Societal aspects of genetically modified foods.

This paper aims to examine some of the reasons behind public controversy associated with the introduction of genetically modified foods in Europe the 1990s. The historical background to the controversy is provided to give context. The issue of public acceptance of genetically modified foods, and indeed the emerging biosciences more generally, is considered in the context of risk perceptions and attitudes, public trust in regulatory institutions, scientists, and industry, and the need to develop communication strategies that explicitly include public concerns rather than exclude them. Increased public participation has been promoted as a way of increasing trust in institutional practices associated with the biosciences, although questions still arise as to how to best utilise the outputs of such exercises in policy development. This issue will become more of a priority as decision-making systems become more transparent and open to public scrutiny. The results are discussed in the context of risk assessment and risk management, and recommendations for future research are made. In particular, it is recommended that new methods are developed in order to integrate public values more efficaciously into risk analysis processes, specifically with respect to the biosciences and to technology implementation in general.     

Physical Activity in Liver Transplantation: A Patient's and Physicians’ Experience

Liver transplantation has become a highly standardized, acceptable option for selected patients with end-stage liver disease and/or hepatocellular carcinoma in the setting of cirrhosis. Both conditions are associated with loss of skeletal muscle mass (sarcopenia) and physical deconditioning. Both conditions result in a dramatic decrease in the patients’ quality of life, negatively impacting on the pre- and post-transplant prognosis. In this context, awareness of the advantages of physical activity in both the pre- and post-transplant setting is key. However, the importance of regular, individualized and patient-adapted physical activity is still understudied and underestimated. This article describes a three-sided perspective on the importance of physical activity in the setting of liver transplantation, including a patient's, transplant surgeon's and hepatologist’s point of view.     

CFTR-mutation specific applications of CFTR-directed monoclonal antibodies

BackgroundOver the last decade novel monoclonal CFTR-specific antibodies have been developed. We here present a paired analysis to detect wild-type and mutant CFTR using Western blot analysis, flow cytometry and confocal microscopy in several cellular expression systems.MethodsThe following CFTR-specific antibodies were used; 217, 432, 450, 570, 769, 596, 660, L12B4 and 24.1. Mutant CFTR was detected in HEK293 cells transiently expressing the mutations; G542X, R1162X, F508del, N1303K, G551D, R117H, A455E.ResultsThe majority of these antibodies are suitable for most applications tested. Using immunofluorescence, some antibodies can better detect mutant forms of CFTR (F508del and N1303K by mAbs 596 and 769), or display lower aspecific detection by Western blot analysis (mAbs 432, 450, 769 and 596) or immunofluorescence (mAbs 432, 450, 570 and 769).ConclusionOptimal detection of CFTR by monoclonal antibodies depends on CFTR mutation and the specific research application.     

Slime mold uses an externalized spatial “memory” to navigate in complex environments

Spatial memory enhances an organism’s navigational ability. Memory typically resides within the brain, but what if an organism has no brain? We show that the brainless slime mold Physarum polycephalum constructs a form of spatial memory by avoiding areas it has previously explored. This mechanism allows the slime mold to solve the U-shaped trap problem—a classic test of autonomous navigational ability commonly used in robotics—requiring the slime mold to reach a chemoattractive goal behind a U-shaped barrier. Drawn into the trap, the organism must rely on other methods than gradient-following to escape and reach the goal. Our data show that spatial memory enhances the organism’s ability to navigate in complex environments. We provide a unique demonstration of a spatial memory system in a nonneuronal organism, supporting the theory that an externalized spatial memory may be the functional precursor to the internal memory of higher organisms.     

Nonagenarian Siblings and Their Offspring Display Lower Risk of Mortality and Morbidity than Sporadic Nonagenarians: The Leiden Longevity Study

OBJECTIVES: To compare the risk of mortality of nonagenarian siblings with that of sporadic nonagenarians (not selected on having a nonagenarian sibling) and to compare the prevalence of morbidity in their offspring with that of the offsprings' partners.
DESIGN: Longitudinal (mortality risk) and cross-sectional (disease prevalence).
SETTING: Nationwide sample.
PARTICIPANTS: The Leiden Longevity Study consists of 991 nonagenarian siblings derived from 420 Caucasian families, 1,365 of their offspring, and 621 of the offsprings' partners. In the Leiden 85-plus Study, 599 subjects aged 85 were included, of whom 275 attained the age of 90 (sporadic nonagenarians).
MEASUREMENTS: All nonagenarian siblings and sporadic nonagenarians were followed for mortality (with a mean±standard deviation follow-up time of 2.7±1.4 years and 3.0±1.5 years, respectively). Information on medical history and medication use was collected for offspring and their partners.
RESULTS: Nonagenarian siblings had a 41% lower risk of mortality ( P <.001) than sporadic nonagenarians. The offspring of nonagenarian siblings had a lower prevalence of myocardial infarction (2.4% vs 4.1%, P =.03), hypertension (23.0% vs 27.5%, P =.01), diabetes mellitus (4.4% vs 7.6%, P =.004), and use of cardiovascular medication (23.0% vs 28.9%, P =.003) than their partners.
CONCLUSION: The lower mortality rate of nonagenarian siblings and lower prevalence of morbidity in their middle-aged offspring reinforce the notion that resilience against disease and death have similar underlying biology that is determined by genetic or familial factors.     

Double outlet right ventricle assessed with Magnetic Resonance Imaging

In this article the value of magnetic resonance (MR) imaging for the evaluation of double outlet right ventricle (DORV) is reviewed from the literature and illustrated with several cases. MR imaging can be used for the determination of cardiac anatomy at initial diagnosis and may provide functional information during the follow-up of patients after surgical correction.     

Spectrum of pleural involvement in sarcoidosis.

Pleural involvement has generally been considered an unusual aspect of sarcoidosis. In this paper, five previously unreported cases of sarcoidosis involving the pleura were discussed. Pleural sarcoidosis may be manifested by the presence of a pleural effusion, and the diagnosis is based on the exclusion of all other possible causes and the demonstration of noncaseating granulomas in the pleura. When the pleura is involved without effusion, it may only be recognized if noncaseating granulomas involving the pleura are looked for specifically. Including the five cases form this study, there have been 73 cases of pleural sarcoidosis reported, but only 37 have been verified by histologic evidence. When strict diagnostic criteria are used, clinical involvement of the pleura in sarsoidosis remains an unusual entity, but it may be that histologic involvement of the pleura is more common than generally appreciated.