Hematopoietic precursor cell exhaustion is a cause of proliferative defect in primitive hematopoietic stem cells (PHSC) after chemotherapy

The aim of the present study is to determine the possibility of measuring the bone mineral density (BMD) around implants by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Therefore, the trabecular BMD was measured close to 127-600 microns and at a distance from various uncoated and Ca-P-coated implants inserted into the femoral condyle of goals. The implants were left in situ for 12 weeks. In addition, the bone-implant interface was evaluated histologically. For comparative reasons the BMD of non-implanted lateral and medial femoral condyles was also measured. The reproducibility of the measurements, expressed as a coefficient of variation, was found to be 0.44%. Moreover, the regions closest to the implants exhibited a higher BMD than all other regions, and the regions located in the medial condyle showed a higher BMD than the lateral condylar regions. Although the histological sections of the implants in the medial condyle demonstrated more bone contact with the coated than with the uncoated implants, a higher density was measured around the uncoated implants. The results regarding the non-implanted condyles indicated a higher density in the medial than in the lateral condyle. In view of these results, we conclude that BMD around dental implants depends on the location of the implant and that DEXA appears to be an excellent tool for analysing bone-implant reactions.     

Substance abuse issues in cancer patients. Part 1: Prevalence and diagnosis

Although rare, drug abuse problems present a complex set of physical and psychosocial issues that complicate cancer treatment and pain/ symptom management. Most oncologists are not be well versed in either the conceptual or practical issues related to addiction. As a result, they often struggle in their attempts to effectively treat patients who are or have been substance abusers, and they find it difficult to understand issues of addiction in patients with pain who have no history of substance abuse. In the first installment of a two-part series, the authors explore the epidemiology of substance abuse. An examination of the distinctions between abuse and dependence leads to definitions of these terms appropriate for the oncology setting. Guidelines for assessing aberrant drug-taking behavior are also offered. Part 2, which will appear in the next issue of ONCOLOGY, will discuss the clinical management of cancer patients with a history of substance abuse.     

Effects of diversion and reperfusion of pancreaticobiliary juice on amylase release from isolated rat pancreas

Excitability of functionally different alpha-motoneurons was studied in 62 patients with gunshot injuries of nervous trunks of lower extremities both before and during process of rehabilitation by means of physical factors. The correlation of reactions of spinal cord motoneurons and the degree of injuries of nervous trunks was observed. Neuroapraxia of nervous trunks was accompanied by multidirectional alterations in reflex activity of large and small alpha-motoneurons. It was depressed in axonothermesis and lost in simultaneous full anatomic interruption of ischiatic nerve and trunks of both fibular and tibial nerves. Under influence of physical factors the function of motoneurons was normalized in neuroapraxia and was improved in axonothermesis of nervous trunks.     

Effects of nitric oxide annealing of thermally grown silicondioxide characteristics

The effects of nitric oxide (NO) annealing on conventional thermal oxides are reported in this letter. The oxide thickness increase, resulting from NO annealing, is found to be only a few angstroms (<0.5 nm) and independent on the initial oxide thickness. Furthermore, both the electrical and physical characteristics are improved. This technique is expected to achieve sub-5 nm high quality ultrathin dielectric films for the applications in EEPROM's and ULSI     

The effect of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection on clinical parameters in steady-state bronchiectasis

