Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs): SEAP-SEOM consensus on pathologic and molecular diagnosis.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common mesenchymal neoplasms of the digestive tract, with an incidence of 1.1 cases/100,000 inhabitants/year. A group of experts from the Spanish Society of Pathology and the Spanish Society of Oncology met to discuss a brief update on GISTs and agree on aspects relating to the pathological and molecular diagnosis of these tumors. GISTs are generally solitary, well-circumscribed lesions of variable size (<10 mm-35 cm) that may present with intra- or extra-luminal parietal growth or a mixed-type (hourglass) growth pattern. Histologically, they are unencapsulated neoplasms displaying expansive growth and spindle-shaped (70%), epithelioid (20%), or mixed cellularity (10%). Mitotic activity is generally moderate or low and should be evaluated only in areas with high cellularity or higher mitotic frequency. The great majority of GISTs harbour mutually exclusive activating mutations in genes coding for the type III receptor tyrosine kinases KIT and PDGFRA; less commonly, GISTs have also been reported to display mutations elsewhere, including BRAF and NF1 and SDH-complex genes. The method most widely used to detect KIT and PDGFRA mutations is amplification of the exons involved by polymerase chain reaction followed by direct sequencing (Sanger method) of these amplification products. Molecular analyses should always specify the type of analysis performed, the region or mutations evaluated, and the sensitivity of the detection method employed.

LEACHING AND DEGRADATION OF 2,4-DICHLOROPHENOXIACETIC ACID, IN COLOMBIA RICE FLOODED SOIL.

Rice is mostly cultivated on soil held under flooded conditions. Under these conditions pesticides undergo reductive transformations which are characteristic to rice fields and other anaerobic systems. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the mobility and persistence of 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D) under laboratory conditions for the rice crop in Espinal, Colombia. A displacement study was performed on a hand packed soil column 30 cm length. After leaching experiment, the soil from column was sliced into six successive sections (5 cm). Methanol acidified (H3PO4 0.25%) extraction was used to determine the herbicide residues in each section. 2,4-D experimental breakthrough curve was analyzed using Stanmod program (inverse problem) to obtain transport parameters. The non-equilibrium physical model fitted well the experimental breakthrough curve. The recovery percent of 2,4-D in leachates was 36.44% after 3.4 pore volumes, and retardation factor was 2.1, indicating low adsorption in that conditions. 2,4-D was rapidly degraded, with DT50 = 11.4 days. The results suggest that 2,4-D under flooded conditions have a high potential for leaching through the soil profile, although the elevated rate of degradation reduced the ground water contamination risk.

Reduction of matrix effects in pesticide residue analysis in food by programmable temperature vaporizer / Reducción efecto matriz em el análisis de residuos de plaguicidas en alimentos mediante el uso de inyector de temperatura programada

Background: The phenomenon known as the “matrix-induced chromatographic response enhancement”commonly affects the sensibility, precision, and accuracy in pesticide residue analysis. The presenceof matrix effects can be given by adsorption and/or thermal decomposition of pesticides on the gaschromatograph injection port. Objective: To reduce the matrix-induced chromatographic responseenhancement o n p esticide r esidues a nalysis i n f ood t hrough t he u se o f s everal o perational m odesof programmable temperature vaporizer inlet. Methods: The analyses were carried out in potato(Solanum tuberosum) extracts by gas chromatography with mass spectrometry detector. In this study, fourprogrammable temperature vaporizer splitless modes were investigated: hot, pulsed, cold and solventvent. Another topic developed in this study has to do with the influence of injection volume, assessed forthe matrix effects. Results: The analysis of variance (ANOVA) (α = 0.05) indicates that when the hotsplitless is used most compounds are subjected to matrix-induced chromatographic response enhancement.Furthermore, with the pulsed splitless, a decrease in the number of compounds with matrix-inducedchromatographic response enhancement was found, approximately 20% compared to the classic hotsplitless. Finally, a remarkable decrease in matrix-induced effects was found when cold splitless modewas used, since there was up to 55% reduction in the compounds, relative to traditional hot splitless, thatshowed statistical differences between responses in matrix-free standards and matrix-matched standards.Conclusions: It was found that the use of conventional hot splitless and pulsed splitless modes causedmatrix-induced effects in more than 70% of the studied compounds. In addition, the results indicate thatfor most compounds there is an inverse relationship between matrix-induced chromatographic responseenhancement and the volume of injection.

