Rare Variants in Genes of the Cholesterol Pathway Are Present in 60% of Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a pandemic in which conventional risk factors are inadequate to detect who is at risk early in the asymptomatic stage. Although gene variants in genes related to cholesterol, which may increase the risk of AMI, have been identified, no studies have systematically screened the genes involved in this pathway. In this study, we included 105 patients diagnosed with AMI with an elevation of the ST segment (STEMI) and treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI).

Naturally presented HLA class I-restricted epitopes from the neurotrophic factor S100-β are targets of the autoimmune response in type 1 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) results from the destruction of pancreatic β-cells by the immune system, and CD8 T lymphocytes are critical actors in this autoimmune response. Pancreatic islets are surrounded by a mesh of nervous cells, the peri-insular Schwann cells, which are also targeted by autoreactive T lymphocytes and express specific antigens, such as the neurotrophic factor S100-β. Previous work has shown increased proliferative responses to whole S100-β in both human T1D patients and the nonobese diabetic (NOD) mouse model.

Comparison of paclitaxel and everolimus-eluting stents in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and influence of thrombectomy on outcomes. ESTROFA-IM study.

Introduction And Objectives: We sought to compare the long-term clinical outcome of with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction treated with paclitaxel-eluting stents or everolimus-eluting stents and the influence of thrombectomy on outcomes.

Methods: The ESTROFA-IM is a multicenter retrospective registry collecting consecutive patients with infarction treated with these stents in 16 centers. Propensity-score matching was performed to select comparable stent groups and comparable groups with and without thrombectomy.

Comparison of paclitaxel-eluting stents (Taxus) and everolimus-eluting stents (Xience) in left main coronary artery disease with 3 years follow-up (from the ESTROFA-LM registry).

Evidence regarding therapy with drug-eluting stents in the left main coronary artery (LM) is based mostly on trials performed with first-generation drug-eluting stents. The aim of this study was to evaluate long-term clinical outcomes after treatment for unprotected LM disease with paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES) and everolimus-eluting stents (EES). The ESTROFA-LM is a multicenter retrospective registry including consecutive patients with unprotected LM disease treated with PES or EES.

Comparison of gene expression profiles in a porcine infarct model after intracoronary, transthoracic, or transendocardiac injection of heterologous bone marrow mesenchymal cells.

An in vivo porcine model of myocardial infarction was developed with the aim of comparing the effectiveness for cardiac repair of intracoronary, transthoracic, or transendocardial delivery strategies for bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMMSC) using an analysis of expression levels of transcripts related to various cellular processes at 8 heart regions using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. We observed significant rises in cardiomyogenic markers Mef2C, Gata4 and Nkx2.5, and contractibility marker Serca2A at infarcted regions for cell-treated pigs.

Analysis of different routes of administration of heterologous 5-azacytidine-treated mesenchymal stem cells in a porcine model of myocardial infarction.

Stem cell therapy constitutes an exciting, powerful therapy to repair the heart. Nevertheless, there are numerous doubts about the best route of stem cell administration to achieve implantation into the injured myocardium. Development of a preclinical, large animal model may be useful to obtain a better approach to clinical situations.

Late steroid withdrawal after heart transplantation and incidence of acute rejection.

Background: Steroid withdrawal (SW) after heart transplantation (HT) reduces steroid-associated side effects, although it can increase acute rejection episodes (ARE). Patient selection criteria for SW and the time elapsed after HT for this maneuver are controversial issues. The objective of this study was to assess the safety of late SW after HT with regard to the occurrence of ARE and to analyze risk factors resulting in a poor evolution.

Comparison of exercise echocardiography and the Duke treadmill score for risk stratification in patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease and normal resting electrocardiogram.

Background: Although exercise echocardiography (EE) is not clearly indicated in patients with normal electrocardiogram (ECG) as the first evaluation, there is a lack of data regarding its superiority over the Duke score for prognosis. We investigate whether EE has incremental value over the Duke score for predicting outcome in patients with normal ECG.

Methods: One thousand six hundred forty-seven patients with interpretable ECG referred for EE were followed up for 2.

Long-term results of heart transplant in recipients older and younger than 65 years: a comparative study of mortality, rejections, and neoplasia in a cohort of 445 patients.

Background: Whether being older than 65 years should be considered an absolute counterindication to heart transplant (HT), as it is in some centers, is controversial. In our centre, patients older than 65 years are accepted for HT if they satisfy stringent conditions. The aim of this study was to examine whether heart recipients older than 65 years have a greater risk of rejection, neoplasia, or mortality than younger ones.

Comparison of peak and postexercise treadmill echocardiography with the use of continuous harmonic imaging acquisition.

Objectives: We sought to compare the feasibility and accuracy of peak and postexercise treadmill echocardiography with the use of continuous harmonic imaging capture.

Background: Previous work has demonstrated the superiority of peak exercise echocardiography (EE) as compared with post-EE for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD). However, most of these studies used fundamental imaging and view-per-view acquisition systems.

[Real time myocardial contrast echocardiography to predict left ventricular wall motion recovery after reperfused acute myocardial infarction].

Introduction And Objectives: Real time myocardial contrast echocardiography (RTMCE) is a recently developed method. We sought to determine: a) whether RTMCE predicts recovery of left ventricular function after acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and b) whether data obtained with this method are comparable to those obtained with 99mTc-sestamibi single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and magnetic resonance.

