Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) maintains basal endothelial barrier function and limits increases in endothelial permeability by inflammatory mediators. We found that endothelial specific deletion of FAK ...in mice markedly increased leukocyte infiltration and pulmonary inflammation indicative of acute lung injury (ALI). The involvement of microRNAs in human diseases is fast getting recognized and they represent a novel class of targets for therapeutic and diagnostic development. We therefore hypothesized a possible role of microRNAs in anti‐inflammatory response downstream of FAK. MicroRNA profiling from endothelial cell specific FAK null lungs (EC‐FAK) showed significant down regulation of miR‐150. A similar down‐regulation of miR‐150 expression was observed upon knockdown of FAK by siRNA and also by using miR‐150 inhibitor in human pulmonary arterial endothelial cells (HPAEC). Target prediction identified interleukin‐1R‐associated kinase‐2 (IRAK2) as one of the top and noteworthy candidates of miR‐150. IRAK2 has recently emerged as a critical mediator of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and Interleukin‐1 (IL‐1) induced inflammation. We showed that IRAK2 expression is increased markedly at both mRNA and protein levels in FAK knock down HPAEC or EC‐FAK null lungs. Inhibition of miR‐150 also induced IRAK2 expression. Our results indicate that FAK induces miR‐150 expression to suppress IRAK2 expression and ensuing pulmonary inflammation.
Vertex is a Wrapper Induction system developed at Yahoo! for extracting structured records from template-based Web pages. To operate at Web scale, Vertex employs a host of novel algorithms for (1) ...Grouping similar structured pages in a Web site, (2) Picking the appropriate sample pages for wrapper inference, (3) Learning XPath-based extraction rules that are robust to variations in site structure, (4) Detecting site changes by monitoring sample pages, and (5) Optimizing editorial costs by reusing rules, etc. The system is deployed in production and currently extracts more than 250 million records from more than 200 Web sites. To the best of our knowledge, Vertex is the first system to do high-precision information extraction at Web scale.
Clinical chorioamnionitis can result either from the ascending organisms from vagina after rupture of membranes or via the blood stream. This report describes a case of chorioamnionitis caused by ...Arcanobacterium haemolyticum, an unusual organism associated with this infection. A 19-year-old primigravida at 32 weeks of gestation presented with the complaints of fever, pain in the abdomen, and discharge per vaginum for the past 2 days. Watery, odorless, colorless, and discharge passing intermittently were noticed. A. haemolyticum was isolated from amniotic fluid. Upon induction, a healthy male baby weighing 1.9 kg was delivered. The patient was started on gentamicin and metronidazole for 8 days. Recovery was uneventful. The mother and baby were discharged on ninth day. Chorioamnionitis can result in significant maternal and fetal mortality and morbidity. Hence, it is important to ascertain the prompt diagnosis and treatment of suspected cases. Increase in awareness of clinicians and laboratories will reduce misdiagnosis and facilitate appropriate treatment.
Acute intermittent porphyria (AIP), the most common and the most severe
form of acute hepatic porphyria, is an autosomal dominant condition. It
results from lower-than-normal levels (less than 50%) ...of
porphobilinogen (PBG) deaminase. Patients may present commonly with
gastrointestinal complaints and neuropsychiatric manifestations.
Diagnosis may be confirmed with the presence of intermediary
metabolites of haem synthesis, amino levulinic acid (ALA) and PBG in
urine or with specific enzyme assays. Abdominal pain is the most common
symptom (90%). Peripheral polyneuropathy, primarily motor with flaccid
paresis of proximal musculature, with or without autonomic involvement,
is characteristic. Respiratory failure necessitates ventilator and
intensive care support. Avoidance of precipitating factors and the use
of haem preparations and intravenous dextrose form the basis of
management. Gabapentin and propofol, rather than the conventional
antiepileptics appear to be the appropriate choice for seizure control.
Here, we present intensive care management of four cases of AIP with
varying clinical presentation.
Metachromatic leukodystrophy is a progressive, inherited and neurodegenerative disease. A patient suffering from this disease poses a lot of anaesthetic problems. We have successfully anaesthetized a ...female child with general anaesthesia who was suffering from metabolic leukodystrophy.
La leucodistrofia metacromática es una enfermedad progresiva hereditaria y neurodegenerativa. Un paciente que sufre de esta enfermedad representa múltiples problemas anestésicos. Hemos anestesiado exitosamente una niña que sufre de leucodistrofia metacromática con anestesia general.
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