Differential use of warfarin for secondary stroke prevention in patients with various types of atrial fibrillation.

Anticoagulation therapy significantly reduces the incidence of thromboembolic events in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), and warfarin therapy at discharge is a class I-indicated drug in patients with ischemic stroke with persistent or paroxysmal AF without contraindications. The aim was to determine whether participation in the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke (GWTG-S) quality improvement program would be associated with improved adherence to anticoagulation guidelines for patients with all types of AF. Adherence to warfarin treatment at hospital discharge was assessed in eligible patients with AF who presented with stroke or transient ischemic attack, based on type of AF.

Modulation of mitogenesis by liver fatty acid binding protein.

Liver fatty acid binding protein (L-FABP), a cytoplasmic 14 kDa protein previously termed Z protein, is conventionally considered to be an intracellular carrier of fatty acids in rat hepatocytes. The following evidence now indicates that L-FABP is also a specific mediator of mitogenesis of rat hepatocytes: a. the synergy between the action of L-FABP and unsaturated fatty acids, especially linoleic acid, in the promotion of cell proliferation; b.

Liver fatty acid-binding protein: specific mediator of the mitogenesis induced by two classes of carcinogenic peroxisome proliferators.

Peroxisome proliferators (PP) are a diverse group of chemicals that induce dramatic increases in peroxisomes in rodent hepatocytes, followed by hypertrophy, hepatomegaly, alterations in lipid metabolism, mitogenesis, and finally hepatocarcinomas. Termed nongenotoxic carcinogens, they do not interact with DNA, are not mutagenic in bacterial assays, and fail to elicit many of the phenotypes associated with classic genotoxic carcinogens. We report here that the mitogenesis induced by the major PP class, the amphipathic carboxylates, and by the tetrazole-substituted acetophenones specifically requires liver fatty acid-binding protein (L-FABP) in cultured rat hepatoma cells transfected with the sense cDNA of L-FABP, in contrast to L-FABP-nonexpressing cells transfected with its antisense cDNA.

Growth promotion of transfected hepatoma cells by liver fatty acid binding protein.

Former studies have linked hepatocyte growth with liver fatty acid binding protein (L-FABP) of rat liver cytosol. In search for the roles of L-FABP in hepatocytes, we previously stably transfected rat L-FABP sense and antisense cDNAs into rat hepatoma HTC cells that do not contain L-FABP RNA or protein, thereby providing a zero-background, homologous cell model of L-FABP-expression suitable for controlled studies of its intracellular functions in hepatocyte-derived cells. The present study demonstrates the abilities of L-FABP to promote DNA synthesis and cell growth, preserve cell morphology, extend survival, and act cooperatively with unsaturated fatty acids in the transfected hepatoma cells in the absence of serum.