Video-assisted thoracic surgery for lung volume reduction surgery

Lung volume reduction surgery by video thoracoscopy can result in significant improvement in quality of life and pulmonary function for selected patients suffering from severe emphysema. Clinical trials comparing the use of lasers versus staples, unilateral versus bilateral procedures, and video surgery versus mediansternotomy are summarized. Patient selection and patient care issues are addressed. Information gathered from the selection, evaluation, and study of almost 500 patients treated surgically for emphysema at a single institution is summarized.     

Radiosensitization and apoptosis

The toxicity of radiation to living tissues was discovered soon after the discovery of radioactivity itself and this toxicity is the basis for cancer therapy with radiation. Although this mode of therapy is often effective, its success is far from assured. One major difficulty in the implementation of radiotherapy is that normal tissues are also sensitive to killing by radiation so that treatment is often limited by the tolerance of normal tissues for radiation. Thus methods that sensitize tumor cells while sparing normal tissues could potentially lead to greater success with radiation as a therapy. Oncogenes are frequently altered in tumors, but are not in normal tissue making them potential targets for altering radiosensitivity and apoptosis in tumors.     

Selective ET(A) receptor antagonism reduces neointimal hyperplasia in a porcine coronary stent model

BACKGROUND: As endothelin binds to ET(A) receptors, it stimulates vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and may thus be pivotally involved in the pathogenesis of restenosis. This study assessed the ability of a potent and selective ET(A) antagonist to reduce neointimal hyperplasia in a porcine coronary artery stented injury model. METHODS AND RESULTS: Fifty-five pigs were randomized to receive placebo or the oral ET(A)-selective antagonist ABT147627 twice daily for 28 days in one of three doses: 0.75 mg/kg (low), 3.75 mg/kg (mid), and 10.0 mg/kg (high). Each underwent oversized stent deployment in two randomly assigned major epicardial coronary arteries. Three animals (5.5%) died as a consequence of stent thrombosis within 24 hours of the procedure. The remaining 52 animals (13 pigs per group) survived without complication until predetermined euthanasia at 28 days. In the placebo group, mean injury score was 1.73+/-0.80, with a mean neointimal response of 0.45+/-0.24 mm. By comparison, the low-dose group had a similar mean injury score of 1.79+/-0.75 with reduced neointimal response, 0.36+/-0.22 mm (P<0.01). Mean injury score in the mid-dose animals was significantly greater than in the placebo group (1.94+/-0.92; P<0.05). The neointimal hyperplasia associated with this injury was less than with placebo, although the difference did not reach statistical significance (0.40+/-0.25 mm; P=0.05). In the high-dose pigs, mean injury score was also significantly greater than in the placebo arm (1.93+/-0.73; P<0.05). Despite this, neointimal response was also significantly less (0.37+/-0.37 mm; P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Oral, selective ET(A) receptor antagonism significantly reduced neointimal hyperplasia forming over porcine coronary stented injuries in the first 28 days. This strategy may have clinical potential for the limitation and treatment of coronary restenosis after percutaneous revascularization.     

In brief

The UK Post Office has rolled out a wide area network encryption technology to protect its connections to the Link ATM network as it upgrades from X.25 to IP. This coincides with a major programme that the Post Office has introduced for the payment of state benefits electronically.     

Supporting Mechanical Reasoning with a Representationally‐Rich Learning Environment

A learning environment to support mechanical reasoning and understanding of simple machines for middle school and high school students is presented, along with results of an evaluation of its effectiveness in student learning. Based on recommendations from literature on instructional frameworks and cognitive aspects of mechanical reasoning, SIMALE (the Simple Machines Learning Environment) was designed to support reflection, collaboration, and presentation of concepts from multiple perspectives. SIMALE was implemented with a diverse population of middle and high school students with three treatment variations: (1) environment with focus on Lego exercises to engage in hands‐on physical activities, (2) environment with focus on a Web‐based computer module, and (3) environment with both the computer module and Lego exercises. Analyses of results show significant increases in post‐test performance for all treatment variations within SIMALE. The results also revealed unexpected dramatic results in equalizing post‐test scores along ethnic and gender dimensions, in spite of large population differences in pre‐test scores.     

Russian zombie army turned back

US government and industry experts voiced fears on the week ending 25 June of an impending massive attack that combined hacking, malcode-injection, and spamming.