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Reliable markers for the rapid discrimination of severe renal damage remain a vital concern for lupus nephritis (LN). To determine a better tool for kidney damage detection, the present study compared the evaluation ability of novel urinary cytokines and chemokines (namely urinary monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (uMCP-1), tumor necrosis factor-like weak inducer of apoptosis (uTWEAK)) with traditional serum or urinary markers (namely urinary alpha 1-microgrobulin (uα1-MG), beta 2-microglobulin (uβ2-MG) and serum complement C3 (C3), complement C4 (C4), creatinine (Cr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and cystatin C (Cys C)) in discriminating LN renal damage. Correlations between markers with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) renal SLEDAI scores, biopsy activity index (BAI) and biopsy chronicity index (BCI) scores were evaluated. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated to evaluate a single or combined model in discriminating active renal involvement (rSLEDAI scores 0) and patients with poor pathological outcome (BAI scores ≥ 7). uMCP-1 and uTWEAK possess higher correlation coefficients with renal damage and larger areas under ROC curves (AUCs) than other markers. A combined model of uMCP-1 and uTWEAK showed an AUC of 0.887, sensitivity of 86.67% and specificity of 80.00% to discriminate active LN, and an AUC of 0.778, sensitivity of 75.00% and specificity of 81.82% to discriminate LN with poor outcome, which are better than the utility of any markers individually.

Systematic first-principles calculations were performed to investigate the adsorption and diffusion of Li on different graphene layers with B/N-doping and/or C-vacancy, so as to understand why doping heteroatoms in graphene anode could significantly improve the performance of lithium-ion batteries. We found that the formation of single or double carbon vacancies in graphene are critical for the adsorption of Li atoms. While the N-doping facilitates the formation of vacancies, it introduces over binding issue and hinders the Li diffusion. The presence of B takes the excessive electrons from Li and N and reduces the energy barrier of Li diffusion on substrates. We perceive that these clear insights are crucial for the further development of graphene based anode materials for lithium-ion batteries.

Systematic first-principles calculations were performed to investigate the adsorption and diffusion of Li on different graphene layers with B/N-doping and/or C-vacancy, so as to understand why doping heteroatoms in graphene anode could significantly improve the performance of lithium-ion batteries. We found that the formation of single or double carbon vacancies in graphene are critical for the adsorption of Li atoms. While the N-doping facilitates the formation of vacancies, it introduces over binding issue and hinders the Li diffusion. The presence of B takes the excessive electrons from Li and N and reduces the energy barrier of Li diffusion on substrates. We perceive that these clear insights are crucial for the further development of graphene based anode materials for lithium-ion batteries.

We previously reported that vanilloid receptor type 1 (VR1, or TRPV1) was up-regulated in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and the spinal dorsal horn after chronic inflammatory pain produced by complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) injection into the plantar of rat hind paw. In the present study, we found that subcutaneous or intrathecal application of capsazepine (CPZ), a TRPV1 competitive antagonist, could inhibit thermal hyperalgesia on day 1 and on day 14 but not on day 28 after CFA injection. With extracellular electrophysiological recording, the effect of CPZ on noxious electrical or heat stimulation evoked responses of wide dynamic range (WDR) neurons in the deep layers of the spinal dorsal horn was evaluated. Under noxious electrical stimulation to sciatic nerve, CPZ applied to the spinal cord produced an inhibition on Adelta- and C-fiber evoked responses of WDR neurons on day 1 and 14, but not on day 28. Under radiant heat stimulation to the receptive field skin, subcutaneous application of CPZ significantly inhibited the background activity and extended the response latency of WDR neurons on day 14. These results provide new evidence for the functional significance of TRPV1 at the early stage, but not the late stage, in the rat model of CFA-induced inflammatory pain.

The central nucleus of amygdala (CeA) plays an important role in pain regulation. Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP)-like immunoreactive fibers and CGRP receptors are distributed densely in CeA. The present study was performed to elucidate the role of CGRP in nociceptive regulation in the CeA of rats. Intra-CeA injection of CGRP induced dose-dependent increases in the hind-paw withdrawal latency tested by hotplate test and Randall Selitto Test, indicating an antinociceptive effect of CGRP in CeA. Furthermore, the antinociceptive effect of CGRP was blocked by intra-CeA administration of the CGRP receptor antagonist CGRP8-37, suggesting that CGRP receptor1 is involved in the CGRP-induced antinociception. The CGRP-induced antinociception was attenuated by s.c. injection of the opioid antagonist naloxone, suggesting an involvement of endogenous opioid systems in CGRP-induced antinociception. Moreover, it was demonstrated that opioid receptors in the periaqueductal gray, but not in CeA, contributed to the CGRP-induced antinociception, indicating the importance of the pathway between CeA and the periaqueductal gray in CGRP-induced antinociception. Combining retrograde fluorescent tracing with immunohistochemistry, we found that met-enkephalinergic neurons were innervated by CGRP-containing terminals in CeA. Furthermore, most neurons in the CeA retrogradely traced from the periaqueductal gray were contacted by CGRP-containing terminals and some of them were surrounded by characteristic basket-like structures formed by the terminals, suggesting that CGRP innervates the neurons which project from CeA to the periaqueductal gray. The results indicate that CGRP activates the met-enkephalinergic neurons, which project from CeA to the periaqueductal gray, producing antinociceptive effect in rats.

Due to the escalating interest in zero ODP (ozone depletion potential) blowing agents throughout the world, hydrocarbons are seriously being considered as potential candidates for rigid foam applications. However, many rigid foam applications require a certain degree of fire resistance, a characteristic which the flammable nature of hydrocarbons would seem to oppose. Last year we presented a paper which detailed our initial work with hydrocarbon-blown foams produced on a lab-scale high pressure machine [1]. In that work, several techniques were explored which improve the flame resistance of isocyanurate foams. These techniques included increased index, inclusion of phosphorous, and the use of inerting co-blowing agents. This paper will present further work concerning the flammability of rigid isocyanurate foams blown with hydrocarbons, with a particular emphasis on cyclopentane as the primary blowing agent. In this study we have investigated the use of various foaming techniques to suppress flammability. As in our previous paper, all foams were produced on a high pressure foam machine. Options which were explored include fire retardants, co-blowing agents, and increased foam indices. Results from small-scale fire tests are presented in order to compare the effectiveness of the different approaches. Mini-tunnel and hot plate test results are featured.

Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) was applied to detect the copy number of the retinoblastoma (RB1) tumor suppressor gene in metaphase chromosomes and interphase nuclei. We used 14 λ phage clones spanning the whole RB1 gene region as a probe and obtained a specific hybridization signal in normal metaphase chromosomes at 13q14. Normal interphase nuclei showed two RB1 signals in about 90% of cases, whereas two cell lines with cytogenetically defined deletions involving the RB1 gene showed only one hybridization signal in about 80% of the nuclei. Analogous changes were detected in metaphase chromosomes. Multicolor FISH with subsets of the phage clones allowed visualization of subregions within the 200-kb gene in interphase nuclei. Analysis of clinical breast cancer samples showed that most of the cells contained two copies of the RB1 gene, even when restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis showed loss of heterozygosity (LOH) at the RB1 locus. This indicates that LOH at the RB1 locus in breast cancer cells probably involves mechanisms other than physical deletion.

The committee met in Macao Special Administrative Region,China, during the 2008 International Society of Blood Trans-fusion (ISBT) Congress. Some changes to the classificationdocumented in Blood Group Terminology 2004 [1] and updatedin 2007 [2] were agreed and are described below. The fullupdated classification can be found on the blood groupterminology website at http://www.blood.co.uk/ibgrl. A newblood group system, the RHAG system, was established andnew antigens were added to the Rh, Kell, and Dombrocksystems (Table 1). A total of 308 antigens are now recognized,270 of which are clustered in 30 blood group systems.

Intact caldesmon and particularly the actin-binding C-terminal fragment (20-kDa) of caldesmon have been shown in skeletal muscle fibers to selectively displace low affinity, weakly bound cross-bridges from actin without significantly altering the actin attachment of force producing, strong binding cross-bridges (Brenner et al., 1991; Kraft et al., 1995a). However, the sarcomeric distribution and the specific binding of externally added caldesmon to the myofilaments of skeletal muscle fibers was not known. It was e.g., unclear whether caldesmon binds along actin in a manner similar to tropomyosin or whether it also binds to myosin. In this study, we determined the binding pattern of exogenously added intact caldesmon and its C-terminal 20-kDa fragment, respectively, in MgATP-relaxed rabbit skeletal muscle fibers using electron (EM) and confocal fluorescence microscopy (CFM). EM showed that similar to what has been demonstrated earlier for smooth muscle thin filaments (Lehman et al., 1989), intact caldesmon binds periodically every 38 nm along the thin filaments. CFM revealed that rhodamine-labeled intact caldesmon and the 20-kDa caldesmon fragment bind along nearly the entire length of the thin filaments. A portion of the I-band near the Z-line appears unlabeled, both when equilibrated at normal and long sarcomere lengths. The width of the unlabeled region seems to depend on ionic strength. The 20-kDa C-terminal caldesmon fragment binds in essentially the same pattern as intact caldesmon. This indicates that the high fluorescence intensity in the overlap region seen with intact caldesmon does not depend on caldesmon binding to myosin. X-ray diffraction was used to monitor the effects of filament lattice. Intact caldesmon at0.3 mg/ml induced disorder in the myofilament lattice. No such disordering was observed, however, when fibers were equilibrated with up to 0.8 mg/ml of the 20-kDa caldesmon fragment.

The industry is continuously being challenged by regulatory agencies to find alternatives to CFCs (chlorofluoro-carbons) for use in all applications. Two solutions investigated were to replace CFCs with HCFCs (hydrochloro-fluorocar-bons or PFAs (perfluoroalkanes). However, the contribution of HCFCs to the depletion of the ozone layer has been determined to be too high for them to be viewed as anything but an intermediate solution. PFAs have been getting attention for their high halogen global warming potential (HGWP) due to their long atmospheric lifetime and, thus, seem unlikely even as additives. At this time, it appears that both HCFCs and PFAs have a finite usage period in our industry. In our search for alternatives, we have discovered that HFAs (hydrofluoroal-kanes or partially fluorinated alkanes) make fine, closed cell foams. As a result of this, HFA-blown rigid foams at 2.0 pcf density or lower have low initial k-factors (0.13 Btu in./hr ft20F). Aged k-factors are excellent because of the relatively slow cell gas diffusion of HFAs. These insulation values are similar to or better than those of foams made with HCFCs and PFAs! The advantage to this technology is that HFAs have zero-ozone depletion potential (ODP) and relatively low HGWP, making HFAs viable long-term alternatives. Processing of the alternatives evaluated is similar to HCFC-22 technology, because the HFAs used in this investigation are gases at room temperature and pressure. The HFAs examined in this study were HFA-32, 134a, 125, and 227. These HFAs all show the same characteristics of low solubility, low blowing efficiency, and higher working vapor pressures; therefore, emulsion technology was used (as with PFAs). Good quality foams were produced without utilizing special compatibilizers.

We tested the premise that monoclonal antibodies to either intracellular or membrane antigens can greatly facilitate the construction of linkage maps of mammals whose chromosomes can be introduced into rodent cells. Monoclonal antibodies against antigenic determinants of cat lymphocytes and fibroblasts were used to analyze feline antigen expression in cat-mouse somatic cell hybrid populations selected to contain the X-linked feline HPRT locus. The frequency of antigen expression as measured by fixed cell immunofluorescence (IF) assays, varied greatly within hybrid populations for all but the antigen designated as VP382. Its frequent presence in hybrid cells led to the prediction, confirmed by 8-azaguanine selection experiments, that its expression was controlled by a gene, or genes, on the feline X chromosome. The antigens identified by the rest of the antibodies segregated independently of each other in cat-mouse somatic cell hybrids and their expression appeared to be controlled by autosomal genes of the cat.

A number of structurally unrelated DNA intercalators have been studied as stabilizers of mitotic chromosomes during isolation from rodent and human metaphase cells. Seven out of the nine intercalators tested were found to be useful as chromosome stabilizing agents. Chromosome suspensions prepared in this way could be preserved for long periods of time. After isolation the chromosomal DNA was longer than 150 kb. With intercalated chromosomes high resolution flow karyotypes could be obtained as illustrated for the non-fluorescent intercalators 9-methylene-(1,3-dimethyl-2,4-dionepyrimidine-5-yl)-phenanthrid in iumchloride and 4'-aminomethyl-4,5', 8-trimethylpsoralen combined with DAPI and 33258 Hoeschst for fluorescent staining and for the fluorescent intercalator propidium iodide used as a stabilizer and as a fluorochrome. Passage of the intercalated chromosomes through the laser beam had no measurable effect on the length of the chromosomal DNA subsequently isolated. After flow analysis and collection on slides human chromosomes could easily be banded by Giemsa staining methods with the same resolution as obtained in conventional metaphase spreads. This allowed a ready identification of about 80 percent of all chromosomes in the unfractionated suspension collected after passage through the laser beam.

We have determined the subchromosomal location of the human insulin gene by analyzing DNA isolated from sorted human metaphase chromosomes. Metaphase chromosome suspensions were sorted into fractions according to relative Hoechst fluorescence intensity by the fluorescence activated chromosome sorter. The chromosomal DNA in each fraction was characterized by restriction endonuclease analysis. Initial sorts indicated that the insulin gene-containing fragment resided in a fraction containing chromosomes 9, 10, 11, and 12. Studies of cell lines that contained chromosome translocations permitted the assignment of the insulin gene to a derivative chromosome that contains portions of the short arm of chromosome II. Simultaneous sorting of the normal homolog from this small derivative chromosome separated the two different sized insulin gene-containing restriction fragments in this individual. These data indicate that the two restriction fragments represent insulin gene polymorphism and not duplicate gene loci.