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Background Dietary guidelines suggest limiting daily sodium intake to <2,300 mg for the general population, and <1,500 mg/d for those with certain cardiovascular risk factors. Despite these recommendations, few Americans are able to achieve this goal. Identifying challenges in meeting these guidelines is integral for successful compliance. This analysis examined patterns and amount of daily sodium intake among participants with metabolic syndrome enrolled in a one-year dietary intervention study. Methods Two hundred forty participants with metabolic syndrome enrolled in a dietary intervention trial to lose weight and improve dietary quality. Three 24-hour dietary recalls were collected at each visit which provided meal patterns and nutrient data, including sodium intake. A secondary data analysis was conducted to examine sodium consumption patterns at baseline and at one-year study visits. Sodium consumption patterns over time were examined using linear mixed models. Results The percentage of meals reported eaten in the home at both baseline and one-year follow-up was approximately 69%. Follow-up for the one-year dietary intervention revealed that the participants who consumed sodium greater than 2,300 mg/d declined from 75% (at baseline) to 59%, and those that consumed higher than 1,500 mg/d declined from 96% (at baseline) to 85%. Average sodium intake decreased from 2,994 mg at baseline to 2,558 mg at one-year (P < 0.001), and the sodium potassium ratio also decreased from 1.211 to 1.047 (P < 0.001). Sodium intake per meal varied significantly by meal type, location, and weekday, with higher intake at dinner, in restaurants, and on weekends. At-home lunch and dinner sodium intake decreased (P < 0.05), while dinner sodium intake at restaurant/fast food chains increased from baseline to one-year (P < 0.05). Conclusion Sodium intake for the majority of participants exceeded the recommended dietary guidelines. Findings support actions that encourage low-sodium food preparation at home and encourage public health policies that decrease sodium in restaurants and prepared foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Herb-derived compound andrographolide sulfonate (called Xiyanping injection) recommended control measure for severe hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) by the Ministry of Health (China) during the 2010 epidemic. However, there is a lack of good quality evidence directly comparing the efficacy of Andrographolide Sulfonate combination therapy with conventional therapy. Methods. 230 patients were randomly assigned to 7-10 days of Andrographolide Sulfonate 5-10mg/Kg/day and conventional therapy, or conventional therapy alone. Results. The major complications occurred less often after Andrographolide Sulfonate (2.6% versus 12.1%; risk difference [RD], 0.94; 95% CI, 0.28-1.61; P = 0.006). Median fever clearance times were 96 hours (CI, 80 to 126) for conventional therapy recipients and 48 hours (CI, 36 to 54) for Andrographolide Sulfonate combination-treated patients (X² = 16.57, P < 0.001). The two groups did not differ in terms of HFMD-cause mortality (P = 1.00) and duration of hospitalization (P = 0.70). There was one death in conventional therapy group. No important adverse event was found in Andrographolide Sulfonate combination therapy group. Conclusions. The addition of Andrographolide Sulfonate to conventional therapy reduced the occurrence of major complications, fever clearance time, and the healing time of typical skin or oral mucosa lesions in children with severe HFMD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elastic and anelastic anomalies associated with spin-state transitions of Co3+ in NdCoO3 and GdCoO3 perovskites with the Pnma structure have been investigated using resonant ultrasound spectroscopy (RUS) at high frequencies (0.1-1.5 MHz) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) at low frequencies (0.1-50 Hz). Analysis of spontaneous strains related to octahedral tilting transitions and calculated using lattice parameter data from the literature show that the sequence of changing spin states with increasing temperature, low spin → low spin + high-spin → intermediate spin, is accompanied by significant variations in shear strain due to changes in ionic radius of the Co3+ ions. This implies significant spin state/strain coupling, which, in turn, leads to renormalization of the shear modulus. In NdCoO3 the shear strains are small, so the coupling is weak and the shear modulus increases with falling temperature in a manner that scales semi-quantitatively with an empirical spin order parameter. In GdCoO3 the shear strains are much greater and softening of the shear modulus by up to ~35% in the low-spin + high-spin field arises through the influence of both the spin state/strain coupling and the order parameter susceptibility. Enhanced acoustic dissipation is also observed in the low-spin + high-spin field and is tentatively attributed to mobility of transformation twin walls, which are likely to have structures modified by changes in local Co3+ spin-state populations. Co3+ is isoelectronic with Fe2+ and, although the spin-state transitions observed in cobaltate and silicate perovskites are not the same, the large shear strains associated with octahedral tilting in (Mg,Fe)SiO3 at high pressures suggest that the effects of a high-spin → intermediate-spin transition of Fe2+ would be closely analogous to those shown by GdCoO3. A spin-state transition of Fe3+ in silicate perovskite would have a similar influence, due to the change in radius and its influence on octahedral tilting via the Goldschmidt tolerance factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elastic and anelastic anomalies associated with spin-state transitions of Co3+ in NdCoO3 and GdCoO3 perovskites with the Pnma structure have been investigated using resonant ultrasound spectroscopy (RUS) at high frequencies (0.1-1.5 MHz) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) at low frequencies (0.1-50 Hz). Analysis of spontaneous strains related to octahedral tilting transitions and calculated using lattice parameter data from the literature show that the sequence of changing spin states with increasing temperature, low spin → low spin + high-spin → intermediate spin, is accompanied by significant variations in shear strain due to changes in ionic radius of the Co3+ ions. This implies significant spin state/strain coupling, which, in turn, leads to renormalization of the shear modulus. In NdCoO3 the shear strains are small, so the coupling is weak and the shear modulus increases with falling temperature in a manner that scales semi-quantitatively with an empirical spin order parameter. In GdCoO3 the shear strains are much greater and softening of the shear modulus by up to ~35% in the low-spin + high-spin field arises through the influence of both the spin state/strain coupling and the order parameter susceptibility. Enhanced acoustic dissipation is also observed in the low-spin + high-spin field and is tentatively attributed to mobility of transformation twin walls, which are likely to have structures modified by changes in local Co3+ spin-state populations. Co3+ is isoelectronic with Fe2+ and, although the spin-state transitions observed in cobaltate and silicate perovskites are not the same, the large shear strains associated with octahedral tilting in (Mg,Fe)SiO3 at high pressures suggest that the effects of a high-spin → intermediate-spin transition of Fe2+ would be closely analogous to those shown by GdCoO3. A spin-state transition of Fe3+ in silicate perovskite would have a similar influence, due to the change in radius and its influence on octahedral tilting via the Goldschmidt tolerance factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elastic anomalies and acoustic dissipation associated with spin-state transitions of Co3+ in Co3O4 have been investigated using resonant ultrasound spectroscopy (RUS) at high frequencies (0.1-1.5 MHz) between 6 and 1107 K, and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) at low frequencies (0.1-50 Hz) between 127 and 775 K. Above ~800 K, the shear modulus decreases with increasing temperature and the acoustic dissipation increases. The amount of softening scales linearly with an empirical order parameter for low spin -> low spin + high spin states derived from analysis of changes in unit-cell volume with temperature. The mechanism for anelastic losses is not understood but must be due to relaxation of strains coupled either to changes in spin state or to changes of cation configuration between tetrahedral and octahedral sites occurring by electron exchange. The pattern of shear modulus softening, in proportion to the spin order parameter, is likely to be general for cubic structures containing cations, which undergo spin-state transitions, such as Fe2+ in (Mg,Fe)O. Below ~30 K, RUS data show a large softening of the shear modulus and a steep increase in acoustic dissipation due to the magnetic transition from paramagnetic to antiferromagnetic. This could be understood in terms of the influence of a symmetry breaking strain coupled to the magnetic order parameter such that cubic lattice geometry is not maintained. Possible magnetic space groups for the antiferromagnetic structure are considered through the use of the group theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Isothermal crystallization of the sandwich films in the form of ethyl cellulose/poly(ethylene oxide)/ethyl cellulose (EC/PEO/EC) was traced by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). A primary turning point was found in the Avrami plot and the Avrami analysis shows that the primary turning point is an indication of transformation of crystal growth geometry from the three-dimensional mode to the two-dimensional one. A mathematical model was proposed to predict if the