The Hox1 gene in the urochordate ascidian Ciona intestinalis (Ci-Hox1) is expressed in the nerve cord and epidermis. We identified a nerve cord enhancer in the second intron of Ci-Hox1, and demonstrated that retinoic acid (RA) plays a major role in activating this enhancer. The enhancer contained a putative retinoic ...

On 26 November 2000, the first autochthonous case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) was detected in Germany. Since then, a total of 413 BSE cases have been confirmed, resulting in the culling and destruction of 17 313 heads of cattle. In view of the possible risks for human and animal health, ...

BACKGROUND: Subungual haemorrhages are characterised by well-circumscribed dots or blotches with a red to red-black pigmentation, but some cases can be difficult to distinguish from subungual melanoma by the naked eye alone. Dermoscopy has proven to be a useful, noninvasive tool in the diagnosis of pigmented lesions in the nail; ...

A 43 year old caucasion gentleman had been receiving Botulinum toxin type A injections (BOTOX(®) , Allergan) for his axillary hyperhidrosis since 2004 with good effect. In June 2009 he gave an 18 month history of developing small prutitic wheals on his chest, arms and to a lesser extent his ...

Cell shape is known to have profound effects on a number of cell behaviors. In this paper we have studied its role in cell migration through modeling the effect of cell shape on the cell traction force distribution, the traction force dependent stability of cell adhesion and the matrix rigidity ...

Neuroimaging and molecular cytogenetics were used to ascertain the cause of disability in a case. The case was diagnosed to be a variant of Miller-Dieker syndrome (MDS). Retrospective analysis showed a prenatal scan reporting dolichocephaly. We evaluated dolichocephaly, the name associated with a nonsynostotic cause to be a physiological variant ...

Carboxyl-terminal binding protein 1 (CtBP1) has been shown to suppress the transcription of several tumor suppressors in vitro. Paradoxically, a previous report showed that CtBP1 mRNA was downregulated in melanoma. Using immunostaining, we found that a large percentage of human melanomas were positive for CtBP1 protein. Furthermore, we demonstrated that ...

Case-control studies are particularly prone to selection bias, which can affect odds ratio estimation. Approaches to discovering and adjusting for selection bias have been proposed in the literature using graphical and heuristic tools as well as more complex statistical methods. The approach we propose is based on a survey-weighting method ...

The systemic oxidative status in hypertensives disorders of pregnancy (HDP) and its association with endothelial dysfunction is controversial. In the present study, we evaluated systemic plasma levels of oxidative stress markers (TBARS (thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances) and carbonyl) and total antioxidant status (FRAP (ferric reducing ability of plasma (ferric reducing/antioxidant power) ...

Enhancing catalytic selectivity of supported metal nanoparticles with capping ligands is demonstrated using an Au/SiO(2) catalyst in liquid phase aerobic oxidation of benzyl alcohol. Chemisorption of an appropriate amount of polyvinylpyrrolidone on the Au/SiO(2) catalyst greatly enhances the benzaldehyde selectivity from 43% to ∼100% and its yield from 4.9% to ...

The moderating effects of ethnicity and gender on factors associated with physical health consequences in adults manifesting alcohol dependence were examined using data from the 2001-2002 US National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). Black and white respondents with a lifetime diagnosis of DSM-IV alcohol dependence were selected ...

Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) is acknowledged as the gold-standard treatment for high risk non-melanoma skin cancer of the head and neck. By virtue of its tissue-sparing nature, patients who undergo MMS may require several stages or 'layers' to successfully extirpate a tumour. Under such circumstances it is commonplace for adhesive ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The role of the endothelial cell (EC) in blood flow regulation within the central nervous system has been little studied. Here, we explored EC participation in morphological changes of the anterior hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) microvasculature of female rats at two reproductive stages with different metabolic demand (virginity ...

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between foot type and the morphometry of selected muscles and tendons of the lower limb. Sixty-one healthy participants (31 male, 30 female; aged 27.1 ± 8.8 years) underwent gray-scale musculoskeletal ultrasound examination to determine the anterior-posterior (AP) thickness of tibialis anterior, tibialis ...

We previously reported 2 osteoporosis-susceptibility genes-formiminotransferase N-terminal sub-domain containing gene (FONG) and thrombospondin, type 1, domain-containing 7A (THSD7A)-in which we identified two common single-nucleotide polymorphisms, rs7605378 (FONG) and rs12673692 (THSD7A). The former was associated with a predisposition to osteoporosis and the latter with bone mineral density. To further elucidate the ...

Summary During famines females generally have a mortality advantage relative to males, and the highest levels of mortality occur in the very young and the elderly. One popular hypothesis is that the sex differential in mortality may reflect the greater body fatness combined with lower metabolism of females, which may ...

Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) is an idiopathic, systemic inflammatory disease characterized by necrotizing granulomatous inflammation and pauci-immune small-vessel vasculitis of upper and lower respiratory tract and kidneys. The condition affects both genders equally, although some inconsistent gender differences have been observed. The aetiology of WG remains unknown although a number of ...