Antecedentes:Diferentes investigaciones establecieron que el efecto matriz en el análisis de residuos deplaguicidas afecta la sensibilidad, precisión y exactitud de las metodologías; la presencia de este fenómeno se atribuye a la adsorción y/o descomposición térmica de los analitos en el puerto de inyección del cromatógrafo de gases.Objetivos:En el presente trabajo se evaluó la influencia de varios modos de operación del inyector de temperatura programada, con el objetivo de reducir el efecto matriz en la determinación deresiduos de plaguicidas en alimentos.Métodos:El análisis se llevó a cabo en extractos de papa (Solanum tuberosum) mediante cromatografía de gases acoplada a espectrometría de masas. En este estudio se evaluólos modos de operación del inyector de temperatura programada sin división de la muestra, los cualescorresponden a: en caliente, con pulso de presión y en frío. Finalmente, también se evaluó el modo deventeo de solvente y el efecto del volumen de inyección sobre la variación de la respuesta cromatográfica (efecto matriz). Resultados:Los resultados mostraron que el modo sin división en caliente ocasionaque la mayoría de los compuestos presenten efecto matriz, mientras que al emplear un pulso de presiónse encontró una reducción cercana al 20% de los compuestos que tienen efecto matriz. Por su parte, elsistema sin división en frío mostró el menor número de compuestos con efecto matriz.

GEICO (Spanish Group for Investigation on Ovarian Cancer) treatment guidelines in ovarian cancer 2012.

In 2006, under the auspices of The Spanish Research Group for Ovarian Cancer (Spanish initials GEICO), the first "Treatment Guidelines in Ovarian Cancer" were developed and then published in Clinical and Translational Oncology by Poveda Velasco et al. (Clin Transl Oncol 9(5):308-316, 2007). Almost 6 years have elapsed and over this time, we have seen some important developments in the treatment of ovarian cancer. Significant changes were also introduced after the GCIG-sponsored 4th Consensus Conference on Ovarian Cancer by Stuart et al. (Int J Gynecol Cancer 21:750-755, 2011). So we decided to update the treatment guidelines in ovarian cancer and, with this objective, a group of investigators of the GEICO group met in February 2012. This study summarizes the presentations, discussions and evidence that were reviewed during the meeting and during further discussions of the manuscript.

First Report of Shoot Blight and Canker Caused by Diplodia coryli in Hazelnut Trees in Chile.

