Vasovagal death from screwdriver stabbing of the neck.

A 40-year-old male victim of an assault with a screwdriver died from vasovagal inhibition as a result of stabbing to the neck. The rare mechanism of death was established after an autopsy. The need to avoid contaminating and adversely modifying clinical forensic evidence is emphasized.

The effect of a special nurse on patients' knowledge of epilepsy and their emotional state. Epilepsy Evaluation Care Group.

Background: People with epilepsy often report being given insufficient information and support. However, there is little evidence from general practice about how much they know and how they feel.

Aim: To describe social differences in the knowledge of epilepsy of people with the condition and test the potential effect of a nurse intervention in general practice on patients' knowledge and depression levels.

Moderate supplementation with natural alpha-tocopherol decreases platelet aggregation and low-density lipoprotein oxidation.

Previous studies have shown that oral administration of 300 mg alpha-tocopherol/day to healthy volunteers decreases platelet function and enhances their sensitivity to the platelet inhibitor, prostaglandin E(1), when full dose-response curves to a range of agonist concentrations are made. In this study, the effects of oral doses of natural alpha-tocopherol (75, 200 and 400 IU/day) were studied in order to determine whether the same effects might be achieved with lower intakes of vitamin E and whether inhibition is related to the platelet levels of the antioxidant in platelet membranes. Twenty two subjects undertook the supplementation regime, divided into three units of 2 weeks, each cycling through each of the dosages.

Tiredness as a ticket of entry. The role of patients' beliefs and psychological symptoms in explaining frequent attendance. General Practice Fatigue Group.

Objectives: To test when patients presented with fatigue whether their beliefs about its cause was related to their frequency of attending; and to measure the association between their fatigue and psychological symptoms and their frequency of attendance during the study year.

Design: A cohort study.

Setting: Primary health care.

The very long-term prognosis and complications of lupus nephritis and its treatment.

Although the short- and medium-term (5-10 years) outcome of patients with lupus nephritis has been studied extensively, there are very few data on the second and subsequent decades. We studied outcome in 110 local patients investigated at a single centre before 1986, who all had potential follow-up of more than 10 years (actual 2-31 years, median 15.5 years).

Inhibition of nitrous acid-dependent tyrosine nitration and DNA base deamination by flavonoids and other phenolic compounds.

Exposure of tyrosine or DNA bases to acidic nitrite at low pH results in the nitration of tyrosine and the formation of base deamination products, respectively. At pH 1, hypoxanthine and xanthine are formed from the deamination of adenine and guanine, respectively, whereas under the same conditions, uracil is not detected. The yield of 3-nitrotyrosine derived from interaction of equimolar nitrite and tyrosine at pH 1 is approximately 50% of that obtained from equimolar peroxynitrite-tyrosine interactions at pH 7.

Characterization and partial purification of a novel 36 kDa peripheral myelin protein recognized by the sera of patients with neurological disorders.

Sera of some patients with acquired sensory neuropathy, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy and motor neuron disease have high titres of IgG autoantibodies to a minor human peripheral nerve glycoprotein of approximately 36 kDa. This protein cofractionated with PNS myelin and was also found in bovine and rat nerve but not in CNS myelin or other nonneural human tissues. The N-terminal sequence revealed that this protein is related to the major myelin protein P0.

Effect of loading on bone regenerated at implant dehiscence sites in humans.

Few investigations have studied the long-term fate of bone formed following the technique of guided tissue regeneration. The aim of the present study was to evaluate bone fill around implant fixtures with dehiscence defects and to study its response to loading. Ten patients were treated with overdentures supported by 2 fixtures ad modum Brånemark.

Fgf-8 determines rostral-caudal polarity in the first branchial arch.

In mammals, rostral ectomesenchyme cells of the mandibular arch give rise to odontogenic cells, while more caudal cells form the distal skeletal elements of the lower jaw. Signals from the epithelium are required for the development of odontogenic and skeletogenic mesenchyme cells. We show that rostral-caudal polarity is first established in mandibular branchial arch ectomesenchymal cells by a signal, Fgf-8, from the rostral epithelium.

Luteolin-rich artichoke extract protects low density lipoprotein from oxidation in vitro.

