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Abstract Multifocal contact lenses (MCLs) are one of the solutions to correct presbyopia, but their adoption is not widespread. To address this situation, visual simulators can be used to refine the adaptation process. This study aims to obtain accurate simulations for a visual simulator (SimVis Gekko; 2EyesVision) of daily soft MCL designs from four manufacturers. In-vitro characterization of these MCLs—several powers and additions- was obtained using NIMO TR-1504. From the averaged relative power profiles across powers, phase maps were reconstructed and the Through-Focus Visual Strehl metric was calculated for each MCL design. The SimVis Gekko simulation corresponding to each MCL design was obtained computationally and bench-validated. Finally, the MCL simulations were clinically validated involving presbyopic patients. The clinical validation results show a good agreement between the SimVis Gekko simulations and the real MCLs for through-focus visual acuity (TF-VA) curves and VA at three real distances. All MCL designs showed a partial correlation higher than 0.90 and a Root Mean Square Error below 0.07 logMAR between the TF-VA of simulations and Real MCLs across subjects. The validity of the simulation approach using SimVis Gekko and in-vitro measurements was confirmed in this study, opening the possibility to accelerate the adaptation of MCLs.

Abstract Background Colon cancer (CC) is a heterogeneous disease that is categorized into four Consensus Molecular Subtypes (CMS) according to gene expression. Patients with loco-regional CC (stages II/III) lack prognostic factors, making it essential to analyze new molecular markers that can delineate more aggressive tumors. Aberrant methylation of genes that are essential in crucial mechanisms such as epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) contributes to tumor progression in CC. We evaluate the presence of hyper- and hypomethylation in subrogate IHC markers used for CMS classification (CDX2, FRMD6, HTR2B, ZEB1) of 144 stage II/III patients and CC cell lines by pyrosequencing. ZEB1 expression was also studied in control and shRNA-silenced CC cell lines and in paired normal tissue/tumors by quantitative PCR. The pattern of ZEB1 staining was also analyzed in methylated/unmethylated tumors by immunohistochemistry. Results We describe for the first time the hypermethylation of ZEB1 gene and the hypomethylation of the FRMD6 gene in 32.6% and 50.9% of tumors, respectively. Additionally, we confirm the ZEB1 re-expression by epigenetic drugs in methylated cell lines. ZEB1 hypermethylation was more frequent in CMS1 patients and, more importantly, was a good prognostic factor related to disease-free survival (p = 0.015) and overall survival (p = 0.006) in our patient series, independently of other significant clinical parameters such as patient age, stage, lymph node involvement, and blood vessel and perineural invasion. Conclusions Aberrant methylation is present in the subrogate genes used for CMS classification. Our results are the first evidence that ZEB1 is hypermethylated in CC and that this alteration is an independent factor of good prognosis.

* Context.--Cardiac metastases are more prevalent than primary cardiac tumors, and although rare, the incidence is anticipated to increase with the extended survival of oncology patients. Objective.--To estimate the current incidence of cardiac metastasis from solid tumors in adult autopsies. Design.--Adult autopsy cases from 1984 through 2019 from patients diagnosed with any type of solid cancer were retrieved. The medical charts and pathologic autopsy data were reviewed in detail. Results.--A total of 1294 adult autopsies performed on patients diagnosed with any type of cancer within the past 35 years were reviewed. We found 124 secondary cardiac tumors. Eighty-five were due to cardiac involvement by solid tumors. Of these, 61 were true cardiac metastases of solid cancers. We focused on these 61 cases. The age range was 32 to 85 years. Forty-four patients were men and 17 were women. The lung was the most common primary site, with 21 cases (34.43%). The most frequent histologic type was carcinoma, with 54 cases (88.52%). The predominant layer of the heart involved was the pericardium, with 35 cases (57.38%). Twenty-one cases (34.43%) had pericardial effusion, with 4 being hemorrhagic. All cases had multiple extracardiac metastases, with 56 cases (91.8%) having distant metastases in 4 or more different organs. Conclusions.--Cardiac metastasis is a rare occurrence, with an incidence of 4.71% (61 of 1294 cases) in our series. Lung cancer accounted for most of the cardiac metastases seen, and carcinomas were the most frequent histologic type. The pericardium was the most frequent location. Cardiac metastases occurred most frequently in cases of massive metastatic dissemination. doi: 10.5858/arpa.2021-0418-OA, According to earlier autopsy studies, the frequency of primary cardiac tumors ranges from 0.001% to 0.3%. (1,2) Most primary cardiac tumors (~75%) are benign, with atrial myxoma being the most [...]

