Straightforward synthesis of thiazolo[5,4-c]isoquinolines from dithiooxamide and 2-halobenzaldehydes

Thiazolo[5,4-c]isoquinolines, an (up to now) elusive family of compounds, are prepared in one reaction only from simple commercial reagents.

Dependent excited state absorption and dynamic of β-BF2 substituted metalloporphyrins: The metal ion effect

Absorption and relaxation dynamics of electronic states of free-base, Co(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) porphyrins bearing a β-(2,2-difluoro-1,3,2-dioxaborinin-5-yl) group were investigated in dimethyl sulfoxide by using distinct time-resolved spectroscopic techniques. Furthermore, excited state absorption cross-section spectra were determined by combining white light continuum Z-Scan and transient absorption techniques. In the case of the free-base (2H) and Zn(II) porphyrins, we were able to quantify singlet-triplet conversion by analyzing the evolution of time-resolved fluorescence. Relaxation lifetimes from the excited to the ground state were observed in both porphyrins at nanosecond time scale. However, for Co(II) and Cu(II) metalloporphyrins it was observed in the picosecond time scale through femtosecond transient absorption, indicating that both compounds relax back to the ground state only by internal conversion processes. Co(II) and Cu(II) heavy atoms seem to prohibit the radiative and intersystem crossing processes.

The Photosensitizing Efficacy of Micelles Containing a Porphyrinic Photosensitizer and KI against Resistant Melanoma Cells

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising alternative to overcome the resistance of melanoma to conventional therapies. Currently applied photosensitizers (PS) are often based on tetrapyrrolic macrocycles like porphyrins. Unfortunately, in some cases the use of this type of derivative is limited due to their poor solubility in the biological environment. Feasible approaches to surpass this drawback are based on lipid formulations. Besides that, and inspired in the efficacy of potassium iodide (KI) for antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT), the combined effect of singlet oxygen (1 O2 ) with KI was assessed in this work, as an alternative strategy to potentiate the effect of PDT against resistant melanoma cells.

Photodynamic treatment of melanoma cells using aza-dipyrromethenes as photosensitizers

In this study, we report for the first time the use of four aza-dipyrromethenes (ADPMs) as photosensitizers for cancer PDT. The synthesis and characterization of the ADPMs and their photodynamic action against B16F10 melanoma cells were assessed. ADPM 2 is the best singlet oxygen generator and the most phototoxic (at 2.5 μM) towards B16F10 cells.

Porphyrin Macrocycle Modification: Pyrrole Ring-Contracted or -Expanded Porphyrinoids

In recent years, several synthetic strategies aiming at the peripheral functionalization of porphyrins were developed. Particularly interesting are those involving the modification of β-pyrrolic positions leading to pyrrole-modified porphyrins containing four-, five-, six- or seven-membered heterocycles. Azeteoporphyrins, porpholactones and morpholinoporphyrins are representative examples of such porphyrinoids. These porphyrin derivatives have recently gained an increasing interest due to their potential application in PDT, as multimodal imaging contrast agents, NIR-absorbing dyes, optical sensors for oxygen, cyanide, hypochlorite and pH, and in catalysis.

Severe infection in a lung transplant recipient caused by donor-transmitted carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii

We describe a case of proven donor transmission of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, which resulted in severe infectious complications after lung transplantation. A single bla(OXA-23) positive strain, belonging to a new multilocus sequence type (ST231), was isolated from donor and recipient, who died 65 days after transplantation. This report highlights the current challenges associated with the potential transmission of multidrug-resistant infections through organ transplantation.

Computer-vision-based extraction of neural dendrograms

This work introduces a new approach to the characterization of neural cells by means of semi-automated generation of dendrograms; data structures which describe the inherently hierarchical nature of neuronal arborizations. Dendrograms describe the branched structure of neurons in terms of the length, average thickness and bending energy of each of the dendritic segments and allow in a straightforward manner, the inclusion of additional measures. The bending energy quantifies the complexity of the shape and can be used to characterize the spatial coverage of the arborizations (the bending energy is an alternative for other complexity measures such as the fractal dimension). The new approach is based on the partitioning of the cell's outer contour as a function of the high curvature points followed by a syntactical analysis of the segmented contours. The semi-automated method is robust and is an improvement on the time consuming manual generation of the dendrograms. Several experimental results are included in this paper which illustrate and corroborate the effectiveness of the approach. The technique presented in this paper is limited to planar neurons but could be extended to a 3D approach.

