Articles

Failure of E. coli bacteria to induce preterm delivery in the rat

We sought to develop a model of bacterially induced preterm delivery in rats to parallel similar models in mice.

Authors: Emmet Hirsch, Yana Filipovich and Roberto Romero

Host factors do not influence the colonization or infection by fluconazole resistant Candida species in hospitalized patients

Nosocomial yeast infections have significantly increased during the past two decades in industrialized countries, including Taiwan. This has been associated with the emergence of resistance to fluconazole and ...

Authors: Yun-Liang Yang, Ming-Fang Cheng, Ya-Wen Chang, Tzuu-Guang Young, Hsin Chi, Sai Cheong Lee, Bruno Man-Hon Cheung, Fan-Chen Tseng, Tun-Chieh Chen, Yu-Huai Ho, Zhi-Yuan Shi, Chung-Huang Hubert Chan, Ju-Yu Lin and Hsiu-Jung Lo

Prospective randomized trial of iliohypogastric-ilioinguinal nerve block on post-operative morphine use after inpatient surgery of the female reproductive tract

To determine the impact of pre-operative and intra-operative ilioinguinal and iliohypogastric nerve block on post-operative analgesic utilization and length of stay (LOS).

Authors: Salim A Wehbe, Labib M Ghulmiyyah, El-Khawand H Dominique, Sarah L Hosford, Carole M Ehleben, Steven L Saltzman and Eric Scott Sills

No evidence of enhanced oxidant production in blood obtained from patients with obstructive sleep apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a recognized risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, perhaps due to causative exacerbations of systemic oxidative stress. Putative oxidative stress re...

Authors: Izabela Grabska-Kobylecka, Andrzej Kobylecki, Piotr Bialasiewicz, Maciej Krol, Golsa Ehteshamirad, Marek Kasielski and Dariusz Nowak

Variation in genes encoding eosinophil granule proteins in atopic dermatitis patients from Germany

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is believed to result from complex interactions between genetic and environmental factors. A main feature of AD as well as other allergic disorders is serum and tissue eosinophilia. Huma...

Authors: Qumar Parwez, Susanne Stemmler, Jörg T Epplen and Sabine Hoffjan

Lack of association between sCTLA-4 levels in human plasma and common CTLA-4 polymorphisms

Cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4) is an important downregulatory molecule expressed on both T and B lymphocytes. Numerous population genetics studies have documented significant associations between au...

Authors: Andrew Berry, Matt Tector and Martin K Oaks

Lack of association between right-to-left shunt and cerebral ischemia after adjustment for gender and age

A number of studies has addressed the possible association between patent foramen ovale (PFO) and stroke. However, the role of PFO in the pathogenesis of cerebral ischemia has remained controversial and most s...

Authors: Holger Poppert, Melanie Morschhaeuser, Regina Feurer, Angelina Bockelbrink, Jens Schwarze, Lorena Esposito, Peter Heider, Dirk Sander and Bernhard Hemmer

Ocular accommodation and cognitive demand: An additional indicator besides pupil size and cardiovascular measures?

The aim of the present study was to assess accommodation as a possible indicator of changes in the autonomic balance caused by altered cognitive demand. Accounting for accommodative responses from a human fact...

Authors: Stephanie Jainta, Joerg Hoormann and Wolfgang Jaschinski

Evidence against PALB2 involvement in Icelandic breast cancer susceptibility

Several mutations in the PALB2 gene (partner and localizer of BRCA2) have been associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, including a founder mutation, 1592delT, reported in Finnish breast cancer familie...

Authors: Haukur Gunnarsson, Adalgeir Arason, Elizabeth M Gillanders, Bjarni A Agnarsson, Gudrun Johannesdottir, Oskar Th Johannsson and Rosa B Barkardottir

Multiple dosing strategies with acetyl L-carnitine (ALCAR) fail to alter age-related hearing loss in the Fischer 344/NHsd rat

The Fischer 344/NHsd rat undergoes age-related, progressive, high-frequency hearing loss beginning at age 12 months. The loss has been linked to defects/death in the outer hair cells related to oxidative stres...

