These miniature cameras are manufactured from materials suitable for human medical procedures. They are designed specifically for small-diameter disposable endoscopic devices, used in diagnostic and surgical procedures in regions of the anatomy where larger scopes are not viable.

Medigus will begin supplying camera samples in the coming weeks to US and Japanese companies which produce cardiology-related devices. The miniature cameras offered by Medigus are supported by the company’s digital video processing systems.

“We are excited to release our second generation of disposable cameras to further progress the medical endoscopic field.” said Dr. Elazar Sonnenschein, CEO for Medigus Ltd. “Medical procedures that have not been possible until now become possible with the world’s smallest camera. The advanced technology provides the medical community and patients with safe, quality and cost-effective treatment.”

Medigus is a medical device company that specializes in developing innovative endoscopic procedures and devices. Medigus is a pioneer developer of a unique proprietary endoscopic device for the treatment of GERD, one of the most common chronic diseases in the Western world.

*

This technological achievement comes as sort of another pace for Israeli technology of inside-body cameras – proceeded by Israeli companies like pioneer Given Imaging and RealView Medical. Those developments position Israel well on both fields of minimally invasive medicine and remote medical monitoring.

For the full news item, see:

http://www.fiercemedicaldevices.com/press-releases/medigus-announces-worlds-smallest-video-camera-0?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal

by Aviva Mishmari

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Prof. Stephen A. Schendel and Rambam doctors performing surgery.
© Pioter Fliter-RHCC

During the beginning of March, Rambam surgeons conducted two complicated operations that included maxillofacial and plastic surgery. Such treatments are usually divided over several operations, performed by different specialists. Apparently, things can be done differently. Within a few hours, these operations – in all their complexity – were completed by one person. This surgeon, Prof. Stephen A. Schendel from Stanford University, is a world-renowned expert who holds two medical titles and specializations in a good number of other areas.

Prof. Schendel, a doctor (MD) and dentist (DDS), is an expert in maxillofacial and plastic surgery, known widely for his work correcting congenital facial deformities. Creating is a genuine passion for Prof. Schendel. In addition to his medical activities, his drawings and sculptures have earned worldwide acclaim. Last month, the doctor/artist arrived at Rambam to take part in activities aimed to raise awareness of the advantages of combining orthodontic treatment with maxillofacial and plastic surgery.

Prof. Schendel’s visit reached its high point when he performed, along with doctors from different departments, two complicated operations at Rambam. The first surgery was done on a seven-year old boy, who suffers from Treacher Collins Sydrome, which was manifested in a cleft palate and deformities of the upper and lower jaw. “Patients with this syndrome also have deformities of the eyes and eyelids,” says Director of the Dept. of Orthodontic and Craniopfacial Anomalies, Dr. Dror Aizenbud, who accompanied Prof. Schendel during his stay. “These cases are very complicated, and their treatment generally requires a number of operations, conducted by surgeons in different fields. “

In contrast, Prof. Schendel holds that all problems should be addressed in one procedure if possible. In a single five-hour operation, Prof. Schendel corrected all the little boy’s facial defects. To reconstruct the jaw, he used bone taken from the patient’s hip.

Shortly after that procedure, Prof. Schendel operated on an 18-year old woman who had undergone a series of operations to correct a serious jaw deformity. In spite of the procedures, the young woman’s nose was still deformed. During a delicate four-hour operation, Prof. Schendel ‘built’ a new nose using cartilage taken from the patient’s ear. This was an especially creative solution, according to Dr. Aizenbud , who explained that while cartilage is usually taken from the nasal septum, this patient laced that partition between the nose’s left and right cavities.

Prof. Schendel spent the remainder of his time at Rambam lecturing to medical professionals in his fields of specialization. He also delivered the key lecture at a conference on medicine and dentistry “Orthodontic & Craniofacial Aspects” at Rambam, attended by 150 doctors.

“Prof. Schendel is amazingly creative,” says Dr. Aizenbud, who travels yearly to Prof. Schendel for research and clinical collaboration, and “has long dreamed of bringing him to Rambam, where he can teach his innovative approaches to the staff”. Quick learners, Rambam’s surgeons have already entered Prof. Schendel’s new techniques into their operating rooms.

