Clinicians’ response to hyperoxia in ventilated patients in a Dutch ICU depends on the level of FiO2

Hyperoxia may induce pulmonary injury and may increase oxidative stress. In this retrospective database study we aimed to evaluate the response to hyperoxia by intensivists in a Dutch academic intensive care unit. All arterial blood gas (ABG) data from mechanically ventilated patients from 2005 until 2009 were extracted from an electronic storage database of a mixed 32-bed intensive care unit in a university hospital in Amsterdam. Mechanical ventilation settings at the time of the ABG tests were retrieved. The results of 126,778 ABG tests from 5,498 mechanically ventilated patients were retrieved including corresponding ventilator settings. In 28,222 (22%) of the ABG tests the arterial oxygen tension (PaO2) was > 16 kPa (120 mmHg). In only 25% of the tests with PaO2 > 16 kPa (120 mmHg) was the fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO(2)) decreased. Hyperoxia was accepted without adjustment in ventilator settings if FiO(2) was 0.4 or lower. Hyperoxia is frequently seen but in most cases does not lead to adjustment of ventilator settings if FiO(2) <0.41. Implementation of guidelines concerning oxygen therapy should be improved and further research is needed concerning the effects of frequently encountered hyperoxi

Global energy governance : a review and research agenda

Over the past few years, global energy governance (GEG) has emerged as a major new field of enquiry in international studies. Scholars engaged in this field seek to understand how the energy sector is governed at the global level, by whom and with what consequences. By focusing on governance, they broaden and enrich the geopolitical and hard-nosed security perspectives that have long been, and still are, the dominant perspectives through which energy is analysed. Though still a nascent field, the literature on GEG is thriving and continues to attract the attention of a growing number of researchers. This article reviews the GEG literature as it has developed over the past 10 years. Our aim is to highlight both the progress and limitations of the field, and to identify some opportunities for future research. The article proceeds as follows. First, it traces the origins of the GEG literature (section “Origins and roots of GEG research”). The subsequent sections deal with the two topics that have received the most attention in the GEG literature: Why does energy need global governance (section “The goals and rationale of global energy governance”)? And, who governs energy (section “Mapping the global energy architecture”)? We then address a third question that has received far less attention: How well or poor is energy governed (section “Evaluating global energy governance”)? In our conclusions (section “Conclusions and outlook”), we reflect on the current state of GEG, review recent trends and innovations, and identify some questions that warrant future consideration by scholars. This article is published as part of a thematic collection on global governance

Year in review in Intensive Care Medicine 2011: III. ARDS and ECMO, weaning, mechanical ventilation, noninvasive ventilation, pediatrics and miscellanea

SCOPUS: re.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

BOLITA, an Arabidopsis AP2/ERF-like transcription factor that affects cell expansion and proliferation/differentiation pathways

The BOLITA (BOL) gene, an AP2/ERF transcription factor, was characterized with the help of an activation tag mutant and overexpression lines in Arabidopsis and tobacco. The leaf size of plants overexpressing BOL was smaller than wild type plants due to a reduction in both cell size and cell number. Moreover, severe overexpressors showed ectopic callus formation in roots. Accordingly, global gene expression analysis using the overexpression mutant reflected the alterations in cell proliferation, differentiation and growth through expression changes in RBR, CYCD, and TCP genes, as well as genes involved in cell expansion (i.e. expansins and the actin remodeling factor ADF5). Furthermore, the expression of hormone signaling (i.e. auxin and cytokinin), biosynthesis (i.e. ethylene and jasmonic acid) and regulatory genes was found to be perturbed in bol-D mutant leave

Nutrition in children with CRF and on dialysis

The objectives of this study are: (1) to understand the importance of nutrition in normal growth; (2) to review the methods of assessing nutritional status; (3) to review the dietary requirements of normal children throughout childhood, including protein, energy, vitamins and minerals; (4) to review recommendations for the nutritional requirements of children with chronic renal failure (CRF) and on dialysis; (5) to review reports of spontaneous nutritional intake in children with CRF and on dialysis; (6) to review the epidemiology of nutritional disturbances in renal disease, including height, weight and body composition; (7) to review the pathological mechanisms underlying poor appetite, abnormal metabolic rate and endocrine disturbances in renal disease; (8) to review the evidence for the benefit of dietetic input, dietary supplementation, nasogastric and gastrostomy feeds and intradialytic nutrition; (9) to review the effect of dialysis adequacy on nutrition; (10) to review the effect of nutrition on outcome

Estrogen- and Progesterone (P4)-Mediated Epigenetic Modifications of Endometrial Stromal Cells (EnSCs) and/or Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells (MSCs) in the Etiopathogenesis of Endometriosis

