The genus Triplophysa (plateau loach) is a highly diverse group in the family Balitoridae with 133 valid species, and they play an important role in zoogeographic study of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. In this study, we sequenced the complete mitochondrial genome of a Triplophysa species, Triplophysa bleekeri. Combined with the complete ...

The BCR-ABL fusion oncoprotein accelerates differentiation and proliferation of myeloid cells during the chronic phase of chronic myeloid leukemia (CP-CML). Here, the role of C/EBPβ, a regulator for 'emergency granulopoiesis', in the pathogenesis of CP-CML was examined. C/EBPβ expression was upregulated in Lineage(-) CD34(+) CD38(-) hematopoietic stem cells and myeloid ...

This article analyses the redistributive impact of public health expenditure in Spain using an insurance value approach to compute individual and household's value of health services non-cash benefit. We model the intensity of use of different health care services using a count data framework on a nationally representative health care ...

We aimed to investigate the effects of fish oil (FO) supplementation to pregnant women on the maternal and fetal fatty acid profile in plasma and erythrocyte phospholipids (PL) and to identify the best compartment for the assessment of fatty acid status. A multi-centre, double-blind, controlled trial was conducted. Healthy pregnant ...

There is an increasing interest in bone nano-structure, the ultimate goal being to reveal the basis of age-related bone fragility. In this study, power spectral density (PSD) data and fractal dimensions of the mineralized bone matrix were extracted from atomic force microscope topography images of the femoral neck trabeculae. The ...

OBJECTIVE: To determine variables that predict the rate of decline in fetal hemoglobin levels in alloimmune disease. METHOD: Retrospective review of singleton pregnancies that underwent first and second intrauterine transfusions for treatment of fetal anemia because of maternal Rh alloimmunization in a tertiary referral center. RESULTS: Forty-one first intrauterine transfusions ...

SUMMARY Changes in population allele frequencies may be driven by several forces, including selection and drift, and are revealed only by sampling over many generations. Such studies, however, are rare for protist parasites. Microsatellite allele frequencies for 4 loci were followed in a population of Plasmodium mexicanum, a malaria parasite ...

Abstract Enhanced level of nuclear erythroid related factor-2 (Nrf2) has been associated with cancer chemo/radioresistance. Therefore, the role of Nrf2 in radiosensitization of malignant cells induced by a combination of 2-deoxy-D-Glucose (2-DG) and 6-aminonicotinamide (6-AN) was investigated. Two established human malignant cells lines namely KB (head and neck squamous carcinoma) ...

Herein, we describe the concise synthesis of 2,6-cis-substituted tetrahydropyran derivatives based on a domino olefin cross-metathesis/intramolecular oxa-conjugate cyclization (CM/IOCC) reaction. We have found that the domino CM/IOCC of δ-hydroxy olefins with α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds (e.g., trans-crotonaldehyde or N-acryloyl-2,5-dimethylpyrrole) could be efficiently achieved in the presence of the second-generation Hoveyda-Grubbs catalyst ...

Many people working in bioethics take pride in the subject's embrace of a wide range of disciplines. This invites questions of what in particular is added by each. In this paper, I focus on the role of philosophy within the field: what, if anything, is its unique contribution to bioethics? ...

Tension-type headache (TTH) is the most prevalent headache worldwide Stovner et al. (Cephalalgia 27:193-210, 2007••); Robbins and Lipton (Semin Neurol 30:107-19, 2010••); Jensen and Stovner (Lancet Neurol 7:354-361, 2008). Despite being the most prevalent primary headache type, there is still a relative lack of epidemiologic data when compared to that ...

AIM: There has been considerable interest in identifying and addressing the specific needs of early-episode patients diagnosed with schizophrenia in the hope that by addressing such needs early, chronic disabilities can be avoided. METHODS: One hundred twenty-eight early-episode and 571 chronic patients were compared on socio-demographic characteristics, clinical symptoms and ...

Stress often disrupts behavior and can lead to psychiatric illness. Considerable evidence suggests that corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) plays an important role in regulating the effects of stress. CRF administration produces stress-like effects in humans and laboratory animals, and CRF levels are elevated in individuals with stress-related illness. Recent work indicates ...

Recent data show that catastrophic events during one cell cycle can cause massive genome damage producing viable clones with unstable genomes. This is in contrast with the traditional view that tumorigenesis requires a long-term process in which mutations gradually accumulate over decades. These sudden events are likely to result in ...

Background: The Measure of Activity Performance of the Hand (MAP-Hand) is reliable and valid in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Objective: To assess the validity and responsiveness of the MAP-Hand in patients with hand osteoarthritis. Methods: Patients were recruited from 2 rheumatology centres. The internal consistency of the MAP-Hand was assessed ...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the hypothesis that prevention of surgical site infection (SSI) is equally effective when patients receive single-dose (SD) or three-dose antibiotic prophylaxis with second-generation cephalosporin and metronidazole in elective colorectal surgery. METHODS: Ninety-three patients were enrolled from May 2009 to November 2010. ...

