Unexpected left ventricular free-wall rupture following an aortic catheter-valve implantation.

Our experience with the Sapien trans-apical aortic valve (Edwards Lifesciences Inc., Irvine, CA, USA) has been straightforward without per-procedural mortality except in 1/16 consecutive cases who developed non-apical haemorrhage early after valve implantation. We describe the case of an 84-year-old female carrying a very high operative risk (logistic EuroScore of 44%), who underwent a trans-apical stent-valve implantation for severe and symptomatic aortic valve stenosis (23 mm). Due to massive blood loss, an emergency sternotomy and cannulation for cardiopulmonary bypass resuscitation were necessary to treat (without success) an unusual and unexpected subaortic left ventricular free-wall rupture that occurred few minutes after the stent-valve positioning and implantation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first described case of a left ventricular free-wall rupture occurring after an otherwise non-complicated standard catheter-based aortic valve replacement.

Anàlisi i resolució de puzzles

Aquest projecte és una anàlisi d'algunes tècniques de reconeixement d'objectes en 2D, la seva comparació i equivalència. La solució presentada en aquesta memòria ha estat implementada en C++ per a poder avaluar els resultats així com les diferents problemàtiques aparegudes durant tot el procés. La resolució de puzzles és tan sols un exemple dels múltiples casos d'objectes bidimensionals que ens podem trobar que necessiten tècniques de matching per obtenir un objecte global.

Extracció del mapa de profunditat a partir d'una seqüència d'imatges

Aquest projecte resol les fases inicials d'un altre projecte més gran que té com a objectiu la conversió automàtica de seqüències d'imatges a 3D. El projecte s'ha centrat en la reconstrucció calibrada de col·leccions d'imatges mitjançant la tècnica anomenada structure from motion. Aquesta tècnica forma part de l'àmbit de la visió per computador i s'utilitza per obtenir la posició i l'orientació de les diferents càmeres juntament amb una reconstrucció 3D de l'escena en forma de núvol de punts.

Las Bodegas españolas y su adaptación a los cambios del mercado a finales del siglo XX: análisis lingüístico de la publicidad

El sector vitivinícola español ha experimentado una serie de transformaciones en los últimos años, especialmente derivada de la caída del consumo interno y la creciente competencia en los mercados. Esto ha provocado que las bodegas españolas tuvieran que adaptarse a las nuevas circunstancias mediante la aplicación de modernas políticas de marketing. El objetivo principal del estudio es conocer el grado de aplicación de éstas, mediante la comparación y el análisis lingüístico de distintos tipos de incursiones publicitarias en medios impresos especializados, tratando aspectos como la frecuencia específica, la variación léxica, las categorías semánticas y las familias de palabras más utilizadas. La principal conclusión es que las bodegas españolas emprendieron un proceso de adaptación tardía, pasando de mensajes sencillos, sin imagen y relacionados con el sistema productivo, a otros mucho más elaborados, con imagen y nuevos términos que pretenden transmitir que estamos ante un producto de calidad.

Wnt secretion and gradient formation.

Concentration gradients formed by the lipid-modified morphogens of the Wnt family are known for their pivotal roles during embryogenesis and adult tissue homeostasis. Wnt morphogens are also implicated in a variety of human diseases, especially cancer. Therefore, the signaling cascades triggered by Wnts have received considerable attention during recent decades. However, how Wnts are secreted and how concentration gradients are formed remains poorly understood. The use of model organisms such as Drosophila melanogaster has provided important advances in this area. For instance, we have previously shown that the lipid raft-associated reggie/flotillin proteins influence Wnt secretion and spreading in Drosophila. Our work supports the notion that producing cells secrete Wnt molecules in at least two pools: a poorly diffusible one and a reggie/flotillin-dependent highly diffusible pool which allows morphogen spreading over long distances away from its source of production. Here we revise the current views of Wnt secretion and spreading, and propose two models for the role of the reggie/flotillin proteins in these processes: (i) reggies/flotillins regulate the basolateral endocytosis of the poorly diffusible, membrane-bound Wnt pool, which is then sorted and secreted to apical compartments for long-range diffusion, and (ii) lipid rafts organized by reggies/flotillins serve as "dating points" where extracellular Wnt transiently interacts with lipoprotein receptors to allow its capture and further spreading via lipoprotein particles. We further discuss these processes in the context of human breast cancer. A better understanding of these phenomena may be relevant for identification of novel drug targets and therapeutic strategies.

