Effects of Health Risk Assessment and Counselling on Fruit and Vegetable Intake in Older People: A Pragmatic Randomised Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVES: Interventions to increase fruit and vegetable intake among community-dwelling older people have shown mixed effects. We investigated whether an intervention based on an initial multidimensional health risk assessment and subsequent physician-lead nutrition counselling has favourable effects on dietary intake among community-dwelling older people. DESIGN: Randomised controlled trial comparing the intervention versus usual care. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Non-disabled persons aged 65 years or older at an ambulatory geriatric clinic in Bucharest, Romania, allocated to intervention (n=100) and control (n=100) groups. INTERVENTION: Participants received a computer-generated health profile report based on answers to a health risk assessment questionnaire, followed by monthly individual counselling sessions with a geriatrician on topics related to health promotion and disease prevention, with a special focus on adequate fruit and vegetable consumption. MEASUREMENTS: Fruit and vegetable intake at baseline and at 6-month follow-up. RESULTS: At baseline, fruit and vegetable intake was below the recommended five portions per day in most study participants (85% in the intervention group, and 86% among controls, respectively). At six months, intake increased in the intervention group from a median of 3.8 to 4.6 portions per day, and decreased in the control group due to a seasonal effect from a median of 3.8 to 3.1 portions per day. At six months, fruit and vegetable consumption was significantly higher among persons in the intervention group as compared to controls (median difference 1.4 portions per day, 95% confidence interval 1.1-1.7, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Personalised food-based dietary guidance, delivered as part of multidimensional preventive health counselling during geriatric clinic visits, results in relevant improvement of fruit and vegetable intake in community-dwelling older adults.

Etapificación pre-operatoria con TC de pacientes con cáncer mamario. Alternativa a la RM en un hospital público / Preoperative CT staging of breast cancer patients. Alternative to MRI in a public hospital

The preoperative study in search of multifocality, multicentricity and bilaterality is essential for the proper therapeutic management of breast cancer. The reference standard to accomplish this is breast Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Based on the literature, we adapted the thorax CT protocol for the study of the breast. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the feasibility of CT with emphasis on the breast, as an alternative to preoperative MRI in places where it is not available. Pre-operative CT was performed in all patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer between August 2013 and September 2014...

El estudio preoperatorio en búsqueda de multifocalidad, multicentricidad y bilateralidad es fundamental para el adecuado manejo terapéutico del cáncer (CA) mamario. El estándar de referencia para realizarlo es la resonancia magnética (RM) mamaria. Basados en la literatura, adaptamos el protocolo de TC de tórax para el estudio de la mama. El objetivo de este trabajo es demostrar la factibilidad de la TC con énfasis en mama como método alternativo a la RM pre-operatoria, en lugares donde ésta no está disponible. Se realizaron TC pre-operatorias en todas las pacientes con diagnóstico reciente de CA mamario entre agosto de 2013 y septiembre de 2014...

Biopsias mamarias bajo resonancia magnética, experiencia preliminar / Breast biopsies performed under MRI, preliminary experience

La resonancia magnética (RM) mamaria se está convirtiendo en una herramienta de trabajo frecuentemente utilizada en nuestro medio. Existe un grupo de lesiones que sólo pueden ser identificadas por esta técnica, RMI only. Entre 14 a 20 por ciento de ellas serán malignas, según las diferentes series publicadas. Este tipo de lesiones requieren de biopsia guiada bajo RM. Pacientes y Métodos: se realizó revisión retrospectiva descriptiva de las biopsias asistidas por vacío realizadas en nuestra institución (período entre agosto de 2008 y junio de 2013). Resultados: El 0,3 por ciento (11) de las biopsias realizadas en nuestra institución fueron realizadas bajo RM, en 9 mujeres. En el 55 por ciento de los casos la indicación de la resonancia en la que se detectó la lesión biopsiada, fue etapificación de cáncer mamario recientemente diagnosticado; en el 100 porciento de los casos se realizó ultrasonido de segunda mirada, las lesiones tenían un tamaño promedio de 15 mm (4-29), un 63,6 por ciento fueron nódulos y el resto captaciones tipo no masa. La duración de la biopsia varió entre 40 y 130 minutos, un 27,2 por ciento resultaron lesiones malignas; 36,4 por ciento lesiones de alto riesgo; y 36,4 por ciento benignas. En el 45,5 por ciento el resultado de la biopsia bajo resonancia cambia la conducta quirúrgica. De las 7 lesiones operadas hubo subestimación en un caso de cáncer ductal in situ, que resultó cáncer ductal infiltrante. En el resto la histología quirúrgica fue idéntica a la de la biopsia bajo resonancia. Conclusión: Las biopsias bajo resonancia son infrecuentes, consumen un tiempo considerable, su correlación histológica es muy confiable y cambia la conducta quirúrgica casi en la mitad de los casos, lo cual tiene implicancias en el pronóstico de la paciente.

