Impact of analysis of frozen-section margin on reoperation rates in women undergoing lumpectomy for breast cancer: evaluation of the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program data.

Background: Reoperation for positive margins after lumpectomy for breast cancer is common. Intraoperative analysis of frozen-section (FS) margins permits immediate re-excision, avoiding reoperation. The aim of this study was to compare reoperation rates between an institution using routine FS analysis of all margins and the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) data.

Experimental nonalcoholic steatohepatitis compromises ureagenesis, an essential hepatic metabolic function.

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is increasing in prevalence, yet its consequences for liver function are unknown. We studied ureagenesis, an essential metabolic liver function of importance for whole body nitrogen homeostasis, in a rodent model of diet-induced NASH. Rats were fed a high-fat, high-cholesterol diet for 4 and 16 wk, resulting in early and advanced experimental NASH, respectively.

Hydrated human corneal stroma revealed by quantitative dynamic atomic force microscopy at nanoscale.

The structures and mechanical properties of human tissues are significantly influenced by water. The functionality of the human cornea can be linked to the hydrated collagen fibers. By applying quantitative dynamic atomic force microscopy to investigate morphological and mechanical property variations of corneal stroma under different hydration levels, we found that the collagen fibers in the stromal tissue show the specific periodicities and the stiffness of giga-Pa magnitude at 40% humidity.

There are only minor changes in quality of life in patients with Scheuermann's disease.

Introduction: The impact of Scheuermannss disease (SD) on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is unclear. The aim of this study was to study HRQoL based on The Medical Outcome Study Short Form-12 (SF-12) in adult life in a group of SD patients.

Material And Methods: A total of 46,418 twins were sent a questionnaire.

Effects of resveratrol in experimental and clinical non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

The prevalence of obesity and related conditions like non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is increasing worldwide and therapeutic options are limited. Alternative treatment options are therefore intensively sought after. An interesting candidate is the natural polyphenol resveratrol (RSV) that activates adenosinmonophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and silent information regulation-2 homolog 1 (SIRT1).

Preparation of uniformly (13)C,(15)N-labeled recombinant human amylin for solid-state NMR investigation.

A number of diseases are caused by the formation of amyloid fibrils. Detailed understanding of structural features of amyloid fibers is of great importance for our understanding of disease progression and design of agents for diagnostics or potential prevention of protein aggregation. In lack of 3D crystal ordering, solid-state NMR forms the most suited method to determine the structures of the fibrils with atomic resolution.

Co-existence of two different α-synuclein oligomers with different core structures determined by hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry.

Neurodegenerative disorders are characterized by the formation of protein oligomers and amyloid fibrils, which in the case of Parkinson's disease involves the protein α-synuclein (αSN). Cytotoxicity is mainly associated with the oligomeric species, but we still know little about their assembly and structure. Hydrogen/deuterium exchange (HDX) monitored by mass spectrometry is used to analyze oligomers formed by wild-type (wt) αSN and also three familial αSN mutants (A30P, E46K, and A53T).

GABAA Receptor-Mediated Bidirectional Control of Synaptic Activity, Intracellular Ca2+, Cerebral Blood Flow, and Oxygen Consumption in Mouse Somatosensory Cortex In Vivo.

Neural activity regulates local increases in cerebral blood flow (ΔCBF) and the cortical metabolic rate of oxygen (ΔCMRO2) that constitutes the basis of BOLD functional neuroimaging signals. Glutamate signaling plays a key role in brain vascular and metabolic control; however, the modulatory effect of GABA is incompletely understood. Here we performed in vivo studies in mice to investigate how THIP (which tonically activates extrasynaptic GABAARs) and Zolpidem (a positive allosteric modulator of synaptic GABAARs) impact stimulation-induced ΔCBF, ΔCMRO2, local field potentials (LFPs), and fluorescent cytosolic Ca(2+) transients in neurons and astrocytes.

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis weakens the acute phase response to endotoxin in rats.

Background & Aims: Patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) have increased mortality, including from infections. We, therefore, tested in a rodent model of steatohepatitis whether the hepatic acute phase response is intact.

Methods: Steatohepatitis was induced in rats by feeding a high-fat, high-cholesterol diet for 4 (early) and 16 weeks (advanced NASH).

Animal models to evaluate bacterial biofilm development.

Medical biofilms have attracted substantial attention especially in the past decade. Animal models are contributing significantly to understand the pathogenesis of medical biofilms. In addition, animal models are an essential tool in testing the hypothesis generated from clinical observations in patients and preclinical testing of agents showing in vitro antibiofilm effect.

Heritability of clubfoot: a twin study.

Introduction: The aetiology of congenital clubfoot is unclear. Although studies on populations, families, and twins suggest a genetic component to the aetiology, other studies have identified environmental factors. The purpose of this study was to calculate heritability in order to determine to what extent genetic and/or environmental factors contribute to the aetiology of congenital clubfoot and to asses whether there was a change in the prevalence over time.

Risk factors associated with breast lymphedema.

Background: The development of breast lymphedema (BLE) after breast/axillary surgery is poorly characterized. We prospectively evaluated clinical and surgical factors associated with development of BLE.