We previously established safety and immunogenicity of a p53 synthetic long peptides (p53-SLP®) vaccine. In the current trial we investigated whether combination of Interferon-alpha (IFN-α) with p53-SLP® is both safe and able to improve the induced p53-specific IFN-γ response. Eleven colorectal cancer patients successfully treated for metastatic disease were enrolled ...

Knowledge of the structure of protein-ligand complexes can aid in understanding their roles within complex biological processes. Here we use electrospray ionization (ESI) coupled to a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer to investigate the noncovalent binding of the macrocycle cucurbit[7]uril (CB7) to bovine insulin. Recent condensed-phase experiments (Chinai ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The anaerobic spirochaete Brachyspira pilosicoli causes enteric disease in avian, porcine and human hosts, amongst others. To date, the only available genome sequence of B. pilosicoli is that of strain 95/1000, a porcine isolate. In the first intra-species genome comparison within the Brachyspira genus, we report the whole ...

Antibodies of the IgG isotype have a variety of pro- and anti-inflammatory effector functions, making them attractive platforms for the development of novel therapeutic approaches. Animal model systems have been invaluable to the understanding of the underlying mechanisms of IgG activity. However, differences in the IgG subclasses and Fc receptors ...

Abstract Purpose: Cancer patients treated with radiomimetic drug bleomycin (BLM) showed incidence of 7% second malignancy. Studies regarding BLM induced genomic instability in bystander cells is scarce, that too with cells grown on three dimensional (3D) cultures to mimic the in-vivo condition has never been attempted. Materials and methods: A549 ...

Stress adaptation in plants involves altered expression of many genes through complex signaling pathways. To achieve the optimum expression of downstream functional genes, we expressed AtbHLH17 (AtAIB) and AtWRKY28 TFs which are known to be upregulated under drought and oxidative stress, respectively in Arabidopsis. Multigene expression cassette with these two ...

The role of vitamin D (25-OH-D, or 25-hydroxyvitamin D) and its potential confounders in relationship to melanoma risk and mortality is discussed. The paradox that ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure is the major environmental risk factor for melanoma etiology as well as a major source of vitamin D might be explained ...

Bonding to porcelain remains to be a challenge in orthodontic treatments. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of CO2 laser conditioning of porcelain surfaces on shear bond strength (SBS) of orthodontic brackets. Eighty feldspathic porcelain specimens were divided into four groups of 20. In each group, ...

Exposure of films formed by the adsorption of oligo(ethylene glycol) (OEG) functionalized trichlorosilanes on glass to UV light from a frequency-doubled argon ion laser (244 nm) causes photodegradation of the OEG chain. Although the rate of degradation is substantially slower than for monolayers of OEG terminated thiolates on gold, it is ...

Learning from error is not just an individual endeavour. Organisations also learn from error. Hospitals provide many learning opportunities, which can be formal or informal. Informal learning from error in hospitals has not been researched in much depth so this narrative review focuses on five learning opportunities: morbidity and mortality ...

Synthesis of a new class of fully unsaturated ladder structures, phenylene-containing oligoacenes (POAs), using 3,4-bis(methylene)cyclobutene as a building block for sequential Diels-Alder reactions is described. The geometric effects of strain and energetic cost of antiaromaticity can be observed via the optical and electrochemical properties of the reported compounds. The resulting ...

The purpose of this study was to understand the short-term therapeutic effects of an activated carbon nanoparticle-epirubicin suspension for regional lymphatic chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer. One hundred and twenty patients with stage I, II, or III primary breast cancer were randomly divided into three groups: the lymphatic chemotherapy ...

The anticancer drug lapatinib (Tykerb) is a dual tyrosine kinase inhibitor targeting the HER2 (ERBB2) and EGFR (ERBB1, HER1) pathways that have been shown in clinical trials to display some cardiotoxicity. Because trastuzumab also targets HER2 receptors, the lapatinib/doxorubicin combination provides a good model to probe the mechanism of the ...

BACKGROUND: The thiopurines azathioprine and 6-mercaptopurine are recommended for maintenance of remission in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Measurement of concentrations of the metabolites 6TGN and 6MMP helps delineate inter-individual variation in metabolism that may underlie variability in efficacy and toxicity. AIMS: We aimed to perform a retrospective observational study to ...

Published studies of the duration of asymptomatic Chlamydia trachomatis infection in women have produced diverse estimates, and most reviewers have not attempted an evidence synthesis. We review the designs of duration studies, distinguishing between the incident cases presenting soon after infection in clinic-based studies and prevalent cases ascertained in population ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: This work is based on the computational models describing the physiology of the electrical wave propagation in the heart. The goal is to show the ability of computational models to reproduce the effect drugs on the electrical activity of the heart at the cell, the organ (heart) ...

