This study investigated the validity of the Baecke Questionnaire, the Five City Project Questionnaire, and the Tecumseh Community Health Study Questionnaire in 19 Flemish males, using correlation and multiple stepwise regression analyses. The three questionnaires are commonly used physical activity questionnaires in epidemiological studies. The physical activity level (PAL) as measured with the doubly labelled water method was used as the criterion. The Baecke total activity index showed the highest correlation coefficient with PAL (r = 0.69, p < 0.001). Also the sweat index from the Five City Project Questionnaire, and total daily energy expenditure from the Tecumseh Community Health Study Questionnaire showed significant associations with PAL, respectively 0.57 (p < 0.05) and 0.64 (p < 0.01). Multiple stepwise regression analyses supported the findings from the correlation study. The largest individual contribution in PAL was from the activity index (45%) for the Baecke Questionnaire, the sweat index (29%) for the Five City Project Questionnaire, and total daily energy expenditure (38%) for the Tecumseh Community Health Study Questionnaire. In conclusion, the questionnaires, and certainly the Baecke Questionnaire, can provide valid data about physical activity. Therefore they are useful in epidemiological studies.

Root-knot nematodes (RKN) are severe pests of maize. Although lipoxygenase (LOX) pathways and their oxylipin products have been implicated in plant-nematode interactions, prior to this report there was no conclusive genetic evidence for the function of any plant LOX gene in such interactions. We showed that expression of a maize 9-LOX gene, ZmLOX3, increased steadily and peaked at 7 days after inoculation with Meloidogyne incognita RKN. Mu-insertional lox3-4 mutants displayed increased attractiveness to RKN and an increased number of juveniles and eggs. A set of jasmonic acid (JA)- and ethylene (ET)-responsive and biosynthetic genes as well as salicylic acid (SA)-dependent genes were overexpressed specifically in the roots of lox3-4 mutants. Consistent with this, levels of JA, SA, and ET were elevated in lox3-4 mutant roots, but not in leaves. Unlike wild types, in lox3-4 mutant roots, a phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) gene was not RKN-inducible, suggesting a role for PAL-mediated metabolism in nematode resistance. In addition to these alterations in the defense status of roots, lox3-4 knockout mutants displayed precocious senescence and reduced root length and plant height compared with the wild type, suggesting that ZmLOX3 is required for normal plant development. Taken together, our data indicate that the ZmLOX3-mediated pathway may act as a root-specific suppressor of all three major defense signaling pathways to channel plant energy into growth processes, but is required for normal levels of resistance against nematodes.

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes four proteins, Msh1, Msh2, Msh3, Msh4, that show strong amino acid sequence similarity to MutS, a central component of the bacterial mutHLS mismatch repair system. MutS has been shown to recognize base pair mismatches in DNA in vitro. Previous studies have suggested that Msh2 is the major mismatch recognition protein in yeast. In this study, the 109-kD Msh2 polypeptide was overexpressed and purified to analyze its DNA-binding properties. This analysis demonstrated that Msh2 can bind selectively to duplex oligonucleotide substrates containing a G/T mismatch, 1- to 14-nucleotide insertion mismatches, and palindromic (12- to 14-nucleotide) insertion mismatches. A general trend was that the affinity of Msh2 for substrate was proportional to the size of the insertion mispair present (+14 PAL, +12 PAL>> +14>> +8>> GT, +6, +4, +2, +1). Kinetic studies indicated that the specificity of Msh2 to mismatch substrates was a function of its ability to form stable complexes with mispair-containing duplex DNAs. These complexes decayed more slowly than Msh2 complexes formed with homoduplex DNA.

OBJECTIVE

Accelerometers are promising tools for characterizing physical activity (PA) patterns in free-living persons. To date, validation of energy expenditure (EE) predictions from accelerometers has been restricted to short laboratory or simulated free-living protocols. This study seeks to determine the capabilities of eight previously published regression equations for three commercially available accelerometers to predict summary measures of daily EE.

METHODS

Study participants were outfitted with ActiGraph, Actical, and RT3 accelerometers, while measurements were simultaneously made during overnight stays in a room calorimeter, which provided minute-by-minute EE measurements, in a diverse subject population (n = 85). Regression equations for each device were used to predict the minute-by-minute metabolic equivalents (METs) along with the daily PA level (PAL).

