Thrombocytopenia and outcome in critically ill patients with bloodstream infection

Thrombocytopenia is common in intensive care units (ICUs), and is associated with a poor prognosis. An acute decrease in total platelet count is frequently observed in severe sepsis, followed by a relative increase indicating organ-failure recovery. However, few data are available describing this effect and its relationship with outcomes in specific subgroups of ICU patients.

Pelvic abscess associated with Haemophilus influenzae bacteremia

Paracoccus yeei: a new unusual opportunistic bacterium in ambulatory peritoneal dialysis

Paracoccus yeei was identified as the etiologic agent of peritonitis in an ambulatory peritoneal dialysis patient. While the old biochemical identification kits are not able to identify this species, the new colorimetric VITEK 2 GN card correctly identified this isolate in 7hours. Its identity was confirmed by sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene.

The economic impact of invasive aspergillosis in intensive care unit patients

Group A Streptococcus virulence and host factors in two toddlers with rheumatic fever following toxic shock syndrome

Rheumatic fever (RF) classically occurs after group A Streptococcus (GAS) pharyngitis in children aged over 5 years in developing countries. The present report describes the bacterial and host determinants in non-related toddlers who developed RF diagnostic criteria after toxic shock syndrome (TSS).

Functional Delineation and Differentiation Dynamics of Human CD4+ T Cells Expressing the FoxP3 Transcription Factor

FoxP3 is a key transcription factor for the development and function of natural CD4(+) regulatory T cells (Treg cells). Here we show that human FoxP3(+)CD4(+) T cells were composed of three phenotypically and functionally distinct subpopulations: CD45RA(+)FoxP3(lo) resting Treg cells (rTreg cells) and CD45RA(-)FoxP3(hi) activated Treg cells (aTreg cells), both of which were suppressive in vitro, and cytokine-secreting CD45RA(-)FoxP3(lo) nonsuppressive T cells. The proportion of the three subpopulations differed between cord blood, aged individuals, and patients with immunological diseases. Terminally differentiated aTreg cells rapidly died whereas rTreg cells proliferated and converted into aTreg cells in vitro and in vivo. This was shown by the transfer of rTreg cells into NOD-scid-common gamma-chain-deficient mice and by TCR sequence-based T cell clonotype tracing in peripheral blood in a normal individual. Taken together, the dissection of FoxP3(+) cells into subsets enables one to analyze Treg cell differentiation dynamics and interactions in normal and disease states, and to control immune responses through manipulating particular FoxP3(+) subpopulations.

Guidance of B Cells by the Orphan G Protein-Coupled Receptor EBI2 Shapes Humoral Immune Responses

Humoral immunity depends on both rapid and long-term antibody production against invading pathogens. This is achieved by the generation of spatially distinct extrafollicular plasmablast and follicular germinal center (GC) B cell populations, but the signals that guide responding B cells to these alternative compartments have not been fully elucidated. Here, we show that expression of the orphan G protein-coupled receptor Epstein-Barr virus-induced gene 2 (EBI2, also known as GPR183) by activated B cells was essential for their movement to extrafollicular sites and induction of early plasmablast responses. Conversely, downregulation of EBI2 enabled B cells to access the center of follicles and promoted efficient GC formation. EBI2 therefore provides a previously uncharacterized dimension to B cell migration that is crucial for coordinating rapid versus long-term antibody responses.

Decision problems for Turing machines

We answer two questions posed by Castro and Cucker (1989) in [1], giving the exact complexities of two decision problems about cardinalities of @w-languages of Turing machines. Firstly, it is D"2(@S"1^1)-complete to determine whether the @w-language of a given Turing machine is countably infinite, where D"2(@S"1^1) is the class of 2-differences of @S"1^1-sets. Secondly, it is @S"1^1-complete to determine whether the @w-language of a given Turing machine is uncountable.

Segmentation 3D multi-objets d’images scanner cardiaques : une approche multi-agents

International audienceNous proposons une nouvelle méthode de segmentation permettant une détection multi-objets, semi-interactive et à caractère générique, appliquée à l'extraction de structures cardiaques en imagerie scanner multibarettes. L'approche proposée repose sur l'élaboration d'un schéma multi-agents combiné à une méthode de classification supervisée qui permet l'introduction d'a priori dans le processus de segmentation ainsi que des temps de calcul rapides. Le système multi-agents proposé est centralisé autour d'un agent communiquant qui contrôle une population d'agents situés dans l'image dont le rôle est d'assurer la segmentation au moyen d'interactions de type coopératif et compétitif. La méthode proposée a été testée sur plusieurs bases de données patient. Quelques résultats représentatifs sont finalement présentés et discutés

A hypoallergenic variant of Der p 1 as a candidate for mite allergy vaccines

Recombinant hypoallergens that display reduced allergenicity but retain T-cell reactivity represent promising candidates to improve the safety and efficacy of allergen-specific vaccines or immunotherapy.