Circulating Gastric Cancer Stem Cells as Blood Screening and Prognosis Factor in Gastric Cancer.

Gastric cancer (GC) is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death, associated with late diagnosis and treatment resistance. Currently, screening tests for GC are not cost-effective or have low accuracy. Previously, we described an extended phenotype of gastric cancer stem cells (GCSCs; CD24+CD44+CD54+EpCAM+) that is associated with metastasis and tumor stage in GC patients. The goal of the current research is to evaluate the presence of these GCSCs in the peripheral blood of GC patients and healthy volunteers. A total of 73 blood samples were collected from 32 GC patients and 41 healthy volunteers. After peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) extraction, multiparametric flow cytometry was performed looking for GCSCs. Using clustering data through artificial intelligence (AI), we defined high/low levels of circulating GCSCs (cGCSCs) and proceeded to evaluate its association with clinical and prognostic variables. Finally, a diagnostic test analysis was performed evaluating patients and healthy volunteers. We found that cGCSCs are present in most GC patients with a mean concentration of 0.48%. The AI clustering showed two groups with different cGCSC levels and clinical characteristics. Through statistical analysis, we confirmed the association between cGCSC levels and lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, and overall survival. The diagnostic test analysis showed sensibility, specificity, and area under the curve (AUC) of 83%, 95%, and 0.911, respectively. Our results suggest that the assessment of cGCSCs CD24+CD44+CD54+EpCAM+ could be a potential noninvasive test, with prognostic value, as well as highly sensitive and specific for screening or diagnosis of GC; however, a larger scale study will be necessary to confirm this.

Topology Regulated Background Extraction (TRBE) method for eye fundus images.

One of the initial steps in the preprocessing of digital fundoscopy images is the identification of pixels containing relevant information. This can be achieved through different approaches, one of them is implementing background extraction, reducing the set of pixels to be analyzed later in the process. In this work, we present a background extraction method for digital fundoscopy images based on computational topology. By interpreting binarized images as cubical complexes and extracting their homological groups in 1 and 2 dimensions we identify a subset of luminescence values that can be used to binarize the original grayscale image, obtaining a mask to achieve background extraction. This method is robust to noise and suboptimal image quality, facilitating the analytical pipeline in the context of computer aided diagnosis approaches. This method facilitates the segmentation of the background of a digital fundoscopy image, which allows further methods to focus on pixels with relevant information (eye fundus). This tool is best suited to be implemented in the preprocessing stages of the analytical pipeline by computational ophthalmology specialists.•It is robust to noise and low-quality images.•Output provides an ideal scenario for down-the-line analysis by facilitating only relevant pixels in a digital fundoscopy.

Untreated combined persistent fetal vasculature with "coralliform" cataract in a Hispanic 21 year-old male.

Persistent fetal vasculature is a spectrum of ocular abnormalities linked to an incomplete regression of the fetal ocular vasculature. A 21-years old male patient came to the outpatient clinic reporting low vision and strabismus in his left eye since 3 years of age. Ophtalmological examination revealed a normal right eye, while the left eye had a best corrected visual acuity of hand-motion perception, a 30 prism diopters esotropia, a "coralliform" cataract and a vitreous stalk joining the posterior face of the lens and the optic nerve. The coralliform cataract possessed spindle-shaped processes radiating out of its center in an axial direction and was located in the posterior subcapsular area. The patient elected to not undergo vitreoretinal surgery due to the poor visual prognosis. The unusual cataract present in the described patient could be related to his untreated status, as previous authors have reported that untreated cataracts in persistent fetal vasculature may undergo diverse degenerations.

A comparative analysis of regional infection risk due to wastewater recontamination in the Mezquital Valley, Mexico.

Urban wastewater reuse for agriculture provides reliable nutrient-rich water, reduces water stress, and strengthens food systems. However, wastewater reuse also presents health risks and characterizing the spatial dynamics of wastewater can help optimize risk mitigation. We conducted comparative risk analysis of exposure to wastewater in irrigation canals, where we compared those exposed to a) treated vs. untreated wastewater, and b) wastewater upstream vs. downstream from communities in the Mezquital Valley. The canal system with treated wastewater was sampled prior to being treated, directly after treatment, as well as before and after it flowed through a community. Along the canal system that carried untreated wastewater, we sampled before and after a community. We quantified the concentrations of bacterial, protozoal, and viral pathogens in the wastewater. Pathogen concentration data were used to calculate measures of relative risk between sampling points. Wastewater treatment reduced predicted bacterial pathogen infection risk in post-treatment locations (RR = 0.73, 95 % CI 0.61, 0.87), with no evidence of similar reductions in Giardia or viral pathogens (RR = 1.02, 95 % CI 0.56, 1.86 and RR = 1.18, 95 % CI 0.70, 2.02 respectively). Although infection risk decreased further down the canals, infection risk increased for bacterial pathogens after our sentinel community (RR = 1.94, 95 % 1.34, 2.86). For Giardia and viral pathogens infection risk was elevated but not significantly. We found similar evidence for increases in risk when comparing the treated section of the canal system with a canal section whose wastewater was not treated, i.e., the risk benefits of wastewater treatment were lost after our sentinel community for bacteria (RR = 5.27 vs. 2.08 for sampling points before and after our sentinel community respectively) and for Giardia (RR = 6.98 vs. 3.35 respectively). The increase in risk after transit through communities could have resulted from local community recontamination of the treated wastewater stream.