RESULTS

Two RT3 regressions and one ActiGraph regression were not significantly different from calorimeter measured PAL. When data from the entire visit were divided into four intensity categories-sedentary, light, moderate, and vigorous-significant (P < 0.001) over- and underpredictions were detected in numerous regression equations and intensity categories.

CONCLUSIONS

Most EE prediction equations showed differences of <2% in the moderate and vigorous intensity categories. These differences, though small in magnitude, may limit the ability of these regressions to accurately characterize whether specific PA goals have been met in the field setting. New regression equations should be developed if more accurate prediction of the daily PAL or higher precision in determining the time spent in specific PA intensity categories is desired.

Nitric oxide (NO) has been postulated to be required, together with reactive oxygen species (ROS), for the activation of the hypersensitive reaction, a defense response induced in the noncompatible plant-pathogen interaction. However, its involvement in activating programmed cell death (PCD) in plant cells has been questioned. In this paper, the involvement of the cellular antioxidant metabolism in the signal transduction triggered by these bioactive molecules has been investigated. NO and ROS levels were singularly or simultaneously increased in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum cv Bright-Yellow 2) cells by the addition to the culture medium of NO and/or ROS generators. The individual increase in NO or ROS had different effects on the studied parameters than the simultaneous increase in the two reactive species. NO generation did not cause an increase in phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) activity or induction of cellular death. It only induced minor changes in ascorbate (ASC) and glutathione (GSH) metabolisms. An increase in ROS induced oxidative stress in the cells, causing an oxidation of the ASC and GSH redox pairs; however, it had no effect on PAL activity and did not induce cell death when it was generated at low concentrations. In contrast, the simultaneous increase of NO and ROS activated a process of death with the typical cytological and biochemical features of hypersensitive PCD and a remarkable rise in PAL activity. Under the simultaneous generation of NO and ROS, the cellular antioxidant capabilities were also suppressed. The involvement of ASC and GSH as part of the transduction pathway leading to PCD is discussed.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate under- and overreporting and their determinants in the EPIC 24-hour diet recall (24-HDR) measurements collected in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC).

METHODS

Cross-sectional analysis. 24-HDR measurements were obtained by means of a standardised computerised interview program (EPIC-SOFT). The ratio of reported energy intake (EI) to estimated basal metabolic rate (BMR) was used to ascertain the magnitude, impact and determinants of misreporting. Goldberg's cut-off points were used to identify participants with physiologically extreme low or high energy intake. At the aggregate level the value of 1.55 for physical activity level (PAL) was chosen as reference. At the individual level we used multivariate statistical techniques to identify factors that could explain EI/BMR variability. Analyses were performed by adjusting for weight, height, age at recall, special diet, smoking status, day of recall (weekday vs. weekend day) and physical activity.

METHODS

Twenty-seven redefined centres in the 10 countries participating in the EPIC project.

METHODS

In total, 35 955 men and women, aged 35-74 years, participating in the nested EPIC calibration sub-studies.

RESULTS

While overreporting has only a minor impact, the percentage of subjects identified as extreme underreporters was 13.8% and 10.3% in women and men, respectively. Mean EI/BMR values in men and women were 1.44 and 1.36 including all subjects, and 1.50 and 1.44 after exclusion of misreporters. After exclusion of misreporters, adjusted EI/BMR means were consistently less than 10% different from the expected value of 1.55 for PAL (except for women in Greece and in the UK), with overall differences equal to 4.0% and 7.4% for men and women, respectively. We modelled the probability of being an underreporter in association with several individual characteristics. After adjustment for age, height, special diet, smoking status, day of recall and physical activity at work, logistic regression analyses resulted in an odds ratio (OR) of being an underreporter for the highest vs. the lowest quartile of body mass index (BMI) of 3.52 (95% confidence interval (CI) 2.91-4.26) in men and 4.80 (95% CI 4.11-5.61) in women, indicating that overweight subjects are significantly more likely to underestimate energy intake than subjects in the bottom BMI category. Older people were less likely to underestimate energy intake: ORs were 0.58 (95% CI 0.45-0.77) and 0.74 (95% CI 0.63-0.88) for age >> or =65 years vs. <50 years). Special diet and day of the week showed strong effects.

