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Background: Renal involvement is common during monoclonal gammopathies and their occurrence impacts the survival of the patients. Our objective was to describe the renal features during monoclonal gammopathies from 2004 to 2016 at the University Hospital of Yopougon in Abidjan., Methods: Renal failure was defined as blood creatinine level > 20 mg/L and/or proteinuria > 500 mg/24 hours., Results: We identified 42 cases of monoclonal gammopathiesincluding multiple myeloma (n=40) and monoclonal gammopathy of underdetermined significance (n=2). The rate of renal impairment was 57% (n=24) including tubular disease (n=20)and glomerular nephropathy (n=3). Two patients (one with cast nephropathy and another with Randall's disease) performed renal biopsy. The factors associated with renal impairment were mainly hyperuricemia (n=24)and hypercalcemia (n=23). Three cases were treated by hemodialysis. There were 6 (14.3%) deaths among patients with renal impairment., Conclusion: Tubular injury was common among patients with monoclonal gammopathy. It was associated with hypercalcemia and Hyperuricemia., (Le comitée de rédaction se réserve le droit de revoyer aux auteurs avant toute soumission à l'avis des lecteurs les manuscrits qui ne seraient pas conformes à ces modalités de présentation. En outre il leur conseille de sonserver un examplaire du manuscrit, des figures et des tableaux.)

We report an experimental investigation of homochiral cluster formation in seeded molecular beam expansions of (2R,3R)-butanediol. Synchrotron radiation vacuum ultraviolet photoionization measurements have been performed using a double imaging electron-ion spectrometer in various configurations and modes of operation. These include measurements of the cluster ion mass spectra, wavelength scanned ion yields, and threshold electron spectra. Protonated cluster ions ranging up to n = 7 have been observed and size-selected photoelectron spectra and photoelectron circular dichroism (PECD) have been recorded by velocity map imaging, recorded in coincidence with ions, at a number of fixed photon energies. Translation temperatures of the cluster ions have been further examined by ion imaging measurements. As well as the sequence of protonated clusters with integral numbers of butanediol monomer units, a second series with half-integral monomer masses is observed and deduced to result from a facile cleavage of a butanediol monomer moiety within the nascent cluster. This second sequence of half-integral masses displays quite distinct behaviours. PECD measurements are used to show that the half-integral mass cluster ions do not share a common parentage with whole integer masses. Using an analogy developed with simple theoretical calculations of butanediol dimer structures, it is inferred that the dissociative branching into integral and half-integral ion mass sequences is controlled by the presence of different butanediol monomer conformations within the hydrogen bonded clusters.

Most large molecules are chiral in their structure: they exist as two enantiomers, which are mirror images of each other. Whereas the rovibronic sublevels of two enantiomers are almost identical (neglecting a minuscular effect of the weak interaction), it turns out that the photoelectric effect is sensitive to the absolute configuration of the ionized enantiomer. Indeed, photoionization of randomly oriented enantiomers by left or right circularly polarized light results in a slightly different electron flux parallel or antiparallel with respect to the photon propagation direction-an effect termed photoelectron circular dichroism (PECD). Our comprehensive study demonstrates that the origin of PECD can be found in the molecular frame electron emission pattern connecting PECD to other fundamental photophysical effects such as the circular dichroism in angular distributions (CDAD). Accordingly, distinct spatial orientations of a chiral molecule enhance the PECD by a factor of about 10.

Various hantaviruses have been discovered in unconventional hosts (shrews and bats) in Africa. Up to now, it was unknown whether these viruses pose a threat for human health. In this study, using newly established serological assays, we demonstrated evidence of shrew-borne hantavirus infections in humans from Côte d'Ivoire and Gabon., (© The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.)