Abstract Background Cataracts affect the optics of the eye in terms of absorption, blur, and scattering. When cataracts are unilateral, they cause differences between the eyes that can produce visual discomfort and harm binocular vision. These interocular differences can also induce differences in the processing speed of the eyes that may cause a spontaneous Pulfrich effect, a visual illusion provoking important depth misperceptions. Interocular differences in light level, like those present in unilateral cataracts, can cause the Classic Pulfrich effect, and interocular differences in blur, like those present in monovision, a common correction for presbyopia, can cause the Reverse Pulfrich effect. The visual system may be able to adapt, or not, to the new optical condition, depending on the degree of the cataract and the magnitude of the monovision correction. Case presentation Here, we report a unique case of a 45-year-old patient that underwent unilateral cataract surgery resulting in a monovision correction of 2.5 diopters (D): left eye emmetropic after the surgery compensated with a monofocal intraocular lens and right eye myopic with a spherical equivalent of -2.50 D. This patient suffered severe symptoms in binocular vision, which can be explained by a spontaneous Pulfrich effect (a delay measured of 4.82 ms, that could be eliminated with a 0.19 optical density filter). After removing the monovision with clear lens extraction in the second eye, symptoms disappeared. We demonstrate that, at least in this patient, both Classic and Reverse Pulfrich effects coexist after unilateral cataract surgery and that can be readapted by reverting the interocular differences. Besides, we report that the adaptation/readaptation process to the Reverse Pulfrich effect happens in a timeframe of weeks, as opposed to the Classic Pulfrich effect, known to have timeframes of days. Additionally, we used the illusion measured in the laboratory to quantify the relevance of the spontaneous Pulfrich effect in different visual scenarios and tasks, using geometrical models and optic flow algorithms. Conclusions Measuring the different versions of the Pulfrich effect might help to understand the visual discomfort reported by many patients after cataract surgery or with monovision and could guide compensation or intervention strategies.

Lan honetan -garri eta -kor atzizkien bitartez eraikitzen diren jite adjektiboak arakatu ditugu. Adjektibo horiek mendeko aditzak adierazten duen gertaerarekin edo egoerarekin lotutako irakurketa potentziala, ebaluatiboa edo joerazkoa dute, eta, adjektiboaren arabera, balio aktiboa, pasiboa ala jasaileduna izan dezakete. Lan honetan proposatuko dugu jite adjektiboen interpretazioa adjektiboak mendean hartzen duen egitura morfosintaktikoaren ondorioa dela; zehazki, Boz buruaren, aditz txikiaren eta buru horiei lotutako argumentuen araberakoa (Alexiadou, 2018; Oltra-Massuet, 2013). Azterketa honetatik abiatuta, proposatuko dugu egile eta arazle argumentuak gune desberdinetan sartzen direla sintaxian.

Abstract Background Diet may impact important risk factors for endometrial cancer such as obesity and inflammation. However, evidence on the role of specific dietary factors is limited. We investigated associations between dietary fatty acids and endometrial cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). Methods This analysis includes 1,886 incident endometrial cancer cases and 297,432 non-cases. All participants were followed up for a mean of 8.8 years. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of endometrial cancer across quintiles of individual fatty acids estimated from various food sources quantified through food frequency questionnaires in the entire EPIC cohort. The false discovery rate (q-values) was computed to control for multiple comparisons. Results Consumption of n-6 γ-linolenic acid was inversely associated with endometrial cancer risk (HR comparing 5th with 1st quintileQ5−Q1=0.77, 95% CI = 0.64; 0.92, ptrend=0.01, q-value = 0.15). This association was mainly driven by γ-linolenic acid derived from plant sources (HRper unit increment=0.94, 95%CI= (0.90;0.98), p = 0.01) but not from animal sources (HRper unit increment= 1.00, 95%CI = (0.92; 1.07), p = 0.92). In addition, an inverse association was found between consumption of n-3 α-linolenic acid from vegetable sources and endometrial cancer risk (HRper unit increment= 0.93, 95%CI = (0.87; 0.99), p = 0.04). No significant association was found between any other fatty acids (individual or grouped) and endometrial cancer risk. Conclusion Our results suggest that higher consumption of γ-linolenic acid and α-linoleic acid from plant sources may be associated with lower risk of endometrial cancer.

AbstractFrom the point of view of institutional communication, the Second Vatican Council can be considered the most significant media event of the 20th century organized by an institution. This was so because of its duration, impact on millions of people, and the media interest it generated. For the Catholic Church, the management of the official information of this Assembly was an undertaking of enormous proportions, involving complex challenges. This article provides an overview of how the Vatican II information services dealt with such challenges.

Abstract Most tunable lenses (TLs) are affected by deviations in optical power induced by external temperature changes or due to internal heating while in use. This study proposes: (1) An experimental characterization method to evaluate the magnitude of the optical power deviations due to internal temperature shifts; (2) three different mathematical models (experimental, polynomial, and optimized) to describe the response of the lens with temperature; (3) predictions of the internal temperature shifts while using the lens in time frames of minutes, seconds, and milliseconds and; (4) a real time optical power compensation tool based on the implementation of the models on a custom voltage electronic driver. The compensation methods were successfully applied to two TL samples in static and dynamic experiments and in hysteresis cycles. After 40 min at a static nominal power of 5 diopters (dpt), the internal temperature exponentially increased by 17 °C, producing an optical power deviation of 1.0 dpt (1.5 dpt when the lens cools down), representing a 20% distortion for heating and 30% for cooling. Modelling and compensation reduced the deviations to 0.2 dpt when heating (0.35 dpt when cooling) and the distortions to 4% and 7%. Similar levels of improvement were obtained in dynamic and hysteresis experiments. Compensation reduced temperature effects by more than 75%, representing a significant improvement in the performance of the lens.