Differential Expression of Proteins in an Atypical Presentation of Autoimmune Lymphoproliferative Syndrome

Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) is a rare disease defined as a defect in the lymphocyte apoptotic pathway. Currently, the diagnosis of ALPS is based on clinical aspects, defective lymphocyte apoptosis and mutations in Fas, FasL and Casp 10 genes. Despite this, ALPS has been misdiagnosed. The aim of this work was to go one step further in the knowledge of the disease, through a molecular and proteomic analysis of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from two children, a 13-year-old girl and a 6-year-old boy, called patient 1 and patient 2, respectively, with clinical data supporting the diagnosis of ALPS. Fas, FasL and Casp10 genes from both patients were sequenced, and a sample of the total proteins from patient 1 was analyzed by label-free proteomics. Pathway analysis of deregulated proteins from PBMCs was performed on the STRING and PANTHER bioinformatics databases. A mutation resulting in an in-frame premature stop codon and protein truncation was detected in the Fas gene from patient 2. From patient 1, the proteomic analysis showed differences in the level of expression of proteins involved in, among other processes, cell cycle, regulation of cell cycle arrest and immune response. Noticeably, the most down-regulated protein is an important regulator of the cell cycle process. This could be an explanation of the disease in patient 1.     

Elevation of Tear MMP-9 Concentration as a Biomarker of Inflammation in Ocular Pathology by Antibody Microarray Immunodetection Assays

Matrix metalloproteinases are a family of enzymes fundamental in inflammatory processes. Between them, MMP-9 is up-regulated during inflammation; thus, its quantification in non-invasive fluids is a promising approach for inflammation identification. To this goal, a biomarker quantification test was developed for ocular inflammation detection using anti-MMP-9 antibody microarrays (AbMAs). After validation with eight healthy control tear samples characterized by ELISA, 20 samples were tested from individuals diagnosed with ocular inflammation due to: cataracts, glaucoma, meibomian gland dysfunction, allergy, or dry eye. Concentration values of tear MMP-9 were obtained for each sample, and 12 patients surpassed the pathological threshold (30 ng/mL). A significant elevation of MMP-9 concentration in the tears of glaucoma patients compared with healthy controls was observed. In order to evaluate the diagnostic ability, an ROC curve analysis was performed using our data, determining the optimal threshold for the test at 33.6 ng/mL of tear MMP-9. In addition, a confusion matrix was applied, estimating sensitivity at 60%, specificity at 88%, and accuracy at 68%. In conclusion, we demonstrated that the AbMAs system allows the quantification of MMP-9 in pathologies that involve inflammation of the ocular surface.     

Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Small Molecules as Potential Anticancer Multitarget Agents

Twenty-six triazole-based derivatives were designed for targeting both PD-L1 (programmed death receptor ligand 1) and VEGFR-2 (vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2). These compounds were synthetized and biologically evaluated as multitarget inhibitors of VEGFR-2, PD-L1 and c-Myc proteins. The antiproliferative activity of these molecules on several tumor cell lines (HT-29, A-549, and MCF-7) and on the non-tumor cell line HEK-293 was determined. The effects on the abovementioned biological targets were evaluated for some selected compounds. Compound 23, bearing a p-chlorophenyl group, showed better results than sorafenib in regard to the downregulation of VEGFR-2 and a similar effect to BMS-8 on both PD-L1 and c-Myc proteins. The antiangiogenic and antivascular activities of chloro derivatives were also established by endothelial microtube formation assay on Matrigel^®.     

A Systematic Study of Restorative Crown-Materials Combinations for Dental Implants: Characterization of Mechanical Properties under Dynamic Loads

This study aimed to find the optimum mechanical characteristics of the restorative materials for the manufacture of implant crowns subjected to impact loading when different combinations of materials are used for the inner and outer crown. Several combinations of external–internal crown restorative materials were analyzed. The dynamic stresses at eight different zones of a dental implant subjected to an impact load and the influence of several mechanical properties, such as the Young’s modulus, Poisson’s ratio, density, and initial velocity, were analyzed and compared. A detailed 3D model was created, including the crown, the retention screw, the implant, and a mandible section. The model was then built by importing the 3D geometries from CAD software. The whole 3D model was carefully created in order to guarantee a finite element mesh that produced results adjusted to physical reality. Then, we conducted a numerical simulation using the finite element method (FEM). The results of the FEM analysis allowed for evaluating the effect that different combinations of restorative materials and mechanical properties had on the stress distribution in various regions of the implant. The choice of restorative material is a factor to be considered in order to preserve the integrity of osseointegration. Restorative materials transfer more or less stress to the dental implant and surrounding bone, depending on their stiffness. Therefore, an inadequate Young’s modulus of the rehabilitation material can affect the survival of the implant over time. Eight interactive graphics were provided on a web-based surface platform to help clinical dentists, researchers, and manufacturers to select the best restorative materials combination for the crown.     

