Stroke associated with central nervous system vasculitis after West Nile virus infection.

We report the association of West Nile virus infection, isolated vasculitis, and stroke in a 9-year-old girl. West Nile virus is of growing epidemiologic importance and should be considered in the differential diagnosis of stroke etiologies, especially during late summer and in patients with a history of exposure in areas where West Nile virus transmission is present.

Role of angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibition in patients with renal disease.

Clinical studies evaluating the benefits of angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitor therapy in patients likely to develop renal disease are reviewed. Patients with diabetes or hypertension are at increased risk for development of renal disease. In patients with diabetic nephropathy, captopril therapy was associated with a 50% reduction in the risk of death, dialysis, and transplantation and a significantly smaller increase in serum creatinine compared with placebo.

Stereolithographic models of biopolymers.

Stereolithography (STL) has been used to make plastic models of the solvent accessible surfaces of biopolymers. Models have been made of proteins and proteins bound to DNA and RNA. The STL process uses a laser to photopolymerize a liquid resin.

PCR monitoring for tetracycline resistance genes in subgingival plaque following site-specific periodontal therapy. A preliminary report.

Background: The selection of antibiotic resistance genes during antibiotic therapy is a critical problem complicated by the transmission of resistance genes to previously sensitive strains via conjugative plasmids and transposons and by the transfer of resistance genes between gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The purpose of this investigation was to monitor the presence of selected tetracycline resistance genes in subgingival plaque during site specific tetracycline fiber therapy in 10 patients with adult periodontitis.

Method: The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used in separate tests for the presence of 3 tetracycline resistance genes (tetM, tetO and tetQ) in DNA purified from subgingival plaque samples.

In vitro cytotoxicity of solid epoxy-based dental resins and their components.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of adding a spiroorthocarbonate (SOC) or a polyol on the cytotoxicity of epoxy-based dental resins.

Methods: Resins contained one of the epoxies: diglycidyl ether Bisphenol A (GY-6004); 3,4-epoxycyclohexanemethyl-3,4-epoxycyclohexane carboxylate (UVR-6105); vinyl cyclohexane dioxide (ERL-4206) or the three-epoxy mixture (Epoxy-M). The SOC was t/t-2,3,8,9-di(tetramethylene)-1,5,7,11-tetraoxaspiro[5.

Pharmacological regulation of striatal gene expression by metabotropic glutamate receptors.

Metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR) are densely expressed by striatal medium spiny neurons. Activation of mGluR in this brain region alters local transmitter release and behaviors of experimental animals. In particular, mGluR regulate transcription factor and neuropeptide gene expression in striatal neurons through their connections with multiple intracellular effectors.

Current methods of finish-line exposure by practicing prosthodontists.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to survey members of The American College of Prosthodontists to evaluate current methods of finish-line exposure. In addition, frequency of use of epinephrine compounds and observed side effects were assessed.

Materials And Methods: A questionnaire was mailed to the 2,436 members of The American College of Prosthodontists.

Judging the effectiveness of analgesia for children and adolescents during vaso-occlusive events of sickle cell disease.

The effectiveness of analgesia during sickle cell crisis was examined in this descriptive, exploratory study. Pain scores (using the African-American Oucher and the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool) and analgesics administered were examined during a 2-hour observation/interview in the hospital while children/adolescents with sickle cell disease (SCD) experienced a vaso-occlusive episode (VOE). A convenience sample of twenty-one 6- to 16-year olds with SCD was included.

Time management behaviors as potential explanatory factors in dental academic achievement.

DAT scores and predental GPAs have made the greatest but an imperfect contribution to the reliable estimation of dental students' academic success. One variable unaddressed yet having potential in accounting for unexplained variability in dental school performance is time management behaviors (TMB), a multidimensional attribute that is critical to success in a dental curriculum. Research has indicated a relationship of TMB dimensions (Setting Goals and Priorities, Mechanics of Time Management, Preference for Organization) with undergraduate academic achievement.

Localization of pro-opiomelanocortin mRNA transcripts and peptide immunoreactivity in rat heart.

Objective: alpha-Melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH), beta-endorphin and other pro-opiomelanocortin-(POMC) derived peptides have been detected in the heart, but it is uncertain whether they are synthesized by cardiomyocytes or by cardiac nerves innervating the heart. The objective of this study was to determine whether POMC peptides are synthesized by cardiomyocytes.

Methods: Pro-opiomelanocortin peptides were localized in rat heart by immunohistochemistry using antisera against alpha-MSH, beta-endorphin and alpha N-acetyl-beta-endorphin, the predominant POMC peptides found in heart.

Dimensional stability of thermosensitive gutta-percha.

The expansion and shrinkage of four commercial brands of endodontic thermosensitive gutta-percha were evaluated. A modified volume dilatometry technique was used; the dilatometric system (DS) consisted of Pyrex glass capillary tubes and a specimen chamber. Each sample was weighed to 10(-4) mg, placed in the specimen chamber, and subjected to vacuum for 45 min to eliminate moisture or gases.

Differential innervation of individual melanotropes suggests a role for nonsynaptic inhibitory regulation of the developing and adult rat pituitary intermediate lobe.