First report of Hibiscus soymovirus in Hibiscus rosa-sinensis in Colombia in mixed infection.

Hibiscus is native to southeast Asia but well suited to Colombia's arid soil and dry climates from the coast to the mountains of Bogotá. Viruses infecting hibiscus in Colombia are largely unexplored, with four viruses previously known: hibiscus chlorotic ringspot virus (HCRSV), hibiscus latent Fort Pierce virus (HLFPV), hibiscus latent Singapore virus (HLSV), and citrus leprosis virus C2 (CiLV-C2) (Padmanabhan et al., 2023). Mixed infections between these viruses were frequently detected. A recent virome analysis of a single hibiscus plant from Colombia revealed multiple viruses in mixed infection; : HCRSV, HLFPV, passion fruit green spot virus (PFGSV), a strain of physalis vein necrosis nepovirus, four novel carlavirus, one new potexvirus and a mitovirus. In addition, few smaller contigs of blunervirus and soymovirus were also identified in the high throughput sequencing (HTS) data, but their presence in the mixed infection could not be validated (A. Roy et al. 2023unpublish data). During Brevipalpus-transmitted virus (BTV) surveys, two asymptomatic and 15 hibiscus foliar samples showing green ringspots with central chlorotic spots in senescing areas, mosaic, and black or chlorotic spots were collected from six departments (states) in three geographical regions of Colombia: Tolima (n=4) and Cauca Valley (n=2) (Andean region), Meta (n=6) and Casanare (n=1) (Orinoquia region), and Quindío (n=1) and Risaralda (n=1) (coffee growing region). About 100 mg of 17 hibiscus leaf samples were separately processed for RNA isolation without DNase I treatment and tested for known BTVs, and for newly discovered hibiscus soymovirus (HSV; genus Soymovirus family Caulimoviridae) using PCR assays (Padmanabhan et al. 2023, Wang et al. 2023). To identify potential HSV infection in the samples, published SVF1/SVR1 and newly designed primer pairs (HSV-REP-F/-R and HSV-CPG-F/-R) were used to amplify the 430 nt transactivation (ORF-VI), 631 nt replicase (REP) and 401 nt coat protein gene (CPG), respectively (Supplementary 1). Of 17 samples tested, three from Tolima and one each from Meta and Quindío yielded all three expected size amplicons. Bi-directional sequencing followed by BLASTn analysis revealed 95-98% nt identity with the CPG, REP, and ORF-VI genes of HSV (OP757659). Ribo-depleted libraries were prepared using the RNA extracts of five HSV PCR positive samples. HTS yielded 11.6 to 50.3 million raw reads per sample library. Adapters were trimmed and filtered from the raw reads with Trimmomatic v0.39 and then assembled using SPAdes v3.15.5 (Padmanabhan et al., 2023). Contigs were blasted against the Arabidopsis proteome and a RefSeq-based viral protein database. Potential viral sequences were then blasted against the complete NCBI nr database. Assembled soymo contigs covered 99-100% of the HSV genome, with per-nucleotide read depths of 23.8 to 393. Contigs from the Tolima (Accessions; OR621030- OR621032 and Quindío samples (OR621033) covered 99-100% of the HSV genome and had >96-98% nt identity to Hawaiian isolate (OP757659) whereas the Meta sample contigs covered 78% of the genome with 9495% nt identity. HTS contigs shared >98-99% nt identities with their PCR amplicons. Along with HSV, other virus sequences (HCRSV, HLFPV, PFGSV, CiLV-C2, and mycoviruses) were variously detected from all five libraries. Due to mixed infection no symptom similarity was noticed among these 5 samples. The findings in hibiscus in Tolima, Meta and Quindío represent the first confirmed report of HSV infection in hibiscus in Colombia. The widespread distribution suggests the possibility of HSV dispersion via movement of planting material, and potential further spread to another hibiscus growing region.

