Socioeconomic factors do not but GH treatment does affect mortality in adult-onset growth hormone deficiency.

Context: GH deficiency is associated with changes in body composition, increased cardiovascular risk markers, and reduced bone mineral density. There seem to be multiple causes of the reported increased morbidity and mortality.

Objective: The objective was to study the socioeconomic status in patients with adult-onset GH deficiency and its impact on mortality.

Magnesium is not consistently neuroprotective for perinatal hypoxia-ischemia in term-equivalent models in preclinical studies: a systematic review.

There is an important unmet need to further improve the outcome of neonatal encephalopathy in term infants. Meta-analyses of large controlled trials now suggest that maternal magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) therapy is associated with a reduced risk of cerebral palsy and gross motor dysfunction after premature birth, but that it has no effect on death or disability. Because of this inconsistency, it remains controversial whether MgSO4 is clinically neuroprotective and, thus, it is unclear whether it would be appropriate to test MgSO4 for treatment of encephalopathy in term infants.

Synthesis of fluorosurfactants for emulsion-based biological applications.

Microemulsion represents an attractive platform for fundamental and applied biomedical research because the emulsified droplets can serve as millions of compartmentalized micrometer-sized reactors amenable to high-throughput screening or online monitoring. However, establishing stable emulsions with surfactants that are compatible with biological applications remains a significant challenge. Motivated by the lack of commercially available surfactants suitable for microemulsion-based biological assays, this study describes the facile synthesis of a biocompatible fluorosurfactant with nonionic tris(hydroxymethyl)methyl (Tris) polar head groups.

Pharmacologic neuroprotective strategies in neonatal brain injury.

This article explains the mechanisms underlying choices of pharmacotherapy for hypoxic-ischemic insults of both preterm and term babies. Some preclinical data are strong enough that clinical trials are now underway. Challenges remain in deciding the best combination therapies for each age and insult.

Increased venous thrombosis incidence in pregnancies after in vitro fertilization.

Study Question: Is venous thrombosis risk increased in pregnancies after in vitro fertilization?

Summary Answer: The venous thrombosis incidence was significantly increased in pregnancies after in vitro fertilization; especially in the first trimester and in the first 6 weeks post-partum.

What Is Known Already: In vitro fertilization without pregnancy is not associated with increased venous thrombosis incidence.

Study Design, Size, Duration: This national register-based cohort study covered the period from 1995 to 2005.

Systemic glycerol decreases neonatal rabbit brain and cerebellar growth independent of intraventricular hemorrhage.

Background: Cerebellar hypoplasia is a common problem in preterm infants and infants suffering from intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH). To evaluate the effects of IVH on cerebellar growth and development, we used a neonatal rabbit model of systemic glycerol to produce IVH.

Methods: New Zealand White rabbit kits were surgically delivered 2 d preterm and treated with intraperitoneal glycerol (3.

Concurrent erythropoietin and hypothermia treatment improve outcomes in a term nonhuman primate model of perinatal asphyxia.

Background: Up to 65% of untreated infants suffering from moderate to severe hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) are at risk of death or major disability. Therapeutic hypothermia (HT) reduces this risk to approximately 50% (number needed to treat: 7-9). Erythropoietin (Epo) is a neuroprotective treatment that is promising as an adjunctive therapy to decrease HIE-induced injury because Epo decreases apoptosis, inflammation, and oxidative injury and promotes glial cell survival and angiogenesis.

Temperature-controlled encapsulation and release of an active enzyme in the cavity of a self-assembled DNA nanocage.

We demonstrate temperature-controlled encapsulation and release of the enzyme horseradish peroxidase using a preassembled and covalently closed three-dimensional DNA cage structure as a controllable encapsulation device. The utilized cage structure was covalently closed and composed of 12 double-stranded B-DNA helices that constituted the edges of the structure. The double stranded helices were interrupted by short single-stranded thymidine linkers constituting the cage corners except for one, which was composed by four 32 nucleotide long stretches of DNA with a sequence that allowed them to fold into hairpin structures.

Erythropoietin improved cognitive function and decreased hippocampal caspase activity in rat pups after traumatic brain injury.

Unlabelled: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of acquired neurologic disability in children. Erythropoietin (EPO), an anti-apoptotic cytokine, improved cognitive outcome in adult rats after TBI. To our knowledge, EPO has not been studied in a developmental TBI model.

Four decades of leading-edge research in the reproductive and developmental sciences: the Infant Primate Research Laboratory at the University of Washington National Primate Research Center.

The Infant Primate Research Laboratory (IPRL) was established in 1970 at the University of Washington as a visionary project of Dr. Gene (Jim) P. Sackett.

Real-time detection of TDP1 activity using a fluorophore-quencher coupled DNA-biosensor.

