Enhanced skeletal muscle lipid oxidative efficiency in insulin-resistant vs insulin-sensitive nondiabetic, nonobese humans.

Context: Skeletal muscle insulin resistance is proposed to result from impaired skeletal muscle lipid oxidative capacity. However, there is no evidence indicating that muscle lipid oxidative capacity is impaired in healthy otherwise insulin-resistant individuals.

Objective: The objective of the study was to assess muscle lipid oxidative capacity in young, nonobese, glucose-tolerant, insulin-resistant vs insulin-sensitive individuals.

Diapause formation and downregulation of insulin-like signaling via DAF-16/FOXO delays axonal degeneration and neuronal loss.

Axonal degeneration is a key event in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative conditions. We show here that mec-4d triggered axonal degeneration of Caenorhabditis elegans neurons and mammalian axons share mechanistical similarities, as both are rescued by inhibition of calcium increase, mitochondrial dysfunction, and NMNAT overexpression. We then explore whether reactive oxygen species (ROS) participate in axonal degeneration and neuronal demise.

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: clinical use and perspectives.

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the accepted therapy of choice for a variety of malignant and non-malignant diseases in children and adults. Initially developed as rescue therapy for a patient with cancer after high doses of chemotherapy and radiation as well as the correction of severe deficiencies in the hematopoietic system, it has evolved into an adoptive immune therapy for malignancies and autoimmune disorders. The procedure has helped to obtain key information about the bone marrow environment, the biology of hematopoietic stem cells and histocompatibility.

Is my patient a bleeder? A diagnostic framework for mild bleeding disorders.

Congenital mild bleeding disorders (MBDs) are very prevalent and are the source of frequent diagnostic problems. Most MBDs are categorized as disorders of primary hemostasis (ie, type 1 VWD and platelet function disorders), but mild or moderate deficiencies of clotting factors and some rare hyperfibrinolytic disorders are also included. These patients have abnormal bleeding from the skin and mucous membranes, menorrhagia, and disproportionate hemorrhages after trauma, invasive procedures, and surgery.

Anatomic hepatectomy as a definitive treatment for hepatolithiasis: a cohort study.

Background: Treatment requirements in hepatolithiasis may vary and may involve a multidisciplinary approach. Surgical resection has been proposed as a definitive treatment.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the clinical results of anatomic liver resection among Chilean patients with hepatolithiasis.

Tumor necrosis factor-α inhibits transforming growth factor-β-stimulated myofibroblastic differentiation and extracellular matrix production in human gingival fibroblasts.

Background: Fibroblasts play a critical role during wound healing and chronic inflammation through the synthesis and assembly of extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules. These responses may be modulated by soluble cytokines and growth factors present in tissues. In the present study, we evaluate whether transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) modulate myofibroblastic differentiation and the production of ECM components.

Periorbital syringoma treated with radiofrequency and carbon dioxide (CO2) laser in 5 patients.

Syringomas are common benign eccrine ductal adnexial tumors, commonly found in periorbital area. Periorbital syringomas are aesthetically disturbing difficult to treat. Many treatment modalities are described in the literature, including topical and surgical methods, with potential problems such as postinflammatory hyper- and hypopigmentation, low efficacy, or scar formation.

The first case of tinea faciei caused by Trichophyton mentagrophytes var. erinacei isolated in Chile.

Background: Trichophyton mentagrophytes var. erinacei is a zoophilic dermatophyte transmitted by hedgehogs which human infections manifest as highly inflammatory and pruritic eruptions.

Methods: We report a 21-year-old woman who presented with a two-week history of a pruritic scaly erythematous plaque on the nose.

Focal cortical dysplasia: a pictorial review.

Abnormalities of cortical development are frequent causes of refractory epilepsy. Among these pathologies, focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) is a heterogeneous group of disorders pathologically characterized by loss of normal cortical structure. Two distinct entities with different etiology have been described (FCD type I and FCD type II Taylor).

Tidal volume is a major determinant of cyclic recruitment-derecruitment in acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Background: Overdistension and cyclic recruitment-derecruitment contribute to ventilator-induced lung injury. High tidal volumes are thought to increase mortality mainly by inducing overdistension. However, experimental evidence suggests that tidal volume (VT) may also influence cyclic recruitment-derecruitment.

Involvement of several transcriptional regulators in the differential expression of tfd genes in Cupriavidus necator JMP134.

Cupriavidus necator JMP134 has been extensively studied because of its ability to degrade chloroaromatic compounds, including the herbicides 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 3-chlorobenzoic acid (3-CB), which is achieved through the pJP4-encoded chlorocatechol degradation gene clusters: tfdCIDIEIFI and tfdDIICIIEIIFII. The present work describes a different tfd-genes expression profile depending on whether C. necator cells were induced with 2,4-D or 3-CB.

Altered chemokine receptor expression in papillary thyroid cancer.

Background: Papillary thyroid cancer (PTC), the most prevalent type of differentiated thyroid carcinoma, displays a strikingly high frequency of lymph node metastasis (LNM). Recent data suggest that chemokines can play an important role in promoting tumor progression and metastatic migration of tumor cells. Here we have evaluated whether PTC tissues express a different pattern of chemokine receptors and if the expression of these receptors correlates with LNM.

Hemorrhagic cystitis secondary to adenovirus infection in a kidney transplant recipient: case report.

