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One hundred forty-four boys from Urban schools in Equador were measured for plasma insulin-like growth factor (IGF1) to assess the validity of the hormone as an index in nutritional status and growth. Two groups of boys coming from the lower socio-economic class and found to have reduced caloric and protein intake were given caloric and nitrogen supplementation. Clinical and anthropometric measurement results show that height is strongly influenced by nutritional intake and that decreased IGF1 values can be a reliable index for food deprivation.

Examines the application of the wet oxidation process to the treatment of municipal sewage sludge. Influence of temperature in the oxidation reactor; Presence of non-degraded fatty compounds and surfactants; Factors to consider in designing a treatment plant for removing ammonia.

An attempt was made to identify the less severe cases of precocious puberty and to describe their natural course. A group of 17 girls with precocious puberty and a bone age advance over chronological age of less than two years (group 1) was compared with a group of 19 patients with severe precocious puberty and bone age advance of two years or more (group 2). Mean (SEM) plasma oestradiol concentrations were 82 (30) pmol/l and 164 (21) pmol/l (p less than 0.05), vaginal maturation indexes were 16 (5) and 41 (4), and plasma somatomedin C concentrations were 1.0 (0.2) U/ml (n = 8) and 2.1 (0.3) U/ml (n = 16) in groups 1 and 2, respectively. The time between onset and diagnosis of secondary sexual characteristics was about one year in both groups. After two years' follow up the untreated patients in group 1 had maintained their predicted final height. These changes were in contrast to those observed at first examination in patients in group 2 who had a mean (SD) predicted final height of -1.3 (0.2) and a mean bone age advance of 3.0 (0.2) years. These data show that bone age advance to chronological age, and plasma somatomedin C concentrations measured at initial evaluation are helpful in identifying less severe and potentially slow progressing forms of central precocious puberty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To ensure patient care in an oncological fertility preservation (FP) programme, specialists must provide technology that best suits the patients' clinical conditions. In vitro oocyte maturation (IVM) and ovarian tissue cryopreservation (OTC) are possible fertility preservation treatments for women in need of urgent oncological treatment. IVM consists of the retrieval of immature oocytes from small antral follicles, with no or minimal ovarian stimulation by gonadotropins. Therefore, IVM has become a pertinent option for fertility preservation, especially for cases whereby ovarian stimulation is unfeasible or contra-indicated. Existing data on immature oocytes, retrieved transvaginally (OPU-IVM) or extracted from ovarian tissue 'ex vivo' (OTO-IVM), are still limited on technical consistency, efficacy, and safety. The present retrospective cohort study includes 89 women undergoing fertility preservation using IVM methodologies and 26 women undergoing ovarian stimulation (OS) in concomitant period. In total, 533 immature oocytes were collected from IVM patients, achieving a maturation rate of 57% and 70% in OTO-IVM and 73% and 82% in OPU-IVM at 24 h and 48 h in culture, respectively. The observed high maturation rates might be due to the use of patients' serum in its innate status, i.e., without heat-inactivation. This permitted 7.6 ± 5.7 and 4.6 ± 4.9 oocytes to be vitrified in OTO-IVM and OPU-IVM, respectively, compared to 6.8 ± 4.6 from OS patients. Regarding OS patients, two of them underwent embryo transfer following the insemination of warmed oocytes after complete remission, resulting in a single live birth from one patient. Upon follow-up of two OTO-IVM patients after the termination of their oncological treatment, a total of 11 warmed oocytes lead to a transfer of a single embryo, but pregnancy was not achieved. From OPU-IVM, six embryos were transferred in three patients 4.25 years after oocyte vitrification, leading to the live birth of a healthy boy. The present case of live birth is among the first cases reported so far and supports the notion that IVM might be a relevant and safe FP option for cancer patients when oocyte preservation is required but ovarian stimulation is contra-indicated.

Rationale: Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) using a stent retriever (SR) device is currently the recommended treatment in ischemic stroke due to anterior circulation large vessel occlusion. Combining contact aspiration (CA) with SR is a promising new treatment, although it was not found to be superior to SR alone as first-line treatment for achieving successful reperfusion., Aim: To determine whether endovascular treatment combining first-line use of CA and SR is more efficient than SR alone., Methods: The ASTER 2 clinical trial is a prospective, randomized, multicenter, open-label trial with a blinded endpoint. We included patients admitted with suspected anterior circulation ischemic stroke secondary to large vessel occlusion <8 hours from symptom onset. They were randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to one of two treatment groups (combined CA and SR or SR alone). In the case of failure of the assigned technique after three attempts, other adjunctive techniques were applied., Study Outcome: The primary outcome is the rate of successful/complete reperfusion (modified Thrombolysis In Cerebral Infarction (mTICI) score 2c/3) after the entire endovascular procedure. Secondary outcomes include reperfusion rates after the assigned first-line intervention alone and at the end of the procedure, procedural times, change in NIH Stroke Scale score at 24 hours, intracerebral hemorrhage at 24 hours, procedure-related serious adverse events, the modified Rankin Scale score, and all-cause mortality at 90 days and 1 year. The cost effectiveness of the two procedures will also be analyzed., Discussion: This is the first head-to-head randomized trial to directly compare the efficacy of the combined use of CA and SR versus SR alone. This prospective trial aims to demonstrate the synergistic effects of CA and SR devices in first-line endovascular treatment., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

