BackgroundThe frequency of preterm labour has risen over the last few years. Hence, there is growing interest in the identification of markers that may facilitate prediction and prevention of premature birth complications. Here, we studied the association of the number of circulating stem cell populations with the incidence of complications typical of prematurity.MethodsThe study groups consisted of 90 preterm (23–36 weeks of gestational age) and 52 full-term (37–41 weeks) infants. Non-hematopoietic stem cells (non-HSCs; CD45-lin-CD184+), enriched in very small embryonic-like stem cells (VSELs), expressing pluripotent (Oct-4, Nanog), early neural (β-III-tubulin), and oligodendrocyte lineage (Olig-1) genes as well as hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs; CD45+lin-CD184+), and circulating stem/progenitor cells (CSPCs; CD133+CD34+; CD133-CD34+) in association with characteristics of prematurity and preterm morbidity were analyzed in cord blood (CB) and peripheral blood (PB) until the sixth week after delivery. Phenotype analysis was performed using flow cytometry methods. Clonogenic assays suitable for detection of human hematopoietic progenitor cells were also applied. The quantitative parameters were compared between groups by the Mann–Whitney test and between time points by the Friedman test. Fisher’s exact test was used for qualitative variables.ResultsWe found that the number of CB non-HSCs/VSELs is inversely associated with the birth weight of preterm infants. More notably, a high number of CB HSCs is strongly associated with a lower risk of prematurity complications including intraventricular hemorrhage, respiratory distress syndrome, infections, and anemia. The number of HSCs remains stable for the first six weeks of postnatal life. Besides, the number of CSPCs in CB is significantly higher in preterm infants than in full-term neonates (p < 0.0001) and extensively decreases in preterm babies during next six weeks after birth. Finally, the growth of burst-forming unit of erythrocytes (BFU-E) and colony-forming units of granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM) obtained from CB of premature neonates is higher than those obtained from CB of full-term infants and strongly correlates with the number of CB-derived CSPCs.ConclusionWe conclude that CB HSCs are markedly associated with the development of premature birth complications. Thus, HSCs ought to be considered as the potential target for further research as they may be relevant for predicting and controlling the morbidity of premature infants. Moreover, the observed levels of non-HSCs/VSELs circulating in CB are inversely associated with the birth weight of preterm infants, suggesting non-HSCs/VSELs might be involved in the maturation of fetal organism.

EPCs may play a considerable role in vascular development in preterm infants.

To investigate the association among different circulating stem cell (SC) populations, the levels of selected growth factors and chemokines regulating SC migration in the peripheral blood, and the incidence of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Methods: We evaluated 88 participants in this study: 29 preterm infants with ROP, 29 preterm infants without ROP, and 30 healthy full-term infants. Peripheral blood samples collected 10 weeks after delivery were analyzed using flow cytometry, immunofluorescence, realtime reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The following cell populations were analyzed: (1) lin-CXCR4 ϩ CD45 − (enriched in very small embryonic-like SCs), (2) lin − CXCR4 ϩ CD45 ϩ (enriched in hematopoietic SCs), and (3) CD34 ϩ CD133 ϩ CD144 ϩ (early endothelial progenitor cells) [lin indicates lineage]. The concentrations of vascular endothelial growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, hepatocyte growth factor, and stromal cellderived factor 1 were measured in the plasma. Results: The very small embryonic-like SCs and early endothelial progenitor cells expressing neural and endothelial markers were significantly increased in the preterm infants. The number of early endothelial progenitor cells in the peripheral blood was significantly greater in the preterm infants with ROP than in the preterm infants without ROP. An accompanying increase in the concentrations of vascular endothelial growth factor and hepatocyte growth factor was found in the peripheral blood of the preterm infants with ROP. No significant associations were found between hematopoietic SCs and ROP or prematurity. Conclusions: The increased number of early endothelial progenitor cells along with elevated levels of vascular endothelial growth factor and hepatocyte growth factor in preterm infants with ROP suggest that circulating vasculogenic factors may play a role in the development and progression of ROP. The increased number of very small embryonic-like SCs in preterm infants suggests that the development of immature tissues and organs, including the retina, may require a contribution of circulating SCs.

Use of the CCFM device allows for monitoring of three basic physiologic functions, namely aEEG, SaO(2), and pulse, and increases the safety of massage in preterm infants.

Background. efficient functioning at work and in the environment depends on social and emotional competence, understood as complex skills that determine the effectiveness of behaviors in various professional and social situations. Objectives. The aim of this study was to determine the social competence of physicians and medical students with regard to the sociodemographic contributors which shape social competence. Material and methods. The study was conducted in 2015 and 2016 and it involved 90 physicians, including 25 GPs (27.8%) and 53 medical students of PMu in szczecin. The median age of the physicians and the students was 32 and 25, respectively. The social competencies Questionnaire (scQ) by anna Matczak and a self-developed survey questionnaire were employed. Results. The ability of physicians to achieve medium and high levels of social competence increases by 8.5% with every year of seniority. Membership in scientific societies increases the odds of a high level of social competence fivefold in the es scale and fourfold in the a scale. Physicians involved in the education of medical students were less likely to obtain medium and high scores (5 stens) in the a scale. an increase in seniority in the last workplace is accompanied by a 0.93 times lower probability of obtaining a high competence score in the a scale. similarly, third cycle degree studies increase the odds of achieving high competence level by 7.48 times in the a scale. Conclusions. low levels of competence can be expected from physicians with less seniority, not belonging to scientific societies, not involved in students' education, working in only one place, and not participating in third cycle degree studies. This group should be provided with social competence training. Key words: physician, general practitioner, medical student, social competence, social competencies Questionnaire (scQ). Summary ISSN 1734-3402, eISSN 2449-8580This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the creative commons attribution-noncommercial-sharealike 4.0 international (cc By-nc-sa 4.0). license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).Fam Med Prim care rev 2016; 18(3): 308-312