MG 53 Protein Protects Aortic Valve Interstitial Cells From Membrane Injury and Fibrocalcific Remodeling.

Background The aortic valve of the heart experiences constant mechanical stress under physiological conditions. Maladaptive valve injury responses contribute to the development of valvular heart disease. Here, we test the hypothesis that MG 53 (mitsugumin 53), an essential cell membrane repair protein, can protect valvular cells from injury and fibrocalcific remodeling processes associated with valvular heart disease.

STRmix™ collaborative exercise on DNA mixture interpretation.

An intra and inter-laboratory study using the probabilistic genotyping (PG) software STRmix™ is reported. Two complex mixtures from the PROVEDIt set, analysed on an Applied Biosystems™ 3500 Series Genetic Analyzer, were selected. 174 participants responded.

When knowing can replace seeing in audiovisual integration of actions.

The ability to predict the effects of actions is necessary to behave properly in our physical and social world. Here, we describe how the ability to predict the consequence of complex gestures can change the way we integrate sight and sound when relevant visual information is missing. Six drummers and six novices were asked to judge audiovisual synchrony for drumming point-light displays where the visual information was manipulated to eliminate or include the drumstick-drumhead impact point.

Evidence-based strategies to improve immunization compliance of postgraduate medical trainees at large academic-medical facilities.

The purpose of this evaluation is to assess the effectiveness of the modifications made by the University of Toronto Postgraduate Medical Education to improve medical trainee compliance with the immunization standards set forth in national guidelines, provincial regulations and protocols and university policy. Trainee compliance with immunization requirements were evaluated as of January 2003, 2004 and 2005. Statistically significant increases in compliance rates for all required immunizations--hepatitis B virus, measles, rubella and chicken pox--and tuberculosis skin tests were observed.

Judgment of disfluency in people who stutter and people who do not stutter: results from magnitude estimation.

Two experiments used a magnitude estimation paradigm to test whether perception of disfluency is a function of whether the speaker and the listener stutter or do not stutter. Utterances produced by people who stutter were judged as "less fluent," and, critically, this held for apparently fluent utterances as well as for utterances identified as containing disfluency. Additionally, people who stutter tended to perceive utterances as less fluent, independent of who produced these utterances.