Evaluation of a Decision Aid for Women with Epilepsy Who Are Considering Pregnancy: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: For many women with epilepsy (WWE), decision making about pregnancy is complicated by considerations such as the potential teratogenicity of antiepileptic drugs, offspring risk of epilepsy, seizure occurrence during pregnancy, and the challenges of parenting amidst poorly controlled seizures.

Objective: This proof-of-concept, randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate a decision aid (DA) developed to help WWE decide if they should start or enlarge their families.

Methods: Seventy-nine WWE of childbearing age were recruited from Epilepsy Action Australia between October and November 2013 and randomized to receive the intervention (the DA) or not, and to complete a set of questionnaires pre- and post- intervention.

Pregnancy-related knowledge and information needs of women with epilepsy: a systematic review.

For women with epilepsy (WWE), pregnancy is complicated by considerations such as the potential teratogenicity of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) versus the risks of having seizures during pregnancy. However, qualitative research suggests that many WWE remain uninformed about the risks associated with epilepsy and pregnancy and may, therefore, be making uninformed decisions about their families. The objectives of this review were to determine the level of patient knowledge, their informational needs, and whether these needs concerning pregnancy and childbirth issues are met among WWE.

ID4 regulates mammary gland development by suppressing p38MAPK activity.

The ID family of helix-loop-helix proteins regulates cell proliferation and differentiation in many different developmental pathways, but the functions of ID4 in mammary development are unknown. We report that mouse Id4 is expressed in cap cells, basal cells and in a subset of luminal epithelial cells, and that its targeted deletion impairs ductal expansion and branching morphogenesis as well as cell proliferation induced by estrogen and/or progesterone. We discover that p38MAPK is activated in Id4-null mammary cells.

Introduction of oncogenes into mammary glands in vivo with an avian retroviral vector initiates and promotes carcinogenesis in mouse models.

We have adapted the avian leukosis virus RCAS (replication-competent avian sarcoma-leukosis virus LTR splice acceptor)-mediated somatic gene transfer technique to introduce oncogenes into mammary cells in mice transgenic for the avian subgroup A receptor gene, tva, under control of the mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) promoter. Intraductal instillation of an RCAS vector carrying the polyoma middle T antigen (PyMT) gene (RCAS-PyMT) induced multiple, oligoclonal tumors within 3 weeks in infected mammary glands of MMTV-tva transgenic mice. The rapid appearance of these tumors from a relatively small pool of infected cells (estimated to be approximately 2 x 10(3) cells per gland by infection with RCAS carrying a GFP gene; RCAS-GFP) was accompanied by a high fraction of cells positive for Ki67, Cyclin D1, and c-Myc, implying strong proliferation competence.

Cytoglobin is a stress-responsive hemoprotein expressed in the developing and adult brain.

Cytoglobin (Cygb) is a novel tissue hemoprotein relatively similar to myoglobin (Mb). Because Cygb shares several structural features with Mb, we hypothesized that Cygb functions in the modulation of oxygen and nitric oxide metabolism or in scavenging free radicals within a cell. In the present study we examined the spatial and temporal expression pattern of Cygb during murine embryogenesis.

Alternative therapies for orthotopic heart transplantation.

Heart failure has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. More than 5 million patients are treated for heart failure and approximately a half a million new patients are diagnosed with this disease each year in the United States. Recent pharmacological therapies have been used for the treatment of this patient population, but heart failure remains a major source of morbidity and mortality for patients.