primary turning point would emerge in the Avrami plot. The model is related to an expression that involves the sample thickness and the average distance between adjacent nuclei. The presence of the primary turning point and the prediction of the model were confirmed by using the computer simulation method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The resin was synthesized by suspension polymerization of butyl methacrylate (BMA) with hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and its swelling properties were studied. The chemical structure was analyzed by FTIR and NMR spectrometer. Additionally, thermal properties were determined by TG and DSC, respectively. Finally, the fibrous resin was prepared by gelation-spinning. Its dynamic mechanics performance was researched by DMA and surface morphology was observed by SEM. The results showed mass fraction of HEMA in monomer feed ratio was a main factor affecting saturated absorbency, absorptive rate, and the content ratio of the remaining resin, and the maximum gram absorbency of resin for various organic chemicals were 1.175 g for kerosene, 12.59 g for toluene, and 24.03 g for trichloroethylene respectively. Besides, intermolecular and intramolecular hydrogen bond formed, which was beneficial to form physical cross-link structure, but chemical cross-link structure between macromolecules could not be formed. Furthermore, mass fraction of HEMA in monomer feed ratio had an impact on dynamic mechanics performance and especially, segments movement of macromolecule was affected obviously. The temperature of initial decomposition and glass transition temperature increased with the increase of mass fraction of HEMA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Micrometer-scale anatase-phase TiO2 congeries assembled with hollow spheres have been synthesized by a bubble-template method combined with a facile chemical process. The as-prepared products were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. Some of the congeries exhibited unique three-dimensional hierarchical architectures. The bubble-template strategy used in the synthetic process may represent a general approach to fabricate hollow micro- and nanostructures and therefore contribute to the formation mechanisms of hollow micro- and nanostructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The kinetics of non-isothermal crystallization of uniaxially oriented poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers modified by poly(ethylene glycol)(PET- co-PEG) was investigated by using a DSC heating scanning method and analyzed by using a new non-isothermal equation. Two crystallization peaks appeared for PET and PET- co-PEG fibers. The kinetics parameters, such as the Avrami exponent, the activation energies of diffusion, and the weight fractions per sub-process, were obtained. Based on the Avrami exponent, peak position, and crystallization rate, the crystallization mechanism was proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Nuclear import of proteins is typically mediated by their physical interaction with soluble cytosolic receptor proteins via a nuclear localization signal (NLS). A simple genetic assay to detect active NLSs based on their function in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been previously described. In that system, a chimera consisting of a modified bacterial LexA DNA binding domain and the transcriptional activation domain of the yeast Gal4 protein is fused to a candidate NLS. A functional NLS will redirect the chimeric fusion to the yeast cell nucleus and activate transcription of a reporter gene. Results: We have reengineered this nuclear import system to expand its utility and tested it using known NLS sequences from adenovirus E1A. Firstly, the vector has been reconstructed to reduce the level of chimera expression. Secondly, an irrelevant "stuffer" sequence from the E. coli maltose binding protein was used to increase the size of the chimera above the passive diffusion limit of the nuclear pore complex. The improved vector also contains an expanded multiple cloning site and a hemagglutinin epitope tag to allow confirmation of expression. Conclusion: The alterations in expression level and composition of the fusions used in this nuclear import system greatly reduce background activity in β-galactosidase assays, improving sensitivity and allowing more quantitative analysis of NLS bearing sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of drawing conditions on the orientation and crystallinity of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fibers were investigated by using optical birefringence, sonic velocity, and wide-angle X-ray diffraction measurements, respectively. The preferred condition for preparation of uniaxially oriented amorphous PET fibers was suggested. The crystallization behavior of oriented PET fibers under relaxed and fixed length conditions was investigated