Abstract. Breast MRI is becoming a frequently used working tool in our environment. A group of lesions exist that can only be identified by this technique, "MRI only". Between 14-20 % of these will be malignant, according to various published series. Such lesions require biopsy guided under MRI. Patients and Methods: A descriptive retrospective review of vacuum-assisted biopsies was performed at our institution (period between August 2008 and June 2013). Results: 0.3 % (11) of the biopsies performed at our institution were done so under MRI, in 9 women. In 55% of the cases the resonance indication in which the biopsied lesion was detected, was newly diagnosed staging of breast cancer; in 100% of the cases a second-look ultrasound was performed, the lesions had an average size of 15 mm (4-29), 63.6% were nodules and the remainder other non-mass type deposits. The duration of the biopsy varied between 40 and 130 min, 27.2% were malignant lesions, 36.4 % high-risk lesions, and 36.4 % benign. In 45.5% the result of the biopsy performed under MRI changed the surgical procedure. Of the 7 operated lesions there was an underestimation in one case of ductal carcinoma in situ, which resulted being invasive ductal carcinoma. In the remainder, the surgical histology was identical to that of the biopsy performed under magnetic resonance. Conclusion: Biopsies performed under MRI are infrequent, they take considerable time, their histological correlation is very reliable and it changes the surgical procedure in almost half of the cases, which has implications in the prognosis of the patient.

A wall-free climate unit for acoustic levitators.

Acoustic levitation represents the physical background of trapping a sample in a standing acoustic wave with no contact to the wave generating device. For the last three decades, sample holders based on this effect have been commonly used for contact free handling of samples coupled with a number of analytical techniques. In this study, a wall-free climate unit is presented, which allows the control of the environmental conditions of suspended samples. The insulation is based on a continuous cold/hot gas flow around the sample and thus does not require any additional isolation material. This provides a direct access to the levitated sample and circumvents any influence of the climate unit material to the running analyses.

PP085. Angiotensin II type 1 receptor antibodies increase angiotensin II sensitivity in pregnant rats.

INTRODUCTION: Pregnant women who subsequently develop preeclampsia are highly sensitive to infused angiotensin (Ang) II; the sensitivity persists postpartum. Activating autoantibodies against the Ang II type 1 (AT1) receptor are present in preeclampsia. In vitro and in vivo data suggest that they could be involved in the disease process. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to show if AT1-AB generated by immunisation alters Ang II sensitivity in pregnant rats. METHODS: We generated and purified activating antibodies against the AT1 receptor (AT1-AB) by immunizing rabbits against the AFHYESQ epitope of the second extracellular loop, which is the binding epitope of endogenous activating autoantibodies against AT1 from patients with preeclampsia. We then purified AT1-AB using affinity chromatography with the AFHYESQ peptide. RESULTS: We were able to detect AT1-AB both by ELISA and a functional bioassay. We then passively transferred AT1-AB into pregnant rats, alone or combined with Ang II. AT1-AB activated protein kinase C-alpha and extracellular-related kinase 1/2. Passive transfer of AT1-AB alone or Ang II (435ng/kg per minute) infused alone did not induce a preeclampsia-like syndrome in pregnant rats. However, the combination (AT1-AB plus Ang II) induced hypertension, proteinuria, intrauterine growth retardation, and arteriolosclerosis in the uteroplacental unit. We next performed gene-array profiling of the uteroplacental unit and found that hypoxia-inducible factor 1alpha was upregulated by Ang II plus AT1-AB, which we then confirmed by Western blotting in villous explants. Furthermore, endothelin 1 was upregulated in endothelial cells by Ang II plus AT1-AB. We show that AT1-AB induces Ang II sensitivity. CONCLUSION: Our mechanistic study supports the existence of an "autoimmune-activating receptor" that could contribute to Ang II sensitivity and possibly to preeclampsia.