CONCLUSIONS

EI tends to be underestimated in the vast majority of the EPIC centres, although to varying degrees; at the aggregate level most centres were below the expected reference value of 1.55. Underreporting seems to be more prevalent among women than men in the EPIC calibration sample. The hypothesis that BMI (or weight) and age are causally related to underreporting seems to be confirmed in the present work. This introduces further complexity in the within-group (centre or country) and between-group calibration of dietary questionnaire measurements to deattenuate the diet-disease relationship.

Cell wall apposition (CWA) formation is one of the first lines of defence used by plants to halt invading fungi such as powdery mildew. Lignin is a complex polymer of hydroxylated and methoxylated phenylpropane units (monolignols) and lignification renders the cell wall more resistant to pathogen attack. The role of monolignol biosynthesis in CWA-mediated defence against powdery mildew penetration into cereals is demonstrated here using RNA interference (RNAi)-mediated gene silencing and enzyme-specific inhibitors. Thirteen cDNAs representing eight genes involved in monolignol biosynthesis were cloned from an expression sequence tag (EST) library derived from the epidermis of diploid wheat (Triticum monococcum) infected with Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici (Bgt). Differential expression patterns were found for these genes in susceptible and resistant plants after infection. Transcripts of phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), caffeic acid O-methyltransferase (CAOMT), ferulic acid hydroxylase (FAH), caffeoyl-CoA O-methyltransferase (CCoAMT), and cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) were accumulated, particularly in the epidermis. RNAi-mediated transient gene silencing in the epidermis led to a higher penetration efficiency of Bgt than in the controls. Gene silencing also compromised penetration resistance to varying degrees with different genes against an inappropriate pathogen, B. graminis f. sp. hordei (Bgh). Co-silencing led to greater penetration of Bgt or Bgh than when the genes were silenced separately. Fluorescence emission spectra analyses revealed that gene silencing hampered host autofluorescence response at fungal contact sites. These results illustrate that monolignol biosynthesis is critically important for host defence against both appropriate and inappropriate pathogen invasion in wheat.

Haemophilus ducreyi expresses a peptidoglycan-associated lipoprotein (PAL) that exhibits extensive homology to Haemophilus influenzae protein 6. We constructed an isogenic PAL mutant (35000HP-SMS4) by the use of a suicide vector that contains lacZ as a counterselectable marker. H. ducreyi 35000HP-SMS4 and its parent, 35000HP, had similar growth rates in broth and similar lipooligosaccharide profiles. 35000HP-SMS4 formed smaller, more transparent colonies than 35000HP and, unlike its parent, was hypersensitive to antibiotics. Complementation of the mutant in trans restored the parental phenotypes. To test whether expression of PAL is required for virulence, nine human volunteers were experimentally infected. Each subject was inoculated with two doses (41 to 89 CFU) of live 35000HP and one dose of heat-killed bacteria on one arm and with three doses (ranging from 28 to 800 CFU) of live 35000HP-SMS4 on the other arm. Papules developed at similar rates at sites inoculated with the mutant or parent but were significantly smaller at mutant-inoculated sites than at parent-inoculated sites. The pustule formation rate was 72% (95% confidence interval [CI], 46.5 to 90.3%) at 18 parent sites and 11% (95% CI, 2.4 to 29.2%) at 27 mutant sites (P < 0.0001). The rates of recovery of H. ducreyi from surface cultures were 8% (n = 130; 95% CI, 4.3 to 14.6%) for parent-inoculated sites and 0% (n = 120; 95% CI, 0.0 to 2.5%) for mutant-inoculated sites (P < 0.001). H. ducreyi was recovered from six of seven biopsied parent-inoculated sites and from one of three biopsied mutant-inoculated sites. Confocal microscopy confirmed that the bacteria present in a mutant inoculation site pustule lacked a PAL-specific epitope. Although biosafety regulations precluded our testing the complemented mutant in humans, these results suggest that expression of PAL facilitates the ability of H. ducreyi to progress to the pustular stage of disease.

