IntroductionAcademic undertakings, including research, lead to career progression. However, the career paths of female psychiatrists appear to diverge significantly from that of their male counterparts. This article reviews the pervasiveness of the trend of women being less likely to pursue active research in psychiatry. In addition, we examine the correlation between academic rank and research productivity.MethodsWe searched the American Medical Association’s (AMA) Fellowship and Residency Electronic Interactive Database (FREIDA) to identify training programs for psychiatry. A total of 5234 psychiatrists met our inclusion criteria. The gender, academic rank, research work, and h-index of faculty members were compared. The ratio of women reaching senior ranks as compared to men was also calculated. The Scopus database was used to determine the h-index of the individuals included in this study. Data analysis was done with SPSS 22.0 Release 2013 (IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, IBM, Armonk, NY, USA). Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney U tests were used where required, with the P-value set at less than 0.05.ResultsIn our study sample, 2181 (42%) of the psychiatrists were women. However, according to the information obtained from the websites of 23 programs, few women reached higher ranks, full professorship, or positions such as the chairperson of a program, and only 9% of women achieved the designation of chairperson of the psychiatry department, with men representing the other 91%. Higher academic rank correlated with higher h-index. A statistically-significant difference between the genders in terms of h-index was found for the assistant professor rank as well. However, this difference was not observed at the level of an associate professor.ConclusionsDespite adequate representation of women in the academic workforce in psychiatry, there appears to be a discrepancy in the research productivity of the two genders. This study highlights the need for targeted interventions to address gender disparities in academic psychiatry.

A fundamental feature of tumor progression is reprogramming of metabolic pathways. ATP citrate lyase (ACLY) is a key metabolic enzyme that catalyzes the generation of Acetyl-CoA and is upregulated in cancer cells and required for their growth. The phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) and Src-family kinase (SFK) Lyn are constitutively activate in many cancers. We show here, for the first time, that both the substrate and product of PI3K, phosphatidylinositol-(4,5)-bisphosphate (PIP 2 ) and phosphatidylinositol-(3,4,5)-trisphosphate (PIP 3 ), respectively, bind to ACLY in Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) patient-derived, but not normal donor-derived cells. We demonstrate the binding of PIP 2 to the CoA-binding domain of ACLY and identify the six tyrosine residues of ACLY that are phosphorylated by Lyn. Three of them (Y682, Y252, Y227) can be also phosphorylated by Src and they are located in catalytic, citrate binding and ATP binding domains, respectively. PI3K and Lyn inhibitors reduce the ACLY enzyme activity, ACLY-mediated Acetyl-CoA synthesis, phospholipid synthesis, histone acetylation and cell growth. Thus, PIP 2 /PIP 3 binding and Src tyrosine kinases-mediated stimulation of ACLY links oncogenic pathways to Acetyl-CoA-dependent pro-growth and survival metabolic pathways in cancer cells. These results indicate a novel function for Lyn, as a regulator of Acetyl-CoA-mediated metabolic pathways.

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The gastrointestinal tract is one of the most common sites for extranodal Burkitt lymphomas (BLs), but an appendiceal BL is extremely rare. We describe a case of appendiceal BL presenting with acute appendicitis and acute kidney injury. A 15-year-old obese male presented to the emergency department with fever and right-sided abdominal pain. WBC count was slightly increased, and a CT scan of the abdomen showed features of ruptured appendicitis and peritonitis. The patient was placed on antibiotics, and an interval appendectomy was planned. The patient developed a worsening acute kidney injury one day later, requiring a laparoscopic appendectomy. Gross examination of the appendix revealed a dilated, firm, sausage-like appendix with a hemorrhagic serosa and a firm mesoappendix. Microscopic examination of the appendix showed a dense diffuse infiltration of monomorphic medium-sized atypical lymphoid cells with round nuclei, dispersed chromatin, and small nucleoli. Few scattered macrophages created a vague "starry sky" appearance. Many mitotic figures were seen. The lesion also involved the mesoappendix. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that the lymphoma expressed CD10, CD20, and BCL6 but was negative for CD34, BCL2, and TdT. Later, the fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis detected an IGH-MYC (8;14) fusion. A final diagnosis of appendicular Burkitt lymphoma was made. Two weeks later, a bone marrow biopsy performed for staging showed involvement of bone marrow by BL. The patient lost follow-up after that due to the transfer of care to another hospital.