Novel targets in the management of pneumonia.

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is the leading cause of death from infectious diseases in the US. It accounts each year for 500,000 hospitalizations and 45,000 deaths and represents one of the most common causes of intensive care unit (ICU) admission. The mortality rate due to severe CAP has shown little improvement in the past three decades, remaining between 21% and 58% in patients admitted to the intensive care unit.

Involvement of the apoptotic mechanism in pemphigus foliaceus autoimmune injury of the skin.

Pemphigus foliaceus (PF) is an organ-specific autoimmune skin disease characterized by subcorneal epidermal cell detachment (acantholysis) and pathogenic autoantibodies against desmoglein 1. The mechanism responsible for pemphigus autoantibody-induced epidermal injury is not fully understood. In this study, we used the IgG passive transfer mouse model of PF to investigate the relevance of the apoptotic mechanism in pemphigus pathogenesis.

Effect of various parameters on viability and growth of bacteria immobilized in sol-gel-derived silica matrices.

Immobilized bacteria are being extensively used for metabolite production, biocatalysts, and biosensor construction. However, long-term viability and metabolic activity of entrapped bacteria is affected by several conditions such as their physiological state, the presence of high-osmolarity environments, porous structure and shrinkage of the matrix. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of various parameters on bacteria immobilized in sol-gel-derived silica matrices.

Autoantibodies in the autoimmune disease pemphigus foliaceus induce blistering via p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase-dependent signaling in the skin.

Pemphigus foliaceus (PF) is a human autoimmune blistering disease in which a humoral immune response targeting the skin results in a loss of keratinocyte cell-cell adhesion in the superficial layers of the epidermal epithelium. In PF, desmoglein-1-specific autoantibodies induce blistering. Evidence is beginning to accumulate that activation of signaling may have an important role in the ability of pathogenic pemphigus IgGs to induce blistering and that both p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and heat shock protein (HSP) 27 are part of this signaling pathway.

Subepidermal blistering induced by human autoantibodies to BP180 requires innate immune players in a humanized bullous pemphigoid mouse model.

Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is a cutaneous autoimmune inflammatory disease associated with subepidermal blistering and autoantibodies against BP180, a transmembrane collagen and major component of the hemidesmosome. Numerous inflammatory cells infiltrate the upper dermis in BP. IgG autoantibodies in BP fix complement and target multiple BP180 epitopes that are highly clustered within a non-collagen linker domain, termed NC16A.

Advances in pemphigus and its endemic pemphigus foliaceus (Fogo Selvagem) phenotype: a paradigm of human autoimmunity.

Pemphigus encompasses a group of organ specific, antibody mediated autoimmune diseases of the skin characterized by keratinocyte detachment that leads to the development of blisters and erosions, which can become life-threatening. The pathogenic autoantibodies recognize desmogleins, which are members of the desmosomal cadherin family of cell adhesion molecules. Desmoglein 3 is targeted in pemphigus vulgaris while desmoglein 1 is targeted in pemphigus foliaceus and its endemic form, Fogo Selvagem.

An integrated genomic analysis of human glioblastoma multiforme.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and lethal type of brain cancer. To identify the genetic alterations in GBMs, we sequenced 20,661 protein coding genes, determined the presence of amplifications and deletions using high-density oligonucleotide arrays, and performed gene expression analyses using next-generation sequencing technologies in 22 human tumor samples. This comprehensive analysis led to the discovery of a variety of genes that were not known to be altered in GBMs.

Development of an IgG4-based predictor of endemic pemphigus foliaceus (fogo selvagem).

Fogo selvagem (FS) is mediated by pathogenic, predominantly IgG4, anti-desmoglein 1 (Dsg1) autoantibodies and is endemic in Limao Verde, Brazil. IgG and IgG subclass autoantibodies were tested in a sample of 214 FS patients and 261 healthy controls by Dsg1 ELISA. For model selection, the sample was randomly divided into training (50%), validation (25%), and test (25%) sets.

Circulating mutant DNA to assess tumor dynamics.

The measurement of circulating nucleic acids has transformed the management of chronic viral infections such as HIV. The development of analogous markers for individuals with cancer could similarly enhance the management of their disease. DNA containing somatic mutations is highly tumor specific and thus, in theory, can provide optimum markers.

Complement and cutaneous autoimmune blistering diseases.