Endometriosis is a common chronic inflammatory condition in which endometrial tissue appears outside the uterine cavity. Because ectopic endometriosis cells express both estrogen and progesterone (P4) receptors, they grow and undergo cyclic proliferation and breakdown similar to the endometrium. This debilitating gynecological disease affects up to 15% of reproductive aged women. Despite many years of research, the etiopathogenesis of endometrial lesions remains unclear. Retrograde transport of the viable menstrual endometrial cells with retained ability for attachment within the pelvic cavity, proliferation, differentiation and subsequent invasion into the surrounding tissue constitutes the rationale for widely accepted implantation theory. Accordingly, the most abundant cells in the endometrium are endometrial stromal cells (EnSCs). These cells constitute a particular population with clonogenic activity that resembles properties of mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs). Thus, a significant role of stem cell-based dysfunction in formation of the initial endometrial lesions is suspected. There is increasing evidence that the role of epigenetic mechanisms and processes in endometriosis have been underestimated. The importance of excess estrogen exposure and P4 resistance in epigenetic homeostasis failure in the endometrial/endometriotic tissue are crucial. Epigenetic alterations regarding transcription factors of estrogen and P4 signaling pathways in MSCs are robust in endometriotic tissue. Thus, perspectives for the future may include MSCs and EnSCs as the targets of epigenetic therapies in the prevention and treatment of endometriosis. Here, we reviewed the current known changes in the epigenetic background of EnSCs and MSCs due to estrogen/P4 imbalances in the context of etiopathogenesis of endometriosis

Vascular Dysfunction in Horses with Endocrinopathic Laminitis

Endocrinopathic laminitis (EL) is a vascular condition of the equine hoof resulting in severe lameness with both welfare and economic implications. EL occurs in association with equine metabolic syndrome and equine Cushing's disease. Vascular dysfunction, most commonly due to endothelial dysfunction, is associated with cardiovascular risk in people with metabolic syndrome and Cushing's syndrome. We tested the hypothesis that horses with EL have vascular, specifically endothelial, dysfunction. Healthy horses (n = 6) and horses with EL (n = 6) destined for euthanasia were recruited. We studied vessels from the hooves (laminar artery, laminar vein) and the facial skin (facial skin arteries) by small vessel wire myography. The response to vasoconstrictors phenylephrine (10-9-10-5M) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5HT; 10-9-10-5M) and the vasodilator acetylcholine (10-9-10-5M) was determined. In comparison with healthy controls, acetylcholine-induced relaxation was dramatically reduced in all intact vessels from horses with EL (% relaxation of healthy laminar arteries 323.5 ± 94.1% v EL 90.8 ± 4.4%, P = 0.01, laminar veins 129.4 ± 14.8% v EL 71.2 ± 4.1%, P = 0.005 and facial skin arteries 182.0 ± 40.7% v EL 91.4 ± 4.5%, P = 0.01). In addition, contractile responses to phenylephrine and 5HT were increased in intact laminar veins from horses with EL compared with healthy horses; these differences were endothelium-independent. Sensitivity to phenylephrine was reduced in intact laminar arteries (P = 0.006) and veins (P = 0.009) from horses with EL. Horses with EL exhibit significant vascular dysfunction in laminar vessels and in facial skin arteries. The systemic nature of the abnormalities suggest this dysfunction is associated with the underlying endocrinopathy and not local changes to the hoof

Microbial diversity and biogeochemical cycling in soda lakes

Soda lakes contain high concentrations of sodium carbonates resulting in a stable elevated pH, which provide a unique habitat to a rich diversity of haloalkaliphilic bacteria and archaea. Both cultivation-dependent and -independent methods have aided the identification of key processes and genes in the microbially mediated carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur biogeochemical cycles in soda lakes. In order to survive in this extreme environment, haloalkaliphiles have developed various bioenergetic and structural adaptations to maintain pH homeostasis and intracellular osmotic pressure. The cultivation of a handful of strains has led to the isolation of a number of extremozymes, which allow the cell to perform enzymatic reactions at these extreme conditions. These enzymes potentially contribute to biotechnological applications. In addition, microbial species active in the sulfur cycle can be used for sulfur remediation purposes. Future research should combine both innovative culture methods and state-of-the-art ‘meta-omic’ techniques to gain a comprehensive understanding of the microbes that flourish in these extreme environments and the processes they mediate. Coupling the biogeochemical C, N, and S cycles and identifying where each process takes place on a spatial and temporal scale could unravel the interspecies relationships and thereby reveal more about the ecosystem dynamics of these enigmatic extreme environments