Sertraline-Induced Sleep Paralysis: A Case Report.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with both insomnia and hypersomnia, but it predominantly decreases sleep continuity and leads to a decrease in rapid eye movement (REM) latency, an increase in REM sleep duration, and an increase in REM density. Some of these changes persist even when MDD is treated and can be associated with a recurrence of MDD. Antidepressants can potentially complicate the relationship between REM sleep and depression, as a majority of patients report improved sleep when prescribed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) but some case reports mention that SSRIs have been associated with REM inhibition, resulting in decreased REM sleep.

A Case of Olanzapine-Induced Cutaneous Eruption.

BACKGROUND Different medication classes have been implicated in cutaneous eruptions that may lead to significant morbidity and mortality. In drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) syndrome, the patient may initially present with a cutaneous eruption and hematologic abnormalities which can lead to acute visceral organ involvement if the offending drug is not discontinued. There is also a potential for long-term sequelae such as autoimmune disorders.

Pregnancy Outcomes in Late Onset Pompe Disease.

There is limited data on pregnancy outcomes in Pompe Disease (PD) resulting from deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme acid alpha-glucosidase. Late-onset PD is characterized by progressive proximal muscle weakness and decline of respiratory function secondary to the involvement of the respiratory muscles. In a cohort of twenty-five females, the effects of both PD on the course of pregnancy and the effects of pregnancy on PD were investigated.

Structural insight into the quinolone-DNA cleavage complex of type IIA topoisomerases.

Type II topoisomerases alter DNA topology by forming a covalent DNA-cleavage complex that allows DNA transport through a double-stranded DNA break. We present the structures of cleavage complexes formed by the Streptococcus pneumoniae ParC breakage-reunion and ParE TOPRIM domains of topoisomerase IV stabilized by moxifloxacin and clinafloxacin, two antipneumococcal fluoroquinolones. These structures reveal two drug molecules intercalated at the highly bent DNA gate and help explain antibacterial quinolone action and resistance.

The difficult case of crystallization and structure solution for the ParC55 breakage-reunion domain of topoisomerase IV from Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Background: Streptococcus pneumoniae is the major cause of community-acquired pneumonia and is also associated with bronchitis, meningitis, otitis and sinusitis. The emergence and increasing prevalence of resistance to penicillin and other antibiotics has led to interest in other anti-pneumonococcal drugs such as quinolones that target the enzymes DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV. During crystallization and in the avenues to finding a method to determine phases for the structure of the ParC55 breakage-reunion domain of topoisomerase IV from Streptococcus pneumoniae, obstacles were faced at each stage of the process.

Breakage-reunion domain of Streptococcus pneumoniae topoisomerase IV: crystal structure of a gram-positive quinolone target.

The 2.7 A crystal structure of the 55-kDa N-terminal breakage-reunion domain of topoisomerase (topo) IV subunit A (ParC) from Streptococcus pneumoniae, the first for the quinolone targets from a gram-positive bacterium, has been solved and reveals a 'closed' dimer similar in fold to Escherichia coli DNA gyrase subunit A (GyrA), but distinct from the 'open' gate structure of Escherichia coli ParC. Unlike GyrA whose DNA binding groove is largely positively charged, the DNA binding site of ParC exhibits a distinct pattern of alternating positively and negatively charged regions coincident with the predicted positions of the grooves and phosphate backbone of DNA.

Database searching for thymidine and thymidylate kinase inhibitors using three-dimensional structure-based methods.

Structure-based drug design methods were used to search for novel inhibitors of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) thymidine kinase and Mycobacterium tuberculosis thymidylate kinase. The method involved the use of crystal structure complexes to guide database searching for potential inhibitors. A number of weak inhibitors of HSV-2 were identified, one of which was found to inhibit HSV-1 TK and HSV-1 TK-deficient viral strains.

The crystal structure of IgE Fc reveals an asymmetrically bent conformation.

The distinguishing structural feature of immunoglobulin E (IgE), the antibody responsible for allergic hypersensitivity, is the C epsilon 2 domain pair that replaces the hinge region of IgG. The crystal structure of the IgE Fc (constant fragment) at a 2.6-A resolution has revealed these domains.