Onset of Senescence and Steatosis in Hepatocytes as a Consequence of a Shift in the Diacylglycerol/Ceramide Balance at the Plasma Membrane.

Ceramide and diacylglycerol (DAG) are bioactive lipids and mediate many cellular signaling pathways. Sphingomyelin synthase (SMS) is the single metabolic link between the two, while SMS2 is the only SMS form located at the plasma membrane. SMS2 functions were investigated in HepG2 cell lines stably expressing SMS2.

Evidence supporting wound care end points relevant to clinical practice and patients' lives. Part 2. Literature survey.

Patients with wounds bear significant clinical, personal, and economic burdens yet complete wound healing is the only United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recognized primary clinical trial end point. The overall goal of this project is to work with FDA to expand the list of acceptable primary end points, recognizing that new and innovative treatments, devices, and drugs may not have complete healing as the focus. Part 1 of the project surveyed 628 wound care experts who identified and content-validated 15 end points most relevant to clinical practice and benefitting patients' lives as primary outcomes in clinical trials.

Identification and content validation of wound therapy clinical endpoints relevant to clinical practice and patient values for FDA approval. Part 1. Survey of the wound care community.

Wounds that exhibit delayed healing add extraordinary clinical, economic, and personal burdens to patients, as well as to increasing financial costs to health systems. New interventions designed to ease such burdens for patients with cancer, renal, or ophthalmologic conditions are often cleared for approval by the U.S.

Novel Interconnections in Lipid Metabolism Revealed by Overexpression of Sphingomyelin Synthase-1.

This study investigates the consequences of elevating sphingomyelin synthase 1 (SMS1) activity, which generates the main mammalian sphingolipid, sphingomyelin. HepG2 cells stably transfected with SMS1 (HepG2-SMS1) exhibit elevated enzyme activity and increased sphingomyelin content (mainly C22:0- and C24:0-sphingomyelin) but lower hexosylceramide (Hex-Cer) levels. HepG2-SMS1 cells have fewer triacylglycerols than controls but similar diacylglycerol acyltransferase activity, triacylglycerol secretion, and mitochondrial function.

Neutral sphingomyelinase-2 is a redox sensitive enzyme: role of catalytic cysteine residues in regulation of enzymatic activity through changes in oligomeric state.

Neutral sphingomyelinase-2 (nSMase-2) is the major sphingomyelinase activated in response to pro-inflammatory cytokines and during oxidative stress. It is a membrane-bound 655 amino acid protein containing 22 cysteine residues. In this study, we expressed recombinant mouse nSMase-2 protein in Escherichia coli, and investigated whether nSMase-2 is a redox sensitive enzyme.

CPT Codes: What Are They, Why Are They Necessary, and How Are They Developed?

Qualified healthcare professionals (QHPs) need to identify the professional services they provide and to report those services in a way that can be universally understood by institutions, private and government payers, researchers, and others interested parties. The QHPs' data are used to track healthcare utilization, identify services for payment, and to gather statistical healthcare information about populations. Each year, in the United States, healthcare insurers process over 5 billion claims for payment.

Ribozyme-mediated trans insertion-splicing into target RNAs.

The trans insertion-splicing (TIS) reaction is a technique that can be used to site-specifically insert an RNA donor substrate into a separate RNA acceptor substrate. The TIS reaction, which is catalyzed by a group I intron-derived ribozyme from Pneumocystis carinii, is described with regards to system design, ribozyme preparation, and the overall protocol for conducting the TIS reaction.

Antigenic and genetic characteristics of swine-origin 2009 A(H1N1) influenza viruses circulating in humans.

Since its identification in April 2009, an A(H1N1) virus containing a unique combination of gene segments from both North American and Eurasian swine lineages has continued to circulate in humans. The lack of similarity between the 2009 A(H1N1) virus and its nearest relatives indicates that its gene segments have been circulating undetected for an extended period. Its low genetic diversity suggests that the introduction into humans was a single event or multiple events of similar viruses.

Tetrahymena thermophila and Candida albicans group I intron-derived ribozymes can catalyze the trans-excision-splicing reaction.

