In Situ ATR Spectroscopy Study of the Interaction of Acacia senegal Gum with Gold Nanoparticles Films at the Solid-Liquid Interface

The adsorption process of Acacia gum (A. senegal), a complex heteropolysaccharide, was followed by using a spectroscopic method to unravel the relative contribution of the protein moieties and the carbohydrate blocks on the adsorption process. In situ ATR-FTIR was used to investigate the kinetics and conformational changes associated with the adsorption of A. senegal gum on gold nanoparticle films (Au-NPs) at different pHs. The results of this thorough study highlighted the adsorption of A. senegal gum through its protein moieties, in particular, AGPs of low molecular weight and high protein content, close to the Au-NPs surface. Isotherm experiments, by gradually increasing the concentration, showed that the gum adsorption was heterogeneous and followed the Freundlich model for the amide part, while the polysaccharide part followed the Langmuir model. In addition, the hydration and structural organization of the gum layer depended on the gum concentration. A. senegal gum adsorbed irreversibly on Au-NPs whatever the pHs, but the adsorbed layer presented a different behavior depending on pH. A more aggregated and less hydrated structure was observed at acidic pH, while a very hydrated and continuous layer was detected at higher pH. The secondary structure analysis through amide III band revealed a change in the gum secondary structure at high pH with the increase in β-turn while random coil decreased.

Post-processed data and graphical tools for a CONUS-wide eddy flux evapotranspiration dataset

Large sample datasets of in situ evapotranspiration (ET) measurements with well documented data provenance and quality assurance are critical for water management and many fields of earth science research. We present a post-processed ET oriented dataset at daily and monthly timesteps, from 161 stations, including 148 eddy covariance flux towers, that were chosen based on their data quality from nearly 350 stations across the contiguous United States. In addition to ET, the data includes energy and heat fluxes, meteorological measurements, and reference ET downloaded from gridMET for each flux station. Data processing techniques were conducted in a reproducible manner using open-source software. Most data initially came from the public AmeriFlux network, however, several different networks (e.g., the USDA-Agricultural Research Service) and university partners provided data that was not yet public. Initial half-hourly energy balance data were gap-filled and aggregated to daily frequency, and turbulent fluxes were corrected for energy balance closure error using the FLUXNET2015/ONEFlux energy balance ratio approach. Metadata, diagnostics of energy balance, and interactive graphs of time series data are included for each station. Although the dataset was developed primarily to benchmark satellite-based remote sensing ET models of the OpenET initiative, there are many other potential uses, such as validation for a range of regional hydrologic and atmospheric models.

Maturation of demineralized arabinogalactan-proteins from Acacia seyal gum in dry state: Aggregation kinetics and structural properties of aggregates

The aggregation in dry state of mineral-loaded arabinogalactan-proteins (AGPs) from Acacia seyal gum (GA) generally occurs above 70 °C. This study focuses on the aggregation sensitivity of AGPs after their demineralization. The dry incubation in mild temperature (25 °C to 70 °C) of demineralized AGPs induced the formation of aggregates, not observed with GA. AGPs aggregated following a self-assembly mechanism for which temperature only modulated the aggregation rate. The activation energy was around 90-100 kJ·mol^-1 that could correspond to chemical condensation reactions induced by the AGPs surface dehydration. The aggregation kinetics were characterized by the formation of soluble aggregates during the first times of incubation, whose molar mass increased from 1 · 10⁶ g·mol^-1 to 6.7 · 10⁶ g·mol^-1 (SEC MALS) or 12 · 10⁶ g·mol^-1 (AF4 MALS) after 1.66 days of dry heating at 40 °C. These soluble aggregates revealed they adopted a similar conformation to that of not aggregated AGPs with a ν_h value around 0.45. Above 1.66 days at 40 °C, the soluble aggregates grew up to form microparticles with sizes ranging from 10 to around 200 μm. This study highlighted the protective role of cations from AGPs whose demineralization increased their sensibility to dry heating and their chemical reactivity for aggregation.

Impact of Hydrophobic and Electrostatic Forces on the Adsorption of Acacia Gum on Oxide Surfaces Revealed by QCM-D

The adsorption of Acacia gum from two plant exudates, A. senegal and A. seyal, at the solid-liquid interface on oxide surfaces was studied using a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D). The impact of the hydrophobic and electrostatic forces on the adsorption capacity was investigated by different surface, hydrophobicity, and charge properties, and by varying the ionic strength or the pH. The results highlight that hydrophobic forces have higher impacts than electrostatic forces on the Acacia gum adsorption on the oxide surface. The Acacia gum adsorption capacity is higher on hydrophobic surfaces compared to hydrophilic ones and presents a higher stability with negatively charged surfaces. The structural configuration and charge of Acacia gum in the first part of the adsorption process are important parameters. Acacia gum displays an extraordinary ability to adapt to surface properties through rearrangements, conformational changes, and/or dehydration processes in order to reach the steadiest state on the solid surface. Rheological analysis from QCM-D data shows that the A. senegal layers present a viscous behavior on the hydrophilic surface and a viscoelastic behavior on more hydrophobic ones. On the contrary, A. seyal layers show elastic behavior on all surfaces according to the Voigt model or a viscous behavior on the hydrophobic surface when considering the power-law model.

Validation of a suite of ERP and QEEG biomarkers in a pre-competitive, industry-led study in subjects with schizophrenia and healthy volunteers

OBJECTIVE

Complexity and lack of standardization have mostly limited the use of event-related potentials (ERPs) and quantitative EEG (QEEG) biomarkers in drug development to small early phase trials. We present results from a clinical study on healthy volunteers (HV) and patients with schizophrenia (SZ) that assessed test-retest, group differences, variance, and correlation with functional assessments for ERP and QEEG measures collected at clinical and commercial trial sites with standardized instrumentation and methods, and analyzed through an automated data analysis pipeline.