Flavonoids represent a diverse group of phytochemicals which possess the capacity to act as antioxidants in vitro. This study examined the free radical scavenging properties of a luteolin-rich artichoke extract and some of its pure flavonoid constituents by assessing their ability to prevent Cu2+-mediated LDL oxidation. Artichoke extract retarded LDL oxidation in a dose-dependent manner as measured by a prolongation of the lag phase to conjugated diene formation, a decrease in the rate of propagation and a sparing of endogenous LDL alpha-tocopherol during oxidation.

Expression of Gbx-2 during early development of the chick embryo.

Gbx-2 is required for the normal development of the anterior hindbrain. Since much of our understanding of the normal development of this region derives from studies of avian embryos, we have determined the expression of Gbx-2 in chick embryos at stages relevant to the regionalization of the hindbrain. As the neural plate forms transcripts already have a clear anterior limit of expression and, subsequently, occupy a domain extending from the extreme posterior midbrain to the rhombomere 3/4 boundary.

Expression of CD44 variant exons by primary and metastatic oral squamous carcinomas.

Abnormal CD44 expression in many neoplasms correlates with behaviour, but reports on its role in oral squamous carcinoma are contradictory. CD44 expression was characterised in a closely matched series of oral carcinomas with and without metastases in both frozen and formalin-fixed tissue and correlated with behaviour and histological grading parameters. Eleven primary oral squamous carcinomas without metastases and nine primary carcinomas with 19 matched metastases were stained immunocytochemically for CD44H and products of variant exons v3, v4/5, v6 and v9.

Presymptomatic detection of familial juvenile hyperuricaemic nephropathy in children.

We studied 34 apparently healthy children and 2 propositi from kindreds with familial juvenile hyperuricaemic nephropathy (FJHN) - a disorder characterised by early onset, hyperuricaemia, gout, familial renal disease and a similarly low urate clearance relative to glomerular filtration rate (GFR) [fractional excretion of uric acid (FEur) 5.1+/-1.6%] in young men and women.

Urinary detection of hydroxycinnamates and flavonoids in humans after high dietary intake of fruit.

The determination of the abilities of flavonoids, hydroxycinnamates and phenolics to scavenge free radicals in vitro suggests potent combined antioxidant activities of fruits, vegetables, beverages and grains. However, the key question of uptake in humans has only recently been approached consistently. The study described here demonstrates the uptake of hydroxycinnamates, for the first time, and other phenolic components, applying an HPLC method for their detection in the urine of subjects consuming levels of specific fruit equivalent to an approximate intake of 25 mg flavonol glycosides.

Management of acute neuromuscular paralysis.

The diagnosis of acute neuromuscular paralysis includes central nervous system disorders, peripheral neuropathy, neuromuscular conduction block and muscle disease. Identification of the cause is largely a clinical problem but neurophysiological investigations are often essential and a few specific tests are helpful. The commonest cause is Guillain-Barré syndrome.

Control of cell cycle gene expression in bone development and during c-Fos-induced osteosarcoma formation.

We have used c-Fos transgenic mice which develop osteosarcomas to determine the expression patterns of cyclins, cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CKIs) in different bone cell populations in order to define the potential mechanisms of c-Fos transformation. Immunohistochemical analysis in embryonic and early postnatal bone demonstrated that cyclin E and its kinase partner CDK2 were expressed specifically in bone-forming osteoblasts. Cyclin D1 expression was absent despite high levels of CDK4 and CDK6, and the CKI p27 was expressed in chondrocytes, osteoclasts, and at lower levels in osteoblasts.

Quantitative analysis of DNase I digestion patterns of oligo- and polynucleosomes.

DNase I digestion of unlabelled chromatin has been used to determine the orientation of nucleosomes in the higher-order structure of chromatin. DNA digestion patterns were analysed quantitatively and compared with simulation curves that were generated with the experimentally obtained rate constants for cutting inside nucleosomes and the half-height widths of the bands. The rate constants for cutting at the linker DNA were varied to fit the experimental curves.

The effect of oral corticosteroids on bronchodilator responses in COPD.

There have been suggestions that corticosteroid treatment might improve bronchodilator responses in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We have studied bronchodilator responses to salbutamol and to oxitropium bromide in 20 patients with stable moderate to severe COPD. Dose responses to the two bronchodilators were tested before and after 3 week courses of placebo and 30 mg prednisolone.