The Crystal and Molecular Structures of N4-(5-Bromosalicylidene)-N1-(3,4-dimethyl-5-isoxazolyl)sulfanilamide

The structure of the title compound was determined by X-ray analysis. Medicinal compounds with Schiff base structure have been widely synthesized and investigated in recent years. The functional group-CH?N- of the Schiffbases has been shown to have considerable biological importance¹⁾ . Many compounds with such a structure have important analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, antimicrobial and especi ally anticancer activities^2-8). Medicinal sulphonamides, having a primary amino group in their molecule, react very easily with salicylaldehyde or its derivatives⁹⁾. Information about the exact structure of the reac tion products is rather scanty, however, even though the formation reaction of the base has been utilized in many analytical pr ocedures for medicinal sulphonamides^9-12) and many such Schiff bases have been found to possess good bac teriostatic properties^13-14).     

Physical loading and performance as predictors of back pain in healthy adults A 5-year prospective study

We investigated muscle strength, aerobic power, and occupational and leisure-time physical loading as predictors of back pain in a 5-year follow-up study. A cohort of 456 adults aged 25, 35, 45 and 55 years, free of back pain, participated in measurements of anthropometric characteristics, aerobic power and muscle strength characteristics at baseline. The subjects' levels and types of physical activity and occupational physical loading were also determined. At 5 years after the baseline examinations 356 of these subjects (78.1 %) were reached by mail, and 262 of them (73.6%) properly completed and returned a questionnaire including a detailed back pain history for the 5 years following the baseline measurements. Of this number 56 subjects (21 %) who reported back pain ( > 30 on a scale from 0 to 100) and functional impairment during the 5-year follow-up composed the marked back pain group. Other subjects (n = 71, 27%) noting lesser symptoms were included in the mild back pain group; 135 subjects (52%) reported having had no back pain. The subjects with marked back pain were on average taller than the subjects without back pain, while no such difference was found in body mass. Heavy occupational musculoskeletal loading (P = 0.005) and high general occupational physical demands (P = 0.036) predicted future back pain. Leisuretime physical activity, aerobic power or muscle strength characteristics were not predictive of future back pain.     

Low insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) in the cerebrospinal fluid of children with progressive encephalopathy, hypsarrhythmia, and optic atrophy (PEHO) syndrome and cerebellar degeneration

PURPOSE: In patients with progressive encephalopathy, hypsarrhythmia, and optic atrophy (PEHO) syndrome, the pathophysiology underlying early progressive cerebellar and brainstem degeneration and severe epilepsy is unknown. Because insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 has been shown significantly to promote survival of cerebellar neurons, we wanted to see if the IGF system played a role in the pathogenesis of cerebellar atrophy. METHODS: We used a sensitive enzyme immunoassay kit for measuring cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) IGF-1 and insulin-like growth-binding protein (IGFBP)-3 in four groups of patients: PEHO syndrome patients (eight), PEHO-like patients (seven), age-matched controls (31), and patients with other types of cerebellar atrophy (11). RESULTS: Patients with PEHO syndrome and those with other progressive, degenerative cerebellar diseases had lower levels of CSF IGF-1 than the controls with other neurologic diseases. The CSF IGF-1 also allowed us to differentiate the "true" PEHO patients from the "PEHO-like" patients (those with similar clinical symptoms but without the typical neuroophthalmologic or neuroradiologic findings). The concentrations of IGFBP-3 did not significantly differ in any of the patient or control groups studied. CONCLUSIONS: CSF IGF-1 levels might be used as a marker of the degeneration of neurons in specific areas.     

Myocardial fatty acid oxidation in patients with impaired glucose tolerance

Abstract Aims/hypothesis. Fatty acids are an important source of energy in the myocardium. Abnormal myocardial fatty acid metabolism could contribute to the deterioration of cardiac function frequently observed in patients with Type II (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus. In our previous study, myocardial total uptake of non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) was measured in patients with impaired glucose tolerance and found to be normal. This study aimed to investigate the subsequent metabolic steps and β-oxidation of NEFA. Methods. A total of 6 men with impaired fasting glucose (age 50 ± 2 years, BMI 29 ± 1 kg/m², means ± SEM) and 6 healthy men (50 ± 1 years, 25 ± 1 kg/m²) were studied in the fasting state. Myocardial blood flow was measured with [¹⁵O]H₂O and positron emission tomography and myocardial NEFA metabolism with [¹¹C]palmitic acid. Results. Myocardial blood flow was normal and not different between the impaired glucose tolerance and the control group (78 ± 6 vs 73 ± 13 ml/100 g/min, NS). The [¹¹C]palmitic acid uptake indices were similar between the groups (10.4 ± 0.5 vs 11.2 ± 0.8 ml/100 g/min, respectively, NS). The clearance of [¹¹C]-palmitate from the myocardium, an index of NEFA β-oxidation, was similar between the groups (half-times of activity 17.6 ± 1.6 vs 19.5 ± 2.3 min, respectively, NS) Conclusion/interpretation. The results indicate that myocardial NEFA uptake and β-oxidation are not altered in patients with IGT. Thus, it is not likely that altered NEFA metabolism contributes to the deterioration of the cardiac function in patients with IGT or Type II diabetes. [Diabetologia (2001) 44: 184–187] Received: 9 June 2000 and in revised form: 25 September 2000     

