bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
SKPDB: a structural database of shikimate pathway enzymes
Authors: Arcuri Helen A , Zafalon Geraldo FD , Marucci Evandro A , Bonalumi Carlos E , da Silveira Nelson JF , Machado José M , de Azevedo Walter F , Palma Mário S
Published: January 2010

Background

The functional and s tructural characterisation of enzymes that belong to microbial metabolic pathways is very important for structure-based drug design. The main interest in studying shikimate pathway enzymes involves the fact that they are essential for bacteria but do not occur in humans, making them selective targets for design of drugs that do not directly impact humans.

Description

The ShiKimate Pathway DataBase (SKPDB) is a relational database applied to the study of shikimate pathway enzymes in microorganisms and plants. The current database is updated regularly with the addition of new data; there are currently 8902 enzymes of the shikimate pathway from different sources. The database contains extensive information on each enzyme, including detailed descriptions about sequence, references, and structural and functional studies. All files (primary sequence, atomic coordinates and quality scores) are available for downloading. The modeled structures can be viewed using the Jmol program.

Conclusions

The SKPDB provides a large number of structural models to be used in docking simulations, virtual screening initiatives and drug design. It is freely accessible at http://lsbzix.rc.unesp.br/skpdb/.
The Zur regulon of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032
Authors: Schröder Jasmin , Jochmann Nina , Rodionov Dmitry A , Tauch Andreas
Published: January 2010

Background

Zinc is considered as an essential element for all living organisms, but it can be toxic at large concentrations. Bacteria therefore tightly regulate zinc metabolism. The Cg2502 protein of Corynebacterium glutamicum was a candidate to control zinc metabolism in this species, since it was classified as metalloregulator of the zinc uptake regulator (Zur) subgroup of the ferric uptake regulator (Fur) family of DNA-binding transcription regulators.

Results

The cg2502 (zur) gene was deleted in the chromosome of C. glutamicum ATCC 13032 by an allelic exchange procedure to generate the zur-deficient mutant C. glutamicum JS2502. Whole-genome DNA microarray hybridizations and real-time RT-PCR assays comparing the gene expression in C. glutamicum JS2502 with that of the wild-type strain detected 18 genes with enhanced expression in the zur mutant. The expression data were combined with results from cross-genome comparisons of shared regulatory sites, revealing the presence of candidate Zur-binding sites in the mapped promoter regions of five transcription units encoding components of potential zinc ABC-type transporters (cg0041-cg0042/cg0043; cg2911-cg2912-cg2913), a putative secreted protein (cg0040), a putative oxidoreductase (cg0795), and a putative P-loop GTPase of the COG0523 protein family (cg0794). Enhanced transcript levels of the respective genes in C. glutamicum JS2502 were verified by real-time RT-PCR, and complementation of the mutant with a wild-type zur gene reversed the effect of differential gene expression. The zinc-dependent expression of the putative cg0042 and cg2911 operons was detected in vivo with a gfp reporter system. Moreover, the zinc-dependent binding of purified Zur protein to double-stranded 40-mer oligonucleotides containing candidate Zur-binding sites was demonstrated in vitro by DNA band shift assays.

Conclusion

Whole-genome expression profiling and DNA band shift assays demonstrated that Zur directly represses in a zinc-dependent manner the expression of nine genes organized in five transcription units. Accordingly, the Zur (Cg2502) protein is the key transcription regulator for genes involved in zinc homeostasis in C. glutamicum.
Sex-dimorphic gene expression and ineffective dosage compensation of Z-linked genes in gastrulating chicken embryos
Authors: Zhang Shaobing O , Mathur Sachin , Hattem Gaye , Tassy Olivier , Pourquié Olivier
Published: January 2010

Background

Considerable progress has been made in our understanding of sex determination and dosage compensation mechanisms in model organisms such as C. elegans, Drosophila and M. musculus. Strikingly, the mechanism involved in sex determination and dosage compensation are very different among these three model organisms. Birds present yet another situation where the heterogametic sex is the female. Sex determination is still poorly understood in birds and few key determinants have so far been identified. In contrast to most other species, dosage compensation of bird sex chromosomal genes appears rather ineffective.

Results

By comparing microarrays from microdissected primitive streak from single chicken embryos, we identified a large number of genes differentially expressed between male and female embryos at a very early stage (Hamburger and Hamilton stage 4), long before any sexual differentiation occurs. Most of these genes are located on the Z chromosome, which indicates that dosage compensation is ineffective in early chicken embryos. Gene ontology analyses, using an enhanced annotation tool for Affymetrix probesets of the chicken genome developed in our laboratory (called Manteia), show that among these male-biased genes found on the Z chromosome, more than 20 genes play a role in sex differentiation.

Conclusions

These results corroborate previous studies demonstrating the rather inefficient dosage compensation for Z chromosome in birds and show that this sexual dimorphism in gene regulation is observed long before the onset of sexual differentiation. These data also suggest a potential role of non-compensated Z-linked genes in somatic sex differentiation in birds.
Antinociceptive effect of geranylgeraniol and 6α,7β-dihydroxyvouacapan-17β-oate methyl ester isolated from Pterodon pubescens Benth
Authors: Spindola Humberto M , Servat Leila , Denny Carina , Rodrigues Rodney AF , Eberlin Marcos N , Cabral Elaine , Sousa Ilza MO , Tamashiro Jorge Y , Carvalho João E , Foglio Mary A
Published: January 2010

Background

Pterodon pubescensBenth seeds are commercially available in the Brazilian medicinal plant street market. The crude alcoholic extracts of this plant are used in folk medicine as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and anti-rheumatic preparations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the contribution of geranylgeraniol (C1) and 6α, 7β-dihydroxyvouacapan-17β-oate methyl ester (C2) isolated fromPterodon pubescensBenth. to the antinociceptive activity of the crude extract.

