Vitamin D status in inpatients admitted to an internal medicine department.
A role of hypovitaminosis D has been advocated in several medical conditions. We investigated vitamin D status in medical inpatients, compared to a blood donors' group from the same area. Fifty-nine consecutive medical patients were recruited at hospital admission, concomitantly to 207 blood donors of both genders. Serum calcium, albumin, phosphate, creatinine, alkaline phosphatase total activity, 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] and parathyroid hormone (PTH) were assessed from April to May 2005. In patients, 25(OH)D values were lower (13.1 +/- 9.2 vs. 16.3 +/- 8.5 ng/ml; p < 0.02) and PTH values higher (73.9 +/- 77.7 vs. 53.4 +/- 24.3 pg/ml; p < 0.01) than in controls, whose mean age was lower (62.5 +/- 14.5 vs. 45.8 +/- 15.6 years, p < 0.01). Such differences were not confirmed when comparing patients to a subgroup of age and sex-matched controls drawn from the whole sample of blood donors. In both patients and controls there was a trend towards a negative correlation between 25(OH)D and age and a positive correlation between PTH and age. The prevalence of 25(OH)D <12 ng/ml was higher in patients than in controls as a whole (58 vs. 34%; chi(2) = 9.95; p < 0.002), but not in respect to the subgroup of matched controls (58 vs. 44%; chi(2) = 2.09; p = 0.14). The prevalence of severe vitamin D deficiency, 25(OH)D <5 ng/ml, was significantly higher in patients than in matched controls (17 vs. 4%; chi(2) = 6.75; p < 0.01). Hypovitaminosis D, defined as 25(OH)D <12 ng/ml, is frequent among inpatients, as in the general population of comparable age. A severe vitamin D deficiency is more common in hospitalized patients.


A study of the characteristics and needs of people transferred from acute hospitals to nursing homes.
To describe the categories of people being approved for admission to nursing homes; to consider whether any alternatives would have been more appropriate; and to outline the care needed for each category. Patients in acute-care facilities in metropolitan Perth for whom a request had been made for nursing home admission. Patients were interviewed (by R B L and M D) and records in the acute hospital were examined. A second interview of those patients still available was conducted after their transfer to the nursing home. Nursing care was considered necessary for 123 of the 201 people seen in the acute hospitals; domestic care in a standard hostel for 24 people; care in a special dementia unit (SDU) hostel for 26 people; and care in a psychiatric institution for 16 people. Twelve others had various specific needs. Several different categories were identified in the group needing nursing care. Applicants for nursing home admission do not form a homogeneous group; there are several categories with different needs. SDU hostels should be added to the available facilities. In addition to undertaking the assessment of nursing home applicants, personnel from geriatric services should be encouraged to become involved in their continuing care.


Screening of organophosphate insecticide pollution in water by using Daphnia magna.
A simple and rapid screening method using Daphnia magna Straus (water fleas) on the basis of their immobilization was developed for detecting pesticide pollution. The laboratory testing of the toxicity of 11 organophosphate insecticides to D. magna determined 50% inhibition concentration of mobility at 48 h of exposure (48-h EC50) of 0.19 to 2.6 microg/L. The mobility of D. magna was inhibited in several river and stream waters sampled from May 1995 to February 1998 in Tokyo. Chemical analysis of the waters revealed that they were polluted by sub-ppb or ppb level of organophosphate insecticides. A significant relationship was observed between the immobilization of D. magna and the pollution level of the river and stream waters. The D. magna test could be used as a low-cost preliminary screening method for insecticide pollution.


A kindred of children with interstitial lung disease.
Childhood interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a spectrum of diseases including many different rare lung conditions. We present a family with an unusual presentation of ILD in association with rheumatologic and immunologic abnormalities. Eight children with a common father were evaluated for evidence of lung disease in association with rheumatologic findings. All underwent routine history and physical examination, hematologic evaluation, and chest radiography and/or CT scan of the chest. Seven children underwent a more extensive immunologic evaluation. Those who were able underwent pulmonary function testing, and four children underwent lung biopsy. Six of eight children with a common father were found to have radiographic findings consistent with ILD. These children also had evidence of autoimmune disease with joint symptoms, alopecia, rheumatoid factor production, and hypergammaglobulinemia. Open-lung biopsy in four children revealed a spectrum of pulmonary lymphoid proliferations ranging from reactive lymphoid hyperplasia to lymphoid interstitial pneumonia. The findings of ILD and autoimmunity in a kindred of children suggest a novel genetic disorder of autosomal dominant pattern and variable penetrance. Although the precise pathogenesis remains unclear, these cases provide valuable insight into childhood ILD.


Antileukoprotease in psoriatic scales.
Antileukoprotease is known to be an antiproteolytic compound of mucous secretions in humans. While searching for peptide-like inhibitors of neutrophil-derived serine proteases in horny layers of human skin, we isolated a potent inhibitor of human leukocyte elastase (EC 3.4.21.37) and cathepsin G (EC 3.4.21.20) from psoriatic scales. This inhibitor showed inhibitory constants for human leukocyte elastase of approximately 0.5-2 x 10(-10) M and for cathepsin G of 2-4 x 10(-9) N. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the purified peptide matched the sequence of antileukoprotease and both peptides showed the same M(r) on SDS-PAGE. Therefore, antileukoprotease may not only regulate serine protease activities in mucous secretions, but also in skin.


Effects of exercise on carcass composition, meat quality, and mRNA expression profiles in breast muscle of a Chinese indigenous chicken breed.
In this study, we evaluated the effects of exercise on the growth performance, carcass composition, meat quality, and mRNA expression profile of breast muscle in a Chinese indigenous chicken breed. Briefly, 300 female Huainan chickens (60-day-old) with similar BW were selected and raised in a free-range environment. Daily steps were counted by pedometer for all birds from 61 to 140 D of age. At 140 D of age, based on the average counts of steps per day, 15 birds with the highest number of steps (HS), 15 birds with a medium number of steps (MS), and 15 birds with low numbers of steps (LS) were selected for use in subsequent experiments. The HS group had heavier BW than the other two groups (P < 0.05). Compared with the LS group, the HS group displayed higher meat redness and lower shear force, drip loss, cooking loss values, and the percentage of breast muscle weight (P < 0.05). Moreover, a total of 150 differentially expressed genes were identified from the pectoralis major muscles of the HS and LS group. Therefore, enhanced exercise increased BW, improved meat quality by increasing WHC and decreasing shear force values, and decreased percentage of breast muscle weight but had no effect on others carcass parameters. Additionally, the differentially expressed genes in breast muscle between the HS and LS groups were mainly associated with skeletal muscle tissue development and meat quality traits.


Prophylactic antiepileptic drug administration following brain tumor resection: results of a recent AANS/CNS Section on Tumors survey.
OBJECTIVE Antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) are often administered prophylactically following brain tumor resection. With conflicting evidence and unestablished guidelines, however, the nature of this practice among tumor surgeons is unknown. METHODS On November 24, 2015, a REDCap (Research Electronic Database Capture) survey was sent to members of the AANS/CNS Section on Tumors to query practice patterns. RESULTS Responses were received from 144 individuals, including 18.8% of board-certified neurosurgeons surveyed (across 86 institutions, 16 countries, and 5 continents). The majority reported practicing in an academic setting (85%) as a tumor specialist (71%). Sixty-three percent reported always or almost always prescribing AED prophylaxis postoperatively in patients with a supratentorial brain tumor without a prior seizure history. Meanwhile, 9% prescribed occasionally and 28% rarely prescribed AED prophylaxis. The most common agent was levetiracetam (85%). The duration of seizure prophylaxis varied widely: 25% of surgeons administered prophylaxis for 7 days, 16% for 2 weeks, 21% for 2 to 6 weeks, and 13% for longer than 6 weeks. Most surgeons (61%) believed that tumor pathology influences epileptogenicity, with high-grade glioma (39%), low-grade glioma (31%), and metastases (24%) carrying the greatest seizure risk. While the majority used prophylaxis, 62% did not believe or were unsure if prophylactic AEDs reduced seizures postoperatively. The vast majority (82%) stated that a well-designed randomized trial would help guide their future clinical decision making. CONCLUSIONS Wide knowledge and practice gaps exist regarding the frequency, duration, and setting of AED prophylaxis for seizure-naive patients undergoing brain tumor resection. Acceptance of universal practice guidelines on this topic is unlikely until higher-level evidence supporting or refuting the value of modern seizure prophylaxis is demonstrated.


Are Surgeons Born or Made? A Comparison of Personality Traits and Learning Styles Between Surgical Trainees and Medical Students.
Medical students and surgical trainees differ considerably in both their preferential learning styles and personality traits. This study compares the personality profiles and learning styles of surgical trainees with a cohort of medical students specifically intent on pursuing a surgical career. A cross-sectional study was conducted contrasting surgical trainees with medical students specifying surgical career intent. The 50-item International Personality Item Pool Big-Five Factor Marker (FFM) questionnaire was used to score 5 personality domains (extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, openness to experience, and neuroticism). The 24-item Learning Style Inventory (LSI) Questionnaire was used to determine the preferential learning styles (visual, auditory, or tactile). χ(2) Analysis and independent samples t-test were used to compare LSI and FFM scores, respectively. Surgical trainees from several UK surgical centers were contrasted to undergraduate medical students. A total of 53 medical students who had specifically declared desire to pursue a surgical career and were currently undertaking an undergraduate intercalated degree in surgical sciences were included and contrasted to 37 UK core surgical trainees (postgraduate years 3-4). The LSI questionnaire was completed by 53 students and 37 trainees. FFM questionnaire was completed by 29 medical students and 34 trainees. No significant difference for learning styles preference was detected between the 2 groups (p = 0.139), with the visual modality being the preferred learning style for both students and trainees (69.8% and 54.1%, respectively). Neuroticism was the only personality trait to differ significantly between the 2 groups, with medical students scoring significantly higher than trainees (2.9 vs. 2.6, p = 0.03). Medical students intent on pursuing a surgical career exhibit similar personality traits and learning styles to surgical trainees, with both groups preferring the visual learning modality. These findings facilitate future research into potential ways of improving both the training and selection of students and junior trainees onto residency programs.


