Relative Uptake of Tomato Carotenoids by In Vitro Intestinal and Prostate Cancer Cells.

Background: Consumption of tomatoes and tomato carotenoids is associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer. Prostate tissue accumulates tomato carotenoids, including lycopene, β-carotene, and phytoene. Phytoene accumulation is relatively greater in the prostate than that of lycopene, but the metabolic determinants of tissue carotenoid profiles are poorly understood.

SMAD4: A critical regulator of cardiac neural crest cell fate and vascular smooth muscle development.

Background: During embryogenesis, cardiac neural crest-derived cells (NCs) migrate into the pharyngeal arches and give rise to the vascular smooth muscle cells (vSMCs) of the pharyngeal arch arteries (PAAs). vSMCs are critical for the remodeling of the PAAs into their final adult configuration, giving rise to the aortic arch and its arteries (AAAs).

Results: We investigated the role of SMAD4 in NC-to-vSMC differentiation using lineage-specific inducible mouse strains.

SMAD4: A Critical Regulator of Cardiac Neural Crest Cell Fate and Vascular Smooth Muscle Differentiation.

Background: The pharyngeal arch arteries (PAAs) are precursor vessels which remodel into the aortic arch arteries (AAAs) during embryonic cardiovascular development. Cardiac neural crest cells (NCs) populate the PAAs and differentiate into vascular smooth muscle cells (vSMCs), which is critical for successful PAA-to-AAA remodeling. SMAD4, the central mediator of canonical TGFβ signaling, has been implicated in NC-to-vSMC differentiation; however, its distinct roles in vSMC differentiation and NC survival are unclear.

A new mechanism of fibronectin fibril assembly revealed by live imaging and super-resolution microscopy.

Fibronectin (Fn1) fibrils have long been viewed as continuous fibers composed of extended, periodically aligned Fn1 molecules. However, our live-imaging and single-molecule localization microscopy data are inconsistent with this traditional view and show that Fn1 fibrils are composed of roughly spherical nanodomains containing six to eleven Fn1 dimers. As they move toward the cell center, Fn1 nanodomains become organized into linear arrays, in which nanodomains are spaced with an average periodicity of 105±17 nm.

Evaluation of Treatment-Dose Enoxaparin in Acutely Ill Morbidly Obese Patients at an Academic Medical Center: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background: Enoxaparin dosing recommendations for morbidly obese patients are lacking. Retrospective and observational studies reported goal anti-Xa levels with a median dose of 0.8 mg/kg using total body weight.

Type III Hypersensitivity Reaction to Subcutaneous Insulin Preparations in a Type 1 Diabetic.

Management of type 1 diabetes in patients who have insulin hypersensitivity is a clinical challenge and places patients at risk for recurrent diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Hypersensitivity reactions can be due to the patient's response to the insulin molecule itself or one of the injection's non-insulin components. It is therefore crucial for clinicians to quickly recognize the type of hypersensitivity reaction that is occurring and identify potentially immunogenic additives for the purpose of directing therapy as various insulin preparations have differing ingredients.

Chemoprophylaxis Use and Risk of Venous Thromboembolism and Death in Adult Patients following Orthotopic Liver Transplantation.

Background: Coagulation abnormalities in end-stage liver disease may preclude patients from receiving venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis immediately following orthotopic liver transplantation.

Methods: To identify risk factors for VTE and death following liver transplantation, a retrospective chart review was conducted in adult liver transplant recipients from January 1, 2001, to October 1, 2011.

Results: In 716 transplantations in 701 patients, the overall incidence of VTE was 2.