Blood pressure in adults with short stature skeletal dysplasias

Hypertension, compounded by obesity, contributes to cardiovascular disease and mortality. Data describing hypertension prevalence in adults with short stature skeletal dysplasias are lacking, perhaps due to poor fit of typical adult blood pressure cuffs on rhizomelic or contracted upper extremities. Through health screening research, blood pressure was measured in short stature adults attending support group meetings and skeletal dysplasia clinics. Blood pressure was measured with a commercially available, narrower adult cuff on the upper and/or lower segment of the arm. Height, weight, age, gender, diagnosis, exercise, and medications were collected. Subjects were classified as normotensive, prehypertensive, or hypertensive for group analysis; no individual clinical diagnoses were made. In 403 short stature adults, 42% were hypertensive (systolic >140, diastolic >90 OR taking antihypertensive medications). For every BMI unit and 1 kg weight increase in males, there was a 9% and an 8% increase, respectively, in the odds of hypertension versus normotension. In females, the increase was 10% and 6%, respectively. In those with achondroplasia, the most common short stature dysplasia, males (n = 106) had 10% greater odds of hypertension versus normotension for every BMI unit and kilogram increase. In females with achondroplasia (n = 128), the odds of hypertension versus normotension was 8% greater for each BMI unit and 7% for each additional kilogram. These data suggest a high population prevalence of hypertension among short stature adults. Blood pressure must be monitored as part of routine medical care, and measuring at the forearm may be the only viable clinical option in rhizomelic short stature adults with elbow contractures.     

Papillary endothelial hyperplasia in the thyroid following fine-needle aspiration

A 74-year-old woman was found to have exuberant papillary endothelial hyperplasia within her thyroid gland subsequent to multiple fine-needle aspiration biopsies of a Hürthle cell neoplasm. To our knowledge, this histologic alteration in the thyroid has not been previously reported. We describe this unusual complication following fine-needle aspiration, and we delineate the clinicopathologic and differential diagnostic features.     

Complete nucleotide sequence of mouse mammary tumor virus from jyg chinese wild mice: Absence of bacterial insertion sequences in the cloned viral gag gene

Mammary tumors of a newly isolated strain of Chinese wild mouse (JYG mouse) harbor exogenous mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV). The complete nucleotide sequence of exogenous JYG-MMTV was determined on the proviral 5' long terminal repeat (LTR)(partial)-gag-pol-env-3' LTR (partial) fragment cloned into a plasmid vector and the cDNA sequence from JYG-MMTV producing cells. Similarly to the other MMTV species the LTR of JYG-MMTV contains an open reading frame (ORF). The amino acid sequence of the JYG-MMTV ORF resembles that of SW-MMTV (92% identity) and endogenous Mtv-7 (93% identity) especially at the C-terminal region. Thus, a functional similarity in T-cell receptor V beta recognition as a superantigen is implicated among these MMTV species. Analysis of the viral gag nucleotide sequence revealed that this gene is not disrupted by the bacterial insertion sequence IS1 or IS2, which have been reported to be present in the majority of the plasmids containing the gag region. Comparison of amino acid sequences of JYG-MMTV with those of BR6-MMTV showed that over 96% of the amino acids of gag, pol, protease and env products are identical. These results suggest the intact nature of the nucleotide sequence of the near full-length MMTV genome cloned in the plasmid.     

New evidence for structural integration across the cartilage-vertebral endplate junction and its relation to herniation

BACKGROUND CONTEXT

The cartilaginous and bony material that can be present in herniated tissue suggests that failure can involve both cartilaginous and vertebral-endplates. How structural integration is achieved across the junction between these two distinct tissue regions via its fibril and mineral components is clearly relevant to the modes of endplate failure that occur.

Natural and anthropogenic radioactivity levels and the associated radiation hazard in the soil of Oodalia Tea Estate in the hilly region of Fatickchari in Chittagong,Bangladesh

Radioactivity in the soil of a tea garden in the Fatickchari area in Chittagong, Bangladesh, was measured using a high-resolution HPGe detector. The soil samples were collected from depths of up to 20 cm beneath the soil surface. The activity concentrations of naturally occurring ²³⁸U and ²³²Th were observed to be in the range of 27 ± 7 to 53 ± 8 Bq kg⁻¹ and 36 ± 11 to 72 ± 11 Bq kg⁻¹, respectively. The activity concentration of ⁴⁰K ranged from 201 ± 78 to 672 ± 81 Bq kg⁻¹, and the highest activity of fallout ¹³⁷Cs observed was 10 ± 1 Bq kg⁻¹. The average activity concentration observed for ²³⁸U was 39 ± 8 Bq kg⁻¹, for ²³²Th was 57 ± 11 Bq kg⁻¹, for ⁴⁰K was 384 ± 79 Bq kg⁻¹ and for ¹³⁷Cs was 5 ± 0.5 Bq kg⁻¹. The radiological hazard parameters (representative level index, radium equivalent activity, outdoor and indoor dose rates, outdoor and indoor annual effective dose equivalents, and radiation hazard index) were calculated from the radioactivity in the soil.     

