Fulminant multifocal relapse in a fingolimod-treated multiple sclerosis patient

BACKGROUND

Fingolimod is the first approved oral disease-modifying treatment for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. Fingolimod targets lymphocytes, exerting a modulator effect on cell-surface sphingosine-1-phosphate receptors and thus blocking lymphocytes egression from secondary lymphoid organs. Recent reports describe fingolimod cessation being followed by severe or pseudo-tumoral relapse, but it usually does not happen on continuous long-term treatment.

CASE PRESENTATION

Here we present the case of a patient on continuous long-term fingolimod treatment who presented with fulminant atypical multifocal relapse involving over 30 new and active lesions.

CONCLUSION

This case is unique since this fulminant multifocal relapse occurred in a patient with grade 3 lymphopenia and irreproachable adherence. This observation should be known as a possible side effect of fingolimod treatment.

Search for CP Violation in Neutrino and Antineutrino Oscillations by the T2K Experiment with 2.2×10^{21} Protons on Target

The T2K experiment measures muon neutrino disappearance and electron neutrino appearance in accelerator-produced neutrino and antineutrino beams. With an exposure of 14.7(7.6)×10^{20} protons on target in the neutrino (antineutrino) mode, 89 ν_{e} candidates and seven anti-ν_{e} candidates are observed, while 67.5 and 9.0 are expected for δ_{CP}=0 and normal mass ordering. The obtained 2σ confidence interval for the CP-violating phase, δ_{CP}, does not include the CP-conserving cases (δ_{CP}=0, π). The best-fit values of other parameters are sin^{2}θ_{23}=0.526_{-0.036}^{+0.032} and Δm_{32}^{2}=2.463_{-0.070}^{+0.071}×10^{-3}  eV^{2}/c^{4}.

Real-life long-term effectiveness of fingolimod in Swiss patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis

Background and purpose

In 2011, fingolimod was approved in Switzerland for the treatment of relapsing‐remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). The aim of the present study was to assess the effectiveness and retention of fingolimod in a real‐life Swiss setting, in which patients can receive fingolimod as both first‐ and second‐line treatment for RRMS.

Methods

This cross‐sectional, observational study with retrospective data collection was performed at 19 sites that comprised both hospitals and office‐based physicians across Switzerland. Sites were asked to document eligible patients in consecutive chronological order to avoid selection bias. Demographic and clinical data from 274 consenting adult patients with RRMS who had received treatment with fingolimod were analyzed.

Results

Mean treatment duration with fingolimod was 32 months. Under fingolimod, 77.7% of patients remained free from relapses and 90.3% did not experience disability progression. The proportion of patients who were free from any clinical disease activity, i.e. without relapses and disability progression, was 72.1%. A total of 28.5% of patients had been RRMS treatment‐naïve prior to fingolimod therapy. High long‐term treatment retention rates ranging between 95.7% at 24 months and 87.8% at 36 months were observed.

Conclusion

In this Swiss cohort of naïve and pre‐treated subjects with RRMS, the majority of patients under fingolimod treatment showed freedom from relapses and disability progression. In addition, treatment retention rate over 2 and 3 years was high, irrespective of previous treatment.

A thin CdSe shell boosts the electron transfer from CdTe quantum dots to methylene blue

CdTe core and CdTe/CdSe core/shell quantum dots (QD) are investigated with steady state and time-resolved spectroscopic methods. The coating of the CdTe core with a 0.7 nm thick CdSe shell shifts the lowest exciton absorption band to the red by more than 70 nm making the CdTe/CdSe QD an interesting candidate for application in solar energy conversion. Femtosecond transient absorption measurements are applied to study the photoinduced electron transfer (ET) to the molecular acceptor methylene blue (MB). ET times after single excitation of the QD are determined for different MB : QD ratios. The ET reaction is significantly faster in the case of the MB-CdTe/CdSe QD complexes, indicative of an altered charge distribution in the photoexcited heterostructure with a higher electron density in the CdSe shell. As a result of the efficient absorption of incoming light and the faster ET reaction, the amount of reduced MB in the time resolved experiments is higher for CdTe/CdSe QD compared to CdTe QD.

Combined Analysis of Neutrino and Antineutrino Oscillations at T2K

T2K reports its first results in the search for CP violation in neutrino oscillations using appearance and disappearance channels for neutrino- and antineutrino-mode beams. The data include all runs from January 2010 to May 2016 and comprise 7.482×10^{20} protons on target in neutrino mode, which yielded in the far detector 32 e-like and 135  μ-like events, and 7.471×10^{20} protons on target in antineutrino mode, which yielded 4 e-like and 66  μ-like events. Reactor measurements of sin^{2}2θ_{13} have been used as an additional constraint. The one-dimensional confidence interval at 90% for the phase δ_{CP} spans the range (-3.13, -0.39) for normal mass ordering. The CP conservation hypothesis (δ_{CP}=0, π) is excluded at 90% C.L.

[Ureteral stricture as a late complication of radiotherapy : Possible treatment options]

Ureteral strictures are uncommon complications of radiotherapy which are often recognized late. Their consequences range from harmless dilatation of the ureter to loss of renal function and potential life-threatening urosepsis.Therapy of radiogenic ureteral stricture is a challenging task for every urologist. Several surgical strategies including minimally invasive procedures, reconstruction and partial or complete replacement of the ureter are available.This article provides an overview of the various options in the treatment of radiogenic stricture of the ureter, focusing on the use of ileum and colon segments for ureteral substitution.

Measurement of Coherent π^{+} Production in Low Energy Neutrino-Carbon Scattering

We report the first measurement of the flux-averaged cross section for charged current coherent π^{+} production on carbon for neutrino energies less than 1.5 GeV, and with a restriction on the final state phase space volume in the T2K near detector, ND280. Comparisons are made with predictions from the Rein-Sehgal coherent production model and the model by Alvarez-Ruso et al., the latter representing the first implementation of an instance of the new class of microscopic coherent models in a neutrino interaction Monte Carlo event generator. We observe a clear event excess above background, disagreeing with the null results reported by K2K and SciBooNE in a similar neutrino energy region. The measured flux-averaged cross sections are below those predicted by both the Rein-Sehgal and Alvarez-Ruso et al.