Relationship between blood pressure, cognitive function and education level in elderly patients with diabetes: a preliminary study.

Aims: This study aimed to assess the relationship between blood pressure and cognitive function in elderly patients with diabetes mellitus (DM).

Methods: A total of 32 patients with DM aged ≥ 65 years (seven women and 25 men; mean ± SD age: 74.3 ± 6.

2012 Liver resections in the 21st century: we are far from zero mortality.

Objectives: Recent improvements in surgical technique have extended the indications for liver resection. The aims of this study were to assess whether this extension is associated with a changing patient profile and to evaluate how this potential shift has influenced mortality after liver resection in order to define standard expectations for hepatectomy.

Methods: The characteristics and postoperative outcomes of all patients undergoing elective hepatectomy from 2000 to 2009 were reviewed retrospectively.

Exacerbated CSF abnormalities in younger patients with Alzheimer's disease.

Increasing age is the most important risk factor for developing Alzheimer's disease (AD). The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between age and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of β-amyloid (Aβ 1-42), total Tau and phosphorylated Tau (pTau-181), in AD and non-AD patients explored for cognitive disorders. 966 patients (AD, n=528; non-AD, n=438) were included between January 2008 and December 2010 (mean age, 69.

Surgical results after downstaging of initially marginal or non-resectable liver metastases.

Surgery remains the best curative treatment for resectable patients with colorectal liver metastases. In patients initially considered unresectable, both refinements in surgical technique using portal vein occlusion or two-step resections and increased efficiency of chemotherapy regimen with the adjunction of antiangiogenics now allow secondary resection. Recent evidence suggests almost identical long-term survival in case of secondary downstaged lesions advocating an aggressive approach.

Laparoscopic hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy: indications, aims, and results: a systematic review of the literature.

Purpose: To evaluate laparoscopic hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) with neoadjuvant, adjuvant, or palliative purpose in order to discuss potential clinical implications.

Methods: A systematic search of PubMed's Medline through August 2011 using the keywords laparoscopic, hyperthermic, and chemotherapy.

Results: Eight studies encompassing a total of 183 patients were considered.

CSF Aβ₁₋₄₂ levels and glucose metabolism in Alzheimer's disease.

Glucose dysmetabolism has been consistently associated with an increased risk of cognitive disorders, and brain insulin resistance could play a role in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. Recent evidence suggests that cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers may reflect the brain pathology in AD. We have investigated the relationship between CSF concentrations of amyloid-β peptide 1-42 (Aβ₁₋₄₂), total tau, and phosphorylated tau (ptau-181) and plasma and CSF glucose levels in a cohort of 94 newly diagnosed non-diabetics AD patients.

Late steps of ribosome assembly in E. coli are sensitive to a severe heat stress but are assisted by the HSP70 chaperone machine.

The late stages of 30S and 50S ribosomal subunits biogenesis have been studied in a wild-type (wt) strain of Escherichia coli (MC4100) subjected to a severe heat stress (45-46°C). The 32S and 45S ribosomal particles (precursors to 50S subunits) and 21S ribosomal particles (precursors to 30S subunits) accumulate under these conditions. They are authentic precursors, not degraded or dead-end particles.

Cytoreductive surgery associated to hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemoperfusion for desmoplastic round small cell tumor with peritoneal carcinomatosis in young patients.

Purpose: Desmoplastic round small cell tumor (DRSCT) is a rare intraabdominal mesenchymal tissue neoplasm in young patients and spreads through the abdominal cavity. Its prognosis is poor despite a multimodal therapy including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgical cytoreduction (CS). hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) is considered as an additional strategy in the treatment of peritoneal carcinomatosis; for this reason, we planned to treat selected cases of children with DRSCT using CS and HIPEC.

Inverse association between CSF Aβ 42 levels and years of education in mild form of Alzheimer's disease: the cognitive reserve theory.

