Biomarkers in sepsis.

Purpose of review: This review discusses the current developments in biomarkers for sepsis. Recent findings: With quantum leaps in technology, an array of biomarkers will become available within the next decade as point-of-care tools that will likely revolutionize the management of sepsis. These markers will facilitate early and accurate diagnosis, faster recognition of impending organ dysfunction, optimal selection and titration of appropriate therapies, and more reliable prognostication of risk and outcome. These diagnostics will also enable an improved characterization of the biological phenotype underlying sepsis and thus a better appreciation of the condition. Summary: The potential for novel biomarkers in sepsis will need to be properly realized with considerable funding, academic–industry collaborations, appropriate investigations and validation in heterogenous populations, but these developments do hold the capacity to transform patient care and outcomes

Effect of high glucose concentration on the synthesis of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 in human peritoneal mesothelial cells: Involvement of protein kinase C

Human peritoneal mesothelial cells (HMC) contribute to the activation and control of inflammatory processes in the peritoneum by their potential to produce various inflammatory mediators. The present study was designed to assess the effect of glucose, the osmotic active compound in most commercially available peritoneal dialysis fluids, on the synthesis of the C-C chemokine monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) in cultured HMC. The MCP-1 concentration in the cell supernatants was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the MCP-1 mRNA expression was examined using Northern blot analysis. Incubation of HMC with glucose (30-120 mM) resulted in a time- and concentration-dependent increase in MCP-1 protein secretion and mRNA expression. After 24 h the MCP-1 synthesis was increased from 2.8 +/- 0.46 to 4.2 +/- 0.32 ng/10(5) cells (n = 5, p 2001 S. Karger AG. Basel

The EULAR–OMERACT rheumatoid arthritis MRI reference image atlas: the metacarpophalangeal joints

This paper presents the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint magnetic resonance images of the EULAR–OMERACT rheumatoid arthritis MRI reference image atlas. The illustrations include synovitis in the MCP joints (OMERACT RA magnetic resonance imaging scoring system (RAMRIS), grades 0–3), bone oedema in the metacarpal head and the phalangeal base (grades 0–3), and bone erosion in the metacarpal head and the phalangeal base (grades 0–3, and examples of higher grades). The presented reference images can be used to guide scoring of MCP joints according to the OMERACT RA MRI scoring system

Ethylene production and quality in 1-Methylcyclopropene treated 'Abbé Fètel'pears after storage in Dynamically Controlled Atmosphere

This research studies the ethylene production rate (EP) and quality in 1-MCP treated ‘Abbé Fètel’ pears after storage in DCA compared to NA and CA. 1-MCP treated (300 ppb) and control fruit were stored at -0.5°C in NA, CA (2 kPa O2 + 0.7 kPa CO2) and DCA (0.7 kPa O2 + 0.3 kPa CO2). After 4 and 6 months storage, fruit were held up to 7 d at 20°C. Skin colour, firmness and EP were measured during shelf life and the incidence of disorders after 7 d. 1-MCP treatment drastically reduced EP, which began to recover after 7 d at 20°C, except for DCA stored pears. In control fruit, NA stored pears showed the highest EP. 1-MCP treated fruit were the greenest at the end of shelf-life, especially after CA and DCA. Control fruit stored in DCA and in CA were greener than NA both at 1 d and 7 d of shelf life. Pears treated with 1-MCP did not soften during shelf life, while in control fruit firmness decreased from about 40 N to about 15-20 N, whatever the storage atmosphere. 1-MCP treatment prevented soft and superficial scald and internal breakdown, independently of storage atmosphere. DCA prevented superficial scald in control fruit, while it increased internal browning and breakdown in control and 1-MCP treated pears. No differences were found for soft scald incidence between control DCA and CA stored fruit. The highest percentage of sound fruit was found in NA stored 1-MCP treated pears, and the lowest in control fruit stored in DC