Pharmacological evidence implicates trans-cinnamic acid as a feedback modulator of the expression and enzymatic activity of the first enzyme in the phenylpropanoid pathway, L-phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL). To test this hypothesis independently of methods that utilize potentially non-specific inhibitors, we generated transgenic tobacco lines with altered activity levels of the second enzyme of the pathway, cinnamic acid 4-hydroxylase (C4H), by sense or antisense expression of an alfalfa C4H cDNA. PAL activity and levels of phenylpropanoid compounds were reduced in leaves and stems of plants in which C4H activity had been genetically down-regulated. However, C4H activity was not reduced in plants in which PAL activity had been down-regulated by gene silencing. In crosses between a tobacco line over-expressing PAL from a bean PAL transgene and a C4H antisense line, progeny populations harboring both the bean PAL sense and C4H antisense transgenes had significantly lower extractable PAL activity than progeny populations harboring the PAL transgene alone. Our data provide genetic evidence for a feedback loop at the entry point into the phenylpropanoid pathway that had previously been inferred from potentially artifactual pharmacological experiments.

OBJECTIVE

Prolonged air leak (PAL) after pulmonary surgery is a frequent occurrence and is reported to cause increased length of stay (LOS) and hospital costs although the costs directly attributable to PAL have never been published. The present study aims to compare the prevalence of pulmonary complications (atelectasis, pneumonia and pleural empyema) in patients with or without PAL and to quantify economic costs directly incurred by PAL in a series of pulmonary lobectomies.

METHODS

A series of 238 patients scheduled for pulmonary lobectomy (January 2001-December 2003) have been reviewed. PAL was defined as air leakage which prevented hospital discharge for 5 postoperative days or over. Hospital costs (excluding operating room) for pulmonary lobectomies have been obtained and calculated as mean daily costs. Age, body mass index, diagnosis, Charlson co-morbidity index, ppoFEV1 and major post-operative cardio-pulmonary morbidity have been used to construct a Cox-regression model for hospital stay, considering deaths as censored cases. Individual risk function has been used as a new variable and expected LOS calculated for each case. This data has been used to estimate total excess hospital stay and costs incurred by cases with PAL.

RESULTS

Prevalence of PAL was 23 cases (9, 7%). Mean daily hospital cost for lobectomy was 632.49. For the whole series, mean hospital stay was 5 days (10 days for patients with PAL). PAL cases had more postoperative pulmonary morbidity (risk-ratio: 2.78). Variables showing independent influence on stay were: diagnosis of non-malignant disease (P=0.001); FEV1ppo (P=0.032) and cardio-respiratory morbidity (P<0.001). Calculated total excess stay for PAL patients was 62 days. A total expense of 39,437.39 (38,724.96 hospital and 712.43 pharmacy charges) were estimated to result from postoperative air-leak.

CONCLUSIONS

PAL patients are prone to developing major postoperative morbidity. PAL calculated costs are over 13,000 per year. This data is useful for designing technical cost-effective strategies to avoid post-lobectomy PAL.

OBJECTIVE

To estimate the total (CVt), within-subject (CVw) and between-subject (CVb) variation in free-living energy expenditure as measured by the doubly-labelled water (DLW) technique. To examine the limitation of the DLW measurement of energy expenditure for evaluating reported energy intake. To estimate the probable minimum and maximum 'habitual' energy expenditures for a sustainable lifestyle.

METHODS

Review and analysis of individual data from 25 studies with repeat DLW measurements of energy expenditure (EE).

RESULTS

Pooled mean CVw derived from 21 studies was 11.8% for EE and 12.3% for physical activity level (PAL). Multiple regression analysis of CVw in 25 studies found a positive association with time span between measurements. At zero time CVw for EE was 8.2% rising to 9.6% at 13 weeks and 15.4% at 52 weeks. At the same time points CVw for PAL was 9.1%, 10.0% and 13.4% respectively. Pooled mean CVt was 13.0% for EE and 10.7% for PAL. CVb calculated from pooled mean CVt and CVw was 20.6% for EE and 7.2% for PAL. 95% confidence limits of PAL in 11 age-sex groups averaged 1.2 to 2.2.