Effects of microplastics pollution on the abundance and composition of interstitial meiofauna

Introduction: Pollution by microplastics is a global problem in marine environments, which impacts microorganisms and ecosystems at several spatial levels. Sandy beaches are depositional environments where microplastics tend to accumulate in large quantities. The co-occurrence of interstitial meiofauna and microplastics in sand grains raises the question on whether the accumulation of microplastics in the sediments affects the abundance and composition of the meiofaunal communities. Objective: To test the hypothesis that microplastics affect the meiofauna of urban sandy beaches. Methods: We studied the three main urban sandy beaches of Santa Marta, Colombia: El Rodadero, Santa Marta Bay, and Taganga. All are similar in morphology and external pressures, and differ from other beaches in the region. In April 2019 we collected 81 sand samples, equally distributed in the intertidal zone (upper, mid, and lower intertidal levels). We applied generalized linear models to abundance, and multivariate permutational tests to community composition. Results: We identified 17 taxonomic groups of meiofauna, and microplastic particles (mainly 45-500 micron fibres) evenly distributed across beaches and intertidal levels. There was more meiofauna at the mid intertidal level, and in fine and medium grain sediment. At the lower intertidal level, sites with more microplastics had less meiofauna. Abundance of microplastics explained 39 % of the variation in meiofaunal community composition at lower intertidal levels. Conclusions: The accumulation of microplastics might have a negative impact on these meiofaunal interstitial communities. This is not surprising: if microplastics occupy the same physical space as these animals, they might presumably modify the structure of sediments and the composition of interstitial water.

Introducción: La contaminación por microplásticos es un problema global en los ecosistemas marinos, con impacto sobre microorganismos y ecosistemas en varios niveles espaciales. Las playas arenosas son ambientes de deposición donde se tiende a acumular gran cantidad de microplásticos. La co-ocurrencia de meiofauna intersticial y microplásticos en granos de arena plantea la pregunta de que si la acumulación de microplásticos en sedimentos afecta la abundancia y composición de comunidades de meiofauna. Objetivo: Probar la hipótesis de que microplásticos afectan la meiofauna de playas arenosas urbanas. Métodos: Estudiamos las tres principales playas arenosas urbanas de Santa Marta, Colombia: El Rodadero, Bahía Santa Marta y Taganga. Estas son similares en morfología y presiones externas, y difieren de las otras playas de la región. En abril 2019 recolectamos 81 muestras de arena, distribuidas de manera equidistante en la zona intermareal (nivel intermareal superior, medio y bajo). Aplicamos modelos lineales generalizados de abundancia, y pruebas permutacionales multivariantes a la composición de comunidades. Resultados: Identificamos 17 grupos taxonómicos de meiofauna, y partículas de microplástico (principalmente fibras de 45-500 micras) distribuidos equitativamente a lo largo de las playas y niveles intermareales. Hubo más meiofauna en el nivel intermareal medio, y en sedimentos de grano mediano y fino. A niveles intermareales más bajos, sitios con más microplásticos tuvieron menos meiofauna. La abundancia de los microplásticos explicó el 39 % de la variación en comunidades de meiofauna a niveles intermareales bajos. Conclusión: La acumulación de microplásticos podría tener un impacto negativo sobre las comunidades de meiofauna intersticial. Esto no es de sorprender: si los microplásticos ocupan el mismo volumen físico que estos animales, estos podrían presuntamente modificar la estructura de sedimentos y la composición del agua intersticial.

First report of Passion fruit green spot virus in yellow Passion fruit (Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa) in Casanare, Colombia.

Passiflora edulis, commonly known as passion fruit, is a vine species of passionflower native to South America. In Colombia, yellow passion fruit (P. edulis f. flavicarpa) is the most important species in terms of net production and local consumption. Recently two brevipalpus transmitted cileviruses, (i) passion fruit green spot virus (PfGSV) and (ii) hibiscus strain of citrus leprosis virus C2 (CiLV-C2H) were detected in passion fruit in Brazil and Hawaii, respectively (Ramos-González et al., 2020, Olmedo-Velarde et al., 2022). CiLV-C2H infects both citrus and hibiscus in Colombia (Roy et al., 2015, 2018) but there was no report of PfGSV elsewhere apart from Brazil and Paraguay (Costa-Rodrigues et al., 2022). Apart from emerging begomovirus diseases, five major viruses are known to infect passion fruit in Colombia: soybean mosaic virus (SMV), cowpea aphid-borne mosaic virus, passion fruit yellow mosaic virus, cucumber mosaic virus, and a tentative Gulupa bacilliform badnavirus A (Cardona et al., 2022). Current findings of CiLV-C2H in passion fruit and PfGSV in hibiscus motivated us to investigate the possibilities of cilevirus infection in passion fruit in Colombia. During surveys, along with healthy yellow passion fruit leaves, five symptomatic plant samples from Meta and three from Casanare were collected before sent to the Molecular Plant Pathology Laboratory at Beltsville, MD under APHIS permit. Passion fruit samples from Meta showed leaf mottling, rugose mosaic, and leaf distortion, whereas leaf variegation, chlorotic spots, yellowing, green spots in senescent leaves and green vein banding were observed in the Casanare samples (Supp. Fig. 1). Total RNA was extracted using RNeasy Plant Mini Kit (Qiagen, USA). To know the potential cilevirus infection in these samples, three PfGSV specific (Ramos-González et al. 2020) and a CiLV-C2 generic primer pairs (Olmedo-Velarde et al. 2021) were used in the RT-PCR assays. All five passion fruit samples from Meta failed to produce either CiLV-C2 or CiLV-C2H or PfGSV amplicon whereas all three Casanare samples successfully amplified 321, 244 and 299 nts of PfGSV-RNA1 and -RNA2 amplicons using C13F/C13R, C6F/C6R and C8F/C8R primers, respectively. Bi-directional amplicon sequencing followed by BlastN analysis revealed ≥99% nt identity with the PfGSV-RNA1 (MK804173) and -RNA2 (MK804174) genome sequences. An optimized ribo-depleted library preparation protocol was utilized to prepare two cDNA libraries using the RNA extracts of a PfGSV suspected positive (Casanare) and a negative (Meta) samples (Chellappan et al., 2022). HTS libraries of Casanare and Meta samples resulted in 22.7 to 29.5 million raw reads, respectively. After adapter trimming and filtering, clean reads were mapped to the Arabidopsis thaliana reference genome and unmapped reads were de novo assembled (Chellappan et al., 2022). BlastN analysis from the assembled contigs identified 1-3 contigs corresponding to PfGSV-RNA1 and -RNA2, respectively, from Casanare sample whereas 3 contigs of SMV were identified in Meta passion fruit sample. No other virus sequence was obtained from either of the libraries. Assembled contigs covered 99.33% of the RNA1 and 94.42% of the RNA2 genome, with read depths of 64,474 and 119,549, respectively. Meta sample contigs (OP564897) covered >99% of the SMV genome, which shared >99% nt identity with the Colombian SMV isolates (KY249378, MW655827). Both RNA-1 (OP564895) and -2 (OP564896) segments of the Casanare isolate shared 99% nt identity with PfGSV isolate (MK804173-74). Our discovery identified PfGSV in Colombia, for the first-time outside Brazil and Paraguay. The findings of PfGSV in yellow passion fruit increases the potential threat and possibility of PfGSV movement via Brevipalpus sp. from passion fruit to other hosts.

