mRNA PGC-1α levels in blood samples reliably correlates with its myocardial expression: study in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Objective: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α) is a transcriptional coactivator that has been proposed to play a protective role in mouse models of cardiac ischemia and heart failure, suggesting that PGC-1α could be relevant as a prognostic marker. Our previous studies showed that the estimation of peripheral mRNA PGC-1α expression was feasible and that its induction correlated with the extent of myocardial necrosis and left ventricular remodeling in patients with myocardial infarction. In this study, we sought to determine if the myocardial and peripheral expressions of PGC-1α are well correlated and to analyze the variability of PGC-1α expression depending on the prevalence of some metabolic disorders.

Minimally invasive aortic valve surgery. A safe and useful technique beyond the cosmetic benefits.

Introduction And Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare the in-hospital clinical outcomes of minimally invasive, isolated aortic valve replacement vs median sternotomy.

Methods: Between 2005 and 2012, 615 patients underwent aortic valve replacement at a single institution, 532 by a median sternotomy (E group) and 83 by a J-shaped ministernotomy (M group).

Results: No significant differences were found between the E and M groups in terms of age (69.

Artificial chordae in the setting of complex mitral valve repair: early outcomes using the folding leaflet technique.

Objectives: Neochordal repair is particularly limited in case of large prolapse with absence of a reference point on a nearby segment. Our aim was to overcome these limitations by means of a simple technique: the 'Folding Leaflet'.

Methods: Ninety-six patients underwent this technique between January 2009 and August 2012 from a global mitral valve (MV) repair group of 384 patients.

Incidence and prognostic value of FLT3 internal tandem duplication and D835 mutations in acute myeloid leukemia.

Background And Objectives: Cytogenetics is the most important prognostic factor in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, a high proportion of patients show normal or intermediate-risk karyotypes. In these patients, other determinants could help to identify those with a higher risk of relapse.