[en] Pleural effusion is a frequent medical problem with a wide span of different causes. We wish to highlight the clinical management of the patient with pleural effusions but anatomic, physiologic and diagnostic management of the main pleural diseases will also be considered

[en] Herein, poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) mats with different amounts of nanohydroxyapatite (nHAp) were produced using rotary-jet spinning (RJS) and evaluated in vitro and in vivo. The mean fiber diameters of the PCL, PCL/nHAp (3%), PCL/nHAp (5%), and PCL/nHAp (20%) scaffolds were 1847 ± 1039, 1817 ± 1044, 1294 ± 4274, and 845 ± 248 nm, respectively. Initially, all the scaffolds showed superhydrophobic behavior (contact angle around of 140^oC), but decreased to 80° after 30 min. All the produced scaffolds were bioactive after soaking in simulated body fluid, especially PCL/nHAp (20%). The crystallinity of the PCL scaffolds decreased progressively from 46 to 21% after incorporation of 20% nHAp. In vitro and in vivo cytotoxicity were investigated, as well as the mats’ ability to reduce bacteria biofilm formation. In vitro cellular differentiation was evaluated by measuring alkaline phosphatase activity and mineralized nodule formation. Overall, we identified the total ideal amount of nHAp to incorporate in PCL mats, which did not show in vitro or in vivo cytotoxicity and promoted lamellar bone formation independently of the amounts of nHAp. The scaffolds with nHAp showed reduced bacterial proliferation. Alizarin red staining was higher in materials associated with nHAp than in those without nHAp. Overall, this study demonstrates that PCL with nHAp prepared by RJS merits further evaluation for orthopedic applications. .

No abstract available

[en] The present invention is concerned with the radioimmunoassay (RIA) procedure for assaying body fluid content of an antigenic substance which may either be an antigen itself or a hapten capable of being converted, such as by means of reaction with a protein, to an antigenic material. The present invention is concerned with a novel and improved modification of a double-antibody RIA technique in which there is a first antibody that is specific to the antigenic substance suspected to be present in a body fluid from which the assay is intended. The second antibody, however, is not specific to the antigenic substance or analyte, but is an antibody against the first antibody

[en] The terminology and classification scheme of acute pancreatitis proposed at the initial Atlanta Symposium was reviewed, and a new consensus statement was recently proposed. Major changes include subdividing acute fluid collections in the first 4 weeks into 'acute peripancreatic fluid collection' and 'acute necrotic collection' based on the presence of necrotic debris. Delayed fluid collections have been similarly subdivided into 'pseudocyst' and 'walled-off necrosis.' Correct use of the new terms that describe these collections is important because they lead to different treatment decisions. The purpose of this article is to present an overview of fluid collections associated with acute pancreatitis, with an emphasis on their prognostic significance and impact on clinical management, and to illustrate the new terminology. (author)

[en] Materials with bioactivity, i.e. bone-bonding ability, form a bone-like apatite layer on their surfaces in the body and bond to living bone through this bone-like apatite layer. Bone-like apatite is carbonated hydroxyapatite with small crystallites and low crystallinity. The coating of the bone-like apatite layer on the substrates is expected to be a useful technique to induce bioactivity on the substrates. The bone-like apatite layer can be formed on the surface of substrates in a solution mimicking body fluid when some functional groups are introduced to the substrates. This process is called a biomimetic process. Coating of bone-like apatite layers through this biomimetic process has received much attention in the fabrication of novel composites with bioactivity. An overview of the coating of bone-like apatite is described. (topical review)

[en] Ten samples of yellow cake, the primary product of uranium milling, were selected on the basis of color variation and chemical composition. Dissolution fractions and half-times were obtained using both simulated interstitial and simulated surfactant lung fluids maintained in vials submerged in a shaker water bath at 37⁰C for 26 days. Samples were collected at 12 different time intervals and fresh simulant replaced. Uranium concentrations were analyzed by fluorometric methods using ASTM techniques. The fraction of the uranium undissolved, F, can be well modelled by the sum of three exponential terms. Dissolution fractions and half-times in the two simulated lung fluids were found to be not significantly different. The point estimates for the six parameters (three fractions of the amount of uranium and the three associated half-times for dissolution) based on the analyses are: f₁ equals 16.0% and tsub(1/2)(1) equals 3.5 hr, f₂ equals 16.5% and tsub(1/2)(2) equals 4.4 days, and f₃ equals 67.5% and tsub(1/2)(3) equals 224 days. The final characterization of yellowcake resulting from this investigation strongly suggests that dissolution rates of yellowcake from a single source may be individually process specific or site specific. (author)

