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The incorporation of normothermic regional perfusion (NRP) to donors after cardiac death (DCD) allows the recovery of liver grafts without the deleterious effects on graft survival the super-rapid technique may cause. The aim of the present report is to determine if the use of NRP in Maastricht type III DCD donors achieves short- and medium-term results comparable to donors after brain death (DBD). This is an observational cohort study including 117 liver transplants executed between November 2016 and April 2021, divided into NRP (n = 39) and DBD (n = 78). Donors were younger in the NRP group (NRP 52 vs DBD 59.4 years; P <.005). Liver recipients in each study group were of similar age and severity of liver disease, although the predominant transplant indication in the NRP group was hepatocellular carcinoma. No differences in ischemia times were found. The incidence of early allograft disfunction and primary nonfunction was balanced between NRP and DBD. Eight patients required retransplant, all of them in the DBD group. No differences were found in biliary complications (NRP 12% vs DBD 5%; P =.104). Ischemic cholangiopathy affected a single DBD patient. Graft survival's Kaplan Meier curve shows a better outcome in the NRP group, although the difference did not reach significance (P =.075). The incorporation of perfusion machines, and specifically the NPR in situ, converts suboptimal liver grafts such as DCD into organs comparable to DBDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is highly expressed in many types of epithelial tumors. EGFR overexpression has been associated with an advanced stage of the disease, with resistance to standard therapies, and, for certain tumors, with poor patient prognosis. As a result, EGFR has been considered a meaningful target in anti-tumor strategies. Active and passive immunotherapies blocking EGFR and its ligands have been explored. But for successful pre-clinical evaluation of these approaches, well-established murine tumor models are not available and highly desirable. We described, for the first time, the generation and characterization of an anti-murine EGFR extracellular domain monoclonal antibody (7A7 MAb) (IgG1). 7A7 was generated by immunization of Balb/c mice with the recombinant extracellular domain of murine EGFR (rECD-mEGFR). 7A7 recognized an epitope present in the amino acidic core of the antigen and is cross-reactive with the human EGFR. Interestingly, this MAb was able to specifically bind EGFR at the cell surface, allowing the assessment of its differential expression in a panel of murine cells. Noteworthy, in a preliminary immunohistochemical study with 7A7 MAb, recognition of Balb/c mice skin sections and EGFR-positive tumors were observed. We concluded that 7A7 MAb is a valuable tool for EGFR-based therapeutic pre-clinical studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Multimodal rehabilitation allows optimization of functional recovery in surgery patients by reducing the postoperative stress and hospital stay duration, without increasing the morbidity and mortality. It is reportedly successful in other surgical disciplines, and guidelines for its application to gynecological surgery are available; however, most evidence for these guidelines is derived from observational and/or retrospective studies. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the applicability of an enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol in laparoscopic gynecological surgery and its influence on the postoperative stay, morbidity, mortality, and readmission, through a prospective approach. Methods: This prospective cohort study was performed on 90 patients who underwent laparoscopic hysterectomy for benign causes from October 2017 to October 2019. Patients in whom the ERAS (ERAS group, n = 30) and traditional (control group, n = 60) protocols were implemented were compared. All patients were followed for 6 months. Results: The groups were homogeneous and did not differ significantly with respect to the demographic characteristics (age, ASA score, body mass index), surgical indications, and surgery types. Adherence to the ERAS protocol was over 99%. The postoperative hospital-stay durations were 1.73 days (r = 1–3) and 2.97 days (r = 2–6) in the ERAS and control groups, respectively (p = 0.000). No significant intergroup differences were observed in the rates of complications and readmissions. Conclusions: The ERAS protocol is applicable in laparoscopic gynecological surgery and can be implemented with good adherence. This can allow optimization of patient recovery by reducing the hospital stay duration, without increasing the rates of morbidity, mortality, or readmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]