Tissue Adhesives

The goal of this paper is to summarize the best available evidence comparing tissue adhesives and tradition suture in the repair of traumatic lacerations in children. As providers caring for children, we want an efficient method of laceration repair that has the best cosmetic outcome. We want a repair without complications and to minimize the amount of pain and anxiety experienced by our patients and families. Numerous peer-reviewed, published studies have found that when used appropriately tissue adhesives are faster, less painful, and more economic than traditional suturing. Patients have fewer complications, reduced risk of infection, and excellent cosmetic outcomes. Overall the evidence suggests that using a tissue adhesive is a cheaper method of laceration repair and results in greater satisfaction for both the patient and the practitioner. Based on these comparisons, an evidenced based decision should be made

The Perfect Service-Learning Class Project: Implications for the SELEB Scale

A six-week public relations class held during the summer of 2009 conducted a very successful service- learning project. The students were able to raise money for charity, while showcasing their project on three local television stations as well as the local newspaper. Additionally, they communicated information about their event through social networking sites. Thus, this project became known as the perfect service- learning class project. The purpose of this article is to determine how the students participating in this service-learning project rated the items on the SELEB (Service Learning Benefits) scale, compared to less successful classes

Germline PTPRD mutations in Ewing sarcoma: biologic and clinical implications.

Ewing sarcoma occurs in children, adolescents and young adults. High STAT3 levels have been reported in approximately 50% of patients with Ewing sarcoma, and may be important in tumorigenesis. Protein tyrosine phosphatase delta (PTPRD) is a tumor suppressor that inhibits STAT3 activation. To date, while somatic mutations in PTPRD have been reported in diverse tumors, germline mutations of PTPRD have not been investigated in Ewing sarcoma or other cancers. We identified a novel germline mutation in the PTPRD gene in three of eight patients (37.5%) with metastatic Ewing sarcoma. Although the functional impact in two of the patients is unclear, in one of them the aberration was annotated as a W775stop germline mutation, and would be expected to lead to gene truncation and, hence, loss of the STAT3 dephosphorylation function of PTPRD. Since STAT3 is phosphorylated after being recruited to the insulin growth factor receptor (IGF-1R), suppression of IGF-1R could attenuate the enhanced STAT3 activation expected in the presence of PTPRD mutations. Of interest, two of three patients with germline PTPRD mutations achieved durable complete responses following treatment with IGF-1R monoclonal antibody-based therapies. Our pilot data suggest that PTPRD germline mutations may play a role in the development of Ewing sarcoma, a disease of young people, and their presence may have implications for therapy

Natural and Induced Mitochondrial Phosphate Carrier Loss: DIFFERENTIAL DEPENDENCE OF MITOCHONDRIAL METABOLISM AND DYNAMICS AND CELL SURVIVAL ON THE EXTENT OF DEPLETION.

The relevance of mitochondrial phosphate carrier (PiC), encoded by SLC25A3, in bioenergetics is well accepted. However, little is known about the mechanisms mediating the cellular impairments induced by pathological SLC25A3 variants. To this end, we investigated the pathogenicity of a novel compound heterozygous mutation in SLC25A3 First, each variant was modeled in yeast, revealing that substituting GSSAS for QIP within the fifth matrix loop is incompatible with survival on non-fermentable substrate, whereas the L200W variant is functionally neutral. Next, using skin fibroblasts from an individual expressing these variants and HeLa cells with varying degrees of PiC depletion, PiC loss of ∼60% was still compatible with uncompromised maximal oxidative phosphorylation (oxphos), whereas lower maximal oxphos was evident at ∼85% PiC depletion. Furthermore, intact mutant fibroblasts displayed suppressed mitochondrial bioenergetics consistent with a lower substrate availability rather than phosphate limitation. This was accompanied by slowed proliferation in glucose-replete medium; however, proliferation ceased when only mitochondrial substrate was provided. Both mutant fibroblasts and HeLa cells with 60% PiC loss showed a less interconnected mitochondrial network and a mitochondrial fusion defect that is not explained by altered abundance of OPA1 or MFN1/2 or relative amount of different OPA1 forms. Altogether these results indicate that PiC depletion may need to be profound (\u3e85%) to substantially affect maximal oxphos and that pathogenesis associated with PiC depletion or loss of function may be independent of phosphate limitation when ATP requirements are not high

Carbon export and regeneration in the coastal upwelling system of Monterey Bay, central California