Results

Compounds C1 and C2 demonstrated activity against writhing with intraperitoneal (i.p.) and oral (p.o.) routes, capsaicin (i.p. and p.o.), glutamate (i.p.), and in the hot-plate (p.o.) tests, demonstrating their contribution to the antinociceptive activity of crudePterodon pubescensBenth extracts. The observed activity of compounds C1 and C2 may be related to vanilloid receptors VR1, and/or glutamate peripheral receptors. In hot-plate model, the antinociceptive activity was maintained when naloxone chloride (opioid antagonist) was administered prior to treatment with compounds suggesting that C1 and C2 (p.o.) do not exert their antinociceptive effects in the hot-plate test via opioid receptors. The findings presented herein also suggest that compounds within the crudePterodon pubescensBenth. extract may exert a synergistic interactive effect, since the crude extract (300 mg.kg-1) containing lower concentrations of compounds C1 (11.5%- 34.6 mg. kg-1) and C2 (1.5% - 4.7 mg.kg-1) gave statistically the same effect to the pure compounds when tested separately (C1 = C2 = 300 mg.kg-1) in writhing experimental model with p.o. administration. Further studies will be undertaken to establish more specifically the mechanisms of action for compounds C1 and C2. Possible synergistic interactions will be evaluated employing the Isobole method.

Conclusion

These results allowed us to establish a relationship between the popular use ofPterodon pubescensseeds for pain relief and the activity of two major compounds isolated from this species which demonstrated antinociceptive activity. Various "in vivo"experimental models corroborate the folk use of this species for different pain and inflammation disorders.
Inhibition of receptor tyrosine kinase signalling by small molecule agonist of T-cell protein tyrosine phosphatase
Authors: Mattila Elina , Marttila Heidi , Sahlberg Niko , Kohonen Pekka , Tähtinen Siri , Halonen Pasi , Perälä Merja , Ivaska Johanna
Published: January 2010

Background

T-cell protein tyrosine phosphatase (TCPTP/TC45) is a ubiquitously expressed intra-cellular non-receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase involved in the negative regulation of several cancer relevant cellular signalling pathways. We have previously shown that interaction between the α-cytoplasmic tail of α1β1 integrin and TCPTP activates TCPTP by disrupting an inhibitory intra-molecular bond in TCPTP. Thus, inhibition of the regulatory interaction in TCPTP is a desirable strategy for TCPTP activation and attenuation of oncogenic RTK signalling. However, this is challenging with low molecular weight compounds.

Methods

We developed a high-throughput compatible assay to analyse activity of recombinant TCPTP in vitro. Using this assay we have screened 64280 small molecules to identify novel agonists for TCPTP. Dose-dependent response to TCPTP agonist was performed using the in vitro assay. Inhibition effects and specificity of TCPTP agonists were evaluated using TCPTP expressing and null mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Western blot analysis was used to evaluate attenuation of PDGFRβ and EGFR phosphorylation. Inhibition of VEGF signalling was analysed with VEGF-induced endothelial cell sprouting assays.

Results

From the screen we identified six TCPTP agonists. Two compounds competed with α1-cytoplasmic domain for binding to TCPTP, suggesting that they activate TCPTP similar to α1-cyt by disrupting the intra-molecular bond in TCPTP. Importantly, one of the compounds (spermidine) displayed specificity towards TCPTP in cells, since TCPTP -/- cells were 43-fold more resistant to the compound than TCPTP expressing cells. This compound attenuates PDGFRβ and VEGFR2 signalling in cells in a TCPTP-dependent manner and functions as a negative regulator of EGFR phosphorylation in cancer cells.

Conclusions

In this study we showed that small molecules mimicking TCPTP-α1 interaction can be used as TCPTP agonists. These data provide the first proof-of-concept description of the use of high-throughput screening to identify small molecule PTP activators that could function as RTK antagonists in cells.
Forefoot disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis patients in remission: results of a cohort study
Authors: van der Leeden Marike , Steultjens Martijn PM , van Schaardenburg Dirkjan , Dekker Joost
Published: January 2010

Introduction

The aim of our study was to investigate the presence of disease activity in the metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joints of the forefoot in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in remission according to the Disease Activity Score based on 28 joints (DAS28) remission criterion.

Methods

A total of 848 patients with recent-onset RA were included from 1995 through 2007. The DAS28 and pain and swelling of the MTP joints were assessed annually. The data were analyzed using descriptive techniques.

Results

On average, 35% of the patients fulfilled the remission criterion of DAS28 <2.6 during the first eight years of RA. On average, 29% of these patients had at least one painful MTP joint and, on average, 31% had at least one swollen MTP joint during follow-up. Forty percent, on average, had at least one involved MTP joint (pain and/or swelling).

