Third intracellular loop of HCMV US28 is necessary for signaling and viral reactivation.

The human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) encoded chemokine receptor US28 plays a critical role in viral pathogenesis, mediating several processes such as cellular migration, differentiation, transformation, and viral latency and reactivation. Despite significant research examining the signal transduction pathways utilized by US28, the precise mechanism by which US28 activates these pathways remains unclear. We performed a mutational analysis of US28 to identify signaling domains that are critical for functional activities.

Socioeconomic factors as predictors of organ donation.

Background: Despite numerous initiatives to increase solid organs for transplant, the gap between donors and recipients widens. There is little in the literature identifying socioeconomic predictors for donation. We evaluate the correlation between socioeconomic factors and familial authorization for donation.

Liver Transplantation for the Treatment of Complicated Iatrogenic Biliary Injuries: A National Review from the UNOS Data Set.

Background: Liver transplantation (LT) is rarely indicated in the management of iatrogenic bile duct injuries (IBDI), but occasionally, it becomes the only remaining therapy. The purpose of this study is to evaluate potential complications of IBDI and their impact on perioperative mortality, graft, and patient survival after LT.

Methods: The United Network for Organ Sharing database was queried for all LT performed in the United States between 1994 and 2014.

Open Vesicocalicostomy for the Management of Transplant Ureteral Stricture.

A 59-year-old male developed a proximal stricture of his transplant ureter ten years after a living donor renal transplant. Endoscopic management was unsuccessful, and the patient was temporized with percutaneous nephrostomy tubes for months. Eventually, it became clear he would require surgical revision.

Perioperative and long-term outcomes in octogenarians after kidney transplantation: the US perspective .

Background: We aimed to study outcomes on octogenarian patients undergoing kidney transplantation in the US.

Methods: We queried the UNOS dataset from 1988 through 2013 and found 471 octogenarians transplanted during the study period.

Results: 86 (18.

Decreased graft survival in liver transplant recipients of donors with positive blood cultures: a review of the United Network for Organ Sharing dataset.

Liver transplantation using blood culture positive donors (BCPD) has allowed a significant expansion of the donor pool. We aimed to characterize BCPD and assess the outcomes of BCPD liver transplant recipients. We retrieved data from the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) registry on all adults who underwent primary, single-organ deceased-donor liver transplantation in the USA between 2008 and 2013.

Liver transplantation for fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma: A national perspective.

Background: Fibrolamellar Hepatocellular Carcinoma (FL-HCC) is a rare primary liver tumor that usually presents in younger patients without underlying liver disease.

Methods: We queried the United Network of Organ Sharing (UNOS) database between October 1988 and January 2013 to evaluate outcomes in patients with FL-HCC undergoing liver transplantation in the United States compared to patients with conventional Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC).

Results: Sixty-three patients were identified (57% female, mean age 30 years).

Kidney Transplant Outcomes in the Super Obese: A National Study From the UNOS Dataset.

Background: We evaluated outcomes of super-obese patients (BMI > 50) undergoing kidney transplantation in the US.

Methods: We performed a review of 190 super-obese patients undergoing kidney transplantation from 1988 through 2013 using the UNOS dataset.

Results: Super-obese patients had a mean age of 45.

Risk factors for increased resource utilization and critical care complications in patients undergoing hepaticojejunostomy for biliary injuries.

Background: This project aimed to study resource utilization and surgical outcomes after hepaticojejunostomy (HJ) for biliary injuries utilizing data from ACS NSQIP.

Methods: Data from the Participant Use Data File containing surgical patients submitted to the ACS NSQIP during the period of 1/1/2005-12/31/2014 were analyzed.

Results: During the study period, 320 patients underwent HJ.

Tipping the Scales: Liver Transplant Outcomes of the Super Obese.

Objective: We aim to study outcomes in liver transplant recipients with body mass index (BMI) ≥50 using the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) database.

Methods: We reviewed patients undergoing liver transplantation recorded in the UNOS database from 1988 to 2013. Of 104,250 liver transplant procedures, 123 were performed on super obese patients.

Cancer stem cell marker expression alone and in combination with microvascular invasion predicts poor prognosis in patients undergoing transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: The cancer stem cell hypothesis provides an explanation for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) heterogeneity. We investigated the expression of CD44 and CD133 alone and in combination with microvascular invasion (MVI) as predictors of prognosis in patients undergoing liver transplantation for HCC.

Methods: Explanted livers from 95 patients transplanted for HCC were analyzed.

Divalent Ion Parameterization Strongly Affects Conformation and Interactions of an Anionic Biomimetic Polymer.

The description of peptides and the use of molecular dynamics simulations to refine structures and investigate the dynamics on an atomistic scale are well developed. Through a consensus in this community over multiple decades, parameters were developed for molecular interactions that only require the sequence of amino-acids and an initial guess for the three-dimensional structure. The recent discovery of peptoids will require a retooling of the currently available interaction potentials in order to have the same level of confidence in the predicted structures and pathways as there is presently in the peptide counterparts.

Triazine-Based Sequence-Defined Polymers with Side-Chain Diversity and Backbone-Backbone Interaction Motifs.

