Brightest X-rays ever give researchers brand-new view of biological molecules

An aberrant right subclavian artery (ARSCA), also known as arteria lusoria, is the most common congenital anomaly of the aortic arch, with a reported prevalence ranging from 0.4 to 2%. The ARSCA arises as the last branch of the aortic arch and crosses the mediastinum from left to right indenting the oesophagus posteriorly. Aneurysms of this aberrant vessel, whether or not arising from a Kommerell's diverticulum, are rare. A 79-year-old woman is presented, in whom a partly thrombosed aneurysm of an ARSCA was diagnosed with magnetic resonance (MR) imaging.     

Molecular biology in medicine. X. DNA chips]

OBJECTIVE: To report long-term ophthalmological sequelae in extremely premature infants at 5 years and to determine the relationship between neonatal variables (including retinopathy of prematurity; ROP) and the 5 year ophthalmological outcome of these infants. METHODOLOGY: The study cohort comprised 84 surviving infants born with a birthweight < 1000 g or gestational age < 28 weeks from June 1985 to December 1989. All infants had an ophthalmological assessment between 34 and 40 weeks post conceptional age to document grade of ROP and were assessed at 5 years of age for fundoscopy, visual acuity, refractive error and ocular mobility. RESULTS: Of the 84 long-term survivors 69 (82%) were formally assessed at 5 years. Overall, 30 (43%) had some form of ocular disorder. Nineteen (27%) had reduced visual acuity of < 6/6 and three of these were blind. Myopia > -0.5 dioptre was noted in eight (12%), hypermetropia > or = 2.0 dioptre in five (8%), astigmatism in seven (11%) and strabismus was present in nine (14%) of the cohort. There was a significant relationship (P < 0.0001) between the incidence of ocular disorders and ROP. However, even those premature children without ROP had a 31% incidence of ocular disorder at 5 years. CONCLUSION: Long-term ophthalmological follow-up is recommended in all extremely premature infants regardless of the presence of ROP in the neonatal period.     

A new view of rigidity.

In an attempt to determine whether rigidity, defined as a restriction in the range of behavior, is a pervasive personality trait or if there is no necessary connection between its operation in different areas, 38 students were given five tests designed to afford them the opportunity to express different degrees of rigid behavior in different areas. The Ss failed to exhibit consistent rigidity scores on the different tasks. A theory in which rigidity is viewed as a result of conditions affecting the organism at the moment is presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A broadening view of recombinational DNA repair in bacteria

The role of the cholinergic and peptidergic pathways in the impairment of gastric motility associated with diabetic gastroparesis was assessed at the postsynaptic level using isolated fundus smooth muscle strips. Maximal contractile responses to carbachol and galanin were significantly decreased in fundus strips isolated from rats rendered diabetic by a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ, 70 mg/kg) 1, 4 and 8 weeks before experiments. We also observed notable decrements in the slopes and Hill's coefficients without conspicuous changes in the EC50 of the respective galanin concentration-response curves measured in strips obtained from STZ animals after 4 and 8 weeks. L-NAME reversed the above-mentioned alterations in an L-arginine-sensitive manner in STZ rats after 4 weeks but not in STZ rats after 8 weeks. The blood plasma nitrite/nitrate levels in STZ animals after 4 and 8 weeks were increased by 44.6 and 61.9%, respectively. Ca2+-independent nitric oxide synthase activity in gastric fundus strips and stomach corpus mucosa from STZ rats after 4 weeks was markedly enhanced by 37.4 and 31.9%, respectively, suggesting an enhanced nitric oxide production. In vivo insulin treatment prevented diabetes-induced alterations in smooth muscle contractility. We conclude that the smooth muscle dysfunction evoked by experimental diabetes causing diminished contractions of fundus strips to carbachol and galanin is at least partly due to the increased nitric oxide synthesis.     

Vulnerability: A new view of schizophrenia.

