Myocardial motion analysis based on an optical flow method using tagged MR images.

We developed a method of velocimetry based on an optical flow method using quantitative analyses of tagged magnetic resonance (MR) images (tagged MR-optical flow velocimetry, tMR-O velocimetry). The purpose of our study was to examine the accuracy of measurement of the proposed tMR-O velocimetry. We performed retrospective pseudo-electrocardiogram (ECG) gating tagged cine MR imaging on a rotating phantom.

A Cold-Inducible DEAD-Box RNA Helicase from Arabidopsis thaliana Regulates Plant Growth and Development under Low Temperature.

DEAD-box RNA helicases comprise a large family and are involved in a range of RNA processing events. Here, we identified one of the Arabidopsis thaliana DEAD-box RNA helicases, AtRH7, as an interactor of Arabidopsis COLD SHOCK DOMAIN PROTEIN 3 (AtCSP3), which is an RNA chaperone involved in cold adaptation. Promoter:GUS transgenic plants revealed that AtRH7 is expressed ubiquitously and that its levels of the expression are higher in rapidly growing tissues.

Macromolecular Crowding Modifies the Impact of Specific Hofmeister Ions on the Coil-Globule Transition of PNIPAM.

Macromolecular crowding alters many biological processes ranging from protein folding and enzyme reactions in vivo to the precipitation and crystallization of proteins in vitro. Herein, we have investigated the effect of specific monovalent Hofmeister salts (NaH2PO4, NaF, NaCl, NaClO4, and NaSCN) on the coil-globule transition of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) in a crowded macromolecular environment as a model for understanding the specific-ion effect on the solubility and stability of proteins in a crowded macromolecular environment. It was found that although the salts (NaH2PO4, NaF, and NaCl) and the macromolecular crowder (polyethylene glycol) lowered the transition temperature almost independently, the macromolecular crowder had a great impact on the transition temperature in the case of the chaotropes (NaClO4 and NaSCN).

Antipyrine test predicts pharmacodynamics in docetaxel and cisplatin combination chemotherapy.

To clarify the role of cytochrome P450 in docetaxel and cisplatin combination chemotherapy, cytochrome P450 activity was measured by simple antipyrine test, and its correlation with the drugs' pharmacodynamics was assessed. Twenty-five patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer received an antipyrine test and were treated with docetaxel and cisplatin. Plasma antipyrine concentration (C) was measured 4 and 24h after oral administration of 500 mg antipyrine.

[Yolk sac tumor resected by transverse sternotomy: a case report].

Transverse sternotomy was performed in a 39-year-old man having bilateral lung metastatic lesions of yolk sac tumor. This approach provided an excellent operative field. Bilateral partial lobes including parietal pleura and diaphragma were readily resected.