[en] Exosomes are secreted membrane vesicles that have been proposed as an effective means to detect a variety of disease states, including cancer. The properties of exosomes, including stability in biological fluids, allow for their efficient isolation and make them an ideal vehicle for studies on early disease detection and evaluation. Much data has been collected over recent years regarding the messenger RNA, microRNA, and protein contents of exosomes. In addition, many studies have described the functional role that exosomes play in disease initiation and progression. Tumor cells have been shown to secrete exosomes, often in increased amounts compared to normal cells, and these exosomes can carry the genomic and proteomic signatures characteristic of the tumor cells from which they were derived. While these unique signatures make exosomes ideal for cancer detection, exosomes derived from cancer cells have also been shown to play a functional role in cancer progression. Here, we review the unique genomic and proteomic contents of exosomes originating from cancer cells as well as their functional effects to promote tumor progression.

[en] The frictional wear characteristics of Ti-29Nb-13Ta-4.6Zr alloy subjected to solution treatment (referred to as TNTZ_ST) and aged at 598, 673 and 723 K after solution treatment (referred to as TNTZ_598K, TNTZ_673K and TNTZ_723K, respectively) were investigated in air and a simulated body environment (Ringer's solution) as a function of the loading level. Ti-6Al-4V ELI alloy aged at 813 K after solution treatment (referred to as T64_STA) was employed as a reference material. Wear weight losses of TNTZ_ST, TNTZ_598K, TNTZ_673K, TNTZ_723K and Ti64_STA are lower in Ringer's solution than in air under both low and high loading conditions (1.96 and 29.4 N, respectively). It is considered that the frictional factor decreases because of the lubricating effect of Ringer's solution between the contact surface of the specimen and the zirconia ball-the mating material. Moreover, the wear weight losses of TNTZ_598K, TNTZ_673K and TNTZ_723K are lower than that of Ti64_STA in both air and Ringer's solution under the low loading condition, but are higher under the high loading condition. This result implies that the transition from severe wear to mild wear versus loading level depends on the type of material

[en] A tantalum/tantalum nitride (Ta/TaN) multilayered coating is deposited on plasma-nitridedAZ91 Mg alloy. The top TaN layer undergoes O₂ + Ar plasma etching to improve the antibacterial properties and Mg plasma immersion ion implantation (MgPIII) is performed to enhance the biocompatibility and wound healing capability. A uniform, compact, homogeneous, and columnar nanostructured MgPIII and plasma-etched TaN layer with a cluster size of about 17 nm, surface roughness of 0.28 nm, and needle morphology is observed. Although, plasma etching increases the corrosion current density (i _corr) from 0.02 to 0.19 µA cm⁻² due to larger surface roughness and different potentials between sharp points and smooth points, MgPIII decreases i _corr from 0.19 to 0.02 µA cm⁻² besides a more positive corrosion potential. The amounts of Mg⁺² released to the simulated body fluid (SBF) diminishes from 89.63 ± 0.54 to 60.30 ± 0.47 mg l⁻¹ cm⁻² indicating improved corrosion resistance. Under fever conditions (40 °C), i _corr decreases by 63%, but the open circuit potential does not change due to the constant chemical composition of the surface as well as thicker double layer and less defects, as confirmed by the larger amount of Mg⁺² of 71.49 ± 0.22 mg l⁻¹ cm⁻² leached to the SBF. In the self-healing process which occurs via the reactions between the tantalum intermediate layer and electrolytes and penetrating ions through the defects as well as formation of oxide compounds, creation and propagation of defects are deterred as shown the 24 h destructive polarization test in SBF. The combination of plasma etching and MgPIII enhance not only the bacterial resistance and biocompatibility of the super-hard TaN layer by providing the rougher surface on TaN–P–Mg, but also the nano-mechanical properties and anticorrosion properties. As a result, the hardness increases by 7%, elastic modulus decreases by 19%, and the stiffness increases by 21%. (paper)