Archaea predominate among ammonia-oxidizing prokaryotes in soils.

Ammonia oxidation is the first step in nitrification, a key process in the global nitrogen cycle that results in the formation of nitrate through microbial activity. The increase in nitrate availability in soils is important for plant nutrition, but it also has considerable impact on groundwater pollution owing to leaching. Here we show that archaeal ammonia oxidizers are more abundant in soils than their well-known bacterial counterparts. We investigated the abundance of the gene encoding a subunit of the key enzyme ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) in 12 pristine and agricultural soils of three climatic zones. amoA gene copies of Crenarchaeota (Archaea) were up to 3,000-fold more abundant than bacterial amoA genes. High amounts of crenarchaeota-specific lipids, including crenarchaeol, correlated with the abundance of archaeal amoA gene copies. Furthermore, reverse transcription quantitative PCR studies and complementary DNA analysis using novel cloning-independent pyrosequencing technology demonstrated the activity of the archaea in situ and supported the numerical dominance of archaeal over bacterial ammonia oxidizers. Our results indicate that crenarchaeota may be the most abundant ammonia-oxidizing organisms in soil ecosystems on Earth.

Comparative studies on two potential methods for the biotechnological production of sponge biomass.

The production of marine sponge biomass is one of the main outstanding goals of marine biotechnology. Due to the increased number of sponge secondary metabolites of economical value the interest in sponge cultivation increased over the last years, too. Therefore, we examined cultivation properties of 11 Mediterranean sponge species. Two methodologies were tested: functional fragment culture and multicell reaggregate culture. The in vitro cultivation of sponge fragments without further dissociation and reaggregation is a method formerly not reported. Reaggregates and functional fragments are promising attempts for culture system development. A broad spectrum of reaggregation properties was found among the species tested. In three species multicell aggregate cultures could be maintained for several months: Petrosia ficiformis, Suberites domuncula and Acanthella acuta. Our results indicate that cellular aggregates or fragments of sponges can be valuable tools in the development of methods for biotechnological production of sponge biomass. Further focus on nutritional demands and the biochemical status of the cells in these kind of cellular associations are needed in order to obtain functional aggregates and fragments.

Archimedean solids: transition metal mediated rational self-assembly of supramolecular-truncated tetrahedra.

A family of nanoscale-sized supramolecular cage compounds with a polyhedral framework is prepared by self-assembly from tritopic building blocks and rectangular corner units via noncovalent coordination interactions. These highly symmetrical cage compounds are described as face-directed, self-assembled truncated tetrahedra with T(d) symmetry.

Heterozygosity for the hemochromatosis gene in liver diseases--prevalence and effects on liver histology.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The effect of heterozygosity for the C282Y mutation in the HFE hemochromatosis gene on iron accumulation and disease progression in liver disease patients is unclear. METHODS: We investigated the prevalence of this mutation in 531 patients and 205 healthy controls. In addition, we assessed the influence of the mutation on liver histology in 34 C282Y heterozygous and 124 age-, sex- and disease-matched controls without the mutation using the modified HAI and Chevallier score. RESULTS: The highest prevalence of the C282Y mutation was observed in patients with autoimmune hepatitis (17.2%, p<0.01) compared to 6.4% in healthy controls. Heterozygotes with hepatitis C and B virus infection showed higher ferritin and hepatic iron concentrations than patients without the mutation. However, we did not detect significant differences in necroinflammatory or fibrosis scores between carriers of the mutation and controls. CONCLUSIONS: There are marked differences in the prevalence of the C282Y mutation in patients with different liver diseases, with the highest prevalence rates in autoimmune hepatitis and PBC. However, the C282Y mutation alone only leads to a mild increase in iron accumulation in the majority of the patients, with the exception of H63D/C282Y compound heterozygotes. We found no evidence for more pronounced fibrosis in C282Y heterozygotes.

One year later: did the quality circle of geriatric hip fracture care achieve quality outcomes?

In 1 year, the Geriatric Orthopaedic Hip Fracture Program saw various positive results. The accomplishments are as follows: Appropriate use of consulting services. Reduction in the mortality rate. Increase in the number of patients (76%) who returned to home versus skilled nursing facilities. Reduction of LOS. Fifty-seven percent of patients are independent with ADLs at 6 months after hip fracture repair. Sixty-four percent remain independent ambulators and use aids on an as needed basis. Our team has learned that we need to improve certain areas of the program. We need to reinforce to the staff the importance of following skin care and toileting guidelines. Other research articles looking at the overall condition of the geriatric patient have used the Apache score or the Anesthesia Rating score and we plan to follow suit. The Apache and Anesthesia ratings have been used to predict outcomes; the higher the score, the less successful the outcome. Within the cost structure, we needed to become more aware of the comorbidity costs and identify opportunities to address these issues.

