Evaluation of a smoking cessation program implemented in the workplace

BACKGROUND: Acute abdominal pain due to complicated Meckel's diverticulum is an unusual event. Even the presence of biliary enterolithiasis at the onset of inflamed congenital diverticulum has rarely been reported previously. RESULTS: Despite this unusual presentation, an episode of gallstone passage through the biliary tract has not yet been described. CONCLUSIONS: Whether the stones were primarily formed in the diverticulum as enterolithiasis, or secondary to gallstone passage is discussed. The complications of Meckel's diverticulum requiring surgical treatment are reviewed, focusing on the unusual finding of biliary stones in Meckel's diverticulum and the etiogenic mechanism of enterolithiasis.     

CD spectra of 5-methyl-2-thiouridine in tRNA-Met-f from an extreme thermophile

5-Methyl-2-thiouridine (S) in tRNA-Met-f from an extreme thermophile is located in the TpsiC region, replacing T, and has a positive CD band centered at 310 nm. Upon heating, the profiles of the change in this band were similar to the UV melting profiles of the change monitored at 260 nm. This strongly suggests a close relation between heat denaturation of the tRNA and the conformation of the S base. Oligonucleotides containing S showed negative CD bands at 320-330 nm, like the monomer S itself, but when the 3'-2/5 fragment containing S formed a complex with the complementary 5'-3/5 fragment, a positive CD band appeared at 310 nm. These results suggest that combination of the TpsiC loop containing S with the hU loop is necessary for the positive band of S at 310 nm. S may serve to strengthen the association of the TpsiC loop with the hU loop in tRNA of the thermophile.     

Angiographic evaluation of culprit lesions in acute coronary syndrome: relation to the original site on previous coronary angiography

Recent studies suggest that release of cytokines during inflammatory states such as septic shock leads to hypocholesterolemia. To examine whether tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF), which is the major cytokine in inflammatory disease, causes hypocholesterolemia, we measured serum levels of total (bioactive and receptor-bound) TNF, cholesterol, Apo B, and Apo A1 in seven patients with septic shock over a period of 8 days. Since elevated serum TNF levels are accompanied by the release of soluble TNF receptors, levels of TNF receptors p55 and p75 were also measured. Patients with septic shock had significantly higher serum TNF and TNF receptor levels compared with healthy controls. Increased cytokine levels were accompanied by a significant decline in total serum cholesterol apolipoprotein A1 and B. In vitro studies with cultured human skin fibroblasts, human umbilical vein endothelial cells, and HepG2 hepatoma cells showed that TNF increased the degradation of 125I-labeled low-density lipoprotein in all the cell lines tested. Recombinant soluble TNF receptors inhibited the TNF-induced stimulation of low-density lipoprotein receptor in a concentration-dependent manner. However, the calculated ratio of TNF receptors to total TNF measured in serum of these patients was not able to counteract the stimulatory effect of TNF, possibly due to the higher molar excess of TNF receptors required to achieve this effect in vitro. Our data strengthen the hypothesis that serum values of total TNF determine the extent of hypocholesterolemia during sepsis and septic shock despite the presence of a high concentration of TNF receptors. Studies with recombinant TNF also confirm the role of TNF in hypocholesterolemia in inflammation.     

Comparison of methods for identifying transcription units and transcription map of the Werner syndrome gene region

OBJECTIVE: The audiologic presentation of vestibular schwannoma (VS) associated with neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) has not been well characterized. The goal of this study was to investigate the audiologic features of NF2-associated VS and to determine their relationship to the size of the tumor. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective case review. SETTING: Quaternary governmental medical research institute evaluating patients fitting specific criteria for ongoing clinical studies. PATIENTS: Audiologic and magnetic resonance imaging data were available for 40 patients (25 males, 15 females), with an average age of 32 years, who had been recruited for ongoing clinical and genetic studies of NF2. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The audiologic profile and magnetic resonance imaging characteristic of tumor were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: The average size of the tumor at presentation was 7.26 +/- 16.58 cm3 and measured 1.2, 1.6, and 1.1 cm in the anterior/posterior, lateral/medial, and superior/inferior dimensions, respectively. An increase in lateral/medial size of the tumor most significantly correlated with deterioration in mid- (1,000-2,000 Hz) and high- (4,000-8,000 Hz) frequency hearing levels, elevated speech reception threshold, and prolonged auditory brain stem response waves III and V latency. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with NF2 demonstrate a more predictable audiologic profile for a given size tumor than has been previously described with spontaneous or sporadic VS.     

