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Acute kidney injury (AKI) is common among hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and associated with worse prognosis. The Spanish Society of Nephrology created the AKI- COVID Registry to characterize the population admitted for COVID-19 that developed AKI in Spanish hospitals. The need of renal replacement therapy (RRT) therapeutic modalities, and mortality in these patients were assessed

In the last years, extensive attention has been paid on designing and developing functional imaging contrast agents for providing accurate noninvasive evaluation of pathology in vivo. However, the issue of false-positives or ambiguous imaging and the lack of a robust strategy for simultaneous dual-mode imaging remain to be fully addressed. One effective strategy for improving it is to rationally design magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents (CAs) with intrinsic T1/T2dual-mode imaging features. In this work, the development and characterization of one-pot synthesized nanostructured coordination polymers (NCPs) which exhibit dual mode T1/T2MRI contrast behavior is described. The resulting material comprises the combination of different paramagnetic ions (Fe3+, Gd3+, Mn2+) with selected organic ligands able to induce the polymerization process and nanostructure stabilization. Among them, the Fe-based NCPs showed the best features in terms of colloidal stability, low toxicity, and dual T1/T2MRI contrast performance overcoming the main drawbacks of reported CAs. The dual-mode CA capability was evaluated by different means: in vitro phantoms, ex vivo and in vivo MRI, using a preclinical model of murine glioblastoma. Interestingly, the in vivo MRI of Fe–NCPs show T1and T2high contrast potential, allowing simultaneous recording of positive and negative contrast images in a very short period of time while being safer for the mouse. Moreover, the biodistribution assays reveals the persistence of the nanoparticles in the tumor and subsequent gradual clearance denoting their biodegradability. After a comparative study with commercial CAs, the results suggest these nanoplatforms as promising candidates for the development of dual-mode MRI CAs with clear advantages.

Les syndromes de résistance aux hormones stéroïdes (aldostérone, cortisol, estrogènes, androgènes) sont relativement rares, l’insensibilité aux androgènes étant le syndrome le plus largement décrit. La résistance à un stéroïde donné se caractérise par une élévation des concentrations d’hormones stéroïdes correspondantes circulantes, secondaire à un défaut de signalisation et souvent une diminution du rétrocontrôle négatif, associée à l’absence de signes cliniques spécifiques relatifs à cet excès. Ce défaut de signalisation est généralement en lien avec des anomalies des récepteurs stéroïdiens. De nombreuses mutations faux-sens ou non-sens, ainsi que des délétions ont été décrites sur les différents types de récepteurs, à l’exception du récepteur de la progestérone. Le nombre de mutations identifiées est très variable selon le récepteur concerné, seules 3 mutations sont décrites pour le récepteur des estrogènes alors que plus de 500l’ont été pour le récepteur des androgènes. Des anomalies d’autres facteurs impliqués dans la signalisation hormonale, notamment les protéines chaperonnes ou les co-régulateurs transcriptionnels, pourraient aussi rendre compte des résistances aux hormones stéroïdes. Le traitement reste essentiellement symptomatique ; il n’existe à ce jour aucune stratégie pharmacologique permettant de rétablir la signalisation hormonale défaillante. L’identification de ces syndromes et leur caractérisation clinico-biologique devraient faciliter une meilleure compréhension des mécanismes impliqués dans les défauts de signalisation des hormones stéroïdes, afin d’envisager de nouvelles options thérapeutiques.

Estimar la satisfacción de familiares de pacientes críticos con respecto al entorno asistencial, la relación con los profesionales y el régimen de visitas, y compararla con la percepción de los profesionales.

The objective of this study is to analyse the appropriateness and characteristics of drug dose calculation for hospitalised, morbidly obese patients.

Seuls neuf cas de mutations inactivatrices du récepteur du glucagon ont été rapportés, associant une hyperplasie des cellules alpha-pancréatiques et des tumeurs neuroendocrines. La glucorégulation a été peu étudiée chez ces patients.

