'Rapid transit' constipation in children: a possible genesis for irritable bowel syndrome.

Children with chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC) often end up at the surgeon when medical treatments have failed. This opinion piece discusses a recently described pattern of CIC called 'Rapid transit constipation (RTC)' first identified in 2011 as part of surgical workup. RTC was identified using a nuclear medicine gastrointestinal transit study (NMGIT or nuclear transit study) to determine the site of slowing within the bowel and to inform surgical treatment. Unexpectedly, we found that RTC occured in 29% of 1000 transit studies in a retrospective audit. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) occurs in 7-21% of the population, with a higher prevalence in young children and with constipation type dominating in the young. While 60% improve with time, 40% continue with symptoms. First-line therapy for IBS in adults is a diet low in fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols which reduces symptoms in > 70% of patients. In children with functional gastrointestinal disorders, fructose intolerance occurs in 35-55%. Reducing fructose produced significant improvement in 77-82% of intolerant patients. In children with RTC and a positive breath test upon fructose challenge, we found that exclusion of fructose significantly improved constipation, abdominal pain, stool consistency and decreased laxative use. We hypothesise that positive breath tests and improvement of pain and bowel frequency with sugar exclusion diets in RTC suggest these children have IBS-C. These observations raise the possibility that many children with CIC could be treated by reducing fructose early in their diet and this might prevent the development of IBS in later life.

Use of plasma "reconstitution" during cardio pulmonary bypass for a heart transplant after previous left ventricular assist device implant surgery.

The case report describes a novel technique of pre-emptive plasma "reconstitution" prior to disengagement from cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) to minimize RV volume overload. The concomitant use of hemoconcentration facilitates volume and blood product management in cardiac transplant after previous left ventricular assist device implant surgery.

Influence of socioeconomic factors on litigation in surgery: Addressing the gap in malpractice literature.

The practice of medicine is occasionally volatile and increasingly litigious. Within the specialities, plastic surgery has a high risk, with negative outcomes seen as dissatisfaction, as compared to actual physical harm. To date, most research has focused on potential triggers for litigation, such as poor communication and perceived behavioural deficiencies among physicians. Few studies have addressed patient characteristics or socioeconomic factors. The 'Influence of Socio-Economic Factors on Attitudes Towards Surgery' questionnaire was designed to reflect these goals. It was distributed for a 12-month period to patients in an Emergency Department waiting room. Three hundred twelve completed questionnaires were submitted for analysis. Within the study population, we identified certain socioeconomic trends among those with a low threshold to pursue litigation. Patients with a low threshold to sue were more likely to be male, aged 25-55 years, currently unemployed, without dependents and divorced. However, these parameters did not reach statistical significance. Although these characteristics are interesting, they cannot reliably identify or predict those with a low threshold for litigation. For now, the clinical focus should remain on careful adherence to best practice in an effort to reduce the risk of potential litigation.

The leptin to adiponectin ratio (LAR) is reduced by sleeve gastrectomy in adults with severe obesity: a prospective cohort study.

Bariatric surgery is known to reduce leptin and increase adiponectin levels, but the influence of sleeve gastrectomy on the leptin: adiponectin ratio (LAR), a measure of insulin sensitivity and cardiovascular risk, has not previously been described. We sought to determine the influence of sleeve gastrectomy on LAR in adults with severe obesity.In a single centre prospective cohort study of adults undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy over a four-month period in our unit, we measured LAR preoperatively and 12 months after surgery. Of 22 patients undergoing sleeve gastrectomy, 17 (12 females, 12 with type 2 diabetes) had follow-up LAR measured at 12.1 ± 1 months. Mean body weight decreased from 130.6 ± 30.8 kg to 97.6 ± 21.6 kg, body mass index (BMI) from 46.9 ± 7.8 to 35.3 ± 7.2 kg m-2 and excess body weight from 87.5 ± 31.3 to 41.3 ± 28.8% (all p < 0.001). The reduction in leptin from 40.7 ± 24.9 to 30.9 ± 30.5 ng/ml was not significant (p = 0.11), but adiponectin increased from 4.49 ± 1.6 to 8.93 ± 6.36 µg/ml (p = 0.005) and LAR decreased from 8.89 ± 4.8 to 5.26 ± 6.52 ng/µg (p = 0.001), equivalent to a 70.9% increase in insulin sensitivity. The correlation with the amount of weight lost was stronger for LAR than it was for leptin or adiponectin alone. In this single-centre, interventional prospective cohort, patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy had a substantial reduction in their LAR after 12 months which was proportional to the amount of weight lost. This may indicate an improvement in insulin sensitivity and a reduction in cardiovascular risk.