BACKGROUND: Rituximab, an anti-CD20 antibody that targets B cells, is a promising agent against steroid-dependent and steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome in children. CASE-DIAGNOSIS/TREATMENT: We report a 3-year-old boy who presented with atypical Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia (PCP) following administration of rituximab for refractory nephrotic syndrome. He had received cyclosporine and daily prednisolone ...

Direct experimental evidences for dissociative photoionization of oxygen molecule via 2Σu- ionic optical dark state are presented by an investigation using the method of threshold photoelectron-photoion coincidence (TPEPICO) velocity imaging. Besides a vibrational progress of B2Σg- state, several weak vibrational bands of 2Σu- ionic optical dark state are observed concomitantly ...

Background/objectives:To examine whether dietary interventions promote intakes of fruit, vegetable, fish and lower salt intake were effective in preventing cognitive decline in older people. Dietary factors have been associated with cognitive function in older people.Subjects/methods:A total of 429 non-demented subjects in 14 old age hostels, with an average age of ...

Paediatric cerebral sinovenous thrombosis (CSVT) is a rare but serious condition. The imaging signs may be subtle with a number of potential pitfalls. We present a pictorial essay of the pitfalls of diagnosis of CSVT on CT and MRI. We describe, using examples, potential pitfalls on both imaging modalities including ...

STUDY DESIGN AND OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this prospective clinical study is to evaluate the clinical and radiographic outcomes using a silicate-substituted calcium phosphate (Si-CaP) as a bone graft substitute in surgery for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). In posterior corrective surgery for AIS, harvesting autologous bone from the iliac crest ...

Pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) has been shown to increase bone mineral density in osteoporosis patients and prevent bone loss in ovariectomized rats. But the mechanisms through which PEMF elicits these favorable biological responses are still not fully understood. Receptor activator of nuclear factor κB ligand (RANKL) and osteoprotegerin (OPG) are ...

AIM: Guidelines for the management of sepsis have been published but not validated for elderly patients, though a prompt work-up and initiation of appropriate therapy are crucial. This study assesses the impact of a sepsis protocol on timelines for therapy and mortality in standardized management. METHODS: Consecutive patients aged 70 ...

Social responsibility in gambling has become a major issue for the gaming industry. The possibility for online gamblers to set voluntary time and money limits are a social responsibility practice that is now widespread among online gaming operators. The main issue concerns whether the voluntary setting of such limits has ...

We present the details of a data analysis approach for deconvolution of the ion mobility (IM) overlapped or unresolved species. This approach takes advantage of the ion fragmentation variations as a function of the IM arrival time. The data analysis involves the use of an in-house developed data preprocessing platform ...

Mitochondrial respiratory chain complex I enzyme deficiency is the most commonly seen mitochondrial respiratory chain disorder. Although screening and diagnostic methods are available overseas, clinically feasible diagnostic methods have not yet been established in China. In this study, four Chinese boys with Leigh syndrome due to complex I deficiency were ...

The purpose of this study was to determine whether magnified visual feedback during position-holding contractions exacerbates the age-associated differences in motor output variability due to changes in the neural activation of the agonist muscle in the upper and lower limb. Twelve young (18-35 years) and ten older adults (65-85 years) were instructed ...

Abstract Vitamin D and vitamin D receptor (VDR) have been postulated as environmental and genetic factors in neurodegenerative disorders including multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimer disease (AD), and recently Parkinson disease (PD). The purpose of this study is to explore the potential correlation between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of the VDR ...

The anthrax toxin is composed of three proteins: protective antigen (PA), lethal factor (LF), and edema toxin (EF). The PA moiety carries EF and LF into the cytosol of mammalian cells via a mechanism that depends on the oligomerization of PA and transmembrane pore formation by the PA oligomer. Certain ...

An accurate and reliable ECG feature extraction algorithm is presented in this paper. ECG samples are de-noised and its first derivative and Hilbert transform are computed. Sample having maximum amplitude in the transformed domain is found out and those samples having amplitudes within a lead wise specified threshold of that ...

Impulsivity and poor inhibitory control are associated with higher rates of delay discounting (DD), or a greater preference for smaller, more immediate rewards at the expense of larger, but delayed rewards. Of the many functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies of DD, few have investigated the correlation between individual differences ...

Pharmacodynamic studies have shown that persistently high platelet reactivity is common in patients with diabetes in spite of clopidogrel treatment. Clinical trials have not convincingly demonstrated that clopidogrel benefits patients with diabetes as much patients without diabetes. To estimate the clinical effectiveness associated with clopidogrel treatment after myocardial infarction (MI) ...

AIMS: Time preference describes how consideration of future events may affect present-day behavioural decisions. The aim was to establish whether time preference predicts smoking cessation in a longitudinal analysis. DESIGN: Secondary analysis of data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics of Australia survey. SETTING: Australian community. PARTICIPANTS: Members of ...

Crocin is the only water soluble carotenoid in nature, and it has a known powerful antioxidant activity. The aim of this work was to investigate the hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects of crocin in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced type 2 diabetic rats. Neonatal male Wistar rats (2-5 days old) were randomly divided into five ...