Mercaptopurine-induced Sweet's syndrome.

Sweet's syndrome is an acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis. Drug-induced Sweet's syndrome typically occurs soon after drug administration, with rapid resolution of symptoms with cessation of the offending agent. We report a man in his early 40s who presented with fever and widespread erythematous rash on a background of recently diagnosed mild stricturing ileal Crohn's disease.

Low-dose thioguanine guided by therapeutic drug monitoring is a safe and effective alternative in inflammatory bowel disease patients intolerant to conventional thiopurines.

Background: Thioguanine is an alternative thiopurine for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients.

Aims: To evaluate the short-term efficacy and safety of low-dose therapeutic drug-monitored (TDM) thioguanine.

Methods: A retrospective evaluation of IBD patients intolerant to conventional thiopurines started on thioguanine from 2017 to 2019 with dosing guided by TDM was conducted.

Short-term colectomy is avoided in over half of regional patients failing medical therapy for acute severe ulcerative colitis with co-ordinated transfer and tertiary care.

Background And Aims: Many patients presenting with an acute severe ulcerative colitis to a regional hospital are transferred to a metropolitan hospital for specialised care. This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes and characteristics of these patients.

Method: A retrospective observational cohort study was conducted to examine the 30-day colectomy rate using prospectively collected data on 69 consecutive index cases of acute severe ulcerative colitis transferred from regional hospitals to our metropolitan hospital meeting Truelove and Witts criteria.

Murine obscurin and Obsl1 have functionally redundant roles in sarcolemmal integrity, sarcoplasmic reticulum organization, and muscle metabolism.

Biological roles of obscurin and its close homolog Obsl1 (obscurin-like 1) have been enigmatic. While obscurin is highly expressed in striated muscles, Obsl1 is found ubiquitously. Accordingly, obscurin mutations have been linked to myopathies, whereas mutations in Obsl1 result in 3M-growth syndrome.

The effect of pre-admission immunosuppression on colectomy rates in acute severe ulcerative colitis.

Background: Patients on immunosuppression at the time of acute severe ulcerative colitis have been suggested to be at a higher risk of colectomy than those who are treatment-naïve. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of immunosuppressive therapy on the risk of colectomy.

Method: We conducted a retrospective observational cohort study using prospective data examining the 30 day and 1 year colectomy rates of 200 consecutive patients with an index episode of acute severe ulcerative colitis as defined by the Truelove and Witts criteria.

Interactions between small ankyrin 1 and sarcolipin coordinately regulate activity of the sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca-ATPase (SERCA1).

SERCA1, the sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca-ATPase of skeletal muscle, is essential for muscle relaxation and maintenance of low resting Ca levels in the myoplasm. We recently reported that small ankyrin 1 (sAnk1) interacts with the sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca-ATPase in skeletal muscle (SERCA1) to inhibit its activity. We also showed that this interaction is mediated at least in part through sAnk1's transmembrane domain in a manner similar to that of sarcolipin (SLN).

Identification of Small Ankyrin 1 as a Novel Sarco(endo)plasmic Reticulum Ca2+-ATPase 1 (SERCA1) Regulatory Protein in Skeletal Muscle.

Small ankyrin 1 (sAnk1) is a 17-kDa transmembrane (TM) protein that binds to the cytoskeletal protein, obscurin, and stabilizes the network sarcoplasmic reticulum in skeletal muscle. We report that sAnk1 shares homology in its TM amino acid sequence with sarcolipin, a small protein inhibitor of the sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase (SERCA). Here we investigate whether sAnk1 and SERCA1 interact.

Characteristics of hepatocellular carcinoma in cirrhotic and non-cirrhotic non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Aim: To determine characteristics and prognostic predictors of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in association with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Methods: We reviewed the records of all patients with NAFLD associated HCC between 2000 and 2012. Data collected included demographics; histology; presence or absence of cirrhosis, size and number of HCC, alpha-fetoprotein, body mass index (BMI), and the presence of diabetes, hypertension, or dyslipidaemia.

Myopathic changes in murine skeletal muscle lacking synemin.

Diseases of striated muscle linked to intermediate filament (IF) proteins are associated with defects in the organization of the contractile apparatus and its links to costameres, which connect the sarcomeres to the cell membrane. Here we study the role in skeletal muscle of synemin, a type IV IF protein, by examining mice null for synemin (synm-null). Synm-null mice have a mild skeletal muscle phenotype.

Improved immunoblotting methods provide critical insights into phenotypic differences between two murine dysferlinopathy models.

Introduction: We adopted a proteomics-based approach to gain insights into phenotypic differences between A/J and B10.SJL murine dysferlinopathy models.

Methods: We optimized immunoblotting of dysferlin by preparing homogenates of the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle under several different conditions.

Protection by pyridostigmine bromide of marmoset hemi-diaphragm acetylcholinesterase activity after soman exposure.

Pyridostigmine bromide (PB) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2003 as a pretreatment in humans against the lethal effects of the irreversible nerve agent soman (GD).