Authors: Eric C Bielefeld, Donald Coling, Guang-Di Chen and Donald Henderson

Tolerance and rebound with zafirlukast in patients with persistent asthma

The potential for tolerance to develop to zafirlukast, a cysteinyl leukotriene (CysLT) receptor antagonist (LRA) in persistent asthma, has not been specifically examined.

Authors: David W Reid, Neil L Misso, Shashi Aggarwal, Philip J Thompson, David P Johns and E Haydn Walters

Environmental enrichment has no effect on the development of dopaminergic and GABAergic fibers during methylphenidate treatment of early traumatized gerbils

It is widely believed, that environmental factors play a crucial role in the etiology and outcome of psychiatric diseases such as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). A former study from our labora...

Authors: Susanne Brummelte, Thorsten Grund, Gunther H Moll, Gertraud Teuchert-Noodt and Ralph R Dawirs

Body composition in male elite athletes, comparison of bioelectrical impedance spectroscopy with dual energy X-ray absorptiometry

The aim of this study was to compare body composition results from bioelectrical spectroscopy (BIS) with results from dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in a population of male elite athletes. Body composi...

Authors: Ulla Svantesson, Martina Zander, Sofia Klingberg and Frode Slinde

Effectiveness of low-dose doxycycline (LDD) on clinical symptoms of Sjögren's Syndrome: a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled cross-over study

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are proteolytic enzymes that may contribute to tissue destruction in Sjögren's syndrome (SS). Low-dose doxycycline (LDD) inhibits MMPs. We evaluated the efficacy of LDD for the...

Authors: Hubertus Seitsalo, Raija K Niemelä, Magdalena Marinescu-Gava, Tuija Vuotila, Leo Tjäderhane and Tuula Salo

Absence of autoantibodies connected to autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome type I and II and Addison's disease in girls and women with Turner syndrome

A disturbance in the immune system has been described in Turner syndrome (45,X), with an association to low levels of IgG and IgM and decreased levels of T- and B-lymphocytes. Also different autoimmune disease...

Authors: Annika E Stenberg, Lisskulla Sylvén, Håkan Hedstrand, Olle Kämpe and Malou Hultcrantz

Functional polymorphisms in the promoter regions of MMP2 and MMP3 are not associated with melanoma progression

The matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are enzymes that cleave various components of the extracellular matrix (ECM) and basement membranes. MMPs are expressed in melanocytes and their overexpression has been lin...

Authors: Javier Cotignola, Pampa Roy, Ami Patel, Nicole Ishill, Shivang Shah, Alan Houghton, Daniel Coit, Allan Halpern, Klaus Busam, Marianne Berwick and Irene Orlow

Peripheral nervous system manifestations in a Sandhoff disease mouse model: nerve conduction, myelin structure, lipid analysis

Sandhoff disease is an inherited lysosomal storage disease caused by a mutation in the gene for the β-subunit (Hexb gene) of β-hexosaminidase A (αβ) and B (ββ). The β-subunit together with the GM2 activator prote...

Authors: Melanie A McNally, Rena C Baek, Robin L Avila, Thomas N Seyfried, Gary R Strichartz and Daniel A Kirschner

Vitamin D and oestrogen receptor polymorphisms in developmental dysplasia of the hip and primary protrusio acetabuli – A preliminary study

We investigated the association of developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) and primary protrusion acetabuli (PPA) with Vitamin D receptor polymorphisms Taq I and Fok I and oestrogen receptor polymorphisms Pvu...

Authors: Birender Kapoor, Colin Dunlop, Charles Wynn-Jones, Anthony A Fryer, Richard C Strange and Nicola Maffulli

Variance in multiplex suspension array assays: carryover of microspheres between sample wells

This study was undertaken because of the accidental observation that a sample of 60+ beads was obtained by the instrument from a completely dry, unused well in a 96 well plate. Others have observed unexplained...

Authors: Brian Hanley

Human pluripotent embryonal carcinoma NTERA2 cl.D1 cells maintain their typical morphology in an angiomyogenic medium

Pluripotent embryonal carcinomas are good potential models, to study, "in vitro," the mechanisms that control differentiation during embryogenesis. The NTERA2cl.D1 (NT2/D1) cell line is a well known system of ect...

Authors: Pedro D Simões and Teresa Ramos

Psycho-education programme for temporomandibular disorders: a pilot study

Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) are by far the most predominant condition affecting the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), however many patients have mild self-limiting symptoms and should not be referred for s...

