Facile synthesis of silver nanoparticles mediated by polyacrylamide-reduction approach to antibacterial application.
The current time increase in the prevalence of antibiotic resistant 'super-bugs' and the risks associated with food safety have become global issues. Therefore, further research is warranted to identify new and effective antimicrobial substances. Silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) were synthesized by autoclaving technique using, different concentrations of Ag salt (AgNO3) solution (1, 5, 10, and 25 mM). Their presence was confirmed by a surface plasmon resonance band at ∼435 nm using UV-Vis absorption spectra. The morphology of the synthesized Ag-NPs stabilized by polyacrylamide (PAM) was examined by TEM, SAED, and EDS. TEM images revealed that the synthesized Ag-NPs had an average diameter of 2.98±0.08 nm and SAED and EDS results confirmed the formation of Ag-NPs. In addition, FT-IR spectroscopy revealed that a PAM polymer matrix stabilized the Ag-NPs. The well diffusion method, was used to test, Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria were examined. Also the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) were studied against Ag-NPs. The Ag-NPs exhibited strong inhibitory activity, MIC and MBC against the tested clinical bacterial isolates. These results suggest that Ag-NPs stabilized in PAM are highly effective against clinical bacterial isolates can be applied in medical fields.


Prosthodontic Rehabilitation of a Child with Ectodermal Dysplasia: A Preliminary Report.
This case history report describes the dental management of a child with ectodermal dysplasia with the premise that appropriate and early dental management positively impacts the oral health-related quality of life of such patients, irrespective of the age at which treatment is initiated.


Placental weights of neonates born with symptomatic congenital syphilis.
Syphilis during pregnancy remains an important global health concern causing miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm birth and neonatal death. As part of the fetal infection, placental changes occur which may include a heavier placenta than expected. A cohort of 50 neonates with symptomatic congenital syphilis has previously been described. This cohort was admitted to Groote Schuur neonatal unit in Cape Town South Africa from 2011 to 2013. For this study, the placental weights of the neonates were analyzed and compared to population based placental centiles. There was data for 37 placentae. Heavy placentae (>90th centile) occurred in 76% of placentae in the study. All 6 infants with birth weights ≥2,500 g had heavy placentae. There was no correlation between placental centile and death. Heavy placenta are an important and frequent finding with symptomatic congenital syphilis, especially in the larger neonates.


Description of the immune microenvironment of chondrosarcoma and contribution to progression.
Chondrosarcoma (CHS) is a rare bone malignancy characterized by its resistance to conventional systemic and radiation therapies. Whether immunotherapy targeting immune checkpoints may be active in these tumors remains unknown. To explore the role of the immune system in this tumor, we analyzed the immune environment of chondrosarcomas both in human sample, and in a syngeneic rat model, and tested the contribution of T lymphocytes and macrophages in chondrosarcoma progression. Immunohistochemical stainings were performed on human chondrosarcoma samples and on Swarm rat chondrosarcoma (SRC) model. Selective immunodepletion assays were performed in SRC to evaluate immune population's involvement in tumor progression. In human and rat chondrosarcoma, immune infiltrates composed of lymphocytes and macrophages were identified in the peritumoral area. Immune infiltrates composition was found correlated with tumors characteristics and evolution (grade, invasiveness and size). In SRC, selective depletion of T lymphocytes resulted in an accelerated growth rates, whereas depletion of CD163+ macrophages slowed down tumor progression. Splenocytes isolated from CHS-bearing SRC showed a specific cytotoxicity directed against chondrosarcoma cells (27%), which significantly decreased in CD3-depleted SRC (11%). The immune environment contributes to CHS progression in both human and animal models, suggesting that immunomodulatory approaches could be tested in bone chondrosarcoma.


Dopamine and full-field illumination activate D1 and D2-D5-type receptors in adult rat retinal ganglion cells.
Dopamine can regulate signal generation and transmission by activating multiple receptors and signaling cascades, especially in striatum, hippocampus, and cerebral cortex. Dopamine modulates an even larger variety of cellular properties in retina, yet has been reported to do so by only D1 receptor-driven cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) increases or D2 receptor-driven cAMP decreases. Here, we test the possibility that dopamine operates differently on retinal ganglion cells, because the ganglion cell layer binds D1 and D2 receptor ligands, and displays changes in signaling components other than cAMP under illumination that should release dopamine. In adult rat retinal ganglion cells, based on patch-clamp recordings, Ca(2+) imaging, and immunohistochemistry, we find that 1) spike firing is inhibited by dopamine and SKF 83959 (an agonist that does not activate homomeric D1 receptors or alter cAMP levels in other systems); 2) D1 and D2 receptor antagonists (SCH 23390, eticlopride, raclopride) counteract these effects; 3) these antagonists also block light-induced rises in cAMP, light-induced activation of Ca(2+) /calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II, and dopamine-induced Ca(2+) influx; and 4) the Ca(2+) rise is markedly reduced by removing extracellular Ca(2+) and by an IP3 receptor antagonist (2-APB). These results provide the first evidence that dopamine activates a receptor in adult mammalian retinal neurons that is distinct from classical D1 and D2 receptors, and that dopamine can activate mechanisms in addition to cAMP and cAMP-dependent protein kinase to modulate retinal ganglion cell excitability.


Analysis of changes in the Panax notoginseng glycerolipidome in response to long-term chilling and heat.
Long-term moderately high or low temperatures can damage economically important plants. In the present study, we treated Panax notoginseng, an important traditional Chinese medicine, with temperatures of 10, 20, and 30 °C for 30 days. We then investigated P. notoginseng glycerolipidome responses to these moderate temperature stresses using an ESI/MS-MS-based lipidomic approach. Both long-term chilling (LTC, 10 °C) and long-term heat (LTH, 30 °C) decreased photo pigment levels and photosynthetic rate. LTH-induced degradation of photo pigments and glycerolipids may further cause the decline of photosynthesis and thereafter the senescence of leaves. LTC-induced photosynthesis decline is attributed to the degradation of photosynthetic pigments rather than the degradation of chloroplastidic lipids. P. notoginseng has an especially high level of lysophosphatidylglycerol, which may indicate that either P. notoginseng phospholipase A acts in a special manner on phosphatidylglycerol (PG), or that phospholipase B acts. The ratio of sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol (SQDG) to PG increased significantly after LTC treatment, which may indicate that SQDG partially substitutes for PG. After LTC treatment, the increase in the degree of unsaturation of plastidic lipids was less than that of extraplastidic lipids, and the increase in the unsaturation of PG was the largest among the ten lipid classes tested. These results indicate that increasing the level of unsaturated PG may play a special role in maintaining the function and stability of P. notoginseng photosystems after LTC treatment.


MicroRNA-137 Affects Proliferation and Migration of Placenta Trophoblast Cells in Preeclampsia by Targeting ERRα.
To investigate the effects of microRNA-137 (miRNA-137) in proliferation and migration of placenta trophoblast cells of preeclampsia and the targeting gene of miRNA-137. A total of 134 cases of puerperants were divided into normal pregnancy (n = 50), mild preeclampsia (n = 38), and severe preeclampsia groups (n = 46). MiRNA-137, estrogen-related receptor α (ERRα), and wingless INT (WNT)11 messenger RNAs (mRNAs) were measured in placental tissue and trophoblast cells after transfection, and ERRα protein in placental tissues was detected by immunohistochemistry. The target genes of miRNA-137, trophoblast cell proliferation, migration, and invasion abilities were detected. Both ERRα and WNT11 proteins in the trophoblast cells were measured after transfection. Relative expressions of miRNA-137 were higher, and positive expression rates and relative expression levels of ERRα protein were lower in mild and severe preeclampsia and early- and late-onset preeclampsia than in normal pregnancy group (all P < .05). MiRNA-137 in the placental tissues was negatively correlated with ERRα protein ( P < .05). Luciferase reporter gene assay analysis showed that ERRα was a direct target gene of miRNA-137. Absorbance values, relative scratch-covered areas, cell membrane permeable rate, ERRα, and WNT11 mRNA and protein relative expressions were significantly lower, while cells at G1/G0 phase were higher in miRNA-137 mimic group than those in the blank, negative control, and miRNA-137 inhibitor group. MiRNA-137 significantly reduced the proliferation and migration of placenta trophoblast cells of preeclampsia by targeting ERRα, which might be a potential target for gene therapy.


Cysteine scanning of CFTR's first transmembrane segment reveals its plausible roles in gating and permeation.
Previous cysteine scanning studies of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) chloride channel have identified several transmembrane segments (TMs), including TM1, 3, 6, 9, and 12, as structural components of the pore. Some of these TMs such as TM6 and 12 may also be involved in gating conformational changes. However, recent results on TM1 seem puzzling in that the observed reactive pattern was quite different from those seen with TM6 and 12. In addition, whether TM1 also plays a role in gating motions remains largely unknown. Here, we investigated CFTR's TM1 by applying methanethiosulfonate (MTS) reagents from both cytoplasmic and extracellular sides of the membrane. Our experiments identified four positive positions, E92, K95, Q98, and L102, when the negatively charged MTSES was applied from the cytoplasmic side. Intriguingly, these four residues reside in the extracellular half of TM1 in previously defined CFTR topology; we thus extended our scanning to residues located extracellularly to L102. We found that cysteines introduced into positions 106, 107, and 109 indeed react with extracellularly applied MTS probes, but not to intracellularly applied reagents. Interestingly, whole-cell A107C-CFTR currents were very sensitive to changes of bath pH as if the introduced cysteine assumes an altered pKa-like T338C in TM6. These findings lead us to propose a revised topology for CFTR's TM1 that spans at least from E92 to Y109. Additionally, side-dependent modifications of these positions indicate a narrow region (L102-I106) that prevents MTS reagents from penetrating the pore, a picture similar to what has been reported for TM6. Moreover, modifications of K95C, Q98C, and L102C exhibit strong state dependency with negligible modification when the channel is closed, suggesting a significant rearrangement of TM1 during CFTR's gating cycle. The structural implications of these findings are discussed in light of the crystal structures of ABC transporters and homology models of CFTR.


