Analysis of STR loci in Cartagena, a Caribbean city of Colombia.

Allele frequencies, together with some parameters of forensic interest were estimated for nine STRs included in the AmpF/STR Profiler kit (CSF1PO, D3S1358, D5S818, D7S820, D13S317, FGA, TH01, TPOX and vWA) in a sample of 215 unrelated individuals from Cartagena (Colombia). For all loci, no significant deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were observed. Comparative analysis results between our data and those from other Colombian and African population samples revealed significant differences, except with two Colombian Caribbean Coast sub-regions.

Basal lamina disorganisation of the acini and ducts of labial salivary glands from patients with Sjogren's syndrome: association with mononuclear cell infiltration.

Objective: To study the expression of laminin and type IV collagen as biomarkers of the organisation of the basal lamina of acini and ducts in labial salivary glands from patients with Sjögren's syndrome, and to relate this organisation to inflammatory cell invasion of acini and ducts.

Methods: Immunohistochemistry for laminin and type IV collagen was undertaken on sections of labial salivary glands from 30 patients with Sjögren's syndrome, 10 control subjects, and 24 controls with chronic sialoadenitis. Immunohistochemistry reaction, alterations to cell morphology, and the presence of inflammatory cells in acini and ducts were evaluated and scored using a semiquantitative method.

A new intermediate intercalate in superconducting sodium-doped hafnium nitride chloride.

A new phase has been observed during the sodium intercalation of hafnium nitride chloride as intermediate between the host beta-HfNCl and the already reported Na(0.29)HfNCl with Tc of 24 K; the new intermediate shows interlayer spacings ranging from 9.48 to 9.

[Morbidity and mortality for oral and pharyngeal cancer in Chile].

Background: Most oral cancers are squamous cell carcinomas (90%) which are two to four times more common in men than in women. The reasons for these differences are associated with exposure to factors such as tobacco and alcohol. Age is also considered as a risk factor (about 90% of the cases are diagnosed after 45 years of age).

Olanzapine-induced myoclonic status.

Olanzapine-related seizures have rarely been reported despite its proconvulsant risk. This is the first description of myoclonic status induced by this antipsychotic. A 54-year-old woman with probable Alzheimer disease developed continuous myoclonic jerks just after adding olanzapine for neuropsychiatric symptoms.

Autosomic STR population data in two Caribbean samples from Colombia.

In this work, a sample of 124 unrelated individuals from San Andres Island and Santa Marta City (Colombia) was studied for the nine STRs included in the AmpFlSTR Profiler kit (CSF1PO, D3S1358, D5S818, D7S820, D13S317, FGA, TH01, TPOX and vWA). Although these two populations are geographically apart, San Andres is an Island in the middle of Caribbean Sea (about 480 miles northwest the Colombian mainland) and Santa Marta City located in the coast, exact test showed no differentiation between both population samples (P=0.39445+/-0.

Expression of the NF-kappaB targets BCL2 and BIRC5/Survivin characterizes small B-cell and aggressive B-cell lymphomas, respectively.

Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappaB) activation has been proposed as a cardinal feature of tumourigenesis, although the precise mechanism, frequency, relevance, and extent of NF-kappaB activation in lymphomas remain to be fully elucidated. In this study, expression profiling and tissue microarray studies of 209 and 323 non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHLs) respectively, including the most frequent sub-types of NHL, were employed to generate a hypothesis concerning the most common NF-kappaB targets in NHL. These analyses showed that NF-kappaB activation is a common phenomenon in NHL, resulting in the expression of distinct sets of NF-kappaB target genes, depending on the cell context.

Longitudinal analysis of metalloproteinases, tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases and clinical parameters in gingival crevicular fluid from periodontitis-affected patients.

Background: The aim of this work was to improve the assessment of the periodontal disease status through measurements of extracellular matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their tissular inhibitors (TIMPs) in the gingival crevicular fluid from patients diagnosed with chronic periodontitis.

Methods: Gingival crevicular fluid samples from patients (n = 13) were taken from 60 sites initially, and from 51 and 41 sites, respectively, 3 and 6 months after scaling and root planing. Gingival crevicular fluid samples were also taken from healthy subjects (n = 11, 24 sites).

[Some characteristics and opinions of graduates from the master's course on epidemiology. Havana 1984--1999].

Data from the Teaching Department records on, age, gender origin and basic profession of foreign and Cuban students were analyzed, including the opinions of a sample of the Cuban graduates up to 1999, who were administered a survey designed to evaluate the impact of the course. "Pedro Kouri" Tropical medicine Institute is giving the Master's course on Epidemiology since 1984. Out of the 254 graduates up to 1999, 97 were foreigners (75 from Spain); 54.

The Nutritional and Inflammatory Evaluation in Dialysis patients (NIED) study: overview of the NIED study and the role of dietitians.

The absolute majority of maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients die within 5 years of commencing dialysis treatment, mostly because of cardiovascular (CV) disease. The strongest and most common correlates of death in MHD patients are not conventional CV risk factors, but markers of protein-energy malnutrition and inflammation, together also known as malnutrition-inflammation complex syndrome (MICS). Paradoxically, classic risk factors such as obesity and hypercholesterolemia are associated with better survival in MHD patients.

Paradoxal effect of salbutamol in an in vitro model of bronchoprotection.

Salbutamol-induced hyperresponsiveness to acetylcholine was investigated in human and guinea-pig isolated airways and cultured human airway smooth muscle cells. Salbutamol (10(-7)-10(-5) m) inhibited contractions induced by low concentrations of acetylcholine (10(-8)-10(-7) m) but potentiated contractions induced by higher concentrations of acetylcholine (10(-5)-10(-3) m). Pretreatment with the calcium channel antagonist nicardipine suppressed salbutamol-induced hyperresponse.

