Mechanisms of maternal intergenerational epigenetic inheritance.

Mammalian embryos are formed by fusion of eggs and sperm. Here we provide an integrated overview of the major dynamic changes in transcriptional processes, chromatin composition and 3D organization which the maternal and paternal genomes undergo during oocyte and early embryonic development in mice. We derive mechanistic insights into molecular hierarchies and crosstalk between the various chromatin-associated processes that define three distinct types of maternal epigenetic memory states in oocytes to support pre-implantation and post-implantation development.

Dysfunctional LAT2 Amino Acid Transporter Is Associated With Cataract in Mouse and Humans.

Cataract, the loss of ocular lens transparency, accounts for ∼50% of worldwide blindness and has been associated with water and solute transport dysfunction across lens cellular barriers. We show that neutral amino acid antiporter LAT2 ) and uniporter TAT1 () are expressed on mouse ciliary epithelium and LAT2 also in lens epithelium. Correspondingly, deletion of LAT2 induced a dramatic decrease in lens essential amino acid levels that was modulated by TAT1 defect.

[Osteotomies around the Knee].

Osteotomies around the knee in unicompartimental osteoarthritis had an impressing revival in the past few years and have to be kept in mind as an alternative to total knee arthroplasty. The most frequent type of osteotomies around the knee is the medial open wedge high tibia osteotomy (MOWHTO). But still also closed wedge high tibia osteotomies (CWHTO) have their relevance in many cases.

Advances in modern osteotomies around the knee : Report on the Association of Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy, Orthopaedic surgery, Rehabilitation (ASTAOR) Moscow International Osteotomy Congress 2017.

Corrective lower limb osteotomies are innovative and efficient therapeutic procedures for restoring axial alignment and managing unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis. This review presents critical insights into the up-dated clinical knowledge on osteotomies for complex posttraumatic or congenital lower limb deformities with a focus on high tibial osteotomies, including a comprehensive overview of basic principles of osteotomy planning, biomechanical considerations of different implants for osteotomies and insights in specific bone deformity correction techniques. Emphasis is placed on complex cases of lower limb osteotomies associated with ligament and multiaxial instability including pediatric cases, computer-assisted navigation, external fixation for long bone deformity correction and return to sport after such osteotomies.

Abnormal creatine transport of mutations in monocarboxylate transporter 12 (MCT12) found in patients with age-related cataract can be partially rescued by exogenous chaperone CD147.

Membrane transporters influence biological functions in the ocular lens. Here, we investigate the monocarboxylate transporter 12 (MCT12), also called creatine transporter 2 (CRT2), which is found in the ocular lens and is involved in cataract. As the age-related form affects about half of the population world-wide, understanding relevant pathomechanisms is a prerequisite for exploring non-invasive treatments.

Supracondylar femur osteotomies around the knee: patient selection, planning, operative techniques, stability of fixation, and bone healing.

Background: Similar to the re-appreciation of high tibial osteotomy (HTO), supracondylar distal femur varus osteotomy (SCO) for lateral compartment osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee has gained renewed interest as new knowledge has become available on the influence of malalignment on the development, progression and symptoms of OA. Furthermore, the less than optimal results of knee replacements (TKR) in younger patients have also led to renewed interest in joint-preserving treatment options.

Purpose: Varus SCO has not had the same success or widespread use as valgus HTO.

[Supracondylar femur osteotomies around the knee. Patient selection, planning, operative techniques, stability of fixation, and bone healing].

Background: Similar to the reappreciation of high tibial osteotomy (HTO), supracondylar distal femur varus osteotomy (SCO) for lateral compartment osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee has gained renewed interest as new knowledge has become available on the influence of malalignment on the development, progression and symptoms of OA. Furthermore, the less than optimal results of total knee replacement (TKR) in younger patients have also led to renewed interest in joint-preserving treatment options.

Purpose: Varus SCO has not had the same success or widespread use as valgus HTO.

Does obesity and nicotine abuse influence the outcome and complication rate after open-wedge high tibial osteotomy? A retrospective evaluation of five hundred and thirty three patients.

