Quantification of antithrombin isoform proportions in plasma samples of healthy subjects, sepsis patients, and in antithrombin concentrates

Antithrombin (AT) circulates in plasma in two isoforms, AT-alpha (90-95%) and AT-beta (5-10%). AT isoform proportions were measured in plasma samples of 17 healthy subjects and 26 posttraumatic or postoperative septic patients, as well as in 4 commercially available AT concentrates. Total AT was immune-purified from plasma and concentrates. Micellar electrokinetic chromatography was used to analytically separate and quantify the isoforms. Compared with plasma samples of healthy donors, septic plasmas revealed significantly reduced AT activity (p < 0.001) and beta-isoform content (p < 0.05). AT-beta correlated inversely with urea and creatinine serum concentrations (p < 0.01), indicating a relationship between better renal function and higher beta-isoform content. beta-Isoform neither correlated with age, gender, and 28-day mortality, nor with plasma concentrations of various inflammatory and organ function parameters. The commercial AT concentrate, which is equivalent to the current WHO standard, had an AT-beta content close to that found in plasma of healthy subjects. The availability of this novel quantitative AT isoform assay allows, for the first time, a closer look at the role of AT isoforms in hemostasis and sepsis pathophysiology. Copyright (C) 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel

The role of advance directives in end-of-life decisions in Austria: survey of intensive care physicians

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Currently, intensive care medicine strives to define a generally accepted way of dealing with end-of-life decisions, therapy limitation and therapy discontinuation.</p> <p>In 2006 a new advance directive legislation was enacted in Austria. Patients may now document their personal views regarding extension of treatment. The aim of this survey was to explore Austrian intensive care physicians' experiences with and their acceptance of the new advance directive legislation two years after enactment (2008).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Under the aegis of the OEGARI (Austrian Society of Anaesthesiology, Resuscitation and Intensive Care) an anonymised questionnaire was sent to the medical directors of all intensive care units in Austria. The questions focused on the physicians' experiences regarding advance directives and their level of knowledge about the underlying legislation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were 241 questionnaires sent and 139 were turned, which was a response rate of 58%. About one third of the responders reported having had no experience with advance directives and only 9 directors of intensive care units had dealt with more than 10 advance directives in the previous two years. Life-supporting measures, resuscitation, and mechanical ventilation were the predominantly refused therapies, wishes were mainly expressed concerning pain therapy.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A response rate of almost 60% proves the great interest of intensive care professionals in making patient-oriented end-of-life decisions. However, as long as patients do not make use of their right of co-determination, the enactment of the new law can be considered only a first important step forward.</p

The politics of heroes through the prism of popular heroism

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Palgrave Macmillan via the DOI in this record.In modern day Britain, the discourse of national heroification is routinely utilised by politicians, educationalists and cultural industry professionals, whilst also being a popular concept to describe deserving ‘do-gooders’ who contribute to British society in a myriad of ways. We argue that although this heroification discourse is enacted as a discursive device of encouraging politically and morally desirable behaviour, it is dissociated from the largely under-explored facets of contemporary popular heroism. To compensate for this gap, this paper explores public preferences for heroes using survey data representative of British adults. This analysis demonstrates a conceptual stretching in the understanding of heroism, and allows identifying age- and gender-linked dynamics which effect public choices of heroes. In particular, we demonstrate that age above all determines the preference for having a hero, but does not explain preferences for specific hero-types. The focus on gender illustrates that the landscape of popular heroism reproduces a male-dominated bias which exists in the wider political and cultural heroification discourse. Simultaneously, our study shows that if national heroification discourse in Britain remains male-centric, the landscape of popular heroism is characterised by a gendered trend towards privatisation of heroes being particularly prominent amongst women. In the conclusion, this paper argues for a conceptual revision and re-gendering of the national heroification discourse as a step towards both empirically grounded, and age- and gender-sensitive politics of heroes and heroines.AHR

Physiological responses of Porphyra haitanesis to different copper and zinc concentrations

In the present study, several physiological responses of the red marine alga Porphyra haitanesis to elevated concentrations of copper (up to 50 &#956;M) and zinc (up to 100 &#956;M) were investigated. Our results showed that the effects of Cu2+ and Zn2+ on growth, photosynthetic pigments (chlorophylls and carotenoids), phycobiliprotein and metabolism (the fluorescence emission spectra and the activities of photosystemII) did not follow the same pattern. The relative growth rate was inhibited by different concentrations of Cu2+, and was slightly increased at lower concentrations (up to 10 &#956;M) and inhibited at higher Zn2+concentrations. On the other hand, the phycoerythrin contents were slightly increased at relatively low concentrations (up to 1 &#956;M Cu2+ or 20 &#956;M Zn2+) and inhibited by high Cu2+ and Zn2+ concentrations. Moreover, photosynthesis and respiration showed an increase in the amount of oxygen exchange in response to relatively low Cu2+ (up to 1 &#956;M) and Zn2+ concentrations (up to 10 &#956;M), and a reduction to relatively high Cu2+ and Zn2+ concentrations. Oxygen evolution was more sensitive than oxygen uptake to Cu2+ and Zn2+. In addition, the photoreductive activities and fluorescence emission of photosystem II (PS II) were enhanced by lower concentrations of Cu2+ (up to 0.1 &#956;M) and Zn2+ (up to 10 &#956;M) and inhibited by higher concentrations. Furthermore, the intensity of chlorophyll a fluorescence and the active PSII reaction centers followed a similar pattern in response to elevated concentrations of Cu2+ and Zn2+. These results suggest that lower concentrations of Cu2+ and Zn2+ affected the metabolism of P. haitanesis, which was inhibited by higher concentrations of these metals.No presente estudo foram investigadas as respostas fisiológicas da alga vermelha Porphyra haitanesis às elevadas concentrações de cobre (acima de 50 &#956;M) e de zinco (acima de 100 &#956;M). Os resultados mostram que os efeitos de Cu2+ e Zn2+ sobre o crescimento, pigmentos fotossintéticos (clorofilas e carotenóides), ficobiliproteína e metabolismo (o espectro de emissão de fluorescência e as atividades do fotossistema) não seguem o mesmo padrão. A taxa de crescimento relativo foi inibida por diferentes concentrações de Cu2+ e, em presença de Zn2+, aumentou ligeiramente em baixas concentrações (abaixo de 10 &#956;M) e foi inibida em altas concentrações. Por outro lado, os teores de ficoeritrina apresentaram leve aumento em concentrações relativamente baixas de Cu2+ e Zn2+ (até 1 &#956;M Cu2+ e até 20 &#956;M Zn2+, respectivamente) e foram inibidas por altas concentrações. Além disso, tanto a fotossíntese quanto a respiração mostraram aumento nas trocas de oxigênio em resposta às concentrações relativamente baixas de Cu2+ (até 1 &#956;M) e de Zn2+ (até 10 &#956;M), além da redução em concentrações relativamente altas desses metais. Adicionalmente, as atividades fotoredutoras e as emissões de fluorescência do fotossistema II (PSII) foram incrementadas em baixas concentrações de Cu2+ (até 0,1 &#956;M) e de Zn2+ (até 10 &#956;M) e inibidas por altas concentrações. Desta forma, a intensidade da fluorescência da clorofila-a e dos centros de reação ativa PSII seguiram um padrão semelhante em resposta às elevadas concentrações de Cu2+ e Zn2+. Esses resultados sugerem que baixas concentrações de Cu2+ e Zn2+ afetam o metabolismo de P. haitanesis, que se torna inibido por altas concentrações desses metais