Successful outcome with tandem myeloablative chemotherapy and autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplants in a patient with atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor of the central nervous system.

Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumors (ATRT) are highly malignant tumors of the central nervous system with a peak incidence in children less than 3 years of age. Despite multimodal therapy including surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, the prognosis remains dismal. No specific treatment guidelines are defined for ATRTs but a gross total resection and radiation therapy (RT) appear to improve overall outcome.

Human Alu RNA is a modular transacting repressor of mRNA transcription during heat shock.

Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) have recently been discovered to regulate mRNA transcription in trans, a role traditionally reserved for proteins. The breadth of ncRNAs as transacting transcriptional regulators and the diversity of signals to which they respond are only now becoming recognized. Here we show that human Alu RNA, transcribed from short interspersed elements (SINEs), is a transacting transcriptional repressor during the cellular heat shock response.

Modeling and testing of reactive contaminant transport in drinking water pipes: chlorine response and implications for online contaminant detection.

A modified one-dimensional Danckwerts convection-dispersion-reaction (CDR) model is numerically simulated to explain the observed chlorine residual loss for a "slug" of reactive contaminants instantaneously introduced into a drinking water pipe of assumed no or negligible wall demand. In response to longitudinal dispersion, a contaminant propagates into the bulk phase where it reacts with disinfectants in the water. This process generates a U-shaped pattern of chlorine residual loss in a time-series concentration plot.

An open-label comparative pilot study of oral voriconazole and itraconazole for long-term treatment of paracoccidioidomycosis.

Background: In previous studies, itraconazole was revealed to be an effective therapy and was considered to be the gold standard treatment for mild-to-moderate acute and chronic clinical forms of paracoccidioidomycosis. A pilot study was conducted to investigate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of voriconazole for the long-term treatment of acute or chronic paracoccidioidomycosis, with itraconazole as the control treatment.

Methods: A randomized, open-label study was conducted at 3 Brazilian tertiary care hospitals.

Cervical spine surgery in the ancient and medieval worlds.

The early historical literature on cervical spine surgery lacks printed material for review, and we can rely only on pathological material from the prehistoric period that has survived as a result of anthropological investigations. After the introduction of Egyptian and early Hellenic medicine, some written material became available. This paper reviews these materials, from both books and manuscripts, in an effort to understand the development of cervical spine surgery from the perspectives of the personalities involved and the early surgical practices used.

Establishment of transplantable porcine tumor cell lines derived from MHC-inbred miniature swine.

The lack of transplantable tumors has limited assessment of graft-versus-tumor effects following hematopoietic cell transplantation in clinically relevant large-animal models. We describe the derivation and characterization of porcine tumor cell lines with initial efforts of tumor transplantation using immunocompromised mice and highly inbred sublines of Massachusetts General Hospital major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-inbred miniature swine. Autopsies were performed routinely on swine that died unexpectedly or had suspicion of malignancy based on clinical symptoms or peripheral blood analysis.

TFIIA changes the conformation of the DNA in TBP/TATA complexes and increases their kinetic stability.

Eukaryotic mRNA transcription by RNA polymerase II is a highly regulated complex reaction involving numerous proteins. In order to control tissue and promoter specific gene expression, transcription factors must work in concert with each other and with the promoter DNA to form the proper architecture to activate the gene of interest. The TATA binding protein (TBP) binds to TATA boxes in core promoters and bends the TATA DNA.

Rare C-6 vertebral involvement in a child with histiocytosis X: case report.

The authors present a rare case of C-6 vertebral involvement in a 12-year-old boy with histiocytosis X. The patient presented with limitation in movements of neck and upper extremities. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MRI) imaging were used in the preoperative workup.

Comparison of culture and 2 real-time polymerase chain reaction assays to detect group B Streptococcus during antepartum screening.

Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is the most common cause of life-threatening infection in neonates but is preventable if the mother is diagnosed before and treated at delivery. Using 200 vaginal-rectal swabs inoculated to enrichment (LIM) broths, we compared routine culture and 2 real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays for detection of GBS: the LightCycler (LC) Strep B analyte-specific reagents (ASRs) (Roche Diagnostics, Indianapolis, IN) and the BD GeneOhm StrepB (BD-StrepB) test (BD GeneOhm Sciences, San Diego, CA). Culture detected 26.

Whole-genome analysis of histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation in Arabidopsis.

Trimethylation of histone H3 lysine 27 (H3K27me3) plays critical roles in regulating animal development, and in several cases, H3K27me3 is also required for the proper expression of developmentally important genes in plants. However, the extent to which H3K27me3 regulates plant genes on a genome-wide scale remains unknown. In addition, it is not clear whether the establishment and spreading of H3K27me3 occur through the same mechanisms in plants and animals.

Characterization of the sequence and architectural constraints of the regulatory and core regions of the human interleukin-2 promoter.

The cytokine interleukin-2 (IL-2) is produced by T cells when they recognize a foreign antigen. Transcription of the IL-2 gene is tightly controlled by the combined actions of multiple transcriptional activators. However, the contribution of sequences in the IL-2 core promoter and the architecture of the IL-2 regulatory region to setting levels of IL-2 transcription are not understood.

