Developmental Exposure to PCBs, MeHg, or Both: Long-Term Effects on Auditory Function

Background: Developmental exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) or methylmercury (MeHg) can result in a variety of neurotoxic effects, including long-term auditory deficits. However, little is known about the effects of combined exposure to PCBs and MeHg on auditory function. Objective: We developmentally exposed rats to PCBs and/or MeHg and assessed auditory function in adulthood to determine the effects of exposure to these contaminants individually and in combination. Methods: We exposed female Long-Evans rats to 1 or 3 mg/kg PCB in corn oil, 1.5 or 4.5 ppm MeHg in drinking water, or combined exposure to 1 mg/ kg PCB + 1.5 ppm MeHg or 3 mg/kg PCB + 4.5 ppm MeHg. Controls received corn oil vehicle and unadulterated water. Dosing began 28 days before breeding and continued until weaning at postnatal day (PND) 21. Auditory function of the offspring was assessed at approximately PND 200 by measuring distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) and auditory brainstem responses (ABRs). Results: Groups exposed to PCBs alone had attenuated DPOAEs amplitudes, elevated DPOAE thresholds, and elevated ABR thresholds compared with controls. Groups exposed to MeHg alone did not differ from controls. Unexpectedly, the effects of PCB exposure appeared to be attenuated by coexposure to MeHg. Conclusions: Developmental exposure to PCBs can result in permanent hearing deficits, and the change in DPOAE amplitudes and threshold suggest a cochlear site of action. Coexposure to MeHg appeared to attenuate the PCB-related deficits, but the mechanism for this unexpected interaction remains to be determined

Canine Visceral Leishmaniasis, United States and Canada, 2000–2003

Foxhounds infected with Leishmania spp. were found in 18 states and 2 Canadian provinces

High-resolution x-ray study of the nematic - smectic-A and smectic-A - smectic-C transitions in 8barS5-aerosil gels

The effects of dispersed aerosil nanoparticles on two of the phase transitions of the thermotropic liquid crystal material 4-n-pentylphenylthiol-4'-n-octyloxybenzoate 8barS5 have been studied using high-resolution x-ray diffraction techniques. The aerosils hydrogen bond together to form a gel which imposes a weak quenched disorder on the liquid crystal. The smectic-A fluctuations are well characterized by a two-component line shape representing thermal and random-field contributions. An elaboration on this line shape is required to describe the fluctuations in the smectic-C phase; specifically the effect of the tilt on the wave-vector dependence of the thermal fluctuations must be explicitly taken into account. Both the magnitude and the temperature dependence of the smectic-C tilt order parameter are observed to be unaffected by the disorder. This may be a consequence of the large bare smectic correlation length in the direction of modulation for this transition. These results show that the understanding developed for the nematic to smectic-A transition for octylcyanobiphenyl (8CB) and octyloxycyanobiphenyl (8OCB) liquid crystals with quenched disorder can be extended to quite different materials and transitions.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figure

Affinity maturation generates greatly improved xyloglucan-specific carbohydrate binding modules

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Molecular evolution of carbohydrate binding modules (CBM) is a new approach for the generation of glycan-specific molecular probes. To date, the possibility of performing affinity maturation on CBM has not been investigated. In this study we show that binding characteristics such as affinity can be improved for CBM generated from the CBM4-2 scaffold by using random mutagenesis in combination with phage display technology.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Two modified proteins with greatly improved affinity for xyloglucan, a key polysaccharide abundant in the plant kingdom crucial for providing plant support, were generated. Both improved modules differ from other existing xyloglucan probes by binding to galactose-decorated subunits of xyloglucan. The usefulness of the evolved binders was verified by staining of plant sections, where they performed better than the xyloglucan-binding module from which they had been derived. They discriminated non-fucosylated from fucosylated xyloglucan as shown by their ability to stain only the endosperm, rich in non-fucosylated xyloglucan, but not the integument rich in fucosylated xyloglucan, on tamarind seed sections.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We conclude that affinity maturation of CBM selected from molecular libraries based on the CBM4-2 scaffold is possible and has the potential to generate new analytical tools for detection of plant carbohydrates.</p

Expression of CXCL10 is associated with response to radiotherapy and overall survival in squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue

Five-year survival for patients with oral cancer has been disappointingly stable during the last decades, creating a demand for new biomarkers and treatment targets. Lately, much focus has been set on immunomodulation as a possible treatment or an adjuvant increasing sensitivity to conventional treatments. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prognostic importance of response to radiotherapy in tongue carcinoma patients as well as the expression of the CXC-chemokines in correlation to radiation response in the same group of tumours. Thirty-eight patients with tongue carcinoma that had received radiotherapy followed by surgery were included. The prognostic impact of pathological response to radiotherapy, N-status, T-stage, age and gender was evaluated using Cox's regression models, Kaplan-Meier survival curves and chi-square test. The expression of 23 CXC-chemokine ligands and their receptors were evaluated in all patients using microarray and qPCR and correlated with response to treatment using logistic regression. Pathological response to radiotherapy was independently associated to overall survival with a 2-year survival probability of 81 % for patients showing a complete pathological response, while patients with a non-complete response only had a probability of 42 % to survive for 2 years (p = 0.016). The expression of one CXC-chemokine, CXCL10, was significantly associated with response to radiotherapy and the group of patients with the highest CXCL10 expression responded, especially poorly (p = 0.01). CXCL10 is a potential marker for response to radiotherapy and overall survival in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue

Structured Caregiver Feedback Enhances Engagement and Impact of Mobile Health Support: A Randomized Trial in a Lower-Middle-Income Country

Background: Patients' engagement in mobile health (m-health) interventions using interactive voice response (IVR) calls is less in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) than in industrialized ones. We conducted a study to determine whether automated telephone feedback to informal caregivers (?CarePartners?) increased engagement in m-health support among diabetes and hypertension patients in Bolivia. Materials and Methods: Patients with diabetes and/or hypertension were identified through ambulatory clinics affiliated with four hospitals. All patients enrolled with a CarePartner. Patients were randomized to weekly IVR calls including self-management questions and self-care education either alone (?standard m-health?) or with automated feedback about health and self-care needs sent to their CarePartner after each IVR call (?m-health+CP?). Results: The 72 participants included 39 with diabetes and 53 with hypertension, of whom 19 had ≤6 years of education. After 1,225 patient-weeks of attempted IVR assessments, the call completion rate was higher among patients randomized to m-health+CP compared with standard m-health (62.0% versus 44.9%; p?Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/140289/1/tmj.2015.0099.pd

Amerindian (but not African or European) ancestry is significantly associated with diurnal preference within an admixed Brazilian population

Significant questions remain unanswered regarding the genetic versus environmental contributions to racial/ethnic differences in sleep and circadian rhythms. We addressed this question by investigating the association between diurnal preference, using the morningness–eveningness questionnaire (MEQ), and genetic ancestry within the Baependi Heart Study cohort, a highly admixed Brazilian population based in a rural town. Analysis was performed using measures of ancestry, using the Admixture program, and MEQ from 1,453 individuals. We found an association between the degree of Amerindian (but not European of African) ancestry and morningness, equating to 0.16 units for each additional percent of Amerindian ancestry, after adjustment for age, sex, education, and residential zone. To our knowledge, this is the first published report identifying an association between genetic ancestry and MEQ, and above all, the first one based on ancestral contributions within individuals living in the same community. This previously unknown ancestral dimension of diurnal preference suggests a stratification between racial/ethnic groups in an as yet unknown number of genetic polymorphisms