Heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) has been implicated in infection-related processes and has been found in body fluids during infection. This study aimed to determine whether pleural mesothelial cells ...release HSP70 in response to bacterial infection in vitro and in mouse models of serosal infection. In addition, the in vitro cytokine effects of the HSP70 isoform, Hsp72, on mesothelial cells were examined. Further, Hsp72 was measured in human pleural effusions and levels compared between non-infectious and infectious patients to determine the diagnostic accuracy of pleural fluid Hsp72 compared to traditional pleural fluid parameters. We showed that mesothelial release of Hsp72 was significantly raised when cells were treated with live and heat-killed Streptococcus pneumoniae. In mice, intraperitoneal injection of S. pneumoniae stimulated a 2-fold increase in Hsp72 levels in peritoneal lavage (p<0.01). Extracellular Hsp72 did not induce or inhibit mediator release from cultured mesothelial cells. Hsp72 levels were significantly higher in effusions of infectious origin compared to non-infectious effusions (p<0.05). The data establish that pleural mesothelial cells can release Hsp72 in response to bacterial infection and levels are raised in infectious pleural effusions. The biological role of HSP70 in pleural infection warrants exploration.
Methylation analysis with probe PW71 (
D15S63) is an established procedure to test patients suspected of having Prader-Willi syndrome or Angelman syndrome. Using this test, we have identified a 28-kb ...deletion spanning
D15S63 in five independent families. Sequence analysis revealed identical breakpoints in all the families. The haplotype data are compatible with a common ancestral origin of the deletion in at least two families. The deletion was not found in 1,000 unrelated controls. Although the deletion maps within the imprinting-center region, neither maternal nor paternal inheritance of the deletion appears to affect imprinting in proximal 15q. We conclude that the deletion is a rare neutral variant that can lead to false-positive results in the PW71-methylation test.
"This handbook is geared towards the following aims: * Reviewing the state of research on disordered language perception and production in adults and children. * Describing and discussing present ...attempts at modelling human language processing by using linguistic disorders and pathologies as a data base. * Presenting diagnostic and therapeutic concepts. * Pointing out gaps and inconcistencies in current knowledge and theories. In bringing together knowlegde of different sources and disciplines under a common roof, the editors have achieved a comprehensive overview of the state of the art in the field of language pathology. Because of the diversity of the disciplines contributing to this scientific field, the chapters differ clearly in theories and methodologies. Yet this handbook represents a clear and common interdisciplinary contribution to linguistic disorders and pathologies and, furthermore, demonstrates the amount of interdisciplinary interaction still required. We chose this title in order to encompass as broadly as possible abnormalities and alterations of language perception, comprehension and production in adults and children, including nonpathological disorders. This handbook will be of interest to anybody involved with disordered language and/or language and speech disturbances, such as linguists and psychologists working in related research areas or teaching related subjects, scientists analyzing and modelling linguistic and cognitive processes (e.g. in Cognitive Psychology, Psycholinguistics, Neurolinguistics, Neuropsychology, Behavioural Neurology, Artificial Intelligence Research, and Cognitive Science), clinicians dealing with aquired or developmental language disorders, and speech pathologists and therapists. Besides presenting the state of the art, the handbook provides rich bibliographical information for research workers, clinicians, and advanced students."
fraud flourishes in bad times Temple-Cole, John; Burnham, Sally
Charter,
02/2009, Letnik:
80, Številka:
1
Trade Publication Article
The current brush with recession means that we may see a raft of financial statement fraud cases brought about by the need for self-preservation. Companies and their boards are likely to face some ...hard choices when deciding whether to commit those resources to the investigation of internal financial statement fraud cases. There has been something of a ground swell in recent months over the extent to which investors and others can rely on the accuracy of financial statements, which will no doubt heighten the call for reviews or amendments to accounting practices or standards. if organisations do not effectively close down the opportunity by ensuring internal controls are rigorous, then the prevalence of this kind of fraud is likely to increase. Those charged with the governance of an organisation face a difficult dilemma. On the one hand, expenditure on fraud investigation may be seen by some as non-essential when faced with the current restrictions on cash flow. However, failure to uncover and stem the occurrence of fraud may very well contribute to making permanent an organisation's precarious financial state.
Raised plasma levels of fibrinogen, factor VIIc, and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) are associated with an increased risk of ischemic heart disease. Levels of these proteins are determined ...in part by environmental influences such as smoking and dietary fat intake. However, genetic variation explains much of the interindividual variation in plasma levels of these proteins not accounted for by environmental factors. We previously investigated the DNA variation at the fibrinogen gene locus and showed that BclI restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) of the beta-fibrinogen gene is associated with between-person differences in plasma fibrinogen levels. This RFLP is unlikely to be the functional base change itself, since it lies downstream of the gene. The rate-limiting step in the production of the mature fibrinogen molecule in the human hepatoma cell-line HepG2 is the synthesis of the beta-polypeptide chain, which in turn is influenced by the amount of messenger (mRNA) available. One possibility is that BclI RFLP is in linkage disequilibrium with a base change in the region of the beta-gene controlling synthesis of its mRNA and ultimately of fibrinogen protein. We identified a base change in the 5'-flanking region of the beta-fibrinogen gene that is in linkage disequilibrium with the BclI RFLP, that is associated with plasma fibrinogen levels, and that may be involved in control of fibrinogen gene expression. For the factor VII gene, we identified a polymorphism, detected after Msp I digestion of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified genomic DNA, that is strongly associated with factor VII coagulant activity (factor VIIc). The base change that creates the Msp I polymorphism is a G to A substitution, leading to the replacement of arginine (Arg) with glutamine (Gln) in the protein product of the M2 allele. In a sample of 284 men from the United Kingdom the frequency of the Gln allele (M2 loss of cutting site) is 0.1, and individuals of genotype Arg/Gln have factor VIIc levels 22% below the sample mean. In this sample, the Msp I genotype was found to be the strongest predictor of factor VIIc, accounting for 20.2% of the variance, with cholesterol accounting for an additional 3.5%. Three individuals homozygous for the Gln allele had both low factor VIIc and low factor VII protein concentrations. The conformation of the factor VII Gln may be different from that of the Arg protein, affecting its intracellular processing, secretion, turnover in plasma, or activity.
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