Feasibility and preliminary outcomes from a pilot study of a brief psychological intervention for families of children newly diagnosed with cancer.

Objective: To report initial feasibility and outcome from a pilot study of a new three-session intervention for caregivers of children newly diagnosed with cancer, Surviving Cancer Competently Intervention Program-Newly Diagnosed (SCCIP-ND).

Method: Nineteen families (38 caregivers) were randomly assigned to SCCIP-ND or treatment as usual subsequent to learning of their child's illness. The study design included pre- and 2-month postintervention assessments, with state anxiety and posttraumatic stress symptoms as outcomes.

Reductive activation of nitrate reductases.

Protein film voltammetry of Paracoccus pantotrophus respiratory nitrate reductase (NarGH) and Synechococcus elongatus assimilatory nitrate reductase (NarB) shows that reductive activation of these enzymes may be required before steady state catalysis is observed. For NarGH complementary spectroscopic studies suggest a structural context for the activation. Catalytic protein film voltammetry at a range of temperatures has allowed quantitation of the activation energies for nitrate reduction.

Posttraumatic stress symptoms during treatment in parents of children with cancer.

Purpose: The conceptualization of childhood cancer and its treatment as traumatic has gained increasing support in the growing literature on medically related posttraumatic stress. Posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) such as intrusive thoughts, physiologic arousal, and avoidance have been documented in mothers and fathers of childhood cancer survivors. In this study we investigated the presence of PTSS in parents of children currently in treatment and their association with treatment intensity and length of time since diagnosis.

The Y chromosome gr/gr subdeletion is associated with male infertility.

Men with Y chromosome (Yq) AZFc deletions lack all copies of the DAZ gene and have severe spermatogenic failure. A recently described gr/gr subdeletion of AZFc removes two of four copies of DAZ. To better understand the relative frequencies of AZFc and gr/gr deletions and their associated phenotypes, we analysed two large groups of infertile men.

Raynaud phenomenon.

Raynaud phenomenon, a vascular disorder triggered by cold or emotional stress, results from an exaggerated vasoconstriction and vasospasm of the digital arteries and arterioles. The fingers, and, less often, the toes, are affected; ear lobes, lips, nose, and nipples may also be involved. This article describes the difference between primary and secondary Raynaud phenomenon and reviews etiology, diagnosis, prevention, and management of symptoms.

Hepatic gene expression changes in mouse models with liver-specific deletion or global suppression of the NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase gene. Mechanistic implications for the regulation of microsomal cytochrome P450 and the fatty liver phenotype.

NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase (CPR) is an essential component for the function of many enzymes, including microsomal cytochrome P450 (P450) monooxygenases and heme oxygenases. In liver-Cpr-null (with liver-specific Cpr deletion) and Cpr-low (with reduced CPR expression in all organs examined) mouse models, a reduced serum cholesterol level and an induction of hepatic P450s were observed, whereas hepatomegaly and fatty liver were only observed in the liver-Cpr-null model. Our goal was to identify hepatic gene expression changes related to these phenotypes.

Clinical utility of cytomegalovirus viral load in bronchoalveolar lavage in lung transplant recipients.

The utility of cytomegalovirus (CMV) viral load (VL) by quantitative hybrid capture assay (Q-HCA) was investigated in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) from lung transplant recipients and compared with BAL cultures and blood VL. Forty-three consecutive BAL samples from 27 lung transplant recipients were analyzed. All samples had shell vial (SV) cultures in addition to Q-HCA.

Microbial reduction of selenate and nitrate: common themes and variations.

A number of biochemically distinct systems have been characterized for the microbial reduction of the oxyanions, selenate (SeO(4)(2-)) and nitrate (NO(3)(-)). Two classes of molybdenum-dependent nitrate reductase catalyse the respiratory-linked reduction of nitrate (NO(3)(-)) to nitrite (NO(2)(-)). The main respiratory nitrate reductase (NAR) is membrane-anchored, with its active site facing the cytoplasmic compartment.

Atypical mycobacterial infections in children with cancer.

Atypical mycobacteria are seen more frequently as a cause of serious infection in children with cancer. Thirteen pediatric cancer patients with blood or tissue cultures positive for atypical mycobacteria were identified by review of records over a 5-year period at one center. All had central venous catheters and were lymphopenic at the time of infection.

Progression or resolution of coxsackievirus B4-induced pancreatitis: a genomic analysis.

Group B coxsackieviruses are associated with chronic inflammatory diseases of the pancreas, heart, and central nervous system. Chronic pancreatitis, which can develop from acute pancreatitis, is considered a premalignant disorder because it is a major risk factor for pancreatic cancer. To explore the genetic events underlying the progression of acute to chronic disease, a comparative analysis of global gene expression during coxsackievirus B4-induced acute and chronic pancreatitis was undertaken.