Methods: Patients undergoing unilateral breast-conserving surgery were prospectively enrolled preoperatively and followed for development of BLE.

Prednisolone but not infliximab aggravates the upregulated hepatic nitrogen elimination in patients with active inflammatory bowel disease.

Background: Catabolism and weight loss are serious problems in patients with active inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The body nitrogen (N) depletion is partly related to increased hepatic capacity for the elimination of N through urea synthesis. This is probably caused by the inflammation per se, and the treatment with prednisolone may aggravate the problem, whereas the effect of biological therapy is unknown.

Renal responses to acute volume expansion in spontaneously hypertensive rats is related to the baseline sodium excretion.

Essential hypertension is associated with an exaggerated natriuresis in response to intravenous infusion of isotonic saline. We examined proximal tubular fluid output and segmental tubular handling of sodium in conscious spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), their normotensive counterparts Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY), and ordinary Wistar rats using servo-controlled sodium and fluid balance and Li clearance technique. Sodium (Na) excretion rose to 2.

Modeling of dielectric properties of aqueous salt solutions with an equation of state.

The static permittivity is the most important physical property for thermodynamic models that account for the electrostatic interactions between ions. The measured static permittivity in mixtures containing electrolytes is reduced due to kinetic depolarization and reorientation of the dipoles in the electrical field surrounding ions. Kinetic depolarization may explain 25-75% of the observed decrease in the permittivity of solutions containing salts, but since this is a dynamic property, this effect should not be included in the thermodynamic modeling of electrolytes.

Elevated platelet expression of CD36 may contribute to increased risk of thrombo-embolism in active inflammatory bowel disease.

Context: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) induces increased risk of thrombo-embolism. CD36 is involved in platelet activation, glucose metabolism and inflammation.

Objective: The relationship between CD36 expression on platelets and monocytes, plasma sCD36, and CD36-positive platelet-derived microparticles (PDMPs) and inflammation in both active IBD and after one week of anti-tumour necrosis alpha antibody (anti-TNF) treatment was investigated.

Targeting of peptide conjugated magnetic nanoparticles to urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) expressing cells.

Ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide (USPIO) nanoparticles are currently being used as a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent in vivo, mainly by their passive accumulation in tissues of interest. However, a higher specificity can ideally be achieved when the nanoparticles are targeted towards cell specific receptors and this may also facilitate specific drug delivery by an enhanced target-mediated endocytosis. We report efficient peptide-mediated targeting of magnetic nanoparticles to cells expressing the urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR), a surface biomarker for poor patient prognosis shared by several cancers including breast, colorectal, and gastric cancers.

Social factors and coping status in asymptomatic middle-aged Danes: association to coronary artery calcification.

Aims: Understanding the determinants of social and coping inequalities in subclinical cardiovascular disease is an important prerequisite in developing and implementing preventive strategies. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between social factors and coping status, respectively, and subclinical coronary artery disease (CAD) in middle-aged Danes.

Methods: This is a DanRisk screening substudy, thus including healthy Danish males and females aged 50 or 60 years.

Minor structural abnormalities in the infant face disrupt neural processing: a unique window into early caregiving responses.

Infant faces elicit early, specific activity in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), a key cortical region for reward and affective processing. A test of the causal relationship between infant facial configuration and OFC activity is provided by naturally occurring disruptions to the face structure. One such disruption is cleft lip, a small change to one facial feature, shown to disrupt parenting.

Regulation of urea synthesis during the acute phase response in rats.

Catabolism is a serious clinical problem in patients with active inflammation. Under such stressful conditions, the catabolism and loss of tissue nitrogen (N) result from proteolysis and are augmented by an up-regulation of the hepatic capacity to eliminate amino-N via urea-N. Our earlier studies suggest that this is part of the acute phase response to inflammation despite the increased need for amino-N for incorporation into acute phase proteins synthesised by the liver.

Efficacy of a synthetic antimicrobial peptidomimetic versus vancomycin in a Staphylococcus epidermidis device-related murine peritonitis model.

Objectives: Biofilm-forming Staphylococcus epidermidis is a prevalent cause of peritonitis during peritoneal dialysis. We compared the efficacy of a synthetic antimicrobial peptidomimetic (Ltx21) versus vancomycin in a murine model mimicking a device-related peritonitis.

Methods: Silicone implants, pre-colonized with an S.

Modeling of dielectric properties of complex fluids with an equation of state.

The static permittivity is a key property for describing solutions containing polar and hydrogen bonding compounds. However, the precise relationship between the molecular and dielectric properties is not well-established. Here we show that the relative permittivity at zero frequency (static permittivity) can be modeled simultaneously with thermodynamic properties.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm aggravates skin inflammatory response in BALB/c mice in a novel chronic wound model.

Chronic wounds are presumed to persist in the inflammatory state, preventing healing. Emerging evidence indicates a clinical impact of bacterial biofilms in soft tissues, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) biofilms. To further investigate this, we developed a chronic PA biofilm wound infection model in C3H/HeN and BALB/c mice.