tLivin displays flexibility by promoting alternative cell death mechanisms.

Livin is a member of the Inhibitor of Apoptosis (IAP) protein family that inhibits apoptosis triggered by a variety of stimuli. We previously demonstrated that while Livin inhibits caspase activity, caspases can cleave Livin to produce a truncated protein, tLivin and that this newly formed tLivin paradoxically induces cell death. However to date, the mechanism of tLivin-induced cell death is not fully understood.

Cartilage repair surgery: outcome evaluation by using noninvasive cartilage biomarkers based on quantitative MRI techniques?

Background: New quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques are increasingly applied as outcome measures after cartilage repair.

Objective: To review the current literature on the use of quantitative MRI biomarkers for evaluation of cartilage repair at the knee and ankle.

Methods: Using PubMed literature research, studies on biochemical, quantitative MR imaging of cartilage repair were identified and reviewed.

Human-induced pluripotent stem cells pave the road for a better understanding of motor neuron disease.

While motor neuron diseases are currently incurable, induced pluripotent stem cell research has uncovered some disease-relevant phenotypes. We will discuss strategies to model different aspects of motor neuron disease and the specific neurons involved in the disease. We will then describe recent progress to investigate common forms of motor neuron disease: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, hereditary spastic paraplegia and spinal muscular atrophy.

Dysfunction of spatacsin leads to axonal pathology in SPG11-linked hereditary spastic paraplegia.

Hereditary spastic paraplegias are a group of inherited motor neuron diseases characterized by progressive paraparesis and spasticity. Mutations in the spastic paraplegia gene SPG11, encoding spatacsin, cause an autosomal-recessive disease trait; however, the precise knowledge about the role of spatacsin in neurons is very limited. We for the first time analyzed the expression and function of spatacsin in human forebrain neurons derived from human pluripotent stem cells including lines from two SPG11 patients and two controls.

Stroke patients after neurological inpatient rehabilitation: a prospective study to determine whether functional status or health-related quality of life predict living at home 2.5 years after discharge.

We carried out a prospective study to determine whether stroke patients' functional status or health-related quality of life would predict whether they lived at home 2.5 years after discharge from neurological inpatient rehabilitation. We carried out a single-center prospective cohort study.

25th anniversary article: 25 years of fullerene research in electron transfer chemistry.

The past 25 years have served as a test bed for exploring the chemistry and physics, in general, and the electron transfer chemistry, in particular, of low-dimensional carbon. Nevertheless, the new realm started with the advent of fullerenes, followed in chronological order by carbon nanotubes, and, more recently, by graphene. The major thrust of this Review article is to historically recap the versatility of fullerenes regarding the design, the synthesis, and the tests as an electroactive building block in photosynthetic reaction mimics, photovoltaics, and catalysis.

Gastrin mediated down regulation of ghrelin and its pathophysiological role in atrophic gastritis.

The gastric hormone ghrelin is known as an important factor for energy homeostasis, appetite regulation and control of body weight. So far, ghrelin has mainly been examined as a serological marker for gastrointestinal diseases, and only a few publications have highlighted its role in local effects like mucus secretion. Ghrelin can be regarded as a gastroprotective factor, but little is known about the distribution and activity of ghrelin cells in pathologically modified tissues.

Predictors of institutionalization of dementia patients in mild and moderate stages: a 4-year prospective analysis.

Background: Institutionalization is the most important milestone in the care of dementia patients. This study was aimed at identifying relevant predictors of institutionalization in a broad empirical context and interpreting them on the basis of the predictor model proposed by Luppa et al. [Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord 2008;26:65-78].

Renal sympathetic denervation as antihypertensive therapy--a reappraisal of first results.

Renal sympathetic denervation (RSD) has previously been discussed in this journal. Since then, it has become a common procedure in many countries to use RSD to treat patients with putatively resistant hypertension. In Germany alone, RSD is now routinely used to treat resistant hypertension at the expense of the health-care system.

Nanocarbon Hybrids: The Paradigm of Nanoscale Self-Ordering/Self-Assembling by Means of Charge Transfer/Doping Interactions.

The scope of this Perspective is to highlight the potential of nanoscale self-ordering/self-assembling nanocarbons-fullerenes, single-wall carbon nanotubes, and graphene-en route toward novel charge transfer hybrids that unify several functions such as light harvesting, charge separation, and, eventually, catalysis. All of the given examples are fully characterized by a broad range of spectroscopic as well as microscopic techniques and, as such, document the success in tuning the electronic structure of functional nanocarbons by means of charge transfer/doping interactions.

