Gamble v. U.S.: Brief of Amici Curiae Law Professors in Support of Petitioner

In this case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court, petitioner Gamble\u27s brief demonstrates that there was no dual sovereignty doctrine before the mid-19th century. At the Founding and for several decades thereafter, a prosecution by one sovereign was understood to bar a subsequent prosecution by all other sovereigns. Dual sovereignty is thus contrary to the original meaning of the Double Jeopardy Clause. Defendants today enjoy a weaker form of double jeopardy protection than they did when the Bill of Rights was ratified.But that fact only raises three further questions. First why did the Court erroneously conclude in Bartkus v. Illinois, 359 U.S. 121, 131 (1959), that the English and early American sources are “totally inconclusive” as to whether dual sovereignty existed at the Founding? Second, how, when, and why did the dual sovereignty doctrine come to exist? Third, given this history, why did the Court hold in United States v. Lanza, 260 U.S. 377 (1922), that a state prosecution does not bar a subsequent federal prosecution for the same conduct? This amicus brief answers these three questions.First, in Bartkus the Court simply misunderstood the English and early American sources. Second, dual sovereignty grew out of the intense controversy over slavery in the period immediately before the Civil War. The Court invented dual sovereignty largely to prevent free states from blocking the recapture of fugitive slaves. Third, by the time of Lanza, the dual sovereignty doctrine had been restated so often that the original meaning of the Double Jeopardy Clause had been forgotten. In Lanza, in any event, the Court was less concerned with original meaning than with rampant disregard for Prohibition. One purpose of dual sovereignty was to prevent “wet” localities from nullifying the Volstead Act. In short, dual sovereignty is an accident of history. It was not part of the constitutional design

Reduced incidence of hypertension after heterotopic cardiac transplantation compared with orthotopic cardiac transplantation Evidence that excision of the native heart contributes to post-transplant hypertension

ObjectivesThis study was designed to test the hypothesis that heterotopic heart transplant (HHT) patients have lower blood pressure than orthotopic cardiac transplant (OCT) patients because their native heart is involved in blood pressure homeostasis.BackgroundHypertension occurs more frequently after OCT than after liver or lung transplantation, suggesting that transplantation of the heart itself contributes to post-transplant hypertension.MethodsBlood pressure and related measurements in 233 OCT and 38 HHT patients were studied retrospectively post-transplant.ResultsSystolic blood pressure (SBP) was persistently lower among HHT patients (means 121 vs. 137, 126 vs. 137, 125 vs. 139, and 128 vs. 143 mm Hg at month 3 and years 1, 3, and 5 respectively, p < 0.005). Left ventricular and aortic systolic pressures were also lower (130 vs. 143 mm Hg, p = 0.01 and 129 vs. 142 mm Hg, p = 0.01). Multivariable analysis with age, gender, body mass index, creatinine, steroids, cyclosporine, use of antihypertensive medication, donor left ventricular ejection fraction, donor weight, and type of transplant as covariables showed HHT to be independently associated with a lower SBP at each time point (beta-coefficients −16.2, −12.1, −13.3, and −14.2 mm Hg, p < 0.01). The adjusted hazard ratio for the development of systolic hypertension among HHT compared with OCT patients was 0.59 (95% confidence interval 0.39 to 0.91, p = 0.017).ConclusionsHeterotopic heart transplant patients had lower SBP than OCT patients, consistent with the hypothesis that the native heart continues to contribute to blood pressure homeostasis

Leukemia Inhibitory Factor Is an Anti-Inflammatory and Analgesic Cytokine

The mRNA for leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF), a neuroimmune signaling molecule, is elevated during skin inflammation produced by intraplantar injection of complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA). Moreover, although LIF knock-out mice display normal sensitivity to cutaneous mechanical and thermal stimulation compared with wild-type mice, the degree of CFA-induced inflammation in mice lacking LIF is enhanced in spatial extent, amplitude, cellular infiltrate, and interleukin (IL)-1β and nerve growth factor (NGF) expression. Conversely, local injection of low doses of recombinant LIF diminishes mechanical and thermal hypersensitivity as well as the IL-1β and NGF expression induced by CFA. These data show that upregulation of LIF during peripheral inflammation serves a key, early anti-inflammatory role and that exogenous LIF can reduce inflammatory hyperalgesia

The Streptomycin-Treated Mouse Intestine Selects \u3cem\u3eEscherichia coli envZ\u3c/em\u3e Missense Mutants That Interact with Dense and Diverse Intestinal Microbiota