用微机图象法对脉冲MAG焊接熔池进行观察和控制的研究

本文对微机图象法在脉冲MAG焊接中的应用作了探讨,设计和采用了带有CCD摄象机的微机控制系统,对脉冲MAG焊接熔池进行了观察、监控和图象处理。其结果证明了采用微机图象法来实现实时控制是可行的。     

A Unified Approach to Submicron DC MOS Transistor Modeling for Low-Voltage ICs

A unified single-equation approach for the MOS transistordrain current modeling for energy-efficient submicron MOS circuitsis presented. Instead of three sets of separate equations forthe triode, saturation, and weak inversion regions, only a continuousexpression which is valid to describe the behavior of drain currentand the derivatives in all operation regions can be realizedby using a combination of hyperbola, sigmoid, and interpolationmethods. The model expression can predict accurate results forthe current, output conductance, and transconductance with continuousand smooth characteristics. The simulation results agree wellwith experimental data.     

Confirmation of anatoxin-a(s), in the cyanobacterium Anabaena lemmermannii, as the cause of bird kills in Danish lakes

Cyanobacterial blooms were implicated in bird kills at lakes in Denmark in July 1993 and June-July 1994. These blooms were dominated by Anabaena lemmermannii and were shown to contain a neurotoxin with anticholinesterase activity. In this study, the toxin was isolated by mouse lethality guided column chromatographies from the field sample collected at Lake Knud s? in 1993. Various spectroscopic data indicated that the toxin was anatoxin-a(s), an irreversible anticholinesterase, first reported in Anabaena flos-aquae. Chemical detection of the same toxin in cultured A. lemmermannii also confirmed this species as the cause of the deaths of the wild birds.     

High Magnetic Field Micro-Calorimeter and Application for BE-Condensation of Cr5+ Dimer System

A micro-calorimeter working at ultra-low temperature down to 75 mK and high magnetic field up to 17.5 T has been developed. A typical sample weight is as small as 100 μg. A magnetic phase diagram of magnon Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in Ba₃Cr₂O₈ is determined. The scaling index of the phase boundary is very close to that of the isotropic three dimensional BEC at low temperature, in spite of the existence of Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) interaction which is confirmed in the previous ESR measurement.     

Characterisation of volatile sulphur-containing compounds generated in crushed leaves of Chinese chive (Allium tuberosum Rottler)

To characterise the composition of sulphur-containing constituents in Chinese chive (Allium tuberosum Rottler), GC–MS and HPLC analyses were carried out, using 12 varieties of Chinese origin, 4 varieties of Japanese origin and 6 commercially available cultivars. Five disulphides (dimethyl, allyl methyl, methyl 1-(E)-propenyl, diallyl, and allyl 1-(E)-propenyl), two trisulphides (dimethyl and allyl methyl), and two vinyldithiins (3-vinyl-[4H]-1,2- and 2-vinyl-[4H]-1,3-) were identified on the basis of their mass spectral and GC-retention data. Among the detected sulphur compounds, sulphides with a methyl group predominated over those with an allyl group. This was supported by the HPLC estimations, suggesting that all cultivars examined had much greater amounts of methiin than alliin. Also, two novel compounds were tentatively identified as [3H,4H]-1,2-dithiin and [2H,4H]-1,3-dithiin on the basis of their mass spectral features, GC-retention data, and some experimental results on their formation in reaction mixtures with different proportions of methiin and alliin. Their formation mechanism was proposed.     

Impact of Oncogenic Targets by Tumor-Suppressive miR-139-5p and miR-139-3p Regulation in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

We newly generated an RNA-sequencing-based microRNA (miRNA) expression signature of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Analysis of the signature revealed that both strands of some miRNAs, including miR-139-5p (the guide strand) and miR-139-3p (the passenger strand) of miR-139, were downregulated in HNSCC tissues. Analysis of The Cancer Genome Atlas confirmed the low expression levels of miR-139 in HNSCC. Ectopic expression of these miRNAs attenuated the characteristics of cancer cell aggressiveness (e.g., cell proliferation, migration, and invasion). Our in silico analyses revealed a total of 28 putative targets regulated by pre-miR-139 (miR-139-5p and miR-139-3p) in HNSCC cells. Of these, the GNA12 (guanine nucleotide-binding protein subunit alpha-12) and OLR1 (oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor 1) expression levels were identified as independent factors that predicted patient survival according to multivariate Cox regression analyses (p = 0.0018 and p = 0.0104, respectively). Direct regulation of GNA12 and OLR1 by miR-139-3p in HNSCC cells was confirmed through luciferase reporter assays. Moreover, overexpression of GNA12 and OLR1 was detected in clinical specimens of HNSCC through immunostaining. The involvement of miR-139-3p (the passenger strand) in the oncogenesis of HNSCC is a new concept in cancer biology. Our miRNA-based strategy will increase knowledge on the molecular pathogenesis of HNSCC.