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Longer
Kinds of Longer Terms modified by Longer Selected AbstractsLIVE LONGER OR DIE HAPPIER AND INEXPENSIVELY?JOURNAL OF AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY, Issue 9 2008J. Andrew Billings MD No abstract is available for this article. [source] Concurrent and Discriminant Validity of DSM-IV Symptoms of Impaired Control Over Alcohol Consumption in AdolescentsALCOHOLISM, Issue 4 2002Tammy Chung Background: Little research has examined impaired control over alcohol consumption in adolescents. This study examined the concurrent and discriminant validity of two DSM-IV dependence criteria that reflect impaired control over drinking: "using more or longer than intended" (Larger/Longer) and "persistent desire or unsuccessful efforts to quit or cut down" (Quit/Cut Down). Methods: Adolescent drinkers, ages 13,19 (N= 173), were recruited from addictions treatment (76%) and community sources (24%). A modified SCID that included assessment of alcohol craving and questionnaires measuring dependence severity, attempts to limit drinking, and impulsivity were administered. Results: Larger/Longer had higher prevalence and an earlier onset than Quit/Cut Down, suggesting that the symptoms respectively represent milder and more severe manifestations of impaired control over drinking. Both symptoms were associated with drinking frequency, dependence severity, episodes of passing out, and an independent measure of unsuccessful attempts to limit drinking. Alcohol craving was associated with both Larger/Longer and Quit/Cut Down. Impulsivity was correlated with Larger/Longer but not Quit/Cut Down. Conclusions: Larger/Longer and Quit/Cut Down demonstrated adequate concurrent validity. The two symptoms were distinguished by severity and differential relations with impulsivity, suggesting that Larger/Longer and Quit/Cut Down reflect different types of impaired control over alcohol consumption. Results suggest the need for improved description and scaling of the impaired control construct in adolescents. [source] Augmentation of clozapine with a second antipsychotic , a meta-analysis of randomized, placebo-controlled studiesACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 6 2009D. M. Taylor Objective:, Inadequate response to clozapine treatment is frequently encountered in practice and augmentation strategies have been developed in an attempt to improve response. Aims of the study were to evaluate the therapeutic effect of adding an antipsychotic drug to clozapine treatment. Method:, Meta-analysis of randomized, placebo-controlled studies of antipsychotic augmentation of clozapine treatment. Results:, Ten studies (including 522 subjects) met inclusion criteria. Antipsychotic augmentation showed significant benefit over the addition of placebo on only one outcome measure examined [mean effect size for rating scale score (BPRS/PANSS) ,0.180, 95% CI ,0.356 to ,0.004]. Antipsychotic augmentation showed no advantage on withdrawals from trials (risk ratio 1.261, 95% CI 0.679,2.345) or on CGI scores (effect size ,0.661, 95% CI ,1.475 to 0.151). Duration of study was not associated with outcome (P = 0.95). There was no evidence of publication bias. Conclusion:, In studies lasting up to 16 weeks, the addition of an antipsychotic to clozapine treatment has marginal therapeutic benefit. Longer and larger trials are necessary to demonstrate the precise therapeutic utility of antipsychotic co-therapy with clozapine. [source] Atypical antipsychotics and weightgain , a systematic reviewACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 6 2000D. M. Taylor Objective: To review systematically data relating to weight changes with atypical antipsychotics. Method: We conducted a Medline search on October 29 1999 and covered the period 1980,99. All recovered papers were examined for further relevant reports. In addition, we wrote to pharmaceutical manufacturers and 10 practising clinicians to ask them to provide other relevant reports known to them. Results: Eighty reports mentioning change in body weight were retrieved. Data relating to weight changes were of variable quality. Weight changes were indicated by a variety of measures. The majority of reports related to short-term changes. Conclusion: All atypical drugs, with the exception of ziprasidone, have been associated with weight increases. Clozapine seems to have the highest risk of weight gain, followed by olanzapine and quetiapine. There is probably a lower risk with risperidone, sertindole and zotepine and a still lower risk with amisulpride. Ziprasidone appears not to be associated with weight gain. In the absence of more compelling data, these rankings must be considered approximate and preliminary. Longer, more robust trials are needed. [source] Longer and better lives for patients , and their centers: A strategy for building a home hemodialysis programHEMODIALYSIS INTERNATIONAL, Issue 1 2008Melville H. HODGE Abstract Physicians should prescribe the dialysis mode most likely to result in the best outcome for the end-stage renal disease patient, not leave it to the patient or dialysis center to choose. That prescription, in order of decreasing desirability, should be for frequent home nocturnal hemodialysis, frequent home short-daily, or least