Ectopic expression of the serine protease inhibitor PI9 modulates death receptor-mediated apoptosis.

Apoptosis is a highly controlled process, whose triggering is associated with the activation of caspases. Apoptosis can be induced via a subgroup of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor superfamily, which recruit and activate pro-caspase-8 and -10. Regulation of apoptosis is achieved by several inhibitors, including c-FLICE-inhibitory protein, which prevents apoptosis by inhibiting the pro-apoptotic activation of upstream caspases. Here we show that the human intracellular serine protease inhibitor (serpin), protease inhibitor 9 (PI9), inhibits TNF-, TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand- and Fas ligand-mediated apoptosis in certain TNF-sensitive cell lines. The reactive center P1 residue of PI9 was required for this inhibition since PI9 harboring a Glu --> Ala mutation in its reactive center failed to impair death receptor-induced cell death. This suggests a classical serpin-protease interaction. Indeed, PI9 inhibited apoptotic death by directly interacting with the intermediate active forms of caspase-8 and -10. This indicates that PI9 can regulate pro-apoptotic apical caspases.

Triatoma jurbergi sp. n. do Norte do Estado do Mato Grosso, Brasil (Hemiptera, Reduviidae, Triatominae) com uma Atualização das Sinonímias e outros Táxons

Triatoma jurbergi n. sp. is described based on nine specimens of both sexes deposited in the Rodolfo Carcavallo Collection in the Oswaldo Cruz Institute Entomological Collection. The new species can be separated from the closely related Triatoma guazu Lent & Wygodzinsky, 1979 by several characters. The most important are longer anteocular region; thin and pointed juga; the shape of the eyes without concavity in the posterior edge; much longer second rostral segment, passing the posterior edge of eye; the absence of a ventral longitudinal depression on the abdomen; the general color redish, brown and orange and the male genitalia, mainly in the vesica lightly chitinized and smaller, the phallosome with apical projection and the pointed apex of the endosome process.

Polarity of endogenous and exogenous glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol-anchored membrane proteins in Madin-Darby canine kidney cells.

Madin-Darby canine kidney cells (MDCK) were transfected with a cDNA encoding the glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored protein mouse Thy-1 in order to study the steady-state surface distribution of exogenous and endogenous GPI-linked proteins. Immunofluorescence of transfected cells grown on collagen-coated coverslips showed that expression of Thy-1 was variable throughout the epithelium, with some cells expressing large amounts of Thy-1 adjacent to very faintly staining cells. Selective surface iodination of cells grown on collagen-coated or uncoated transwell filters followed by immunoprecipitation of Thy-1 demonstrated that all the Thy-1 was present exclusively in the apical plasma membrane. Although cells grown on uncoated filters had much smaller amounts of Thy-1, it was consistently localized on the apical surfaces. Immunofluorescent localization of Thy-1 on 1 micron frozen sections of filter-grown cells demonstrated that all the Thy-1 was on the apical surface and there was no detectable intracellular pool. Phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C digestion of intact iodinated monolayers released Thy-1 only into the apical medium, indicating that Thy-1 was processed normally in transfected cells and was anchored by a GPI-tail. In agreement with previous findings, endogenous GPI-linked proteins were found only on the apical plasma membrane. These results suggest that there is a common mechanism for sorting and targeting of GPI-linked proteins in polarized epithelial cells.

Glut9 is a major regulator of urate homeostasis and its genetic inactivation induces hyperuricosuria and urate nephropathy.