Reviews the 6 approaches to etiology that now preempt the field—ecological, developmental, learning, genetic, internal environment, and neurophysiological models—and proposes a 2nd-order model, vulnerability, as the common denominator. Methods are suggested for finding markers of vulnerability in the hope of revitalizing the field. It is assumed that exogenous and/or endogenous challengers elicit a crisis in all humans, but depending on the intensity of the elicited stress and the threshold for tolerating it (i.e., one's vulnerability), the crisis will either be contained homeostatically or lead to an episode of disorder. Vulnerability and episode stand in a trait–state relation, and markers for each must be provided to distinguish between them. (83 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A new view of developmental research for psychoanalysts

Three major epistemological perspectives in psychoanalysis are summarized, and the developmental research relevant to each is described. Not all research is useful for all psychoanalytic perspectives. The most historically recent of the three perspectives, exemplified by Winnicott, others in the British Independent Group, and the "relationists" in the United States, who focus on the experiential immediacy of the analyst-analysand interaction and emotions, presents new problems and challenges for meaningful dialogue with the developmental researcher. Research in extrapsychoanalytic disciplines has traditionally been posed as authoritative for the grounding of psychoanalytic "truth," and, unlike the earlier perspectives, this view explicity rejects any truth deriving from authority outside the psychoanalytic process itself. To illustrate how developmental research inquiry would be different for each epistemological perspective in psychoanalysis, the same study of infant development is described in three different ways as relevant to each perspective. Child development research has been changing as a field in ways parallel to psychoanalysis, each undergoing fundamental changes that encourage a new integration.     

What predicts changes in useful field of view test performance?

The Useful Field of View Test (UFOV) has been used as an examination of age-related changes in visual processing and cognition and as an indicator of everyday performance outcomes, particularly driving, for over 20 years. How UFOV performance changes with age and what may impact such changes have not previously been investigated longitudinally. Predictors of change in UFOV performance over a 5-year period among control group participants (N = 690) from the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) study were examined. Random effects models were estimated with 4-subtest-total UFOV as the outcome and with baseline age, education, gender, race, visual acuity, depressive symptoms, mental status, and self-rated health, as well as attrition, as predictors. UFOV performance generally followed a curvilinear pattern, improving and then declining over time. Only increased age was consistently related to greater declines in UFOV performance over time. UFOV and Digit Symbol Substitution subtest, a standard measure of cognitive speed, had similar trajectories of change. The implications of these results are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A new view of water dynamics in immobilized proteins

The inflection frequency of the deuteron magnetic relaxation dispersion from water in rotationally immobilized protein samples has recently been found to be essentially independent of temperature and protein structure. This remarkable invariance has been interpreted in terms of a universal residence time of 1 microseconds for protein-associated water molecules. We demonstrate here that this interpretation is an artifact of the conventional perturbation theory of spin relaxation, which is not valid for rotationally immobile proteins. Using a newly developed non-perturbative, stochastic theory of spin relaxation, we identify the apparent correlation time of 1 microseconds with the inverse of the nuclear quadrupole frequency, thus explaining its invariance. The observed dispersion profiles are consistent with a broad distribution of residence times, spanning the microseconds range. Furthermore, we argue that the deuteron dispersion is due to buried water molecules rather than to the traditional surface hydration previously invoked, and that the contribution from rapidly exchanging protein hydrogens cannot be neglected. The conclusions of the present work are also relevant to proton relaxation in immobilized protein samples and to magnetic resonance imaging of soft tissue.     

A prospective view for the new classifications of malignant lymphomas

Malignant lymphomas, which are now apparently the neoplasms of the immune system, are not a single disease, but represent a group of entities. Because the cells of their normal counterparts undergo differentiation in a complex manner, the corresponding neoplasms are considerably heterogeneous in terms of clinicopathologic features and biologic behavior. Indeed, there are quite a few problems to be solved in the currently used classifications of malignant lymphomas. Their complexity and heterogeneity make it almost impossible, at present, to establish any single classification system which is both clinically useful and scientifically accurate. We, therefore, propose to establish separate clinical and scientific classifications. Our prospective view for the new scientific classification of malignant lymphomas is presented.     

Clinical validation of a new olfactory test

A new approach to clinical olfactometry is presented using nasal sprays. A special dosage valve was used to standardize an aerosol size to 40 microns. For evaluation a 6 x 6 matrix (substance/olfactory quality) with verbal associative clues was used according to test psychological findings. Validation took place in three steps after determining smell-associated thresholds in preliminary examinations. Recognition of different aromas administered either by spraying into the open mouth from a distance of 5 cm using nasal sprays or sniffing opened bottles was compared in 50 subjectively normosmic subjects. Findings showed that the correspondence between the two procedures was relatively high, with global identification of odorous substances as high as 98.4% in the spray test. The number of substances used was next reduced to those six substances providing the most reproducible results in an investigation with 56 normosmic and 55 hyposmic subjects. Verbal associative clues were also tested. In a last step 50 patients with hyposmia of various origin and 110 normosmic subjects were tested, allowing previous results to be reproduced regardless of the cause of hyposmia. The spray test was shown to be easily performed and was suitable as a screening test, with a sensitivity of 88% and a specificity of 100%.     