efficacious, 3x in-center or peritoneal dialysis. Patient limitations may require prescribing a less than optimal mode. Physician-patient discussions should focus on expected clinical outcomes and health benefits, not patient convenience or "lifestyle." In order to overcome natural fears, qualified patients should participate in a short in-center frequent dialysis personal clinical trial to experience the benefits. The financial health of dialysis centers will be enhanced by shifting continually inflating labor costs from the center to patients and home caregivers. This shift from 3x in-center to frequent (optimally 6x nocturnal) home dialysis may reasonably be expected to enhance the survival and well-being of both the patient and the center. [source] Follow up of surgical repair of female pelvic floor disorders by a mailed questionnaireINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF UROLOGY, Issue 4 2006HIDEYASU MATSUYAMA Background:, This study was conducted to determine whether surgical repair of pelvic prolapse enhances patients' quality of life (QOL) in the long term. Methods:, A total of 91 patients (median age, 68.0 years) with pelvic prolapse including cystoceles underwent bladder neck suspension with anterior/posterior colporrhaphy between 1997 and 2003. Postoperative QOL was longitudinally assessed by three disease-specific items (sensation of vaginal bulging, obstructive symptoms, urinary incontinence), and one overall health-related QOL (HR-QOL) item. Results:, A longitudinal study demonstrated that a significant improvement in these symptoms was sustained at a median follow up of 65.5 months, although poor HR-QOL was significantly higher in patients whose age was more than 70 years at surgery (P = 0.0234, Fisher's test). Multivariate analysis revealed update urinary incontinence, update obstructive symptoms, and basic comorbidity to be independent prognostic factors for predicting postoperative moderate-to-poor HR-QOL. Conclusions:, Longer follow up with adequate assessment of patients' QOL may be crucial for the management of postoperative patients, in particular those having basic comorbidity and aged 70 years or more at surgery. [source] Longer you play, the more hostile you feel: examination of first person shooter video games and aggression during video game playAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 6 2007Christopher P. Barlett Abstract This study investigated the effects of video game play on aggression. Using the General Aggression Model, as applied to video games by Anderson and Bushman, [2002] this study measured physiological arousal, state hostility, and how aggressively participants would respond to three hypothetical scenarios. In addition, this study measured each of these variables multiple times to gauge how aggression would change with increased video game play. Results showed a significant increase from baseline in hostility and aggression (based on two of the three story stems), which is consistent with the General Aggression Model. This study adds to the existing literature on video games and aggression by showing that increased play of a violent first person shooter video game can significantly increase aggression from baseline. Aggr. Behav. 33:486,497, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Determination of Regional Flavor Differences in U.S. Cheddar Cheeses Aged for 6 Mo or LongerJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE, Issue 5 2008M.A. Drake ABSTRACT:, Cheddar cheese is a widely popular food in the United States. This product is produced in facilities across the United States and often marketed based on region of manufacture, implying that regional differences in flavor character of the cheese exist. This study was conducted to determine if regional differences in flavor exist in the aged U.S. Cheddar cheeses. Three times per year for 2 y, triplicate 18-kg blocks of Cheddar cheese (< 60 d old) were obtained from 19 manufacturing facilities located in 4 major cheese- producing regions/states: California, Northwest, Midwest, and Northeast. A trained sensory panel documented the flavor characteristics of cheeses after 6-, 9-, 12-, 18-, and 24-mo ripening at 7 °C. Regional differences were observed for specific flavors for cheeses manufactured in the Northwest, Midwest, and Northeast across ripening (P < 0.05), but the specific flavors responsible for these effects were not consistent across ripening. Similarly, cheese make procedure effects were also observed for specific flavors across ripening (P < 0.05), but these differences were also not consistent across ripening. The impact of region and cheese make procedure on flavor of the aged Cheddar cheeses was small in comparison to consistently documented, facility-specific flavor differences (P < 0.0001). Flavor profiles of aged Cheddar cheeses were most strongly influenced by practices specific to manufacturing facility rather than region of manufacture. [source] Are Spells of Unemployment Longer in Nonmetropolitan Areas?JOURNAL OF REGIONAL SCIENCE, Issue 4 2000Nonparametric, Semiparametric Evidence I use nonparametric and semiparametric proportional hazard models to examine whether individuals resident in nonmetropolitan areas experience lower per period rates of exit from unemployment following