TCC in Transplant Ureter—When and When Not to Preserve the Transplant Kidney

We present four cases of transitional cell carcinoma of the transplant ureter (TCCtu). In three cases, localized tumor resection and a variety of reconstructive techniques were possible. Transplant nephrectomy with cystectomy was performed as a secondary treatment in one locally excised case. Transplant nephroureterectomy was performed as primary treatment in one case. The role of oncogenic viruses and genetic fingerprinting to determine the origin of TCCtu are described. Our cases and a systematic literature review illustrate the surgical, nephrological, and oncological challenges of this uncommon but important condition.     

Does Primary Surgical Management of Liver Hydatid Cyst Influence Recurrence?

Background and aims  

Hydatid disease is still a major health problem in sheep-raising areas. Surgery remains the basic treatment for liver hydatid cyst (LHC). However, recurrences can occur after all therapies. Surgery for recurrence of LHC becomes technically more difficult with higher rate of morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to determine perfective factors associated to hepatic recurrence after LHC surgery and to propose and discuss postoperative follow-up schedules.     

Kinetics of fiber solidification

Many synthetic or natural fibers are produced via the transformation of a liquid solution into a solid filament, which allows the wet processing of high molecular weight polymers, proteins, or inorganic particles. Synthetic wet-spun fibers are used in our everyday life from clothing to composite reinforcement applications. Spun fibers are also common in nature. Silk solidification results from the coagulation of protein solutions. The chemical phenomena involved in the formation of all these classes of fibers can be quite different but they all share the same fundamental transformation from a liquid to a solid state. The solidification process is critical because it governs the production rate and the strength that fibers can sustain to be drawn and wound. An approach is proposed in this work to investigate the kinetics of fiber solidification. This approach consists in circulating solidifying fibers in the extensional flow of a surrounding liquid. Such as polymers in extensional flows, the fibers break if resultant drag forces exceed the fiber tensile strength. The solidification kinetics of nanotube composite fibers serves as a validation example of this approach. The method could be extended to other systems and advance thereby the science and technology of fiber and textile materials. It is also a way to directly visualize the scission of chain-like systems in extensional flows.     

In vivo expression and binding activity of scFv-RWAV, which recognizes the coat protein of tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus (family Geminiviridae)

Recombinant antibodies expressed in plants have the potential to interrupt virus infections by blocking essential stages of the infection cycle. Here, we show that the expression of a recombinant single-chain variable fragment (scFv) that recognizes the coat protein of tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus (ToLCNDV) in vitro can also bind to a recombinant coat protein in vivo in the reducing environment of the plant cytosol. The scFv and its target were both expressed as fluorescent protein fusions, one incorporating green fluorescent protein (GFP) and the other DsRed. We found that the incorporation of a nuclear localization signal into the scFv construct resulted in the nuclear import of the antibody-antigen complex, as shown by colocalization of the two fluorescent signals. This demonstrates that recombinant antibodies can be targeted to the nucleus and will bind to geminivirus coat proteins therein, allowing the virus infection cycle to be interrupted during its critical replicative phase.     

Generation and characterization of a scFv against recombinant coat protein of the geminivirus tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus

We report the establishment of a hybridoma cell line secreting the monoclonal antibody (mAb) HAV, which recognizes the coat (AV1) protein of tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus (ToLCNDV), a begomovirus. The cell line was obtained following immunization of mice with purified recombinant AV1 fused to glutathione S-transferase (GST). A single-chain variable fragment (scFv-SAV) was assembled from hybridoma cDNA, but sequence analysis revealed a single nucleotide deletion causing a frame shift that resulted in a 21-residue N-terminal truncation. The missing nucleotide was restored by in vitro site-directed mutagenesis to create scFv-RWAV. The binding properties of mAb HAV and the corresponding scFvs were characterized by western blot, ELISA and surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy. MAb HAV bound to AV1 with nanomolar affinity but reacted neither with the N-terminal region of the protein nor with the GST fusion partner. This suggested that the antibody recognized a linear epitope in a region of the coat protein that is conserved among begomoviruses. Both scFvs retained the antigen specificity of mAb HAV, although the dissociation rate constant of scFv-RWAV was tenfold greater than that of scFv-SAV, showing the importance of restoring the 21 N-terminal amino acids.     

The Risk of Tumour Recurrence in Patients Undergoing Renal Transplantation for End-stage Renal Disease after Previous Treatment for a Urological Cancer: A Systematic Review

Context

Renal transplantation is the gold standard renal replacement therapy in end-stage renal disease owing to its superior survival and quality of life compared with dialysis. When the potential recipient has a history of cancer, the waiting period before renal transplantation is usually based on the Cincinnati Registry.