In Alzheimer's disease (AD), the cognitive reserve theory predicts that at any level of assessed clinical severity, the underlying brain pathology is more advanced in patients with more cognitive reserve. Recent evidences suggest that cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers may reflect the brain pathology in AD. We investigated the relationship between education level and CSF concentrations of β-amyloid, total tau and phosphorylated tau (ptau-181) in a cohort of 70 subjects newly diagnosed with AD.

The 2009 A (H1N1) influenza virus pandemic: A review.

In March and early April 2009 a new swine-origin influenza virus (S-OIV), A (H1N1), emerged in Mexico and the USA. The virus quickly spread worldwide through human-to-human transmission. In view of the number of countries and communities which were reporting human cases, the World Health Organization raised the influenza pandemic alert to the highest level (level 6) on June 11, 2009.

Integrons and antibiotic resistance in phylogenetic group B2 Escherichia coli.

It has been reported that Escherichia coli B2 phylogenetic group strains are more susceptible to antibiotics, especially to quinolones, and tend to carry less integrons than other phylogenetic groups in commensal environments. To gain a better understanding of the relationships between antibiotic resistance, integrons, and phylogenetic groups in an environment with high antibiotic selective pressure, we compared these characteristics in three selected groups of urinary tract infection E. coli isolated in a university hospital (G1, G2, and G3).

Development of aortic valve implantation.

Aortic valve stenosis is an important public-health problem in Europe and is predicted to increase with the aging population. Management of severe symptomatic aortic stenosis is by surgical replacement of the aortic valve whenever feasible. Improvement in the perioperative management has permitted surgical intervention in high-risk patients.

A quantitative assessment of gene expression (QAGE) reveals differential overexpression of DOPEY2, a candidate gene for mental retardation, in Down syndrome brain regions.

The brain alterations and mental retardation in Down syndrome are associated with overdosage of chromosome 21 genes. To shed light on the understanding of the molecular effect of this genetic overdosage, gene expression studies have crucial importance to quantify expression variations in Down syndrome tissues compared to normal ones. Herein, an in situ Quantitative Assessment of Gene Expression (QAGE) was used to quantify and statistically analyze, for the first time, DOPEY2 expression variations in different regions of the Down syndrome human fetal brains and to compare them to corresponding normal brains.

Long-acting lanreotide in adolescent girls with constitutional tall stature.

Background/aims: The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of lanreotide prolonged release (PR) 30 mg (long-acting lanreotide) in girls with constitutional tall stature (CTS).

Methods: This open label prospective study included 35 girls (mean age 12.6 years) with CTS and a predicted adult height of >180 cm.

Ischemic complications after pancreaticoduodenectomy: incidence, prevention, and management.

Objective: To assess prevalence, prevention, and management strategy of visceral ischemic complications after pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD).

Background: Ischemic complications after PD resulting from preexisting celiac axis (CA), superior mesenteric artery (SMA), stenosis, or intraoperative arterial trauma appear as an underestimated cause of death. Their prevention and adequate management are challenging.

Ribosome biogenesis is temperature-dependent and delayed in Escherichia coli lacking the chaperones DnaK or DnaJ.

In Escherichia coli strains carrying null mutations in either the dnaK or dnaJ genes, the late stages of 30S and 50S ribosomal subunit biogenesis are slowed down in a temperature-dependent manner. At high temperature (44 degrees C), 32S and 45S particles (precursors to 50S subunits) and 21S particles (precursors to 30S subunits) accumulate. The latter are shown by 3'5' rapid amplification of cDNA ends analysis to contain unprocessed or partially processed 16S ribosomal RNA at the 5' end, but the 3' end was never processed.

p53 dependent cell-cycle arrest triggered by chemotherapy in xenografted breast tumors.

The major long-term prognostic factor for breast cancer patients treated by first-line chemotherapy is response to treatment. We have previously shown that complete responses to high doses epirubicin-cyclophosphamide were observed only in human tumors bearing a TP53 mutation. Three xenografted human breast tumors, 2 of them with a TP53 mutation and one of them without, were studied for their immediate response to this drug association.

