Complete Genome Sequence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Strain MtURU-001, Isolated from a Rapidly Progressing Outbreak in Uruguay.

Despite efficient control programs, large clonal outbreaks of tuberculosis (TB) may arise in low-risk populations. Recently, an unusual TB outbreak was reported in Uruguay, reaching an elevated disease attack rate (53 to 69%). Here, we report the genome sequence of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain associated with this rapidly progressing outbreak, named MtURU-001.

Moral mediation in interpreted health care consultations.

This paper reports on the moral work done in routine diabetes review consultations in primary care with nurses. Consultations with fluent English speakers are compared with consultations where an interpreter was present, largely involving patients of Bangladeshi origin. The study setting was Tower Hamlets in London, where type 2 diabetes is particularly common.

Lanthanide(III) complexes of rhodamine-DO3A conjugates as agents for dual-modal imaging.

Two novel dual-modal MRI/optical probes based on a rhodamine-DO3A conjugate have been prepared. The bis(aqua)gadolinium(III) complex Gd.L1 and mono(aqua)gadolinium(III) complex Gd.

Drawing the line: how African, Caribbean and White British women live out psychologically abusive experiences.

This study explores how African, Caribbean and White British women worked to hide psychological partner abuse as they experienced it, "do gender," and appear competent in social roles. They prioritized negotiated competencies as "good partners," actively setting socially and culturally embedded boundaries to their abuser's behaviors: an inner boundary encompassing normal behaviors and an outer one of "acceptable" behaviors projected as normal through remedial work. Behaviors breaching the outer boundary (e.

The HSP90 inhibitor ganetespib synergizes with the MET kinase inhibitor crizotinib in both crizotinib-sensitive and -resistant MET-driven tumor models.

The proto-oncogene MET is aberrantly activated via overexpression or mutation in numerous cancers, making it a prime anticancer molecular target. However, the clinical success of MET-directed tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) has been limited due, in part, to mutations in the MET kinase domain that confer therapeutic resistance. Circumventing this problem remains a key challenge to improving durable responses in patients receiving MET-targeted therapy.

[Factors associated with early weaning in a Spanish region].

Introduction: Breastfeeding has undoubtedly great benefits. Previous studies have foundan early dropout. Only a few studies have investigated related factors.

SUMOylation of p53 mediates interferon activities.

There is growing evidence that many host proteins involved in innate and intrinsic immunity are regulated by SUMOylation, and that SUMO contributes to the regulatory process that governs the initiation of the type I interferon (IFN) response. The tumor suppressor p53 is a modulator of the IFN response that plays a role in virus-induced apoptosis and in IFN-induced senescence. Here we demonstrate that IFN treatment increases the levels of SUMOylated p53 and induces cellular senescence through a process that is partially dependent upon SUMOylation of p53.

Resolution of the direct interaction with and inhibition of the human GLUT1 hexose transporter by resveratrol from its effect on glucose accumulation.

Resveratrol acts as a chemopreventive agent for cancer and as a potential antiobesity and antidiabetic compound, by leading to reduced body fat and improved glucose homeostasis. The exact mechanisms involved in improving hyperglycemic state are not known, but most of the glucose uptake into mammalian cells is facilitated by the GLUT hexose transporters. Resveratrol is structurally similar to isoflavones such as genistein, which inhibit the glucose uptake facilitated by the GLUT1 hexose transporter.

Analysis of SUMOylated proteins using SUMO-traps.

SUMO-modified proteins are recognized by SUMO interacting motifs (SIMs), thus triggering diverse cellular responses. Here SIMs were used to develop SUMO-traps to capture endogenous SUMOylated proteins. Our results show that these small peptides are transferable motifs that maintain their SUMO binding capacity when fused to the heterologous carrier protein GST.

The challenge of communication in interpreted consultations in diabetes care: a mixed methods study.

