The burden of irritable bowel syndrome and chronic constipation on health-related quality of life in black Africans: a comparison with healthy control subjects in Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa.

Background: Although patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and chronic constipation (CC) have an impaired health-related quality of life (HRQoL), little is known in black African patients compared with control subjects. This study provided the magnitude and the influencing factors of HRQoL impairment in black African outpatients with IBS or CC compared with control subjects using the generic SF-36 questionnaire. Materials and methods: One hundred and four consecutive black African outpatients complaining with IBS (n=72, mean age=38.9 years, female=62.5%) and CC (n=32, mean age=37.4 years, female=75%) met Rome 3 criteria were compared with 210 control subjects (mean age=37.4 years, 63.8% male). The SF-36 scores in all domains of HRQoL with the corresponding physical (PCS) and mental (MCS) composite scores between groups were compared with post hoc analysis and multivariate linear regression analysis for the assessment of the influencing factors. Results: Overall, IBS and CC patients exhibited low SF-36 scores in the 8 domains of HRQoL in comparison with control subjects. IBS patients scored less in mental health (mean difference=-10.3, p=0.001), bodily pain (mean difference=-23.5, p≤0.0001), and social functioning domains (mean difference =-15.1, p=0.01) in comparison with CC patients. Post hoc analysis demonstrated a trend down of PCS (mean difference=-12.9, p<0.0001) and MCS (mean difference=-11.2, p=0.01) disfavoring IBS patients than those with CC in comparison with control subjects. In multivariate linear regression analysis, besides the negative impact of IBS and CC, factors influencing PCS were BMI (ß=0.4; p=0.01) and comorbidities (ß=-5.9; p=0.002). Those influencing MCS were the presence of remunerated activity (ß=2.7, p=0.02), and patient living alone (ß=9.4; p=0.04). Conclusion: IBS and CC impact negatively on the HRQoL in black African subjects and more importantly in those with IBS than CC.

About the Role of the Bottleneck/Cork Interface on Oxygen Transfer.

The transfer of oxygen through a corked bottleneck was investigated using a manometric technique. First, the effect of cork compression on oxygen transfer was evaluated without considering the glass/cork interface. No significant effect of cork compression (at 23% strain, corresponding to the compression level of cork in a bottleneck for still wines) was noticeable on the effective diffusion coefficient of oxygen. The mean value of the effective diffusion coefficient is equal to 10(-8) m(2) s(-1), with a statistical distribution ranging from 10(-10) to 10(-7) m(2) s(-1), which is of the same order of magnitude as for the non-compressed cork. Then, oxygen transfer through cork compressed in a glass bottleneck was determined to assess the effect of the glass/cork interface. In the particular case of a gradient-imposed diffusion of oxygen through our model corked bottleneck system (dry cork without surface treatment; 200 and ∼0 hPa of oxygen on both sides of the sample), the mean effective diffusion coefficient is of 5 × 10(-7) m(2) s(-1), thus revealing the possible importance of the role of the glass/stopper interface in the oxygen transfer.

Communication: Evidence of structural phase transitions in silicalite-1 by infrared spectroscopy.

The adsorption of trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene, and p-xylene on a MFI (Mobile-FIve) zeolite is studied using in situ FTIR spectroscopy at 298 K. Spectra of self-supported zeolites in contact with increasing pressures of pure gas were recorded at equilibrium in the mid-infrared domain. Analysis of the evolution of the shape and location of vibrational bands of the zeolite as a function of the amount adsorbed allowed the observation of structural modifications of the adsorbent for the first time by infrared spectroscopy.

Diffusion of oxygen in cork.

This work reports measurements of effective oxygen diffusion coefficient in raw cork. Kinetics of oxygen transfer through cork is studied at 298 K thanks to a homemade manometric device composed of two gas compartments separated by a cork wafer sample. The first compartment contains oxygen, whereas the second one is kept under dynamic vacuum. The pressure decrease in the first compartment is recorded as a function of time. The effective diffusion coefficient D(eff) is obtained by applying Fick's law to transient state using a numerical method based on finite differences. An analytical model derived from Fick's law applied to steady state is also proposed. Results given by these two methods are in close agreement with each other. The harmonic average of the effective diffusion coefficients obtained from the distribution of 15 cork wafers of 3 mm thickness is 1.1 × 10(-9) m(2) s(-1) with a large distribution over four decades. The statistical analysis of the Gaussian distribution obtained on a 3 mm cork wafer is extrapolated to a 48 mm cork wafer, which length corresponds to a full cork stopper. In this case, the probability density distribution gives a mean value of D(eff) equal to 1.6 × 10(-9) m(2) s(-1). This result shows that it is possible to obtain the effective diffusion coefficient of oxygen through cork from short time (few days) measurements performed on a thin cork wafer, whereas months are required to obtain the diffusion coefficient for a full cork stopper. Permeability and oxygen transfer rate are also calculated for comparison with data from other studies.

