Polymersomes, vesicles composed of bilayer membranes of amphiphilic block-copolymers, are promising delivery vehicles for long-term storage and controlled release of bioactives; enhanced stability of the membrane makes polymersomes potentially useful in a wide range of biological delivery applications by comparison with liposomes. However, unilamellar structure is intrinsically fragile when subjected ...

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) modulates neuroplasticity. A functional polymorphism [Val66Met (G196A)] in BDNF has been reported to modify cortical plasticity in humans. Physiologic investigations have revealed that dystonia might be a consequence of the pathologic plasticity of the sensorimotor cortex. We aimed to investigate the role of the Val66Met polymorphism ...

The majority of genes present in the hexaploid bread wheat genome are present as three homoeologs. Here, we describe the three homoeologous orthologs of the barley cleistogamy gene Cly1, a member of the AP2 gene family. As in barley, the wheat genes (designated TaAP2-A, -B and -D) map to the ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: It has been previously reported that IL-22, one of the cytokines secreted by Th17 cells, demonstrates both a protective and inflammatory promotion effect in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) through STAT3 signaling activation. We sought to investigate the role of IL-22 expression in colon cancer (CC). METHODS: The expression ...

BACKGROUND: Surgery for pheochromocytoma may lead to uncontrolled catecholamine secretion with severe hypertension and cardiac failure. Perioperative α(1)-receptor-blockade with orally administered phenoxybenzamine or intravenous urapidil therefore is a standard procedure in the treatment regime prior to surgery. METHODS: Medical records of 30 patients who underwent surgery for pheochromocytoma during the ...

Nijmegen breakage syndrome 1 (NBS1), a vital DNA repair protein in the homologous recombination repair pathway and a signal modifier in the intra-S phase checkpoint, plays a critical role in cellular response to DNA damages and the maintenance of genomic stability. The NBS1 Glu185Gln (NBS1 E185Q, NBS1 8360G>C, rs1805794) polymorphism ...

This biographical sketch on Franz König corresponds to the historic text, The Classic: Ueber freie Körper in den Gelenken [On loose bodies in the joint] (1887), available at DOI 10.1007/s11999-013-2824-y (Translated by Drs. Richard A. Brand and Christian-Dominik Peterlein).

The scientific community has agreed upon developing accurate monitoring of tissue perfusion and oxygenation to improve the management of subjects with sepsis. This pilot study aimed to investigate the feasibility of targeting tissue oxygen saturation (StO(2)) in addition to the currently recommended resuscitation goals, central venous pressure, mean arterial pressure ...

In this paper we build a prey-predator model with discrete weight structure for the predator. This model will conserve the number of individuals and the biomass and both growth and reproduction of the predator will depend on the food ingested. Moreover the model allows cannibalism which means that the predator ...

People with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit superior performance in visual search compared to others. However, most studies demonstrating this advantage have employed simple, uncluttered images with fully visible targets. We compare the performance of high-functioning adults with ASD and matched controls on a naturalistic luggage screening task. Although ...

Study design:Cohort study.Objectives:First, to examine three sets of risk and protective factors for mortality after spinal cord injury (SCI), with an emphasis on health and secondary conditions. Second, to extend earlier work with several methodologic enhancements and addition of new predictors.Setting:Twenty hospitals designated as SCI Model Systems (SCIMSs) of care ...

Oncolytic virotherapy is an emerging treatment modality that uses replication-competent viruses to destroy cancers. Many naturally occurring viruses have a preferential, although nonexclusive, tropism for tumors and tumor cells. In addition, specific targeting of cancer cells can be achieved at the virus entry level. We optimized retargeting of cell entry ...

With the continuous improvement of the living standards of human society, the number of diabetics worldwide is growing rapidly. To date, the main effective therapy for diabetic is intravenous injection of insulin, which is accompanied by a lot of shortage such as high cost and side effects. To obtain long-term ...

