LKB1 and AMPKα1 are required in pancreatic alpha cells for the normal regulation of glucagon secretion and responses to hypoglycemia.

Aims/hypothesis: Glucagon release from pancreatic alpha cells is required for normal glucose homoeostasis and is dysregulated in both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. The tumour suppressor LKB1 (STK11) and the downstream kinase AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), modulate cellular metabolism and growth, and AMPK is an important target of the anti-hyperglycaemic agent metformin. While LKB1 and AMPK have emerged recently as regulators of beta cell mass and insulin secretion, the role of these enzymes in the control of glucagon production in vivo is unclear.

Respective performance of 18F-FDG PET and radiolabeled leukocyte scintigraphy for the diagnosis of prosthetic valve endocarditis.

Unlabelled: Echocardiography plays a key role in the diagnosis of infective endocarditis (IE) but can be inconclusive in patients in whom prosthetic valve endocarditis (PVE) is suspected. The incremental diagnostic value of (18)F-FDG PET and radiolabeled leukocyte scintigraphy in IE patients has already been reported. The aim of this study was to compare the respective performance of (18)F-FDG PET and leukocyte scintigraphy for the diagnosis of PVE in 39 patients.

Searching for a link between the L-BMAA neurotoxin and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a study protocol of the French BMAALS programme.

Introduction: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most common motor neurone disease. It occurs in two forms: (1) familial cases, for which several genes have been identified and (2) sporadic cases, for which various hypotheses have been formulated. Notably, the β-N-methylamino-L-alanine (L-BMAA) toxin has been postulated to be involved in the occurrence of sporadic ALS.

Osteoprotegerin is not a determinant of metabolic syndrome in sub-Saharan Africans after age adjustment.

Objectives: Osteoprotegerin (OPG), a soluble member of tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily that inhibits bone resorption, has been suggested as a cardiovascular risk factor in humans. In this study, we aim to investigate the potential relationship between OPG and MetS (MetS) in a sub-Saharan African population.

Methods: Four hundred and eleven volunteers (152 men, 259 women) aged ≥18 years recruited from the general population in Douala and Edea, Cameroon participated in this study.

New advances in treating thrombotic diseases: GPVI as a platelet drug target.

The recent introduction of highly effective antiplatelet drugs has contributed to the significant improvement in the treatment of acute coronary syndromes. However, limitations remain. Recurrence of ischaemic vascular events results in poor prognosis.

Thermodynamic aspects of the self-assembly of DsrA, a small noncoding RNA from Escherichia coli.

DsrA is an Escherichia coli small noncoding RNA that acts by base pairing to some mRNAs in order to control their translation and turnover. It was recently shown that DsrA is able to self-associate in a way similar to DNA and to build nanostructures. Although functional consequence of this RNA self-assembly in vivo is not yet understood, the formation of such an assemblage more than likely influences the noncoding RNA function.

Animal models of osteoarthritis for the understanding of the bone contribution.

Osteoarthritis characterizes the joint disease that results in cartilage damage accompanied by bone lesions and synovial inflammation. Joint integrity results from physiological interactions between all these tissues. Local factors such as cytokines and growth factors regulate cartilage remodeling and metabolism as well as chondrocyte differentiation and survival.

Influence of migration on characteristics of type 2 diabetes in sub-Saharan Africans.

Aim: This study compared the clinical and biochemical characteristics and microvascular complications found in three groups of type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients: Africans living in Africa; African immigrants living in France; and Caucasians living in France.

Methods: Diagnosed T2D Africans living in Cameroon (n=100) were compared with 98 African migrants diagnosed with T2D after having moved to France, and a group of 199 T2D Caucasian patients living in France. All underwent clinical and biochemical evaluations, and all were assessed for microvascular complications.

Relationship between the proteasomal system and autophagy.

TWO MAJOR PATHWAYS DEGRADE MOST CELLULAR PROTEINS IN EUKARYOTIC CELLS: the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), which usually degrades the majority of proteins, and autophagy, primarily responsible for the degradation of most long-lived or aggregated proteins and cellular organelles. Disruption of these processes can contribute to pathology of a variety of diseases. Further, both pathways are critical for the maintenance of several aspects of cellular homeostasis, but, until recently, were thought to be largely distinct.

Role of radiolabelled leucocyte scintigraphy in patients with a suspicion of prosthetic valve endocarditis and inconclusive echocardiography.

Aims: In patients with a suspicion of prosthetic valve endocarditis (PVE), detection of perivalvular infection can be difficult based only on echocardiography. The aim of this retrospective study was to test the interest of radiolabelled leucocyte scintigraphy (LS) for the detection of perivalvular infection in patients with a suspicion of PVE and inconclusive transoesophageal echocardiography (TEE).

Methods And Results: LS was performed in 42 patients.

Animal models in OA: a means to explore bone.

Cartilage damage which characterizes osteoarthritis is accompanied with bone lesions. Joint integrity results from the balance in the physiological interactions between bone and cartilage. Several local factors regulate physiological remodeling of cartilage, the disequilibrium of these leading to a higher cartilage catabolism.

