Histidine 114 Is Critical for ATP Hydrolysis by the Universally Conserved ATPase YchF.

GTPases perform a wide range of functions, ranging from protein synthesis to cell signaling. Of all known GTPases, only eight are conserved across all three domains of life. YchF is one of these eight universally conserved GTPases; however, its cellular function and enzymatic properties are poorly understood.

Numerical study of extreme events in a laser diode with phase-conjugate optical feedback.

Extreme intensity pulses sharing statistical properties similar to rogue waves have been recently observed in a laser diode with phase-conjugate feedback [A. Karsaklian Dal Bosco, D. Wolfersberger, and M.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)-associated acute cor pulmonale and patent foramen ovale: a multicenter noninvasive hemodynamic study.

Introduction: Acute cor pulmonale (ACP) and patent foramen ovale (PFO) remain common in patients under protective ventilation for acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). We sought to describe the hemodynamic profile associated with either ACP or PFO, or both, during the early course of moderate-to-severe ARDS using echocardiography.

Methods: In this 32-month prospective multicenter study, 195 patients with moderate-to-severe ARDS were assessed using echocardiography during the first 48 h of admission (age: 56 (SD: 15) years; Simplified Acute Physiology Score: 46 (17); PaO2/FiO2: 115 (39); VT: 6.

Aerosol Route to Administer Teicoplanin in Mechanical Ventilation: In Vitro Study, Lung Deposition and Pharmacokinetic Analyses in Pigs.

Backround: Glycopeptides given intravenously achieve low airway concentrations. Nebulization of teicoplanin may be an efficient way of delivering a high concentration of this antibiotic to the lung. This multistep study assessed the feasibility of teicoplanin nebulization during mechanical ventilation by evaluating: the stability of its antibiotic effect; epithelial tolerance; lung deposition and systemic absorption in ventilated pigs.

A conserved P-loop anchor limits the structural dynamics that mediate nucleotide dissociation in EF-Tu.

The phosphate-binding loop (P-loop) is a conserved sequence motif found in mononucleotide-binding proteins. Little is known about the structural dynamics of this region and its contribution to the observed nucleotide binding properties. Understanding the underlying design principles is of great interest for biomolecular engineering applications.

Assessment of Toll-like receptor 2, 4 and 9 SNP genotypes in canine sino-nasal aspergillosis.

Background: The exact aetiology of canine sino-nasal aspergillosis (SNA) is unknown. In man, dysfunction in innate immunity, particularly in the function of pattern recognition receptors, is implicated in the pathogenesis of inflammatory sino-nasal disease and in fungal diseases. Associations between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and these diseases have been identified.

Physical random bit generation from chaotic solitary laser diode.

We demonstrate the physical generation of random bits at high bit rates (> 100 Gb/s) using optical chaos from a solitary laser diode and therefore without the complex addition of either external optical feedback or injection. This striking result is obtained despite the low dimension and relatively small bandwidth of the laser chaos, i.e.

Copy number variants (CNVs) analysis in a deeply phenotyped cohort of individuals with intellectual disability (ID).

Background: DNA copy number variants (CNVs) are found in 15% of subjects with ID but their association with phenotypic abnormalities has been predominantly studied in smaller cohorts of subjects with detailed yet non-systematically categorized phenotypes, or larger cohorts (thousands of cases) with smaller number of generalized phenotypes.

Methods: We evaluated the association of de novo, familial and common CNVs detected in 78 ID subjects with phenotypic abnormalities classified using the Winter-Baraitser Dysmorphology Database (WBDD) (formerly the London Dysmorphology Database). Terminology for 34 primary (coarse) and 169 secondary (fine) phenotype features were used to categorize the abnormal phenotypes and determine the prevalence of each phenotype in patients grouped by the type of CNV they had.

BET 1: bedside ultrasound for the diagnosis of necrotising fasciitis.

A short-cut review was carried out to establish whether bedside ultrasound was accurate at diagnosing necrotising fasciitis in patients with limb infections. A total of 187 papers were found using the reported searches, of which one presented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results and study weaknesses of this paper is tabulated.

Bifurcation to chaotic low-frequency fluctuations in a laser diode with phase-conjugate feedback.

We unveil theoretically the bifurcations to chaotic low-frequency fluctuations (LFF) in a laser diode with phase-conjugate feedback (PCF). LFF occur from a chaotic itinerancy among destabilized limit-cycle attractors that correspond to the external-cavity modes (ECMs) of the PCF laser system and with a directional motion toward a self-pulsating dynamics of increasing frequency and larger output power. When increasing the feedback strength, the frequency of the fast-pulsing dynamics changes about a multiple of the external-cavity frequency, which is a unique feature of LFF in a laser diode with PCF.