¿Es concordante el tamaño tumoral medido en resonancia magnética mamaria y el de la biopsia quirúrgica en pacientes con cáncer de mama, tratadas con quimioterapia neoadyuvante? / Is breast MRI concordant with pathologic tumor size in breast cancer patients treated with neo-adjuvant chemotherapy?

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) is a treatment used in those breast cancers initially inoperable due to their size, and also in operable breast cancers where NACT could increase the rate of conservative breast surgery. To assess tumor response to treatment, clinical examination, mammography, ultrasound, and breast MRI are used, the latter being the modality that yields the best correlation with histologic tumor volume. We evaluated the correlation of tumor sizes as measured by MRI versus surgical pathological specimen in breast cancers treated with NACT. Eighteen patients underwent MRI to monitor NACT; in 15 (83 percent) of them the final biopsy was obtained. In this group a very good correlation was observed, with a mean difference between MRI and histology of 4 mm regarding tumor volumen, which has allowed an adequate management of patients in our daily practice.

La quimioterapia neoadyuvante (QTNA) es un tratamiento usado en aquellos cánceres mamarios cuyo tamaño los hace inoperables al momento del diagnóstico y en cánceres mamarios operables, pero cuyo uso podría permitir una cirugía conservadora. Para evaluar la respuesta al tratamiento, se ha utilizado el examen clínico, la mamografía, el ultrasonido y la resonancia magnética mamaria, siendo ésta última la que mejor correlación tiene con el tamaño tumoral histológico. Quisimos evaluar la concordancia del tamaño tumoral medido en resonancia magnética con el de la biopsia quirúrgica, en cánceres mamarios tratados con QTNA. Dieciocho pacientes se realizaron resonancia magnética para monitorización de QTNA, en 15 (83 por ciento) de ellas se obtuvo la biopsia definitiva. En este grupo observamos una muy buena correlación, con una diferencia promedio de 4 mm, entre el tamaño de la resonancia y el de la histología, lo que permitió en nuestro medio un adecuado manejo de las pacientes.

Resonancia magnética mamaria preoperatoria: la gran polémica / Preoperative breast MRI: the great controversy

Preoperative examination intended to detect multifocality, multicentricity and bilaterality-once considered the strongest indication of breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-is currently being strongly questioned in medical literature. This paper aims at evaluating, based on our experience at Clínica Alemana, Santiago, Chile, breast MRI ability to improve preoperative radiological tumour staging by conventional methods, as well as to determine the proportion of patients in which this diagnostic procedure generated changes in the surgical management. We retrospectively reviewed preoperative MRI studies carried out between January 2009 and June 2010. Classification: Group 1: MRI provided no new information. Group 2: by detecting additional lesions, MRI improved radiological staging without changing the type of surgery planned. Group 3: MRI showed new benign lesions and caused unnecessary surgery. Group 4: MRI successfully changed the type of surgery planned based on conventional studies. A total of 419 breast MRI scans were performed during a 18-month period; 39 percent of them were carried out preoperatively. For the analysis, 128 patients were enrolled and distributed in the following categories: Group 1 (66 percent), Group 2 (20 percent), Group 3 (2 percent) and Group 4 (12 percent). In 95.3 percent of the patients, a single surgery with clear margins was performed. This work demonstrated the usefulness of preoperative MRI in our practice, i.e., it allowed for a better radiological staging in one third of the patients and even successfully changed the surgical approach in 12 percent of cases.

El estudio preoperatorio en búsqueda de multifocalidad, multicentricidad y bilateralidad -antes considerada la indicación más sólida de la resonancia magnética (RM) mamaria- hoy se encuentra fuertemente cuestionada en la literatura. En este trabajo nos propusimos evaluar la capacidad de la RM mamaria en nuestro centro para mejorar la etapificación radiológica preoperatoria realizada por métodos convencionales y determinar la proporción de las pacientes en que genera cambio en el enfoque quirúrgico. Hemos revisado retrospectivamente las RM preoperatorias entre enero de 2009 y junio de 2010. Clasificación: Grupo1: la RM no aportó información nueva. Grupo 2: al detectar lesiones adicionales, mejoró la etapificación radiológica, sin cambiar el tipo de la cirugía planificada. Grupo3: demostró nuevas lesiones no malignas y causó cirugía inútil. Grupo 4: cambió correctamente el tipo de cirugía planeada en base a los estudios convencionales. En los 18 meses se realizaron 419 RM mamarias, el 39 por ciento de ellas en preoperatorio. Para el análisis se han reclutado 128 pacientes con la siguiente distribución en los grupos predeterminados: Grupo 1(66 por ciento), Grupo 2(20 por ciento), Grupo 3(2 por ciento) y Grupo 4(12 por ciento). En el 95,3 por ciento de las pacientes se logró realizar una sola cirugía con márgenes libres. Este trabajo demostró la utilidad de la RM preoperatoria en nuestra práctica: permite una mejor etapificación radiológica en el tercio de las pacientes e incluso cambia correctamente el enfoque quirúrgico en el 12 por ciento de los casos.