Shoot blight, twig and branch cankers with grayish discoloration, roughened tissue, and dieback were observed in 5-year-old European hazelnut trees (Corylus avellana L.) cv. Barcelona at two commercial plantations in the Allipén locality, Region de La Araucanía (38° 59' 24.76″ S, 72° 29' 35.58″ W), Chile, during the 2011 to 2012 growing season. In addition, discoloration of the wood was observed in cross-sections. In order to isolate the causal agent, entire twigs and shoot fragments with cankers were sterilized in 0.5% sodium hypochlorite for 2 minutes, followed by two rinses with sterile distilled water. The tissues were then stored in a humid chamber. Sub-epidermal black pycnidia with sporulation were detected on the symptomatic tissue. Conidia were transferred to potato dextrose agar (PDA) (Difco, Lawrence, KS) and incubated at 25°C in the dark. The mycelia were black, creeping, and compact in appearance. The mature conidia were dark brown with a single septum, slightly constricted at the septum, and ovoid with a broadly rounded apex; some had a truncated base. Conidia had the following measurements: (20.0-) 23.1 ± 1.9 (-28.0) × (10-) 11.9 ± 1.2 (-15) µm with an average length/width ratio of 1.95 ± 0.17 (n = 50). These morphometric characteristics correspond to those of Diplodia coryli Fuckel (1870), teleomorph: Botryosphaeria sensu lato. The identity of the fungus was confirmed using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA sequencing completed at CABI, United Kingdom. The sequencing report indicated that the isolate (IMI-501235a) had 100% homology with a reference strain (CBS 242.51) in the CBS collection. The obtained sequence was deposited in GenBank (Accession No. JX163116). The anamorphs of Botryosphaeria have been divided into up to 18 genera (1), many of which are not clearly defined. Diplodia (3), including D. coryli (CBS 242.51) and D. juglandis (CBS 188.87), have been included within the genus Dothiorella (2), but the taxon names have not been formally changed. A pathogenicity test was conducted with one isolate (IMI-501235a) and four 1-year-old plants of hazelnut cultivar Barcelona. Plants were maintained in individual bags in greenhouse conditions (14/10 hours dark/light, 20°C; 70% RH). Prior to inoculation, plant tissues were externally disinfected with sodium hypochlorite (2%) and rinsed with sterile distilled water. Each plant was inoculated at fresh wound sites on two shoots and three twigs around each vegetative bud. The inoculum consisted of an agar plug with mycelia (5 mm) from the margin of an actively growing colony cultured on PDA media for 7 days. Each wound was covered with moistened cotton and sealed with Parafilm; a control plant was inoculated in the same way with agar only. After 3 months, fragments of necrotic and discolored vascular system tissues from inoculated shoots were removed and incubated on PDA. D. coryli was consistently recovered from these tissues, satisfying Koch's postulates. The control plant showed no symptoms of the disease. D. coryli has been reported to cause symptoms of dieback (dead branches) in Italy and Spain. To our knowledge, this is the first report of D. coryli on C. avellana cv. Barcelona in Chile. European hazelnut is an emerging crop in Chile, grown mainly for export, and management strategies for this disease will need to be developed. References: (1) S. Denman et al. Stud. Mycol. 45:129, 2000. (2) A. J. L. Phillips et al. Persoonia 21:29, 2008. (3) A. J. L. Phillips et al. Mycologia 97:513, 2005.

Activity pattern detection in electroneurographic and electromyogram signals through a heteroscedastic change-point method.

In this work, we propose a heteroscedastic method in the detection of activity patterns of electroneurographic and electromyogram signals involved in rhythmic activities of nerves and muscles, respectively. The electric behavior observed in such signals is characterized by phases of activity and silence. The beginning and the length of electrically active and electrically silent phases in a signal allow us to quantitatively analyze the changes and the effects on a rhythmic activity produced by experimental changes. In order to distinguish between these two phases, signals are assumed to be a sample of a time-dependent, normally distributed random variable with non-constant variance, and that the determination of the variance at each point allows us to determine in which phase is the signal. The parameters of the model are determined by means of an iterative process which maximizes the log-likelihood under the proposed model. Moreover, we apply our method to the determination of the activity phases and silence phases in sequences of experimental and synthetic electroneurographic and electromyogram signals. The results obtained with synthetic data show that the method performs well in the determination of these activity patterns. Finally, the study of particular signals simulated under a generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity model suggests the robustness of the method with respect to the assumption of independence.

14C tebuconazole degradation in Colombian soils.

