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An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including complex Atrial septal defects (ASD), Static balloon sizing of the ASD, and use of use of 3 dimensional echocardiography in assessing in ASD.

Chemical examination of the MeOH extract of Plectranthus bishopianus Benth., a rare and endangered plant, resulted in isolation of a new abietane diterpene, 6 β-hydroxy-7 α-methoxyroyleanone ( 1), along with two more diterpenoids, 6,7-dehydroroyleanone, and 6 β,7 α-dihydroxyroyleanone, a triterpene oleanolic acid, and two sterols, β-sistosterol and stigmasterol. The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic data and also by comparison with authentic samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autoreactive T cells play a major role in the development of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, suggesting that costimulatory molecules that regulate T cell responses might be essential for disease progression. In NOD mice, CD28/B7 and CD40/CD40 ligand (L) interactions control the onset of diabetes from 2 to 4 weeks of age, but blocking these molecules has little effect after this time. Hence, it is possible that other ligand/receptor pairs control a later phase of disease. We now show that OX40 is expressed on CD4 and CD8 T cells several weeks prior to islet destruction, which is initiated around weeks 12-14, and that OX40L is present on dendritic cells in both secondary lymphoid organs and the pancreas from 11 to 13 weeks of age. Blocking OX40L at 6, 9, or 15 weeks after birth had little effect on disease; however, inhibiting OX40/OX40L interactions at week 12, or continuous treatment from week 12 onwards, significantly reduced the incidence of diabetes. Histological examination showed that islet destruction was prevented and insulitis reduced by targeting OX40L. These studies show that OX40/OX40L interactions form a late checkpoint in diabetes development and suggest that these molecules are realistic targets for therapeutic intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical composition of fruits and stem essential oils of Lantana camara from the northern plains of India were analysed by GC and GC–MS, which resulted in the identification of 52 and 66 constituents, representing 98.1% and 96.6% of the oils, respectively. The major constituents in the fruits oil were palmitic acid (22.8%), stearic acid (12.8%) and germacrene-D (7.1%), while the major constituents in the stem oil were palmitic acid (32.7%) and stearic acid (23.9%). Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The essential oils of Palmarosa ( Cymbopogon martinii (Roxb.) Wats. var. motia Burk) flowering herbs from three different geographical locations in India, viz. Hyderabad,Lucknow and Amarawati were analysed by high-resolution GC and GC -MS. In all three samples, geraniol (67.6 -83.6%) was the major constituent and, although the composition of the three oils was similar, quantitative differences in the concentration of some constituents were observed. The GC and GC -MS analysis of the Hyderabad, Lucknow and Amarawati oils resulted in the identification of 40, 38 and 33 constituents, representing 98.5%, 99.7% and 99.8% of the oils,respectively. Among the three oils analysed, Amarawati oil was of the highest quality due to higher geraniol (83.6%) and lower geranyl acetate (2.3%) and geranial (1.0%) content. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the use of intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) to monitor stent placement across aortic coarctation (AC). It discusses a case study of a 13-year-old AC patient who successfully underwent stent placement. The disadvantages of using ICE to monitor stent deployment are also mentioned, such as additional time and expense related to the use of ICE catheter.

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the author discusses an article by C. Gao, H. Zhang, and X. Chen about an echocardiography study of the impacts of transcatheter occlusion of atrial septal defects on left ventricular function.

See Articles on Pages 699 and 706 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]