Long-term reproducibility of screening for glaucoma with FDT-perimetry.

Purpose: Aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term reproducibility of frequency doubling technology (FDT) screening procedures.

Methods: Longitudinal data of 433 eyes of 294 patients with no progression of glaucomatous optic disc atrophy were retrospectively analyzed: 62 control eyes, 184 ocular hypertensive eyes, 104 preperimetric, and 83 perimetric open-angle glaucoma eyes. All subjects had annual tests with the FDT perimeter and a standardized ophthalmologic examination (ie, conventional perimetry, optic disc inspection, tonometry, lens opacity measurement for exclusion of cataract).

Measuring contrast sensitivity in normal subjects with OPTEC 6500: influence of age and glare.

Background: The purpose of this study was to develop age-related curves for contrast sensitivity (CS) in normal subjects under day and night conditions with and without glare.

Methods: Sixty-one healthy eyes from 61 subjects were measured with the OPTEC(R) 6500 P under day and night conditions (luminance levels: 85 cd/m(2) and 3.0 cd/m(2) with and without glare; spatial frequencies: 1.

Glaucoma detection with frequency doubling perimetry and short-wavelength perimetry.

Purpose: The aim of this analysis was to evaluate the diagnostic usefulness of frequency doubling technology (FDT) perimetry and short-wavelength perimetry (SWAP). Moreover, to study a combination of both methods using the machine-learning technique double-bagging, which was recently established in glaucoma research.

Methods: Forty-three patients with "preperimetric" open-angle glaucoma (glaucomatous optic disc atrophy and no visual field defect in standard perimetry), 26 patients with "perimetric" open angle glaucoma (glaucomatous optic disc atrophy and visual field defect in standard perimetry), and 40 control subjects had FDT screening (protocol: C-20-5) and SWAP (Octopus 101, G2).

Interleukin-6 dependent survival of multiple myeloma cells involves the Stat3-mediated induction of microRNA-21 through a highly conserved enhancer.

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3) is implicated in the pathogenesis of many malignancies and essential for IL-6-dependent survival and growth of multiple myeloma cells. Here, we demonstrate that the gene encoding oncogenic microRNA-21 (miR-21) is controlled by an upstream enhancer containing 2 Stat3 binding sites strictly conserved since the first observed evolutionary appearance of miR-21 and Stat3. MiR-21 induction by IL-6 was strictly Stat3 dependent.

Clusterin is protective in pancreatitis through anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory properties.

Clusterin is overexpressed in pancreas during the acute phase of pancreatitis. We intended to clarify the role of clusterin expression in stressed exocrine pancreas. We performed in vitro experiments in transfected AR4-2J cells with modified expression levels of clusterin and in vivo studies in clusterin-deficient mice.

Automatic extraction of protein point mutations using a graph bigram association.

Protein point mutations are an essential component of the evolutionary and experimental analysis of protein structure and function. While many manually curated databases attempt to index point mutations, most experimentally generated point mutations and the biological impacts of the changes are described in the peer-reviewed published literature. We describe an application, Mutation GraB (Graph Bigram), that identifies, extracts, and verifies point mutations from biomedical literature.

Novel estrogen receptor beta transcript variants identified in human breast cancer cells affect cell growth and apoptosis of COS-1 cells.

Estrogen receptor (ER) beta gene codes for different transcript variants resulting from alternative splicing. In this study, we report identification of the two novel human exon-skipped ERbeta transcript isoforms ERbetaDelta125 and ERbetaDelta1256 in MDA-MD-231 breast cancer cells. Both transcripts could also be detected in a variety of human tissues.

Pupillographic measurements with pattern stimulation: the pupil's response in normal subjects and first measurements in glaucoma patients.

Purpose: This study was undertaken to characterize the influence of contrast, luminance, and spatial frequency of a pattern stimulus on the pupil reaction of healthy subjects. First measurements with this technique in patients with glaucoma were compared with those in a control group.

