Alcohol Abuse and Cardiac Disease

Background

Understanding the relationship between alcohol abuse, a common and theoretically modifiable condition, and the most common cause of death in the world, cardiovascular disease, may inform potential prevention strategies.

Implementing national standards for cancer pain management: Program model and evaluation

The purpose of this quasi-experimental (pre- and posttest) study was to test a model pain management program (PMP) to implement the American Pain Society (APS) quality assurance standards for the management of acute and chronic cancer pain using a continuous quality improvement (CQJ) approach to improve professionals' knowledge and skills, patient satisfaction, and to identify areas needing improvement. The sample consisted of 1210 nurse responses and 698 interviews of patients with pain during hospitalization at a major urban cancer center. The PMP provided a structure (standards), educational opportunities, and training in CQI methods. Outcome measures included a patient evaluation questionnaire and concerns checklist: nurse knowledge, attitude and barriers questionnaire; and focus groups to identify areas needing improvement. Significant improvements were found in patients' satisfaction, nurses' knowledge and attitude scores, and reductions in nurses' perceptions of barriers. Focus groups revealed the need for improved communication among disciplines about pain and better assessment of patients unable to self-report. The program met its goal of implementing the APS standards, educating nurses, and identifying “system” problems, and improving overall patient satisfaction.     

Integration of IEEE 1451 and HL7 Exchanging Information for Patients’ Sensor Data

HL7 (Health Level 7) is a standard developed for exchanging incompatible healthcare information generated from programs or devices among heterogenous medical information systems. At present, HL7 is growing as a global standard. However, the HL7 standard does not support effective methods for treating data from various medical sensors, especially from mobile sensors. As ubiquitous systems are growing, HL7 must communicate with various medical transducers. In the area of sensor fields, IEEE 1451 is a group of standards for controlling transducers and for communicating data from/to various transducers. In this paper, we present the possibility of interoperability between the two standards, i.e., HL7 and IEEE 1451. After we present a method to integrate them and show the preliminary results of this approach.     

Ginseng and ginsenoside Rg3, a newly identified active ingredient of ginseng, modulate Ca2+ channel currents in rat sensory neurons

There is increasing evidence that ginseng influences pain modulation. In spite of extensive behavior studies, the detailed mechanism of ginseng actions at the cellular level and the identity of the active substance have not been elucidated yet. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings were used to examine the modulation of high-voltage-activated Ca2+ channel currents by ginseng total saponins and its various individual ginsenosides in rat dorsal root ganglion neurons. Application of ginseng total saponins suppressed Ca2+ channel currents in a dose-dependent manner. Occlusion experiments using selective blockers revealed that ginseng total saponins could modulate L-, N-, and P-type currents. The co-application of ginseng total saponins and the gamma-opioid receptor agonist, D-Ala(2), N-MePhe(4), Gly(5)-ol-enkephalin (DAMGO), produced non-additive effects in most cells tested and each effect was significantly relieved by a depolarizing prepulse. Overnight treatment of cells with pertussis toxin profoundly reduced the inhibition. Furthermore, we now report that ginsenoside Rg3, among the major fractions of ginseng saponins, is a newly identified active component for the inhibition. These results suggest that the modulation of Ca2+ channels by ginseng total saponins, in particular by ginsenoside Rg3, could be part of the pharmacological basis of ginseng-mediated antinociception.     

Functional expression of a novel ginsenoside Rf binding protein from rat brain mRNA in Xenopus laevis oocytes

We have shown that ginsenoside Rf (Rf) regulates voltage-dependent Ca(2+) channels through pertussis toxin (PTX)-sensitive G proteins in rat sensory neurons. These results suggest that Rf can act through a novel G protein-linked receptor in the nervous system. In the present study, we further examined the effect of Rf on G protein-coupled inwardly rectifying K(+) (GIRK) channels after coexpression with size-fractionated rat brain mRNA and GIRK1 and GIRK4 (GIRK1/4) channel cRNAs in Xenopus laevis oocytes using two-electrode voltage-clamp techniques. We found that Rf activated GIRK channel in a dose-dependent and reversible manner after coexpression with subfractions of rat brain mRNA and GIRK1/4 channel cRNAs. This Rf-evoked current was blocked by Ba(2+), a potassium channel blocker. The size of rat brain mRNA responding to Rf was about 6 to 7 kilobases. However, Rf did not evoke GIRK current after injection with this subfraction of rat brain mRNA or GIRK1/4 channel cRNAs alone. Other ginsenosides, such as Rb(1) and Rg(1), evoked only slight induction of GIRK currents after coexpression with the subfraction of rat brain mRNA and GIRK1/4 channel cRNAs. Acetylcholine and serotonin almost did not induce GIRK currents after coexpression with the subfraction of rat brain mRNA and GIRK1/4 channel cRNAs. Rf-evoked GIRK currents were not altered by PTX pretreatment but were suppressed by intracellularly injected guanosine-5'-(2-O-thio) diphosphate, a nonhydrolyzable GDP analog. These results indicate that Rf activates GIRK channel through an unidentified G protein-coupled receptor in rat brain and that this receptor can be cloned by the expression method demonstrated here.     

Stress, coping, and depression in non-ulcer dyspepsia patients

Thirty adults with upper gastrointestinal symptoms in the absence of structural organic disease diagnosed with non-ulcer dyspepsia (NUD) were compared to 30 healthy adults who had visited the hepatobiliary clinic for medical evaluation of non-organic complaints without NUD. Medical investigation in both groups were negative. Before independent gastrointestinal physicians conducted diagnostic evaluations, all subjects were evaluated for anxiety and depressive symptoms, stressful life events, coping style, and social support. The measures included Symptom Checklist 90-Revised (SCL-90-R), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Ways of Coping Checklist, and Interpersonal Support Evaluation List, and a self-report questionnaire, which measured the quantity of perceived stressful life events. The NUD patients reported significantly more symptoms of depression, more perceived stressful life events, less problem-focused coping, and less social support than the control subjects. Depressive symptoms were negatively correlated with interpersonal support, whereas, problem-focused coping was positively correlated with interpersonal support in the NUD patients. The two groups did not differ significantly in terms of anxiety and emotion-focused coping. The implications of these findings for the diagnosis and treatment of NUD are discussed.     