Conclusions

Painful and/or swollen MTP joints were detected in a substantial proportion of patients classified as being in remission. Therefore, examination of the foot joints - irrespective of the patient's state of remission - seems indicated in order to provide optimal foot care.
Ventilation with lower tidal volumes as compared with conventional tidal volumes for patients without acute lung injury: a preventive randomized controlled trial
Authors: Determann Rogier M , Royakkers Annick , Wolthuis Esther K , Vlaar Alexander P , Choi Goda , Paulus Frederique , Hofstra Jorrit-Jan , de Graaff Mart J , Korevaar Johanna C , Schultz Marcus J
Published: January 2010

Introduction

Recent cohort studies have identified the use of large tidal volumes as a major risk factor for development of lung injury in mechanically ventilated patients without acute lung injury (ALI). We compared the effect of conventional with lower tidal volumes on pulmonary inflammation and development of lung injury in critically ill patients without ALI at the onset of mechanical ventilation.

Methods

We performed a randomized controlled nonblinded preventive trial comparing mechanical ventilation with tidal volumes of 10 ml versus 6 ml per kilogram of predicted body weight in critically ill patients without ALI at the onset of mechanical ventilation. The primary end point was cytokine levels in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and plasma during mechanical ventilation. The secondary end point was the development of lung injury, as determined by consensus criteria for ALI, duration of mechanical ventilation, and mortality.

Results

One hundred fifty patients (74 conventional versus 76 lower tidal volume) were enrolled and analyzed. No differences were observed in lavage fluid cytokine levels at baseline between the randomization groups. Plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels decreased significantly more strongly in the lower-tidal-volume group ((from 51 (20 to 182) ng/ml to 11 (5 to 20) ng/ml versus 50 (21 to 122) ng/ml to 21 (20 to 77) ng/ml; P = 0.01)). The trial was stopped prematurely for safety reasons because the development of lung injury was higher in the conventional tidal-volume group as compared with the lower tidal-volume group (13.5% versus 2.6%; P = 0.01). Univariate analysis showed statistical relations between baseline lung-injury score, randomization group, level of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP), the number of transfused blood products, the presence of a risk factor for ALI, and baseline IL-6 lavage fluid levels and the development of lung injury. Multivariate analysis revealed the randomization group and the level of PEEP as independent predictors of the development of lung injury.

Conclusions

Mechanical ventilation with conventional tidal volumes is associated with sustained cytokine production, as measured in plasma. Our data suggest that mechanical ventilation with conventional tidal volumes contributes to the development of lung injury in patients without ALI at the onset of mechanical ventilation.

Trial registration

ISRCTN82533884
Macrophages: do they impact AIDS progression more than CD4 T cells?
Authors: Kuroda Marcelo J
Published: January 2010

Data review of the hypothesis that damage in the monocyte/macrophage arm of innate immunity is a key component predicting AIDS progression.

Destruction of CD4+ T cells is considered to be the main cause of immunodeficiency manifested by opportunistic infections in HIV-1-infected humans, as well as in SIV-infected macaques. We propose that monocyte/macrophage lineage cells also play an important role in the pathogenesis of AIDS, based on our recent work with the SIV/rhesus macaque animal model. We propose that damage to CD4+ T cells is important and readily apparent, but damage to monocyte/macrophage lineage cells, although less obvious, may provide the missing link to predict the onset of opportunistic infections and progression to AIDS.
Global Lukács
Authors: Esty Jed
Published: January 2010

Lukácsian narrative theory remains influential in literary studies despite the fact that many of its principles and conclusions seem specific to novel production within the industrializing heartland of the nineteenth-century European nation-state. Starting with the premise that two of Lukács's interconnected blind spots were modernist form and imperial history, this essay looks to some of the central concepts of The Theory of the Novel, The Historical Novel, and Studies in European Realism for a broader, twentieth-century, and global frame of reference. To that end, it builds on two critical essays, “Traveling Theory” and “Travelling Theory Reconsidered,” in which Edward Said takes the concept of reification as an apt way to describe a specific symbolic procedure central to colonial discourse: the dehumanization of the native. If we follow out the Fanonian logic of that claim, we can think of late European humanism (and its associated modernist discourses of psyche and myth) as crucially formed by the colonial world system. In that case we can also reread modernism in a properly global frame, turning Lukács against Lukács, by taking the modernist novel of consciousness not as a testament to bourgeois inwardness and decadence but as an artifact whose form was partially determined by objective social and historical conditions in the colonial and metropolitan contact zones of the Age of Empire.
Pitying the Sheep inFar from the Madding Crowd
Authors: Kreilkamp Ivan
Published: January 2010

Henry James famously remarked of Thomas Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd that “[e]verything human in the book strikes us as factitious and insubstantial; the only things we believe in are the sheep and the dogs.” This comment is generally taken as a simple putdown, but it can also lead us to consider more seriously the implications of a novel in which the most memorable characters, arguably, walk on four legs. What does it mean to read Far from the Madding Crowd nonanthropocentrically, to take the measure of its creatureliness? I do so here by returning to the old question of Hardy's status as a “pastoral” author. “Pastoral” is a major concept in contemporary theory because of Michel Foucault's arguments about the emergence of this form of power as one of the basic elements of Western modernity, but it can be easy to forget how directly Foucault links pastoral power to its origins in the literal occupation of shepherds. For Foucault, much of the specificity of our Judeo-Christian inheritance may be traced to the vocation of the sheepherder and his ability to turn cross-species pity or empathy into the action of protective care and governance. Far from the Madding Crowd can be understood as an extended thinking through of these very topics. Hardy's novel, written at a moment at which long-standing distinctions between the human and the animal body were breaking down, represents the sheep fold as a zone of species indistinction where sheep, dogs, and human beings overlap, co-influence, and sometimes even seem to merge. The novel teaches its readers to pity the sheep and to push beyond an exclusively human-centered perspective.
History and the Work of Literature in the Periphery
Authors: Krishnan Sanjay
Published: January 2010

