A 25-year-old patient with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type II was referred due to swallowing problems related to prolonged nonoral feeding. Restriction of jaw movement, neck stiffness, absence of oral food intake, and weakness of the oropharyngeal and laryngeal muscles were considered to be the main factors contributing to the deterioration of his swallowing function. Treatment comprised exercises to improve flexibility of the neck and temporomandibular joint, tactile oral stimulation, passive and active oropharyngolaryngeal exercises, and supraglottic swallowing maneuvers. Treatment was performed for 30 min per day, three times a week, for 7 months. On initial videofluoroscopic examination, the patient was unable to safely tolerate any per-oral nutrition. After 7 months of treatment, the patient's swallowing function had improved to the extent that he was able to resume oral intake of food under supervision, and aspiration was no longer evident. These findings suggest that noninvasive treatment is a possible strategy for enhancing the swallowing function of a patient with SMA type II presenting with swallowing difficulties related to prolonged nonoral feeding.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effectiveness of tramadol for the reduction of pain in panretinal photocoagulation (PRP). METHODS: A double-masked randomized controlled study was performed. Fifty-eight eyes in 29 patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy were enrolled. The eyes of the patients were randomized into two groups. Group A received an empty capsule. Group B received an oral intake of 100 mg tramadol. The capsule used in Group A had the same appearance as that used in Group B. Pain during PRP was assessed using a visual analog scale. Vital signs, including blood pressure and heart rate, were measured. RESULTS: The mean pain scores for groups A and B were 4.80+/-2.10 and 3.83+/-1.82 (p=0.09). There were no significant differences in the mean pain scores between the two groups. More patients in group A complained of greater pain than moderate intensity (visual analogue scale=4). Systemic blood pressure increased significantly in group A after laser treatment. However, there were no significant differences in the diastolic blood pressure changes between the two groups. We found no statistical correlation in the heart rate changes. CONCLUSIONS: We failed to prove that tramadol is effective for pain relief because of the small sample size. However, tramadol was effective for the relief of more severe pain. It was also found to stabilize vital sign changes, such as systolic blood pressure during PRP.

The principal objective of the present study was to develop a multiresidue analytical method for 62 pesticides in a soil matrix. Soil samples were fortified with known quantities of pesticides at two different concentration levels (0.1 and 0.01 mug/g) and the analytes were extracted via a liquid-solid extraction method. The pesticides were separated on an HP5 capillary column and were detected by gas chromatography coupled to an electron capture detector (GC-ECD). The method was validated, considering its good linearities (r(2)= 0.978-0.999), specificity and recovery characteristics. Recoveries were found between 70.3 and 113.4% for all pesticides except edifenphos (67.5%) and dichlobenil (69.5%) spiked at a 0.1 mug/mL concentration level and 74.5-117% except ethalfluralin (63.3%) and dichlobenil (51.9%) spiked at a concentration of 0.01 mug/mL. The developed method could be utilized as a simple and cost-effective method for the routine analysis of 62 pesticides in soil samples. Copyright (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Improved global estimates of terrestrial photosynthesis and respiration are critical for predicting the rate of change in atmospheric CO(2). The oxygen isotopic composition of atmospheric CO(2) can be used to estimate these fluxes because oxygen isotopic exchange between CO(2) and water creates distinct isotopic flux signatures. The enzyme carbonic anhydrase (CA) is known to accelerate this exchange in leaves, but the possibility of CA activity in soils is commonly neglected. Here, we report widespread accelerated soil CO(2) hydration. Exchange was 10-300 times faster than the uncatalyzed rate, consistent with typical population sizes for CA-containing soil microorganisms. Including accelerated soil hydration in global model simulations modifies contributions from soil and foliage to the global CO(18)O budget and eliminates persistent discrepancies existing between model and atmospheric observations. This enhanced soil hydration also increases the differences between the isotopic signatures of photosynthesis and respiration, particularly in the tropics, increasing the precision of CO(2) gross fluxes obtained by using the delta(18)O of atmospheric CO(2) by 50%.