CONCLUSIONS

The analysis supported previous estimates of 8% for within-subject variation in DLW measurements including analytic plus inherent biologic variation. Variation that included changes in weight, season and activity increased with increased time between measurements to about 15% at a time span of 12 months. Confidence limits of agreement between EE and reported energy intake were estimated to range from +/-15% to +/-32%. Estimates of the range of usual EE for normally active persons ranged from 1.3 to 2.2.

By labeling cells heavily with [3H]glycerol or [3H]-palmitic acid several new species of lipoproteins, in addition to Braun's lipoprotein and a peptidoglycan-associated lipoprotein called PAL, were found in the envelope of Escherichia coli. The new lipoproteins were immunochemically different from both Braun's lipoprotein and PAL. A strain lacking the structural gene for Braun's lipoprotein contained new lipoproteins and PAL. In addition to Braun's lipoprotein and PAL, four new lipoproteins were found to be localized in the outer membrane, while other two species were found in the cytoplasmic membrane. The localization of one species is unknown. We previously reported that, on treatment of cells with globomycin, a precursor of Braun's lipoprotein accumulated in the cell envelope (Hussain, M., Ichihara, S., and Mizushima, S. (1980) J. Biol. Chem. 255, 3707-3712). Similarly, the putative precursors of new lipoproteins and that of PAL accumulated in globomycin-treated cells. These precursors contained glycerol and fatty acid(s) as that of Braun's lipoprotein did. It is suggested that the structures of the "signal" region and the mechanisms of processing of all the lipoproteins of E. coli are similar.

Transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) plants overexpressing the enzyme L-phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL; EC 4.3.1.5) were grown from seeds of a primary transformant containing the bean PALPAL genes. Analysis of endogenous and transgene-encoded PAL transcripts and protein in the primary transformant (T0) and first-generation (T1) overexpressor plants indicated that the transgene-encoded PAL is the cause of the greater than wild-type levels of PAL activity (up to 5- and 2-fold greater in leaf and stem tissue, respectively) in the T1 plants. Leaves of PAL-overexpressing plants contained increased levels of the hydroxycinnamic acid ester chlorogenic acid but not of the flavonoid rutin, indicating that PAL is the key control point for flux into chlorogenic acid. In addition, levels of the glucoside of 4-coumaric acid increased in the overexpressing plants, suggesting that the 4-coumarate:coenzyme A ligase or coumarate hydroxylase reactions might have become limiting. These results help to define the regulatory architecture of the phenylpropanoid pathway and indicate the possibility of engineering-selective changes in this complex metabolic pathway by overexpression of a single early pathway gene.

BACKGROUND

Platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) is considered a second-generation platelet concentrate that is widely used in osseous regeneration. The present study aims to explore the clinical and radiographic effectiveness of autologous PRF in the treatment of intrabony defects in patients with chronic periodontitis.

METHODS

Fifty-six intrabony defects were treated with either autologous PRF with open-flap debridement or open-flap debridement alone. Clinical parameters such as the probing depth (PD) and periodontal attachment level (PAL) were recorded at baseline and 9 months postoperatively. The defect fill at baseline and 9 months was calculated on standardized radiographs by using image-analysis software.

RESULTS

The mean PD reduction was greater in the test group (4.55 ± 1.87 mm) than in the control group (3.21 ± 1.64 mm), whereas the mean PAL gain was also greater in the test group (3.31 ± 1.76) compared to the control group (2.77 ± 1.44 mm). Furthermore, a significantly greater percentage of mean bone fill was found in the test group (48.26% ± 5.72%) compared to the control group (1.80% ± 1.56%).

CONCLUSIONS

Within the limits of the present study, there was greater PD reduction, PAL gain, and bone fill at sites treated with PRF with conventional open-flap debridement compared to conventional open-flap debridement alone. However, a long-term, multicentered randomized controlled clinical trial is required to know the clinical and radiographic effects of PRF on bone regeneration.

