Radium ion: A possible candidate for measuring atomic parity violation

Single trapped and laser cooled Radium ion as a possible candidate for measuring the parity violation induced frequency shift has been discussed here. Even though the technique to be used is similar to that proposed by Fortson [1], Radium has its own advantages and disadvantages. The most attractive part of Radium ion as compared to that of Barium ion is its mass which comes along with added complexity of instability as well as other issues which are discussed hereComment: Conference proceedin

Comparative Performance of Comorbidity Indices in Predicting Health Care-Related Behaviors and Outcomes among Medicaid Enrollees with Type 2 Diabetes

Abstract No single gold standard of comorbidity measure has been identified, and the performance of comorbidity indices vary according to the outcome of interest. The authors compared the Charlson Comorbidity Index, Elixhauser Index (EI), Chronic Disease Score (CDS), and Health-related Quality of Life Comorbidity Index (HRQL-CI) in predicting health care-related behaviors (physicians' concordance with diabetes care standards and patients' oral antidiabetic drug [OAD] adherence) and outcomes (health care utilization and expenditures) among Medicaid enrollees with type 2 diabetes. A total of 9832 diabetes patients who used OAD were identified using data from the MarketScan Medicaid database from 2003 to 2007. Predictive performance of the comorbidity index was assessed using multiple regression models controlling for patient demographics, diabetes severity, and baseline health care characteristics. Among the 4 indices, the CDS was best at predicting physician's concordance with care standards. The CDS and HRQL-CI mental index performed better than other indices as predictors of medication adherence. The EI was best at predicting health care utilization and expenditures. These results suggest that, for these low-income diabetes patients, the CDS and HRQL-CI mental index were relatively better risk-adjustment tools for health care-related behavior data evaluation and the EI was the first choice for health care utilization and expenditures data. (Population Health Management 2012;15:220?229)Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/98469/1/pop%2E2011%2E0037.pd

Restoration of Altered MicroRNA Expression in the Ischemic Heart with Resveratrol

Resveratrol, a constituent of red wine, is important for cardioprotection. MicroRNAs are known regulators for genes involved in resveratrol-mediated cardiac remodeling and the regulatory pathway involving microRNA has not been studied so far.We explored the cardioprotection by resveratrol in ischemia/reperfusion model of rat and determined cardiac functions. miRNA profile was determined from isolated RNA using quantitative Real-time PCR based array. Systemic analyses of miRNA array and theirs targets were determined using a number of computational approaches.Cardioprotection by resveratrol and its derivative in ischemia/reperfusion [I/R] rat model was examined with miRNA expression profile. Unique expression pattern were found for each sample, particularly with resveratrol [pure compound] and longevinex [commercial resveratrol formulation] pretreated hearts. Longevinex and resveratrol pretreatment modulates the expression pattern of miRNAs close to the control level based on PCA analyses. Differential expression was observed in over 25 miRNAs, some of them, such as miR-21 were previously implicated in cardiac remodeling. The target genes for the differentially expressed miRNA include genes of various molecular function such as metal ion binding, sodium-potassium ion, transcription factors, which may play key role in reducing I/R injury.Rats pretreated with resveratrol for 3 weeks leads to significant cardioprotection against ischemia/reperfusion injury. A unique signature of miRNA profile is observed in control heart pretreated with resveratrol or longevinex. We have determined specific group of miRNA in heart that have altered during IR injuries. Most of those altered microRNA expressions modulated close to their basal level in resveratrol or longevinex treated I/R mice

Magnetic resonance imaging protocols for paediatric neuroradiology

Increasingly, radiologists are encouraged to have protocols for all imaging studies and to include imaging guidelines in care pathways set up by the referring clinicians. This is particularly advantageous in MRI where magnet time is limited and a radiologist’s review of each patient’s images often results in additional sequences and longer scanning times without the advantage of improvement in diagnostic ability. The difficulties of imaging small children and the challenges presented to the radiologist as the brain develops are discussed. We present our protocols for imaging the brain and spine of children based on 20 years experience of paediatric neurological MRI. The protocols are adapted to suit children under the age of 2 years, small body parts and paediatric clinical scenarios

Dietary restriction reduces angiogenesis and growth in an orthotopic mouse brain tumour model

Diet and lifestyle produce major effects on tumour incidence, prevalence, and natural history. Moderate dietary restriction has long been recognised as a natural therapy that improves health, promotes longevity, and reduces both the incidence and growth of many tumour types. Dietary restriction differs from fasting or starvation by reducing total food and caloric intake without causing nutritional deficiencies. No prior studies have evaluated the responsiveness of malignant brain cancer to dietary restriction. We found that a moderate dietary restriction of 30–40% significantly inhibited the intracerebral growth of the CT-2A syngeneic malignant mouse astrocytoma by almost 80%. The total dietary intake for the ad libitum control group (n=9) and the dietary restriction experimental group (n=10) was about 20 and 13 Kcal day−1, respectively. Overall health and vitality was better in the dietary restriction-fed mice than in the ad libitum-fed mice. Tumour microvessel density (Factor VIII immunostaining) was two-fold less in the dietary restriction mice than in the ad libitum mice, whereas the tumour apoptotic index (TUNEL assay) was three-fold greater in the dietary restriction mice than in the ad libitum mice. CT-2A tumour cell-induced vascularity was also less in the dietary restriction mice than in the ad libitum mice in the in vivo Matrigel plug assay. These findings indicate that dietary restriction inhibited CT-2A growth by reducing angiogenesis and by enhancing apoptosis. Dietary restriction may shift the tumour microenvironment from a proangiogenic to an antiangiogenic state through multiple effects on the tumour cells and the tumour-associated host cells. Our data suggest that moderate dietary restriction may be an effective antiangiogenic therapy for recurrent malignant brain cancers

