Asymmetric and symmetric dimethylarginine in high altitude pulmonary hypertension (HAPH) and high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE).

High altitude exposure may lead to high altitude pulmonary hypertension (HAPH) and high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE). The pathophysiologic processes of both entities have been linked to decreased nitric oxide (NO) availability. We studied the effect of acute high altitude exposure on the plasma concentrations of asymmetric (ADMA) and symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA), L-arginine, L-ornithine, and L-citrulline in two independent studies.

Biomarkers of the L-Arginine/Dimethylarginine/Nitric Oxide Pathway in People with Chronic Airflow Obstruction and Obstructive Sleep Apnoea.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) are common chronic diseases that are associated with chronic and intermittent hypoxemia, respectively. Patients affected by the overlap of COPD and OSA have a particularly unfavourable prognosis. The L-arginine/nitric oxide (NO) pathway plays an important role in regulating pulmonary vascular function.

The Clinical Laboratory Is an Integral Component to Health Care Delivery : An Expanded Representation of the Total Testing Process.

Objectives: Developing an expanded representation of the total testing process that includes contemporary elements of laboratory practice can be useful to understanding and optimizing testing workflows across clinical laboratory and patient care settings.

Methods: Published literature and meeting reports were used by the coauthors to inform the development of the expanded representation of the total testing process and relevant examples describing its uses.

Results: A visual representation of the total testing process was developed and contextualized to patient care scenarios using a number of examples covering the detection of blood culture contamination, use of next-generation sequencing, and pharmacogenetic testing.

Use of Proficiency Testing as a Tool to Improve Quality in Microbiology Laboratories.

Proficiency testing (PT) is a valuable tool for assessing laboratory performance and verifying the accuracy and reliability of test results. Participation is required by the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) of 1988 for each of the microbiology subspecialties (bacteriology, mycobacteriology, mycology, parasitology, and virology), and the regulations include specific PT requirements for each subspecialty. To determine the use and perceived value of PT beyond meeting CLIA requirements, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funded a cooperative agreement with the Association of Public Health Laboratories to convene a series of focus groups to query laboratory professionals responsible for PT.