Condensation of Vanillin and Substitution Products with Hippuric Acid (Abstract)

Condensation of vanillin with hippuric acid in presence of acetic anhydride gives a-benzoylamino-3-methoxy-4-acetoxycinnamic acid which, under the conditions of the experiment, loses the elements of water to give the related azlactone. This view of the reaction is supported by the fact that when esters of hippuric acid are used in this condensation lactones are not obtained. The ring may be opened by warming the lactone with 3 N caustic alkali solution. More drastic treatment causes further hydrolysis with the loss of benzoic acid and ammonia, and gives the related pyruvic acid. Similar results were obtained by starting with aceturic instead of hippuric acid. Several substitution products of vanillin were tested

Functional protection by acute phase proteins alpha(1)-acid glycoprotein and alpha(1)-antitrypsin against ischemia/reperfusion injury by preventing apoptosis and inflammation.

BACKGROUND: Ischemia followed by reperfusion (I/R) causes apoptosis, inflammation, and tissue damage leading to organ malfunction. Ischemic preconditioning can protect against such injury. This study investigates the contribution of the acute phase proteins alpha(1)-acid glycoprotein (AGP) and alpha(1)-antitrypsin (AAT) to the protective effect of ischemic preconditioning in the kidney. METHODS AND RESULTS: Exogenous AGP and AAT inhibited apoptosis and inflammation after 45 minutes of renal I/R in a murine model. AGP and AAT administered at reperfusion prevented apoptosis at 2 hours and 24 hours, as evaluated by the presence of internucleosomal DNA cleavage, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling, and the determination of renal caspase-1- and caspase-3-like activity. AGP and AAT exerted anti-inflammatory effects, as reflected by reduced renal tumor necrosis factor-alpha expression and neutrophil influx after 24 hours. In general, these agents improved renal function. Similar effects were observed when AGP and AAT were administered 2 hours after reperfusion but to a lesser extent and without functional improvement. Moreover, I/R elicited an acute phase response, as reflected by elevated serum AGP and serum amyloid P (SAP) levels after 24 hours, and increased hepatic acute phase protein mRNA levels after 18 hours of renal reperfusion. CONCLUSIONS: We propose that the antiapoptotic and anti-inflammatory effects of AGP and AAT contribute to the delayed type of protection associated with ischemic preconditioning and other insults. This mechanism is potentially involved in the course of many clinical conditions associated with I/R injury. Moreover, exogenous administration of these proteins may provide new therapeutic means of treatmen

The Neonatal Development of Intraepithelial and Lamina Propria Lymphocytes in the Murine Small Intestine

During early neonatal life, important changes occur in the gut. The intestine is challenged by both milk and a microbial flora. Later on, at weaning, the diet of mice changes from milk to pelleted food leading to changes in microbial contents. This period seems essential for a complete development of the mucosal immune system. We investigated the development of both intraepithelial (IEL) and lamina propria lymphocytes (LPL), from day 5, and every 5 days, up to day 30 after birth. IEL and LPL were isolated from the small intestine and the phenotype was assessed by FACS analyses, using antibodies for detection of T-cell markers CD3, TCRαβ, TCRγδ, CD4, CD8α, CD8β, CD5, CD18, CD54, and CD49d. Our data show a clear increase in the number of LPL just before weaning, while the number of IEL increased after day 15. A more mature pattern of membrane antigen expression of both IEL and LPL was observed at weaning. The adhesion molecules CD18, CD54, and CD49d, essential for cellular communication of lymphocytes, showed an expression peak at weaning. In conclusion, the mouse mucosal immune system develops during the first 3 weeks of neonatal life leading to the formation of a more mature immune system at weaning

Erkundung von Erdfallstrukturen in der Metropolregion Hamburg und Lüneburg mit dem Georadar (Ground Penetrating Radar)

