Dofetilide is safe and effective in preventing atrial fibrillation recurrences in patients accepted for catheter ablation.

Aims: The aim of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of dofetilide among patients refractory to other anti-arrhythmic drugs (AADs) and accepted for atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation.

Methods And Results: One hundred and twenty-seven of 454 patients (69% male, 58% paroxysmal, age 60 +/- 10 years, AF duration 8 +/- 7 years) scheduled for AF ablation between February 2004 and May 2008 were treated with dofetilide. Patients had failed 1.

Creating access to health technologies in poor countries.

Many people in developing countries lack access to health technologies. We present seven findings about processes that shape access, based on analysis of six case histories: praziquantel to treat schistosomiasis (a parasitic worm disease), hepatitis B vaccine, the Norplant contraceptive, malaria rapid diagnostic tests, vaccine vial monitors, and the female condom. Each case study is assessed with a comprehensive framework that examines the effects of architecture, availability, affordability, and adoption on creating access.

Atrial fibrillation in patients with ischemic stroke: A population-based study.

Background: Atrial fibrillation is a major risk factor for ischemic stroke. However, the prognostic impact of atrial fibrillation among patients with stroke is not fully clarified. We compared patient characteristics, including severity of stroke and comorbidity, quality of in-hospital care and outcomes in a cohort of first-time ischemic stroke patients with and without atrial fibrillation.

Completeness and positive predictive value of registration of upper limb embolectomy in the Danish National Vascular Registry.

Objective: TO EVALUATE COMPLETENESS AND POSITIVE PREDICTIVE VALUE OF THE DANISH NATIONAL VASCULAR REGISTRY REGARDING REGISTRATION OF THE SURGICAL PROCEDURES: embolectomy of brachial, ulnar, or radial artery.

Study Design And Settings: The study was based on first-time embolectomies in the brachial, ulnar, or radial artery performed in Denmark from January 1, 1990 to December 31, 2002. The data were primarily retrieved from the Danish National Vascular Registry and secondarily from the Danish National Registry of Patients.

Structural basis of specific TraD-TraM recognition during F plasmid-mediated bacterial conjugation.

F plasmid-mediated bacterial conjugation requires interactions between a relaxosome component, TraM, and the coupling protein TraD, a hexameric ring ATPase that forms the cytoplasmic face of the conjugative pore. Here we present the crystal structure of the C-terminal tail of TraD bound to the TraM tetramerization domain, the first structural evidence of relaxosome-coupling protein interactions. The structure reveals the TraD C-terminal peptide bound to each of four symmetry-related grooves on the surface of the TraM tetramer.

Towards a systems biology approach to study type II/IV secretion systems.

Many gram-negative bacteria produce thin protein filaments, named pili, which extend beyond the confines of the outer membrane. The importance of these pili is illustrated by the fact that highly complex, multi-protein pilus-assembly machines have evolved, not once, but several times. Their many functions include motility, adhesion, secretion, and DNA transfer, all of which can contribute to the virulence of bacterial pathogens or to the spread of virulence factors by horizontal gene transfer.

ZFPL1, a novel ring finger protein required for cis-Golgi integrity and efficient ER-to-Golgi transport.

The Golgi apparatus occupies a central position within the secretory pathway, but the molecular mechanisms responsible for its assembly and organization remain poorly understood. We report here the identification of zinc finger protein-like 1 (ZFPL1) as a novel structural component of the Golgi apparatus. ZFPL1 is a conserved and widely expressed integral membrane protein with two predicted zinc fingers at the N-terminus, the second of which is a likely ring domain.

Warfarin for the prevention of systemic embolism in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation: a meta-analysis.

Background: Warfarin for stroke prevention in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) is well documented. However, it has not been examined in the prevention of systemic embolism.

Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy of warfarin in preventing systemic embolism (embolism to limbs or viscera) in patients with AF.

Coordination of golgin tethering and SNARE assembly: GM130 binds syntaxin 5 in a p115-regulated manner.

During membrane traffic, transport carriers are first tethered to the target membrane prior to undergoing fusion. Mechanisms exist to connect tethering with fusion, but in most cases, the details remain poorly understood. GM130 is a member of the golgin family of coiled-coil proteins tat is involved in membrane tethering at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) to Golgi intermediate compartment and cis-Golgi.

[Sinus caroticus syndrome diagnosed after 43 years].

A 63-years-old male suffered from palpitations, syncope and near syncope for 43 years. He had diagnosed paroxystic atrial fibrillation and was treated with betablocade, calcium antagonists, and flecanide with potentially severe complications. Blood tests, electrocardiography, echocardiography and myocardial scintigraphy were all normal.

Activation of the Cpx regulon destabilizes the F plasmid transfer activator, TraJ, via the HslVU protease in Escherichia coli.

The Escherichia coli CpxAR two-component signal transduction system senses and responds to extracytoplasmic stress. The cpxA101* allele was previously found to reduce F plasmid conjugation by post-transcriptional inactivation of the positive activator TraJ. Microarray analysis revealed upregulation of the protease-chaperone pair, HslVU, which was shown to degrade TraJ in an E.

Bile salt-phospholipid aggregation at submicellar concentrations.

The aggregation behavior of the bile salts taurodeoxycholate (NaTDC) and sodium cholate (NaC), are followed at concentrations below critical micelle concentrations (CMCs) using the environment sensitive, fluorescent-labeled phospholipid, 2-(6-(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl)amino)hexanoyl-1-hexadecanoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (NBD-C(6)-HPC). A buffer solution containing NBD-C(6)-HPC is titrated with increasing NaC or NaTDC and the fluorescence changes followed. Both bile salts induced fluorescence changes below their critical micelle concentration indicating the presence of a bile salt-phospholipid aggregate.