Sertoli cell expression of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator.
Mutations of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene have been associated with a number of male reproductive problems, including testis abnormalities and a reduction in germ cell quality and number. To establish at least one site of functional CFTR expression in the testis, we subjected cultured Sertoli cells to analysis of message, protein, and channel activity for CFTR. With reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, we obtained evidence for the presence of CFTR RNA when CFTR primers were used with RNA from cultured Sertoli cells. Western analysis performed with both anti-R and anti-C domain CFTR antibodies revealed immunoreactive material in extracts from primary Sertoli cell cultures that seemed consistent with CFTR previously identified in other cells and tissues. This led us to perform more detailed studies using the whole cell arrangement of the patch-clamp technique. Application of the membrane-soluble cAMP analog, 8-chlorophenyl-thio-cAMP, resulted in the activation of a Cl- current that displayed a permeability sequence of Br- > I- > or = Cl- and was blocked by diphenylamine-2-carboxylate and glibenclamide. In addition, a 13-pS conductance Cl- channel was measured in excised membrane patches exposed to the catalytic subunit of protein kinase A. When taken together, our findings of evidence of CFTR message, immunoreactive material that appeared consistent with CFTR, and Cl- channels with properties similar to those reported for CFTR provide strong evidence that Sertoli cells express a functional CFTR-like protein. The presence of CFTR in these cells may be needed to maintain the specific nutritional and fluid balance in the seminiferous tubule that is vital for normal spermatogenesis.


Estimation of nutrient discharge from the Yangtze River to the East China Sea and the identification of nutrient sources.
Based on a time-series dataset and the mass balance method, the contributions of various sources to the nutrient discharges from the Yangtze River to the East China Sea are identified. The results indicate that the nutrient concentrations vary considerably among different sections of the Yangtze River. Non-point sources are an important source of nutrients to the Yangtze River, contributing about 36% and 63% of the nitrogen and phosphorus discharged into the East China Sea, respectively. Nutrient inputs from non-point sources vary among the sections of the Yangtze River, and the contributions of non-point sources increase from upstream to downstream. Considering the rice growing patterns in the Yangtze River Basin, the synchrony of rice tillering and the wet seasons might be an important cause of the high nutrient discharge from the non-point sources. Based on our calculations, a reduction of 0.99Tg per year in total nitrogen discharges from the Yangtze River would be needed to limit the occurrences of harmful algal blooms in the East China Sea to 15 times per year. The extensive construction of sewage treatment plants in urban areas may have only a limited effect on reducing the occurrences of harmful algal blooms in the future.


Effects of introducing negative charges into the molecular surface of thermolysin by site-directed mutagenesis on its activity and stability.
Thermolysin is remarkably activated and stabilized by neutral salts, and surface charges are suggested important in its activity and stability. The effects of introducing negative charge into the molecular surface on its activity and stability are described. Seven serine residues were selected, and each of them was changed for aspartate by site-directed mutagenesis in a thermolysin mutant. In the hydrolysis of N-[3-(2-furyl)acryloyl]-glycyl-l-leucine amide, the k(cat)/K(m) values of all mutants were almost similar to that of the wild-type enzyme (WT). However, those of six out of seven mutants were enhanced 17-19 times with 4 M NaCl, being slightly higher than WT. The remaining casein-hydrolyzing activities of the S53D and S65D mutants (Ser53 and Ser65 are replaced with Asp, respectively) after 30-min incubation with 10 mM CaCl(2) at 85 degrees C were 78 and 63%, being higher than those of WT (51%) and the other mutants (35-53%). S53D was stabilized with increase in the enthalpy change of activation for thermal inactivation while S65D was with decrease in the entropy change of activation. The stability of WT was enhanced by CaCl(2) and reached the level of S53D and S65D at 100 mM, suggesting that S53D and S65D might be stabilized by reinforcement of the Ca(2+)-binding structures.


Isolation and characterization of horse alpha 2-macroglobulin protease inhibitor.
Several publications have described in the past properties of partly purified horse alpha 2-macroglobulin (alpha 2M) which are strikingly different from the human alpha 2M. Horse alpha 2M was therefore isolated to purity by classical procedures, i.e. affinity chromatography, ion exchange chromatography and gel filtration, and its properties are compared with those of its human counterpart. The molecular weight of the native protein and its subunits, the isoelectrofocusing pattern and the change in electrophoretic mobility caused by interaction with protease were similar to those of human alpha 2M. Horse alpha 2M had a broad enzyme specificity and inhibited enzymatic action on macromolecules but not on small molecular weight synthetic substrates. In addition the horse and human alpha 2M were found to be immunochemically related when examined by specific antisera to human as well as to horse alpha 2-macroglobulin.


Stepwise construction of grid-type Cu(II)-Cd(II) heterometallic MOFs based on an imidazole-appended dipyrrin ligand.
An imidazole-appended dipyrrin ligand yields, upon coordination to Cu(II) cations, a linear metallatecton that self-assembles with Cd(II) salts to afford 2D grid-type MOFs which, upon parallel stacking, lead to porous crystals offering 1D channels.


[Long-term outcome of inpatient psychotherapy in older patients].
To compare long-term outcome of inpatient psychotherapy in an age-mixed setting for patients aged over 50 years or over 60 years at time of treatment compared to younger patients. At the beginning and the end of inpatient psychotherapy and at katamnesis 1 to 8 years later, patients were examined with self-assessment questionnaires (BSI, HADS, IIP). At katamnesis they also filled in a questionnaire designed to record improvement in symptoms, satisfaction with the inpatient treatment, and other psychotherapeutic and/or psychiatric treatments. 87 (34.3 %) of the 253 participants were 50 years or older, 48 (18.9 %) 60 years or older at time of inpatient treatment. At katamnesis there were no significant differences between the older and younger patients regarding treatment satisfaction, improvement of symptoms, psychometric scales, and further in- or outpatient psychotherapy. Older patients can be treated as successfully as younger patients with inpatient psychotherapy in an age-mixed setting.


Rostral hypothalamus: a new neuroanatomical site of neurochemically-induced emesis in the cat.
The localized effect of noradrenergic agonists administered directly in the anterior hypothalamic preoptic area (AH/POA) in inducing emesis in the cat was investigated. Of the noradrenergic agonists tested, which included norepinephrine, clonidine, phenylephrine and methoxamine, only clonidine in doses of 5.0-50.0 micrograms was found to evoke emesis consistently when micro-injected in a volume of 1.0 microliter into AH/POA of the unrestrained cat. The emetic response to clonidine was short-lasting, generally dose-dependent in terms of latency and frequency, and occurred in bouts of one to three episodes. The sequence of the vomiting response, beginning with licking and retching, functionally resembled a normal pattern of an emetic response. The clonidine-induced emesis was not antagonized by the following antagonists micro-injected in AH/POA just prior to clonidine: alpha-adrenergic blocking agents, yohimbine, RX 781094 and phentolamine; the antimuscarinic drug, atropine; the serotonin antagonist, methysergide; the opioid antagonist, naloxone; and the dopamine antagonist, chlorpromazine. Therefore, it would appear that clonidine-induced emesis is not mediated by alpha noradrenergic, serotonergic, dopaminergic, muscarinic and opiate receptor systems within the AH/POA of the cat. Finally, the obtained results show that apart from the area postrema and a circumscribed zone of the brain-stem reticular formation, the hypothalamus is now implicated as a neuroanatomical site in the central nervous system mechanism underlying neurochemically-induced emesis.


Attractiveness of Different Food Resources to Dung Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) of a Dry Tropical Area.
Excrement scarcity is one of the main historical factors leading dung beetles to adapt to other food resources. In the Caatinga, a seasonally tropical dry forest, harsh environmental conditions seem to restrict the availability of food resources. In this scenario, the aim of our study was to experimentally investigate the attractiveness of different potential food resources to these insects in the Caatinga. Field samplings were performed, and we tested five resources in pitfall baited traps: excrement, carrion, fruits of two species of columnar cacti, and seeds of one species of Euphorbiaceae (Jatropha mollissima (Pohl)). In a controlled setting, we tested dietary preferences of Deltochilum verruciferum Felsche by offering one or two resources simultaneously. In the field experiments, 297 dung beetles (9 species) were recovered from the traps, and D. verruciferum was the most abundant species. Carrion and excrement were the most attractive resources. Controlled dietary preference tests with D. verruciferum evidenced that these beetles used all tested food resources, excrement and carrion most pronouncedly. Our findings support copro-necrophagy as the main feeding habit of D. verruciferum, but also suggest that alternative resources might be utilized if preferred resources are scarce.


The efficiency of intraosseous human growth hormone administration: a feasibility pilot study in a rabbit model.
The use of protein- and peptide-based drugs in the treatment of disease has significantly increased in recent years. However, their chemical and physical properties make them unsuitable for simple oral delivery. The objective of this proof-of-concept study was to examine the feasibility of protein administered via intraosseous (IO) injection. Human growth hormone (GH), a 22-kd protein, served as the model protein. An indwelling IO needle and intravenous (IV) line were placed in four New Zealand white male rabbits, and 50, 100, 200, or 400 μg/kg of GH were injected. Blood samples were taken at different time points and analyzed for GH concentration. There were no significant pharmacokinetic differences between the IO and IV routes. For the 400 μg/kg dose, the area under the serum GH concentration time curve was 100.55 ± 46.7 μg/min*mL with IV administration and 84.6 ± 34 μg/min*mL for IO (P = .73 compared to the IV route), Cmax measured 11.2 ± 5 μg/L and Tmax 0.9 ± 0.7 minutes. For the 200 μg/kg dose, the area under the curve was 68.5 ± 16.7 μg/min*mL with IV administration, and 85.1 ± 1.5 μg/min*mL (P = .39) for IO, Cmax measured 8.13 ± 2.44 μg/L and Tmax 1.92 ± 1.06 minutes. The findings confirm that a large protein (22 kd) can be administered via IO injection, reaching blood levels comparable to IV injection. Further studies with a larger number of animals are required to evaluate the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of high-molecular-weight proteins injected by the IO route.