Knee osteoarthritis in former runners,soccer players,weight lifters,and shooters

Objective. To determine the relationship between different physical loading conditions and findings of knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods. We selected 117 male former top-level athletes (age range 45–68 years) who had participated in sports activities with distinctly different loading conditions: 28 had been long-distance runners, 31 soccer players, 29 weight lifters, and 29 shooters. Histories of lifetime occupational and athletic knee loading, knee injuries, and knee symptoms were obtained, and subjects were examined clinically and radiographically for knee findings of OA. Results. The prevalence of tibiofemoral or patellofemoral OA based on radiographic examination was 3% in shooters, 29% in soccer players, 31% in weight lifters, and 14% in runners (P = 0.016 between groups). Soccer players had the highest prevalence of tibiofemoral OA (26%), and weight lifters had the highest prevalence of patellofemoral OA (28%). Subjects with radiographically documented knee OA had more symptoms, clinical findings, and functional limitations than did subjects without knee OA. By stepwise logistic regression analysis, the risk for having knee OA was increased in subjects with previous knee injuries (odds ratio [OR] 4.73), high body mass index at the age of 20 (OR 1.76/unit of increasing body mass index), previous participation in heavy work (OR 1.08/work-year), kneeling or squatting work (OR 1.10/work-year), and in subjects participating in soccer (OR 5.21). Conclusion. Soccer players and weight lifters are at increased risk of developing premature knee OA. The increased risk is explained in part by knee injuries in soccer players and by high body mass in weight lifters.     

Familial resemblance and diversity in bone mass and strength in the population are established during the first year of postnatal life

Familial resemblance and diversity in bone structure and strength in adulthood are determined in part during growth. Whether these characteristics are established during gestation or shortly after birth is not known. Total‐body, lumbar spine, and femoral neck size and mass and indices of tibial bending strength and distal radial compressive strength were measured using bone densitometry and quantitative computed tomography in 236 girls at 18.5 years of age. Among them, 219, 141, and 105 girls had crown‐heel length (CHL) and weight recorded at birth and at 6 and 12 months of age, and then height and weight were recorded at 3, 5, 10, 13, and 15 years of age in 181, 176, 127, 111, and 228 girls, respectively. Of these girls, 101 and 93 girls also had bone structure assessed at 11 and 13 years of age, respectively. Similar bone measurements were made once in 78 mother‐father pairs. CHL and weight at birth did not correlate or did so weakly with bone traits in girls at 18 years of age. By contrast, CHL at 6 months correlated with the height, bone traits, and strength at puberty and at 18 years of age (r = 0.24–0.56, p < .001) in girls and with their parents' height and bone traits (r = 0.15–0.37, p < .05). When the girls' CHL at 6 months was stratified into quartiles, the absolute and relative differences in bone traits observed at puberty (～11.5 years) were maintained as these traits tracked during the ensuing 7 years. Similarly, weight at 6 months correlated with the girls' bone traits at puberty and 18 years of age (r = 0.22–0.55, p < .05). During puberty and at 18 years of age, the girls' bone traits correlated with the corresponding traits in their parents (r = 0.32–0.43, p < .01). It is concluded that familial resemblance in bone structural strength and the position of an individual's bone traits relative to others in adulthood are likely to be established during the first year of life. Thus susceptibility to bone fragility late in life has its antecedents established early in life. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research     

Similar responses in hemostatic factors after consumption of wholemeal rye bread and low-fiber wheat bread

OBJECTIVE: Both epidemiological and experimental evidence suggests a protective effect of dietary fiber against disease, such as cancer and cardiovascular disease. The effects of fiber on lipoproteins are modest, indicating that other mechanisms may be involved. As the hemostatic effects of different types of fiber are poorly known, we compared the effects of wholemeal rye bread and low-fiber wheat bread on factors related to coagulation, fibrinolysis and platelet function. DESIGN: Subjects consumed rye and wheat bread as part of their habitual diet in a cross-over manner for 4 weeks, with a 4 week washout period between the diet periods. SUBJECTS: Forty healthy subjects (18 men, 22 women), aged 43+/-2 y. RESULTS: Mean daily intake of fiber during the rye bread period was 31 g for men and 26 g for women, while the respective figures for the wheat bread period were 15 g and 12 g. However, no significant differences between the two periods were seen in factor VII coagulant activity (FVIIc), fibrinogen, prothrombin fragments 1+2 (F1+2), tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) or 2,3,-dinor-thromboxane B2. Fibrin degradation products, D-dimers, were slightly lower after the wheat period (P=0.046). CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that wheat and rye bread do not differ in their effects on coagulation, fibrinolysis or platelet function. Sponsorship: Fazer Bakeries Ltd, Lahti Finland; Vaasan & Vaasan Ltd, Helsinki, Finland.