E-type asteroid (2867) Steins as imaged by OSIRIS on board Rosetta.

The European Space Agency's Rosetta mission encountered the main-belt asteroid (2867) Steins while on its way to rendezvous with comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Images taken with the OSIRIS (optical, spectroscopic, and infrared remote( )imaging system) cameras on board Rosetta show that Steins is an oblate body with an effective spherical diameter of 5.3 kilometers. Its surface does not show color variations. The morphology of Steins is dominated by linear faults and a large 2.1-kilometer-diameter crater near its south pole. Crater counts reveal a distinct lack of small craters. Steins is not solid rock but a rubble pile and has a conical appearance that is probably the result of reshaping due to Yarkovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack (YORP) spin-up. The OSIRIS images constitute direct evidence for the YORP effect on a main-belt asteroid.

Muscle and nerve pathology in Dunnigan familial partial lipodystrophy.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize muscle and nerve pathology in Dunnigan familial partial lipodystrophy (FPLD). METHODS: We used conventional histology, immunohistochemistry, messenger RNA (mRNA) expression, gene sequencing, and clinical studies of 13 patients with neuromuscular involvement. RESULTS: The clinical findings consisted of muscle hypertrophy (12/13), severe myalgias (9/13), and multiple nerve entrapment syndromes (8/13). Skeletal muscle histology demonstrated marked Type 1 and 2 muscle fiber hypertrophy and nonspecific myopathic changes, whereas numerous paranodal myelin swellings (tomacula) were found in sural nerve biopsies. We found that myostatin mRNA expression was reduced in patients with FPLD vs controls. We sequenced the myostatin gene in our subjects, but found no mutations. We then investigated whether or not SMAD, the intracellular mediator of myostatin signaling, might be impaired in patients with FPLD. We found that in FPLD muscle, a large number of SMAD molecules adhered to the nuclear membrane and were not found within the nucleus, compared with normal muscle or muscle from a patient with a non-FPLD lamin A/C disease. CONCLUSION: The myopathy and neuropathy associated with Dunnigan familial partial lipodystrophy are distinct from other lamin A/C disorders. We hypothesize that the lipodystrophy-associated mutation interferes with SMAD signaling, linking this type of lipodystrophy to the phenotypically similar myostatin deficiency.

Quistes retro-aeeolares en adolescentes: aspectos clínicos y ultrasonograficos / Retro-areolar cysts in adolescents: clinical and ultrasonographic aspects

Retroareolar cysts are common in pre and postmenarchic girls. Boys are rarely diagnosed with this condition. They correspond to cystic dilatations of the accessory mammary glands that open along with a sebaceous gland at the areola and can be single or multiple, uni or bilateral, palpable or incidental findings on ultrasound. They have variable morphology, thin walls, anechogenic content, sometimes calcic sediment can be observed in their lumen. Infected cysts present enlarged, hypervascularized walls; their content is echogenic, avascular and the adjacent tissue is hyperechogenic, with increased vascularization at color Doppler. If not treated, may become retroareolar abscesses. Inflamatory complications are treated with anti-inflamatory drugs and/or antibiotics. No diagnostic biopsy or puncture aspiration is required, since they are spontaneously drained at the areola. In order to appropriately advise patients and families, it is necessary to have knowledge of both the medical and the ultrasonographic aspects of them and their complications.

