Cinnamic acid, coumarin and vanillin: Alternative phenolic compounds for efficient Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of the unicellular green alga, Nannochloropsis sp.

The use of acetosyringone in Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer into plant hosts has been favored for the past few decades. The influence of other phenolic compounds and their effectiveness in Agrobacterium-mediated plant transformation systems has been neglected. In this study, the efficacy of four phenolic compounds on Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of the unicellular green alga Nannochloropsis sp.

Endovascular solutions to arterial injury due to posterior spine surgery.

Iatrogenic arterial injury is an uncommon but recognized complication of posterior spinal surgery. The spectrum of injuries includes vessel perforation leading to hemorrhage, delayed pseudoaneurysm formation, and threatened perforation by screw impingement on arterial vessels. Repair of these injuries traditionally involved open direct vessel repair or graft placement, which can be associated with significant morbidity.

Self management pilot study on women with breast cancer: lessons learnt in Malaysia.

Objective: With increasing survival rates, breast cancer is now considered a chronic condition necessitating innovative care to meet the long-term needs of survivors. This paper presents the findings of a pilot study on self-management for women diagnosed with breast cancer and their implications for Asian health care providers.

Methods: A pre-test/ post-test pilot study was conducted to gain preliminary insights into program feasibility and barriers to participation, and to provide justification for a larger trial.

An adolescent with anorexia nervosa - a case report.

This case report illustrates an adolescent with clinical presentation of moderate anorexia nervosa with no significant co-morbidities. It highlights the management of anorexia nervosa in the outpatient setting by a multi-disciplinary health care team which includes a family physician, a dietician, a psychologist and a child psychiatrist.

Severity of initial stent angulation predicts reintervention after successful palliative enteral stenting for malignant luminal obstruction.

Background And Aim: Recurrent stent obstruction necessitating reintervention is problematic and incompletely understood. The aim of the present study was to identify factor(s) predisposing to reintervention.

Methods: Retrospective review of patients (n = 117) referred to a single major endoscopic referral centre for palliative enteral stenting from 1999 to 2006.

PINK1 cleavage at position A103 by the mitochondrial protease PARL.

Mutations in PTEN-induced kinase 1 (PINK1) cause early onset autosomal recessive Parkinson's disease (PD). PINK1 is a 63 kDa protein kinase, which exerts a neuroprotective function and is known to localize to mitochondria. Upon entry into the organelle, PINK1 is cleaved to produce a ∼53 kDa protein (ΔN-PINK1).

Mitochondrial quality control and Parkinson's disease: a pathway unfolds.

Recent findings from genetic studies suggest that defective mitochondrial quality control may play an important role in the development of Parkinson's disease (PD). Such defects may result in the impairment of neuronal mitochondria, which leads to both synaptic dysfunction and cell death and results in neurodegeneration. Here, we review state-of-the-art knowledge of how pathways affecting mitochondrial quality control might contribute to PD, with a particular emphasis on the molecular mechanisms employed by PTEN-induced putative kinase 1 (PINK1), HtrA2 and Parkin to regulate mitochondrial quality control.

The missing zinc: p53 misfolding and cancer.

The p53 tumor suppressor is a transcription factor that contains a single zinc ion near its DNA binding interface. Zn(2+) is required for site-specific DNA binding and proper transcriptional activation. In addition to its functional significance, zinc plays a dominant role in determining whether p53 folds productively or misfolds.

Converting a protein into a switch for biosensing and functional regulation.

Proteins that switch conformations in response to a signaling event (e.g., ligand binding or chemical modification) present a unique solution to the design of reagent-free biosensors as well as molecules whose biological functions are regulated in useful ways.

Anti-inflammatory/Anti-oxidative stress activities and differential regulation of Nrf2-mediated genes by non-polar fractions of tea Chrysanthemum zawadskii and licorice Glycyrrhiza uralensis.

Accumulating evidence from epidemiological studies indicates that chronic inflammation and oxidative stress play critical roles in neoplastic development. The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative stress activities, and differential regulation of Nrf2-mediated genes by tea Chrysanthemum zawadskii (CZ) and licorice Glycyrrhiza uralensis (LE) extracts. The anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative stress activities of hexane/ethanol extracts of CZ and LE were investigated using in vitro and in vivo approaches, including quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and microarray.

Semiautomated segmentation for volumetric analysis of intratumoral ethiodol uptake and subsequent tumor necrosis after chemoembolization.

Objective: Linear measurements, such as those described by the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) criteria, may be limited for assessment of response after transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). The purpose of this pilot study was to show intra- and interobserver reproducibility of volumetric measurements of Ethiodol (ethiodized oil) seen within tumor 24 hours after TACE and of necrotic and viable tumor 1 month after treatment. Volumetric measurements are compared with linear measurements and survival outcomes.

Existing trauma and critical care scoring systems underestimate mortality among vascular trauma patients.

Background: The impact of vascular injuries on patient mortality has not been well evaluated in multi-trauma patients. This study seeks to determine (1) whether the presence of vascular trauma negatively affects outcome compared with nonvascular trauma (NVT) and (2) the utility of existing severity scoring systems in predicting mortality among vascular trauma (VT) patients.

Methods: A retrospective review of our trauma database from January 2005 to December 2007 was conducted.