Authors: Waseem Jerjes, Geir Madland, Charlotte Feinmann, Mohammed El Maaytah, Mahesh Kumar, Colin Hopper, Tahwinder Upile and Stanton Newman

Erratum to: searching for plasticity in dissociated cortical cultures on multi-electrode arrays

Authors: Daniel A Wagenaar, Jerome Pine and Steve M Potter

Fall risk in an active elderly population – can it be assessed?

Falls amongst elderly people are often associated with fractures. Training of balance and physical performance can reduce fall risk; however, it remains a challenge to identify individuals at increased risk of...

Authors: Uffe Laessoe, Hans C Hoeck, Ole Simonsen, Thomas Sinkjaer and Michael Voigt

Effects of bone marrow cell transplant on thyroid function in an I¹³¹-induced low T4 and elevated TSH rat model

We developed a study using low dose radioactive iodine creating an animal model of transient elevation of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). Male derived bone marrow cells were transplanted to asses their effe...

Authors: Gustavo E Guajardo-Salinas, Juan A Carvajal, Ángel A Gaytan-Ramos, Luis Arroyo, Alberto G López-Reyes, José F Islas, Beiman G Cano, Netzahualcoyótl Arroyo-Currás, Alfredo Dávalos, Gloria Madrid and Jorge E Moreno-Cuevas

Indirect exclusion of four candidate genes for generalized progressive retinal atrophy in several breeds of dogs

Generalized progressive retinal atrophy (gPRA) is a hereditary ocular disorder with progressive photoreceptor degeneration in dogs. Four retina-specific genes, ATP binding cassette transporter retina (ABCA 4), co...

Authors: Tanja Lippmann, Sandra M Pasternack, Britta Kraczyk, Sabine E Dudek and Gabriele Dekomien

A study of association between common variation in the growth hormone-chorionic somatomammotropin hormone gene cluster and adult fasting insulin in a UK Caucasian population

Reduced growth during infancy is associated with adult insulin resistance. In a UK Caucasian cohort, the CSH1.01 microsatellite polymorphism in the growth hormone-chorionic somatomammotropin hormone gene cluster ...

Authors: Rachel M Freathy, Simon MS Mitchell, Beatrice Knight, Beverley Shields, Michael N Weedon, Andrew T Hattersley and Timothy M Frayling

A critique of the WHO TobReg's "Advisory Note" report entitled: "Waterpipe tobacco smoking: health effects, research needs and recommended actions by regulators"

The World Health Organisation Study Group on Tobacco Product Regulation (TobReg) has issued in 2005 an "Advisory Note" entitled: "Waterpipe Tobacco Smoking: Health Effects, Research Needs and Recommended Actions ...

Authors: Kamal Chaouachi

Searching for plasticity in dissociated cortical cultures on multi-electrode arrays

We attempted to induce functional plasticity in dense cultures of cortical cells using stimulation through extracellular electrodes embedded in the culture dish substrate (multi-electrode arrays, or MEAs). We ...

Authors: Daniel A Wagenaar, Jerome Pine and Steve M Potter

Polymorphisms within inflammatory genes and colorectal cancer

Chronic inflammation is a risk factor for colorectal cancer and polymorphisms in the inflammatory genes could modulate the levels of inflammation. We have investigated ten single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs...

Authors: Stefano Landi, Federica Gemignani, Fabio Bottari, Lydie Gioia-Patricola, Elisabet Guino, María Cambray, Sebastiano Biondo, Gabriel Capella, Laura Boldrini, Federico Canzian and Victor Moreno

Role of metabolically active hormones in the insulin resistance associated with short-term glucocorticoid treatment

The mechanisms by which glucocorticoid therapy promotes obesity and insulin resistance are incompletely characterized. Modulations of the metabolically active hormones, tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha)...

Authors: Jeetesh V Patel, David E Cummings, John P Girod, Alwin V Mascarenhas, Elizabeth A Hughes, Manjula Gupta, Gregory YH Lip, Sethu Reddy and Daniel J Brotman

Wnt expression is not correlated with β-catenin dysregulation in Dupuytren's Disease

Dupuytren's contracture or disease (DD) is a fibro-proliferative disease of the hand that results in finger flexion contractures. Increased cellular β-catenin levels have been identified as characteristic of t...

