Chronic CNS-mediated cardiometabolic actions of leptin: potential role of sex differences.

Previous studies using male rodents showed the adipocyte-derived hormone leptin acts in the brain to regulate cardiovascular function, energy balance, and glucose homeostasis. The importance of sex differences in cardiometabolic responses to leptin, however, is still unclear. We examined potential sex differences in leptin's chronic central nervous system (CNS)-mediated actions on blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), appetite, and glucose homeostasis in normal and type 1 diabetic rats.

A qualitative analysis of diagnostic testing, antibiotic selection, and quality improvement interventions for uncomplicated urinary tract infections.

Background: Uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTIs) can often be diagnosed based solely on symptoms and should be treated with a short course of narrow spectrum antibiotics. However, clinicians often order urine analyses and prescribe long courses of broad spectrum antibiotics.

Objective: The objectives of our study are: 1) Understand how primary care providers and residents clinically approach UTIs and 2) to understand specific opportunities, based on provider type, to target future antibiotic stewardship interventions.

In search for potential antidiabetic compounds from natural sources: docking, synthesis and biological screening of small molecules from . (Goji).

Current clinical antidiabetic drugs, like rosiglitazone , have been implicated in some serious side effects like edema, weight gain, and heart failure, making it necessary to find alternative agents. Partial agonists of peroxisome-proliferator activated receptor-gamma (PPARγ) were determined to possess improved insulin sensitivity without undeseirable side-effects when compared to full agonists of PPARγ, like rosiglitazone . The traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) plants, Goji ( and ) are widely used for treating symptoms related to various diseases including diabetes and hypertension.

Impact of Student vs Faculty Facilitators on Motivational Interviewing Student Outcomes.

To determine the impact of student or faculty facilitation on student self-assessed attitudes, confidence, and competence in motivational interviewing (MI) skills; actual competence; and evaluation of facilitator performance. Second-year pharmacy (P2) students were randomly assigned to a student or faculty facilitator for a four-hour, small-group practice of MI skills. MI skills were assessed in a simulated patient encounter with the mMITI (modified Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity) tool.

In Vitro Translation Assays for Selenocysteine Insertion.

The molecular characterization of the protein and RNA factors that are required for Sec incorporation in mammals has been largely carried out using in vitro translation systems specifically modified for this purpose. This chapter outlines the various systems and modifications that have been used to decipher the mechanism of Sec incorporation.

The utilization of selenocysteine-tRNA isoforms is regulated in part at the level of translation .

The tRNA for the 21st proteinogenic amino acid, selenocysteine, exists in mammalian cells as 2 isoforms differing by a single 2'-O-methylribosyl moiety at position 34 (Um34). These isoforms contain either 5-methoxycarbonylmethyluridine (mcmU) or 5-methoxycarbonylmethyl-2'-O-methyluridine (mcmUm) at position 34. The accumulation of the mcmUm isoform is tightly correlated with the expression of nonessential "stress response" selenoproteins such as glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPX1).

Crystal structures of the human elongation factor eEFSec suggest a non-canonical mechanism for selenocysteine incorporation.

Selenocysteine is the only proteinogenic amino acid encoded by a recoded in-frame UGA codon that does not operate as the canonical opal stop codon. A specialized translation elongation factor, eEFSec in eukaryotes and SelB in prokaryotes, promotes selenocysteine incorporation into selenoproteins by a still poorly understood mechanism. Our structural and biochemical results reveal that four domains of human eEFSec fold into a chalice-like structure that has similar binding affinities for GDP, GTP and other guanine nucleotides.

Transcriptomic evaluation of the American oyster, Crassostrea virginica, deployed during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: Evidence of an active hydrocarbon response pathway.

Estuarine organisms were impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill which released ∼5 million barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico in the spring and summer of 2010. Crassostrea virginica, the American oyster, is a keystone species in these coastal estuaries and is routinely used for environmental monitoring purposes. However, very little is known about their cellular and molecular responses to hydrocarbon exposure.

Iliac Crest Donor Site for Children With Cleft Lip and Palate Undergoing Alveolar Bone Grafting: A Long-term Assessment.

The authors aimed to accurately assess the donor site morbidity from iliac crest bone grafts for secondary bone grafting in patients with cleft lip and palate alveolar defects. Fifty patients between 3 months and 10 years following alveolar bone grafting for cleft lip and palate were entered into the study. Two-thirds of patients had no significant concerns about the donor site.

Combined genomics and experimental analyses of respiratory characteristics of Shewanella putrefaciens W3-18-1.

It has previously been shown that the Shewanella putrefaciens W3-18-1 strain produces remarkably high current in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) and can form magnetite at 0°C. To explore the underlying mechanisms, we developed a genetic manipulation method by deleting the restriction-modification system genes of the SGI1 (Salmonella genome island 1)-like prophage and analyzed the key genes involved in bacterial respiration. W3-18-1 has less respiratory flexibility than the well-characterized S.

Differential microRNA epression in asthma and the role of miR-1248 in regulation of IL-5.

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease that can be difficult to manage due to a lack of diagnostic biomarkers and an incomplete understanding of the molecular pathogenesis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, single-stranded, non-coding RNAs with increasing importance in regulation of immune function and as biomarkers. We profiled miRNAs in the serum of asthmatics and non-asthmatic controls to identify miRNAs that could serve as diagnostic markers and potential regulators of allergic inflammation.

Role of the inflammatory protein serine protease inhibitor Kazal in preventing cytolytic granule granzyme A-mediated apoptosis.

Serine protease inhibitor Kazal (SPIK) is an inflammatory protein whose levels are elevated in numerous cancers. However, the role of this protein in cancer development is unknown. We have recently found that SPIK suppresses serine protease-dependent cell apoptosis.

Internal distraction osteogenesis in the management of a patient with a bilateral cleft of the lip and palate: a case report.

Distraction osteogenesis is a relatively new technique in the field of oral and maxillo-facial surgery. It is being increasingly employed to help rehabilitate various craniofacial abnormalities. This case report describes its use in a 20-year-old male who was born with a bilateral cleft of the lip and palate.

Hepatitis B and hepatitis C virus replication upregulates serine protease inhibitor Kazal, resulting in cellular resistance to serine protease-dependent apoptosis.

Hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and HCV, respectively) are different and distinct viruses, but there are striking similarities in their disease potential. Infection by either virus can cause chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, and ultimately, liver cancer, despite the fact that no pathogenetic mechanisms are known which are shared by the two viruses. Our recent studies have suggested that replication of either of these viruses upregulates a cellular protein called serine protease inhibitor Kazal (SPIK).

Cultured human periodontal ligament cells constitutively express multiple osteotropic cytokines and growth factors, several of which are responsive to mechanical deformation.

Background And Objective: A role for cytokines and growth factors in mediating the cellular and molecular events involved in orthodontic tooth movement is well established. The focus to date, however, has been largely on individual mediators, rather than to study cytokines in terms of complex interacting networks. Our objective was to expand our knowledge of the cytokines and growth factors expressed by human periodontal ligament (PDL) cells and to identify new genes that are responsive to mechanical deformation.