Recombinant rat guanidinoacetate methyltransferase: structure and function of the NH2-terminal region as deduced by limited proteolysis.
Recombinant rat liver guanidinoacetate methyltransferase, a monomeric protein with Mr 26,000, is inactivated upon incubation with low concentrations of trypsin. Examination of the reaction products by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and high-performance liquid chromatography followed by amino acid analysis and sequencing of isolated peptides reveals that the inactivation is due to the cleavage of the NH2-terminal segment after Arg20. The cleaved peptide is not tightly associated with the rest of the protein. The rate of inactivation is not affected by the presence of either S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet) or guanidinoacetate, but a substantial retardation of inactivation is observed when both substrates are present. The cleavage at Arg20 is also slowed by cross-linking Cys15 and Cys90 by a disulfide bond. An equilibrium binding study shows that guanidinoacetate methyltransferase in the free form binds AdoMet but not guanidinoacetate. The trypsin-modified enzyme, despite having no catalytic activity, can weakly bind AdoMet and guanidinoacetate in the presence of AdoMet. Chymotrypsin rapidly hydrolyzes the peptide bond after Trp19, and elastase cleaves the bond after Ala24, leading in both cases to loss of activity. The results obtained in this study suggest that the portion of the methyltransferase around residues 19-24 is highly exposed to the solvent and flexible. The results also indicate that the NH2-terminal region is not directly involved in substrate binding but plays a role in catalysis.


Comparison of aniline hydroxylation by hemoglobin and microsomal cytochrome P450 using stable isotopes.
Hemoglobin (Hb) and cytochrome P450 carry out aromatic ring hydroxylation of aniline. In the presence of reductants and Hb, para- and ortho-aminophenol were formed. Under [18O]O2, 100% of product was labeled; no incorporation occurred with [18O]H2O. Deuterium (1.9%) was detectable in p-aminophenol formed from p-[2H]aniline by Hb, as compared with 6% retention observed with cytochrome P450. These observations are consistent with a mechanism for Hb-dependent reaction involving formation of an iron-oxo complex competent to hydroxylate substrate. Hb-mediated reactions may represent a source of extrahepatic metabolism since Hb is a major carrier for small organic molecules. The similarities of P450- and Hb-mediated aniline hydroxylation using stable isotopes preclude their use as in vivo probes.


Analysis of sevoflurane degradation products in vapor phase samples.
Sevoflurane degradation products were measured by GC-flame ionization detection in vapor phase samples using manual and automated injection methods. Sample handling techniques allowed the transfer and storage of samples for up to 72 h. Compound A, fluoromethyl 2,2-difluoro-1-(trifluoromethyl)vinyl ether, was the major vapor phase degradation product formed in simulated clinical conditions. Recoveries of 4-32 ppm (v/v) compound A concentrations using the manual method were in the range of 88-117% (n = 12, mean = 102%, R.S.D. = 9%).


Association Between Plantar Fasciitis and Isolated Gastrocnemius Tightness.
An association between plantar fasciitis and isolated gastrocnemius tightness (IGT) has been postulated in the literature; however, there have been few studies to prove this relationship. This prospective cross-sectional cohort study was aimed at determining the association between plantar fasciitis and IGT. Three groups comprising 45 patients with plantar fasciitis (group 1), 117 patients with foot and ankle pathology other than plantar fasciitis (group 2), and 61 patients without foot and ankle pathology (group 3) were examined for the presence of IGT using the Silfverskiöld test. Statistical tests included chi-square test, Student t test, and analysis of variance. Of the patients, 101 (45.3%) had IGT: 36 (80%) in group 1, 53 (45.3%) in group 2, and 12 (19.7%) in group 3. The difference in IGT prevalence between the groups was statistically significant at P < .001. The prevalence of IGT was similar between acute and chronic plantar fasciitis at 78.9% and 80.6%, respectively. There was a very strong association between plantar fasciitis and IGT using group 3 as a reference. This study suggests that IGT should be actively sought out and managed in patients with plantar fasciitis. Level II, cross-sectional cohort prospective study.


A LEAFY-like gene in the long-day plant, Silene coeli-rosa is dramatically up-regulated in evoked shoot apical meristems but does not complement the Arabidopsis lfy mutant.
A LEAFY-like gene was cloned in the long-day (LD) plant, Silene coeli-rosa (ScLFY). The open reading frame spans 1452 bp encoding a putative protein of 483 amino acids. Amino acid homology to other LFYs is 43-55%; conserved and variable regions were similar to others. However, an intron (808 bp) not found in others occurred close to the N-terminal of the C1 domain. Known features of transcription factors exhibited by ScLFY were an acidic domain in the central variable region, a proline-rich variable-region, and glutamate-rich regions. The proximal 5' untranslated region of ScLFY contains an 8 bp motif: CAACGGCC, which conforms to the Gibberellic Acid Regulatory Element (GARE), also found in the promoter of LFY in Arabidopsis. However, the 5' variable region of ScLFY is exceptionally long compared with other LFY genes. ScLFY failed to complement the Arabidopsis lfy mutant reflecting the substantial divergence of this gene. ScLFY was analysed during inductive and non-inductive treatments using RT-PCR. A clear up-regulation of ScLFY occurred in the apical meristem upon evocation of flowering, but it was barely detectable in non-inductive conditions. Thus, ScLFY is strongly up-regulated in evoked and young floral apices.


[Original technic for conservative treatment of "lateral" duodenal fistulas].
An original technique is presented, resulting in the spectacular recovery in only 3-7 days of "lateral" duodenal fistulae by their transformation from the "alkaline" to the "acidic" type. The author achieved this by administration, either by mouth or by intra-duodenal route, with the aid of the Eihorn tube, in continuous perfusion, of a lactic acid solution concentrated at 6 g%--not exceeding 3.000 ml over a 24 hours period, partially eliminated through the fistulous traject which is cured in the process. The condition to obtain the recovery is to provide continuous lactic acid perfusion. The patient should not receive any food by mouth but the feeding will be provided by direct jejunal infusion and parenterally, until the complete closure of the fistula. The author describes in detail several conditions which are considered as of prime importance for the resolution of any type of duodenal fistula and also suggests some new formula for jejunal alimentation and for the protection of the teguments around the fistula.


High average power 2 μm generation using an intracavity PPMgLN optical parametric oscillator.
An intracavity quasi-phase-matched optical parametric oscillator (OPO) has been developed for the purpose of generating radiation with high average power and high repetition rate in the 2 μm regime. The device is a degenerate OPO based on a 3 mm thick MgO-doped periodically poled LiNbO(3) (PPMgLN) crystal, which is pumped in turn within the cavity by a diode side-pumped, Q-switched 1 μm Nd:YAG laser operating at 10 kHz. Up to 20 W broadband 2 μm radiation can be generated with a compact configuration under the crystal temperature of 115 °C. The beam profile is close to circularly symmetric with M(2) ~ 10.


Theoretical insight into the single-atom catalytic mechanism of CeO2-supported Ag catalysts in CO oxidation.
Revealing the accurate active center structure and the functional mechanism of CeO2-supported Ag catalysts during catalysis is extremely important for their accurate synthesis. In this work, a series of AgnCeO2 (n = 1, 2, 3, 4 and 10) model catalysts was constructed, and a DFT investigation of the reaction mechanism of CO oxidation, as a probe reaction on those catalysts, was carried out. It was found that the entire catalytic reaction was completed coordinately by Ag, lattice O and O vacancies, which could be considered as the active centers. Noticeably, the mobility of Ag atoms played an important role in the reaction process, leading to the observation of a single-atom catalytic mechanism, wherein a series of single Ag atomic species was formed during the reaction, which was beneficial to CO oxidation. With the completion of some elementary reactions, the single Ag formed during the migration of CO-Ag could return to the Ag cluster again. As expected, the single-AgCeO2 catalyst exhibited extremely high activity due to the absence of the binding effect of Ag-Ag. Nevertheless, the AgnCeO2 (n > 1) catalysts showed similar catalytic activity, which was slightly worse than that of single AgCeO2, indicating that the size effect of the Ag cluster was not obvious. These results provide the theoretical basis for further understanding the functional mechanism of the AgnCeO2 catalyst and are helpful for designing various catalysts with tailored functionalities.


"NEONATE"--an expert application for the "HELP" system: comparison of the computer's and the physician's problem list.
NEONATE is a prototype of an expert application for the HELP Hospital Information System. Its goal is to improve documentation in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit. The decision module of NEONATE is designed to produce an admission problem list. In this paper, the admission problem list that NEONATE generates was compared to the admission problem list of the current CETUS system for 30 patients. These were compared to a retrospectively constructed gold standard problem list. Of 101 problems in the gold standard list, 56 were on the current admission reports; 82 were found by NEONATE. NEONATE found 31 problems missed on the current admission reports; the current admission reports contained 5 problems missed by NEONATE. The current admission reports contained 9 false positives; whereas NEONATE's reports contained 27. Of the 27, 16 were caused by a single rule in NEONATE. We conclude that an expert system has great potential for improving the documentation of the patient problem list.


Development of embryonic rat brain cells in aggregating cell cultures with special reference to cholinergic functions.
Mechanically dissociated cells from embryonic rat brain regions (telencephalon and metencephalon 15-16 days gestation) reassociate in a rotation culture to form aggregates. These reaggregate cultures show a variety of developmental phenomena, expression of specific cell types and the formation of synapses as the most prominent ultrastructural change. The biochemical maturation is evident in increasing specific activities of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT, EC 2.3.1.6.) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE, EC 3.1.1.7.). The binding of 3H-quinuclidinylbenzilate(3H-QNB) represents the presence of the muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) in these cultures. The expression of the cholinergic character was also shown by histochemical demonstration of specific AChE activity in cryostat sections of reaggregates.


Scary Science: Ondansetron Safety in Pregnancy-Two Opposing Results From the Same Danish Registry.
While perceived safe in pregnancy, several recent studies raise concerns about both fetal and maternal safety of ondansetron. Until more data are available, it should not be a first-line medication for morning sickness.


On the resolution capabilities and limits of fluorescence lifetime correlation spectroscopy (FLCS) measurements.
Quantitative tests were performed in order to explore the practical limits of FLCS. We demonstrate that: a) FLCS yields precise and correct concentration values from as low as picomolar to micromolar concentrations; b) it is possible to separate four signal components in a single detector setup; c) diffusion times differing only 25% from each other can be resolved by separating a two component mixture based on the different fluorescence lifetimes of both components; d) most of the inherent technical limitations of conventional FCS are easily overcome by FLCS employing a single detector channel confocal detection scheme.


