Transhepatic echocardiography: a novel approach for imaging in left ventricle assist device patients with difficult acoustic windows

Aims A significant proportion of left ventricle assist device (LVAD) patients have very difficult transthoracic echocardiographic images. The aim of this study was to find an echocardiographic window which would provide better visualization of the heart in LVAD patients with limited acoustic windows. ................................................................................................................................................................................................... Methods and results Based on the anatomic relationships in LVAD patients, a right intercostal transhepatic approach was proposed. By using a computer simulator, we searched for the appropriate probe orientation. Further, 15 ambulatory LVAD patients (age 56 ± 15 years, 73% males) underwent two echocardiographic studies: one normal transthoracic echocardiography following the institutional protocol (Echo 1) and a second study which included the transhepatic approach (Echo 2). The two exams were performed by two different sonographers and the results validated by a third observer for agreement. The transhepatic intercostal window was feasible in all patients, with an image quality allowing good visualization of structures in 93%. Precise quantification of the left ventricular (LV) and right ventricular (RV) function was achieved more often in the Echo 2 (10 vs. 3 patients for LV, P = 0.03 and 14 vs. 8 patients for RV, P = 0.04). A significant difference existed also in the quantification of the LVAD inflow cannula flow by pulsed Doppler (11 patients in Echo 2 vs. 3 patients in Echo 1, P = 0.009). ................

Phosphodiesterase Inhibition Increases CREB Phosphorylation and Restores Orientation Selectivity in a Model of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

Background: Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are the leading cause of mental retardation in the western world and children with FASD present altered somatosensory, auditory and visual processing. There is growing evidence that some of these sensory processing problems may be related to altered cortical maps caused by impaired developmental neuronal plasticity. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here we show that the primary visual cortex of ferrets exposed to alcohol during the third trimester equivalent of human gestation have decreased CREB phosphorylation and poor orientation selectivity revealed by western blotting, optical imaging of intrinsic signals and single-unit extracellular recording techniques. Treating animals several days after the period of alcohol exposure with a phosphodiesterase type 1 inhibitor (Vinpocetine) increased CREB phosphorylation and restored orientation selectivity columns and neuronal orientation tuning. Conclusions/Significance: These findings suggest that CREB function is important for the maturation of orientation selectivity and that plasticity enhancement by vinpocetine may play a role in the treatment of sensory problems in FASD

The mechanisms of activation of the single chain cytokine receptors: Preformed and ligand-induced dimerization

Despite intensive studies, the mechanisms of cytokine receptor activation are still not completely understood. Historically two models have been proposed: early studies suggested a mechanism involving ligand-induced dimerization of the receptors which results in the activation of downstream signaling pathways, whereas, in the absence of ligands, the receptors are thought to be in a monomeric inactive state; later studies uncovered evidence for the existence of many receptors as inactive preformed dimers, which upon ligand binding undergo conformational changes and/or relative rotation of the receptor molecules. Here we focus on the dimerization status of the single chain cytokine receptors, which are involved in the regulation of hematopoiesis. © Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics, NAS of Ukraine, 2014

Exact and approximate interior corner problem in neutron diffusion by integral transform methods

The mathematical solution of the neutron diffusion equation exhibits singularities in its derivatives at material corners. A mathematical treatment of the nature of these singularities and its impact on coarse network approximation methods in computational work is presented. The mathematical behavior is deduced from Green's functions, based on a generalized theory for two space dimensions, and the resulting systems of integral equations, as well as from the Kontorovich--Lebedev Transform. The effect on numerical calculations is demonstrated for finite difference and finite element methods for a two-region corner problem