Auxin cross-talk: integration of signalling pathways to control plant development.
Plants sense and respond to endogenous signals and environmental cues to ensure optimal growth and development. Plant cells must integrate the myriad transduction events into a comprehensive network of signalling pathways and responses. The phytohormone auxin occupies a central place within this transduction network, frequently acting in conjunction with other signals, to co-ordinately regulate cellular processes such as division, elongation and differentiation. As a non-cell autonomous signal, auxin also interacts with other signalling pathways to regulate inter-cellular developmental processes. As part of this especially themed edition of Plant Molecular Biology, we will review examples of 'cross-talk' between auxin and other signalling pathways. Given the current state of knowledge, we have deliberately focused our efforts reviewing auxin interactions with other phytohormone and light signalling pathways. We conclude by discussing how new genomic approaches and the Arabidopsis genome sequence are likely to impact this area of research in the future.


Using IV-Tubing "Bridge" from Splenic Artery to Superior Mesentery Artery to Create a Single Arterial Cannulation for Normothermic Machine Perfusion When Donor Liver Has Replaced Right Hepatic Artery.
BACKGROUND The presence of anatomical variations of the hepatic artery poses a challenge for normothermic machine perfusion (NMP). Here, we describe our experience of creating a single arterial cannulation for NMP in 3 donor livers with replaced right hepatic artery. CASE REPORT Three donor livers with replaced right hepatic artery were perfused using NMP (OrganOx® metra®) for liver transplantation. To maintain hepatic artery integrity and establish an intact arterial vascular inflow for NMP, a single vasculature was created to allow single arterial cannulation for NMP. A piece of intravenous-line tubing was used as a bridge from the splenic artery to the superior mesenteric artery during the back-table preparation. After 1 h of NMP, the lactate of 2 livers decreased from >10.0 to about 1.0 mmol/L, and the lactate of 1 liver decreased from >4.0 to <0.4 mmol/L. Three livers made >100 mL of bile after 4 h of NMP and were successfully implanted after >10 h of NMP. The recipients spent 2, 3, and 4 days in the Intensive Care Unit and were discharged home at 6, 7, and 9 days, respectively. None of the patients experienced early allograft dysfunction or any early technical complication or non-anastomotic biliary stricture. CONCLUSIONS Creating an intravenous-line tubing bridge from the splenic artery to the superior mesenteric artery prior to NMP of liver grafts associated with replaced right hepatic artery could reduce the cold ischemia time associated with vessel reconstruction and reduce bleeding risk during NMP. This is feasible, safe, and effective.


Structural analysis of succinoglycan oligosaccharides from Sinorhizobium meliloti strains with different host compatibility phenotypes.
Sinorhizobium meliloti NRG247 has a Fix(+) phenotype on Medicago truncatula A20 and is Fix(-) on M. truncatula A17, and the phenotype is reversed with S. meliloti NRG185. As the succinoglycan was shown to impact host specificity, an analysis of the succinoglycan oligosaccharides produced by each strain was conducted. The symbiotically active succinoglycan trimeric oligosaccharides (STOs) from the two S. meliloti strains were compared by chromatography and mass spectrometry, and the analysis of the S. meliloti NRG247 oligosaccharides showed that this strain produces an abundance of STO trimer 1 (T1), containing no succinate (i.e., three nonsuccinylated repeats), yet the low-molecular-weight pool contained no nonsuccinylated monomers (potential repeats). This showed that STO T1 is likely to be the active signal on M. truncatula A20 and that the biosynthesis of the STOs is not a random polymerization of the monomer population. The results also suggest that the fully succinylated STO T7 is required for the infection of M. truncatula A17.


Calix[4]arene-functionalized naphthalene and perylene imide dyes.
[reaction: see text] Calix[4]arenes bearing one, two, or four 1,8-naphthyl imide groups at the wide rim and bis-calix[4]arenes connected via perylene-bisimide dye spacers have been synthesized. The low-temperature NMR spectrum of the tetranaphthylimide suggests, in agreement with a crystal structure, a C2-symmetrical pinched cone conformation stabilized via face-to-face pi-pi interactions between opposite naphthylimide groups. UV-vis and fluorescence studies have been carried out for the perylene bis-calix[4]arene dyes.


Association between a dietary quality index based on the food standard agency nutrient profiling system and cardiovascular disease risk among French adults.
In France, the implementation of a front-of-pack (FOP) nutrition label-the 5-Colour Nutrition Label (5-CNL) is currently under consideration as a strategic tool to allow consumers making healthier food choices. This FOP label is based on the British Food Standards Agency Nutrient Profiling System (FSA-NPS), reflecting the overall nutritional quality of foods. At the individual level, an energy-weighted mean of all FSA-NPS scores of foods usually consumed has been elaborated (FSA-NPS DI). Our objective was to investigate the prospective association between the FSA-NPS DI and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. 75,801 participants to the NutriNet-Santé cohort, who completed at least three 24h dietary records during the first 2y of the follow-up, were followed between 2009 and 2016. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were used to characterize the associations between FSA-NPS DI and the incidence of CVDs. 509 major cardiovascular events were diagnosed (262 coronary heart diseases and 247 strokes). A higher FSA-NPS DI, characterizing lower dietary quality, was associated with increased CVD risk (HRfor a 1-point increment=1.08 (1.03-1.13); HRQ4vs.Q1=1.40 (1.06-1.84), Ptrend Q4-Q1=0.01). This association tended to be stronger in overweight subjects (HRfor a 1-point increment=1.12 (1.04-1.19); Pinteraction=0.003). These results suggest that lower dietary quality, as reflected by a higher FSA-NPS DI, may be associated with a significant increase in cardiovascular risk, especially in at-risk individuals (overweight population). They support the public health relevance of developing a front-of-pack nutrition label based on this score.


Rapid detection of human rotavirus using colorimetric nucleic acid sequence-based amplification (NASBA)-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in sewage treatment effluent.
A colorimetric nucleic acid sequence-based amplification-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (NASBA-ELISA) was developed for rapid detection and identification of human rotavirus. Oligonucleotide primers targeting gene 9 encoding a serotype-specific antigen VP7 were selected and used for the amplification of viral RNA by the isothermal NASBA process, resulting in the accumulation of biotinylated RNA amplicons. Amplicons were hybridized with a specific amino-linked oligonucleotide probe covalently immobilized on microtiter plates. The DNA-RNA hybrids were colorimetrically detected by the addition of streptavidin-peroxidase conjugate and tetramethylbenzidine substrate. Using the NASBA-ELISA system, as little as 0.2 PFU (4 x 10(1) PFU ml(-1)) and 15 PFU (3 x 10(3) PFU ml(-1)) of rotavirus were detected within 6 h in spiked MQ water and sewage treatment effluent respectively. No interference was encountered in the amplification and detection of rotavirus in the presence of non-target RNA or DNA. Moreover, the presence of non-target bacteria and virus does not generate any non-specific signal, confirming the specificity of the developed NASBA-ELISA system and its effectiveness in specifically detecting rotavirus. The NASBA-ELISA system offers several advantages in terms of sensitivity, rapidity and simplicity. This technique should be readily adaptable for detection of other RNA viruses in both foods and clinical samples.


Carabelli Trait in Primary Tooth - A Case Report.
The Carabelli cusp (Cusp of Carabelli) is a tubercle or the extra fifth cusp found on the mesiopalatal cusp of the maxillary permanent and deciduous molars. It is nonfunctional but it can be used to distinguish populations and is also used in forensic and anthropological studies. This condition is uncommon on deciduous teeth. In this case report, we present a rare case of unilateral presence of cusp of Carabelli in deciduous dentition.


[Angiogenic ability of 3 different tissues-derived mesenchymal stem cells on endothelial progenitor cells].
To compare the ability between bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) (BM-MSCs) and adipose-derived MSCs (AD-MSCs) or umbilical cord-derived MSCs (UC-MSCs) on promotion of vessels formation and vessels stabilization relevant to the functions of EPCs. Methods: In vitro, co-culture blood vessel test was performed to compare the angiogenic ability between BM-MSCs, AD-MSCs or UC-MSCs. In vivo, angiogenic assay dependent on basement membrane matrix Matrigel and immunohistochemistry were performed to compare the ability of vessels formation functions between BM-MSCs and AD-MSCs or UC-MSCs. Results: The lengths and dots of vascular structures formed by EPCs on AD-MSCs layer are greater than those by EPCs on BM-MSCs layer and UC-MSCs layer in angiogenic assay in vitro. The stability of the capillary-like structures formed by EPCs with AD-MSCs on Matrigel was more stable than that by the BM-MSCs, UC-MSCs or EPCs. AD-MSCs and EPCs could form abundant functional vessels with blood perfusion in Matrigelin vivo; UC-MSCs and EPCs could form a few functional vessels with blood perfusion in Matrigelin vivo; BM-MSCs and EPCs could form broken vessels with hemocytes leakage in Matrigel in vivo. Conclusion: AD-MSCs have the stronger ability to promote the angiogenesis and stabilize the vessels compared with BM-MSCs or UC-MSCs ex vivo and in vivo.


[Cytomegalovirus retinitis in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus].
We report a rare case of cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis in association with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). A 36-year-old female was admitted to our hospital because of nephrotic syndrome and renal insufficiency due to lupus nephritis. After steroid and immunosuppressant treatment for lupus nephritis, she began to complain of floaters and visual disturbance. She was diagnosed as having CMV retinitis based upon the depressed immune status and the clinical appearance of fundus. As soon as CMV retinitis was diagnosed, antiviral treatment with intravenous ganciclovir was instituted and maintained for 7 months. She was treated successfully and almost no progression or relapse of CMV retinitis was documented without ganciclovir maintenance treatment during a 2 year follow-up period. It is suggested that CMV retinitis can occur in patients with SLE treated with steroid and immunosuppressant, indicating the importance of early diagnosis and treatment for CMV retinitis.


Patient-specific quality assurance for intracranial cases in robotic radiosurgery system.
The purpose of this study was to perform pretreatment patient-specific quality assurance (QA) for intracranial irradiation using CyberKnife with an ion chamber. Twenty-five intracranial plans created using the ray-tracing algorithm were used for this study. Computed tomography (CT) images of the water-equivalent RW3 slab phantom with PinPoint ionization chamber were acquired with 1-mm slice thickness and transferred to the MultiPlan treatment planning system (TPS). Four gold fiducial markers embedded into two different plates were used to tracking during the irradiation. Intracranial plans were transferred to CT images of the RW3 phantom. The isodose curves and sensitive volume of ion chamber were overlapped. Point dose measurements were performed three times and the mean point doses were calculated for each plan. The mean doses measured by the PinPoint ion chamber were compared with those of the calculated by MultiPlan TPS in the sensitive volume of PinPoint. The mean percentage difference (MPD) in point dose measurements was -2.44±1.97 for 25 plans. The maximum and minimum percentage differences between the measured and calculated absolute point doses were -7.14 and 0.23, respectively. The MPD was -1.70±1.90 for 12 plans using a fixed collimator and -3.11±1.86 for 13 plans using an IRIS cone. Point dose measurement is a reliable and functional method for pre-treatment patient-specific QA in intracranial CyberKnife plans. Point dose verification should be performed to correct any possible errors prior to patient treatment. It is recommended for use in patient-specific QA process in the CyberKnife plans.