In this report, we demonstrate that, in contrast to most previously characterized nuclear receptors, hERR1 and hERR2 (human estrogen receptor-related protein 1 and -2) are constitutive activators of the classic estrogen response element (ERE) as well as the palindromic thyroid hormone response element (TRE(pal)) but not the glucocorticoid response element (GRE). This intrinsically activated state of hERR1 and hERR2 resides in the ligand-binding domains of the two genes and is transferable to a heterologous receptor. In addition, we show that members of the p160 family of nuclear receptor coactivators, ACTR (activator of thyroid and retinoic acid receptors), GRIP1 (glucocorticoid receptor interacting protein 1), and SRC-1 (steroid receptor coactivator 1), potentiate the transcriptional activity by hERR1 and hERR2 in mammalian cells, and that both orphan receptors bind the coactivators in a ligand-independent manner. Together, these results suggest that hERR1 and hERR2 activate gene transcription through a mechanism different from most of the previously characterized steroid hormone receptors.

Nitric oxide (NO) has recently emerged as an important cellular mediator in plant defense responses. However, elucidation of the biochemical mechanisms by which NO participates in this signaling pathway is still in its infancy. We previously demonstrated that cryptogein, an elicitor of tobacco defense responses, triggers a NO burst within minutes in epidermal sections from tobacco leaves (Nicotiana tabacum cv Xanthi). Here, we investigate the signaling events that mediate NO production, and analyze NO signaling activities in the cryptogein transduction pathway. Using flow cytometry and spectrofluorometry, we observed that cryptogein-induced NO production in tobacco cell suspensions is sensitive to nitric oxide synthase inhibitors and may be catalyzed by variant P, a recently identified pathogen-inducible plant nitric oxide synthase. NO synthesis is tightly regulated by a signaling cascade involving Ca2+ influx and phosphorylation events. Using tobacco cells constitutively expressing the Ca2+ reporter apoaequorin in the cytosol, we have shown that NO participates in the cryptogein-mediated elevation of cytosolic free Ca2+ through the mobilization of Ca2+ from intracellular stores. The NO donor diethylamine NONOate promoted an increase in cytosolic free Ca2+ concentration, which was sensitive to intracellular Ca2+ channel inhibitors. Moreover, NO appears to be involved in the pathway(s) leading to the accumulation of transcripts encoding the heat shock protein TLHS-1, the ethylene-forming enzyme cEFE-26, and cell death. In contrast, NO does not act upstream of the elicitor-induced activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase, the opening of anion channels, nor expression of GST, LOX-1, PAL, and PR-3 genes. Collectively, our data indicate that NO is intimately involved in the signal transduction processes leading to cryptogein-induced defense responses.

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether sleep timing behaviour is associated with energy intake and diet quality in children and adolescents.

METHODS

Cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative survey data.

METHODS

A total of 2200 participants of the 2007 Australian National Children's Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey aged 9-16 years with 2 days of food intake data, 4 days of use of time data and complete anthropometry. Participants were grouped into one of four sleep-wake behaviour categories: early bed-early rise (EE); early bed-late rise (EL); late bed-early rise (LE) and late bed-late rise (LL). The four categories were compared for body mass index (BMI) z-score, energy intake and diet quality assessed using the Dietary Guideline Index for Children and Adolescents. Analyses were adjusted for survey design, sociodemographic characteristics, sleep duration and physical activity level (PAL).

RESULTS

In adjusted multivariate regression models with sleep timing behaviour group as the independent variable, the 'LL' category compared with the 'EE' category had a higher BMI z-score (β=0.20, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.06 to 0.34, P=0.007), and lower diet quality (β=-4.0, 95% CI -5.7 to -2.3, P<0.001). Children and adolescents who went to bed late also had a higher intake of extra foods (that is, energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods) while those whom went to bed early consumed more fruit and vegetables. Energy intake was associated with sleep duration (β=-4.5 kJ, 95% CI -6.7 to -2.4, P<0.001), but not sleep timing behaviour.

CONCLUSIONS

Late bedtimes and late wake up times are associated with poorer diet quality, independent of sleep duration, PAL and child and sociodemographic characteristics.

