Rhythmic Diel Pattern of Gene Expression in Juvenile Maize Leaf

Co-expressed genes belonging to individual clusters are likely to be regulated by common mechanisms. The nocturnal phase of the diurnal cycle involves gross induction of fundamental biochemical processes and should be studied more thoroughly than was appreciated in most earlier physiological studies. Although some general mechanisms responsible for the diel regulation of gene expression might be shared among plants, details of the diurnal regulation of gene expression seem to differ between taxa

Molecular foundations of chilling-tolerance of modern maize

Gene Ontology categories of GO class “Molecular Function” significantly over-represented among transcripts down-regulated by cold treatment in S50676 inbred line. (PDF 233 kb

Retrospective analysis of eff ectiveness and toleration of treatment with platinum derivative and pemetrexed in patients with advanced (stage IIIB and IV) non-small non-squamous cell lung cancer in a few oncology centers

Wstęp. Badanie Scagliottiego i wsp. zapoczątkowało stosowanie w leczeniu raka płuca schematów chemioterapiistosownie do konkretnego rozpoznania histologicznego: w raku o utkaniu innym niż płaskonabłonkowe — w połączeniuz cisplatyną pojawił się pemetreksed.Cel pracy. Retrospektywna ocena skuteczności i tolerancji paliatywnej chemioterapii z użyciem dwulekowegoschematu zawierającego pochodną platyny i pemetreksed w rutynowej praktyce klinicznej w okresie przed wprowadzeniemprogramu lekowego.Materiał i metody. Do badania włączono 50 chorych na zaawansowanego (stopień kliniczny IIIB lub IV) raka niedrobnokomórkowegoo utkaniu innym niż płaskonabłonkowe. W całej grupie przeprowadzono analizę odpowiedzii tolerancji leczenia. Czas wolny od progresji określono u 45 chorych, u których nie stosowano innego leczenia przedprogresją oraz u których czas do progresji lub zgonu (ewentualnie utraty z obserwacji) był znany.Wyniki. Chorzy otrzymali od 1 do 5 cykli leczenia, a 34 chorych (68%) — zalecane 3–4 cykle. U żadnego chorego nieuzyskano całkowitej remisji pod wpływem leczenia. U 8 chorych (16%) odnotowano częściową remisję, a u 29 chorych(58%) — stabilizację choroby. Progresja w trakcie leczenia wystąpiła u 13 chorych (26%). Korzyść kliniczną odniosło17 chorych (34%). Mediana czasu wolnego od progresji wyniosła w ocenianej grupie 19 tygodni (3–92 tyg.). Wśródchorych leczonych cisplatyną mediana czasu do progresji wyniosła 19,8 tygodnia (3–92 tyg.). Tolerancja leczenia byładobra, nie odnotowano powikłań zagrażających życiu. Wystąpiło 10 przypadków neutropenii, 1 małopłytkowość,niedokrwistość pojawiła się u 7 chorych, odnotowano też 6 przypadków powikłań niehematologicznych.Wnioski. Korzyść kliniczną odniosła około jedna trzecia chorych, a mediana czasu wolnego od progresji była krótszaod uzyskanego we wspomnianym badaniu rejestracyjnym dla pemetreksedu. Leczenie było dobrze tolerowane.Celowe byłoby przeprowadzenie prospektywnego badania obserwacyjnego w celu rzetelnej oceny efektywnościi tolerancji rutynowego leczenia schematem zawierającym pemetrekset.Background. The Scagliotti trial initiated the use of chemotherapy in non-small cell, non-squamous lung cancerchemotherapy with pemetrexed.Purpose. Retrospective analysis of eff ectiveness and toleration of palliative chemotherapy with platinum derivativeand pemetrexed.Materials and methods. The study population was 50 patients with stage IIIB/IV non-small cell non-squamous lungcancer who had been treated with platinum derivate and pemetrexed. Response and toxicity were analyzed in allgroups. Progression-free survival was assessed for 45 patients who had not received any other treatment beforedisease progression and whose date of progression or death was known.Results. Patients received 1 to 5 cycles of chemotherapy, but 34 (68%) had recommended 3 to 4 cycles. No patientachieved complete remission. 8 (16%) had a partial response and stabilization was reached in 29 (58%). Progression ofthe disease occurred in 13 patients (26%). Clinical benefi t was achieved in 17 patients (34%). Median progression-freesurvival was 19 weeks (range 3–92 weeks), and for patients treated with cisplatin 19.8 weeks (3–92 weeks). Treatmenttoleration was good. No life threatening side eff ects were reported. Toxicity was as follows: 10 cases of neutropenia,1 of thrombocytopenia, 7 of anemia, and 6 of non-hematological toxicities were also reported.Conclusions. Clinical benefi t was achieved in one-third of patients. Progression-free survival was shorter than fornon-squamous cell cancer patients treated with cisplatin and pemetrexed in the Scagliotti trial. Treatment was welltolerated. For better assessment of treatment eff ectiveness and toxicity a observational study would be useful

