Assessment of QF-PCR as the first approach in prenatal diagnosis.

Quantitative fluorescent PCR (QF-PCR) has been used by many laboratories for prenatal diagnosis of the most common aneuploidies. QF-PCR is rapid, cost-effective, and suitable for automation and can detect most abnormalities diagnosed by conventional karyotyping. Whether QF-PCR should be used alone in most of the samples and in which karyotyping should also be offered is currently a topic of debate. We evaluated and compared the results obtained from 7679 prenatal samples in which conventional karyotype and QF-PCR had been performed, including 1243 chorionic villi and 6436 amniotic fluid samples. Concordant QF-PCR and karyotype results were obtained in 98.75% of the samples. An abnormal karyotype associated with adverse clinical outcome undetected by QF-PCR was found in 0.05% of samples. Therefore, QF-PCR can be used alone in a large number of samples studied in a prenatal laboratory, thereby reducing both the workload in cytogenetic laboratories and parental anxiety when awaiting results.

[Standardized treatment plan to prevent circulatory complications]. / Prevenir complicaciones circulatorias. Plan de cuidados estandarizados.

The authors present the necessity to standardize basic treatment protocols for bedridden patients in order to avoid circulatory complications. If we set up protocols for nursing treatment when dealing with this type of patients and the activities derived from this care, we can act precociously to achieve our objective. The authors propose the following Standardized Treatment Plan bearing in mind that this is a protocol for a specific situation, appropriate for bedridden patients who suffer the risk of circulatory complications. One should not forget that standardized treatment plans serve as a model, but it is necessary for nurses to personalize each plan for each patient.

Brassinolides and IAA induce the transcription of four alpha-expansin genes related to development in Cicer arietinum.

Four different cDNAs encoding alpha-expansins have been identified in Cicer arietinum (Ca-EXPA1, Ca-EXPA2, Ca-EXPA3 and Ca-EXPA4). The shared amino acid sequence similarity among the four alpha-expansin proteins ranged from 67 to 89%. All of them display common characteristics such as molecular mass (around 24 kDa), amino acid numbers, and also the presence of a signal peptide. The transcription pattern of chickpea alpha-expansin genes in seedlings and plants suggests a specific role for each of the four alpha-expansins in different phases of development or in different plant organs. High levels of Ca-EXPA2 transcripts coincide with maximum epicotyl and stem growth, indicating an important involvement of this particular alpha-expansin in elongating tissues. Ca-EXPA3 would be related to radicle development, while Ca-EXPA4 seems to be involved in pod development. A considerable increase in the level of all Ca-EXPA transcripts accompanied the indole acetic acid (IAA) plus brassinolide (BR)-induced elongation of excised epicotyl segments. This IAA + BR induction was seen even for the chickpea expansin genes whose transcription was not affected by IAA or BR alone.