Review paper: Implications of the "cancer stem cell" hypothesis on murine models of colon cancer and colitis-associated cancer.

The use of murine models to investigate human diseases has been an invaluable tool. In the areas of inflammation and oncogenesis, such models have provided unique insights into pathogenesis and mechanisms to evaluate potential therapy. As such, one facet of these disease processes links inflammation and cancer. Inflammation is associated with at least 15% of the world's malignancies. One example of this relationship is documented in the association between colitis and colorectal cancer. To date, the precise molecular events linking inflammation and cancer remain unclear. A new paradigm that may bridge these processes includes the cancer stem cell hypothesis. In this review, murine models of colitis, colon cancer, and colitis-associated cancer are discussed in reference to the potential of this paradigm to clarify the relationship of these devastating diseases.

Induction of midbrain dopaminergic neurons by Sonic hedgehog.

Midbrain dopaminergic neurons, whose loss in adults results in Parkinson's disease, can be specified during embryonic development by a contact-dependent signal from floor plate cells. Here we show that the amino-terminal product of Sonic hedgehog autoproteolysis (SHH-N), an inductive signal expressed by floor plate cells, can induce dopaminergic neurons in vitro. We show further that manipulations to increase the activity of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase A, which is known to antagonize hedgehog signaling, can block dopaminergic neuron induction by floor plate cells. Our results and those of other studies indicate that SHH-N can function in a dose-dependent manner to induce different cell types within the neural tube. Our results also provide the basis for a potential cell transplantation therapy for Parkinson's disease.

TGF beta 2 and TGF beta 3 are potent survival factors for midbrain dopaminergic neurons.

The vertebrate ventral midbrain contains 3-4 x 10(4) dopaminergic neurons that influence motor activity, emotional behavior, and cognition. Recently, glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) was shown to be a potent survival factor for these dopaminergic neurons in culture. However, many midbrain dopaminergic neurons project to targets that do not express GDNF. We report here that transforming growth factors (TGFs) TGF beta 2 and TGF beta 3, which are distantly related to GDNF, also prevent the death of cultured rat embryonic midbrain dopaminergic neurons at picomolar concentrations. Furthermore, we find that TGF beta 2, TGF beta 3, and GDNF are expressed sequentially as local and target-derived trophic factors and that subpopulations of dopaminergic neurons projecting to distinct targets have access to only one of these factors. These findings are consistent with the idea that GDNF, TGF beta 2, and TGF beta 3 are physiological survival factors for developing midbrain dopaminergic neurons and may have applications as therapeutics for Parkinson's disease, a neurodegenerative disorder of dopaminergic neurons.

TAG-1 can mediate homophilic binding, but neurite outgrowth on TAG-1 requires an L1-like molecule and beta 1 integrins.

Subsets of axons in the embryonic nervous system transiently express the glycoprotein TAG-1, a member of the subfamily of immunoglobulin (Ig)-like proteins that contain both C2 class Ig and fibronectin type III domains. TAG-1 is attached to the cell surface by a glycosylphosphatidylinositol linkage and is secreted by neurons. In vitro studies have shown that substrate-bound TAG-1 promotes neurite outgrowth. We have examined the nature of axonal receptors that mediate the neurite-outgrowth promoting properties of TAG-1. Although TAG-1 can mediate homophilic binding, neurite outgrowth on a substrate of TAG-1 does not depend on the presence of TAG-1 on the axonal surface. Instead, neurite outgrowth on TAG-1 is inhibited by polyclonal antibodies directed against L1 and, independently, by polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies against beta 1-containing integrins. These results provide evidence that TAG-1 can interact with cell surfaces in both a homophilic and heterophilic manner and suggest that neurite extension on TAG-1 requires the function of both integrins and an L1-like molecule.

