Loop 2 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae Rad51 protein regulates filament formation and ATPase activity

Previous studies showed that the K342E substitution in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Rad51 protein increases the interaction with Rad54 protein in the two-hybrid system, leads to increased sensitivity to the alkylating agent MMS and hyper-recombination in an oligonucleotide-mediated gene targeting assay. K342 localizes in loop 2, a region of Rad51 whose function is not well understood. Here, we show that Rad51-K342E displays DNA-independent and DNA-dependent ATPase activities, owing to its ability to form filaments in the absence of a DNA lattice. These filaments exhibit a compressed pitch of 81 Å, whereas filaments of wild-type Rad51 and Rad51-K342E on DNA form extended filaments with a 97 Å pitch. Rad51-K342E shows near normal binding to ssDNA, but displays a defect in dsDNA binding, resulting in less stable protein-dsDNA complexes. The mutant protein is capable of catalyzing the DNA strand exchange reaction and is insensitive to inhibition by the early addition of dsDNA. Wild-type Rad51 protein is inhibited under such conditions, because of its ability to bind dsDNA. No significant changes in the interaction between Rad51-K342E and Rad54 could be identified. These findings suggest that loop 2 contributes to the primary DNA-binding site in Rad51, controlling filament formation and ATPase activity

Development and characterisation of a large diameter decellularised vascular allograft

The aims of this study were to develop a biological large diameter vascular graft by decellularisation of native human aorta to remove the immunogenic cells whilst retaining the essential biomechanical, and biochemical properties for the ultimate benefit of patients with infected synthetic grafts. Donor aortas (n = 6) were subjected to an adaptation of a propriety decellularisation process to remove the cells and acellularity assessed by histological analysis and extraction and quantification of total DNA. The biocompatibility of the acellular aortas was determined using standard contact cytotoxicity tests. Collagen and denatured collagen content of aortas was determined and immunohistochemistry was used to determine the presence of specific extracellular matrix proteins. Donor aortas (n = 6) were divided into two, with one half subject to decellularisation and the other half retained as native tissue. The native and decellularised aorta sections were then subject to uniaxial tensile testing to failure [axial and circumferential directions] and suture retention testing. The data was compared using a paired t-test. Histological evaluation showed an absence of cells in the treated aortas and retention of histoarchitecture including elastin content. The decellularised aortas had less than 15 ng mg¯¹ total DNA per dry weight (mean 94% reduction) and were biocompatible as determined by in vitro contact cytotoxicity tests. There were no gross changes in the histoarchitecture [elastin and collagen matrix] of the acellular aortas compared to native controls. The decellularisation process also reduced calcium deposits within the tissue. The uniaxial tensile and suture retention testing revealed no significant differences in the material properties (p > 0.05) of decellularised aorta. The decellularisation procedure resulted in minimal changes to the biological and biomechanical properties of the donor aortas. Acellular donor aorta has excellent potential for use as a large diameter vascular graft

Vampires in the village Žrnovo on the island of Korčula: following an archival document from the 18th century

Središnja tema rada usmjerena je na raščlambu spisa pohranjenog u Državnom arhivu u Mlecima (fond: Capi del Consiglio de’ Dieci: Lettere di Rettori e di altre cariche) koji se odnosi na događaj iz 1748. godine u korčulanskom selu Žrnovo, kada su mještani – vjerujući da su se pojavili vampiri – oskvrnuli nekoliko mjesnih grobova. U radu se podrobno iznose osnovni podaci iz spisa te rečeni događaj analizira u širem društvenom kontekstu i prate se lokalna vjerovanja.The main interest of this essay is the analysis of the document from the State Archive in Venice (file: Capi del Consiglio de’ Dieci: Lettere di Rettori e di altre cariche) which is connected with the episode from 1748 when the inhabitants of the village Žrnove on the island of Korčula in Croatia opened tombs on the local cemetery in the fear of the vampires treating. This essay try to show some social circumstances connected with this event as well as a local vernacular tradition concerning superstitions