Toward multifunctional wet chemically functionalized graphene-integration of oligomeric, molecular, and particulate building blocks that reveal photoactivity and redox activity.

Many technological applications indispensable in our daily lives rely on carbon. By altering the periodic binding motifs in networks of sp(3), sp(2), and sp-hybridized carbon atoms, researchers have produced a wide palette of carbon allotropes. Over the past two decades, the physicochemical properties of low-dimensional nanocarbons, including fullerenes (0D), carbon nanotubes (1D), and, most recently, graphene (2D), have been explored systematically.

Decorating polyelectrolyte wrapped SWNTs with CdTe quantum dots for solar energy conversion.

We report herein on the development of a synthetic route towards SWNT/polyelectrolyte/QD nanohybrids. On one hand, negatively charged thioglycolic acid capped CdTe QDs were prepared via an aqueous solution based synthesis. On the other hand, SWNTs were coated with a positively charged polyelectrolyte.

Carbon nanostructures for solar energy conversion schemes.

Developing environmentally friendly, renewable energy is one of the challenges to society in the 21st century. One of the renewable energy technologies is solar energy conversion--a technology that directly converts daylight into electricity. This highlight surveys recent breakthroughs in the field of implementing carbon nanostructures--fullerenes (0D), carbon nanotubes (1D), carbon nanohorns, and graphene (2D)--into solar energy conversion schemes, that is, bulk heterojunction and dye-sensitized solar cells.

Preparation of highly concentrated and white cell-poor platelet-rich plasma by plateletpheresis.

Background And Objectives: Contaminating white blood cells (WBC) contribute remarkably to the overall growth factor content of locally applicable platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or platelet (PLT) gel and change the relative proportions of the contained growth factors.

Materials And Methods: To study the independent effects of locally applicated highly concentrated PLTs, the development of preparations is needed that contain large amounts of PLTs and no or at least very few leucocytes. Therefore, 20 plateletpheresis procedures were performed in voluntary blood donors to get highly concentrated and extremely WBC-poor plateletpheresis concentrates.

Evaluation of speech intelligibility for children with cleft lip and palate by means of automatic speech recognition.

Objective: Cleft lip and palate (CLP) may cause functional limitations even after adequate surgical and non-surgical treatment, speech disorders being one of them. Interindividually, they vary a lot, showing typical articulation specifics such as nasal emission and shift of articulation and therefore a diminished intelligibility. Until now, an objective means to determine and quantify the intelligibility does not exist.

Coordinate expression of CC chemokine ligand 5, granulysin, and perforin in CD8+ T cells provides a host defense mechanism against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

The ability of CD8+ T cells to kill intracellular pathogens depends upon their capacity to attract infected cells as well as their secretion of cytolytic and antimicrobial effector molecules. We examined the Ag-induced expression of three immune effector molecules contained within cytoplasmic granules of human CD8+ T cells: the chemokine CCL5, the cytolytic molecule perforin, and the antimicrobial protein granulysin. Macrophages infected with virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis triggered the expression of CCL5 in CD8+ T cells only in donors with previous exposure to the tuberculosis bacteria, not in naive donors.

Diagnostic value of maximum intensity projections versus source images for assessment of contrast-enhanced three-dimensional breath-hold magnetic resonance coronary angiography.

Rationale And Objectives: We compared maximum intensity projections (MIP) versus original source images (SI) in respect to detection of coronary artery stenoses by means of magnetic resonance (MR) coronary angiography.

Methods: MR coronary angiography was performed on 61 patients. MIP and SI were independently evaluated as to presence of significant stenoses in the proximal and midcoronary segments and compared with x-ray angiography.

Comparison of contrast-enhanced breath-hold and free-breathing respiratory-gated imaging in three-dimensional magnetic resonance coronary angiography.

Suppression of respiratory motion is one of the major challenges of magnetic resonance (MR) coronary angiography. Two approaches to compensate for respiratory motion have often been proposed: breath-hold (BH) and free-breathing respiratory-gated (FBRG) imaging. So far, however, these approaches have never been directly compared.

Comparative sequence analysis of human cytomegalovirus strains.

Three regions of DNA from five low-passage clinical isolates of human cytomegalovirus were amplified by polymerase chain reaction. The DNA sequences as well as the predicted amino acid sequences were compared with those of the laboratory strains AD169 and Towne. The genomic regions consisted of (i) three regions from the major glycoprotein (gp58/116, unique long [UL]55), (ii) three regions from the integral membrane protein (IMP, UL100), and (iii) a region from the major immediate-early 1 and 2 (IE-1/2) enhancer/promoter.