Sequence control in polymers, well-known in nature, encodes structure and functionality. Here we introduce a new architecture, based on the nucleophilic aromatic substitution chemistry of cyanuric chloride, that creates a new class of sequence-defined polymers dubbed TZPs. Proof of concept is demonstrated with two synthesized hexamers, having neutral and ionizable side chains.

Long-term outcome of patients undergoing liver transplantation for mixed hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma: an analysis of the UNOS database.

Background: Mixed hepatocellular and cholangiocarcinoma (HCC-CC) have been associated with a poor prognosis after liver transplantation (LT). We aimed to evaluate long-term outcomes in patients undergoing LT for HCC-CC versus patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) or cholangiocarcinoma (CC).

Methods: Retrospective analysis of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) database from 1994-2013.

Combined liver-kidney transplantation for polycystic liver and kidney disease: analysis from the United Network for Organ Sharing dataset.

Background & Aims: The purpose of this study was to evaluate predictors of outcomes in combined liver-kidney transplants for polycystic liver and kidney disease.

Methods: We queried the United Network for Organ Sharing dataset for combined liver-kidney transplants performed from 1988 to 2013.

Results: Out of 107 patients who had combined liver-kidney transplants for polycystic liver and kidney disease, 84 were women (78.

A prospective analysis of factors associated with decreased physical activity in patients with cirrhosis undergoing transplant evaluation.

Background: Physical activity (PA) has been associated with improved recovery time after transplantation. Handgrip strength has been related to post-transplant outcomes.

Aim: To evaluate predictors of PA and grip strength in patients with cirrhosis undergoing liver transplant evaluation.

Numerical calculation of protein-ligand binding rates through solution of the Smoluchowski equation using smoothed particle hydrodynamics.

Background: The calculation of diffusion-controlled ligand binding rates is important for understanding enzyme mechanisms as well as designing enzyme inhibitors.

Methods: We demonstrate the accuracy and effectiveness of a Lagrangian particle-based method, smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH), to study diffusion in biomolecular systems by numerically solving the time-dependent Smoluchowski equation for continuum diffusion. Unlike previous studies, a reactive Robin boundary condition (BC), rather than the absolute absorbing (Dirichlet) BC, is considered on the reactive boundaries.

Role of transplantation in the treatment of benign solid tumors of the liver: a review of the United Network of Organ Sharing data set.

Importance: The role of orthotopic liver transplantation for the treatment of benign solid liver tumors (BSLT) is not well defined.

Objective: To analyze outcomes in the United Network of Organ Sharing data set of patients with a diagnosis of BSLT who underwent transplantation.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A retrospective analysis of the United Network of Organ Sharing data set was performed for all (N = 87,280) patients who underwent transplantation for BSLT in the United States from October 1, 1988, through January 31, 2013.

Risk factors for 30-day readmissions after hepatectomy: analysis of 2444 patients from the ACS-NSQIP database.

Aims: The aim of this study was to identify risk factors associated with unplanned readmissions after hepatectomies.

Methods: Patients who underwent hepatectomies between January and December of 2011 were identified using the ACS-NSQIP database. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to determine predictors of unplanned readmissions related to the procedure within 30 days.

Trimeric structure of (+)-pinoresinol-forming dirigent protein at 1.95 Å resolution with three isolated active sites.

Control over phenoxy radical-radical coupling reactions in vivo in vascular plants was enigmatic until our discovery of dirigent proteins (DPs, from the Latin dirigere, to guide or align). The first three-dimensional structure of a DP ((+)-pinoresinol-forming DP, 1.95 Å resolution, rhombohedral space group H32)) is reported herein.

Structural and functional characterization of DUF1471 domains of Salmonella proteins SrfN, YdgH/SssB, and YahO.

Bacterial species in the Enterobacteriaceae typically contain multiple paralogues of a small domain of unknown function (DUF1471) from a family of conserved proteins also known as YhcN or BhsA/McbA. Proteins containing DUF1471 may have a single or three copies of this domain. Representatives of this family have been demonstrated to play roles in several cellular processes including stress response, biofilm formation, and pathogenesis.

Targeting the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in liver cancer stem cells and hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines with FH535.

Activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway has been observed in at least 1/3 of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC), and a significant number of these have mutations in the β-catenin gene. Therefore, effective inhibition of this pathway could provide a novel method to treat HCC. The purposed of this study was to determine whether FH535, which was previously shown to block the β-catenin pathway, could inhibit β-catenin activation of target genes and inhibit proliferation of Liver Cancer Stem Cells (LCSC) and HCC cell lines.

Improved Coarse-Grained Modeling of Cholesterol-Containing Lipid Bilayers.

Cholesterol trafficking, which is an essential function in mammalian cells, is intimately connected to molecular-scale interactions through cholesterol modulation of membrane structure and dynamics and interaction with membrane receptors. Since these effects of cholesterol occur on micro- to millisecond timescales, it is essential to develop accurate coarse-grained simulation models that can reach these timescales. Cholesterol has been shown experimentally to thicken the membrane and increase phospholipid tail order between 0-40% cholesterol, above which these effects plateau or slightly decrease.