Background: The experience of diabetes care for individuals from minority ethnic groups, particularly individuals of Bangladeshi origin, shows they are at a significant disadvantage.

Aim: To identify the challenges of interpreted consultations for healthcare providers and to explain the disadvantage experienced by patients from minority groups who have diabetes.

Design And Setting: Comparison of 12 interpreted consultations with 24 consultations involving fluent English speakers in four primary healthcare centres in Tower Hamlets, east London, UK.

PP050. NT-Pro-BNP: Correlation with adverse outcome markers in hypertensive gestational syndromes.

Introduction: Brain-type natriuretic peptide is released by cardiomyocites in response to parietal stress augmentation and systemic endothelial dysfunction. Hypertensive Gestational Syndromes (HGS) share this mechanism, but the correlation between NT-Pro-BNP and maternal/fetal outcomes is not yet clear enough.

Objectives: Evaluate the correlation between NT-Pro-BNP in HGS and Normotensive Pregnant Women (NPW), with clinical and biological markers of adverse maternal/fetal outcome.

Passive administration of purified secretory IgA from human colostrum induces protection against Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a murine model of progressive pulmonary infection.

Background: Immunoglobulin A is the most abundant isotype in secretions from mucosal surfaces of the gastrointestinal, respiratory and genitourinary tracts and in external secretions such as colostrum, breast milk, tears and saliva. The high concentration of human secretory IgA (hsIgA) in human colostrum strongly suggests that it should play an important role in the passive immune protection against gastrointestinal and respiratory infections.

Materials And Methods: Human secretory IgA was purified from colostrum.

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus lana2 protein interacts with the pocket proteins and inhibits their sumoylation.

The pocket proteins retinoblastoma protein (pRb), p107 and p130 are the key targets of oncoproteins expressed by DNA tumor viruses. Some of these viral proteins contain an LXCXE motif that mediates the interaction with the three pocket proteins and the inhibition of the pRb SUMOylation. Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV) contains at least two proteins that can regulate pRb function but, so far, a KSHV-encoded protein targeting p107 and p130 has not been identified.

The C-terminus of CBFβ-SMMHC is required to induce embryonic hematopoietic defects and leukemogenesis.

The C-terminus of CBFβ-SMMHC, the fusion protein produced by a chromosome 16 inversion in acute myeloid leukemia subtype M4Eo, contains domains for self-multimerization and transcriptional repression, both of which have been proposed to be important for leukemogenesis by CBFβ-SMMHC. To test the role of the fusion protein's C-terminus in vivo, we generated knock-in mice expressing a C-terminally truncated CBFβ-SMMHC (CBFβ-SMMHCΔC95). Embryos with a single copy of CBFβ-SMMHCΔC95 were viable and showed no defects in hematopoiesis, whereas embryos homozygous for the CBFβ-SMMHCΔC95 allele had hematopoietic defects and died in mid-gestation, similar to embryos with a single-copy of the full-length CBFβ-SMMHC.

Influence of methane in CO2 transport and storage for CCS technology.

CO(2) Capture and Storage (CCS) is a good strategy to mitigate levels of atmospheric greenhouse gases. The type and quantity of impurities influence the properties and behavior of the anthropogenic CO(2), and so must be considered in the design and operation of CCS technology facilities. Their study is necessary for CO(2) transport and storage, and to develop theoretical models for specific engineering applications to CCS technology.

Rotavirus viroplasm proteins interact with the cellular SUMOylation system: implications for viroplasm-like structure formation.

Posttranslational modification by SUMO provides functional flexibility to target proteins. Viruses interact extensively with the cellular SUMO modification system in order to improve their replication, and there are numerous examples of viral proteins that are SUMOylated. However, thus far the relevance of SUMOylation for rotavirus replication remains unexplored.

Bubble nasal CPAP, early surfactant treatment, and rapid extubation are associated with decreased incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia in very-low-birth-weight newborns: efficacy and safety considerations.

