Influence of Co-Cr particles and Co-Cr ions on the growth of staphylococcal biofilms.

Purpose: In the last decades, hip prostheses with a metal-on-metal (MOM) bearing have been implanted by orthopedic surgeons worldwide. However, concerns are now raised towards the metal particles and degradation products released by MOM-bearings into surrounding tissue, although effects of Co-Cr wear on infection are also unknown. Therefore, we here determine the viable volumes of staphylococcal biofilms formed on polystyrene in the absence and presence of Co-Cr particles and Co-Cr ions.

The prognostic value of multivoxel magnetic resonance spectroscopy determined metabolite levels in white and grey matter brain tissue for adverse outcome in term newborns following perinatal asphyxia.

Objective: Magnetic resonance spectroscopy can identify brain metabolic changes in perinatal asphyxia by providing ratios of metabolites, such as choline (Cho), creatine (Cr), N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) and lactate (Lact) [Cho/Cr, Lact/NAA, etc.]. The purpose of this study was to quantify the separate white and grey matter metabolites in a slab cranial to the ventricles and relate these to the outcome.

Salt sensitivity of minimal twin arginine translocases.

Bacterial twin arginine translocation (Tat) pathways have evolved to facilitate transport of folded proteins across membranes. Gram-negative bacteria contain a TatABC translocase composed of three subunits named TatA, TatB, and TatC. In contrast, the Tat translocases of most Gram-positive bacteria consist of only TatA and TatC subunits.

Bacterial cell surface damage due to centrifugal compaction.

Centrifugal damage has been known to alter bacterial cell surface properties and interior structures, including DNA. Very few studies exist on bacterial damage caused by centrifugation because of the difficulty in relating centrifugation speed and container geometry to the damage caused. Here, we provide a simple, versatile method of analysis for describing the compaction of bacteria during centrifugation based on a proposed centrifugation coefficient, C.

Latent cytomegalovirus infection is an independent risk factor for late graft failure in renal transplant recipients.

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a risk factor for rejection and mortality soon after renal transplantation. Little is known about its consequences longer after transplantation. We prospectively investigated whether latent CMV infection is a risk factor for graft failure and mortality long after transplantation.

Fully 3-dimensional digitally planned reconstruction of a mandible with a free vascularized fibula and immediate placement of an implant-supported prosthetic construction.

Background: Reconstruction of craniofacial defects becomes complex when dental implants are included for functional rehabilitation. We describe a fully 3-dimensional (3D) digitally planned reconstruction of a mandible and immediate prosthetic loading with a fibula graft in a 2-step surgical approach.

Methods: A 54-year-old man had development of osteoradionecrosis of the mandible.

Cold spots in neonatal incubators are hot spots for microbial contamination.

Thermal stability is essential for the survival and well-being of preterm neonates. This is achieved in neonatal incubators by raising the ambient temperature and humidity to sufficiently high levels. However, potentially pathogenic microorganisms also can thrive in such warm and humid environments.

Subcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation: a feasible and new method for the treatment of patients with refractory angina.

Introduction:   Patients suffering from chronic angina pectoris, insufficiently controllable with medication and revascularization, are an increasing medical and psychosocial problem. Although spinal cord stimulation (SCS) is proven to employ, safe, long-term anti-angina, and anti-ischemic effects for these patients, the use of SCS in this group remains limited. The reason for this restricted use is largely unknown.

Single implants with different neck designs in the aesthetic zone: a randomized clinical trial.

Objectives: To compare single implants in the aesthetic zone with different neck designs for marginal bone-level changes and clinical outcome measures.

Materials And Methods: Ninety-three patients with a missing anterior tooth in the maxilla were randomly assigned to be treated with an implant with a 1.5 mm smooth neck ("smooth group"), a moderately rough neck with grooves ("rough group") or a scalloped moderately rough neck with grooves ("scalloped-group").

Antiproteinuric treatment reduces urinary loss of vitamin D-binding protein but does not affect vitamin D status in patients with chronic kidney disease.

Vitamin D deficiency is common in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Increased urinary loss of vitamin D binding protein (VDBP), the main transporter of 25-hydroxyvitamin D(3) in the circulation, has been postulated to contribute to vitamin D deficiency in proteinuria. To test this hypothesis we analyzed urinary and plasma levels of VDBP, 25-hydroxyvitamin D(3) and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) from proteinuric patients, before and after antiproteinuric interventions.

Composition and architecture of biofilms on used voice prostheses.

Background: Biofilms on medical devices are a frequent reason for failure of the device. Voice prostheses in laryngectomized patients deteriorate within 3 to 4 months due to adhering biofilms, impeding proper functioning. Recently, we showed that these biofilms are dominated by Candida and lactobacilli.

Rapid screening method for compounds that affect the growth and germination of Candida albicans, using a real-time PCR thermocycler.

We propose a screening method for compounds affecting growth and germination in Candida albicans using a real-time PCR thermocycler to quantify green fluorescent protein (GFP) fluorescence. Using P(ACT1)-GFP and P(HWP1)-GFP reporter strains, the effects of a wide range of compounds on growth and hyphal formation were quantitatively assessed within 3 h after inoculation.