METHODS

81 HV and 80 SZ were tested at one of four study sites. Subjects were administered two ERP/EEG testing sessions on separate visits. Sessions included a mismatch negativity paradigm, a 40 Hz auditory steady-state response paradigm, an eyes-closed resting state EEG, and an active auditory oddball paradigm. SZ subjects were also tested on the Brief Assessment of Cognition (BAC), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), and Virtual Reality Functional Capacity Assessment Tool (VRFCAT).

RESULTS

Standardized ERP/EEG instrumentation and methods ensured few test failures. The automated data analysis pipeline allowed for near real-time analysis with no human intervention. Test-retest reliability was fair-to-excellent for most of the outcome measures. SZ subjects showed significant deficits in ERP and QEEG measures consistent with published academic literature. A subset of ERP and QEEG measures correlated with functional assessments administered to the SZ subjects.

CONCLUSIONS

With standardized instrumentation and methods, complex ERP/EEG testing sessions can be reliably performed at clinical and commercial trial sites to produce high-quality data in near real-time.

Artificial intelligence-guided, single-lead EKG may be a game-changer for symptom-to-balloon time reduction in ST-elevated myocardial infarction

Background

Over decades, efforts to shave off life-saving minutes from ST-Elevated Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) care centred on reducing door-to-needle and door-to-balloon times. We firmly believe that symptom-to-balloon time should prove a better focus to this end. Challenges come with this goal as it heavily relies on a patient's perception and initiative to seek care, which we deem intelligent and wearable Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven Single Lead EKG technologies as an attractive solution in modern-day cardiology.

Purpose

To provide an accurate, accessible, and cost-effective AI-driven Single Lead STEMI detection algorithm that can be embedded into wearable devices and employed in a self-administered fashion.

Methods

Database: EKG records from Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, and Brazil from April 2014 to December 2019. Dataset: A total of 11,567 12-lead EKG records of 10[s] length with a sampling frequency of 500 Hz, including the following balanced classes: angiographically confirmed and unconfirmed STEMI, branch blocks, non-specific ST-T abnormalities, normal and abnormal (200+ CPT codes, excluding those mentioned above). Cardiologists manually checked the label of each record to ensure precision. Pre-processing: We discard the first and last 250 samples as they may contain a standardisation pulse. The study applied a digital low pass filter of order 5 with a frequency cut-off of 35 Hz. The mean was subtracted from each Lead. Classification: The determined classes were “STEMI” (Including STEMI in different locations of the myocardium – anterior, inferior, and lateral); and “Not-STEMI” (Combination of randomly sample, branch blocks, non-specific ST-T changes, and abnormal records – 25% of each). Training and Testing: A 1-D Convolutional Neural Network was trained and tested with a dataset proportion of 90/10, respectively. A different model was trained and tested for each Lead, using the central 4,500 samples of the records. The last dense layer outputs a probability for each report of being STEMI or Not-STEMI. Lead V2 showed the best overall results. The model was further tested through the same methodology using the best Lead with a subset of the previous data, excluding the unconfirmed STEMI EKG records (Total 7,230 12-lead EKG records for Confirmed Only STEMI dataset). Performance metrics were reported for each experiment and compared.

Results

Combined STEMI data: Accuracy: 91.2%; Sensitivity: 89.6%; Specificity: 92.9%. Confirmed STEMI Only dataset: Accuracy: 92.4%; Sensitivity: 93.4%; Specificity: 91.4% (Figure 1).

Conclusion

By assiduously improving the quality of the model's input, we continue to assess our algorithm's performance and reliability for future clinical validation as a potential remote monitoring and early STEMI detection device.

Funding Acknowledgement

Type of funding sources: None.

Supraglottic airway device to improve ventilation success and reduce pulmonary aspiration during cardio-pulmonary resuscitation by basic life support rescuers: a randomised cross-over human cadaver study

Objectives: Early airway management during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) prevents aspiration of gastric contents. Endotracheal intubation is the gold standard to protect airways, but supraglottic airway devices (SGA) may provide some protection with less training. Bag-mask ventilation (BMV) is the most common method used by rescuers. We hypothesized that SGA use by first rescuers during CPR could increase ventilation success rate and also decrease intragastric pressure and pulmonary aspiration.Methods: We performed a randomized cross-over experimental trial on human cadavers. Protocol A: we assessed the rate of successful ventilation (chest rise), intragastric pressure, and CPR key time metrics. Protocol B: cadaver stomachs were randomized to be filled with 300 mL of either blue or green serum saline solution through a Foley catheter. Each rescuer was randomly assigned to use SGA or BMV during a 5-minute standard CPR period. Then, in a crossover design, the stomach was filled with the second colour solution and another 5-minute CPR period was performed using the other airway method. Pulmonary aspiration, defined as the presence of coloured solution below the vocal cords, was assessed by a blinded operator using bronchoscopy. A generalized linear mixed model was used for statistical analysis.Results: Protocol A: Forty-eight rescuers performed CPR on 11 cadavers. Median ventilation success was higher with SGA than BMV: 75.0% (IQR: 59.8-87.3) vs. 34.7% (IQR: 25.0-50.0), (p = 0.003). Gastric pressure and differential (maximum minus minimum) gastric pressure were lower in the SGA group: 2.21 mmHg (IQR: 1.66; 2.68) vs. 3.02 mmHg (IQR: 2.02; 4.22) (p = 0.02) and 5.70 mmHg (IQR: 4.10; 7.60) vs. 8.05 mmHg (IQR: 5.40; 11.60) (p = 0.05). CPR key times were not different between groups. Protocol B: Ten cadavers were included with 20 CPR periods. Aspiration occurred in 2 (20%) SGA procedures and 5 (50%) BMV procedures (p = 0.44).Conclusion: Use of SGA by rescuers improved the ventilation success rate, decreased intragastric pressure, and did not affect key CPR metrics. SGA use by basic life support rescuers appears feasible and efficient.