A series of sulfonamide-containing hydroxylated chalcone (4-7) and quinolinone (8, 9) derivatives was synthesised and tested for inhibition of the trans-sialidase from Trypanosoma cruzi (TcTS). IC(50) values for these inhibitors ranged from 0.6 to 7.3 microM, with the dihydroxylated (catechol) derivatives being the tightest binders. Full kinetic analyses of inhibition were performed for these catechol derivatives, both for the transglycosylation reaction in the presence of lactose and for the hydrolysis reaction in its absence. Competitive inhibition was seen in each case with K(i) values for 5, 7 and 9 of 2.0, 2.2 and 0.2 microM, respectively, in the absence of lactose, and 4.6, 3.7 and 0.4 microM in its presence. None of the compounds tested showed any significant inhibition of the human sialidase Neu2, at concentrations up to 200 microM.

Monodisperse Pt and PtRu/C(60) hybrid nanoparticles with controlled diameters were synthesized by the reduction of metal precursors in the presence of C(60); the resulting metal/C(60) hybrid nanocatalyst exhibited a remarkable enhancement of methanol oxidation activity over commercial E-TEK catalysts.

The purpose of the current investigation is to elucidate the pharmacokinetic profiles of orbifloxacin (OBFX) in lactating ewes (n = 6) following intravenous (i.v.) and intramuscular (i.m.) administrations of 2.5 mg/kg W. In a crossover study, frequent blood, milk, and urine samples were drawn for up to 48 h after the end of administration, and were then assayed to determine their respective drug concentrations through microbiological assay using Klebsiella pneumoniae as the test micro-organism. Plasma pharmacokinetic parameters were derived from plasma concentration-time data using a compartmental and noncompartmental analysis, and validated a relatively rapid elimination from the blood compartment, with a slope of the terminal phase of 0.21 +/- 0.02 and 0.19 +/- 0.06 per hour and a half-life of 3.16 +/- 0.43 and 3.84 +/- 0.59 h, for i.v. and i.m. dosing, respectively. OBFX was widely distributed with a volume of distribution V((d(ss))) of 1.31 +/- 0.12 L/kg, as suggested by the low percentage of protein binding (22.5%). The systemic body clearance (Cl(B)) was 0.32 +/- 0.12 L/h x kg. Following i.m. administration, the maximum plasma concentration (C(max)) of 1.53 +/- 0.34 microg/mL was reached at t(max) 1.25 +/- 0.21 h. The drug was completely absorbed after i.m. administration, with a bioavailability of 114.63 +/- 11.39%. The kinetic milk AUC(milk)/AUC(plasma) ratio indicated a wide penetration of orbifloxacin from the bloodstream to the mammary gland. OBFX urine concentrations were higher than the concurrent plasma concentrations, and were detected up to 30 h postinjection by both routes. Taken together, these findings indicate that systemic administration of orbifloxacin could be efficacious against susceptible mammary and urinary pathogens in lactating ewes.

The progress in anti-platelet therapy and percutaneous coronary intervention led to reconfigure indications of hybrid re-vascularisation. However, there are still some controversies over indication, timing and patient management during the procedure. The case discussed here is a patient who was diagnosed with myocardial infarction and treated with hybrid re-vascularisation. The patient underwent stent insertion followed by bypass surgery. After the hybrid procedure, the patient was stable but eventually died on the 12th day after the surgery owing to unexpected stent thrombosis. We discuss the current controversy over hybrid re-vascularisation, variables that can affect the outcome and the requirement for establishing accurate logistics based on our case.

TGFbeta activated kinase 1 (TAK1), a member of the MAPKKK family, controls diverse functions ranging from innate and adaptive immune system activation to vascular development and apoptosis. To analyse the in vivo function of TAK1 in cartilage, we generated mice with a conditional deletion of Tak1 driven by the collagen 2 promoter. Tak1(col2) mice displayed severe chondrodysplasia with runting, impaired formation of secondary centres of ossification, and joint abnormalities including elbow dislocation and tarsal fusion. This phenotype resembled that of bone morphogenetic protein receptor (BMPR)1 and Gdf5-deficient mice. BMPR signalling was markedly impaired in TAK1-deficient chondrocytes as evidenced by reduced expression of known BMP target genes as well as reduced phosphorylation of Smad1/5/8 and p38/Jnk/Erk MAP kinases. TAK1 mediates Smad1 phosphorylation at C-terminal serine residues. These findings provide the first in vivo evidence in a mammalian system that TAK1 is required for BMP signalling and functions as an upstream activating kinase for Smad1/5/8 in addition to its known role in regulating MAP kinase pathways. Our experiments reveal an essential role for TAK1 in the morphogenesis, growth, and maintenance of cartilage.