Recognizing and preventing unacknowledged prescribing errors associated with polypharmacy.

Background: Prescribing errors put an enormous burden on health and the economy, claiming implementation of effective methods to prevent/reduce them. Polypharmacy regimens (five or more drugs) are highly prone to unacknowledged prescribing errors, since the complex network of drug-drug interactions, guidelines and contraindications is challenging to be adequately evaluated in the prescription phase, especially if different doctors are involved. Clinical decision support systems aimed at polypharmacy evaluation may be crucial to recognize and correct prescribing errors.

Prescription Advice Based on Data of Drug-Drug-Gene Interaction of Patients with Polypharmacy.

Purpose: Pharmacogenetic counselling is a complex task and requires the efforts of an interdisciplinary team, which cannot be implemented in most cases. Therefore, simple rules could help to minimize the risk of medications incompatible with each other or with frequent genetic variants.

Patients And Methods: One hundred and eighty-four multi-morbid Caucasian patients suffering from side effects or inefficient therapy were enrolled and genotyped.

DNA content of Ovis musimon spermatozoa.

To our knowledge, the value of the haploid DNA content (C-value) of Ovis musimon (mouflon) has not been previously published. Therefore, the aim of the present work was to determine the C-value and the nuclear area of O. musimon sperm cells and compare both parameters with those of Ovis aries.

Equine sperm nuclei with different ploidy levels: relationship between the nuclear DNA content and the nuclear area.

The aims of this study were to estimate the ability of the Feulgen reaction to identify equine sperm nuclei with different ploidy levels, to determine the frequency of haploid, diploid and polyploid sperm nuclei in the semen of fertile equines and to evaluate the relationship between the nuclear DNA content and the nuclear area. Determination of the ploidy level of Feulgen-stained spermatozoa using a scanning microspectrophotometer was very similar to the subjective estimations made with a light microscope. This indicates that the Feulgen reaction is a simple, inexpensive and reliable technique to recognise the ploidy level of equine spermatozoa.

Oxcarbazepine adjunctive therapy in infants and young children with partial seizures.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetics of oxcarbazepine as adjunctive therapy in infants and young children (1 month to < 4 years).

Methods: Children 1 month to < 4 years of age with inadequately controlled partial seizures taking up to two concomitant antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) were enrolled in this rater-blind, randomized, parallel-group study. Patients received either high-dose (60 mg/kg/day) or low-dose (10 mg/kg/day) oxcarbazepine as oral suspension.

Long-term effectiveness of cardiac resynchronization therapy in patients with refractory heart failure and "narrow" QRS.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) in patients with refractory heart failure (HF) and incomplete left bundle branch block ("narrow" QRS), together with echocardiographic evidence of interventricular and intraventricular asynchrony.

Background: Cardiac resynchronization therapy has been proven effective in patients with HF and wide QRS by ameliorating contraction asynchrony.

Methods: Fifty-two patients with severe HF received biventricular pacing.

Chromatin cytophotometric analysis of abnormal bovine spermatozoa.

Sperm head morphology is basically conditioned by the nuclear structure. The aim of the present work was to study the relation between nuclear morphological features, DNA content and chromatin distribution in morphologically normal vs. abnormal bovine spermatozoa.

Discovery of CGS 27023A, a non-peptidic, potent, and orally active stromelysin inhibitor that blocks cartilage degradation in rabbits.

Structure-activity relationships of a lead hydroxamic acid inhibitor of recombinant human stromelysin were systematically defined by taking advantage of a concise synthesis that allowed diverse functionality to be explored at each position in a template. An ex vivo rat model and an in vivo rabbit model of stromelysin-induced cartilage degradation were used to further optimize these analogs for oral activity and duration of action. The culmination of these modifications resulted in CGS 27023A, a potent, orally active stromelysin inhibitor that blocks the erosion of cartilage matrix.

Acute myocardial infarction shortly after a normal exercise stress test. Case reports.

The authors describe 3 cases of AMI occurring shortly after a negative bicycle ergometer stress test. These cases represent an unfortunate but extremely rare complication of a relatively safe diagnostic procedure. The authors also focus on the pathogenesis of the ischemic event, which may be attributed either to intraplaque hemorrhage or to platelet aggregation, both exercise-induced.

Release of cell surface proteoglycan from chondrocytes by interleukin-1.

A cell culture model was developed to assess factors that can protect cartilage from recombinant human interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1)-induced breakdown. IL-1 (0.01-10 ng/ml) caused a dose-dependent release of cell surface proteoglycan into the medium of bovine and rabbit articular chondrocytes.

A comparison of chondrocyte proteoglycan metabolism in monolayer and agarose cultures.

Bovine chondrocyte cultures were established in agarose and in monolayers to compare the effects of cytokines and drugs on matrix metabolism. The production of sulfated glycosaminoglycans (S-GAG) from the medium and cell surface compartments were measured by a dimethylmethylene blue assay. In the agarose cultures most of the proteoglycan remained in the agar, but was continuously released into the medium for more than 50 days.

Thymic stromal cells in culture. I. Establishment and characterization of a line which is cytotoxic for normal thymocytes and produces hematopoietic growth factor(s).

Lines of thymic stromal cells have been established. One of these, designated TS-9, has been cloned and studied extensively. This line expresses both acid and alkaline phosphatases.

Distribution of 18+28S ribosomal genes in mammalian genomes.

In situ hybridization with 3H 18S and 28S ribosomal RNA from Xenopus laevis has been used to study the distribution of DNA sequences coding for these RNAs (the nucleolus organizing regions) in the genomes of six mammals. Several patterns of distribution have been found: 1) A single major site (rat kangaroo, Seba's fruit bat), 2) Two major sites (Indian muntjac), 3) Multiple sites in centromeric heterochromatin (field vole), 4) Multiple sites in heterochromatic short arms (Peromyscus eremicus), 5) Multiple sites in telomeric regions (Chinese hamster). - The chromosomal sites which bind 3H 18S and 28S ribosomal RNA correspond closely to the sites of secondary constrictions where these are known.