Method: Grating patterns were presented using a Maxwellian-view system to study series of contrast, luminance, and spatial frequency in three healthy subjects.

Antiproliferative effect of quercetin in the human U138MG glioma cell line.

Recent epidemiological and dietary intervention studies in animals and humans have suggested that diet-derived flavonoids, in particular quercetin, may play a beneficial role by preventing or inhibiting tumorigenesis. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether quercetin may act differently on cancer and normal neuronal tissue. In order to investigate this, the U138MG human glioma cell line and hippocampal organotypic cultures were used.

Measurement of autofluorescence in the parapapillary atrophic zone in patients with ocular hypertension.

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to investigate area and intensity of parapapillary autofluorescence in patients with ocular hypertension and controls.

Patients And Methods: Forty-two consecutive patients with ocular hypertension and 25 controls were investigated in a controlled prospective cross-sectional trial. All patients and controls were members of the Erlangen Glaucoma registry and received complete ophthalmologic examination and detailed standardized glaucoma examination, including 24-h IOP measurement, perimetrie (G1, three phases) and 15 degrees stereographic slides of the optic disc.

Improving glaucoma diagnosis by the combination of perimetry and HRT measurements.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine, whether the combination of morphologic data of the optic nerve head and visual field (VF) data would improve diagnosis of glaucoma, on the basis of the measurements alone.

Patients And Methods: Eighty-eight perimetric glaucomatous and 88 normal optic discs from the Erlangen Glaucoma Registry were matched for age. All normals and patients were examined in a standardized manner (Slitlamp biomicroscopy, gonioscopy, 24 h-applanation tonometry, automated VF testing, 15-degree optic disc stereographs, and Heidelberg Retina Tomograph (HRT)-scanning of the optic disc).

[Flicker provocation with LED full-field stimulation in normals and glaucoma patients].

Background: Flicker light is an easy method to test sensory function after stress. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of flicker stress on temporal contrast sensitivity in healthy controls and patients with glaucomatous alteration of the optic disk.

Methods: A commercially available full-field stimulator (Retiport, Roland Consult) equipped with white LEDs was modified to perform psychophysical tests.

BCL3 is induced by IL-6 via Stat3 binding to intronic enhancer HS4 and represses its own transcription.

BCL3 is a proto-oncogene affected by chromosomal translocations in some patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. It is an IkappaB family protein that is involved in transcriptional regulation of a number of NF-kappaB target genes. In this study, interleukin (IL)-6-induced BCL3 expression and its effect on survival of multiple myeloma (MM) cells were examined.

Measuring change in prescription drug utilization in Australia.

Purpose: The National Prescribing Service Ltd (NPS) aims to improve prescribing and use of medicines consistent with evidence-based best practice. This report compares two statistical methods used to determine whether multiple educational interventions influenced antibiotic prescription in Australia.

Methods: Monthly data (July 1996 to June 2003) were obtained from a national claims database.

[Healthy optic discs with large cups--a diagnostic challenge in glaucoma].

Background: Healthy optic discs with large cups are often characterised to be glaucomatous in automated, morphometric analysis. The aim of this study was to investigate the variables of laser scanning tomography (LST) and nerve fibre polarimetry of these disks in comparison to small and normal sized disks.

Methods: 117 eyes (age 49.

Measurement of changes in antihypertensive drug utilisation following primary care educational interventions.

Purpose: To measure changes in drug utilisation following a national general practice education program aimed at improving prescribing for hypertension.

Methods: A series of nationally implemented, multifaceted educational interventions using social marketing principles focusing on prescribing for hypertension, was commenced in October 1999, and repeated in September 2001 and August 2003. The target group was all primary care prescribers in Australia and interventions were both active (voluntary) and passive.

Pattern reversal ERG with LED-stimulation using cyclic summation technique.

Purpose: Multifocal pattern reversal stimulation can be used to detect inner retinal dysfunction. Commonly, the stimulus is generated on a monitor using m-sequence technique. We describe a pattern reversal ERG evoked by LED arrays using cyclic summation (CS).