Patients And Method: We studied 85 patients with AMI who underwent angioplasty.

Comparison of ischemia-modified albumin levels in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention for unstable angina pectoris with versus without coronary collaterals.

This study compared ischemia-modified albumin levels, a marker of ischemia in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. Ischemia-modified albumin levels were significantly lower in patients with collateral circulation compared with those without collateral circulation.

[Clinical characteristics, prognosis, and variability in the management of non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes. Data from the PEPA registry].

Objectives: To assess the clinical characteristics and inter-hospital variability in the treatment and prognosis of patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes.

Patients And Method: Data from the PEPA study, a prospective registry that enrolled 4,115 patients in 18 Spanish hospitals, were analyzed.

Results: The mean age of the patients enrolled was 65 years, 33% were women, and 26% had diabetes.

Comparison of two-dimensional echocardiography and pulsed Doppler tissue imaging during dobutamine-atropine stress testing to detect coronary artery disease.

In order to compare the diagnostic accuracy of two-dimensional (2-D) echocardiography and pulsed Doppler tissue imaging (pDTI) during dobutamine-atropine stress testing (DAST) to detect significant coronary lesions, 41 patients underwent DAST (up to 40 microg/k/min of dobutamine with additional atropine during submaximal heart rate responses) and coronary angiography. Pulsed Doppler tissue sampling of territories corresponding to the left anterior descending (LAD), left circumflex (LCx), and right coronary arteries (RCAs) were performed in the apical four-chamber plus aorta and two-chamber apical views. The measurements were repeated at rest, at low dose (10 microg/k/min), and at peak stress.

Ion interaction reagent reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography determination of anti-tuberculosis drugs and metabolites in biological fluids.

New methods of ion interaction reagent (IIR) RP-HPLC are presented for the determination of anti-tuberculosis drugs and their metabolites, singly or in multi-component mixtures, in biological fluids. The following analytes are considered: isoniazid, ethionamide, pyrazinamide, morphazinamide, p-aminosalicylic acid, nicotinic and isonicotinic acids. Aqueous solutions of three different ion interaction reagents are alternatively or comparatively used as the mobile phases, namely: (A) 5.

Effect of oral aminophylline in patients with angina and normal coronary arteriograms (cardiac syndrome X).

Background: Patients with syndrome X (exertional angina, positive exercise test, normal coronary arteriogram) have an altered perception of cardiac pain. This symptom may arise from increased sensitivity to adenosine. Previous studies suggest that intravenous aminophylline (an adenosine receptor blocker) improves exercise tolerance in patients with this disorder.

Differences in heart transplant physiology according to surgical technique.

A new cardiac transplantation technique that preserves the shape of the left atrium and leaves the right atrium intact has been introduced. To compare the new and the standard techniques, we studied cardiac physiology with Doppler echocardiography and catheterization in 26 patients who underwent operation with the standard technique (group A) and I1 who underwent operation with the new technique (group B). Right atrial dimensions were significantly lower in group B (right atrial area index 8.

Unreliability of echocardiographic and Doppler indexes in the diagnosis of heart transplant acute rejection.

Objective: To investigate the value of Doppler echocardiography to diagnose heart transplant acute rejection in both patients submitted to the standard surgical technique (Group A), and to a new technique that preserves the size of the left atrium and leaves the right atrium intact (Group B).

Methods: 122 Doppler echocardiographic studies and endomyocardial biopsies were performed on 27 group A and 11 group B patients. Systolic measurements included left ventricular shortening fraction, left ventricular endsystolic stress and tricuspid ring systolic displacement.

Plasma immunoreactive endothelin concentration correlates with severity of coronary artery disease in patients with stable angina pectoris and normal ventricular function.

Objectives: The present study tested the hypothesis that plasma immunoreactive endothelin concentration correlates with the severity and extent of coronary atherosclerosis.

Background: Plasma endothelin-1 concentration is increased in patients with unstable coronary syndromes and advanced atherosclerosis. This finding, together with other clinicopathologic observations, suggests that endothelins may participate in the atherogenic process.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme insertion/deletion polymorphism and restenosis after coronary angioplasty in unstable angina pectoris.

We studied the relation between angiotensin-converting enzyme insertion/deletion gene polymorphism and restenosis in Caucasian patients who underwent coronary angioplasty for management of unstable angina pectoris. Our results indicate that, in contrast to previous reports in Japanese patients, no association exists between angiotensin-converting enzyme gene polymorphism and the development of restenosis in Caucasian patients with acute coronary syndromes.)

Activation of endothelial guanylate cyclase inhibits cellular reactivity.

The study shows that endothelial cells from human umbilical veins have a soluble guanylate cyclase which can be activated by sodium nitroprusside (SNP), SIN-1 (3-morpholinosydnonimine) and S35b (4-methyl-3-phenylsulfonylfuroxan). Cells which were pretreated with these compounds showed an inhibition of thrombin-induced arachidonic acid release, PGI2 formation, PAF synthesis and PMNL adhesion. Endothelial guanylate cyclase can also be activated by nitric oxide (NO) which is generated in endothelial cells upon stimulation with thrombin or ionomycin.