A competition between chiral characteristics alternatively attributable to either conformation or to absolute configuration is identified. Circular dichroism associated with photoexcitation of the outer orbital of configurational enantiomers of 1,3- and 2,3-butanediols has been examined with a focus on the large changes in electron chiral asymmetry produced by different molecular conformations. Experimental gas-phase measurements offer support for the theoretical modeling of this chiroptical effect. A surprising prediction is that a conformationally produced pseudo-enantiomerism in 1,3-butanediol generates a chiral response in the frontier electron dynamics that outweighs the influence of the permanent configurational handedness established at the asymmetrically substituted carbon. Induced conformation, and specifically induced conformational chirality, may thus be a dominating factor in chiral molecular recognition in such systems., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of leukocyte- and platelet-rich fibrin (L-PRF) on the pain and soft tissue healing after tooth extractions. Twenty-six patients (9 males and 17 females) were treated with multiple extractions (2 to 8), with a total of 108 extractions. This was an exploratory single blinded randomized clinical trial with a split-mouth design. The pain after the surgery was assessed in each patient by the VAS scale (1 to 10) at intervals of 24-48-72-96 hours. The soft tissue healing was clinically evaluated at 3, 7, 14, and 21 days after surgery by the same examiner surgeon, using the modified Healing Index (4 to 12). The mean value of postextraction pain was 3.2 ± 0.3 in the experimental sides and 4.1 ± 0.1 in the control sides. After 7 days from the extractions, the values of modified Healing Index in the experimental and control groups were, respectively, 4.8 ± 0.6 and 5.1 ± 0.9. The use of L-PRF in postextraction sockets filling can be proposed as a useful procedure in order to manage the postoperative pain and to promote the soft tissue healing process, reducing the early adverse effects of the inflammation.

The valence shell photoionization of the simplest proteinaceous chiral amino acid, alanine, is investigated over the vacuum ultraviolet region from its ionization threshold up to 18 eV. Tunable and variable polarization synchrotron radiation was coupled to a double imaging photoelectron/photoion coincidence (i(2)PEPICO) spectrometer to produce mass-selected threshold photoelectron spectra and derive the state-selected fragmentation channels. The photoelectron circular dichroism (PECD), an orbital-sensitive, conformer-dependent chiroptical effect, was also recorded at various photon energies and compared to continuum multiple scattering calculations. Two complementary vaporization methods-aerosol thermodesorption and a resistively heated sample oven coupled to an adiabatic expansion-were applied to promote pure enantiomers of alanine into the gas phase, yielding neutral alanine with different internal energy distributions. A comparison of the photoelectron spectroscopy, fragmentation, and dichroism measured for each of the vaporization methods was rationalized in terms of internal energy and conformer populations and supported by theoretical calculations. The analytical potential of the so-called PECD-PICO detection technique-where the electron spectroscopy and circular dichroism can be obtained as a function of mass and ion translational energy-is underlined and applied to characterize the origin of the various species found in the experimental mass spectra. Finally, the PECD findings are discussed within an astrochemical context, and possible implications regarding the origin of biomolecular asymmetry are identified.

A detailed study of the valence photoionization of small homochiral glycidol (C3O2H6) clusters is carried out with the help of circularly-polarized VUV synchrotron radiation by recording photoionization-based spectroscopic data detected by velocity map electron imaging with coincidence ion selection. We show that information on the stability of cationic as well as neutral chiral clusters can be obtained with enhanced sensitivity by examining the chiral fingerprint encapsulated in Photoelectron Circular Dichroism (PECD) spectra. In particular, by varying the clustering conditions we demonstrate that the PECD signal effectively carries the signature of the neutral precursor species, prior to any fragmentation of the ion, as may be inferred from the below-threshold monomer measurements (including ion imaging). Here the monomer's direct ionization channel is closed and the monomer ion hence must result exclusively as a fragment from dissociative ionization of the dimer (or higher) clusters. At higher photon energies, the mass-selection on the electron spectroscopy data, achieved through filtering the electron images in coincidence with selected ion masses, evidently succeeds in providing a degree of size-selection on the neutral clusters being ionized with, in particular, a clear differentiation of monomer and dimer PECD, showing the strong sensitivity of this chiroptical effect to the non-local long-range molecular potential.

Abstract Platelet derivatives are commonly used in wound healing and tissue regeneration. Different procedures of platelet preparation may differentially affect growth factor release and cell growth. Preparation of platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) is accompanied by release of growth factors, including platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and transforming growth factor β1 (TGFβ1), and several cytokines. When compared with the standard procedure for platelet-rich plasma (PRP), PRF released 2-fold less PDGF, but >15-fold and >2-fold VEGF and TGFβ1, respectively. Also, the release of several cytokines (IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IFNγ, MIP-1α, MIP-1β and TNFα) was significantly increased in PRF-conditioned medium (CM), compared to PRP-CM. Incubation of both human skin fibroblasts and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) with PRF-derived membrane (mPRF) or with PRF-CM enhanced cell proliferation by >2-fold (p<0.05). Interestingly, PRP elicited fibroblast growth at a higher extent compared to PRF. At variance, PRF effect on HUVEC growth was significantly greater than that of PRP, consistent with a higher concentration of VEGF in the PRF-CM. Thus, the procedure of PRP preparation leads to a larger release of PDGF, as a possible result of platelet degranulation, while PRF enhances the release of proangiogenic factors.

