Plasma B-type natriuretic peptide levels are associated with early cardiac dysfunction after subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Background And Purpose: Serum B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) is elevated after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), as well as in the setting of congestive heart failure and myocardial infarction. The aim of this study was to prospectively quantify the relationship between BNP levels and cardiac outcomes after SAH.

Methods: Plasma was collected for BNP measurements as soon as possible after enrollment; a mean of 5+/-4 days after SAH symptom onset.

High incidence of epithelial cancers in mice deficient for DNA polymerase delta proofreading.

Mutations are a hallmark of cancer. Normal cells minimize spontaneous mutations through the combined actions of polymerase base selectivity, 3' --> 5' exonucleolytic proofreading, mismatch correction, and DNA damage repair. To determine the consequences of defective proofreading in mammals, we created mice with a point mutation (D400A) in the proofreading domain of DNA polymerase delta (poldelta, encoded by the Pold1 gene).