Modulation of thymidine incorporation by κ-opioid ligands in rat spinal cord-dorsal root ganglion co-cultures

β-Endorphin, met-enkephalin and several μ-selective opioid agonists were shown to decrease thymidine incorporation into DNA in various neural cell cultures. We now report that the κ-selective opioid agonists U50488, U69593 and MR2034 modulate [³H]thymidine incorporation into DNA in rat spinal cord-dorsal root ganglion co-cultures. U50488 at 10 μM increased by 60% thymidine incorporation in 6-day-old cultures. The thymidine incorporation induced by U50488 was blocked by the κ-selective antagonist nor-binaltorphimine, as well as by pertussis toxin and LiCl U50488 treatment stimulated phosphatidylinositol turnover by three-fold compared with untreated controls. These findings suggest that κ-opioid agonists modulate DNA synthesis in spinal cord-dorsal root ganglion co-cultures through a mechanism which involves pertussis toxin-sensitive GTP-binding proteins, as well as activation of phosphatidylinositol turnover.     

Flow calorimetry--a useful tool for determination of immobilized cis-epoxysuccinate hydrolase activity from Nocardia tartaricans

Bacterial cells Nocardia tartaricans with cis-epoxysuccinate hydrolase activity were entrapped in hardened calcium pectate gel by a commercial high performance encapsulator. This enzyme (in a single step reaction with no formation of side products) was used to hydrolyze disodium cis-epoxysuccinate to a pure enantiomer--disodium L-(+)-tartrate. Activities of this enzyme were determined using flow calorimetry. The validity of this method was corroborated by HPLC and isotachophoresis. The immobilized biocatalyst has activity (75.8 U/mgdry) able to convert disodium cis-epoxysuccinate to disodium tartrate at 94% yield in 5.5h. Immobilization of N. tartaricans in hardened calcium pectate gel beads had a positive effect on the activity of cis-epoxysuccinate hydrolase, storage stability, yield, and time of bioconversion.     

Ginseng saponins induce store-operated calcium entry in Xenopus oocytes

1 We investigated the effect of the active ingredients of Panax ginseng, ginsenosides, on store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) using a two-electrode voltage clamp technique in Xenopus oocytes in which SOCE is monitored through Ca(2+)-activated Cl- currents. 2 Under hyperpolarizing voltage clamp conditions, treatment with ginsenosides produced a biphasic Ca(2+)-activated Cl- current consisting of a rapid transient inward current and a slowly developing secondary sustained inward current. The transient inward current was inactivated rapidly, whereas the sustained inward current persisted for nearly 10 min. The effect of ginsenosides on the biphasic current was dose-dependent and reversible. The EC50 was 42.8+/-11.6 and 46.6+/-7.1 microg ml(-1) for the transient and sustained inward current, respectively. 3 In the absence of extracellular Ca2+ ginsenosides induced only a transient inward current but in the presence of extracellular Ca2+ ginsenosides induced the biphasic current. Magnitudes of the sustained currents were dependent on extracellular Ca2+ concentration. Sustained inward current induced by ginsenosides, but not transient inward current, and ginsenoside-induced store-operated Ca2+ (SOC) currents (ISOC) were blocked by La3+, a Ca2+ channel blocker, suggesting that the sustained inward current and ISOC was derived from an influx of extracellular Ca2+. 4 Treatment with 2-APB and heparin, which are IP3 receptor antagonists, inhibited the ginsenoside-induced biphasic current. Treatment with the PLC inhibitor, U73122, also inhibited the ginsenoside-induced biphasic current. Intraoocyte injection of ATP-gammaS, but not adenylyl AMP-PCP, induced a persistent activation of ginsenoside-induced sustained current but did not affect the transient current. 5 In rat hippocampal neurons, ginsenosides inhibited both carbachol-stimulated intracellular Ca2+ release and intracellular Ca2+ depletion-activated SOCE. 6 These results indicate that ginsenoside might act as a differential regulator of intracellular Ca2+ levels in neurons and Xenopus oocytes.     

Clinical study on the combined effect of capsaicin, green tea extract and essence of chicken on body fat content in human subjects

This study was conducted to assess the body fat content of free-living healthy human subjects taking a health supplement containing 0.4 mg capsaicin, 625 mg green tea extract (125 mg catechins and 50 mg caffeine) and 800 mg essence of chicken (CGTE). Subjects were advised to maintain their regular dietary habits and routine physical activity throughout study duration. Their body fat content was measured before and throughout the trial duration using a hand-grip body fat monitor. After 2 wk of supplementation with CGTE, the mean body fat percentage of males and female subjects was significantly less than the initial value (p < 0.05; t-test). 70.6%, of volunteers showed a trend for decreasing body fat content with 4 subjects showing a significant decrease in body fat content over time. The findings suggested that the effects were more prominent in subjects with higher initial body fat content. It was also demonstrated that the resting energy expenditure (REE) of the subjects taking the test samples were significantly increased in groups supplemented with CGTE, compared to placebo group. Thus, the combined thermogenic effect of capsaicin, green tea extract and essence of chicken could translate to a positive clinical effect by reducing approximately 460 g of body fat, following 2 wk of supplementation and the application of this natural health supplement for excess fat regulation, should be considered.