Adsorption Behavior of Arabinogalactan-Proteins (AGPs) from Acacia senegal Gum at a Solid-Liquid Interface

Adsorption of five different hyperbranched arabinogalactan-protein (AGP) fractions from Acacia senegal gum was thoroughly studied at the solid-liquid interface using a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The impact of the protein/sugar ratio, molecular weight, and aggregation state on the adsorption capacity was investigated by studying AGP fractions with different structural and biochemical features. Adsorption on a solid surface would be primarily driven by the protein moiety of the AGPs through hydrophobic forces and electrostatic interactions. Increasing ionic strength allows the decrease in electrostatic repulsions and, therefore, the formation of high-coverage films with aggregates on the surface. However, the maximum adsorption capacity was not reached by fractions with a higher protein content but by a fraction that contains an average protein quantity and presents a high content of high-molecular-weight AGPs. The results of this thorough study highlighted that the AGP surface adsorption process would depend not only on the protein moiety and high-molecular-weight AGP content but also on other parameters such as the structural accessibility of proteins, the molecular weight distribution, and the AGP flexibility, allowing structural rearrangements on the surface and spreading to form a viscoelastic film.

B subgroup detection in a small hospital transfusion service

The ABO blood group system includes phenotypes, or subgroups, that differ in the amount of A and B antigens present on the red blood cells (RBCs). These subgroups also differ in the A, B, or H substances present in secretions (for individuals who have the secretor phenotype). B subgroups are very rare and are less frequently reported than A subgroups. Usually, B subgroups are discovered during serologic testing when there is a discrepancy between RBC and serum grouping results. Subgroups of B are usually identified by a reference laboratory using molecular and adsorption-elution methods. This report details a case of a young, healthy, pregnant woman with a B subgroup detected by a small transfusion service using adsorption-elution methods. Serology and genotyping of the ABO gene was performed at a reference laboratory where the serology was consistent with a B subgroup, but no changes were identified in ABO gene sequencing. It is important to correctly identify B subgroups in donors and recipients to help resolve ABO discrepancies and potentially prevent ABO incompatibility in blood transfusion, thus minimizing transfusion reactions.

The ABO blood group system includes phenotypes, or subgroups, that differ in the amount of A and B antigens present on the red blood cells (RBCs). These subgroups also differ in the A, B, or H substances present in secretions (for individuals who have the secretor phenotype). B subgroups are very rare and are less frequently reported than A subgroups. Usually, B subgroups are discovered during serologic testing when there is a discrepancy between RBC and serum grouping results. Subgroups of B are usually identified by a reference laboratory using molecular and adsorption-elution methods. This report details a case of a young, healthy, pregnant woman with a B subgroup detected by a small transfusion service using adsorption-elution methods. Serology and genotyping of the ABO gene was performed at a reference laboratory where the serology was consistent with a B subgroup, but no changes were identified in ABO gene sequencing. It is important to correctly identify B subgroups in donors and recipients to help resolve ABO discrepancies and potentially prevent ABO incompatibility in blood transfusion, thus minimizing transfusion reactions.

Acacia gums new fractions and sparkling base wines: How their biochemical and structural properties impact foamability?

Foam is the first attribute observed when sparkling wine is served. Bentonite is essentially used to flocculate particles in sparkling base wines but can impair their foamability. Gums from Acacia senegal and Acacia seyal improved the foamability of different bentonite-treated base wines. Our main goal was to see how the supplementation with new fractions separated from Acacia gums by Ion Exchange Chromatography affected foamability of sparkling base wines, deepening the relation between foam behavior and characteristics of wine and gums. High molar mass fractions increased the maximal foam height and the foam height during the stability period in, respectively, 11 out and 8 out of 16 cases (69% and 50%, respectively). The properties of the supplementing gums fractions obtained by IEC and, although to a minor extent, the wine characteristics, affected positively and/or negatively the foam behavior. Wine foamability also depended on the relationship between wine and gums fractions properties.

TICACOS international: A multi-center, randomized, prospective controlled study comparing tight calorie control versus Liberal calorie administration study

Since the first TICACOS study, 3 additional studies have been published comparing a medical nutrition therapy guided by indirect calorimetry to a regimen prescribed on the basis of predictive equations. A recent guidelines document included a meta-analysis including these 4 papers and found a trend for improvement (OR 0.98-1.48) in favor of medical nutrition therapy guided by indirect calorimetry in terms of survival. The aim of our study was to perform a multicenter prospective, randomized, controlled non blinded study in critically patients to assess the added value for measuring daily resting energy expenditure as a guide for nutritional support. The primary objective was to decrease infectious rate of these critically ill patients.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

This phase III, multi-center, randomized, controlled non blinded study was planned to include 580 newly-admitted, adult ventilated ICU patients that were planned to stay more than 48 h in the ICU departments. The nutritional support was aimed to meet 80-100% of energy requirement measured by indirect calorimetry. The calorie needs were determined by IC in the Study group and by an equation (20-25 kcal/kg ideal body weight/day) in the Control Group. The ICU staff was trained to strive to supply 80-100% of a patient's energy requirements through artificial nutrition, preferably enteral feeding. Primary endpoint was infection rate and secondary endpoints included other morbidities and mortality during ICU, at 90 and 180 days. Comparison between the study and the control group was performed using T test for equality of means (independent samples test). Correlations were performed using the Pearson correlation test. A p level of 0.05 or below was considered as significant. Cross tabs procedure used Chi-square test for testing differences in complication rates, length of stay and length of ventilation. Correlations between energy balances and complications was also be tested using one way analysis as well as ANOVA analysis between groups and within groups. Kaplan Meir curves assessed the proportion of surviving patients in the 2 groups.