Endoscopic intratympanic methylprednisolone injection for treatment of refractory sudden sensorineural hearing loss and one case in pregnancy.
to evaluate the effectiveness of transtympanic methylprednisolone injection in patients with refractory sudden sensorineural hearing loss via endoscopic diode laser myringotomy. thirty-six sudden sensorineural hearing loss patients who failed routine oral steroid therapy and two patients with a contraindication to systemic steroid received intratympanic methylprednisolone injections at the round window by endoscopic diode laser myringotomy once every other day with a maximum of four injections. One of the two patients with a contraindication to oral steroid was a normal pregnant woman, whereas the other was an active digestive ulcer patient. Hearing level, dizziness, and tinnitus were evaluated before the first procedure and 20 days after the last injection. thirteen of 38 patients (34.2%) showed an improvement in hearing levels. The average improvement 20 days after treatment was 54 dB in the hearing thresholds of 125 to 8000 Hz. The complete recovery rate of intratympanic methylprednisolone injection (mean 2.6 times) was 21% (8 of 38). There were no serious unexpected adverse events in the 38 patients except one aggravation of hearing loss occurred after intratympanic injection. Temporary dizziness in seven subjects and otalgia in six subjects occurred after injection, which was relieved after 0.5 to 2 hours without special treatment. No perforation of tympanic membrane or infection occurred 20 days after the last injection. topical intratympanic injection may be considered a substitute for the systemic administration in patients with refractory sudden hearing loss, especially those who have contraindications to systemic steroid administration. The endoscope is helpful for ensuring the effective delivery of drugs into the round window. Prospective randomized controlled trials should be designed for further investigation.


Influence of the structure of new anthracycline antibiotics on their biological properties.
In the search for new derivatives of anthracycline antibiotics with advantageous biological properties, particularly with lower toxicity and/or higher activity, a series of new analogs of antibiotics applied in therapy such as daunorubicin, doxorubicin, as well as epidoxorubicin and, for comparison, analogs of epidaunorubicin, have been synthesized. Our results show that the new derivatives have antiproliferative activities similar to or higher than the parent antibiotics. The toxicities of these analogs were significantly lower, with LD50 values from 1.8- to 18.4-fold higher than the referential drugs. Cardiotoxicity determinations, using male mice treated with a single dose of 75% of the LD50 values of all tested compounds, indicated that the cardiotoxicity of the new analogs is significantly lower than that of the parent drugs.


[Impact assessment of the implementation of an integrated care model for thyroid disease at the University Hospital "Federico II" of Naples (Campania Region, Southern Italy): an interrupted time series analysis].
to evaluate the implementation of an integrated care model for thyroid disease on thyroid surgery at the University Hospital "Federico II" of Naples (Campania Region, Southern Italy). quasi-experimental design employing an interrupted time series analysis. all subjects who were admitted to the University Hospital "Federico II" for thyroid surgery between January 2008 and December 2018. The integrated care model for thyroid disease was implemented starting from January 2016. rate of partial thyroidectomies over all thyroidectomies; rate of diagnosed thyroid cancers over all diagnosed thyroid tumours; length of stay (LOS). Differences pre- and post-interventions were assessed employing Poisson (for count outcomes) and linear (for continuous outcomes) regression models. Models were adjusted for age, gender, tumour diagnosis (none, benign, malignant), Charlson index, and discharge month. data on 4,233 thyroidectomies were included. There was no difference between pre- and post-intervention trends for the rate of partial thyroidectomies over all thyroidectomies (pre-intervention: IRR 1.00; 95%CI 0.99;1.00 - post-intervention: IRR 1.00; 95%CI 0.98;1.02) and for the rate of diagnosed thyroid cancers over all thyroid tumours (pre-intervention IRR 0.99; 95%CI 0.99;1.00 - post-intervention IRR 1.00; 95%CI 0.99;1.01). On the contrary, the LOS reduced from 4.5 (±4.3) days in 2008 to 3.2 (±3.2) days in 2018. The multivariate analysis confirmed this reduction, estimated to be 1.1 days on average in the pre-intervention eight-year period (pre-intervention coefficient -0.01; 95%CI -0.02;-0.01), followed by an even greater reduction in the post-intervention three-year period which was estimated to be 1.1 day (post-intervention: coefficient -0.03; 95%CI -0.05;-0.01). the implementation of an integrated care model for thyroid disease contributed to reduce the LOS for thyroidectomies, improving the efficiency in the management of thyroid disease. However, this intervention had no impact in reducing the rate of total thyroidectomies.


A body-fixed-sensor-based analysis of stair ascent and sit-to-stand to detect age-related differences in leg-extensor power.
Human ageing is accompanied by a progressive decline in leg-extensor power (LEP). LEP is typically measured with specialized and expensive equipment, which limits the large-scale applicability. Previously, sensor-based trunk kinematics have been used to estimate the vertical power required to elevate the body's center of mass during functional tests, but the link with LEP and age remains to be investigated. Therefore, we investigated whether a body-fixed sensor-based analysis of power during stair ascent (SA) and sit-to-stand (STS) is positively related to LEP and whether its ability to detect age-related declines is similar. In addition, the effect of load during SA and STS was investigated. 98 adults (20-70 years) performed a leg press to assess LEP, SA and 5-repetition STS tests. In SA and STS, two conditions were tested: unloaded and loaded (+10% body mass). An inertial measurement unit was used to analyze (sub)-durations and vertical power. SA and STS power were more related to LEP than duration parameters (i.e. 0.80-0.81 for power and -0.41 --0.66 for duration parameters, p < 0.05). The average annual age-related percent change was higher in SA power (-1.38%) than in LEP (-0.86%) and STS power (-0.38%) (p < 0.05). Age explained 29% in SA power (p < 0.001), as opposed to 14% in LEP (p < 0.001) and a non-significant 2% in STS power (p = 0.102). The addition of 10% load did not influence the age-related decline of SA and STS power nor the relationship with LEP. These results demonstrate the potential of SA tests to detect age-related deterioration in neuromuscular function. SA seems more sensitive to detect age-related changes than LEP, probably because of the additional balance component and plantar- and dorsiflexor activity. On the contrary, STS is less sensitive to age-related changes because of a ceiling effect in well-functioning adults.


Tilted pillar array fabrication by the combination of proton beam writing and soft lithography for microfluidic cell capture Part 2: Image sequence analysis based evaluation and biological application.
As a continuation of our previously published work, this paper presents a detailed evaluation of a microfabricated cell capture device utilizing a doubly tilted micropillar array. The device was fabricated using a novel hybrid technology based on the combination of proton beam writing and conventional lithography techniques. Tilted pillars offer unique flow characteristics and support enhanced fluidic interaction for improved immunoaffinity based cell capture. The performance of the microdevice was evaluated by an image sequence analysis based in-house developed single-cell tracking system. Individual cell tracking allowed in-depth analysis of the cell-chip surface interaction mechanism from hydrodynamic point of view. Simulation results were validated by using the hybrid device and the optimized surface functionalization procedure. Finally, the cell capture capability of this new generation microdevice was demonstrated by efficiently arresting cells from a HT29 cell-line suspension.


Gender attitude to the empowerment of women: an independent right to contraceptive acceptance, choice and practice.
Multiple factors influence the acceptance, choice and utilisation of contraceptive. The objective of the study is to identify individual attitude towards the empowerment of women to an independent right to accept, choose and utilise a contraceptive method of their choice without recourse to their male partners. This is a cross sectional study of men and women of different socio-cultural background working or utilising the services of the Federal Medical Centre Gombe, Nigeria. There were 554 respondents. Only 187 (34.4%) respondents thought that all women, irrespective of marital status, should have an independent right to contraceptive acceptance, choice and practice. Significantly more men (85.4%) than women (61.8%) rejected that women should have an independent right to contraceptive acceptance, choice and practice. Majority of both gender favoured male influence in the acceptance and choice of method of contraception. Our study has re-echoed the importance of male involvement in contraception decision-making.


Salmonella enterica causes more severe inflammatory disease in C57/BL6 Nramp1G169 mice than Sv129S6 mice.
Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) causes systemic inflammatory disease in mice by colonizing cells of the mononuclear leukocyte lineage. Mouse strains resistant to S. Typhimurium, including Sv129S6, have an intact Nramp1 (Slc11a1) allele and survive acute infection, whereas C57/BL6 mice, homozygous for a mutant Nramp1 allele, Nramp1(G169D) , develop lethal infections. Restoration of Nramp1 (C57/BL6 Nramp1(G169) ) reestablishes resistance to S. Typhimurium; mice survive at least 3 to 4 weeks postinfection. Since many transgenic mouse strains are on a C57/BL6 genetic background, C57/BL6 Nramp1(G169) mice provide a model to examine host genetic determinants of resistance to infection. To further evaluate host immune response to S. Typhimurium, we performed comparative analyses of Sv129S6 and C57/BL6 Nramp1(G169) mice 3 weeks following oral S. Typhimurium infection. C57/BL6 Nramp1(G169) mice developed more severe inflammatory disease with splenic bacterial counts 1000-fold higher than Sv129S6 mice and relatively greater splenomegaly and blood neutrophil and monocyte counts. Infected C57/BL6 Nramp1(G169) mice developed higher proinflammatory serum cytokine and chemokine responses (interferon-γ, tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin [IL]-1β, and IL-2 and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 and chemokine [C-X-C motif] ligand 1, respectively) and marked decreases in anti-inflammatory serum cytokine concentrations (IL-10, IL-4) compared with Sv129S6 mice postinfection. Splenic dendritic cells and macrophages in infected compared with control mice increased to a greater extent in C57/BL6 Nramp1(G169) mice than in Sv129S6 mice. Overall, data show that despite the Nramp1 gene present in both strains, C57/BL6 Nramp1(G169) mice develop more severe, Th1-skewed, acute inflammatory responses to S. Typhimurium infection compared with Sv129S6 mice. Both strains are suitable model systems for studying inflammation in the context of adaptive immunity.