Lost life years attributable to stroke among patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation: a nationwide population-based follow-up study.

Aim: We assessed the number of lost life years attributable to stroke among patients with a hospital diagnosis of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.

Methods: We identified all patients, aged 40-89 years, with an incident hospital diagnosis of atrial fibrillation or flutter in the Danish National Registry of Patients from calendar year 1980 to 2002, and no previous or concomitant diagnosis of stroke or heart valve disease. All patients were followed in the Danish National Registry of Patients for occurrence of an incident diagnosis of stroke of any type (ischemic and/or hemorrhagic) and in the Danish Civil Registration System for emigration or change in vital status.

Age and risk of stroke in atrial fibrillation: evidence for guidelines?

Aim: Guidelines for the clinical management of patients with atrial fibrillation suggest that treatment strategies for prescribing oral anticoagulant therapy should implicate change at age 60, 65 and 75 years. We examined if there is any threshold concerning risk of stroke by age.

Methods: We identified 141,493 subjects, aged 40-89 years, with an incident hospital diagnosis of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation or flutter and no previous or concomitant diagnosis of stroke in the Danish National Registry of Patients from January 1, 1980, to December 31, 2002.

3,4-dichloropropionaniline suppresses normal macrophage function.

Macrophages are a critical part of the innate immune response and natural surveillance mechanisms. As such, proper macrophage function is crucial for engulfing bacterial pathogens through phagocytosis and destroying them by generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS). The production of a number of cytokines by macrophages, such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin (IL)-1beta, and IL-6, plays an important role in the initiation of the acquired immune response creating an inflammatory environment favorable for fighting a bacterial infection.

Entry exclusion in F-like plasmids requires intact TraG in the donor that recognizes its cognate TraS in the recipient.

The mating pair stabilization (Mps) protein of the F plasmid, TraG, is unique to F-like type IV secretion systems. TraG is a polytopic inner-membrane protein with a large C-terminal periplasmic domain that is required for piliation and Mps, whereas the N-terminal region is sufficient for pilus synthesis. The C-terminal region of TraG is thought to be cleaved by the host signal peptidase I to give a fragment called TraG* that is responsible for Mps.

Trend in mortality after stroke with atrial fibrillation.

Purpose: To evaluate trend in mortality in stroke associated with atrial fibrillation, we examined mortality trend after stroke with atrial fibrillation by calendar year period (1980-1984, 1985-1989, 1990-1994, 1995-1999, and 2000-2002). We estimated trends separately for each sex in unadjusted analyses. We also adjusted for age, comorbid conditions, and general trend in mortality in the background population.

Atypically diffuse functional connectivity between caudate nuclei and cerebral cortex in autism.

Background: Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder affecting sociocommunicative behavior, but also sensorimotor skill learning, oculomotor control, and executive functioning. Some of these impairments may be related to abnormalities of the caudate nuclei, which have been reported for autism.

Methods: Our sample was comprised of 8 high-functioning males with autism and 8 handedness, sex, and age-matched controls.

Protonation-mediated structural flexibility in the F conjugation regulatory protein, TraM.

TraM is essential for F plasmid-mediated bacterial conjugation, where it binds to the plasmid DNA near the origin of transfer, and recognizes a component of the transmembrane DNA transfer complex, TraD. Here we report the 1.40 A crystal structure of the TraM core tetramer (TraM58-127).

Seasonal variation in stroke and stroke-associated mortality in patients with a hospital diagnosis of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation or flutter. A population-based study in Denmark.

Aim: There are few data on seasonal variation in stroke and seasonal variation in mortality after stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. We examined the seasonal pattern in stroke occurrence and the effect of the season on mortality after stroke in patients with a history of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.

Methods: We identified all individuals, aged 40-89 years, with an incident diagnosis of stroke of any nature (ischemic or hemorrhagic) in the 1980-2002 period and no history of heart valve disease and a previous or concomitant diagnosis of atrial fibrillation or flutter in the Danish National Registry of Patients.

Trends in risk of stroke in patients with a hospital diagnosis of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation: National Cohort Study in Denmark, 1980-2002.

Aim: We examined trends in incidence of stroke of any nature (ischemic and/or hemorrhagic) in subjects with a hospital diagnosis of nonvalvular atrial fibrillation or flutter in Denmark from 1980 to 2002 by sex, age and conditions of comorbidity.

Methods: We identified all individuals, aged 40-89 years, with an incident hospital diagnosis of atrial fibrillation or flutter and no history of stroke or heart valve disease in the Danish National Registry of Patients, and subjects were followed in the Danish National Registry of Patients for occurrence of an incident diagnosis of stroke of any nature (ischemic and/or hemorrhagic) and in the Danish Civil Registration System (emigration and vital status). We used multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis to estimate trends in incidence of stroke.

PKCtheta is a key player in the development of insulin resistance.

Activation of PKCtheta is associated with lipid-induced insulin resistance and PKCtheta knockout mice are protected from the lipid-induced defects. However, the exact mechanism by which PKCtheta contributes to insulin resistance is not known. To investigate whether an increase in PKCtheta expression leads to insulin resistance, C2C12 skeletal muscle cells were transfected with PKCtheta DNA and treated with different concentrations of insulin for 10 min.