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Introduction: Acne vulgaris, a chronic inflammatory condition, is associated with significant physical and psychosocial burden. Since 2019, three new topical agents for acne vulgaris have been approved in the USA and Canada. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to compare the efficacy between twice-daily clascoterone cream 1%, once-daily trifarotene 0.005% cream, and once-daily tazarotene 0.045% lotion for acne treatment. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing clascoterone, trifarotene, or tazarotene with vehicle in patients with moderate-to-severe acne were identified from a systematic literature review and included in a meta-analysis. Primary outcomes were percentage reduction in inflammatory and noninflammatory lesion count (ILC and NILC, respectively) and treatment success rate (≥ 2-grade improvement in Investigator's Global Assessment or Evaluator's Global Severity Score and a rating of clear or almost clear) at week 12. DerSimonian and Laird random-effects models with the inverse variance method were used to calculate the mean difference (MD) for percentage reduction in ILC and NILC, and odds ratios (ORs) for the rate of treatment success. Results: Six Phase 3 RCTs were included in the meta-analysis. The analyses showed robust differences favoring the interventions for ILC (MD: − 11.5; 95% confidence interval [CI]: − 14.39, − 8.62), NILC (MD: − 12.25; 95% CI: − 15.21, − 9.29), and treatment success rate (OR: 2.14; 95% CI: 1.81, 2.53). No differences were observed between clascoterone, trifarotene, and tazarotene for ILC (MD: − 12.8, − 11.2, and − 10.1, respectively), NILC (MD: − 11.6, − 13.9, and − 12.8, respectively), or treatment success rate (OR: 2.9, 1.9, and 2.1, respectively (all P > 0.05). Conclusion: No significant differences in efficacy were observed between clascoterone, trifarotene, and tazarotene after 12 weeks of treatment in patients with moderate-to-severe acne. Differences in application frequency and safety profile should also be taken into consideration when making treatment decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surf scoters are part of a community of sea ducks on the western coast of North America that have shown signs of long-term, unexplained declines in breeding bird numbers. Substantial numbers of scoters winter in the major harbours on the west coast, after breeding in the west-central northern boreal forest. To address the potential for contaminants to impact the health and survival of those birds, we investigated the condition and contamination of surf scoters during the winters of 1998–2001 at four foraging locations in the Strait of Georgia region of the Pacific coast of Canada. Vitamin A status was evaluated in liver and plasma samples collected from adults and juveniles, as part of a larger assessment of tissue contamination, body condition and biomarker responses. Individuals collected from a relatively contaminated site, Howe Sound, showed consistently low hepatic concentrations of retinol and retinyl palmitate forms of vitamin A, and gender-specific associations of retinyl palmitate with hepatic EROD activity. The relationship of hepatic retinol to retinyl palmitate was not constant across geographic locations, and a clear, linear relationship between the two forms of vitamin A was only evident in birds from the relatively uncontaminated site. This study also identified strong positive relationships between vitamin A and tissue burdens of cadmium and zinc. The positive association between hepatic retinyl palmitate and renal cadmium is similar to one observed in laboratory rats, in which a mechanism of interference with the controlled release of retinol from the liver was suggested. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Since the mid-1990s, the decline of the yellow perch population of Lake Saint-Pierre (hereinafter LSP) in Quebec, Canada has been the subject of several research programs. The combined effect of habitat deterioration, the presence of invasive species, and poor water quality negatively affected the yellow perch population in this lake. In 2013, we sampled yellow perch (larvae, juveniles and adults) at six sites along the St. Lawrence River representing a gradient of increasing human influences from upstream to downstream and measured several biomarkers including retinoid compounds (vitamin A). In the most contaminated sites (LSP, north and south shores), we found that retinoid stores were decreased in all three stages of development. To corroborate these results and to test other biomarkers, we once again sampled yellow perch (adults only) from the same sites. Results from our 2014 and 2015 samplings confirmed that LSP yellow perch appeared to be at a disadvantage compared to fish from upstream populations. Individuals from LSP have lower acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity as well as lower retinoid levels in liver and plasma. These fish were also marked by lower levels of antioxidants such as lycopene and vitamin E. A discriminant analysis of this set of results confirmed that the yellow perch of the LSP could be easily discriminated from those of the other sites (2014 and 2015) on the basis of liver retinoid and, to a lesser extent, of the liver tocopherol and protein concentration of the muscle, as well as AChE activity and DROH (all-trans-3,4-dehydroretinol) measured in plasma., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Bragg, P. D. (University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B. C, Canada) and W. J. Polglase. Electron-transport components of streptomycin-dependent Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 86:544-547. 1963.-When a streptomycin-dependent strain of Escherichia coli was grown in antibiotic-free medium, the resulting streptomycin-depleted cells were found to contain relatively large amounts of vitamin K(2). Cytochromes a(1) and a(2) were absent from depleted cells, and these cells metabolized glucose with the accumulation of lactic acid. Depleted cells were normal in their content of coenzyme Q(8), total flavine, and cytochrome b. Growth of depleted cells on medium containing dihydrostreptomycin restored their ability to metabolize lactic acid concomitantly with a decrease in vitamin K(2) to a normal level, and with the formation of cytochromes a(1) and a(2). It is concluded that streptomycin (or dihydrostreptomycin) is required by dependent E. coli for maintenance of the integrity of the electron-transport system.

Bragg, P. D. (University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C., Canada). Dihydrostreptomycin, vitamin K(2)-coupled tetrazolium reduction, and oxidative phosphorylation in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 88:1019-1023. 1964.-Dihydrostreptomycin inhibited the vitamin K(2)-coupled pyruvate-triphenyltetrazolium (TTC) reductase system in extracts from antibiotic-sensitive cells, but stimulated this reaction with extracts from a dependent mutant. The effects of nucleotides, phosphate, and uncoupling agents on the vitamin K(2)-TTC system are consistent with the linkage of reduction of the dye through intermediates of oxidative phosphorylation.