We present a versatile double imaging particle coincidence spectrometer operating in fully continuous mode, named DELICIOUS III, which combines a velocity map imaging device and a modified Wiley-McLaren time of flight momentum imaging analyzer for photoelectrons and photoions, respectively. The spectrometer is installed in a permanent endstation on the DESIRS vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) beamline at the French National Synchrotron Radiation Facility SOLEIL, and is dedicated to gas phase VUV spectroscopy, photoionization, and molecular dynamics studies. DELICIOUS III is capable of recording mass-selected threshold photoelectron photoion coincidence spectra with a sub-meV resolution, and the addition of a magnifying lens inside the electron drift tube provides a sizeable improvement of the electron threshold/ion mass resolution compromise. In fast electron mode the ultimate kinetic energy resolution has been measured at ΔE/E = 4%. The ion spectrometer offers a mass resolution--full separation of adjacent masses--of 250 amu for moderate extraction fields and the addition of an electrostatic lens in the second acceleration region allows measuring the full 3D velocity vector for a given mass with an ultimate energy resolution of ΔE/E = 15%, without sacrificing the mass resolution. Hence, photoelectron images are correlated both to the mass and to the ion kinetic energy and recoil direction, to access the electron spectroscopy of size-selected species, to study the photodissociation processes of state-selected cations in detail, or to measure in certain cases photoelectron angular distributions in the ion recoil frame. The performances of DELICIOUS III are explored through several examples including the photoionization of N2, NO, and CF3.

Leukocyte- and platelet-rich fibrin (L-PRF) is a biomaterial commonly used in periodontology and implant dentistry to improve healing and tissue regeneration, particularly as filling material in alveolar sockets to regenerate bone for optimal dental implant placement. The objective of this work was to evaluate the use of L-PRF as a safe filling and hemostatic material after dental extractions (or avulsions) for the prevention of hemorrhagic complications in heart surgery patients without modification of the anticoagulant oral therapy. Fifty heart surgery patients under oral anticoagulant therapy who needed dental extractions were selected for the study. Patients were treated with L-PRF clots placed into 168 postextraction sockets without modification of anticoagulant therapy (mean international normalized ratio  =  3.16 ± 0.39). Only 2 patients reported hemorrhagic complications (4%), all of which resolved a few hours after the surgery by compression and hemostatic topical agents. Ten patients (20%) showed mild bleeding, which spontaneously resolved or was resolved by minimal compression less than 2 hours after surgery. No case of delayed bleeding was reported. The remaining 38 patients (76%) showed an adequate hemostasis after the dental extractions. In all cases, no alveolitis or painful events were reported, soft tissue healing was quick, and wound closure was always complete at the time of suture removal one week after surgery. The proposed protocol is a reliable therapeutic option to avoid significant bleeding after dental extractions without the suspension of the continuous oral anticoagulant therapy in heart surgery patients. Other applications of the hemostatic and healing properties of L-PRF should be investigated in oral implantology.

Background: A 16-years old female patient was referred to our observation in July 2006, 14 days after an accident, with traumatic intrusive luxation of the right upper central incisor that caused the nasal floor and buccal cortical bone fracture. While the extraoral examination showed the traumatic lesions of the upper lip, the intraoral examination revealed intrusive luxation, pain and high mobility of the tooth, and bleeding of the adjacent oral tissue. The treatment protocol consisted in surgical buccal bone removal, tooth extraction, retrograde root-canal filling, and tooth repositioning in occlusion with a resilient splinting. After 8 weeks the splinting was removed, and clinical and radiological examinations were taken 3, 6, 9, 12, and 24 months after surgery. At the 24 months follow-up the root showed no radiographic signs of inflammation, resorption or ankylosis, and the function of the replanted tooth was fully maintained. Tooth replantation can be considered an effective alternative to dental implant, when the latter is contraindicated in young patient with incomplete skeletal development. The long-term success of the procedure will likely require a multidisciplinary approach.

