Continence Is Not Affected after Sling Revision with Transvaginal Tape Elongation for Post-Sling Voiding Dysfunction.

Voiding dysfunction (VD) after sling operation is not uncommon. Sling revisions by incision/excision are usually effective; however, they may result in recurrent stress urinary incontinence (SUI). We aimed to evaluate continence status after an innovative sling revision procedure that preserves the integrity of the sling.

Spontaneous abdominal wall endometriosis: A Case Report and review of the literature.

Objective: We present a case of spontaneous abdominal wall endometriosis presenting as a painless nodular mass in a woman with no prior history of abdominal surgery.

Case Report: Abdominal wall endometriosis (AWE) is an uncommon form of endometriosis, usually arising due to a past history of cesarean section or abdominal hysterectomy. However, in rare cases, abdominal wall endometriosis can arise in women with no prior history of abdominal surgery.

Association of Baseline Pelvic Floor Muscle Activities With Sexual and Urinary Functions In Female Stress Urinary Incontinence.

Background: The presence of reactive and strong pelvic floor muscle (PFM) activities is supposed to be associated with better urinary and sexual functions in female stress urinary incontinence (SUI).

Aim: This study was to explore the association of baseline PFM activities, both volitional and reflex, with urinary and sexual functions in women with SUI but who had no experience of PFM training programs before.

Methods: Secondary analysis of a prospectively maintained database identified 125 sexually active women with SUI who had met the eligibility criteria.

A 3-year longitudinal survey of overactive bladder in community-dwelling male residents aged 40 years and above.

Objectives: To evaluate the short-term evolution and risk factors of overactive bladder (OAB) in community-dwelling male residents aged 40 years and above in central Taiwan.

Methods: This was a 3-year longitudinal cohort study. From January 2012 to December 2012, community residents aged 40 years and above, living in central Taiwan, were invited to participate in this study.

Development and Clinical Evaluation of a High-Throughput LC-MS/MS Assay for Vitamin B6 in Human Plasma and Serum.

Background: Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP) is the primary circulatory form of vitamin B6, an essential cofactor for numerous biochemical enzymatic reactions. Conventional PLP analysis using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence requires derivatization and long injection-to-injection time. Development of high-throughput LC-MS/MS assays is desirable.

Associations of Waist Circumference, Socioeconomic, Environmental, and Behavioral Factors with Chronic Kidney Disease in Normal Weight, Overweight, and Obese People.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) places a heavy burden on the healthcare system worldwide. The risk factors may vary by body adiposity. We aimed to investigate the associations of socioeconomic, environmental, and behavioral factors with CKD in different groups of body mass indexes (BMI).

Education and Protein Supplementation Improve Nutritional Biomarkers among Hypoalbuminemic Peritoneal Dialysis Patients: A Quasi-Experimental Design.

Protein-energy wasting is prevalent in peritoneal dialysis patients, which causes a heavy burden for individuals and healthcare systems. We aimed to investigate the effect of nutritional education, and/or protein supplementation on nutritional biomarkers in hypoalbuminemic peritoneal dialysis patients. A quasi-experimental study was conducted in two dialysis centers at Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital and Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital.

Coproduction of Research Questions and Research Evidence in Public Health: The Study to Prevent Teen Drinking Parties.

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) provides a set of principles and practices intended to foster coproduction of knowledge. However, CBPR often has shortcomings when applied to population-level policy and practice interventions, including a focus on single communities and a lack of focus on policy change. At the same time, community trials focused on policy have shortcomings, including lack of stakeholder involvement in framing research questions and modest engagement in study implementation and interpretation and dissemination of results.

The Panitumumab EGFR Complex Reveals a Binding Mechanism That Overcomes Cetuximab Induced Resistance.

Panitumumab and cetuximab target the epidermal growth factor receptor for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer. These therapies provide a significant survival benefit to patients with metastatic colorectal cancer with wild-type RAS. A single point mutation in the ectodomain of EGFR (S468R) confers acquired or secondary resistance in cetuximab treated patients, which is not observed in panitumumab-treated patients.

Using public health and community partnerships to reduce density of alcohol outlets.

Excessive alcohol use causes approximately 80,000 deaths in the United States each year. The Guide to Community Preventive Services recommends reducing the density of alcohol outlets - the number of physical locations in which alcoholic beverages are available for purchase either per area or per population - through the use of regulatory authority as an effective strategy for reducing excessive alcohol consumption and related harms. We briefly review the research on density of alcohol outlets and public health and describe the powers localities have to influence alcohol outlet density.

Ordering of the N-terminus of human MDM2 by small molecule inhibitors.

Restoration of p53 function through the disruption of the MDM2-p53 protein complex is a promising strategy for the treatment of various types of cancer. Here, we present kinetic, thermodynamic, and structural rationale for the remarkable potency of a new class of MDM2 inhibitors, the piperidinones. While these compounds bind to the same site as previously reported for small molecule inhibitors, such as the Nutlins, data presented here demonstrate that the piperidinones also engage the N-terminal region (residues 10-16) of human MDM2, in particular, Val14 and Thr16.