A new view of pulmonary edema and acute respiratory distress syndrome

The old division of lung edema into two categories--cardiogenic (hydrostatic) and noncardiogenic (increased permeability)--is no longer adequate. For instance, it fails to distinguish between the capillary leak caused by acute respiratory distress syndrome from that caused by interleukin-2 treatment. Further, it fails to account for the capillary leak ('stress-failure') that may accompany edema. A modern view of edema must recognize the natural barriers to the formation and spread of edema. These barriers are the capillary endothelium and the alveolar epithelium. Varying degrees of damage to them can account for the varying radiographic and clinical manifestations of lung edema. Thus, interleukin-2 administration causes increased endothelial permeability without causing alveolar epithelial damage. The result is lung edema that is largely confined to the interstitium, causing little hypoxia and clearing rapidly. However, acute respiratory distress syndrome, which is characterized by extensive alveolar damage, causes air-space consolidation, severe hypoxia, and slow resolution. Thus, a reasonable classification of lung edema requires at least four categories: 1) hydrostatic edema; 2) acute respiratory distress syndrome (permeability edema caused by diffuse alveolar damage); 3) permeability edema without alveolar damage; and (4) mixed hydrostatic and permeability edema. The authors emphasize the importance of the barriers provided by the capillary endothelium and the alveolar epithelium in determining the clinical and radiographic manifestations of edema. In general, when the alveolar epithelium is intact, the radiographic manifestations are those of interstitial (not air-space) edema; this radiographic pattern predicts a mild clinical course and prompt resolution.     

Anterior release test. A new test for occult shoulder instability

Occult shoulder instability is recognized as a significant contributor to shoulder dysfunction in throwing athletes. Diagnosis of occult instability by physical examination remains challenging. The anterior release test is a test for physical examination of the shoulder. It was developed to facilitate detection of occult anterior instability. One hundred shoulders were examined preoperatively by the same examiner. Based on surgical findings, the shoulders were classified as anterior instability or other. The results of examination were compared with the operative findings. Sensitivity was calculated as 91.9%, specificity 88.9%, positive predictive value 87.1%, negative predictive value 93.0%, and accuracy 90.2%. The anterior release test is a reliable and reproducible test for the detection of the unstable shoulder.     

Hospital administration--the new order; the medical administrator''s point of view

Urine from rats and sheep given single doses of [14C]propachlor contained 14C metabolites in which the chlorine of propachlor was replaced by a methylsulfonyl group. Methylsulfonyl-containing metabolites were also isolated from the urine of rats given an intraperitoneal dose of the cysteine conjugate of [14C]propachlor; this indicated that the methylsulfonyl-containing metabolites resulted from metabolic reactions subsequent to the mercapturic acid pathway.     

Efficient methods of processing metal chips

The development and use of efficient methods of processing chips (particularly alloy chips) is important for solving the problems of conserving resources, improving quality of the metal that is produced, and improving the environmental situation at metallurgical plants.     

A unified view of polymer, dumbbell, and oligonucleotide DNA nearest-neighbor thermodynamics

A unified view of polymer, dumbbell, and oligonucleotide nearest-neighbor (NN) thermodynamics is presented. DNA NN DeltaG degrees 37 parameters from seven laboratories are presented in the same format so that careful comparisons can be made. The seven studies used data from natural polymers, synthetic polymers, oligonucleotide dumbbells, and oligonucleotide duplexes to derive NN parameters; used different methods of data analysis; used different salt concentrations; and presented the NN thermodynamics in different formats. As a result of these differences, there has been much confusion regarding the NN thermodynamics of DNA polymers and oligomers. Herein I show that six of the studies are actually in remarkable agreement with one another and explanations are provided in cases where discrepancies remain. Further, a single set of parameters, derived from 108 oligonucleotide duplexes, adequately describes polymer and oligomer thermodynamics. Empirical salt dependencies are also derived for oligonucleotides and polymers.