A piezoelectric plate, poled along its thickness and supporting on its top and bottom surfaces a periodic grating of electrodes, is considered. An analytical model allowing band structure calculation is derived for the first symmetrical mode propagating along the length of the plate. Analytical results show that an electrical Bragg (EB) bandgap can be observed for this mode, depending on the electrical boundary conditions applied on the electrodes. This "EB bandgap" is associated with a discontinuity of the electric field between two successive unit cells. These results are validated with the numerical simulations based on the finite element method. Analytical and numerical results prove that the EB bandgap is highly tunable and can be optimized by changing the crystallographic orientation of the material. A simple tunable filter exploiting this bandgap is designed and fabricated. Experimental results of electrical impedance and electrical potential at the output together with a scanning laser vibrometer analysis are presented, which confirm the theoretical predictions.

Background: Freezing strips of ovarian cortex before chemotherapy followed by transplantation is an experimental method to preserve fertility for reproductive-aged women with cancer. We report a case of a cancer patient who developed a mucinous cystadenoma in a grafted piece of ovarian cortex., Case: A 32-year-old woman with a Ewing sarcoma had ovarian cryopreservation using cortical strip freezing before receiving chemotherapy. Five years later she had no ovarian function, and the strips were thawed and grafted back onto the ovary. She spontaneously became pregnant 1 year after this procedure and delivered a healthy neonate near term. During the cesarean delivery, a 5×3-cm cyst was removed from the graft. On pathologic evaluation, it was determined to be a mucinous cystadenoma., Conclusion: Ovarian pathology can develop in previously frozen ovarian cortex tissue after transplantation back onto the ovary. This suggests that routine gynecologic surveillance remains important for these women.

Background: HIV infection and progression to AIDS is characterized by the depletion of T cells, which could be due, in part, to apoptosis mediated by the extra-cellular HIV-encoded Tat protein as a consequence of Tat binding to tubulin. Microtubules are tubulin polymers that are essential for cell structure and division. Molecules that target microtubules induce apoptosis and are potent anti-cancer drugs. We studied the effect on tubulin polymerization of three Tat variants: Tat HxB2 and Tat Eli from patients who are rapid progressors (RP) and Tat Oyi from highly exposed but persistently seronegative (HEPS) patients. We compared the effect on tubulin polymerization of these Tat variants and peptides corresponding to different parts of the Tat sequence, with paclitaxel, an anti-cancer drug that targets microtubules., Results: We show that Tat, and specifically, residues 38-72, directly enhance tubulin polymerization. We demonstrate that Tat could also directly trigger the mitochondrial pathway to induce T cell apoptosis, as shown in vitro by the release of cytochrome c from isolated mitochondria., Conclusions: These results show that Tat directly acts on microtubule polymerization and provide insights into the mechanism of T cell apoptosis mediated by extra-cellular Tat.

This study concerns the immunoreactive somatomedin C secretion by prepubertal rabbit epiphyseal chondrocytes cultured in a defined serum-free medium. In such culture conditions, chondrocytes mainly synthesized Type II collagen (80% of total collagen) during 10 days. A small amount of Type I collagen was also found with a significant (p less than 0.05) higher level during the period of cell multiplication (6.4 +/- 1.5%) than when cells reached confluency (0.9 +/- 0.2%). During the 10 days of culture without serum and without hormone added, a Sm-C/IGF1 activity was measured by RIA at a mean level of 30 +/- 5 mU/ml/10 micrograms DNA. This value was significantly higher (p less than 0.001) than in the medium not incubated with the cells (1.7 +/- 0.9 mU/ml). When hGH was added to the culture medium during the period of cell division, the level of Sm-C/IGF1 activity was significantly elevated at 39 +/- 4 mU/ml/10 micrograms DNA (p less than 0.05) and at 55 +/- 3 mU/ml/10 micrograms DNA (p less than 0.001) with 50 ng/ml and 100 ng/ml hGH concentrations respectively. On the contrary, no difference was observed at confluency in treated and non treated cells.

