597 research outputs found

    Suture Materials, 1980s: Properties, Uses, and Abuses

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    Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/66057/1/j.1365-4362.1982.tb03154.x.pd

    Light hadron, Charmonium(-like) and Bottomonium(-like) states

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    Hadron physics represents the study of strongly interacting matter in all its manifestations and the understanding of its properties and interactions. The interest on this field has been revitalized by the discovery of new light hadrons, charmonium- and bottomonium-like states. I review the most recent experimental results from different experiments.Comment: Presented at Lepton-Photon 2011, Mumbai, India; 21 pages, 18 figures; add more references; some correctio

    The initial experience of electronic brachytherapy for the treatment of non-melanoma skin cancer

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    <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Millions of people are diagnosed with non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSC) worldwide each year. While surgical approaches are the standard treatment, some patients are appropriate candidates for radiation therapy for NMSC. High dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy using surface applicators has shown efficacy in the treatment of NMSC and shortens the radiation treatment schedule by using a condensed hypofractionated approach. An electronic brachytherapy (EBT) system permits treatment of NMSC without the use of a radioactive isotope.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data were collected retrospectively from patients treated from July 2009 through March 2010. Pre-treatment biopsy was performed to confirm a malignant cutaneous diagnosis. A CT scan was performed to assess lesion depth for treatment planning, and an appropriate size of surface applicator was selected to provide an acceptable margin. An HDR EBT system delivered a dose of 40.0 Gy in eight fractions twice weekly with 48 hours between fractions, prescribed to a depth of 3-7 mm. Treatment feasibility, acute safety, efficacy outcomes, and cosmetic results were assessed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Thirty-seven patients (mean age 72.5 years) with 44 cutaneous malignancies were treated. Of 44 lesions treated, 39 (89%) were T1, 1 (2%) Tis, 1 (2%) T2, and 3 (7%) lesions were recurrent. Lesion locations included the nose for 16 lesions (36.4%), ear 5 (11%), scalp 5 (11%), face 14 (32%), and an extremity for 4 (9%). Median follow-up was 4.1 months. No severe toxicities occurred. Cosmesis ratings were good to excellent for 100% of the lesions at follow-up.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The early outcomes of EBT for the treatment of NMSC appear to show acceptable acute safety and favorable cosmetic outcomes. Using a hypofractionated approach, EBT provides a convenient treatment schedule.</p

    Variational Methods for Biomolecular Modeling

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    Structure, function and dynamics of many biomolecular systems can be characterized by the energetic variational principle and the corresponding systems of partial differential equations (PDEs). This principle allows us to focus on the identification of essential energetic components, the optimal parametrization of energies, and the efficient computational implementation of energy variation or minimization. Given the fact that complex biomolecular systems are structurally non-uniform and their interactions occur through contact interfaces, their free energies are associated with various interfaces as well, such as solute-solvent interface, molecular binding interface, lipid domain interface, and membrane surfaces. This fact motivates the inclusion of interface geometry, particular its curvatures, to the parametrization of free energies. Applications of such interface geometry based energetic variational principles are illustrated through three concrete topics: the multiscale modeling of biomolecular electrostatics and solvation that includes the curvature energy of the molecular surface, the formation of microdomains on lipid membrane due to the geometric and molecular mechanics at the lipid interface, and the mean curvature driven protein localization on membrane surfaces. By further implicitly representing the interface using a phase field function over the entire domain, one can simulate the dynamics of the interface and the corresponding energy variation by evolving the phase field function, achieving significant reduction of the number of degrees of freedom and computational complexity. Strategies for improving the efficiency of computational implementations and for extending applications to coarse-graining or multiscale molecular simulations are outlined.Comment: 36 page

    Coxiella burnetii Phagocytosis Is Regulated by GTPases of the Rho Family and the RhoA Effectors mDia1 and ROCK

