Late thrombotic occlusion of a malapposed stent 10 months after intracoronary brachytherapy

We report a patient who received a stent following intracoronary 3-irradiation. Despite a good initial angiographic result, the stent appeared to be not fully expanded on intravascular ultrasound imaging at 6-month follow-up. Four months later, sudden thrombotic occlusion occurred shortly after aspirin cessation.     

Microtubule plus-ends reveal essential links between intracellular polarization and localized modulation of endocytosis during division-plane establishment in plant cells

Background  

A key event in plant morphogenesis is the establishment of a division plane. A plant-specific microtubular preprophase band (PPB) accurately predicts the line of cell division, whereas the phragmoplast, another plant-specific array, executes cell division by maintaining this predicted line. Although establishment of these specific arrays apparently involves intracellular repolarization events that focus cellular resources to a division site, it still remains unclear how microtubules position the cell division planes. Here we study GFP-AtEB1 decorated microtubule plus-ends to dissect events at the division plane.     

Polymorphisms in the glucocorticoid receptor gene that modulate glucocorticoid sensitivity are associated with rheumatoid arthritis

Introduction  

The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) plays an important regulatory role in the immune system. Four polymorphisms in the GR gene are associated with differences in glucocorticoid (GC) sensitivity; the minor alleles of the polymorphisms N363 S and BclI are associated with relative hypersensitivity to GCs, while those of the polymorphisms ER22/23EK and 9β are associated with relative GC resistance. Because differences in GC sensitivity may influence immune effector functions, we examined whether these polymorphisms are associated with the susceptibility to develop Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and RA disease severity.     

Aspects of early arthritis. Definition of disease states in early arthritis: remission versus minimal disease activity

With regard to rheumatoid arthritis, remission as currently used in the literature can have two meanings: either a state with persistent absence of clinical and radiological signs of disease activity without being treated for a specific time period, or it may point to a disease state with minimal disease activity during antirheumatic treatment. A risk factor for the first is absence of autoantibodies, with the anti-CCP-antibodies as best predictors, whereas risk factors for achieving a drug-induced state of minimal disease activity are not well defined. These definitions of remission refer to different disease states; therefore, we propose that the term remission is reserved for patients that are not treated with antirheumatic drugs.     

Phylogenetic relationships within the aplocheiloid fish genus Rivulus (Cyprinodontiformes, Rivulidae): implications for Caribbean and Central American biogeography

We examined the phylogenetic relationships of 16 northern species of the aplocheiloid genus Rivulus inhabiting the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. A total of 714 base pairs per taxon were sequenced from two segments of the mitochondrial genome, 12S rRNA and cytochrome b. Both parsimony and neighbor-joining analyses suggest an ancient vicariant origin of the Greater Antillean taxa, in addition to a quite recent dispersal of species into the Lesser Antilles from the South American mainland. Combined analyses support the monophyly of the northern South American assemblage as the sister group of a Central American/Columbian biota. However, the monophyly of the Central American biota remains uncertain. Divergence estimates for the Central American taxa are calibrated from the Last Cretaceous separation of the proto-Antilles from the Americas. These data suggest that the extant Central American taxa represent the descendants of at least two separate invasions during the Cenozoic, prior to the closing of the Panamanian isthmus. Times are consistent with the extensive evidence for reptilian and mammalian exchange throughout the Cenozoic.      

An intragenic distribution bias of DNA uptake sequences in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pasteurellaceae</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Neisseriae</Emphasis>

   

Most sequenced strains from Pasteurellaceae and Neisseriae contain hundreds to thousands of uptake sequence (US) motifs in their genome, which are associated with natural competence for DNA uptake. The mechanism of their recognition is still unclear, and I searched for intragenic location patterns of these motifs for clues about their distribution. In all cases, one orientation of the US has a higher occurrence in the reading frame, and in all Pasteurellaceae, the US and the reverse complement motifs are biased towards the gene termini. These findings could help design experimental set-ups to study preferential DNA uptake, thereby further unravelling the phenomenon of natural competence.     

Glucocorticoid receptor gene polymorphisms and disease activity during pregnancy and the postpartum period in rheumatoid arthritis

Introduction

The mechanism underlying the spontaneous improvement of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) during pregnancy and the subsequent postpartum flare is incompletely understood, and the disease course varies widely between pregnant RA patients. In pregnancy, total and free levels of cortisol increase gradually, followed by a postpartum decrease to prepregnancy values. The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) polymorphisms BclI and N363S are associated with relatively increased glucocorticoid (GC) sensitivity, whereas the 9β and ER22/23EK polymorphisms of the GR gene are associated with a relatively decreased GC sensitivity. We examined the relation between the presence of these GR polymorphisms and level of disease activity and disease course of RA during pregnancy and postpartum.