Clinical impact of somatostatin receptor scintigraphy in the management of tumor-induced osteomalacia.

Objective: Tumor-induced osteomalacia (TIO) is a rare condition due to phosphate wasting secondary to the release of a phosphatonin, fibroblast growth factor-23. Attempts to identify the tumor by physical examination and/or conventional imaging are sometimes unrewarding. In such cases, somatostatin receptor scintigraphy with octreotide has been successfully proposed.

Open hepatic parenchymal transection using ultrasonic dissection and bipolar coagulation.

Liver transection is the most challenging part of liver resection due to the risk of massive blood loss which is associated with increased postoperative morbidity and mortality, as well as reduced long-term survival after resection of malignancies. Among the devices used for open parenchyma transection, ultrasonic dissection with bipolar cautery forceps is one of the most widely used technique worldwide. We identified four retrospective comparative studies and three randomized controlled trials dealing with the efficacy of ultrasonic dissector (UD) compared with other techniques including the historical clamp crushing technique.

Retinal and renal complications in patients with a mutation of mitochondrial DNA at position 3,243 (maternally inherited diabetes and deafness). A case-control study.

Aims/hypothesis: We assessed the prevalence and determinants of retinal and renal complications in patients with maternally inherited diabetes and deafness (MIDD).

Methods: This was a multicentre prospective study comparing the prevalence of retinopathy and renal disease in 74 patients with MIDD and 134 control patients matched for sex, age and clinical presentation at onset of diabetes, duration of diabetes and current treatment. Comparisons were adjusted for HbA(1c) and hypertension.

Inhibition of chaperone-dependent bacterial ribosome biogenesis.

In Escherichia coli, the molecular chaperone HSP70 (DnaK) is necessary for 30S and 50S ribosomal subunit assembly at temperatures above 37 degrees C. Inhibitors of DnaK should therefore hinder ribosome biogenesis, in addition to all of the other DnaK-dependent cellular functions. An easily testable phenotype of DnaK is described here based on alpha-complementation of beta-galactosidase.

New pharmacologic therapies for acute heart failure.

Given the limitations of high-dose diuretics and vasodilators and the increasing literature showing that inotropes, regardless of the dose used, have a detrimental effect on mortality, a variety of new agents are under investigation for the treatment of pulmonary and systemic congestion and restoration of cardiac output in the setting of acute heart failure syndromes. The new therapeutic approach is based on two goals: short-term improvement in symptoms together with long-term improvement of cardiac function. This review describes new agents that are in preclinical and in clinical phases with realistic prospects: anti-endothelin, natriuretic peptides, istaroxime, levosimendan, myosin activators, and vasopressin antagonists.

Anti-inflammatory effect of ibuprofen-loaded embolization beads in sheep uterus.

Embolization of blood vessels may result in a variety of side effects which can include pain and inflammation. The objective of this study was to assess the release and effect of ibuprofen (IBU) from Bead Block microspheres (BB) loaded with IBU (IBU-BB) on the foreign body inflammatory reaction in a sheep uterine artery model. Both uterine arteries of 12 hormonally cycled ewes were embolized with 0.

Mental retardation and associated neurological dysfunctions in Down syndrome: a consequence of dysregulation in critical chromosome 21 genes and associated molecular pathways.

Down syndrome (DS), affecting 1/700 live births, is the major genetic cause of mental retardation (MR), a cognitive disorder with hard impact on public health. DS brain is characterized by a reduced cerebellar volume and number of granular cells, defective cortical lamination and reduced cortical neurons, malformed dendritic trees and spines, and abnormal synapses. These neurological alterations, also found in trisomic mouse models, result from gene-dosage effects of Human Chromosome 21 (HC21) on the expression of critical developmental genes.