PURPOSE: Although patients receive information prior to commencing radiotherapy, they often experience anxiety and distress. We conducted a pilot randomised controlled trial to determine whether a radiation therapist led psycho-educational intervention for breast cancer patients prior to radiotherapy is likely to be effective in reducing radiotherapy-related concerns, patient anxiety and ...

PURPOSE: To identify independent predictors of survival in patients with lymph node (LN) metastases from hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after external beam radiotherapy (EBRT). METHODS: There were 191 patients with LN metastases from HCC received EBRT enrolled in the study cohort. EBRT was designed to focus on the LNs and a ...

Turning a ship requires small but steady and deliberate efforts over time. During the past 9 years, Wisconsin's Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Program has begun to utilize the life-course perspective as its framework for guiding efforts around women's health, early childhood systems, children and youth with special health care needs, ...

PURPOSE: To compare the efficacy and safety of short-term versus long-term hormonotherapy (HT) plus radiotherapy (RT) or prostatectomy (RP) for prostate cancer. METHODS: Literatures were searched from Embase, PubMed, Web of science and Cochrane Library up to October, 2012. Quality of the study was evaluated according to the Cochrane's risk ...

Treatment for pancreatic cancer with pharmacological ascorbate (ascorbic acid, vitamin C) decreases tumor progression in preclinical models. A phase I clinical trial was performed to establish safety and tolerability of pharmacological ascorbate combined with gemcitabine in patients with biopsy-proven stage IV pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Nine subjects received twice-weekly intravenous ascorbate (15-125 ...

Over 2 years, 32 beef cows nursing calves in southwest Arkansas were randomly selected from a herd of 120 that were managed in six groups and were assigned to six 5.1-ha bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon [L.] Pers.) pastures. Treatments were assigned to pastures (two pastures/treatment) and cows had ad libitum access to ...

Objectives: To assess the bioequivalence of two Tizanidine 4 mg tablet formulations (Tizanidine® of the Pharma International company, as test product, and Sirdalud® of Novartis as a reference product), and to investigate possible effects of smoking on pharmacokinetics of tizanidine. Methods: A single-blind, randomized, single dose, two treatment, two-period, two-sequence, ...

Objective:Obesity is associated with an increase in various pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines, but the interplay of these cytokines is incompletely understood. We conducted experiments to test a broader hypothesis that a dynamic interplay of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines controls lipid storage in adipocytes.Design:Three experiments were designed to test the overall ...

Cyanamide was introduced into the rhodamine spirolactam framework to produce a colorless and non-fluorescent compound . It shows a reversible ring-opening/ring-closure process in response to the solution pH, which exhibits an "ON/OFF" switching in its fluorescence. Different from other rhodamine-type dyes, the ring-open form of is stable in protic solvents ...

Objectives: Chemokines are involved in leucocyte recruitment into inflammatory sites. The release of certain chemokines is augmented by tumour necrosis factor (TNF). Infliximab, a monoclonal antibody that blocks the effects of TNF, is used for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The effect of TNF blockage on chemokines is not fully ...

Males consistently outperform females on mental rotation tasks, such as the Vandenberg and Kuse (1978) Perceptual and Motor Skills, 47(2), 599-604, mental rotation test (MRT; e.g. Voyer et al. 1995) in Psychological Bulletin, 117, 250-265. The present study investigates whether these sex differences in MRT scores can be explained in ...

Ruxolitinib (INC424), a potent and selective oral Janus kinase 1 and 2 inhibitor, was recently approved by the US food and drug administration for the treatment of intermediate or high-risk myelofibrosis. The safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics (PK) of ruxolitinib have been extensively evaluated in healthy subjects and patients. The present ...

A double-layer nanostructure comprising amorphous Si nanograss on top of Si nanofrustums (NFs) with a total height of 680 nm exhibits ultralow reflection. Almost near-unity absorption and near-zero reflectance result in this layered nanostructure over a broad range of wavelengths and a wide range of angles of incidence, due to ...

