Antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy in elective percutaneous coronary intervention

Thrombosis plays a major role in acute vessel closure both after coronary balloon angioplasty and after stenting. This review will address the role of antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy in preventing early thrombotic complications after percutaneous coronary intervention. The focus will be on agents that are routinely available and commonly used.     

Automated determination of bone age and bone mineral density in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis: a feasibility study

Introduction

Chronic inflammation combined with glucocorticoid treatment and immobilization puts juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) patients at risk of impaired growth and reduced bone mineral density (BMD). Conventional methods for evaluating bone age and BMD are time-consuming or come with additional costs and radiation exposure. In addition, an automated measurement of bone age and BMD is likely to be more consistent than visual evaluation. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the feasibility of an automated method for determination of bone age and (cortical) bone mineral density (cBMD) in severely affected JIA patients. A secondary objective was to describe bone age and cBMD in this specific JIA population eligible for biologic treatment.

Methods

In total, 69 patients with standard hand radiographs at the start of etanercept treatment and of calendar age within the reliability ranges (2.5 to 17 years for boys and 2 to 15 years for girls) were extracted from the Dutch Arthritis and Biologicals in Children register. Radiographs were analyzed using the BoneXpert method, thus automatically determining bone age and cBMD expressed as bone health index (BHI). Agreement between measurements of the left- and right-hand radiographs and a repeated measurement of the left hand were assessed with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Regression analysis was used to identify variables associated with Z-scores of bone age and BHI.

Results

The BoneXpert method was reliable in the evaluation of radiographs of 67 patients (radiographs of 2 patients were rejected because of poor image quality). Agreement between left- and right-hand radiographs (ICC = 0.838 to 0.996) and repeated measurements (ICC = 0.999 to 1.000) was good. Mean Z-scores of bone age (−0.36, P = 0.051) and BHI (−0.85, P < 0.001) were lower compared to the healthy population. Glucocorticoid use was associated with delayed bone age (0.79 standard deviation (SD), P = 0.028), and male gender was associated with a lower Z-score of BHI (0.65 SD, P = 0.021).

Conclusions

BoneXpert is an easy-to-use method for assessing bone age and cBMD in patients with JIA, provided that radiographs are of reasonable quality and patients’ bone age lies within the age ranges of the program. The population investigated had delayed bone maturation and lower cBMD than healthy children.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13075-014-0424-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

人呼吸道合胞病毒兰州株基因组全长cDNA克隆的构建及鉴定

目的构建用于呼吸道合胞病毒(respiratory syncytial virus,RSV)体外拯救的RSV基因组全长cDNA克隆,并进行鉴定。方法根据RSV Long株基因组序列设计并合成引物,利用RT-PCR技术分6段扩增RSV LZ01/09基因组序列并构建克隆载体;测序后,利用重叠PCR与酶切连接技术,根据基因组序列选择特异性酶切位点,引入Kpn I、Xma I和Sal I酶切位点,构建成4个亚克隆载体;将亚克隆载体的插入片段连接至经过改造且包含T7启动子、锤头状核酶、多克隆位点、丁肝核酶、T7终止子的p RSV1载体中,构建RSV基因组全长cDNA克隆;对克隆全长cDNA序列进行测定,与亲本RSV LZ01/09基因组进行同源性比对分析,并与RSV实验参比株进行系统进化树分析。结果测序结果显示,RSV LZ 01/09的基因组全长为15 204 bp,与GenBank公布的RSV基因组序列长度相当,将完整的序列提交GenBank,登录号为KY782635;酶切及测序结果显示,用于RSV全长cDNA克隆构建的基本载体p BSKS-MCS(简称p RSV1)与预期相符,RSV全长基因组cDNA克隆质粒(简称转录载体p RSV1-4F)酶切片段大小与预期一致;同源性比对结果显示,全长cDNA序列与亲本RSV LZ01/09基因组序列同源性高达99.83%;系统进化树分析结果显示,其与RSV-A亚型序列同属于一个分支。结论测序及酶切分析结果表明已成功构建RSVLZ01/09基因组全长cDNA克隆,为建立拯救RSV重组病毒的反向遗传学系统平台奠定了基础。     

Substructural specificity and polyvalent carbohydrate recognition by the Entamoeba histolytica and rat hepatic N- acetylgalactosamine/galactose lectins