Control of cell pattern in the neural tube by the zinc finger transcription factor and oncogene Gli-1.

Sonic hedgehog (Shh) is a putative morphogen secreted by the floor plate and notochord, which specifies the fate of multiple cell types in the ventral aspect of the vertebrate nervous system. Since in Drosophila the actions of Hh have been shown to be transduced by Cubitus interruptus (Ci), a zinc finger transcription factor, we examined whether a vertebrate homolog of this protein can mediate the functions of Shh in the vertebrate nervous system. Here, we demonstrate that expression of Gli-1, one of three vertebrate homologs of Ci, can be induced by Shh in the neural tube. Further, ectopic expression of Gli-1 in the dorsal midbrain and hindbrain of transgenic mice mimics the effects of ectopically expressed Shh-N, leading to the activation of ventral neural tube markers such as Ptc, HNF-3beta, and Shh; to the suppression of dorsal markers such as Pax-3 and AL-1; and to the formation of ectopic dorsal clusters of dopaminergic and serotonergic neurons. These findings demonstrate that GLI-1 can reproduce the cell patterning actions of Shh in the developing nervous system and provide support for the hypothesis that it is a mediator of the Shh signal in vertebrates.

GFRalpha1 is an essential receptor component for GDNF in the developing nervous system and kidney.

Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) is a distant member of the TGFbeta protein family that is essential for neuronal survival and renal morphogenesis. We show that mice who are deficient in the glycosyl-phosphatidyl inositol (GPI) -linked protein GFRalpha1 (GDNFRalpha) display deficits in the kidneys, the enteric nervous system, and spinal motor and sensory neurons that are strikingly similar to those of the GDNF- and Ret-deficient mice. GFRalpha1-deficient dopaminergic and nodose sensory ganglia neurons no longer respond to GDNF or to the structurally related protein neurturin (NTN) but can be rescued when exposed to GDNF or neurturin in the presence of soluble GFRalpha1. In contrast, GFRalpha1-deficient submandibular parasympathetic neurons retain normal response to these two factors. Taken together with the available genetic and biochemical data, these findings support the idea that GFRalpha1 and the transmembrane tyrosine kinase Ret are both necessary receptor components for GDNF in the developing kidney and nervous system, and that GDNF and neurturin can mediate some of their activities through a second receptor.

Mice lacking alpha-synuclein display functional deficits in the nigrostriatal dopamine system.

alpha-Synuclein (alpha-Syn) is a 14 kDa protein of unknown function that has been implicated in the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD). Here, we show that alpha-Syn-/- mice are viable and fertile, exhibit intact brain architecture, and possess a normal complement of dopaminergic cell bodies, fibers, and synapses. Nigrostriatal terminals of alpha-Syn-/- mice display a standard pattern of dopamine (DA) discharge and reuptake in response to simple electrical stimulation. However, they exhibit an increased release with paired stimuli that can be mimicked by elevated Ca2+. Concurrent with the altered DA release, alpha-Syn-/- mice display a reduction in striatal DA and an attenuation of DA-dependent locomotor response to amphetamine. These findings support the hypothesis that alpha-Syn is an essential presynaptic, activity-dependent negative regulator of DA neurotransmission.

Persephin, a novel neurotrophic factor related to GDNF and neurturin.

A novel neurotrophic factor named Persephin that is approximately 40% identical to glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and neurturin (NTN) has been identified using degenerate PCR. Persephin, like GDNF and NTN, promotes the survival of ventral midbrain dopaminergic neurons in culture and prevents their degeneration after 6-hydroxydopamine treatment in vivo. Persephin also supports the survival of motor neurons in culture and in vivo after sciatic nerve axotomy and, like GDNF, promotes ureteric bud branching. However, in contrast to GDNF and NTN, persephin does not support any of the peripheral neurons that were examined. Fibroblasts transfected with Ret and one of the coreceptors GFRalpha-1 or GFRalpha-2 do not respond to persephin, suggesting that persephin utilizes additional, or different, receptor components than GDNF and NTN.