Interaction Mechanisms between guaiacols and lignin: the conjugated double bond makes the difference.

Lignin is considered to be responsible for a selective sorption of phenolic compounds on wood. In order to investigate the mechanisms involved, two similar guaiacol compounds--only differing by the nature of the para side chain--were adsorbed on oak wood extracted lignin. Vapor sorption-desorption isotherms indicated that about 3.5 wt % of 4-vinylguaiacol is adsorbed near saturation whereas it is only 0.8% for 4-ethylguaiacol. For both compounds, the isotherms displayed a hysteresis though significantly greater for 4-vinylguaiacol. Analyses of the hydroxyl stretching region of FTIR spectra of the lignin/4-ethylguaiacol and lignin/4-vinylguaiacol complexes indicated that physisorption via hydrogen bonds occurs for both sorbates with lignin phenolic hydroxyl groups but which would be more condensed for the former than for the latter. According to NMR spectra, these phenolic hydroxyl groups correspond to non-etherified guaiacyl subunits. In contrast with other para substituents, the conjugated vinyl bond favors not only physisorption but also chemisorption as witnessed by the fact that upon desorption in the vapor phase, even after pumping under dynamic vacuum for several days, about 1 wt % of 4-vinylguaiacol remains adsorbed onto lignin.

Thyroglobulin measurement in fine-needle aspirates of lymph nodes in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer: a simple definition of the threshold value, with emphasis on potential pitfalls of the method.

BACKGROUND: Thyroglobulin measurements in fine-needle aspirate (FNA-Tg) is an accurate method for the diagnosis of lymph node metastasis in differentiated thyroid carcinoma. The goal of this study is to determine the most appropriate diagnostic threshold value for FNA-Tg. METHODS: Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration-cytology (FNA-C) and FNA-Tg were performed on suspicious lymph nodes in 114 consecutive patients with thyroid cancer prior to thyroidectomy (n=13) or during follow-up (n=93), and in 16 control subjects. Functional sensitivity of the thyroglobulin assay was 0.7 ng/mL. Sensitivity and specificity of FNA-Tg and FNA-C were determined for different cut-off values within a range of 0.69-1.34 nanogram/punction (ng/p) using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. RESULTS: The FNA-Tg cut-off value of 0.93 ng/p offers the best diagnostic performances: 94.2% sensitivity, 97.8% specificity. FNA-C showed 100% specificity in diagnostic samples, but low sensitivity of 71% due primarily to inadequate samples. Combining FNA-C and FNA-Tg resulted in 98% sensitivity and 100% specificity. CONCLUSIONS: A unique threshold of 0.93 ng/p gives high sensitivity and specificity, even in non-thyroidectomized patients. However, since false negative results may be observed in poorly differentiated thyroid cancer, FNA-C should remain combined to FNA-Tg.

Thermal effects of water intrusion in hydrophobic nanoporous materials.

Liquid water intrusion in hydrophobic nanoporous silicalite-1, a pure siliceous zeolite, in isothermal conditions under high pressure produces an endothermic effect. After intrusion, confined water in zeolite pores is in a different state from that of the liquid bulk water. Such forced intrusion also chemically modifies the material and tends to render it slightly more hydrophilic.

