Novel methods for assessing oral direct factor Xa and thrombin inhibitors: use of point-of-care testing and urine samples.

Rivaroxaban and dabigatran are new oral anticoagulants (NOACs) that inhibit directly factor Xa and thrombin, respectively. These NOACs effectively prevent thromboembolic complications using fixed doses without the need for dose adjustment according to laboratory results. About 60% of rivaroxaban is cleared from circulation by glomerular filtration, 30% of which is excreted as active drug.

Mitochondrial citrate synthase crystals: novel finding in Sengers syndrome caused by acylglycerol kinase (AGK) mutations.

We report on two families with Sengers syndrome and mutations in the acylglycerol kinase gene (AGK). In the first family, two brothers presented with vascular strokes, lactic acidosis, cardiomyopathy and cataracts, abnormal muscle cell histopathology and mitochondrial function. One proband had very abnormal mitochondria with citrate synthase crystals visible in electron micrographs, associated with markedly high citrate synthase activity.

[The cognitive development of triplets in school age and its impact on the quality of family life--a follow-up study from a perinatal centre].

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the developmental outcome of 7- to 9-year-old triplets and to determine parenting stress and quality of family life.

Methods: Cognitive development (Wechsler intelligence scales for children III, WISC III) and quality of family life (Kansas family life satisfaction scale, KFLSS; parenting stress index, PSI) of 48 triplets born between 1996 and 1998 at a perinatal centre were compared with controls born at a gestational age ≥37 weeks. Index and control children/mothers were matched by age (birthday: ±14 days/maternal age±2 years).

Food ingredient extracts of Cyclopia subternata (Honeybush): variation in phenolic composition and antioxidant capacity.

Cyclopia subternata plants are traditionally used for the production of the South African herbal tea, honeybush, and recently as aqueous extracts for the food industry. A C. subternata aqueous extract and mangiferin (a major constituent) are known to have anti-diabetic properties.

Apomorphine is a bimodal modulator of TRPA1 channels.

Apomorphine is a non-narcotic derivative of morphine, which acts as a dopamine agonist and is clinically used to treat "off-states" in patients suffering from Parkinson's disease. Adverse effects of apomorphine treatment include severe emesis and nausea, and ulceration and pain at the injection site. We wanted to test whether sensory transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are a molecular target for apomorphine.

Linking glycogen and senescence in cancer cells.

Glycogen metabolism operates as an alternative energy source, enabling cell growth under conditions of metabolic stress. Favaro et al. (2012) now demonstrate that in hypoxic cancer cells, depletion of liver glycogen phosphorylase causes glycogen accumulation, leading to oxidative stress, induction of senescence, and impaired tumor growth in vivo.

How cancer metabolism is tuned for proliferation and vulnerable to disruption.

Cancer metabolism has received a substantial amount of interest over the past decade. The advances in analytical tools have, along with the rapid progress of cancer genomics, generated an increasingly complex understanding of metabolic reprogramming in cancer. As numerous connections between oncogenic signalling pathways and metabolic activities emerge, the importance of metabolic reprogramming in cancer is being increasingly recognized.

Structure-function relationship between FDF, FDT, SAP, and scanning laser ophthalmoscopy in glaucoma patients.

Purpose: Flicker defined form perimetry (FDF) and frequency doubling technology perimetry (FDT) are alleged to detect glaucoma at an earlier stage than standard automated perimetry (SAP). It is the purpose of this study to investigate the structure-function relationship between FDF, FDT, SAP, and confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (cSLO) in patients with glaucoma.

Methods: Seventy-six patients with glaucoma were included in the study.

Interpretation of endpoints in a network meta-analysis of new oral anticoagulants following total hip or total knee replacement surgery.

New oral anticoagulant (NOAC) regimens [dabigatran 150 mg (D150) and 220 mg (D220), rivaroxaban 10 mg (R20), and apixaban 2.5 mg bid (A5)] were effective and safe compared to enoxaparin for the prevention of venous thromboembolism (VTE) following elective total knee (TKR) or hip replacement (THR) surgery. First a cluster analysis was used to identify homogeneous studies for the trial programs of each NOAC.

Global transcriptome analysis in influenza-infected mouse lungs reveals the kinetics of innate and adaptive host immune responses.

An infection represents a highly dynamic process involving complex biological responses of the host at many levels. To describe such processes at a global level, we recorded gene expression changes in mouse lungs after a non-lethal infection with influenza A virus over a period of 60 days. Global analysis of the large data set identified distinct phases of the host response.

Electrical tomography using atomic force microscopy and its application towards carbon nanotube-based interconnects.

The fabrication and integration of low-resistance carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for interconnects in future integrated circuits requires characterization techniques providing structural and electrical information at the nanometer scale. In this paper we present a slice-and-view approach based on electrical atomic force microscopy. Material removal achieved by successive scanning using doped ultra-sharp full-diamond probes, manufactured in-house, enables us to acquire two-dimensional (2D) resistance maps originating from different depths (equivalently different CNT lengths) on CNT-based interconnects.

Sarcolemmal repair is a slow process and includes EHD2.

