Nonsurgical pulmonary valve replacement: Why,when, and how?

Percutaneous transcatheter interventions for valve replacement or implantation is one of the most exciting developments in the field of interventional cardiology. Valvular stenosis has been treated by balloon dilatation with early and late results; however, treatment for valvular regurgitation has remained surgical until now. Most new designs have been investigated for implantation of valves in the left or right ventricular outflow tracts. Patients with surgery on the right ventricular outflow tract for congenital heart disease constitute the most common group for reoperations during late follow-up. Surgical pulmonary valve replacement can be performed with low mortality; however, it sets up a substrate for future operations. Also, the risk of cardiopulmonary bypass, infection, bleeding, and ventricular dysfunction remains. A transcatheter technique is likely to have more acceptance and may expand the indications for early intervention for right ventricular outflow tract dysfunction.     

Effects of pH and Nutrients (Nitrogen) on Growth and Toxin Profile of the Ciguatera-Causing Dinoflagellate Gambierdiscus polynesiensis (Dinophyceae)

Ciguatera poisoning is a foodborne disease caused by the consumption of seafood contaminated with ciguatoxins (CTXs) produced by dinoflagellates in the genera Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa. Ciguatera outbreaks are expected to increase worldwide with global change, in particular as a function of its main drivers, including changes in sea surface temperature, acidification, and coastal eutrophication. In French Polynesia, G. polynesiensis is regarded as the dominant source of CTXs entering the food web. The effects of pH (8.4, 8.2, and 7.9), Nitrogen:Phosphorus ratios (24N:1P vs. 48N:1P), and nitrogen source (nitrates vs. urea) on growth rate, biomass, CTX levels, and profiles were examined in four clones of G. polynesiensis at different culture age (D10, D21, and D30). Results highlight a decrease in growth rate and cellular biomass at low pH when urea is used as a N source. No significant effect of pH, N:P ratio, and N source on the overall CTX content was observed. Up to ten distinct analogs of Pacific ciguatoxins (P-CTXs) could be detected by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in clone NHA4 grown in urea, at D21. Amounts of more oxidized P-CTX analogs also increased under the lowest pH condition. These data provide interesting leads for the custom production of CTX standards.     

Effects of intranasal oxytocin on pupil dilation indicate increased salience of socioaffective stimuli

To investigate the mechanisms by which oxytocin improves socioaffective processing, we measured behavioral and pupillometric data during a dynamic facial emotion recognition task. In a double‐blind between‐subjects design, 47 men received either 24 IU intranasal oxytocin (OXT) or a placebo (PLC). Participants in the OXT group recognized all facial expressions at lower intensity levels than did participants in the PLC group. Improved performance was accompanied by increased task‐related pupil dilation, indicating an increased recruitment of attentional resources. We also found increased pupil dilation during the processing of female compared with male faces. This gender‐specific stimulus effect diminished in the OXT group, in which pupil size specifically increased for male faces. Results suggest that improved emotion recognition after OXT treatment might be due to an intensified processing of stimuli that usually do not recruit much attention.     

The tumor suppressor SirT2 regulates cell cycle progression and genome stability by modulating the mitotic deposition of H4K20 methylation

The establishment of the epigenetic mark H4K20me1 (monomethylation of H4K20) by PR-Set7 during G₂/M directly impacts S-phase progression and genome stability. However, the mechanisms involved in the regulation of this event are not well understood. Here we show that SirT2 regulates H4K20me1 deposition through the deacetylation of H4K16Ac (acetylation of H4K16) and determines the levels of H4K20me2/3 throughout the cell cycle. SirT2 binds and deacetylates PR-Set7 at K90, modulating its chromatin localization. Consistently, SirT2 depletion significantly reduces PR-Set7 chromatin levels, alters the size and number of PR-Set7 foci, and decreases the overall mitotic deposition of H4K20me1. Upon stress, the interaction between SirT2 and PR-Set7 increases along with the H4K20me1 levels, suggesting a novel mitotic checkpoint mechanism. SirT2 loss in mice induces significant defects associated with defective H4K20me1–3 levels. Accordingly, SirT2-deficient animals exhibit genomic instability and chromosomal aberrations and are prone to tumorigenesis. Our studies suggest that the dynamic cross-talk between the environment and the genome during mitosis determines the fate of the subsequent cell cycle.     

β3-integrin Leu33Pro gain of function variant does not modulate inflammatory activity in human derived macrophages in diabetes

Objective: We aimed to investigate the association between the Leu33Pro (rs5918) polymorphism in β3-integrin with diabetic complications and inflammatory function of macrophages depending on the genotype in subjects with diabetes mellitus.Material and methods: We determined the Leu33Pro polymorphism in 186 diabetic subjects and collected laboratory data. Monocytes from 24 patients were collected for macrophage differentiation to determine the inflammatory activity by treating with different stimulants.Results: We could demonstrate that human derived differentiated macrophages expressed β3‑integrin. Their secretory capacity upon inflammatory stimulation did not reveal any differences depending on the Leu33Pro variant. We found trends for an association of the polymorphism with the presence of diabetic nephropathy (p = 0.071), as well as with creatinine [1.32 mg/dL (1) vs. 0.98 mg/dL (0)] (p = 0.029 in recessive model) and glomerular filtration rate [75.6 ml/min ± 22 vs. 62.3 ml/min ± 25] (p = 0.076 in recessive model) as quantitative markers of kidney function.Conclusion: Despite the expression of β3‑integrin in human macrophages, the Leu33Pro polymorphism in β3‑integrin does not modify the inflammatory response upon stimulation but might play a role in the progression of diabetic nephropathy. Further studies are necessary to substantiate such a hypothesis.     

Big Brain Data: On the Responsible Use of Brain Data from Clinical and Consumer-Directed Neurotechnological Devices

Neuroethics - The focus of this paper are the ethical, legal and social challenges for ensuring the responsible use of “big brain data”—the recording, collection and analysis of...