Improving the Management of Endometrial Cancer Patients through the Use of Liquid Biopsy Analyses: A Case Report

Endometrial cancer (EC) is the 4th most common neoplasm of the female genital tract, with 15–20% of patients being of high risk of recurrence which leads to a significant decrease in patient survival. Current therapeutic options for patients with EC are poor, being the combined therapy of carboplatin and paclitaxel the standard of care, with limited efficacy. Therefore, new therapeutic options and better monitoring tools are needed to improve the management of the disease. In the current case report, we showcase the value of liquid biopsy analyses in a microsatellite instability EC patient with initially good prognosis that however underwent rapid progression disease within 6 months post-surgery; through the study of plasma cfDNA/ctDNA dynamics to assess the tumour evolution during treatment, as well as the study of the uterine aspirate as a valuable sample that captures the intra-tumour heterogeneity that allows a comprehensive genomic profiling of the disease to identify potential therapeutic options. Furthermore, preclinical models were generated at the time of tumour progression to assess the efficacy of the identified targeted therapies.     

Software specification using graph grammars

The following paper demonstrates that programmed sequential graph grammars can be used in a systematic proceeding to specify the changes of high level intermediate data structures arising in a programming support environment, in which all tools work in an incremental and syntax-driven mode. In this paper we lay stress upon the way to get the specification rather than on the result of this process. Therefore, we give here some approach to “specification engineering” using graph grammars. This approach is influenced by the syntactical definition of the underlying language for Programming in the Small, the module concept etc. to be supported on one side but also by the idea of the user interface.     

Matisse: A System-on-Chip Design Methodology Emphasizing Dynamic Memory Management

MATISSE is a design environment intended for developing systems characterized by a tight interaction between control and data-flow behavior, intensive data storage and transfer, and stringent real-time requirements. Matisse bridges the gap from a system specification, using a concurrent object-oriented language, to an optimized embedded single-chip hardware/software implementation. Matisse supports stepwise exploration and refinement of dynamic memory management, memory architecture exploration, and gradual incorporation of timing constraints before going to traditional tools for hardware synthesis, software compilation, and inter-processor communication synthesis. With this approach, specifications of embedded systems can be written in a high-level programming language using data abstraction. Application of MATISSE on telecom protocol processing systems in the ATM area shows significant improvements in area usage and power consumption.     

Comparison of Biological Features of Wild European Rabbit Mesenchymal Stem Cells Derived from Different Tissues

Although the European rabbit is an “endangered” species and a notorious biological model, the analysis and comparative characterization of new tissue sources of rabbit mesenchymal stem cells (rMSCs) have not been well addressed. Here, we report for the first time the isolation and characterization of rMSCs derived from an animal belonging to a natural rabbit population within the native region of the species. New rMSC lines were isolated from different tissues: oral mucosa (rOM-MSC), dermal skin (rDS-MSC), subcutaneous adipose tissue (rSCA-MSC), ovarian adipose tissue (rOA-MSC), oviduct (rO-MSC), and mammary gland (rMG-MSC). The six rMSC lines showed plastic adhesion with fibroblast-like morphology and were all shown to be positive for CD44 and CD29 expression (characteristic markers of MSCs), and negative for CD34 or CD45 expression. In terms of pluripotency features, all rMSC lines expressed NANOG, OCT4, and SOX2. Furthermore, all rMSC lines cultured under osteogenic, chondrogenic, and adipogenic conditions showed differentiation capacity. In conclusion, this study describes the isolation and characterization of new rabbit cell lines from different tissue origins, with a clear mesenchymal pattern. We show that rMSC do not exhibit differences in terms of morphological features, expression of the cell surface, and intracellular markers of pluripotency and in vitro differentiation capacities, attributable to their tissue of origin.