Pattern reversal ERG and VEP--comparison of stimulation by LED, monitor and a Maxwellian-view system.

Purpose: Pattern stimulation is widely used to detect inner retinal dysfunction. In this work we describe a pattern stimulation technique with LEDs and compare the results with conventional methods.

Methods: PERG and VEP were derived from three normal subjects.

Boophilus microplus: its saliva contains microphilin, a small thrombin inhibitor.

Saliva of the cattle tick Boophilus microplus contains two thrombin inhibitors, BmAP and microphilin. This work presents the purification and characterization of microphilin. It was purified from the saliva by gel filtration, ultrafiltration through a 3 kDa cut-off membrane and affinity chromatography in a thrombin-Sepharose column.

GRIS: glycoprotein-hormone receptor information system.

The glycoprotein-hormone receptor information system (GRIS) presents a comprehensive view on all available molecular data for the lutropin/choriogonadotropin receptor, follitropin receptor, and thyrotropin receptor G protein-coupled receptors. It features a mutation database presently containing 696 point mutations, combined with all sequences and the associated homology models. The mutation information was automatically extracted from the literature and manually augmented with respect to constitutivity, surface expression, sensitivity to hormones, and binding affinity.

Visual evoked potentials of the blue-sensitive pathway under cold provocation in normals and glaucomas.

Background: Vascular dysregulation in open-angle glaucomas can be identified by measuring the blood circulation during exposure to cold water. Aim of this study was to find out whether the same cold stimulus would lead to functional changes in the visual evoked potentials (VEP) of the short-sensitive pathway in normals and glaucoma patients.

Patients And Methods: Blue-on-yellow pattern-visual evoked potentials were studied in 22 healthy control persons and 47 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (25 high-pressure glaucomas, 22 normal pressure glaucomas with clinical signs of vasospastic hyperreactivity).

Association between localized visual field losses and thickness deviation of the nerve fiber layer in glaucoma.

Purpose: To perform a correlation between morphology and function by studying local perimetric field losses and thickness reduction of the nerve layer in corresponding areas.

Method: Forty-seven patients with "preperimetric" open-angle glaucoma, 95 patients with "perimetric" open-angle glaucoma, and 75 control subjects had perimetric (Octopus) and polarimetric measurements. Criteria for exclusion: optic discs larger than 4 mm, media opacities, polarimetric hourglass pattern in the macular image.

An avian pathogenic Escherichia coli isolate induces caspase 3/7 activation in J774 macrophages.

Avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) strains, the etiological agent of colibacillosis in poultry, must resist the attack of incoming macrophages in order to cause disease. In this work, we show that an APEC strain (APEC17) remained viable inside J774 macrophages for at least 8 h and was cytotoxic to them 6-8 h after infection. APEC17 induced caspase 3/7 activation, the central caspases in apoptosis, in infected macrophages already at 2h after infection.

Influence of optic disc size on parameters of retinal nerve fiber analysis with laser scanning polarimetry.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of optic disc size on the variables of laser scanning polarimetry (GDx).

Patients And Methods: One hundred and nineteen healthy controls and 161 patients with ocular hypertension (OHT) received detailed ophthalmologic investigation with respect to glaucoma including retinal nerve fiber analysis with GDx (Version 3.0.

Cellular death in hippocampus in response to PI3K pathway inhibition and oxygen and glucose deprivation.

We investigated the importance of the phosphoinositide3-kinase (PI3K) pathway in CA1 and dentate gyrus (DG) areas of hippocampus by exposing organotypic cultures to LY294002, a PI3K inhibitor, or to oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) for up to 21 hours. LY294002 induced increased propidium iodide (PI) uptake and caspase 3/7 activity in both regions, with a faster onset in DG. In contrast, cultures exposed to 60 min of OGD showed a PI uptake only in the CA1 area, beginning 13 h after the insult and increasing until 21 h.