Skin cancer and welding

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

A rare case of finger ischemia following bypass procedure with autologous vein graft for thumb revascularization: a case report and brief review of the literature

Abstract

This case report aims to point out the importance of having in mind anatomical variation in the blood supply to the hand even in emergency settings. A 39-year-old patient presented at our emergency department with a wound on the distal anterolateral third of the left forearm with skin loss, degloving injury of the thumb starting from the 1st metacarpal, exposure of the proximal two thirds of the 1st metacarpal bone, and both radial and ulnar digital arteries of the thumb damaged. A 10-cm-long vein graft was anastomosed in termino-later fashion between the dorsal branch of the radial artery and the uninjured distal part of the ulnar collateral digital artery of the thumb, successfully re-establishing its blood supply. Starting from the 1st postoperative day, the thumb was warm and pink while the other fingers were pale and capillary filling was absent. An urgent arteriography of the left upper extremity demonstrated the presence of normal radial artery, hypoplastic ulnar artery, dominant median artery, and absence of vascularization of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th fingers. By the end of 2nd week, the patient underwent amputation of the four fingers at the distal metacarpal level. Anatomical anomalies of hand arterial blood supply are not uncommon, even though rarely reported in literature. Therefore, an instrumental study should be performed before attempting any arterial intervention even in emergency settings. Nevertheless, further studies should be performed to identify ready-to-use tools to make surgeons aware of any anatomic variations in order to avoid such complications.

Level of Evidence: Level V, therapeutic study.

Biochar amendment immobilizes arsenic in farmland and reduces its bioavailability

Abstract

This study aimed to determine effects of biochar derived from wheat straw at 500 °C on arsenic immobilization in a soil-Brassica campestris L system. When the soils amended with 4% modified biochar (MBC), 0.5% Fe grit as zero-valent iron (ZVI), 0.5% Fe grit + 4% MBC (ZMBC), 0.5% ZVI + 4% biochar (ZBC), 4% biochar (BC), and control (without amendments), it confirmed that available arsenic concentration in soils occurred in the following order: ZMBC < MBC < ZVI < ZBC < Control < BC. Water-soluble As (WSAs) was reduced by 89.74% and 92.30% in MBC- and ZMBC-amended soils, respectively, compared to the control. When MBC applied into soil, As uptake of shoot and root decreased by 44.55% and 45.40%, respectively, and ZMBC resulted in 74.92% and 71.80% reduction in shoot and root As of Brassica campestris L. Immobilization effect of As in ZBC was also observed though BC elevated plant As uptake significantly. The immobilization effect of MBC was mainly attributed to Fe₂O₃ impregnation illustrated by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images through sorption, precipitation, and coprecipitation. Such Fe containing complexes might impede As translocation from root to shoot and subsequently reduce As accumulation in the plant with modified biochar amendment.

Occurrence and risk assessment of heavy metals in water, sediment, and fish from Dongting Lake, China

Abstract

In this study, 15 representative surface waters and sediments and seven typical fish were collected during the wet season in 2016 to explore the occurrence, chemical fractionation, and ecological risk of heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Cr, Hg, As, and Ni) in aquatic ecosystems of Dongting Lake in China. In surface water, the concentrations of all elements were lower than the third grade of the surface water quality standards (GB3838-2002). The highest concentrations of Zn, Pb, Cd, Ni, and Cu were found in the outlet of Dongting Lake, whereas As and Cr were highest in the Xiangjiang River Delta area. In surface sediments, the concentration decreased in the order of Zn > Cr > Pb > Cu > Ni > As>Cd > Hg; the highest concentration of all elements, except for Hg, was located in the Xiangjiang River Delta area; for chemical fractionation, Cr, Hg, Zn, As, Ni, and Cu were mainly residual fractionation; and Pb and Cd were mainly in a reducible state and fraction soluble in acid, respectively. In fish muscle, the concentrations of all elements were lower than relevant standards; the highest concentration appeared in fish living in the middle-lower and demersal layers. As for the feeding habits of fish, the average concentration decreased in the order of carnivorous > omnivorous > herbivorous fish. The potential ecological risk and the ratio of secondary phase to primary phase assessment showed that Cd and Hg had the highest ecological risk and that Cd and Pb had a high risk of secondary release. A health risk assessment showed that drinking water and fish for consumption in urban and rural areas around Dongting Lake were in the acceptable level.

