Thyroid hormones,Sertoli cell proliferation and differentiation in progenies from carbamazepine-treated rat dams during pregnancy and lactation

Carbamazepine (CBZ) is used in the control of seizure and affective disorders, causing hypothyroidism. Thyroid hormones regulate the Sertoli cell proliferation and differentiation. Clinical aspects must be considered since epileptic fertile women need to continuously use CBZ during pregnancy and lactation. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of CBZ on testis development of rat offspring from dams treated during pregnancy/lactation. Rat dams received CBZ (20 mg kg⁻¹ day⁻¹) or vehicle by intra-peritoneal route during gestation and lactation. Progenies were euthanised at 4, 14, 41, 63 and 93-days post-partum (dpp) for the evaluation of T3, T4 and TSH plasma total levels. Testicular cross sections were submitted to anti-Ki67, anti-PCNA, anti-p27^kip1 and anti-transferrin immunolabelling for the evaluation of Sertoli cells. There was a significant reduction in p27^kip1-positive Sertoli cell numerical densities and an increase in TSH level at 14 dpp. CBZ exposure affected the volume density of transferrin-positive immunolabelling at 63 dpp. These results suggest that CBZ may cause a dysregulation of the controller system of thyroid hormones homeostasis leading to an increase in the proliferation rate at the neonatal phase and a differentiation delay of the Sertoli cell, culminating in an altered function at late puberty. The occurrence of hypothyroidism cannot be completely discarded.     

Metastases to the thyroid gland: the Royal Marsden experience.

AIM: A review of patients seen at the Royal Marsden Hospital with metastases to the thyroid gland. METHOD: Experience reported on 15 patients that were seen at our institution between 1985 and 2002. RESULTS: The most common site of origin was the kidney (4/15). Ages ranged between 26 and 76 years. Twelve presented with a neck mass. Most had metastatic disease elsewhere at the time of presentation (9/15). Diagnosis was made by fine needle aspiration cytology (5), tru-cut biopsy (1), or surgery (9); surgery comprised total thyroidectomy (3), subtotal thyroidectomy (3) or lobectomy (3). Radiotherapy resulted in disease stabilisation in three patients. Chemotherapy was used to treat local recurrence in two patients post-operatively. The interval from diagnosis of the primary tumour to thyroid metastasis varied from 0 months to 15 years. Thyroid gland metastasis was the initial manifestation of metastatic disease in five patients. Five patients are alive, with one disease free 7 years following resection of the thyroid metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: Thyroid metastases are clinically rare, with the kidney the most common primary site of origin. They usually occur when there are metastases elsewhere, sometimes many years after diagnosis of the original primary tumour. Surgical resection of an isolated metastasis may result in prolonged disease-free survival. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy may be of value in specific situations.     

Improved two-photon imaging of living neurons in brain tissue through temporal gating

We optimize two-photon imaging of living neurons in brain tissue by temporally gating an incident laser to reduce the photon flux while optimizing the maximum fluorescence signal from the acquired images. Temporal gating produces a bunch of ~10 femtosecond pulses and the fluorescence signal is improved by increasing the bunch-pulse energy. Gating is achieved using an acousto-optic modulator with a variable gating frequency determined as integral multiples of the imaging sampling frequency. We hypothesize that reducing the photon flux minimizes the photo-damage to the cells. Our results, however, show that despite producing a high fluorescence signal, cell viability is compromised when the gating and sampling frequencies are equal (or effectively one bunch-pulse per pixel). We found an optimum gating frequency range that maintains the viability of the cells while preserving a pre-set fluorescence signal of the acquired two-photon images. The neurons are imaged while under whole-cell patch, and the cell viability is monitored as a change in the membrane’s input resistance.OCIS codes: (170.3880) Medical and biological imaging, (170.3660) Light propagation in tissues, (140.0140) Lasers and laser optics, (170.2520) Fluorescence microscopy, (170.6930) Tissue, (110.0110) Imaging systems     

Community Mental Health Provider Reluctance to Provide Pharmacotherapy May Be a Barrier to Addressing Perinatal Depression: A Preliminary Study

This is the first study evaluating obstetrics and gynecology (OB/Gyn) provider and staff perceptions of barriers to accessing pharmacotherapy for perinatal depression outside the obstetric setting. Four, 90 min focus groups were conducted with OB/Gyn physicians, advance practice nurses, and support and nursing staff (n = 28). Data were analyzed with a grounded theory approach. Participants perceived that community mental health providers and pharmacists often do not want to participate in pharmacotherapy for perinatal women. Participants believed the solution is training for community mental health providers in the risks and benefits of pharmacotherapy for perinatal depression and improved communication between OB/Gyn’s and community mental health providers. Community mental health provider and pharmacist reluctance to provide pharmacotherapy hinders OB/Gyn’s perceived ability to address perinatal depression. Community mental health provider and pharmacist training are needed to mitigate precipitous discontinuation of treatment and to improve access to pharmacotherapy for perinatal women.     

Feasibility and Acceptability of Delivering a Postpartum Weight Loss Intervention via Facebook: A Pilot Study

Objective

To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a Facebook-delivered postpartum weight loss intervention.

Correlation between human papillomavirus infection and histopathological diagnosis of women in Northeast Brazil

Cervical carcinoma is the fourth leading cause of death among women worldwide. Epidemiological studies claim that human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is a necessary condition for cervical cancer development. Knowledge of the geographic distribution of HPV is important in guiding the introduction of prophylactic vaccines. This study analyzed the prevalence of HPV infection in cervical samples obtained from women with abnormal cervical histopathological diagnosis in Northeast Brazil. The study included an analysis of 211 women whose diagnosis was confirmed for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia type 1 (CIN-1), cervical intraepithelial neoplasia type 2 (CIN-2), cervical intraepithelial neoplasia type 3 (CIN-3), and cancer. The identification of the HPV genotypes was based on the polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism technique. A total of 42.7% of the samples showed a single HPV infection, while 57.3% showed multiple infections. The most common genotypes detected were HPV-16, HPV-18, and HPV-31. HPV-16, HPV-31, HPV-35, and HPV-18 were the most common types in CIN-1 with a single infection. HPV-16 and HPV-18 were the most often found in CIN-2 with a single infection. HPV-16, HPV-18, and HPV-31 were the most detected in CIN-3 with a single infection. HPV-16 and HPV-31 were the most frequent in cancer with a single infection. Multiple infection with HPV-16 shows a 2.7 times greater risk of CIN-3 (P = .04). Multiple infections for HPV with HPV-16 and excluding the HPV18/31 types, were associated with CIN-3 (P = .01). The results allowed the detection and genotyping of HPV types circulating in the population studied. These findings must be taken into account when devising vaccination strategies against HPV.     

Management of thyroid cancer

Thyroid cancers are a diverse group of malignant disorders ranging from indolent micropapillary carcinoma, which has no effect on life expectancy, to anaplastic tumours, which are invariably fatal even with aggressive treatment. Although the estimated incidence has increased by 14.6% over the past 40 years, the estimated death rate has fallen by 21%, probably as a result of earlier diagnosis. The natural history of thyroid tumours is no longer a mystery, and the prognostic factors identified can predict outcome fairly accurately. Improvements in management have mostly depended on information from large retrospective series, though there are still many areas open to debate. There has been, however, a general acceptance that thyroid cancer should be managed by multidisciplinary teams in specialised units following evidence-based guidelines.