Cells from individuals with the cancer-prone, inherited disorder Fanconi anemia (FA) are hypersensitive to DNA interstrand cross-linking agents and this hypersensitivity correlates with a defect in ability to repair this type of damage to their DNA. We have isolated a DNA endonuclease complex from the nuclei of normal human cells which is involved in repair of DNA interstrand cross-links and have shown that in FA complementation group A (FA-A) cells there is a defect in ability of this complex to incise DNA containing interstrand cross-links. In order to identify the specific protein(s) in this complex which is defective in FA-A cells, monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were developed against proteins in the normal complex. One of these mAbs, which is against a protein with a molecular weight of approximately 230 kDa, completely inhibited the ability of the normal complex to incise cross-linked DNA. Western blot analysis has shown that there is a deficiency in this protein in FA-A cells. Electophoretic analysis has also indicated that there are reduced levels of this protein in FA-A compared with normal cells. Studies carried out utilizing FA-A cells which have been stably transduced with a retroviral vector expressing the FANCA cDNA have shown that the DNA repair defect in these cells has been corrected; levels of unscheduled DNA synthesis are at least as great as those of normal human cells. In addition, in the transduced cells the deficiency in the 230 kDa protein has been corrected, as determined by both western blot and electrophoretic analysis. These results indicate that the FANCA gene plays a role in the expression or stability of the 230 kDa protein.

Pollen allergy is a common disease causing rhinoconjunctivitis (hay fever) in 5–10% of the population. Medical studies have indicated that pollen related diseases could be highly reduced if future pollen contents in the air could be predicted. In this work we have developed a new forecasting method that applies the ability of neural nets to predict the future behaviour of chaotic systems in order to make accurate predictions of the airborne pollen concentration. The method requires that the neural net be fed with non-zero values, which restricts the method predictions to the period following the start of pollen flight. The operational method outlined here constitutes a different point of view with respect to the more generally used forecasts of time series analysis, which require input of many meteorological parameters. Excellent forecasts were obtained training a neural net by using only the time series pollen concentration values.

The clinical and operative findings of 40 infants treated for Extradural Haematomas (EDH) between 1960 and 1988 are presented. This series represents 19% of the total number of children with EDH during this period. Twenty-five (63%) were male, fifteen (37%) female. They were divided into three groups according to age for comparison. Group A, less than 6 months (11 cases); group B, 7-12 months (16 cases); and group C, 13-24 months (13 cases). Sixteen (40%) resulted from falls less than 1 m. Seven (17.5%) fell whilst walking. Twelve (30%) fell more than 1 m. Two EDH followed obstetric trauma, three occurred as a result of a road traffic accident. A lucid interval was identified in 30 cases, and in 15 it was longer than 24 h. Drowsiness (60%), and delayed vomiting (45%), were the most important symptoms. Anaemia occurred in 19 (47.5%). Thirty-six (90%) had abnormal skull X-rays. Thirty (75%) EDH were parietal, temporal, or temporo-parietal. Two were located in the posterior fossa. There were no frontal EDH in this series in contrast to that found in older children. Twenty-seven (67.5%) EDH were larger than 75 cc in volume. The source of bleeding was identified in 31; in 17 (42.5%) it was from the middle meningeal artery; in 11 (27.5%) from the bone; and in three (7.5%) from the dural surface. The mortality was 12.5% with a 15% morbidity rate, three infants (7.5%), suffering motor deficits, and three requiring medical treatment for epilepsy.

A simple but effective modal solution based on the underlying ideas of the hierarchical finite element method is presented for evaluating the free vibration characteristics of vertical, thin, circular, cylindrical shells, partially or completely filled with liquid and subjected to any variationally consistent set of boundary conditions on the lower and upper boundaries. Effects of static liquid pressure, in-plane inertias and liquid free surface motions are taken into account. The solution of the shell problem is obtained through a procedure in which Sander's shell equations are transformed into a new system of first order ordinary differential equations which are solved by the Galerkin error-minimization procedure. The system variables are those quantities which appear in the boundary conditions on a rotationally symmetric edge of a cylindrical shell. The liquid is taken as non-viscous and incompressible, and the coupling between the deformable shell and this medium is taken into account. The solution for the liquid velocity potential is assumed as a sum of two sets of linear combinations of suitable harmonic functions which satisfy Laplace equation and the relevant boundary conditions. This procedure leads to a determinantal equation for the determination of the shell and liquid natural frequencies and the associated mode shapes. Application of the method to a few selected cases and comparisons of the numerical results with those obtained by other theories and from experiments are found to be good and demonstrate the effectiveness and accuracy of the present methodology.

