Time-Resolved cw Thermal Z-scan for Nanoparticles Scattering Evaluation in Liquid Suspension

The thermal lens effect is analyzed as a time-resolved Z-scan measurement using cw-single Gaussian beam configuration. The main characteristics of the measurement method are determined. We focus on the evaluation of the measurement error from statistical calculations to also check the linearity of the response and the way to extract the thermo-optical characteristics of absorbing liquids. The results are also applied to demonstrate the feasibility of absorption and scattering efficiencies determination on gold nanoparticles of 5 and 50 nm diameters.     

Two-year follow-up of stereotactically guided 9-G breast biopsy: a multicenter evaluation of a self-contained vacuum-assisted device

PurposeTo evaluate the performance of a self-contained, battery-driven, vacuum-assisted breast biopsy (VABB) system for the sampling of clustered breast microcalcifications and masses under stereotactic guidance.Methods and materialsA total of 144 patients (median age: 56 years; range: 21–87 years) in four European breast centers underwent percutaneous 9-gauge (G), stereotactic-guided VABB. The median lesion size was 11 mm (range 2–60 mm). Patients were biopsied in the prone (n=125) or upright position (n=19). All patients were followed up for at least 24 months.ResultsThe stereotactic procedure was successful in 142 (98.6%) of 144 cases, with two cases cancelled due to either severe patient motion (one case) or failure to detect faint calcifications (one case). A median of 12 specimens per procedure was obtained. In 39 cases (27.5%), the suspicious lesion could no longer be detected mammographically after the biopsy procedure. The histological diagnosis was malignancy in 45 (31.7%) cases. One case of atypical ductal hyperplasia diagnosed preoperatively was upgraded to ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) at operation, giving an overall sensitivity of 97.7% for the vacuum-assisted biopsy procedure. In two cases where DCIS was diagnosed at vacuum-assisted biopsy, the malignant tissue was apparently completely removed and could no longer be found at operation. No serious complications occurred. During the follow-up period, no breast cancers appeared at the location of biopsy. Six patients dropped out during the follow-up period.ConclusionThe self-contained, vacuum-assisted biopsy device is well suited for stereotactically guided breast biopsies, having demonstrated excellent sensitivity and specificity in the preoperative workup of mammographically detected breast lesions after 2 years of follow-up.     

Bioequivalence of a generic metformin tablet preparation.

OBJECTIVE: The bioavailability of a generic preparation of metformin (Diabetmin from Hovid Sdn Bhd) was evaluated in comparison with a proprietary product (Glucophage from Lipha Pharma Ltd., UK). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twenty-four healthy male volunteers participated in the study conducted according to a two-way crossover design. The bioavailability was compared using the parameters total area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC0-infinity), peak plasma concentration (Cmax and time to reach peak plasma concentration (Tmax). RESULTS: No statistically significant difference was observed between the values of the two products in all three parameters. Moreover, the 90% confidence interval for the ratio of the logarithmic-transformed AUC0-infinity and Cmax values of Diabetmin over those of Glucophage was found to lie between 0.94-1.03 and 0.94-1.06, respectively, being within the acceptable bioequivalence limit of 0.80-1.25. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that the two preparations are comparable in the extent and rate of absorption. In addition, elimination rate constant (k(e)) and apparent volume of distribution (Vd) were calculated. There was no statistically significant difference between the values of the two preparations in the k(e) and Vd. Moreover, the values are comparable to those reported in the literature.     

Biomedical waste management in the Regional Hospital Center of Ziguinchor

To make the hospital environment healthier for those it serves, the management of biomedical waste (BMW) was studied in the Ziguinchor Regional Hospital Center (RHC) in Senegal from 1 March through 15 March, 2000. The RHC incinerator had stopped operating in 1993. Problems in BMW management were observed at all levels. Neither identification nor sorting took place during collection. Waste bins were exposed everywhere. Workers, rather than carrying waste bins on their back or head, used rolling tables. BMW ended up in a shallow open pit where they were periodically burned. Workers collected, stored, and transported BMW without any type of protection (gloves, boots, masks, aprons, etc.). The principal determinants of this poor management appear to be inadequate funding and training for the cleaning staff, the staff's failure to realize the dangers, and their use of non-standardized practices, due to the absence of BMW policies. BMW management at Ziguinchor RHC must be corrected. Protective equipment must be used systematically. Similarly, standardized practices must be applied to the decontamination of used objects, the identification and sorting at the source, the recovery and recycling of all objects with any remaining value, and the correct storage of BMW. This waste must be transported under high security from its place of storage to its final disposal site. Deep burial has been selected as the most feasible method of disposal under current conditions. A year-long program has been proposed towards this end. Strategies include training, information, motivation, equipment, supervision and evaluation. The budget to implement this program is CFA 5,423,454 francs, distributed between training (22%), equipment (40%), construction of the pit, and follow-up (38%). The tasks are distributed between a public health doctor, department supervisors, and cleaning staff. The follow-up will include three quarterly inspections, at 3, 6, and 9 months and an evaluation at the end of the program. The effect of the program will be judged by the disappearance of unlawful dumping due to the disposal of all BMW in the RHS's deep burial pit.     

