Recent Publications
Chaim Putterman: Single Cell RNA Sequencing in Human Disease: Renal, Pancreatic, and Viral Diseases (Adv Exp Med Biol .)
In this chapter, we discussed some of the specific uses of scRNA-seq in exploring viral infections and diseases of the kidney and pancreas. This review, however, is by no means exhaustive, and indeed this technology has advanced the study of pulmonary and cardiac diseases, transplant immunology, cancer, and many others as well. Nevertheless, the above reviewed studies do illustrate the utility and resolution of scRNA-seq in understanding exact cellular compositions, discovering heterogeneity within cellular expression patterns, and uncovering clues that may eventually lead to the development of more targeted and personalized therapies. Additionally, the increasing availability of whole tissue cellular atlases in both health and disease as a result of scRNA-seq studies provides an important resource to better understand complicated molecular signaling patterns and events that are similar and different between human diseases.
S Ben-Simon, O Koren: Alterations of the salivary and fecal microbiome in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (Hepatol Int .)
Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a chronic, progressive liver disease known for its frequent concurrence with inflammatory bowel disease. PSC can progress to cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease, hepatobiliary cancer, and/or colorectal cancer. The etiopathogenesis of PSC remains poorly understood, and, as such, pharmacotherapy has yet to be definitively established. Little is known about the salivary microbiome in PSC and PSC-IBD. This study aimed to evaluate the oral microbiome of patients with PSC, with association to these patient's fecal microbial composition.
Avi Benov: Neck injuries - israel defense forces 20 years' experience (Injury . )
Neck injuries are an important cause of combat mortality and morbidity. This study's objective was to examine the characteristics and causes of neck injuries among Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and emphasize the best treatment protocols for the advanced life support providers in the prehospital combat environment.
Limor Meoded Danon: Psychosocial approaches and discursive gaps in intersex healthcare: findings from an Israeli-German action research study (Cult Health Sex . )
In the past several decades, conflicting discourses have coexisted in the field of intersex studies, including the pathologising discourse of the biomedical disciplines and the affirmative, subjective psychosocial discourse of people born with intersex bodies and their advocates. Intersex activists call for a positive discourse on intersex bodies and a humanistic healthcare approach that accepts and protects intersex bodily autonomy to replace continuing harmful, traumatic treatments aimed at normalising variations of sex characteristics (VSC). Our awareness of the biomedical discursive dominance prompted us to initiate Inter-Care and Awareness, an intercultural German-Israeli action research project. This paper introduces the project and explores intercultural approaches to psychosocial intersex care using an action research framework.
Dor Shahar, Jacob Bornstein: Cervical traction suture technique during large loop excision of the transformation zone increases complete lesion excision (J Gynecol Obstet Hum Reprod .)
A surgical technique was developed in the past by our group to reduce the rate of inadvertent complications. It was then seemed that it also increased the rate of complete lesion excision. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a cervical traction suture technique in increasing the prevalence of complete lesion excisions and reducing the incidence of unintended injuries to adjacent tissues during large loop excision of the transformation zone (LLETZ).
Chaim Putterman: Phoenix from the flames: Rediscovering the role of the CD40-CD40L pathway in systemic lupus erythematosus and lupus nephritis (Autoimmun Rev . )
Lupus nephritis (LN) is a significant complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), increasing its morbidity and mortality. Although the current standard of care helps suppress disease activity, it is associated with toxicity and ultimately does not cure SLE. At present, there are no therapies specifically indicated for the treatment of LN and there is an unmet need in this disease where treatment remains a challenge.
Proton Pump Inhibitor Use May Increase the Risk of Diverticulitis but Not It's Severity among Patients with Colonic Diverticulosis: A Multicenter Study (J Clin Med .)
Colonic diverticular disease, especially diverticulitis constitutes a major cause of hospitalization and an economic burden in developed countries. Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are among the commonest drugs used to treat several diseases affecting the upper gastrointestinal tract. A few studies have reported that the use of Proton Pump Inhibitors PPIs caused dysbiosis. In this study, we searched for a relationship between PPI use and the onset and severity of diverticulitis in patients with colonic diverticulosis. (Wisam Sbeit, Tawfik Khoury, Anas Kadah, Waseem Asadi, Amir Shahin, Ahmad Lubany, Mohammed Safadi, Haya Haddad, Ruba Abu Ahmad, Sami Abu El Hija, Rand Abboud, Amir Mari)
Wisam Sbeit, Tawfik Khoury, Anas Kadah, Amir Mari: Long-Term Safety of Endoscopic Biliary Stents for Cholangitis Complicating Choledocholithiasis: A Multi-Center Study (J Clin Med .)