Writer: Roberta Neiger, ProText

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Researchers from Technion – Israel Institute of Technology collected breath samples from 82 people from three groups: head-and-neck cancer patients, lung cancer patients and healthy people. The team examined the differences in the molecules present in the exhaled breath of each group using tailor-made detection equipment called the Nano Artificial NOSE.

The team examined the potential for a future test to be developed to diagnose head-and-neck cancer and distinguish it from lung cancer.

Lead researcher, Professor Hossam Haick, at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, said: “There’s an urgent need to develop new ways to detect head-and-neck cancer because diagnosis of the disease is complicated, requiring specialist examinations.

”We’ve shown that a simple ‘breath test’ can spot the patterns of molecules which are found in head-and-neck patients in a small, early study”.

For the full news item, see:

http://www.ecancermedicalscience.com/news-insider-news.asp?itemId=1717

See also “Potential of cancer breath test studied”:

http://www.nhs.uk/news/2011/04April/Pages/head-and-neck-cancer-breath-test.aspx

The original scientific article in British Journal of Cancer:

http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/bjc2011128a.html

by Aviva Mishmari

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Rambam’s medical clowns.
Pioter Fliter-RHCC.©

Medical clowns have been active at Rambam for the last eight years. Now, they have entered the hospital’s ‘holiest sanctum’: the operation room, where they help children arrive for surgery calm, relaxed and even happy. Outfitted with the latest medical equipment – a mock medical mask, imitation oxygen balloons, IV stands – and a bright red nose, Bermula (zoya Hite) gets to work.

Bermula may “argue” with children about their pajamas, take orders for a special dream, or act like someone who wants an examination. Through games, she acquaints children with the operating room and its equipment, makes them laugh and helps them pass the stressful pre-op hours. “My routine calms many children,” says Hite, who initiated this service. “Some learn to breathe in the oxygen balloon, and some run and laugh on their way to the OR.”
Bermula is part of the medical clown program at Rambam. With their bright red-rubber ball noses and day-glo garb, medical clowns move through hospital wards, clinics and now, operating rooms. Active at Rambam for the last eight years, the clowns create a fantasy world with the patient – usually a child – at the center. Bringing light to young patients and restoring their sense of self and security, medical clowns are an integral part of hospital treatment.

Rambam’s clowns work through Dream Doctors, an organization active in 17 hospitals throughout Israel. Rambam was among the first to become involved, and now has seven clowns who work with children and one with adults. The ‘Dream Doctors’ accompany children to surgery, remain with them in post-op recovery, and through treatments for burns, physiotherapy, psychiatry and plastic surgery. They are also present in outpatient, dental and other clinics.

All the clowns are actors, many with experience in street theater. None have difficulty connecting with patients from different religious, cultural or linguistic backgrounds. Often working without words, the clowns coax laughter from patients representing Rambam’s diverse populations.

“This is the most satisfying thing I’ve ever done,” says Hamutal Ende (‘Suzy’), who has worked as a medical clown at Rambam for three years. “When a sick child smiles, you get immediate feedback and thanks. It’s addictive.”

Medical clowning requires versatility and flexibility, and more than a little intuition. “I work according to who’s sitting opposite me, and depending on the person’s age, illness, mood and mobility”, says Hamutal.

“In the hospital, children become powerless,” says Hamutal. “They are told what to wear, what to eat, when to take medicine. They are pricked and prodded, and perhaps most difficult of all, their parents become, in their eyes, impotent.” Within this scenario, the clown attempts to return the child’s sense of self, center and place.

Hamutal believes this can be done even in the most difficult situations. As part of the Israeli medical delegation to Haiti after last year’s devastating earthquake, she was able to bring some comfort. Armed with her ukulele, playacting and pantomime skills, Hamutal wandered the field hospital. “I tried to give the wounded children special care and attention to help them heal,” she says. “Amidst the overwhelming tragedy, pain and misery, even the soldiers and health care workers sought me out for some relief.”