Effects of extract and ingredients isolated from Magnolia obovata thunberg on catecholamine secretion from bovine adrenal chromaffin cells.
The crude extract of magnolia bark, an herbal drug, inhibited the secretion of catecholamines from bovine adrenal chromaffin cells stimulated by acetylcholine (ACh) in a concentration-dependent manner (200-900 microg/mL). The extract also diminished the secretion induced by high K(+), which is a stimulus directly depolarizing the plasma membranes, but its inhibition was weaker than that of ACh-evoked secretion. beta-Eudesmol, honokiol, magnolol, and bornyl acetate, but not alpha- and beta-pinenes, all of which are ingredients of magnolia bark, greatly reduced ACh-evoked secretion. beta-Eudesmol and magnolol also inhibited high K(+)-induced secretion to an extent similar to that of ACh-evoked secretion. However, honokiol and bornyl acetate inhibited the secretion induced by high K(+) much less than the secretion evoked by ACh. ACh-induced Na(+) influx and ACh- or high K(+)-induced Ca(2+) influx into the cells were diminished by beta-eudesmol or honokiol. These results indicate that magnolia bark contains some effective components inhibiting the secretion of catecholamines from bovine adrenal chromaffin cells stimulated by ACh due to the antagonism of Na(+) and Ca(2+) influxes into the cells. However, inhibition by the extract of magnolia bark seems to be attributable to honokiol and bornyl acetate. Furthermore, the results indicate that the inhibitory effect of magnolia bark may be associated with its pharmacological effect on activities of the nervous system.


[Expression, purification and crystallization of a truncated Saccharomyces cerevisiae diadenosion 5',5'''-P1,P4 -tetraphosphate phosphorylase I].
To obtain the crystal of 5',5'''-P1,P4-tetraphosphate phosphorylase I (Apal) of Saccharomyces cerevisiae for X-ray crystal structure and function analysis. We amplified the coding region of an N-terminally truncated version of Saccharomyces cerevisiae diadenosion 5',5'''-P1,P4-tetraphosphate phosphorylase I (Apaldnl6) , and cloned it into the pET28 derived expression vector. After having screened the recombinant plasmids by PCR and confirmed them by DNA sequencing, we transformed a positive recombinant plasmid into the Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) cells for efficient expression. Then the expression and solubility of the recombinant Apaldnl6 protein were analyzed by SDS-PAGE after proper concentration of IPTG induction. Following that, we collected the soluble Apaldnl6 protein and purified it to homogeneity by sequential Ni-NTA affinity chromatography and Superdex 75 gel filtration, and then detected the purity and molecular weight of the desired protein by SDS-PAGE and mass spectrometry . In addition, we screened the crystallization conditions of Apaldnl6 with Hampton Research kits using the hanging drop vapor diffusion method. We efficiently expressed an N-terminally truncated Saccharomyces cerevisiae diadenosion 5',5'''-P1, P4-tetraphosphate phosphorylase I in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3). The recombinant protein was partially soluble and was purified to homogeneity with a single band of approximately 36 kDa after SDS-PAGE. Mass spectrometry analysis further confirmed the purity and intactness of the recombinant protein.Moreover, we obtained the needle crystals of Apaldnl6 by hanging drop vapor diffusion method. Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) is an efficient expression system for producing enough quantity of Apaldnl6 protein. The purified recombinant Apaldnl6 protein is suitable for crystallization and further structural investigation.


Rapid automated tracing and feature extraction from retinal fundus images using direct exploratory algorithms.
Algorithms are presented for rapid, automatic, robust, adaptive, and accurate tracing of retinal vasculature and analysis of intersections and crossovers. This method improves upon prior work in several ways: 1) automatic adaptation from frame to frame without manual initialization/adjustment, with few tunable parameters; 2) robust operation on image sequences exhibiting natural variability, poor and varying imaging conditions, including over/under-exposure, low contrast, and artifacts such as glare; 3) does not require the vasculature to be connected, so it can handle partial views; and 4) operation is efficient enough for use on unspecialized hardware, and amenable to deadline-driven computing, being able to produce a rapidly and monotonically improving sequence of usable partial results. Increased computation can be traded for superior tracing performance. Its efficiency comes from direct processing on gray-level data without any preprocessing, and from processing only a minimally necessary fraction of pixels in an exploratory manner, avoiding low-level image-wide operations such as thresholding, edge detection, and morphological processing. These properties make the algorithm suited to real-time, on-line (live) processing and is being applied to computer-assisted laser retinal surgery.


[Effects of levodopa and piribedil on cyclic AMP levels in cerebrospinal fluid in rats (author's transl)].
30 min after injection of levodopa (200 mg/kg) into rats the cAMP levels in the cisternal fluid were significantly elevated by 60% over controls. When dopamine-beta-hydroxylase was inhibited by bis-(4-methyl-1-homopiperazinyl-thiocarbonyl)-disulfide (Fla 63) the levodopa induced increase of cAMP levels was less marked, it was suppressed by propranolol (10 mg/kg), a beta-adrenergic blocking agent. Piribedil (10 mg/kg) failed to influence cisternal cAMP concentrations. The findings do not support the concept of a dopamine-sensitive adenylate cyclase in vivo, and suggest a beta-adrenergic stimulation of cerebral adenylate cyclase by metabolites of levodopa.


[The High Priest of gout - Sir Alfred Baring Garrod (1819-1907)].
The name of Sir Alfred Baring Garrod is linked with the first detection of uric acid in blood and its accumulation in sufferers from gout as well as the formulation of the term rheumatoid arthritis. The disease concept formulated by him initially (especially in Germany) caused confusion and much discussion but has now become accepted worldwide. Garrod's work on gout delivered important contributions to the elucidation of pathophysiological problems of the symptoms. Furthermore, he made a great contribution to the reorganization of the British Pharmacopoeia. One of his sons, the also knighted Sir Archibald Edward Garrod, initially continued the work of his father in the field of rheumatology and thereby made it really known. Later he developed his own research field with the establishment of the genetics of metabolism and introduced here the term inborn errors of metabolism.


Spinal glioma: platelet-derived growth factor B-mediated oncogenesis in the spinal cord.
Human platelet-derived growth factor B (hPDGFB) has been characterized in vitro and shown to mediate numerous cellular responses including glial proliferation and differentiation. Expression of PDGFB is thought to be important in the pathogenesis of glioma and several animal models of cerebral glioma based on PDGF expression have been described. To examine whether PDGF could contribute to the pathogenesis of spinal cord glioma, we developed transgenic mice that express hPDGFB under the control of a tetracycline-responsive element (TRE/hPDGFB). These TRE/hPDGFB mice were mated with transgenic mice expressing the tetracycline transcriptional activator (tet-off), tTA, regulated by the human glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) promoter and exhibiting uniquely strong promoter activity in the spinal cord. These transgenic mice (GFAP/tTA:TRE/hPDGFB) expressed hPDGFB in GFAP-expressing glia in a manner responsive to doxycycline administration. Without doxycycline, almost all GFAP/tTA:TRE/hPDGFB mice developed spinal cord neoplasms resembling human mixed oligoastrocytoma. Tumorigenesis in these animals was suppressed by doxycycline. To further examine the importance of PDGFB in mouse primary intramedullary spinal cord tumors, we also created transgenic mice expressing hPDGFB under the control of the human GFAP promoter (GFAP/hPDGFB). These GFAP/hPDGFB mice also developed spinal oligoastrocytoma. PDGFB can mediate the development of mouse spinal tumors that are histologically and pathologically indistinguishable from primary intramedullary spinal tumors of humans and may provide opportunities for both novel insights into the pathogenesis of these tumors and the development of new therapeutics.


Enhanced Afterglow in Neon by Removal of Electrical Excitation.
An unusual increase in light output results when a neon strobe tube is suddenly short-circuited during the transient. Experimental measurements have been made of the emitted light from the discharge when the capacitor is short-circuited at different times after the initiation of the discharge.


Cytotoxic T‑lymphocyte-associated antigen‑4 polymorphisms and susceptibility to cervical cancer: a meta‑analysis.
Cytotoxic T‑lymphocyte associated antigen‑4 (CTLA‑4) polymorphisms have been examined for associations with cervical cancer in various countries. The results, however, are inconclusive. The present study aimed to explore whether CTLA‑4 +49 A/G, ‑318 C/T and CT60 G/A polymorphisms confer susceptibility to cervical cancer. A meta‑analysis was performed with 7,794 subjects included in 15 case‑control studies that were published up to January 1, 2013. The results from the meta‑analysis indicated that there were no significant associations between the risk of cervical cancer and the three studied polymorphisms [+49 A/G: Odds ratio (OR), 0.94 and 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.82‑1.07 for GG+AG vs. AA; ‑318 C/T: OR, 1.33 and 95% CI, 0.82‑2.16 for TT+TC vs. CC; and CT60: OR, 0.98 and 95% CI, 0.72‑1.33 for AA+AG vs. GG]. Stratified analyses by ethnicity for the +49 A/G and ‑318 C/T polymorphisms suggested that Asian populations had a decreased risk of cervical cancer for the +49 A/G polymorphism (OR, 0.75 and 95% CI, 0.58‑0.97 for GG+AG vs. AA), but an increased risk for the ‑318 C/T polymorphism (OR, 2.02 and 95% CI, 1.36‑3.00 for TC vs. CC). In summary, the current meta‑analysis showed that the +49 A/G and ‑318 C/T polymorphisms in CTLA‑4 constitute risk factors for cervical cancer.


Dimensions of cardiac chambers and great vessels by cross-sectional echocardiography in infants and children.
A total of 120 healthy infants, children, and teenagers were examined by cross-sectional echocardiography. Right and left atrial and ventricular dimensions and areas were measured in the parasternal, apical, and subcostal views. Dimensions of the inferior caval vein, the pulmonary artery and the aorta were obtained in the parasternal, suprasternal, and subcostal views. Reproducibility was studied in separate material consisting of 19 children with various forms of congenital heart disease examined consecutively by two different observers. Interobserver reproducibility was expressed as the 95% tolerance limit for the difference between two measurements. Good correlation with body surface area was demonstrated for all measurements, and the regression equations for the normal values of the parameters studied are given. Interobserver reproducibility was fairly good for measurements in the parasternal views, but moderate or low for measurements in the apical and the subcostal four-chamber views. Measurements in cross-sectional echocardiography are clinically useful, especially in the study of the right-sided cardiac structures that are difficult to evaluate with M-mode echocardiography, but the problems of reproducibility have to be taken into account.


[Drug therapy and radiotherapy in Graves' orbitopathy].
Drug therapy and radiotherapy in Graves' orbitopathy (GO) aim mainly at the inherent soft tissue inflammation. A timely and sustained anti-inflammatory therapy not only alleviates the current symptoms but particularly intends to limit the degree of permanent alterations. It is indicated in active GO of moderate or higher severity. Pharmacologically, glucocorticoids and if appropriate other immunosuppressive agents, such as cyclosporine are given. Adverse effects can complicate the treatment. Retrobulbar irradiation is applied against diplopia due to eye muscle involvement during the active phase.