Der oberflächennahe geologische Untergrund Norddeutschlands wird durch das Auftreten zahlreicher Salzvorkommen geprägt. Während der Triaszeit und des unteren Juras herrschte ein EW gerichtetes, extensives tektonisches Regime vor. Durch zusätzliche Umlagerung klastischer Sedimente wurden darunter liegende Salzmassen permischen Alters (Zechstein) aus Tiefen von bis zu 5000Metern an die Erdoberfläche empor gepresst. Durch diesen Salzaufstieg wurden darüber liegende mesozoische Schichten durchschlagen, randlich der Salzdiapire deformiert und teilweise mitgeschleppt. Eine letzte Phase salztektonischer Aktivitäten während der oberen Kreide und des unteren Tertiärs zeichnet sich zum einen durch weiteren Salzaufstieg aus und zum anderen durch horizontale Einengung der Salzstöcke. Begleitgesteine der Salze, wie Gips, Anhydrit, und Karst, sowie Tertiäre und Quartäre Ablagerungen überlagern die Salzstöcke mit unterschiedlichen Mächtigkeiten. Das humide Klima Norddeutschlands begünstigt natürliche Auslaugungsprozesse (Subrosion) der Evaporite durch Grundwasser. Je nach Tiefenlage des Salzspiegels (Salzstock Lüneburg: −20 bis −40 m; Salzstock Othmarschen-Langenfelde (Hamburg): ca 0 bis −250 m) kann es zu intensiver Hohlraumbildung im tieferen Untergrund kommen. Die fortschreitende Vergrößerung einer solchen Höhle steht in Abhängigkeit zur Intensität der Lösungsprozesse, während die Stabilität des Hohlraumes zusätzlich von der Materialbeschaffenheit abhängt. So können feste Gesteine oder bindige Böden zwar ein stabiles Höhlendach bilden, jedoch ist bei andauernden Lösungsprozessen langfristig ein statisches Versagen des Höhlendaches unvermeidlich. Der damit verbundene Kollaps und die Verfüllung des Hohlraumes mit Sediment spiegelt sich häufig in Form von sub-zirkularen und konischen Einsturzröhren oder weitläufigen morphologischen Trichtern an der Erdoberfläche wieder. Die Terminologie der Erdfälle wird anhand der Subsidenzrate gewählt...conferenc

Prognostication in Acutely Admitted Older Patients by Nurses and Physicians

BACKGROUND: The process of prognostication has not been described for acutely hospitalized older patients. OBJECTIVE: To investigate (1) which factors are associated with 90-day mortality risk in a group of acutely hospitalized older medical patients, and (2) whether adding a clinical impression score of nurses or physicians improves the discriminatory ability of mortality prediction. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: Four hundred and sixty-three medical patients 65 years or older acutely admitted from November 1, 2002, through July 1, 2005, to a 1024-bed tertiary university teaching hospital. MEASUREMENTS: At admission, the attending nurse and physician were asked to give a clinical impression score for the illness the patient was admitted for. This score ranged from 1 (high possibility of a good outcome) until 10 (high possibility of a bad outcome, including mortality). Of all patients baseline characteristics and clinical parameters were collected. Mortality was registered up to 90 days after admission. MAIN RESULTS: In total, 23.8% (n=110) of patients died within 90 days of admission. Four parameters were significantly associated with mortality risk: functional impairment, diagnosis malignancy, co-morbidities and high urea nitrogen serum levels. The AUC for the baseline model which included these risk factors (model 1) was 0.76 (95% CI 0.71 to 0.82). The AUC for the model using the risk factors and the clinical impression score of the physician (model 2) was 0.77 (0.71 to 0.82). The AUC for the model using the risk factors and the clinical impression score of the nurse (model 3) was 0.76 (0.71 to 0.82) and the AUC for the model, including the baseline covariates and the clinical impression score of both nurses and physicians was 0.77 (0.72 to 0.82). Adding clinical impression scores to model 1 did not significantly improve its accuracy. CONCLUSION: A set of four clinical variables predicted mortality risk in acutely hospitalized older patients quite well. Adding clinical impression scores of nurses, physicians or both did not improve the discriminating ability of the mode