In order to quantify the role of coastal upwelling regions as source or sink areas for carbon, the relationships between particulate organic carbon (POC) production, export, remineralization, and accumulation were examined in Monterey Bay from 1989 through 1992. During a normal upwelling year (1989–90), a high positive correlation (r = 0.91) is observed between biweekly primary production and POC export at 450 m. Primary production values range from 500 mgC m−2 d−1 during the winter, to 2600 mgC m−2 d−1 in the spring and summer upwelling months. Corresponding deep-water (450 m) POC fluxes vary from a minimum of 10 mgC m−2 d−1 in December, to 120 mgC m−2 d−1 in May. In contrast, the mid-1991 through 1992 data sets obtained during the \u2791–92 El Nino period, show a relatively poor correlation (r = 0.23) between productivity and carbon export. Calculated ratios of POC export to POC production (defined as e-ratios) display a trend for the three-year data sets in which the e-ratio values are greatest during periods of low productivity and decrease to minimal values when surface production is high. Upwelling-induced, offshore Ekman transport of organic matter and probable seasonal changes in the planktonic community structure are the mechanisms likely to be responsible for the e-ratio trends. Based on the data sets reported from this work, a simple box model of the annual export and regeneration of particulate organic carbon is presented for the Monterey Bay region. An appreciable advective and/or recycling “loss” from the euphotic zone of 362.8 gC m−2 y−1 is estimated, representing primarily algal material transported offshore and/or recycled within the upper 100 m of the water column. Annual mid-water (≈100– 450 m) and deep-water (\u3e450 m) POC remineralization rates of 71.8 gC m−2 y−1 of 7.2 gC m−2 y−1, respectively, are reported for Monterey Bay. The average POC rain rate to the underlying slope sediments is sufficient to satisfy reported benthic utilization requirements without invoking an additional input source of POC via deep lateral advection and/or the downslope movement of particulate material

Molecular computations for reactions and phase transitions: applications to protein stabilization, hydrates and catalysis

In this work we have made significant contributions in three different areas of interest: therapeutic protein stabilization, thermodynamics of natural gas clathrate-hydrates, and zeolite catalysis. In all three fields, using our various computational techniques, we have been able to elucidate phenomena that are difficult or impossible to explain experimentally. More specifically, in mixed solvent systems for proteins we developed a statistical-mechanical method to model the thermodynamic effects of additives in molecular-level detail. It was the first method demonstrated to have truly predictive (no adjustable parameters) capability for real protein systems. We also describe a novel mechanism that slows protein association reactions, called the “gap effect.” We developed a comprehensive picture of methioine oxidation by hydrogen peroxide that allows for accurate prediction of protein oxidation and provides a rationale for developing strategies to control oxidation. The method of solvent accessible area (SAA) was shown not to correlate well with oxidation rates. A new property, averaged two-shell water coordination number (2SWCN) was identified and shown to correlate well with oxidation rates. Reference parameters for the van der Waals Platteeuw model of clathrate-hydrates were found for structure I and structure II. These reference parameters are independent of the potential form (unlike the commonly used parameters) and have been validated by calculating phase behavior and structural transitions for mixed hydrate systems. These calculations are validated with experimental data for both structures and for systems that undergo transitions from one structure to another. This is the first method of calculating hydrate thermodynamics to demonstrate predictive capability for phase equilibria, structural changes, and occupancy in pure and mixed hydrate systems. We have computed a new mechanism for the methanol coupling reaction to form ethanol and water in the zeolite chabazite. The mechanism at 400°C proceeds via stable intermediates of water, methane, and protonated formaldehyde.Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA

Uniform particle-droplet partitioning of 18 organic and elemental components measured in and below DYCOMS-II stratocumulus clouds

Microphysical and chemical aerosol measurements collected during DYCOMS‐II research flights in marine stratocumulus clouds near San Diego in 2001 were used to evaluate the partitioning of 18 organic and elemental components between droplet residuals and unactivated particles. Bulk submicron particle (between 0.2 and 1.3 μm dry diameter) and droplet residual (above 9 μm ambient diameter) filter samples analyzed by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X‐ray Fluorescence (XRF) were dominated by sea salt, ammonium, sulfate, and organic compounds. For the four nighttime and two daytime flights studied, the mass concentration of unactivated particles and droplet residuals were correlated (R² > 0.8) with consistent linear relationships for mass scavenging of all 18 components on each flight, meaning that the measured particle population partitions between droplet residuals and unactivated particles as if the particles contain internal mixtures of the measured components. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for flights 3, 5, and 7 support some degree of internal mixing since more than 90% of measured submicron particles larger than 0.26 μm included sea salt‐derived components. The observed range of 0.26 to 0.40 of mass scavenging coefficients for the four nighttime flights results from the small variations in temperature profile, updraft velocity, and mixed layer depth among the flights. The uniformity of scavenging coefficients for multiple chemical components is consistent with the aged or processed internal mixtures of sea salt, sulfate, and organic compounds expected at long distances downwind from major particle sources