Sporadic pemphigus foliaceus and class II human leucocyte antigen allele associations in the white British and Indo‐Asian populations in the UK

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Phytohormones enhanced drought tolerance in plants: a coping strategy

Abstract

Drought stress is a severe environmental constraint among the emerging problems. Plants are highly vulnerable to drought stress and a severe decrease in yield was recorded in the last few decades. So, it is highly desirable to understand the mechanism of drought tolerance in plants and consequently enhance the tolerance against drought stress. Phytohormones are known to play vital roles in regulating various phenomenons in plants to acclimatize to varying drought environment. Abscisic acid (ABA) is considered the main hormone which intensifies drought tolerance in plants through various morpho-physiological and molecular processes including stomata regulation, root development, and initiation of ABA-dependent pathway. In addition, jasmonic acid (JA), salicylic acid (SA) ethylene (ET), auxins (IAA), gibberellins (GAs), cytokinins (CKs), and brassinosteroids (BRs) are also very important phytohormones to congregate the challenges of drought stress. However, these hormones are usually cross talk with each other to increase the survival of plants in drought conditions. On the other hand, the transgenic approach is currently the most accepted technique to engineer the genes responsible for the synthesis of phytohormones in drought stress response. Our present review highlights the regulatory circuits of phytohormones in drought tolerance mechanism.

Co-contamination of antibiotics and metals in peri-urban agricultural soils and source identification

Abstract

To identify the dominant sources of contamination in peri-urban land, this study investigated the concentrations and distributions of antibiotics and metals in agricultural soil of this area. An index of landscape development intensity (LDI) was used to characterize the distribution of human disturbance-related land use. The results showed that total antibiotic concentration in the soil reached 395.55 μg/kg and that chlortetracycline was the predominant antibiotic compound, with a relatively high mean concentration of 30.62 μg/kg. In soils, the mean concentrations of Cu, Zn, and Pb were 38.41, 127.88, and 56.61 mg/kg and those of Al, Fe, and K were 83.73, 24.17, and 23.42 g/kg, respectively. A redundancy analysis showed that the landscape pattern in a 300-m buffer zone can well explain the variation in the concentrations of antibiotics and metals (24%, p < 0.05). The LDI in the 300-m buffer zone significantly correlated with the concentrations of total antibiotics and total amounts of Cu and Zn in the soil, suggesting that the risk of soil contamination increases with the intensity of anthropogenic activities. A structural equation modeling analysis indicated that Al, Cu, and Zn could significantly aggravate accumulation of tetracycline antibiotics in the soil, whereas there were only significantly direct paths from Cu to ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin. Overall, the results showed that aggravated co-contamination of antibiotics and metals occurs in agricultural soil under intensive human disturbance.

Keratosis Pilaris Rubra with Mucin Deposition

Journal of Cutaneous Pathology, Volume 0, Issue ja, -Not available-.

Assessment of elemental composition and properties of copper smelter-affected dust and its nano- and micron size fractions

Abstract

A comprehensive approach has been developed to the assessment of composition and properties of atmospherically deposited dust in the area affected by a copper smelter. The approach is based on the analysis of initial dust samples, dynamic leaching of water soluble fractions in a rotating coiled column (RCC) followed by the determination of recovered elements and characterization of size, morphology and elemental composition of nano-, submicron, and micron par ticles of dust separated using field-flow fractionation in a RCC. Three separated size fractions of dust (<0.2, 0.2–2, and >2 μm) were characterized by static light scattering and scanning electron microscopy, whereupon the fractions were analyzed by ICP-AES and ICP-MS (after digestion). It has been evaluated that toxic elements, which are characteristics for copper smelter emissions (As, Cu, Zn), are accumulated in fraction >2 μm. At the same time, up to 2.4, 3.1, 8.2, 6.7 g/kg of As, Cu, Zn, Pb, correspondently, were found in nanoparticles (<0.2 μm). It has been also shown that some trace elements (Sn, Sb, Ag, Bi, and Tl) are accumulated in fraction <0.2, and their content in this fraction may be one order of magnitude higher than that in the fraction >2 μm, or the bulk sample. It may be assumed that Sn, Sb, Ag, Bi, Tl compounds are adsorbed onto the finest dust particles as compared to As, Cu, Zn compounds, which are directly emitted from the copper smelter as microparticles.

The legacy of pesticides and POPs stockpiles—a threat to health and the environment

Factors associated with false‐negative pathologic diagnosis of calciphylaxis

Journal of Cutaneous Pathology, Volume 0, Issue ja, -Not available-.

Investigation of high‐frequency hearing loss and outer hair cell function of the cochlea in patients with psoriasis: a case–control study

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Efficacy of localized hand and foot phototherapy: a review of patients treated in a teaching hospital setting

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Differential expression of interferon‐induced genes and other tissue‐based biomarkers in acute graft‐versus‐host disease vs. lupus erythematosus in skin

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Public engagement lectures targeting prospective medical students: an opportunity for dermatology

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Risk factors for development of systemic lupus erythematosus in patients with cutaneous lupus: a retrospective review

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Cutaneous hyperpigmentation and familial gastrointestinal stromal tumour associated with KIT mutation

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Acitretin as a successful treatment for Hailey–Hailey disease

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

The nose as the predominant site for pemphigus foliaceous

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.

Systematic review and meta‐analysis of prevalence of dermatological toxicities associated with vemurafenib treatment in patients with melanoma

Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, EarlyView.