Previously, we reported that the streptomycin-treated mouse intestine selected nonmotile Escherichia coli MG1655 flhDC deletion mutants of E. coli MG1655 with improved colonizing ability that grow 15% faster in vitro in mouse cecal mucus and 15 to 30% faster on sugars present in mucus (M. P. Leatham et al., Infect. Immun. 73:8039–8049, 2005). Here, we report that the 10 to 20% remaining motile E. coli MG1655 are envZ missense mutants that are also better colonizers of the mouse intestine than E. coli MG1655. One of the flhDC mutants, E. coli MG1655 ΔflhD, and one of the envZ missense mutants, E. coli MG1655 mot-1, were studied further. E. coli MG1655 mot-1 is more resistant to bile salts and colicin V than E. coli MG1655 ΔflhD and grows ca. 15% slower in vitro in mouse cecal mucus and on several sugars present in mucus compared to E. coli MG1655 ΔflhD but grows 30% faster on galactose. Moreover, E. coli MG1655 mot-1 and E. coli MG1655 ΔflhD appear to colonize equally well in one intestinal niche, but E. coli MG1655 mot-1 appears to use galactose to colonize a second, smaller intestinal niche either not colonized or colonized poorly by E. coli MG1655 ΔflhD. Evidence is also presented that E. coli MG1655 is a minority member of mixed bacterial biofilms in the mucus layer of the streptomycin-treated mouse intestine. We offer a hypothesis, which we call the “Restaurant” hypothesis, that explains how nutrient acquisition in different biofilms comprised of different anaerobes can account for our results

Book Reviews

Book Reviews: The Great Land: How Western America Nearly Became a Russian Possession by Jeremy Atiyah ; Sacred Claims: Repatriation and Living Tradition by Greg Johnson ; Who Owns the Crown Lands of Hawai'i? by Jon M. Van Dyke ; White Enough to Be American?: Race Mixing, Indigenous People, and the Boundaries of State and Nation by Lauren L. Basson ; Colonizing Leprosy: Imperialism and the Politics of Public Health in the United States by Michelle T. Moran ; Pacific Performances: Theatricality and Cross-Cultural Encounter in the South Seas by Christopher B. Balme ; Guardian of the Sea: Jizo in Hawai'i by John R. K. Clark ; Pathways to the Present: U.S. Development and Its Consequences in the Pacific by Mansel G. Blackford ; "Whole Oceans Away": Melville and the Pacific edited by Jill Barnum, Wyn Kelley, and Christopher Sten ; Ka Mo'olelo o Hi'iakaikapoliopele: Ka Wahine i ka Hikina a ka la, ka u'i Palekoki Uila o Halema'uma'u -- The Epic Tale of Hi'iakaikapoliopele: Woman of the Sunrise, Lightning-Skirted Beauty of Halema'uma'u by Ho'oulumahiehie ; We Go Eat: A Mixed Plate From Hawai'i's Food Culture edited by Susan Yim ; The White Pacific: U.S. Imperialism and Black Slavery in the South Seas after the Civil War by Gerald Horn

Cost-effectiveness of left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) for patients with advanced heart failure : analysis of the British NHS Bridge to Transplant (BTT) program

Background: A previous cost-effectiveness analysis showed that bridge to transplant (BTT) with early design left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) for advanced heart failure was more expensive than medical management while appearing less beneficial. Older LVADs were pulsatile, but current second and third generation LVADs are continuous flow pumps. This study aimed to estimate comparative cost-effectiveness of BTT with durable implantable continuous flow LVADs compared to medical management in the British NHS. Methods and results: A semi-Markov multi-state economic model was built using NHS costs data and patient data in the British NHS Blood and Transplant Database (BTDB). Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and incremental costs per QALY were calculated for patients receiving LVADs compared to those receiving inotrope supported medical management. LVADs cost £80,569 ($127,887) at 2011 prices and delivered greater benefit than medical management. The estimated probabilistic incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was £53,527 ($84,963)/QALY (95%CI: £31,802–£94,853; $50,479–$150,560) (over a lifetime horizon). Estimates were sensitive to choice of comparator population, relative likelihood of receiving a heart transplant, time to transplant, and LVAD costs. Reducing the device cost by 15% decreased the ICER to £50,106 ($79,533)/QALY. Conclusions: Durable implantable continuous flow LVADs deliver greater benefits at higher costs than medical management in Britain. At the current UK threshold of £20,000 to £30,000/QALY LVADs are not cost effective but the ICER now begins to approach that of an intervention for end of life care recently recommended by the British NHS. Cost-effectiveness estimates are hampered by the lack of randomized trials

