Initial Impression of Two New Brief-Pulse Electroconvulsive Therapy Machines

Until last year only two U.S. manufacturers were producing ECT machines for purchase. These machines differed in waveforms: a sine-wave device (Medcraft Corp.) and a brief-pulse bidirectional square-wave machine (MECTA Corp.). Early in 1985 a new brief-pulse bidirectional square-wave machine called the Thymatron was marketed (Somatics Inc.). For the first time this created a choice in brief-pulse equipment available in the U.S. This paper summarizes our initial impressions to this new brief-pulse device and one of MECTA's most recent brief-pulse models (SR-1) in terms of features, safety, practicality, and cost.     

The New Normal? Patient Satisfaction and Usability of Telemedicine in Breast Cancer Care

Annals of Surgical Oncology - Telemedicine was adopted to minimize exposure risks for patients and staff during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. This study measured patient satisfaction and...     

Binding of lipopeptide to CD14 induces physical proximity of CD14, TLR2 and TLR1

Lipoproteins or lipopeptides (LP) are bacterial cell wall components detected by the innate immune system. For LP, it has been shown that TLR2 is the essential receptor in cellular activation. However, molecular mechanisms of LP recognition are not yet clear. We used a FLAG-labeled derivative of the synthetic lipopeptide N-palmitoyl-S-[2,3-bis(palmitoyloxy)-(2R,S)-propyl]-(R)-cysteinyl-seryl-(lysyl)(3)-lysine (Pam(3)CSK(4)) to study the roles of CD14, TLR2 and TLR1 in binding and signaling of LP and their molecular interactions in human cells. The activity of Pam(3)CSK(4)-FLAG was TLR2 dependent, whereas the binding was enabled by CD14, as evaluated by flow cytometry and confocal microscopy. Using FRET and FRAP imaging techniques to study molecular associations, we could show that after Pam(3)CSK(4)-FLAG binding, CD14 and Pam(3)CSK(4)-FLAG associate with TLR2 and TLR1, and TLR2 is targeted to a low-mobility complex. Thus, LP binding to CD14 is the first step in the LP recognition, inducing physical proximity of CD14 and LP with TLR2/TLR1 and formation of the TLR2 signaling complex.     

Multiple regulatory changes contribute to the evolution of the Caenorhabditis lin-48 ovo gene

Recent work points to the importance of changes in gene expression patterns in species-specific differences. Here, we investigate the evolution of the nematode lin-48 ovo gene. lin-48 is expressed in several cells in both Caenorhabditis elegans and Caenorhabditis briggsae, but acts in the excretory duct cell only in C. elegans. We find the differences result both from alterations in the cis-regulatory sequences and in proteins that mediate lin-48 expression. One factor that contributes to the species differences is the bZip protein CES-2. Our results indicate the accumulation of several regulatory changes affecting one gene can contribute to evolutionary change.     

Familial endometriosis

Purpose The study aimed to identify families with endometriosis and to document disease seventy within the families and the clinical characteristics of the affected women.Results Two hundred and thirty women with surgically confirmed endometriosis in 100 families were identified. The families consisted of 19 mother-daughter pairs, 1 set of cousins and 56 sister pairs. There were 5 families with 3 affected sisters, 1 family with 5 affected sisters, and 18 families with 3 affected members in more than one generation. The mean age at the onset of symptoms and the mean age at surgical diagnosis was 22.1±8.8 SD (range 10–46) and 31.8±7.9 SD (range 15–56) years respectively. Seventy-nine women (34.3%) had revised AFS Stage I–II disease, and 151 (65.7%) had revised AFS Stage III–IV disease.Conclusion The study confirms a familial tendency for endometriosis and supports the hypothesis that endometriosis has a genetic basis.Presented at the 50th Annual Meeting of the American Fertility Society, San Antonio, Texas, November 5–10, 1994.     

Linear Accelerator Configurations for Radiosurgery

The dramatic proliferation of radiosurgery in the 1980s and 1990s has resulted in the development of a plethora of hardware systems and an exponential increase in clinical use. This article summarizes the initial, now mostly historical, developments and emphasizes that most linear accelerator radiosurgery systems are based on three early prototypical systems from Buenos Aires, Heidelberg, and Montréal. These systems have more recently been tailored to permit fractionated radiosurgery, blurring the distinction between radiosurgery and radiotherapy. The commonly used fractionated systems are described. Clinical outcome data for arteriovenous are described. Clinical outcome data for arteriovenous malformations, acoustic neuroma, and meningioma, are mostly preliminary but substantial data are available for the radiosurgical management of metastases. With the recent emphasis on cost containment, cost-effectiveness issues have become significant and at least for metastases some preliminary data suggest a potential "cost benefit" with radiosurgery. The recent publication of data from a prospective randomized trial has established the superiority of boost therapy for malignant glioma and in this article, we present preliminary evidence supporting the use of radiosurgery. Finally, some of the new and exciting developments such as the robot-mounted linear accelerator, the use of shaped fields, and tomotherapy are described.     

A proposal for a standard electronic anthropomorphic phantom for radiotherapy.

To create a database of human male and female computed tomography (CT) slices, the National Library of Medicine organized the "Visible Human Project." Since the male and female data sets provided are approximately 269 MB and 915 MB, respectively, both the size and complexity have been reduced. While making the slices accessible to those with limited computing resources, the production of these reduced data sets also presents a unique opportunity to establish a standard human CT slice library for research in radiation therapy. A brief history of the original data sets is included, as well as details of the reduction process, applications to radiotherapy, and information on accessing these reduced image files.     

Cytoskeletal integration in a highly ordered sensory epithelium in the organ of Corti: reponse to loss of cell partners in the Bronx waltzer mouse

This report is concerned with control of cell shaping, positioning, and cytoskeletal integration in a highly ordered cochlear neuroepithelium. It is largely based on investigations of events that occur during abnormal morphogenesis of the organ of Corti in the Bronx waltzer (bv/bv) mutant mouse. The organ's sensory hair cells and adjacent supporting cells ordinarily construct a spatially elaborate and supracellularly integrated cytoskeletal framework. Large microtubule bundles are connected to cytoskeletal components in neighbouring cells by actin-containing meshworks that link them to substantial arrays of adherens junctions. In bv/bv mice, degeneration and loss of most inner hair cells and outer pillar cells occurs during organ development. These cells flank each side of a row of inner pillar cells that respond by upregulating assembly of their actin-containing meshworks. This only occurs in surface regions where they no longer contact cell types involved in construction of the cytoskeletal framework. The meshworks are larger and exhibit a more extensive sub-surface deployment than is normally the case. Hence, assembly of intercellular cytoskeletal connecting components can proceed without contact with appropriate cell neighbours but termination of assembly is apparently subject to a negative feedback control triggered by successful completion of intercellular connection with the correct cell neighbours. In addition, inner pillar cells compensate for loss of cell neighbours by interdigitating and overlapping each other more extensively than is usually the case to increase opportunities for generating adherens junctions. Certain adherens junctions in the organs of +/+ and bv/bv mice exhibit features that distinguish them from all previously described cell junctions. The dense plaques on their cytoplasmic faces are composed of aligned ridges. We suggest that they are called ribbed adherens junctions. Perturbations of cell shaping and positioning indicate that loss of inner hair cells is the primary consequence of the bv mutation. Most of the other abnormalities can be understood in terms of a secondary sequence of morphogenetic aberrations (precipitated by loss of inner hair cells). These aberrations provide new information about the ways in which supporting cells help to control hair cell positioning.