Triglyceride-Glucose Index and Hepatic Steatosis Index for the assessment of liver steatosis in HCV patients.
Liver steatosis in patients with chronic infection of hepatitis C virus (HCV) is important from multiple standpoints: faster disease progression, more frequent hepatocellular carcinoma and cirrhosis development or worse therapy response. Liver biopsy as diagnostic method, is in recent years more and more challenged due to its well-known flaws. Hepatic steatosis index (HSI) and triglyceride-glucose (TyG) Index, are surrogate scores developed in the first place for noninvasive assessment of steatosis in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, their use in the context of chronic hepatitis C (CHC) virus infection is still unclear. Aim of our study was to assess the accuracy of both HSI and TyG index in patients with CHC. The cohort included 814 patients with CHC infection in whom liver biopsy was performed. After implementing strict criteria for sample adequacy and necessary data, 424 patients were finally enrolled in our study. Histological findings were used as a reference point, and surrogate scores HSI and TyG index were expressed through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves in order to assess their ability in determining patients without (<5%) or with steatosis (>5%), but also to address their ability in assessing between different degrees of steatosis. The average age of study population was 37.09 years and the majority of patients were men (67%). Liver steatosis was detected in approximately half of the liver biopsy samples (50.4%). About 5% of them had severe steatosis. The area under the ROC curve values for HSI and TyG index when detecting liver steatosis were 0.76 and 0.629, respectively. Similar values were obtained comparing between absence of steatosis and mild steatosis (5-30%). Non-invasive surrogate scores HSI and TyG index in CHC patients, have good performance to detect the presence of steatosis. In this context, these tools are cheap, widely available and could be valuable asset in liver steatosis assessment outside liver biopsy.


Usage and Side Effects of Neuroleptics in Elderly Japanese Patients.
The authors assessed the use and side effects of neuroleptics (especially tardive dyskinesia [TD]) in elderly patients in Japan (N = 73; mean age 76 years, 32 men and 41 women) admitted for the first time to six psychiatric hospitals. The comparison group was 74 elderly patients with dementia admitted to nursing homes or psychiatric hospitals and not treated with neuroleptics. The mean dose of neuroleptics in the Japanese elderly patients was lower than that in Western countries; however, the prevalence of side effects was higher, possibly because of polypharmacy. The total number of psychotropic drugs correlated significantly with the number of side effects. Incidence of dyskinesia in the patients treated with neuroleptics (for a mean of 20 months) was significantly greater (44%) than that in non-neuroleptic-treated patients (14%). A significant risk factor for TD was long-term neuroleptic therapy, whereas age, gender, psychiatric diagnosis, neuroleptic dose, and antiparkinsonian drug use were not risk factors.


Novel Mutations in the Crystallin Gene in Age-Related Cataract Patients from a North Indian Population.
Cataract is the most prevalent leading cause of visual impairment and blindness worldwide. In comparison to congenital cataract, which affects relatively few individuals, age-related cataract is responsible for slightly half of all cases of blindness worldwide. Although significant work has been done, the genetic aspect of age-related cataract is still in its infancy. The current study was performed to analyze the mutations and polymorphisms in the CRYAA, CRYAB, CRYBB1, and GJA8 genes in 40 unrelated age-related cataract patients. Mutational analysis of the above-mentioned genes in 40 cataract cases revealed 14 different substitutions of which 8 variants were novel and 6 were reported SNPs. Two disease-causing mutations, g.44590631G>A (p.R65Q) and g.44592224G>A (p.R119H), were also observed in the CRYAA gene. The disease-causing variants mildly affect the stability, functionality, and localization of crystallin, and, with progressing age, a small change in the microenvironment of the crystallin lens occurs. This change in combination with a mutation may significantly alter the functionality of the crystallin protein, leading to age-related cataract.


Does respiratory muscle training improve cough flow in acute stroke? Pilot randomized controlled trial.
Cough protects the lungs from aspiration. We investigated whether respiratory muscle training may improve respiratory muscle and cough function, and potentially reduce pneumonia risk in acute stroke. We conducted a single-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial in 82 patients with stroke (mean age, 64±14 years; 49 men) within 2 weeks of stroke onset. Participants were masked to treatment allocation and randomized to 4 weeks of daily expiratory (n=27), inspiratory (n=26), or sham training (n=25), using threshold resistance devices. Primary outcome was the change in peak expiratory cough flow of maximal voluntary cough. Intention-to-treat analyses were conducted using ANCOVA, adjusting for baseline prognostic covariates. There were significant improvements in the mean maximal inspiratory (14 cmH2O; P<0.0001) and expiratory (15 cmH2O; P<0.0001) mouth pressure and peak expiratory cough flow of voluntary cough (74 L/min; P=0.0002) between baseline and 28 days in all groups. Peak expiratory cough flow of capsaicin-induced reflex cough was unchanged. There were no between-group differences that could be attributed to respiratory muscle training. There were also no differences in the 90-day incidence of pneumonia between the groups (P=0.65). Respiratory muscle function and cough flow improve with time after acute stroke. Additional inspiratory or expiratory respiratory muscle training does not augment or expedite this improvement. http://www.controlled-trials.com. Unique identifier: ISRCTN40298220.


Myelodysplastic Syndrome in Pakistan: Clinicohematological Characteristics, Cytogenetic Profile, and Risk Stratification.
Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) is a group of bone marrow diseases that not only have variable morphological presentation and heterogeneous clinical courses but also have a wide range of cytogenetic abnormalities. Clinicohematological parameters have a significant role in diagnosis and along with identification of cytogenetic abnormalities are important for prognostic scoring and risk stratification of patients to plan management and make treatment decisions. This study aimed to determine the clinicohematological characteristics, cytogenetic abnormalities, and risk stratification of newly diagnosed de novo MDS patients. This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Hematology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi, from January 2013 to January 2017. Patients were diagnosed on the basis of World Health Organization criteria for MDS, clinicohematological parameters were noted, and cytogenetic analysis was performed. Risk stratification was done using the Revised International Prognostic Scoring System. A total of 178 cases of MDS were analyzed, including 119 males (66.9%) and 59 females (33.1%). The median age was 58 years. The most common presenting feature was anemia in 162 (91%) of the patients. MDS with multilineage dysplasia was the most common diagnosis, seen in 103 (57.9%) patients. A normal karyotype was seen in 95 (53.4%), while 83 (46.6%) showed clonal karyotypic abnormalities at diagnosis. Of these, the common abnormalities found were trisomy 8, complex karyotype, and del 5q. Risk stratification revealed low-risk disease in 73 (41%) patients. Cytogenetic analysis showed the normal karyotype to be the most common while risk stratification revealed a predominance of low-risk disease at the time of presentation.


Opposing effects of spinal nerve ligation on calcium-activated potassium currents in axotomized and adjacent mammalian primary afferent neurons.
Calcium-activated potassium channels regulate AHP and excitability in neurons. Since we have previously shown that axotomy decreases I(Ca) in DRG neurons, we investigated the association between I(Ca) and K((Ca)) currents in control medium-sized (30-39 microM) neurons, as well as axotomized L5 or adjacent L4 DRG neurons from hyperalgesic rats following L5 SNL. Currents in response to AP waveform voltage commands were recorded first in Tyrode's solution and sequentially after: 1) blocking Na(+) current with NMDG and TTX; 2) addition of K((Ca)) blockers with a combination of apamin 1 microM, iberiotoxin 200 nM, and clotrimazole 500 nM; 3) blocking remaining K(+) current with the addition of 4-AP, TEA-Cl, and glibenclamide; and 4) blocking I(Ca) with cadmium. In separate experiments, currents were evoked (HP -60 mV, 200 ms square command pulses from -100 to +50 mV) while ensuring high levels of activation of I(K(Ca)) by clamping cytosolic Ca(2+) concentration with pipette solution in which Ca(2+) was buffered to 1 microM. This revealed I(K(Ca)) with components sensitive to apamin, clotrimazole and iberiotoxin. SNL decreases total I(K(Ca)) in axotomized (L5) neurons, but increases total I(K(Ca)) in adjacent (L4) DRG neurons. All I(K(Ca)) subtypes are decreased by axotomy, but iberiotoxin-sensitive and clotrimazole-sensitive current densities are increased in adjacent L4 neurons after SNL. In an additional set of experiments we found that small-sized control DRG neurons also expressed iberiotoxin-sensitive currents, which are reduced in both axotomized (L5) and adjacent (L4) neurons. Axotomy decreases I(K(Ca)) due to a direct effect on K((Ca)) channels. Axotomy-induced loss of I(Ca) may further potentiate current reduction. This reduction in I(K(Ca)) may contribute to elevated excitability after axotomy. Adjacent neurons (L4 after SNL) exhibit increased I(K(Ca)) current.


Development of a validated search filter for Ovid Embase for degenerative cervical myelopathy.
Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) is a recently proposed umbrella term for symptomatic cervical spinal cord compression secondary to degeneration of the spine. Currently literature searching for DCM is challenged by the inconsistent uptake of the term 'DCM' with many overlapping keywords and numerous synonyms. Here, we adapt our previous Ovid medline search filter for the Ovid embase database, to support comprehensive literature searching. Both embase and medline are recommended as a minimum for systematic reviews. References contained within embase identified in our prior study formed a 'development gold standard' reference database (N = 220). The search filter was adapted for embase and checked against the reference database. The filter was then validated against the 'validation gold standard'. A direct translation was not possible, as medline indexing for DCM and the keywords search field were not available in embase. We also used the 'focus' function to improve precision. The resulting search filter has 100% sensitivity in testing. We have developed a validated search filter capable of retrieving DCM references in embase with high sensitivity. In the absence of consistent terminology and indexing, this will support more efficient and robust evidence synthesis in the field.


[Post-partum spontaneous coronary artery dissection. Clinical report].
The authors report the clinical case of a 32 years old woman who suffered a spontaneous dissection of the common trunk, anterior descending, intermediary and circumflex coronary arteries, on the 6th post partum day. The diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction was made, through ECG and enzymatic studies and the patient was transferred to a Coronary Unit. Coronary angiography disclosed those lesions and the patient underwent a triple coronary bypass graft, under extracorporeal circulation. The post operative course was uneventful. Eight months after the operation she was found in good condition, free of symptoms and with a normal pattern of life.