Leucoplaquias laríngeas: Análisis de las lesiones y resultados vocales en una unidad de voz terciaria / Analysis of laryngeal leukoplakia characteristics and voice outcomes in a tertiary voice unit

Introducción: Las leucoplaquias laríngeas (LL) pueden corresponder a lesiones precancerosas. La aproximación diagnóstica es endoscópica y en caso de persistir, se debe estudiar con biopsia. Objetivo: Describir las características biodemográficas, clínicas, endoscópicas, histológicas y evolutivas de pacientes diagnosticados con leucoplaquias glóticas. Material y Método: Estudio prospectivo no-concurrente de pacientes diagnosticados con leucoplaquias glóticas en la Unidad de Voz del Departamento de Otorrinolaringología de la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, entre 2012 y 2019. Resultados: Se incluyeron 29 pacientes, 65,5% hombres, con edad promedio de 61 años y seguimiento promedio de 21,1 meses. El principal motivo de consulta fue disfonía, en un 86,2% de los casos. El 38% presentó compromiso del pliegue vocal (PV) izquierdo, 24,1% derecho, 24,1% bilateral y 13,8% bilateral incluyendo comisura anterior. El 41,4% de las lesiones comprometían más del 50% del PV y 68% presentaba una onda mucosa alterada en la estroboscopia. Un 89,7% requirió biopsia, identificando carcinoma en 26,9%, displasia en 34,6% y otro diagnóstico en 38,5%. El 25,9% presentó recurrencias, del cual 28,6% progresó a cáncer. Se identificó asociación significativa en un análisis bivariado entre la edad (p = 0,030) y compromiso mayor al 50% del PV (p = 0,016) con displasia de alto riesgo o cáncer. En el análisis multivariado, solo la edad mostró ser significativa (p = 0,038; OR 1,27; IC 95% 1,01-1,59). Conclusión: El estudio de las LL es esencial para el diagnóstico precoz de cáncer laríngeo. La edad y el compromiso mayor al 50% del PV en la estroboscopia podría predecir un riesgo mayor de displasia de alto riesgo o cáncer.

Introduction: Laryngeal leukoplakia (LL) may correspond to precancerous lesions. The diagnostic approach is endoscopic, and if LL persist, a biopsy should be performed. Aim: To describe the biodemographic, clinical, endoscopic, histological, and developmental characteristics of patients diagnosed with glottic leucoplakia. Material and Method: Prospective non-concurrent study of patients diagnosed with glottic leukoplakia in the Voice Unit at the Otolaryngology Department of the Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, between 2012 and 2019. Results: Twenty-nine patients were included, 65.5% men, with an average age of 61.7 years, and average follow-up of 21.1 months. Dysphonia was the chief complaint, present in 86.2% of the cases. The left vocal fold (VF) was involved in 38.0%, right in 24.1%, bilateral in 24.1%, and bilateral including anterior commissure in 13.8%. Only 41.4% compromised over 50% of the VF and 68.0% presented an altered mucosal wave in the videostroboscopy. A biopsy was performed in 89.7%, identifying carcinoma in 26.9%, dysplasia in 34.6% and other diagnosis in 38.5%. During follow-up 25.9% recurred, of which 28.6% progressed to cancer. A significant association was found in the bivariate analysis between age (p = 0.030) and extension over 50% of the VF (p = 0.016) with high-risk dysplasia or cancer. In the multivariate analysis only, the age was found to be significative (p = 0.038; OR 1.27; CI 95% 1.01-1.59). Conclusions: A thorough evaluation is essential in LL, favoring an early diagnosis for laryngeal cancer. Age and an involvement greater than 50% of the VF in the videostroboscopy could predict an increased possibility for high-risk dysplasia or cancer.

