OBJECTIVETo investigate the potential therapeutic effect of tamoxifen in treating abnormal skin scar contraction.

METHODSFibroblast-populated collagen lattices, which were made by embedding human dermal fibroblasts within type I collagen forming a three-dimensional culture system, were used as an invitro model. Then media either without or with addition of tamoxifen from 1 mumol/L to 50 mumol/L were added to the collagen lattices. Lattice areas were measured at intervals to assess the influence of tamoxifen on the lattice contraction. To visualize changes in the morphology and vitality of fibroblasts, MTT was added to the lattices.

RESULTSTamoxifen had an inhibitory effect on lattice contraction by a dose- and time-dependent pattern. 5 mumol/L or less of tamoxifen didn't show any influence on lattice contraction but 30 mumol/L or higher completely inhibited contraction. At intermediate concentrations from 10 mumol/L to 20 mumol/L the degree of lattice contraction was dose- and time-dependent, which was demonstrated by the reversibility of inhibition. Both the inhibition of contraction and the reversibility of inhibition appeared to correlate with changes in fibroblast morphology.

CONCLUSIONTamoxifen could inhibit the contraction of fibroblast-populated collagen lattices, indicating that tamoxifen may have potential effect on abnormal scar contraction in vivo.

Cicatrix ; drug therapy ; Collagen ; physiology ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Fibroblasts ; drug effects ; physiology ; Humans ; Skin ; cytology ; drug effects ; Tamoxifen ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Time Factors

No abstract available.
Imatinib Mesylate* ; Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive* ; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases*

The authors have decided to remove one of the authors, Serpil C. Erzurum, MD, who was cited as the 5th author on the original manuscript.

To identify the expression of thrombopoietin (TPO) receptors (c-mpl) on central nervous system (CNS) and to evaluate the role of TPO on neural cell proliferation and protection, immunohistochemical staining, RT-PCR, MTT, and annexin-V methods were used in this study. The results showed the expression of TPO receptor on human CNS and murine neural cells. C-mpl mRNA was identified in human cerebral hemispheres and cerebellum, and mouse neural cell line C17.2 by RT-PCR. C-mpl was also confirmed in human cerebral hemispheres by immunohistostaining with con-focal microscopy. Furthermore, TPO had a stimulating effect on the growth of in vitro neural cell C17.2 by MTT assay. The anti-apoptotic effect of TPO on C17.2 cells was also demonstrated by staining with annexin-V and PI. In conclusion, the first evidence showed the expression of TPO receptor c-mpl in central nervous system. Moreover, the effect of TPO on neural cell proliferation and anti-apoptosis was also demonstrated on in vitro neural cells.
Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Brain Chemistry ; Cell Line ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Erythropoietin ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Mice ; Neoplasm Proteins ; analysis ; Neurons ; drug effects ; Oncogene Proteins ; analysis ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins ; analysis ; Receptors, Cytokine ; analysis ; Receptors, Thrombopoietin ; Thrombopoietin ; pharmacology

Schistosomiasis is prevalent in Nigeria, and the foremost pathogen is Schistosoma haematobium, which affects about 29 million people. Single dose of the drug praziquantel is often recommended for treatment but the efficacy has not been documented in certain regions. Therefore, this study was designed to assess the impact of single dose praziquantel treatment on S. haematobium infection among school children in an endemic community of South-Western Nigeria. Urine samples were collected from 434 school children and 10 ml was filtered through Nucleopore filter paper before examination for egg outputs by microscopy. The prevalence was 24.9% at pre-treatment. There was no statistically significant difference for the prevalence of infection between males (14.7%) and females (10.2%), although the mean egg count for the females (9.87) was significantly more (P < 0.05) than the males (6.06). At 6 and 12 months post-treatment there was 74.4% and 86.4% reduction in the mean egg count, respectively. Interestingly, an increased prevalence of infection from 2.1% at 6 months to 7.7% at 12 months post-treatment was observed, nonetheless the mean egg count was reduced to 0.27 at 12th month from 1.98 at 6 months post-treatment. Resurgence in the prevalence rate between 6 and 12 months post-treatment with praziquantel is herein reported and the need for a follow-up treatment in endemic areas for adequate impact on schistosomiasis control is discussed.
Child ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Microscopy ; Nigeria ; Ovum ; Praziquantel ; Prevalence ; Schistosoma haematobium ; Schistosoma ; Schistosomiasis

