The Proctolin Gene and Biological Effects of Proctolin in the Blood-Feeding Bug, Rhodnius prolixus

We have reinvestigated the possible presence or absence of the pentapeptide proctolin in Rhodnius prolixus and report here the cloning of the proctolin cDNA. The transcript is expressed in the central nervous system (CNS) and some peripheral tissues. The proctolin prepropeptide encodes a single copy of proctolin along with a possible proctolin-precursor-associated peptide. We have biochemically identified proctolin in CNS extracts and shown its distribution using proctolin-like immunoreactivity. Immunostained processes are found on the salivary glands, female and male reproductive tissues, and heart and associated alary muscles. Proctolin-like immunoreactive bipolar neurons are found on the lateral margins of the common oviduct and bursa. Proctolin is biologically active on R. prolixus tissues, stimulating increases in contraction of anterior midgut and hindgut muscles, and increasing heartbeat frequency. Contrary to the previous suggestion that proctolin is absent from R. prolixus, proctolin is indeed present and biologically active in this medically important bug

The Correlation Between Electrodiagnostic Results and Ultrasonographic Findings in the Severity of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in Females

Objective: To determine which ultrasonographic measurement can be used as an indicator reflecting the severity of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), by comparing electrodiagnostic results with ultrasonographic measurements in females. Many previous studies have tried to reveal that the ultrasonography (US) can possibility be used for diagnosis and severity of CTS. However, the criteria are different by gender. Thus far, there have been many efforts towards providing patients with a CTS diagnosis and severity prediction using US, but studies’ results are still unclear due to lack of data on gender differences. Methods: We collected data from 54 female patients. We classified the severity of CTS according to electrodiagnostic results. Ultrasonographic measurements included proximal and distal cross-sectional areas of the median nerve and carpal tunnel. Results: The severity by electrodiagnostic results statistically correlated to the proximal cross-sectional area (CSA) of the median nerve and carpal tunnel. However, there was no relationship between the proximal and distal nerve/tunnel indexes and the severity by electrodiagnostic results. Conclusion: In female patients with CTS, the proximal CSAs of the median nerve and carpal tunnel increase. They correlate with the severity by electrodiagnostic findings. The CSA of the proximal median nerve could be particularly used as a predictor of the severity of CTS in female patients. However, the nerve/tunnel index is constant, irrespective of the severity of CTS

Modified triglyceride-glucose index indices are reliable markers for predicting risk of metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease: a cross-sectional study

IntroductionMetabolic dysfunction–associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is newly proposed nomenclature, and its diagnosis involves an algorithm that can be complicated and impractical for clinicians in real-world clinical settings. Thus, we investigated the association between MAFLD and modified triglyceride-glucose index (TyG) indices to find a more concise, feasible method for predicting MAFLD in everyday clinical care.MethodsData were obtained from people who voluntarily underwent health check-ups at the Health Promotion Centre of Gangnam Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, from January 2017 to October 2020. Four indices were analyzed: TyG-body to mass index (BMI), TyG-waist circumference (WC), TyG, and the fatty liver index (FLI). The odds ratios for MAFLD according to each index were calculated using multiple logistic regression analyses, and the receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) and area under the ROC were obtained to find the predictive powers of each index.ResultsThe final number of study participants was 22,391, 8,246 with MAFLD and 14,145 without MAFLD. The odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) from TyG-WC and TyG-BMI after adjusting for confounding variables were 12.484 (9.962–15.644) and 12.494 (9.790–15.946), respectively, for quartile 2, 54.332 (43.131–68.442) and 51.580 (40.495–65.699) for quartile 3, and 165.804 (130.243–211.076) and 128.592 (100.601–164.371) for quartile 4. The area under the ROC curve values for TyG-WC and TyG-BMI were 0.862 (0.857–0.867) and 0.867 (0.862–0.872), respectively.ConclusionThe modified TyG indices are highly reliable markers for predicting MAFLD that clinicians can easily and practically apply in everyday, real-world, clinical care settings

GLP-1 receptor agonists in diabetic kidney disease: current evidence and future directions

With the emergence of various classes of blood glucose-lowering agents, choosing the appropriate drug for each patient is emphasized in diabetes management. Among incretin-based drugs, glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists are a promising therapeutic option for patients with diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Several cardiovascular outcome trials have demonstrated that GLP-1 receptor agonists have beneficial effects on cardiorenal outcomes beyond their blood glucose-lowering effects in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The renal protective effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists likely result from their direct actions on the kidney, in addition to their indirect actions that improve conventional risk factors for DKD, such as reducing blood glucose levels, blood pressure, and body weight. Inhibition of oxidative stress and inflammation and induction of natriuresis are major renoprotective mechanisms of GLP-1 analogues. Early evidence from the development of dual and triple combination agents suggests that GLP-1 receptor agonists will probably become popular treatment options for patients with T2DM

Outbreaks of Imipenem Resistant Acinetobacter Baumannii Producing OXA-23 β-Lactamase in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Korea