Authors: David B O'Gorman, Yan Wu, Shannon Seney, Rebecca D Zhu and Bing Siang Gan

Radiographic 2D:4D index in females: no relation to anthropometric, behavioural, nutritional, health-related, occupational or fertility variables

The ratio of index finger to ring finger length (2D:4D index) may be an indicator of gonadal hormone exposure, because the differentiation of gonads, fingers and toes is influenced by the same HOXA and HOHD ge...

Authors: Tapio Vehmas, Svetlana Solovieva and Päivi Leino-Arjas

Soy isoflavones increase preprandial peptide YY (PYY), but have no effect on ghrelin and body weight in healthy postmenopausal women

Soy isoflavones show structural and functional similarities to estradiol. Available data indicate that estradiol and estradiol-like components may interact with gut "satiety hormones" such as peptide YY (PYY) ...

Authors: Martin O Weickert, Manja Reimann, Bärbel Otto, Wendy L Hall, Katherina Vafeiadou, Jesper Hallund, Marika Ferrari, Duncan Talbot, Francesco Branca, Susanne Bügel, Christine M Williams, Hans-Joachim Zunft and Corinna Koebnick

Study of the impact of perilipin polymorphisms in a French population

Perilipins are proteins localized at the surface of the lipid droplet in adipocytes, steroid-producing cells and ruptured atherosclerotic plaques playing a role in the regulation of triglyceride deposition and...

Authors: Aline Meirhaeghe, Séverine Thomas, Frédéric Ancot, Dominique Cottel, Dominique Arveiler, Jean Ferrières and Philippe Amouyel

Aortic distensibility measured by pulse-wave velocity is not modified in patients with Chagas' disease

Experimental studies demonstrate that infection with trypanosoma cruzi causes vasculitis. The inflammatory lesion process could hypothetically lead to decreased distensibility of large and small arteries in advan...

Authors: Humberto Villacorta, Luiz Aparecido Bortolotto, Edmundo Arteaga and Charles Mady

VEGF receptors on PC12 cells mediate transient activation of ERK1/2 and Akt: comparison of nerve growth factor and vascular endothelial growth factor

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and endostatin are angiogenic and anti-angiogenic molecules, respectively, that have been implicated in neurogenesis and neuronal survival. Using alkaline phosphatase ...

Authors: Ingrid Berger, Sonja Stahl, Natalia Rychkova and Ute Felbor

Sporadic ALS is not associated with VAPB gene mutations in Southern Italy

Mutations in the Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (Sod1) gene have been reported to cause adult-onset autosomal dominant Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (FALS). In sporadic cases (SALS) de novo mutations in the Sod1 gene...

Authors: Francesca Luisa Conforti, Teresa Sprovieri, Rosalucia Mazzei, Carmine Ungaro, Alessandro Tessitore, Gioacchino Tedeschi, Alessandra Patitucci, Angela Magariello, AnnaLia Gabriele, Vincenzo Labella, Isabella Laura Simone, Giovanni Majorana, Maria Rosaria Monsurrò, Paola Valentino, Maria Muglia and Aldo Quattrone

Capsaicin- resistant arterial baroreceptors

Aortic baroreceptors (BRs) comprise a class of cranial afferents arising from major arteries closest to the heart whose axons form the aortic depressor nerve. BRs are mechanoreceptors that are largely devoted ...

Authors: Patrick J Reynolds, Wei Fan and Michael C Andresen

Genetic polymorphisms and susceptibility to lung disease

Susceptibility to infection by bacterium such as Bacillus anthracis has a genetic basis in mice and may also have a genetic basis in humans. In the limited human cases of inhalation anthrax, studies suggest that ...

Authors: Pauline L Lee, Carol West, Karen Crain and Lei Wang

Role of HOXA7 to HOXA13 and PBX1 genes in various forms of MRKH syndrome (congenital absence of uterus and vagina)

The Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome refers to the congenital absence or severe hypoplasia of the female genital tract, often described as uterovaginal aplasia which is the prime feature of the s...