job loss than metropolitan area residents. Results show that between 1989 and 1993 per period cumulative rates of exit from unemployment were slightly higher in nonmetropolitan areas, mainly due to nonmetropolitan–metropolitan differences in individual characteristics and local economic conditions. Employment density is found to have a positive association with rates of exit of unemployment in metropolitan areas but not in nonmetropolitan areas. [source] The fate of seeds in Mediterranean soil seed banks in relation to their traitsJOURNAL OF VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 1 2006Juan Traba Abstract Question: Is there any change in seed density and species richness in Mediterranean surface soil banks during summer? Are there any relationships between these summer variations and seed traits (weight, length and shape), without and with controlling the phylogenetic effect? Location: Central Spain. Methods: Samples of the surface soil seed bank were collected in two Mediterranean systems, grassland and scrubland, at two points in the year: immediately after the summer production peak and immediately prior to the autumn germination peak. We used Canonical Correspondence Analysis ordination to check for changes in floristic composition and ANOVAs to check for changes in seed density and species richness between summer and autumn samples. We used multiple regression analysis to analyse the relationship between summer variations in soil seed density and form traits, with and without controlling phylogenetic relations. Results: Soil seed density dropped significantly during the summer in the two systems (28% in grasslands, repeated measures ANOVA test; F = 58.19, P < 0.01; 72% in scrublands, repeated measures ANOVA test; F = 75.67, P < 0.001). Species richness, however, only dropped significantly in the scrubland (32%; repeated measures ANOVA test; F = 9.17, P < 0.05). Variation in the floristic composition of the shallow banks was only significant in the scrubland. Changes in shallow bank density were related significantly to seed morphology features, with greater drops in species with heavier seeds in grasslands and species with longer seeds in scrubland. Conclusions: Our results show a substantial loss of seeds in the uppermost soil layer during the summer period between the point of peak production and the autumn germination peak. This drop was clearer in the scrubland than in the grassland. Longer and/or heavier seeds underwent the greatest declines in density at the end of summer, indicating a more intense effect of post-dispersal predation on large-seeded species. [source] The relationship between dosing of alosetron and discontinuation patterns reported by patients participating in a follow-up programmeALIMENTARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 3 2007P. TENNIS Summary Background Alosetron was reintroduced for treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with a risk management programme in November 2002. Recommended starting dosage was 1 mg/day for 4 weeks. If symptoms remained uncontrolled, dosage could be changed to 2 mg/day. Aim To describe alosetron dosages and associated patient characteristics from the Lotronex follow-up survey programme. Methods Patients reported dosages of alosetron at start and regular follow-up intervals. Analyses were limited to patients with the potential to have at least 1 year of follow-up (enrolled between 9 December 2002 and 31 December 2003). Results At baseline, 75% of 2817 respondents reported starting on 1 mg/day, 17% on 2 mg/day and 8% on other doses. Adherence to recommended starting dosage did not vary by status at end of follow-up, previous alosetron experience or age. At last reported dose, 50% of respondents were using 1 mg/day; 29% were using 2 mg/day. Discontinuation was not related to baseline doses. Longer times to discontinuation were associated with previous use, symptoms for more than 6 months and dose change throughout follow-up. Conclusions High adherence to recommended dosing at baseline and follow-up suggests that the risk management programme is encouraging safe use of alosetron, including adherence to dosing recommendations. [source] Labor Longer for Overweight, Obese WomenNURSING FOR WOMENS HEALTH, Issue 1 2005Carolyn Davis Cockey MLS No abstract is available for this article. [source] Finding New Wine in Old Bottles: What Historians Must Do When Leontief Coefficients Are No Longer the Designated Drivers of EconomicsAMERICAN JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS AND SOCIOLOGY, Issue 1 2010Laurence S. Moss First page of article [source] Women With Chest Pain and Normal Coronary Angiograms: No Longer a Benign Syndrome?PREVENTIVE CARDIOLOGY, Issue 4 2006Melissa Robinson MD No abstract is available for this article. [source] Prison Officers' Concerns About Blood Borne Viral InfectionsTHE HOWARD JOURNAL OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE, Issue 1 2005Brendan Dillon Most officers (87%) reported not knowing enough about these diseases to enable them to take the necessary precautions at work. Longer serving and senior officers were less fearful and less anxious about contracting the infections. Officers who had received hepatitis B vaccination were no less worried about hepatitis B than unvaccinated