1. Closed-Loop Therapy and Preservation of C-Peptide Secretion in Type 1 Diabetes
Charlotte K Boughton, et al. N Engl J Med. 2022 Sep 8;387(10):882-893. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2203496.
Background: Whether improved glucose control with hybrid closed-loop therapy can preserve C-peptide secretion as compared with standard insulin therapy in persons with new-onset type 1 diabetes is unclear. Methods: In a multicenter, open-label, parallel-group, randomized trial, we assigned youths 10.0 to 16.9 years of age within 21 days after a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes to receive hybrid closed-loop therapy or standard insulin therapy (control) for 24 months. The primary end point was the area under the curve (AUC) for the plasma C-peptide level (after a mixed-meal tolerance test) at 12 months after diagnosis. The analysis was performed on an intention-to-treat basis. Results: A total of 97 participants (mean [±SD] age, 12±2 years) underwent randomization: 51 were assigned to receive closed-loop therapy and 46 to receive control therapy. The AUC for the C-peptide level at 12 months (primary end point) did not differ significantly between the two groups (geometric mean, 0.35 pmol per milliliter [interquartile range, 0.16 to 0.49] with closed-loop therapy and 0.46 pmol per milliliter [interquartile range, 0.22 to 0.69] with control therapy; mean adjusted difference, -0.06 pmol per milliliter [95% confidence interval {CI}, -0.14 to 0.03]). There was not a substantial between-group difference in the AUC for the C-peptide level at 24 months (geometric mean, 0.18 pmol per milliliter [interquartile range, 0.06 to 0.22] with closed-loop therapy and 0.24 pmol per milliliter [interquartile range, 0.05 to 0.30] with control therapy; mean adjusted difference, -0.04 pmol per milliliter [95% CI, -0.14 to 0.06]). The arithmetic mean glycated hemoglobin level was lower in the closed-loop group than in the control group by 4 mmol per mole (0.4 percentage points; 95% CI, 0 to 8 mmol per mole [0.0 to 0.7 percentage points]) at 12 months and by 11 mmol per mole (1.0 percentage points; 95% CI, 7 to 15 mmol per mole [0.5 to 1.5 percentage points]) at 24 months. Five cases of severe hypoglycemia occurred in the closed-loop group (in 3 participants), and one occurred in the control group; one case of diabetic ketoacidosis occurred in the closed-loop group. Conclusions: In youths with new-onset type 1 diabetes, intensive glucose control for 24 months did not appear to prevent the decline in residual C-peptide secretion. (Funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research and others; CLOuD ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT02871089.).
2. Spatial proteogenomics reveals distinct and evolutionarily conserved hepatic macrophage niches
Martin Guilliams, et al. Cell. 2022 Jan 20;185(2):379-396.e38. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.12.018. Epub 2022 Jan 11.
The liver is the largest solid organ in the body, yet it remains incompletely characterized. Here we present a spatial proteogenomic atlas of the healthy and obese human and murine liver combining single-cell CITE-seq, single-nuclei sequencing, spatial transcriptomics, and spatial proteomics. By integrating these multi-omic datasets, we provide validated strategies to reliably discriminate and localize all hepatic cells, including a population of lipid-associated macrophages (LAMs) at the bile ducts. We then align this atlas across seven species, revealing the conserved program of bona fide Kupffer cells and LAMs. We also uncover the respective spatially resolved cellular niches of these macrophages and the microenvironmental circuits driving their unique transcriptomic identities. We demonstrate that LAMs are induced by local lipid exposure, leading to their induction in steatotic regions of the murine and human liver, while Kupffer cell development crucially depends on their cross-talk with hepatic stellate cells via the evolutionarily conserved ALK1-BMP9/10 axis.
3. Laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy
S Manodoro, E Werbrouck, J Veldman, K Haest, R Corona, F Claerhout, G Coremans, D De Ridder, F Spelzini, J Deprest Facts Views Vis Obgyn. 2011;3(3):151-8.
Laparoscopy offers great exposure and surgical detail, reduces blood loss and the need for excessive abdominal packing-- and bowel manipulation making it an excellent modality to perform pelvic floor surgery. Laparoscopic repair of level I or apical vaginal prolapse may be challenging, due to the need for extensive dissection and advanced suturing skills. However, it offers the efficacy of open abdominal sacrocolpopexy, such as lower recurrence rates and less dyspareunia-- than sacrospinous fixation, as well as the reduced morbidity of a laparoscopic approach.