The Effects of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis on Axial Rotation of the Spine: A Study of Twisting Using Surface Topography

Axial twisting of the spine has been previously shown to be affected by scoliosis with decreased motion and asymmetric twisting. Existing methods for evaluating twisting may be cumbersome, unreliable, or require radiation exposure. In this study, we present an automated surface topographic measurement tool to evaluate global axial rotation of the spine, along with two measurements: twisting range of motion (TROM) and twisting asymmetry index (TASI). The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of scoliosis on axial range of motion. Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) patients and asymptomatic controls were scanned in a topographic scanner while twisting maximally to the left and right. TROM was significantly lower for AIS patients compared to control patients (69.1° vs. 78.5°, p = 0.020). TASI was significantly higher for AIS patients compared to control patients (29.6 vs. 19.8, p = 0.023). After stratifying by scoliosis severity, both TROM and TASI were significantly different only between control and severe scoliosis patients (Cobb angle > 40°). AIS patients were then divided by their major curve region (thoracic, thoracolumbar, or lumbar). ANOVA and post hoc tests showed that only TROM is significantly different between thoracic AIS patients and control patients. Thus, we demonstrate that surface topographic scanning can be used to evaluate twisting in AIS patients

3D Surface Topographic Optical Scans Yield Highly Reliable Global Spine Range of Motion Measurements in Scoliotic and Non-Scoliotic Adolescents

Background: Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis results in three dimensional changes to a patient’s body, which may change a patient’s range of motion. Surface topography is an emerging technology to evaluate three dimensional parameters in patients with scoliosis. The goal of this paper is to introduce novel and reliable surface topographic measurements for the assessment of global coronal and sagittal range of motion of the spine in adolescents, and to determine if these measurements can distinguish between adolescents with lumbar scoliosis and those without scoliosis. Methods: This study is a retrospective cohort study of a prospectively collected registry. Using a surface topographic scanner, a finger to floor and lateral bending scans were performed on each subject. Inter- and intra-rater reliabilities were assessed for each measurement. ANOVA analysis was used to test comparative hypotheses. Results: Inter-rater reliability for lateral bending fingertip asymmetry (LBFA) and lateral bending acromia asymmetry (LBAA) displayed poor reliability, while the coronal angle asymmetry (CAA), coronal angle range of motion (CAR), forward bending finger to floor (FBFF), forward bending acromia to floor (FBAF), sagittal angle (SA), and sagittal angle normalized (SAN) demonstrated good to excellent reliability. There was a significant difference between controls and lumbar scoliosis patients for LBFA, LBAA, CAA and FBAF (p-values < 0.01). Conclusion: Surface topography yields a reliable and rapid process for measuring global spine range of motion in the coronal and sagittal planes. Using these tools, there was a significant difference in measurements between patients with lumbar scoliosis and controls. In the future, we hope to be able to assess and predict perioperative spinal mobility changes

Äldres rehabiliteringsbehov i hemmiljö

Upprättat; 2001; 20131113 (andbra

Antioquia Médica, Vol. 1, No. 3. Agosto

Tabla de contenido: Hodas de oro profesionales de los doctores M M Calle Y E Robledo Antioquia Medica (Medellin) p. 147-148 Tuberculosis y estreptomicina Montoya Rodriguez, L. p. 149- 163 La transfusión intraarterial en la muerte por anemia aguda Montoya Toro, Mario p. 164-187 Un caso de neurocitoma Rodríguez Pérez, Antonio Pedro ; Marulanda Botero, R. p. 186-190 Arenoblastoma del ovario Diaz Correa, Rene ; Isaza Mejia, Gustavo p. 191-195 Fiebre amarilla y hepatitis epidémica en el departamento de Antioquia 1939-1949 Gast Galvis, Augusto p. 196-212 EL llamado infarto silencioso del miocardio Hipp, Harold ; Behrman, James ; Heyer, Howard p. 213-21