Writer: Roberta Neiger, ProText

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Prof. Benjamin Brenner at the laboratory in Rambam.
Raanan Tal-RHCC©

Research at Rambam Health Care Campus (RHCC) has drawn a direct connection between blood clotting, and fetal loss and vascular complications in pregnant women. These findings led Rambam researchers to develop treatments now being performed on a large scale in hospitals throughout Israel and the rest of the world.

“We were among the first to demonstrate the contribution of blood clotting to gestational vascular complications like pre-eclampsia (hypertension in pregnancy), placental abruption (separation of the placental lining from the mother’s uterus), severe uterine growth restriction and uterine fetal death, and to intervene with therapy,” says Prof. Benjamin Brenner , Acting Director of the Department of Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation. Such complications occur in five to ten percent of pregnancies worldwide. “Since these complications can cause maternal and fetal mortality and premature births, this is a major public health issue,” he says.

In Israel, this issue is especially pressing, as roughly one in five Caucasian women here – some 15% of Jews and 25% of Arabs – have thrombophilia, an inherited tendency for clotting.

Taking their pioneering work one step further, researchers at the Rambam Institute of Hematology sought ways to prevent these devastating events. They initiated the first study on averting such complications with anti-clotting medications taken during pregnancy. “We generally give low-molecular weight Heparin, which reduces the re-occurrence of pregnancy complication by 75%,” says Prof. Brenner.

Women have special needs and problems associated with bleeding and clotting, explains Prof. Brenner. For example, bleeding disorders may manifest at menarche – the onset of menstruation while hormonal contraception and pregnancy increase the risk of thrombosis. Pregnancy, in particular, increases chances of clotting. “This phenomenon is rooted deep in the past, when women gave birth outside, in the fields,” explains Prof. Brenner. “Then, excessive bleeding was the most fearful complication. Over time, clotting became the body’s way of countering the bleeding.”

To this day, the clotting mechanism still plays an important role, as bleeding continues to pose a threat to pregnant women around the world. “In the developing world today, bleeding during childbirth is still a leading cause of death among women. In developed countries, women become pregnant at more advanced ages, which contribute to a higher risk of thrombosis.

In addition to his clinical and research activities, Prof. Brenner chaired, in early February, the fourth bi-annual conference on Women’s Issues in Thrombosis and Hemostasis, held in Berlin, Germany. This meeting, attended by over 600 physicians and scientists “is a major venue for exchanging information between OB/GYNs and hematologists,” he says. “By presenting different angles on widespread problems, we will be able to bring about great change in this field.”

Prof. Brenner also moves beyond the sphere of thrombosis and women to explore the connection between coagulation and common diseases such as diabetes and cancer, studying mechanisms of major vascular complications including pulmonary embolism, heart attacks and strokes.

Writer: Roberta Neiger, ProText

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“The current pharmaceutical supply chain worked well when the ‘blockbuster’ paradigm prevailed, but pharma’s focus in a post-health reform world is shifting from products to patients, and their supply chain processes need to adopt the speed and agility of other, more consumer-oriented industries such as consumer electronics and mass retailing,” said Wynn Bailey, head of supply chain strategies, PwC. “In a world where outcomes count for everything, health organizations need to acquire a much deeper understanding of patients and their healthcare needs. Information is the new currency, and the data behind the product may soon be as valuable as the product itself.”

PwC predicts that the pharmaceutical supply chain will undergo three key changes over the next decade:

• It will become fragmented, with different models for different product types and patient segments.

• It will become a means of market differentiation and source of economic value.

• It will become a two-way street, with information flowing upstream to drive the downstream flow of products and services.

For a summary of the six trends described in the report, see:

http://www.healthcarepackaging.com/archives/2011/03/six_trends_that_will_change_th.php

Aviva Mishmari . March 11, 2011

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Stephen N. Oesterle, M.D., joined the company in 2002 as Senior Vice President for Medicine and Technology. In this role, Steve provides executive leadership for Medtronic scientific research, formation of technological strategies and continued development of strong cooperative relationships with the world’s medical communities, technical universities, financial institutions and emerging medical device companies.

