Comparisons of pulmonary and sinonasal lesions in patients with cystic fibrosis. Evaluation using computerized tomography

INTRODUCTION: Cystic fibrosis is a recessive genetic systemic exocrinopathy caused by a variety of mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene (CFTR). The disease is characterized by alterations of the secretions, which become thickened and viscous. Both the paranasal sinuses and the lung parenchyma are involved in all cases. The aim of this study was to assess a correlation between the rhinosinusal and lung parenchyma changes in cystic fibrosis patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Eighteen patients (11 men and 7 women, age range: 8 to 22 years) were examined with chest HRCT and sinonasal low dose CT. Lung symptoms were found in all patients; 13 of them, also affected with rhinosinusal symptoms, had been examined with ENT and nasal endoscopy. The other 5 patients, without rhinosinusal symptoms and previously examined with ENT, were evaluated as control group. Chest CT was performed with the high-resolution technique, 2 mm slice thickness and 10 mm table feed. Rhinosinusal CT was performed with the low dose technique, acquiring contiguous 2-4 mm thickness coronal sections. The CT patterns were analyzed by two radiologists and scored as slight, medium and diffuse involvement of both districts. RESULTS: No statistically significant correlation between lung and sinonasal damage was found in our study. Parenchymal lung involvement appeared more severe than sinonasal involvement in 14/18 patients. The retention of secretions in the paranasal sinuses, even if limited, was demonstrated in all symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. CONCLUSIONS: The absence of correlation between pulmonary and sinonasal damage and more generally, the different severity of cystic fibrosis can be caused by different allele mutations of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene, the most frequent of which is Delta F-508.     

Postoperative enteral feeding does not prevent intestinal bacterial translocation, but reduces the rate of pulmonary infections in pigs undergoing total orthotopic small bowel transplantation

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effects of a non-elemental liquid diet on nutritional state, composition of bowel flora, intestinal translocation, and pulmonary infections after small bowel transplantation in pigs. DESIGN: Prospective randomised experiment. SETTING: Teaching hospital, Italy. MATERIAL: 32 female Large White pigs. INTERVENTIONS: Group 1 (n = 6) underwent small bowel transplantation, were treated with immunosuppression, and fed on commercial chow. Group 2 (n = 6) were treated similarly except that they were fed with an enteral feed through a tube gastrostomy starting on day 4 postoperatively. Group 3 (n = 6) were treated similarly to group 1 except that they had no immunosuppression, and Group 4 (n = 6) underwent orthotopic small bowel autotransplantation; 8 further pigs underwent a sham operation only to act as controls. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Signs of rejection, graft-versus-host-disease, luminal bacterial overgrowth, bacterial translocation, pneumonia, and the pigs' nutritional state. RESULTS: All animals in group 3 showed signs of acute rejection. There was appreciable overgrowth of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in all three groups after allotransplantation compared with controls. The counts of anaerobic bacteria were significantly lower in group 2 (enterally fed animals) compared with those given free access to commercial chow [mean (SD) 2.81 (1.39) log CFU/cm2 compared with 4.80 (1.65), p = 0.047]. Bacterial translocation developed to a similar degree after autografts and allografts and pneumonia developed in fewer animals after enteral feeding (1/6) than after conventional feeding (5/6) but the difference was not significant (p = 0.08, odds ratio 25.0, 95% confidence interval of odds ratio 1.20 to 521.13). Enterally fed animals also lost less weight than conventionally fed animals [2.32 (1.23) kg compared with 4.53 (1.74), p = 0.016]. CONCLUSIONS: Enteral feeding for up to a month slightly reduced the rate of pneumonia and resulted in a better nutritional state in pigs after small bowel transplantation. It had no effect on luminal bacterial overgrowth or translocation.     