Objective. Venlafaxine is a bicyclic antidepressant that may be associated with severe cardiotoxicity following large overdose. The purpose of this short case series is to present different patterns of venlafaxine-related cardiotoxicity and to discuss the potential mechanisms. Case series. Between January 2010 and July 2011, four patients were admitted to ...

Chemoprevention represents one of the most highly effective anti-cancer strategies and is accompanied by minimal secondary effects as compared to conventional chemotherapies. Many new anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer drug candidates have been derived from chemical scaffolds engineered from natural products discovered just a few decades ago. This approach is widely utilized ...

Polymeric micelle prepared through the self-assembly of cationic cholesterol-modified gelatin was tested for siRNA delivery. It exerted the desired effect of gene knockdown in HeLa cells stably expressing the luciferase gene and achieved a two-fold increase in the knockdown ability when compared to Lipofectamine® 2000. It was found that the ...

We present a clinical proof-of-concept (PoC) study in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with the objective of assessing the bronchodilatory effect of an experimental drug as compared with an active control treatment. In such an exploratory Phase II setting, we discuss the formal inclusion of relevant historical information and tailored PoC ...

Ergot alkaloids (the sum of individual alkaloids is termed as total alkaloids, TA) are mycotoxins of the fungus Claviceps purpurea and might adversely affect the performance and aspects of liver physiology of pigs. The objective of the study was to assess the effect of feeding ergot alkaloids to piglets on ...

Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) of the electron transport system is thought to be the rate-limiting step in cellular respiration and is found mutated in numerous human pathologies. Here, we employ quaternary three-dimensional (3-D) modeling to construct a model for human COX. The model was used to predict the functional consequences ...

Abstract Gene expression profiling studies in the Philadelphia-negative chronic myeloproliferative neoplasms have unraveled significant deregulation of several immune and inflammation genes that might be of importance for clonal evolution due to defective tumor immune surveillance. Other mechanisms might be downregulation of major histocompatibility (MHC) class I and II genes, which ...

The synthesis of the first water stable isoreticular phosphonate based mixed-linker metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) is achieved via the use of the N-donor heterocyclic co-ligands. Furthermore, these isoreticular phosphonate frameworks show selective CO(2)/N(2) uptake at low pressures.

R. glacialis leaves were tested for their PTOX content and electron flow to photorespiration and to alternative acceptors. In shade-leaves, the PTOX and NDH content were markedly lower than in sun-leaves. Carbon assimilation/light and C(i) response curves were not different in sun- and shade-leaves but photosynthetic capacity was the highest ...

BACKGROUND.-: Short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache with conjunctival injection and tearing (SUNCT) and trigeminal neuralgia (TN) are unilateral painful conditions that can share the same triggering factors, autonomic features and the main location, as well as the cyclically recurrent crises. Both these syndromes are associated with a high percentage of findings ...

ABSTRACT: Improving the quality of oral hygiene is recognised as an important counter measure for reducing the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia amongst critically ill patients. Toothbrushing physically disrupts the dental plaque that acts as a reservoir for pulmonary infection and therefore has the potential to reduce the incidence of ventilator-associated ...

Eleven spontaneous mutations of acetyl-CoA carboxylase have been identified in many herbicide-resistant populations of 42 species of grassy weeds, hampering application of aryloxyphenoxypropionate, cyclohexadione and phenylpyrazoline herbicides in agriculture. IC(50) shifts (resistance indices) caused by herbicide-resistant mutations were determined using a recombinant yeast system that allows comparison of the effects ...

Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a genetic disorder caused by the absence of expression of the paternal copy of maternally imprinted genes in chromosome region 15q11-13. The genetic subtypes of PWS are classified into deletion (∼70%), maternal uniparental disomy (mUPD; 25-30%), imprinting center defects (3-5%) and rare unbalanced translocations. Recently, Matsubara ...

Understanding the relationship between prokaryotic traits and phylogeny is important for predicting and modeling ecological processes. Microbial extracellular enzymes have a pivotal role in nutrient cycling and the decomposition of organic matter, yet little is known about the phylogenetic distribution of genes encoding these enzymes. In this study, we analyzed ...

Protein-conjugated gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been extensively explored for the development of many novel protein assays. In this article, we demonstrate that nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA) can be used as a rapid and simple analytical tool to monitor bioconjugation and to study protein-protein interactions. The adsorption of protein A onto ...

The chemoselective α-iodination of various simple and multi-functionalised acrylic esters is efficiently accomplished by a Morita-Baylis-Hillman protocol involving the use of N-iodophthalimide, 3-quinuclidinol and KF-Celite in acetonitrile. No degradation of the obtained compounds was observed under the optimized conditions thus, furnishing α-iodoacrylates suitable for organometallic reactions (i.e. Nozaki-Kishi-Hiyama type coupling).