Endurance improved by ingestion of a glucose polymer supplement.
The effect of glucose polymer (GP) ingestion upon endurance performance during walking exercise at 45% VO2max was examined. Also, performance on a battery of psychomotor tests was assessed to determine if exhaustion from endurance exercise was related to central nervous system dysfunction. Ten trained male subjects ingested approximately 120 g of GP in four equally-divided dosages 60, 90, 120, and 150 min following the start of exercise. This treatment significantly increased time to exhaustion by 11.5% as compared to the control (C) group (GP=299.0 +/- 9.8 min; C=268.3 +/- 11.8 min). No difference in VO2 (1 X min-1) or perceived exertion was noted between treatments. As a result of the GP feedings the rate of carbohydrate utilization during the GP trial was 0.53 g X min-1 greater than during the C trial. However, during the GP trial plasma glucose did not fall below the pre-exercise level and was significantly higher than the C plasma glucose concentration at exhaustion. No differences in psychomotor performance between treatments or between rested and exhausted states for either the C or GP treatments were noted. These data suggest that exhaustion was not a result of hypoglycemia or central nervous system dysfunction and that glucose polymer supplements may enhance endurance capacity.


Stress-activated MAP kinase (mitogen-activated protein kinase) pathways of budding and fission yeasts.
All eukaryotic cells share the ability to sense and rapidly respond to environmental stress by initiating cyto-protective programmes of gene expression, protein translation and protein degradation. The molecular basis underlying these processes is, however, not well understood. Recently, attention has become focused on an evolutionarily conserved family of protein kinases called the stress-activated mitogen-activated protein kinases (SAPKs) that are activated when cells are challenged with a variety of environmental stresses or cytotoxic agents. Two members of the SAPK family, HOG1 and Sty1/Spc1, have been identified in the distantly related budding and fission yeasts, respectively. This has allowed researchers to genetically and biochemically dissect the structure of these pathways to begin to understand how they are activated and the role of the SAPKs in the cyto-protective response. In this chapter, I compare the structure of the SAPK pathways in the two yeasts and illustrate how this knowledge may benefit our understanding of stress sensing in mammalian cells.


Post-acute COVID-19 functional movement disorder.
Movement disorders are rare compared to other neurological manifestations of COVID-19. Patients who have recovered from acute severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infection continue to have multiple debilitating symptoms months later. We report a case of 54-year-old man who presented with repetitive flexion movement of head which started 2 months after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infection. Extensive work-up including neurological examination, neuroimaging, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and electroencephalogram were normal. The self-reported questionnaires for depression and anxiety were suggestive of severe anxiety and depression. The patient continued to have the jerky movements besides cognitive impairment, frequent headaches, intermittent shortness of breath, sleeping difficulties, fatigue, and dizziness at 1-year follow-up. This case highlights the presentation of functional movement disorder as one of the manifestations of underlying neuropsychiatric condition. Our patient had significant effect on quality of life with high symptom burden which further highlights the struggle and unmet needs of the patients with multiple symptoms after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infection.


[Bronchioloalveolar carcinoma of the lung associated with a highly positive pANCA-titer and clinical signs of microscopic polyangiitis].
Autoimmune paraneoplastic processes are investigated in detail concerning the Lambert-Eaton-Myasthenic-Syndrome for bronchial carcinomas. For the cutaneous leukocytoclastic vasculitis as a non-ANCA-associated vasculitis the paraneoplastic genesis is described. Litttle is known about ANCA-associated vasculitis as a paraneoplastic autoimmune phenomenon. We present the case of a 62 year old woman referred to our hospital presenting air-space shadows mainly in both upper lobes, skin rash with petechial bleeding and a highly positive pANCA-titer. A bronchioloalveolar carcinoma was diagnosed by surgical biopsy. The patient developed renal failure postsurgically and died a few weeks after the diagnosis was established. This is the 5 (th) case in literature of the temporal concurrence of a bronchial carcinoma and an ANCA-associated vasculitis. So far only 24 cases of a solid tumor occuring simultaneously with an ANCA-positive vasculitis are reported in literature.


Variables in recording motor conduction of the radial nerve.
Motor conduction examinations of the right radial nerve were performed on 25 healthy students. The purposes of this study were to determine the optimum position for placement of the active recording electrode, to determine the optimum position of the elbow during conduction examinations, and to report normal values for radial motor nerve characteristics. The radial nerve was stimulated at the supraclavicular notch, axilla, lateral surface of the brachium, and over the middle third of the forearm. The evoked responses were recorded from the abductor pollicis longus or the extensor pollicis brevis. The optimum site for placement of the active recording electrode was found over the medial aspect of the abductor pollicis longus or the extensor pollicis brevis and at a point that represents 28 percent of the forearm length. The optimum position for the elbow was full extension. The distal latency of 2.6 msec, the velocity of the brachium-forearm segment of 50 meters per second, and amplitude of muscle action potentials of 4.0 mv may serve as the limits of normal values for motor conduction of the radial nerve.


Artificial reprogramming of human somatic cells to generate pluripotent stem cells: a possible alternative to the controversial use of human embryonic stem cells.
Recent findings showed certain specific factors had the ability to reprogram in vitro human somatic cells, which in turn could generate pluripotent stem cells. Remarkably, somatic cell-derived pluripotent stem cells recapitulated the features of human embryonic stem cells, as demonstrated independently by two groups of investigators. The reprogramming of somatic cells may represent an alternative to the controversial use of human embryonic stem cells in transplantation therapy and in a variety of other applications, such as generation of cellular models for human diseases and for drug research and development. However, the intrinsic expression of epigenetic reprogramming factors in somatic cells requires the use either of lentiviral- or retroviral-mediated gene transfer, which may cause insertional mutagenesis-induced malignancies. In summary, the recent achievements for the in vitro reprogramming of human somatic cells to a pluripotent state can be considered an important advancement in stem cell research. As for future clinical applications in regenerative medicine, it is necessary to tackle the issue of insertional mutagenesis, which is associated with all types of integrating gene delivery systems. Another critical issue is the control of the tumorigenic potential of somatic cell-derived pluripotent stem cells. As it stands, the newly developed technology can be used to engineer useful models for the study of human diseases and development of novel therapeutics.


Folic acid treatment of fragile X males: a further study.
Investigations of the effect of high dose folic acid treatment of fragile X syndrome in males has produced mixed results. However, no study had examined the possible drug effects of folic acid on non-fragile X control males. Therefore, we examined the effect of folic acid on fragile X males using non-fragile X control males. Subjects were assigned randomly to an ABA or BAB design. Duration of either folic acid or placebo condition was 4 months. Folic acid or placebo was given in a double-blind fashion. At the end of each condition, the subjects' behavior was assessed. At the end of the study, parents were asked to complete a questionnaire. Using parents' responses, we examined 22 items on the Autistic Descriptors Checklist and two subscales from the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale which corresponded to areas of behavior parents' noted to have shown improvement. We did not find significant differences between fragile X males and control males, within subjects, nor across folic acid and placebo conditions. Thus, our follow-up study confirms and extends our original findings, as well as those of other researchers: namely, that no dramatic changes in behavior result from high dose folic acid. Moreover, subtle improvements observed in earlier investigations were not confirmed.


Experimental overview on pairing mechanisms of BiCh2-based (Ch: S, Se) layered superconductors.
BiCh2-based (Ch: S, Se) layered superconductors have attracted extensive attentions because of variation of materials and physical characteristics, which include relatively large spin-orbit coupling originating from bismuth 6porbitals, and the possibility of anisotropic superconducting gap. Some of theoretical studies suggested that anisotropic superconductivity is realized in the BiCh2-based superconductors. In experimental studies, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurement on the superconducting states of Nd(O,F)BiS2have revealed the anisotropic structure of the superconducting gap, and the absence of isotope effect have been reported, indicating unconventional superconductivity pairing. Furthermore, two-fold-symmetric in-plane anisotropy of magnetoresistance have been observed in the superconducting states of some of Bi(S,Se)2-based systems like La(O,F)Bi(S,Se)2while the crystal structure possesses a tetragonal square plane with four-fold symmetry. Those results indicate nematic superconductivity is emerging in BiCh2-based superconductors. On the basis of the observations suggesting unconventional superconductivity in BiCh2-based systems, clarification of pairing mechanisms of superconductivity in BiCh2-based superconductors have been highly desired. In this article, we review experimental results on the superconducting gap structure, the pairing mechanism, and related phenomena of BiCh2-based superconductors.


Diphenylhydantoin-induced gingival hyperplasia: its response to changes in drug dosage.
Changes in gingival hyperplasia were studied in 48 patients treated for epilepsy with diphenylhydantoin (DPH) over a two-year period. During this time changes in the dose of DPH were made in some patients in order to increase control of seizures or decrease side-effects: in 27 patients the dose was increased, in nine it was decreased and in 12 the dose remained unchanged. It was found that the severity of gingival hyperplasia varied directly with both the dose and serum level of the drug.


Outpatient endoscopic quadruple hamstring ACL reconstruction.
When a surgical reconstruction is necessary for a patient with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, autologus tissue from either a bone-patellar tendon-bone or hamstring tendon grafts is preferable. There are relative and absolute contraindications for the use of either tissue, in addition to the surgeon's own preference. For example, a patient with Erlos-Danlos ligamentous laxity is not a candidate for a hamstring ACL reconstruction.


Flow Cytometry Definition of Rat Mammary Epithelial Cell Populations and Their Distinct Radiation Responses.
Breast tissue is very susceptible to radiation-induced carcinogenesis, and mammary stem/progenitor cells are potentially important targets of this. The mammary epithelium is maintained as two mostly independent lineages of luminal and basal cells. To elucidate their immediate radiation responses, we analyzed the mammary glands of female Sprague-Dawley rats, a radiation carcinogenesis model, using colony formation, flow cytometry and immunofluorescence. The results revealed that flow cytometry successfully fractionates rat mammary cells into CD49fhi CD24lo basal, CD49fmed CD24hi luminal progenitor, and CD49flo CD24hi mature luminal populations, resembling human breast, rather than mouse tissues. The colony-forming ability of the basal cells was more radiosensitive than the luminal progenitor cells. Flow cytometry and immunofluorescence showed more efficient cell cycle arrest, γ-H2AX responses, and apoptosis in the irradiated luminal progenitor cells, than in the basal cells. These results provide important insights into the early phase of radiation-induced breast cancer.


