Progesterone utilizes distinct membrane pools of tissue factor to increase coagulation and invasion and these effects are inhibited by TFPI.

Tissue factor (TF) serving as the receptor for coagulation factor VII (FVII) initiates the extrinsic coagulation pathway. We previously demonstrated that progesterone increases TF, coagulation and invasion in breast cancer cell lines. Herein, we investigated if tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) could down-regulate progesterone-increased TF activity in these cells.

Black tea improves attention and self-reported alertness.

Tea has previously been demonstrated to better help sustain alertness throughout the day in open-label studies. We investigated whether tea improves attention and self-reported alertness in two double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, crossover studies. Participants received black tea (made from commercially available tea bags) in one condition and placebo tea (hot water with food colours and flavours) similar in taste and appearance to real tea in the other condition.

Strong agostic-type interactions in ruthenium benzylidene complexes containing 7-azaindole based scorpionate ligands.

The complexes [Ru(Tai)Cl{=C(H)Ph}(PCy(3))] (4) and [Ru((Ph)Bai)Cl{=C(H)Ph}(PCy(3))] (5) [where Tai = HB(7-azaindolyl)(3) and (Ph)Bai = Ph(H)B(7-azaindolyl)(2)] have been prepared and structurally characterised. The borohydride unit is located in the coordination site trans to the chloride ligand in both complexes. The degree of interaction between the borohydride group and the metal centre was found to be significantly large in both cases.

An in vitro study of plasticized poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) films as possible guided tissue regeneration membranes: material properties and drug release kinetics.

Guided tissue regeneration (GTR), in periodontal therapy, involves the placement of a barrier membrane, to ensure the detached root surface becomes repopulated with periodontal ligament cells capable of regenerating this attachment. GTR procedures exhibit large variability in surgical outcome as a consequence of poor membrane performance. The objective of this study was to evaluate the suitability of plasticized poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) as a material for GTR membranes.

Implementing the national invasive cervical cancer audit: a local perspective.

Objective:  To monitor the effectiveness of the cervical screening programme and identify suboptimal management in order to improve patient care.

Design:  Retrospective study.

Setting:   A university hospital serving a population of 1 million people.

The British Gynaecological Cancer Society Delphi consultation exercise on expected standards of practice for doctors specializing in the area of gynecological oncology.

Objective: To determine a set of auditable standards applicable to physicians working in the area of gynecological oncology, which could be implemented as accreditation criteria for the revalidation procedure.

Design: A 3-round Delphi consultation exercise.

Setting: British Gynaecological Cancer Society (BGCS) members and delegates at the 2006 and 2007 Annual BGCS conferences Population 35 BGCS members, 72 delegates attending the 2006 BGCS conference and 120 delegates attending the 2007 conference.

Exploring the Nature of Desmosomal Cadherin Associations in 3D.

Desmosomes are a complex assembly of protein molecules that mediate adhesion between adjacent cells. Desmosome composition is well established and spatial relationships between components have been identified. Intercellular cell-cell adhesion is created by the interaction of extracellular domains of desmosomal cadherins, namely, desmocollins and desmogleins.

Reversible dioxygen binding in solvent-free liquid myoglobin.

The ensemble of forces that stabilize protein structure and facilitate biological function are intimately linked with the ubiquitous aqueous environment of living systems. As a consequence, biomolecular activity is highly sensitive to the interplay of solvent-protein interactions, and deviation from the native conditions, for example by exposure to increased thermal energy or severe dehydration, results in denaturation and subsequent loss of function. Although certain enzymes can be extracted into non-aqueous solvents without significant loss of activity, there are no known examples of solvent-less (molten) liquids of functional metalloproteins.

Plugs unplugged. Anal fistula plug: the Concord experience.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyse preliminary experience and outcomes with the Cook Surgisis AFP anal fistula plug (Cook Medical, Bloomington, IN, USA) with respect to the treatment of complex anal fistulae in a specialist colorectal unit.

Methods: Data on all patients who were treated with the Surgisis AFP between October 2006 and January 2009 were retrospectively reviewed. The plug was placed in accordance with the Cook guidelines.