Impact of carboxylation and hydrolysis functionalisations on the anti-oil staining behaviour of textiles grafted with poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) hydrogel

Novel hydrogel-modified textiles have been prepared through photografting poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) onto pristine and functionalised polyethylene terephthalate (PET) surfaces. In this work, two types of functionalisation, carboxylation (CPET) and hydrolysis (HPET), were performed to scrutinise the hydrogel grafting efficiency. Basic characterisation of the pristine, functionalised and grafted textiles was carried out via fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) analyses. Then, the functional characteristics of these samples were determined based on the oil staining performance. Functionalisation of the PET textiles via hydrolysis and carboxylation gives rise to different chemical reactivity and interactions on the PET surface. Impressively, the surface formed via hydrolysis functionalisation of PET was found to be more efficient compared to that formed via carboxylation, and the untreated one. The HPET surface was remarkably more hydrophilised and rougher than both the UPET and CPET surfaces. The accessibility of the –OH groups for hydrogen abstraction from HPET has a great impact on the hydrogel grafting onto the HPET surface. All the grafted textiles (PNIPAAm-g-UPET, PNIPAAm-g-CPET and PNIPAAm-g-HPET) demonstrated anti-oil staining behaviour at 27 °C. In particular, PNIPAAm-g-HPET textiles with a high degree of grafting (DG) exhibited the fastest rate for oil to de-stain from the surface. Moreover, the reversible transition of PNIPAAm hydrogels around the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) ∼ 32 °C from hydrophilic to hydrophobic generates switchable surfaces of the textiles with regard to the oil wettability. Specifically, PNIPAAm-g-HPET textiles also displayed the highest degree of wettability switching as a result of having the highest DG. Taken together, the PNIPAAm hydrogels grafted onto PET textiles were significantly enhanced though hydrolysis functionalisation and possessed excellent switchable surfaces toward oil-staining, having great potential to be used for applications in oil and water separation as well as smart textiles.

Functionalisation, especially via hydrolysis, has created efficient PNIPAAm hydrogels grafted onto PET textiles with superior anti-oil staining performance.     

Capacitive performance of vertically aligned reduced titania nanotubes coated with Mn2O3 by reverse pulse electrodeposition

In this study, a composite material, manganese oxide/reduced titania nanotubes (Mn₂O₃/R-TNTs), was synthesized through incorporation of Mn₂O₃ onto R-TNTs via the reverse pulse electrodeposition technique. The influence of pulse reverse duty cycles on the morphological, structural and electrochemical performance of the surface was studied by varying the applied duty cycle from 10% to 90% for 5 min total on-time at an alternate potential of −0.90 V (E_on) and 0.00 V (E_off). FESEM analysis revealed the uniform deposition of Mn₂O₃ on the circumference of the nanotubes. The amount of Mn₂O₃ loaded onto the R-TNTs increased as a higher duty cycle was applied. Cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge–discharge tests were employed to elucidate the electrochemical properties of all the synthesized samples in 1 M KCl. The specific capacitance per unit area was greatly enhanced upon the incorporation of Mn₂O₃ onto R-TNTs, but showed a decrease as a high duty cycle was applied. This proved that low amounts of Mn₂O₃ loading enhanced the facilitation of the active ions for charge storage purposes. The optimized sample, Mn₂O₃/R-TNTs synthesized at 10% duty cycle, exhibited high specific capacitance of 18.32 mF cm⁻² at a current density of 0.1 mA cm⁻² obtained from constant current charge–discharge measurements. This revealed that the specific capacitance possessed by Mn₂O₃/R-TNTs synthesized at 10% duty cycle was 6 times higher than bare R-TNTs.

Mn₂O₃ was coated onto reduced titania nanotubes by reverse pulse electrodeposition, showing smooth and homogenous deposits without covering the opening of the nanotubes.     

BKCa Channel Activation Attenuates the Pathophysiological Progression of Monocrotaline-Induced Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension in Wistar Rats

Cardiovascular Drugs and Therapy - In the present study, the therapeutic efficacy of a selective BKCa channel opener (compound X) in the treatment of monocrotaline (MCT)-induced pulmonary arterial...