DNA sequences belonging to the recently discovered Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), now provisionally designated human herpesvirus 8, have been previously identified in an uncommonly occurring subset of AIDS-related lymphomas, referred to as body-cavity-based lymphomas (BCBLs), which present as lymphomatous effusions. Pyothorax-associated lymphomas (PALS) are non-Hodgkin's lymphomas that arise in the pleural cavity after long-standing pleural inflammation resulting from therapeutic artificial pneumothorax or from tuberculosis pleuritis. Although PALs present as solid tumor masses, they are otherwise similar to BCBLs in that they also are B cell lymphomas, usually exhibit immunoblastic morphology, and contain Epstein-Barr virus. We investigated whether KSHV sequences are present in 2 BCBLs in patients without AIDS and 12 in Japanese and 2 French PALs. The 2 BCBLs were positive for KSHV sequences, whereaas all 14 PALs were KSHV negative. This finding strongly suggests that BCBLs and PALs are distinct clinicopathological entities and further strengthens the association between the presence of KSHV and an effusion phenotype. Based on these findings, we propose replacing the term body-cavity-based lymphoma with the term primary effusion lymphoma, which describes these non-Hodgkin's lymphomas more accurately and avoids confusion with other lymphomas that may occur in the body cavities, such as the PALs.

The Tol-Pal proteins of Escherichia coli are involved in maintaining outer membrane integrity. Transmembrane domains of TolQ, TolR and TolA interact in the cytoplasmic membrane, while TolB and Pal form a complex near the outer membrane. TolB and the central domain of TolA interact in vitro with the outer membrane porins. In this study, both genetic and biochemical analyses were carried out to analyse the links between TolB, Pal and other components of the cell envelope. It was shown that TolB could be cross-linked in vivo with Pal, OmpA and Lpp, while Pal was associated with TolB and OmpA. The isolation of pal and tolB mutants disrupting some interactions between these proteins represents at first approach to characterizing the residues contributing to the interactions. We propose that TolB and Pal are part of a multiprotein complex that links the peptidoglycan to the outer membrane. The Tol-Pal proteins might form transenvelope complexes that bring the two membranes into close proximity and help some outer membrane components to reach their final destination.

This study compared the high school academic experience of adolescents with and without childhood ADHD using data from the Pittsburgh ADHD Longitudinal Study (PALS). Participants were 326 males with childhood ADHD and 213 demographically similar males without ADHD who were recruited at the start of the follow-up study. Data were collected yearly from parents, teachers and schools. The current study used assessment points at which the participants were currently in or had recently completed grades 9, 10, 11, and 12. Results indicated that adolescents with ADHD experienced significant academic impairment in high school relative to comparison adolescents, including lower overall and main academic subject grade point averages (GPA), lower levels of class placement (e.g. remedial vs. honors), and higher rates of course failure. In addition, teacher reports indicated that adolescents with ADHD completed and turned in a significantly lower percentage of assignments and were significantly less likely to be working up to their potential. Adolescents with ADHD were also significantly more likely to be absent or tardy during the academic year, and they were over eight times more likely than adolescents without ADHD to drop out of high school. These findings demonstrate that children with ADHD continue to experience severe academic impairment into high school.

In patients with severe mitral regurgitation (MR) referred for cardiac surgery, left atrial (LA) remodeling and enlargement are accompanied by mechanical stress, mediated cellular hypertrophy, and interstitial fibrosis that finally lead to LA failure. Speckle tracking echocardiography is a novel non-Doppler-based method that allows an objective quantification of LA myocardial deformation, becoming useful for LA functional analysis. We conducted a study to evaluate the relation between the traditional and novel atrial indexes and the extent of ultrastructural alterations, obtained from patients with severe MR who were undergoing surgical correction of the valvular disease. The study population included 46 patients with severe MR, referred to our echocardiographic laboratory for a diagnostic examination before cardiac surgery. The global peak atrial longitudinal strain (PALS) was measured in all subjects by averaging all atrial segments. LA tissue samples were obtained from all patients. Masson's trichrome staining was performed to assess the extent of the fibrosis. The LA endocardial thickness was measured. A close negative correlation between the global PALS and grade of LA myocardial fibrosis was found (r = -0.82, p <0.0001), with poorer correlations for the LA indexed volume (r = 0.51, p = 0.01), LA ejection fraction (r = 0.61, p = 0.005), and E/E' ratio (0.14, p = NS). Of these indexes, global PALS showed the best diagnostic accuracy to detect LA fibrosis (area under the curve 0.89), and it appears to be a strong and independent predictor of LA fibrosis. Furthermore, we also demonstrated an inverse correlation between the global PALS and LA endocardial thickness (r = -0.66, p = 0.0001). In conclusion, in patients with severe MR referred for cardiac surgery, impairment of LA longitudinal deformation, as assessed by the global PALS, correlated strongly with the extent of LA fibrosis and remodeling.

