Stimulated calcium entry and constitutive RhoA kinase activity cause stretch-induced detrusor contraction.

Urinary bladder wall muscle (i.e., detrusor smooth muscle; DSM) contracts in response to a quick-stretch, but this response is neither fully characterized, nor completely understood at the subcellular level.

Genotype-phenotype relationships involving hypertrophic cardiomyopathy-associated mutations in titin, muscle LIM protein, and telethonin.

Background: TTN-encoded titin, CSRP3-encoded muscle LIM protein, and TCAP-encoded telethonin are Z-disc proteins essential for the structural organization of the cardiac sarcomere and the cardiomyocyte's stretch sensor. All three genes have been established as cardiomyopathy-associated genes for both dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Here, we sought to characterize the frequency, spectrum, and phenotype associated with HCM-associated mutations in these three genes in a large cohort of unrelated patients evaluated at a single tertiary outpatient center.

Papillary thyroid carcinoma in children: risk factors and complications of disease recurrence.

Introduction: Optimal treatment of recurrent papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) in children remains controversial. We reviewed our experience with recurrent PTC to better identify children diagnosed with it.

Aims: The objective of this study was to determine the risk factors, optimal treatment, complications, and prognosis of recurrent PTC in children.