Previously, Steve served as Associate Professor of Medicine at the Harvard University Medical School and as Director of Invasive Cardiology Services at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston. A teacher and innovator in the field of cardiac catheterization, he has also developed and directed interventional cardiology programs at Good Samaritan Hospital, Los Angeles; at Georgetown University; and at Stanford University.

Steve is a 1973 summa cum laude graduate of Harvard College and received his medical doctorate from Yale University in 1977. He completed his internship and residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and also served a fellowship in interventional cardiology at Stanford.

Stephen N. Oesterle will give a keynote lecture How technology saved healthcare in the up-and-coming ILSI-BioMed week at the second day, Tuesday, May 24 2011.

Innovation 100: Stephen N. Oesterle’s video lecture.

Interview with Dr. Stephen Oesterle

ILSI-BioMed week – program at a glance.

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BrainStorm, after several hurdle-crossing years of pre-clinical testing and validation of its autologous stem cell therapy, is about to become the first Israeli company to reach the clinical trial stage with a differentiated stem cell-based therapy.
The company`s Phase I/II trial, expected to begin in the spring, targets a major unmet need – amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). There is currently no approved therapy for this neurodegenerative disorder which costs the healthcare system an estimated $6 billion a year in the US alone.

In order to fund this trial the company recently raised $3.6 million from institutional and private investors in equity financing.

For Adrian Harel, to be working in the cell therapy field on neurological indications, means coming full circle from the early days of his professional career when he served as manager of Proneuron. At Proneuron he led a team that pioneered the use of cell therapy for spinal injuries in a multi-center global trial.

Prior to joining Proneuron, Harel cut his teeth as a research scientist at InterPharm Labs, one of Israel`s first biotech companies and the starting point for an entire generation of biotech managers.

During the past 15 years Harel has managed a wide variety of companies in a career marked by innovative drug development and top tier management, a reflection of his own educational background that combines a Ph.D in neurobiology from the Weizmann Institute with a MBA in Business Administration from the University of Haifa.
Companies under his helm have included Heal-Or, Meditor Pharmaceuticals and Aminolab Technologies where he oversaw the production of four new ethical drugs. At Sepal Pharma and Molecular Cytomics he initiated cGMP in drug and product development.
As a seasoned industry veteran Harel has nurtured numerous early stage companies, both as an advisor of the Jerusalem Biotechnology Incubator, and through founding his own company, Da-Ta Biotech, which serves as an R&D beta site.
At BrainStorm, Harel will have ample opportunity to put his regulatory and drug manufacturing experience to good use, with the screening of patients for the ALS Phase I/II study expected to begin soon. He will head a team that includes the developers of BrainStorm`s technology, Chief Medical Officer Prof. Eldad Melamed, a member of the Scientific Committee of the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson`s Research, and Chief Scientist Prof. Daniel Offen, Head of Tel Aviv University`s Neuroscience Laboratory.
The ALS trial will be conducted in Israel at the Hadassah Medical Center.

Published on http://www.bioisrael.com
Copyright 2006 by BioIsrael Communications Ltd.

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Many patients scheduled for a major spinal operation naturally worry that they might find themselves in a wheelchair due to a surgical error, or simple bad luck. While this happens only rarely, it is a possibility. The results of orthopedic surgery are as good as the specialist who performs it – but today, the risk is much reduced. Not only is there computer-assisted navigation for hip replacement, for example (introduced in the past decade), but now there is a robot that guides orthopedic surgeons in performing operations customized for each patient’s anatomy. The world’s first such robotic system, called SpineAssist, is Israeli – based on the work of a scientist at Haifa’s Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and marketed around the world by Mazor Robotics (www.mazorrobotics.com) of Caesarea.

Ori Hadomi, the publicly traded company’s CEO, visited Israel recently. SpineAssist is the first surgical-guidance robot for orthopedic surgery to receive full approval from the US Food and Drug Administration and the European CE. Hadomi has headed the company since 2003, and moved to New York last summer for three years to promote SpineAssist’s marketing.