In this essay I ask whether there is a mode of writing that we can call “underdeveloped.” I examine two writers from the periphery, Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir and V. S. Naipaul, in order to consider how realist modes take effect in social formations where institutions of the modern nation-state and capitalism are absent. I draw upon Georg Lukács's reflections on historical consciousness and the European novel to consider the differences between realist forms as they are deployed in the metropolis and the periphery.
Reading Time
Authors: Levenson Michael
Published: January 2010

This essay reanimates discussion of narrative temporality by retuning to a theoretical crux—the contest between succession and duration—and the relation of the crux to the work of private desire and social labor. The essay begins with Freud's assertion that “[e]very desire sooner or later makes a picture of its fulfillment” and turns the phrase toward a discussion of “kernel narrative.” Questions of boredom and the temporality of reading are then posed by way of Soap Opera Digest, the weekly guide to events that the television viewer may have missed. Through a re-engagement with Russian formalism, Gérard Genette, and G. W. F. Hegel, the essay challenges the received understanding of novelistic chronology and argues for a reconsideration of the place of duration within a theory of narrative temporality. The argument builds on examples drawn from Virginia Woolf, Charles Dickens, and George Eliot and concludes with a discussion of novelistic time and the production of social relations.
Arts of Homelessness: Roberto Bolaño or the Commodification of Exile
Authors: Medina Alberto
Published: January 2010

Exile is a recurrent subject in Roberto Bolaño's writings. Far from lamenting the separation from the motherland, simultaneous to that from a lost generation of idealist politics and avant-garde aesthetics, Bolaño turns exile into an ethical opportunity to reconsider history and literature. Nevertheless, the advantages of marginalization and distance from the mainstream end up becoming precisely the most attractive features in the eyes of an editorial industry and a general public avid for a reformulation of Latin American literature in a global and politically skeptical context. Reading Bolaño's conception of exile as a conciliation between Lukács's and Bakhtin's theories of literature as a form of exile, this essay traces how his novels turn the modern drive to estrangement into a post-auratic nostalgia open to commodification.
Pollen-tube tip growth requires a balance of lateral propagation and global inhibition of Rho-family GTPase activity
Authors: Hwang Jae-Ung , Wu Guang , Yan An , Lee Yong-Jik , Grierson Claire S. , Yang Zhenbiao
Published: January 2010

Rapid tip growth allows for efficient development of highly elongated cells (e.g. neuronal axons, fungal hyphae and pollen tubes) and requires an elaborate spatiotemporal regulation of the growing region. Here, we use the pollen tube as a model to investigate the mechanism regulating the growing region. ROPs (Rho-related GTPases from plants) are essential for pollen tip growth and display oscillatory activity changes in the apical plasma membrane (PM). By manipulating the ROP activity level, we showed that the PM distribution of ROP activity as an apical cap determines the tip growth region and that efficient tip growth requires an optimum level of the apical ROP1 activity. Excessive ROP activation induced the enlargement of the tip growth region, causing growth depolarization and reduced tube elongation. Time-lapse analysis suggests that the apical ROP1 cap is generated by lateral propagation of a localized ROP activity. Subcellular localization and gain- and loss-of-function analyses suggest that RhoGDI- and RhoGAP-mediated global inhibition limits the lateral propagation of apical ROP1 activity. We propose that the balance between the lateral propagation and the global inhibition maintains an optimal apical ROP1 cap and generates the apical ROP1 activity oscillation required for efficient pollen-tube elongation.
Article Commentary: The contributions of Louis I Woolf to the treatment, early diagnosis and understanding of phenylketonuria
Authors: Alonso-Fernández J R , Colón C
Published: January 2010

Early diagnosis of phenylketonuria (PKU) became a goal worth pursuing following demonstration of the efficacy of the dietary treatment conceived by Louis I Woolf. This paper narrates the history of this treatment, describes Woolf's role in the establishment of neonatal PKU screening and surveys his other contributions to our understanding of this condition. If Woolf, Centerwall, Baird and Berry had waited until all the scientific evidence about PKU that is now at our disposal had been brought to light, there would still be no neonatal screening programmes.
Perceived barriers to flexible sigmoidoscopy screening for colorectal cancer among UK ethnic minority groups: a qualitative study
Authors: Austin K L , Power E , Solarin I , Atkin W S , Wardle J , Robb K A
Published: January 2010

Objectives

Evidence from existing UK screening programmes indicates disparities in uptake rates between UK ethnic minorities and the white majority population. The aim of this study was to explore barriers to the uptake of flexible sigmoidoscopy (FS) screening among UK ethnic minority populations. Specifically, beliefs about bowel cancer, perceived barriers to the test and ideas about ways to increase uptake were investigated.

Methods

Nine focus groups were conducted with a total of 53 participants from African-Caribbean, Gujarati Indian, Pakistani and white British communities. The topic guide was based on the Health Belief Model. Discussions were subject to framework analysis.

Results

Most participants expressed limited awareness of bowel cancer and cited this as a barrier to screening attendance. Anxiety regarding the invasiveness of the test, the bowel preparation and fear of a cancer diagnosis were common barriers across all ethnic groups. Language difficulties, failure to meet religious sensitivities and the expression of culturally influenced health beliefs were all discussed as specific barriers to uptake. Ethnically tailored health promotion and general practitioner involvement were recommended as ways of overcoming such barriers.