Tebuconazole is a fungicide used on onion crops (Allium Fistulosum L) in Colombia. Persistence of pesticides in soils is characterized by the half-life (DT50), which is influenced by their chemical structure, the physical and chemical properties of the soil and the previous soil history. Based on its structural and chemical properties, tebuconazole should be expected to be relatively persistent in soils. Laboratory incubation studies were conducted to evaluate persistence and bond residues of 14C tebuconazole in three soils, two inceptisol (I) and one histosol (H). Textural classifications were: loam (101), loamy sand (102) and loam (H03), respectively. Data obtained followed a first-order degradation kinetics (R2 > or = 0.899) with DT50 values between 158 and 198 days. The production of 14CO2 from the 14C-ring-labelled test chemicals was very low and increased slightly during 63 days in all cases. The methanol extractable 14C-residues were higher than aqueous ones and both decreased over incubation time for the three soils. The formation of bound 14C-residues increased with time and final values were 11.3; 5.55 and 7.87% for 101, 102 and H03 respectively. Soil 101 showed the lowest mineralization rate and the highest bound residues formation, which might be explained by the clay fraction content. In contrast, an inverse behavior was found for soils 102 and H03, these results might be explained by the higher soil organic carbon content.

Adaptive monogenic filtering and normalization of ESPI fringe patterns.

A technique is presented for filtering and normalizing noisy fringe patterns, which may include closed fringes, so that single-frame demodulation schemes may be successfully applied. It is based on the construction of an adaptive filter as a linear combination of the responses of a set of isotropic bandpass filters. The space-varying coefficients are proportional to the envelope of the response of each filter, which in turn is computed by using the corresponding monogenic image [Felsberg and Sommer, IEEE Trans. Signal Process. 49, 3136 (2001)]. Some examples of demodulation of real Electronic Speckle Pattern Interferometry (ESPI) images patterns are presented.

[Distribution of aquatic and raptor birds in a freshwater artificial pond of Baja California Sur, Mexico]. / Distribución de aves acuáticas y rapaces en un embalse dulceacuícola artificial de Baja California Sur, México.

We determined the taxonomic composition and spatial-temporal distribution of aquatic and raptor birds in a freshwater artificial pond of El Centenario, Baja California Sur, México, during 24 biweekly censuses (April, 1998 to March, 1999). The pond is particularly attractive for birds because of its variety of food items. A total 25,563 records of 69 species were done, among them the first report of Chlidonias niger and Phalaropus tricolor for the region. Species richness and abundance were determined for the migrant component, mostly Anatidae (16 species and 55.6% of the total abundance) and shorebirds (18 species and 13.3%). The greater number of species and individuals was in C the deepest and more heterogeneous section of the pond. The most important species was Oxyura jamaicensis (30% of the total observed individuals), with highest abundance in the peninsula. The artificial pond presented an atypical and distinct ornithological composition because it is located in an arid region, and acts as a resting site for migrant birds. The site included species that usually live in freshwater and coastal areas, a characteristic reflected in their high richness. It contributes noticeably to the local avian biodiversity.

[Treatment of premenstrual tension syndrome (PMS) with lisuride maleate]. / Tratamiento del síndrome de tensión premenstrual (STP) con maleato de lisurida.

The etiology of PMS has not yet been defined, although there are several theories among which it is reported that there is an increase in prolactine levels involved in it. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a dopamine receptor agonist (lisuride maleate), in the treatment of PMS. 35 patients between 19 and 35 years old were recruited in a prospective study design, with diagnosis of PMS and no other gynecological disorder ruled out clinical and ultrasonographic examination, women with no previous treatment and with no use of hormonal agents, these patients were treated for three months with lisuride maleate, 0.3 mg-day in a three dosage scheme per day, the following symptoms were evaluated: headaches, mastalgia, bloating, edema of lower extremities and myalgia in legs, as well as hormonal parameters before and after treatment with estrogens, progesterone, prolactine, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and testosterone, which were prescribed in the luteal phase (day 21). Results obtained were: reduction of all symptoms scores versus pretreatment: Headache from 85.7 to 20%, mastalgia from 91.4 to 25%, bloating from 74.2 to 40%, edema in lower extremities from 85.7 to 30%, myalgia in legs, from 61 to 34%. The hormonal profile only showed changes in FSH, since the basal pretreatment level was found in 18.6 and the post-treatment value was 13.86, progesterone from 2.7 to 4.6 and prolactine from 7.74 to 6.82. We conclude the lisuride maleate is a good option to the PMS treatment, since a significative reduction of symptoms are induced and it is well tolerated.