Heat shock protein 27 as a new therapeutic target for radiation sensitization of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

In a wide range of human cancers, increased levels of heat shock protein 27 (Hsp27) are closely associated with tumorigenesis, metastasis, resistance to anticancer therapeutics, and thus poor prognosis. In this study, we evaluate the radiosensitizing effects of Hsp27 gene silencing using OGX-427, a second-generation antisense oligonucleotide (ASO), on the radioresistant head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) SQ20B cells. In vitro, the downregulation of Hsp27 significantly enhanced radiation-induced apoptotic and clonogenic death, and promoted Akt inactivation. In vivo, combining OGX-427 with local tumor irradiation (5 x 2 Gy) led to a significant regression of SQ20B tumors related to a high rate of apoptosis and decreased levels of glutathione antioxidant defenses. Increasing the total radiation dose (15 x 2 Gy) significantly amplified the radiosensitizing effect of OGX-427. Treatment of tumors with OGX-427 plus radiation resulted in a decrease in angiogenesis associated with a reduced activation of the Akt pathway. Furthermore, the combined treatment enhanced the survival of SQ20B-bearing mice and showed no signs of acute and delayed toxicity. Our findings demonstrate for the first time that Hsp27 knockdown enhances the cytotoxic effects of radiotherapy in vivo and provide preclinical proof of principle for clinical trials using Hsp27 antisense technology in the treatment of patients with HNSCC radioresistant cancers.

Evaluation of gene expression profiles in thyroid nodule biopsy material to diagnose thyroid cancer.

CONTEXT: Detection of thyroid cancer among benign nodules on fine-needle aspiration biopsies (FNAB), which presently relies on cytological examination, is expected to be improved by new diagnostic tests set up from genomic data. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to use a set of genes discriminating benign from malignant tumors, on the basis of their expression levels, to build tumor classifiers and evaluate their capacity to predict malignancy on FNAB. DESIGN: We analyzed the level of expression of 200 potentially informative genes in 56 thyroid tissue samples (benign or malignant tumors and paired normal tissue) using nylon macroarrays. Gene expression data were subjected to a weighted voting algorithm to generate tumor classifiers. The performances of the classifiers were evaluated on a series of 26 sham FNAB, i.e. FNAB carried out on thyroid nodules after surgical resection. RESULTS: A series of 19 genes with a similar expression in follicular adenomas and normal tissue and discriminating follicular adenomas+normal tissue from the following: 1) follicular thyroid carcinomas (FTCs), 2) papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTCs), or 3) both FTCs and PTCs. These were used to generate four classifiers, the FTCs, PTCs, common (FTC+PTCs), and global classifiers. In 23 of the 26 sham FNAB, the four classifiers yielded a diagnosis in agreement with the diagnosis of the pathologist used as reference; in the three other cases, the correct diagnosis was given by three of four classifiers. CONCLUSIONS: We developed a procedure of molecular diagnosis of benign vs. malignant tumors applicable to the material collected by FNAB. The molecular test complied with a preclinical validation stage; it must be now evaluated on ultrasound-guided FNAB in a large-scale prospective study.

In vitro thermochemotherapy of colon cancer cell lines with irinotecan alone and combined with mitomycin C.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Irinotecan (CPT-11) is a new drug of the camptothecin family which has shown significant activity in the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer. Hyperthermia has been shown to enhance the cytotoxic effect of some anticancer drugs and has been combined with intraperitoneal chemotherapy for the treatment of colorectal peritoneal carcinomatosis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cytotoxic effect of CPT-11 alone and in combination with mitomycin C (MMC) and hyperthermia on three colorectal cancer cell lines: CACO-2, HT-29, and DHD/K12/TRb (PROb). METHODOLOGY: The cytotoxic effect of CPT-11 was tested at seven different concentrations (from 2.5 to 160microg/mL) for each type of cell line at 37, 39, 42.5 and 44 degrees C. Combined cytotoxic effect of MMC with CPT-11 was tested at 37 and 42.5 degrees C. RESULTS: The cytotoxic effect of CPT-11 alone increased with concentration (p<0.001) and with increasing temperature (p<0.001) at concentration above 5microg/mL in all three cell lines. CPT-11 (20microg/mL) significantly increased the cytotoxicity of MMC (8microg/mL) at 42.5 degrees C on the CACO-2 line. The combination of CPT-11 and MMC had at least 92% cytotoxicity on the three cell lines. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of CPT-11 and MMC at 42.5 degrees C had a large spectrum of cytotoxicity in these in vitro models. Our findings support the clinical use of this combination and provide a rationale for the design of a clinical trial using intraperitoneal chemohyperthermia with MMC and CPT-11 to treat colorectal peritoneal carcinomatosis of colorectal origin.