Increased trophoblast expression of NFAT5/TonEBP in pre-eclamptic placentas and hyperosmolar-treated BeWo cells.

Objectives: To assess the concentrations of inositol and sorbitol, and determine the expression of related osmolyte factors [nuclear factor of activated T cells 5, also known as tonicity responsive binding protein (NFAT5/TonEBP); sodium myo-inositol transporter (SLC5A3); and aldose reductase] in placentas of pre-eclamptic (PE) patients and trophoblast BeWo cells subjected to hypertonic stress in vitro.

Study Design: Control and PE placentas were collected. BeWo cells were cultured and subjected to a hyperosmolar solution for 4h.

Decreased expression of phosphorylated placental heat shock protein 27 in human and ovine intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR).

Introduction: Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) has been documented to increase placental apoptosis at term. HSP27 has been shown to be involved in the control of apoptosis. Our objective is to determine the expression of phosphorylated HSP27 (p-HSP27) in human IUGR, and to determine the role of HSP27 during gestation in an ovine hyperthermia induced model of IUGR.

ACR appropriateness criteria® radiologic management of thoracic nodules and masses.

Pulmonary and mediastinal masses represent a wide range of pathologic processes with very different treatment options. Although advances in imaging (such as PET and high-resolution CT) help in many cases with the differential diagnosis of thoracic pathology, tissue samples are frequently needed to determine the best management for patients presenting with thoracic masses. There are many options for obtaining tissue samples, each of which has its own set of benefits and drawbacks.

Placental TonEBP/NFAT5 osmolyte regulation in an ovine model of intrauterine growth restriction.

TonEBP/NFAT5 (the tonicity-responsive enhancer binding protein/nuclear factor of activated T cells) modulates cellular response to osmotic changes by accumulating inositol and sorbitol inside the cells. Our objective was to assess placental osmolytes, TonEBP/NFAT5 RNA and protein expression, and signaling molecules across gestation between control and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) ovine pregnancies. Pregnant sheep were placed in hyperthermic conditions to induce IUGR.

Increased placental XIAP and caspase 3 is associated with increased placental apoptosis in a baboon model of maternal nutrient reduction.

Objective: Our objective was to determine signaling molecules and apoptosis rate in the term placenta of a baboon model of maternal nutrient reduction (MNR).

Study Design: Female baboons were fed ad libitum for controls (n = 7) or 70% of control baboon diet (MNR; n = 6) from 30-165 days of gestation with necropsy at 165 days of gestation. Placental tissues were collected and fixed for immunohistochemistry or snap frozen to measure extracellular signal-regulated kinases, protein kinase B, JUN NH(2)-terminal kinase, X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein, and caspase 3.

Placental mammalian target of rapamycin and related signaling pathways in an ovine model of intrauterine growth restriction.

Objective: Both phosphorylated (p) mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and protein S6 kinase 1 (p70S6K) are known to regulate protein synthesis and are affected during intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). We studied the mTOR pathway during hyperthermia (HT)-induced IUGR in sheep.

Study Design: Beginning at 40 days gestational age, 4 ewes were exposed to HT for 55 days and 4 were exposed for 80 days to induce IUGR.

Primary repair of civilian colon injuries is safe in the damage control scenario.

Background: Although the safety of primary repair/anastomosis for civilian colon injuries after standard laparotomy (SL) has been established, recent civilian and military reports have questioned the advisability of this technique in the patient requiring damage control laparotomy (DL). We hypothesized that, even in the high-risk DL group, primary repair could be safely used after patient stabilization and that the open abdomen would facilitate the safety of this procedure.

Methods: All patients admitted to our level 1 trauma center with a colon injury over a 7-year period were reviewed from a prospectively collected database.

Surgical treatment of movement disorders.

Surgical approaches are an important consideration in the management of many movement disorders, particularly for patients refractory to medications. In this article, we review the history, pathophysiology, risks and indications for surgical treatment. Summaries of case studies, case series and clinical trials performed using deep brain stimulation are provided for Parkinson's disease, dystonia, essential tremor and other movement disorders.

Physical therapy utilization in intensive care units: results from a national survey.

Objective: Patients who survive admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) commonly complain of fatigue, weakness, and poor functional status. This study sought to determine the utilization of inpatient physical therapy (PT) for patients recovering from critical illness.

Design: Surveys were mailed to 984 physical therapists from across the United States.

Left ventricular assist device outflow cannula obstruction by the rare environmental fungus Myceliophthora thermophila.

Left ventricular assist devices are used to provide mechanical circulatory support during end-stage heart failure either as a destination therapy or as a bridge to heart transplantation. Perioperative transesophageal echocardiography is becoming an invaluable tool to investigate device function during implantation and in case of mechanical malfunction. Most malfunctions are due to inflow graft occlusion, or device malfunction, while outflow graft dysfunction is rare.

Glucose replacement to euglycemia causes hypoxia, acidosis, and decreased insulin secretion in fetal sheep with intrauterine growth restriction.

