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Infectious mononucleosis is a largely benign disease process that occurs secondary to infection with the Epstein-Barr virus. However, it can also present with more serious complications, including auto-immune hemolytic anemia and acute liver failure. Hereditary hemochromatosis is a genetic disorder that leads to organ damage via increased iron uptake and deposition. This case report describes a 25-year-old man who presented with acute liver failure and severe hemolytic anemia. Workup revealed that not only did he have a rare presentation of Epstein-Barr virus-induced acute liver failure and C3-positive IgG-negative hemolytic anemia, he also had previously undiagnosed hereditary hemochromatosis. This combined presentation of these pathologies presents a unique opportunity to study their interaction and possible synergistic pathophysiology. Furthermore, the evolving understanding of the disease mechanisms behind these disease processes is described.

Pulmonary large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) is an uncommon type of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with an incidence of approximately 3% of all lung cancer diagnoses. The patient was a 60-year-old male with a 90-pack year smoking history who presented with dyspnea on exertion and productive cough for five weeks. Decreased breath sounds without respiratory distress and generalized cachexia were noted on the initial physical exam. Laboratory results were unremarkable except for chronic microcytic anemia. Computed tomography revealed extensive lymphadenopathy of the paratracheal, paraaortic, hilar, and nodes surrounding the left pulmonary arteries. Additionally, there were areas of necrosis in the left upper lobe, lingula, and left lower lobe with extensive pleural thickening extending to the abdomen and subcutaneous tissue of the anterior chest wall. Biopsy and staining showed disorganized tight cell clusters with irregular and prominent nuclei and numerous lymphocytes consistent with LCNEC. Immunohistochemistry was positive for neural cell adhesion molecule CD56 and synaptophysin, which was indicative of neuroendocrine origin. It was also positive for pan-cytokeratin antibody AE1 and AE3 and cytokeratin (CAM) 5.2, which arise from epithelial origin consistent with NSCLCs. Lastly, the patient’s tissue was positive for thyroid transcription factor-1, which confirmed the tumor’s primary lung origin. This combination of neuroendocrine and primary lung tumor markers, in conjunction with the histology, confirmed the patient’s diagnosis of LCNEC.

Background The utility of convalescent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) plasma (CCP) in the current pandemic is not well defined. We sought to evaluate the safety and efficacy of CCP in severely or life threateningly ill COVID-19 patients when matched with a contemporaneous cohort. Methods Patients with severe or life-threatening COVID-19 were treated with CCP according to Food and Drug Administration criteria, prioritization by an interdisciplinary team, and based on CCP availability. Individual-level matched controls (1:1) were identified from patients admitted during the prior month when no CCP was available. The safety outcome was freedom from adverse transfusion reaction, and the efficacy outcome was a composite of death or worsening O2 support. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were analyzed by univariate and multivariable regression analyses accounting for matched design. Results Study patients (n = 94, 47 matched pairs) were 62% male with a mean age of 58, and 98% (90/94) were minorities (53% Hispanic, 45% Black, non-Hispanic) in our inner-city population. Seven-day composite and mortality outcomes suggested a nonsignificant benefit in CCP-treated patients (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 0.70; 95% CI, 0.23–2.12; P = .52; aHR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.04–1.51; P = .13, respectively). Stratification by pretransfusion mechanical ventilation status showed no differences between groups. No serious transfusion reactions occurred. Conclusions In this short-term matched cohort study, transfusion with CCP was safe and showed a nonsignificant association with study outcomes. Randomized and larger trials to identify appropriate timing and dosing of CCP in COVID-19 are warranted. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04420988.

Hetlioz ® (tasimelteon) is the first approved treatment in the United States for Non-24-Hour Sleep-Wake Disorder (Non-24). We present here data on the in vitro binding affinity of tasimelteon for both human melatonin receptors MT 1 and MT 2 , as well as the extended screen of other receptors and enzymes. Results indicate that tasimelteon is a potent Dual Melatonin Receptor Agonist (DMRA) with 2.1–4.4 times greater affinity for the MT 2 receptor believed to mediate circadian rhythm phase-shifting (K i = 0.0692 nM and K i = 0.17 nM in NIH-3T3 and CHO–K1 cells, respectively), than for the MT 1 receptor (K i = 0.304 nM and K i = 0.35 nM, respectively). Tasimelteon was also shown to have no appreciable affinity for more than 160 other pharmacologically relevant receptors and several enzymes.