The mitochondrial respiratory complex I is a target for 15-deoxy-delta12,14-prostaglandin J2 action.

The prostaglandin J2 derivative 15-deoxy-Delta12,14-prostaglandin J2 (15d-PGJ2) is a very active compound with important effects on inflammation, apoptosis, and cell growth processes. To exert this broad range of effects, 15d-PGJ2 binds and alters the activity of diverse proteins, which consequently are postulated to be mediators of its action. Among them are the transcription factors peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma and nuclear factor kappaB, which are thought to play an essential role in the antitumorigenic and anti-inflammatory actions of 15d-PGJ2.

[Evaluation of a pharmaceutical care program to improve adherence to antiretroviral therapy].

Objective: To establish the impact of a pharmaceutical care program on the improvement of adherence to antiretroviral therapy, and on patient immunologic and virologic outcome.

Materials And Methods: A multicenter, observational, prospective study in a HIV-infected patient cohort under treatment with antiretrovirals selected by random sampling in 19 Spanish hospitals. The study lasted 12 months, in which the program was applied through a baseline preprocedural visit and 4 quarterly visits.

[Latex agglutination system for the rapid diagnosis of leptospirosis in Cuba].

Objectives: To assess the sensitivity, specificity, reproducibility, and stability of five latex agglutination systems for detecting antibodies against leptospira in human and animal sera, by using the Leptospira serotypes that are most widely prevalent in Cuba.

Methods: We performed an analytic and descriptive study with 706 human sera (65 tested positive for antibodies against leptospira with microagglutination (MAT) and hemagglutination (HA) techniques; 156 sera that tested negative with MAT and HA); 485 sera from 424 patients who had clinical or epidemiologic signs of leptospirosis; and 29 animal sera (16 from equines, 6 from bovines, 5 from porcines, 1 from a canine, and 1 from an ovine). All of the samples were tested with five latex conjugates made from whole cells of Leptospira interrogans, specifically the four serogroups that circulated most widely in Cuba from 2002 to 2004.

Robotics in vascular surgery.

The procedure for surgical correction of aortic disease has gone relatively unchanged over the last 50 years, requiring a xiphoid pubic incision as well as shifting of the abdominal viscera. These maneuvers produce significant pathophysiologic changes that consequently affect intraoperative and postoperative care and recovery. In approaching minimally invasive aortic surgery, advances in computer-enhanced technology have the potential to revolutionize aortic surgery and improve patient safety.

Comparative testing for weak expression of D antigen: manual tube testing vs. a semiautomated IgG gel system.

Donor RBCs nonreactive in initial tests for D must be tested further for evidence of weak expression of D antigen. Performing this test in test tubes is labor intensive and prone to inconsistencies in readings (relative strength of agglutination) and interpretation (positive versus negative). These inconsistencies can lead to repeat testing, additional documentation, and delay in releasing units.

[Morphological, histochemical and immunochemical characteristics of the terminal ileum of patients with ulcerative colitis. Relationship with the development of pouchitis].

Unlabelled: Pouchitis is the most frequent long-term complication of the ileoanal reservoirs. Its etiology is unknown and it is currently believed to be a recurrence of ulcerative colitis in the mucosa of the ileal reservoir.

Aim: To evaluate whether the mucosa of the terminal ileum of patients with ulcerative colitis is different from that of patients free of this disease and whether there are morphological and immunological alterations which might predispose to inflammation of the reservoir.

An automated small-scale protein expression and purification screening provides beneficial information for protein production.

One of the first key steps in structural genomics is high-throughput expression and rapid screening to select highly soluble proteins, the preferred candidates for crystal production. Here we describe the methodology used at the Berkeley Structural Genomics Center (BSGC) for automated parallel expression and small-scale purification of fusion proteins using a 96-well format. Our robotic method includes cell lysis, soluble fraction separation and purification with affinity resins.

Enhanced production of lactococcin 972 in chemostat cultures.

Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis IPLA972 is a wild lactococcal strain suitable as a single starter in the manufacture of dairy products. This strain synthesizes lactococcin 972 (Lcn972), a unique bacteriocin that blocks septum formation.

Inhibition of a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strain in Afuega'l Pitu cheese by the nisin Z-producing strain Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis IPLA 729.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains are a potential threat for food safety because foodborne illness caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus has been reported even though these strains were only associated with nosocomial infections until recently. This article focuses on the inhibitory effect of the nisin Z-producing strain Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis IPLA 729 on the growth of Staphylococcus aureus CECT 4013, a methicillin-resistant strain.

Unusual phonon softening in delta-phase plutonium.

The phonon density of states and adiabatic sound velocities were measured on fcc-stabilized 242Pu0.95Al0.05.

Detection of factors influencing nitrite determination in meat.

A critical assessment was made of the official Spanish method for determining nitrite content in meat, using a 2((k-p)) fold-over Plackett-Burman experiment to identify influencing factors (IF) affecting the analytical method; these factors were drawn from seven apparent critical factors (ACF): sample weight (W(S)), extraction temperature (T(E)), stirring extraction time (S(ET)), addition of Carrez I reagent (C(I-R)), addition of Carrez II reagent (C(II-R)), addition of borax reagent (B(R)) and color development time (D(CT)). In the experimental conditions assayed, the analytical method does not require protein precipitation. In addition, a negative effect of the Carrez reagent on nitrite determination was detected; it is thus proposed that this reagent be eliminated, in accordance with AOAC method 973.