An ultrasonographic monitoring of skin condition in patients receiving radiotherapy for head and neck cancers

Radiodermatitis is one of the commonest side effects of radiotherapy. They are usually assessed by semi‐quantitative clinical scores, which are not validated and may be subject to inter‐observer variability. A few previous studies suggested that high‐frequency ultrasonography (HF‐USG) is useful in the assessment of the acute phase of radiation dermatitis in breast cancer patients. (a) To monitor skin changes by HF‐USG during the course of radiotherapy due to head and neck cancers, and (b) to determine whether there is any connection between skin sonograms and the skin scoring criteria. This prospective, observational study includes patients diagnosed with head and neck cancers, treated with radiotherapy or concomitant chemoradiation. The final analysis includes six patients. In every patient, the HF‐USG as well as dermatological assessment (target lesion score—TLS and CACE v. 4.0) were performed 4×: before, in the middle, day after, and 3 months after radiotherapy. There were significant differences between non‐irradiated skin thickness and thickness of skin with clinically obvious radiodermatitis (TLS grade 1‐4; P < .0001), as well as between irradiated, unchanged skin thickness (TLS grade 0) and thickness of skin with clinically obvious radiodermatitis (TLS grade 1‐4; P = .0002). There was no significant difference between non‐irradiated and irradiated, unchanged skin thickness (TLS grade 0; P = .9318). In four patients, we demonstrated subepidermal low echogenic band (SLEB). HF‐USG can be useful tool to noninvasive and objective assessment of skin changes during radiotherapy.     

Lumbar Lipomeningomyelocele Associated with Multiple Café au Lait Spots: A Case Report

We report on a child with several café au lait spots in association with a lumbar lipomeningomyelocele as an apparently new association. Cutaneous markers, the identification of which plays a crucial role in the early diagnosis and management of spinal malformations, can accompany occult spinal dysraphism. Herein we report a case of lumbar lipomeningomyelocele associated with an overlying café au lait spot that served as a marker of occult spinal dysraphism. The patient also had segmental café au lait spots on the face, making the association unique.     

Estimation of phase signal change in neuronal current MRI for evoke response of tactile detection with realistic somatosensory laminar network model

Magnetic field generated by neuronal activity could alter magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) signals but detection of such signal is under debate. Previous researches proposed that magnitude signal change is below current detectable level, but phase signal change (PSC) may be measurable with current MRI systems. Optimal imaging parameters like echo time, voxel size and external field direction, could increase the probability of detection of this small signal change. We simulate a voxel of cortical column to determine effect of such parameters on PSC signal. We extended a laminar network model for somatosensory cortex to find neuronal current in each segment of pyramidal neurons (PN). 60,000 PNs of simulated network were positioned randomly in a voxel. Biot–savart law applied to calculate neuronal magnetic field and additional phase. The procedure repeated for eleven neuronal arrangements in the voxel. PSC signal variation with the echo time and voxel size was assessed. The simulated results show that PSC signal increases with echo time, especially 100/80 ms after stimulus for gradient echo/spin echo sequence. It can be up to 0.1 mrad for echo time = 175 ms and voxel size = 1.48 × 1.48 × 2.18 mm³. With echo time less than 25 ms after stimulus, it was just acquired effects of physiological noise on PSC signal. The absolute value of the signal increased with decrease of voxel size, but its components had complex variation. External field orthogonal to local surface of cortex maximizes the signal. Expected PSC signal for tactile detection in the somatosensory cortex increase with echo time and have no oscillation.     

Quality of life in women with endometriosis: a cross-sectional survey

Quality of Life Research - The aim of the study was to assess QoL and identify and analyse its determinants in women with endometriosis. The study was performed in 2019 in health centres in Lublin...     

Optimal combination of antiangiogenic therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma

The success of sorafenib in prolonging survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) makes therapeutic inhibition of angiogenesis a component of treatment for HCC. To enhance therapeutic efficacy, overcome drug resistance and reduce toxicity, combination of antiangiogenic agents with chemotherapy, radiotherapy or other targeted agents were evaluated. Nevertheless, the use of antiangiogenic therapy remains suboptimal regarding dosage, schedule and duration of therapy. The issue is further complicated by combination antiangiogenesis to other cytotoxic or biologic agents. There is no way to determine which patients are most likely respond to a given form of antiangiogenic therapy. Activation of alternative pathways associated with disease progression in patients undergoing antiangiogenic therapy has also been recognized. There is increasing importance in identifying, validating and standardizing potential response biomarkers for antiangiogenesis therapy for HCC patients. In this review, biomarkers for antiangiogenesis therapy including systemic, circulating, tissue and imaging ones are summarized. The strength and deficit of circulating and imaging biomarkers were further demonstrated by a series of studies in HCC patients receiving radiotherapy with or without thalidomide.     

Binding mode of conformations and structure-based pharmacophore development for farnesyltransferase inhibitors

Farnesyltransferase (FTase) is one of the prenyltransferase family enzymes that catalyse the transfer of 15-membered isoprenoid (farnesyl) moiety to the cysteine of CAAX motif-containing proteins including Rho and Ras family of G proteins. Inhibitors of FTase act as drugs for cancer, malaria, progeria and other diseases. In the present investigation, we have developed two structure-based pharmacophore models from protein–ligand complex (3E33 and 3E37) obtained from the protein data bank. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were performed on the complexes, and different conformers of the same complex were generated. These conformers were undergone protein–ligand interaction fingerprint (PLIF) analysis, and the fingerprint bits have been used for structure-based pharmacophore model development. The PLIF results showed that Lys164, Tyr166, TrpB106 and TyrB361 are the major interacting residues in both the complexes. The RMSD and RMSF analyses on the MD-simulated systems showed that the absence of FPP in the complex 3E37 has significant effect in the conformational changes of the ligands. During this conformational change, some interactions between the protein and the ligands are lost, but regained after some simulations (after 2 ns). The structure-based pharmacophore models showed that the hydrophobic and acceptor contours are predominantly present in the models. The pharmacophore models were validated using reference compounds, which significantly identified as HITs with smaller RMSD values. The developed structure-based pharmacophore models are significant, and the methodology used in this study is novel from the existing methods (the original X-ray crystallographic coordination of the ligands is used for the model building). In our study, along with the original coordination of the ligand, different conformers of the same complex (protein–ligand) are used. It concluded that the developed methodology is significant for the virtual screening of novel molecules on different targets.