colleagues. Training on blood borne viruses had little effect on prison officers' knowledge or perception of blood borne viral infections. [source] NS13P A PROSPECTIVE COMPARISON OF TWO CERVICAL INTERBODY FUSION CAGESANZ JOURNAL OF SURGERY, Issue 2007M. A. Hansen Purpose For some time the surgical management of chronic back pain has utilised interbody lumbar cages. Recently interbody cages for use in the cervical spine have been produced. Cervical cages provide initial stability during the fusion process. There is little literature comparing the performance of interbody cage systems due to their relative recent introduction. Methodology Patients with symptomatic cervical degeneration or traumatic lesions were treated with the dynamic ABC 2 Aesculap anterior cervical plating system and either the B-Braun Samarys or Zimmer cage systems. A single surgeon conducted all surgery. Pre- and post-operative radiological examinations were compared. Changes in disc height at affected and adjacent levels, lordosis and evidence of fusion were recorded. Patient outcome was measured with questionnaires. The modified Oswestry neck pain disability and Copenhagen neck disability scale scores were utilised to allow comparison between patients. Results A total of 43 patients were involved in the study (30 with the Zimmer cage system and 13 with the Samarys cage). Patient follow-up has been up to 12 months. Improvement in disability scores was shown in 90% of patients. Follow up imaging did not demonstrate subsidence of the cage or adjacent instability in either group. There was no statistical difference in complication rate between the two groups. Discussion Initial stability was provided by both interbody cervical spine cage system. Rates of fusion and symptomatic relief compared favourably to fusion involving autogenous bone graft without associated morbidity. Longer follow up is necessary to determine whether there is evidence of adjacent level instability or vertebral end-plate subsidence. [source] Introduction of solids and formula to breastfed infants: a longitudinal prospective study in Uppsala, SwedenACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 5 2001A Hörnell The introduction of solids and formula was studied among 506 breastfed infants in Uppsala, Sweden, based on daily recordings during the first year. The mothers had previously breastfed at least 1 infant for at least 4 mo. Thirty-four per cent of the infants were introduced to solids before the age of 4 mo (4,6 mo is recommended in Sweden). Accustoming the infants to solids was a lengthy process. Life-table analyses showed a median duration of 28 d from the first introduction of solids to consumption of >10 ml daily, and 46 d before the infants ate 100 ml of solids in 1 d for the first time. These durations were longer the younger the infant was at the introduction of solids. Thirty-two per cent of infants given formula consumed 100 ml the first time it was given, and 49% did so within 1 wk, regardless of infant age. Conclusion: Parents and healthcare personnel need to be aware that accustoming breastfed infants to solid food is a lengthy process, and that there is a strong age effect on this duration. It is also important to consider what consequences the (usually) more abrupt introduction of formula might have on breastfeeding. [source] Significance of clinical risk factors of cystic periventricular leukomalacia in infants with different birthweightsACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 3 2001H Kubota Fifteen appropriate-for-date premature low-birthweight infants with cystic periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) were studied. The infants were stratified into three birthweight groups: less than 1000 g, 1000 g and greater but less than 1500 g, and 1500 g or greater. Reported and new risk factors for PVL were compared with control patients for all patients and each birthweight group. Hypocarbia was significantly related to cystic PVL, especially in infants with birthweight 1000 g or greater (p < 0.03). Sensitivity to hypocarbia might be decreased in infants with birthweight less than 1000 g due to therapy or prematurity. In the group with birthweight less than 1000 g, the proportion of cystic PVL infants on continuous intra-arterial blood-pressure monitoring tended to be lower than the controls, with an almost significant difference (p= 0.05). The duration of tocolysis was significantly longer in the cystic PVL infants than in the controls when the birthweight was greater than 1500 g (p < 0.04). For some risk factors, a significant difference or a tendency of difference was demonstrated only after stratifying the birthweight. For others, the difference became insignificant after stratification. Assessing risk factors after stratifying by birthweight or degree of prematurity is therefore useful. Conclusion: The results suggest that hypocarbia should be avoided to prevent cystic PVL, especially in infants with birthweight of 1000 g or greater, continuous intra-arterial blood-pressure monitoring may be important in infants with birthweight less than 1000 g, and fetal status should be monitored carefully when the duration of tocolysis is prolonged, especially in infants with birthweight of 1500 g or more. [source] Interactive Cover Design Considering