In an interview with The Jerusalem Post to discuss the progress of the system, the master’s graduate in industrial chemistry and business administration at the Hebrew University and the University of California said the $750,000 system is taking off not only there but also in Europe, Russia and Asia.

THE SYSTEM has been known longer – three years – to Israeli orthopedic surgeons than to those abroad, as some 400 procedures have already been performed with much success at the Hadassah University Medical Centers in Jerusalem’s Ein Kerem and on Mount Scopus and Haifa’s Carmel Medical Center. Other Israelis will follow, said Hadomi, who predicted that using SpineAssist for spinal and other orthopedic operations will be regarded as the standard, while the company upgrades the system for even better performance.

“Patients will demand robot-guided back surgery,” he predicted.

The system was invented by Prof. Moshe Shoham and colleagues in his robotics lab at the Technion, which patented it and has stocks in Mazor Robotics.

SpineAssist, which allows surgeons to plan and perform any spinal surgery safely and accurately, from the simplest to the most complex, does not replace surgeons but helps them safely, accurately and efficiently, reducing radiation for pre-surgical scanning and optimizing clinical outcomes, said Hadomi. It is not just his word, but based on independent clinical studies that persuaded the FDA to approve it.

SpineAssist is an integral part of minimally invasive spinal surgery, as opposed to open spinal surgery, in which the surgeon needs a direct field-of-view to spine. This means creating an incision large enough to reach the spine and expose a full view. In minimally-invasive surgery, the surgeon makes small incisions to allow either keyhole visualization of the operating field or pulls back the tissues beneath the skin to expose the spine. To compensate for this limited field of view, surgeons use fluoroscopy (Xrays) to view their progress, said Hadomi.

But comparative studies have shown that robotic guidance can produce results more accurate than in open surgery – not to mention with less pain, faster recovery and fewer repeat operations.

Prior to surgery, the patient undergoes a CT scan of the spine. On the day of the operation, while under anesthesia, two X-rays of the spinal column – one from the back and the other from the side – are performed. Using special algorithms, the SpineAssist merges the images to create a three-dimensional “blueprint.” All this is necessary to plan and carry out the placement of metallic screws that hold the vertebrae together, whether the discs are damaged or missing, or to repair deformities, as in scoliosis.

A SpineAssist platform is mounted on the back to guide the surgeon on where to optimally drill holes in the bones – within one millimeter (a fifth of the width of a coarse human hair) in accuracy. This minimizes the risk of harm to the spinal cord and blood vessels, as well as the patient’s and the medical team’s exposure to radiation, which is halved, said Hadomi.

The procedure is carried out with a $1,200 disposable robotic implant called Emerald (after one of the jewels on the breastplate worn by the High Priest in the Temple, Hadomi explained). But it is the surgeon who actually makes the holes and inserts the implant, not the robot, and it is he who can make smaller incisions in the skin and muscle below because he needs less leeway, added the CEO. Once a hospital purchases the system, the cost of the Emerald – which cannot be reused – is covered by the health basket.

PROF. MEIR Liebergall, chairman of the orthopedic surgery complex at Hadassah University Medical Center, praised the work of Mazor Robotics. “We have cooperated with them for almost a decade, especially in implementation of the system,” he said. “This has been in accordance with our Hadassah philosophy of boosting minimally invasive and computer-aided surgery.”

Liebergall, who is a world expert in using computers to guide the implantation of screws for hip replacement, does not perform the spinal surgery.

This procedure is carried out at Hadassah by Dr. Leon Kaplan and Dr. Yair Barzilai. Liebergall said there are only four or five surgeons in the whole country who use the SpineAssist system so, far after undergoing training abroad. They learn through computerized simulations and by working on cadavers.

“The Mazor Robotics system is now used at the two Hadassah hospitals “on a daily basis. It doesn’t solve all orthopedic surgery problems, but it is very helpful,” he said.