Comparison of quality-control rules used in clinical chemistry laboratories.
Numerous papers have been written to show which combinations of Shewhart-type quality-control charts are optimal for detecting systematic shifts in the mean response of a process, increases in the random error of a process, and linear drift effects in the mean response across the assay batch. One paper by Westgard et al. (Clin Chem 1977;23:1857-67) especially seems to have attracted the attention of users. Here we derive detailed results that enable the characteristics of the various Shewhart-type control schemes, including the multirule scheme (Clin Chem 1981;27:493-501), to be calculated and show that a fundamental formula proposed by Westgard et al. in the earlier paper is in error, although their derived results are not seriously wrong. We also show that, from a practical point of view, a suitably chosen Cusum scheme is near optimal for all the types and combinations of errors discussed, thereby removing the selection problem for the user.


JSparklines: making tabular proteomics data come alive.
Perhaps the most common way of presenting proteomics data, and indeed life sciences data in general, is by using some form of tabular data. And while tables can be very informative and contain lots of information, the format can be challenging to interpret visually. An elegant and efficient solution is to extend the textual and numerical information with an additional visual layer, referred to as sparklines, making it intuitive to draw inferences about the properties of the underlying data. We here present a free and open source Java library called JSparklines (http://jsparklines.googlecode.com) that allows straightforward addition of a substantial list of customizable sparklines to tabular data representations, and we show examples of how these sparklines greatly simplify the interpretation of the tabular data.


Essential trace metal excretion from rats with lead exposure and during chelation therapy.
Urinary excretion of lead, zinc, calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, sodium, and potassium was measured in rats daily for 1 week after a 6-week exposure to 10,000 micrograms/ml lead in drinking water. Beginning on the third day, half of the lead-exposed and control rats were injected intraperitoneally with calcium disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate (EDTA) daily for 3 days. Whole blood, plasma, and kidney metal concentrations were determined from samples obtained at the end of the experiment. Exposure to lead increased urinary excretion, not only of lead, but also of calcium, magnesium, zinc, copper, and iron. Excretion of sodium and potassium was not altered. Chelation therapy further increased excretion of lead, zinc, copper, and iron, but not magnesium. The increase in calcium excretion during chelation treatment (beyond that resulting from lead exposure per se) was accounted for by the Ca content of CaNa2-EDTA. EDTA treatment increased renal concentration of zinc but lowered renal concentration of lead, copper, and iron. These multimetal alterations may have implications for essential metal supplementation, particularly zinc, in persons being given chelation agents for excess lead exposure and in infants and children with low-level lead exposure not necessarily requiring chelation therapy.


Specification of motoneuron fate in Drosophila: integration of positive and negative transcription factor inputs by a minimal eve enhancer.
We are interested in the mechanisms that generate neuronal diversity within the Drosophila central nervous system (CNS), and in particular in the development of a single identified motoneuron called RP2. Expression of the homeodomain transcription factor Even-skipped (Eve) is required for RP2 to establish proper connectivity with its muscle target. Here we investigate the mechanisms by which eve is specifically expressed within the RP2 motoneuron lineage. Within the NB4-2 lineage, expression of eve first occurs in the precursor of RP2, called GMC4-2a. We identify a small 500 base pair eve enhancer that mediates eve expression in GMC4-2a. We show that four different transcription factors (Prospero, Huckebein, Fushi tarazu, and Pdm1) are all expressed in GMC4-2a, and are required to activate eve via this minimal enhancer, and that one transcription factor (Klumpfuss) represses eve expression via this element. All four positively acting transcription factors act independently, regulating eve but not each other. Thus, the eve enhancer integrates multiple positive and negative transcription factor inputs to restrict eve expression to a single precursor cell (GMC4-2a) and its RP2 motoneuron progeny.


A new species of Aethra (Decapoda: Brachyura: Aethridae) from the early Serravallian (middle Miocene) of the Medobory Hills (Ukraine).
A new species of the genus Aethra (A. stalennyii n. sp.) from the Badenian (middle Miocene) reef frameworks of the Maksymivka quarry in the Medobory Hills, near Ternopil (Ukraine) is described herein. Aethra stalennyii n. sp. represents the first fossil occurrence of the genus known to date. Aethra stalennyii n. sp. inhabited a very similar habitat to those all the extant congeners live in. The presence of Aethra in the middle Miocene of the Central Paratethys adds further emphasis on close affinities between Tethyan reef-associated decapod assemblages and their modern counterparts in the Indo-West Pacific waters. Aethra stalennyii n. sp. represents the first report of Aethra in the fossil record. Possible origin of the genus and subsequent migration eastward is discussed.


Fluid shift by lower body positive pressure increases pharyngeal resistance in healthy subjects.
Fluid displacement into nuchal and peripharyngeal soft tissues while recumbent may contribute to narrowing and increased airflow resistance of the pharynx (Rph), and predispose to pharyngeal collapse in patients at risk for obstructive sleep apnea. To determine whether displacement of fluid from the lower body to the neck will increase both neck circumference and Rph in healthy subjects. In 11 healthy, nonobese subjects, studied while awake and supine, leg fluid volume, neck circumference, and Rph were measured at baseline. Subjects were then randomized to a control period or to application of lower body positive pressure (LBPP) of 40 mm Hg via antishock trousers to displace fluid from the legs, after which they crossed over to the other arm. Baseline measurements were repeated at 1 and 5 min during the control and LBPP periods. Compared with the control period, application of LBPP caused a significant reduction in leg fluid volume (p < 0.001) and a significant increase in neck circumference (p = 0.004). Rph remained stable during the control period, but increased significantly from baseline after 1 and 5 min of LBPP (from 0.43 +/- 0.10 to 0.60 +/- 0.11 cm H(2)O/L/s, p = 0.034, and to 0.87 +/- 0.19 cm H(2)O/L/s, p < 0.001, compared with baseline, respectively). Fluid displacement from the legs by LBPP increases neck circumference and Rph in healthy subjects. These findings suggest the hypothesis that fluid displacement to the upper body during recumbency may predispose to pharyngeal obstruction during sleep, especially in fluid overload states, such as heart and renal failure.


Prevalence of infections in renal transplant recipients of north India.
Renal transplant is usually performed at the end stage of renal disease. Most of the transplant recipients become susceptible to infections due to chronic uremia, protein depletion, anemia and administration of immunosuppressive drugs. It is a retrospective study of 510 post renal transplant recipients. 378 (74%) renal transplant recipients suffered from the infections. Most common site of infection was urinary tract infection (53%). Out of 26% of wound infections, the deep wound infection (23%) was six times higher than superficial wound infection (3.5%). Chest infection and bacteraemia were noticed to be 18% and 8%, respectively. The common isolate was Escherichia coli (160) followed by Staphylococcus aureus (140), Enterococcus (86) and Pseudomonas (69).


Atracurium, cisatracurium, vecuronium and rocuronium in patients with renal failure.
The cumulative index, the recovery, the onset and the duration of action, of atracurium, cisatracurium, vecuronium and rocuronium in uremic patients undergoing kidney transplantation compared to healthy patients undergoing general surgery were studied. In all patients (64 uremic vs 62 "healthy" patients) after anesthesia induction, atracurium 0.5 mgxkg(-1) or cisatracurium 0.15 mgxkg(-1) or vecuronium 0.1 mgxkg(-1) or rocuronium 0.6 mgxkg(-1) were administered, and at the end of surgery when T1 reached 25% neostigmine 0.05 mgxkg(-1) was given. Neuro-muscu-lar transmission was monitored by accelerometry (TOF-GUARD, Organon). Cumulative index of vecuronium (1.3+/-0.1 vs 1.06+/-0.11, p<0.001) and rocuronium (1.45+/-0.18 vs 1.04+/-0.16, p<0.001), recovery index (time of T1 25-75) of atracurium (14.2+/-5 vs 9+/-4, p<0.005), cisatracurium (18.7+/-3 vs 9.1, p<0.001), vecuronium (18.5+/-3 vs 12.5+/-3, p<0.001) and rocuronium (18+/-6 vs 11+/-4, p<0.001) and interval T1 25% to TOF 0.8 of cisatracurium (20.5+/-1.2 vs 16+/-2.1, p<0.001) and vecuronium (27+/-6.3 vs 20+/-3.3, p<0.001) were longer in uremic patients. The onset time and the duration of action of atracurium, cisatracurium, vecuronium and rocuronium were similar in all groups compared to controls one. In patients with renal failure the use of atracurium, cisatracurium, vecuronium and rocuronium is suitable and predictable in terms of onset, and duration of action. Care has to be taken to vecuronium and rocuronium cumulative index. Neuromuscular trasmission has to be always monitored.


Heat shock preconditioning reduces the formation of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine and 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal modified proteins in ischemia-reperfused liver of rats.
Heat shock preconditioning (HSPC) is a promising strategy for providing ischemic tolerance. The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of HSPC in preventing oxidative damage of cellular proteins and DNA during ischemia-reperfusion of the liver. Male Wistar rats were divided into a heat shock group (group HS) and control (group C). Forty-eight hours prior to ischemia, rats in group HS received HSPC at 42 degrees C for 15 min. All rats received hepatic warm ischemia for 30min and subsequent reperfusion. The formation of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (HNE) modified proteins in liver tissue, survival rate of the animals, and changes in biochemical and histological parameters were compared between groups. Heat shock protein 72 was produced only in group HS. The 7-day survival of rats was significantly better in group HS (10/10) than in group C (5/10) (p < 0.01). The serum release of alanine aminotransferase (n = 10, p < 0.01) and the concentration of adenosine triphosphate in liver tissue (n = 10, p < 0.01) 40min after reperfusion was significantly better in group HS than in group C. The formation of 8-OHdG in liver tissue measured by high-performance liquid chromatography was suppressed in group HS (p < 0.01). The production of HNE-modified proteins as determined by Western-blot analysis was also decreased in group HS. These results were also confirmed by immunohistochemical analysis. As determined by levels of 8-OHdG and HNE-modified proteins produced during ischemia-reperfusion of the liver, HSPC reduced the oxidative injury of cellular proteins and DNA in the liver tissue.