Treatment of cholangitis complicating choledocholithiasis includes biliary sphincterotomy and stone extraction. In certain cases of elderly comorbid patients with high risk for definitive endoscopic treatment, biliary stenting is the only measure for relieving biliary obstruction. We aimed to report the safety of retained biliary stone.
Mervyn S Jaswon: Urine collection methods and dipstick testing in non-toilet-trained children (Pediatr Nephrol .)
Urinary tract infection is a commonly occurring paediatric infection associated with significant morbidity. Diagnosis is challenging as symptoms are non-specific and definitive diagnosis requires an uncontaminated urine sample to be obtained. Common techniques for sampling in non-toilet-trained children include clean catch, bag, pad, in-out catheterisation and suprapubic aspiration. The pros and cons of each method are examined in detail in this review.
Wisam Sbeit, Anas Kadah, Amir Mari, Tawfik Khoury: A Comprehensive Narrative Review on the Evolving Role of Endoscopic Ultrasound in Focal Solid Liver Lesions Diagnosis and Management (Diagnostics (Basel) .)
The implications of endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) have expanded considerably in recent years to cover more fields in invasive gastroenterology practice, as both an investigative and therapeutic modality. The utility of EUS in the diagnosis and management of focal liver lesions has gained a special attractiveness recently. The EUS probe proximity to the liver and its excellent spatial resolution enables real-time images coupled with several enhancement techniques, such as contrast-enhanced (CE) EUS. Aside from its notable capability to execute targeted biopsies and therapeutic interventions, EUS has developed into a hopeful therapeutic tool for the management of solid liver lesions. Herein, we provide a comprehensive state-of-the-art review on the efficacy and safety of EUS in the diagnosis and management of focal solid liver lesions.
Lilach Malatskey: A nationwide assessment of lifestyle medicine counseling: knowledge, attitudes, and confidence of Israeli senior family medicine residents (BMC Fam Pract . )
Non-communicable diseases are the leading causes of death, largely due to the last century's often-unhealthy lifestyles. Family medicine (FM) and other physicians can improve patients' lifestyle behaviors, yet FM residency programs in Israel and other countries do not uniformly deliver lifestyle medicine (LM) training. The readiness of FM residents to counsel on lifestyle issues is not known. The purpose of this study is to assess knowledge, attitudes, and confidence levels of senior Israeli FM residents regarding LM counseling, and to evaluate the influence of LM training and personal health behaviors on residents' LM knowledge, attitudes, and confidence.
Wisam Sbeit, Anas Kadah, Hala Karayanni, Amir Mari, Shani Tali, Samer Srouji, Tawfik Khoury: Oral manifestations of inflammatory bowel disease: the neglected piece of the puzzle (Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol .)
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic relapsing remitting autoimmune disease including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. IBD is associated with various extra-intestinal manifestations including oral manifestation. To date, only limited studies addressing the characteristics of the oral manifestations are available. The aim of the present review is to report the oral manifestations and their characteristics in IBD.
Vikrant Palande, Dorith Raviv Shay, Milana Frenkel-Morgenstern: Detection of Cell-Free DNA in Blood Plasma Samples of Cancer Patients (J Vis Exp .)
Identifying mutations in tumors of cancer patients is a very important step in disease management. These mutations serve as biomarkers for tumor diagnosis as well as for the treatment selection and its response in cancer patients. The current gold standard method for detecting tumor mutations involves a genetic test of tumor DNA by means of tumor biopsies. However, this invasive method is difficult to be performed repeatedly as a follow-up test of the tumor mutational repertoire. Liquid biopsy is a new and emerging technique for detecting tumor mutations as an easy-to-use and non-invasive biopsy approach....In this manuscript, we present a detailed protocol for liquid biopsy, including blood collection, plasma, and buffy coat separation, cfDNA and germline DNA extraction, quantification of cfDNA or germline DNA, and cfDNA fragment enrichment analysis.
Avi Benov, Kaykov Edward: Compassionate use of convalescent plasma for treatment of moderate and severe pneumonia in COVID-19 patients and association with IgG antibody levels in donated plasma (EClinicalMedicine .)
We assessed outcome of patients with moderate and severe COVID-19 following treatment with convalescent plasma (CP) and the association with IgG levels in transfused CP.
Amir Hadanny: The outcome of intracranial meningioma surgery in octogenarians: matched cohort study (World Neurosurg .)
Previous studies comparing the outcomes of intracranial meningioma surgery in octogenarians compared to younger patients without accounting for different tumor locations and sizes. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the outcomes of intracranial meningioma surgery in octogenarians taking into account both patient pre-operative status, comorbidities as well the tumor properties.