Mutation in beta1-tubulin correlates with macrothrombocytopenia in Cavalier King Charles Spaniels.

BACKGROUND Cavalier King Charles Spaniels (CKCS) have a high prevalence of inherited macrothrombocytopenia. The purpose of this study was to determine if a mutation in beta1-tubulin correlated with presumptive inherited macrothrombocytopenia. HYPOTHESIS A mutation in beta1-tubulin results in synthesis of an altered beta1-tubulin monomer. alpha-beta tubulin dimers within microtubule protofilaments are unstable, resulting in altered megakaryocyte proplatelet formation. ANIMALS Blood samples were obtained from CKCS and non-CKCS dogs. METHODS DNA was used in polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays to evaluate beta1-tubulin. Platelet numbers and mean platelet volume (MPV) were evaluated for a correlation with the presence or absence of a mutation identified in beta1-tubulin. Platelets obtained from homozygous, heterozygous, and clear CKCS were further evaluated using electron microscopy and immunofluorescence. RESULTS A mutation in the gene encoding beta1-tubulin correlated with macrothrombocytopenia in CKCS. Electron microscopy and immunofluorescence studies suggest that platelet microtubules are present but most likely are unstable and decreased in number. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE The macrothrombocytopenia of CKCS correlated with a mutation in beta1-tubulin. alpha-beta tubulin dimers within protofilaments most likely are unstable, leading to altered proplatelet formation by megakaryocytes. This information will aid in distinguishing inherited from acquired thrombocytopenia. It also provides insight into the mechanism of platelet production by megakaryocytes, and also may prove useful in understanding heart-related changes in macrothrombocytopenic CKCS with concurrent mitral valve regurgitation.

Serological survey of Toxoplasma gondii infection in free-ranging Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) from Sweden

To investigate the prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in free-ranging Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) in Sweden, serosanguinous fluids and feces were collected from 207 carcasses of lynx killed or found dead from 1996 to 1998. Sera were tested for antibodies against T. gondii by the direct agglutination test, and 156 (75.4%) of the sera tested positive at antibody titers>or=40. Antibody prevalence was significantly lower in lynx originating from the northern parts of Sweden than in lynx from the more southern regions that are more densely populated by humans. Age-related differences also were found, with a significantly lower prevalence (55%) in juvenile (<1-yr-old) than in subadult and adult animals (82%). There was no significant difference in seroprevalence between males and females. Oocysts typical of T. gondii were not detected in any of the fecal samples.

Comparison of pre-operative dGEMRIC imaging with intra-operative findings in femoroacetabular impingement: preliminary findings

To study standard MRI and dGEMRIC in patients with symptomatic FAI undergoing surgical intervention and compare them with intra-operative findings to see if they were corroborative.

Diagnosis of endometriosis with imaging: a review

Endometriosis corresponds to ectopic endometrial glands and stroma outside the uterine cavity. Clinical symptoms include dysmenorrhoea, dyspareunia, infertility, painful defecation or cyclic urinary symptoms. Pelvic ultrasound is the primary imaging modality to identify and differentiate locations to the ovary (endometriomas) and the bladder wall. Characteristic sonographic features of endometriomas are diffuse low-level internal echos, multilocularity and hyperchoic foci in the wall. Differential diagnoses include corpus luteum, teratoma, cystadenoma, fibroma, tubo-ovarian abscess and carcinoma. Repeated ultrasound is highly recommended for unilocular cysts with low-level internal echoes to differentiate functional corpus luteum from endometriomas. Posterior locations of endometriosis include utero-sacral ligaments, torus uterinus, vagina and recto-sigmoid. Sonographic and MRI features are discussed for each location. Although ultrasound is able to diagnose most locations, its limited sensitivity for posterior lesions does not allow management decision in all patients. MRI has shown high accuracies for both anterior and posterior endometriosis and enables complete lesion mapping before surgery. Posterior locations demonstrate abnormal T2-hypointense, nodules with occasional T1-hyperintense spots and are easier to identify when peristaltic inhibitors and intravenous contrast media are used. Anterior locations benefit from the possibility of MRI urography sequences within the same examination. Rare locations and possible transformation into malignancy are discussed.

The Social Imaginary of Culture/Civilization in the Arabic Literary Tradition

Charles Taylor’s contribution to social imaginaries offers an interpretive framework for better understanding modernity as secularity. One of its main aspects is conceiving of human society in linear, homogenous time (secular time). Looking into the Arabic intellectual tradition, I will argue in my paper that Taylor’s framework can help us understand major social and intellectual transformations. The Ottoman and Arabic modernization process during the 19th century has often been understood by focusing on certain core concepts. One of these is tamaddun, usually translated as “civilization.” I will be mostly talking about the works of two “pioneers” of Arab modernity (which is traditionally referred to as an-nahḍa, the so-called Arab Renaissance): the Syrian Fransīs Marrāsh and the Egyptian Rifāʿa aṭ-Ṭahṭāwī. First I will focus on Marrāsh’s didactic novel “The Forest of Truth” (1865), as it offers a complex view of tamaddun, which has sometimes been construed as merely a social and political reform program. The category of "social imaginary,” however, is useful in grasping the wider semantic scope of this concept, which is reading it as a signifier for human history conceived of in secular time, as Taylor defines it. This conceptualization of human history functioning within the immanent frame can also be observed in the introduction to “The Extraction of Pure Gold in the Description of Paris” (1834), a systematic account of a travel experience in France that was written by the other “pioneer,” aṭ-Ṭahṭāwī. Finally, in translating tamaddun as “the modern social imaginary of civilization/culture,” the talk aims to consider this imaginary as a major factor in the emergence of the “secular age.” Furthermore, it suggests the importance of studying (quasi-) literary texts, such as historiographical, geographical, and self-narratives in the Arabic literary tradition, in order to further elaborate continuities and ruptures in social imaginaries.