Medicina
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Background and Objectives: The prediction of the prognosis and effect of neoadjuvant therapy is vital for patients with advanced or unresectable colorectal carcinoma (CRC). Materials and Methods: We investigated several tumor microenvironment factors, such as intratumoral budding (ITB), desmoplastic reaction (DR), and Klintrup-Mäkinen (KM) inflammation grade, and the tumor-stroma ratio (TSR) in pretreatment biopsy samples (PBSs) collected from patients with advanced or unresectable CRC. A total of 85 patients with 74 rectal carcinomas and 11 colon cancers treated at our hospital were enrolled; 66 patients had curative surgery and 19 patients received palliative treatment. ⋯ High-grade ITB had a significant relationship with tumor regression in patients who received curative surgery (p = 0.049). Conclusions: High-grade ITB in PBSs is a potential unfavorable prognostic factor for patients with advanced CRC. Immature DR, TSR, and KM grade could not predict prognosis or therapy response in PBSs.
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Background and Objectives: Endometriosis is a benign, chronic disease, that negatively influences the quality of life of affected women and is responsible for a remarkable amount of infertility. The pathophysiology of the disease is still not clarified, but the insufficient immune surveillance plays a significant role in it. The phagocyte function of innate immune cells may play a role in the elimination of ectopic endometrium. ⋯ The heat-inactivation of plasma samples did not affect the results. Conclusions: Active endometriosis lesions may produce heat-stable systemic immunomodulatory factors, which reduced the phagocyte function of peripheral monocytes and neutrophil granulocytes. The phagocyte function of these cells can be normalized after the complete surgical removal of endometriosis, which then demonstrates similar values as in healthy women.
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Background and Objectives: the upper respiratory tract harbors the highest bacterial density in the whole respiratory system. Adenoids, which are located in the nasopharynx, are a major site of bacterial colonies in the upper airways. Our goal was to use culture-independent molecular techniques to identify the breadth of bacterial diversity in the adenoid vegetations of children suffering from chronic rhinosinusitis and obstructive sleep apnea. ⋯ Results: among the most common bacterial species found were Veillonella atypica, Fusobactrium nucelatum, Shaalia odontolytica, and Moraxella catarrhalis. Veillonella atypica and Fusbacteriumnucelatum dominated the microbiome in all 21 samples, attributing to more than 60% of all detected genetic material. Conclusions: since both Veillonella atypica and Fusobacterium nucleatum are, predominantly, oral cavity and dental microorganisms, our findings may suggest oral microbiome migration deeper into the oropharynx and nasopharynx where these bacteria colonize adenoid vegetations.
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Background and Objective: The recent multi-country outbreak of human monkeypox (HMPX) in non-endemic regions poses an emerging public health concern. University students in health schools/faculties represent a core knowledgeable group that can be helpful to study from a public health point of view. As future healthcare workers, assessment of their knowledge and attitude towards emerging zoonotic viral infections can be helpful to assess their taught material and courses with potential improvement if gaps in knowledge were identified. ⋯ Our data also indicate that lower levels of HMPX knowledge were associated with higher levels of conspiracy beliefs. Conclusion: The current study pointed to generally unsatisfactory levels of knowledge regarding the emerging HMPX among university students in Jordanian health schools/faculties. Conspiracy beliefs regarding emerging virus infections were widely prevalent, and its potential detrimental impact on health behavior should be evaluated in future studies.
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Is a cyclic neuropeptide produced primarily in the hypothalamus and plays an important neuromodulatory role for other neurotransmitter systems, with an impact on behavior, response to danger, stress, and complex social interactions, such as pair bonding and child care. This narrative expert review examines the literature on oxytocin as a brain hormone. We focused on oxytocin structure, distribution, genetics, and the oxytocin receptor system, as well as the relationship of oxytocin with other neurotransmitters and the resulting impacts on the main psychiatric disorders. ⋯ Oxytocin could impact the latter, being linked with other neurotransmitter systems that are responsible for integrating different situations during the development phases of individuals. Also, these systems have an important role in how the body responds to stressors or bonding with others, helping with the creation of social support groups that could speed up recovery in many situations. Oxytocin has the potential to become a key therapeutic agent for future treatment and prevention strategies concerning the main psychiatric disorders.