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INTRODUCTION: Systemic inflammatory response (SIR) indicators are an emerging category of serum biomarkers with significant potential as prognostic and predictive factors in various types of cancers The primary focus of our study was to determine the prognostic value of the lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), platelet-to-albumin ratio (PLR) and platelet-to-albumin ratio (PAR) in evaluating the response to neoadjuvant treatment for patients with rectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We included 99 consecutive patients with rectal cancer which were admitted for surgery in our institution after completing a standard neoadjuvant radio-chemotherapy regimen. Several hematologic parameters, including LMR, PAR and PLR, were calculated by collecting and analyzing blood samples preoperatively. Cases were divided into groups using ROC curve analysis to determine optimal cutoff values for each of the investigated parameters. Treatment response was assessed through histopathological analysis of the resected specimens. RESULTS: PLR values over 215.2 were correlated with the presence of lymph node metastasis. A similar correlation was observed between PAR values over 41.89 and lymph node positivity. A significant correlation was observed between the presence of tumor budding on histopathological analysis and high-PAR values. A statistically significant correlation between a high PLR and a good response to neoadjuvant treatment was determined. CONCLUSIONS: High PLR values may be associated with a more favorable treatment response to neoadjuvant radio-chemotherapy. A high PAR may be associated with unfavorable histopathological characteristics. Further studies on these readily available biomarkers are required in order to validate their clinical utility.

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Dirofilaria immitis, a parasite that mainly infects domestic or wild canids, but can infect felines or humans as well, is frequent in many Brazilian areas. The main objective of this research was to determine the prevalence of natural canine infection at the Algodoal-Maiandeua Island complex, in the coastal region of the state of Pará, Brazil. A total of 67 dogs were sampled for blood microfilariae detection and for D. immitis DNA detection. Microfilaria and D. immitis DNA could be detected in 35.8% (24/67) of the animals. In one dog's sample no microfilariae were detected, but the PCR was positive, suggesting that either larvae recently were eliminated or adults died shortly before sample collecting. Therefore, it can be concluded that the occurrence of D. immitis is a health threat for domestic and wild canids at the Island of Algodoal, as well as for feline or human health.(AU)

Dirofilaria immitis, um parasito que infecta principalmente canídeos domésticos ou selvagens, embora também possa infectar felinos e humanos, é frequente em muitas áreas do Brasil. O objetivo deste estudo foi determinar a ocorrência da infecção natural em cães provenientes do complexo da Ilha de Algodoal-Maiandeua, região litorânea do estado do Pará, Brasil. Um total de 67 cães tiveram o sangue coletado para detecção de microfilárias de D. immitis e seu DNA. Microfilárias e o DNA de D. immitis foram detectados em 35,8% (24/67) dos animais. Na amostra de um animal, não foram observadas microfilárias, mas o seu DNA foi detectado, sugerindo que as larvas tenham sido recentemente eliminadas ou os adultos tenham morrido antes da coleta da amostra. Portanto, pode-se concluir que a ocorrência de D. immitis é uma ameaça à saúde de canídeos domésticos no complexo da Ilha de Algodoal-Maiandeua, bem como para felinos e seres humanos.(AU)

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Chronic treatment with oral levodopa is associated with an increased frequency of motor complications in the late stages of Parkinson's disease (PD). Continuous administration of levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG-Duodopa(®), Abbott Laboratories), which has been available in Romania since 2009, represents an option for treating patients with advanced PD. Our primary objective was to report changes in motor complications after initiation of LCIG therapy. The secondary objectives were as follows: to determine the impact of LCIG therapy on the daily levodopa dose variation before/and after LCIG, to collect patient self-assessments of quality of life (QoL), and to study the overall tolerability and safety of LCIG administration. A retrospective analysis (2009-2013) of LCIG therapy and the experience in nine neurology centers in Romania was performed. The impact of LCIG therapy was evaluated by analyzing changes in motor fluctuations, dyskinesia and the patients' QoL after initiating therapy. The safety of LCIG therapy was estimated by noting agent-related adverse events (AEs) and medical device-related AEs. In the 113 patients included, we observed a significant improvement in PD symptoms after initiation of LCIG therapy. The "on" period increased, with a mean value of 6.14 h, and the dyskinesia period was reduced, with a mean value of 29.4 %. The quantified non-motor symptoms subsided. The patients exhibited significant improvements in QoL scores. There were few AEs and few cases of LCIG therapy discontinuation. LCIG is an important and available therapeutic option for managing patients with advanced PD.