Dopamine and GABA were detected in intermediate lobe axons around birth, and early axons were closely apposed to glial cells and processes, possibly using them for guidance. In the adult, axons containing colocalized dopamine and GABA were distributed in a distinct pattern within the lobe, with plexuses located dorsally and ventrally. Axons preferentially followed glial processes in interlobular septa, yet were also interspersed between melanotropes.

Combining the analyses of three qualitative data sets in studying young caregivers.

Adolescent care of the adult with cancer led the authors to choose three qualitative methods to describe this unexplored phenomenon. In this study, phenomenology, ethnography and unstructured survey were combined to provide a more complete picture of the phenomenon. Data from interviews with 11 youngsters within seven family units, observations, and unstructured questionnaire, demographic data from and field notes were analysed and combined.

Effects of tetracycline hydrochloride and chlorhexidine gluconate on Candida albicans. An in vitro study.

This study examined the effects of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCN) and chlorhexidine gluconate (CHX) on the growth and viability of Candida albicans. Subcultures of Candida albicans on Sabouraud's agar, were divided into 5 treatment groups: group 1, untreated control; group 2, 0.12% CHX; group 3, 3.

Mitochondrial, but not peroxisomal, beta-oxidation of fatty acids is conserved in coenzyme A-deficient rat liver.

Hepatic coenzyme A (CoA) plays an important role in cellular lipid metabolism. Because mitochondria and peroxisomes represent the two major subcellular sites of lipid metabolism, the present study was designed to investigate the specific impact of hepatic CoA deficiency on peroxisomal as well as mitochondrial beta-oxidation of fatty acids. CoA deficiency (47% decrease in free CoA and 23% decrease in total CoA) was produced by maintaining weanling male Sprague-Dawley rats on a semipurified diet deficient in pantothenic acid (the precursor of CoA) for 5 weeks.

Antagonistic effects of isofloxythepin on dopamine D1 and D2 receptors and behaviors in rats.

1. In vitro, isofloxythepin competed for the binding of [3H]SCH 23390 to striatal D1 receptors and for the binding of [3H]spiperone to striatal D2 receptors with IC50 values of 6.1 (+/- 1.

Low pharmacist counseling rates in the Kansas City, Missouri, metropolitan area.

Objective: To quantify the percentage of patients counseled by community-based pharmacists.

Methods: Phase I consisted of a 15-minute observational period of pharmacist counseling in 50 randomly selected pharmacies in the Kansas City, MO, area. In phase II, a survey was mailed to the same pharmacies to obtain policies, self-reported rates of counseling, baseline workload, and personnel information, as well as perceived communication barriers.

Histologic evaluation of soft tissue attachment to CO2 laser-treated root surfaces: an in vivo study.

There is little support in the dental literature to justify the use of lasers for periodontal root therapy. To the contrary, there are several in vitro studies suggesting potentially adverse effects when lasers are applied to root surfaces. The purpose of this study was to evaluate, in vivo, soft tissue attachment to root surfaces following CO2 laser irradiation.

G-protein expression in melanotropes changes coincident with innervation of the developing rat pituitary intermediate lobe.

The two isoforms of the dopamine D2 receptor, the D2short and the D2long differ in a 29 amino acid insert in the third cytoplasmic loop with which G proteins interact. We have previously reported that in rat melanotropes, expression of D2short increases markedly at the end of the first postnatal week which is concurrent with innervation of the intermediate lobe. Using immunohistochemistry, this study examined expression of G alpha i1/2, G alpha i3, G alpha o and G alpha s proteins before and after dopaminergic innervation.

Effects of CO2 laser irradiation on tooth-root cementum.

With the aging of the American population and the endemic problem of gingival recession, patients will inevitably suffer from greater exposure of root surfaces and therefore will be more likely to develop root caries. The treatment of root caries is often frustrating. Traditional biomaterials used for the restoration of enamel caries have been less than satisfactory when margins of a cavity are adjacent to cementum.

Attenuation of antipsychotic-induced hyperprolactinemia with clozapine.

Hyperprolactinemia is a well-known consequence of conventional antipsychotic therapy. The atypical antipsychotic clozapine is reported to lack this effect. We describe a case of attenuated serum prolactin levels after conversion to clozapine therapy in an adolescent.

Activated Kupffer cells attenuate the liver response to the peroxisome proliferator perfluorooctanoic acid.

It has been suggested that peroxisome proliferators stimulate Kupffer cells, an effect which may be involved in their mechanism of action. To evaluate this hypothesis, this study was designed to investigate the effect of stimulating Kupffer cells on basal as well as induced peroxisomal enzyme activity. Twenty four hours following treatment of male Sprague-Dawley rats with the peroxisome proliferating agent perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), in corn oil or with corn oil alone, hepatic peroxisomal beta-oxidation was 4.

Sjögren's syndrome salivary gland immunopathology: increased laminin expression precedes lymphocytic infiltration.

Previous studies have demonstrated increased expression of a laminin-like protein in labial salivary glands from Sjögren's syndrome (SS) patients. The objective of the present study was to verify the identity of this protein and to compare lymphocytic infiltration and laminin expression in minor salivary gland ductal epithelium. This was carried out by comparing laminin protein and laminin mRNA expression in 13 SS patients, 11 normal controls, and 12 patients with non-specific sialoadenitis.