by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The multi-overlapping peaks were observed in the non-isothermal DSC curves of oriented PET fibers under relaxed condition. The kinetics of non-isothermal crystallization of oriented PET fibers under relaxed condition was analyzed by using an equation which takes the multi-crystallization processes into account. The kinetic parameters of every process were obtained and the crystallization mechanism was discussed. The crystallization behavior under fixed length condition differs from that under relaxed condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A general method for the synthesis of α,β-unsaturated primary amides was achieved by an one-pot, triphenylphosphine- and zinc powder-promoted Wittig reaction of bromoacetamide and aldehydes under solvent-free conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A stereoselective synthesis of α,β-unsaturated-N,N-diethyl amides was achieved by a one-pot reaction of triphenylphosphine, an aromatic aldehyde, and N,N-diethyl chloroacetamide in the presence of indium under microwave-assisted and solvent-free condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase catalyzes the initial step in the formation of the mannose-6-phosphate tag that labels -60 lysosomal proteins for transport. Mutations in GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase are known to cause lysosomal storage disorders such as mucolipidoses. However, the molecular mechanism of GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase activity remains unclear. Mammalian GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferases are α2β2γ2 hexamers in which the core catalytic α- and β-subunits are derived from the GNPTAB (N-acetylglucosamine-1-phosphate transferase subunits alpha and beta) gene. Here, we present the cryo-electron microscopy structure of the Drosophila melanogaster GNPTAB homolog, DmGNPTAB. We identified four conserved regions located far apart in the sequence that fold into the catalytic domain, which exhibits structural similarity to that of the UDP-glucose glycoprotein glucosyltransferase. Comparison with UDP-glucose glycoprotein glucosyltransferase also revealed a putative donor substrate-binding site, and the functional requirements of critical residues in human GNPTAB were validated using GNPTAB-knockout cells. Finally, we show that DmGNPTAB forms a homodimer that is evolutionarily conserved and that perturbing the dimer interface undermines the maturation and activity of human GNPTAB. These results provide important insights into GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase function and related diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an intrinsic cellular mechanism responsible for the internalization of extracellular ligands and membrane components, caveolae-mediated endocytosis (CavME) is also exploited by certain pathogens for endocytic entry [e.g., Newcastle disease virus (NDV) of paramyxovirus]. However, the molecular mechanisms of NDVinduced CavME remain poorly understood. Herein, we demonstrate that sialic acid-containing gangliosides, rather than glycoproteins, were utilized by NDV as receptors to initiate the endocytic entry of NDV into HD11 cells. The binding of NDV to gangliosides induced the activation of a non-receptor tyrosine kinase, Src, leading to the phosphorylation of caveolin-1 (Cav1) and dynamin-2 (Dyn2), which contributed to the endocytic entry of NDV. Moreover, an inoculation of cells with NDV-induced actin cytoskeletal rearrangement through Src to facilitate NDV entry via endocytosis and direct fusion with the plasma membrane. Subsequently, unique members of the Rho GTPases family, RhoA and Cdc42, were activated by NDV in a Src-dependent manner. Further analyses revealed that RhoA and Cdc42 regulated the activities of specific effectors, cofilin and myosin regulatory light chain 2, responsible for actin cytoskeleton rearrangement, through diverse intracellular signaling cascades. Taken together, our results suggest that an inoculation of NDV-induced Src-mediated cellular activation by binding to ganglioside receptors. This process orchestrated NDV endocytic entry by modulating the activities of caveolae-associated Cav1 and Dyn2, as well as specific Rho GTPases and downstream effectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new approach was proposed to prepare 3D structure of nanoparticles. A kind of ordered superlattice of nanogold was created layer by layer by LB technique. The UV-vis spectra monitored its formation. The TEM images and small-angle X-ray diffraction confirmed the ordered structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report an experimental and theoretical investigation to extend lifetimes of light storages by applying guiding magnetic fields in a room-temperature atomic vapor. The storages are based on dynamic electromagnetically induced transparency. Retrieval efficiencies versus storage time are experimentally measured for different strengths of the guiding magnetic fields. The measured results show that the 1/e storage times are ∼6 μs and ∼59 μs for the guiding field B0z = 0 and B0z = 93 mG, respectively. Physical processes causing decoherence in an atomic ensemble have been discussed and analyzed. A theory model which is used to evaluate the decoherence caused by fluctuations of transverse magnetic fields is developed. Based on this evaluation, the fact that storage lifetimes can be increased by applying guiding magnetic fields is well explained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abstract of the study "Role of neuregulin-1 in peripheral nerve injury," by Z. D. Kong, Z. Y. Zhang, H. Y. Lin, and C. S. Zhang is presented.