Hee University Hospital in Seoul, Korea. The purpose of this study was to determine the genetic basis and molecular epidemiology of outbreak isolates. Materials and Methods: Forty-nine non-repetitive isolates of the 734 IRAB strains were investigated in order to determine their characteristics. The modified Hodge and the ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA)-disk synergy test were performed for the screening of carbapenemase and metallo-β-lactamase production. Multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays were performed for the detection of genes encoding for OXA-23-like, OXA-24-like, OXA-58-like and OXA-51-like carbapenemase. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was performed for strain identification. Results: All isolates showed 100% resistance to ciprofloxacin and gentamicin, 97.9 % resistance to cefepime, piperacillin/tazobactam, aztreonam, ceftazidime and piperacillin, 93.9 % resistance to tobramycin and 57.1 % resistance to amikacin. All of the 49 isolates (100%) showed positive results in the modified Hodge test and negative results in the EDTA-disk synergy test. They all (100%) possessed the encoding gene for an intrinsic OXA-51-like carbapenemase and an acquired OXA-23-like carbapenemase in the multiplex PCR assay. PFGE patterns revealed that all isolates were clonally related from A1 to A14. Conclusion: It is concluded that all of the 49 IRAB isolates acquired resistance t

Impact of Side Chains in 1-n-Alkylimidazolium Ionomers on Cu-Catalyzed Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction

This study presents the impact of the side chains in 1-n-alkylimidazolium ionomers with varying side chain lengths (CnH2n+1 where n = 1, 4, 10, 16) on Cu-catalyzed electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR). Longer side chains suppress the H2 and CH4 formation, with the n-hexadecyl ionomer (n = 16) showing the greatest reduction in kinetics by up to 56.5% and 60.0%, respectively. On the other hand, C2H4 production demonstrates optimal Faradaic efficiency with the n-decyl ionomer (n = 10), a substantial increase of 59.9% compared to its methyl analog (n = 1). Through a combination of density functional theory calculations and material characterization, it is revealed that the engineering of the side chains effectively modulates the thermodynamic stability of key intermediates, thus influencing the selectivity of both CO2RR and hydrogen evolution reaction. Moreover, ionomer engineering enables industrially relevant partial current density of –209.5 mA cm−2 and a Faradaic efficiency of 52.4% for C2H4 production at 3.95 V, even with a moderately active Cu catalyst, outperforming previous benchmarks and allowing for further improvement through catalyst engineering. This study underscores the critical role of ionomers in CO2RR, providing insights into their optimal design for sustainable chemical synthesis

The combined clinical impact of red blood cell distribution width and vascular calcification on cardiovascular events and mortality in patients with end-stage kidney disease

Background Little is known about how the interaction between red blood cell distribution width (RDW) and vascular calcification (VC) affects cardiovascular (CV) events and mortality in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients. This study investigated the combined prognostic effect of RDW and VC in ESKD patients starting dialysis. Methods A retrospective single-center study of 582 ESKD patients was conducted. VC was assessed by calculating the aortic calcification index (ACI) using computed tomography. Patients were divided into low ACI-low RDW, low ACI-high RDW, high ACI-low RDW, and high ACI-high RDW groups based on median ACI (17.12) and RDW (14.3) values. The association between RDW and VC and the composite endpoint of CV events and death was analyzed. Results During a median follow-up of 3.1 years (range, 1.5–5.5 years), 165 CV events (28.4%) and 124 deaths (21.4%) occurred. Cox regression showed that the low ACI-high RDW (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 1.66; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04–2.66; p = 0.03) and high ACI-low RDW (adjusted HR, 1.95; 95% CI, 1.21–3.14; p = 0.006) groups had a greater risk of CV events and death than the low ACI-low RDW group. The high ACI-high RDW group had the greatest risk (adjusted HR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.42–3.52; p = 0.001). The effect of the interaction between ACI and RDW on CV events and mortality was statistically significant (p = 0.005). Conclusion High RDW and VC interact to increase the risk of CV events and death in ESKD patients

Treatment Using a Long Pulsed Nd:Yag Laser with a Pulsed Dye Laser for Four Cases of Blebbed Port Wine Stains

Port wine stains (PWS) are congenital capillary malformations consisting of ectasia of capillaries and venules. At birth,lesions are flat and relatively uniform in color, but evolve with age to become raised, thickened, irregularly surfaced, and deeply colored. Therefore, it is considered optimal to begin treatment of patients at an early age. Conventional treatment modalities, such as electrocautery or excision, require considerable effort and may be cosmetically unsatisfactory. We have performed treatment of blebbed PWS of four patients using a 1,064 nm long pulsed Nd:YAG laser with a contact cooling device. According to their size, most blebs required three or fewer treatment sessions at 8-week intervals. Treatments were well tolerated by all subjects and patients showed moderate to good improvement of blebs. A 1,064 nm long pulsed Nd:YAG laser with contact cooling may be considered as a promising therapeutic option for treatment of blebbed PWS

Formyl-methionine as an N-degron of a eukaryotic N-end rule pathway

In bacteria, nascent proteins bear the pretranslationally generated N-terminal (Nt) formyl-methionine (fMet) residue. Nt-fMet of bacterial proteins is a degradation signal, termed fMet/N-degron. In contrast, proteins synthesized by cytosolic ribosomes of eukaryotes were presumed to bear unformylated Nt-Met. Here we found that the yeast formyltransferase Fmt1, although imported into mitochondria, could also produce Nt-formylated proteins in the cytosol. Nt-formylated proteins were strongly up-regulated in stationary phase or upon starvation for specific amino acids. This up-regulation strictly required the Gcn2 kinase, which phosphorylates Fmt1 and mediates its retention in the cytosol. We also found that the Nt-fMet residues of Nt-formylated proteins act as fMet/N-degrons, and identified the Psh1 ubiquitin ligase as the recognition component of this eukaryotic fMet/N-end rule pathway, which destroys Nt-formylated proteins