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The pathogenesis of an ovarian disease is connected with PTN and its receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor Z1 (PTPRZ1). Paclitaxel is the first-line drug for the therapy of ovarian cancer. With the increment of paclitaxel chemotherapy, paclitaxel obstruction happens in the late phase of therapy frequently. By treating A2780 and SKOV-3 cells with PTN, we found the development of the two cell lines was enhanced. Different concentrations of PTN were added to A2780 and SKOV-3 cells treated with paclitaxel and the results of MTT showed that the inhibitory effect of paclitaxel on these two cell lines was weakened. The results of apoptosis assays showed that PTN could slow down the rate of apoptosis and its concentration dependence in both cell lines. To further investigate the impact of PTN on the paclitaxel responsiveness of ovarian malignant growth cells, A2780 and SKOV-3 cells were transfected with sh-PTN-1, sh-PTN-2 and sh-NC plasmids. The results of PCR and Western Blot showed that both RNA-interfering plasmids could inhibit PTN in A2780 and SKOV-3 cells. The results of MTT showed that the inhibitory effect of paclitaxel on cells transfected with sh-PTN-1 expanded compared with the benchmark group. Apoptosis assays showed that the complete apoptosis pace of A2780 and SKOV-3 cells with sh-PTN-1 plasmid induced by paclitaxel was accelerated obviously compared with the benchmark group. To summarize, the results suggested that PTN could enhance the resistance to paclitaxel in ovarian cancer cells, which provides a groundwork for studying on drug resistance of cancer cells to paclitaxel and a new perspective for ovarian cancer therapy.

Gallstone ileus is a rare complication of cholelithiasis and a type of mechanical obstruction involving impaction of a gallstone within the intestinal tract [1,2]. This entity occurs in 0.15% - 1.5% of cholelithiasis cases and < 0.1% of ileus cases overall [1]. Gallstone ileus is more common in the elderly and up to 80% - 90% of affected patients have medical comorbidities [2]. The ratio of occurrence in females to males is 3.5:1 [3]. The following report presents a case of gallstone ileus with associated perforated small bowel diverticulitis, demonstrating the importance of considering this condition as a differential diagnosis of an acute abdomen.

Orbital melanoma is a subtype of periocular melanoma that can present from primary, secondary (arising from local invasion), or metastatic disease [1]. Melanoma metastasis to the orbit is rare with the majority of metastases occurring in subcutaneous tissue, nonregional lymph nodes, lungs, liver, brain, and bone [2]. Despite melanoma being relatively radioresistant, radiation therapy can be considered in an adjuvant or palliative setting [3]. In the palliative setting specifically, radiation therapy is highly effective in alleviating symptoms due to mass effect [3]. However, significant ocular and orbital complications may occur as a direct result of radiation therapy.

The purpose of this study was to differentiate between muscular activity of three different types of belt squats (SquatMax-MD, Pit Shark and Monster Rhino) and the muscle activation of the rectus femoris, vastus medialis oblique, gluteus maximus, and gluteus medius. Fourteen healthy, male athletes, over the age of 18 years, performed 2 sets of 5 repetitions on each of the three belt squat machines with a weight equivalent to each participant’s body weight. Athletes were given at least 2 minutes of rest between each set and condition. Electromyographic data were collected from four muscles: rectus femoris, vastus medialis oblique, gluteus maximus, and gluteus medius muscles. ANOVA revealed the SquatMax-MD belt squat resulted in the highest muscle activation in every muscle, with significantly higher activity in the rectus femoris, vastus medialis oblique, and gluteus medius muscles. The Monster Rhino belt squat produced the second highest muscle activation with the Pit Shark belt squat creating the lowest muscle activation. In totality, the SquatMax-MD produced 38.7% greater muscle activation than the Monster Rhino and 12.2% greater activation than the Pit Shark. The belt squat can be an advantageous exercise because it can effectively load the lower body while de-loading the spine and upper body. The difference in activation between the SquatMax-MD and other belt squats may be due, in part, to the design of the machines. The additional activation produced by the SquatMax-MD belt squat may be useful for individuals seeking hypertrophy, strength, or a reduction in injury risk.