RESULTS

Seven centers with a calorimeter available participated to the study. Due to slow inclusion rate, the study was stopped after 6 years and after inclusion of 417 patients only. From the 417 intended to treat patients, 339 followed the protocol. There was no differences between control and study groups in terms of age, sex BMI, SOFA (7.1 ± 3.1 vs 7.4 ± 3.3) and APACHE II scores (22.4 ± 7.9 vs 22.2 ± 7.4). The rate of infection (40 vs 31), including pneumonia rate, need for surgery, dialysis requirement, length of ventilation, ICU length of stay, and hospital length of stay were not different between groups. Mortality (30 in the control vs 21 in the study group) was not significantly different between groups. The decreased mortality observed in the study group when added to previous studies may have a positive effect on the meta-analysis previously published.

CONCLUSION

Tight Calorie Control guided by indirect calorimetry decreased the rate of infection and mortality but not significantly. This may be explained by the not relatively small sample size. There results together with the previous 4 prospective randomized studies, may improve the results of the meta-analysis exploring the effects of IC guided nutrition on mortality.

Countdown to physician-free EKG interpretation

Background

With the introduction of electronic medical records and other digital platforms, the classification and coding of different medical entities have become a complex, cumbersome task that is prone to diagnostic inconsistencies and errors. By incorporating Artificial Intelligence (AI) to a massive database of EKG records, we have developed an innovative methodology to accurately discriminate an EKG as “normal” or “abnormal”. We firmly believe that this algorithm sets up medicine on a path of complete computer-aided EKG interpretation.

Purpose

To present a viable AI-guided filter that can accurately discriminate between normal and abnormal EKG within a cardiologist-annotated EKG database.

Methods

An observational, retrospective, case-control study. Samples: A total of 140,000 randomly sampled 12-lead ECG of 10-seconds length with a sampling frequency of 500 [Hz] from Brazil (BR) and Colombia (CO) (divided as 70,000 normal and 70,000 abnormal EKG records per country dataset) were derived from the private International Telemedical System (ITMS) database from September 2018 to July 2019. Only de-identified records were used, records with artifacts were excluded. Preprocessing: Only the first 2s of each short lead and 9s of the long lead were considered. This data includes mobile (MOB) and transtelephonic (TTP) EKGs (50/50 ratio). Limb leads I, II and III and precordial leads V1, V2, V3 and V5 were used. The mean was removed from each lead. Training Sets: Four models were trained as depicted in the figure below. Each training dataset has 25,000 Normal and 25,000 Abnormal records, where 10% of the total records were used as a validation set. The test sets included 10,000 normal, and 10,000 abnormal records each. Testing and Class Assigning: An inception convolutional neural network was implemented; Each model was tested with 5,000 normal and 5,000 abnormal records of the corresponding country and transmission type with which they were trained. “Normal” or “Abnormal” labels were assigned to each EKG record and were compared to the cardiologists' reports; performance indicators (accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity) were calculated for each model.

Results

An overall accuracy of 82.4%; sensitivity of 88.7%; and specificity of 76.2% was achieved amongst the 4 testing models (Separate results of each training set are shown below).

Conclusion(s)

AI enables the interpretation of digital EKG records to be exercised in an organized, accurate, and straightforward manner, taking into consideration the multiple potential entities that can be diagnosed through this historical triage tool. By quickly identifying the normal records, the cardiologist is able to invest efforts in treating patients in a timely manner.

Funding Acknowledgement

Type of funding source: None

AB1204 COST-EFFECTIVENESS OF ABATACEPT IN SPAIN IN SEROPOSITIVE BIOLOGIC-NAÏVE EARLY RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS PATIENTS WITH SHARED EPITOPE

Background:

The HLA class II Shared Epitope (SE) is a known Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) risk allele linked to autoantibody production and disease progression. The recent Early AMPLE study suggests an enhanced treatment benefit of abatacept (ABA) over adalimumab (ADA) in SE positive patients with early seropositive RA.1Economic implications beyond the trial follow-up duration are unknown.

Objectives:

To estimate the cost-effectiveness of ABA vs ADA in biologic-naive RA patients seropositive for anti-citrullinated protein antibody and rheumatoid factor based on the Early AMPLE study.

Methods:

We developed a microsimulation model to estimate clinical response, medical cost, quality of life and survival from a Spanish payer perspective. The model captures the patient’s disease and treatment journey using response outcomes and the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) score. Patients who fail to respond switch to the next treatment line. Six treatment lines are included to capture a lifetime horizon. Responding patients (ACR50 and EULAR response) achieve an improvement in their HAQ score. Patient mortality was modelled as a function of HAQ. For both the overall Early AMPLE population and SE+ patients, incremental monthly cost per response over 2 years and incremental cost per QALY over a lifetime were estimated. Costs were based on local tariffs in Spain.

Results:

Baseline characteristics for the Early AMPLE (n=80) and the SE+ (n=61) patients were well balanced between the treatment groups.2Compared to ADA, the ABA cohort had a lower cost per response and the difference was more pronounced in the SE+ population, compared to the entire Early AMPLE population for both the response criteria (Table 1). Compared with ADA, the ABA cohort showed greater quality adjusted life years (QALYs) gains, and a modest increase in cost due to a prolonged time on treatment (Table 2). The incremental cost per QALY over a lifetime fell below commonly used thresholds in Spain (25-60 thousand Euros per QALY).3

Table 1.