Rhodium and iridium complexes containing diphenyl-2-(3-methyl)indolylphosphine: synthesis, structure and application in the catalytic transfer hydrogenation of ketones.

The synthesis and characterisation of a number of group nine complexes containing the recently reported ligand, diphenyl-2-(3-methyl)indolylphosphine, is presented herein. The complexes [RhCl(COD){PPh(2)(C(9)H(8)N)}] (1), [IrCl(COD){PPh(2)(C(9)H(8)N)}] (2), [RhCl(NBD){PPh(2)(C(9)H(8)N)}] (3) and [Rh(COD)(MeCN){PPh(2)(C(9)H(8)N)}]BF(4) (4) (where COD = 1,5-cyclooctadiene, NBD = 2,5- norbornadiene) have been structurally characterised by X-ray crystallography. The complex [Rh(2)(COD)(2){N(Me)[double bond, length as m-dash]C(H)Ph)}{PPh(2)(C(9)H(8)N)}][BF(4)](2) (8) was also isolated and structurally characterised.

Towards multistranded molecular wires: syntheses, structures, and reactivities of tetraplatinum bis(polyynediyl) complexes with [upper bond 1 start]Pt-C(x)-Pt-(P(CH2)3P)2-Pt-C(x)-Pt-(P(CH2)3P[upper bond 1 end])2 cores (x = 4, 6, 8).

Reactions of trans,trans-(C(6)F(5))(p-tol(3)P)(2)Pt(C[triple bond]C)(n)Pt(Pp-tol(3))(2)(C(6)F(5)) (PtC(x)Pt; x = 2n) and the 1,3-diphosphine Ph(2)P(CH(2))(3)PPh(2) (2.5 equiv) give the tetraplatinum complexes trans, trans,trans,trans-(C(6)F(5))[upper bond 1 start]Pt(C[triple bond]C)(n)Pt(C(6)F(5))(PPh(2)(CH(2))(3)Ph(2)P)(2)(C(6)F(5))Pt(C[triple bond]C)(n)Pt(C(6)F(5))(PPh(2)(CH(2))(3)Ph(2)P[upper bond 1 end])(2) ([Pt'C(x)Pt'](2); x = 4/6/8, 39%/95%/81%). Crystal structures of [Pt'C(8)Pt'](2) and two solvates of [Pt'C(6)Pt'](2) are determined.

A new family of flexible scorpionate ligands based on 2-mercaptopyridine.

A new family of flexible scorpionate ligands based on 2-mercaptopyridine is reported. The tris- and bis-substituted ligands, K[HB(mp)(3)] (1) and Na[H(2)B(mp)(2)] (2) (mp = 2-mercaptopyridine) have been prepared and fully characterised. The structural characterisation of 1 reveals an unprecedented mu(3)-kappa(3)-SS'H-eta(1)eta(1)eta(2)-kappa(2)-S''C-eta(1)eta(1)-kappa(1)-S'-eta(1) coordination mode.

Regaining mental capacity for treatment decisions following psychiatric admission: a clinico-ethical study.

Background: Mental capacity is an emerging ethical legal concept in psychiatric settings but its relation to clinical parameters remains uncertain. We sought to investigate the associations of regaining capacity to make treatment decisions following approximately 1 month of in-patient psychiatric treatment.

Method: We followed up 115 consecutive patients admitted to a psychiatric hospital who were judged to lack capacity to make treatment decisions at the point of hospitalization.

A reproducible technique for specific labeling of antigens using preformed fluorescent molecular IgG-F(ab')2 complexes from primary antibodies of the same species.

Immunolabeling two different antigens using the indirect approach with antibodies from the same species is not possible as secondary antibodies can bind to either primary target antibodies. In this study, we describe how preformed complexes of primary and secondary labeled antibodies can be used in such circumstances. In this situation, the first antigen is labeled using the conventional indirect method followed by incubation with the preformed primary-secondary antibody complex against the second antigen.

A new hybrid scorpionate ligand: a study of the metal-boron bond within metallaboratrane complexes.