Increasingly potent immunosuppressive agents have reduced the incidence of rejection of transplanted organs while increasing patient susceptibility to opportunistic infections and cancer. Adenoviruses are increasingly recognized as contributors to morbidity and mortality in stem cell and solid-organ transplant recipients. Clinical findings range from asymptomatic viremia to respiratory and gastrointestinal disease, hemorrhagic cystitis, and severe disseminated illness.

Factors that predict duration of delayed graft function in cadaveric kidney transplantation.

Introduction: We have previously shown that the duration of delayed graft function (DGF) is a significant predictor of serum creatinine concentration at 1 year posttransplantation, which may be a surrogate marker for kidney survival after renal transplantation.

Objective: To identify donor and recipient characteristics that influence the duration of DGF in a 2-center study.

Patients And Methods: This retrospective analysis of 212 consecutive cadaveric renal transplant procedures examined the following variables: donor and recipient age and sex, cause of death (cerebrovascular accident or trauma), donor creatinine and sodium concentrations, multiorgan or kidney-only donor use, type of vasoactive drugs, cold ischemia time, percent reactive antibodies, and HLA mismatch.

c-Abl modulates AICD dependent cellular responses: transcriptional induction and apoptosis.

APP intracellular domain (AICD) has been proposed as a transcriptional inductor that moves to the nucleus with the adaptor protein Fe65 and regulates transcription. The two proteins, APP and Fe65, can be phosphorylated by c-Abl kinase. Neprilysin has been proposed as a target gene for AICD.

Survival and maturation rates of the African rodent, Mastomys natalensis: density-dependence and rainfall.

Survival and maturation rates of female Mastomys natalensis were analysed based on a ten-year monthly capture-recapture data set. We investigated whether direct and delayed density dependent and independent (rainfall) variables accounted for the considerable variation in demographic traits. It was estimated that seasonal and annual covariates accounted for respectively 29 and 26% of the total variation in maturation rates and respectively 17 and 11% of the variation in survival rates.

Melanotic nonpsammomatous trigeminal schwannoma as the first manifestation of Carney complex: case report.

Objective: Melanotic schwannoma is a rare neoplasm, classifiable as a peripheral nerve sheath tumor, and differentiated from a typical schwannoma by heavy pigmentation. Psammoma bodies can be visualized in more than 50% of melanotic schwannomas. Half of patients with such "psammomatous melanotic schwannomas" have Carney complex, a dominantly transmitted autosomal disorder.

Usefulness of monitoring fertility from menarche.

The concept of the ovarian cycle as a continuum considers that all types of ovarian activity encountered during the reproductive life are responses to different environmental conditions in order to ensure the health of the woman. During the normal ovulatory cycle, a series of sequential events have to occur in a highly synchronized manner. Fertility awareness is useful in helping women to identify the different stages of their reproductive life cycle.

Assembly of spermatid acrosome depends on microtubule organization during mammalian spermiogenesis.

The acrosome is a secretory vesicle attached to the nucleus of the sperm. Our hypothesis is that microtubules participate in the membrane traffic between the Golgi apparatus and acrosome during the first steps of spermatid differentiation. In this work, we show that nocodazole-induced microtubule depolarization triggers the formation of vesicles of the acrosomal membrane, without detaching the acrosome from the nuclear envelope.

Is the Chilean diet a Mediterranean-type diet?

Food intake in Chile has changed markedly in the last decades, showing an increase in fat consumption and presently a small fruit and vegetables intake. A parallel is made between the Chilean and Mediterranean diet (mainly the one from Spain, Italy, and Greece), both currently and from 50 years ago. The main differences and similarities are based on food availability.

Hepatic cholesterol transport from plasma into bile: implications for gallstone disease.

Purpose Of Review: The transhepatic traffic of cholesterol from plasma lipoproteins into the bile is critical for overall cholesterol homeostasis and its alterations may lead to cholesterol gallstone formation. This review summarizes recent progress in understanding the key hepatic cholesterol metabolism-related proteins and pathways that influence biliary secretion of cholesterol.

Recent Findings: In cholesterol-fed apolipoprotein E knockout mice, the availability of dietary cholesterol for biliary disposal is decreased and diet-induced gallstone formation is impaired.

Differential expression of lysosomal associated membrane protein (LAMP-1) during mammalian spermiogenesis.

The mammalian acrosome is a secretory vesicle of mature sperms that plays an important role in fertilization. Recent evidence had pointed out that some components found at endosomes in somatic cells are associated with the developing acrosome during the early steps of spermiogenesis. Moreover, the mammalian acrosome contains many enzymes found within lysosomes in somatic cells.

Determination of chromium in urine samples by complexation-supercritical fluid extraction and liquid or gas chromatography.

A method was developed for the determination of chromium as the Cr(acac)(3) complex in urine using SFE and chromatography. Quantitative extractions were achieved when the experiments were carried out under 3000 p.s.

First-trimester pregnancy loss and active Chlamydia trachomatis infection: correlation and ultrastructural evidence.

The incidence of Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) infection and the possible correlation between couples presenting with first-trimester spontaneous abortions and active Ct infection was assessed. Additionally, the ability of Ct to infect zona-free hamster oocytes was explored by incubating the oocytes with spermatozoa from infected patients. A total of 961 women and 750 men consulting our reproductive medicine centre were screened for Ct using direct immunofluorescence.