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In recent decades, naturally growing mosses have been used successfully as biomonitors of atmospheric deposition of heavy metals and nitrogen. Since 1990, the European moss survey has been repeated at five-yearly intervals. In 2010, the lowest concentrations of metals and nitrogen in mosses were generally found in northern Europe, whereas the highest concentrations were observed in (south-)eastern Europe for metals and the central belt for nitrogen. Averaged across Europe, since 1990, the median concentration in mosses has declined the most for lead (77%), followed by vanadium (55%), cadmium (51%), chromium (43%), zinc (34%), nickel (33%), iron (27%), arsenic (21%, since 1995), mercury (14%, since 1995) and copper (11%). Between 2005 and 2010, the decline ranged from 6% for copper to 36% for lead; for nitrogen the decline was 5%. Despite the Europe-wide decline, no changes or increases have been observed between 2005 and 2010 in some (regions of) countries.

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The possible hepatotoxic effects of chloroform extract of Artemisia maciverae was evaluated biochemically and histologically using male Swiss albino rats, randomly assigned into four groups of 24 animals each. The groups (control, 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg body weight) were treated for 60 days and then monitored for another 30 days before sacrifice. Alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin (total and direct), total protein and albumin were assessed colorimetrically, while tissue specimens were subjected to histological examination following standard hematoxyline-eosin staining techniques. After 1 week of treatment, the extract caused statistically significant elevation in levels of serum alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase and bilirubin (total and direct), while there was significant (p < 0.05) decrease in the levels of serum total protein and albumin at the onset of treatment when compared with the control. These abnormalities in the levels of serum biochemical parameters were spontaneously corrected within 2 weeks of treatment. Similarly, histological assessment showed severe hepatic tissue injuries after 1 week, but these organs recovered spontaneously by the second week of treatment. The results indicate that long-term exposure to therapeutic doses of chloroform extract of A maciverae is relatively safe, but high dose exposure may result in hepatocellular injury.

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Complete thymectomy plays an important role in the myasthenia gravis (MG) pacient's treatment. Many different surgical techniques have been developed to achieve thymectomy. Of these, thoracoscopic technique is the most recent. There still are many controversies about the most suitable approach for thymectomy. The paper presents in detail the video-assisted thoracoscopic extended thymectomy--VATET-technique, and initial results with this procedure. Prospective data was obtain according to the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America (MGFA) recommendations. From Mai 2007 to December 2009, 15 patients with MG underwent the VATET procedure with cervical access. There was no conversion to sternotomic approach. Mean operating time for complete VATET was 215 min (150-280 min), with the cervical procedure requiring 44 min (25-60 min). There was no mortality or intraoperative complications. It was a single case with a thoracoscopic second look for hemothorax from intercostals bleeding. At this time, due to the reduced number of cases, we can't evaluate the therapeutic effectiveness of the VATET. We consider VATET as a valuable surgical option to treat myasthenic patients, with an optimal report between radicality and invasiveness.

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In the search for new plant-derived anti-malarial compounds, chromatographic fractions of chloroform extract of whole plants of Artemisia maciverae were tested in vivo using chloroquine resistant and chloroquine sensitive Plasmodium berghei NK 65 infected Swiss albino mice. One fraction and a sub-fraction of this were most active at 10/mg and cleared parasitemia in mice within 3 days. The different fractions and sub-fractions were tested with different reagents to determine the broad classes of compounds present. The active fraction tested positive for triterpenes and alkaloids, and the sub-fraction for only triterpenes. These tests suggest that the anti-malarial activities observed with these fractions may be due to these classes of compounds in the chloroform extract of the A. maciverae. Further chemical work is however required to characterize the active constituents.

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Petroleum ether, chloroform and methanol extracts of A. maciverae were studied in vitro and in vivo for activity against Trypanosoma brucei brucei in Swiss albino mice. Thereafter, the chloroform extract which showed the highest activity in both in vitro and in vivo assessments was subjected to bioassay-guided fractionation. The crude extracts and the fractions of the chloroform extract of A. maciverae were screened for phytochemicals and secondary metabolites. Combined fractions 54-57 of this extract showed the highest in vitro antitrypanosomal activity, and at 10 mg/kg body weight, this fraction cleared the parasitemia completely from T. brucei brucei infected Swiss albino mice after 7 days of treatment. There was no statistically significant difference in the level of parasitemia when the infected mice treated with this fraction was compared with the standard trypanocidal drug, diminal. The results of the phytochemical analysis showed that the crude extracts contained secondary metabolites like flavonoids, triterpenes, terpenoids, tannins, phlobatannins and alkaloids, while the active fraction contains only triterpenes and alkaloids. It can be inferred that fraction 54-57 contains the active component responsible for the high antitrypanosomal activity of the chloroform extract of A. maciverae.

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Carbon containing plasmas play an important role not only in plasma technology but also in thermonuclear fusion research. In order to understand and control the processes taking place in the plasma, the knowledge of the carbon ground state density is of major importance. It can be determined by absorption and emission spectroscopy. Detailed measurements were performed in the past to determine the silicon ground state density by means of spectroscopy of the self-absorbed spectral lines of the silicon ground state multiplet at 251 nm. The same procedure was applied for the determination of the carbon concentration, for which the carbon multiplet at 165 nm was analyzed and compared to a simulated spectrum. The ground state density was determined by two independent methods.

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