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Right ventricular longitudinal strain (RVLS) is a new parameter of RV function. We evaluated the relationship of RVLS by speckle-tracking echocardiography with functional and invasive parameters in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Thirty four patients with World Health Organization group 1 PAH (29 females, mean age 45+/-13 years old). RVLS were analyzed with velocity vector imaging. RESULTS: Patients with advanced symptoms {New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class III/IV} had impaired RVLS in global RV (RVLS(global), -17+/-5 vs. -12+/-3%, p<0.01) and RV free wall (RVLS(FW), -19+/-5 vs. -14+/-4%, p<0.01 to NYHA class I/II). Baseline RVLS(global) and RVLS(FW) showed significant correlation with 6-minute walking distance (r=-0.54 and r=-0.57, p<0.01 respectively) and logarithmic transformation of brain natriuretic peptide concentration (r=0.65 and r=0.65, p<0.01, respectively). These revealed significant correlations with cardiac index (r=-0.50 and r=-0.47, p<0.01, respectively) and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR, r=0.45 and r=0.45, p=0.01, respectively). During a median follow-up of 33 months, 25 patients (74%) had follow-up examinations. Mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP, 54+/-13 to 46+/-16 mmHg, p=0.03) and PVR (11+/-5 to 6+/-2 wood units, p<0.01) were significantly decreased with pulmonary vasodilator treatment. RVLS(global) (-12+/-5 to -16+/-5%, p<0.01) and RVLS(FW) (-14+/-5 to -18+/-5%, p<0.01) were significantly improved. The decrease of mPAP was significantly correlated with improvement of RVLS(global) (r=0.45, p<0.01) and RVLS(FW) (r=0.43, p<0.01). The PVR change demonstrated significant correlation with improvement of RVLS(global) (r=0.40, p<0.01). CONCLUSION: RVLS correlates with functional and invasive hemodynamic parameters in PAH patients. Decrease of mPAP and PVR as a result of treatment was associated with improvement of RVLS.
Arterial Pressure ; Echocardiography ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart ; Heart Ventricles ; Hemodynamics* ; Humans ; Hypertension* ; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain ; Vascular Resistance ; Ventricular Function, Right ; Walking ; Wood ; World Health Organization

Background: Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) is a complication that occurs in patients undergoing an imaging procedure with intravenous injection of contrast media, most notably iodinated dyes. Fluorescein angiography is a diagnostic procedure performed by ophthalmologists to determine abnormalities in retinal blood vessels. It uses sodium fluorescein, an organic dye, to capture and visualize these blood vessels. There have been conflicting data and practices on how to approach the procedure especially in patients with renal insufficiency. Objective: To determine the risk of CIN among patients undergoing fluorescein angiography. Methods: We searched PubMed, HerdIn, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar, for published articles on the topic. Other sources were searched for unpublished data or ongoing clinical trials. All research articles pertaining to fluorescein angiography and its effect on renal function with serum creatinine monitoring were included. Two independent authors separately screened records, assessed full texts, and extracted data. We used RevMan computer software to analyze data from the included studies. The primary outcome was the risk of CIN among patients undergoing fluorescein angiography based on the differences on serum creatinine levels and estimated glomerular filtration rates pre- and post-angiography, while the secondary outcome included risk factors for CIN. Results: A total of 6 studies were included in the meta-analysis. Four studies had poor quality as assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. One study was deemed to have good quality. Data analysis showed that hemoglobin (p = 0.002) and albumin (p < 0.001) levels may be associated with CIN using sodium fluorescein but were not independent risk factors for CIN (multivariable logistic regression, p = 0.648 and p = 0.069, respectively); while sex, diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease were not significantly associated. As a primary outcome, only 6.8% of included patients had CIN with serum creatinine levels post-exposure showed significant differences from baseline values (mean difference 0.05; 95% CI 0.02, 0.07; I2 = 49%), but translating it to eGFR yielded non-significant differences (mean difference -0.37; 95% CI -2.33, 1.59; I2 = 0%). Conclusion Among patients undergoing fluorescein angiography, sodium fluorescein does not pose an increased risk for CIN.
fluorescein angiography ; renal function

Although genome-wide association studies have identified more than eighty genetic variants associated with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) risk, biological mechanisms of these variants remain largely unknown. By integrating a large-scale genotype data of 15 581 lung adenocarcinoma (AD) cases, 8350 squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC) cases, and 27 355 controls, as well as multiple transcriptome and epigenomic databases, we conducted histology-specific meta-analyses and functional annotations of both reported and novel susceptibility variants. We identified 3064 credible risk variants for NSCLC, which were overrepresented in enhancer-like and promoter-like histone modification peaks as well as DNase I hypersensitive sites. Transcription factor enrichment analysis revealed that USF1 was AD-specific while CREB1 was SqCC-specific. Functional annotation and gene-based analysis implicated 894 target genes, including 274 specifics for AD and 123 for SqCC, which were overrepresented in somatic driver genes (ER = 1.95, P = 0.005). Pathway enrichment analysis and Gene-Set Enrichment Analysis revealed that AD genes were primarily involved in immune-related pathways, while SqCC genes were homologous recombination deficiency related. Our results illustrate the molecular basis of both well-studied and new susceptibility loci of NSCLC, providing not only novel insights into the genetic heterogeneity between AD and SqCC but also a set of plausible gene targets for post-GWAS functional experiments.
Adenocarcinoma of Lung/genetics* ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/genetics* ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/genetics* ; Genetic Heterogeneity ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genome-Wide Association Study ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms/genetics* ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide