Rotavirus serology and breast-feeding in young children in rural Guinea-Bissau

One hundred and forty-four children aged 9-20 months living in 14 villages in a rural area of Guinea-Bissau were examined for circulating rotavirus antibodies twice in a 15-month period. An immunofluorescence technique was used. About 3/4 of the children seroconverted, independent of age on entering the study. The age-specific proportion of seropositivity increased from 4/40 (10%) at 9-11 months to 26/29 (90%) at 33-35 months of age. All the initially seropositive children retained detectable antibodies to rotavirus. The relative risk of seroconversion was 1.4 times (95% confidence interval 1.0-2.0) more common among children living in villages by the mainroad as compared to those living off the road. Contact rate is probably dependent on population density and mobility but not on age. Breast-feeding, decreasing sharply through the age interval covered by the follow-up (9-35 months), had no apparent influence on seroconversion at the ages concerned.     

Estado actual del valor pronóstico de los marcadores moleculares en pacientes con cáncer colorrectal y la predicción de respuesta al tratamiento adyuvante

Colorectal cancer is one of the best studied of all malignant diseases interms of genetics and/or molecular prognostic factors. These factors, and relationships with prognosis, may have important implications especially in the design of surgical and adjuvant chemo-radiotherapy options. However, the true prognostic significance of all known factors has yet to be realised. We have reviewed the literature with specific focus on the role of molecular markers involved in prognosis and the prediction of response to adjuvant treatment.     

Activity of some naphthoquinones on blood stream forms of Trypanosoma cruzi

Accidental transmission of Chagas disease to man by blood transfusion is a serious problem in Latin America. This paper describes the testing of several naphthoquinones, some of which were active against blood trypomastigotes in vitro at 4 degrees C and might therefore warrant further study for preventing transmission of Chagas disease by blood transfusion.     

Glomerular lesions in adolescents with gross hematuria or the nephrotic syndrome

We report clinical and pathological data in 56 adolescents presenting with gross hematuria (GH) and 65 presenting with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome (INS). IgA nephropathy (present in 52%) and other mesangial lesions were found in the majority of the 56 patients with GH. Many of these patients had complex urological procedures prior to consideration of a nephrological problem. This often led to significant delays in making the appropriate diagnosis. Pathological lesions in the 65 patients with INS included minimal change NS (MCNS) in 31%, membranous glomerulonephritis (MGN) and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) in 18.5% each, and membranoproliferative GN (MPGN) in 12%. In 47 of the patients with INS, in whom no specific treatment had been given prior to renal biopsy, MCNS and MGN were observed with a similar frequency (26% and 23%, respectively), with FSGS and MPGN being found in 21% and 11%. These results indicate that the pathological lesions in adolescents with INS who undergo a renal biopsy more closely resemble those in adults, and are usually more severe than those in young children. However, it should be noted that our study was retrospective. Hence, there were probably some adolescents with INS who had a successful response to therapy and therefore did not have a renal biopsy performed. Southwest Pediatric Nephrology Study Group (Central Office, Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, Tex., USA). Director, Ronald J. Hogg; Associate Directors, Fred G. Silva and F. Bruder Stapleton; Statistician, Joan S. Reisch; Administrative Assistant, Kaye Green. Participating Centers—Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Tex.: Phillip L. Berry, L. Leighton Hill, Sami A, Sanjad, Edith Hawkins; Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, Tex.: Ronald J. Hogg, Kaye Green; Tulane University Medical Center, New Orleans, La.: Frank Boineau, John E. Lewy, Radhakrishna Baliga, Patrick Walker; University of Arkansas, Little Rock, Ark.: Watson Arnold, Eileen Ellis, Edward Uthman; University of Colorado Health Science Center, Denver, Colo.: Gary M. Lum, Wiliam Hammond; University of Oklahoma Medical Center, Oklahoma City, Okla.: James Wenzl, James Matson, Geoffrey Altshuler, Sarah Johnson; University of Tennessee, Memphis, Tenn.: F. Bruder Stapleton, Shane Roy, III, Robert J. Wyatt, Charles McKay, William Murphy; University of Texas Health Science Center at Dallas, Tex.: Billy S. Arant Jr, Michel Baum, Fred G. Silva, Arthur Weinberg, Craig Argyle, Joseph Rutledge, Ed Eigenbrodt; University of Texas Medical School, Houston, Tex.: Susan B. Conley, Jacques Lemine, Ron Portman, Ann Ince, Regina Verani; University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, Tex.: Michael Foulds, Sudesh Makker, Kanwal Kher, Melanie Sweet, Victor Saldivar, Fermin Tio; University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Tex.: Ben H. Brouhard, Alok Kalia, Luther B. Travis, Lisa Hollander, Tito Cavallo, Srinivasan Rajaraman; University of Utah Medical Center, Salt Lake City; Utah: Eileen Brewer, Richard Siegler, Elizabeth Hammond, Theodore Pysher. Note that this list reflects the investigators' addresses and positions during the period of this study and not necessarily their current situations.     

Diagnosis of mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes in a Chinese family by PCR/restriction enzyme analysis

The clinical presentation and the biochemical and molecular genetic findings are described in a 13 year old Chinese boy with MELAS (mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes). The diagnosis was initially suspected because of the characteristic clinical features and the strong family history of convulsions. Using polymerase chain reaction—restriction enzyme analysis, the heteroplasmic nt3243 A→G mutation in mtDNA of peripheral blood leucocytes and a muscle sample was demonstrated. The oligosymptomatic relatives were then screened by this method and the degree of heteroplasmy was analysed. This appears to be the first report of a MELAS family in Hong Kong with this described mutation. Molecular genetic techniques are advantageous in the diagnosis of MELAS.     

FRACTURE OF ABUTMENT SCREW SUPPORTING A CEMENTED IMPLANT-RETAINED PROSTHESIS WITH EXTERNAL HEXAGON CONNECTION: A CASE REPORT WITH SEM EVALUATION

One of the causes of implant failures in cemented implant-retained prostheses is the fracture of abutment screw or UCLA abutment. This article reports a case of simultaneous fracture of two UCLA abutments screws occurring in an implant-supported prosthesis placed in the mandibular molar region. The fractured structures were examined under scanning electron microscopy to investigate the probable causes of the failure, which were not related to failures on materials or fabrication of the screws, but rather were due to shear forces. The misfit in cemented prostheses may be the most likely cause of shear force generation.     

Recycling and EH domain proteins at the synapse

In neurons, a network of endocytic proteins accomplishes highly regulated processes such as synaptic vesicle cycling and the timely internalization of intracellular signaling molecules. In this review, we discuss recent advances on molecular networks created through interactions between proteins bearing the Eps15 homology (EH) domain and partner proteins containing the Asn–Pro–Phe (NPF) motif, which participate in important aspects of neuronal function as the synaptic vesicle cycle, the internalization of nerve growth factor (NGF), the determination of neuronal cell fate, the development of synapses and the trafficking of postsynaptic receptors. We discuss novel functional findings on the role of intersectin and synaptojanin and then we focus on the features of an emerging family of EH domain proteins termed EHDs (EH domain proteins), which are important for endocytic recycling of membrane proteins.