Notes

Salmonella Derby: A Comparative Genomic Analysis of Ranges Coming from Germany.
Increasing age is a known negative prognostic factor for glioblastoma. However, a multifactorial approach is necessary to achieve optimal neuro-oncological treatment. It remains unclear to what extent frailty, comorbidity burden, and obesity might exert influence on survival in geriatric glioblastoma patients. We have therefore reviewed our institutional database to assess the prognostic value of these factors in elderly glioblastoma patients.

Between 2012 and 2018, patients aged ≥ 65years with newly diagnosed glioblastoma were included in this retrospective analysis. Patients frailty was analyzed using the modified frailty index (mFI), while patients comorbidity burden was assessed according to the Charlson comorbidity index (CCI). Body mass index (BMI) was used as categorized variable.

A total of 110 geriatric patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma were identified. Geriatric patients categorized as least-frail achieved a median overall survival (mOS) of 17months, whereas most frail patients achieved a mOS of 8months (p = 0.003). Patients with a CCI > 2 had a lower mOS of 6months compared to patients with a lower comorbidity burden (12months; p = 0.03). Multivariate analysis identified "subtotal resection" (p = 0.02), "unmethylated MGMT promoter status" (p = 0.03), "BMI < 30" (p = 0.04), and "frail patient (mFI ≥ 0.27)" (p = 0.03) as significant and independent predictors of 1-year mortality in geriatric patients with surgical treatment of glioblastoma (Nagelkerke's R
0.31).

The present study concludes that both increased frailty and comorbidity burden are significantly associated with poor OS in geriatric patients with glioblastoma. Further, the present series suggests an obesity paradox in geriatric glioblastoma patients.
The present study concludes that both increased frailty and comorbidity burden are significantly associated with poor OS in geriatric patients with glioblastoma. Further, the present series suggests an obesity paradox in geriatric glioblastoma patients.
Data augmentation is a common technique to overcome the lack of large annotated databases, a usual situation when applying deep learning to medical imaging problems. Nevertheless, there is no consensus on which transformations to apply for a particular field. This work aims at identifying the effect of different transformations on polyp segmentation using deep learning.

A set of transformations and ranges have been selected, considering image-based (width and height shift, rotation, shear, zooming, horizontal and vertical flip and elastic deformation), pixel-based (changes in brightness and contrast) and application-based (specular lights and blurry frames) transformations. A model has been trained under the same conditions without data augmentation transformations (baseline) and for each of the transformation and ranges, using CVC-EndoSceneStill and Kvasir-SEG, independently. Statistical analysis is performed to compare the baseline performance against results of each range of each transformation on the sed transformations behave similarly in both datasets. Polyp area, brightness and contrast of the dataset have an influence on these differences.
Sodium oxybate (Xyrem
), approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for narcolepsy with cataplexy, is only available through risk mitigation programs due to potential adverse effects including respiratory and central nervous system depression, neuropsychiatric events, and misuse.

We report findings from a survey evaluating effectiveness of the European Union Xyrem
Risk Management Plan (RMP).

A cross-sectional, online, multiple-choice survey was distributed to randomly selected healthcare professionals (HCPs) from six European countries (April 2016-May 2018). Eligibility criteria current/potential Xyrem
prescriber and/or sleep disorder specialist; contact information available; on the Xyrem
RMP educational materials mailing list.

proportion of respondents answering each question correctly (< 50% responses correct = unsatisfactory comprehension, 50% to < 70% = satisfactory, ≥ 70% = excellent), with precision assessed using 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Of the 709 HCPs contacted, 60improve understanding of how best to develop educational materials.