Purpose: The extraction of deeply included third molars may cause multiple periodontal defects at the distal root of the second molar. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is a material containing autologous growth factors, which may be used in repairing and preventing periodontal complications at the distal root of the second molar adjacent to the extracted third molar. We have previously analyzed the effects of autologous PRP on periodontal tissues after extraction of the third molar in 18 young patients. In the current study, we investigated the clinical effects of a resorbable collagen membrane of porcine origin (Bio-Gide; Geistlich Biomaterials, Wolhusen, Switzerland) associated with PRP on bone regeneration after surgical avulsion of the inferior third molars in mesio-horizontal inclusion in comparison with the use of PRP alone., Materials and Methods: Inclusion criteria were the presence of a pocket distal to the mandibular second molar with a probing depth greater than or equal to 7.5 mm and a probing attachment level greater than or equal to 6 mm, and a postextraction defect presenting with the vestibular and lingual cortical bone intact., Results and Conclusions: We show that although clinical results from the comparison of PRP alone versus PRP and resorbable membrane can be considered similar, from a histologic point of view, the association of PRP to Bio-Gide membrane showed earlier signs of bone maturation but not a higher grade of bone regeneration.

Background: Extraction of deep-impacted mandibular third molars may lead to periodontal defects at the distal surface of the adjacent second molar. The purpose of this study was to compare the ability of three regenerative approaches to prevent third molar extraction-related periodontal defects., Methods: Forty-five patients with bilateral osseous or soft tissue-impacted lower third molars were selected to participate in the study. Inclusion criteria were the presence of a pocket that was located distally to the mandibular second molar with a probing depth (PD) >or=7 mm and with a probing clinical attachment level (CAL) >or=6 mm. Ninety third molar impactions were used and were randomly assigned to three equal treatment groups (30 each): bovine porous bone mineral (BPBM) alone, BPBM plus collagen membrane (CM), and an untreated control group. Clinical and radiographic measurements were recorded at 3, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, 60, and 72 months after the surgery., Results: BPBM or BPBM + CM resulted in a significant reduction in PD and gain in CAL compared to the control group at all time points. BPBM + CM had the best outcome for the prevention of a second-molar periodontal defect., Conclusion: The application of BPBM, with or without a collagen membrane, can be a viable and stable treatment to alleviate the periodontal defects that are often associated with impacted mandibular third molar extractions.

This study was conducted in order to identify the failure rate of the first arterio-venous fistula (AVF) in patients starting hemodialysis (HD) with a central venous catheter (CVC) and to search for factors responsible for this failure. A retrospective study was conducted on 85 patients on chronic HD in Abidjan, from March 15 th to April 15 th , 2007. Factors that could potentially influence the failure of the first AVF were collected. Statistical analysis was used for comparison between groups. Among the study subjects, 7.14% had AVF at the start of their dialysis as against 92.86% who had CVC. About 50% of the patients starting dialysis with CVC failed to have an AVF created within 90 days of commencing dialysis. The number of catheters inserted was significantly higher in patients with failed first AVF as compared to their counterparts (49.29 % versus 30.77%) (p< 0.001). Similarly, the number of attempts at AVF creation, within 90 days of starting HD, was significantly higher in patients with failed first AVF (81.48% versus 18.52%) (p< 0.001). Multivariate analysis did not reveal any specific factor(s) that influenced the failure rate of the first AVF. Our study suggests that a very small number of patients in Ivory Coast started dialysis with an AVF. The failure rate of the first AVF in patients starting dialysis on CVC is about 50%.