Correlation between viral loads of cytomegalovirus in blood and bronchoalveolar lavage specimens from lung transplant recipients determined by histology and immunohistochemistry.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is an important pathogen in lung transplant recipients. Early detection of CMV end-organ disease should help with treatment management. We determined the CMV viral load by hybrid capture in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid samples from patients who had undergone lung transplantation.

Does the addition of information on genotype improve prediction of the risk of melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancer beyond that obtained from skin phenotype?

The authors quantified improvement in predicting cutaneous malignant melanoma, basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma of the skin made possible by information on common variants of the melanocortin-1 receptor gene (MC1R) in a 1998-1999 population-based case-control study of subjects aged 20-59 years of northern European ancestry in Tasmania, Australia. Melanin density at the upper inner arm was estimated by spectrophotometry. DNA samples were genotyped for five MC1R variants: Val60Leu, Asp84Glu, Arg151Cys, Arg160Trp, and Asp294His.

Investigation of chromosome 2q in osteoarthritis of the hand: no significant linkage in a Tasmanian population.

Background: Previous studies have suggested a strong genetic component to osteoarthritis (OA), especially that of the hand, and three linkage studies have suggested the existence of susceptibility loci in disparate regions of chromosome 2q.

Objective: To examine for linkage to 2q in a Tasmanian population of women and men with familial hand OA.

Methods: Hand OA (distal interphalangeal, carpometacarpal, and Heberden's nodes) was assessed by a combination of hand photographs and radiographs.

Antibodies highly effective in SCID mice during infection by the intracellular bacterium Ehrlichia chaffeensis are of picomolar affinity and exhibit preferential epitope and isotype utilization.

Although often considered to be ineffective against intracellular bacteria, Abs, in the absence of lymphocytes, have been shown previously to protect SCID mice from lethal infection by the obligate intracellular bacterium Ehrlichia chaffeensis, even when administered well after infection has been established. To identify characteristics of Abs that are critical for host defense during this intracellular infection, a panel of Ehrlichia-specific mAbs was generated and analyzed. Among 100 Abs recovered, 39 recognized an amino-terminal hypervariable region of an outer membrane protein (OMP), demonstrating that the OMPs are both antigenically variable and immunodominant.

Structural dynamics of the membrane translocation domain of colicin E9 and its interaction with TolB.

In order for the 61 kDa colicin E9 protein toxin to enter the cytoplasm of susceptible cells and kill them by hydrolysing their DNA, the colicin must interact with the outer membrane BtuB receptor and Tol translocation pathway of target cells. The translocation function is located in the N-terminal domain of the colicin molecule. (1)H, (1)H-(1)H-(15)N and (1)H-(13)C-(15)N NMR studies of intact colicin E9, its DNase domain, minimal receptor-binding domain and two N-terminal constructs containing the translocation domain showed that the region of the translocation domain that governs the interaction of colicin E9 with TolB is largely unstructured and highly flexible.

Effects of an inadvertent dose of cytarabine in a child with Fanconi's anemia: reducing medication errors.

We report the case of a 7-year-old boy with Fanconi's anemia, who underwent a bone marrow transplant using an unrelated donor, and who received an inadvertent dose of cytarabine (cytosine arabinoside). The cytarabine was given by mistake 6 months following transplant. This caused excessive toxicity to many systems, including the pulmonary and renal systems.

A computer model of an image intensifier system working under automatic brightness control.

A computer model of a fluoroscopy unit operating under automatic brightness control has been developed. The model has been validated by simulating one particular unit but is very general in nature and can easily be applied to other fluoroscopy systems. The model was developed by breaking the operation of a fluoroscopy unit down into its constituent parts then implementing each part in a module of code.

Gene transfer: manipulating and monitoring function in cells and tissues.

1. The ectopic expression of genes has proven to be an extremely valuable tool for biologists. The most widely used systems involve electrically or chemically mediated transfer of genes to immortalized cell lines and, at the other end of the spectrum, transgenic animal models.

Restoration of calcium handling properties of adult cardiac myocytes from hypertrophied hearts.

Reductions in cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium-ATPase (Serca2a) levels are thought to underlie the prolonged calcium (Ca(2+)) transients and consequent reduced contractile performance seen in human cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure. In freshly isolated cardiac myocytes from rats with monocrotaline-induced right ventricular hypertrophy we found reduced sarcoplasmic reticulum Serca2a expression and prolonged Ca(2+)transients, characteristic of hypertrophic cardiac disease. Modulation of intracellular Ca(2+)levels, Ca(2+) kinetics or Ca(2+)sensitivity is the focus of many current therapeutic approaches to improve contractile performance in the hypertrophic or failing heart.