Cost per response results

Full Early AMPLEACR50EULARABAADAABAADACost per response (€) – 2 years25,86040,65426,99340,643Incremental monthly cost per response (€)-616-569SE positiveACR 50EULARABAADAABAADACost per response (€) – 2 years24,27240,24925,33741,425Incremental monthly cost per response (€)-666-670

All incremental results are for ABA – ADA

Table 2.

Cost-effectiveness results (discounted)

Full Early AMPLEACR50EULARABAADAABAADALYs*30.1430.0630.1130.03QALYs8.327.817.577.12Time on treatment (years)4.172.035.143.06Costs (€)75,54768,15785,12280,933Incremental LYs*0.080.08Incremental QALYs0.520.45Incremental Costs (€)7,3904,189Incremental cost per QALY (€)14,3089,275SE positiveACR50EULARABAADAABAADALYs*30.3830.2230.1630.09QALYs8.207.597.406.90Time on treatment (years)4.482.025.383.02Costs (€)78,11368,65187,58681,321Incremental LYs*0.150.06Incremental QALYs0.610.50Incremental Costs (€)9,4626,265Incremental cost per QALY (€)15,41012,503

*LY results are presented undiscounted. All incremental results are for ABA – ADA

Conclusion:

Compared with ADA, ABA is a cost-effective alternative and is associated with a lower 2 years cost per response for both populations. The economic benefit and quality of life gain is greater in a SE+ patient population.

References:

[1]Rigby W, et al. EULAR Annual Meeting, June 2019; Poster LB0008

[2]Buckner J, et al. ACR/ARP Annual Meeting, Nov 2019; Poster 1424

[3]Sacristán JA, et al.Gaceta Sanitaria2019

Disclosure of Interests:

José M. Rodríguez-Heredia: None declared, Lisanne Verburg-Baltussen Consultant of: Consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb, Paid instructor for: Training sessions for Pharmaceutical companies, Dhanda Devender Shareholder of: BMS, Employee of: BMS, Nicholas Durno Consultant of: Consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb, Paid instructor for: Training sessions for Pharmaceutical companies, Carlos Sanchez Shareholder of: Shareholder of Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol Myers-Squibb, Neelanjana Ray Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Maarten Treur Consultant of: Consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb, Paid instructor for: Training sessions for Pharmaceutical companies, Joe Zhuo Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb

AB0073 BOSWELLIA SERRATA EXTRACT AND CURCUMIN INCREASE GDF15 PRODUCTION BY HUMAN PRIMARY OSTEOARTHRITIS CHONDROCYTES: A NEW MECHANISM OF ACTION

Background:

Boswellia serrata extract (BSE) and curcumin are used to relief symptoms in osteoarthritis (OA).

Objectives:

This study aims to better understand the mode of action of these compounds on OA chondrocytesin vitro.

Methods:

Therapeutic plasmatic concentrations of the different components of BSE correspond to anin vitrorange from 25 to 100 µg/ml of total BSE (100 µg/ml of BSE corresponds to 9.2 µM of 11-keto-β-boswellic acid (KBA), 5.2 µM of acetylKBA, 22 µM de αBA, 34 µM de βBA, 4.4 µM de acetylαBA and 13.2 acetyl βBA), and between 2 to 10 µM for bioavaibility-increased curcumin. BSE (5-100 µg/ml) and curcumin (0.04 to 4 µg/ml corresponding to 0.1 to 10 µM) were tested separately on primary chondrocytes from 3 OA patients. Lactate Deshydrogenase LDH, nitrite (NO2), interleukin (IL)-6 and Growth Differentiation Factor (GDF)15 were quantified in 72h-treated supernatant using enzyme activity, Griess reaction and ELISAs, respectively.

Results:

No mortality was observed at the tested concentrations. BSE and curcumin both decreased concentration-dependently NO2and IL-6 production, and increased GDF15 production. For NO2production, the decrease was observed from 0.2 µg/ml of curcumin and 10 µg/ml of BSE. For IL-6 production, the decrease was observed from 1 µg/ml for curcumin and 10 µg/ml for BSE. For GDF-15, the increase was observed from 2 µg/ml for curcumin and 50 µg/ml for BSE. Maximal effect was observed at 4 µg/ml for curcumin: -67% NO2(p<0.0001), -71% IL-6 (p=0.0001) and +80% GDF15 (p<0.0001) and at 100 µg/ml for BSE: -40% NO2(p=0.0003), -70% IL-6 (p=0.0003) and +73% for GDF15 (p=0.0017).

Conclusion:

At therapeutic plasmatic concentrations, BSE and curcumin decreased the production of NO2and IL-6, two inflammatory mediators. Furthermore, BSE and curcumin enhanced GDF-15 production, an anti-inflammatory growth factor. GDF15 was first identified as Macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1 or NSAID-activated gene-1 (by a prostanoid-independent manner), and is known as a regulator of inflammatory, cell repair and apoptosis pathways. GDF-15 has pro-apoptotic and anti-tumorigenic activity in vitro and in vivo. It could represent a new pathway explaining the beneficial effects of BSE and the curcumin on synovium inflammation and cartilage degradation.

Disclosure of Interests:

christelle sanchez: None declared, Jérémie Zappia: None declared, Yvan Dierckxsens Shareholder of: Tilman SA, Employee of: Tilman SA, Jean-Pierre Delcour: None declared, Yves Henrotin Grant/research support from: HEEL, TILMAN

AB0072 A MULTICOMPONENT MEDICATION PROMOTES CHONDROGENESIS AND REDUCES MMP-13 IN PRIMARY ARTICULAR CHONDROCYTES FROM KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS PATIENTS IN VITRO

Background:

HE-1100 is a multicomponent medicinal product. Initial preclinical data potentially suggest a preventive effect on cartilage degradation.