Purpose: Nicotine abuse and obesity are well-known factors leading to common post-operative complications. However, their influence on the outcome after high tibial osteotomy is controversial. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate their effect on the clinical outcome with particular regard to bone non-union and local complications.

Outcome after high tibial open-wedge osteotomy: a retrospective evaluation of 533 patients.

Purpose: Open-wedge valgus high tibial osteotomy is a well-established procedure in the management of medial osteoarthritis of the knee. In recent years, improved osteotomy and fixation methods have led to an increased use of this technique. The aim of this study was to identify predictive parameters for the clinical outcome after valgus high tibial osteotomy.

Axial and torsional stability of an improved single-plane and a new bi-plane osteotomy technique for supracondylar femur osteotomies.

Purpose: An important disadvantage of the standard medial closing-wedge distal femur osteotomy for lateral compartment osteoarthritis of the knee is the immediate effects on the extensor mechanism function. Therefore, a novel bi-plane osteotomy technique was developed. The stability and stiffness of this newly developed technique and a modification of the proximal screw configuration were tested in a composite femur model and compared to the standard single-plane technique.

[The medial closed-wedge osteotomy of the distal femur for the treatment of unicompartmental lateral osteoarthritis of the knee].

Objective: Shifting of the mechanical axis from the lateral to the medial compartment in patients with lateral osteoarthritis in combination with valgus deformity.

Indications: Osteoarthritis of the lateral compartment in combination with valgus deformity of the (distal) femur. Posttraumatic and congenital valgus deformities of the (distal) femur.

Evolution of open-wedge high-tibial osteotomy: experience with a special angular stable device for internal fixation without interposition material.

Surgical correction of bowed legs should be performed as early as possible. Overload osteoarthritis, even without significant varus deformity of the knee, is a further indication for open-wedge high-tibial osteotomy. Progression of damage to the joint surfaces due to overloading can be significantly retarded by realigning the extremity with the aim to, at least, reduce overload on the medial compartment to a value close to physiological.

[Osteotomies of the knee joint in patients with monocompartmental arthritis].

The basic principles of biomechanics, patient selection, proper planning, safe intraoperative technique with stable osteosynthesis, and early functional rehabilitation are the key factors for successful osteotomies around the knee. An individual unloading of the involved compartment should be the goal of this procedure. Several different osteotomy techniques have been described in the past.

Osteotomies around the knee: patient selection, stability of fixation and bone healing in high tibial osteotomies.

New developments in osteotomy techniques and methods of fixation have caused a revival of interest of osteotomies around the knee. The current consensus on the indications, patient selection and the factors influencing the outcome after high tibial osteotomy is presented. This paper highlights recent research aimed at joint pressure redistribution, fixation stability and bone healing that has led to improved surgical techniques and a decrease of post-operative time to full weight-bearing.

A fluoroscopy-based surgical navigation system for high tibial osteotomy.

High tibial osteotomy is a widely accepted treatment for unicompartmental osteoarthritis of the knee and other lower extremity deformities, particularly in young and active patients. However, it is generally recognized as a technically demanding procedure. The lack of intraoperative control of the mechanical axis of the affected limb often results in postoperative malalignments, which is one of the main reasons for poor long-term results.

Implementation, accuracy evaluation, and preliminary clinical trial of a CT-free navigation system for high tibial opening wedge osteotomy.

Objective: The objectives of this study are to design and evaluate a CT-free intra-operative planning and navigation system for high tibial opening wedge osteotomy. This is a widely accepted treatment for medial compartment osteoarthritis and other lower extremity deformities, particularly in young and active patients for whom total knee replacement is not advised. However, it is a technically demanding procedure.

Computer aided ACL reconstruction.

The following article gives a clinical description of computer aided ACL reconstruction using the Praxim Medivision tool. The special feature of this navigation is the existence of the possibility to virtually graft the implantation without first having to attach anchoring channels, which allows potential risks to be recognized and thus avoided. This description meets with the current operating techniques of the 4-fold semitendinosus technique, and of extra-cortical anchoring with the endobutton/suture disc technique.