Risk factors and clinical outcomes of patients with node-positive muscle-invasive bladder cancer.
Radical cystectomy and lymphadenectomy is a standard treatment for patients with high-grade, invasive bladder cancer. Although the absolute limits of lymphadectomy at the time of surgery have not been precisely defined, there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that an extended lymph node dissection may be beneficial for staging and survival in both node-negative and -positive bladder cancer patients. For lymph node-positive patients, several prognostic factors have been identified to provide risk stratification and direct the need for adjuvant treatment. These include: the pathological stage of the bladder tumor, extent of the lymphadenectomy and nodal tumor burden. The concept of lymph node density has also been identified as a prognostic factor. The literature and data on the extent of lymphadenectomy will be reviewed as well as the current prognostic variables and the benefits of adjuvant chemotherapy.


Effects of skill level and sensory information on golf putting.
To determine the role of sensory information in golf putting 22 subjects were classified as either high or low in skill. Subjects from both groups putted from two distances (5 and 15 ft.) under three different conditions: relevant visual cues (look at ball), no visual cues (blindfolded), and irrelevant visual cues (look at offset marker). The 2 X 2 X 3 analysis of variance with radial error as the dependent variable indicated significant main effects for each factor but no significant interactions. Relevant visual cues provided greater accuracy than did no visual cues or irrelevant visual cues.


Respiration induced by substrate and bacteria diversity after application of diuron, hexazinone, and sulfometuron-methyl alone and in mixture.
After application, herbicides often reach the soil and affect non-target soil microorganisms, decreasing their population, diversity or affecting metabolic activity. Therefore, laboratory studies were performed to evaluate the effects of diuron, hexazinone and sulfometuron-methyl alone and mixed upon carbon transformation by soil microorganisms in clayey and sandy soils and the effect on bacterial diversity and structure. Control treatment without herbicide application was also performed. Sub-samples from the control and herbicide treatments (10 g - in triplicate) were collected before herbicide application and 7, 14, 28 and 42 days after treatment (DAT), then 1 mL of 14C-glucose solution was applied. The released 14CO2 was trapped in 2 M NaOH solution and the radioactivity was analyzed by liquid scintillation counting (LSC), 12 h after glucose application. The effect of herbicides on bacterial diversity was evaluated by T-RFLP. The experiment was conducted in a complete randomized design. Hexazinone did not affect 14CO2 evolution. Diuron showed a greater 14CO2 evolution in sandy and clayey soil, while sulfometuron-methyl led to an increase in sandy soil, at 42 DAT. A greater evolution of carbon was observed in the treatment with herbicide mixture in sandy soil, compared with the same treatment in clayey soil or control. However, the herbicide mixture application did not affect the soil biological activity measured by the respiration rate induced by substrate. On the other hand, the herbicide mixtures affected the bacterial diversity in both soils, being the strongest effect to diuron and sulfometuron-methyl in clayey soil and hexazinone in sandy soil.


Urban habitat fragmentation and floral resources shape the occurrence of gut parasites in two bumblebee species.
Urbanization and the expansion of human activities foster radical ecosystem changes with cascading effects also involving host-pathogen interactions. Urban pollinator insects face several stressors related to landscape and local scale features such as green habitat loss, fragmentation and availability reduction of floral resources with unpredictable effects on parasite transmission. Furthermore, beekeeping may contribute to the spread of parasites to wild pollinators by increasing the number of parasite hosts. Here we used DNA-based diagnostics tools to evaluate how the occurrence of parasites, namely microsporidians (Nosema spp.), trypanosomatids (Crithidia spp.) and neogregarines (Apicystis bombi), is shaped by the above-mentioned stressors in two bumblebee species (i.e. Bombus terrestris and Bombus pascuorum). Infection rates of the two species were different and generally higher in B. terrestris. Moreover, they showed different responses towards the same ecological variables, possibly due to differences in body size and foraging habits supposed to affect their susceptibility to parasite infection. The probability of infection was found to be reduced in B. pascuorum by green habitat fragmentation, while increased along with floral resource availability. Unexpectedly, B. terrestris had a lower parasite richness nearby apiaries maybe due to the fact that parasites are prone to be transmitted among the most abundant species. Our finding supports the need to design proper conservation measures based on species-specific knowledge, as suggested by the variation in the parasite occurrence of the two species. Moreover, conservation policies aiming at safeguarding pollinators through flower planting should consider the indirect effects of these measures for parasite transmission together with pollinator biodiversity issues.


Damage to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex is associated with impairments in both spontaneous and deliberative moral judgments.
Implicit moral evaluations-spontaneous, unintentional judgments about the moral status of actions or persons-are thought to play a pivotal role in moral experience, suggesting a need for research to model these moral evaluations in clinical populations. Prior research reveals that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) is a critical area underpinning affect and morality, and patients with vmPFC lesions show abnormalities in moral judgment and moral behavior. We use indirect measurement and multinomial modeling to understand differences in implicit moral evaluations among patients with vmPFC lesions. Our model quantifies multiple processes of moral judgment: implicit moral evaluations in response to distracting moral transgressions (Unintentional Judgment), accurate moral judgments about target actions (Intentional Judgment), and a directional tendency to judge actions as morally wrong (Response Bias). Compared to individuals with non-vmPFC brain damage and neurologically healthy comparisons, patients with vmPFC lesions showed a dual deficit in processes of moral judgment. First, patients with vmPFC lesions showed reduced Unintentional Judgment about moral transgressions, but not about non-moral negative affective distracters. Second, patients with vmPFC lesions showed reduced Intentional Judgment about target actions. These findings highlight the utility of a formal modeling approach in moral psychology, revealing a dual deficit in multiple component processes of moral judgment among patients with vmPFC lesions.


Experiences of parents and carers in managing asthma in children: a qualitative systematic review protocol.
The overarching objective of this review is to enhance understanding of the lived experiences of parents and carers in managing a child with asthma. Enablers and barriers encountered by parents will be examined and findings of the review will be used to develop recommendations for enhancing policy and practice aimed at improving asthma management for children and their families.The specific objective of this review is to critically appraise and synthesize the best available evidence based on qualitative studies exploring the experiences of parents and carers in managing their child's asthma.The primary question to be addressed is:Secondary questions to be addressed include.


Is there a role for colon capsule endoscopy beyond colorectal cancer screening? A literature review.
Colon capsule endoscopy is recommended in Europe alternatively to colonoscopy for colorectal cancer screening in average risk individuals. The procedure has also been proposed to complete colon examination in cases of incomplete colonoscopy or when colonoscopy is contraindicated or refused by the patient. As tissue samples cannot be obtained with the current capsule device, colon capsule endoscopy has no place in diagnosing ulcerative colitis or in dysplasia surveillance. Nevertheless, data are accumulating regarding its feasibility to examine ulcerative colitis disease extent and to monitor disease activity and mucosal healing, even though reported results on the capsule's performance in this field vary greatly. In this review we present the currently available evidence for the use of colon capsule endoscopy to complement colonoscopy failure to reach the cecum and its use to evaluate ulcerative colitis disease activity and extent. Moreover, we provide an outlook on issues requiring further investigation before the capsule becomes a mainstream alternative to colonoscopy in such cases.


Intracardiac Fungal Mass in a Term Neonate.
Systemic fungal infections pose insidious challenges in neonatal intensive care settings. We present the case of a 9-day-old male term neonate admitted for polymicrobial sepsis and hepatic dysfunction who later developed candidemia superinfection. Despite broad antifungal therapy, the fungemia was complicated by progressive growth of a fungus ball in the right ventricular outflow tract that threatened cardiac function. Surgical excision of the mass was undertaken by right atriotomy and histologic examination confirmed Candida albicans.


Altered steering strategies for goal-directed locomotion in stroke.
Individuals who have sustained a stroke can manifest altered locomotor steering behaviors when exposed to optic flows expanding from different locations. Whether these alterations persist in the presence of a visible goal and whether they can be explained by the presence of a perceptuo-motor disorder remain unknown. The purpose of this study was to compare stroke participants and healthy participants on their ability to control heading while exposed to changing optic flows and target locations. Ten participants with stroke (55.6 ± 9.3 yrs) and ten healthy controls (57.0 ± 11.5 yrs) participated in a mouse-driven steering task (perceptuo-motor task) while seated and in a walking steering task. In the seated steering task, participants were instructed to head or 'walk' toward a target in the virtual environment by using a mouse while wearing a helmet-mounted display (HMD). In the walking task, participants performed a similar steering task in the same virtual environment while walking overground at their comfortable speed. For both experiments, the target and/or the focus of expansion (FOE) of the optic flow shifted to the side (±20°) or remained centered. The main outcome measure was net heading errors (NHE). Secondary outcomes included mediolateral displacement, horizontal head orientation, and onsets of heading and head reorientation. In the walking steering task, the presence of FOE shifts modulated the extent and timing of mediolateral displacement and head rotation changes, as well as NHE magnitudes. Participants overshot and undershot their net heading, respectively, in response to ipsilateral and contralateral FOE and target shifts. Stroke participants made larger NHEs, especially when the FOE was shifted towards the non-paretic side. In the seated steering task, similar NHEs were observed between stroke and healthy participants. The findings highlight the fine coordination between rotational and translational steering mechanisms in presence of targets and FOE shifts. The altered performance of stroke participants in walking but not in the seated steering task suggests that an altered perceptuo-motor processing of optic flow is not a main contributing factor and that other stroke-related sensorimotor deficits are involved.


Cultural influences on occupational therapy practice in Singapore: a pilot study.
Over the past decades, numerous occupational therapy frameworks have been published and adopted in the West but there is little discussion of their applicability to Singapore. The purpose of this study was to examine the relevance and applicability of occupational therapy frameworks in Singapore. Data were gathered from nine highly experienced occupational therapists. Audio-taped semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. Qualitative methods were used in identifying five themes--independence, applicability of client-centred practice, concepts of occupation/activity, client's areas of concern, and application of occupational therapy models to practice. The themes were discussed in the context of three broad areas: (1) the potential discrepancy between occupational therapy's philosophical base and clients' values, (2) mismatch between the occupational therapists' prescription of activity and the meaning of activities to clients, and (3) the potential conflict between the occupational therapy approach and the corporate culture in Singapore. One of the important results from the study was that in Singapore culture, clients generally did not believe that achieving independence was important and they expected to be taken care of by their families. Further research with a larger sample is necessary to explore how culture and societal values impact on occupational therapy practice in Singapore.