Autologous platelet gel (AGP) is a source of concentrated growth factors contained in the platelet granules used to enhance bone quality and, especially, quicken bone formation in regeneration techniques, and also ameliorate the haemostasis in anti-coagulated patient management. The purpose of this study is to describe a technique to perform labelling of autologous platelet-gel with 111In -Oxine and to evaluate its usefulness, as a marker of bone osteoinduction by means of scintigraphy, after in vivo application in patients with jaw bone defects following cystic lesion enucleation and the extraction of deeply impacted lower third molar. All patients included in the study presented mandible bone defects following cyst enucleation or deeply impacted lower third molar extraction. In sterile conditions, 111In-Oxine AGP was added during the bone-milling phase of the graft preparation and then applied to the bone defects. The scintigraphy was performed 2 hours after the application of labelled AGP (early scan) and at 24, 48, 72, 384 hours (delayed scan). At early scan all the patients presented a high concentration of 111In-Oxine AGP, which was easily recognized at the level of jaw defect. Limited diffusion of AGP was seen in the tissue surrounding the bone defect; this activity was attributed to the presence, in the PRP, of a quote of autologous granulocytes, as marker of inflammatory process, which was labelled with 111In-Oxine. In order to demonstrate the persistence and stability of labelling AGP, abdominal scintigraphies were performed to assess the presence of activity in the liver, spleen and bone marrow. None of the patients presented appreciable activity in these organs. The labelled AGP topically applied showed high uptake values, without statistically significant activity in the surrounding tissues or in critical organs during the early phase, as well as in delayed controls, and confirmed a very low grade of loss of 111In-Oxine from the bone defect. The scintigraphy represents a useful method of assessing the success of surgical procedure for jaw bone defects performed with autogenous grafts. It is well accepted by the patients, offering at the same time a sensitive method of studying uptake of topically applied AGP and to follow up kinetics of AGP in order to correlate quantitative data of the platelet gel life span with evolution of the bone remodelling process. Finally, the labelled granulocytes around the bone defect allow to assess the inflammatory process evolution derived from the surgical technique.

The source of living kidney donors in the general population remains underused. The present study aims at assessing the prevalence and the characteristics of potential living kidney donors in Ivory Coast in a view of a project of kidney transplantation in French Black Africa. A survey was undertaken in Abidjan from 30 June to 7 July 2006. Nine hundred (and) sixty-two subjects living in the capital and aged between 19 and 64 years old were randomly chosen using data from the 1998 population census. Subjects were asked their age, gender, nationality, marital status, information on kidney graft and renal failure, and their willingness to donate kidney to a relative or friend for transplantation purpose. Seventy per cent of the population study appeared favourable to kidney donation. Potentials living kidney donors have displayed following characteristics: age inferior to 26 years old [OR=2.08, P<0.02, 95%CI: 1.10-3.92]; Ivorians national [OR=2.72, P<0.002, 95% CI 1.42-5.21]; having heard of kidney transplantation (OR=1.89, P<0.047, 95% CI 1-3.54]); the death of a relative or friend from renal failure [OR=1.82, P<0.002, 95% CI 1.25 2.67]. Being married adversely affect kidney donation [OR=0.52, P<0.0002, 95% CI 0.34-0.79]. Potentials living kidney donors are in great number in Ivory Coast, who had specific characteristics.

Purpose: The extraction of mesioangular impacted third molars may cause multiple periodontal defects at the distal root of the second molar. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is a material containing many autologous growth factors that may be used in repairing and preventing periodontal complications at the distal root of the second molar adjacent to the extracted third molar., Patients and Methods: We analyzed the effects of autologous PRP on periodontal tissues after extraction of the third molar in 18 young patients (age, 21-26 years). Inclusion criteria were the presence of a pocket distal to the mandibular second molar with a probing depth>or=7.5 mm and a probing attachment level>or=6 mm., Results: We observed, at 12 weeks after surgery, a notable reduction in the probing depth and an improvement in the probing attachment level in those cases treated with PRP compared with the controls, as well as formation of new bone tissue in the bone defect., Conclusion: We showed that PRP is effective in inducing and accelerating bone regeneration for the treatment of periodontal defects at the distal root of the mandibular second molar after surgical extraction of a mesioangular, deeply impacted mandibular third molar.

Purpose: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a protocol using platelet-rich plasma (PRP) to prevent bleeding after dental extraction in patients treated with anticoagulant oral therapy., Materials and Methods: Forty patients with mechanical heart-value replacement who were treated with anticoagulant oral therapy were selected for the study. Each patient was treated with PRP gel placed into residual alveolar bone after extraction without heparin administration after suspension of oral anticoagulant drugs (36 hours)., Results: Only 2 patients reported hemorrhagic complications (5%). Sixteen patients (40%) had mild bleeding that was easy to control with hemostatic topical agents; this mild bleeding terminated completely 1 to 3 days after the surgical procedures. The remaining 22 patients (55%) presented with adequate hemostasis., Conclusions: Oral surgery in heart surgical patients under oral anticoagulant therapy may be facilitated with PRP gel. Its use is an advanced and safe procedure. This biological and therapeutical improvement can simplify systemic management and help avoid hemorrhagic and/or thromboembolic complications.