[Application of combined fluorescence in situ hybridization and karyotype analysis for the diagnosis of Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21].
To assess the value of fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) combined with chromosomal analysis for the detection of Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21 in amniotic fluid cells. Amniotic fluid samples from pregnant women requesting prenatal diagnosis were cultivated. Metaphase cells were prepared for G-banding karyotype analysis. For the 5 Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21, interphase nuclei from amniotic fluid and parental peripheral blood cells were prepared for FISH analysis. In 2 cases, analysis of parental peripheral blood cells showed normal karyotypes. FISH analysis of amniotic fluid cells indicated that one sample had two copies of chromosome 21, which has a 46, XY, rob(21;21)(q10;q10) karyotype, whilst another had trisomy 21 by FISH, which has a 46, XY, rob(14;21)(q10;q10) karyotype. For the remaining three samples, analysis of parental peripheral blood cells indicated that their karyotypes were 45, XX, rob(14;21)(q10;q10), 45, XX, rob(15;21)(q10;q10) and 45, XX, rob(21;22)(q10;q10), whilst the karyotypes of amniotic fluid cells were 46, XX, rob(14;21)(q10;q10), 46, XY, rob(15;21)(q10;q10) and 46, XX, rob(21;22)(q10;q10), respectively. Combined FISH and chromosomal analysis is an efficient method for detecting non-homologous Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21. However, FISH has limited ability to detect homologous Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21.


[Usefulness of hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy using lecithin-added lipiodol emulsion in hepatocellular carcinoma].
After implanting a reservoir in the hepatic artery, we performed intra-arterial chemotherapy with a smaller particle size lipiodol emulsion and examined its therapeutic effect. Subjects were 21 patients with advanced/recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Arterial infusion was performed once every 2 weeks on an outpatient basis using 2 mL lipiodol emulsion with lecithin added as a surface active agent and 10 mg doxorubicin hydrochloride. As of 6 months after the start of treatment, the response rate was 38.1%. Median survival was 17.0 months. Serious adverse events were not noted in any of the subjects;during the course of treatment, catheter occlusion was observed in 2 patients. This therapy allows fewer visits and provides a relatively substantial therapeutic effect while maintaining QOL, so it may serve as an effective treatment for highly advanced/multiple HCC not suited to other treatments.


Fibro-C-Index: comprehensive, morphology-based quantification of liver fibrosis using second harmonic generation and two-photon microscopy.
We develop a standardized, fully automated, quantification system for liver fibrosis assessment using second harmonic generation microscopy and a morphology-based quantification algorithm. Liver fibrosis is associated with an abnormal increase in collagen as a result of chronic liver diseases. Histopathological scoring is the most commonly used method for liver fibrosis assessment, where a liver biopsy is stained and scored by experienced pathologists. Due to the intrinsic limited sensitivity and operator-dependent variations, there exist high inter- and intraobserver discrepancies. We validate our quantification system, Fibro-C-Index, with a comprehensive animal study and demonstrate its potential application in clinical diagnosis to reduce inter- and intraobserver discrepancies.


[Conventional or microsurgical op-technic in diagnostic deferens vesiculography?].
A catamnestic study revealed azoospermia in the spermiogram following one in three radiodiagnostic operations on vasa deferentes using conventional techniques, whereas this was not found in a single case following the use of microsurgical techniques. The authors agree with the literature that manipulation of the vas deferens with large surgical instruments is a significant cause of postoperative occlusion, which is to be seen as an avoidable complication when microsurgery is used. Criteria for the indication and contra-indication of deferento-vesiculography are recommended, which may help to lower the at present high rate of post-operative occlusion azoospermia.


Safety and efficacy of early surgical decompression of the thoracic outlet for Paget-Schroetter syndrome.
The surgical treatment of Paget-Schroetter syndrome has evolved to include early thrombolytic therapy and an interval period of anticoagulation, followed by late surgical decompression of the thoracic outlet. More recently, we have developed an abbreviated course of therapy in which the thrombolytic therapy is followed by early surgical decompression during the same admission, then a period of anticoagulation. We compared early surgical decompression with the standard management protocol to determine safety and efficacy of the early treatment algorithm. Nine patients were treated with lysis and early operation. These were compared with the preceding nine consecutive patients treated with lysis and staged operation. Demographic data, risk factors, duration of thrombosis, lytic therapy, time to surgery, operative variables, and postoperative complications were analyzed. Our results showed that thrombolysis followed by early operation does not result in increased perioperative morbidity or mortality. Early surgical decompression of the thoracic outlet during the same admission as lysis is as safe and efficacious as the traditional (staged decompression) approach to Paget-Schroetter syndrome. Lysis followed by early surgical decompression should be considered a new standard of care in the management of Paget-Schroetter syndrome.


Modelling convection-enhanced delivery in normal and oedematous brain.
Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) could have clinical applications in the delivery of neuroprotective agents in brain injury states, such as ischaemic stroke. For CED to be safe and effective, a physician must have accurate knowledge of how concentration distributions will be affected by catheter location, flow rate and other similar parameters. In most clinical applications of CED, brain microstructures will be altered by pathological injury processes. Ischaemic stroke and other acute brain injury states are complicated by formation of cytotoxic oedema, in which cellular swelling decreases the fractional volume of the extracellular space (ECS). Such changes would be expected to significantly alter the distribution of neuroprotective agents delivered by CED. Quantitative characterization of these changes will help confirm this prediction and assist in efforts to model the distribution of therapeutic agents. Three-dimensional computational models based on a Nodal Point Integration (NPI) scheme were developed to model infusions in normal brain and brain with cytotoxic oedema. These models were compared to experimental data in which CED was studied in normal brain and in a middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion model of cytotoxic oedema. The computational models predicted concentration distributions with reasonable accuracy.


Use of a structured interview to diagnose anxiety disorders in a minority population.
A structured interview--the Anxiety Disorder Interview Schedule--Revised (ADIS-R)--was used to assess the presence of panic disorder and other anxiety disorders in 100 psychiatric outpatients at an inner-city municipal hospital, most of whom were black and of low socioeconomic status. The ADIS-R identified seven patients as having a primary diagnosis of panic disorder and 16 as having a secondary diagnosis of panic disorder. None of the patients received a primary diagnosis of panic disorder from the outpatient clinical staff, who did not use the ADIS-R. The authors conclude that a structured interview is an effective tool for identifying panic disorder in a minority population, in whom the disorder is generally underdiagnosed.


Angioplasty of below-the-elbow arteries in critical hand ischaemia.
Critical hand ischaemia (CHI) due to pure below-the-elbow (BTE) artery obstruction is a disabling disease and there is still no consensus concerning the most appropriate revascularisation strategy. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility, safety and outcomes of percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) in the treatment of CHI due to pure BTE artery disease. Twenty-eight patients (age 62 ± 11 years; three females) with a total of 34 hands affected by CHI (one pain at rest; 18 non-healing ulcer; 15 gangrene) due to pure BTE artery disease underwent PTA. Most of the patients were males with a long history of diabetes mellitus, end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on haemodialysis and systemic atherosclerosis. The interosseous artery was free of disease in all cases, whereas the radial and ulnar arteries were simultaneously involved in 31/34 hands with long stenosis/occlusions (91%; mean length 155 ± 64 mm). The technical success rate was 82% (28/34), with only three minor complications. In the three cases with a functioning radial arteriovenous fistula, we successfully treated the ulnar artery. PTA was unsuccessful in 18% (6/34) hands due to inability to cross severely calcified lesions. The hand-healing rate was 65% (22/34). The predictors of hand healing were PTA technical success (odds ratio (OR) 0.5, confidence interval (CI) 0.28-0.88; p ≤ 0.0001) and digital run-off (OR 0.37, CI 0.19-0.71; p ≤ 0.003). The mean follow-up period was 13 ± 9 months. Six patients (18%) underwent secondary procedures due to symptomatic restenosis. In all these cases, a successful re-PTA was performed at a mean 6 months after the index procedure, and there were no major procedure-related events. Ten patients (36%) died during follow-up. Angioplasty of BTE vessels for CHI is a feasible and safe procedure with acceptable rates of technical success and hand healing. Poor digital run-off due to obstructive disease of the digital vessels can reduce the hand-healing rate after a successful PTA. Pure isolated BTE vessel disease seems to characterise patients with ESRD and diabetes mellitus.


Derivation of urinary dopamine from plasma dihydroxyphenylalanine in humans.
1. Dihydroxyphenylalanine is the precursor of all endogenous catecholamines. In laboratory animals, renal uptake and decarboxylation of circulating dihydroxyphenylalanine accounts for most of dopamine in urine. Dopamine is natriuretic, and in rats, dietary salt loading increases renal dihydroxyphenylalanine uptake by increasing the rate of entry (spill-over) of dihydroxyphenylalanine into arterial plasma. In experimental animals and in humans, dietary salt loading increases urinary excretion of dihydroxyphenylalanine and dopamine. The present study examined in humans the extent to which circulating dihydroxyphenylalanine is the source of urinary dopamine and of the dopamine metabolite dihydroxyphenylacetic acid, and whether, as in animals, dietary salt loading affects dihydroxyphenylalanine spillover. 2. L-Dihydroxyphenylalanine (0.33 micrograms min-1 kg-1) was infused intravenously for 300 min after 7 days of a low-salt (mean 41 mmol/day) or a high-salt (mean 341 mmol/day) diet in 12 healthy subjects. Concentrations of dihydroxyphenylalanine, dopamine and dihydroxyphenylacetic acid were measured in urine and in antecubital venous plasma. Infusion of L-dihydroxyphenylalanine produced a steady-state mean dihydroxyphenylalanine level about 10 times the endogenous level. About 30% of infused dihydroxyphenylalanine estimated to be delivered to the kidneys via the arterial plasma was excreted as dopamine, and about 30% was excreted as dihydroxyphenyl-acetic acid. 3. Dietary salt loading increased urinary excretion rates of dihydroxyphenylalanine [from 0.08 +/- (SEM) 0.01 to 0.14 +/- 0.03 nmol/min, t = 2.80, P < 0.02] and dopamine (from 1.03 +/- 0.19 to 1.30 +/- 0.28 nmol/min, t = 2.35, P < 0.05), whereas dihydroxyphenylalanine spillover appeared to be unchanged.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Anomalous neuronal responses to fluctuated inputs.
The irregular firing of a cortical neuron is thought to result from a highly fluctuating drive that is generated by the balance of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic inputs. A previous study reported anomalous responses of the Hodgkin-Huxley neuron to the fluctuated inputs where an irregularity of spike trains is inversely proportional to an input irregularity. In the current study, we investigated the origin of these anomalous responses with the Hindmarsh-Rose neuron model, map-based models, and a simple mixture of interspike interval distributions. First, we specified the parameter regions for the bifurcations in the Hindmarsh-Rose model, and we confirmed that the model reproduced the anomalous responses in the dynamics of the saddle-node and subcritical Hopf bifurcations. For both bifurcations, the Hindmarsh-Rose model shows bistability in the resting state and the repetitive firing state, which indicated that the bistability was the origin of the anomalous input-output relationship. Similarly, the map-based model that contained bistability reproduced the anomalous responses, while the model without bistability did not. These results were supported by additional findings that the anomalous responses were reproduced by mimicking the bistable firing with a mixture of two different interspike interval distributions. Decorrelation of spike trains is important for neural information processing. For such spike train decorrelation, irregular firing is key. Our results indicated that irregular firing can emerge from fluctuating drives, even weak ones, under conditions involving bistability. The anomalous responses, therefore, contribute to efficient processing in the brain.