There is emerging evidence that the adenosinergic system might be involved in drug addiction and alcohol dependence. We have already demonstrated the involvement of A2A receptors (A2AR) in ethanol-related behaviours in mice. Here, we investigated whether the A2AR agonist CGS 21680 can reduce ethanol operant self-administration in both non-dependent and ...

BACKGROUND: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a commonly encountered inflammatory skin disease. Although acute lesions of acute AD are characterized by intense inflammation, the hallmarks of chronic AD lesions include lichenified fibrosis and thickening of the upper dermis. The increased expression of transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1), a well-known fibrogenic ...

The sea urchin provides a relatively simple and tractable system for analyzing the early stages of embryo development. Here, we use the sea urchin species, Paracentrotus lividus, to investigate the role of Alix in key stages of embryogenesis, namely the egg fertilization and the first cleavage division. Alix is a ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Human respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV) is a highly contagious pathogen and is the most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia for infants and children under one year of age. Worldwide, greater than 33 million children under five years of age are affected by hRSV resulting in three million ...

Aim:  Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. The use of this drug has been considered a public health problem in many countries. The aim of this study was to assess the stimulated salivary flow rate (SSFR), pH, and the buffer capacity of saliva in ...

The Red Queen hypothesis proposes that coevolving parasites select for outcrossing in the host. Outcrossing relies on males, which often show lower immune investment due to, for example, sexual selection. Here, we demonstrate that such sex differences in immunity interfere with parasite-mediated selection for outcrossing. Two independent coevolution experiments with ...

The hippocampal mossy fiber (MF) terminal is among the largest and most complex synaptic structures in the brain. Our understanding of the development of this morphologically elaborate structure has been limited because of the inability of standard electron microscopy techniques to quickly and accurately reconstruct large volumes of neuropil. Here ...

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to find mutations in the SQSTM1 gene encoding p62 in Japanese patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), since this gene has been recently identified as a causative gene for familial and sporadic ALS in the United States. METHODS: We sequenced this gene in ...

Introduction Laser technology presents a promising alternative to achieve tumor excision and renal hemostasis with or without hilar occlusion, yet its use in partial nephrectomy (PN) has not been significantly evaluated. We prospectively evaluated the Thulium:YAG (Th:YAG) laser in laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN) in our institution over a 1 year ...

Effects of isolobal heteroatoms in divanadium-substituted γ-Keggin-type polyoxometalates, (TBA)(4)[γ-XV(2)W(10)O(38)(μ-OH)(2)] 1(X) and (TBA)(4)[γ-XV(2)W(10)O(38)(μ-O)] 2(X) (where X = Ge or Si), on (OV)(2)(μ-OH)(2) and (OV)(2)(μ-O) core structures and transformations from 2(X) to 1(X) have been investigated. X-ray crystallography of 1(X) and 2(X) reveals that larger Ge (covalent radius 1.22 Å; covalent radius ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is often used to test wildlife samples for Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) infection. However, commercially available kits are only validated for use with domestic ruminant species. A literature review was performed to document the current use of MAP serum ELISA in wild and ...

The development of an efficient noble-metal-free counter electrode is crucial for possible applications of quantum-dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs). Herein, we present TiN nanoparticles on a carbon nanotube (CNT)-graphene hybrid support as a noble-metal-free counter electrode for QDSSCs employing a polysulfide electrolyte. The resulting TiN/CNT-graphene possesses an extremely high surface roughness, ...

MOTIVATION: Identification of bimodally expressed genes is an important task, since genes with bimodal expression play important roles in cell differentiation, signaling, and disease progression. Several useful algorithms have been developed to identify bimodal genes from microarray data. Currently, no method can deal with data from next generation sequencing, which ...

Klebsiella pneumoniae K1 is a major agent of hepatic abscess with metastatic disease in East Asia, with sporadic reports originating elsewhere. We report a case of abscess complicated by septic endophthalmitis caused by a wzyAKpK1-positive Klebsiella strain in a United States resident, raising concern for global emergence.

Gastric cancer continues to be a fatal disease with majority of cases presenting in late stages. For patients with advanced disease, we can only recommend palliative therapy. For localized gastric cancer, the approaches vary in various regions of the world. In western countries, preoperative chemotherapy or adjuvant chemo-radiation is preferred; ...

To surmount the challenges of the locus determination and accurate quantification of 5MedC in DNA fragments that contain multiple 5mC residues, and distinguishing between 5MedC and 5hmdC, we designed and synthesised two N-halogeno-N-sodiobenzenesulfonamide reagents that provide a new chemical method of probing 5MedC in DNA in this study. This sensitive ...

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION: Microcirculation dysfunction is a typical feature of systemic sclerosis (SSc) and represents the earliest abnormality of primary myocardial involvement. We assessed coronary microcirculation status by combining two functional tests in SSc patients and estimating its impact on disease outcome. METHODS: Forty-one SSc patients, asymptomatic for coronary artery disease, ...