Insertional mutagenesis with Moloney murine leukemia virus (MoMLV) in c-myc and Pim-1 transgenic mice permits the identification of oncogenes that collaborate with the transgenes in lymphomagenesis. The recently identified common insertion site pal-1, in MoMLV-induced lymphomas, is located in a region in which several independent integration clusters are found: eis-1, gfi-1, and evi-5. Proviral insertions of MoMLV in the different integration clusters upregulate the transcriptional activity of the Gfi-1 gene, which is located within the pal-1 locus. The eis-1/pal-1/gfi-1/evi-5 locus serves as a target for MoMLV proviral insertions in pre-B-cell lymphomas of Emu-myc transgenic mice (20%) and in T-cell lymphomas of H-2K-myc (75%) and Emu-pim-1 (93%) transgenic mice. Many tumors overexpress both Gfi-1 as well as Myc and Pim gene family members, indicating that Gfi-1 collaborates with Myc and Pim in lymphomagenesis. Proviral integrations in the previously identified insertion site bmi-1 are, however, mutually exclusive with integrations in the eis-1/pal-1/gfi-1/evi-5 locus. This finding suggests that Bmi-1 and Gfi-1 belong to the same complementation group in lymphoid transformation.

FtsN is the last known essential protein component to be recruited to the Escherichia coli divisome, and has several special properties. Here we report the isolation of suppressor mutants of ftsA that allow viability in the absence of ftsN. Cells producing the FtsA suppressors exhibited a mild cell division deficiency in the absence of FtsN, and no obvious phenotype in its presence. Remarkably, these altered FtsA proteins also could partially suppress a deletion of ftsK or zipA, were less toxic than wild-type FtsA when in excess, and conferred resistance to excess MinC, indicating that they share some properties with the previously isolated FtsA* suppressor mutant, and bypass the need for ftsN by increasing the integrity of the Z ring. TolA, which normally requires FtsN for its recruitment to the divisome, localized proficiently in the suppressed ftsN null strain, strongly suggesting that FtsN does not recruit the Tol-Pal complex directly. Therefore, despite its classification as a core divisome component, FtsN has no unique essential function but instead promotes overall Z ring integrity. The results strongly suggest that FtsA is conformationally flexible, and this flexibility is a key modulator of divisome function at all stages.

Infection of potato leaves with the fungal pathogen Phytophthora infestans (Pi) resulted in the rapid stimulation of phenylpropanoid metabolism. Increases in the activities of several mRNAs, including those encoding phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) and 4-coumarate:CoA ligase (4CL), were detectable within a few hours postinoculation, as demonstrated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of proteins synthesized in vitro. This effect was closely mimicked by application of Pi culture filtrate through cut leaf stems. PAL and 4CL mRNA activities were also rapidly and transiently induced in potato cell suspension cultures by treatments with Pi culture filtrate or arachidonic acid. This induction was exploited to generate cDNA probes complementary to PAL and 4CL mRNAs. Blot hybridizations using these probes revealed almost immediate, transient and coordinate increases in the transcription rates and subsequent changes in the amounts of PAL and 4CL mRNAs in leaves treated with Pi culture filtrate. Similar changes in the mRNA amounts were found in infected leaves of potato cultivars carrying resistance genes R1 (cv Datura) or R4 (cv Isola), independent of whether a virulent or an avirulent Pi pathotype was used for inoculation. These results are discussed in relation to recent cytological observations with the same potato cultivars and Pi pathotypes.