Effects of pravastatin sodium on mevalonate metabolism in common marmosets.

In experimental animals and humans, the concentration of serum mevalonate (MVA), a direct product of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase, is considered to reflect the activity of whole-body sterol synthesis. The relationship between the concentration of serum MVA and the activity of sterol synthesis in tissues, however, has not been fully clarified. In the present study, we examined MVA metabolism by using pravastatin, a liver-selective inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, and common marmosets, a good model animal for studying lipid metabolism.

Facial pattern categories of sleep breathing-disordered children using Ricketts analysis.

The facial patterns of 29 children under the age of 15 years with tonsil and/or adenoid and sleep disorder problems was analysed. The lateral-cephalograms of these patients was digitized in a zero-based computer program using Ricketts analysis to examine facial patterns. Results of the analysis were compared with the mean of the control group, n = 41 (9-year-old Japanese children).