The princess and the pea. An unusual complication after a laparoscopic cholecystectomy

A vena porta choledochal fistula caused by an adenocarcinoma arising from a type I choledochal cyst was detected in a 42-year-old woman. The diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of this malignancy are discussed.     

Combined effect of short stature and socioeconomic status on body mass index and weight gain during reproductive age in Brazilian women

Short stature, a marker for undernutrition early in life, has been associated with obesity in Brazilian women, but not in men. We tested the hypothesis that weight gain during the reproductive years could explain this gender difference. A national two-stage household survey of mothers with one or more children under five years of age was conducted in Brazil in 1996. The subjects were women aged 20 to 45 years (N = 2297), with last delivery seven months or more prior to the interview. The regions of the country were divided into rural, North/Northeast (urban underdeveloped) and South/Southeast/Midwest (urban developed). The dependent variables were current body mass index (BMI) measured, BMI prior to childbearing (reported), and BMI change. Socioeconomic variables included mother's years of education and family purchasing power score. A secondary analysis was restricted to primiparous women. The prevalence of current overweight and overweight prior to childbearing (BMI > or = 25 kg/m2) was higher among shorter women (<1.50 m) compared to normal stature women only in the urban developed region (P < 0.05). After adjustment for socioeconomic variables, age, parity, BMI prior to childbearing, and age at first birth, current BMI was 2.39 units higher (P = 0.008) for short stature women living in the urban developed area compared with short stature women living in the urban underdeveloped area. For both multiparous and primiparous women, BMI gain compared to the value prior to childbearing was significantly higher among short stature women living in the urban developed region (P <= 0.04). These results provide clear evidence that short stature was associated with a higher BMI and with an increased risk of weight gain/retention with pregnancy in the developed areas of Brazil, but not in the underdeveloped ones.     

Coronary artery stenosis in rats affects beta-adrenergic receptor signaling in myocytes

The rotational spectrum of (CH3OH)2 has been observed in the 8 to 24 GHz region with a pulsed-beam Fabry-Perot cavity Fourier-transform microwave spectrometer. Previously we demonstrated that each transition of the a-type R(J), Ka = 0 is split into 15 states of the 16 theoretically expected states by tunneling motions. Here we show that the K = 1 states are split into the 16 expected states through the assignment of the Ka = 1 a-type transitions and DeltaKa = 1 b-type transitions. The internal-rotation analysis of the two inequivalent methyl groups presented here was guided by the previous experimental observations and theory for multidimensional tunneling, which predicts 16 tunneling components for each R(J) transition from 25 distinct tunneling motions. The effective barrier to internal rotation for the donor methyl group of (CH3OH)2 is V3 = 183.0 cm-1, and is one-half of the value for the methanol monomer (370 cm-1), while the barrier to internal rotation of the acceptor methyl group is 120 cm-1, one-third of the methanol monomer. The structure of the methanol dimer complex is similar to that of water dimer with a hydrogen bond distance of 1.96(2) A and tilt of the acceptor methanol of 77(2)degrees from the O-H-O axis (one standard deviation uncertainty). This structure shows good agreement with the angular orientation of the methyl groups derived in the internal-rotation analysis. Copyright 1997 Academic Press. Copyright 1997Academic Press     

Spiral and interlocking grain in Eucalyptus dunnii

Spiral grain in 181 trees from a 9-year-old plantation-grown Eucalyptus dunnii was normally distributed with mean -0.33 degrees (to the left) and standard deviation 1.7 degrees, and was affected by family and by crown asymmetry. Interlocking grain was common, exhibiting a mean amplitude of 3.4 degrees (standard deviation 1.5°) and a mean wavelength of 39 mm (standard deviation 12 mm). The relatively large amplitude of interlocking grain means that most trees will have spiral grain that alternates between left and right during each year. The wavelength of interlocking grain is influenced by tree size, but amplitude of interlocking is under genetic control. Both spiral grain and the amplitude of any interlocking were heritable (h²=0.99 and 0.63 respectively).     