Protein expression profiles in human breast ductal carcinoma and histologically normal tissue

Reference two-dimensional (2-D) gels are presented for human breast ductal carcinoma and histologically normal tissue. Whole biopsy fragments were analyzed, including epithelial and nonepithelial components. Thirty-five spots have been assigned by gel matching to the human liver SWISS-2DPAGE reference map and/or to the human primary keratinocyte IPG map from the Danish Center for Human Genome. N-terminal microsequencing was applied to confirm randomly chosen matching assignments and to identify six new spots. Protein expression profiles in ductal carcinoma and in normal breast tissue appeared to be similar, except for a pattern consisting of 32 spots, which were highly expressed in all carcinoma specimens, and less intense and occasionally undetectable in normal tissue. This difference was statistically significant. Assignment has been obtained for several spots, namely GRP94, GRP78, GRP75, mitochondrial HSP60, calreticulin, protein disulfide isomerase, peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase, collagen-binding protein 2, fructose bisphosphate aldolase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, thioredoxin, cytochrome c oxidase VA subunit, tubulin beta isoform and macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF). The cancer- and tissue-specificity of the described pattern was assessed by matching to the Swiss-2DPAGE human liver, hepatoma, lymphoma, erythroleukemia reference maps. The pattern of 32 spots was found to be indicative of epithelial neoplasia.     

Menadione-induced oxidative stress accelerates onset of Emory mouse cataract in vivo

This article takes issue with procedural reductionism, which is the inclination to reduce all matters of judgement and responsibility to the following of some procedure or rule. Two scenarios provide content for a discussion of professional discretion in the context of accountability. The author shows that in professional life there will always be situations that stand beyond the rules of procedures and require the unique judgement of the professional at the time. While this judgement may be determined by the facts available in a situation of uncertainty, it cannot be reduced to the facts (including facts about rules and procedures). The moral judgement will still have an essential indeterminancy about it.     

Ductal carcinoma in situ. Part 2: Treatment

In the last decades, the classification of schemes of haematological malignancies have undergone considerable changes both in terms of modifications of previous concepts and of methodological approaches, in parallel with the acquisition of new information on the physiopathological and functional pattern of haemic cells and of their precursors both at the lymph node and bone marrow level. The cyto-morphological aspects of haemic were better defined and integrated by the application of cyto- and histochemical methods, which were subsequently supplemented by bioenzymatic and cytogenetic techniques, then by immunophenotypical studies and finally by biomolecular investigations. Through the use of monoclonal antibodies and the introduction both in research and routine diagnostic practice of multiparameter analysis techniques, it is now possible to correlate several cellular parameters, to identify clonality of malignant cells as well as their lineage assignment and maturation stage. Flow cytometry has become an important, rapid and objective method for the diagnosis of haematological neoplasias. In the present survey we have illustrated the different expression of surface, cytoplasmic and nuclear antigens in haematological malignancies, their correlation with the clinical course of the disease and their diagnostic and prognostic significance.     

Simplified 0.35-μm flash EEPROM process using high-temperatureoxide (HTO) deposited by LPCVD as interpoly dielectrics and peripheraltransistors gate oxide

A simplified flash EEPROM process was developed using high-temperature LPCVD oxide both as flash cells interpoly dielectrics and as peripheral transistors gate oxide (decoding logic). An O₂ anneal at 850°C lowers charge trapping and interface trap density induced by Fowler-Nordheim injection. However, electron trapping remains slightly higher than with dry thermal oxide. Similar memory charge loss and write-erase endurance are obtained as for ONO-insulated cells. HTO thus proves to have the required quality and reliability to be used in flash EEPROMs     

Fracture mechanics of oilseed rape pods

The basic theory of linear elastic fracture mechanics was applied to the fracture of pods from six genetic lines of oilseed rape (Brassica napus). An experiment was designed to allow the energetics of the fracture process to be accurately determined. The work of fracture, toughness and fracture toughness of five experimental varieties and one common commercial variety (Apex) were measured. The values for the toughness (0.006–0.271 kJ m-2) and fracture toughness (0.026–0.233 MN m-3/2) obtained from each line were distinct from each other but broadly similar to those of other brittle materials. The toughness and fracture toughness of Apex were approximately midway between the lowest and highest values measured. This result indicates that there is scope for improving the fracture resistance of oilseed rape crops so as to reduce seed loss before and during harvest. The approach described would be useful in selecting fracture-resistant genetic lines to help to develop such crops. This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.