Conclusions

The study was the first attempt to qualitatively explore barriers to FS bowel cancer screening in UK ethnic minorities. Most barriers were shared by all ethnic groups but health educators should supplement approaches designed for the majority to incorporate the specific needs of individual minority groups to ensure equitable access.
Career destinations, views and future plans of the UK medical qualifiers of 1988
Authors: Taylor Kathryn , Lambert Trevor , Goldacre Michael
Published: January 2010

Summary

Objectives

To report the career destinations, views and future plans of a cohort of senior doctors who qualified in the 1980s.

Methods

Postal questionnaire survey of all doctors who qualified from all UK medical schools in 1988.

Results

The response rate was 69%. We estimated that 81% of the total cohort was working in the NHS, 16 years after qualification; and that at least 94% of graduates who, when students, were from UK homes, were working in medicine. Of NHS doctors, 30% worked part-time. NHS doctors rated their job satisfaction highly (median score 19.9, scale 5–25) but were less satisfied with the amount of leisure time available to them (median score 5.4, scale 1–10). NHS doctors were very positive about their careers, but were less positive about working hours and some other aspects of the NHS. Women were more positive than men about working conditions; general practitioners were more positive than hospital doctors. Twenty-five percent reported unmet needs for further training or career-related advice, particularly about career development. Twenty-nine percent intended to reduce their hours in future, while 6%, mainly part-time women, planned to increase their hours. Overall, 10% of NHS doctors planned to do more service work in future and 24% planned to do less; among part-time women, 18% planned to do more and only 14% less.

Conclusions

These NHS doctors, now in their 40s, had a high level of satisfaction with their jobs and their careers but were less satisfied with some other aspects of their working environment. A substantial percentage had expectations about future career development and change.
Collecting 3D electron diffraction data by the rotation method
Authors: Zhang Daliang , Oleynikov Peter , Hovmöller Sven , Zou Xiaodong
Published: January 2010

A new method for collecting complete three-dimensional electron diffraction data is described. Diffraction data is collected by combining electron beam tilt at many very small steps, with rotation of the crystal in a few but large steps. A number of practical considerations are discussed, as well as advantages and disadvantages compared to other methods of collecting electron diffraction data.
Structure determination of the zeolite IM-5 using electron crystallography
Authors: Sun Junliang , He Zhanbing , Hovmöller Sven , Zou Xiaodong , Gramm Fabian , Baerlocher Christian , McCusker Lynne B.
Published: January 2010

The structure of the complex zeolite IM-5 (Cmcm, a = 14.33(4) Å, b = 56.9(2) Å, c = 20.32(7) Å) was determined by combining selected area electron diffraction (SAED), 3D reconstruction of high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) images from different zone axes and distance least squares (DLS) refinement. The unit cell parameters were determined from SAED. The space group was determined from extinctions in the SAED patterns and projection symmetries of HRTEM images. Using the structure factor amplitudes and phases of 144 independent reflections obtained from HRTEM images along the [100], [010] and [001] directions, a 3D electrostatic potential map was calculated by inverse Fourier transformation. From this 3D potential map, all 24 unique Si positions could be determined. Oxygen atoms were added between each Si–Si pair and further refined together with the Si positions by distance-least-squares. The final structure model deviates on average 0.16 Å for Si and 0.31 Å for O from the structure refined using X-ray powder diffraction data. This method is general and offers a new possibility for determining the structures of zeolites and other materials with complex structures.
Automated nanocrystal orientation and phase mapping in the transmission electron microscope on the basis of precession electron diffraction
Authors: Rauch Edgar F. , Portillo Joaquin , Nicolopoulos Stavros , Bultreys Daniel , Rouvimov Sergei , Moeck Peter
Published: January 2010

An automated technique for the mapping of nanocrystal phases and orientations in a transmission electron microscope is described. It is primarily based on the projected reciprocal lattice geometry that is extracted from electron diffraction spot patterns. Precession electron diffraction patterns are especially useful for this purpose. The required hardware allows for a scanning-precession movement of the primary electron beam on the crystalline sample and can be interfaced to any older or newer mid-voltage transmission electron microscope (TEM). Experimentally obtained crystal phase and orientation maps are shown for a variety of samples. Comprehensive commercial and open-access crystallographic databases may be used in support of the nanocrystal phase identification process and are briefly mentioned.
The strong phase object approximation may allow extending crystallographic phases of dynamical electron diffraction patterns of 3D protein nano-crystals
Authors: Abrahams Jan Pieter
Published: January 2010

Simulations suggest that the strong phase object approximation of dynamical scattering may allow extracting crystallographic phase information from single 2D electron diffraction patterns of 3D protein crystals using probabilitistic procedures. Unlike other phasing methods, the procedure does not requires any additional knowledge – like real space images, atomicity, non-crystallographic symmetry, the presence or location of disordered solvent or the availability of a support with a known structure. In specific cases, the availability of precession electron diffraction data can further improve the phases.
Autosomal dominant familial neurohypophyseal diabetes insipidus caused by a novel mutation in arginine-vasopressin gene in a Brazilian family
Authors: Melo Maria Edna de , Marui Suemi , Brito Vinícius Nahime de , Mancini Marcio Corrêa , Mendonca Berenice B. , Knoepfelmacher Mirta
Published: January 2010