A fusion-loop antibody enhances the infectious properties of immature flavivirus particles.

Flavivirus-infected cells secrete a mixture of mature, partially immature, and fully immature particles into the extracellular space. Although mature virions are highly infectious, prM-containing fully immature virions are noninfectious largely because the prM protein inhibits the cell attachment and fusogenic properties of the virus. If, however, cell attachment and entry are facilitated by anti-prM antibodies, immature flavivirus becomes infectious after efficient processing of the prM protein by the endosomal protease furin.

Survival of adhering staphylococci during exposure to a quaternary ammonium compound evaluated by using atomic force microscopy imaging.

Effects of a quaternary ammonium compound (QAC) on the survival of adhering staphylococci on a surface were investigated using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Four strains with different minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentrations (MBC) for the QAC were exposed to three different concentrations of the QAC in potassium phosphate buffer (0.5×, 1×, and 2× MBC) while adhering to glass.

A common first-order time-to-contact based control of hand-closure initiation in catching and grasping.

To catch or grasp an object, the initiation of hand closure has to be coordinated with the relative movement between hand and object. In search of a common control of the initiation of hand closure for both tasks (van de Kamp, Bongers, & Zaal, 2010), the authors studied two tasks, catching while keeping the hand stationary and prehension. They showed that the initiation of hand closure could well be based on first-order time-to-contact in the prehension task but not in the catching task studied.

Cross talk between the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and vitamin D-FGF-23-klotho in chronic kidney disease.

There is increasingly evidence that the interactions between vitamin D, fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23), and klotho form an endocrine axis for calcium and phosphate metabolism, and derangement of this axis contributes to the progression of renal disease. Several recent studies also demonstrate negative regulation of the renin gene by vitamin D. In chronic kidney disease (CKD), low levels of calcitriol, due to the loss of 1-alpha hydroxylase, increase renal renin production.

MR intensity measurements of nondenervated muscle in patients following severe forearm trauma.

Fluid increases resulting in higher MRI signal intensities in T(2) -weighted and short tau inversion recovery (STIR) sequences can be used to diagnose nerve injury. By comparing the signal intensities over time, MRI may become a new method for monitoring the healing process. Muscle edema is assessed by comparing the signal intensity of affected muscle with that of nonaffected muscle.

Trans-eQTLs reveal that independent genetic variants associated with a complex phenotype converge on intermediate genes, with a major role for the HLA.

For many complex traits, genetic variants have been found associated. However, it is still mostly unclear through which downstream mechanism these variants cause these phenotypes. Knowledge of these intermediate steps is crucial to understand pathogenesis, while also providing leads for potential pharmacological intervention.

Single-tooth implants with different neck designs: a randomized clinical trial evaluating the aesthetic outcome.

Aim: To evaluate the aesthetic outcome of single-tooth implants in the aesthetic zone with different neck designs from a professional's and patient's perception.

Materials And Methods: Ninety-three patients with a missing anterior tooth in the maxilla were randomly assigned to be treated with an implant with a smooth neck, a rough neck with grooves or a scalloped rough neck with grooves. Implants were installed in healed sites.

Role of eDNA on the adhesion forces between Streptococcus mutans and substratum surfaces: influence of ionic strength and substratum hydrophobicity.

The aim of this study was to investigate the role of extracellular DNA (eDNA) on the adhesion strength of Streptococcus mutans LT11 on substrata with different hydrophobicities at high and low ionic strengths. AFM adhesion forces to a hydrophilic and hydrophobic substratum increased with increasing surface-delay times and ionic strength and were stronger on a hydrophobic than on a hydrophilic substratum. The presence of eDNA on the streptococcal cell surface enhanced its adhesion force to a hydrophobic substratum significantly more than to a hydrophilic substratum, especially after bond maturation.

Wnt signaling and Dupuytren's disease.

Background: Dupuytren's disease is a benign fibromatosis of the hands and fingers that leads to flexion contractures. We hypothesized that multiple genetic and environmental factors influence susceptibility to this disease and sought to identify susceptibility genes to better understand its pathogenesis.

Methods: We conducted a genomewide association study of 960 Dutch persons with Dupuytren's disease and 3117 controls (the discovery set) to test for association between the disease and genetic markers.

prM-antibody renders immature West Nile virus infectious in vivo.

West Nile virus (WNV) is a member of the family Flaviviridae and is a neurotropic pathogen responsible for severe human disease. Flavivirus-infected cells release virus particles that contain variable numbers of precursor membrane (prM) protein molecules at the viral surface. Consequently, antibodies are produced against the prM protein.

Surface shaving as a versatile tool to profile global interactions between human serum proteins and the Staphylococcus aureus cell surface.

The human commensal bacterium Staphylococcus aureus is renowned as a causative agent of severe invasive diseases. Upon entering the bloodstream, S. aureus can infect almost every tissue and organ system in the human body.

Statistical analysis of long- and short-range forces involved in bacterial adhesion to substratum surfaces as measured using atomic force microscopy.

Surface thermodynamic analyses of microbial adhesion using measured contact angles on solid substrata and microbial cell surfaces are widely employed to determine the nature of the adhesion forces, i.e., the interplay between Lifshitz-van der Waals and acid-base forces.