Challenges encountered with argatroban anticoagulation during cardiopulmonary bypass.

Use of argatroban as an alternative to heparin during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) in patients with heparin-induced thrombocytopenia has gained some attention in the past two decades. Dosing of argatroban during CPB is complex due to lack of complete understanding of its pharmacokinetic profile and the various elements during CPB that may alter its plasma levels. We report a case where the challenges in dosing argatroban led to failure to provide adequate anticoagulation during CPB, as evidenced by clot formation in the oxygenator, and extensive bleeding in the postoperative period.

Thin-layer chromatography of lipid antigens as a means of identifying nontuberculous mycobacteria.

The previously described thin-layer chromatography procedure (Brennan et al., J. Clin.

Peptidoglycolipid nature of the superficial cell wall sheath of smooth-colony-forming mycobacteria.

The most superficial cell wall layer present in smooth-colony-forming mycobacteria was isolated from serovar 20 of the Mycobacterium avium-Mycobacterium intracellulare-Mycobacterium scrofulaceum (MAIS) serocomplex and examined chemically and by electron microscopy. Most (70 to 80%) of the fibrillar material consisted of an array of serologically active, acetylated C-myosidic peptidoglycoplipids with the basic structure (formula, see text) but in which the location of acetyl groups and the arrangement of monosaccharides have not been defined. Apparently, all serovars within the MAIS complex are characterized by structurally related superficies in which the monoglycosyl-lipopeptide portion is invariable but the oligosaccharide attachment is peculiar to each serovar.

Identification of atypical mycobacteria by thin-layer chromatography of their surface antigens.

The knowledge that the surface (Schaefer) antigens of certain smooth-colony atypical mycobacteria are multiglycosylated C-mycosidic peptidoglycolipids was used to devise a sensitive thin-layer chromatographic (TLC) procedure for the identification of Mycobacterium avium/M. intracellulare/M. scrofulaceum serotypes.