Physical ConstraintsCOMPUTER GRAPHICS FORUM, Issue 7 2009Yuki Igarashi Abstract We developed an interactive system to design a customized cover for a given three-dimensional (3D) object such as a camera, teapot, or car. The system first computes the convex hull of the input geometry. The user segments it into several cloth patches by drawing on the 3D surface. This paper provides two technical contributions. First, it introduces a specialized flattening algorithm for cover patches. It makes each two-dimensional edge in the flattened pattern equal to or longer than the original 3D edge; a smaller patch would fail to cover the object, and a larger patch would result in extra wrinkles. Second, it introduces a mechanism to verify that the user-specified opening would be large enough for the object to be removed. Starting with the initial configuration, the system virtually "pulls" the object out of the cover while avoiding excessive stretching of cloth patches. We used the system to design real covers and confirmed that it functions as intended. [source] The birth process initiates an acute phase reaction in the fetus-newborn infantACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 9 2000G Marchini Our goal was to investigate whether the normal birth process stimulated an acute phase response in healthy infants with physiological changes in the circulating levels of acute phase cytokines and acute phase proteins. We also monitored body temperature, body weight and behavioural state in order to investigate if clinical signs of acute phase reaction were present. We made cross-sectional measurements of interleukin-1,, interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A, procalcitonin, prealbumin, body weight, body temperature and the duration of the sleeping period during the first four postnatal days. We found an increase in interleukin-6 (p < 0.001) during the first day, followed by an increase in C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A and procalcitonin on the second postnatal day (p < 0.01). The level of prealbumin fell after birth and reached its lowest value at 3 d of age (p < 0,001). Interleukin-l p remained unchanged. The duration of the sleeping period was longer during the first day (p < 0.01). There was an increase in body temperature during the first day (p < 0.01). Maximal weight loss was during the first 2 d. Conclusions: The normal birth process and extra-uterine adaptation stimulates an acute phase reaction in the newborn infant with a release of interleukin-6 and acute phase proteins and a depression of prealbumin. This reaction, as the body's first line inflammatory defence system, probably affects the infant's behaviour, nutritional state as well as the regulation of body temperature. [source] Singlet states open the way to longer time-scales in the measurement of diffusion by NMR spectroscopyCONCEPTS IN MAGNETIC RESONANCE, Issue 1 2008Simone Cavadini Abstract Nuclear magnetic resonance is a powerful nonintrusive technique for measuring diffusion coefficients through the use of pulsed field gradients. The main limitation to the application range of this method is imposed by the relaxation time constants of the magnetization. The recently introduced singlet-state spectroscopy affords obtaining relaxation time constants for pairs of coupled spins which can be longer by more than an order of magnitude than the spin-lattice relaxation time constants. We review in this paper the advantages that are offered by these long relaxation time constants for diffusion measurements. Using experiments that combine singlet-state and diffusion spectroscopy, slower diffusion constants can be determined. The coupling of the two methods constitutes an alternative to the use of special probes equipped with strong gradients for the study of large molecules that diffuse slowly in solution. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part A 32A: 68,78, 2008. [source] Development of olfactory epithelium in the human fetus: Scanning electron microscopic observationsCONGENITAL ANOMALIES, Issue 3 2009Mitsuhiro Kimura ABSTRACT Aims:, Human olfactory epithelium becomes functional at birth, but prenatal development remains unclear. In the present study, we aimed to clarify the development of human olfactory epithelium using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Methods:, The development of human olfactory epithelium was observed in 24 externally normal fetuses, which were formalin-fixed and long-preserved, with a crown-rump length (CRL) of 102,336 mm (gestational week 14,38). The olfactory mucosa in the superior wall of the nasal septum near the choana were dissected and observed under SEM. We examined the number of olfactory vesicles per unit area, diameter of olfactory vesicles, and number and length of cilia on olfactory vesicles. Results:, At circa (ca) CRL 100 mm (ca 14 weeks), olfactory epithelium displayed several olfactory vesicles with 1,2 short cilia per unit area. At ca CRL 150 mm (ca 18 weeks), olfactory vesicles were present in small clusters, and cilia were longer. At CRL lager than 225 mm (ca 26 weeks), olfactory vesicles became located separately from each other, while length and number of cilia per olfactory vesicle were further increased. Conclusion:, The present findings suggest that