Los quistes retroareolares son frecuentes en niñas pre y postmenárquicas. Raramente se diagnostican en el varón. Corresponden a dilataciones quísticas de glándulas mamarias accesorias que se abren junto con una glándula sebácea en la areola, pueden ser únicos o múltiples, uni o bilaterales, palpables o hallazgos incidentales en ecografía. Los no complicados tienen morfología variable, paredes delgadas y contenido anecogénico, pudiendo observarse sedimento calcico en su lumen. Los complicados presentan paredes engrosadas, hipervascularizadas, con contenido ecogénico, avascular, tejidos adyacentes hiperecogénicos y aumento de la vascularización al Doppler color. Sin tratamiento, pueden transformarse en abscesos retroareolares. La complicación inflamatoria se trata con antiinflamatorios y/o antibióticos. No requieren biopsia diagnóstica ni punción evacuadora, puesto que se drenan espontáneamente a la areola. El conocimiento del cuadro clínico y su aspecto ul-trasonográfico permitirá orientar adecuadamente a los pacientes y sus familias.

Biopsias core en el Hospital Padre Hurtado / Biopsies core in Padre Hurtado Hospital

The objective of our study was to describe the experience in US-guided core biopsy of the Radiology Department of Hospital Padre Hurtado. Case files of women that had undergone core biopsy during 2005 and the first semester of 2006 were retrospectively reviewed, obtaining basic demographic data, mammography and ultrasound reports, and results of core biopsy and surgical biopsy, when these were available. Our study population consisted of 37 women with a mean age of 49.8 ± 11.0 years. The main indication for core biopsy was breast nodule (91.7%). A 67.6% of core biopsies were benign and the remaining 32.4% were indicative of malignancy. 15 women had surgical excisions, all of those with indicative malignant core biopsies (12), and 3 with benign ones. Only two surgical biopsies were not consistent with their previous core, with a Spearman correlation coefficient of 0.72 (high), p = 0.0001. Core biopsy at Hospital Padre Hurtado showed high correlation with surgical biopsy, and, was useful avoiding unnecessary surgeries of benign lesions.

El objetivo de nuestro estudio fue dar a conocer la experiencia en biopsias core de la Unidad de Imagenología del Hospital Padre Hurtado. Se revisaron retrospectivamente fichas de pacientes sometidas a core durante los años 2005 y primer semestre del 2006, registrando antecedentes importantes, resultados mamográficos, ultrasonográficos, de biopsias core y quirúrgicas, cuando existían. La población fue de 37 mujeres con edad promedio de 49,8 ± 11,0 años. La principal indicación de core fue la presencia de un nódulo sólido (91,7%); el 67,6% de estas biopsias resultaron benignas y 32,4% indicaron malignidad. 15 mujeres fueron sometidas a biopsias quirúrgicas, todas aquellas con core indicativas de malignidad (12), y 3 con core benignas. Sólo dos biopsias quirúrgicas no fueron concordantes con sus core, dando un coeficiente de correlación de Spearman de 0,72 (alta), p = 0,0001. La biopsia core en nuestro hospital demostró una alta correlación con la biopsia quirúrgica y fue de gran utilidad, evitando cirugías innecesarias de lesiones benignas.

Lesiones mucocele-like de la mama: experiencia local y revisión de la literatura / Mucocele-like lesions of the breast: local experience and review of the literature

Mucocele-like lesions of the breast are uncommon. They where first described by Rosen in 1986. Pathologically, they are defined as mucin filled cysts and extravasated mucin in the adjacent stroma, without inflammatory reaction. We present eight cases of mucocele-like lesions in six patients, emphasizing the clinical and radiological findings and features of the respective percutaneous and excisional biopsies. Considering their frequent association with high risk type lesions (4/8 = 50%) and also with ductal carcinomas in situ or mucinous carcinomas (1/7 = 14%), surgical excision is recommended to exclude malignancy.

La lesión mucocele-like (LML) es infrecuente, fue descrita por primera vez por Rosen en 1986; se define anatomopatológicamente como área de quistes conteniendo mucina, con presencia de mucina extravasada en el estroma adyacente debido a la rotura de quistes, sin reacción inflamatoria asociada. Se presentan ocho casos de LML diagnosticados en seis pacientes, haciendo énfasis en las características clínicas, imaginológicas y hallazgos de las respectivas biopsias percutáneas y excisionales. Considerando su frecuente asociación con lesiones de alto riesgo, (4/8=50%) y también con cáncer in situ o cáncer infiltrante mucinoso (1/7=14%), la recomendación actual es la biopsia quirúrgica para excluir malignidad.