Een dubbele dijk met driedubbele doelen

De huidige zeedijk in de Eemsdelta voldoet niet meer aan de veiligheidsnormen. Omdat de dijk in een aardbevingsgevoelig gebied ligt is dijkversterking urgent. Daarnaast heeft Noordoost-Groningen behoefte aan nieuwe economische impulsen, en is voor de natuur in het Eems-estuarium kwaliteitsverbetering dringend gewenst. Dit was aanleiding voor de provincie Groningen om te onderzoeken of een innovatieve, multifunctionele dubbele dijk haalbaar is. Daarmee kunnen drie doelen worden bereikt: meer veiligheid, nieuwe economische dragers en meer biodiversiteit

Problems of methodological determination of the place of financial and budgetary control in the system of state financial control

The relevance of this report due to the presence of problems in the field of budgetary control at all levels of the Russian budget system, which leads to numerous cases of misuse and inefficient use of budget funds and other public property, overestimation of the cost of purchased goods, works and services for state and municipal needs, the use of other corruption schemes in the budget mechanism

Exercise-Induced splanchnic hypoperfusion results in gut dysfunction in healthy men

Background Splanchnic hypoperfusion is common in various pathophysiological conditions and often considered to lead to gut dysfunction. While it is known that physiological situations such as physical exercise also result in splanchnic hypoperfusion, the consequences of flow redistribution at the expense of abdominal organs remained to be determined. This study focuses on the effects of splanchnic hypoperfusion on the gut, and the relationship between hypoperfusion, intestinal injury and permeability during physical exercise in healthy men. Methods and Findings Healthy men cycled for 60 minutes at 70% of maximum workload capacity. Splanchnic hypoperfusion was assessed using gastric tonometry. Blood, sampled every 10 minutes, was analyzed for enterocyte damage parameters (intestinal fatty acid binding protein (I-FABP) and ileal bile acid binding protein (I-BABP)). Changes in intestinal permeability were assessed using sugar probes. Furthermore, liver and renal parameters were assessed. Splanchnic perfusion rapidly decreased during exercise, reflected by increased gapg-apCO2 from −0.85±0.15 to 0.85±0.42 kPa (p < 0.001). Hypoperfusion increased plasma I-FABP (615±118 vs. 309±46 pg/ml, p < 0.001) and I-BABP (14.30±2.20 vs. 5.06±1.27 ng/ml, p < 0.001), and hypoperfusion correlated significantly with this small intestinal damage (rS = 0.59; p < 0.001). Last of all, plasma analysis revealed an increase in small intestinal permeability after exercise (p < 0.001), which correlated with intestinal injury (rS = 0.50; p < 0.001). Liver parameters, but not renal parameters were elevated. Conclusions Exercise-induced splanchnic hypoperfusion results in quantifiable small intestinal injury. Importantly, the extent of intestinal injury correlates with transiently increased small intestinal permeability, indicating gut barrier dysfunction in healthy individuals. These physiological observations increase our knowledge of splanchnic hypoperfusion sequelae, and may help to understand and prevent these phenomena in patients

Human intestinal microbiota composition is associated with local and systemic inflammation in obesity.

OBJECTIVE: Intestinal microbiota have been suggested to contribute to development of obesity, but the mechanism remains elusive. We relationship between microbiota composition, intestinal permeability, inflammation in non-obese and obese subjects. DESIGN AND METHODS: Fecal microbiota composition of 28 subjects (BMI 18.6-60.3kg/m2 ) was analyzed phylogenetic profiling microarray. Fecal calprotectin and plasma C- protein levels were determined to evaluate intestinal and systemic Furthermore, HbA1c , and plasma levels of transaminases and lipids were Gastroduodenal, small intestinal, and colonic permeability were assessed multi-saccharide test. RESULTS: Based on microbiota composition, the population segregated into two clusters with predominantly obese (15/19) exclusively non-obese (9/9) subjects. Whereas intestinal permeability differ between clusters, the obese cluster showed reduced bacterial decreased Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio, and an increased abundance of pro-inflammatory Proteobacteria. Interestingly, fecal calprotectin was detectable in subjects within the obese microbiota cluster (n=8/19, Plasma C-reactive protein was also increased in these subjects correlated with the Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio (rs =-0.41, p=0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Intestinal microbiota alterations in obese subjects are with local and systemic inflammation, suggesting that the obesity- microbiota composition has a pro-inflammatory effect