OBJECTIVES:By systematic review and meta-analysis, we sought to assess the impact of comorbidity on short-term mortality in patients with peptic ulcer bleeding (PUB).METHODS:We conducted systematic searches in PubMed and Embase (January 1989-January 2010). Relative risks (RRs) were pooled across selected studies and an analysis of diagnostic test accuracy was performed ...

Mycobacterium protein tyrosine phosphatase B (mPTPB) is essential for the survival and persistence of Mycobacterium in the host. Thus small molecule inhibitors of mPTPB are potential anti-TB agents. We developed an efficient organocatalytic multicomponent reaction (MCR) between pyrrole, formaldehyde and aniline, affording a potent and selective mPTPB inhibitor with an ...

The adjustment of pulmonary oxygen uptake (VO(2p)), heart rate (HR), limb blood flow (LBF), and muscle deoxygenation [HHb] was examined during the transition to moderate-intensity, knee-extension exercise in six older adults (70 ± 4 years) under two conditions: normoxia (FIO(2) = 20.9 %) and hypoxia (FIO(2) = 15 %). The subjects performed repeated step transitions from an active baseline ...

ACCESSIBLE SUMMARY: Depressive symptoms are common in women hospitalized for acute coronary syndrome, but symptom experience and severity may differ across a women's lifetime. Tiredness or fatigue, loss of energy and sleep disturbances were the three depressive symptoms most frequently reported by depressed women, hospitalized for acute coronary syndrome, across ...

BACKGROUND: Providing ongoing clinical care that adequately addresses patients' medical, psychosocial and information needs is challenging, particularly for patient groups at increased risk of developing life-threatening disease such as malignant melanoma. This study examined a model of clinical care developed by the High Risk Clinic (HRC) of the Sydney Melanoma ...

Mesechymal Stromal Cells (MSCs) are a heterogeneous cell population capable of differentiating towards several cell lines in vitro and, possibly, in vivo. Within cultured MSCs we identified and purified a precursor cell population (Mesodermal Progenitor Cells, MPCs) retaining robust proliferation potential and ability to differentiate into endothelial or mesenchymal cells. ...

Ag@zinc-tetraphenylporphyrin (Ag@ZnTPP) core-shell nanostructures have been fabricated by in situ chemical deposition. Unusual thickness-dependent fluorescence allowed their colour to be tuned from blue to red by simply increasing the shell thickness from ∼2 nm to ∼9 nm. The competition between metal enhancement and the self-absorption effect of ZnTPP has been ...

Here we present the novel functionalization of detonation nanodiamond (dND) with amino-phenyl boronic acid (APBA) assisted by poly-l-lysine (PL) and PEG-diglycolic acid (PEG) (dND-p-APBA). With the assistance of biocompatible poly-l-lysine and PEG, dND-p-APBA particles show good dispersibility in aqueous solution and plentiful boronic acid functional groups on the surface, which ...

Comparative studies of the divergence of quantitative traits and neutral molecular markers, known as Q(ST)-F(ST) comparisons, provide a means for researchers to distinguish between natural selection and genetic drift as causes of population differentiation in complex polygenic traits. The use of Q(ST)-F(ST) comparisons has increased rapidly in the last few ...

To help faculty prepare and revise courses in all the disciplines represented in the MCAT(2015) , the American Association of Medical Colleges, through its MedEdPORTAL's iCollaborative, has established the Pre-health Collection, a repository of reviewed web resources that are openly and freely available to faculty, and indirectly through them to ...

Being different from common sensing molecules existing as monomer in solution, the gelators as sensing molecules self-assembled together in gels. Therefore, the interaction strength between gelators is believed as an important factor for gels to recognize selectively anions. In this paper, we choose two gelators, presenting similar binding sites for ...