Cost-effectiveness of left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) for patients with advanced heart failure : analysis of the British NHS Bridge to Transplant (BTT) program

Background: A previous cost-effectiveness analysis showed that bridge to transplant (BTT) with early design left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) for advanced heart failure was more expensive than medical management while appearing less beneficial. Older LVADs were pulsatile, but current second and third generation LVADs are continuous flow pumps. This study aimed to estimate comparative cost-effectiveness of BTT with durable implantable continuous flow LVADs compared to medical management in the British NHS. Methods and results: A semi-Markov multi-state economic model was built using NHS costs data and patient data in the British NHS Blood and Transplant Database (BTDB). Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and incremental costs per QALY were calculated for patients receiving LVADs compared to those receiving inotrope supported medical management. LVADs cost £80,569 ($127,887) at 2011 prices and delivered greater benefit than medical management. The estimated probabilistic incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was £53,527 ($84,963)/QALY (95%CI: £31,802–£94,853; $50,479–$150,560) (over a lifetime horizon). Estimates were sensitive to choice of comparator population, relative likelihood of receiving a heart transplant, time to transplant, and LVAD costs. Reducing the device cost by 15% decreased the ICER to £50,106 ($79,533)/QALY. Conclusions: Durable implantable continuous flow LVADs deliver greater benefits at higher costs than medical management in Britain. At the current UK threshold of £20,000 to £30,000/QALY LVADs are not cost effective but the ICER now begins to approach that of an intervention for end of life care recently recommended by the British NHS. Cost-effectiveness estimates are hampered by the lack of randomized trials

Persistence of Triploid Grass Carp in Devils Lake, Oregon

Grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella are sometimes used as a biological tool for managing aquatic vegetation in reservoirs. Sterile, triploid fish were stocked in Devils Lake, Oregon, during 1986, 1987, and 1993 to control aquatic vegetation. We present a case study for using multiple measures on the same fish to determine whether illegal stocking of fertile, diploid grass carp occurred. An investigation into the estimated age of a dead grass carp found in Devils Lake suggested that it was significantly younger than would otherwise be expected, given the only stocking events occurred during 1986, 1987, and 1993. To determine whether illegal stocking or reproduction by presumed sterile grass carp had occurred in Devils Lake, we conducted a study that balanced the needs of lethally sampling grass carp for biological measures with the socially and politically sensitive sentiment of the pro–grass carp citizenry of Devils Lake. These considerations, in combination with a low catch per-unit effort, resulted in a modest sample size for grass carp. We sampled grass carp and recorded multiple measures for each fish. Ploidy testing of blood samples indicated the grass carp were all triploid. Based on gonadal histopathology, six fish were male, two were female, and two were sex-indeterminate with severe gonadal dysgenesis. Age estimates from lapillus otoliths were consistent with fish originating from the legal stocking events in Devils Lake. The grass carp were 21–30 y old, and we were unable to find published reports of grass carp anywhere else in the world that are older. The grass carp were significantly smaller than much younger fish from other regions. The small size of these grass carp relative to their age in Devils Lake suggests food limitations that stunted growth. The dead grass carp that was the impetus for this study was aged by anatomical structures that we have since found to be unreliable. This suggests that the dead grass carp was probably in fact older and originated from the legal stockings. The use of multiple biological measurements on a modest sample size of grass carp, combined with the knowledge that no juvenile grass carp have been observed since legal stocking occurred, lead us to conclude that the grass carp in Devils Lake are sterile fish that originated from legal stocking events.Keywords: maximum age, sterile, intersex, gonadal histology, Asian carpKeywords: maximum age, sterile, intersex, gonadal histology, Asian car

Chelation in Metal Intoxication

Chelation therapy is the preferred medical treatment for reducing the toxic effects of metals. Chelating agents are capable of binding to toxic metal ions to form complex structures which are easily excreted from the body removing them from intracellular or extracellular spaces. 2,3-Dimercaprol has long been the mainstay of chelation therapy for lead or arsenic poisoning, however its serious side effects have led researchers to develop less toxic analogues. Hydrophilic chelators like meso-2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid effectively promote renal metal excretion, but their ability to access intracellular metals is weak. Newer strategies to address these drawbacks like combination therapy (use of structurally different chelating agents) or co-administration of antioxidants have been reported recently. In this review we provide an update of the existing chelating agents and the various strategies available for the treatment of heavy metals and metalloid intoxications