[Pierre de Tchihatcheff] / Disderi & Cie

Donateur : Reclus, Élisée (1830-1905)

Detection of new cross-reacting carcinoembryonic antigen(s) on cultured tumor cells by mixed hemadsorption assay.

Antisera highly specific for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) from New Zealand White rabbits and a goat reacted strongly in antibody binding tests with cultured tumor cell lines, irrespective of the ability of the cell lines to produce CEA. The most reactive were colon carcinoma and melanoma cell lines, the former known to produce CEA and the latter not associated with CEA production. The reactivity was not diminished by absorption with perchloric acid extracts of normal lung or spleen, whereas absoprtion with purified CEA preparations abolished the reactivity. Quantitative absorption studies indicated that reactivity against CEA-producing cell lines could be totally removed by absorption with other CEA-producing lines but not with melanoma cell lines. Reactivity against melanoma cell lines could be completely removed by colon carcinoma cells as well as by melanoma cells. Antisera raised against purified CEA, after absorption with extracts of normal lung, still contained two populations of antibodies, one that binds a newly described antigen cross-reacting with CEA which is present on melanoma cells.

Proteomic analysis of Intercept-treated platelets.

In the past decades, transfusion medicine has been driven by the quest for increased safety against transfusion-transmitted infections, mainly by better donor selection and by the development of improved serological and nucleic-acid-based screening assays. Recently, pathogen reduction technologies became available and started to be implemented in several countries, with the primary goal to fight against bacterial contamination of blood products, a rare but dramatic event against which there was no definitive measure. Though pathogen reduction technologies represent a quantum leap in transfusion safety, the biomedical efficacy of platelet concentrates (PCs) treated with various pathogen reduction techniques has been recently questioned by clinical studies. Here, a gel-based proteomic analysis of PCs (n=5), Intercept-treated or untreated, from pooled buffy-coat (10 donors per PC) at Days 1, 2 and 8, shows that the Intercept process that is the most widespread pathogen reduction technique to date, has relatively low impact on the proteome of treated platelets: the process induces modifications of DJ-1 protein, glutaredoxin 5, and G(i)alpha 2 protein. As for the impact of storage, chloride intracellular channel protein 4 (CLIC4) and actin increased independently of Intercept treatment during storage. Whereas alteration of the DJ-1 protein and glutaredoxin 5 points out an oxidative stress-associated lesion, modification of G(i)alpha2 directly connects a possible Intercept-associated lesion to haemostatic properties of Intercept-treated platelets. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Integrated omics.

Underdiagnosed and undertreated: obesity in the portuguese population.

Comment on: Post RE, Mainous AG 3rd, Gregorie SH, Knoll ME, Diaz VA, Saxena SK. The influence of physician acknowledgment of patients' weight status on patient perceptions of overweight and obesity in the United States. Arch Intern Med. 2011 Feb 28;171(4):316-21. PMID: 21357807.

Novel Chemotherapy Combinations in Advanced Gastric Cancer: an Updated Meta-Analysis

Combination chemotherapy is widely accepted for patients with advanced gastric cancer, but uncertainty remains regarding the choice of the regimen. Objectives: To assess the effect of: Comparison 1) irinotecan versus non-irinotecancontaining regimens, comparison 2) docetaxel versus non-docetaxel-containing regimens, comparison 3) regimens including oral 5-FU prodrugs versus intravenous fluoropyrimidines, comparison 4) oxaliplatin versus cisplatin-containing regimens on overall survival. Search Strategy: We searched: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, MEDLINE, EMBASE, proceedings from ECCO, ESMO, ASCO until December 2009. Selection Criteria: Randomised controlled trials on the above mentioned chemotherapy regimens in advanced or metastatic denocarcinoma of the stomach or GE-junction. Results: The meta-analysis of overall survival for comparison 1) included 4 trials, 640 patients, and results in a HR of 0.86 (95% CI 0.73-1.02) in favour of the irinotecancontaining regimens. For comparison 2) 4 trials with a total of 924 patients have been included in the analysis of overall survival. The resulting HR is 0.93 (95% CI 0.79-1.09) in favour of the docetaxel-containing regimens, with moderate heterogeneity (I2 =7%). For comparison 3 and 4, one major relevant study (Cunningham 2008) could not be included in this meta-analysis after discussion because it included patients with squamous cell cancer of the esophagus as well. Thus, for comparison 3) one relevant study (Kang 2009; 316 patients) comparing capecitabine versus 5-FU in combination with cisplatin is eligible. The resulting HR is 0.85 (95%CI 0.65-1.11) in favour of the oral regimen. For comparison 4) two eligible trials were identified (Al Batran 2008, Popov 2008; 292 patients) with a resulting HR of 0.82 (95% CI 0.47-1.45) in favour of the oxaliplatin-based regimens. For three further trials data is incomplete at present. Conclusions: Chemotherapy combinations including irinotecan, oxaliplatin, docetaxel or oral 5-FU prodrugs are alternative treatment options to cisplatin/5-FU or cisplatin/ 5-FU/anthracycline-combinations, but do not provide significant advantages in overall survival. Supported by: KKS Halle, grant number [BMBF/FKZ 01GH01GH0105]. Disclosure: All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