[Use of papain in visceral infections]

This research was carried out at the University Hospital of the University of São Paulo and deals with the experiment of papain utilization for visceral irrigation in patients with severe infection. It was observed that seventy two hours after treatment, there was a considerable reduction of purulent secretion, and that the medium time of cicatrization of all lesions was thirty days.

Quality of life in patients 2 to 4 years after closed head injury

This study evaluated quality of life in 78 patients with closed head injury (CHI) 2 to 4 years postinjury. Using both interview data and mean data from the Sickness Impact Profile questionnaire, impaired quality of life was observed in the areas of psychosocial functioning, social role functioning, leisure activities, and, to a lesser extent, physical functioning, during chronic phases of recovery. Relatives and close friends reported by means of the Katz Adjustment Scale that the CHI patients showed a series of negative behavioral symptoms 2 to 4 years postinjury. These data suggest that CHI patients may experience impaired quality of life in a number of domains well beyond the acute postinjury phases. An attempt was also made to compare patients' and relatives' reports of patient quality of life. Preliminary analyses indicated modest correspondence between relatives' and patients' ratings of some areas of postinjury dysfunction, including cognitive and behavioral slowing and social withdrawal.

Predictors and indicators of quality of life in patients with closed-head injury

This study examined predictors and indicators of quality of life in 71 patients with closed-head injury (CHI), 2-4 years postinjury. Predictors included premorbid characteristics and acute injury-related data. Indicators included follow-up data, e.g., neuropsychological functioning. Exploratory canonical correlation analyses demonstrated that the combination of the predictor variable, initial Glasgow Coma Scale score, and indicator variables of neuropsychological data in the areas of motor functioning, memory, and constructional ability were related most strongly to quality of life as reported by the patients. Severity of head injury and motor disability also related strongly to quality of life, based on reports by relatives (n = 68) on the Katz Adjustment Scale (Relatives' Form). These findings suggest that quality of life is adversely affected by increased severity of head injury and greater residual motor deficits. Implications of these findings for treatment and recovery are discussed.

Interset variability on the raven coloured progressive matrices as an indicator of specific ability deficit in brain-lesioned patients

Patients with right cerebral lesions were found to have lower RCPM scores than a matched group of patients with left lesions. Analysis of interset patterns of performance demonstrated relatively greater difficulty for right lesion patients, especially those with posterior lesions on the Ab set. The findings were interpreted in terms of the abilities that Raven maintains underly test performance.

The relation of visuospatial dysfunction to digit span performance in patients with cerebral lesions

DSF and DSB performance was compared in hospitalized controls and right and left brain lesion groups dichotomized for the presence or absence of visuospatial deficits. Digit Span performance was also correlated with WAIS Similarities and Block Design and Raven Coloured Progressive Matrices. No differences between groups were observed on DSF. On DSB patients with brain lesions had lower scores than controls and brain-lesioned patients with visuospatial deficits had lower scores than those without. DSB correlated significantly with WAIS Block Design and Raven Coloured Progressive Matrices supporting the hypothesis that visuospatial ability is needed to mediate proper DSB performance. The correlation of DSB with WAIS Similarities, however, lends support to the idea that low DSB may merely reflect severity of cognitive deficit.

Test-retest reliability of serial pure-tone audiograms in children at a school for the deaf

Successive air-conduction audiograms obtained between ages 1¼ and 12 years and recorded in the charts of 75 children at a school for the deaf were analyzed statistically. Approximately half of 414 audiogram pairs differed by at least 20 dB for 2 or more frequencies, and 34% of 3203 paired frequency scores differed by at least 20 dB. Conductive losses, moderate hearing losses, and perhaps mild mental retardation were associated with unreliability. Audiograms performed at the school by a nonprofessional audiologist were especially unreliable. The desirability of retesting a child until a stable threshold is obtained and of indicating the zone of uncertainty around each threshold point was stressed. When the zone of uncertainty is wide, a verbal label describing the estimated severity of the loss might be preferable to possibly invalid numerical information.

Choice reaction time as a function of stimulus uncertainty in patients with brain lesions

Longer times and greater variabilities for 24 brain-damaged Ss than for normals were associated with increased stimulus information in a card-sorting task.