Elevated plasma urate levels are associated with metabolic, cardiovascular, and renal diseases. Urate may also form crystals, which can be deposited in joints causing gout and in kidney tubules inducing nephrolithiasis. In mice, plasma urate levels are controlled by hepatic breakdown, as well as, by incompletely understood renal processes of reabsorption and secretion. Here, we investigated the role of the recently identified urate transporter, Glut9, in the physiological control of urate homeostasis using mice with systemic or liver-specific inactivation of the Glut9 gene. We show that Glut9 is expressed in the basolateral membrane of hepatocytes and in both apical and basolateral membranes of the distal nephron. Mice with systemic knockout of Glut9 display moderate hyperuricemia, massive hyperuricosuria, and an early-onset nephropathy, characterized by obstructive lithiasis, tubulointerstitial inflammation, and progressive inflammatory fibrosis of the cortex, as well as, mild renal insufficiency. In contrast, liver-specific inactivation of the Glut9 gene in adult mice leads to severe hyperuricemia and hyperuricosuria, in the absence of urate nephropathy or any structural abnormality of the kidney. Together, our data show that Glut9 plays a major role in urate homeostasis by its dual role in urate handling in the kidney and uptake in the liver.

Scolex Morphology of Proteocephalid Cestodes Parasites of Neotropical Freshwater Fishes

The morphology of the scolices and metascolices of 29 proteocephalid species, parasites of freshwater fishes from Brazil was compared by using scanning electron microscope, light and laser microscopy. The following species were evaluated: Proteocephalus vazzolerae, P. piramutab, Robertiella paranaensis, Travassiella avitellina, Monticellia loyolai, M. spinulifera, M. belavistensis, Houssayela sudobim, Zygobothrium megacephalum, Gibsoniela mandube, Cangatiella arandasi, Nomimoscolex sudobim, N. lopesi, N. admonticellia, N. piraeeba, N. pirarara, Harriscolex kaparari, Crepidobothrium eirasi, Spatulifer rugosa, Megathylacus brooksi, Choanoscolex abscisus, Amphoteromorphus peniculus, A. piraeeba, Paramonticellia itaipuensis, Peltidocotyle rugosa, Othinoscolex lenha, Rudolphiella rugata, R. piranabu, Jauella glandicephalus. Some features as overall shape of scolex, suckers, apical sucker, frontal glands and several kinds of metascolex were analyzed. The taxonomic importance of scolex and metascolex is discussed.

Scanning and transmission electron microscopy of the tegument of Paranaella luquei Kohn, Baptista-Farias & Cohen, 2000 (Microcotylidae, Monogenea), parasite of a Brazilian catfish, Hypostomus regani

The surface topography and ultrastructure of the tegument of Paranaella luquei Kohn, Baptista-Farias & Cohen, 2000, a microcotylid monogenean parasite from the gills of Hypostomus regani (Ihering, 1905) (Loricariidae) was studied by scanning (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). By SEM, it was observed that the tegument presents transversal ridges, forming folds in the ventral and dorsal surfaces and microvillous-like tegumental projections in the anterior and median regions of body. These projections were also observed by TEM. The tegument is made up of a syncytium delimited by apical and basal plasma membranes, containing inclusion bodies and mitochondria, connected to the nucleated region by means of cytoplasmatic processes. The tegumental cells present a well developed nucleus and cytoplasm containing inclusion bodies, similar to those found on the external layer, mitochondria, rough endoplasmatic reticulum and free ribossomes.

Transport and metabolism of [214-C]abscisic acid in maize root

The tips of intact maize (cv. LG 11) roots, maintained vertically, were pretreated with a droplet of buffer solution or a bead of anion exchange resin, both containing [214-C]abscisic acid (ABA). A significant basipetal ABA movement was observed and two metabolites of ABA (possibly phaseic acid and dihydrophaseic acid) were found. ABA pretreatment enhanced the gravireaction of 10 mm apical root segments kept both in the dark and in the light. The possibility that ABA could be one of the endogenous growth inhibitors produced or released by the cap cells is discussed.