In a large group of 74 patients irradiated with 2400 rad for acute lymphoblastic leukemia an unusually high frequency of complete GH deficiency was observed (40%). Only 11 out of 46 prepubertal children had growth retardation and seven children received hGH treatment. On the contrary 11 other prepubertal cases had normal growth rates in spite of lack of response to AITT. Plasma SmC values were correlated with growth rates but were discrepant with GH responses to AITT in some cases. Because of this high frequency of GH dysregulation further growth at time of puberty should be carefully documented.

This study demonstrates that cytolytic T-cell lines exhibit progressive in-vitro modifications of their phenotype and of their growth behaviour and may use different pathways for their multiplication. Comparing three established cell lines, we firstly demonstrated that the expression of LFA-I is stable but the Lyt 2, 3 is rapidly lost. In this case, a high lectin-dependent cytotoxicity appears. Secondly, we demonstrated that two of the cell lines used the interleukin 2-interleukin 2 receptors (IL-2-IL-2R) binding pathway. Two different monoclonal antibodies showed that the IL-2 receptors distribution does not correlate with the number of functional sites which determines the IL-2 requirement. In contrast, the third cell line, although bearing high levels of IL-2 receptors, grows without the addition of IL-2; this cell growth is not inhibited by anti-IL-2 receptors monoclonal antibodies. Thirdly, it appears that the new property of IL-2 independence is associated with acquisition of the simultaneous capacity to induce tumour grafts in nude mice. As it has been recently reported that cytolytic T-lymphocytes against tumour cells could be promising immunotherapeutic agents, the spontaneous malignant transformation of such CTL lines should be taken into account before using them for adoptive immunotherapeutic purposes.

Somatomedin activity, as estimated by the porcine bioassay and GH response to stimulation were compared in prepubertal children with severe growth retardation and lack of evidence of pituitary dysfunction. Somatomedin activity was strongly correlated with growth rate. A group of patients had a low somatomedin activity in contrast with normal GH responsiveness. This appears to be a rather frequent situation and deserves further evaluation of the somatomedin system and a more critical approach of GH secretion.

This study was undertaken to investigate the role of GH secretion in the pubertal increase in plasma somatomedin-C (Sm-C) concentrations and its relation to growth in children with true precocious puberty (PP) and normal or deficient GH secretion. We studied 37 children (9 boys and 28 girls), divided into 3 groups according to their pubertal stages and their peak stimulated plasma GH concentration. Group I (n = 20) contained patients with PP and normal GH secretion. In group II (n = 8), PP was accompanied by GH deficiency. Group III (n = 9) patients were GH deficient and prepubertal. The mean plasma Sm-C (RIA) levels in groups I and II were 2.01 +/- 0.17 (+/- SEM) and 0.59 +/- 0.21 U/mL, respectively (P less than 0.001), and it was 0.09 +/- 0.01 U/mL in group III (P less than 0.001 compared to group II). The higher mean plasma Sm-C level in group II compared to that in group III could be related to a significantly higher GH response to arginine-insulin stimulation (P less than 0.02), although this value was in the hypopituitary range. The mean growth rate in group II (6.8 +/- 0.9 cm/yr) was also much higher than the rate in group III (1.9 +/- 0.5 cm/yr; P less than 0.001) and only slightly lower than that in group I (90 +/- 0.8 cm/yr; P less than 0.05). These data indicate that plasma Sm-C values are closely correlated with even small changes in GH secretion. The observed growth rates could, in general, be linked to plasma GH and Sm-C levels, as modulated by sex steroids, in these patients with precocious puberty.

Although GH deficiency (GHD) is the most frequent hormonal abnormality that occurs after cranial radiation, the natural course of this complication and its relationship to growth in children are not known. Therefore, we undertook a 2-yr prospective study of 16 children, aged 1.7-15 yr at the time of treatment, who received cranial [31-42 Gy (1 Gy = 100 rads)] and spinal radiation for medulloblastoma or ependymoma (group I). Their growth was compared to that of 11 children given similar doses of cranial radiation only (group II). The mean plasma GH response to arginine-insulin test (AITT) was 9.1 +/- 1.5 (+/- SE) micrograms/L in group I and 8.5 +/- 1.8 micrograms/L in group II (P = NS). After 2 yr, 16 of the 27 children had a peak plasma GH value below 8 micrograms/L after AITT, and 10 children had a peak response less than 5 micrograms/L. In addition, in group I, AITT and sleep-related GH secretion were compared; at the 2 yr follow-up only 3 of 13 children had discrepant results. At the 2 yr follow-up children treated by cranial and spinal radiation had a mean height of -1.46 +/- 0.40 SD below the normal mean. In contrast, the children given only cranial radiation had a mean height of -0.15 +/- 0.18 SD; P less than 0.02. Therefore, most of the growth retardation appeared to be due to lack of spinal growth. GHD is thus an early complication of cranial radiation in these children, and no significant growth retardation can be attributed to GHD during the first 2 yr. These data contribute to the organization of follow-up in irradiated children in order to decide when human GH treatment is necessary.