A new boron-based hybrid scorpionate ligand based upon one 2-mercaptopyridine (mp) and two 1-methyl-imidazoyl-2-thione (mt) units, Na[HB(mt)(2)(mp)] has been prepared. This new ligand together with the recently reported ligand K[HB(mp)(3)] have been used to prepare analogues of the original metallaboratrane complex [Ru(CO)(PPh(3)){kappa(4)-SSBS-B(mt)(3)}]. The effect of tautomerisation of the ligand arms upon the electronic properties of the boron and metal centres is examined in an attempt to probe further the nature of the metal-boron bond within metallaboratrane complexes.

A semi-quantitative assay to screen for angiogenic compounds and compounds with angiogenic potential using the EA.hy926 endothelial cell line.

Angiogenesis, the development of new capillary vessels, has a host of clinical manifestations. The identification of agents that increase or decrease angiogenesis is of great pharmaceutical interest. Classically, in vitro angiogenesis utilizes human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) grown in matrigel.

The zinc-responsive regulator Zur controls expression of the coelibactin gene cluster in Streptomyces coelicolor.

Streptomyces coelicolor mutants lacking the zinc-responsive Zur repressor are conditionally defective in sporulation, presumably due to the overexpression of one or more Zur target genes. Gene disruption analyses revealed that deregulation of previously known Zur targets was not responsible for the sporulation phenotype. We used microarrays to identify further Zur targets and discovered that Zur controls a cluster of genes predicted to direct synthesis of an uncharacterized siderophore-related non-ribosomally encoded peptide designated coelibactin.

Stability improvement of a liquid enzyme product.

The shelf-life of a previously developed two-part liquid-liquid enzyme ceruminolytic product was improved maintaining the same final reconstituted composition and re-formulating the liquid enzyme portion as a drug granulate by a double wet granulation process. The critical steps for the preparation of the granulate were studied (mixing/granulating times and drying) determining the proteolytic activity, the residual ethanol, and the moisture content of the granulates. The original liquid-liquid formulation had been proven effective as a ceruminolytic agent, but only had stability of greater than 75% enzyme activity for up to 18 months and up to 1 day at room temperature after combining the two parts.

11β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type-2 and type-1 (11β-HSD2 and 11β-HSD1) and 5β-reductase activities in the pathogenia of essential hypertension.

Cortisol availability is modulated by several enzymes: 11β-HSD2, which transforms cortisol (F) to cortisone (E) and 11β-HSD1 which predominantly converts inactive E to active F. Additionally, the A-ring reductases (5α- and 5β-reductase) inactivate cortisol (together with 3α-HSD) to tetrahydrometabolites: 5αTHF, 5βTHF, and THE. The aim was to assess 11β-HSD2, 11β-HSD1, and 5β-reductase activity in hypertensive patients.

Retrospective views of psychiatric in-patients regaining mental capacity.

Background: An individual's right to self-determination in treatment decisions is a central principle of modern medical ethics and law, and is upheld except under conditions of mental incapacity. When doctors, particularly psychiatrists, override the treatment wishes of individuals, they risk conflicting with this principle. Few data are available on the views of people regaining capacity who had their treatment wishes overridden.

Localization and potential function of kindlin-1 in periodontal tissues.

Kindlin-1 is an intracellular focal adhesion protein that regulates the actin cytoskeleton. Patients suffering from Kindler syndrome have a homologous mutation of the kindlin-1 gene and develop skin blisters, periodontal disease, and intestinal complications because of deficient adhesion of the basal epithelial cells. We investigated kindlin-1 localization in periodontal tissue and its functions in cultured keratinocytes and showed that kindlin-1 co-localizes with migfilin and paxillin in the basal epithelial cells of oral mucosa and in cultured keratinocytes.

Mental capacity and psychiatric in-patients: implications for the new mental health law in England and Wales.

Background: In England and Wales mental health services need to take account of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Mental Health Act 1983. The overlap between these two causes dilemmas for clinicians.

Aims: To describe the frequency and characteristics of patients who fall into two potentially anomalous groups: those who are not detained but lack mental capacity; and those who are detained but have mental capacity.