Nutritional interventions for intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) have raised concerns for fetal toxicity, the mechanisms of which are unknown. Most of these attempts did not aim to normalize fetal metabolic conditions. Therefore, we used a model of IUGR to determine whether normalization of fetal hypoglycemia for 2 wks would be tolerated and increase insulin concentrations and pancreatic beta-cell mass.

The epidemiology of sepsis.

Sepsis is a common and devastating syndrome that represents a significant healthcare burden worldwide. The average annual cost to care for patients with sepsis has been estimated to being $16.7 billion.

Localization of Kv2.2 protein in Xenopus laevis embryos and tadpoles.

Voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels sculpt neuronal excitability and play important developmental roles. Kv channels consist of pore-forming alpha- and auxiliary subunits. For many Kv alpha-subunits, existing mRNA probes and antibodies have allowed analysis of expression patterns, typically during adult stages.

Presence of de novo mutations in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease patients without family history.

Background: At the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, on detailed questioning, approximately 10% of patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) gave no family history of ADPKD. There are several explanations for this observation, including occurrence of a de novo pathogenic sequence variant or extreme phenotypic variability. To confirm de novo sequence variants, we have undertaken clinical and genetic screening of affected offspring and their parents.

Dorsal-ventral gradient for neuronal plasticity in the embryonic spinal cord.

Within the developing Xenopus spinal cord, voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channel genes display different expression patterns, many of which occur in opposing dorsal-ventral gradients. Regional differences in Kv gene expression would predict different patterns of potassium current (I(Kv)) regulation. However, during the first 24 h of postmitotic differentiation, all primary spinal neurons undergo a temporally coordinated upregulation of I(Kv) density that shortens the duration of the action potential.

Rohon-Beard sensory neurons are induced by BMP4 expressing non-neural ectoderm in Xenopus laevis.

Rohon-Beard mechanosensory neurons (RBs), neural crest cells, and neurogenic placodes arise at the border of the neural- and non-neural ectoderm during anamniote vertebrate development. Neural crest cells require BMP expressing non-neural ectoderm for their induction. To determine if epidermal ectoderm-derived BMP signaling is also involved in the induction of RB sensory neurons, the medial region of the neural plate from donor Xenopus laevis embryos was transplanted into the non-neural ventral ectoderm of host embryos at the same developmental stage.

Expected Power for the False Discovery Rate with Independence.

The Benjamini-Hochberg procedure is widely used in multiple comparisons. Previous power results for this procedure have been based on simulations. This article produces theoretical expressions for expected power.

Baculovirus-infected insect cells expressing peptide-MHC complexes elicit protective antitumor immunity.

Evaluation of T cell responses to tumor- and pathogen-derived peptides in preclinical models is necessary to define the characteristics of efficacious peptide vaccines. We show in this study that vaccination with insect cells infected with baculoviruses expressing MHC class I linked to tumor peptide mimotopes results in expansion of functional peptide-specific CD8+ T cells that protect mice from tumor challenge. Specific peptide mimotopes selected from peptide-MHC libraries encoded by baculoviruses can be tested using this vaccine approach.

The need for anticoagulation following inferior vena cava filter placement: systematic review.

Purpose: To perform a systemic review to determine the effect of anticoagulation on the rates of venous thromboembolism (pulmonary embolus, deep venous thrombosis, inferior vena cava (IVC) filter thrombosis) following placement of an IVC filter.

Methods: A comprehensive computerized literature search was performed to identify relevant articles. Data were abstracted by two reviewers.

Molecular determinants of milk lipid secretion.

Mammary epithelial cells secrete lipids by an envelopment process that produces lipid droplets coated by membranes derived from the plasma membrane and possibly secretory vesicles. This secretion process, which resembles viral budding, is hypothesized to be mediated by specific interactions between molecules on the surface of intracellular lipids and membrane elements of the cell. Multiple lines of evidence indicate that milk lipid secretion occurs through a tripartite complex between the integral transmembrane protein, butyrophilin (BTN); the soluble metabolic enzyme, xanthine oxidoreductase (XOR); and the lipid droplet surface protein, adipophilin (ADPH).

Type I interferon signaling is involved in the spontaneous development of lupus-like disease in B6.Nba2 and (B6.Nba2 x NZW)F(1) mice.

Several studies have described a role for type I interferons (IFNalphabeta) in the initiation and/or prolongation of autoimmune diseases. Most pronounced has been the association of disease activity with what is now known as 'the interferon signature' of gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from lupus patients. In correlation, studies have shown that inhibition of IFNalphabeta signaling abrogates disease in various mouse models of lupus.

Finasteride and high-grade prostate cancer in the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial.

Background: The Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT) reported a decreased incidence of prostate cancer overall but an increase in the incidence of high-grade prostate cancer with finasteride compared with placebo. We assessed whether the increased high-grade prostate cancer associated with finasteride in the PCPT was due to finasteride's potential effects on tumor morphology or prostate size.

Methods: Prostate biopsies with Gleason score 8-10 (n = 90, finasteride; n = 52, placebo) were examined histologically for hormonal effects, and those with Gleason score 7-10 (n = 282, finasteride; n = 244, placebo) were examined for pathologic surrogates of disease extent.