Acute pseudogout after pamidronate infusion

A 72-year-old man, treated with a 60-mg intravenous infusion of pamidronate for shoulder hand syndrome, developed after few hours an acute pseudogout arthritis of his right knee. Diagnosis was confirmed by synovial fluid analysis and was associated with hypocalcemia. Only a few cases are reported in the literature. The mechanism of this potential side effect remains speculative.     

PQBP1, a factor linked to intellectual disability,affects alternative splicing associated with neurite outgrowth

Polyglutamine-binding protein 1 (PQBP1) is a highly conserved protein associated with neurodegenerative disorders. Here, we identify PQBP1 as an alternative messenger RNA (mRNA) splicing (AS) effector capable of influencing splicing of multiple mRNA targets. PQBP1 is associated with many splicing factors, including the key U2 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) component SF3B1 (subunit 1 of the splicing factor 3B [SF3B] protein complex). Loss of functional PQBP1 reduced SF3B1 substrate mRNA association and led to significant changes in AS patterns. Depletion of PQBP1 in primary mouse neurons reduced dendritic outgrowth and altered AS of mRNAs enriched for functions in neuron projection development. Disease-linked PQBP1 mutants were deficient in splicing factor associations and could not complement neurite outgrowth defects. Our results indicate that PQBP1 can affect the AS of multiple mRNAs and indicate specific affected targets whose splice site determination may contribute to the disease phenotype in PQBP1-linked neurological disorders.     

Do indices of baroreflex failure and peripheral noradrenergic deficiency predict the magnitude of orthostatic hypotension in Lewy body diseases?

Clinical Autonomic Research - Patients with neurogenic orthostatic hypotension in the setting of Lewy body diseases (LBnOH) typically have baroreflex failure and peripheral noradrenergic...     

Solid Polymer Electrolytes from Copolymers Based on Vinyl Dimethyl Phosphonate and Vinylidene Fluoride

Solid polymer electrolytes are prepared by mixing various amounts of lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide with poly(vinylidene fluoride‐co‐vinyl dimethyl phosphonate) statistical copolymers with different compositions. Such copolymers are obtained by conventional radical copolymerization of vinylidene fluoride (VDF) with vinyl dimethyl phosphonate (VDMP) initiated by peroxides. A morphological study of the obtained solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) shows that only samples prepared from the copolymer with the lower amount of VDMP (16 mol%) result in the formation of homogeneous electrolytes while aggregates of lithium salts are observed for the other copolymers. The best ionic conductivity values are accordingly observed for the copolymers with the lower VDMP amount and are reaching 5 × 10^?3 mS cm^?1 at 100 °C. The dependence of the ionic conductivity versus temperature suggests that the ionic conductivity is controlled by the motion of polymer segments. Indeed, the ionic conductivity can be increased by adding a small amount of trimethylphosphate plasticizer and can reach 1.9 × 10^?2 mS cm^?1 at 20 °C. Finally, the prepared SPEs exhibit a high electrochemical stability and a good resistance to flame because of the presence of fire‐retardant phosphate groups in their structure.