Obstrucción laríngea inducible (OLI): una revisión actualizada de la literatura / Induced laryngeal obstruction (ILO): an updated literature review

La obstrucción laríngea inducible se ha descrito como un trastorno de la respiración que se presenta, habitualmente, como dificultad respiratoria aguda por aducción anormal de los pliegues vocales, típicamente, durante la inspiración. Es más frecuente en mujeres y adultos, que en adolescentes. Es difícil estimar la incidencia exacta dada la heterogeneidad de los criterios diagnósticos y nomenclatura, asociado al frecuente subdiagnóstico de esta entidad. Por ello, en la literatura se ha reportado la prevalencia de acuerdo con las subpoblaciones de pacientes, describiendo que alrededor de un 2,8% de los pacientes que consultan en el servicio de urgencia por disnea podría corresponder a esta patología. El diagnóstico es eminentemente clínico, con confirmación mediante laringoscopia flexible. Se apoya en exámenes de función respiratoria, especialmente para descartar otras patologías pulmonares que expliquen el cuadro. El tratamiento es sencillo y, suele ser exitoso, tanto en situaciones agudas como crónicas. Sin embargo, se ha descrito, frecuentemente, un retraso en el diagnóstico, debido a desconocimiento de esta patología.

Induced laryngeal obstruction has been described as a respiratory disorder, usually presenting as an acute respiratory distress due to abnormal adduction of the vocal folds, typically during inspiration. It is more frequent in women and adults, than adolescents. It is difficult to estimate its exact incidence given the heterogeneity of the diagnostic criteria and nomenclature, together with its common underdiagnosis. Hence, studies have reported its prevalence according to the subpopulations within this entity, with a prevalence of 2.8% in patients who consult in the emergency room for dyspnea. The diagnosis is based upon clinical presentation, confirmed by flexible laryngoscopy, and supported by respiratory function exams to rule out other pulmonary diseases with similar symptoms. Its treatment is simple and usually successful, in both acute and chronic situations. However, a delay in the diagnosis has been frequently described, due to unawareness of this disorder.

PIPs from Fragaria vesca: A structural analysis of native and mutated protein.

Aquaporins are an ancient family of membrane channel proteins present in all eukaryotes and most prokaryotes, and apart from water, allow the transport of neutral solutes and organic compounds through the pore. These proteins are essential role differentially expressed during ripening in Fragaria vesca fruits. Fv PIP2-1a is intensively expressed in fruits, inclusive several other proteins member are differentially expressed in fruit but also in other plant tissues. Phylogenetic analysis shows that Fv PIP2-1a grouped with other Fragaria proteins and far apart from other F. vesca PIP proteins. A structural model for Fv PIP2-1a protein was built by comparative modelling methodology, which was validated and refined by molecular dynamics simulation. Fv PIP2-1a structure consists of 6 transmembrane regions and two NPA domains. The mobilization of water was analyzed by molecular docking simulations in wildtype and two mutants. Interestingly, the mutant FvPIP2-1a_H214G allowed the prediction of an increment in the flux of water molecules. On contrary, structural analysis predicted that H214E mutation blocked passage of water associated to constriction of the pore.

[Translated article] Transcultural validation and adaptation of the Pedi-IKDC scale for the functional assessment of children that undergo knee surgery.

INTRODUCTION: In the last decades sports practice in children has increased, thus increasing the number of musculoskeletal injuries. There are no validated scales in Spanish for the functional evaluation of knee aspects in children. The validation and cross-cultural adaptation of the Pedi-IKDC scale to Spanish, used for this purpose, was carried out. METHODOLOGY: The scale was applied to 50 patients that suffered traumatic knee injuries between 2016 and 2021 and underwent surgical interventions. The validation process of the scale was carried out after a pilot test, cross-cultural adaptation of words into Spanish, translation-retranslation, statistical, determination of internal consistency of the instrument, intraclass correlation, test-retest and evaluation of data dispersion. RESULTS: The internal consistency of the evaluated instrument is good according to the Gregory scale with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.82 The intraclass correlation was considered substantial (0.624) and the test-retest correlation, showed a coefficient of 0.91. The Bland-Altman graph showed a low dispersion among the data. CONCLUSION: The Pedi-IKDC scale can be a useful tool to assess functionality in children who have undergone knee surgery, it is considered valid, with adequate reliability and with the advantage of easy application.

