The Discovery of LOX-1, its Ligands and Clinical Significance

LOX-1 is an endothelial receptor for oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL), a key molecule in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis.The basal expression of LOX-1 is low but highly induced under the influence of proinflammatory and prooxidative stimuli in vascular endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, macrophages, platelets and cardiomyocytes. Multiple lines of in vitro and in vivo studies have provided compelling evidence that LOX-1 promotes endothelial dysfunction and atherogenesis induced by oxLDL. The roles of LOX-1 in the development of atherosclerosis, however, are not simple as it had been considered. Evidence has been accumulating that LOX-1 recognizes not only oxLDL but other atherogenic lipoproteins, platelets, leukocytes and CRP. As results, LOX-1 not only mediates endothelial dysfunction but contributes to atherosclerotic plaque formation, thrombogenesis, leukocyte infiltration and myocardial infarction, which determine mortality and morbidity from atherosclerosis. Moreover, our recent epidemiological study has highlighted the involvement of LOX-1 in human cardiovascular diseases. Further understandings of LOX-1 and its ligands as well as its versatile functions will direct us to ways to find novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to cardiovascular disease

A new MRI rating scale for progressive supranuclear palsy and multiple system atrophy: validity and reliability

AIM To evaluate a standardised MRI acquisition protocol and a new image rating scale for disease severity in patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and multiple systems atrophy (MSA) in a large multicentre study. METHODS The MRI protocol consisted of two-dimensional sagittal and axial T1, axial PD, and axial and coronal T2 weighted acquisitions. The 32 item ordinal scale evaluated abnormalities within the basal ganglia and posterior fossa, blind to diagnosis. Among 760 patients in the study population (PSP = 362, MSA = 398), 627 had per protocol images (PSP = 297, MSA = 330). Intra-rater (n = 60) and inter-rater (n = 555) reliability were assessed through Cohen's statistic, and scale structure through principal component analysis (PCA) (n = 441). Internal consistency and reliability were checked. Discriminant and predictive validity of extracted factors and total scores were tested for disease severity as per clinical diagnosis. RESULTS Intra-rater and inter-rater reliability were acceptable for 25 (78%) of the items scored (≥ 0.41). PCA revealed four meaningful clusters of covarying parameters (factor (F) F1: brainstem and cerebellum; F2: midbrain; F3: putamen; F4: other basal ganglia) with good to excellent internal consistency (Cronbach α 0.75-0.93) and moderate to excellent reliability (intraclass coefficient: F1: 0.92; F2: 0.79; F3: 0.71; F4: 0.49). The total score significantly discriminated for disease severity or diagnosis; factorial scores differentially discriminated for disease severity according to diagnosis (PSP: F1-F2; MSA: F2-F3). The total score was significantly related to survival in PSP (p<0.0007) or MSA (p<0.0005), indicating good predictive validity. CONCLUSIONS The scale is suitable for use in the context of multicentre studies and can reliably and consistently measure MRI abnormalities in PSP and MSA. Clinical Trial Registration Number The study protocol was filed in the open clinical trial registry (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov) with ID No NCT00211224

Adsorption of yellow bemacid CM-3R dye from aqueous solutions onto raw and sodium bentonite

Discharges from the textile industries are heavily loaded with various dyes which requires their treatment. The most common method is to adsorb on solids high surface area, for example, clay material highly available and whose leaves are good natural adsorbents. In present study we used a local bentonite available in its natural form and sodium form for the adsorption of a dye CM-3R yellow bemacid provided by BEZEMA. The evaluation of the effect of various variables is driven by a series of experiments as the contact time, initial concentration of the dye, the initial pH. The different parameters show that the adsorption of the dye is favoured to 240 min, pH 2 and a temperature of 19 ºC. The sodium bentonite yielded good performance results due to the improvement of its adsorption properties. The best correlation of experimental results are obtained with the Langmuir model for sodium bentonite (R % = 0.998) and Freundlich for the raw bentonite (0997

Transient natural convection in closed and inclined cubical enclosures. Application to electronic equipment thermal regulation

Paper presented at the 5th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, South Africa, 1-4 July, 2007.Certain electronic components are very sensitive to temperature variations during their operations. This is true particularly for electronic systems containing high density integrated circuits, which are increasingly a characteristic of today’s equipment due to the ever evolving process of miniaturisation. The correct operation of such electronic systems is related to their thermal state. Therefore, thermal regulation is required for their proper dynamic operation. This regulation is complex in the case of a high level of integration and confinement to small spaces. The proper sizing of the closed or limited opening casing is, therefore, necessary in order to ensure the correct operation of the equipment in confined spaces. This paper presents a treatment of the particular case of the transient natural 2D convection in a cubical enclosure filled with air. The active walls are differentially heated and maintained isothermic. These walls can remain vertical, but can also be inclined with respect to the gravity field. The dynamic and thermal fields within the case are analysed numerically using the finite volume method. An experimental test rig is developed for the thermal analysis by examining the temperature distribution in the immediate vicinity of the hot wall, which simulates the electronic equipment.cs201

Metformin promotes isolated rat liver mitochondria impairment

Abstract Metformin, a drug widely used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, has recently received attention due to the new and contrasting findings regarding its effects on mitochondrial function. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of metformin in isolated rat liver mitochondria status. We observed that metformin concentrations =8 mM induce an impairment of the respiratory chain characterized by a decrease in RCR and state 3 respiration. However, only metformin concentrations =10 mM affect the oxidative phosphorylation system by decreasing the mitochondrial transmembrane potential and increasing the repolarization lag phase. Moreover, our results show that metformin does not prevent H2O2 production, neither protects against lipid peroxidation induced by the pro-oxidant pair ADP/Fe2+. In addition, we observed that metformin exacerbates Ca2+-induced permeability transition pore opening by decreasing the capacity of mitochondria to accumulate Ca2+ and increasing the oxidation of thiol groups. Taken together, our results show that metformin can promote liver mitochondria injury predisposing to cell death