Autosomal dominant familial neurohypophyseal diabetes insipidus (adFNDI) is a rare autosomal dominant disorder characterized by polyuria and polydipsia due to deficiency of arginine vasopressin (AVP). More than 50 mutations causing adFNDI have been already reported in the AVP gene. The aim of the present study is to analyze the AVP gene in four generations of one Brazilian kindred with adFNDI. The proband was a 31-year old female with huge hypotonic polyuria (10 L/day) dated from childhood. Molecular analysis included amplification of all exons and exon-intron regions of the AVP gene by PCR and direct sequencing. Sequencing analysis showed a novel point mutation in heterozygous: G88V (GGC>GTC). All affected patients presented the same mutation also in heterozygous, while it was absent in four normal members. We expand the repertoire of mutations in AVP describing the novel G88V mutation in one Brazilian kindred with adFNDI.
Increase incidence of thyroid cancer in Florianopolis, Brazil: comparative study of diagnosed cases in 2000 and 2005
Authors: Cordioli Maria Isabel C. V. , Canalli Maria Heloísa B. S. , Coral Marisa Helena C.
Published: January 2010

OBJECTIVE: To provide epidemiological information about thyroid cancer (TC) in the Metropolitan area of Florianopolis and investigate some factors that could be associated with this type of cancer. METHOD: This study analyzed data of patients who had TC diagnosed and underwent surgical treatment in 2000 and 2005. Epidemiological factors about patients, tumors and surgical procedures were evaluated. RESULTS: In 2000 and 2005, an increasing incidence of TC at a rate of 132.33% was detected. The increased rate was mainly observed for tumors measuring less than 1 cm (p = 0.004). Results also showed an increase in the number of multifocal tumors (p = 0.02) and in the rate of total thyroidectomy (p = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: The increasing incidence of TC in the Metropolitan area of Florianopolis is probably due to more invasive thyroid nodule management. Future studies are necessary to establish potential predicting factors for papillary thyroid microcarcinoma aggressiveness, as well as predictors of follicular lesion malignancy to identifying more accurately the appropriate therapy approach.
Infant feeding practices, childhood growth and obesity in adult life
Authors: Lourenço Bárbara Hatzlhoffer , Cardoso Marly Augusto
Published: January 2010

Child health is widely affected by nutritional status, and there is growing interest surrounding the possibility that child nutritional status and infant feeding practices may be linked to obesity in adulthood, increasing risks of metabolic complications. Prospective studies enable appropriate investigation and evaluation of the determinants of childhood development. The present paper therefore aimed to provide a review of the main evidence to date from longitudinal studies concerning the associations of infant feeding practices, patterns of childhood growth and nutritional status exhibited in adult life.
Impacto hormonal e inflamatório de diferentes composições dietéticas: ênfase em padrões alimentares e fatores dietéticos específicos
Authors: Bressan Josefina , Hermsdorff Helen H. M. , Zulet María Ángeles , Martínez José Alfredo
Published: January 2010

A adoção de um padrão alimentar saudável, caracterizado pelo consumo de frutas, hortaliças, carnes magras, lácteos desnatados, frutos secos e moderada ingestão de óleos vegetais e álcool, é um fator determinante para um menor risco de doenças crônicas como a obesidade, a síndrome metabólica e as doenças cardiovasculares. Esse efeito benéfico pode ser explicado, pelo menos em parte, por seu papel modulador sobre biomarcadores da sensibilidade insulínica, da aterogênese, bem como os de inflamação e de função endotelial. Por outra parte, a ingestão de componentes específicos da dieta como os ácidos graxos insaturados (oleico e alfa-linolênico) e os micronutrientes com propriedades antioxidantes (vitaminas A, E e C; selênio e zinco) vêm sendo discutida, em razão de sua potencial ação protetora perante a ocorrência das doenças crônicas e possíveis benefícios na regulação hormonal, metabólica e inflamatória que esses fatores dietéticos podem proporcionar dentro de um tratamento nutricional para a obesidade e a síndrome metabólica.
Importância da gordura alimentar na prevenção e no controle de distúrbios metabólicos e da doença cardiovascular
Authors: Lottenberg Ana Maria Pita
Published: January 2010

A Organização Mundial da Saúde (OMS) reiterou recentemente que o consumo de dietas inadequadas e a inatividade física estão entre os dez principais fatores de mortalidade. Diversos ensaios aleatorizados demonstram que intervenções alimentares adequadas podem diminuir ou prevenir significativamente o aparecimento de várias doenças crônicas não transmissíveis. Neste contexto, o papel da dieta vem sendo exaustivamente avaliado em estudos clínicos e epidemiológicos. Assim, já foi bem estabelecido na literatura que a quantidade e o tipo de gordura alimentar exercem influência direta sobre fatores de risco cardiovascular, tais como a concentração de lípides e de lipoproteínas plasmáticas, bem como sua associação a processos inflamatórios. Os ácidos graxos participam de complexos sistemas de sinalização intracelular, função que vem sendo bastante explorada. Os ácidos graxos poli-insaturados não somente influenciam a composição das membranas, metabolismo celular e sinais de tradução, mas também modulam a expressão de genes, regulando a atividade e a produção de diversos fatores de transcrição. A proposta deste artigo é rever tópicos relevantes referentes ao metabolismo de lípides e os relacionar a terapias nutricionais que possam contribuir para a prevenção e o tratamento de doenças associadas.
The small bowel flora in individuals with cecoileal reflux
Authors: Machado Wellington Monteiro , Miranda José Ricardo Arruda , Morceli José , Padovani Carlos Roberto
Published: January 2010