Skeletal muscle is continually subjected to microinjuries that must be repaired to maintain structure and function. Fluorescent dye influx after laser injury of muscle fibers is a commonly used assay to study membrane repair. This approach reveals that initial resealing only takes a few seconds.

Sipunculan larvae and "cosmopolitan" species.

Sipuncula is a relatively small taxon with roughly 150 recognized species. Many species are geographically widespread or "cosmopolitan." The pelagosphera larvae of some species are estimated to spend several months in the plankton.

Lipid metabolism in cancer.

Lipids form a diverse group of water-insoluble molecules that include triacylglycerides, phosphoglycerides, sterols and sphingolipids. They play several important roles at cellular and organismal levels. Fatty acids are the major building blocks for the synthesis of triacylglycerides, which are mainly used for energy storage.

Functional metabolic screen identifies 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-biphosphatase 4 as an important regulator of prostate cancer cell survival.

Unlabelled: Alterations in metabolic activity contribute to the proliferation and survival of cancer cells. We investigated the effect of siRNA-mediated gene silencing of 222 metabolic enzymes, transporters, and regulators on the survival of 3 metastatic prostate cancer cell lines and a nonmalignant prostate epithelial cell line. This approach revealed significant complexity in the metabolic requirements of prostate cancer cells and identified several genes selectively required for their survival.

Acceptability--a neglected dimension of access to health care: findings from a study on childhood convulsions in rural Tanzania.

Background: Acceptability is a poorly conceptualized dimension of access to health care. Using a study on childhood convulsion in rural Tanzania, we examined social acceptability from a user perspective. The study design is based on the premise that a match between health providers' and clients' understanding of disease is an important dimension of social acceptability, especially in trans-cultural communication, for example if childhood convulsions are not linked with malaria and local treatment practices are mostly preferred.

Electron beam-based functionalization of polymer membranes.

A new electron beam-based approach for the direct functionalization of polyethersulfone, polyvinylidene fluoride, polysulfone as well as polyacrylonitrile membranes in a one-step procedure is presented. Aqueous solutions of functional molecules were immobilized on the membrane surface by electron beam treatment. The resulting membranes show significantly increased flux and water wettability accompanied by decreased protein adsorption.

Targeting cancer metabolism--aiming at a tumour's sweet-spot.

Targeting cancer metabolism has emerged as a hot topic for drug discovery. Most cancers have a high demand for metabolic inputs (i.e.

Flicking the Warburg switch-tyrosine phosphorylation of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase regulates mitochondrial activity in cancer cells.

In this issue of Molecular Cell, Hitosugi et al. (2011) show that the switch from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis in cancer cells is regulated by tyrosine phosphorylation of PDHK1.

FOXO3a regulates reactive oxygen metabolism by inhibiting mitochondrial gene expression.

Forkhead transcription factors of the O class (FOXOs) are important targets of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt pathway, and are key regulators of the cell cycle, apoptosis and response to oxidative stress. FOXOs have been shown to have tumour suppressor function and are important for stem cell maintenance. We have performed a detailed analysis of the transcriptional programme induced in response to Forkhead-box protein O3a (FOXO3a) activation.

Container molecules based on imine type ligands.

This chapter will give a short overview about container molecules, their synthesis and possible applications. The main focus is on those which are based on imine type ligands. These containers can be used for example for guest exchange, gas separation, as chemical sensors or for the stabilisation of white phosphorus under water.

[Osseointegration of ceramic cement-free acetabular cups].

Introduction: A stable osseointegration of an alumina-matrix-composite-ceramic (AMC) could facilitate the use of a thin-walled monoblock acetabular cup for hip arthroplasty with large ball-heads providing advantages like reduced risk of dislocation. The aim of the pilot study was to examine the osseointegration of porous-coated alumina-matrix-composite-ceramic-monoblock cups after implantation in a sheep model.

Material And Methods: The porous coated AMC-ceramic cups were taken out after a healing period of 8 and 52 weeks after unilateral implantation in 5 and 6 sheep, respectively.

Hepatocyte polarization is essential for the productive entry of the hepatitis B virus.

Unlabelled: Human hepatitis B virus (HBV) is characterized by a high species specificity and a distinct liver tropism. Within the liver, HBV replication occurs in differentiated and polarized hepatocytes. Accordingly, the in vitro HBV infection of primary human hepatocytes (PHHs) and the human hepatoma cell line, HepaRG, is restricted to differentiated, hepatocyte-like cells.

Transcriptomics of environmental acclimatization and survival in wild adult Pacific sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) during spawning migration.

Environmental shifts accompanying salmon spawning migrations from ocean feeding grounds to natal freshwater streams can be severe, with the underlying stress often cited as a cause of increased mortality. Here, a salmonid microarray was used to characterize changes in gene expression occurring between ocean and river habitats in gill and liver tissues of wild migrating sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka Walbaum) returning to spawn in the Fraser River, British Columbia, Canada. Expression profiles indicate that the transcriptome of migrating salmon is strongly affected by shifting abiotic and biotic conditions encountered along migration routes.