Real-time detection of enzyme activities may present the easiest and most reliable way of obtaining quantitative analyses in biological samples. We present a new DNA-biosensor capable of detecting the activity of the potential anticancer drug target tyrosyl-DNA phosphodiesterase 1 (TDP1) in a very simple, high throughput, and real-time format. The biosensor is specific for Tdp1 even in complex biological samples, such as human cell extracts, and may consequently find future use in fundamental studies as well as a cancer predictive tool allowing fast analyses of diagnostic cell samples such as biopsies.

Poor socio-economic status in 47,XXX --an unexpected effect of an extra X chromosome.

One of the most common sex chromosomal abnormalities in females is 47,XXX syndrome, which is characterized by tall stature and reduced IQ, but with a variable phenotype. In order to elaborate on the characteristics of this syndrome, we undertook an investigation in all diagnosed 47,XXX females at risk in Denmark and compared their socio-economic status with an age-matched cohort of the female background population as well as with all Danes diagnosed with Turner syndrome. We focused on cohabitation, motherhoods, income, education, retirement and convictions.

Erythropoietin as a neuroprotectant for neonatal brain injury: animal models.

Prematurity and perinatal hypoxia-ischemia are common problems that result in significant neurodevelopmental morbidity and high mortality worldwide. The Vannucci model of unilateral brain injury was developed to model perinatal brain injury due to hypoxia-ischemia. Because the rodent brain is altricial, i.

Early signs of autism in toddlers: a follow-up study in the Danish National Birth Cohort.

To identify possible early signs of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) within the Danish National Birth Cohort, we studied prospectively collected interviews from 76,441 mothers about their children's development and behaviour at 6 and 18 months. In Danish national registries, 720 children with ASD and 231 children with intellectual disability (ID) were identified. At 6 months, associations between early signs and ASD or ID were found only in few areas.

Specific detection of topoisomerase I from the malaria causing P. falciparum parasite using isothermal rolling circle amplification.

We present a Rolling-Circle-Enhance-Enzyme-Activity-Detection (REEAD) system with potential use for future point-of-care diagnosis of malaria. In the developed setup, specific detection of malaria parasites in crude blood samples is facilitated by the conversion of single Plasmodium falciparum topoisomerase I (pfTopI) mediated cleavage-ligation events, happening within nanometer dimensions, to micrometer-sized products readily detectable at the single molecule level in a fluorescence microscope. In principle, REEAD requires no special equipment and the readout is adaptable to simple colorimetric detection systems.

Droplet microfluidics platform for highly sensitive and quantitative detection of malaria-causing Plasmodium parasites based on enzyme activity measurement.

We present an attractive new system for the specific and sensitive detection of the malaria-causing Plasmodium parasites. The system relies on isothermal conversion of single DNA cleavage-ligation events catalyzed specifically by the Plasmodium enzyme topoisomerase I to micrometer-sized products detectable at the single-molecule level. Combined with a droplet microfluidics lab-on-a-chip platform, this design allowed for sensitive, specific, and quantitative detection of all human-malaria-causing Plasmodium species in single drops of unprocessed blood with a detection limit of less than one parasite/μL.

Adult responses to an ischemic stroke in a rat model of neonatal stress and morphine treatment.

Critically ill newborn infants experience stressors that may alter brain development. Using a rodent model, we previously showed that neonatal stress, morphine, and stress plus morphine treatments each influence early gene expression and may impair neurodevelopment and learning behavior. We hypothesized that the combination of neonatal stress with morphine may alter neonatal angiogenesis and/or adult cerebral blood vessel density and thus increase injury after cerebral ischemia in adulthood.

Erythropoiesis and the approach to anemia in premature infants.

Objective: To review causes of anemia in preterm infants and to suggest potential preventive measures.

Methods: Data for this review is obtained from review of the literature.

Results: An approach to investigating and treating causes of neonatal anemia is outlined.

Erythropoietin for neuroprotection in neonatal encephalopathy: safety and pharmacokinetics.

Objective: To determine the safety and pharmacokinetics of erythropoietin (Epo) given in conjunction with hypothermia for hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). We hypothesized that high dose Epo would produce plasma concentrations that are neuroprotective in animal studies (ie, maximum concentration = 6000-10000 U/L; area under the curve = 117000-140000 U*h/L).

Methods: In this multicenter, open-label, dose-escalation, phase I study, we enrolled 24 newborns undergoing hypothermia for HIE.

Neuroprotective role of erythropoietin in neonates.

This review summarizes target populations of neonates for which erythropoietin (Epo) neuroprotective therapy might be of benefit, and the mechanisms by which Epo functions as a neuroprotective agent. Potential risks of Epo are reviewed. Finally, the progression of Epo neuroprotection from preclinical studies to translational studies is discussed.

Mortality and socioeconomic status in adults with childhood onset GH deficiency (GHD) is highly dependent on the primary cause of GHD.

Objective: Childhood onset GH deficiency (CO-GHD) is associated with increased morbidity and mortality; however, the patients' socioeconomic profile as adults is not fully known.

Design: Register study using Danish nationwide registries. Two hundred and sixty GHD males and 156 GHD females and 25,358 male and 15,110 female controls were included.