Transcultural validation and adaptation of the Pedi-IKDC scale for the functional assessment of children that undergo knee surgery. / Validación y adaptación transcultural de la escala Pedi-IKDC para la evaluación funcional de niños llevados a cirugía de rodilla.

INTRODUCTION: In the last decades sports practice in children has increased, thus increasing the number of musculoskeletal injuries. There are no validated scales in Spanish for the functional evaluation of knee aspects in children. The validation and cross-cultural adaptation of the Pedi-IKDC scale to Spanish, used for this purpose, was carried out. METHODOLOGY: The scale was applied to 50 patients that suffered traumatic knee injuries between 2016 and 2021 and underwent surgical interventions. The validation process of the scale was carried out after a pilot test, cross-cultural adaptation of words into Spanish, translation-retranslation, statistical, determination of internal consistency of the instrument, intraclass correlation, test-retest and evaluation of data dispersion. RESULTS: The internal consistency of the evaluated instrument is good according to the Gregory scale with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.82 The intraclass correlation was considered substantial (0.624) and the test-retest correlation, showed a coefficient of 0.91. The Bland-Altman graph showed a low dispersion among the data. CONCLUSION: The Pedi-IKDC scale can be a useful tool to assess functionality in children who have undergone knee surgery, it is considered valid, with adequate reliability and with the advantage of easy application.

Assessing the exposure risk of large pelagic fish to oil spills scenarios in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

Exposure risk is assessed based on modeling suitable habitat of large pelagic fish and oil spill scenarios originating at three wells located in the western GM's deep waters. Since the fate of the oil depends on the oceanographic conditions present during the accident, as well as the magnitude and duration of the spill, which are not known a priori, the scenarios used are a statistical representation of the area in which oil spilled from the well could be found, given all possible outcomes. The ecological vulnerability assessment identified a subset of bony fish with low-medium vulnerability and elasmobranchs with medium-high vulnerability. The oiling probability and exposure risk of both bony fish and elasmobranchs hotspots vary by well analyzed. Thus, these results provide essential information for a risk management plan for the assessed species and others with economic or conservation importance distributed in the GM and worldwide.

Association between genetic variations at 8q24 and prostate cancer risk in Mexican Men.

BACKGROUND: Variants of 8q24 locus have been associated with prostate cancer (PCa) susceptibility. This study aims to analyze the genetic basis of PCa susceptibility in Mexican men by analyzing SNPs in the 8q24 locus for the first time. METHODS: A case-control study was performed in 875 men recruited from the Mexican Social Security Institute, 326 patients with PCa, and 549 non-PCa patients (88 with benign prostatic hyperplasia BPH and 461 healthy controls). The 8q24 locus SNPs: rs16901979, rs16983267, rs1447295, and rs7837328 were genotyped by allelic discrimination assays using TaqMan probes. Statistical analysis was performed using Epi Info statistical 7.0 and SNPstats softwares. RESULTS: All genotype frequencies were in Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium. No differences were observed in genotype distribution between PCa and non-PCa patients for rs6983267. Under different inheritance models, the rs16901979, rs1447295, and rs7837328 SNPs were associated with PCa (OR = 2.8, 1.8, and 1.72, respectively; Pc < 0.001) when comparing PCa patients against controls. This association remains between PCa and BPH patients under different models (OR = 8.5, 2.2, and 1.9, respectively; Pc < 0.001). There were no significant differences in allele and genotype distribution among BPH patients and controls. The combined effect of the alleles CGAA for the SNPs rs16901979, rs6983267, rs1447295, and rs7837328 showed significant differences between PCa patients and controls (OR = 2.9, 95% CI = 1.48-5.83, Pc = 0.008). Four 8q24 variants were not associated with D'Amico score, age at diagnosis, and bone metastases. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides the first confirmation that variants rs16901979, rs1447295, and 7837328 at 8q24 locus are associated with PCa susceptibility in Mexican men.

Tratamiento quirúrgico de la epilepsia asociada a tumores neuroepiteliales de bajo grado / Surgical treatment of low-grade epilepsy-associated neuroepithelial tumors

Resumen Los tumores cerebrales son una causa importante de las epilepsias de difícil manejo, corresponden a un 20-30 % de los casos de cirugía de epilepsia refractaria. En este grupo de pacientes los tumores neuroepiteliales de bajo grado asociados a epilepsia (LEAT) son la principal causa, siendo los más frecuentes los tumores neuroepiteliales disembrioplásticos (DNT) y ganglioglioma (GG). En el presente artículo revisamos los cambios en la definición de epilepsia refractaria, avances en el diagnóstico por imágenes y el diagnóstico histopatológico con los nuevos marcadores moleculares, que han permitido un diagnóstico cada vez más precoz y certero. Se revisa también la cirugía resectiva que permite en estos casos una libertad de crisis cercana un 70-90% de los pacientes. Los mejores resultados en términos de control de crisis, se pueden alcanzar cuando la cirugía es precoz.