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection on clinical parameters in Chinese patients with noncystic fibrosis and steady-state bronchiectasis. DESIGN: Prospective, cross-sectional clinicomicrobiological study with informed consent. SETTING: Consecutive outpatient recruitment from a specialist bronchiectasis respiratory clinic. PATIENTS: Outpatients (n = 100; 62 women; 55.1+/-16.7 years old; FEV1/FVC 1.4+/-0.7/2.1+/-0.9 L), who had stable respiratory symptoms for more than 3 weeks. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Respiratory pathogens isolated from the sputum were: Pseudomonas aeruginosa (33), Haemophilus influenzae (10), Moraxella catarrhalis (2), other Gram-negative bacilli (5), Streptococcus pneumoniae (6), Staphylococcus aureus (5), mycobacteria (3), and yeast (1). Clinical parameters in patients with positive isolation of P aeruginosa were compared with those without the organism in the sputum culture (non-P aeruginosa). In the P aeruginosa group, the FEV1/FVC ratio and sputum volume were lower (p < 0.005) and higher (p < 0.0001), respectively, than those of the non-P aeruginosa group. The FEV1/FVC ratio (< 60%) and sputum volume (grading > 5) were independently associated with a positive sputum isolation of P aeruginosa with odds ratios of 3.1 (confidence interval [CI] 1.2 to 8.4; p < 0.01) and 4.7 (CI 1.6 to 13.3; p < 0.001), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: P aeruginosa is the predominant respiratory pathogen isolated in the sputum of Chinese patients with steady-state bronchiectasis, and its isolation is associated with high sputum output (> or = 75th quartile) and moderately severe airflow obstruction (FEV1/FVC < 60%).     

Comparison of PCR and pp65 antigenemia assay with quantitative shell vial culture for detection of cytomegalovirus in blood leukocytes from solid-organ transplant recipients

This study compared PCR and an assay for cytomegalovirus (CMV) pp65 antigenemia (CMV-vue; INCSTAR Corp.) with a quantitative shell vial culture (QSVC) technique for the detection of CMV in serial blood specimens from 46 solid-organ transplant recipients. In a comparison based on 535 specimens tested by PCR and QSVC, CMV was detected by PCR in 41 and by QSVC in 37 of 43 recipients at risk of CMV infection. The mean number of days after transplantation of initial detection of CMV was 29.9 for PCR and 34.0 for QSVC (P = 0.01). The antigenemia assay was performed on 395 specimens, including 304 of those also tested by PCR. In these specimens, CMV was detected by the antigenemia assay, QSVC, and PCR in 30, 32, and 35 (respectively) of 38 patients at risk, with no statistically significant difference in the time to detection. Each of the assays detected CMV in similar proportions of patients with and without clinically significant CMV infection. PCR stayed positive longer after transplantation than the other assays but frequently returned to negative when more than 6 months had elapsed after transplantation. The antigenemia assay and PCR stayed positive longer after institution of antiviral therapy than QSVC. PCR can provide highly sensitive detection of CMV viremia, but a PCR assay for CMV is not yet available in kit form. The pp65 antigenemia assay and shell vial culture are quantifiable and comparable in sensitivity. Either is recommended for rapid detection of CMV in blood specimens from solid-organ transplant recipients.     

Dbp5p, a cytosolic RNA helicase, is required for poly(A)+ RNA export

The DBP5 gene encodes a putative RNA helicase of unknown function in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It is shown here that Dbp5p is an ATP-dependent RNA helicase required for polyadenylated [poly(A)+] RNA export. Surprisingly, Dbp5p is present predominantly, if not exclusively, in the cytoplasm, and is highly enriched around the nuclear envelope. This observation raises the possibility that Dbp5p may play a role in unloading or remodeling messenger RNA particles (mRNPs) upon arrival in the cytoplasm and in coupling mRNP export and translation. The functions of Dbp5p are likely to be conserved, since its potential homologues can be found in a variety of eukaryotic cells.     

Solving applied general equilibrium models represented as a mixture of linearized and levels equations

General equilibrium moels are usually represented as a system of levels equations (e.g., in North America) or a system of linearized equations (e.g., in Australia). Either representation can be used to obtain accurate solutions. General-purpose software is available in both cases-GAMS or MPS/GE is typically used by levels modellers and GEMPACK by linearizers. Some equations (notably accounting identities) are naturally expressed in the levels while others (especially behavioural equations) are naturally expressed in a linearized form. This paper describes the new GEMPACK facility for solving models represented as a mixture of levels and linearized equations and discusses the advantages to modellers of using such a representation.