Assessment of panobacumab as adjunctive immunotherapy for the treatment of nosocomial Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia.

The fully human anti-lipopolysaccharide (LPS) immunoglobulin M (IgM) monoclonal antibody panobacumab was developed as an adjunctive immunotherapy for the treatment of O11 serotype Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. We evaluated the potential clinical efficacy of panobacumab in the treatment of nosocomial pneumonia. We performed a post-hoc analysis of a multicenter phase IIa trial (NCT00851435) designed to prospectively evaluate the safety and pharmacokinetics of panobacumab.

Bistability of time-periodic polarization dynamics in a free-running VCSEL.

We report experimentally a bistability between two limit cycles (i.e. time-periodic dynamics) in a free-running vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa serotypes in nosocomial pneumonia: prevalence and clinical outcomes.

Introduction: Pseudomonas aeruginosa frequently causes nosocomial pneumonia and is associated with poor outcome. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and clinical outcome of nosocomial pneumonia caused by serotype-specific P. aeruginosa in critically ill patients under appropriate antimicrobial therapy management.

An arginine-aspartate network in the active site of bacterial TruB is critical for catalyzing pseudouridine formation.

Pseudouridine synthases introduce the most common RNA modification and likely use the same catalytic mechanism. Besides a catalytic aspartate residue, the contributions of other residues for catalysis of pseudouridine formation are poorly understood. Here, we have tested the role of a conserved basic residue in the active site for catalysis using the bacterial pseudouridine synthase TruB targeting U55 in tRNAs.

Pulmonary toxicity associated with the use of lenalidomide: case report of late-onset acute respiratory distress syndrome and literature review.

Lenalidomide is an immunomodulating drug structurally similar to thalidomide. It is indicated for patients with relapsing or refractory multiple myeloma in combination with dexamethasone, and for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes associated with a deletion 5q cytogenetic abnormality. It is also used to treat other myelodysplastic syndromes such as myelofibrosis and lymphoma.

Lung and serum teicoplanin concentration after aerosol and intravenous administration in a rat model.

Background: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a major cause of mortality in mechanically ventilated patients. Nebulization of teicoplanin is an alternative way of administration that may provide higher lung tissue concentrations than intravenous (IV) delivery. The aim of this study was to compare the administration of teicoplanin via aerosol with the IV route by measuring the lung and the serum teicoplanin concentrations in a rat model.

Severe Measles Infection: The Spectrum of Disease in 36 Critically Ill Adult Patients.

France has recently witnessed a nationwide outbreak of measles. Data on severe forms of measles in adults are lacking. We sought to describe the epidemiologic, clinical, treatment, and prognostic aspects of the disease in adult patients who required admission to an intensive care unit (ICU).

miRNA and miRNA target genes in copy number variations occurring in individuals with intellectual disability.

Background: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a family of short, non-coding RNAs modulating expression of human protein coding genes (miRNA target genes). Their dysfunction is associated with many human diseases, including neurodevelopmental disorders. It has been recently shown that genomic copy number variations (CNVs) can cause aberrant expression of integral miRNAs and their target genes, and contribute to intellectual disability (ID).

Towards evidence-based emergency medicine: best BETs from the Manchester Royal Infirmary. BET 2: Therapeutic hypothermia for cardiac arrest of asphyxial origin.

A short-cut review was carried out to establish whether therapeutic hypothermia leads to improved neurological outcomes in adult patients who have sustained a cardiac arrest of asphyxial origin. Four studies were directly relevant to the question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results and study weaknesses of these papers are shown in table 2.

Prone positioning in severe acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Background: Previous trials involving patients with the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) have failed to show a beneficial effect of prone positioning during mechanical ventilatory support on outcomes. We evaluated the effect of early application of prone positioning on outcomes in patients with severe ARDS.

Methods: In this multicenter, prospective, randomized, controlled trial, we randomly assigned 466 patients with severe ARDS to undergo prone-positioning sessions of at least 16 hours or to be left in the supine position.

Predictive value of S-100β protein for prognosis in patients with moderate and severe traumatic brain injury: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: To determine the ability and accuracy of the S-100β protein in predicting prognosis after a moderate or severe traumatic brain injury.

Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials and observational studies.

Data Sources: Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, BIOSIS (from their inception to April 2012), conference abstracts, bibliographies of eligible articles, and relevant narrative reviews.