Plasma viscosity and the risk of coronary heart disease: results from the MONICA-Augsburg Cohort Study, 1984 to 1992

Plasma viscosity is determined by various macromolecules, eg, fibrinogen, immunoglobulins, and lipoproteins. It may therefore reflect several aspects involved in cardiovascular diseases, including the effects of classic risk factors, hemostatic disturbances, and inflammation. We examined the association of plasma viscosity with the incidence of a first major coronary heart disease event (CHD; fatal and nonfatal myocardial infarction and cardiac death; n=50) in 933 men aged 45 to 64 years of the MONICA project of Augsburg, Germany. The incidence rate was 7.23 per 1000 person-years (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.37 to 9.53), and the subjects were followed up for 8 years. All suspected cases of an incident CHD event were classified according to the MONICA protocol. There was a positive and statistically significant unadjusted relationship between plasma viscosity and the incidence of CHD. The relative risk of CHD events associated with a 1-SD increase in plasma viscosity (0.070 mPa x s) was 1.60 (95% CI, 1.25 to 2.03). After adjustment for age, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, smoking, blood pressure, and body mass index, the relative risk was reduced only moderately (1.42; 95% CI, 1.09 to 1.86). The relative risk of CHD events for men in the highest quintile of the plasma viscosity distribution in comparison with the lowest quintile was 3.31 (95% CI, 1.19 to 9.25) after adjustment for the aforementioned variables. A large proportion of events (40%) occurred among men in the highest quintile. These findings suggest that plasma viscosity may have considerable potential to identify subjects at risk for CHD events.     

Effect of Pre-coated Vs. Added Coupling Agents on the Vulcanization of Silica-filled Polyisoprene

Solid-state ¹³C NMR was utilized in analysis of the crosslink structure in silica-filled polyisoprene. Samples containing either a pre-coated coupling agent, a coupling agent added in the mixing process, or polyethylene glycol (PEG) were vulcanized and the type and density of crosslinking determined. The precoated coupling agent sample gave lower %swelling, lower extraction amounts, and a lower T ₂ relaxation than the mixed coupling agent, indicating increased crosslinking or increased filler –rubber interaction. The precoated also showed less cis –trans isomerization than the mixed, which may be due to its more uniform coating effect on the silica. The PEG sample yielded a ¹³C spectrum similar to an unfilled sample indicating decreased silica adsorption of vulcanization agents. Neither coupling agent significantly decreased the total sulfurization nor the percent monosulfidic crosslinks from that of a silica-filled sample without coupling agent.     

The Study of a 231 French Patient Cohort Significantly Extends the Mutational Spectrum of the Two Major Usher Genes MYO7A and USH2A

Usher syndrome is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by congenital hearing loss combined with retinitis pigmentosa, and in some cases, vestibular areflexia. Three clinical subtypes are distinguished, and MYO7A and USH2A represent the two major causal genes involved in Usher type I, the most severe form, and type II, the most frequent form, respectively. Massively parallel sequencing was performed on a cohort of patients in the context of a molecular diagnosis to confirm clinical suspicion of Usher syndrome. We report here 231 pathogenic MYO7A and USH2A genotypes identified in 73 Usher type I and 158 Usher type II patients. Furthermore, we present the ACMG classification of the variants, which comprise all types. Among them, 68 have not been previously reported in the literature, including 12 missense and 16 splice variants. We also report a new deep intronic variant in USH2A. Despite the important number of molecular studies published on these two genes, we show that during the course of routine genetic diagnosis, undescribed variants continue to be identified at a high rate. This is particularly pertinent in the current era, where therapeutic strategies based on DNA or RNA technologies are being developed.     

南京钢铁联合有限公司应用清洁生产技术提高余热余压综合利用效率

清洁生产是指不断采取改进设计、使用清洁的能源和原料、采用先进的工艺技术与设备、改善管理、综合利用等措施,从源头削减污染,提高资源（含能源）利用效率,减少或者避免生产、服务和产品使用过程中污染物的产生和排放。以减轻或者消除对人类健康和环境的危害。我国先后颁布了“中华人民共和国清洁生产促进法”和“清洁生产审核暂行办法”等法律法规。鼓励和促进清洁生产,以实现节能、降耗、减污、增效。为宣传在实施清洁生产过程中取得的成功经验,我刊将陆续刊登清洁生产实施案例以飨读者。同时欢迎您积极参与![编者按]     

Defective repair of oxidative damage in mitochondrial DNA in Down''s syndrome

BACKGROUND: Synthetic homopyrimidine peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) can bind complementary targets in double-stranded DNA, generating strand-displacement complexes, and so offering an opportunity to modulate specific gene expression. Several issues remain to be addressed before these attributes can be exploited in vivo, however. RESULTS: The kinetics of the interaction between a homopyrimidine PNA and a complementary homopurine target on double-stranded DNA were analyzed in the presence or absence of a preformed strand-displacement complex proximal to the target. The complex was established under low salt conditions by the binding of a different homopyrimidine PNA to a target situated adjacent to the first PNA target. These two targets were placed next to each other on opposite strands at distances of 0, 2, 4 and 8 base pairs apart. The presence of a preformed strand-displacement complex near the target accelerates the binding of PNA to double-stranded DNA in a salt-dependent manner. The influence of salt on the binding rates was also examined. The binding rate is increased by a factor of 1 x exp(70[NaCl]), that is, 16-fold at 40 mM NaCl and more than 10(4)-fold if extrapolated to 140 mM NaCl. This effect is significantly reduced if the two targets are 2 base pairs apart and completely absent if the distance is 4 base pairs or more. CONCLUSIONS: The perturbation of the DNA helix imposed by a PNA strand-displacement complex only propagates a few base pairs. It is therefore possible to target sites in the immediate vicinity of strand invasion complexes specifically. The results presented have implications for the mechanism of strand displacement and for the application of PNA in a genomic context.     

Tuberculosis cutis miliaris disseminata due to multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in AIDS patients

Two patients with AIDS and disseminated tuberculosis characterized by cutaneous involvement are reported. They developed a maculopapular skin eruption, from which a multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain was isolated. In both cases the clinical course was rapidly fatal. Tuberculosis cutis miliaris disseminata should be differentiated from the skin lesions frequently seen in HIV-infected patients, especially from folliculitis. In patients with tuberculosis, the appearance of cutaneous lesions may be due to the haematogenous dissemination of mycobacteria. Therefore, early identification of the causative organism by use of optimal microbiological methods is fundamental.