EUPAS15024.
EUPAS15024.Artemisia annua L. has been utilized for the first time in a nanofibrous wound dressing composition. The extract of this valuable plant provides anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and anti-microbial properties which can be considered as a promising medicinal component in therapeutic applications. In the present work, Artemisia annua L. was picked up from Gorgan forest area of Northern Iran and its extract was prepared by methanol as the extraction solvent. In the fabrication of wound dressing, Artemisia annua L. extract was mixed with gelatin and a nanofibrous structure was formed by electrospinning technique. To have a wound dressing with acceptable stability and optimum mechanical properties, this biologically active layer was formed on a PCL nanofibrous base layer. The fabricated double-layer wound dressing was analyzed chemically, structurally, mechanically and biologically. ATR-FTIR spectra of the prepared wound dressing contain functional groups of Artemisia annua L. as peroxide groups, etc. SEM micrographs of electrospun gelatin/Artemisia annua L. confirmed the successful electrospinning process for producing Artemisia annua L.-containing nanofibers with mean diameter of 242.00 ± 67.53 nm. In vitro Artemisia annua L. release study of the fabricated wound dressings suggests a sustain release over 7 days for the crosslinked sample. In addition, evaluation of the in vitro structural stability of the prepared wound dressings confirmed the stability of the crosslinked nanofibrous structures in PBS solution environment. Biological study of the Artemisia annua L.-containing wound dressing revealed no cytotoxicity, good proliferation and attachment of the seeded fibroblasts cells and acceptable antibacterial property against Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.This single-center, retrospective study aimed to explore the immune characteristics of COVID-19 and biomarkers to predict the severity of this disease. Patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 (n = 215) treated at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University from January 24 to March 12, 2020, were included in the study and classified into severe and non-severe groups. Peripheral immunocyte count and cytokine statuses were compared. The correlation between immune status, cytokine levels, and disease severity was analyzed. Triton X-114 molecular weight Leukocyte numbers were normal in both groups; however, they were relatively high (7.19 × 109/L) in patients of the severe group. Leukocyte distributions differed between the two groups; the severe group had a higher percentage of neutrophils and lower percentage of lymphocytes compared with the non-severe group, and absolute lymphocyte numbers were below normal in both groups, and particularly deficient in patients in the severe group. Lymphocyte counts have negative correlation with duration of hospital period whereas neutrophil count has no significant correlation with it. Of tested cytokines, IL-6 levels were significantly higher in the severe group (P = 0.0418). Low level of lymphocyte predicts severity of COVID-19. IL-6 levels were significantly higher in the severe group, especially in some extremely severe patients. But we did not detect the significant correlation between severity of COVID-19 with IL-6 level which may be due to limited case numbers. Our observations encourage future research to understand the underlying molecular mechanisms and to improve treatment outcome of COVID-19.Pharmacological studies have implicated the translocator protein (TSPO) in the regulation of complex behaviors including anxiety and depression, effects thought to be mediated by increased synthesis of neuroactive steroid hormones. However, TSPO function in the brain remains to be corroborated in vivo via genetic studies. To address this, we developed global TSPO knockout (TSPO-KO) and neuronal TSPO transgenic (TSPO-Tg) mouse models to investigate TSPO function in the regulation of anxiety- and depression-related behaviors using elevated plus maze and forced swim test paradigms. Neuroactive steroid hormones were measured in the brain by mass spectrometry. In vivo TSPO ligand pharmacokinetics was investigated using competitive PET with 18F-FE-DAA1106. Genetic TSPO deficiency increased anxiety-related behavior and impaired brain steroidogenesis but did not affect depressive behaviors. Using the TSPO-KO model, we then demonstrated the specificity of Ac-5216, also known as XBD-173 or Emapunil, as an anxiolytic targeting TSPO at doses optimized by competitive PET for high cortical occupancy. Neuronal TSPO overexpression decreased depressive behaviors, an effect that was dependent on steroidogenesis, and partially reversed anxiogenic behavior in TSPO-KO mice. These findings demonstrate that TSPO is critical for brain steroidogenesis and modulates anxiety- and depression-related behaviors. However, we demonstrate that key differences in the contribution of neuronal TSPO to the modulation of these complex behaviors, illustrating the tissue- and cell-specific importance of TSPO. The TSPO-KO and TSPO-Tg mice provide the tools and rationale for the development of therapeutic approaches targeting TSPO in the brain for treatment of neuropsychiatric conditions.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the antitumor mechanisms of n-butylidenephthalide (BP) and to further examine the delivery efficacy of polycationic liposome containing PEI and polyethylene glycol complex (LPPC)-encapsulated BP in leukemia cells.

MTS, flow cytometric and TUNEL assays were performed to assess cell viability and apoptosis. BP and BP/LPPC complex delivery efficiency was analyzed by full-wavelength fluorescent scanner and fluorescence microscope. The expressions of cell cycle- and apoptosis-related proteins were conducted by Western blotting.

The results showed that BP inhibited leukemia cell growth by inducing cell cycle arrest and cell apoptosis. LPPC-encapsulated BP rapidly induced endocytic pathway activation, resulting in the internalization of BP into leukemia cells, causing cell apoptosis within 1h.

LPPC encapsulation enhanced the cytotoxic activity of BP and did not influence the effects of BP induction that suggested LPPC-encapsulated BP might be developed as anti-leukemia drugs in future.
LPPC encapsulation enhanced the cytotoxic activity of BP and did not influence the effects of BP induction that suggested LPPC-encapsulated BP might be developed as anti-leukemia drugs in future.
The COVID-19 outbreak witnessed in the first months of 2020 has led to unprecedented changes in society's lifestyles. In the current study, we aimed to investigate the effect of this unexpected context on sleep.

During the COVID-19 outbreak, we performed an online survey with individuals formerly recruited for validation of the Spanish version of the sleep questionnaire Satisfaction, Alertness, Timing, Efficiency, and Duration (SATED). In the current survey, we asked the participants to complete the previously answered questionnaires including the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), a modified version of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and the SATED questionnaire. We also assessed the mood by the Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaire.

The 71 participants were mostly women (75%) with a mean (± SD) age of 40.7 ± 11.9 years. Comparing the previous PSQI score to that during the COVID-19 outbreak, we observed worsening sleep quality (5.45 ± 3.14 to 6.18 ± 3.03 points, p = 0.035). In parallel, there was an increase in the negative mood (p = 0.
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