Discrete dynamic system oriented on the formation of prebiotic dipeptides from Rode's experiment.
This work attempts to rationalize the possible prebiotic profile of the first dipeptides of about 4 billion years ago based on a computational discrete dynamic system that uses the final yields of the dipeptides obtained in Rode's experiments of salt-induced peptide formation (Rode et al., 1999, Peptides 20: 773-786). The system built a prebiotic scenario that allowed us to observe that (i) the primordial peptide generation was strongly affected by the abundances of the amino acid monomers, (ii) small variations in the concentration of the monomers have almost no effect on the final distribution pattern of the dipeptides and (iii) the most plausible chemical reaction of prebiotic peptide bond formation can be linked to Rode's hypothesis of a salt-induced scenario. The results of our computational simulations were related to former simulations of the Miller, and Fox & Harada experiments on amino acid monomer and oligomer generation, respectively, offering additional information to our approach.


Vitamin A metabolism: analysis of steady-state neutral metabolites in rat tissues.
High-performance liquid chromatography systems were developed to rapidly separate retinol from its esters, analyze the total spectrum of neutral vitamin A compounds, and purify retinyl esters to homogeneity. Chemical ionization mass spectrometric techniques were used to identify vitamin A compounds; these techniques are also applicable to quantification of tissue vitamin A compounds. These methods provide rapid and sensitive techniques for separation and quantification of neutral retinol metabolites. Their utility was demonstrated by analysis of vitamin A metabolites in rat tissues under steady-state conditions. Tissue specificity was noted for the concentrations of retinol and its long-chain fatty acid esters, the ratio of retinol to retinyl esters, and the fatty acid composition of retinyl esters. Quantitatively minor amounts of several neutral polar retinol metabolites were detected, but neither 13-cis-retinol nor 4-hydroxyretinol was observed in vivo as metabolites of retinol in kidney.


Benign fibroblastic polyp of the colorectum.
We present the clinicopathologic features, endoscopic appearance, and ultrastructure of a newly described mesenchymal polyp of the colorectum, termed benign fibroblastic polyp. A total of 4 cases from our institution are analyzed using routine histopathology, immunohistochemistry, and electron microscopy, and compared with the original series of 14 cases previously described in the pathology literature. Benign fibroblastic polyps appear endoscopically throughout the colorectum as submucosal lesions with a hyperplastic surface component. These lesions are histologically and ultrastructurally distinct, but overlap with other mesenchymal polyps warrants additional immunohistochemical studies for definitive classification. Benign fibroblastic polyps of the colorectum comprise a recently described distinct entity of mesenchymal polyps that appear to follow an indolent clinical course. Their etiology is uncertain but may be linked to an exuberant tissue response following mucosal injury. Gastroenterologists should be aware of this new entity that will be increasingly diagnosed by pathologists.


Study on the Local Structure and Luminescence Properties of a Y2Mg2Al2Si2O12:Eu3+ Red Phosphor for White-Light-Emitting Diodes.
Structure determines properties, and properties determine applications, which is an important ideology of natural sciences. For optical materials, it is vital to lucubrate the corresponding relationship between the local crystal structure and luminescence properties for their design, synthesis, and application. This work reports a newly designed Y2Mg2Al2Si2O12(YMAS):Eu3+ red phosphor, in which difunctional Eu3+ ion is used as a red-light activator and spectroscopic probe. The qualitative and quantitative studies on the relationship between the local crystal structure and the luminescence properties of YMAS:Eu3+ are performed experimentally and computationally, using the Y3Al5O12 (YAG):Eu3+ as contrast. Moreover, compared with YAG:Eu3+, the newly designed YMAS:Eu3+ has stronger luminescence, superior Commission Internationale de L'Eclairage chromaticity coordinates, a lower optimal doping concentration, and equally excellent thermal stability. The satisfactory color-rendering index of packaged white-light-emitting diodes demonstrates its potential performance as a red phosphor. Briefly, this work provides not only a new case for the study of the local crystal structure and luminescence properties but also a new possibility for the application of a red phosphor in solid-state lighting.


Data correlation based noise level estimation for cone beam projection data.
In regularized iterative reconstruction algorithms, the selection of regularization parameter depends on the noise level of cone beam projection data. Our aim is to propose an algorithm to estimate the noise level of cone beam projection data. We first derived the data correlation of cone beam projection data in the Fourier domain, based on which, the signal and the noise were decoupled. Then the noise was extracted and averaged for estimation. An adaptive regularization parameter selection strategy was introduced based on the estimated noise level. Simulation and real data studies were conducted for performance validation. There exists an approximately zero-energy double-wedge area in the 3D Fourier domain of cone beam projection data. As for the noise level estimation results, the averaged relative errors of the proposed algorithm in the analytical/MC/spotlight-mode simulation experiments were 0.8%, 0.14% and 0.24%, respectively, and outperformed the homogeneous area based as well as the transformation based algorithms. Real studies indicated that the estimated noise levels were inversely proportional to the exposure levels, i.e., the slopes in the log-log plot were -1.0197 and -1.049 with respect to the short-scan and half-fan modes. The introduced regularization parameter selection strategy could deliver promising reconstructed image qualities. Based on the data correlation of cone beam projection data in Fourier domain, the proposed algorithm could estimate the noise level of cone beam projection data accurately and robustly. The estimated noise level could be used to adaptively select the regularization parameter.


Neuroendocrine differentiation in embryonal type hepatoblastoma.
Hepatoblastoma, a malignant tumor which arises occasionally in older children but very rarely in adults, exhibits divergent differentiation with embryonal cells, fetal hepatocytes and immature elements. This report describes an embryonal type hepatoblastoma with neuroendocrine differentiation in a 16-year-old patient, which was diagnosed postoperatively. Clinical and radiologic work-up failed to reveal a primary gastrointestinal malignancy and no primary lesions were detected in any other organ. This feature of hepatoblastoma is considered to be a multidirectional differentiation of the small epithelial or stem cells of the liver. At 2-year follow up, the patient remains symptom-free, with normal laboratory and diagnostic imaging studies, and no recurrent or metastatic disease identified.


Evaluating the effectiveness of home exercise programmes using an online exercise prescription tool in children with cerebral palsy: protocol for a randomised controlled trial.
Children with cerebral palsy (CP) and other neurodevelopmental disabilities often receive a home programme of exercises to assist in reaching their therapy goals. Adherence to exercise programmes is necessary to attain the level of practice required to achieve goals; however, adherence can be difficult to accomplish. In this paper, we describe the protocol for a randomised controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of delivering a home exercise programme to school-age children with disabilities using Physitrack, an online exercise prescription tool with a website or app interface. Participants aged 6-17 years, with CP or other neurodevelopmental disabilities, receiving community physiotherapy services in Western Australia, will be recruited. Participants will be stratified by age and functional mobility and randomised to either the intervention group, who will complete an 8-week home exercise programme using Physitrack, or the control group, who will complete an 8-week exercise programme without Physitrack. Researcher blinding to group allocation, and participant blinding to outcome, will be maintained. The primary outcome measures are adherence to the home exercise programme with weekly collection of home exercise logs; achievement of individualised goals by phone interview before and after intervention; and correctness of exercise performance by collection and analysis of videos of participants performing home exercises. Secondary outcome measures include enjoyment of physical activity, confidence to complete exercise programme, preferred method of delivery of programme and usability of Physitrack. A sample size of 58 participants will be necessary to see an effect on home programme adherence. Data will be analysed using the intention-to-treat principle. Ethical approval was obtained from Curtin University Human Research Ethics Committee in July 2016 (10391). Outcomes will be disseminated through publication in peer-reviewed journals and presentations at scientific conferences. ACTRN12616000743460; Pre-results.


[The study of mRNA expression profiles of main cell function regulator genes in unchanged colonic mucosa from healthy donors].
A comparative analysis of molecular genetic phenotypes of mucous membrane cells in five anatomical regions of the colon in a group of healthy donors was conducted by comparing mRNA expression profiles of 62 genes involved in the regulation of vital cellular function. We used 181 biopsy samples of morphologically unchanged colonic mucosa, obtained from the colon (ascending, transverse-colon, descending, sigmoid) and rectum sections during prophylactic colonoscopy of 58 donors with no colon pathology. The mRNA levels for 62 genes involved in the regulation of apoptosis, proliferation, transcription, differentiation, cell-cell adhesion, and immune response were assessed by RT-PCR. Statistically significant differences were found for the molecular phenotypes of five sections of the colon. The results of the study can serve as a basis for creating a reference database (values of expression profiles), developing methods of differential diagnostics and screening of various pathologies of the colon.


Anti-carbamylated protein antibodies as a clinical response predictor in rheumatoid arthritis patients treated with abatacept.
Carbamylation is an irreversible post-translational modification of proteins. The presence of anti-carbamylated protein antibodies (anti-CarP) has been observed in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This study was focused to verify whether anti-CarP antibodies can be used as a predictive factor of clinical response to abatacept (CTLA4-Ig) in RA patients. Sixty RA patients treated with abatacept were enrolled. A home-made ELISA for anti-CarP and a commercial anti-CCP3.1 kit for anti-citrullinated proteins antibodies (anti-CCP) were applied to determine serum levels every six months of therapy. Rheumatoid factor (RF) was also tested. Anti-CarP positive patients (n=18) were younger (p=0.01) and with a longer disease duration (p=0.05) when compared to anti-CarP negative patients (n=42) at baseline. Considering the entire cohort, a significant reduction of anti-CarP titre after twelve-months of treatment was shown (p<0.01). A significant reduction of Disease Activity Score (DAS) 28-C-reactive protein (CRP) in the first six months of therapy was found in the subgroup of anti-CarP positive patients in comparison with the negative ones (p=0.003). No significant results were found by dividing the cohort using the positivity to anti-CCP and/or RF. Earlier onset and a longer disease duration in anti-CarP positive patients might suggest they are specific risk factors for RA in this subgroup of patients. The correlation between the anti-CarP positivity at baseline and the reduction of disease activity during the first six months of treatment with abatacept allowed us to hypothesise that anti-CarP antibodies, but not anti-CCP and/or RF, could be used as a good clinical response predictor.