Cell cycle arrest and apoptosis responses of human breast epithelial cells to the synthetic organosulfur compound p-methoxyphenyl p-toluenesulfonate.
There are several studies documenting that organosulfur compounds show promise as anticancer agents. Although some mechanisms of the antiproliferative activity of naturally occurring organosulfur compounds have been elucidated, few studies have reported the differential response of human breast cells to these compounds. The effect of the synthetic sulfonate ester, p-methoxyphenyl p-toluenesulfonate on growth inhibitory activity depending upon the estrogen-receptor (ER), p53, bcl-2 and caspase-3 status of cells was investigated by comparing its effects on three distinct human breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7, MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-453) and on one normal human mammary epithelial cell line (MCF-10A). This sulfonate ester selectively killed cancer cells at doses of 100 microM. Flow cytometry analysis showed that treatment with p-methoxyphenyl p-toluenesulfonate caused different cell cycle responses in the four cell lines but no clear association with p53 status was observed. Apoptosis was also induced in cells harboring different levels of Bcl-2 expression, but again independently of the p53 or ER status of the cells. These results suggest that p-methoxyphenyl p-toluenesulfonate acts on multiple signaling pathways leading to growth inhibition and activation of mechanisms of cell death selectively affecting survival of breast cancer cells. Thus, p-methoxyphenyl p-toluenesulfonate is the first member of a new class of tumor-specific chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of breast cancer.


[Evaluation of biological properties of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from patients with sternum and rib osteomyelitis].
Study of the role of P. aeruginosa in the development of osteomyelitis of sternum and ribs in cardio-surgery patients, and analysis of the main biological properties of the isolated bacterial strains. 132 bacterial cultures were isolated from 83 hospital patients as a result of bacteriological examination during 2007-2013. Wound discharge was the study mate- rial. Sampling, seeding and identification of the isolated cultures was carried out by using the respective test-systems; antibiotic sensitivity was studied by disc-diffusion method. The proportion of P. aeruginosa was 10.6% (n = 14) that is comparable with data on wound infections of general surgery hospitals. A direct and strong correlation (R = 0.846, p = 0.000132) between hemolytic and phospholipase activity was established during evaluation of virulence properties of the isolated-strains. The degree of film-forming ability varied significantly from 0.122 to 1.412 OD; 64.3% ofthe studied cultures were highly film-forming variants. Statistically significant association between biofilm formation and other studied properties was not found. 4 strains produced VIM2-type metallo-betalactamase and had identical RAPD profiles. Considering that earlier the similar cultures were not detected and all of them were isolated at a short interval of time, we have made a conclusion, that their short-term circulation is probably associated with introduction, which was the reason for patient infection. P. aeruginosa could be the etio-pathogen of both early and later complications of cardio-surgical interventions.


Vaccinia-interleukin 2 recombinant virus or exogenous interleukin 2 does not alter the magnitude or immune response gene defects of the cytotoxic T-cell response to vaccinia virus in vivo.
We investigated the role of interleukin 2 (IL-2), a T cell-derived lymphokine, in the generation of in vivo cytotoxic T-cell responses to vaccinia virus. We made use of a recombinant vaccinia virus encoding and expressing the murine IL-2 gene and recombinant IL-2 to test the role of IL-2 in the expression of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I determined immune response (Ir) gene defects in the response to vaccinia virus. IL-2 expressed either by the vaccinia virus vector or exogenous IL-2 does not alter Ir gene defects nor does IL-2 under such conditions elevate the cytotoxic T-cell response in general.


Examining autobiographical memory content in patients with depression and anxiety disorders.
The purpose of this study was to move beyond the traditional specificity model of autobiographical memory (ABM) and to examine the content of memories with a focus on disorder and schema-relevant content. The sample (N = 82) included 25 patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), 24 with social phobia (SP), and 33 with panic disorder with agoraphobia (PDA) who were referred to a large outpatient clinic for group treatment of depression or anxiety. Participants completed the Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) and Beck Depression Inventory-II as part of the clinical intake process. Responses to the AMT were coded for disorder-specific content based on diagnostic criteria for each disorder as well as for schema-relevant (sociotropy vs. autonomy) content. A repeated measures multiple analysis of variance demonstrated significant differences in disorder-specific content, with patients in the MDD group reporting more depressotypic ABMs than those in the PDA group but not the SP group. Similarly, in the analysis of schema-relevant content, significant differences were found between MDD and PDA regarding the presence of autonomy-based ABM ratings. Study results provide partial support for the cognitive specificity hypothesis with ABM content. The results are discussed in relation to the cognitive models of depression and anxiety.


A preparatory technique for examination of imperfect fungi by scanning electron microscopy.
Thin 12 mm diameter coverslips, coated with nutrient agar, were inoculated with a fungus, incubated, and sequentially examined with the light microscope and then the scanning electron microscope (SEM), thus providing the valuable capability of correlation of results obtained from these two microscopic analyses. A sandwich of two coverslips was prepared for light-microscopic observations, and then separated and the agar-coated coverslip on which the fungus had grown was passed through fixative solutions, critical point dried, metal-coated and examined in the SEM. The technique was designed primarily for studies of conidiogenesis in rapidly growing human pathogenic imperfect fungi.


Study on incorporation of homologous serum albumin into the developing rabbit incisor.
The incorporation pattern of the rabbit albumin labelled with Lissamine Rhodamine B200 or 125I into the rabbit dentine and the enamel matrices was studied by fluorescence microscopy and/or autoradiography. The fluorescence of the fluorochrome-labelled albumin was observed in the dentine at 6 hours and 3 days. Autoradiographic silver grains were observed over the predentine at 1 hour after the injection. They were found over the dentine matrix adjacent to the predentine-dentine junction at 6 hours. The silver grain band was concentrated over the internal dentine matrix at 3 days. However, an appreciable amount of the fluorescence could not be seen in the enamel at any time after the injection. Also, no significant differences in the number of autoradiographic silver grains were found over the enamel matrix between the experimental groups and the background at any time after the injection. These results suggested that albumin was incorporated into the developing dentine matrix but not into the developing enamel matrix.


The psychometric properties of the Homonegativity Scale.
This research details the psychometric properties of an instrument designed to measure negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbians (the Homonegativity Scale-HS). Four studies were conducted using adolescents (N = 1078), university students (N = 343), and members of the general population (N = 146). Results suggest that the HS possesses a unidimensional factor structure and a high degree of internal consistency for both male and female participants. As predicted, scores on the HS were positively correlated with machismo, authoritarianism, political conservatism, religiosity, and modern sexism. In addition, responses on the HS did not appear to be contaminated by social desirability bias. The usefulness of this measure in survey research is discussed.


[Diagnostic Workup and Treatment of Antibody-Related Encephalomyelitis].
The results of laboratory tests for antineuronal antibodies in immune-mediated encephalitis nowadays are not only relevant for diagnostic purposes but are instead closely connected to outcome measures and treatment response. Besides the mere detection of antibodies, investigating the cerebrospinal fluid is indispensible to rule out an infectious etiology of encephalitis prior to the initiation of immunosuppressive treatment, whereas imaging studies are relevant to gain information on the temporal course of disease and for ruling out other etiologies, e. g. hippocampal gliomas. This work gives an overview on the clinical course and findings of laboratory, electroencephalography (EEG) and imaging studies in relevant types of autoimmune mediated encephalitis. Furthermore, it gives a synopsis on contemporary treatment strategies.


Congenital causes of duodenal ulcers in adults.
In seven cases of congenital anomalies in adults, duodenal obstruction and peptic ulcer disease developed. There were two cases of congenital duodenal web, two of hypertrophic pyloric stenosis, two of annular pancreas, and one of a preduodenal portal vein. The diagnosis is seldom made preoperatively. In the four patients who had preoperative gastric analysis, the acid secretions were increased. Those patients who underwent endoscopy had changes consistent with hypertrophic secretory gastrophy and duodenitis. We believe that treatment should be directed toward relief of the duodenal obstruction and the reduction of basal acid secretion by truncal vagotomy in all such cases.


Determination of the enantiomeric composition of ibuprofen in human plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography.
A normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic method, using a hexane-ethyl acetate solvent system, for the determination of the enantiomeric composition of ibuprofen in human plasma is described. The method is based on the resolution of the diastereoisomeric amides formed on reaction of the ibuprofen enantiomers with S-1-(naphthen-1-yl)ethylamine using p-chlorophenoxy-acetic acid as internal standard. The application of the method for the determination of the enantiomeric composition of ibuprofen in human plasma following the repeated oral administration of the drug to two volunteers is reported. The plasma concentrations of the S-(+) enantiomer were always greater than that of the R-(-), the ratio of the areas under the enantiomer plasma concentration-time curves (S/R) being 1.8 and 1.6.


[The absolute threshold of the perception of thicknesses between antagonist teeth in contact].
An experimental technique has been evolved with the aim of identifying the perception threshold of widths between antagonist teeth using thin metal sheets of a known thickness either singly or as multiples. A reference sample was chosen from young subjects with integral dentition: 22 individuals, 13 women and 9 men, were included. Following statistical analysis, the results showed that, in spite of a wide individual variation, the absolute threshold may be located between 8 and 45 mu, with no difference between sexes. Contrary to published findings, no significant variation between back and front teeth was observed.