Background: Current literature has been inconsistent in demonstrating that minimizing the duration of mechanical ventilation in very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) newborns reduces lung damage.

Objective: To determine if introduction of bubble nasal CPAP (bnCPAP), early surfactant treatment, and rapid extubation (combined bnCPAP strategy) in our community-based neonatal ICU reduced bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD).

Methods: This was a 7-year retrospective,single-institution review of respiratory outcomes in 633 VLBW babies before and after introduction of the combined bnCPAP strategy.

Regulation of the tumor suppressor PTEN by SUMO.

The crucial function of the PTEN tumor suppressor in multiple cellular processes suggests that its activity must be tightly controlled. Both, membrane association and a variety of post-translational modifications, such as acetylation, phosphorylation, and mono- and polyubiquitination, have been reported to regulate PTEN activity. Here, we demonstrated that PTEN is also post-translationally modified by the small ubiquitin-like proteins, small ubiquitin-related modifier 1 (SUMO1) and SUMO2.

Identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex by polymerase chain reaction of Exact Tandem Repeat-D fragment from mycobacterial cultures.

This study evaluated an in-house polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for rapid identification of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) using the MTBC-specific Exact Tandem Repeat D (ETR-D) as the amplification target. In a prospective study, 801 clinical isolates identified as MTBC and 15 nontuberculous mycobacteria were analyzed. Mycobacterial DNA was extracted from automated broth cultures or from egg-based media.

PP113. NT-Pro-BNP: A predictor of adverse maternal outcomes in hypertensive gestational syndromes?

Introduction: BNP (brain-type natriuretic peptide) is released by cardiomyocytes, as a pro-hormone, in response to parietal stress augmentation and systemic endothelial dysfunction, and then Pro-BNP is cleaved into: NT-Pro-BNP and BNP fragment in 1:1 ratio. BNP is considered an important component of the adaptative mechanism that helps to reduce the load on the myocardium, through systemic vasodilatation, reduction in venous return and reduction in vascular volume. Hypertensive Gestational Syndromes (HGS) are considered to share those mechanisms, but the role of NT-Pro-BNP to evaluate maternal outcomes, is not well defined.

Caspofungin for the treatment of invasive fungal disease in hematological patients (ProCAS Study).

Caspofungin is an echinocandin with proven efficacy in invasive candidiasis (IC) and invasive aspergillosis (IA). This multicenter, prospective, non-comparative, observational ProCAS study was aimed to assess the effectiveness and safety of caspofungin in adult hematological patients with IC or IA under everyday clinical conditions. Favorable outcomes included complete and partial responses on the last day of caspofungin therapy.

Noncompetitive blocking of human GLUT1 hexose transporter by methylxanthines reveals an exofacial regulatory binding site.

Glucose transporter (GLUT)1 has become an attractive target to block glucose uptake in malignant cells since most cancer cells overexpress GLUT1 and are sensitive to glucose deprivation. Methylxanthines are natural compounds that inhibit glucose uptake; however, the mechanism of inhibition remains unknown. Here, we used a combination of binding and glucose transport kinetic assays to analyze in detail the effects of caffeine, pentoxifylline, and theophylline on hexose transport in human erythrocytes.

May titanium spiral tacks contribute to intra-abdominal adhesion formation?

Purpose: To verify if titanium spiral tacks may contribute to intra-abdominal adhesion formation in rabbits.

Methods: Ten New Zealand white rabbits were used. Through videolaparoscopic surgery two titanium spiral tacks (ProTack(®), Covidien(®)) were applied in the right flank.

Sources of weaning advice, comparisons between formal and informal advice, and associations with weaning timing in a survey of UK first-time mothers.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to explore knowledge of the UK weaning guidelines and the sources of weaning advice used by UK first-time mothers.

Design: An online survey of UK parents; analysed using mixed methods.

Setting: Participants were recruited from a selection of parenting websites that hosted a link to the survey.