Quantification of the response of circulating epithelial cells to neodadjuvant treatment for breast cancer: a new tool for therapy monitoring

Introduction

In adjuvant treatment for breast cancer there is no tool available with which to measure the efficacy of the therapy. In contrast, in neoadjuvant therapy reduction in tumour size is used as an indicator of the sensitivity of tumour cells to the agents applied. If circulating epithelial (tumour) cells can be shown to react to therapy in the same way as the primary tumour, then this response may be exploited to monitor the effect of therapy in the adjuvant setting.

Method

We used MAINTRAC^® analysis to monitor the reduction in circulating epithelial cells during the first three to four cycles of neoadjuvant therapy in 30 breast cancer patients.

Results

MAINTRAC^® analysis revealed a patient-specific response. Comparison of this response with the decline in size of the primary tumour showed that the reduction in number of circulating epithelial cells accurately predicted final tumour reduction at surgery if the entire neoadjuvant regimen consisted of chemotherapy. However, the response of the circulating tumour cells was unable to predict the response to additional antibody therapy.

Conclusion

The response of circulating epithelial cells faithfully reflects the response of the whole tumour to adjuvant therapy, indicating that these cells may be considered part of the tumour and can be used for therapy monitoring.     

Argemone mexicana decoction for the treatment of uncomplicated falciparum malaria

A prospective, dose-escalating, quasi-experimental clinical trial was conducted with a traditional healer using a decoction of Argemone mexicana for the treatment of malaria in Mali. The remedy was prescribed in three regimens: once daily for 3 days (Group A; n=23); twice daily for 7 days (Group B; n=40); and four times daily for the first 4 days followed by twice daily for 3 days (Group C; n=17). Thus, 80 patients were included, of whom 80% were aged<5 years and 25% were aged<1 year. All presented to the traditional healer with symptoms of malaria and had a Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia>2000/microl but no signs of severe malaria. The proportions of adequate clinical response (ACR) at Day 14 were 35%, 73% and 65% in Groups A, B and C, respectively (P=0.011). At Day 14, overall proportions of ACR were lower in children aged<1 year (45%) and higher in patients aged>5 years (81%) (P=0.027). Very few patients had complete parasite clearance, but at Day 14, 67% of patients with ACR had a parasitaemia<2000/microl. No patient needed referral for severe disease. Only minor side effects were observed. Further research should determine whether this local resource could represent a first-aid home treatment in remote areas.     

Diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging of the breast: a pilot study

Objectives  

Diffusion-weighted MR imaging has shown diagnostic value for differential diagnosis of breast lesions. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) adds information about tissue microstructure by addressing diffusion direction. We have examined the diagnostic application of DTI of the breast.     

Selection of Antimalarial Drug Resistance after Intermittent Preventive Treatment of Infants and Children (IPTi/c) in Senegal

Our study investigated the possible impact of SP-IPT given to infants and children on the prevalence of SP-resistant haplotypes in the Plasmodium falciparum genes Pfdhfr and Pfdhps, comparing sites with and without IPTi/c. P. falciparum positive samples (N = 352) collected from children < 5 years were analyzed to determine the prevalence of SP resistance-related haplotypes by nested PCR followed by sequence-specific oligonucleotide probe-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The prevalence of the Pfdhfr triple mutant haplotype (CIRN) increased in both groups, but only significantly in the IPTi/c group from 41% to 65% in 2011 (P = 0.005). Conversely, the Pfdhps 437G mutation decreased in both groups from 44.6% to 28.6% (P = 0.07) and from 66.7% to 47.5% (P = 0.02) between 2010 and 2011 in the control and the IPTi/c groups, respectively. A weak trend for decreasing prevalence of quadruple mutants (triple Pfdhfr + Pfdhps 437G) was noted in both groups (P = 0.15 and P = 0.34). During the two cross-sectional surveys some significant changes were observed in the SP resistance-related genes.     

Antitumor activity and long-term fate of chimeric antigen receptor-positive T cells in patients with neuroblastoma

We generated MHC-independent chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) directed to the GD2 antigen expressed by neuroblastoma tumor cells and treated patients with this disease. Two distinguishable forms of this CAR were expressed in EBV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (EBV-CTLs) and activated T cells (ATCs). We have previously shown that EBV-CTLs expressing GD2-CARs (CAR-CTLs) circulated at higher levels than GD2-CAR ATCs (CAR-ATCs) early after infusion, but by 6 weeks, both subsets became low or undetectable. We now report the long-term clinical and immunologic consequences of infusions in 19 patients with high-risk neuroblastoma: 8 in remission at infusion and 11 with active disease. Three of 11 patients with active disease achieved complete remission, and persistence of either CAR-ATCs or CAR-CTLs beyond 6 weeks was associated with superior clinical outcome. We observed persistence for up to 192 weeks for CAR-ATCs and 96 weeks for CAR-CTLs, and duration of persistence was highly concordant with the percentage of CD4(+) cells and central memory cells (CD45RO(+)CD62L(+)) in the infused product. In conclusion, GD2-CAR T cells can induce complete tumor responses in patients with active neuroblastoma; these CAR T cells may have extended, low-level persistence in patients, and such persistence was associated with longer survival. This study is registered at www.clinialtrials.gov as #NCT00085930.