This study focuses on Okinawa and Yoron islands, in order to better understand tectonics in the Ryukyu Arc related to the subduction zone. We used coral microatolls—known for their centimetric accuracy in the record of relative sea‐level (RSL) changes—to reconstruct RSL changes over the last century from living microatolls. A fossil microatoll in Yoron was used to discuss possible RSL changes beyond the last century. The signal consists of emergence whose rate varies through time, interrupted by decadal to multidecadal periods of sudden and/or gradual submergence and by interannual sea‐level falls. Comparison with other existing RSL records in the arc highlights RSL variability along the arc. This pattern contrasts with the homogeneous and linear absolute regional sea‐level rise, implying that this latter signal cannot fully explain our observations and that an additional process is required. We suggest the subduction zone as a possible source for generating centimetric scale RSL changes observed in coral microatolls. We tested how the Ryukyu megathrust could explain our observations with elastic dislocation modeling. The emergence trend could be explained by interseismic loading on the plate interface with a minimum coupling rate of 25%, which is higher than previous estimates based on short instrumental records. As for the submergence events that occurred regularly in the coral record, we show that they could be explained by slow slip events on the shallower part of the megathrust or in the transition zone. Such process could accommodate a significant part of the total convergence. Relative sea‐level changes due to climate and tectonics recorded by coral microatollsRecord of vertical deformations related to the seismic cycle of the Ryukyu subduction zoneCoupling variability of the Ryukyu subduction zone

L’atteinte hypothalamo-hypophysaire (HH) au cours de la sarcoïdose est rare et peu décrite. Elle peut entraîner des insuffisances antéhypophysaires, une hyperprolactinémie de déconnexion et un diabète insipide.

Hypertension is more severe in kidney transplant patients than in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and similar renal function. The aim is to study the contribution of subclinical atherosclerosis and low grade inflammation to hypertension in kidney transplants.

Introduction: OXPHOS diseases are a heterogeneous group of disorders caused by mutations in mitochondrial or nuclear DNA. They display either maternal or mendellian inheritance. We describe the clinical features of four patients with MENGIE. Material and methods: clinical presentation: four patients from two families: Family A: 2 affected siblings, male and female, born from unrelated healthy parents who had healthy children in posterior marriages. The male, usually thin, developed ptosis, ophthalmoparesis, visual impairment and muscle weakness at age 13 years. Deafness and diarrhea became evident at age 37 The female developed diabetes in addition to the same clinical features. Family B: two affected children, male and female, born from noconsanguineous healthy parents. They did not gain weight after age 7 years with progressive decrease in muscle mass. They still walked at age 15, nevertheless, they had difficulties climbing stairs. In addition, they also developed ptosis and opthalmoparesis. At the age of 17 the male developed frequent diarrhea and ceased to walk. Clinical Evaluation: all the patients showed both proximal and extraocular muscle weakness with onset before the age of 20 years. Deafness, diarrhea and visual impairment appeared later. The clinical course was worse in the males Laboratory studies showed increased levels of lactate and pyruvate, normal CK, decrease of serum 1-camitine. Brain MRI revealed Increased T2 signals. EMG revealed myogenic or neurogenic abnormalities and nerve conduction alterations. Muscle biopsy showed proliferation of abnormal mitochondria Discussion: an autosomal recessive inheritance pattern was inferred because of healthy parents, recurrence in sibs and both genres being affected. The diagnosis was based on the recognition of the phenotype. the histological and ultraestructural mitochondrial abnormalities, biochemical tests, however, the diagnosis of difficult, non-classic cases is possible only by DNA analysis.