Identification of substrates of SMURF1 ubiquitin ligase activity utilizing protein microarrays.

The ubiquitin proteasome pathway (UPP) has been implicated in a number of pathogenic diseases: cancer, inflammation, metabolic disorders, and viral infection. The human genome contains well over 500 genes encoding proteins involved in the UPP. Ubiquitin ligases (E3s) comprise the largest subset of these genes, and together with an E2 partner, provide the substrate selectivity required for regulating cellular proteins through the covalent attachment of ubiquitin.

Clinical and pathophysiological correlates of the symptom severity of stress urinary incontinence.

Introduction And Hypothesis: The pathophysiology of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is multifactorial. The aim of this study was to explore the factor determining the symptom severity of SUI.

Methods: One hundred twenty-four women with SUI were retrospectively investigated.

Different modes of inhibitor binding to prolyl hydroxylase by combined use of X-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy of paramagnetic complexes.

In aqueous solution, azaquinolone inhibitors bind to prolyl 4-hydroxylase in two different orientations, as first detected by (19)F spectroscopy. This contrasts with the crystallographic structure where only one orientation has been determined. Dissection of the metal binding properties of the enzyme allowed structures of both complexes to be obtained in solution from (19)F and (13)C dipolar shifts in a labeled ligand.

The correlations of incontinence-related quality of life measures with symptom severity and pathophysiology in women with primary stress urinary incontinence.

Purpose: We sought to explore the correlations of incontinence-related quality of life (QoL) measures with the symptom severity and pathophysiological factors for female stress urinary incontinence (SUI).

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of 707 women who had primary SUI. Clinical data for analysis included Ingelman-Sundberg scales, 1-h pad tests, incontinence-related QoL questionnaires comprising short forms of the Urogenital Distress Inventory (UDI-6) and Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7), ultrasound assessment of urethral support and urethral sphincter function determined by maximum urethral closure pressure and Valsalva leak point pressure.

Discovery and optimization of chromenotriazolopyrimidines as potent inhibitors of the mouse double minute 2-tumor protein 53 protein-protein interaction.

Tumor protein 53 (p53) is a critical regulator of cell cycle and apoptosis that is frequently disabled in human tumors. In many tumor types, p53 is deleted or mutated, but in others p53 is inactivated by overexpression or amplification of its negative regulator mouse double minute 2 (MDM2). A high-throughput screening effort identified 6,7-bis(4-bromophenyl)-7,12-dihydro-6H-chromeno[4,3-d][1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine as a potent inhibitor of the MDM2-p53 protein-protein interaction.

Reliability of real-time ultrasound to detect pelvic floor muscle contraction in urinary incontinent women.

Purpose: We determined the reliability of real-time ultrasound for detecting involuntary or reflex pelvic floor muscle contraction.

Materials And Methods: A total of 118 women with the symptomatic and urodynamic evidence of stress urinary incontinence were recruited in a 3-year period from tertiary referral urogynecology clinics. Under the oral instruction of strong coughing involuntary pelvic floor muscle contraction was detected using introital ultrasound in real-time and cine loop modes.

A proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 neutralizing antibody reduces serum cholesterol in mice and nonhuman primates.

Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) regulates serum LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) by interacting with the LDL receptor (LDLR) and is an attractive therapeutic target for LDL-C lowering. We have generated a neutralizing anti-PCSK9 antibody, mAb1, that binds to an epitope on PCSK9 adjacent to the region required for LDLR interaction. In vitro, mAb1 inhibits PCSK9 binding to the LDLR and attenuates PCSK9-mediated reduction in LDLR protein levels, thereby increasing LDL uptake.

Function of the extrinsic hindlimb muscles in trotting dogs.

The extrinsic appendicular muscles of mammals have been suggested to impose parasagittal torques on the trunk that require recruitment of the oblique hypaxial muscles for stabilization. To determine if the recruitment of the protractors and retractors of the hindlimb are compatible with this hypothesis, we monitored changes in the recruitment of eleven muscles that span the hip joint to controlled manipulations of locomotor forces in trotting dogs. The results indicate that the primary retractor muscles of the hindlimb produce a small retraction moment at the hip joint early in the support phase during trotting at constant speed on a level surface.

Cellular oxygen sensing: Crystal structure of hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase (PHD2).

Cellular and physiological responses to changes in dioxygen levels in metazoans are mediated via the posttranslational oxidation of hypoxia-inducible transcription factor (HIF). Hydroxylation of conserved prolyl residues in the HIF-alpha subunit, catalyzed by HIF prolyl-hydroxylases (PHDs), signals for its proteasomal degradation. The requirement of the PHDs for dioxygen links changes in dioxygen levels with the transcriptional regulation of the gene array that enables the cellular response to chronic hypoxia; the PHDs thus act as an oxygen-sensing component of the HIF system, and their inhibition mimics the hypoxic response.