Antisense strategies in dopamine receptor pharmacology.

Recent advances in molecular biology have provided pharmacologists the opportunity of developing an entirely new type of agent for studying and treating a variety of biological disorders. These agents, termed antisense oligodeoxynucleotides, have as their target the messenger RNAs encoding specific proteins. They act by binding to selected portions of these mRNAs through complimentary interactions and thereby prevent the synthesis of these proteins.

Fetal spinal cord transplants rescue some axotomized rubrospinal neurons from retrograde cell death in adult rats.

Intraspinal transplants of fetal spinal cord may contribute to recovery after spinal cord injury by keeping axotomized neurons alive. In this study we examined whether transplants rescued axotomized red nucleus (RN) neurons from retrograde cell death in adult rats. RN neurons were labeled by retrograde transport of Fluorogold (FG); 1 week later right-sided RN neurons were axotomized by left-sided hemisection at C3-4 vertebral level, and Embryonic Day 14 spinal cord or gelfoam was introduced into the cavity.

The in vivo effect of bilirubin on the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor/ion channel complex in the brains of newborn piglets.

Bilirubin neurotoxicity can be mediated by numerous mechanisms due to its increased permeability in neuronal membranes. The present study tests the hypothesis that a prolonged bilirubin infusion modifies the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor/ ion channel complex in the cerebral cortex of newborn piglets. Studies were performed in seven control and six bilirubin-exposed piglets, 2-4 d of age.

A probable cis-regulatory element on yeast mitochondrial DNA responsible for cAMP-mediated transcription.

Studies from this laboratory have suggested that mitochondrial (mt) transcription in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) is governed by changing cellular cAMP levels, and that the mechanism of such transcriptional regulation requires cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) activity; these observations, in turn, suggest a trans-activation process for nucleotide-dependent mt transcriptional control. Here we demonstrate a sequence-specific mtDNA-phosphorylated protein interaction, a requisite part of such a control mechanism, using filter-binding and gel mobility shift assays with mt protein extracts and mtDNA from rho- strains whose retained mt genes show cAMP-sensitive expression. We demonstrate that the protein-mt DNA interaction depends on PKA activity, that it specifically involves a tripartite GC-rich sequence element on yeast mtDNA, and that it does not involve mt coding or promoter sequences.

The non-healing leg ulcer: peripheral vascular disease, chronic venous insufficiency, and ischemic vasculitis.

The non-healing leg ulcer is examined by discussing three disease processes: peripheral vascular occlusive disease (PVOD), chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), and vasculitis. For PVOD, management decisions are based on risk factors and disease history. Comprehensive management includes the discontinuation of smoking, exercise conditioning and regulation of diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and the appropriate application of anticoagulant/antiplatelet drugs.

"Keyhole" coronary artery bypass surgery.

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify the utility of "keyhole" thoracotomy approaches to single vessel coronary artery bypass surgery.

Summary Background Data: Although minimally invasive surgery is efficacious in a wide variety of surgical disciplines, it has been slow to emerge in cardiac surgery. Among 49 selected patients, the authors have used a left anterior keyhole thoracotomy (6 cm in length) combined with complete dissection of the eternal mammary artery (IMA) pedicle under thoracoscopic guidance or directly through the keyhole incision to accomplish IMA coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) to the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery circulation or to the right coronary artery (RCA).

Ischemic preconditioning decreases oxidative stress during reperfusion: a chemiluminescence study.

The mechanism responsible for ischemic preconditioning (IPC) is still unknown but may involve the induction of antioxidant enzymes decreasing oxidative stress during subsequent periods of ischemia (I) and reperfusion (RP). The purpose of this study was to determine whether, in fact, an antioxidant mechanism is involved in the protection afforded by IPC. Lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence (LEC), a direct, continuous, nondestructive, on-line method was used to monitor the net amount of free oxygen radicals (FOR) produced during perfusion of rat hearts.

Identification of a cAMP-dependent protein-DNA interaction at a sequence near the yeast mitochondrial rRNA genes.

We have shown that expression of yeast mitochondrial (mt) rRNA genes (S. cerevisiae) is controlled in a cAMP-dependent manner via PKA, suggesting a trans-activation process involving phosphorylation-dependent protein-mt DNA interaction. We used filter-binding assays, mt protein extracts, and mt DNA from a rho-mutant strain retaining the 21S rRNA gene to demonstrate such an interaction.

Quality of life and coping styles of HIV-positive women with children.

This descriptive study explored the quality of life and coping methods of HIV positive women (N = 52) with children. The sample consisted of women with HIV/AIDS who answered an adapted Padilla Quality of Life Index and the Jalowiec Coping Scale. Among the psychological, physical, and social quality of life subscales, social quality of life was rated highest and the psychological scale rated the lowest.

Cutaneous aspergillosis.

Aspergillosis comprises a spectrum of diseases caused by species of a ubiquitous saprophytic mold, Aspergillus, that usually live on decaying vegetation. Aspergillus organisms rarely behave as pathogens in an immunocompetent host. In the presence of immunosuppression, however, aspergillus may be invasive and take a fulminant course.

Innovations in brachytherapy in gynecologic oncology.

With the discovery of radium by Curie in 1898, researchers recognized that this unique radionuclide had specific biologic properties that were applicable to treating patients with cancer. In the beginning, the radium sources were placed within cavities as independent sources and, when needles were available, implanted into tissues. The first combination of brachytherapy, technologies with external-beam radiation therapy was reported by Wright at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York in 1914 in the treatment of a patient with cervical cancer.

Substrates for yeast mitochondrial cAMP-dependent protein kinase activity.

We showed that transcription of mitochondrial (mt) genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is governed in part by cellular cAMP levels, and that such transcriptional control is mediated via cAMP-dependent protein kinase (cAPK) activity. Here we use in vitro protein kinase assays with intact mitochondria from respiring cells to define protein substrates for mt cAPK. Our data show that there are at least eight mt proteins phosphorylated in a cAMP-dependent manner, ranging in M(r) from 96000 to 9500.

Fungal Bursitis: Olecranon Bursitis Caused by Candida parapsilosis with Review of the Literature.

Various Candida species have emerged as clinically important pathogens, as documented by increasing incidence of localized Candida infections, candidemia, and systemic candidiasis. Septic bursitis caused by fungi has been described infrequently. We describe a case of septic olecranon bursitis caused by Candida parapsilosis.

Cerebellar nitric oxide is necessary for vestibulo-ocular reflex adaptation, a sensorimotor model of learning.

1. Nitric oxide (NO) production in the nervous system has been implicated in cellular mechanisms of learning and memory. Our study investigates an in vivo sensorimotor model of learning.

Discriminated conditioned taste aversion for studying multi-element stimulus control.

The effects of morphine pre-treatment interval on the stimulus control exerted by a multi-element stimulus consisting of morphine (5.6mg/kg), saccharin (0.2%, w/v), and a ball-bearing drinking nozzle in a discriminated taste aversion procedure were examined.