Rapid pharmacotherapeutic intervention for an influenza A outbreak in the Canadian Arctic: lessons from the Sanikiluaq experience.

In January of 2000 an outbreak of influenza-like illness (ILI) was identified by Health Centre nursing staff in the remote island Inuit community of Sanikiluaq, Nunavut. A staged approach to an intervention strategy was adopted and an intervention team dispatched within 48 hours with diagnostic, prophylactic, and therapeutic capabilities and the intent to evaluate the response as well. The presence of influenza virus was determined on site in 3 out of thirteen initial cases of ILI using portable kit based rapid detection.

Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in a puerperant with drug-induced agranulocytosis.

Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) is an acute infection of Aspergillus species to the lungs. It generally occurs in immunocompromised hosts, especially with neutropenia. We report a 30-year-old puerperant, who developed IPA from agranulocytosis.

Results of local resection with regional lymphadenectomy for early gastric cancer.

Background: In 1999, the authors reported preliminary results of local resection with regional lymphadenectomy(LR) for early gastric cancer.

Methods: Twenty-four patients underwent LR until May 2000. Laparoscopic techniques were recently applied.

Comparative bioavailability of acyclovir from oral valacyclovir and acyclovir in patients treated for recurrent genital herpes simplex virus infection.

The bioavailabilities of acyclovir from capsules of valacyclovir, the L-valyl ester of acyclovir, and acyclovir were compared by measuring urinary excretion of the drug in a double blind, placebo-controlled field trial of patient-initiated treatment for recurrent genital herpes. Forty-six healthy patients with recurrent genital herpesvirus infection were randomly assigned to receive acyclovir 200 mg five times daily (n=20), valacyclovir 1000 mg twice daily (equivalent to 694 mg acyclovir twice daily) (n=18) or placebo (n=6). Thirty-three patients on the active treatments provided the required 24 h urine samples for assessment of bioavailability.

An outbreak of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus on a burn unit: potential role of contaminated hydrotherapy equipment.

Objective: To report a multi-institution outbreak caused by a single strain of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Outbreak: Between September 19 and November 20, 1996 an index case and five secondary cases of nosocomial MRSA occurred on a 26 bed adult plastic surgery/burn unit (PSBU) at a tertiary care teaching hospital. Between November 11 and December 23, 1996, six additional cases were identified at a community hospital.

Changes in power and coherence of brain activity in human sensorimotor cortex during performance of visuomotor tasks.

Electrocorticograms (ECoG) were recorded using subdural grid electrodes in forearm sensorimotor cortex of six human subjects. The subjects performed three visuomotor tasks, tracking a moving visual target with a joystick-controlled cursor; threading pieces of tubing; and pinching the fingers sequentially against the thumb. Control conditions were resting and active wrist extension.

Posttranscriptional regulation of cyclin A1 and cyclin A2 during mouse oocyte meiotic maturation and preimplantation development.

A shift from a meiotic cell cycle to a mitotic cell cycle occurs following fertilization. The molecular basis for this transition, however, is poorly understood. Although cyclin A1 is proposed to regulate M phase in the meiotic cell cycle, and cyclin A2 is proposed to regulate S and M phases in the mitotic cell cycle, little is known about changes in the expression levels of cyclin A1 and A2 during meiotic and mitotic cell cycles in mammalian oocytes.

Gastric proteinase digestion of caseins in newborn pups of the mouse.

Casein micelles of mouse milk consist of alpha-, beta-, gamma-, and kappa-caseins. By digestion with alkaline phosphatase, they were separated as an independent band by sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE). The compositions of alpha-, beta-, gamma-, and kappa-caseins were 24.

Atypical Cryptococcus neoformans isolate from an HIV-infected patient in Brazil.

Cryptococcus neoformans is an important fungal pathogen in immunocompromised hosts. Capsulation, urease and melanin synthesis activity of the fungus are well known virulence factors. Although artificial melanin-deficient mutants of Cr.

Vitamin A and risk of HIV-1 seroconversion among Kenyan men with genital ulcers.

Background: Vitamin A is involved in normal immune function and the maintenance of mucosal integrity through complex effects on cellular differentiation.

Objective: We sought to determine whether serum vitamin A levels were associated with altered susceptibility to primary infection with HIV-1 in men with high-risk sexual behaviour and genital ulcers who presented for treatment at an STD clinic in Nairobi, Kenya.

Methods: HIV-1 seronegative men were prospectively followed.

Hormonal regulation of mitochondrial Tim23 gene expression in the mouse mammary gland.

Tim23, a mitochondrial inner membrane protein, is essential for cell viability. Mouse Tim23 cDNA consisted of 1142 nucleotides plus poly(A) at the 3' end. In situ hybridization showed that mammary epithelial cells expressed Tim23 mRNA during pregnancy.

Slow dorsal-ventral rhythm generator in the lamprey spinal cord.

In the isolated lamprey spinal cord, a very slow rhythm (0.03-0.11 Hz), superimposed on fast N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-induced locomotor activity (0.

Effect of Antifungal Agents on Candida spp. and Pichia anomala Isolated from Oropharyngeal Candidiasis of AIDS Patients in a University Hospital in Brazil.

In order to determine the clinical significance of oropharyngeal candidiasis in AIDS patients, 44 isolates collected from individual clinical episodes were evaluated. The isolates were identified by microbiologic standard methods and in vitro antifungal susceptibility testing was evaluated for amphotericin B, fluconazole, flucytosine, miconazole, itraconazole, and ketoconazole according to the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. Candida albicans ATCC90028 was used as control for the MICs.

