Influence of functional deficiency of complement mannose-binding lectin on outcome of patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Aims Experimental data point towards a favourable effect of low serum concentrations of complement mannose-binding lectin (MBL) on myocardial ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. As comparable data on the role of MBL in human I/R injury is lacking, we investigated the influence of low serum MBL concentrations on mortality of patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods and results Mannose-binding lectin was determined in 890 acute STEMI patients that were prospectively recruited in the APEX-AMI trial. This trial had a primary endpoint of death through Day 30 and secondary endpoints of death through Day 90 and the composite of death, cardiogenic shock, or congestive heart failure (CHF) through Days 30 and 90. Samples were taken immediately before PCI and the analysis of MBL limited to patients having received placebo. Patients with serum MBL levels of or below 100 ng/mL were considered to be functionally deficient. Of the 890 patients, 127 had functional MBL deficiency (14.3%). Characteristics of patients with MBL deficiency and those with MBL levels >100 ng/mL did not differ. In patients with MBL deficiency, there was 1 death (0.79%) compared with 42 deaths (5.51%) in patients with MBL levels >100 ng/mL (P = 0.0233) representing an absolute and relative lower mortality in MBL deficient patients of 4.7 and 85%, respectively. Functional MBL deficiency, however, was not associated with decreased risk of the combined endpoints of death and shock or death, shock, and CHF, respectively. Conclusion Functional deficiency of complement MBL is associated with reduced mortality in patients with STEMI undergoing PCI. This unique finding suggests that a component of the innate immune system affects mortality in STEMI patients undergoing primary PCI. Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov, Identifier: NCT0009163

Does cytomegalovirus infection contribute to socioeconomic disparities in all-cause mortality?

The social patterning of cytomegalovirus (CMV) and its implication in aging suggest that the virus may partially contribute to socioeconomic disparities in mortality. We used Cox regression and inverse odds ratio weighting to quantify the proportion of the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and all-cause mortality that was attributable to mediation by CMV seropositivity. Data were from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III (1988–1994), with mortality follow-up through December 2011. SES was assessed as household income (income-to-poverty ratio ≤1.30; >1.30 to ≤1.85; >1.85 to ≤3.50; >3.50) and education (high school). We found strong associations between low SES and increased mortality: hazard ratio (HR) 1.80; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.57, 2.06 comparing the lowest versus highest income groups and HR 1.29; 95% CI: 1.13, 1.48 comparing high school education. 65% of individuals were CMV seropositive, accounting for 6–15% of the SES-mortality associations. Age modified the associations between SES, CMV, and mortality, with CMV more strongly associated with mortality in older individuals. Our findings suggest that cytomegalovirus may partially contribute to persistent socioeconomic disparities in mortality, particularly among older individuals

Six-minute walk distance after coronary artery bypass grafting compared with medical therapy in ischaemic cardiomyopathy

Background: In patients with ischaemic left ventricular dysfunction, coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG) may decrease mortality, but it is not known whether CABG improves functional capacity. Objective: To determine whether CABG compared with medical therapy alone (MED) increases 6 min walk distance in patients with ischaemic left ventricular dysfunction and coronary artery disease amenable to revascularisation. Methods: The Surgical Treatment in Ischemic Heart disease trial randomised 1212 patients with ischaemic left ventricular dysfunction to CABG or MED. A 6 min walk distance test was performed both at baseline and at least one follow-up assessment at 4, 12, 24 and/or 36 months in 409 patients randomised to CABG and 466 to MED. Change in 6 min walk distance between baseline and follow-up were compared by treatment allocation. Results: 6 min walk distance at baseline for CABG was mean 340±117 m and for MED 339±118 m. Change in walk distance from baseline was similar for CABG and MED groups at 4 months (mean +38 vs +28 m), 12 months (+47 vs +36 m), 24 months (+31 vs +34 m) and 36 months (−7 vs +7 m), P>0.10 for all. Change in walk distance between CABG and MED groups over all assessments was also similar after adjusting for covariates and imputation for missing values (+8 m, 95% CI −7 to 23 m, P=0.29). Results were consistent for subgroups defined by angina, New York Heart Association class ≥3, left ventricular ejection fraction, baseline walk distance and geographic region. Conclusion: In patients with ischaemic left ventricular dysfunction CABG compared with MED alone is known to reduce mortality but is unlikely to result in a clinically significant improvement in functional capacity

INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN AND ASSESSMENT Peer-to-Peer Interprofessional Health Policy Education for Medicare Part D

Objectives. To determine whether a peer-to-peer education program was an expedient and effective approach to improve knowledge and promote interprofessional communication and collaboration. Design. Trained pharmacy students taught nursing students, medical students, and medical residents about the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit (Part D), in 1-to 2-hour lectures. Assessment. Learners completed a survey instrument to assess the effectiveness of the presentation and their attitudes toward the peer-to-peer instructional format. Learners strongly or somewhat agreed that the peer-to-peer format was effective in providing Part D education (99%) and promoted interprofessional collaboration (100%). Qualitative data highlighted the program's clinical relevance, value in promoting interprofessional collaboration, and influence on changing views about the roles and contributions of pharmacists. Conclusion. The Part D peer educator program is an innovative way to disseminate contemporary health policy information rapidly, while fostering interprofessional collaboration

Why Do Species Co-Occur? A Test of Alternative Hypotheses Describing Abiotic Differences in Sympatry versus Allopatry Using Spadefoot Toads

Areas of co-occurrence between two species (sympatry) are often thought to arise in regions where abiotic conditions are conducive to both species and are therefore intermediate between regions where either species occurs alone (allopatry). Depending on historical factors or interactions between species, however, sympatry might not differ from allopatry, or, alternatively, sympatry might actually be more extreme in abiotic conditions relative to allopatry. Here, we evaluate these three hypothesized patterns for how sympatry compares to allopatry in abiotic conditions. We use two species of congeneric spadefoot toads, Spea multiplicata and S. bombifrons, as our study system. To test these hypotheses, we created ecological niche models (specifically using Maxent) for both species to create a map of the joint probability of occurrence of both species. Using the results of these models, we identified three types of locations: two where either species was predicted to occur alone (i.e., allopatry for S. multiplicata and allopatry for S. bombifrons) and one where both species were predicted to co-occur (i.e., sympatry). We then compared the abiotic environment between these three location types and found that sympatry was significantly hotter and drier than the allopatric regions. Thus, sympatry was not intermediate between the alternative allopatric sites. Instead, sympatry occurred at one extreme of the conditions occupied by both species. We hypothesize that biotic interactions in these extreme environments facilitate co-occurrence. Specifically, hybridization between S. bombifrons females and S. multiplicata males may facilitate co-occurrence by decreasing development time of tadpoles. Additionally, the presence of alternative food resources in more extreme conditions may preclude competitive exclusion of one species by the other. This work has implications for predicting how interacting species will respond to climate change, because species interactions may facilitate survival in extreme habitats

Efficient Genetic Method for Establishing Drosophila Cell Lines Unlocks the Potential to Create Lines of Specific Genotypes

Analysis of cells in culture has made substantial contributions to biological research. The versatility and scale of in vitro manipulation and new applications such as high-throughput gene silencing screens ensure the continued importance of cell-culture studies. In comparison to mammalian systems, Drosophila cell culture is underdeveloped, primarily because there is no general genetic method for deriving new cell lines. Here we found expression of the conserved oncogene RasV12 (a constitutively activated form of Ras) profoundly influences the development of primary cultures derived from embryos. The cultures become confluent in about three weeks and can be passaged with great success. The lines have undergone more than 90 population doublings and therefore constitute continuous cell lines. Most lines are composed of spindle-shaped cells of mesodermal type. We tested the use of the method for deriving Drosophila cell lines of a specific genotype by establishing cultures from embryos in which the warts (wts) tumor suppressor gene was targeted. We successfully created several cell lines and found that these differ from controls because they are primarily polyploid. This phenotype likely reflects the known role for the mammalian wts counterparts in the tetraploidy checkpoint. We conclude that expression of RasV12 is a powerful genetic mechanism to promote proliferation in Drosophila primary culture cells and serves as an efficient means to generate continuous cell lines of a given genotype

Influence of functional deficiency of complement mannose-binding lectin on outcome of patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Experimental data point towards a favourable effect of low serum concentrations of complement mannose-binding lectin (MBL) on myocardial ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. As comparable data on the role of MBL in human I/R injury is lacking, we investigated the influence of low serum MBL concentrations on mortality of patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)