European viper envenomings: Assessment of Viperfav™ and other symptomatic treatments.

Unlabelled: The treatment of European viper envenomings is based on IV antivenom infusions. Viperfav™ contains purified F(ab')(2) fragments of equine antibodies, and a 4 ml vial can neutralize 500-1000 mouse LD50 of Vipera aspis, V. ammodytes and V.

Synthesis of 1,3,4-oxadiazoles from 1,2-diacylhydrazines using [Et2NSF2]BF4 as a practical cyclodehydration agent.

The preparation of 1,3,4-oxadiazoles from 1,2-diacylhydrazines using XtalFluor-E ([Et(2)NSF(2)]BF(4)) as cyclodehydration reagent is described. Various functionalized 1,3,4-oxadiazoles were synthesized and it was found that the use of acetic acid as an additive generally improved the yields.

Wireless solar water splitting using silicon-based semiconductors and earth-abundant catalysts.

We describe the development of solar water-splitting cells comprising earth-abundant elements that operate in near-neutral pH conditions, both with and without connecting wires. The cells consist of a triple junction, amorphous silicon photovoltaic interfaced to hydrogen- and oxygen-evolving catalysts made from an alloy of earth-abundant metals and a cobalt|borate catalyst, respectively. The devices described here carry out the solar-driven water-splitting reaction at efficiencies of 4.

National Guard service members returning home after deployment: the case for increased community support.

National Guard service members and their families face unique circumstances that distinguish them from other branches of the military. In this article, we highlight unique National Guard needs and argue that more can be done by policy makers to help this population. We present the findings from a representative survey of Michigan citizens showing that public support exists for increased assistance for these service members.

Five-year clinical follow-up of prefabricated precision attachments: a comparison of uni- and bilateral removable dental prostheses.

Objectives: To evaluate the clinical long-term success of prefabricated precision attachments in retaining uni- or bilateral removable dental prostheses.

Method And Materials: Twenty-three patients with uni- or bilateral shortened dental arches received removable dental prostheses attached to the residual dentition with two types of precision attachments.

Results: After 5 years, 70% of bilateral and 25% of unilateral removable dental prostheses remained clinically functional.

Internal brooding favours pre-metamorphic chimerism in a non-colonial cnidarian, the sea anemone Urticina felina.

The concept of intraorganismal genetic heterogeneity resulting from allogeneic fusion (i.e. chimerism) has almost exclusively been explored in modular organisms that have the capacity to reproduce asexually, such as colonial ascidians and corals.

A review of acute cyanide poisoning with a treatment update.

Cyanide causes intracellular hypoxia by reversibly binding to mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase a(3). Signs and symptoms of cyanide poisoning usually occur less than 1 minute after inhalation and within a few minutes after ingestion. Early manifestations include anxiety, headache, giddiness, inability to focus the eyes, and mydriasis.

Assessment of aortic stiffness by local and regional methods.

The stiffness of large arteries has an important role in cardiovascular hemodynamics. Aortic stiffness (AoStiff) can be assessed non-invasively with regional and local methods. In this paper, we compared these two techniques for evaluating AoStiff.

Lunar rhythms in the deep sea: evidence from the reproductive periodicity of several marine invertebrates.

While lunar rhythms are commonly documented in plants and animals living in terrestrial and shallow-water environments, deep-sea organisms have essentially been overlooked in that respect. This report describes evidence of lunar periodicity in the reproduction of 6 deep-sea species belonging to 2 phyla. Occurrences of gamete release in free spawners and larval release in brooders exhibited significant peaks around the new and full moons, respectively.

[Comparison of the automated oscillometric method with Doppler ultrasound method to access the Ankle-Brachial Pressure Index (ABPI)].

Objective: The Ankle-Brachial Pressure Index (ABPI) is the easiest non-invasive method for the assessment of peripheral arterial diseases (PAD) but remains uncommon in general practice, because of the need for training and specific devices. The purpose of this survey was to assess the reliability of the automated oscillometric measurement of the ABPI, compared with the gold-standard Doppler ultrasound measurement.

Methods: A study was conducted on patients aged 65 years and over without diagnosed PAD hospitalized in the Teaching Hospital of Angers (France) from July 2008 to March 2009.

Long-term outcome of noninvasive positive pressure ventilation for obesity hypoventilation syndrome.

Background: Few data are available on the long-term outcome of noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) for obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS). This study was designed to determine long-term survival, treatment adherence, and prognostic factors in patients with OHS in whom NPPV was initiated in an acute setting vs under stable clinical conditions.

Methods: One hundred thirty consecutive patients with OHS (56 women) who started NPPV between January 1995 and December 2006 either under stable conditions (stable group, n = 92) or during ICU management of acute hypercapnic exacerbation (acute group, n = 38) were retrospectively analyzed.

Comparison of the automated oscillometric method with the gold standard Doppler ultrasound method to access the ankle-brachial pressure index.

Objective: Despite its screening interest, the ankle-brachial pressure index (ABPI) remains uncommon in general practice, because it needs training and specific devices as Doppler. Easier methods such as the use of automated oscillometric devices may facilitate the peripheral arterial diseases (PADs) screening. We wanted to assess the reliability of the automated oscillometric measurement of the ABPI, compared with the gold standard Doppler ultrasound measurement.

Evaluation of the difference in accuracy between implant placement by virtual planning data and surgical guide templates versus the conventional free-hand method - a combined in vivo - in vitro technique using cone-beam CT (Part II).