Objectives:

This study aims to understand the mode of action of HE-1100 on OA chondrocytesin vitro.

Methods:

Primary chondrocytes were obtained from 10 knee osteoarthritis (OA) patients undergoing knee replacement surgery. The cultures were treated with 20% (v/v) HE-1100 or placebo. Samples were collected for subsequent RNA extraction using standard methods. The reads were generated with Illumina NextSeq5000 sequencer and aligned to the human reference genome (UCSC hg19) to generate the transcriptome. Differential expression analysis between HE-1100 and placebo was made in R using the DESeq2 package to identify the differentially expressed genes in the OA-associated regulatory pathways. The protein production of the selected genes was quantified by ELISA in 10 independent human OA chondrocytes cultures.

Results:

According to the DESeq2 analysis, HE-1100 significantly modified the expression of 13 genes in OA chondrocytes by at least 10% with an adjusted p-value < 0.05: EGR1 (+93%), FOS (+87%), NR4A1 (+43%), DUSP1 (+18%), ZFP36 (+18%), ZFP36L1 (+14%), NFKBIZ (+16%) and CYR61 (+14%) were upregulated and ATF7IP (-10%), TXNIP (-11%), C10orf10 (-12%), CLEC3A (-12%) and MMP13 (-18%) were downregulated after 24h HE-1100 treatment. HE-1100 significantly increased (2.3 fold +/-1.2 after 24h, p=0.0444 and 2.3-fold +/-1.0 after 72h, p=0.0239) the CYR61 protein production by human OA chondrocytes. After 72h, HE-1100 slightly but not significantly increased aggrecan production by 14 ± 19 % (p=0.1117) and significantly increased type II collagen pro-peptide production by 27 ± 20 % (p=0.0147). For both time points CYR61 production by OA chondrocytes was positively and significantly correlated with aggrecan (r=0.66, p=0.0004) and type II collagen pro-peptide (r=0.64, p=0.0008) production. In alginate beads culture, pro-MMP-13 was significantly decreased by HE-1100 treated cultures from day 7 to day 14 (from -16 to -25 %, p<0.05) and from day 17 to 21 (-22 %, p=0.0331) in comparison to controls.

Conclusion:

HE-1100 significantly modified the expression of DUSP1, C10orf10, ZFP36/L1 and CLEC3A, which are pathway mediators involved in MMP-13 expression and activation. Further, long-term (28 days) treatment with HE-1100 significantly reduced the production of pro-MMP-13, the inactive precursor of the metalloproteinase MMP-13 involved in type II collagen degradation. HE-1100 also promoted extracellular matrix formation probably through CYR61 production, a growth factor well correlated with type II collagen and aggrecan production.

References:

/

Acknowledgments:

We would like to thank the staff of the GIGA ULiège Genomic Next Generation Sequencing platform for performing the RNA sequencing and Benoit Charloteaux for his help in RNAseq data analysis.

Disclosure of Interests:

christelle sanchez: None declared, Kathrin Hemmer Employee of: Heel, Natascha Kroemmelbein Employee of: Heel, Bernd Seilheimer Employee of: Heel, Jean-Emile Dubuc: None declared, Christophe Antoine Employee of: Artialis, Yves Henrotin Grant/research support from: HEEL, TILMAN

Predictors of a good response to inhaled corticosteroids in obesity-associated asthma

INTRODUCTION

Asthma in obese subjects is poorly understood. According to GINA guidelines, pulmonologists increase ICS in case of poor asthma control but lung volume restriction may also worsen respiratory symptoms in obese asthmatics leading to overtreatment in this subpopulation.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective study on 1217 asthmatics recruited from University Hospital of Liege. 92 patients with a BMI ≥30 came at least two times at the asthma clinic (mean interval: 335 days). In this obese population, we identified predictors of good (decrease in ACQ ≥0.5) versus poor response (rise in ACQ ≥0.5) to ICS step-up therapy.

RESULTS

Obese asthmatics had a poorer asthma control and quality of life as compared to non-obese and exhibited reduced FVC, higher levels of blood leucocytes and markers of systemic inflammation. The proportion of asthma inflammatory phenotypes was similar to that observed in a general population of asthmatics. Among uncontrolled obese asthmatics receiving ICS step-up therapy, 53% improved their asthma control while 31% had a worsening of their asthma. Uncontrolled obese asthmatics showing a good response to increase in ICS had higher ACQ, lower CRP levels, higher sputum eosinophil counts and higher FeNO levels at visit 1. Uncontrolled obese asthmatics that worsened after increasing the dose of ICS had lower FVC, lower sputum eosinophil counts and higher sputum neutrophil counts.

CONCLUSION

We observed poorer asthma control in obese asthmatics despite similar bronchial inflammation. Managing obese asthmatics according to ACQ alone seems to underestimate asthma control and the contribution of restriction to dyspnea. Increasing the dose of ICS in the absence of sputum eosinophilic inflammation or in the presence of restriction or bronchial neutrophilia led to poorer asthma control. In those patients, management of obesity should be the first choice.