The seven-transmembrane receptor smoothened cell-autonomously induces multiple ventral cell types.

Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) is a secreted protein that controls cell fate and mitogenesis in the developing nervous system. Here we show that a constitutively active form of Smoothened (Smo-M2) mimics concentration-dependent actions of Shh in the developing neural tube, including activation of ventral marker genes (HNF3beta, patched, Nkx2.2, netrin-1), suppression of dorsal markers (Pax-3, Gli-3, Ephrin A5) and induction of ventral neurons (dopaminergic, serotonergic) and ventrolateral motor neurons (Islet-1+, Islet-2+, HB9+) and interneurons (Engrailed-1+, CHX10+). Furthermore, Smo-M2's patterning activities were cell autonomous, occurring exclusively in cells expressing Smo-M2. These findings suggest that Smo is a key signaling component in the Hh receptor and that Shh patterns the vertebrate nervous system as a morphogen, rather than through secondary relay signals.

Regulatory genes in Aspergillus nidulans.

A major area for the study of gene regulation in lower eukaryotes has been the coordinated control of catabolic enzyme synthesis. Studies of catabolic gene regulation aim to define how interactions between input signals and regulatory proteins are transmitted to the transcription machinery to bring about changes in gene expression. In the past, mutants altered in the utilization of a wide variety of substrates have been characterized in Aspergillus nidulans. Recently, the development of a transformation system for A. nidulans has meant that molecular techniques can now be combined with the traditional genetic approach.

Sequence and functional analysis of the positively acting regulatory gene amdR from Aspergillus nidulans.

The positively acting regulatory gene amdR of Aspergillus nidulans coordinately regulates the expression of five structural genes involved in the catabolism of certain amides (amdS), omega amino acids (gatA and gabA), and lactams (lamA and lamB) in the presence of omega amino acid inducers. Analysis of the amdR gene showed that it contains three small introns, heterogeneous 5' and 3' transcription sites, and multiple AUG codons prior to the major AUG initiator. The predicted amdR protein sequence has a cysteine-rich "zinc finger" DNA-binding motif at the amino-terminal end, four putative acidic transcription activation motifs in the carboxyl-terminal half, and two sequences homologous to the simian virus 40 large T antigen nuclear localization motif. These nuclear localization sequences overlap the cysteine-rich DNA-binding motif. A series of 5', 3', and internal deletions were examined in vivo for transcription activator function and showed that the amdR product contains at least two activation regions in the carboxyl-terminal half. Each of these activator amdR product contains at least two activation regions in the carboxyl-terminal half. Each of these activator regions may function independently, but both are required for wild-type levels of transcription activation. A number of the amdR deletion products were found to compete with the wild-type amdR product in vivo. Development of a rapid method for the localization of amdR mutations is presented, and using this technique, we localized and sequenced the mutation in the semiconstitutive amdR6c allele. The amdR6c missense mutation occurs in the middle of the gene, and it is suggested that it results in an altered protein which activates gene expression efficiently in the absence of an inducer.

Isolation and analysis of the acetate regulatory gene, facB, from Aspergillus nidulans.

The facB gene of Aspergillus nidulans is thought to be involved in acetate induction of enzymes required for acetate utilization and of the acetamidase encoded by the multiply regulated amdS gene. In addition, some evidence suggests that the facB gene has a structural as well as a regulatory role in acetate metabolism. The facB gene was cloned from a cosmid library by complementation of the facB101 loss-of-function mutation. Transformants receiving multiple copies of facB displayed stronger growth on acetamide media, indicating increased amdS expression, while growth on acetate was inhibited in these multicopy transformants. A 3.1-kilobase acetate-inducible facB transcript was detected by Northern (RNA) blot analysis. Examination of message levels in wild-type and mutant strains indicated that the facB gene is subject to carbon catabolite repression. Previous work has indicated that the presence of multiple copies of the 5' end of the amdS gene can result in titration of regulatory proteins. Additional copies of the facB gene were shown to specifically overcome the effect of facB product titration.

Cloning and analysis of the positively acting regulatory gene amdR from Aspergillus nidulans.