Both the Entamoeba histolytica lectin, a virulence factor for the causative agent of amebiasis, and the mammalian hepatic lectin bind to N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) and galactose (Gal) nonreducing termini on oligosaccharides, with preference for GalNAc. Polyvalent GalNAc- derivatized neoglycoproteins have >1000-fold enhanced binding affinity for both lectins (Adler,P., Wood,S.J., Lee,Y.C., Lee,R.T., Petri,W.A.,Jr. and Schnaar,R.L.,1995, J. Biol. Chem ., 270, 5164-5171). Substructural specificity studies revealed that the 3-OH and 4-OH groups of GalNAc were required for binding to both lectins, whereas only the E.histolytica lectin required the 6-OH group. Whereas GalNAc binds with 4-fold lower affinity to the E.histolytica lectin than to the mammalian hepatic lectin, galactosamine and N-benzoyl galactosamine bind with higher affinity to the E. histolytica lectin. Therefore, a synthetic scheme for converting polyamine carriers to poly-N-acyl galactosamine derivatives (linked through the galactosamine primary amino group) was developed to test whether such ligands would bind the E.histolytica lectin with high specificity and high affinity. Contrary to expectations, polyvalent derivatives including GalN6lys5, GalN4desmosine, GalN4StarburstTMdendrimer, and GalN8StarburstTMdendrimer demonstrated highly enhanced binding to the mammalian hepatic lectin but little or no enhancement of binding to the E.histolytica lectin. We propose that the mammalian hepatic lectin binds with greatest affinity to GalNAc "miniclusters," which mimic branched termini of N-linked oligosaccharides, whereas the E.histolytica lectin binds most effectively to "maxiclusters," which may mimic more widely spaced GalNAc residues on intestinal mucins.      

杂交构树UDP-葡萄糖脱氢酶基因编码蛋白的亚细胞定位及其启动子5'端缺失片段的功能分析

为了研究杂交构树UDP-葡萄糖脱氢酶基因（DDBJ,BpUGDH基因登录号为LC457701）启动子不同区域的表达活性,利用5'端缺失及同源重组实验技术,将5个不同长度的BpUGDH启动子5'端缺失片段与GUS基因连接,并通过农杆菌介导法瞬时转化烟草;同时,为了定位BpUGDH基因编码的蛋白在细胞中表达的具体位置,利用GFP报告基因融合目的基因进行蛋白质的亚细胞定位。结果显示：BpUGDH基因启动子-244 bp以内的序列均能介导GUS基因的诱导表达,并且-973、-465、-355、-281和-244 bp之间的区域可能对BpUGDH基因启动子的活性发挥着至关重要的作用。另外,BpUGDH基因编码蛋白的亚细胞定位结果显示：BpUGDH位于叶绿体中。     

Daily changes in the sensitivity of wax-moth larvae, Galleria mellonella, to cooling stress

ABSTRACT. Sensitivity to cooling stress in the last instar larvae of Galleria mellonella was measured as (a) the number of extra larval moults, (b) the number of larvae retaining the ability to secrete silk, and (c) the number showing arrested development. With respect to (a) and (b) there were considerable differences in sensitivity across the day. A relationship was observed between the number of additional larval moults induced by chilling and the ability of prepupal larvae to spin silk: the periods during the 24 h when the most larvae passed through additional larval moults were periods characterized by the smallest number of larvae capable of spinning, and vice versa. These daily changes were apparently partly independent of developmental age. Daily variations in sensitivity also occurred when larvae of the same age were cooled at different times of day. It is suggested that these rhythms in cold-sensitivity are related to a cold-sensitive rhythm in juvenile hormone secretion, or hormone sensitivity in the tissues.     

Phylogenetic significance of the kinethmoid‐associated Y‐shaped ligament and long intercostal ligaments in the Cypriniformes (Actinopterygii: Ostariophysi)

Liao, T.Y. & Kullander, S.O. (2012). Phylogenetic significance of the kinethmoid‐associated Y‐shaped ligament and long intercostal ligaments in the Cypriniformes (Actinopterygii: Ostariophysi). —Zoologica Scripta, 42, 71–87. The phylogenetic significance of the Y‐shaped and long intercostal ligaments in the Cypriniformes is examined using character optimization in 184 species representing 20 non‐ostariophysan teleost species, five ostariophysan orders, seven cypriniform families and 14 cyprinid subfamilies. Character states were optimized on the phylogenetic trees of previous studies. Given the topology of Saitoh et al. (2011) , the Y‐shaped ligament, connecting the kinethmoid to the ethmoid complex, is shown to be a synapomorphy for the Cyprinidae, with reversals observed in the Cyprininae, Danioninae, Gobioninae and Psilorhynchinae. The condition of the Y‐shaped ligament is consistent within most subfamilies with a few exceptions. Despite the exceptions, the Y‐shaped ligament may be considered as a diagnostic character distinguishing cyprinid subfamilies with otherwise similar morphology, that is, the Danioninae and Opsariichthyinae. The long intercostal ligament, connecting five to eight ribs and ascending from the subdistal end of the fifth rib, is present in the Catostomidae and all cyprinid subfamilies, except for the Psilorhynchinae and two developmentally truncated genera, Danionella and Paedocypris. In addition to these two cypriniforme families, the long intercostal ligament is homoplastically present in some catfishes. Given the topology of Saitoh et al. (2011) , presence of the long intercostal ligament is a synapomorphy of Cyprinidae+Catostomidae. Some shorter ligaments are also present in the Cypriniformes and Chilodus gracilis (Characiformes), near the base of the anterior ribs and only occurring anterodorsally to the putative line of the long intercostal ligament even when it is absent.