New tax laws require slight shifts in hospitals' funding strategies.

Recent tax laws that affect hospitals' deferred compensation plans, employment taxes, annuities, foundation grants, unrelated business income, and gifts of appreciated property will not seriously affect charitable giving to hospitals.     

The pathogenesis of neurodystrophy

Summary In injury of the II and III trigeminal nerve branches a reversible neuro-dystrophic process develops in the parodontium of the molars in albino rats. Changes in the higher nervous activity and of the CNS trophic functions markedly disturb the compensatory mechanisms and the regulation of restorative processes. A combination of the CNS functional traumatization and injury of the trigeminal nerve branches leads to the development of an irreversible neurodystrophic process in the parodontium of rat molars, which is an experimentally reproduced parodontosis model.(Presented by Active Member AMN SSSR A. V. Lebedinskii) Translated from Byulleten' Éksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 55, No. 3, pp. 117–121, March, 1963     

Localization of nervous system antigens in retina by immunohistology.

Several antigens expressed in the nervous system were localized in tissue sections of developing and adult mouse retina by indirect immunofluorescence. Two antigens expressed in oligodendrocytes, basic protein of myelin, and NS-1 are not detectable. Antisera against nervous system-3, -4, and -7 antigens (NS-3, NS-4, and NS-7) give a uniformly intense reaction on all retinal cell structures. Large, external, transformation-sensitive (LETS) protein is present on blood vessels. Glial fibrillary acidic (GFA) protein is absent at birth but is found after day 4 in cells of the ganglion cell and nerve fiber layers. GFA protein--positive cells extend in parallel from inner to outer limiting membranes only at the ora serrata and around the optic nerve. No other glial elements contain GFA antigen, suggesting two distinct populations of astrocytes. Neurofilament (NF) protein--positive cells are present in the adult retina in outer plexiform and ganglion cell layers. By day 4 the ganglion cell layer and the ependymal zone have become NF-positive.     

Antibodies reactive to non-HLA antigens in transplant glomerulopathy

Although T and B cell alloimmunity contribute to transplant injury, autoimmunity directed at kidney-expressed, non-HLA antigens may also participate. Because the specificity, prevalence, and importance of antibodies to non-HLA antigens in late allograft injury are poorly characterized, we used a protein microarray to compare antibody repertoires in pre- and post-transplant sera from several cohorts of patients with and without transplant glomerulopathy. Transplantation routinely induced changes in antibody repertoires, but we did not identify any de novo non-HLA antibodies common to patients with transplant glomerulopathy. The screening studies identified three reactivities present before transplantation that persisted after transplant and strongly associated with transplant glomerulopathy. ELISA confirmed that reactivity against peroxisomal-trans-2-enoyl-coA-reductase strongly associated with the development of transplant glomerulopathy in independent validation sets. In addition to providing insight into effects of transplantation on non-HLA antibody repertoires, these results suggest that pretransplant serum antibodies to peroxisomal-trans-2-enoyl-coA-reductase may predict prognosis in kidney transplantation.     

Neurology Academic Advisory Committee: a strategy for faculty retention and advancement

Major effort and expense are devoted to faculty recruitment. Subsequent direction, support, and guidance of faculty members for retention and academic advancement are often inconsistent and ineffective. Individual mentorship is widely endorsed as an important element in advancement but often does not occur or is uneven in its pragmatic benefit. We formed a Departmental Academic Advisory Committee to provide individualized advice and guidance about career development and institutional promotion, retention, and tenure procedures. To assess the effectiveness of this process, a survey was sent to faculty members. A 100% response rate was achieved. The results of the survey demonstrated high levels of acceptance by faculty members and described benefits experienced by faculty, including better understanding of promotion and tenure policies and specific actions taken to achieve professional goals. An academic advisory committee can be a valuable adjunct to individual mentorship and to meetings with department chairs to enhance faculty satisfaction and advancement of neurology faculty members.