[Protein catabolism after lung transplantation and heart transplantation].

Any surgical intervention is associated with an activation of protein catabolism, the extent of which is dependent on the severity of surgical trauma. There is a paucity of reports on protein catabolism after transplantation of chest organs (lung transplantation (LTX) and heart transplantation (HTX)). The aim of the present study was to quantify and compare the extent of postoperative protein catabolism and associated metabolic perturbations in patients after LTX and HTX.

Structural investigations on small RNA molecules using different force field methods.

The structures of two kinds of small RNA hairpin loops were investigated. As an example of four-membered loops the family of GNNA-loops was chosen, and the influence of a variation of the two middle bases on the rather uncommon G-A base pair was examined. Comparison of the resulting structures showed surprisingly little dependence on the sequence for the overall structure and for the G-A base pair geometry.

[Myocardial metabolism during the pre-ischemic administration of metabolic myocardial protection in coronary surgical patients].

Metabolic myocardial preservation by means of preischemic insulin administration (glucose-potassium-insulin, GPI; acute parenteral alimentation, APA) with the aim of a preischemic myocardial glycogen enrichment was performed in 20 consecutive CABG patients (12 in the APA group, 8 in the control group). Before and after 30 min of an infusion (APA or 0.9% NaCl solution), blood levels of potassium, glucose, NEFA (non-esterified fatty acids) and lactate were determined from arterial (a), central venous (cv) and coronary sinus (cs) blood.