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Background: Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is the most common surgical disease in the neonatal period with a high mortality rate. To date, there is no consensus on the indications for surgery in the absence of pneumoperitoneum. This study aimed to determine the indications for surgery in pre-term infants with NEC and their mortality. Methods: We conducted a descriptive, observational, cross-sectional, and retrospective study including pre-term infants with NEC from two perinatal hospitals in Toluca, Mexico, between 2017 and 2022. Descriptive and inferential statistics and group comparisons were performed using Fisher and Kruskal-Wallis tests. Results: Of 236 patients with NEC, 52 (22%) required surgery; we analyzed 42 cases with complete clinical records. The indications for surgery were divided into (a) clinical deterioration (33.3%); (b) radiographic findings (31%); (c) laboratory alterations (19%); and (d) positive paracentesis (16.7%). The group of radiographic findings underwent surgery later, up to 2 days after the other groups. The mortality rate of surgical NEC was 42.9%. Conclusions: The most common indication for surgery in pre-term infants with NEC was clinical worsening despite optimal medical management; radiographic findings were the indication associated with the highest mortality. Laboratory abnormalities and positive paracentesis were the indications with the best outcomes but the least used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Neonatal surgery is one of the most specialized and demanding areas of pediatric surgery due to the specific anatomical and physiological characteristics of this vulnerable group of patients. This study aimed to present the experience of 10 years of neonatal surgical management in a secondary care perinatal hospital in Mexico. Methods: We conducted a descriptive, observational, cross-sectional, and retrospective study in a perinatal hospital in Toluca, Mexico, from August 01, 2012, to July 31, 2022. We included patients who underwent surgery within the hospital facilities by the Service of Pediatric Surgery. We studied demographic, clinical, and surgical variables and performed descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: A total of 551 patients underwent surgery during this period with a prevalence of 0.5%. The number of patients operated in the neonatal period was 497 (90.1%). Forty-eight pathologies were recorded, with a predominance of congenital malformations in 64.6% and prenatal diagnosis in 40.5% of cases. The survival rate was 89.7%. In the bivariate analysis of mortality, we found an inverse relationship between weight and gestational age (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Although not a local or national reference center, the hospital where the study was conducted treats various congenital and acquired diseases, with a mortality rate that tends to decrease, close to the international average, and lower than national reports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rosette morphology across Arabidopsis accessions exhibits considerable variation. Here we report a high-throughput phenotyping approach based on automatic image analysis to quantify rosette shape and dissect the underlying genetic architecture. Shape measurements of the rosettes in a core set of Recombinant Inbred Lines from an advanced mapping population (Multiparent Advanced Generation Inter-Cross or MAGIC) derived from inter-crossing 19 natural accessions. Image acquisition and analysis was scaled to extract geometric descriptors from time stamped images of growing rosettes. Shape analyses revealed heritable morphological variation at early juvenile stages and QTL mapping resulted in over 116 chromosomal regions associated with trait variation within the population. Many QTL linked to variation in shape were located near genes related to hormonal signalling and signal transduction pathways while others are involved in shade avoidance and transition to flowering. Our results suggest rosette shape arises from modular integration of sub-organ morphologies and can be considered a functional trait subjected to selective pressures of subsequent morphological traits. On an applied aspect, QTLs found will be candidates for further research on plant architecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Listeria monocytogenes is a saprophytic gram-positive bacterium, and an opportunistic foodborne pathogen that can produce listeriosis in humans and animals. It has evolved an exceptional ability to adapt to stress conditions encountered in different environments, resulting in a ubiquitous distribution. Because some food preservation methods and disinfection protocols in food-processing environments cannot efficiently prevent contaminations, L. monocytogenes constitutes a threat to human health and a challenge to food safety. In the host, Listeria colonizes the gastrointestinal tract, crosses the intestinal barrier, and disseminates through the blood to target organs. In immunocompromised individuals, the elderly, and pregnant women, the pathogen can cross the blood-brain and placental barriers, leading to neurolisteriosis and materno-fetal listeriosis. Molecular and cell biology studies of infection have proven L. monocytogenes to be a versatile pathogen that deploys unique strategies to invade different cell types, survive and move inside the eukaryotic host cell, and spread from cell to cell. Here, we present the multifaceted Listeria life cycle from a comprehensive perspective. We discuss genetic features of pathogenic Listeria species, analyze factors involved in food contamination, and review bacterial strategies to tolerate stresses encountered both during food processing and along the host's gastrointestinal tract. Then we dissect host–pathogen interactions underlying listerial pathogenesis in mammals from a cell biology and systemic point of view. Finally, we summarize the epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical features of listeriosis in humans and animals. This work aims to gather information from different fields crucial for a comprehensive understanding of the pathogenesis of L. monocytogenes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Listeria monocytogenes is a saprophytic gram-positive bacterium, and an opportunistic foodborne pathogen that can produce listeriosis in humans and animals. It has evolved an exceptional ability to adapt to stress conditions encountered in different environments, resulting in a ubiquitous distribution. Because some food preservation methods and disinfection protocols in food-processing environments cannot efficiently prevent contaminations, L. monocytogenes constitutes a threat to human health and a challenge to food safety. In the host, Listeria colonizes the gastrointestinal tract, crosses the intestinal barrier, and disseminates through the blood to target organs. In immunocompromised individuals, the elderly, and pregnant women, the pathogen can cross the blood-brain and placental barriers, leading to neurolisteriosis and materno-fetal listeriosis. Molecular and cell biology studies of infection have proven L. monocytogenes to be a versatile pathogen that deploys unique strategies to invade different cell types, survive and move inside the eukaryotic host cell, and spread from cell to cell. Here, we present the multi-faceted Listeria life cycle from a comprehensive perspective. We discuss genetic features of pathogenic Listeria species, analyze factors involved in food contamination, and review bacterial strategies to tolerate stresses encountered both during food processing and along the host's gastrointestinal tract. Then we dissect host-pathogen interactions underlying listerial pathogenesis in mammals from a cell biology and systemic point of view. Finally, we summarize the epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical features of listeriosis in humans and animals. This work aims to gather information from different fields crucial for a comprehensive understanding of the pathogenesis of L. monocytogenes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extrapulmonary small-cell carcinoma (SCC) is a rare neoplasm that shares certain features with its pulmonary counterpart and occurs predominantly in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). It is a high-grade and poorly differentiated neuroendocrine tumor, usually diagnosed in advanced stages, with a poor prognosis and few therapeutic options in that setting. This is a case report of a 77-year-old Spanish male patient with localized SCC of the colon, who presented a pathological complete response in the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant chemotherapy with cisplatin and etoposide. To date, 5 years after surgery, the patient remains without evidence of tumor recurrence. As clinical guidelines for the management of this entity are lacking, and therefore its management has not been standardized, an attempt to summarize the current evidence in the literature was made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper builds on discussions of academic developers' identity experienced as a discomfiting, troubled, and often marginal space. Three experienced academic developers, located in research-intensive institutions in three different countries, using auto-ethnographic writing and a shared narrative inquiry, explore moments of congruence and conflict. While there are elements that sustain them in their job, the categorisation of their role can impact on their ability to do their job, undermining their credibility. This can prevent them from engaging in research that could enrich practice in their institutions and inform institutional strategy or change the culture in teaching and learning. Instead they are forced into discomfit: having to defend their right to be involved in the institutional discussions. The most worrying issue is the pervasive trend in the change of academic developers' status (from tenure-track academic peers to professionals). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]