Authors: Agnès Burel, Thomas Mouchel, Sylvie Odent, Filiz Tiker, Bertrand Knebelmann, Isabelle Pellerin and Daniel Guerrier

Genetic variation in the myeloperoxidase gene and cognitive impairment in Multiple Sclerosis

There is evidence that multiple sclerosis (MS) may associated with cognitive impairment in 25 to 40% of cases. The gene encoding myeloperoxidase (MPO) is involved in molecular pathways leading to β-amyloid dep...

Authors: I Manna, P Valentino, A La Russa, F Condino, R Nisticò, M Liguori, A Clodomiro, V Andreoli, D Pirritano, R Cittadella and A Quattrone

Neurohumoral, immunoinflammatory and cardiovascular profile of patients with severe tetanus: a prospective study

Autonomic disturbances in tetanus are traditionally associated with adrenergic variations and/or cardiac dysfunction, based on case report data. The objective of this study was to measure catecholamines, (TNF)...

Authors: Janete S Brauner and Nadine Clausell

The Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome (congenital absence of uterus and vagina) – phenotypic manifestations and genetic approaches

The Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome affects at least 1 out of 4500 women and has for a long time been considered as a sporadic anomaly. Congenital absence of upper vagina and uterus is the prime...

Authors: Daniel Guerrier, Thomas Mouchel, Laurent Pasquier and Isabelle Pellerin

Failure to confirm influence of Methyltetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) polymorphisms on age at onset of Huntington disease

Huntington disease (HD) is a fully penetrant, autosomal dominantly inherited disorder associated with abnormal expansions of a stretch of perfect CAG repeats in the 5' part of the IT15 gene. The number of repeat ...

Authors: Wiebke Hansen, Carsten Saft, Jürgen Andrich, Thomas Müller, Stefan Wieczorek, Jörg T Epplen and Larissa Arning

Cortactin and phagocytosis in isolated Sertoli cells

Cortactin, an actin binding protein, has been associated with Sertoli cell ectoplasmic specializations in vivo, based on its immunolocalization around the heads of elongated spermatids, but not previously identif...

Authors: Katja M Wolski, Edward Haller and Don F Cameron

Exclusion of PINK1 as candidate gene for the late-onset form of Parkinson's disease in two European populations

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder. Recently, mutations in the PINK1 (PARK6) gene were shown to rarely cause autosomal-recessively transmitted, early-onset parkinsonism....

Authors: Anna Melissa Schlitter, Martin Kurz, Jan P Larsen, Dirk Woitalla, Thomas Mueller, Joerg T Epplen and Gabriele Dekomien

Beta-defensin genomic copy number is not a modifier locus for cystic fibrosis

Human beta-defensin 2 (DEFB4, also known as DEFB2 or hBD-2) is a salt-sensitive antimicrobial protein that is expressed in lung epithelia. Previous work has shown that it is encoded in a cluster of beta-defens...

Authors: Edward J Hollox, Jane Davies, Uta Griesenbach, Juliana Burgess, Eric WFW Alton and John AL Armour

On the genetic involvement of apoptosis-related genes in Crohn's disease as revealed by an extended association screen using 245 markers: no evidence for new predisposing factors

Crohn's disease (CD) presents as an inflammatory barrier disease with characteristic destructive processes in the intestinal wall. Although the pathomechanisms of CD are still not exactly understood, there is ...

Authors: Sonja EN Wagenleiter, Peter Jagiello, Denis A Akkad, Larissa Arning, Thomas Griga, Wolfram Klein and Jörg T Epplen

An extended association screen in multiple sclerosis using 202 microsatellite markers targeting apoptosis-related genes does not reveal new predisposing factors

Apoptosis, the programmed death of cells, plays a distinct role in the etiopathogenesis of Multiple sclerosis (MS), a common disease of the central nervous system with complex genetic background. Yet, it is no...

Authors: René Gödde, Stefanie Brune, Peter Jagiello, Eckhart Sindern, Michael Haupts, Sebastian Schimrigk, Norbert Müller and Jörg T Epplen

Resting energy expenditure is not influenced by classical music

Obesity shows an increasing prevalence worldwide and a decrease in energy expenditure has been suggested to be one of the risk factors for developing obesity. An increase in resting energy expenditure would ha...

Authors: Ebba Carlsson, Hannah Helgegren and Frode Slinde