The LIFE Study was designed to test the effects of a low-glycemic index high-legume diet on biomarkers of inflammation and insulin resistance (IR) among men who have undergone a screening colonoscopy within the past two years. Participants (n=68) ages 35-75 are recruited from gastroenterology practices in Central Pennsylvania, representing four combinations: IR (Y or N) and history of adenomatous polyps (Y or N). Participants receive two four-week controlled diets (Average American and Legume diet) in random order separated by a three-week washout period. Weight is maintained on these two diets. Fasting blood samples are collected at the beginning and end of both diet periods. Screening data for the first 49 subjects are stratified by IR. Preliminary results suggested that the IR group has larger mean waist circumferences (102.13±8.82 v.92.75±8.71 cm; P=0.002) and BMI (30.4±3.64V.26.67±2.98; P=0.002), higher mean concentrations of triglycerides (TG, 156.20±63.33 v. 113.68±75.60mg/dL; P=0.012), and lower mean HDL concentrations (42.27±6.80 v. 51.56±12.80mg/dL, P=0.025). The Spearman correlation matrix showed that fasting insulin level was directly related to waist circumference (r=0.665; P<0.0001), TG (r=0.429; P=0.002), BMI (r=0.665; P<0.0001), and systolic blood pressure (SBP, r=0.345; P=0.015), and was inversely related to HDL (r=-0.369; P=0.009). The study is ongoing with an expected completion date of Fall, 2007. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Base editing has emerged as a revolutionary technology for single nucleotide modifications. The cytosine and adenine base editors (CBEs and ABEs) have demonstrated great potential in clinical and fundamental research. However, screening and isolating target-edited cells remains challenging. In the current study, we developed a universal Adenine and Cytosine Base-Editing Antibiotic Resistance Screening Reporter (ACBE-ARSR) for improving the editing efficiency. To develop the reporter, the CBE-ARSR was first constructed and shown to be capable of enriching cells for those that had undergone CBE editing activity. Then, the ACBE-ARSR was constructed and was further validated in the editing assays by four different CBEs and two versions of ABE at several different genomic loci. Our results demonstrated that ACBE-ARSR, compared to the reporter of transfection (RoT) screening strategy, improved the editing efficiency of CBE and ABE by 4.6- and 1.9-fold on average, respectively. We found the highest CBE and ABE editing efficiencies as enriched by ACBE-ARSR reached 90% and 88.7%. Moreover, we also demonstrated ACBE-ARSR could be employed for enhancing simultaneous multiplexed genome editing. In conclusion, both CBE and ABE activity can be improved significantly using our novel ACBE-ARSR screening strategy, which we believe will facilitate the development of base editors and their application in biomedical and fundamental research studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dual-specificity tyrosine phosphorylation-regulated kinase DYRK2 has emerged as a critical regulator of cellular processes. We took a chemical biology approach to gain further insights into its function. We developed C17, a potent small-molecule DYRK2 inhibitor, through multiple rounds of structure-based optimization guided by several co-crystallized structures. C17 displayed an effect on DYRK2 at a single-digit nanomolar IC50 and showed outstanding selectivity for the human kinome containing 467 other human kinases. Using C17 as a chemical probe, we further performed quantitative phosphoproteomic assays and identified several novel DYRK2 targets, including eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) and stromal interaction molecule 1 (STIM1). DYRK2 phosphorylated 4E-BP1 at multiple sites, and the combined treatment of C17 with AKT and MEK inhibitors showed synergistic 4E-BP1 phosphorylation suppression. The phosphorylation of STIM1 by DYRK2 substantially increased the interaction of STIM1 with the ORAI1 channel, and C17 impeded the store-operated calcium entry process. These studies collectively further expand our understanding of DYRK2 and provide a valuable tool to pinpoint its biological function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, genome engineering technology has provided unprecedented opportunities for site-specific modification of biological genomes. Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated (Cas) 9 is one such means that can target a specific genome locus. It has been applied in human cells and many other organisms. Meanwhile, to efficiently enrich targeted cells, several surrogate systems have also been developed. However, very limited information exists on the application of CRISPR/Cas9 in chickens. In this study, we employed the CRISPR/Cas9 system to induce mutations in the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ), ATP synthase epsilon subunit (ATP5E), and ovalbumin (OVA) genes in chicken DF-1 cells. The results of T7E1 assays showed that the mutation rate at the three different loci was 0.75%, 0.5%, and 3.0%, respectively. In order to improve the mutation efficiency, we used the PuroR gene for efficient enrichment of genetically modified cells with the surrogate reporter system. The mutation rate, as assessed via the T7E1 assay, increased to 60.7%, 61.3%, and 47.3%, and subsequent sequence analysis showed that the mutation efficiency increased to 94.7%, 95%, and 95%, respectively. In addition, there were no detectable off-target mutations in three potential off-target sites using the T7E1 assay. As noted above, the CRISPR/Cas9 system is a robust tool for chicken genome editing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long-lived and high-fidelity memory for a photonic polarization qubit (PPQ) is crucial for constructing quantum networks. We present a millisecond storage system based on electromagnetically induced transparency, in which a moderate magnetic field is applied on a cold-atom cloud to lift Zeeman degeneracy and, thus, the PPQ states are stored as two magnetic-field-insensitive spin waves. Especially, the influence of magnetic-field-sensitive spin waves on the storage performances is almost totally avoided. The measured average fidelities of the polarization states are 98.6% at 200 μs and 78.4% at 4.5 ms, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human adenovirus E4orf4 protein is toxic in human tumor cells. Its interaction with the Bα subunit of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) is critical for cell killing; however, the effect of E4orf4 binding is not known. Bα is one of several mammalian B-type regulatory subunits that form PP2A holoenzymes with A and C subunits. Here we show that E4orf4 protein interacts uniquely with B55 family subunits and that cell killing increases with the level of E4orf4 expression. Evidence suggesting that Bα-specific PP2A activity, measured in vitro against phosphoprotein substrates, is reduced by E4orf4 binding was obtained, and two potential B55-specific PP2A substrates, 4E-BP1 and p70S6K, were seen to be hypophosphorylated in vivo following expression of E4orf4. Furthermore, treatment of cells with low levels of the phosphatase inhibitor okadaic acid or coexpression of the PP2A inhibitor I1PP2A enhanced E4orf4-induced cell killing and G2/M arrest significantly. These results suggested that E4orf4 toxicity results from the inhibition of B55-specific PP2A holoenzymes, an idea that was strengthened by an observed growth arrest resulting from treatment of H1299 cells with Bα-specific RNA interference. We believe that E4orf4 induces growth arrest resulting in cell death by reducing the global level of B55-specific PP2A activity, thus preventing the dephosphorylation of B55-specific PP2A substrates, including those involved in cell cycle progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the results of a wide-angle seismic profile, over 700 km long, across the southern margin of the Tarim Basin. A crustal structure that best fits the observed data, that tests and verifies the earlier discovery that the crystalline basement dips southward from the area of the petroleum industry seismic reflection profiling and geological investigation is presented. The profile also reveals that the Moho dips southward beneath the southern Tarim, at an angle in concordance to that of the crystalline basement. This result is thought to be the first evidence for the underthrusting of the Tarim crust beneath the western Kunlun. Additional evidence of underthrusting is that the relatively weak western Kunlun crust has contracted, and expressed by a lower crust, which is more than 20 km thick, with an uplift of the Kunlun basement, accompanied by northward-directed thrusts. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The case of a 66-year-old male with heart failure and cardiorenal syndrome is presented. The patient had normal renal function before intensive treatment with diuretics and ACE inhibitor. Shortly after the ACE inhibitor was stopped and diuretics were either stopped or reduced in dosage, his renal function normalized. Suggestions are presented for follow-up after initiation of ACE inhibitor treatment.