Brain tumors are an important cause of epilepsy that is difficult to manage, accounting for 20-30% of cases of refractory epilepsy surgery. In this group of patients, low-grade epilepsy-associated neuroepithelial tumors (LEAT) are the main cause and the most frequent being dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumors (DNT) and ganglioglioma (GG). In this article, we review the changes in the definition of refractory epilepsy, advances in diagnostic imaging, and histopathological diagnosis with new molecular markers, which have allowed for an increasingly early and accurate diagnosis. Resective surgery is also reviewed, allowing in these cases a seizure freedom close to 70-90% of patients. The best outcome in terms of seizure control can be achieved when early surgery is performed.

Multimodal imaging assessment of a "micro" optic disk melanocytoma: A case report.

An optic disk melanocytoma is a benign pigmented neoplasm of the optic disk measuring 2.00 mm of diameter in average. Smaller optic disk melanocytomas are rare and have not been studied with multiple imaging studies. A case of a "micro" optic disk melanocytoma measuring 0.71 mm in diameter was studied by multiple imaging modalities, including fundus autofluorescence, ultrasound, visual fields, optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography. While clinical appreciation and fundus autofluorescence reveal changes compatible with previously reported cases, OCT, OCT angiography and ultrasound reveal specific changes that could be useful for follow up.

Traducción, validación y adaptación cultural de la evaluación SANE (Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation) en pacientes con patología de hombro / Translation, validation and cultural adaptation of the SANE (Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation) in patients with shoulder pathology

Resumen: Introducción: La evaluación SANE (Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation) es un tipo de desenlace reportado por el paciente, corto y fácil de administrar que se correlaciona con otras evaluaciones funcionales del hombro más extensas. Hasta la fecha no se encuentra validada en nuestra lengua. Objetivo: Traducir, validar y adaptar la evaluación SANE al idioma español. Material y métodos: Se realizó la traducción y contra-traducción por dos evaluadores expertos bilingües y un traductor oficial. Se determinó la validez de constructo con un grupo de expertos en cirugía de hombro, la validez de criterio con la escala de American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) previamente validada en español y la reproducibilidad de la prueba. Resultados: Se evaluaron 113 pacientes con un promedio de edad de 53.6 años, siendo 56% mujeres. El diagnóstico más frecuente fue síndrome de manguito rotador en un 78.6% seguido por artrosis glenohumeral y acromioclavicular, hombro congelado e inestabilidad del hombro. El índice de correlación de Pearson entre el SANE y el ASES fue de 0.699. La reproducibilidad de la prueba fue alta con un coeficiente de correlación intraclase de 0.86. Conclusiones: La evaluación SANE es una medida de desenlace centrada en el paciente fiable y válida, que tiene una buena correlación con puntajes funcionales previamente validados al español más extensos. Se presenta la versión traducida y adaptada al español, que puede ser utilizada como medida de desenlace para intervenciones quirúrgicas o no quirúrgicas en patologías de hombro.

Abstract: Introduction: The Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE) score is a brief method of evaluating patients' perception of the shoulder joint and has proven high correlation with other outcome measures that are more lengthy and time-consuming in daily practice. The SANE score to date has not been validated in Spanish. Objective: To translate, adapt, and validate the SANE score in Spanish. Material and methods: An initial translation and counter-translation was conducted by two bilingual evaluators and an official translator. Content validity was evaluated by a group of experts in shoulder surgery. The criteria validity was determined by determining correlation with the previously translated and validated ASES score. Reliability of the test was determined. Results: 113 patients were evaluated, with an average age of 53.6 being 56% female. The most frequent diagnosis was rotator cuff syndrome in 78.6% followed by frozen shoulder, glenohumeral and acromioclavicular osteoarthritis and shoulder instability and acromioclavicular dislocation. Correlation between the SANE and ASES results was 0.699. The test was highly reliable with an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.86. Conclusion: The SANE score is a valid and reliable patient centered outcome measure that has a good correlation with other previously validated scores in Spanish that are less practical. We present a translated valid version of the SANE score in Spanish that can be used as a patient reported outcome measure for shoulder pathologies.

Habitat suitability of cetaceans in the Gulf of Mexico using an ecological niche modeling approach.

