Morphological changes in a hyperfunctioning thyroid adenoma after percutaneous ethanol injection: histological, enzymatic and sub-microscopical alterations

Autonomic nervous dysfunction has recently been considered to be an etiological factor in syncope and sudden death in cases of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. However, the precise mechanism is still unknown. A 73-year-old woman with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy was hospitalized with complaints of impaired consciousness; faintness 3 to 4 h after meals, lightheadedness while walking, and syncope during and after defecation and micturition. Faintness was induced by alimentary hypoglycemia related to gastrectomy performed 5 years previously. Lightheadedness and syncope were accounted for by autonomic nervous failure combined with an impairment of alpha 1-adrenoceptor in vasoconstriction and the carotid sinus hypersensitivity which accompanied preceding events such as abdominal pain, defecation and micturition, which could enhance the vagally-mediated baroreceptor reflex.     

Wt-p53 action in human leukaemia cell lines corresponding to different stages of differentiation

Recent studies support the potential application of the wt-p53 gene in cancer therapy. Expression of exogenous wt-p53 suppresses a variety of leukaemia phenotypes by acting on cell survival, proliferation and/or differentiation. As for tumour gene therapy, the final fate of the neoplastic cells is one of the most relevant points. We examined the effects of exogenous wt-p53 gene expression in several leukaemia cell lines to identify p53-responsive leukaemia. The temperature-sensitive p53Val135 mutant or the human wt-p53 cDNA was transduced in leukaemia cell lines representative of different acute leukaemia FAB subtypes, including M1 (KG1), M2 (HL-60), M3 (NB4), M5 (U937) and M6 (HEL 92.1.7), as well as blast crisis of chronic myelogenous leukaemia (BC-CML: K562, BV173) showing diverse differentiation features. By morphological, molecular and biochemical analyses, we have shown that exogenous wt-p53 gene expression induces apoptosis only in cells corresponding to M1, M2 and M3 of the FAB classification and in BC-CML showing morphological and cytochemical features of undifferentiated blast cells. In contrast, it promotes differentiation in the others. Interestingly, cell responsiveness was independent of the vector used and the status of the endogenous p53 gene.     

广告,从中国文化中脱颖而出

广告是源于生活,又从生活中升华的艺术.中国广告的奇花异葩也只有在中国肥沃的历史文化土壤中才能茁壮成长.在这则美的空调的广告中,聪明又简单的创意,直接而真实的视觉演绎以及亲切又幽默的概念传达,让你看后回味无穷.     

Response to recombinant human erythropoietin in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes

OBJECTIVES: The impact of a positive surgical margin in otherwise confined prostate cancer after radical prostatectomy remains unclear. We analyzed the outcome of a large number of patients with organ-confined prostate cancer according to the presence and anatomic site of margin positivity. METHODS: We evaluated 2712 prostatectomy patients with Stage pT2N0 cancer (ie, no evidence of extra-prostatic disease, seminal vesicle or regional node involvement) and no prior therapy who were treated by radical prostatectomy between 1987 and 1995 at Mayo Clinic. A total of 697 patients (26%) had positive margins. To assess the effect of margin status in the absence of treatment, 378 patients with postoperative adjuvant therapy were not considered for the study group: the final group consisted of 2334 patients. RESULTS: Overall, 253 (58%) tumors were positive at the apex and/or urethra, 85 (19%) at the prostate base, 11 (2.5%) at the anterior prostate, and 174 (40%) at the posterior prostate; 89 (20%) had at least two margins involved and 21 (8.3%) had more than two involved. The apex/urethra was the only positive anatomic site in 183 (42%). Five-year survival free of clinical recurrence or prostate-specific antigen (PSA) biochemical failure (postoperative serum PSA of 0.2 ng/mL or more) for patients with a single positive margin was 79% for apex or urethra, 78% for anterior/posterior, and 56% for prostate base. Five-year survival free of clinical recurrence or PSA (biochemical) failure was slightly higher for those with one versus two margin-positive regions (77% versus 68%, respectively). Multivariate analysis revealed that positive surgical margins were a significant predictor of clinical recurrence and PSA (biochemical) failure (relative risk [95% confidence interval]: 1.65 [1.24, 2.18]) after controlling for Gleason grade, preoperative PSA, and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) ploidy. The effect of margin positivity on recurrence at a specific anatomic site (versus negative margins or positive at a different anatomic site) revealed the prostate base to be the only significant anatomic site when adjusted for grade, PSA, and ploidy. Five-year survival free of the combined clinical or PSA failure end point for those with versus those without positive margins at the prostate base was 56% versus 85%, respectively (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Positive surgical margins are a significant predictor of recurrence in Stage pT2N0 cancer, which is independent of grade, PSA, and DNA ploidy. The impact of positive margin status on recurrence-free survival appears to be anatomic and site-specific, with prostate base positivity significantly associated with poor outcome. The benefit of adjuvant therapy based on anatomic site-specific margin positivity remains to be tested in order to optimize recurrence-free survival.     

Polymere und Copolymere mit reaktionsfähigen Gruppen. Copolymerisation von Glycidyl-β-methylitaconat und Styrol

In part I of this series the results of sedimentation velocity experiments with the polyelectrolyte Polyvinylpyrrolidone-Blancophor are described. The combination of the Svedberg formula and an equation of Tiselius describing the charge- and salt-effects gives the possibility to describe the change of the frictional coefficient as a function of charge and screening quantitatively. The resulting frictional coefficients resp. the dimensions of the coil of this polyelectrolyte change in a wide range with the charge density and the counterion concentration.     

Comparison of QUV accelerated weathering to outdoor exposure for PVC compounds

Weathering characteristics of the PVC compounds used for exterior applications, such as house siding, window and door frames, must be determined in order to predict their performance in actual use. In this study color weatherability of various PVC compounds, determined in the QUV accelerated weatherometer, was compared to the outdoor exposure in Arizona, Ohio, and Florida. The effect of the compound base formulation and color on correlation of the QUV to the outdoor weathering has been also analyzed.     

Predicting heat buildup due to the sun's energy

PVC building products such as siding, windows, and roofings are exposed to the sun. Absorption of the sun's energy leads to a temperature rise, which may cause dimensional control problems, such as expansion and, in severe cases, distortion of the PVC products. The amount of heat buildup in the product depends on the color and/or pigment system of the PVC compound. Generally, the darker the color, the more the sun's energy is absorbed and the higher the temperature heat buildup. Because of the growing demand for darker colors of PVC building products, a test for measuring temperature rise to predict performance of the product in actual use is needed. A laboratory test method for predicting maximum heat buildup due to the sun is described in this paper. The effects of the sample thickness and gloss, carbon black and titanium dioxide levels, and the distance of an infrared heat source from the sample on the heat buildup are also presented in the paper.