Like Visiting an Old Friend: Fischer Glycosylation in the Twenty-First Century: Modern Methods and Techniques.

Fischer glycosylation is typically the chemical reaction of a monosaccharide and an alcohol in presence of an acidic catalyst to afford glycosides in pyranosidic and furanosidic forms. This reaction is still applied today for the synthesis of specialized glycosides, and optimization and modification of the method have continued since its discovery by Emil Fischer in the 1890s. This review presents advancements in Fischer glycosylation described in literature of the past 15 years and its implementation in modern chemical methods.

Effects of blood conservation on the incidence of anemia and transfusions in pediatric parapneumonic effusion: a hospitalist perspective.

Background: Children with pneumonia may develop parapneumonic effusion (PNE). The associated inflammatory process and nutritional compromise can blunt erythropoesis. Traditional treatment for these children with PNE includes repeated phlebotomy and surgical intervention, resulting in ongoing blood losses.

Characteristics of electrical skin resistance at acupuncture points in healthy humans.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the phenomenon of electrical skin resistance (ESR) changes at different acupuncture points (APs).

Setting: This single-blinded study was performed at the hospital of the University of Munich.

Design: Six common APs were measured (TE5, PC6, LU6, ST36, SP6, GB39) in 53 subjects.

Therapy of parapneumonic effusions in children: video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery versus conventional thoracostomy drainage.

Objective: Controversy surrounds the optimal treatment of parapneumonic effusions. This trial of pediatric patients with community-acquired pneumonia and associated parapneumonic processes compared primary video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery with conventional thoracostomy drainage.

Design: A prospective, randomized trial was conducted at DeVos Children's Hospital (Grand Rapids, MI) between November 2003 and May 2005.

Purification, crystallisation and X-ray diffraction study of fully functional laccases from two ligninolytic fungi.

Laccase isozymes from the white-rot basidiomycete fungi Trametes versicolor and Pycnoporus cinnabarinus were purified to apparent iso-electric homogeneity and crystallised. T. versicolor laccase crystallises in two crystal forms, both with the orthorhombic space group P2(1)2(1)2(1), which diffract to 1.