Design of biomolecules that perform two or more distinct functions in response to light remains challenging. Here, we have introduced concurrent photoactivity and photoreactivity into an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-targeting antibody fragment, 7D12. This was achieved by site-specific incorporation of photocaged tyrosine (pcY) for photoactivity and p-benzoyl-ʟ-phenylalanine (Bpa) for photoreactivity into 7D12.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOxygenation conditions are crucial for growth and tumor progression. Recent data suggests a decrease in cancer cell proliferation occurring after exposure to normobaric hyperoxia. Those changes are associated with fractal dimension.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPowdery mildews are biotrophic pathogens causing fungal diseases in many economically important crops, including cereals, which are affected by . Powdery mildews only invade the epidermal cell layer of leaf tissues, in which they form haustorial structures. Haustoria are at the center of the biotrophic interaction by taking up nutrients from the host and by delivering effectors in the invaded cells to jeopardize plant immunity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To examine the relationship between frequent falls in older drivers and motor vehicle collision (MVC) involvement.
Design: Cross-sectional.
Setting: North central Alabama.
The purpose of this study was to investigate ultrasound (US)- and US elastography-detected changes in the median nerve of patients with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). Seventy-four wrists of 41 female patients with CTS (mean age, 47.73 ± 11.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Experts recommend that children with suspected pneumococcal meningitis should empirically receive combination therapy with vancomycin plus either ceftriaxone or cefotaxime. The relationship between timing of the first dose of vancomycin relative to other antibiotics and outcome in these children, however, has not been addressed.
Methods: Medical records of children with pneumococcal meningitis at a single institution from 1991-2001 were retrospectively reviewed.
Giant cell myocarditis (GCM) is an organ-specific, autoimmune disease that infrequently affects children and generally has a more aggressive (often fatal) course than other forms of myocarditis. No data are available about the epidemiology of GCM in children. We describe a 13-year-old girl who presented with ventricular tachycardia and rapid hemodynamic deterioration that required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) as a bridge to heart transplantation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe role of p38- and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase pathways in the up-regulation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) production in macrophages stimulated with Streptococcus pneumoniae was examined. Inhibitors of p38 kinases effected significant decreases in the accumulation of iNOS protein in macrophages challenged with pneumococcal cell wall preparations or antibiotic-killed pneumococci, even when added up to 6 h after bacterial challenge. In contrast, ERK pathway inhibitors failed to inhibit pneumococcus-induced iNOS protein accumulation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The relationship of antibiotic susceptibility to clinical outcome in children with pneumococcal meningitis is uncertain. Previous studies have been limited by inclusion of relatively few patients infected with nonsusceptible pneumococci and inconsistent use of empiric vancomycin.
Methods: Medical records of 86 children with culture-confirmed pneumococcal meningitis at a single institution from October, 1991, to October, 1999, were retrospectively reviewed, and differences in presentation and outcome based on antibiotic susceptibility of pneumococcal isolates were assessed.
Antibiotic choice can alter host inflammation during invasive bacterial infections. Previous studies of gram-negative organisms concluded that antibiotic-mediated release of bacterial cell wall components amplifies inflammation. Less has been reported about antibiotic effect on gram-positive organisms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To describe the use of aerosolized urokinase in a patient with plastic bronchitis after a Fontan procedure.
Design: Case report.
Setting: Pediatric intensive care unit in a university-affiliated children's hospital.
The role of nitric oxide (NO) in the pathophysiology of gram-positive sepsis is uncertain. In inflammatory conditions, high-output NO production is catalyzed by the enzyme inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). The ability of 2 strains of pneumococci, pneumococcal cell wall preparations, and purified pneumococcal capsule (Pnu-Imune 23) to trigger the production of iNOS protein and NO in RAW 264.
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