Methods

We studied 147 participants of the PARA study (Pregnancy-Induced Amelioration of Rheumatoid Arthritis study), a prospective study investigating the natural improvement during pregnancy and the postpartum flare in women with RA. Patients were visited, preferably before pregnancy, at each trimester and at three postpartum time points. On all occasions, disease activity was scored by using DAS28. All patients were genotyped for the GR polymorphisms BclI, N363S, 9β, and ER22/23EK and divided in groups harboring either polymorphisms conferring increased GC sensitivity (BclI and N363S; GC-S patients) or polymorphisms conferring decreased GC sensitivity (9β or 9β + ER22/23EK; GC-I patients). Data were analyzed by using a mixed linear model, comparing GC-S patients with GC-I patients with respect to improvement during pregnancy and the postpartum flare. The cumulative disease activity was calculated by using time-integrated values (area under the curve, AUC) of DAS28 in GC-I patients versus GC-S patients. Separate analyses were performed according to the state of GC use.

Results

GC-S patients treated with GC had a significantly lower AUC of DAS28 in the postpartum period than did GC-I patients. This difference was not observed in patients who were not treated with GCs. During pregnancy, GC-S and GC-I patients had comparable levels of disease activity and course of disease.

Conclusions

Differences in relative GC sensitivity, as determined by GR polymorphisms, are associated with the level of disease activity in the postpartum period in GC-treated patients, but they do not seem to influence the course of the disease per se.     

Reappraisal of the diagnostic and prognostic value of morning stiffness in arthralgia and early arthritis: results from the Groningen EARC,Leiden EARC,ESPOIR, Leiden EAC and REACH

IntroductionMorning stiffness is assessed daily in the diagnostic process of arthralgia and arthritis, but large-scale studies on the discriminative ability are absent. This study explored the diagnostic value of morning stiffness in 5,202 arthralgia and arthritis patients and the prognostic value in early rheumatoid arthritis (RA).MethodsIn arthralgia patients referred to the Early Arthritis Recognition Clinics (EARC) of Leiden (n = 807) and Groningen (n = 481) or included in the Rotterdam Early Arthritis Cohort (REACH) study (n = 353), the associations (cross-sectional analyses) between morning stiffness and presence of arthritis at physical examination were studied. In early arthritis patients, included in the Leiden Early Arthritis Clinic (EAC) (n = 2,748) and Evaluation et Suivi de POlyarthrites Indifférenciées Récentes (ESPOIR) (n = 813), associations with fulfilling the 2010-RA criteria after one year were assessed. In 2010-RA patients included in the EAC (n = 1,140) and ESPOIR (n = 677), association with the long-term outcomes of disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD)-free sustained remission and radiological progression were determined. Morning stiffness was defined as a duration ≥60 minutes; sensitivity analyses were performed for other definitions.ResultsIn arthralgia, morning stiffness (≥60 minutes) associated with the presence of arthritis; Leiden EARC odds ratio (OR) 1.49 (95% CI 1.001 to 2.20), Groningen EARC OR 2.21 (1.33 to 3.69) and REACH OR 1.55 (0.97 to 2.47) but the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUCs) were low (0.52, 0.57, 0.54). In early arthritis, morning stiffness was associated with 2010-RA independent of other predictors (Leiden EAC OR 1.72 (95% CI 1.31 to 2.25, AUC 0.68), ESPOIR OR 1.68 (1.03 to 2.74, AUC 0.64)). Duration of ≥30 minutes provided optimal discrimination for RA in early arthritis. Morning stiffness was not associated with radiological progression or DMARD-free sustained remission.ConclusionsMorning stiffness in arthralgia and early arthritis is associated with arthritis and RA respectively. This supports the incorporation of morning stiffness in the diagnostic process.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13075-015-0616-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Effects of cycloheximide on a cytoplasmic factor initiating meiotic maturation in Xenopus oocytes

Oocytes induced to undergo meiotic maturation by progesterone possess a cytoplasmic activity that causes germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD). The cytoplasmic factor postulated to be responsible for this activity is designated as the maturation promoting factor (MPF). The activity of MPF was assayed by injecting cytoplasm into fully-grown oocytes to induce GVBD. It was found that maturing oocyte cytoplasm possesses MPF activity before GVBD begins. Treatment of progesterone stimulated oocytes with cycloheximide, either applied externally or injected, inhibited the appearance of MPF in the cytoplasm as well as GVBD when the inhibitor treatment was initiated before the cytoplasm exhibited MPF activity. In contrast, the same treatment did not inhibit GVBD when it was applied to oocytes after the cytoplasm possessed MPF activity. Furthermore, cycloheximide treatment of recipient oocytes did not inhibit the induction of GVBD by injected cytoplasm containing MPF. Cytoplasm of oocytes injected with MPF subsequently possessed MPF activity as high as that of the original donor cytoplasm in spite of its extensive dilution. This suggests that amplification of MPF took place in the recipient. Cycloheximide treatment did not inhibit the amplification of MPF. It was concluded that cycloheximide inhibits only the initial phase of induction of MPF activity, but neither its amplification nor its action on the nucleus that causes GVBD. From these results, a hypothesis concerning the cytoplasmic mechanism for the induction of GVBD has been proposed.