Group I intron-derived ribozymes can catalyze a variety of non-native reactions. For the trans-excision-splicing (TES) reaction, an intron-derived ribozyme from the opportunistic pathogen Pneumocystis carinii catalyzes the excision of a predefined region from within an RNA substrate with subsequent ligation of the flanking regions. To establish TES as a general ribozyme-mediated reaction, intron-derived ribozymes from Tetrahymena thermophila and Candida albicans, which are similar to but not the same as that from Pneumocystis, were investigated for their propensity to catalyze the TES reaction.

Ribozyme mediated trans insertion-splicing of modified oligonucleotides into RNA.

The trans insertion-splicing reaction, catalyzed by a group I intron-derived from Pneumocystis carinii, was recently developed for the site-specific insertion of a segment of RNA into a separate RNA substrate. The molecular determinants of this reaction for binding and catalysis are reasonably well understood, making them easily and highly modifiable for altering substrate specificity. To demonstrate proof-of-concept, we now report that the P.

Kinetic characterization of the first step of the ribozyme-catalyzed trans excision-splicing reaction.

Group I introns catalyze the self-splicing reaction, and their derived ribozymes are frequently used as model systems for the study of RNA folding and catalysis, as well as for the development of non-native catalytic reactions. Utilizing a group I intron-derived ribozyme from Pneumocystis carinii, we previously reported a non-native reaction termed trans excision-splicing (TES). In this reaction, an internal segment of RNA is excised from an RNA substrate, resulting in the covalent reattachment of the flanking regions.

A Pneumocystis carinii group I intron-derived ribozyme utilizes an endogenous guanosine as the first reaction step nucleophile in the trans excision-splicing reaction.

In the trans excision-splicing reaction, a Pneumocystis carinii group I intron-derived ribozyme binds an RNA substrate, excises a specific internal segment, and ligates the flanking regions back together. This reaction can occur both in vitro and in vivo. In this report, the first of the two reaction steps was analyzed to distinguish between two reaction mechanisms: ribozyme-mediated hydrolysis and nucleotide-dependent intramolecular transesterification.

Computer-assisted bar-coding system significantly reduces clinical laboratory specimen identification errors in a pediatric oncology hospital.

Objective: To assess the ability of a bar code-based electronic positive patient and specimen identification (EPPID) system to reduce identification errors in a pediatric hospital's clinical laboratory.

Study Design: An EPPID system was implemented at a pediatric oncology hospital to reduce errors in patient and laboratory specimen identification. The EPPID system included bar-code identifiers and handheld personal digital assistants supporting real-time order verification.

Development of a content-validated venous ulcer guideline.

Evidence-based practice for venous ulcers may improve healing and reduce costs of care. The Association for the Advancement of Wound Care Government and Regulatory Task Force developed a content-validated venous ulcer guideline based on best available evidence supporting each aspect of venous ulcer care. After compiling all-inclusive lists of elements in venous ulcer algorithms published before August 2002, the Task Force objectively rated and summarized up to five best references from MEDLINE, CINAHL, and EMBASE literature searches covering each aspect of care.

The academic hematology-oncology firm:a model for postgraduate cancer education.

Objective: To examine whether the introduction of a subspecialty firm system results in improving fellowship training in hematology and oncology.

Methods: A subspecialty firm in Hematology-Oncology was created to provide ambulatory and inpatient, primary, and subspecialty care. A survey was conducted of all fellows who trained in this firm while enrolled in an affiliated University subspecialty fellowship program.

The unusual accidental death of a pregnant woman by sexual foreplay.

This is the case of a young pregnant black woman who died during foreplay when her male partner with his hands accidentally forced air from her vaginal cavity into her uterine cavity, causing air embolization in the veins on the surface of her heart and her brain. Her premature infant was removed by cesarean section by emergency-room personnel after she died. The infant survived for 12 days before being declared brain dead.

Magnetic resonance imaging in neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis.

Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis is a group of neurodegenerative disorders characterized by accumulation of lipofuscin and/or ceroid within the tissues of the body. These entities are manifest by visual, intellectual, and motor deterioration as well as recurrent seizures. Computed tomography has been shown to demonstrate changes of cerebral atrophy in more severely affected patients.

Magnetic resonance and CT imaging correlated with clinical status in SSPE.

Five patients afflicted with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis were studied with computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Computed tomography documented changes of nonspecific cerebral atrophy and low attenuation in the subcortical white matter. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed bilateral, symmetric, and diffuse abnormal increased signal in the white matter of the cerebral hemispheres with normal posterior fossa structures in 4 of 5 patients.