Recent advances in circulating nucleic acids in oncology

Circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) is one of the fastest growing and most exciting areas in oncology in recent years. Its potential clinical uses cover now each phase of cancer patient management care (predictive information, detection of the minimal residual disease, early detection of resistance, treatment monitoring, recurrence surveillance, and cancer early detection/screening). This review relates the recent advances in the application of circulating DNA or RNA in oncology building on unpublished or initial findings/work presented at the 10th international symposium on circulating nucleic acids in plasma and serum held in Montpellier from the 20th to the 22nd of September 2017. This year, presenters revealed their latest data and crucial observations notably in relation to (i) the circulating cell-free (cfDNA) structure and implications regarding their optimal detection; (ii) their role in the metastatic or immunological processes; (iii) evaluation of miRNA panels for cancer patient follow up; (iv) the detection of the minimal residual disease; (v) the evaluation of a screening tests for cancer using cfDNA analysis; and (vi) elements of preanalytical guidelines. This work reviews the recent progresses in the field brought to light in the meeting, as well as in the most important reports from the literature, past and present. It proposes a broader picture of the basic research and its potential, and of the implementation and current challenges in the use of circulating nucleic acids in oncology.

123 Growth performance and nutrient digestibility of multi-enzyme-supplemented low-energy and -amino acid diets for growing and finishing pigs

Objective was to determine the effects of supplementing corn-soybean meal-based diets with a multi-enzyme on growth performance and apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of nutrients in growing pigs. A total of 276 pigs (BW = 33.99 ± 4.3 kg) were housed by sex in 45 pens of 6 or 7 pigs and fed 5 diets (9 pens/diet) in a randomized complete block design. Diets were positive control (PC); and negative control 1 (NC1) or negative control 2 (NC2) without or with multi-enzyme. The multi-enzyme used supplied at least 1,250, 860, 4,600, and 1,000 units of xylanase, β-glucanase, arabinofuranosidase and phytase per kilogram of diet, respectively. The PC was adequate in all nutrients according to NRC (2012) recommendations and had greater digestible P content than NC1 diet or NC2 diet by 0.134 percentage points. The NC1 diet had lower NE and digestible AA content than PC diet by 3%. The NC2 diet had lower NE and digestible AA content than PC diet by 5%. The diets were fed in 4 phases based on BW; Phase 1: 34–50 kg, Phase 2: 50–75 kg, Phase 3: 75–100 kg, and Phase 4: 100–120 kg. Nutrient digestibility was determined at the end of Phase 1. Overall (34–120 kg BW), pigs fed the PC and NC1 diets did not differ in ADG and ADFI. Pigs fed NC2 diet had lower (PPPP > 0.10). Supplemental multi-enzyme increased (P = 0.047) the ATTD of GE for NC2 diet. In conclusion, the NE and digestible AA and P can be lowered by ≤ 5% in multi-enzyme-supplemented diets without effects on growth performance pigs.

86-GBaud subcarrier multiplexed 16QAM signal generation using an electrical 90 degree hybrid and IQ mixers

We experimentally demonstrate an aggregate 86-GBaud (over three sub-bands and one polarization) signal generation based on subcarrier multiplexing technique using IQ mixers, an electrical 90 degree hybrid, and diplexers. The electrical hybrid allows transmitter-side digital signal processing to be simplified to pulse shaping and digital pre-emphasis. We verified the configuration by testing the performance of an 86-GBaud Nyquist-shaped 16 quadrature amplitude modulation signal with differential bit encoding. The implementation penalty assuming 7% hard-decision forward error correction is reduced to 2 dB by utilizing a 31-tap decision-directed least mean square based multiple-input multiple-output equalizer for sideband crosstalk mitigation.

Dynamics of liquid-liquid phase separation of wheat gliadins

During wheat seeds development, storage proteins are synthetized and subsequently form dense protein phases, also called Protein Bodies (PBs). The mechanisms of PBs formation and the supramolecular assembly of storage proteins in PBs remain unclear. In particular, there is an apparent contradiction between the low solubility in water of storage proteins and their high local dynamics in dense PBs. Here, we probe the interplay between short-range attraction and long-range repulsion of a wheat gliadin isolate by investigating the dynamics of liquid-liquid phase separation after temperature quench. We do so using time-resolved small angle light scattering, phase contrast microscopy and rheology. We show that gliadins undergo liquid-liquid phase separation through Nucleation and Growth or Spinodal Decomposition depending on the quench depth. They assemble into dense phases but remain in a liquid-like state over an extended range of temperatures and concentrations. The analysis of phase separation kinetics reveals that the attraction strength of gliadins is in the same order of magnitude as other proteins. We discuss the respective role of competing interactions, protein intrinsic disorder, hydration and polydispersity in promoting local dynamics and providing this liquid-like behavior despite attractive forces.

In situ insight into the unconventional ruthenium catalyzed growth of carbon nanostructures

We report on the in situ analysis of the growth process of carbon nanostructures catalyzed by Ru nanoparticles using syngas, a mixture of hydrogen and CO, as the carbon source at a medium temperature (500 °C). The structural modifications of the dual nanotube/nanoparticle system and the general dynamics of the involved processes have been directly followed during the growth, in real time and at the atomic scale, by transmission electron microscopy in an environmental gas cell at atmospheric pressure. After a reduction step under hydrogen and syngas, the particles became very active for the carbon growth. The growth rate is independent of the particle size which mainly influences the nanotube wall thickness. Other subtle information on the general behavior of the system has been obtained, as for instance the fact that the regular changes in the direction of the particle originate generally from the particle shape fluctuation. The main result is the evidence of a new growth mode in relation to the presence and the high instability of the ruthenium carbide phase which acts as a carbon reservoir. For the first time, a relaxation oscillation of the growth rate has been observed and correlated with the metal-carbide structural transition at the particle sub-surface.

Clinical utility of circulating DNA analysis for rapid detection of actionable mutations to select metastatic colorectal patients for anti-EGFR treatment

Background

While tumor-tissue remains the 'gold standard' for genetic analysis in cancer patients, it is challenged with the advent of circulating cell-free tumor DNA (ctDNA) analysis from blood samples. Here, we broaden our previous study on the clinical validation of plasma DNA in metastatic colorectal cancer patients, by evaluating its clinical utility under standard management care.