Instantaneous fringe-order identification using dual broadband sources with widely spaced wavelengths

A new fringe-order identification technique for interferometric optical fibre sensors is described using dual broadband optical sources coupled with white-light interferometry. Compared with previous work, this technique enables the central (zero-order) fringe to be directly identified through its dominant amplitude, and does not require digitisation and its associated computing power. Therefore, it is suitable for coherence multiplexed quasidistributed sensors and for monitoring quickly varying measurands.<>     

Immunogenicity of pneumococcal vaccine in persons with spinal cord injury

OBJECTIVE: To determine immunogenicity and optimum timing for administering the 23-valent pneumococcal vaccine after spinal cord injury (SCI). DESIGN: Double-blind, randomized, placebo control study. SETTING: SCI unit in a tertiary care medical center and community. PARTICIPANTS: Eighty-seven persons with recent SCI. INTERVENTION: Participants were randomized to receive either placebo or pneumococcal vaccine at 16 to 18 days versus 4 to 6 months postinjury. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Antibody concentrations were measured prior to intervention and 1, 2, and 12 months afterward to evaluate the immune response to five serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae. Effects of demographic and injury-related variables on immune response were also evaluated. RESULTS: Timing of vaccination did not influence mean antibody concentrations for any serotype (p > .05). Ninety-five percent of vaccinated persons had twofold or greater increases in antibody concentration for at least one serotype when measured 1 month after vaccination versus 35% of placebo groups (p < .01). After 12 months, 93% of vaccinated persons in both groups maintained antibody concentrations twofold or greater than baseline values. CONCLUSIONS: Most participants developed an immune response to at least one serotype that was maintained for at least 12 months. Immune response varied according to serotype. Given the favorable immune response and no effect of timing, persons with SCI should receive pneumococcal vaccine during initial hospitalization.     

Oocyte competence for in vitro maturation is associated with histone H1 kinase activity and is influenced by estrous cycle stage in the mare

The in vitro maturation rate of equine oocytes remains low, regardless of culture conditions. Our objective was to determine the reasons for failure of equine oocytes to resume meiosis during in vitro maturation and to ascertain the influence of the estrous cycle stage on meiotic competence. In 10 cyclic mares, 7 ultrasound-guided follicular punctures were performed alternately during the follicular phase (group DF; n = 3 punctures), at the end of the follicular phase (group EF; n = 2), and during the luteal phase (group DL; n = 2). We evaluated the competence of the oocytes for in vitro maturation and measured their maturation-promoting factor activity by histone H1 kinase assay. Puncturing once at the end of the follicular phase and once during the luteal phase, or three times during the follicular phase, yielded about 11 cumulus-oocyte complexes per 22 days. The maturation rate was different between the groups, 51% in group EF, 34% in group DL (p < 0.05), and 15% in group DF (p < 0.01), and it increased with an increase in follicular diameter (p < 0.05). After in vitro culture, the H1 kinase activity was lower in oocytes that remained in germinal vesicle or dense chromatin stages than in oocytes that reached metaphase I or metaphase II (p < 0.05). The H1 kinase activity was not different between oocytes in germinal vesicle stage after in vitro maturation and immature oocytes that were not cultured in vitro, and was higher in preovulatory oocytes that reached metaphase II in vivo than in the oocytes that reached metaphase II after in vitro maturation (p < 0.001). This is the first report on kinase activity in the equine oocyte.     

Chaos under canvas: a Salmonella enteritidis PT 6B outbreak

Triphenylselenonium chloride, a novel synthetic organic selenium compound in which selenium is bonded to three unsubstituted benzene rings, possesses significant chemopreventive activity against chemically-induced mammary carcinogenesis. The effects of triphenylselenonium chloride on a mammary tumor cell line (MOD) were compared to selenite, a reference compound in selenium chemoprevention research. It was observed that triphenylselenonium chloride treatment exerted a cytostatic effect in the absence of membrane damage or DNA strand breaks. The observed cytostasis was associated with a selenium concentration-dependent inhibition of cell proliferation, measured by [3H]thymidine incorporation into DNA, and delayed cell cycle progression. In contrast, selenite treatment rapidly induced DNA damage and cell death. These marked differences were observed across the same levels of cellular selenium. In addition, triphenylselenonium chloride treatment increased glucose consumption and lactate production, indicating an effect of the compound on cellular energy metabolism. Collectively these observations demonstrate that the toxic activities associated with selenite treatment do not occur when cells are treated with triphenylselenonium chloride. This compound represents a new type of selenium compound that exerts significant cellular effects through mechanisms distinct from those induced by selenite.