fetal olfactory epithelium becomes morphologically almost the same as that in adults in late gestation, much later than previously thought. [source] Population-based case,control study of oral ketoconazole treatment for birth outcomesCONGENITAL ANOMALIES, Issue 1 2005Zoltán Kazy ABSTRACT The objective of the study presented here was to check the effect of oral ketoconazole treatment on fetal development. Ketoconazole has been given a teratogenic classification of C by the US Food and Drug Administration, but human controlled epidemiological studies of the treatment's effects have not been reported. The occurrence of ketoconazole use in the second to third months of gestation was compared between cases with congenital abnormalities and their matched controls in the large population-based data set of the Hungarian Case,Control Surveillance of Congenital Abnormalities, 1980,1996. Birth weight and gestational age were evaluated in control newborn infants born to mothers with or without ketoconazole treatment. The case group comprised 22 843 cases with congenital abnormalities, while the control group contained 38 151 newborn infants without any defects. Six infants (0.03%) and 12 controls (0.03%) had mothers who had received oral ketoconazole treatment (prevalence odds ratio: with 95% confidence interval: 0.8, 0.3,2.2). No group of infants with congenital abnormalities had mothers with a higher incidence of use of the drug. The mean gestational age was somewhat longer while birth weight was somewhat larger in controls with ketoconazole treated mothers. Our study failed to demonstrate a higher rate of congenital abnormalities in infants with mothers who had received oral ketoconazole treatment during pregnancy. [source] Late Presenters with Dextro-transposition of Great Arteries and Intact Ventricular Septum: To Train or Not to Train the Left Ventricle for Arterial Switch Operation?CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE, Issue 6 2009Noor Mohamed Parker MBChB ABSTRACT Objective., We report our experience in managing late presenters (older than 4 weeks) with dextro-transposition of great arteries and intact ventricular septum (d-TGA/IVS) in an effort to achieve successful arterial switch operation (ASO) in a third world setting. Design., We retrospectively reviewed the charts of all late presenters with d-TGA/IVS. Patients were divided into two groups: left ventricular training (LVT) group and non-left ventricular training (non-LVT) group. LVT group underwent pulmonary artery banding and Blalock-Taussig Shunt prior to ASO. Results., Twenty-one late presenters were included in the study. In LVT group, 11 patients with median age of 6 months (range, 1,72 months) underwent LVT. Later, 8 patients with median age of 9.25 months (range, 1.33,84 months) underwent ASO. Prior to ASO, left ventricle (LV) collapse resolved in all and left ventricle to systemic pressure (LV/SP) ratio was 0.81 (range, 0.76,0.95) in 4 patients. Two patients who had LVT for ,14 days required postoperative extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support due to LV dysfunction. Seven patients survived to discharge. In non-LVT group, 10 patients with median age of 2.5 months (range, 1,98 months) underwent ASO. Five patients had LV collapse, and median LV/SP ratio was 0.67 (range, 0.56,1.19) in 5 patients. Seven patients needed ECMO support. Seven patients survived to discharge. Conclusion., Late presenters with d-TGA/IVS, who have LV collapse on echocardiography and/or a LV/SP ratio <0.67 on cardiac catheterization, should be subjected to LVT preferably for duration of longer than 14 days in order to avoid potential ECMO use. [source] An electro-optic monitor of the behavior of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii ciliaCYTOSKELETON, Issue 2 2005Keith Josef Abstract The unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii steers through water with a pair of cilia (eukaryotic flagella). Long-term observation of the beating of its cilia with controlled stimulation is improving our understanding of how a cell responds to sensory inputs. Here we describe how to record ciliary motion continuously for long periods. We also report experiments on the network of intracellular signaling that connects the environment inputs with response outputs. Local spatial changes in ciliary response on the time scale of the underlying biochemical dynamics are observed. Near-infrared light monitors the cells held by a micropipette. This condition is tolerated well for hours, not interfering with ciliary beating or sensory transduction. A computer integrates the light stimulation of the eye of Chlamydomonas with the ciliary motion making possible long-term correlations. Measures of ciliary responses include the beating frequency, stroke velocity, and stroke duration of each cilium, and the relative phase of the cis and trans cilia. The stationarity and dependence of the system on light intensity was investigated. About 150,000,000 total beat cycles and up to 8 h on one cell have been recorded. Each beat cycle is resolved so that each asynchronous beat is detected. Responses extend only a few hundred milliseconds, but there is a persistence of momentary changes that last much longer. Interestingly, we see a response that is linear with absolute light