CIRSE Vascular Closure Device Registry

The conclusion of this registry of closure devices with an anchor and a plug is that the use of this device in interventional radiology procedures is safe, with a low incidence of serious access site complications. There seems to be no difference in complications between antegrade and retrograde access and other parameters

Benign external hydrocephalus: a review, with emphasis on management

Benign external hydrocephalus in infants, characterized by macrocephaly and typical neuroimaging findings, is considered as a self-limiting condition and is therefore rarely treated. This review concerns all aspects of this condition: etiology, neuroimaging, symptoms and clinical findings, treatment, and outcome, with emphasis on management. The review is based on a systematic search in the Pubmed and Web of Science databases. The search covered various forms of hydrocephalus, extracerebral fluid, and macrocephaly. Studies reporting small children with idiopathic external hydrocephalus were included, mostly focusing on the studies reporting a long-term outcome. A total of 147 studies are included, the majority however with a limited methodological quality. Several theories regarding pathophysiology and various symptoms, signs, and clinical findings underscore the heterogeneity of the condition. Neuroimaging is important in the differentiation between external hydrocephalus and similar conditions. A transient delay of psychomotor development is commonly seen during childhood. A long-term outcome is scarcely reported, and the results are varying. Although most children with external hydrocephalus seem to do well both initially and in the long term, a substantial number of patients show temporary or permanent psychomotor delay. To verify that this truly is a benign condition, we suggest that future research on external hydrocephalus should focus on the long-term effects of surgical treatment as opposed to conservative management

Probing self-regeneration of essential protein factors required forin vitrotranslation activity by serial transfer

The bottom-up construction of bio-inspired systems capable of self-maintenance and reproduction is a central goal in systems chemistry and synthetic biology. A particular challenge in such systems is the continuous regeneration of key proteins required for macromolecular synthesis. Here, we probe self-maintenance of a reconstituted in vitro translation system challenged by serial transfer of selected key proteins. We find that the system can simultaneously regenerate multiple essential polypeptides, which then contribute to the maintenance of protein expression after serial transfer. The presented strategy offers a robust methodology for probing and optimizing continuous self-regeneration of proteins in cell-free environments

In vitro self-replication and multicistronic expression of large synthetic genomes

The generation of a chemical system capable of replication and evolution is a key objective of synthetic biology. This could be achieved by in vitro reconstitution of a minimal self-sustaining central dogma consisting of DNA replication, transcription and translation. Here, we present an in vitro translation system, which enables self-encoded replication and expression of large DNA genomes under well-defined, cell-free conditions. In particular, we demonstrate self-replication of a multipartite genome of more than 116 kb encompassing the full set of Escherichia coli translation factors, all three ribosomal RNAs, an energy regeneration system, as well as RNA and DNA polymerases. Parallel to DNA replication, our system enables synthesis of at least 30 encoded translation factors, half of which are expressed in amounts equal to or greater than their respective input levels. Our optimized cell-free expression platform could provide a chassis for the generation of a partially self-replicating in vitro translation system

In vitro self-replication and multicistronic expression of large synthetic genomes

AbstractThe generation of a chemical system capable of replication and evolution is a key objective of synthetic biology. This could be achieved by in vitro reconstitution of a minimal self-sustaining central dogma consisting of DNA replication, transcription and translation. Here, we present an in vitro translation system, which enables self-encoded replication and expression of large DNA genomes under well-defined, cell-free conditions. In particular, we demonstrate self-replication of a multipartite genome of more than 116 kb encompassing the full set of Escherichia coli translation factors, all three ribosomal RNAs, an energy regeneration system, as well as RNA and DNA polymerases. Parallel to DNA replication, our system enables synthesis of at least 30 encoded translation factors, half of which are expressed in amounts equal to or greater than their respective input levels. Our optimized cell-free expression platform could provide a chassis for the generation of a partially self-replicating in vitro translation system.</jats:p

Templated self-replication in biomimetic systems.

A key characteristic of living systems is the storage and replication of information, and as such the development of self-replicating systems capable of heredity is of great importance to the fields of synthetic biology and origin of life research. In this review, the design and implementation of self-replicating systems in the context of bottom-up synthetic biology is discussed, with a particular focus on nucleic acid-based replication including nonenzymatic systems, ribozyme-based systems, and complex in vitro translation coupled RNA and DNA replication. The current state and remaining challenges of the respective fields are discussed, and the potential of individual replicators for synthetic biology applications such as the creation of artificial life capable of Darwinian evolution is also summarized