Treatment outcome of women with a single ovary undergoing in vitro fertilisation cycles.

Introduction: Women with a single ovary present a unique problem in assisted reproductive techniques. The aim of our study was to compare the ovarian response and pregnancy rates of women with one ovary and those with two ovaries in assisted reproduction.

Methods: A total of 18 consecutive women with a single ovary (n is 22 cycles) were identified.

Simplified PGD of common determinants of haemoglobin Bart's hydrops fetalis syndrome using multiplex-microsatellite PCR.

The high incidence of double-gene deletions in α-thalassaemia increases the risk of having pregnancies with homozygous α(0)-thalassaemia, the cause of the lethal haemoglobin (Hb) Bart's hydrops fetalis syndrome. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) has played an important role in preventing such cases. However, the current gap-PCR based PGD protocol for deletional α-thalassaemia requires specific primer design for each specific deletion.

On the mechanism of protein fold-switching by a molecular sensor.

Alternate frame folding (AFF) is a mechanism by which conformational change can be engineered into a protein. The protein structure switches from the wild-type fold (N) to a circularly-permuted fold (N'), or vice versa, in response to a signaling event such as ligand binding. Despite the fact that the two native states have similar structures, their interconversion involves folding and unfolding of large parts of the molecule.

Treatment planning and volumetric response assessment for Yttrium-90 radioembolization: semiautomated determination of liver volume and volume of tumor necrosis in patients with hepatic malignancy.

Purpose: The primary purpose of this study was to demonstrate intraobserver/interobserver reproducibility for novel semiautomated measurements of hepatic volume used for Yttrium-90 dose calculations as well as whole-liver and necrotic-liver (hypodense/nonenhancing) tumor volume after radioembolization. The secondary aim was to provide initial comparisons of tumor volumetric measurements with linear measurements, as defined by Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors criteria, and survival outcomes.

Methods: Between 2006 and 2009, 23 consecutive radioembolization procedures were performed for 14 cases of hepatocellular carcinoma and 9 cases of hepatic metastases.

Probing local structural fluctuations in myoglobin by size-dependent thiol-disulfide exchange.

All proteins undergo local structural fluctuations (LSFs) or breathing motions. These motions are likely to be important for function but are poorly understood. LSFs were initially defined by amide hydrogen exchange (HX) experiments as opening events, which expose a small number of backbone amides to (1)H/(2)H exchange, but whose exchange rates are independent of denaturant concentration.

Maximizing parameters for tissue ablation by using an internally cooled electrode.

Purpose: To compare an algorithm of gradually ramped-up power to a full-power-level technique to determine which technical parameters maximized tissue coagulation by using a saline-perfused electrode.

Materials And Methods: Institutional review board approval was not necessary and animal committee approval was unnecessary because an ex vivo bovine liver model was used and the animals were not specifically killed for this study. This four-part experiment utilized multiple ablations of ex vivo bovine liver with a standard radiofrequency (RF) generator and an internally cooled needle.

Childhood adversity and adult depressive disorder: a case-controlled study in Malaysia.

Objective: To describe the association between childhood adversity and depression in adult depressed patients in a Malaysian population.

Methods: Fifty-two patients, who met the criteria for major depressive disorder or dysthymia according to the Structured Clinical Interview based on the revised 3rd edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, were used as cases and compared with 52 controls matched for age and sex. Cases and controls were assessed using a sexual and physical abuse questionnaire and a Parental Bonding Instrument.

Visualization of ion distribution at the mica-electrolyte interface.

Local ionic environments within nanometer proximity of a surface play a major role in the interactions which occur there and can be of critical importance in, for example, colloid suspensions, as well as biological function. Such environments often vary significantly from bulk properties, as we show here by the direct imaging of a range of monovalent (Li(+), Na(+)) and divalent (Ca(2+), Mg(2+)) cations distributed at the liquid-solid interface of mica. We image local charge distributions relative to the atomic lattice of mica and adjacent structured water and explain how their location is influenced by the electrostatic characteristics of the underlying lattice.

Delayed adverse reaction to contrast-enhanced CT: a prospective single-center study comparison to control group without enhancement.

Purpose: To prospectively assess the incidence of delayed adverse reactions (DARs) in patients undergoing contrast material-enhanced computed tomography (CT) with the low osmolar nonionic contrast agent iohexol and compare with the incidence of DARs in patients undergoing unenhanced CT as control subjects.

Materials And Methods: Institutional review board approval and informed written consent for this prospective study were obtained. The study was HIPAA compliant.

Microleakage evaluation of core buildup composite resins with total-etch and self-etch adhesive systems.

Aim: Core buildup composite resins with prefabricated posts are commonly used to restore endodontically treated teeth. This study compared the sealing ability of Core Max II and Panavia F2.0 cement with total-etch and self-etch adhesive systems.

Engineering an artificial zymogen by alternate frame protein folding.

Alternate frame folding (AFF) is a novel mechanism by which allostery can be introduced into a protein where none may have existed previously. We employ this technology to convert the cytotoxic ribonuclease barnase into an artificial zymogen that is activated by HIV-1 protease. The AFF modification entails partial duplication of the polypeptide chain and mutation of a key catalytic residue in one of the duplicated segments.