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Background: Adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AT-MSCs) offer potential as a therapeutic option for chronic discogenic low back pain (LBP) because of their immunomodulatory functions and capacity for cartilage differentiation. The goal of this study was to assess the safety and tolerability of a single intradiscal implantation of combined AT-MSCs and hyaluronic acid (HA) derivative in patients with chronic discogenic LBP. Methods: We performed a single-arm phase I clinical trial with a 12-month follow-up and enrolled 10 eligible chronic LBP patients. Chronic LBP had lasted for more than 3 months with a minimum intensity of 4/10 on a visual analogue scale (VAS) and disability level ≥ 30% on the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). The 10 patients underwent a single intradiscal injection of combined HA derivative and AT-MSCs at a dose of 2 × 107 cells/disc (n=5) or 4×107 cells/disc (n=5). Safety and treatment outcomes were evaluated by assessing VAS, ODI, Short Form-36 (SF-36), and imaging (lumbar spine X-ray imaging and MRI) at regular intervals over 1 year. Results: No patients were lost at any point during the 1-year clinical study. We observed no procedure or stem cell-related adverse events or serious adverse events during the 1-year follow-up period. VAS, ODI, and SF-36 scores significantly improved in both groups receiving both low (cases 2, 4, and 5) and high (cases 7, 8, and 9) cell doses, and did not differ significantly between the two groups. Among six patients who achieved significant improvement in VAS, ODI, and SF-36, three patients (cases 4, 8, and 9) were determined to have increased water content based on an increased apparent diffusion coefficient on diffusion MRI. Conclusions: Combined implantation of AT-MSCs and HA derivative in chronic discogenic LBP is safe and tolerable. However, the efficacy of combined AT-MSCs and HA should be investigated in a randomized controlled trial in a larger population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improved conductive poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT)-based electrode films were assembled by hybridization with charged silver nanowires (Ag NWs). The hybrid layers consisting of PEDOT chains interconnected between random Ag-NW networks were found to have better conductivity than PEDOT alone or intrinsic pure Ag NW networks. Various concentrations of Ag NWs with 30 nm size in diameter were incorporated into the PEDOT chains matrix. The optimized PEDOT/Ag NW hybrid layers exhibited excellent performance with a low sheet resistance of 15 Ω/sq, corresponds to the electrical conductivity of approximately 8500 S/cm, at 90% transparence when PEDOT was hybridized with 40 wt% Ag NWs. The organic solar cell devices deposited on these hybrid electrodes show a performance equivalent to that of the devices based on a conventional ITO electrode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Clevudine has demonstrated antiviral potency in the treatment of naïve chronic hepatitis B patients in pivotal studies. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a 1-year treatment with clevudine in chronic hepatitis B patients. Methods: This is a post-marketing surveillance using case report forms which were submitted to the health authorities. Results: Analysis of individual data showed that hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA after a 1-year treatment was <141,500 copies/ml in 96% of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive and 100% of HBeAg-negative patients. The proportion of patients with HBV DNA <2,000 copies/ml after a 1-year treatment was 74%: 71% of HBeAg-positive and 93% of HBeAg-negative patients. Most of the patients with HBV DNA below the detection limit with each assay at week 24 showed sustained viral suppression up to week 48. The proportion of patients who showed normal alanine aminotransferase at week 48 was 86% in HBeAg-positive patients and 87% in HBeAg-negative patients. The rates of HBeAg-loss were 21%. Two patients showed viral breakthrough during treatment. Conclusion: Clevudine monotherapy demonstrates potent antiviral activity as well as biochemical and serological response with a 0.7% rate of viral breakthrough in naïve chronic hepatitis B patients. Copyright © 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]