Conditioned polarized Caco-2 cell monolayers allow to discriminate for the ability of gut-derived microorganisms to modulate permeability and antigen-induced basophil degranulation.

BACKGROUND: Food allergy is a common allergic disorder--especially in early childhood. The avoidance of the allergenic food is the only available method to prevent further reactions in sensitized patients. A better understanding of the immunologic mechanisms involved in this reaction would help to develop therapeutic approaches applicable to the prevention of food allergy. OBJECTIVE: To establish a multi-cell in vitro model of sensitized intestinal epithelium that mimics the intestinal epithelial barrier to study the capacity of probiotic microorganisms to modulate permeability, translocation and immunoreactivity of ovalbumin (OVA) used as a model antigen. METHODS: Polarized Caco-2 cell monolayers were conditioned by basolateral basophils and used to examine apical to basolateral transport of OVA by ELISA. Activation of basophils with translocated OVA was measured by beta-hexosaminidase release assay. This experimental setting was used to assess how microorganisms added apically affected these parameters. Basolateral secretion of cytokine/chemokines by polarized Caco-2 cell monolayers was analysed by ELISA. RESULTS: Basophils loaded with OVA-specific IgE responded to OVA in a dose-dependent manner. OVA transported across polarized Caco-2 cell monolayers was found to trigger basolateral basophil activation. Microorganisms including lactobacilli and Escherichia coli increased transepithelial electrical resistance while promoting OVA passage capable to trigger basophil activation. Non-inflammatory levels of IL-8 and thymic stromal lymphopoietin were produced basolaterally by Caco-2 cells exposed to microorganisms. CONCLUSION: The complex model designed in here is adequate to learn about the consequence of the interaction between microorganisms and epithelial cells vis-a-vis the barrier function and antigen translocation, two parameters essential to mucosal homeostasis. It can further serve as a direct tool to search for microorganisms with anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory properties.

Two new species of Nomimoscolex (Cestoda: Proteocephalidea, Monticelliidae) from Gymnotus carapo (Pisces: Gymnotiformes) in Argentina

Nomimoscolex guillermoi n. sp. and N. dechambrieri n. sp. are described from the gymnotiform fish Gymnotus carapo from Argentina. The new species are placed into Nomimoscolex based on the cortical position of the vitelline follicles, and medullary position of the testes, ovary, and uterus. Both species were compared to the 13 species considered valid in the genus. The combination of features distinguishing N. guillermoi from N. dechambrieri is (1) the position of the vagina to cirrus pouch (anterior or posterior vs always anterior respectively), (2) the total number of testes (41-85 vs 108-130 respectively), (3) the distribution of the vitelline follicles (arranged in dorso-lateral and ventro-lateral bands vs lateral bands respectively), (4) the length of the uteroduct (ending 58% vs 35% from posterior margin of mature proglottis respectively), and (5) the presence of gland cells in the scolex (unicellular glands in the apical region and the external margin of suckers vs the presence of unicellular glands in the apex and other grouped in a cluster medially to the suckers respectively).

Mutations in Eml1 lead to ectopic progenitors and neuronal heterotopia in mouse and human.

Neuronal migration disorders such as lissencephaly and subcortical band heterotopia are associated with epilepsy and intellectual disability. DCX, PAFAH1B1 and TUBA1A are mutated in these disorders; however, corresponding mouse mutants do not show heterotopic neurons in the neocortex. In contrast, spontaneously arisen HeCo mice display this phenotype, and our study revealed that misplaced apical progenitors contribute to heterotopia formation. While HeCo neurons migrated at the same speed as wild type, abnormally distributed dividing progenitors were found throughout the cortical wall from embryonic day 13. We identified Eml1, encoding a microtubule-associated protein, as the gene mutated in HeCo mice. Full-length transcripts were lacking as a result of a retrotransposon insertion in an intron. Eml1 knockdown mimicked the HeCo progenitor phenotype and reexpression rescued it. We further found EML1 to be mutated in ribbon-like heterotopia in humans. Our data link abnormal spindle orientations, ectopic progenitors and severe heterotopia in mouse and human.