The global incidence of cancer continues to rise, posing a significant public health concern. Although numerous cancer therapies exist, each has limitations and complications. The present study explores alternative cancer treatment approaches, combining hyperthermia and photodynamic therapy (PDT). Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) and amine-functionalized carbon quantum dots (A-CQDs) were synthesized separately and then covalently conjugated to form a single nanosystem for combinational therapy (M-CQDs). The successful conjugation was confirmed using zeta potential, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and UV-visible spectroscopy. Morphological examination in transmission electron microscopy (TEM) further verified the conjugation of CQDs with MNPs. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) revealed that M-CQDs contain approximately 12 weight percentages of carbon. Hyperthermia studies showed that both MNP and M-CQDs maintain a constant therapeutic temperature at lower frequencies (260.84 kHz) with high specific absorption rates (SAR) of 118.11 and 95.04 W/g, respectively. In vitro studies demonstrated that MNPs, A-CQDs, and M-CQDs are non-toxic, and combinational therapy (PDT + hyperthermia) resulted in significantly lower cell viability (~4%) compared to individual therapies. Similar results were obtained with Hoechst and propidium iodide (PI) staining assays. Hence, the combination therapy of PDT and hyperthermia shows promise as a potential alternative to conventional therapies, and it could be further explored in combination with existing conventional treatments.

OBJECTIVE: Peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) presents a major challenge in the treatment of late-stage, solid tumors, with traditional therapies limited by poor drug penetration. We evaluated a novel hyperthermic pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (HPIPAC) system using a human abdominal cavity model for its efficacy against AGS gastric cancer cells.
METHODS: A model simulating the human abdominal cavity and AGS gastric cancer cell line cultured dishes were used to assess the efficacy of the HPIPAC system. Cell viability was measured to evaluate the impact of HPIPAC under 6 different conditions: heat alone, PIPAC with paclitaxel (PTX), PTX alone, normal saline (NS) alone, heat with NS, and HPIPAC with PTX.
RESULTS: Results showed a significant reduction in cell viability with HPIPAC combined with PTX, indicating enhanced cytotoxic effects. Immediately after treatment, the average cell viability was 66.6%, which decreased to 49.2% after 48 hours and to a further 19.6% after 120 hours of incubation, demonstrating the sustained efficacy of the treatment. In contrast, control groups exhibited a recovery in cell viability; heat alone showed cell viability increasing from 90.8% to 94.4%, PIPAC with PTX from 82.7% to 89.7%, PTX only from 73.3% to 74.8%, NS only from 90.9% to 98.3%, and heat with NS from 74.4% to 84.7%.
CONCLUSIONS: The HPIPAC system with PTX exhibits a promising approach in the treatment of PC in gastric cancer, significantly reducing cell viability. Despite certain limitations, this study highlights the system\'s potential to enhance treatment outcomes. Future efforts should focus on refining HPIPAC and validating its effectiveness in clinical settings.

This research sought to evaluate the thermal zones of the upper body and firefighter personal protective equipment (PPE) immediately following uncompensable heat stress (0.03 °C increase/min). We hypothesized that the frontal portion of the head and the inside of the firefighter helmet would be the hottest as measured by infrared thermography. This hypothesis was due to previous research demonstrating that the head accounts for ∼8-10% of the body surface area, but it accounts for ∼20% of the overall body heat dissipation during moderate exercise. Twenty participants performed a 21-min graded treadmill exercise protocol (Altered Modified Naughton) in an environmental chamber (35 °C, 50 % humidity) in firefighter PPE. The body areas analyzed were the frontal area of the head, chest, abdomen, arm, neck, upper back, and lower back. The areas of the PPE that were analyzed were the inside of the helmet and the jacket. The hottest areas of the body post-exercise were the frontal area of the head (mean: 37.3 ± 0.4 °C), chest (mean: 37.5 ± 0.3 °C), and upper back (mean: 37.3 ± 0.4 °C). The coldest area of the upper body was the abdomen (mean: 36.1 ± 0.4 °C). The peak temperature of the inside of the helmet increased (p < 0.001) by 9.8 °C from 27.7 ± 1.6 °C to 37.4 ± 0.7 °C, and the inside of the jacket increased (p < 0.001) by 7.3 °C from 29.2 ± 1.7 °C to 36.5 ± 0.4 °C. The results of this study are relevant for cooling strategies for firefighters.