Le Resident Assessment Instrument-Home-Care (RAI-Domicile): ce que le médecin de premier recours doit savoir [The Resident Assessment Instrument Home care: what primary care physician needs to know].

Following the decision of the Swiss Association for Home Care Services to adopt the Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI), the RAI-Home Care is gradually implemented in all home care services in Switzerland. Based on a comprehensive geriatric assessment, the RAI not only allows to establish an individualized plan of care, but also generates quality indicators and a case-mix classification system that helps financing and planning resources. This article describes the five steps of the RAI-Home Care process and discusses the strengths, future and limitations of the RAI.

L'analyse économique face à l'épuisement des ressources naturelles, de William Stanley Jevons à Harold Hotelling (1865-1931) : le cas de énergies fossiles

L'épuisement des énergies fossiles est un thème d'actualité dont les prémices datent, selon l'opinion courante, des années 1970 et du premier choc pétrolier. En réalité, c'est une préoccupation plus ancienne, intimement liée à l'ère industrielle. Dans la deuxième partie du XIXème siècle, les économistes se sont penchés sur la question de l'épuisement des minerais, 'objet non identifié' jusqu'alors et nécessitant la mise sur pied de nouveaux outils d'analyse (effet-rebond chez Jevons, rente minière chez Marshall-Einaudi notamment). Avec le progrès des techniques et l'apparition de nouvelles énergies (pétrole, hydro-électricité), leurs craintes de déclin industriel se sont progressivement dissipées dans les années 1910 et 1920. Mais ces évolutions tenant à l'histoire des faits ne sont pas les seules à considérer. Des facteurs internes à la discipline économique, comme l'émergence du marginalisme dans les années 1870 et de la théorie de l'épargne et du capital dans les années 1890, ont aussi changé le regard des économistes sur la question de l'épuisement des ressources. Pourquoi ? Comment ? Quels enseignements peut-on en tirer pour les défis environnementaux d'aujourd'hui ? Voilà les questions qui sont traitées dans ce travail de thèse.

Cholesterol metabolism is associated with soluble amyloid precursor protein production in Alzheimer's disease.

Disturbances of the cholesterol metabolism are associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk and related cerebral pathology. Experimental studies found changing levels of cholesterol and its metabolites 24S-hydroxycholesterol (24S-OHC) and 27-hydroxycholesterol (27-OHC) to contribute to amyloidogenesis by increasing the production of soluble amyloid precursor protein (sAPP). The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the CSF and circulating cholesterol 24S-OHC and 27-OHC, and the sAPP production as measured by CSF concentrations of sAPP forms in humans. The plasma and the CSF concentrations of cholesterol, 24S-OHC and 27-OHC, and the CSF concentrations of sAPPα, sAPPβ, and Aß1-42 were assessed in subjects with AD and controls with normal cognition. In multivariate regression tests including age, gender, albumin ratio, and apolipoprotein E (APOE)ε4 status CSF cholesterol, 24S-OHC, and 27-OHC independently predicted the concentrations of sAPPα and sAPPβ. The associations remained significant when analyses were separately performed in the AD group. Furthermore, plasma 27-OHC concentrations were associated with the CSF sAPP levels. The results suggest that high CSF concentrations of cholesterol, 24S-OHC, and 27-OHC are associated with increased production of both sAPP forms in AD.