BACKGROUND: The observation of cecoileal reflux to barium enema is not rare; however, its causes and consequences have not been widely investigated. Considering that ileocecal junction exerts a function as barrier to invasion of bacteria from colon to small bowel, it seems interesting to study the intestinal microflora in subjects carrying cecoileal reflux. AIMS: This study aims at evaluating the ileal flora in individuals with cecoileal reflux. METHODS: A group of 36 subjects comprising 30 females and 6 males with a mean age of 54 years was assessed. Twenty-five individuals with cecoileal reflux and 11 without cecoileal reflux were submitted to small intestine contamination evaluation through the breath test with lactulose-H2 and measurement of the orocecal transit time by means of alternate current biosusceptometry. Small intestine bacterial overgrowth was characterized by orocecal transit time-H2 shortening. RESULTS: Comparison of basal H2, orocecal transit time-H2 and orocecal transit time-alternate current biosusceptometry measurements did not statistically differ between the groups with and without cecoileal reflux. Orocecal transit time-H2 was significantly smaller than orocecal transit time-alternate current biosusceptometry, particularly in individuals with cecoileal reflux. A significant correlation between the two methods was observed only in relation to control, not existing in relation to cecoileal reflux group. CONCLUSIONS: Smaller orocecal transit time-H2 and the loss of correlation with orocecal transit time-alternate current biosusceptometry observed in the individuals with cecoileal reflux suggest a differentiated behavior for such group relative to control, which could be associated with small intestine bacterial overgrowth.
Chlamydia pneumoniae and stroke: is there a direct relationship?
Authors: Gagliardi Rubens J. , Caiaffa-Filho Helio H.
Published: January 2010

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the possible relationship between atherothrombotic stroke and Chlamydia pneumoniae. METHOD: 150 patients with carotid atherothrombosis were enrolled. The casuistic was divided in three groups: ischemic stroke (IS): 65 patients; transient ischemic attack (TIA): 26 patients; and control: 59. The IS or TIA onset was up to 30 days from the beginning of the study. Carotid atheromatoses was diagnosed by Doppler-ultrasonography. Patients with cardioembolic risk or non-atherothrombotic origin were excluded. Comparisons were done between the three groups, and within each group according to the different age sub-groups, to the main arteries affected, and to the atherogenic risk factors. Bacteria detection was done using polimerase chain reaction. RESULTS: Only one patient tested positive for C. pneumoniae belonging to the control group. CONCLUSION: These results do not suggest that C. pneumoniae participated in the onset of IS or TIA or that it has a role in carotid plaque destabilization.
Conjugal amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Brazil
Authors: Godeiro-Junior Clecio , Oliveira Acary S.B. , Felicio Andre C. , Chieia Marco A. , Gabbai Alberto Alain
Published: January 2010

The origin of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) remains unknown, although it seems to be multifactorial. The role of environmental factors has been frequently investigated and suspicion of its influence can be obtained when clusters of a rare disease are described. OBJECTIVE: To describe conjugal cases of ALS in Brazil. METHOD: We describe 2 couples in which both spouses were affected by ALS. Both couples had lived in southeast Brazil and were married for at least 20 years. RESULTS: There was a great variability in clinical presentation of ALS in our patients. In both couples the interval between disease onsets was short. No precise environmental factors could be identified at the origin of these conjugal cases. CONCLUSION: The occurrence of ALS in couples living in the same area may be epidemiologically important, but we cannot exclude that cases may be due to a chance association.
Effects of the use of MIG3 bioceramics fabrics use - long infrared emitter - in pain, intolerance to cold and periodic limb movements in post-polio syndrome
Authors: Silva Tatiana Mesquita e , Moreira Gustavo Antonio , Quadros Abrahão Augusto Juviniano , Pradella-Hallinan Márcia , Tufik Sergio , Oliveira Acary Souza Bulle
Published: January 2010

The main post-polio syndrome (PPS) symptoms are new-onset weakness, new-onset atrophy, fatigue, cold intolerance, and pain associated with sleep disturbances. The polysomnographic study is the gold pattern to analyze sleep disorders. OBJECTIVE: To assess pain, intolerance to cold and periodic limb movements (PLM) index before and after the use of MIG3 bioceramic fabrics over 4 weeks. METHOD: 12 patients with PPS from UNIFESP/EPM. All patients were submitted to polysomnography and infra-red examinations with answered scales of pain and intolerance to cold before and after the use of MIG3 bioceramics fabrics. RESULTS: There were significant decreases in pain and PLM index. CONCLUSION: MIG3 bioceramic fabrics can help in the treatment of pain and PLM in PPS patients.
Treatment of colloid cysts of the third ventricle through neuroendoscopic Nd: YAG laser stereotaxis
Authors: Pinto Fernando Campos Gomes , Chavantes Maria Cristina , Fonoff Erich Talamoni , Teixeira Manoel Jacobsen
Published: January 2010

