Impact of atrial fibrillation on platelet gene expression.

Aims: Platelets retain cytoplasmic messenger RNA and are capable of protein biosynthesis. Several diseases are known to impact the platelet transcriptome but the effect of non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) on platelet RNA transcript is essentially unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of NVAF on platelet RNA transcript by measuring platelet genes expression in consecutive NVAF patients before and 3-4 months after pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) and compared to normal sinus rhythm controls (NSR).

Cancer effect on periprocedural thromboembolism and bleeding in anticoagulated patients.

Background: Patients with active cancer are often on chronic anticoagulation and frequently require interruption of this treatment for invasive procedures. The impact of cancer on periprocedural thromboembolism (TE) and major bleeding is not known.

Patients And Methods: Two thousand one hundred and eighty-two consecutive patients referred for periprocedural anticoagulation (2484 procedures) using a standardized protocol were followed forward in time to estimate the 3-month incidence of TE, major bleeding and survival stratified by anticoagulation indication.

Prevalence of lower extremity venous disease in inflammatory bowel disease.

Aim: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has long been considered a risk factor for venous thromboembolism (VTE). Whereas most patients have persistent venous valvular dysfunction following lower extremity deep venous thrombosis (DVT), we hypothesized that patients with IBD would have an increased prevalence of valvular incompetence and changes of chronic DVT (reduced venous caliber with thickened walls) relative to patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or normal volunteers.

Methods: Subjects with confirmed IBD, clinical features of IBS or normal volunteers underwent complete, prospective duplex ultrasound assessment of their lower extremity venous vascular system.

Antiphospholipid antibodies in thromboangiitis obliterans.

Thromboangiitis obliterans (TAO) and antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) share the clinical characteristics of arterial thrombosis and recurrent thrombophlebitis. Although the association of anticardiolipin antibodies (aCLa) and TAO has been previously recognized, the prevalence and the clinical impact of this association remains unclear. aCLa were measured by double ELISA in patients with TAO (n = 47), premature atherosclerosis (pASO) (n=48) and otherwise healthy individuals (n = 48).

Coagulation in diabetic and non-diabetic claudicants.

Background: In order to compare hemostasis in diabetic and non-diabetic claudicants we evaluated endothelial (von Willebrand factor, vWF), rheologic (fibrinogen, hematocrit), coagulation system (thrombin-antithrombin complex, TAT) and platelet (platelet factor 4, PF4, aggregation on thrombin, collagen and ADP stimulation) parameters in both groups and healthy controls.

Methods: Twenty-five diabetic, 34 non-diabetic patients with claudication and 26 healthy individuals were enrolled into the study.

Results: The severity of lower limbs ischemia was similar in two groups of claudicants but coronary heart disease and cerebral ischemia were significantly more common in diabetic than in non-diabetic claudicants.

Clinical spectrum of Raynaud's phenomenon in patients referred to vascular clinic.

Difficulties to establish general characteristics of patients with Raynaud's phenomenon, especially frequency, rates and predisposing factors of the evolution of primary to secondary cases probably originate from substantial variation of evaluated cohorts. We conducted a prospective study using standardised diagnostic procedures in order to look for the specificity of patients referred to the vascular centre; moreover, we assayed anticardiolipin antibodies in these patients using double ELISA and compared its frequency to sex and age matched a control group of 50 healthy individuals. 124 patients (20 men), mean age at onset 35.

Sustained classic clinical spectrum of thromboangiitis obliterans (Buerger's disease).

Thromboangiitis obliterans (TAO) has been reported to become less common in general population but more common in women, and in elderly patients. The authors looked at the clinical characteristics of TAO in Poland where there was no significant decrease of smoking and the extent of aging of the general population is less profound. They retrospectively reviewed the records of 377 patients with the diagnosis of TAO hospitalized in their institution from 1970 to 1995.

Buerger's disease in two brothers: iliac artery occlusion by thromboangiitis obliterans--case reports.

Several characteristics of thromboangiitis obliterans are unique and confirm the existence of the disease as a distinct pathological entity. Its predilection for young smoking males, peripheral type of vascular involvement, recurrences of superficial thrombophlebites, and typical histolopathology form the principals of the disease although the etiology remains unknown. The authors report the unusual finding of Buerger's disease occurring in two brothers, one of whom had occlusion of the left external iliac and femoral arteries.

Effect of different chronic intermittent stressors and acetyl-l-carnitine on hypothalamic beta-endorphin and GnRH and on plasma testosterone levels in male rats.

Chronic stress affects the reproductive function by modifying the neuroendocrine homeostasis. The aim of the present study was to clarify the neuroendocrine and the gonadal changes following chronic intermittent stress in male rats and the action of a neuroactive drug, acetyl-l-carnitine (ALC). The effect of two different stressors, cold water swimming or ether, on central beta-endorphin (beta-EP) and GnRH contents, and on plasma testosterone levels was investigated.

Acetyl-L-carnitine effect on pituitary and plasma beta-endorphin responsiveness to different chronic intermittent stressors.

The aims of the present study were: 1) to compare the effect of two different chronic intermittent stressors i.e. cold-swimming versus ether, on the pituitary opioidergic system; 2) to evaluate the response of pituitary and plasma beta-endorphin (beta-EP) to an acute stress in chronically stressed rats; and 3) to evaluate the effect of acetyl-l-carnitine treatment (10 mg/day/rat per os at night) on pituitary and plasma beta-EP changes induced by two different types of chronic stress.

Method of purification of thiol proteinase inhibitors from human urine.

Urinary thiol proteinase inhibitors (UTPI) had been isolated from their complex with papain. Almost 90% of these inhibitors, previously inactivated by native or immobilized papain, were recovered after heating the complex to 80 degrees C at pH 2.0 for 20 min.

Ability of plasma from patients with immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) to promote the growth of megakaryocyte progenitors from normal bone marrow.

The ability of plasma from ITP patients (before and after splenectomy) to support the growth of megakaryocyte progenitors was compared with that from healthy subjects. Plasma Factor Index-Megakaryocyte PFI-Mk (ITP) which expressed resultant colony growth was significantly lower before splenectomy, but it normalized after splenectomy. (PFI-Mk) (ITP) did not relate neither to megakaryocyte nor to platelet counts.

Purification and properties of pyruvate kinase type M1 from bovine brain.

1. Pyruvate kinase type M1 was purified from bovine brain about 241-fold with 38% yield. 2.