Patients and methods

Concordance and data turnaround-time of ctDNA when compared with tumor-tissue analysis were studied in a real-time blinded prospective multicenter clinical study (n = 140 metastatic colorectal patients). Results are presented according to STARD criteria and were discussed in regard with clinical outcomes of patients.

Results

Much more mutations were found by ctDNA analysis: 59%, 11.8% and 14.4% of the patients were found KRAS, NRAS and BRAF mutant by ctDNA analysis instead of 44%, 8.8% and 7.2% by tumor-tissue analysis. Median tumor-tissue data turnaround-time was 16 days while 2 days for ctDNA analysis. Discordant samples analysis revealed that use of biopsy, long delay between tumor-tissue and blood collection and resection of the tumor at time of blood draw, tumor site, or type of tissue analyzed seem to affect concordance. Altogether, the clinical data with respect to the anti-epidermal growth factor receptor response (RAS status) and the prognosis (BRAF status) of those discordant patients do not appear contradictory to the mutational status as determined by plasma analysis. Lastly, we present the first distribution profile of the RAS and BRAF hotspot mutations as determined by ctDNA analysis (n = 119), revealing a high proportion of patients with multiple mutations (45% of the population and up to 5 mutations) and only 24% of WT scored patients for both genes. Mutation profile as determined from ctDNA analysis with using various detection thresholds highlights the importance of the test sensitivity.

Conclusion

Our study showed that ctDNA could replace tumor-tissue analysis, and also clinical utility of ctDNA analysis by considerably reducing data turnaround time.

Amplifier-free 200-Gb/s tandem SSB doubly differential QPSK signal transmission over 80-km SSMF with simplified receiver-side DSP

We numerically demonstrate 80-km standard single-mode fiber transmission without optical amplification, dispersion compensation or carrier recovery using 200-Gb/s tandem single sideband modulated doubly differential QPSK. Simulation results show that doubly differential encoding enables practically constant system performance for frequency offsets within ± 2.3 GHz and allows a linewidth tolerance of 2.5 × 10^-3 at 1-dB receiver sensitivity penalty. Employing 2.9-MHz linewidth lasers, the receiver sensitivity penalty at 7% HD-FEC threshold for 80-km transmission is less than 0.2 dB. By adding a 12-symbol decision feedback in the 2^nd differential operation of doubly differential decoding, the receiver sensitivity is improved by 3.7 dB.

Exploring physical and chemical properties in new multifunctional indium-, bismuth-, and zinc-based 1D and 2D coordination polymers

Main group element coordination polymers (MGE-CPs) are important compounds for the development of multifunctional materials. However, there has been a shortage of studies regarding their structural, optical, catalytic, mechanical, and antibacterial properties. This work presents an exhaustive study of a set of crystalline MGE-CPs obtained from bismuth and indium metals and iminodiacetate, 1,2,4,5-benzenetetracarboxylate, and 2,2'-bipyridine as building blocks. An in-depth topological analysis of the networks was carried out. Additionally, nanoindentation studies were performed on two representative low-dimensional compounds in order to find the relationships between their structural features and their intrinsic mechanical properties (hardness and elasticity). The solid-state photoluminescence (SSPL) properties were also studied in terms of excitation, emission, lifetimes values, and CIE chromaticites. Moreover, the heterogeneous catalytic activities of the compounds were evaluated with the cyanosilylation reaction using a set of carbonylic substrates under solvent-free conditions. Finally, the inhibitory effect of the Bi-CPs on the growth of microorganisms such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which are associated with relevant infectious diseases, is reported.

Effects of vortioxetine on biomarkers associated with glutamatergic activity in an SSRI insensitive model of depression in female rats

The aim of this study was to investigate the antidepressant activity of vortioxetine in a tryptophan (TRP) depletion female rat model of depression and compare it to that of paroxetine using doses that fully occupy the serotonin transporter (SERT). We evaluated the effects of vortioxetine on potential biomarkers associated with TRP depletion including serum aldosterone, corticosterone and IL-6 levels together with indirect indicators of glutamate neurotransmission. Female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized to control, low TRP, low TRP/paroxetine or low TRP/vortioxetine groups. Vortioxetine and paroxetine were administered via diet (10mg/kg/day) and drinking water (10mg/kg/day) respectively for 14days. Vortioxetine but not paroxetine reversed TRP depletion-induced depressive-like behavior. Vortioxetine reduced TRP depletion-induced increases of serum corticosterone, aldosterone, IL-6 and N-methyl-d-aspartate and α7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptor expression in the amygdala and hippocampus, respectively. Paroxetine demonstrated little effect except a reduction of aldosterone. Vortioxetine but not paroxetine reversed TRP depletion-induced reductions of serum and brain kynurenic acid. In conclusion, vortioxetine, but not paroxetine, enabled reversals of TRP depletion-induced changes of depression-like behavior and markers of glutamatergic activity. These observations support the hypothesis that vortioxetine's antidepressant activity may involve mechanisms beyond SERT inhibition.

Modified Synthesis Strategies for the Stabilization of low n Tin O2n-1 Magnéli Phases

Titanium reduced oxides TiO_2-x occupy, since long time, a prominent place on the landscape of binary metal oxides because of their intriguing ability to form extended defects that affect both the formation of new superlattices and different electronic behaviours. Related to these features, a wide range of practical applications has been achieved. Moved by the conviction of the great potential of understanding the influence of the reactivity, compositional variations and size effects on their functional properties, the aim of this personal account is the optimization of a recently developed strategy for the stabilization of low n Ti_n O_2n-1 terms. In particular, we will focus on the Ti₄ O₇ composition as well as the incorporation of transition metals, like Mn, in order to deal with new reduced Magnéli phases.