[Effects of 3 insecticide formulations in the removal and hatching of oothecae of Blatella germanica (Dictyoptera: Blattellidae)]. / Efectos de 3 formulaciones de insecticidas en el desprendimiento y eclosión de las ootecas de Blattella germanica (Dictyoptera: Blattellidae).

Different insecticide formulations used for the control of German Cockroach, Blatella germanica (L.) were studied to know their effects on the gravid females of this species. The insecticides assayed were baygon 20% EC, diazinon 60 EC, and licon 2.5% EC. Exposure to each insecticide showed an effect on the oothecal drop (p < 0.001). Gravid females treated with baygon had the highest percent of oothecae detached (71%); whereas diazinon caused the lowest percent (33.5%). Doses of baygon, diazinon, and icon used showed that among the oothecas detached hatching occurred only in 19.01%; 34.2% and 39.11%, respectively. Of the oothecas retained by treated females, the lowest hatching percent was produced by baygon (13.79%) compared with diazinon and icon insecticides, which presented the highest hatching percentages with 39.84 and 47.82, respectively. Therefore, the effects of insecticides on females bearing oothecas may be considered at the time of selecting an insecticide to control the German cockroach.

[Effect of growth hormone and parenteral nutrition on the catabolic phase following major digestive surgery]. / Efecto de la hormona del crecimiento y la nutrición parenteral sobre la fase catabólica tras cirugía digestiva mayor.

The purpose of the present study was to determine if the administration of a biosynthetic human growth hormone (bGH) was able to enhance the efficacy of total parenteral nutrition (PN). Patients (n = 38) who had undergone major gastrointestinal surgery were randomly divided in two groups. Group I (n = 20) treated only with PN and Group II (n = 18) treated as in Group I plus bGH (4 UI/daily). Our study shows that the administration of bGH produces a significant increase in serum levels of growth hormone and Somatomedin-C. It also caused a positive nitrogen balance from the first 24 hours on (p less than 0.01). In Group II on day 12 after operation a statistically significant increase in transferrin (p less than 0.05), albumin (p less than 0.01) and total proteins (p less than 0.02) was observed. Our study suggest that the administration of bGH produces, perhaps through Somatomedin-C as mediator, an increase in protein synthesis.

[Cross-stimulation in endocardiac AV sequential demand DVI pacemaker associated with great dilatation of the right atrial appendage]. / Estimulación cruzada en un marcapasos secuencial endocárdico asociada con gran dilatación de la orejuela derecha.

We report on a case of ventricular stimulation by an atrial electrode in endocardiac DVI sequential pacemaker implanted in a patient with cardiomegaly and great atrial appendage. The appropriately placement of the electrode was confirmed by open-heart surgery in the valve replacement. This rare malfunction could be exceptionally studied anatomically.

[Considerations on 200 cases of vaginal burns by potassium permanganate]. / Consideraciones sobre 200 casos de quemaduras vaginales con permanganato de potasio.

PIP: Potassium permanganate in tablets is still used in Mexico under the wrong belief that it will induce abortion. What it does, instead, is to provoke deep burns and ulcers in the vaginal walls, and to cause serious hemorrhage. This study investigates 200 women who used potassium permanganate as an abortifacient agent, and who needed hospitalization. Average age was 28; 58.5% had 4 or more children; 88.5% were married, and 11.5% were not; all patients belonged to the lowest socioeconomic class. Many had antecedents of induced abortion, and most had been amenorrheic for only 4-5 weeks. 23.5% of patients was not pregnant. Acute anemia was the most common complication, followed by hypovolemic shock. In this series there was 21.5% of diagnostic error, which shows the importance of suspecting this pathologic entity in women bleeding profusely and for whom induced abortion is suspected.^ieng