Implementation of a Vascular Access Experience Program to Train Unit-Based Vascular Access Champions.

Vascular access team (VAT) nurses receive many consults to place short peripheral catheters (SPCs), a portion of which do not require skilled insertion by a VAT member. VAT nurses at a health care organization in the Midwestern United States developed a program to train direct care nurses as unit-based vascular access champions to increase and improve SPC placement, care, and maintenance. Twenty-one nurses from 6 units were selected to train as vascular access champions; knowledge and confidence around SPC placement were assessed before, immediately after, and 6 months after the training.

Specific IgE antibody responses to ragweed allergens Ra5S and Ra5G associated with distinct HLA-DR beta genes.

Previous studies have established that sensitivity (IgE antibody response) to Ra5S, a 5000 mol. wt protein of short ragweed pollen, is significantly associated with host possession of HLA-DR2. The same allele was implicated [Goodfriend et al.

Allergen nomenclature.

This article presents a nomenclature system for allergens which has been officially recommended by the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). The nomenclature is based on proposals of the IUIS Sub-Committee for Allergen Nomenclature and is applicable to highly purified, well-characterized allergens and to non-purified or partially purified allergenic extracts.

Ra5G, a homologue of Ra5 in giant ragweed pollen: isolation, HLA-DR-associated activity and amino acid sequence.

Recent studies [Marsh et al. (1982) J. exp.

500-MHz 1H NMR studies of ragweed allergen Ra5.

The solution conformation of short ragweed allergen Ra5, a protein of 45 amino acid residues cross-linked with four disulfide bridges, has been investigated by 1H NMR spectroscopy at 500 MHz. The aromatic region, which contains resonances from three tyrosines and two tryptophans, has been partially assigned. Two tyrosines titrate with a pK of 10.