β- and α-cell dysfunctions in africans with ketosis-prone atypical diabetes during near-normoglycemic remission.

Objective: Ketosis-prone atypical diabetes (KPD) is a subtype of diabetes in which the pathophysiology is yet to be unraveled. The aim of this study was to characterize β- and α-cell functions in Africans with KPD during remission.

Research Design And Methods: We characterized β- and α-cell functions in Africans with KPD during remission.

Fechner as a pioneering theorist of unconscious cognition.

Fechner remains virtually unknown for his psychological research on the unconscious. However, he was one of the most prominent theorists of unconscious cognition of the 19th century, in the context of the rise of scientific investigations on the unconscious in German psychology. In line with the models previously developed by Leibniz and Herbart, Fechner proposes an explanative system of unconscious phenomena based on a modular conception of the mind and on the idea of a functional dissociation between representational and attentional activity.

Desmin mutations in the terminal consensus motif prevent synemin-desmin heteropolymer filament assembly.

Disorganization of the desmin network is associated with cardiac and skeletal myopathies characterized by accumulation of desmin-containing aggregates in the cells. Multiple associations of intermediate filament proteins form a network to increase mechanical and functional stability. Synemin is a desmin-associated type VI intermediate filament protein.

Sustained gonadotropin-releasing hormone stimulation mobilizes the cAMP/PKA pathway to induce nitric oxide synthase type 1 expression in rat pituitary cells in vitro and in vivo at proestrus.

Previous in vivo studies have established that pituitary nitric oxide synthase type 1 (NOS1) is regulated by gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). The aim of our study was to elucidate the mechanisms of NOS1 regulation by GnRH in rat pituitary cells. Using a perifused cell system, we demonstrated that NOS1 induction was sensitive to GnRH pulse frequency and was maximally induced under continuous GnRH stimulation.

Tips and tricks for preparing lampbrush chromosome spreads from Xenopus tropicalis oocytes.

Due to their large size and fine organization, lampbrush chromosomes (LBCs) of amphibian oocytes have been for decades one of the favorite tools of biologists for the analysis of transcriptional and post-transcriptional processes at the cytological level. The emergence of the diploid Xenopus tropicalis amphibian as a model organism for vertebrate developmental genetics and the accumulation of sequence data made available by its recent genomic sequencing, strongly revive the interest of LBCs as a powerful tool to study genes expressed during oogenesis. We describe here a detailed protocol for preparing LBCs from X.

Carbon black and titanium dioxide nanoparticles induce pro-inflammatory responses in bronchial epithelial cells: need for multiparametric evaluation due to adsorption artifacts.

The initiation of an inflammatory process is the main adverse effect observed following the exposure of the airway epithelium to nanoparticles (NPs). This study was designed to explore the pro-inflammatory potential of two different NPs of similar size but of different compositions (CB 13 nm and TiO(2) 15 nm) on a human bronchial epithelial cell line (16HBE14o-). The expression of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), interleukin (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) was evaluated in terms of mRNA, intracellular proteins, and released cytokines.

The central nervous system at the core of the regulation of energy homeostasis.

Energy homeostasis is kept through a complex interplay of nutritional, neuronal and hormonal inputs that are integrated at the level of the central nervous system (CNS). A disruption of this regulation gives rise to life-threatening conditions that include obesity and type-2 diabetes, pathologies that are strongly linked epidemiologically and experimentally. The hypothalamus is a key integrator of nutrient-induced signals of hunger and satiety, crucial for processing information regarding energy stores and food availability.

Oxidative stress and proinflammatory effects of carbon black and titanium dioxide nanoparticles: role of particle surface area and internalized amount.

The ubiquitous presence of nanoparticles (NPs) together with increasing evidence linking them to negative health effects points towards the need to develop the understanding of mechanisms by which they exert toxic effects. This study was designed to investigate the role of surface area and oxidative stress in the cellular effects of two chemically distinct NPs, carbon black (CB) and titanium dioxide (TiO(2)), on the bronchial epithelial cell line (16HBE14o-). CB and TiO(2) NPs were taken up by 16HBE cells in a dose-dependent manner and were localized within the endosomes or free in the cytoplasm.

April 2009: an outbreak of swine-origin influenza A(H1N1) virus with evidence for human-to-human transmission.

A swine-origin influenza A(H1N1) virus is currently responsible for an outbreak of infections in the human population, with laboratory-confirmed cases reported in several countries and clear evidence for human-to-human transmission. We provide a description of the outbreak at the end of April 2009, and a brief review of the zoonotic potential of swine influenza viruses.

Multitissue insulin resistance despite near-normoglycemic remission in Africans with ketosis-prone diabetes.

Objective: To characterize insulin action in Africans with ketosis-prone diabetes (KPD) during remission.

Research Design And Methods: At Saint-Louis Hospital, Paris, France, 15 African patients with KPD with an average 10.5-month insulin-free near-normoglycemic remission period (mean A1C 6.