Recent findings

Recent clinical and experimental findings demonstrate a progressive improvement in the function and durability of islet allografts. Induction therapies targeting T lymphocytes and costimulatory pathways have been highly effective at promoting islet transplant function. It

is also apparent that islet injury associated with metabolic distress provides a nonimmune barrier to islet transplant outcomes.

Summary

Newer therapeutic interventions show great promise for attenuating the adaptive immune response to islet allografts. Also, clarifying the mechanisms of metabolic-related tissue distress may provide additional potential targets for improving islet graft outcomes.”
“Objective: This study aims to describe the endovascular management of abdominal-aortic- or common-iliac-artery injuries after lumbar-spine surgery.

Methods: Patients treated for abdominal-aortic- or common-iliac-artery Angiogenesis inhibitor injuries after lumbar-spine surgery during a 13-year period were identified from an endovascular database, providing prospective information on techniques and outcome. The corresponding patient records and radiographic reports were analysed retrospectively.

Results: Seven patients were treated with acute (n = 3) or Subacute (n = 4) injuries of the common iliac artery (n = 6)

or abdominal aorta (n = 1) after lumbar-spine surgery. Vascular injuries included arterial selleck chemicals lacerations (n = 3), arteriovenous fistulas (n = 2) and pseudo-aneurysms (n = 2). The mean age of the

patients was 51.7 years (30-60 years), 71.4% were women. These lesions were repaired by transluminal placement of stent grafts: Passager (n = 3), Viabahn (n = 1), Wallgraft (n = 1), Zenith (n = 1) and Advanta V12 (n = 1). Exclusion of the injury was achieved in all cases. Mortality was nil. There were no procedure-related complications. During a median follow-up of 8.7 years (range 0.3-13 years), all stent grafts remained patent.

Conclusions: Sealing of common iliac artery or abdominal aortic lesions as a complication of lumbar-disc surgery with a stent graft is effective and is suggested as an excellent alternative to open surgery for AZD2171 ic50 iatrogenic great-vessel injuries, particularly in critical conditions. (C) 2011 European Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“In this work, thermoplastic starch (TPS)-clay bionanocomposites were obtained by an innovative methodology using a combination of methodologies commonly used in the composites and nanocomposites preparations. The main objectives or novelties were to confirm efficiency of the processing methodology by field emission gun scanning electron microscopy and investigate the effect of clay content on the spectroscopic, bulk and surface hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties of these bionanocomposites. Raman and FTIR spectroscopies confirmed the changes in the spectroscopic properties of the TPS bionanocomposites with the addition of the clay materials.