Measurement of total-body 40potassium in patients with urate calculi.

Fifty-eight patients with urate calculi and 31 patients with other (non-urate) calculi were examined for total-body potassium by means of a total-body counter. The patients with urate calculosis were found to differ significantly in their total-body K from patients with other calculi as well as from normal subjects. The results indicate that total-body potassium deficiency is one of the factors causing urate calculosis.

Subdiffraction-resolution fluorescence microscopy reveals a domain of the centrosome critical for pericentriolar material organization.

As the main microtubule-organizing centre in animal cells, the centrosome has a fundamental role in cell function. Surrounding the centrioles, the pericentriolar material (PCM) provides a dynamic platform for nucleating microtubules. Although the importance of the PCM is established, its amorphous electron-dense nature has made it refractory to structural investigation. By using SIM and STORM subdiffraction-resolution microscopies to visualize proteins critical for centrosome maturation, we demonstrate that the PCM is organized into two main structural domains: a layer juxtaposed to the centriole wall, and proteins extending farther away from the centriole organized in a matrix. Analysis of Pericentrin-like protein (PLP) reveals that its carboxy terminus is positioned at the centriole wall, it radiates outwards into the matrix and is organized in clusters having quasi-nine-fold symmetry. By RNA-mediated interference (RNAi), we show that PLP fibrils are required for interphase recruitment and proper mitotic assembly of the PCM matrix.

Measurement of blood loss by total-body counting on the basis of calculated and predicted blood volumes.

Blood loss was measured by total-body counting in conformity with the fall in activity, the calculated or predicted blood volumes being known. On the ground of the predicted and calculated blood volumes it was the Nadler formula which gave the best approximation. The method was employed for the measurement of blood loss in users of intrauterine contraceptive spirals. It was found suitable for the measurement of a sudden blood loss of major intensity.

Iron absorption and loss in psoriasis.

59Fe absorption has been studied in psoriatics to elucidate the iron deficiency state. To determine the rate of iron loss, elimination of injected 59Fe was measured. In psoriasis mean iron absorption did not differ from the mean in the normal group, but a pathologically low absorption was found in 8 cases. Iron loss was significantly higher in psoriatics than in normal men, while it did not differ significantly from iron loss in women with regular menses.

[Treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee joint. Efficacy and tolerance to acemetacin slow release in comparison to celecoxib]. / Behandlung der Gonarthrose. Wirksamkeit und Verträglichkeit von retardiertem Acemetacin im Vergleich zu Celecoxib.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this trial was to compare acemetacin (ACE) with celecoxib (CEL) in terms of tolerability and efficacy in the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee joint. METHODS: A total of 105 patients (26-64 years old) suffering from primary osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee were enrolled in this international, multicenter, randomized, double blind controlled trial. Fifty three patients were given ACE and 52 CEL. They were treated with either 90 mg bid of slow release ACE or 200 mg bid of CEL for 6 weeks. Additional gastroprotective therapy was not provided. Tolerability was assessed by physical examination, laboratory tests, vital signs and reports of side effects, as well as by patient and physician global assessments. Efficacy parameters comprised pain assessment by visual analogue scale (VAS) and ordinal scale, WOMAC, SF-36 and patient and physician global impressions of efficacy. In addition, acetaminophen consumption was recorded. RESULTS: In 21 ACE (39.6%) and 19 CEL patients (36.5%), the number of side effects totaled 56 (ACE n=29; CEL n=27) (ns). Mean pain reduction at week 6 was highly significant ( P<0.0001) in both groups and amounted to 38.7 mm (+/-20.3) in the ACE group and to 35.1 mm (+/-18.7) in the CEL group (ns). Very similar results were seen with respect to the other efficacy parameters. CONCLUSION: ACE is not inferior to CEL for the short-term treatment of knee OA in terms of tolerability and efficacy.