A new PCR primer for the identification of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis based on rRNA sequences coding the internal transcribed spacers (ITS) and 5 x 8S regions.

Internal transcribed spacer (ITS) genes including the 5.8S ribosomal (r)RNA of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis were amplified and the DNA sequences were determined. Based on a comparison of the sequence information, a new polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primer pair was designed for specific amplification of DNA for P.

Maturation/M-phase promoting factor: a regulator of aging in porcine oocytes.

Deterioration in the quality of mammalian oocytes during the metaphase-II arrest period is well known as "oocyte aging." Oocytes in which aging has occurred are called aged oocytes, and these oocytes show enhanced activation and higher fragmentation rates after parthenogenetic activation. Previously we showed that porcine aged oocytes had low maturation/M-phase promoting factor (MPF) activity, and we suggested that this low MPF activity contributed at least in part to the aging phenomena.

Impact of zanamivir treatment on productivity, health status and healthcare resource use in patients with influenza. Zanamivir Study Group.

Objective: This study examined the impact of zanamivir treatment on patient morbidity in patients with influenza.

Design And Setting: This was a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, parallel-group study conducted in 14 countries in Europe and North America during the winter of 1995/1996.

Patients And Participants: The study included 722 individuals with virologically confirmed influenza.

Acid-promoted rearrangement of carbonate functionality anchored to the lower rim of a Calix.

A unique calix[4]arene lower-rim intramolecular rearrangement, resulting in molecular asymmetry arising from the upper- and lower-rim substitution pattern, produces a new class of inherently chiral calix[4]arenes in a partial cone conformation. This was aided by molecular rigidification arising from pi-pi and C-H.pi interactions between bulky lower-rim substituents, with the corresponding circular dichroism spectra exhibiting the most intense bisignate Cotton effects yet observed for calix[4]arenes not bearing a chiral center.

Feasibility of daily concurrent chemoradiation therapy as nonsurgical management for esophageal cancer: our experience and theoretical background.

Background And Objectives: Many combination patterns of chemotherapy and radiotherapy (chemoradiation therapy; CRT) for the treatment of esophageal cancer indicate that the optimal doses of chemotherapeutic agents and of chemotherapy and radiotherapy regimens remain unclear. The feasibility and promising outcome of our newly developed definitive CRT for nonsurgical management of esophageal cancer, essentially based on the theoretical backgrounds of the radiosensitizing and biochemical modulation effects of chemotherapeutic agents, is investigated.

Methods: Six nonoperated esophageal cancer patients were treated by daily concurrent CRT, which consisted of continuous 5-fluorouracil administration with leucovorin, combined with a low dose of daily cisplatin administration before each fraction of radiation.

Efficacy and safety of famciclovir for treating mucocutaneous herpes simplex infection in HIV-infected individuals. Collaborative Famciclovir HIV Study Group.

Objective: To compare the efficacy and safety of 7 days' treatment with famciclovir 500 mg twice a day versus acyclovir 400 mg five times a day, for mucocutaneous herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection in HIV-infected individuals.

Design: Randomized, double-blind, parallel-group study to demonstrate equivalence for the primary efficacy parameter.

Setting: Forty-eight hospital-based or specialist public-health clinics in 12 countries.

Efficacy and safety of oseltamivir in treatment of acute influenza: a randomised controlled trial. Neuraminidase Inhibitor Flu Treatment Investigator Group.

Background: Use of some antiviral drugs for influenza infection is limited by potential rapid emergence of resistance. We studied the efficacy and safety of oseltamivir, the oral prodrug of the neuraminidase inhibitor GS4071, in adults with naturally acquired laboratory-confirmed influenza.

Methods: We did a randomised controlled trial of 726 previously healthy non-immunised adults with febrile influenza-like illness of up to 36 h duration.

Rapid antiviral effect of inhaled zanamivir in the treatment of naturally occurring influenza in otherwise healthy adults.

The antiviral and clinical effects of inhaled zanamivir (10 mg twice daily for 5 days, started within the first or second day of a flulike illness) were evaluated in a randomized, placebo-controlled trial during the 1997-1998 influenza season in Canada. Pharyngeal secretions were collected with swabs every 12 h during 6 days, and symptoms were self-evaluated twice daily during 14 days. After only 12 h of treatment (1 dose), median virus titers decreased by 1.

The poly(A) tail length of casein mRNA in the lactating mammary gland changes depending upon the accumulation and removal of milk.

The length of casein mRNA from the lactating mouse mammary gland, as assessed on Northern blots, is shorter after weaning, but is elongated following the removal of milk. In order to investigate this phenomenon, the molecular structures of beta- and gamma-casein mRNAs were analysed. The coding and non-coding regions of the two forms were the same length, but the long form of casein mRNA had a longer poly(A) tail than the short form (P<0.

Prospects for control of herpes simplex virus disease through immunization.

Herpes simplex viruses (HSVs) can cause a variety of infections, including genital herpes. Despite effective antiviral therapy, HSV infections remain a significant worldwide public health problem. Vaccines offer the best hope for controlling spread and limiting HSV disease.

Three screening tests for patients with psychological problems who undergo plastic and reconstructive surgery.

To investigate their quality of life, screening tests of emotion, coping with stress, and personality were developed for use with patients in plastic and reconstructive surgery who had psychological problems. The validity and reliability of each test were examined in a sample of 329 patients who were admitted to the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. The reliability of each test was supported by factor analysis, adequate internal consistency, and test-retest correlations.