TomoFix: a new LCP-concept for open wedge osteotomy of the medial proximal tibia--early results in 92 cases.

High Tibial Osteotomy (HTO) is an established treatment for unicompartmental osteoarthritis of the knee with malalignment. The classic procedure for correcting varus deformity is the lateral closed wedge osteotomy of the tibia with osteotomy of the fibula. The disadvantages of this technique are well known.

The labile iron pool in hepatocytes: prooxidant-induced increase in free iron precedes oxidative cell injury.

The labile iron pool (LIP) represents the nonferritin-bound, redox-active iron that has been implicated in oxidative stress and cell injury. Here we examined whether alterations in LIP can be detected in cultured murine hepatocytes and whether increases in LIP are related to the oxidative damage inflicted by the redox cycling drug nitrofurantoin (NFT). Early changes in LIP were monitored with the metal-sensitive fluorescent probe calcein (CA), the fluorescence of which is quenched on binding to iron.

Fluorescently detectable magnetic resonance imaging agents.

This report describes the synthesis, characterization, and in vivo testing of several bifunctional contrast-enhancing agents for optical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of experimental animals. These new agents integrate the advantages of both techniques since they can be visualized simultaneously by light and MRI microscopy. Employing this strategy allows the same biological structures of a specimen to be studied at dramatically different resolutions and depths.

Antioxidant and cytoprotective properties of D-tagatose in cultured murine hepatocytes.

D-Tagatose is a zero-energy producing ketohexose that is a powerful cytoprotective agent against chemically induced cell injury. To further explore the underlying mechanisms of cytoprotection, we investigated the effects of D-tagatose on both the generation of superoxide anion radicals and the consequences of oxidative stress driven by prooxidant compounds in intact cells. Primary cultures of hepatocytes derived from male C57BL/6 mice were exposed to the redox cycling drug nitrofurantoin (NFT).

Sequence specificity of the non-natural pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine nucleoside in triple helix formation.

The non-natural pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine nucleoside F, which pairs preferentially with guanine (G) and adenine (A) within double-helical DNA, recognizes with high selectivity AT base pairs within triple-helical complexes. These observations suggest that F may exist in different tautomeric forms within double-helical and triple-helical complexes. Analysis of the base stacking properties of this extended ring system using two oligodeoxyribonucleotides containing terminal thymines and/or pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidines bound to adjacent sites showed a decrease in free energy of binding in a triple-helical complex in the order (5'-3') TT > FT > TF > FF.

[Differential diagnosis and therapy of multi-fragment humeral head fracture--an analysis of three clinical studies].

Out of the total number of patients of three Centers for Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery, 93 comminuted humeral head fractures were clinically and radiologically controlled by means of a retrospective analysis. The classification of the fractures was made according to C.S.

Enzyme thermoinactivation in anhydrous organic solvents.

Three unrelated enzymes (ribonuclease, chymotrypsin, and lysozyme) display markedly enhanced thermostability in anhydrous organic solvents compared to that in aqueous solution. At 110-145 degrees C in nonaqueous media all three enzymes inactivate due to heat-induced protein aggregation, as determined by gel filtration chromatography. Using bovine pancreatic ribonuclease A as a model, it has been established that enzymes are much more thermostable in hydrophobic solvents (shown to be essentially inert with respect to their interaction with the protein) than in hydrophilic ones (shown to strip water from the enzyme).

[Functional results of Neer II type hemi-arthroplasty joint replacement of multi-fragment humerus head fractures].

Among the fractures of the proximal humerus--a typical kind of injury affecting elderly people, as well as gainfully employed patients, the comminuted and dislocated humeral head fractures have a specific position because of therapeutical reasons. By means of a retrospective analysis, a review is given of the results of 26 comminuted humeral head fractures type IV-VI according to Neer, treated with a Neer prosthesis type II at the surgical clinic of the Kantonsspital Lucerne between 1983 and 1989. Our interest is mainly concentrated on the functional results and on their correlation with biomechanical and perioperative factors.