We present this preliminary investigation into the safety and feasibility of endovascular therapy for morbid obesity in a swine model. A flow-limiting, balloon-expandable covered stent was placed in the superior mesenteric artery of three Yorkshire swine after femoral arterial cutdown. The pigs were monitored for between 15 and 51 days after ...

Background: Meloxicam is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, indicated for osteoarthritis exacerbations, rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis symptomatic treatment. Objective: To compare the bioavailability of a 15 mg meloxicam orodispersible tablet (ODT) and a reference 15 mg tablet in healthy volunteers. Methods: Two randomized, crossover, bioequivalence studies were conducted. In both ...

The beneficial effects of subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) on motor symptoms and quality of life in Parkinson's disease (PD) are well known, but little is known of the effects on autonomic function. Diffusion of current during stimulation of the STN may simultaneously involve the motor and nonmotor, limbic ...

Objective:Observational studies have examined the link between vitamin D deficiency and obesity traits. Some studies have reported associations between vitamin D pathway genes such as VDR, GC and CYP27B1 with body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC); however, the findings have been inconsistent. Therefore, we investigated the involvement of ...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzyme, CYP3A4, metabolizes ACT-178882, a new direct renin inhibitor. This study investigated the effect of diltiazem, a moderate inhibitor of CYP3A4, on the single-dose pharmacokinetics of ACT-178882 in healthy subjects. METHODS: In this open-label, two-way crossover, drug-drug interaction study, healthy young male subjects ...

OBJECTIVES:Elemental diets have not been studied in adults with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE). The goal of this trial was to assess the efficacy of an elemental diet in adults with EoE.METHODS:A total of 18 adults with EoE were given an elemental diet for 4 weeks, or just 2 weeks if their ...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding ribonucleic acids (RNAs) of approximately 22 bp that induce RNA interference with a complementary messenger RNA (mRNA) and act in silencing of mRNA. miRNAs are strongly associated with cancer development and those involved in carcinogenesis are classified into oncogenic miRNAs and tumor suppressor miRNAs (tumor suppressor ...

It has been widely believed that the non-negativity and the piecewise-constant constraints guarantee a unique solution to an interior tomographic problem. This letter points out that if the number of views is finite, the non-negativity and the piecewise-constant constraints do not guarantee a unique solution to an interior tomographic problem ...

The practice of using images in teaching is widespread, and in science education images are used so extensively that some have argued they are now the "main vehicle of communication" (C. Ferreira, A. Arroio Problems Educ. 21st Century 2009, 16, 48-53). Although this phenomenon is especially notable in the field ...

Objective. This study was done to understand the demographics, clinical course, and outcomes of children with status asthmaticus treated in a tertiary care pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Methods. The medical charts of all patients above 5 years of age admitted to the PICU at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, ...

There are few effective therapies for high-risk sarcomas. Initial chemosensitivity is often followed by relapse. In vitro, mTOR inhibition potentiates the efficacy of chemotherapy on resistant sarcoma cells. Although sarcoma trials using mTOR inhibitors have been disappointing, these drugs were used as maintenance. We conducted a Phase I/II clinical trial ...

A chemo-enzymatic strategy for the preparation of 2-aminomethyl derivatives of (2R,3R,4R)-2-(hydroxymethyl)pyrrolidine-3,4-diol (also called 1,4-dideoxy-1,4-imino-d-arabinitol, DAB) and its enantiomer LAB is presented. The synthesis is based on the enzymatic preparation of DAB and LAB followed by the chemical modification of their hydroxymethyl functionality to afford diverse 2-aminomethyl derivatives. This strategy leads ...

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive, treatment-resistant tumor arising from mesothelium of pleura, peritoneum and pericardium. Despite current combined regimen, its prognosis remains dismal, calling for more effective targeted therapies. We investigated whether aberrant Hh activation may play a role in mesothelioma. METHODS: SMO and SHH expression levels were ...