The multiple forms of pulmonary aspergillosis caused by Aspergillus species are the most common respiratory mycoses. Although invasive, the analysis of diagnostic biomarkers in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) is a clinical standard for diagnosing these conditions. The BALF samples from 22 patients with proven or probable aspergillosis were assayed for human pentraxin 3 (Ptx3), fungal ferricrocin (Fc), and triacetylfusarinine C (TafC) in a retrospective study. The infected group included patients with invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) and chronic aspergillosis (CPA). The BALF data were compared to a control cohort of 67 patients with invasive pulmonary mucormycosis (IPM), non-Aspergillus colonization, or bacterial infections. The median Ptx3 concentrations in patients with and without aspergillosis were 4545.5 and 242.0 pg/mL, respectively (95% CI, p < 0.05). The optimum Ptx3 cutoff for IPA was 2545 pg/mL, giving a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of 100, 98, 95, and 100%, respectively. The median Ptx3 concentration for IPM was high at 4326 pg/mL. Pentraxin 3 assay alone can distinguish IPA from CPA and invasive fungal disease from colonization. Combining Ptx3 and TafC assays enabled the diagnostic discrimination of IPM and IPA, giving a specificity and PPV of 100%.

Background The analysis of body composition, especially the assessment of the amount and distribution of body fat and muscle mass in young people, has a relatively important clinical significance for detecting nutritional disorders. Inappropriate eating habits and insufficient physical activity contribute to changes in body composition. A healthy lifestyle, especially sufficient and correct nutrition, contributes to reducing the risk of developing nutritional disorders and their associated health complications and especially sufficient and correct nutrition, contribute to reducing the risk of developing nutritional disorders and the health complications associated with them. Materials and methods University students aged 19–25 years (⌀women = 21.6 ± 1.46, ⌀men = 21.5 ± 1.02) had their body composition measured using a bioimpedance device InBody 370S. Furthermore, a questionnaire survey (IPAQ, FPQ, FCQ) related to information on the level of physical activity, food selection preferences and factors influencing students' food choices was performed. The research took place at the Centre for Health Research at University of Ostrava from October 2020 to May 2021. Results and findings: For the majority of surveyed body composition parameters, most students (women and men) were found to have values that corresponded to their reference range. Body Mass Index (BMI) for 89.5% of men and 77.9% of women were within a normal range, while statistically significant differences between the sexes were confirmed for all body parameters (p < 0,001; p = 0,025). 50.4% of women had a waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) parameter above the reference norm, and 44.3% of women had higher percentage body fat (PBF) values. Higher values of skeletal muscle mass (SMM), protein, minerals a bone mineral content (BMC) were identified in 36.8% of men. When asked what influences their choice of food, men rated the health category the highest (3 ± 0.56), but women preferred fast (convenient) food preparation (3.2 ± 0.52). Men had the lowest preference for snacks, starchy foods and dairy products (equal 3.7; SD 0.55–0.77). Women preferred meat and fish the least (3.6 ± 0.72). A total of 88 students (66.7% of men and women) achieved metabolic equivalent (MET) values of more than 3000 per week and thus had a high level of physical activity. Of this number, men (79%) were more active than women (64.6%). Conclusion BMI does not always have explanatory power for assessing body weight, as it does not consider the percentage distribution of fat and non-fat body mass in the total body weight. Men have a higher proportion of skeletal muscle mass and ensure a sufficient supply of food with high-quality protein content. Women who are genetically predisposed to higher body fat storage (and higher visceral fat percentage) can improve the skeletal muscle mass ratio by increasing physical activity and consuming enough lean meat, fish and quality dairy products. Physical activity and a varied diet have a positive effect on achieving optimal body weight, they are also effective in prevention against nutritional disorders (obesity, malnutrition) and other health complications related to these disorders.

Lung cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide, with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) having the worst prognosis. SCLC is diagnosed late in the disease’s progression, limiting treatment options. The most common treatment for SCLC is chemotherapy. As the disease progresses, immunotherapy, most commonly checkpoint inhibitor medication, becomes more important. Efforts should be made in the development of immunotherapy to map specific biomarkers, which play a role in properly assigning a type of immunotherapy to the right cohort of patients, where the benefits outweigh any risks or adverse effects. The objective of this review was to provide a thorough assessment of current knowledge about the nature of the tumor process and treatment options for small cell lung cancer, with a focus on predictive biomarkers. According to the information obtained, the greatest potential, which has already been directly demonstrated in some studies, has characteristics such as tumor microenvironment composition, tumor mutation burden, and molecular subtyping of SCLC. Several other aspects appear to be promising, but more research, particularly prospective studies on a larger number of probands, is required. However, it is clear that this field of study will continue to expand, as developing a reliable method to predict immunotherapy response is a very appealing goal of current medicine and research in the field of targeted cancer therapy.