Except for a few cases, Kaplan and Barzilai have not yet used the system on children suffering from scoliosis, in which the spinal column curves away from the middle or sideways. Scoliosis can be congenital due to improper formation of the vertebrae or fused ribs during gestation or early in life; be caused by poor muscle control or paralysis due to diseases such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, spina bifida and polio; or be of unknown cause. Whatever the type, scoliosis can cause functional and esthetic problems. But Liebergall expects that it will routinely offer such surgery at Hadassah within the next two years.

Other potential applications for the system, whose price will apparently rise, are very exciting, he added. “It won’t take long before it could be used for lengthening bones and for treating vertebrae damaged in trauma cases. With some modification, it could be used for hip replacement surgery as well. And the fact that it is Israeli technology leading the world is wonderful.”

Hadomi notes that the company has a total of 50 employees in Israel and Europe, but is certain to expand as demand for the robotic system grows.

“It might even be used eventually in brain surgery.”

The company has offices in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and Chicago in addition to New York. “We have signed agreements in Italy, Russia and Holland, and are expanding to Belgium, France, Spain, Portugal and the Far East. The potential is huge.” Some components are manufactured by the Tamuz company at Kibbutz Jezreel, and others by subcontractors in Switzerland.

“This is the smallest medical robot in the world, and has been used for over 2,000 operations and 10,000 implants so far. There is no other that works on the spine. We do not expect serious competition, and our product is patented. Our sales will reach hundreds of millions of dollars, but we will not relax. We will work on new generations of robotic surgical equipment,” concluded Hadomi.

And, it is hoped, patients’ having to spend the rest of their lives in a wheelchair due to a failed operation won’t be even a passing fear.

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH http://www.jpost.com/Health/Article.aspx?id=210918

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Prof. Karin, from the University of California, San Diego, will receive the prize in the field of human health. He discovered the strong link between obesity, inflammation and cancer. The judges decided to award the prize to Prof. Karin for “his pioneering contribution that led to deciphering the molecular mechanism through which mammalian cells react to cytokines which cause inflammation, to adverse environmental conditions and also to various pathogens. His research laid the foundations for our understanding of the control mechanisms of transcription factor activities influenced by external stimulations, especially the transcription factors of the AP-1 family and NF-B. These discoveries led to the identification of new target protein cells that have recently been used to develop new medications for preventing and treating various malignant tumors.”

Prof. Polyakov, from Princeton University, will receive the prize in the field of science and technology. “He developed revolutionary theories that shaped our contemporary understanding of elementary particles in nature. In addition, he significantly contributed to condensed matter physics, statistical mechanics and mathematics. Among the ideas credited to him are topological structures (such as magnetic monopoles) in gauge field theories, which are important in understanding the confinement of quarks in the nucleus.
Polyakov also contributed to the foundations of string theory, the unification of quantum mechanics and gravity, and to the idea of duality between string theory and gauge field theory.”

The Technion’s prestigious Harvey Prize foresaw the winning of the Nobel Prize for two of the latest Nobel laureates – Elizabeth Blackburn (Medicine) and Ada Yonath of the Weizmann Institute of Science (Chemistry). To date, 13 Harvey Prize winners have gone on to win the Nobel Prize.

The Harvey Prize was first awarded in 1972 from a fund established by the late Leo M. Harvey of Los Angeles in order to recognize those who have made great contributions to advancing humanity in science and technology and in human health, as well as advancing peace in the Middle East. Every year, prizes totaling $75,000 per winner are awarded from the fund’s income.

Among the winners of the prestigious Harvey Prize are scientists from the US, Great Britain, Russia, Sweden, France and Israel. These include Nobel Prize laureate Mikhail Gorbachev, former leader of the USSR, who was awarded the prize for his activities aimed at reducing regional tensions; Prof. Bert Sakmann who won the Nobel Prize in Medicine; Prof. Pierre-Gilles de Gennes who won the Nobel Prize in Physics; Prof. Edward Teller for his discoveries in solid state physics, atomic physics and nuclear physics; and Prof. William J. Kolff for his invention of the artificial kidney.

Proposals for candidates for the Harvey Prize are received from leading scientists and personalities in Israel and the world. The prize laureates are chosen by the Harvey Prize committee in a stringent process at the Technion.

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