Factors affecting surgical risk in elderly patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

The operative treatment of elderly patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has often been avoided in favor of medical management because of a perceived increase in surgical risk. This study sought to define the following in the elderly IBD patient population: (1) the risk of surgical management and (2) those factors affecting risk. Thirty patients with IBD, aged 60 years or more, who were surgically managed by a single surgeon over a 10-year period, were retrospectively matched to 75 patients with IBD who were less than 60 years of age; patients were matched according to sex, date of surgery, and type of surgery performed.

Kottamides A-D: novel bioactive imidazolone-containing alkaloids from the New Zealand ascidian Pycnoclavella kottae.

Kottamides A-D (1-4), novel 2,2,5-trisubstituted imidazolone-containing alkaloids, were isolated from the New Zealand endemic ascidian Pycnoclavella kottae and structurally characterized using 15N natural abundance 2-D NMR in addition to standard spectroscopic methods. The kottamides exhibited anti-inflammatory and anti-metabolic activity as well as cytotoxicity toward tumor cell lines.

Hydrolysis of a sulfonamide by a novel elimination mechanism generated by carbanion formation in the leaving group.

The alkaline hydrolysis of N-alpha-methoxycarbonyl benzyl-beta-sultam occurs 10(3) times faster than the corresponding carboxylate and with rapid D-exchange at the alpha-carbon: the pH rate profile indicates pre-equilibirum CH ionisation and together with formation of benzoyl formate as a product this suggests a novel mechanism for hydrolysis.

Acylating agents as enzyme inhibitors and understanding their reactivity for drug design.

A series of bicyclic trans-fused gamma-lactones and gamma-lactams have been previously described for the inhibition of human neutrophil elastase and as possible development candidates. During the discovery program, it had been assumed that their acylating power was due in part to the inherent strain energy in the bicyclic structure that was released upon ring opening. This is now shown not to be the case, and in fact, these compounds are no more reactive than simple but analogous gamma-lactams and gamma-lactones.

Effect of theophylline on contrast material-nephropathy in patients with chronic renal insufficiency: controlled, randomized, double-blinded study.

Purpose: To investigate whether the adenosine antagonist theophylline reduces the incidence of contrast material-induced nephropathy (serum creatinine level increase of at least 0.5 mg/dL [44.2 micromol/L] in 48 hours) in high-risk patients who have chronic renal insufficiency and have received at least 100 mL of contrast medium.

Mutational analysis of the two zinc-binding sites of the Bacillus cereus 569/H/9 metallo-beta-lactamase.

The metallo-beta-lactamase BcII from Bacillus cereus 569/H/9 possesses a binuclear zinc centre. The mono-zinc form of the enzyme displays an appreciably high activity, although full efficiency is observed for the di-zinc enzyme. In an attempt to assign the involvement of the different zinc ligands in the catalytic properties of BcII, individual substitutions of selected amino acids were generated.