Characterization of monoclonal antibodies for the rapid detection of foodborne campylobacters.
The specificity of 97 monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) to the Campylobacter jejuni Lior serogroup 6 reference strain was assessed using an indirect enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Four MAbs, M316, M337, M357 and M637, reacted with whole cells of the C. jejuni, C. coli and C. lari reference strains of the 20 most common Lior serogroups and 25 recent C. jejuni and C. coli isolates, and did not react with most of the 42 other Campylobacter and non-Campylobacter spp. tested. Immunoblot analysis revealed that MAbs M337 and M357 reacted with a protein component with molecular mass of approximately 62 kiloDaltons (kDa) while M316 and M637 reacted with protein components of approximately 92 and 31 kDa, respectively. The detection limit of M357 in an indirect ELISA was 10(5) colony forming units. These four highly specific MAbs may be useful reagents of an immunoassay for the rapid detection of thermophilic campylobacters in foods and clinical samples.


[Impacts on repeated common cold for the adults with different constitutions treated by acupoint application in the dog days and the three nine-day periods after the winter solstice].
To observe the impacts on repeated common cold for the adults with different constitutions treated by acupoint application in the dog days (the three periods of the hottest days) and the three nine-day periods after the winter solstice (the three periods of the coldest days). One hundred and fifty-two cases of repeated common cold were divided into four zones according to the body constitution. Each zone was sub-divided into a group of the dog days + the three nine-day periods of the coldest days (group A), and a simple group of the dog periods (group B). In both groups, Dazhui (GV 14), Feishu (BL 13), Tiantu (CV 22), Danzhong (CV 17), Zhongfu (LU 1) and Shenshu (BL 23) were selected. In group A, the acupoint application was given on the 1st or 2nd day of the first, second and third periods of the hottest days in 2010, as well as the 1st or 2nd day of the first, second and third periods of the coldest days in 2010 separately. In group B, the acupoint application was only given on the 1st or 2nd day of the first, second and third periods of the hottest days in 2010. The follow-up visit was conducted before the acupoint application in the three periods of the coldest days in 2010 and before the acupoint application in the three periods of the hottest days in 2011. Additionally, the frequency of disease attack and the symptom score in sickness were taken as the observation indices for the efficacy assessment in both groups. (1) In both groups, the attack frequency was reduced obviously in half a year after the three periods of the hottest days for the patients of qi deficiency constitution, yang deficiency constitution and qi stagnation constitution and the clinical symptom score were reduced apparently (all P<0.01), which were superior to those for the patients of phlegm damp constitution (P<0.01, P<0.05). For the patients of phlegm damp constitution, only the clinical symptom score was reduced (P<0.01). (2) In group A, the improvements were received in the attack frequency and the clinical symptom score in half a year after the three periods of the coldest days for the patients of those four constitutions as compared with those before treatment (all P<0.01). In group B, the attack frequency and the clinical symptom score were all back to the level as those before treatment. (3) In group A, in half a year after the three periods of the coldest days, the efficacy for reducing the attack frequency and the improvements in the clinical symptoms were better than those in group B (all P<0.01). The acupoint application in the dog days and the three nine-day periods after the winter solstice reduces the attack frequency and relieves the clinical symptoms of common cold for the adults of individual constitutions to different extents. The efficacy can be further improved in the treatment with the acupoint application in the three nine-day periods after the winter solstice half a year after the acupoint application in the dog days.


The transcription factor CUTL1 is associated with proliferation and prognosis in malignant melanoma.
The transcription factor CUTL1 (CCAAT displacement protein 1) has been reported to participate in the proliferation of diverse types of cancer. In the present study, we investigated the potential involvement of CUTL1 in the proliferation of malignant melanoma. We found that CUTL1 expression was upregulated in malignant melanoma tissues and cell lines, and CUTL1 expression was selected as a prognostic predictor for malignant melanoma patients by both univariate and multivariate analysis. Knockdown of CUTL1 by short hairpin RNA significantly reduced the colony-forming ability of malignant melanoma cells in vitro and reduced tumor growth in vivo, whereas forced overexpression of CUTL1 produced the opposite results. Consistently, cell cycle progression was impaired upon downregulation of CUTL1 and enhanced when CUTL1 was upregulated. Additional experiments suggested that CUTL1 may regulate the proliferation of malignant melanoma by modulating the expression of cell cycle-related proteins.


Cryopreservation of Rh negative blood for improved storage & utilisation by means of indigenous freezing bags & solutions & manual deglycerolisation.
Cryopreservation allows donor blood to be stored for years, rather than weeks as in liquid storage. This is an established procedure in countries with a developed blood transfusion service. Cryopreservation has not been introduced in India, possibly because of the presumed high cost and complexity of the procedure. An attempt is made in this study, to cryopreserve Rh negative blood in a mechanical freezer using indigenous bags and solutions and manual deglycerolisation to reduce the cost of preservation. RBCs to be frozen were weighed and transferred by sterile welding to an 800 ml freezing bag. Based on RBC weight, 400-500 ml of glycerol (5.7 MpH 6.8) was added as cryopreservative. After extracellular and intracellular equilibration, excess glycerol was removed by centrifugation. Glycerolised RBCs were frozen at -80 degrees C in a mechanical freezer. Cryopreserved units were thawed at 37 degrees C and deglycerolised. Twenty one patients were transfused with the frozen deglycerolised RBCs after the usual pre-transfusion tests. Haematocrit (Hct) values of the frozen deglycerolised units, complied with required standards, before addition of glycerol and post glycerolisation. RBC recovery was more than 80 per cent and Hct 83.3 per cent after deglycerolisation. Twenty one patients transfused with the frozen deglycerolised blood experienced no adverse effects and showed a 24 h mean post transfusion Hb increment of 0.73 g/dl. Cryopreservation, unlike liquid storage, allows Rh negative blood of the required ABO groups to be stocked. Cryopreservation also improves its utilisation, reduces wastage and helps supplement the liquid stocks of Rh negative blood. The use of indigenous freezing bags and manual deglycerolisation has resulted in an inexpensive procedure, which can be integrated, with minor inputs, into any blood bank that is already preparing blood components.


Detection of active transcription factor binding sites with the combination of DNase hypersensitivity and histone modifications.
The identification of active transcriptional regulatory elements is crucial to understand regulatory networks driving cellular processes such as cell development and the onset of diseases. It has recently been shown that chromatin structure information, such as DNase I hypersensitivity (DHS) or histone modifications, significantly improves cell-specific predictions of transcription factor binding sites. However, no method has so far successfully combined both DHS and histone modification data to perform active binding site prediction. We propose here a method based on hidden Markov models to integrate DHS and histone modifications occupancy for the detection of open chromatin regions and active binding sites. We have created a framework that includes treatment of genomic signals, model training and genome-wide application. In a comparative analysis, our method obtained a good trade-off between sensitivity versus specificity and superior area under the curve statistics than competing methods. Moreover, our technique does not require further training or sequence information to generate binding location predictions. Therefore, the method can be easily applied on new cell types and allow flexible downstream analysis such as de novo motif finding. Our framework is available as part of the Regulatory Genomics Toolbox. The software information and all benchmarking data are available at http://costalab.org/wp/dh-hmm. ivan.costa@rwth-aachen.de or eduardo.gusmao@rwth-aachen.de Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.


Sodium sulfate potentiates N-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)-2-hydroxysuccinimide (NDHS) and N-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)-2-hydroxysuccinamic acid (2-NDHSA) nephrotoxicity in the Fischer 344 rat.
The agricultural fungicide N-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)succinimide (NDPS) induces nephrotoxicity as its major toxicity in rats. Previous studies have shown that NDPS induces nephrotoxicity following oxidation of the succinimide ring to form N-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)-2-hydroxysuccinimide (NDHS) and the hydrolysis product of NDHS, N-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)-2-hydroxysuccinamic acid (2-NDHSA). Our recent work found that sodium sulfate potentiated NDPS nephrotoxicity, suggesting that sulfate conjugation of NDPS metabolites might be a bioactivation step mediating NDPS nephrotoxicity. The purpose of this study was to determine if sodium sulfate also potentiated the nephrotoxicity of the two nephrotoxic metabolites of NDPS and further to see if sodium sulfate potentiated NDHS and 2-NDHSA nephrotoxicity to the same degree. Male Fischer 344 rats (4-16 rats/group) received an intraperitoneal (ip) injection of sodium sulfate (10 mg/kg) 20 min before a non-nephrotoxic dose (0.05 mmol/kg, ip) of NDHS or 2-NDHSA, or vehicle (12.5% dimethyl sulfoxide in sesame oil). Renal function was then monitored over 48 h. Sodium sulfate pretreatment potentiated the renal effects of a non-nephrotoxic dose of NDHS and 2-NDHSA to induce nephrotoxicity. Nephrotoxicity was characterized by diuresis, increased proteinuria, elevated blood urea nitrogen (BUN) concentration, increased kidney weight and proximal tubular necrosis. Differences in the potentiation of NDHS and 2-NDHSA nephrotoxicity by sodium sulfate were also observed as NDHS nephrotoxicity was potentiated to a lesser degree than 2-NDHSA-induced nephrotoxicity. These results support the likelihood that one or more sulfate conjugate(s) of NDPS metabolites contribute to NDPS nephrotoxicity.


Glass ring-wall sealing to prevent leakage from electrode culture chambers: a technical note.
Entellan is a good sealing substance for culture chamber walls and does not interfere with the growth of the cultured DRG cells. If the Entellan becomes brittle the glass ring can easily be loosened by placing the chamber with the sealed ring for 24 hrs in xylene. Repeated rinsing with xylene and subsequently with hydrated steps of ethanol (100%-70%-30%) allows the ring-wall and chamber floor with its electrodes to be reused.


Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus.
Since it was first described in 1965, normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) has been a controversial subject. New studies have shed light on its epidemiology and pathogenesis and provided objective ways to measure outcome in patients with NPH. Neuroimaging has improved and allows better recognition of both NPH and the presence of overlapping diseases RECENT FINDINGS: Several recent epidemiologic studies confirm that NPH is a rare disease, but the presence of large ventricles is a common finding with aging. NPH may be multifactorial, including congenital causes, vascular disease, and impaired CSF absorption. MRI features of NPH include enlarged ventricular size and CSF fluid collection outside the ventricles not due to atrophy. The term disproportionately enlarged subarachnoid space hydrocephalus (DESH) has been used to describe prognostic MRI features in NPH, including a "tight high convexity" and enlargement of CSF spaces in the sylvian fissure. DESH has been included in the Japanese guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of NPH. A new NPH scale has been published that provides an objective framework for evaluating patients with NPH before and after shunt placement. Programmable shunts can noninvasively manage overdrainage complications. Surgical outcome has been improving over time. Recent studies have led to improved recognition of overlapping diseases such as Alzheimer pathology, which co-occurs in about 30% of NPH cases. Fludeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) is a promising imaging modality for diagnosing NPH and detecting concomitant degenerative disease. A systematic approach to patients with possible NPH allows recognition of the subset of patients who will respond to shunt surgery and identification of those with alternative diagnoses.


Factors associated with low adherence to a Mediterranean diet in healthy children in northern Spain.
There is a tendency in Mediterranean countries to abandon the characteristic Mediterranean diet. This is especially apparent within younger populations. This could have negative consequences for health such as, cardiovascular diseases, obesity or metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to describe adherence to the Mediterranean diet within a population of school children and to examine the influence of different socio-demographic factors and lifestyle habits. The study was conducted on a representative sample of 321 school children aged 11-12 years from 31 schools in the city of Logroño (La Rioja). Socio-demographic variables, anthropometric variables, blood pressure, level of development, aerobic fitness, lifestyle, physical activity habits and adherence to the Mediterranean diet were recorded. High adherence to the Mediterranean diet was reported by 46.7% of school children, with low adherence being reported by 4.7% of them. Children attending state schools, immigrants and families from low-to-medium socio-economic strata reported significantly lower adherence to the Mediterranean diet (p = .039), but the results did not reveal any significant differences in terms of body composition. Correlations were found between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and other lifestyle habits, especially level of physical activity (r = .38) and screen time (r = -.18). Adherence to a Mediterranean diet differs according to the type of school attended by children, and the child's nationality and socio-economic status. Children who attended state schools, immigrants and those from families with a medium-to-low socio-economic status were less likely to follow healthy diets.


On the addictive power of gabapentinoids: a mini-review.
The gabapentinoids gabapentin and pregabalin have been related to addiction citing pharmacovigilance data, some case presentations and increasing reports mainly from methadone maintenance treatment programs or emergency medicine. Most of these reports were based on patients with another current or previous substance use disorder (SUD). According to the ICD-10 dependence criteria, physical dependence (withdrawal symptoms, tolerance) was reported most frequently alongside regular use of gabapentinoids. Far less patients showed key symptoms of behavioral dependence (craving, loss of control, or addictive behavior). Through a literature review, we found 2 and 13 case reports about gabapentionoid-seeking behavior or craving for gabapentin and pregabalin, respectively. Those patients without a history of another SUD, but being behaviorally dependent on gabapentinoids, deemed more appropriate to reflect the true addictive power of these drugs. We found solely 4 such cases, all referring to pregabalin and none for gabapentin. Taking into account that gabapentinoids have become widely distributed and easily obtainable via the internet or black-markets, one would expect many more of these cases, if gabapentinoids had considerable addictive power. Moreover, we are not aware of any patient who sought detoxification treatment owing to the misuse of gabapentinoids. Unlike for traditional psychoactive drugs, there is only very scarce evidence for gabapentinoids to be misused in a long-term manner and to be rewarding and reinforcing in animal experiments. Further, we assessed the hazardous potential of gabapentin and pregabalin in relation to that of traditional substances of abuse. Altogether, we support the view that gabapentinoids are quite rarely addictive in the general population. In patients with a history of SUD, however, gabapentinoids (notably pregabalin) should avoided or, if thought to be beneficial, administered with caution by using a strict prescription and therapy monitoring.


The real cost of the NSERC peer review is less than 5% of a proposed baseline grant.
A recent publication in this journal (Gordon and Poulin, 2009) argues that the cost of the NSERC peer review exceeds the cost of giving every researcher a $30,000 baseline grant. However, the authors overestimated the ratio of peer review expenses to baseline grant cost by a factor of 26. The real cost of peer review is less than 5% of the baseline grant amount.


Elevated blood viscosity in alloxan diabetic dogs and experimentally galactosemic dogs.
Blood viscosity was investigated in alloxan-diabetic dogs and in dogs made experimentally hyperglycemic by a galactose-rich diet. The diabetics were prospectively assigned to levels of glycemic control ranging from poor to good. After up to 5 years of study, the blood viscosity of hyperglycemic diabetic animals was significantly greater than normal at both high (100 sec-1) and low (0.1 sec-1) shear rates. Blood viscosity at the low shear rate correlated closely with fibrinogen concentration, (r = 0.75; p less than 0.02) but not with HbA1 concentration (r = 0.14) in the diabetics. Galactosemic animals likewise had elevated blood viscosity at the low shear rate, but the correlation of viscosity with fibrinogen concentration in those animals was not statistically significant (r = 0.42). Plasma viscosity tended to be elevated in both diabetes and galactosemia, but not to a statistically significant degree.


Interleukin-6: an early marker of bacterial infection in decompensated cirrhosis.
Fifty-seven patients with decompensated cirrhosis were studied prospectively to assess the sensitivity and specificity of early clinical or biological signs of bacterial infection. Among them, 19 had proven infection on admission (7 spontaneous bacterial peritonitis, 5 bacteraemia, 3 urinary tract infections, 2 pneumonia, 1 dental abscess and 1 cholangitis). Fever, polymorphonuclear cell count, fibrinogen and C-reactive protein levels were found to be of little or no help in diagnosing bacterial infection on admission. Interleukin-6 plasma levels were, however, significantly different between infected (median: 1386 pg/ml, range: 237-20,000) and non-infected patients (median: 34 pg/ml, range: 0-4500, p < 0.00001). Levels above 200 pg/ml were always found in infected patients, giving a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 74%. C-reactive protein correlated weakly with interleukin-6 levels, indicating a defective acute-phase response in cirrhosis. Tumor necrosis factor alpha plasma levels were less sensitive (95%) and specific (68%) for the diagnosis of bacterial infection at a threshold of 50 pg/ml, but were more closely related to a poor patient outcome. In decompensated cirrhosis, interleukin-6 plasma levels on admission provided the most sensitive and specific tool for the diagnosis of bacterial infection.


B-tropic oncornavirus production by BALB/c methylcholanthrene-induced sarcoma cells.
Six oncogenic cell lines were established from primary sarcomas that had been induced in thymectomized, aged, BALB/cSt mice by the injection of 3-methylcholanthrene. Of these lines, three produced B-tropic murine leukemia virus (MuLV), i.e. MuLV that would patently infect fibroblasts of BALB/c origin but not those from NIH Swiss mice. One of these lines, M-138, produced large quantities of virus, permitting the isolation of milligram quantities of B-tropic MuLV. Neonatal BALB/c mice injected with the M-138 MuLV developed high plasma levels of the species-specific virion antigen p30, but during 9 months of observation failed to manifest clinical signs of leukemia. Plasma p30 levels of NIH Swiss mice (non-permissive host) that were inoculated also as neonates with the same virus preparation, remained undetectable by radioimmunoassay. Xenotropic MuLV, i.e. that which infects cells of species other than the species of origin, was released by one of the three remaining cell lines. Two of the six original lines have remained free of detectable oncornavirus production. Our results suggest that cell lines that are stable sources of large quantities of B-tropic MuLV may be easily obtainable by the described manipulations. Equally important, however, is the fact that these data re-emphasize the danger that is inherent in assuming that a cell line is virus-free simply because it was isolated from a chemical carcinogen-induced neoplasm


Combined treatment with PPAR-γ agonists in pancreatic cancer: a glimmer of hope for cancer therapy?
Pancreas cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death due to the limited treatment success rate. The wide number of signalling pathway aberrations contributing to tumorigenesis, progression and drug resistance, is the main reason for unsuccessful treatments in pancreatic cancer. An additional and still under-investigated intracellular cancer target is the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ). Several studies have shown the in vitro antitumor activity of PPAR-γ agonists in cancer cells but, if used in monotherapy, they were poorly effective in cancer treatment. The present review will focus on the potential therapeutic role of PPAR-γ agonists in combination with other drugs (type I interferons, gemcitabine and COX-2 inhibitors), highlighting molecular interactions and signalling pathways involved in pancreatic cancer cells. Understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms and survival pathways activated in cancer cells should promote the development of more successful strategies based on the specific targeting of molecular pathways involved in the resistance to anti-cancer agents.


Molecular basis for virus disease resistance in plants.
Classical studies of virus disease resistance in plants have provided the basis for recent molecular studies of resistance. Three common approaches to the study of resistance have been used. In one approach, nucleotide and/or amino acid sequences of virus strains that overcome disease resistance genes in the host are compared with sequences of strains that do not induce disease in these hosts. In the second approach, resistance/susceptibility of protoplasts is compared with the response of intact plants from which they are derived, to develop hypotheses regarding whether resistance acts at the level of the individual cell or by inhibiting cell-to-cell movement. In the third approach, the mechanism of virus cell-to-cell movement has been studied to clarify one of the basic steps in pathogenesis and to determine the mechanism of disease resistance for certain virus-host interactions.


Rib head disarticulation for multilevel transpedicular thoracic corpectomies and expandable cage reconstruction.
Traditional posterior approaches to the thoracic spine are done with either costo-transversectomy, lateral extracavitary approaches, or transpedicular approaches. The transpedicular approach is the only one that preserves the rib head. However, placing an expandable cage with this rib head intact poses special challenges because of the narrow corridor defined by the rib head and the spinal cord. Instead of removing the rib head, which requires pleural dissection and carries the risks of pleural injury, we disarticulate it and push it laterally during cage placement. This avoids pleural dissection and affords expandable cage placement through a transpedicular approach.


[Treatment of Acromioclavicular Dislocations by Weaver-Dunn's Operation.].
The authors present an account of a group of 52 patients subjected to Weaver-Dunn's operation on account of acromioclavicular dislocation grade III. They started to use this method in 1988. The authors emphasize that it is an elastic fixation of the clavicle without the use of osteosynthetic material. It is a simple operation with a relatively short period of work incapacity. Based on the described group of patients the authors provide evidence that they achieved very good results with Weaver-Dunn's operation. Key words: acromioclavicular dislocation, Weaver-Dunn's operation.