Birds maintain some of the highest body temperatures among endothermic animals. Often deemed a selective advantage for heat tolerance, high body temperatures also limits birds\' thermal safety margin before reaching lethal levels. Recent modelling suggests that sustained effort in Arctic birds might be restricted at mild air temperatures, which may require reductions in activity to avoid overheating, with expected negative impacts on reproductive performance. We measured within-individual changes in body temperature in calm birds and then in response to an experimental increase in activity in an outdoor captive population of Arctic, cold-specialised snow buntings (Plectrophenax nivalis), exposed to naturally varying air temperatures (- 15 to 36 °C). Calm buntings exhibited a modal body temperature range from 39.9 to 42.6 °C. However, we detected a significant increase in body temperature within minutes of shifting calm birds to active flight, with strong evidence for a positive effect of air temperature on body temperature (slope = 0.04 °C/ °C). Importantly, by an ambient temperature of 9 °C, flying buntings were already generating body temperatures ≥ 45 °C, approaching the upper thermal limits of organismal performance (45-47 °C). With known limited evaporative heat dissipation capacities in these birds, our results support the recent prediction that free-living buntings operating at maximal sustainable rates will increasingly need to rely on behavioural thermoregulatory strategies to regulate body temperature, to the detriment of nestling growth and survival.

OBJECTIVE: Hyperthermia represents an adjuvant local anticancer strategy which relies on the increase of temperature beyond the physiological level. In this study, we investigated the anticancer potential of Fe3O4 and Fe3O4core Aushell nanoparticles as hyperthermic agents in terms of cytotoxicity and studied the expression of cellular markers of proliferation (changes in mRNA levels via real-time polymerase chain reaction).
METHODS: The human breast cancer cell line SK-BR-1 was incubated with either Fe3O4 or Fe3O4core Aushell nanoparticles stabilized with tryptophan, prior to hyperthermia treatment. The normal HEK293 cell line was used as a control. Toxicity was determined using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium assay to estimate possible toxic effects of the tested nanoparticles. After RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis, mRNA expression of three indicators of proliferation, namely marker of proliferation Ki-67, DNA topoisomerase II alpha (TOP2A) and TPX2 microtubule nucleation factor (TPX2), was investigated.
RESULTS: At each concentration tested, Fe3O4core Aushell nanoparticles showed greater toxicity compared to Fe3O4, while SK-BR-3 cells were more susceptible to their cytotoxic effects compared to the HEK293 cell line. The expression of Ki-67, TOP2A and TPX2 was reduced in SK-BR-3 cells by both Fe3O4 or Fe3O4core Aushell nanoparticles compared to untreated cells, while the only observed change in HEK293 cells was the up-regulation of TOP2A.
CONCLUSIONS: Both Fe3O4core Aushell and Fe3O4 NPs exhibit increased cytotoxicity to the cancer cell line tested (SK-BR-3) compared to HEK293 cells. The down-regulation in SK-BR-3 cells of the three proliferative markers studied, Ki-67, TOP2A and TPX2, after incubation with NPs suggests that cells that survived thermal destruction were not actively proliferating.

Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (LNS) is a disease characterized by a reduced ability to recycle purines, leading to increased de novo purine synthesis and uric acid production. Patients classically present with an array of hyperuricemic, neurologic, and behavioral symptoms. In this report, we describe a 26-year-old male with a history of LNS and recurrent fevers of unknown origin who presented to the emergency department (ED) with a fever, hypotension, and hypernatremia. We suspect that our patient\'s presentation was caused by autonomic instability in the setting of LNS leading to excessive free water loss. This report highlights a rare but life-threatening manifestation of LNS.

Deserts are defined by their arid nature, characterized by little rainfall, and often featuring vast stretches of sandy terrain with sparse vegetation. The resulting variations in temperature, humidity, and topography predispose patients to medical conditions that practitioners in both rural and urban deserts must recognize and manage. This article will equip medical practitioners with the essential knowledge and tools to navigate these complexities, including a description of specific environmental considerations and challenges encountered while providing care in these desert locations, common conditions associated with extreme heat and solar radiation, and animal encounters.