Molecular architecture via coordination: self-assembly of pseudohexagonal A2(3)X2(3)-macrocycles.

[formula: see text] The interaction of two complementary ditopic building blocks, each incorporating 120 degrees angles between the active coordination sites, in methylene chloride at room temperature results in the spontaneous self-assembly of platinum-based assemblies of hexagonal shape.

The quality circle of hip fracture care.

Elderly patients with hip fractures have many medical, physical, and psychosocial challenges. Their care can become complex and require the integration of various disciplines. In this article, the author describes and explains the hip fracture preoperative assessment tool that contains various "red flag" indicators and tools used for data collection. The case manager can use this tool to assess patients before surgery and appropriately plan for discharge. Outcome results are discussed, including functional status, length of stay, and costs.

Quality circle of joint care.

The implementation of clinical pathways in home care, along with the use of outcome tools and the development of benchmark physical therapy guidelines, is discussed in this article. Three tools were developed by an interdisciplinary team led by an orthopaedic surgeon and the clinical nurse specialist (CNS) in cooperation with several members of the home care staff.

Building clinical pathways.

TQM principles change the work environment so that point-of-service personnel can improve health care delivery to patients. The clinical pathway process starts with the principles of TQM. In the era of managed care, health care resources can be managed effectively using a clinical pathway. The multidisciplinary team has the opportunity to improve the health care services provided to patients.

Managing patients with cryosurgical ablation of the prostate and liver.

Cryosurgery is an important alternate treatment for some patients diagnosed with prostate and liver metastasis cancer. The procedure, its benefits and side effects, and implications for nurses are discussed.

Tools for building a successful orthopaedic pathway.

In this arena of ever-changing health care, critical pathways have been identified as a tool to analyze cost as well as improve patient care and resource utilization. The Orthopaedic Department of Allegheny General Hospital was one of the first departments to begin the process of developing critical pathways with DRG #209, Total Joint Replacements. This article explains how the multidisciplinary team members used the Continuous Quality Improvement process through the use of various questionnaires, tools, and tracking documents in identifying ways to improve customer services.

Flow cytometric DNA content analysis of paraffin block embedded endometrial carcinomas.

Flow cytometry is being used as an aid in planning the treatment of patients with various malignancies. We report our experience with DNA content analysis on paraffin-embedded carcinomas. Hospital, radiation therapy, clinic, and pathology records were reviewed in 139 cases of endometrial carcinoma diagnosed between December 1980 and December 1986. Patients having Stage IV tumors, endometrial sarcomas, dual primary tumors, or incomplete records were eliminated from the analysis, which left 98 evaluable patients. This report outlines our experience with the first 20 patients. Five of 20 (25%) specimens demonstrated DNA content consistent with aneuploidy, median coefficient of variance of 5.3%. The median survival time of these five patients is 55 months, with three dying of cancer and one patient dying of other causes but with metastatic disease. The median %S phase was 3.7% in the 15 patients comprising the DNA content diploid population, median coefficient of variance 5.4%. No patient whose tumor showed S-phase cells below 3.7% died of endometrial cancer. Four of 7 patients developed recurrent cancer with 3 of the 4 patients dying of disease in the high %S phase group. The median patients survival time in the DNA content diploid population was 73 (range: 17-98) months. Patients with 3.7% or below S-phase cells had a median survival time of 75 (range: 40-98) months whereas the median survival time was 48 (range: 17-89) months for patients having a %S phase fraction above 3.7%. Although the number of patients studied is small, it appears that DNA content aneuploid tumors are frequently "upstaged" at surgery. These patients may not benefit from preoperative irradiation. Accurate determination of the %S phase fraction in DNA content diploid tumors may possibly identify patients with a poorer prognosis who may benefit from adjuvant therapy.

Right bundle-branch block in a dog.

A cardiac gallop rhythm and a low-grade systolic murmur were found in an 8-year-old Miniature Poodle. Conditions had not changed 7 months later, but electrocardiographic evaluation revealed a short R wave, large S wave, prolonged QRS interval and mean electrical axis of -100 degrees, all consistent with a right bundle-branch block. The dog has remained in good condition for 2 years without right-heart enlargement, ectopic beats or tachycardia, indicating the condition was an incidental finding.