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of implant placement after virtual planning of implant positions using cone-beam CT data and surgical guide templates, and to match the results with those achieved with the conventional free-hand method.

Materials And Methods: Twenty-three implants were placed in 10 patients with a Kennedy Class II with 3-dimensional (3-D) planned surgical guide template. Manual implantation was performed in anatomical casts of the same patients by a prosthodontist and a maxillofacial surgeon.

Zirconia posterior fixed partial dentures: a prospective clinical 3-year follow-up.

Purpose: The aim of this prospective clinical trial was to evaluate the reliability of three- and four-unit posterior fixed partial dentures (FPDs) with zirconia frameworks after 3 years of clinical function.

Materials And Methods: Thirty patients, each needing a posterior FPD to restore one or two missing teeth, were included in the study. Preparation guidelines were: occlusal reduction of 1.

Protein adsorption and excipient effects on kinetic stability of silicone oil emulsions.

The effect of silicone oil on the stability of therapeutic protein formulations is of concern in the biopharmaceutical industry as more proteins are stored and delivered in prefilled syringes. Prefilled syringes provide convenience for medical professionals and patients, but prolonged exposure of proteins to silicone oil within prefilled syringes may be problematic. In this study, we characterize systems of silicone oil-in-aqueous buffer emulsions and model proteins in formulations containing surfactant, sodium chloride, or sucrose.

[Resection of talocalcaneal coalition in children and adolescents without and with osteotomy of the calcaneus].

Objective: Resection of the painful medial talocalcaneal fibrocartilaginous or bony bridge, thereby restoration of mobility of the peritalar joint complex; in case of flatfoot deformity realignment of the hindfoot and midfoot by medial sliding calcaneal osteotomy and in some cases correction of equinus contracture by intramuscular lengthening of the gastrocnemius muscle.

Indications: Before growth arrest: --Bony or fibrocartilaginous bridge at the medial or dorsomedial talocalcaneal region with or without pain. --Rigid flatfoot deformity caused by talocalcaneal coalition.

The man behind the eponym: Hans Biberstein and follicular hyperplasia overlying dermatofibroma.

Hans Biberstein first described the basaloid follicular hyperplasia overlying dermatofibromas in 1923 and published his extensive observations on the subject in 1931. Part of Josef Jadassohn's department in Breslau, he was forced to leave German by the National Socialist regime and spent the rest of his career in New York. After a hiatus of 30 years, the dermatopathologic literature once again began addressing his seminal finding but never gave him proper credit.

Endogenous and exogenous control of gametogenesis and spawning in echinoderms.

Most echinoderms display seasonal or other temporal cycles of reproduction that presumably result from the complex interplay of endogenous and exogenous signals. Various environmental, chemical and hormonal factors, acting directly or indirectly, individually or in combination, have been proposed to cue, favour or modulate a suite of reproductive functions from the onset of gametogenesis to gamete release. From as early as the nineteenth century, an astonishing array of studies has been published on topics related to the control of reproduction in echinoderms, ranging from fortuitous behavioural observations to complex experimental demonstrations and molecular analyses.

Prosthetic screw detorque values in implants retained as cast bar superstructures or bars modified by the Cresco Ti Precision technique--a comparative in vivo study.

Purpose: This prospective clinical trial investigated the effect of different fabrication techniques on screw-joint stability in implant-retained frameworks.

Materials And Methods: Seventy-nine dental implants (39 Brånemark System and 40 Straumann) were inserted into 20 patients with an edentulous mandible. One of two fabrication techniques was randomly chosen as a definitive restoration, either a cast bar or a bar superstructure modified with the Cresco Ti Precision (CTiP) technique.

Effects of dissolved oxygen tension and agitation rate on the production of heat-shock protein glycoprotein 96 by MethA tumor cell suspension culture in stirred-tank bioreactors.

Heat-shock protein glycoprotein (gp96) serves as a natural adjuvant for chaperoning antigenic peptide into the immune surveillance pathway. In our laboratory, MethA tumor cell suspension culture process has been recently developed for gp96 production in spinner flask. In this work, effects of dissolved oxygen tension (DOT) and agitation rate on this process were studied in stirred-tank bioreactor.

Significances of pH and temperature on the production of heat-shock protein glycoprotein 96 by MethA tumor cell suspension culture in stirred-tank bioreactors.

Heat-shock protein, glycoprotein 96 (gp96), elicits both innate and adaptive immune responses against tumors or viral infections. In our laboratory, MethA tumor cell suspension culture process has been recently developed for gp96 production in spinner flask. In this work, significances of pH and temperature on the novel bioprocess were studied in stirred-tank bioreactor.

Properties of acetate kinase activity in Clostridium thermocellum cell extracts.

Acetate kinase (EC 2.7.2.

Comparative clinical results after implant placement in the posterior maxilla with and without sinus augmentation.

Purpose: The objective was to compare implants in the posterior maxilla with or without sinus floor augmentation.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective study was conducted of patients who received implants in the posterior maxilla. All patients received solitary, implant-retained fixed partial dentures or crowns.

Discovery and characterization of QPT-1, the progenitor of a new class of bacterial topoisomerase inhibitors.

QPT-1 was discovered in a compound library by high-throughput screening and triage for substances with whole-cell antibacterial activity. This totally synthetic compound is an unusual barbituric acid derivative whose activity resides in the (-)-enantiomer. QPT-1 had activity against a broad spectrum of pathogenic, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, was nontoxic to eukaryotic cells, and showed oral efficacy in a murine infection model, all before any medicinal chemistry optimization.