Thrombus aspiration during ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

To access publisher's full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field.The clinical effect of routine intracoronary thrombus aspiration before primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is uncertain. We aimed to evaluate whether thrombus aspiration reduces mortality.We conducted a multicenter, prospective, randomized, controlled, open-label clinical trial, with enrollment of patients from the national comprehensive Swedish Coronary Angiography and Angioplasty Registry (SCAAR) and end points evaluated through national registries. A total of 7244 patients with STEMI undergoing PCI were randomly assigned to manual thrombus aspiration followed by PCI or to PCI only. The primary end point was all-cause mortality at 30 days.No patients were lost to follow-up. Death from any cause occurred in 2.8% of the patients in the thrombus-aspiration group (103 of 3621), as compared with 3.0% in the PCI-only group (110 of 3623) (hazard ratio, 0.94; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.72 to 1.22; P=0.63). The rates of hospitalization for recurrent myocardial infarction at 30 days were 0.5% and 0.9% in the two groups, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.34 to 1.07; P=0.09), and the rates of stent thrombosis were 0.2% and 0.5%, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.47; 95% CI, 0.20 to 1.02; P=0.06). There were no significant differences between the groups with respect to the rate of stroke or neurologic complications at the time of discharge (P=0.87). The results were consistent across all major prespecified subgroups, including subgroups defined according to thrombus burden and coronary flow before PCI.Routine thrombus aspiration before PCI as compared with PCI alone did not reduce 30-day mortality among patients with STEMI. (Funded by the Swedish Research Council and others; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01093404.).Swedish Research Council, Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions, Terumo Medical Corporation, Medtronic, Vascular Solutions, Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation/20100178/ B0010401 Biotronik, Stentys, Abbott Vascular, St. Jude Medical, Boston Scientific, EPS Vascular, Cardiac Dimensions, AstraZeneca, Edwards Lifesciences

Safety of the Deferral of Coronary Revascularization on the Basis of Instantaneous Wave-Free Ratio and Fractional Flow Reserve Measurements in Stable Coronary Artery Disease and Acute Coronary Syndromes

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical outcomes of patients deferred from coronary revascularization on the basis of instantaneous wave-free ratio (iFR) or fractional flow reserve (FFR) measurements in stable angina pectoris (SAP) and acute coronary syndromes (ACS). BACKGROUND Assessment of coronary stenosis severity with pressure guidewires is recommended to determine the need for myocardial revascularization. METHODS The safety of deferral of coronary revascularization in the pooled per-protocol population (n = 4,486) of the DEFINE-FLAIR (Functional Lesion Assessment of Intermediate Stenosis to Guide Revascularisation) and iFR-SWEDEHEART (Instantaneous Wave-Free Ratio Versus Fractional Flow Reserve in Patients With Stable Angina Pectoris or Acute Coronary Syndrome) randomized clinical trials was investigated. Patients were stratified according to revascularization decision making on the basis of iFR or FFR and to clinical presentation (SAP or ACS). The primary endpoint was major adverse cardiac events (MACE), defined as the composite of all-cause death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or unplanned revascularization at 1 year. RESULTS Coronary revascularization was deferred in 2,130 patients. Deferral was performed in 1,117 patients (50%) in the iFR group and 1,013 patients (45%) in the FFR group (p <0.01). At 1 year, the MACE rate in the deferred population was similar between the iFR and FFR groups (4.12% vs. 4.05%; fully adjusted hazard ratio: 1.13; 95% confidence interval: 0.72 to 1.79; p = 0.60). A clinical presentation with ACS was associated with a higher MACE rate compared with SAP in deferred patients (5.91% vs. 3.64% in ACS and SAP, respectively; fully adjusted hazard ratio: 0.61 in favor of SAP; 95% confidence interval: 0.38 to 0.99; p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS Overall, deferral of revascularization is equally safe with both iFR and FFR, with a low MACE rate of about 4%. Lesions were more frequently deferred when iFR was used to assess physiological significance. In deferred patients presenting with ACS, the event rate was significantly increased compared with SAP at 1 year. (C) 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier on behalf of the American College of Cardiology Foundation.Peer reviewe

Performance Evaluation of a Gravity-Assisted Heat Pipe-Based Indirect Evaporative Cooler

In the present work, the effects of different operating parameters on the performance of a gravity-assisted heat pipe-based indirect evaporative cooler (GAHP-based IEC) were investigated. The aim of the theoretical study is to evaluate accurately the cooling performance indicators, such as the coefficient of performance (COP), wet bulb effectiveness, and cooling capacity. To predict the effectiveness of the air cooler under a variety of conditions, the comprehensive calculation method was adopted. A mathematical model was developed to simulate numerically the heat and mass transfer processes. The mathematical model was validated adequately using experimental data from the literature. Based on the conducted numerical simulations, the most favorable ranges of operating conditions for the GAHP-based IEC were established. Moreover, the conducted studies could contribute to the further development of novel evaporative cooling systems employing gravity-assisted heat pipes as efficient equipment for transferring heat

Quasi-dynamic model of the energy efficiency degradation coefficient for an air-to-water heat pump

Operating in part-load conditions significantly affects the energy efficiency of the air-to-water heat pumps. The currently used method of testing the devices does not provide the necessary data for estimating the degradation of the device’s efficiency in part-load operating mode. The value of the degradation coefficient Cc = 0.9 adopted in accordance with the EN 14825 standard is generally used. However, this value often does not reflect the actual degree of the COP reduction. Hence the new quasi-dynamic model and the calculation approach to the degradation coefficient were proposed. The model reflects the real and overall reduction between the full and part-load COP, not only the energy consumption in the stand-by mode. The estimation was made using the field measurement data of the air-to-water heat pump supplying heat to the low temperature installation. It has been proved that the determination of the main parameter is possible using a relatively small amount of data without losing an accuracy