Percutaneous sperm retrieval is an effective method to retrieve sperm in men with obstructive azoospermia irrespective of the cause of obstruction. The chance of achieving a live birth and the profile of neonates born after sperm injection do not seem to be related to the cause of obstruction.

BackgroundMale-factor infertility presents a vexing problem for many reproductively active couples. Many studies have focused on abnormal sperm parameters. Recent advances in proteomic techniques, especially in mass spectrometry, have aided in the study of sperm and more specifically, sperm proteins. The aim of this study was to review the current literature on the various proteomic techniques, and their usefulness in diagnosing sperm dysfunction and potential applications in the clinical setting.MethodsReview of PubMed database. Key words: spermatozoa, proteomics, protein, proteome, 2D-PAGE, mass spectrometry.ResultsRecently employed proteomic methods, such as two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, mass spectrometry, and differential in gel electrophoresis, have identified numerous sperm-specific proteins. They also have provided a further understanding of protein function involved in sperm processes and for the differentiation between normal and abnormal states. In addition, studies on the sperm proteome have demonstrated the importance of post-translational modifications, and their ability to bring about physiological changes in sperm function. No longer do researchers believe that in order for them to elucidate the biochemical functions of genes, mere knowledge of the human genome sequence is sufficient. Moreover, a greater understanding of the physiological function of every protein in the tissue-specific proteome is essential in order to unravel the biological display of the human genome.ConclusionRecent advances in proteomic techniques have provided insight into sperm function and dysfunction. Several multidimensional separation techniques can be utilized to identify and characterize spermatozoa. Future developments in bioinformatics can further assist researchers in understanding the vast amount of data collected in proteomic studies. Moreover, such advances in proteomics may help to decipher metabolites which can act as biomarkers in the detection of sperm impairments and to potentially develop treatment for infertile couples.Further comprehensive studies on sperm-specific proteome, mechanisms of protein function and its proteolytic regulation, biomarkers and functional pathways, such as oxidative-stress induced mechanisms, will provide better insight into physiological functions of the spermatozoa. Large-scale proteomic studies using purified protein assays will eventually lead to the development of novel biomarkers that may allow for detection of disease states, genetic abnormalities, and risk factors for male infertility. Ultimately, these biomarkers will allow for a better diagnosis of sperm dysfunction and aid in drug development.

Background. Pemetrexed is a commonly used treatment for platinum-resistant advanced urothelial carcinoma (UC) based on objective response rates of 8% and 28% in two small phase II studies. To address the discrepancy in reported response rates and to assess efficacy and toxicity outside of a clinical trial setting, we performed a large retrospective analysis of pemetrexed use at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. We also investigated candidate prognostic factors for overall survival in this setting to explore whether the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) had independent prognostic significance. Patients and Methods. Patients receiving pemetrexed for platinum-resistant advanced UC between 2008 and 2013 were identified. The Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST, version 1.1) were used to determine response rate. Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses were used to examine the association of various factors with efficacy and survival outcomes. Hematologic toxicity and laboratory abnormalities were recorded.

Relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a devastating disease with a poor prognosis and represents a major unmet medical need. We report on a real-world academic center experience of treating 25 patients with relapsed/refractory AML using venetoclax in combination with decitabine or azacitidine, which is not otherwise widely evaluated in the current literature. Our patients come from a large, socioeconomically and geographically diverse area including the majority of Northern California. Most had ELN Adverse Risk (52%) or Intermediate Risk (44%) AML, and most had an ECOG Performance Status of 1 (64%). Over half (52%) had prior hypomethylating agent exposure, and 40% had Secondary AML. We observed an overall response rate of 52%, with eight patients (32%) achieving composite complete remission. Median overall survival was 5.5 months, and for patients achieving composite complete remission this was 21.6 months. One-year estimated overall survival was 38%. Three patients were able to proceed directly to stem cell transplant for consolidation, and all three were alive at last follow-up, ranging 13.8–24.0 months. We found venetoclax in combination with hypomethylating agents to be well tolerated and potentially efficacious in securing long-term remissions for patients with relapsed/refractory AML.

A mobile robot moving in an environment in which there are other moving objects and active agents, some of which may represent threats and some of which may represent collaborators, needs to be able to reason about the potential future behaviors of those objects and agents. In this paper we present an approach to tracking targets with complex behavior, leveraging a 3D simulation engine to generate predicted imagery and comparing that against real imagery. We introduce an approach to compare real and simulated imagery and present results using this approach to locate and track objects with complex behaviors.In this approach, the salient points in real and imaged images are identified and an affine image transformation that maps the real scene to the synthetic scene is generated. An image difference operation is developed that ensures that the matched points in both images produce a zero difference. In this way, synchronization differences are reduced and content differences enhanced. A number of image pairs are processed and presented to illustrate the approach.