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    The GTPases belonging to the Rho family control the actin cytoskeleton rearrangements needed for particle internalization during phagocytosis. ROCK and mDia1 are downstream effectors of RhoA, a GTPase involved in that process. Coxiella burnetii, the etiologic agent of Q fever, is internalized by the hostÂŽs cells in an actin-dependent manner. Nevertheless, the molecular mechanism involved in this process has been poorly characterized. This work analyzes the role of different GTPases of the Rho family and some downstream effectors in the internalization of C. burnetii by phagocytic and non-phagocytic cells. The internalization of C. burnetii into HeLa and RAW cells was significantly inhibited when the cells were treated with Clostridium difficile Toxin B which irreversibly inactivates members of the Rho family. In addition, the internalization was reduced in HeLa cells that overexpressed the dominant negative mutants of RhoA, Rac1 or Cdc42 or that were knocked down for the Rho GTPases. The pharmacological inhibition or the knocking down of ROCK diminished bacterium internalization. Moreover, C. burnetii was less efficiently internalized in HeLa cells overexpressing mDia1-N1, a dominant negative mutant of mDia1, while the overexpression of the constitutively active mutant mDia1-ΔN3 increased bacteria uptake. Interestingly, when HeLa and RAW cells were infected, RhoA, Rac1 and mDia1 were recruited to membrane cell fractions. Our results suggest that the GTPases of the Rho family play an important role in C. burnetii phagocytosis in both HeLa and RAW cells. Additionally, we present evidence that ROCK and mDia1, which are downstream effectors of RhoA, are involved in that processFil: Salinas Ojeda, Romina Paola. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂ­ficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂ­fico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas MĂ©dicas. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Ortiz Flores, Rodolfo Matias. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂ­ficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂ­fico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas MĂ©dicas. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Distel, JesĂșs SebastiĂĄn. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂ­ficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂ­fico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas MĂ©dicas. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Aguilera, Milton Osmar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂ­ficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂ­fico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas MĂ©dicas. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Colombo, Maria Isabel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂ­ficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂ­fico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas MĂ©dicas. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Beron, Walter. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂ­ficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂ­fico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Cienicas MĂ©dicas. Instituto de HistologĂ­a y EmbriologĂ­a de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; Argentin

    Association between hair mineral and age, BMI and nutrient intakes among Korean female adults

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    This study was performed to investigate the association between hair mineral levels and nutrient intakes, age, and BMI in female adults who visited a woman's clinic located in Seoul. Dietary intakes were assessed by food frequency questionnaire and mineral levels were measured in collected hairs, and the relationship between these was examined. The average daily nutrient intakes of subjects were compared to those of the KDRIs, and the energy intake status was fair. The average intake of calcium in women of 50 years and over was 91.35% of KDRIs and the potassium intake was greatly below the recommended levels in all age groups. In the average hair mineral contents in subjects, calcium and copper exceeded far more than the reference range while selenium was very low with 85.19% of subjects being lower than the reference value. In addition, the concentrations of sodium, potassium, iron, and manganese in the hair were below the reference ranges in over 15% of subjects. The concentrations of sodium, chromium, sulfur, and cadmium in the hair showed positive correlations (P < 0.05) with age, but the hair zinc level showed a negative correlation (P < 0.05) with age. The concentrations of sodium, potassium, chromium, and cadmium in the hair showed positive correlations (P < 0.05) with BMI. Some mineral levels in subjects of this study showed significant correlations with nutrient intakes, but it seems that the hair mineral content is not directly influenced by each mineral intake. As described above, some hair mineral levels in female adults deviated from the normal range, and it is considered that nutritional intervention to control the imbalance of mineral nutrition is required. Also, as some correlations were shown between hair mineral levels and age, BMI, and nutrient intakes, the possibility of utilizing hair mineral analysis for specific purposes in the future is suggested

    The Salmonella effector SseJ disrupts microtubule dynamics when ectopically expressed in Normal Rat Kidney cells

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    Salmonella effector protein SseJ is secreted by Salmonella into the host cell cytoplasm where it can then modify host cell processes. Whilst host cell small GTPase RhoA has previously been shown to activate the acyl-transferase activity of SseJ we show here an un-described effect of SseJ protein production upon microtubule dynamism. SseJ prevents microtubule collapse and this is independent of SseJ's acyl-transferase activity. We speculate that the effects of SseJ on microtubules would be mediated via its known interactions with the small GTPases of the Rho family
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