Characterization of the structure, function, and mechanism of B2 RNA, an ncRNA repressor of RNA polymerase II transcription.

We previously found that the SINE-encoded mouse B2 RNA binds RNA polymerase II and represses mRNA transcription during the cellular heat-shock response. In vitro B2 RNA assembles into preinitiation complexes on promoter DNA via its interaction with the polymerase, thus rendering the complexes inactive. With the goal of understanding which regions of B2 RNA are important for high-affinity binding to RNA polymerase II and repression of transcription, we performed a structural and deletion analysis of a 178 nucleotide (nt) B2 RNA.

Alpha-chitin nanocrystals prepared from shrimp shells and their specific surface area measurement.

Alpha-chitin was isolated from shrimp shells. The chitin was subjected to extensive treatments of acid hydrolysis and mechanical disruption to yield nanocrystals. The goal of this article is to characterize alpha-chitin nanocrystals produced from shrimp shells in regard to crystallite properties and the specific surface area of the chitin nanoparticles.

Comparison of Cepheid's analyte-specific reagents with BD directigen for detection of respiratory syncytial virus.

For detection of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the BD Directigen RSV rapid antigen assay was compared to Cepheid's real-time reverse transcriptase PCR RSV analyte-specific reagents. The Directigen RSV assay resulted in a 23% false-negative rate, using PCR and chart review as the gold standard, indicating that rapid RSV PCR results would be advantageous.

Cyclopentanone ring-cleaved pleuromutilin derivatives.

Ring-cleaved pleuromutilin derivatives comprised of a [5.3.1] bicyclic core structure have been synthesized and evaluated in vitro as antibacterial agents.

Silencing by plant Polycomb-group genes requires dispersed trimethylation of histone H3 at lysine 27.

The plant Polycomb-group (Pc-G) protein CURLY LEAF (CLF) is required to repress targets such as AGAMOUS (AG) and SHOOTMERISTEMLESS (STM). Using chromatin immunoprecipitation, we identify AG and STM as direct targets for CLF and show that they carry a characteristic epigenetic signature of dispersed histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3) and localised H3K27me2 methylation. H3K27 methylation is present throughout leaf development and consistent with this, CLF is required persistently to silence AG.

Different Polycomb group complexes regulate common target genes in Arabidopsis.

Polycomb group (PcG) proteins convey epigenetic inheritance of repressed transcriptional states. Although the mechanism of the action of PcG is not completely understood, methylation of histone H3 lysine 27 (H3K27) is important in establishing PcG-mediated transcriptional repression. We show that the plant PcG target gene PHERES1 is regulated by histone trimethylation on H3K27 residues mediated by at least two different PcG complexes in plants, containing the SET domain proteins MEDEA or CURLY LEAF/SWINGER.

Stable multilineage chimerism without graft versus host disease following nonmyeloablative haploidentical hematopoietic cell transplantation.

Background: Hematopoietic cell transplantation may offer the only cure for patients with hematological diseases. The clinical application of this therapy has been limited by toxic conditioning and lack of matched donors. Haploidentical transplantation would serve to extend the potential donor pool; however, transplantation across major histocompatibility complex barriers is often associated with severe graft-versus-host disease.

An 8 nt RNA triggers a rate-limiting shift of RNA polymerase II complexes into elongation.

To better understand the critical conversions that RNA polymerase II complexes undergo during promoter escape, we determined in vitro the precise positions of the rate-limiting step and the last step requiring negative superhelicity or TFIIE and TFIIH. We found that both steps occur after synthesis of an 8 nt RNA during the stage encompassing translocation of the polymerase active site to the ninth register. When added to reactions just before this step, TFIIE and TFIIH overcame the requirement for negative superhelicity.

Non-coding-RNA regulators of RNA polymerase II transcription.

Several non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) that regulate eukaryotic mRNA transcription have recently been discovered. Their mechanisms of action and biological roles are extremely diverse, which indicates that, so far, we have only had a glimpse of this new class of regulatory factor. Many surprises are likely to be revealed as further ncRNA transcriptional regulators are identified and characterized.

Beating the heat: A translation factor and an RNA mobilize the heat shock transcription factor HSF1.

Cells respond to stress via orchestrated modifications in gene expression; in a recent publication in Nature, Shamovsky et al. (2006) report that an RNA and a translation factor regulate the activity of a transcriptional activator essential to the mammalian heat shock response.

The craniopagus malformation: classification and implications for surgical separation.

Craniopagus twins (CPT) are an uncommon, highly fascinating accident of nature. The clinical pathology of this complex entity is reviewed and placed in perspective. A logical classification aids understanding of the anomaly, and is essential to gauge outcome from separation attempts.

Anesthetic management of staged separation of craniopagus conjoined twins.

We present a case of successful separation of craniopagus conjoined twins. The procedure was staged to permit each child to develop adequate independent cerebral venous drainage and to prevent deleterious, perioperative cerebral edema. Surgical hemorrhage, blood product delivery, and hemodilution were minimized.