Chemical Validation of DegS As a Target for the Development of Antibiotics with a Novel Mode of Action

Despite the availability of hundreds of antibiotic drugs, infectious diseases continue to remain one of the most notorious health issues. In addition, the disparity between the spread of multidrug-resistant pathogens and the development of novel classes of antibiotics exemplify an important unmet medical need that can only be addressed by identifying novel targets. Herein we demonstrate, by the development of the first in vivo active DegS inhibitors based on a pyrazolo[1,5-a]-1,3,5-triazine scaffold, that the serine protease DegS and the cell envelope stress-response pathway σE represent a target for generating antibiotics with a novel mode of action. Moreover, DegS inhibition is synergistic with well-established membrane-perturbing antibiotics, thereby opening promising avenues for rational antibiotic drug design.

HTRA1-Dependent Cell Cycle Proteomics

The HTRA1 gene encoding an evolutionary conserved protein quality-control factor can be epigenetically silenced or inactivated by mutation under pathologic conditions such as cancer. Recent evidence suggests that the loss of HTRA1 function causes multiple phenotypes, including the acceleration of cell growth, delayed onset of senescence, centrosome amplification, and polyploidy, suggesting an implication in the regulation of the cell cycle. To address this model, we performed a large-scale proteomics study to correlate the abundance of proteins and HTRA1 levels in various cell cycle phases using label-free-quantification mass spectrometry. These data indicate that the levels of 4723 proteins fluctuated in a cell-cycle-dependent manner, 2872 in a HTRA1-dependent manner, and 1530 in a cell-cycle- and HTRA1-dependent manner. The large number of proteins affected by the modulation of HTRA1 levels supports its general role in protein homeostasis. Moreover, the detected changes in protein abundance, in combination with pull-down data, implicate HTRA1 in various cell cycle events such as DNA replication, chromosome segregation, and cell-cycle-dependent apoptosis. These results highlight the wide implications of HTRA1 in cellular physiology.

Incidence of herpes simplex virus type 2 infection in the United States

Between the time that two large, national surveys were conducted, the Second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1976-1980) and the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1994), prevalence of herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) infection in the United States increased by 30%. From these survey data, the authors estimated the incidence of HSV-2 infection in the civilian, noninstitutionalized population aged > or = 12 years by means of a mathematical model that allowed overall incidence to increase linearly with time but required the shape of the age-specific incidence curve to remain constant. From 1970 to 1985, annual incidence of HSV-2 infection in HSV-2-seronegative persons increased by 82%, from 4.6 per 1,000 (95% confidence interval: 4.2, 5.0) to 8.4 per 1,000 (95% confidence interval: 7.7, 9.1). Incidence in 1985 was higher in women than in men (9.9 vs. 6.9 per 1,000), higher in Blacks than in Whites (20.4 vs. 6.3 per 1,000), and highest in the group aged 20-29 years (14.6 and 22.5 per 1,000 in men and women, respectively). Thus, by 1985, approximately 1,640,000+/-150,000 persons (730,000 men and 910,000 women) were being infected annually with HSV-2.

Comparison of field performance of the Andersen N6 single stage and the SAS sampler for airborne fungal propagules

Comparisons of two common bioaerosol samplers were made after sampling and enumeration of airborne fungal propagules in several office structures on a university campus in Southern California. Data collected on five occasions throughout the year showed that a Surface Air Systems (SAS) high flow portable sampler recovered consistently lower levels of colony forming units (cfu) than an Andersen N6 single stage impactor. There was no difference statistically between the samplers when concentrations of Cladosporium were compared. Compared to the Andersen N6, the SAS sampler recovered about half the number of cfu for three other fungal categories, i.e. non-sporulating species, Aspergillus and Penicillium and others. Differences in sampler efficiencies are discussed in terms of effective particle diameters. Counts of culturable airborne fungal spores obtained with the SAS sampler should be interpreted with caution when genera other than Cladosporium predominate.

Marital quality of parents of children with spina bifida: a case-comparison study

The impact of childhood chronic illness on parents' marital quality has received limited attention. Most studies have relied solely on mothers' reports and have not examined differences between mothers and fathers. Using a case-control design, this study compared the marital quality within and between dyads of 46 couples with children matched on the age and children matched on the age and sex of the child. During a home visit, parents completed both self-report measures and a communication observational task. Mothers' and fathers' reports of marital quality did not differ between the two groups. Also, no significant differences were found on other marital and psychosocial measures. The most interesting correlations were observed for fathers of children with spinal bifida whose marital quality was associated with parenting stress (r = -.51), depression (r = -.34), and role strain (r = -.34). Overall, the results of this study contribute to the growing body of literature demonstrating that parents of children with a chronic condition are at no greater risk for psychosocial dysfunction, including marital distress, than parents of healthy children. However, to generalize the results, additional research on marital quality with other chronic conditions is required.

Multilocular cyst (multilocular cystic nephroma) of the kidney: a report of 2 cases with an unusual mode of presentation

We report 2 cases of multilocular cyst (multilocular cystic nephroma) of the kidney in children who presented with sudden rapid growth of a renal mass.

Caliceal diverticula developing into simple renal cyst

Although common in adults simple cortical renal cysts are rare in children. Caliceal diverticula are rare in adults and children. A case of a caliceal diverticulum apparently sealing off and becoming an isolated simple cyst in the renal parenchyma has been reported as an unusual complication of caliceal diverticula. There have been 2 other cases of caliceal diverticula becoming sealed off reported in the literature, although neither progressed to frank cysts. We report 2 cases of definite caliceal diverticula progressing to simple renal cortical cysts.

Importance of electromyographic data in interpreting nocturnal penile tumescence

The use of home monitoring of nocturnal penile tumescence has potential advantages if it can reliably replace full somnographic recording. However, little is known of the relationship between home monitoring and full somnographic recording. The present study compared 26 records from 13 patients. Each record was scored independently by two evaluators, and the results indicate that home monitoring can lead to overestimation of NPT and errors in etiologic diagnosis.