Using magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) for extracorporeal heating applications results in higher field strength and, therefore, particles of higher coercivity can be used, compared to intracorporeal applications. In this study, we report the synthesis and characterization of barium hexa-ferrite (BaFe12O19) nanoparticles as potential particles for magnetic heating. Using a precipitation method followed by high-temperature calcination, we first studied the influence of varied synthesis parameters on the particles\' properties. Second, the iron-to-barium ratio (Fe/Ba = r) was varied between 2 and 12. Vibrating sample magnetometry, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used for characterization. A considerable influence of the calcination temperature (Tcal) was found on the resulting magnetic properties, with a decrease in coercivity (HC) from values above 370 kA/m for Tcal = 800-1000 °C to HC = 45-70 kA/m for Tcal = 1200 °C. We attribute this drop in HC mainly to the formation of entirely multi-domain particles at high Tcal. For the varying Fe/Ba ratios, increasing amounts of BaFe2O4 as an additional phase were detected by XRD in the small r (barium surplus) samples, lowering the particles\' magnetization. A decrease in HC was found in the increased r samples. Crystal size ranged from 47 nm to 240 nm and large agglomerates were seen in SEM images. The reported particles, due to their controllable coercivity, can be a candidate for extracorporeal heating applications in the biomedical or biotechnological field.

UNASSIGNED: Cancer stem cells (CSCs) substantially influence the development of colorectal cancer (CRC), metastasis, relapse, and resistance to therapy. Ibuprofen and hyperthermia can be effective in the treatment of cancer. Herein, we evaluated the effects of hyperthermia and ibuprofen on the isolated-CSCs of CRC.
UNASSIGNED: This experimental study was conducted between Sep 2020 and Jan 2022 at the Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Iran. A non-adhesive culture system was used to isolate CSCs from HT-29 cells. To confirm the stemness nature of isolated-CSCs, the expression of stemness genes and protein markers was evaluated by quantitative Real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and flow cytometry assay. The isolated-CSCs were treated with hyperthermia and ibuprofen. The cell viability was determined by MTT assay and trypan blue staining. The expression of stemness, proliferation, Wnt signaling pathway and apoptosis genes was assessed by qRT-PCR.
UNASSIGNED: CSCs were isolated within 14 days. The expression of CD-133 marker and OCT3/4, C-MYC, KLF4, and NANOG genes in isolated-CSCs was higher than HT-29 cells (P<0.05). Cell viability of treated-CSCs were considerably reduced (P<0.05). Hperthermia reduced the expression of OCT3/4, NANOG, PCNA, WNT1 and CTNNB1 genes and increased the expression of P53, BAX, and KLF4 genes (P<0.05). Ibuprofen decreased the expression of OCT3/4, BCL2, NANOG, PCNA, WNT1, and CTNNB1 genes and increased the expression of P53, BAX, and KLF4 genes in treated-CSCs (P<0.05).
UNASSIGNED: Hyperthermia and ibuprofen treatment demonstrate an inhibitory effect on colorectal CSCs. However, using combination therapy is remaining to be tested.

Hyperthermia induced by phenethylamines, such as 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), can lead to life-threatening complications and death. Activation of the sympathetic nervous system and subsequent release of norepinephrine and activation of uncoupling proteins have been demonstrated to be the key mediators of phenethylamine-induced hyperthermia (PIH). Recently, the gut microbiome was shown to also play a contributing role in PIH. Here, the hypothesis that bile acids (BAs) produced by the gut microbiome are essential to PIH was tested. Changes in the serum concentrations of unconjugated primary BAs cholic acid (CA) and chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA) and secondary BA deoxycholic acid (DCA) were measured following MDMA (20 mg/kg, sc) treatment in antibiotic treated and control rats. MDMA-induced a significant hyperthermic response and reduced the serum concentrations of three BAs 60 min post-treatment. Pretreatment with antibiotics (vancomycin, bacitracin and neomycin) in the drinking water for five days resulted in the depletion of BAs and a hypothermic response to MDMA. Gut bacterial communities in the antibiotic-treated group were distinct from the MDMA or saline treatment groups, with decreased microbiome diversity and alteration in taxa. Metagenomic functions inferred using the bioinformatic tool PICRUSt2 on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that bacterial genes associated to BA metabolism are less abundant in the antibiotic-MDMA treated group. Overall, these findings suggest that gut bacterial produced BAs might play an important role in MDMA-induced hyperthermia.