Cutaneous autoimmune blistering diseases are associated with tissue injury and fluid accumulation within the skin. The initial trigger for the organ-specific damage is autoantibodies targeting skin autoantigens, which are involved in cell-cell or cell-matrix adhesion in the skin. Pemphigus autoantibodies bind to desmosomal antigens and cause intraepidermal blisters, while pemphigoid autoantibodies interact with hemidesmosomal or hemidesmosome-associated antigens and lead to dermal-epidermal junction separation.

Analysis of fluorouracil-based adjuvant chemotherapy and radiation after pancreaticoduodenectomy for ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas: results of a large, prospectively collected database at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Purpose: To examine the efficacy of adjuvant chemoradiotherapy after pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) for pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PC) in patients undergoing resection at Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH; Baltimore, MD).

Patients And Methods: Between August 30, 1993, and February 28, 2005, a total of 908 patients underwent PD for PC at JHH. A prospective database was reviewed to determine which patients received fluorouracil (FU) -based CRT.

Fracture toughness, strength and slow crack growth in a ceria stabilized zirconia-alumina nanocomposite for medical applications.

Mechanical properties and slow crack growth (SCG) behavior of a 10Ce-TZP/Al2O3 nanocomposite currently developed as a biomaterial are considered. Fracture toughness is determined for sharp, long (double torsion) and short (indentation) cracks and a good agreement is found between the two types of cracks. The main toughening mechanism in the nanocomposite is the tetragonal to monoclinic phase transformation of the ceria-stabilized zirconia (Ce-TZP) phase.

MRI features of cystic lesions around the knee.

Cystic lesions around the knee are a diverse group of entities, frequently encountered during routine MRI of the knee. These lesions range from benign cysts to complications of underlying diseases such as infection, arthritis, and malignancy. MRI is the technique of choice in characterizing lesions around the knee: to confirm the cystic nature of the lesion, to evaluate the anatomical relationship to the joint and surrounding tissues, and to identify associated intra-articular disorders.

Pemphigus foliaceus.

Pemphigus foliaceus (PF) and its endemic form fogo selvagem (FS) are autoimmune diseases characterized clinically by transient cutaneous superficial blisters. As opposed to pemphigus vulgaris (PV), patients lack mucosal involvement. Acantholysis in the upper epidermis is appreciated histologically.

Antibody detection employing sol-gel immobilized parasites.

Immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and immunoperoxidase assay (IPA) are useful diagnostic techniques for specific antibody detection for different diseases. Both involve several alternatives for immobilization of cells, such as solvent or heat fixation. Non-covalent immobilization implies rigorous storage conditions at -20 degrees C to preserve the slides, and usually numerous cells are detached during the washing steps, which can lead to inconsistencies in the results.

Eared dove (Zenaida auriculata, Columbidae) as host for St. Louis encephalitis virus (Flaviviridae, Flavivirus).

St. Louis encephalitis virus (SLEV) is an emerging Flavivirus in South American countries. Its ecology and biological transmission cycles are scarcely known.

Response of Pseudomonas putida F1 cultures to fluctuating toluene loads and operational failures in suspended growth bioreactors.

The response of Pseudomonas putida F1 to process fluctuations and operational failures during toluene biodegradation was evaluated in a chemostat suspended growth bioreactor. The ability of P. putida F1 to rapidly increase its specific toluene degradation capacity resulted in no significant variation in process removal efficiency when toluene load was increased from 188 to 341 g m(-3) h(-1).

Consensus statement on definitions of disease, end points, and therapeutic response for pemphigus.

Our scientific knowledge of pemphigus has dramatically progressed in recent years. However, despite the availability of various therapeutic options for the treatment of inflammatory diseases, only a few multicenter controlled trials have helped to define effective therapies in pemphigus. A major obstacle in comparing therapeutic outcomes between centers is the lack of generally accepted definitions and measurements for the clinical evaluation of patients with pemphigus.

Mitigation of global greenhouse gas emissions from waste: conclusions and strategies from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report. Working Group III (Mitigation).

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from post-consumer waste and wastewater are a small contributor (about 3%) to total global anthropogenic GHG emissions. Emissions for 2004-2005 totalled 1.4 Gt CO2-eq year(-1) relative to total emissions from all sectors of 49 Gt CO2-eq year(-1) [including carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and F-gases normalized according to their 100-year global warming potentials (GWP)].

Human outbreak of St. Louis encephalitis detected in Argentina, 2005.

Background: An outbreak of flavivirus encephalitis occurred in 2005 in Córdoba province, Argentina.

Objectives: To characterize the epidemiologic and clinical features of that outbreak and provide the serologic results that identified St. Louis encephalitis virus (SLEV) as the etiologic agent.