A molecular analysis of the phylogenetic position of the suborder Cavernicola within the Tricladida (Platyhelminthes), with the description of a new species of stygobiont flatworm from Benin

This paper presents a new species of cavernicolan planarian from the African continent, which enabled us to determine the position of the suborder Cavernicola within the order Tricladida on a molecular basis. A recent paper suggested a sister‐group relationship between Cavernicola and marine triclads. However, our work is the first molecular study to demonstrate unequivocally that the Cavernicola does not group with either the freshwater planarians or the land planarians, i.e. is not closely related to the suborder Continenticola, and corroborates the suggested sister‐group relationship with the marine triclads or Maricola. Two possible scenarios are proposed for the evolution of the Cavernicola from marine ancestors. The new species is assigned to the genus Novomitchellia and is characterized by the absence of eyes. Testicular follicles are numerous and only dorsal, extending from behind the ovaries to the posterior end of the body. The vasa deferentia separately penetrate the penis bulb and the seminal vesicle. The penis papilla is very short and blunt, and the penis bulb musculature is weak. A long and narrow copulatory bursa is situated behind the gonopore. The common oviduct is orientated perpendicularly to the short bursal canal.     

Next‐generation monitoring of aquatic biodiversity using environmental DNA metabarcoding

Global biodiversity in freshwater and the oceans is declining at high rates. Reliable tools for assessing and monitoring aquatic biodiversity, especially for rare and secretive species, are important for efficient and timely management. Recent advances in DNA sequencing have provided a new tool for species detection from DNA present in the environment. In this study, we tested whether an environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding approach, using water samples, can be used for addressing significant questions in ecology and conservation. Two key aquatic vertebrate groups were targeted: amphibians and bony fish. The reliability of this method was cautiously validated in silico, in vitro and in situ. When compared with traditional surveys or historical data, eDNA metabarcoding showed a much better detection probability overall. For amphibians, the detection probability with eDNA metabarcoding was 0.97 (CI = 0.90–0.99) vs. 0.58 (CI = 0.50–0.63) for traditional surveys. For fish, in 89% of the studied sites, the number of taxa detected using the eDNA metabarcoding approach was higher or identical to the number detected using traditional methods. We argue that the proposed DNA‐based approach has the potential to become the next‐generation tool for ecological studies and standardized biodiversity monitoring in a wide range of aquatic ecosystems.     

Escherichia coli ClbS is a colibactin resistance protein

The genomic pks island codes for the biosynthetic machinery that produces colibactin, a peptide‐polyketide metabolite. Colibactin is a genotoxin that contributes to the virulence of extra‐intestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli and promotes colorectal cancer. In this work, we examined whether the pks‐encoded clbS gene of unknown function could participate in the self‐protection of E. coli‐producing colibactin. A clbS mutant was not impaired in the ability to inflict DNA damage in HeLa cells, but the bacteria activated the SOS response and ceased to replicate. This autotoxicity phenotype was markedly enhanced in a clbS uvrB double mutant inactivated for DNA repair by nucleotide excision but was suppressed in a clbS clbA double mutant unable to produce colibactin. In addition, ectopic expression of clbS protected infected HeLa cells from colibactin. Thus, ClbS is a resistance protein blocking the genotoxicity of colibactin both in the procaryotic and the eucaryotic cells.     

Memantine before Mastectomy Prevents Post-Surgery Pain: A Randomized,Blinded Clinical Trial in Surgical Patients