Resonancia Magnetica Mamaria: Indicaciones Poco Habituales / Breast MR imaging: unusual indications

The indications of breast MRI are now clearly established and internationally accepted. They are also applied in Chile as was agreed in the last the National Consensus on the management of breast cancer. In our study the indications not mentioned in the consensus were classified as infrequent. We determined that a 9.2 percent of breast MRI performed in our study centers were due to infrequent indications, leading to a change in medical management in 71,4 percent of these patients, although this change sometimes had no scientific evidence availing it. These results suggest that MRI could be useful in specific situation and reveal a need for multicentric high quality studies in order to gather enough evidence to justify its use in indications other than the ones already established. In other situations MRI would not be recommended. In exceptional cases, where it seems useful to perform this type of exam it is suggested to make the advisable to make the decision after discussion in a interdisciplinary committee.

Las indicaciones de resonancia magnética mamaria están bien definidas e internacionalmente aceptadas. Se aplican también en Chile según lo establecido en el último Consenso Nacional sobre cáncer mamario, sin embargo observamos que un porcentaje no despreciable (9.2 por ciento) de las resonancias mamarias realizadas en nuestros centros de atención son por indicaciones distintas a las establecidas. En un 71.4 por ciento de estos casos generó un cambio en la conducta médica, situación que en algunos casos no contó con respaldo científico establecido. Estos resultados orientan a pensar que la resonancia sería de utilidad en casos específicos y demuestran la necesidad de estudios sistematizados, multicéntricos que lleven a reunir la evidencia suficiente para justificar su uso en indicaciones distintas a las ya aceptadas. En los casos en que parezca conveniente realizar este tipo de estudio, sería recomendable discutir su eventual utilidad e influencia en la conducta clínica, en el seno de equipos de especialistas multidisciplinarios.

Proliferation and differentiation of osteoblasts on Biocement D modified with collagen type I and citric acid.

In this study, the proliferation and differentiation of rat calvarial osteoblasts cultured on either (1) calcium-phosphate bone cement Biocement D, (2) Biocement D with 2.5% (w/w) mineralized collagen type I, or (3) Biocement D with 2.5% (w/w) mineralized collagen type I and 3% (w/w) citric acid were investigated. Incubation of the composites in cell-culture medium resulted in a fast decrease of pH and calcium concentration as well as in an increase of phosphate concentration. Although these effects occurred with all investigated materials, the lowest extent could be observed for the citric-acid-containing composites. As shown by scanning-electron microscopy, osteoblasts adhered to the composite surfaces. Proliferation and differentiation of the cells grown on the composites were found to be reduced compared to cells grown on tissue-culture polystyrene. Cells cultured in the vicinity of the composites but without direct contact also exhibited a reduced rate of proliferation, reduced alkaline phosphatase activity, and reduced mineralization. Simulating the changes in calcium and phosphate concentration occasioned by the composites through exposing cells to EGTA and phosphate gives rise to the same effects of reducing proliferation, ALP activity, and mineralization. No indication for apoptosis in cells exposed to low calcium and high phosphate concentrations was found. The number of necrotic cells, however, increased after incubation with EGTA and phosphate. For assessment of cell-composite interactions and the success of the composites in vivo, as well as for more effective material development, it seems to be important to know how changes in microenvironmental pH and ion composition of the material affect cellular proliferation and differentiation.

Dialysis of persistent organic pollutants and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from semipermeable membranes. A procedure using an accelerated solvent extraction device.

Accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) is one of the most recent solid-phase extraction methods and has caught on all over the world in numerous laboratories. Until now it was not known that this device is also very suitable for performing dialysis. In this study, development of a rapid dialysis procedure (RDP) was described that is based on the dialysis of persistent organic xenobiotics from triolein-containing semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) using ASE. All the operating parameters were optimized within the framework of usage. The RDP procedure was compared with the conventional dialytic recovery of target analytes under atmospheric pressure using spiked analytes and real field samples of SPMDs exposed to urban air. The main advantages of the RDP in comparison to the conventional dialysis are the speed, with up to 70 times faster taking only 40 min, and the considerable reduction in solvent consumption (by two-thirds) when SPMDs with standard configuration are used. Moreover, the RDP is also suitable as an analytical cleanup procedure for the same analytes from various types of lipid samples and other difficult matrixes using semipermeable membranes.

