Accuracy of mean arterial pressure and blood pressure measurements in predicting pre-eclampsia: systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective To determine the accuracy of using systolic and diastolic blood pressure, mean arterial pressure, and increase of blood pressure to predict pre-eclampsia.Design Systematic review with meta-analysis of data on test accuracy.Data sources Medline, Embase, Cochrane Library, Medion, checking reference lists of included articles and reviews, contact with authors.Review methods Without language restrictions, two reviewers independently selected the articles in which the accuracy of blood pressure measurement during pregnancy was evaluated to predict pre-eclampsia. Data were extracted on study characteristics, quality, and results to construct 2×2 tables. Summary receiver operating characteristic curves and likelihood ratios were generated for the various levels and their thresholds.Results 34 studies, testing 60 599 women (3341 cases of pre-eclampsia), were included. In women at low risk for pre-eclampsia, the areas under the summary receiver operating characteristic curves for blood pressure measurement in the second trimester were 0.68 (95% confidence interval 0.64 to 0.72) for systolic blood pressure, 0.66 (0.59 to 0.72) for diastolic blood pressure, and 0.76 (0.70 to 0.82) for mean arterial pressure. Findings for the first trimester showed a similar pattern. Second trimester mean arterial pressure of 90 mm Hg or more showed a positive likelihood ratio of 3.5 (95% confidence interval 2.0 to 5.0) and a negative likelihood ratio of 0.46 (0.16 to 0.75). In women deemed to be at high risk, a diastolic blood pressure of 75 mm Hg or more at 13 to 20 weeks’ gestation best predicted pre-eclampsia: positive likelihood ratio 2.8 (1.8 to 3.6), negative likelihood ratio 0.39 (0.18 to 0.71). Additional subgroup analyses did not show improved predictive accuracy.Conclusion When blood pressure is measured in the first or second trimester of pregnancy, the mean arterial pressure is a better predictor for pre-eclampsia than systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, or an increase of blood pressure.     

Antibacterial cobalt (II), copper (II), nickel (II) and zinc (II) complexes of mercaptothiadiazole--derived furanyl, thienyl, pyrrolyl, salicylyl and pyridinyl Schiff bases

A series of Co (II), Cu (II), Ni (II) and Zn (II) complexes of mercaptothiadiazole-derived furanyl, thienyl, pyrrorlyl, salicylyl and pyridinyl Schiff bases were synthesized, characterized and screened for their in vitro antibacterial activity against four Gram-negative, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi and Shigella fexneri, and two Gram-positive; Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureous bacterial strains. The results of these studies show the metal complexes to be more antibacterial as compared to the prepared un-complexed Schiff bases.     

Epigeic spiders are not affected by the genetically modified maize MON 88017

The genetically modified (GM) maize MON 88017 facilitates weed management owing to its tolerance to glyphosate, and resists western corn rootworm (WCR), Diabrotica virgifera virgifera, owing to the expression of Cry3Bb1 toxin. MON 88017 could therefore contribute to the solution of two major problems of European agriculture: continuous WCR spreading and high use of herbicides. To assess possible unwanted environmental impacts of MON 88017, we compared communities of spiders in plots planted in three successive years with this maize, its near isogenic non‐GM cultivar treated or not treated with an insecticide and two unrelated maize cultivars. Each of the five treatments was applied on five 0.5 ha plots in a 14 ha field. Spiders were collected in five pitfall traps per plot five times per year. Upon reaching the waxy ripening stage, all plants of first‐year cultivation were shredded to small pieces and ploughed into the soil in the respective plot, whereas in the 2nd and 3rd year the harvest was used for biogas production and only digestate was returned to the field. Out of 79 spider species, Pardosa agrestis, Pachygnatha degeeri and Oedothorax apicatus made up 28%, 25% and 23% of the total spider count in the 1st year of study; 2%, 8% and 84% in the 2nd; and 40%, 8% and 35% in the 3rd year. Statistical analysis did not reveal any influence of GM maize on the spider abundance and biodiversity. The abundance, and in two years also the species diversity, was insignificantly higher on the plots with GM maize than on plots with the insecticide‐treated non‐GM maize. The composition and size of spider community varied year to year, probably reflecting weather conditions and differences in field fertilization with organic matter.     

Technical communication: Determination of cuprous ions in bacterial leachates and for environmental monitoring

A sensitive and precise spectrophotometric method has been developed for the determination of copper(I) in bacterial leach liquors produced by the action of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans and T. thiooxidans on copper ores. In this method bicinchoninic acid (BCA) has been used as the chromogenic reagent which produces a stable purple complex with Cu(I) which was found to obey Beer's Law and with _max at 560 nm. The coloured complex has a molar extinction coefficient () value of 6.6 × 10³ l mol^–1 cm^–1; specific absorptivity () value of 0.104 ml^–1 g cm^–1 and the Sandell sensitivity (S) value was 0.0096 g cm². Optimal conditions for development of coloration/sensitivity were determined. Interferences due to cations and anions were investigated and various masking agents for alleviating their inhibition were studied. The method has been found very useful in determining ratios of Cu(I) to Cu(II) in bacterial leach liquors and should play a significant role in determining the reaction mechanisms of biological leaching and for environmental monitoring.     

Properties of Hexadecaprenyl Monophosphate/Dioleoylphosphatidylcholine Vesicular Lipid Bilayers

In our study we investigated hemispherical phospholipid bilayer membranes and phospholipid vesicles made from hexadecaprenyl monophosphate (C₈₀-P), dioleoylphosphatidylocholine (DOPC) and their mixtures by voltammetric and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. The current-voltage characteristics, the membrane conductance-temperature relationships and the membrane breakdown voltage have been measured for different mixtures of C₈₀-P/DOPC. The membrane hydrophobic thickness and the activation energy of ion migration across the membrane have been determined. Hexadecaprenyl monophosphate decreased in comparison with DOPC bilayers, the membrane conductance, increased the activation energy and the membrane breakdown voltage for the various value of C₈₀-P/DOPC mole ratio, respectively. The TEM micrographs of C₈₀-P, DOPC and C₈₀-P/DOPC lipid vesicles showed several characteristic structures, which have been described. The data indicate that hexadecaprenyl monophosphate modulates the surface curvature of the membranes by the formation of aggregates in liquid-crystalline phospholipid membranes. We suggest that the dynamics and conformation of hexadecaprenyl monophosphate in membranes depend on the transmembrane electrical potential. The electron micrographs indicate that polyprenyl monophosphates with single isoprenyl chains form lipid vesicular bilayers. The thickness of the bilayer, evaluated from the micrographs, was 11 ± 1 nm. This property creates possibility of forming primitive bilayer lipid membranes by long single-chain polyprenyl phosphates in abiotic conditions. It can be the next step in understanding the origin of protocells. Received: 10 January 2000/Revised: 7 June 2000     

Evaluation and identification of hepatitis B virus entry inhibitors using HepG2 cells overexpressing a membrane transporter NTCP

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) entry has been analyzed using infection-susceptible cells, including primary human hepatocytes, primary tupaia hepatocytes, and HepaRG cells. Recently, the sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP) membrane transporter was reported as an HBV entry receptor. In this study, we established a strain of HepG2 cells engineered to overexpress the human NTCP gene (HepG2-hNTCP-C4 cells). HepG2-hNTCP-C4 cells were shown to be susceptible to infection by blood–borne and cell culture-derived HBV. HBV infection was facilitated by pretreating cells with 3% dimethyl sulfoxide permitting nearly 50% of the cells to be infected with HBV. Knockdown analysis suggested that HBV infection of HepG2-hNTCP-C4 cells was mediated by NTCP. HBV infection was blocked by an anti-HBV surface protein neutralizing antibody, by compounds known to inhibit NTCP transporter activity, and by cyclosporin A and its derivatives. The infection assay suggested that cyclosporin B was a more potent inhibitor of HBV entry than was cyclosporin A. Further chemical screening identified oxysterols, oxidized derivatives of cholesterol, as inhibitors of HBV infection. Thus, the HepG2-hNTCP-C4 cell line established in this study is a useful tool for the identification of inhibitors of HBV infection as well as for the analysis of the molecular mechanisms of HBV infection.     

Historical demographic profiles and genetic variation of the East African Butana and Kenana indigenous dairy zebu cattle

Butana and Kenana breeds from Sudan are part of the East African zebu Bos indicus type of cattle. Unlike other indigenous zebu cattle in Africa, they are unique due to their reputation for high milk production and are regarded as dairy cattle, the only ones of their kind on the African continent. In this study, we sequenced the complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) D‐loop of 70 animals to understand the maternal genetic variation, demographic profiles and history of the two breeds in relation to the history of cattle pastoralism on the African continent. Only taurine mtDNA sequences were identified. We found very high mtDNA diversity but low level of maternal genetic structure within and between the two breeds. Bayesian coalescent‐based analysis revealed different historical and demographic profiles for the two breeds, with an earlier population expansion in the Butana vis a vis the Kenana. The maternal ancestral populations of the two breeds may have diverged prior to their introduction into the African continent, with first the arrival of the ancestral Butana population. We also reveal distinct demographic history between the two breeds with the Butana showing a decline in its effective population size (N_e) in the recent past ~590 years. Our results provide new insights on the early history of cattle pastoralism in Sudan indicative of a large ancient effective population size.     

WAVE3-NFκB Interplay Is Essential for the Survival and Invasion of Cancer Cells

The WAVE3 cytoskeletal protein promotes cancer invasion and metastasis. We have shown that the WAVE3-mediated activation of cancer cell invasion is due, in part, to its regulation of expression and activity of key metalloproteinases (MMPs), including MMP9, which is centrally involved in invadopodia-mediated degradation of the extracellular matrix (ECM). MMP9 is also a major NFκB target gene, suggesting a potential linkage of WAVE3 to this pathway, which we sought to investigate. Mechanistically, we found that loss of WAVE3 in cancer cells leads to inhibition of NFκB signaling as a result of a decrease in the nuclear translocation of NFκB and therefore loss of activation of NFκB target genes. Conversely, overexpression of WAVE3 was sufficient to enhance NFκB activity. Both pharmacologic and genetic manipulations of NFκB effector molecules show that the biological consequence of loss of WAVE3 function in the NFκB pathway result the inhibition of invadopodia formation and ECM degradation by cancer cells, and these changes are a consequence of decreased MMP9 expression and activity. Loss of WAVE3 also sensitized cancer cells to apoptosis and cell death driven by TNFα, through the inhibition of the AKT pro-survival pathway. Our results identify a novel function of WAVE3 in NFκB signaling, where its activity is essential for the regulation of invadopodia and ECM degradation. Therefore, targeted therapeutic inhibition of WAVE3 will sensitize cancer cells to apoptosis and cell death, and suppress cancer invasion and metastasis.