Laparoscopic versus open pyeloplasty in children: preliminary report of a prospective randomized trial.

Purpose: Pyeloplasty for ureteropelvic junction obstruction in children has traditionally been performed using an open technique. Although laparoscopic pyeloplasty has been shown to be comparable and possibly superior to open pyeloplasty in adult studies, such results in the pediatric population are limited. We evaluated outcomes between transperitoneal laparoscopic and open pyeloplasty in children.

Aberrant expression of SWI/SNF catalytic subunits BRG1/BRM is associated with tumor development and increased invasiveness in prostate cancers.

Background: Brahma gene (BRM) and Brahma-related gene 1 (BRG1) are major components with ATPase enzymatic activities in the nucleosome remodeling SWI/SNF complex, and their expression pattern in human prostate cancers is unknown.

Method: We analyzed a published cDNA microarray data set of prostate cancers for the expression of SWI/SNF genes, and then we evaluated the expression levels of BRG1 and BRM proteins with a semi-quantitative immunohistochemistry (IHC) approach in a pairwise manner of malignant versus benign tissues from individual prostate cancers. The correlation of BRG1/BRM expression with clinical parameters was analyzed.

Incidence of cardiac events in burned patients.

Given the increased level of adrenergic stimulation in burn patients, it would be expected that they would experience an increased incidence of cardiac arrhythmias and other cardiac events. We performed a retrospective chart review of 56 acute burn patients matched by age, length of hospital stay, and sex to 56 trauma patients, all of whom had been continuously monitored electrocardiographically. Burn and trauma patients were similar in injury severity, admission laboratory values, and prior history of cardiopulmonary diseases.

Induction of caspase-dependent and -independent apoptosis in response to methionine restriction.

Tumor cells are more sensitive to methionine restriction than normal tissues, a phenomenon known as methionine auxotrophy. Previous studies have demonstrated that methionine restriction causes tumor cell growth arrest and eventually apoptosis. The current studies were undertaken to elucidate the molecular pathways leading to apoptosis induced by methionine restriction.

Identification of an additional hypoxia responsive element in the glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase gene promoter.

Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) is a multifunctional enzyme overexpressed in many tumors and induced by hypoxia in normal and malignant cells. The degree to which hypoxia transcriptionally activates GAPDH is cell type specific. The GAPDH promoter region contains a hypoxia responsive element (HRE) consisting of a hypoxia inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) consensus binding site plus adjacent sequence [Graven et al.

Methionine restriction induces apoptosis of prostate cancer cells via the c-Jun N-terminal kinase-mediated signaling pathway.

Tumors are relatively more sensitive to methionine restriction than corresponding normal tissues, a phenomenon known as methionine auxotrophy. The current studies were undertaken to elucidate the molecular mechanisms for methionine auxotrophy of prostate cancer cells. We found that the activity of c-Jun N-terminal kinase 1 (JNK1) increased dramatically in response to methionine restriction.