BackgroundNeuropathic pain following surgical treatment for breast cancer with or without chemotherapy is a clinical burden and patients frequently report cognitive, emotional and quality of life impairment. A preclinical study recently showed that memantine administered before surgery may prevent neuropathic pain development and cognitive dysfunction. With a translational approach, a clinical trial has been carried out to evaluate whether memantine administered before and after mastectomy could prevent the development of neuropathic pain, the impairment of cognition and quality of life.MethodA randomized, pilot clinical trial included 40 women undergoing mastectomy in the Oncology Department, University Hospital, Clermont-Ferrand, France. Memantine (5 to 20 mg/day; n = 20) or placebo (n = 20) was administered for four weeks starting two weeks before surgery. The primary endpoint was pain intensity measured on a (0–10) numerical rating scale at three months post-mastectomy.ResultsData analyses were performed using mixed models and the tests were two-sided, with a type I error set at α = 0.05. Compared with placebo, patients receiving memantine showed at three months a significant difference in post-mastectomy pain intensity, less rescue analgesia and a better emotional state. An improvement of pain symptoms induced by cancer chemotherapy was also reported.ConclusionsThis study shows for the first time the beneficial effect of memantine to prevent post-mastectomy pain development and to diminish chemotherapy-induced pain symptoms. The lesser analgesic consumption and better well-being of patients for at least six months after treatment suggests that memantine could be an interesting therapeutic option to diminish the burden of breast cancer therapy.

Trial Registration

Clinicaltrials.gov {"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT01536314","term_id":"NCT01536314"}}NCT01536314     

Comparative Quality Indicators for Hospital Choice: Do General Practitioners Care?

Context

The strategy of publicly reporting quality indicators is being widely promoted through public policies as a way to make health care delivery more efficient.

Objective

To assess general practitioners’ (GPs) use of the comparative hospital quality indicators made available by public services and the media, as well as GPs’ perceptions of their qualities and usefulness.

Method

A telephone survey of a random sample representing all self-employed GPs in private practice in France.

Results

A large majority (84.1%–88.5%) of respondents (n = 503; response rate of 56%) reported that they never used public comparative indicators, available in the mass media or on government and non-government Internet sites, to influence their patients’ hospital choices. The vast majority of GPs rely mostly on traditional sources of information when choosing a hospital. At the same time, this study highlights favourable opinions shared by a large proportion of GPs regarding several aspects of hospital quality indicators, such as their good qualities and usefulness for other purposes. In sum, the results show that GPs make very limited use of hospital quality indicators based on a consumer choice paradigm but, at the same time, see them as useful in ways corresponding more to the usual professional paradigms, including as a means to improve quality of care.     

Integration of Stem Cell to Chondrocyte-Derived Cartilage Matrix in Healthy and Osteoarthritic States in the Presence of Hydroxyapatite Nanoparticles

We investigated the effectiveness of integrating tissue engineered cartilage derived from human bone marrow derived stem cells (HBMSCs) to healthy as well as osteoarthritic cartilage mimics using hydroxyapatite (HA) nanoparticles immersed within a hydrogel substrate. Healthy and diseased engineered cartilage from human chondrocytes (cultured in agar gels) were integrated with human bone marrow stem cell (HBMSC)-derived cartilaginous engineered matrix with and without HA, and evaluated after 28 days of growth. HBMSCs were seeded within photopolymerizable poly (ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) hydrogels. In addition, we also conducted a preliminary in vivo evaluation of cartilage repair in rabbit knee chondral defects treated with subchondral bone microfracture and cell-free PEGDA with and without HA. Under in vitro conditions, the interfacial shear strength between tissue engineered cartilage derived from HBMSCs and osteoarthritic chondrocytes was significantly higher (p < 0.05) when HA nanoparticles were incorporated within the HBMSC culture system. Histological evidence confirmed a distinct spatial transition zone, rich in calcium phosphate deposits. Assessment of explanted rabbit knees by histology demonstrated that cellularity within the repair tissues that had filled the defects were of significantly higher number (p < 0.05) when HA was used. HA nanoparticles play an important role in treating chondral defects when osteoarthritis is a co-morbidity. We speculate that the calcified layer formation at the interface in the osteoarthritic environment in the presence of HA is likely to have attributed to higher interfacial strength found in vitro. From an in vivo standpoint, the presence of HA promoted cellularity in the tissues that subsequently filled the chondral defects. This higher presence of cells can be considered important in the context of accelerating long-term cartilage remodeling. We conclude that HA nanoparticles play an important role in engineered to native cartilage integration and cellular processes.