OBJECTIVE: Colloid cysts (IIIVT CC) are benign neuroepithelial cysts located in the anterior third ventricle. The authors propose the use of Nd:YAG laser stereotactic neuroendoscopic for guided resection of the third ventricle colloid cysts. METHOD: Eleven patients presented third ventricle colloid cysts and were treated by Nd:YAG laser guided with stereotactic endoscopy (n=7) , stereotactic endoscopy (n=3) or stereotactly guided puncture (n=1). The patients were followed prospectively (average 33 months, range 19-64 months). The clinical data, neuroimaging findings, hospitalization stay, outcomes and complications of the method were evaluated. RESULTS: All patients presented headache; six had papilledema, one had gait disturbance and one had third-nerve palsy. Neuroimaging showed hydrocephalus and a IIIVT CC with 14.4-mm mean diameter. After surgery all patients presented clinical and image improvement. Only two patients presented transient morbidities that were easily treated: One had diabetes insipidus that lasted for two days and was treated with a single dose of DDAVP, and another had chemical aseptic meningitis, probably due to the contact of the cyst content with the CSF. This patient was treated with antibiotics and corticosteroids with complete resolution of the problem without sequels. The other patients were discharged from the hospital 48 h after surgery. CONCLUSION: The stereotactic neuroendoscopy-guided procedure with Nd:YAG laser allowed the complete removal of the third ventricle colloid cysts, without definitive morbidities, sequels or recurrence of the lesion.
Novas variedades de pimentão resistentes ao mosaico causado por virus Y
Authors: Nagai Hiroshi
Published: January 2010

Novas variedades de pimentão denominadas "Agronômico 9" e "Agronômico 10" foram obtidas de cruzamentos múltiplos, em que tomaram parte as variedades de pimentão Casca Dura (Casca Grossa), Mogi das Cruzes, Porto Rico Wonder, Moura, Ikeda, Yolo Wonder e Modestão, além de uma pimenteira P 11 (P.I. 264281). Cada uma dessas variedades contribuiu com respectivos genes de resistência às estirpes Yn, Yw, Yf, Yat do complexo PVY e mais hipersensibilidade ao TMV. "Agronômico 9" produz frutos quadrados (tipo California Wonder) e "Agronômico 10" apresenta frutos cônico-alongados (tipo Casca Dura).
Polinização e formação de frutos em araticum
Authors: Cavalcante Tadeu Robson Melo , Naves Ronaldo Veloso , Franceschinelli Edivani Villaron , Silva Ricardo Pereira da
Published: January 2010

O araticum, Annona crassiflora Mart., é fruta típica do Cerrado brasileiro, com potencial econômico e alimentar, entretanto, há baixa produção. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o sistema reprodutivo do araticum e identificar seus possíveis polinizadores. O experimento foi desenvolvido no Estado de Goiás, Brasil, nos municípios de Goiânia, a 6° 35' 56,0" S 49° 16' 44,4" O; 727 m e Vila Propício, a 15°15' 37,0" S 48(0) 42' 30,9" O; 696 m, em 2004 e 2005. O delineamento foi em blocos ao acaso com quatro tratamentos: polinização cruzada manual (T1); polinização natural (T2); autopolinização espontânea (T3) e autopolinização manual (T4). A viabilidade do pólen foi checada usando carmim acético a 1%. Em 2004, as porcentagens de frutos formados em Goiânia foram de 39,46%; 0% e 0% em T1, T2 e T3, respectivamente. Em Vila Propício foram: 31,11%; 4,65% e 0% em T1, T2 e T3 respectivamente. Em 2005, as porcentagens de frutos formados em Goiânia foram de 64,24%; 4,72%, 0% e 34,38%, em T1, T2, T3 e T4 respectivamente. Em Vila Propício, três espécies de besouros foram coletados nas flores de araticum e identificados como: Cyclocephala atricapilla Mannerheim, Cyclocephala latericia Hohne e Cyclocephala octopunctata Burmeister. Em Goiânia, somente Cyclocephala octopunctata foi coletado. A polinização cruzada manual resultou em alta frutificação. O araticum é espécie autocompatível, mas principalmente alogâmica.
Potencial de aumento do teor de ferro em grãos de feijão por melhoramento genético
Authors: Jost Evandro , Ribeiro Nerinéia Dalfollo , Cerutti Taiguer , Poersch Nerison Luiz , Maziero Sandra Maria
Published: January 2010

O desenvolvimento de germoplasma de feijão com maior teor de ferro nos grãos é uma alternativa para minimizar os problemas da deficiência desse mineral na dieta. Para tanto, é preciso verificar se ocorre efeito materno para o teor de ferro e conhecer a herança desse caráter, objetivos desse trabalho. As gerações F1, F1 recíproco, F2, F2 recíproco, F3, F3 recíproco, retrocruzamento 1 e retrocruzamento 2 foram obtidas para os cruzamentos entre Minuano x Diamante Negro e Diamante Negro x IAPAR 44. O teor de ferro foi determinado por meio de digestão nítrica-perclórica e leitura em espectrofotômetro de absorção atômica. Variabilidade genética para o teor de ferro nos grãos foi obtida nos diferentes cruzamentos e constatou-se efeito materno na expressão do teor de ferro em feijão. Estimativas de herdabilidade em sentido amplo de 76,36% e em sentido restrito de 50,60% foram observadas, a partir do cruzamento entre Minuano x Diamante Negro. Ganho por seleção de 11,14% foi obtido, comprovando que é possível aumentar o teor de ferro em grãos de feijão por meio de melhoramento genético. A seleção realizada em gerações precoces poderá ser efetiva no desenvolvimento de germoplasma de feijão com alto teor de ferro nos grãos.