Alien Registration- Murchison, Bertha A. (Mapleton, Aroostook County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/34033/thumbnail.jp

Non-adherence to eye care in people with diabetes

Objective Evaluate individual factors that impact adherence to eye care follow-up in patients with diabetes. Design and methods A 4-year retrospective chart review was conducted for 1968 patients with diabetes over age 40 from an urban academic center. Data collected included demographics, insurance, visual acuity, smoking status, medications, dates of dilated fundus examinations (DFE), and reported hemoglobin A1C and blood glucose levels. The primary outcome was timely DFE follow-up adherence following the initial eye exam visit. Results Overall, 41.6% of patients adhered to initial follow-up eye care recommendations. Multivariable analysis demonstrated that patients with severe diabetic retinopathy (DR) were more adherent than patients with mild DR (OR 1.86). Other variables associated with increased adherence were visual impairment and reported A1C or blood glucose. Smoking was associated with decreased adherence. Ethnicity and insurance were also significantly associated with adherence. Longitudinal follow-up rates were influenced by additional factors, including ethnicity and neighborhood deprivation index. Conclusions Patients with moderate to severe DR and/ or visual impairment were more likely to adhere to timely DFE follow-up. This could relate to the presence of visual symptoms and/or other systemic manifestations of diabetes. Smokers were less likely to adhere to timely DFE follow-up. One hypothesis is patients who smoke have other symptomatic health problems which patients prioritize over asymptomatic ocular disorders. In order to reduce vision loss from DR, practitioners should be aware that patients with mild and moderate DR, patients with normal vision, and smokers are at greater risk for poor follow-up eye care adherence. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved

Chronicles of Oklahoma

Article outlines the interracial marriage laws present within the Cherokee Nation during the Reconstruction Era. Included is a list interracial marriages that were reported within the territory

A MicroRNA feedback circuit in midbrain dopamine neurons

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are evolutionarily conserved, 18- to 25-nucleotide, non-protein coding transcripts that posttranscriptionally regulate gene expression during development. miRNAs also occur in postmitotic cells, such as neurons in the mammalian central nervous system, but their function is less well characterized. We investigated the role of miRNAs in mammalian midbrain dopaminergic neurons (DNs). We identified a miRNA, miR-133b, that is specifically expressed in midbrain DNs and is deficient in midbrain tissue from patients with Parkinson's disease. miR-133b regulates the maturation and function of midbrain DNs within a negative feedback circuit that includes the paired-like homeodomain transcription factor Pitx3. We propose a role for this feedback circuit in the fine-tuning of dopaminergic behaviors such as locomotion

Genotype data not consistent with clonal transmission of sea turtle fibropapillomatosis or goldfish schwannoma.

Recent discoveries of transmissible cancers in multiple bivalve species suggest that direct transmission of cancer cells within species may be more common than previously thought, particularly in aquatic environments. Fibropapillomatosis occurs with high prevalence in green sea turtles ( Chelonia mydas) and the geographic range of disease has increased since fibropapillomatosis was first reported in this species. Widespread incidence of schwannomas, benign tumours of Schwann cell origin, reported in aquarium-bred goldfish (Carassius auratus), suggest an infectious aetiology. We investigated the hypothesis that cancers in these species arise by clonal transmission of cancer cells. Through analysis of polymorphic microsatellite alleles, we demonstrate concordance of host and tumour genotypes in diseased animals. These results imply that the tumours examined arose from independent oncogenic transformation of host tissue and were not clonally transmitted. Further, failure to experimentally transmit goldfish schwannoma via water exposure or inoculation suggest that this disease is unlikely to have an infectious aetiology

Serial characterisation of monocyte and neutrophil function after lung resection.

OBJECTIVES: The primary aim of this prospective study was to perform a comprehensive serial characterisation of monocyte and neutrophil function, circulating monocyte subsets, and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid after lung resection. A secondary aim was to perform a pilot, hypothesis-generating evaluation of whether innate immune parameters were associated with postoperative pneumonia. METHODS: Forty patients undergoing lung resection were studied in detail. Blood monocytes and neutrophils were isolated preoperatively and at 6, 24 and 48 h postoperatively. BAL was performed preoperatively and immediately postoperatively. Monocyte subsets, monocyte responsiveness to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and neutrophil phagocytic capacity were quantified at all time points. Differential cell count, protein and cytokine concentrations were measured in BAL. Pneumonia evaluation at 72 h was assessed using predefined criteria. RESULTS: After surgery, circulating subsets of classical and intermediate monocytes increased significantly. LPS-induced release of proinflammatory cytokines from monocytes increased significantly and by 48 h a more proinflammatory profile was found. Neutrophil phagocytosis demonstrated a small but significant fall. Factors associated with postoperative pneumonia were: increased release of specific proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines from monocytes; preoperative neutrophilia; and preoperative BAL cell count. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that postoperative lung inflammation is associated with specific changes in the cellular innate immune response, a better understanding of which may improve patient selection and prediction of complications in the future

Preferential Lineage-Specific Differentiation of Osteoblast-Derived Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells into Osteoprogenitors

While induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) hold great clinical promise, one hurdle that remains is the existence of a parental germ-layer memory in reprogrammed cells leading to preferential differentiation fates. While it is problematic for generating cells vastly different from the reprogrammed cells\u27 origins, it could be advantageous for the reliable generation of germ-layer specific cell types for future therapeutic use. Here we use human osteoblast-derived iPSCs (hOB-iPSCs) to generate induced osteoprogenitors (iOPs). Osteoblasts were successfully reprogrammed and demonstrated by endogenous upregulation of Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, TRA-1-81, TRA-16-1, SSEA3, and confirmatory hPSC Scorecard Algorithmic Assessment. The hOB-iPSCs formed embryoid bodies with cells of ectoderm and mesoderm but have low capacity to form endodermal cells. Differentiation into osteoprogenitors occurred within only 2-6 days, with a population doubling rate of less than 24 hrs; however, hOB-iPSC derived osteoprogenitors were only able to form osteogenic and chondrogenic cells but not adipogenic cells. Consistent with this, hOB-iOPs were found to have higher methylation of PPAR gamma but similar levels of methylation on the RUNX2 promoter. These data demonstrate that iPSCs can be generated from human osteoblasts, but variant methylation patterns affect their differentiation capacities. Therefore, epigenetic memory can be exploited for efficient generation of clinically relevant quantities of osteoprogenitor cells