Onion gene expression in response to ethylene and 1-MCP

Onion is regarded as a non-climacteric vegetable. In onions, however, ethylene can suppress sprouting while the ethylene binding inhibitor, 1-MCP (1- methylcyclopropene) can also suppress sprout growth yet, it is unknown how ethylene and 1-MCP elicit the same response. In this study, onions were treated with 10 μL L-1 ethylene or 1 μL L-1 1-MCP individually or in combination for 24 h at 20°C before or after curing (six weeks) at 20 or 28°C then stored at 1°C. Following curing, a subset of these same onions was stored separately under continuous air or ethylene (10 μL L- 1) at 1°C Onions treated with ethylene and 1-MCP in combination after curing for 24 h had reduced sprout growth as compared with the control 25 weeks after harvest. Sprout growth following storage beyond 25 weeks was only reduced through continuous ethylene treatment. This observation was supported by a higher proportion of down-regulated genes characterised as being involved in photosynthesis measured using a newly developed onion microarray. Physiological and biochemical data suggested that ethylene was being perceived in the presence of 1-MCP since sprout growth was reduced in onions treated with 1-MCP and ethylene applied in combination but not when applied individually. A cluster of probes representing transcripts up-regulated by 1-MCP alone but down-regulated by ethylene alone or in the presence of 1-MCP support this suggestion. Ethylene and 1-MCP both down52 regulated a probe tentatively annotated as an ethylene receptor as well as EIN3, suggesting that both treatments down-regulate the perception and signalling events of ethylene

The Kepler view of magnetic chemically peculiar stars

Magnetic chemically peculiar (mCP) stars exhibit complex atmospheres that allow the investigation of such diverse phenomena as atomic diffusion, magnetic fields, and stellar rotation. The advent of space-based photometry provides the opportunity for the first precise characterizations of the photometric variability properties of these stars. We carried out a search for new mCP stars in the Kepler field with the ultimate aim of investigating their photometric variability properties using Kepler data. As an aside, we describe criteria for selecting mCP star candidates based on light curve properties, and assess the accuracy of the spectral classifications provided by the MKCLASS code. As only very few known mCP stars are situated in the Kepler field, we had to depend largely on alternative (nonspectroscopic) means of identifying suitable candidates that rely mostly on light curve properties; in particular we relied on monoperiodic variability and light curve stability. Newly acquired and archival spectra were used to confirm most of our mCP star candidates. Linear ephemeris parameters and effective amplitudes were derived from detrended Kepler data. Our final sample consists of 41 spectroscopically confirmed mCP stars of which 39 are new discoveries, 5 candidate mCP stars, and 7 stars in which no chemical peculiarities could be established. Our targets populate the whole age range from zero-age main sequence to terminal-age main sequence and are distributed in the mass interval from 1.5 M_sun to 4 M_sun. About 25% of the mCP stars show a hitherto unobserved wealth of detail in their light curves indicative of complex surface structures. We identified light curve stability as a primary criterion for identifying mCP star candidates among early-type stars in large photometric surveys, and prove the reliability of the spectral classifications provided by the MKCLASS code.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics. 20 pages, 12 figures, 5 tables. Given above is a slightly shortened version of the abstract; for the full abstract, please refer to the pape

Lifetime-Extended MCP-PMT

In order to develop a long-lifetime MCP-PMT under high rates of circumstance, we investigated the degradation of the quantum efficiency (QE) of PMT's with a multialkali photocathode. We found that not only positive ions, but also neutral residual gases would damage the photocathode resulting in an enhancement of the work function; their countermeasures were established in newly manufactured square-shaped MCP-PMT's with 4 or 4x4 multi-anodes. The performances of the PMT's were measured: QE was stable up to an integrated amount of anode output charge of 2-3 C/cm^2, while keeping other basic performances steady, such as the time resolution for single photons of ~40 ps, a photoelectron collection efficiency (CE) of 60%, a multiplication gain (G) of a few x 10^6, and dark counts of 20-300 Hz. The causes of QE degradation are discussed.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figure

MPI Phantom Study with A High-Performing Multicore Tracer Made by Coprecipitation

Magnetic particle imaging (MPI) is a new imaging technique that detects the spatial distribution of magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) with the option of high temporal resolution. MPI relies on particular MNP as tracers with tailored characteristics for improvement of sensitivity and image resolution. For this reason, we developed optimized multicore particles (MCP 3) made by coprecipitation via synthesis of green rust and subsequent oxidation to iron oxide cores consisting of a magnetite/maghemite mixed phase. MCP 3 shows high saturation magnetization close to that of bulk maghemite and provides excellent magnetic particle spectroscopy properties which are superior to Resovist® and any other up to now published MPI tracers made by coprecipitation. To evaluate the MPI characteristics of MCP 3 two kinds of tube phantoms were prepared and investigated to assess sensitivity, spatial resolution, artifact severity, and selectivity. Resovist® was used as standard of comparison. For image reconstruction, the regularization factor was optimized, and the resulting images were investigated in terms of quantifying of volumes and iron content. Our results demonstrate the superiority of MCP 3 over Resovist® for all investigated MPI characteristics and suggest that MCP 3 is promising for future experimental in vivo studies