Phosphoserine--a convenient compound for modification of calcium phosphate bone cement collagen composites.

Temporary bone replacement materials on the basis of calcium phosphates and hydroxyapatite (HAP) are used in surgery for filling bone defects. Components which are able to control the nucleation and crystal growth of HAP through their functional groups and which can additionally activate bone cells may be helpful in the development of materials with enhanced remodelling in vivo. In this study, the influence of O-phospho-L-serine (PS) on the materials properties of calcium phosphate bone cement composites was investigated. For up to an addition of 25 mg/g PS a strong increase in the stability of the cements under load was determined. The material was studied by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A more dense microstructure and a plate-like morphology of the HAP-crystals were detected in the modified composites compared with the non-modified samples. By X-ray powder diffraction an inhibition of the dissolution of alpha-tricalcium phosphate (alpha-TCP) and dicalciumphosphate anhydrous (DCPA) particles was found. alpha-TCP and DCPA are the main constituents of the cement precursor. The results of cell culture studies using rat calvaria osteoblasts demonstrate a good viability of the cells on the PS-modified material. Furthermore, the proliferation and differentiation were found to be enhanced on the PS-modified material.

Influence of age, gender, education and dexterity on upper limb motor performance in Parkinsonian patients and healthy controls.

Finger tapping, the most widely used test for evaluating motor dysfunction in Parkinson's disease (PD), was found to react sensitively to disease specific factors like disease severity and changes in medication. A possible interference caused by disease unrelated demographic factors--age, gender, education and dexterity--however has not yet been studied systematically. Various components of tapping performance of 187 healthy subjects and 200 PD patients were assessed by means of the BRAIN TEST, a digitalized test battery. The effects of demographic factors--above all education and age--were found to be significant. These influences generally affect different aspects of movement to a different extent, with speed and akinesia being affected more severely than dysmetria and arrhythmokinesis. Our study suggests that whenever precise assement of upper limb motor performance is needed, specific corrections for these demographic factors in both healthy controls and PD patients are necessary.

East-west differences in the organization of botulinum toxin use in nine Central European countries.

Availability and quality of expensive treatment modalities such as botulinum toxin (BTX) largely depend on organizational aspects such as costs, reimbursement by insurance companies, expertise and facilities for expert training, and the propagation of research. To investigate which determinants influence the organization of BTX' use throughout nine Central European countries (Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland) we sent out questionnaires to leading BTX experts and consulted data banks of manufacturers and bulletins of international organizations. In Western European countries, there is a tendency for users to organize themselves in formal groups and to concentrate on research whereas the way how BTX is provided is diverse regarding qualifications of specialists and institutions. In the post-communist Eastern European countries, we found a tendency towards a centralized system of reimbursement and BTX treatment seems to be more in the hands of neurologists than any other specialists. Strong correlations were observed between the number of BTX centres, degree of organization of user groups and number of scientific publications, on the one hand, and parameters of healthcare performance and socioeconomic determinants, on the other. Our study suggests that in the nine countries surveyed, organizational aspects of BTX use vary considerably, whilst similarities are based mainly on socioeconomic rather than socio-demographic determinants.

Transforming growth factor beta1 immobilized adsorptively on Ti6Al4V and collagen type I coated Ti6Al4V maintains its biological activity.

Titanium and titanium alloys are often used for orthopedic and dental implants. Osseointegration of Ti6Al4V may be improved not only by precoating of the surface with extracellular matrix proteins like collagen type I but also by additional immobilization of growth factors. In the present study, transforming growth factor beta1 (TGF-beta1) which is known as an inducer of collagen synthesis was immobilized adsorptively on uncoated and collagen type I coated Ti6Al4V surfaces. TGF-beta1 was found immobilized slightly faster to collagen type I coated than to uncoated Ti6Al4V and released slower from the collagen coated material. Immobilized TGF-beta1 is biologically active for at least 3 weeks storage at 4 degrees C. Sterilization by ethylene oxide inactivates immobilized TGF-beta1. In osteoblasts cultured on implants with adsorptively immobilized TGF-beta1, mRNA level and specific catalytic activity of alkaline phosphatase as well as accumulation of calcium and phosphate were found reduced, whereas procollagen alpha1(I) mRNA level and the rate of collagen synthesis were increased.