intensity as well as different kinds of response that are clearly nonlinear, implying two signaling pathways from the cell body to the cilia. Cell Motil. Cytoskeleton 61:83,96, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Role of the two type II myosins, Myo2 and Myp2, in cytokinetic actomyosin ring formation and function in fission yeastCYTOSKELETON, Issue 3 2003Daniel P. Mulvihill Abstract The formation and contraction of a cytokinetic actomyosin ring (CAR) is essential for the execution of cytokinesis in fission yeast. Unlike most organisms in which its composition has been investigated, the fission yeast CAR contains two type II myosins encoded by the genes myo2+ and myp2+. myo2+ is an essential gene whilst myp2+ is dispensable under normal growth conditions. Myo2 is hence the major contractile protein of the CAR whilst Myp2 plays a more subtle and, as yet, incompletely documented role. Using a fission yeast strain in which the chromosomal copy of the myo2+ gene is fused to the gene encoding green fluorescent protein (GFP), we analysed CAR formation and function in the presence and absence of Myp2. No change in the rate of CAR contraction was observed when Myp2 was absent although the CAR persisted longer in the contracted state and was occasionally observed to split into two discrete rings. This was also observed in myp2, cells following actin depolymerisation with latrunculin. CAR contraction in the absence of Myp2 was completely abolished in the presence of elevated levels of chloride ions. Thus, Myp2 appears to contribute to the stability of the CAR, in particular at a late stage of CAR contraction, and to be a component of the signalling pathway that regulates cytokinesis in response to elevated levels of chloride. To determine whether the presence of two type II myosins was a feature of cytokinesis in other fungi that divide by septation, we searched the genomes of two filamentous fungi, Aspergillus fumigatus and Neurospora crassa, for myosin genes. As in fission yeast, both A. fumigatus and N. crassa contained myosins of classes I, II, and V. Unlike fission yeast, both contained a single type II myosin gene that, on the basis of its tail structure, was more reminiscent of Myp2 than Myo2. The significance of these observations to our understanding of septum to formation and cleavage is discussed. Cell Motil. Cytoskeleton 54:208,216, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Acute effects of desmin mutations on cytoskeletal and cellular integrity in cardiac myocytesCYTOSKELETON, Issue 2 2003Kurt Haubold Mutations in desmin have been associated with a subset of human myopathies. Symptoms typically appear in the second to third decades of life, but in the most severe cases can manifest themselves earlier. How desmin mutations lead to aberrant muscle function, however, remains poorly defined. We created a series of four mutations in rat desmin and tested their in vitro filament assembly properties. RDM-G, a chimera between desmin and green fluorescent protein, formed protofilament-like structures in vitro. RDM-1 and RDM-2 blocked in vitro assembly at the unit-length filament stage, while RDM-3 had more subtle effects on assembly. When expressed in cultured rat neonatal cardiac myocytes via adenovirus infection, these mutant proteins disrupted the endogenous desmin filament to an extent that correlated with their defects in in vitro assembly properties. Disruption of the desmin network by RDM-1 was also associated with disruption of plectin, myosin, and ,-actinin organization in a significant percentage of infected cells. In contrast, expression of RDM-2, which is similar to previously characterized human mutant desmins, took longer to disrupt desmin and plectin organization and had no significant effect on myosin or ,-actinin organization over the 5-day time course of our studies. RDM-3 had the mildest effect on in vitro assembly and no discernable effect on either desmin, plectin, myosin, or ,-actinin organization in vivo. These results indicate that mutations in desmin have both direct and indirect effects on the cytoarchitecture of cardiac myocytes. Cell Motil. Cytoskeleton 54:105,121, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Hemidesmosome protein dynamics in live epithelial cellsCYTOSKELETON, Issue 2 2003Daisuke Tsuruta Abstract Hemidesmosomes mediate stable anchorage of epithelial cells to laminin-5 in the basement membrane zone and have been likened to spot-welds. Indeed, it has been assumed that hemidesmosomes are not dynamic, at least when compared to other matrix adhesion sites including focal contacts. We tested this notion by monitoring the fate of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged human integrin ,4 subunit (GFP-h,4) and GFP-tagged 180-kD human bullous pemphigoid (BP) autoantigen (GFP-BP180) in live cultures of 804G cells that assemble numerous mature hemidesmosomes. In subconfluent 804G cells, both GFP-h,4 and GFP-BP180 protein clusters are not stable but assemble into and disassemble out of cat paw,like arrays at a relatively rapid rate. In confluent populations of 804G cells, although some cat paw,like clusters of both GFP-h,4 and GFP-BP180 are stable over periods of >60 min, other GFP-h,4 and GFP-BP180 protein arrays form and/or disappear during the same time period. Moreover, individual labeled particles show considerable motility in the plane of the membrane. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching analyses provide a further indication of the dynamics of hemidesmosome proteins. In particular, bleached GFP-h,4 protein clusters in confluent cells recover signal within about 30 min, indicating that there is a relatively rapid turnover of hemidesmosome components in protein arrays clustered along the substratum attached surface of a cell. The rate of recovery is dependent on an intact microfilament system. In sharp contrast, bleached GFP-BP180 protein clusters in confluent cells fail to recover signal even when observed for longer than 60 min. To evaluate hemidesmosome protein dynamics in motile cells, we monitored GFP-h,4 and GFP-BP180 in 804G cells populating scrape wound sites in vitro. In these migratory cells, which lack mature hemidesmosomes, integrin ,4 subunit and BP180 protein clusters progressively assemble and disassemble into linear and cat-paw arrays. In summary, hemidesmosome protein clusters, like their counterparts in focal contacts, are dynamic. We discuss these results in relation to hemidesmosome functions. Cell Motil. Cytoskeleton 54:122,134, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Mutagenesis of ,-tubulin cysteine residues in Saccharomyces cerevisiae: Mutation of cysteine 354 results in cold-stable microtubulesCYTOSKELETON, Issue 2 2001Mohan L. Gupta Jr. Abstract Cysteine residues play important roles in the control of tubulin function. To determine which of the six cysteine residues in ,-tubulin are critical to tubulin function, we mutated the cysteines in Saccharomyces cerevisiae ,-tubulin individually to alanine and serine residues. Of the twelve mutations, only three produced significant effects: C12S, C354A, and C354S. The C12S mutation was lethal in the haploid, but the C12A mutation had no observable phenotype. Based on interactive views of the electron crystallographic structure of tubulin, we suggest that substitution of serine for cysteine at this position has a destabilizing effect on the interaction of tubulin with the exchangeable GTP. The two C354 mutations, although not lethal, produced dramatic effects on microtubules and cellular processes that require microtubules. The C354 mutant cells had decreased growth rates, a slowed mitosis, increased resistance to benomyl, and impaired nuclear migration and spindle assembly. The C354A mutation produced a more severe phenotype than the C354S mutation: the haploid cells had chromosome segregation defects, only 50% of cells in a culture were viable, and a significant percentage of the cells were misshapened. Cytoplasmic microtubules in the C354S and C354A cells were longer than in the control strain and spindle structures appeared shorter and thicker. Both cytoplasmic and spindle microtubules in the two C354 mutants were extremely stable to cold temperature. After 24 h at 4°C, the microtubules were still present and, in fact, very long and thick tubulin polymers had formed. Evidence exists to indicate that the C354 residue in mammalian tubulin is near the colchicine binding site and the electron crystal structure of tubulin places the residue at the interface between the ,- and ,-subunits. The sulfhydryl group is situated in a polar environment, which may explain why the alanine mutation is more severe than the serine mutation. When the C12S and the two C354 mutations were made in a diploid strain, the mutated tubulin was incorporated into microtubules and the resulting heterozygotes had phenotypes that were intermediate between those of the mutated haploids and the wild-type strains. The results suggest that the C12 and C354 residues play important roles in the structure and function of tubulin. Cell Motil. Cytoskeleton 49:67,77, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Factors affecting the time of onset of resorption in avulsed and replanted incisor teeth in childrenDENTAL TRAUMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2001M. Donaldson Abstract , Resorption is the main reason for loss of replanted teeth. The outcome examined in this study is the timing of the onset of resorption. The effect of dichotomised dry and wet time intervals as well as the presence of additional crown damage and of contamination were determined. Of 84 replanted teeth, 67.5% developed resorptions. Twenty-eight had detectable additional crown damage with a more rapid onset being seen in these cases (P=0.009). The critical limit for dry time was 15 min (P=0.038) and significant differences persisted for greater limits also. Serial analysis of the association between the time of onset of root resorption and dichotomised wet time variables failed to yield any significant associations. There was visible contamination detected in 32 teeth and these exhibited a more rapid onset of resorption than the other cases (P=0.030). Teeth with inflammatory root resorption (12.8%) had a more rapid onset of resorption than those that developed replacement resorption (54.7%) (P<0.001). It is concluded that the risk of early resorption is increased in teeth that have additional damage or have contamination, or are kept in dry conditions for longer than 15 min. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||