Early Outcomes of MDR-TB Treatment in a High HIV-Prevalence Setting in Southern Africa

BACKGROUND: Little is known about treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in high HIV-prevalence settings such as sub-Saharan Africa. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We did a retrospective analysis of early outcomes of the first cohort of patients registered in the Lesotho national MDR-TB program between July 21, 2007 and April 21, 2008. Seventy-six patients were included for analysis. Patient follow-up ended when an outcome was recorded, or on October 21, 2008 for those still on treatment. Fifty-six patients (74%) were infected with HIV; the median CD4 cell count was 184 cells/microl (range 5-824 cells/microl). By the end of the follow-up period, study patients had been followed for a median of 252 days (range 12-451 days). Twenty-two patients (29%) had died, and 52 patients (68%) were alive and in treatment. In patients who did not die, culture conversion was documented in 52/54 patients (96%). One patient had defaulted, and one patient had transferred out. Death occurred after a median of 66 days in treatment (range 12-374 days). CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: In a region where clinicians and program managers are increasingly confronted by drug-resistant tuberculosis, this report provides sobering evidence of the difficulty of MDR-TB treatment in high HIV-prevalence settings. In Lesotho, an innovative community-based treatment model that involved social and nutritional support, twice-daily directly observed treatment and early empiric use of second-line TB drugs was successful in reducing mortality of MDR-TB patients. Further research is urgently needed to improve MDR-TB treatment outcomes in high HIV-prevalence settings

T7 RNA Polymerase Functions In Vitro without Clustering

Many nucleic acid polymerases function in clusters known as factories. We investigate whether the RNA polymerase (RNAP) of phage T7 also clusters when active. Using ‘pulldowns’ and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy we find that elongation complexes do not interact in vitro with a Kd<1 µM. Chromosome conformation capture also reveals that genes located 100 kb apart on the E. coli chromosome do not associate more frequently when transcribed by T7 RNAP. We conclude that if clustering does occur in vivo, it must be driven by weak interactions, or mediated by a phage-encoded protein

Testing Simulation Theory with Cross-Modal Multivariate Classification of fMRI Data

The discovery of mirror neurons has suggested a potential neural basis for simulation and common coding theories of action perception, theories which propose that we understand other people's actions because perceiving their actions activates some of our neurons in much the same way as when we perform the actions. We propose testing this model directly in humans with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) by means of cross-modal classification. Cross-modal classification evaluates whether a classifier that has learned to separate stimuli in the sensory domain can also separate the stimuli in the motor domain. Successful classification provides support for simulation theories because it means that the fMRI signal, and presumably brain activity, is similar when perceiving and performing actions. In this paper we demonstrate the feasibility of the technique by showing that classifiers which have learned to discriminate whether a participant heard a hand or a mouth action, based on the activity patterns in the premotor cortex, can also determine, without additional training, whether the participant executed a hand or mouth action. This provides direct evidence that, while perceiving others' actions, (1) the pattern of activity in premotor voxels with sensory properties is a significant source of information regarding the nature of these actions, and (2) that this information shares a common code with motor execution

Pch2 Acts through Xrs2 and Tel1/ATM to Modulate Interhomolog Bias and Checkpoint Function during Meiosis

Proper segregation of chromosomes during meiosis requires the formation and repair of double-strand breaks (DSBs) to form crossovers. Repair is biased toward using the homolog as a substrate rather than the sister chromatid. Pch2 is a conserved member of the AAA+-ATPase family of proteins and is implicated in a wide range of meiosis-specific processes including the recombination checkpoint, maturation of the chromosome axis, crossover control, and synapsis. We demonstrate a role for Pch2 in promoting and regulating interhomolog bias and the meiotic recombination checkpoint in response to unprocessed DSBs through the activation of axial proteins Hop1 and Mek1 in budding yeast. We show that Pch2 physically interacts with the putative BRCT repeats in the N-terminal region of Xrs2, a member of the MRX complex that acts at sites of unprocessed DSBs. Pch2, Xrs2, and the ATM ortholog Tel1 function in the same pathway leading to the phosphorylation of Hop1, independent of Rad17 and the ATR ortholog Mec1, which respond to the presence of single-stranded DNA. An N-terminal deletion of Xrs2 recapitulates the pch2Δ phenotypes for signaling unresected breaks. We propose that interaction with Xrs2 may enable Pch2 to remodel chromosome structure adjacent to the site of a DSB and thereby promote accessibility of Hop1 to the Tel1 kinase. In addition, Xrs2, like Pch2, is required for checkpoint-mediated delay conferred by the failure to synapse chromosomes