Background: Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplants (HSCT) is the standard of care for transplant-eligible patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) and patients with relapsed and refractory Hodgkin lymphoma (R/R-HL) who achieve chemosensitivity after salvage therapy. Although autologous HSCT is routinely performed in an  inpatient setting, the procedure can safely be performed in an  outpatient setting.Methods and materials: A retrospective study of patients with MM and R/R- HL who received outpatient autologous HSCT at King Fahad Specialist Hospital (KFSH) in Dammam, Saudi Arabia between the first of April 2017 and the 31st of January 2022 was performed.Results: Over the study period of 4 years and 10 months, a total of 90 outpatient autologous HSCTs were performed for 79 patients (54 patients with MM; 4 of them received planned tandem autografts and 7 other myeloma patients received second autologous HSCTs for relapsed or progressive disease; and 25 patients with R/R-HL) at our institution. The median ages of patients with MM and those with R/R-HL at HSCT were 50.4 years and 27.8 years respectively.At the presentation of their MM, the following high-risk (HR) features were encountered: stage II and III diseases according to the revised international scoring system (RISS) in 53.7%; adverse cytogenetics in 42.6% and extensive bone involvement in 53.7% of patients. In patients with HL at presentation, 48% of patients had stage IV disease according to Ann Arbor staging classification and 84% of patients had B symptoms.Survival for 100 days post-HSCT for all patients with MM and HL who received outpatient autologous transplants was 100%. For patients with MM, the overall survival (OS) rates at 3 years and 4 years post-HSCT were 80% and 67%, while the progression-free survival (PFS) rates over 3 years and 4 years were 58% and 38% respectively. For patients with HL, the OS at 6 years post-HSCT was 95% while the PFS rates at 3 years and 6 years post-HSCT were 84% and 62% respectively.Conclusion: Outpatient autologous HSCT for patients with MM and HL is safe, and feasible and can lead to short-term as well as long-term outcomes that are comparable to autologous transplantation performed in an  inpatient setting. Additional benefits of outpatient autologous include saving beds and reducing hospital costs.

In this work the statistical and squeezing properties of light-driven by sub-harmonic generation with two-mode coherent light are studied. With interaction Hamiltonian of both two-mode coherent and sub harmonic generation, we have driven master equation of system under consideration. From the master equation, the solution of the C-number Langevin equation is derived. It helps us to solve quadrature variance, quadrature squeezing, mean, and variance of photon number for light produced by sub-harmonic generation with the two-mode coherent light state. And the result shows that; the squeezing occurs in plus quadrature with the maximum squeezing of 87%. The photon statistics of the system under consideration is subpoissonian in which both mean & variance are increasing as kappa increase.

A micellar thin-layer chromatography method for the quantitative determination and validation of coumarin in Meliloti herba and its ethanolic extracts was developed and validated. For achieving good determination, the mobile phase of 5 x 10-4 mol/L Tween-80 in a mixture propanol-2 – water (5:95 v/v) was used. Densitometric determination was carried out at 275 nm. The calibration curve was linear in the range of 0.1-2.5 μg per band. The proposed method is simple, rapid, precise and accurate; replacing hazardous solvents by greener ones correspond to the modern requirements in “Green chemistry” concepts. The obtained data can be used for the routine analysis of coumarin in medical plant and extracts. 

Scientific interest in low-molecular-weight pectins is not accidental. Despite the experimental material widely presented in the literature on the pharmacological effects of pectins, the clinical application of the developments has not yet been fully implemented. On the one hand, antitumor potential is registered in polymers with a mass of hundreds of kilodaltons, on the other hand, practically nothing is known about such in pectin derivatives weighing less than 20 kDa. In addition, the issues of assessing the nature of the pharmacological interaction of nanoscale pectin and conventional cytostatics are not covered. The aim of this work is an experimental study of the antitumor potential of low-molecular, low-esterified pectin in combination with a cytostatic agent on a model of Walker’s carcinosarcoma. Pectin therapy of Walker’s transplanted tumor in several series of experiments consistently caused inhibition of its growth from 60% to 80%. The combined use of pectin and cyclophosphane caused inhibition of tumor growth up to 72.4%. The increase in life expectancy in the “pectin + cyclophosphane” group versus the “cyclophosphane” group was 200%. It can be concluded that nanoscale pectin is a promising drug for in-depth study since it meets the criteria of primary screening (increase in animal life expectancy, inhibition of tumor growth, survival without tumor growth).

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in public health measures and fewer viral infections, which trigger the nephrotic syndrome. Our objectives were to characterize the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on children with nephrotic syndrome. This single-center retrospective chart review compared children with nephrotic syndrome one year before the pandemic with the first wave of the pandemic. Epidemiologic events, clinical characteristics, and health care utilization were compared using paired t-tests, Fisher’s exact tests and Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests. Among 96 children the mean age was 10.7 ± 5.28 years. The distribution was minimal change disease (16.7%), focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (12.5%), membranous nephropathy (1%) and not biopsied (69.8%). Medication responsiveness was steroid-sensitive (25%), frequently relapsed (54%) and steroid-resistant (20.8%). There were 14 new diagnoses of nephrotic syndrome pre-pandemic and 18 during the pandemic. Fewer relapses during the pandemic were likely due to fewer viral illnesses from public health measures during the pandemic.

The depletion of non-renewable resources is followed by severe ecological and social impacts, and the heavy usage of raw, virgin resources leaves significant, long-lasting footprints. The transition to a more circular economy, where the value of products, materials and resources is maintained and circulated (by recycling activities) in the economy for as long as possible, is an essential contribution to the EU’s efforts to develop a sustainable, low carbon, resource efficient and competitive economy. In this context, ecological solutions consisting of materials that help carbon sequestration and necessitate small amounts of energy for production are becoming increasingly popular from a building construction point of view, namely: The raw material is cheap and in large quantities; has low thermal conductivity; are from a renewable source. The paper presents an analysis of IZOMIN an innovative thermal insulating product made from renewable or recycled resources and their main technical properties, the purpose being to inform the market in order to increase the present level of technical knowledge and technologies used to facilitate the implementation of buildings with high energy efficiency.