BACKGROUND: The Gulf of Mexico (GOM) is a semi-enclosed sea where the waters of the United States, Mexico and Cuba converge. Al least 21 species of cetaceans inhabit it. The only mysticete (baleen whale) is found in the northeast (U.S. waters). The distribution of the 20 species of odontocetes (toothed cetaceans) is well understood in U.S. waters, but practically unknown in Mexican and Cuban waters. In this study we used sighting data from several odontocete species to construct habitat suitability maps in order to identify geographical regions suitable for high diversity throughout the GOM. METHODS: Historical datasets of georeferenced sightings from across the GOM were used to implement the maximum entropy algorithm (MaxEnt) to model the habitat suitability of each species. Five environmental predictors were used, selected for their influence over the occurrence of cetaceans: two oceanographic predictors (sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-a concentration), and three bathymetric predictors (depth, slope, and distance to 200-m isobath). A spatial approach based on the habitat suitability maps was used to identify the suitable regions. RESULTS: Only 12 species were modeled, which were the ones with the minimum sample size required. The models performed well, showing good discriminatory power and slight overfitting. Overall, depth, minimum sea surface temperature, and bottom slope were the most contributing predictor in the models. High suitability areas of 10 species were located on the continental slope, and four suitable regions were identified: (1) the Mississippi Canyon and the Louisiana-Texas slope in the northern GOM, (2) the west Florida slope in the east-northeastern GOM, (3) the Rio Grande slope in the west-northwestern GOM, and (4) the Tamaulipas-Veracruz slope in the west-southwestern GOM. CONCLUSIONS: We were able to detect four geographic regions in the GOM where a high diversity of odontocetes is expected, all located on the continental slope. Although the methodology to identify them (spatial overlap) is a very conservative approach, it is useful for conservation and management purposes. The paucity of data did not allow all species to be modeled, which highlights the importance of establishing transboundary monitoring programs.

[Translation, validation and cultural adaptation of the SANE (Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation) in patients with shoulder pathology]. / Traducción, validación y adaptación cultural de la evaluación SANE (Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation) en pacientes con patología de hombro.

INTRODUCTION: The Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE) score is a brief method of evaluating patients' perception of the shoulder joint and has proven high correlation with other outcome measures that are more lengthy and time-consuming in daily practice. The SANE score to date has not been validated in Spanish. OBJECTIVE: To translate, adapt, and validate the SANE score in Spanish. MATERIAL AND METHODS: An initial translation and counter-translation was conducted by two bilingual evaluators and an official translator. Content validity was evaluated by a group of experts in shoulder surgery. The criteria validity was determined by determining correlation with the previously translated and validated ASES score. Reliability of the test was determined. RESULTS: 113 patients were evaluated, with an average age of 53.6 being 56% female. The most frequent diagnosis was rotator cuff syndrome in 78.6% followed by frozen shoulder, glenohumeral and acromioclavicular osteoarthritis and shoulder instability and acromioclavicular dislocation. Correlation between the SANE and ASES results was 0.699. The test was highly reliable with an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.86. CONCLUSION: The SANE score is a valid and reliable patient centered outcome measure that has a good correlation with other previously validated scores in Spanish that are less practical. We present a translated valid version of the SANE score in Spanish that can be used as a patient reported outcome measure for shoulder pathologies.

INTRODUCCIÓN: La evaluación SANE (Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation) es un tipo de desenlace reportado por el paciente, corto y fácil de administrar que se correlaciona con otras evaluaciones funcionales del hombro más extensas. Hasta la fecha no se encuentra validada en nuestra lengua. OBJETIVO: Traducir, validar y adaptar la evaluación SANE al idioma español. MATERIAL Y MÉTODOS: Se realizó la traducción y contra-traducción por dos evaluadores expertos bilingües y un traductor oficial. Se determinó la validez de constructo con un grupo de expertos en cirugía de hombro, la validez de criterio con la escala de American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) previamente validada en español y la reproducibilidad de la prueba. RESULTADOS: Se evaluaron 113 pacientes con un promedio de edad de 53.6 años, siendo 56% mujeres. El diagnóstico más frecuente fue síndrome de manguito rotador en un 78.6% seguido por artrosis glenohumeral y acromioclavicular, hombro congelado e inestabilidad del hombro. El índice de correlación de Pearson entre el SANE y el ASES fue de 0.699. La reproducibilidad de la prueba fue alta con un coeficiente de correlación intraclase de 0.86. CONCLUSIONES: La evaluación SANE es una medida de desenlace centrada en el paciente fiable y válida, que tiene una buena correlación con puntajes funcionales previamente validados al español más extensos. Se presenta la versión traducida y adaptada al español, que puede ser utilizada como medida de desenlace para intervenciones quirúrgicas o no quirúrgicas en patologías de hombro.

Dermatophytosis caused by Nannizzia nana.

PURPOSE: In this paper, we reported three distinct cases of tinea, including tenia ungulum, tenia pedis, and tenia cruris caused by the infection of Nannizzia nana in the immunocompetent patients who were also the residents of Guatemala. Dermatophytes were identified phenotypically and genotypically. Thereafter, DNA was extracted from the fungal isolates and a fragment of the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region was amplified and sequenced. The direct visual examination revealed the presence of fungal hyphae and arthroconidia. These characteristic morphological features resembled with the general features of the species, Nannizzia nana. Furthermore, nucleotide sequences that were amplified from the fungal isolates, confirmed the species identification. Thereafter, all the patients were treated with Terbinafine (250mg) through oral route for two weeks, except the patient with onychomycosis, who received the same treatment but for an extended period of three months. All the patients showed complete recovery from dermatophytosis. This study contributes to a better understanding of the epidemiology of human infections that are caused by dermatophytes, often misdiagnosed. Dermatophytes are currently less known but are now being more frequently identified due to the improvements in the diagnostic techniques.