Fluorine-induced polarity increases inhibitory activity of BPTI towards chymotrypsin.

Substituting the P position in bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor (BPTI) is known to heavily influence its inhibitory activity towards serine proteases. Side-chain fluorinated aliphatic amino acids have been shown to alter numerous properties of peptides and proteins and thus are of interest in the context of BPTI. In our study, we systematically investigated the site-specific incorporation of non-canonical amino acids into BPTI by microwave-assisted solid-phase peptide synthesis (SPPS).

Assessment and early diagnosis of dysphagia.

Dysphagia is defined as difficulty in swallowing food (semi-solid or solid), liquid, or both. Neurological, muscular, anatomical, and/or psychological factors may predispose a person to difficulty in swallowing. Difficulty in swallowing or dysphagia can lead to serious complications including aspiration pneumonia, malnutrition, and death if not diagnosed early.

Perspectives of nursing executives regarding ethical-economic issues.

The authors grapple with the very real issue of how to allocate scarce health care resources while trying to hold down costs, especially in the face of changing federal and managed care reimbursement realities. Nurse executives (NEs) were surveyed in an attempt to discover their perspectives on a number of related ethical-economic issues. The NEs' responses to the entire "ethical-economic" survey were contrasted with answers offered to the same tool earlier by staff RNs.

Spiritual and coping needs of critically ill patients: validation of nursing diagnoses.

Although testing of physiologic nursing diagnoses has occurred, critical care nurses have not validated the defining characteristics of the diagnoses, Spiritual Distress and Ineffective Individual Coping. This research report describes how critical care nurses rated the defining characteristics of these diagnoses. Specific strategies are given to assist nurses in recognizing the defining characteristics so that they can effectively intervene in the spiritual and coping needs of patients, thereby enhancing patient outcomes.

Perspectives of practicing nurses on ethical issues in health care economics.

Perspectives of nurses working in seven hospitals across the United States are described. Most nurses believed that all people should have equal access and quality of health care. However, most nurses were unwilling to pay more taxes or donate time to achieve these goals.