Human urotensin-II is a potent vasoactive peptide: pharmacological characterization in the rat, mouse, dog and primate.

The observation that the novel G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) GPR14 and its cognate ligand, urotensin-II (U-II), are expressed within the mammalian vasculature raises the possibility that they may influence cardiohemodynamic homeostasis. To this end, this study examined the vasoactive properties of U-II in rodents, dogs and primates. In vitro, human U-II was a sustained vasoconstrictor with a potency (pD2s < or = 9) approximately an order of magnitude greater than that seen with endothelin-1 (ET-1), making it one of the most, if not the most, potent mammalian vasoconstrictor identified to date. However, in vitro responses exhibited significant anatomical and/or species-dependency, that is, human U-II was a selective 'aorto-coronary' vasoconstrictor in rats and dogs, inactive in mice and contracted all primate arteries studied. In vivo, this peptide evoked a complex, dose-dependent hemodynamic response in the anesthetized primate, culminating in severe myocardial depression and fatal circulatory collapse. As such, U-II may represent a novel neurohumoral regulator of mammalian cardiovascular physiology and pathology in particular disorders characterized by aberrant vascular smooth muscle and/or myocardial function.

Satisfaction and role performance of case managers in the mental health system.

The demand for case managers in the mental health system has increased as helping persons with severe mental disorders to live in community settings of their choice has become a primary outcome goal of intervention. This article reports on an exploratory study that addressed the following questions: What is the case manager's perception of his or her current work satisfaction, and what factors contribute to this perception? How do case managers perceive their overall sense of well-being, use of social support, and role performance? Is there a difference in the intensive case manager's perception of work satisfaction, general well-being, and use of social supports when compared to that of traditional case managers?

Strategic planning in non-profits: profit from it.

Non-profit human service organizations, both public and private, face unique challenges and opportunities in the climate of the 1990s as human needs are increasing, funding is decreasing, and threats to organizational well-being are encountered. The purpose of this paper is to describe, advocate for, and illustrate a strategic planning model which facilitates a proactive, energizing, futuristic vision as services are being planned and delivered. Three case examples are used: a large state-run county social services department; a small, private, sectarian agency that provides group home services for the developmentally disabled; and a medium sized federal public health hospital.

[An atypical case of visceral leishmaniasis]. / Su un caso atipico di leishmaniosi viscerale.

The authors report a case of infant visceral Leishmaniosis observed in their Department, that showed unusual clinical finding (absence of fever). They emphasize the current epidemiologic situation and recommend to consider the disease in the diagnosis of long term syndroms occurring without fever and with hepatosplenomegaly.

[A case of Kawasaki disease. Case report]. / Su un caso di malattia di Kawasaki. Contributo casistico.

The Authors describe the case of a little girl from Buenos Aires that presents, as regards the clinical picture and the course, the features of Kawasaki illness. It is the first case described in Calabria. The Authors come to the hypothesis that Kawasaki illness, could be a benign variant of periarteritis nodosa, caused from an infections noxa (Rickettsie?).