The positively acting regulatory gene amdR of Aspergillus nidulans coordinately regulates the expression of four unlinked structural genes involved in acetamide (amdS), omega amino acid (gatA and gabA), and lactam (lamA) catabolism. By the use of DNA-mediated transformation of A. nidulans, the amdR regulatory gene was cloned from a genomic cosmid library. Southern blot analysis of DNA from various loss-of-function amdR mutants revealed the presence of four detectable DNA rearrangements, including a deletion, an insertion, and a translocation. No detectable DNA rearrangements were found in several constitutive amdRc mutants. Analysis of the fate of amdR-bearing plasmids in transformants showed that 10 to 20% of the transformation events were homologous integrations or gene conversions, and this phenomenon was exploited in developing a strategy by which amdRc and amdR- alleles can be readily cloned and analyzed. Examination of the transcription of amdR by Northern blot (RNA blot) analysis revealed the presence of two mRNAs (2.7 and 1.8 kilobases) which were constitutively synthesized at a very low level. In addition, amdR transcription did not appear to depend on the presence of a functional amdR product nor was it altered in amdRc mutants. The dosage effects of multiple copies of amdR in transformants were examined, and it was shown that such transformants exhibited stronger growth than did the wild type on acetamide and pyrrolidinone media, indicating increased expression of the amdS and lamA genes, respectively. These results were used to formulate a model for amdR-mediated regulation of gene expression in which the low constitutive level of amdR product sets the upper limits of basal and induced transcription of the structural genes. Multiple copies of 5' sequences from the amdS gene can result in reduced growth on substrates whose utilization is dependent on amdR-controlled genes. This has been attributed to titration of limiting amdR gene product. Strong support for this proposal was obtained by showing that multiple copies of the amdR gene can reverse this phenomenon (antititration).

AnCF, the CCAAT binding complex of Aspergillus nidulans, is essential for the formation of a DNase I-hypersensitive site in the 5' region of the amdS gene.

The CCAAT sequence in the amdS promoter of Aspergillus nidulans is recognized by AnCF, a complex consisting of the three evolutionary conserved subunits HapB, HapC, and HapE. In this study we have investigated the effect of AnCF on the chromatin structure of the amdS gene. The AnCF complex and the CCAAT sequence were found to be necessary for the formation of a nucleosome-free, DNase I-hypersensitive region in the 5' region of the amdS gene. Deletion of the hapE gene results in loss of the DNase I-hypersensitive site, and the positioning of nucleosomes over the transcriptional start point is lost. Likewise, a point mutation in the CCAAT motif, as well as a 530-bp deletion which removes the CCAAT box, results in the loss of the DNase I-hypersensitive region. The DNase I-hypersensitive region and the nucleosome positioning can be restored by insertion of a 35-bp oligonucleotide carrying the CCAAT motif. A DNase I-hypersensitive region has been found in the CCAAT-containing fmdS gene and was also hapE dependent. These data indicate a critical role for the AnCF complex in establishing an open chromatin structure in A. nidulans.

Isolation of genomic clones containing the amdS gene of Aspergillus nidulans and their use in the analysis of structural and regulatory mutations.

Previous analysis of the amdS gene of Aspergillus nidulans has identified multiple regulatory circuits mediated by trans-acting regulatory genes, cis-acting mutations have been identified and shown to specifically affect individual regulatory circuits. Fine-structure genetic mapping of the amdS regions showed that these cis-acting mutations occur in a complex controlling region adjacent to the amdS structural gene. The amdS gene was cloned by differential hybridization, using cDNA probes derived from a high-level-producing strain and from a strain with a large amdS deletion mutation. RNA blotting experiments showed that a single RNA species of 1,600 to 1,700 base pairs is transcribed from the amdS gene. DNA blotting experiments on a large number of amdS mutant strains, including deletions and translocations, allowed the genetic and physical maps of the gene to be correlated. The controlling region of the gene is situated at the 5' end of the gene and the direction of transcription is toward the centromere of chromosome III. The regulatory mutations in the controlling region were found to be due to small-scale alterations in the DNA rather than to large-scale rearrangements resulting in gene fusions.