A method for detecting errors in discounted fee-for-service payments by insurance companies

In order to discover and correct inaccurate payments received from insurance companies, a practice requires a plan for the systematic, efficient, and prompt monitoring of receipts. When any such discrepancies are detected, the physician can query the insurance company and correct the problem. Once the system is in place, it behooves each physician to look at the results at least weekly. Monitoring receipts requires interest, know-how, and persistence in the face of ever-confusing payment methodologies. This paper explains one such plan for detecting and correcting inaccurate insurance company payments.

Isozyme electrophoresis patterns of the liver fluke, Clonorchis sinensis from Kimhae, Korea and from Shenyang, China

An enzyme analysis of the liver fluke, Clonorchis sinensis from Kimhae, Korea and from Shenyang, China was conducted using a horizontal starch gel electrophoresis in order to elucidate their genetic relationships. A total of eight enzymes was employed from two different kinds of buffer systems. Two loci from each enzyme of aconitase and esterase (alpha-Na and beta-Na); and only one locus each from six enzymes, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase (GPD), 3-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBDH), malate dehydrogenase (MDH), phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI), and phosphoglucomutase (PGM) were detected. Most of loci in two populations of C. sinensis showed homozygous monomorphic banding patterns and one of them, GPD was specific as genetic markers between two different populations. However, esterase (alpha-Na), GPD, HBDH and PGI loci showed polymorphic banding patterns. Two populations of C. sinensis were more closely clustered within the range of genetic identity value of 0.998-1.0. In summarizing the above results, two populations of C. sinensis employed in this study showed mostly monomorphic enzyme protein banding patterns, and genetic differences specific between two populations.

Enhancement of immunoglobulin G2a and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte responses by a booster immunization with recombinant hepatitis C virus E2 protein in E2 DNA-primed mice

The induction of strong cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) and humoral responses appear to be essential for the elimination of persistently infecting viruses, such as hepatitis C virus (HCV). Here, we tested several vaccine regimens and demonstrate that a combined vaccine regimen, consisting of HCV E2 DNA priming and boosting with recombinant E2 protein, induces the strongest immune responses to HCV E2 protein. This combined vaccine regimen augments E2-specific immunoglobulin G2a (IgG2a) and CD8(+) CTL responses to a greater extent than immunizations with recombinant E2 protein and E2 DNA alone, respectively. In addition, the data showed that a protein boost following one DNA priming was also effective, but much less so than those following two DNA primings. These data indicate that sufficient DNA priming is essential for the enhancement of DNA encoded antigen-specific immunity by a booster immunization with recombinant E2 protein. Furthermore, the enhanced CD8(+) CTL and IgG2a responses induced by our combined vaccine regimens are closely associated with the protection of BALB/c mice from challenge with modified CT26 tumor cells expressing HCV E2 protein. Together, our results provide important implications for vaccine development for many pathogens, including HCV, which require strong antibody and CTL responses.

Relation between the risk of gallstone pancreatitis and characteristics of gallstone in Korea

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Pancreatitis is a serious complication of patients with gallstones. However, risk factors of gallstone pancreatitis were unpredictable until recently. In Korea, characteristics of gallstones are different from Western countries. The present study was designed to determine differences in the risk of gallstone pancreatitis and characteristics of gallstones in Korean patients.

METHODOLOGY

Clinical data were collected on patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The physical characteristics of gallstones recovered at surgery were also recorded. Patients with gallstone pancreatitis were compared with patients who had uncomplicated biliary pain.

RESULTS

In a logistic regression model, acute gallstone pancreatitis was associated with a stone diameter of less than 5 mm (odds ratio: 3.3695; P = 0.0352) and with stone number of more than 20 (odds ratio: 3.8686; P = 0.0361). No other variable, including pigment stone, age, and sex, remained statistically significant in the adjusted analysis (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with at least 1 gallstone smaller than 5 mm in diameter and stone number more than 20 each have a more than 3-fold increased risk of presenting with acute gallstone pancreatitis. The composition of gallstones, especially pigment stones, was not an important risk factor in gallstone pancreatitis in Korean patients with stones having a different composition than those from Western countries.

Manganese deposits in patients with biliary atresia after hepatic porto-enterostomy

PURPOSE

The aim of this study was to determine if there is latent manganese toxicity in patients with biliary atresia.

METHODS

Fifteen children with biliary atresia were examined postoperatively with regard to whole-blood manganese levels using brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and I-123 iodoamphetamine (IMP) per rectal portal scintigraphy.

RESULTS

Nine (60%) of the 15 had high whole-blood manganese levels (mean, 4.1 microg/dL; range, 1.2 to 9.6; normal, 0.5 to 2.5), and these 9 had hyperintense globus pallidus on T1-weighted images, with no corresponding signal change in T2 sequences. I-123 IMP per rectal portal scintigraphy was done for 13 patients to evaluate portosystemic shunt flow. 12 (92%) of these patients had an increased flow. Mean shunt ratio was estimated to be 41% (range, 0.6 to 98; normal, <5%). Encephalopathy was evident in only 1 patient.

CONCLUSIONS

Some patients with biliary atresia in the postoperative period have manganese deposits in globus pallidus on T1-weighted images and high whole-blood manganese levels, possibly caused by increased portsystemic shunt, and a latent or subclinical encephalopathy is also present.

Genetic ablation reveals that the roof plate is essential for dorsal interneuron specification

During neural development in vertebrates, a spatially ordered array of neurons is generated in response to inductive signals derived from localized organizing centres. One organizing centre that has been proposed to have a role in the control of neural patterning is the roof plate. To define the contribution of signals derived from the roof plate to the specification of neuronal cell types in the dorsal neural tube, we devised a genetic strategy to ablate the roof plate selectively in mouse embryos. Embryos without a roof plate lack all the interneuron subtypes that are normally generated in the dorsal third of the neural tube. Using a genetically based lineage analysis and in vitro assays, we show that the loss of these neurons results from the elimination of non-autonomous signals provided by the roof plate. These results reveal that the roof plate is essential for specifying multiple classes of neurons in the mammalian central nervous system.

Survey of dental fees charged by dentists in Singapore

A survey on dental fees was conducted among all private dental clinics registered with the Medical Audit and Accreditation Unit of the Ministry of Health in Singapore. Replies were received from 74 dental clinics. Analysis of results showed that there was a general increase in the median of fees charged in 1998 compared to the fees listed in the Minimum Fee Schedule issued by the Singapore Dental Association in 1994. 93% of the respondents indicated that there is a need to revise the Minimum Fee Schedule.

Effects of diets containing gossypol on reproductive capacity of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

We evaluated five practical diets in which 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% (dietary treatments 1-5) of fish meal protein was replaced by solvent-extracted cottonseed meal protein. Adult rainbow trout (initial average weight 247 +/- 8 g) were fed the diets over a period of 131 days during which a general 2-fold body weight increase occurred. The total diet gossypol concentration (free and protein-bound) showed a gradual increase with increased cottonseed meal substitution. Blood samples were collected on Days 0, 64, 112, and 131 for hematological and steroid hormone determination in plasma of males and females. Hemoglobin content was significantly reduced in fish from treatment 5 (7.9 +/- 0.3 g/dl) in comparison to treatments 1-3 (10.3-10.9 g/dl). After 112 and 131 days of feeding, testis weights, concentrations of testosterone, and 11-ketotestosterone were elevated in fish from dietary treatments 2 and 3 in comparison to control and diets 4 and 5. On Day 71, sperm were collected from 6 fish per dietary treatment to assess sperm quality. No significant differences in sperm concentrations (7.2-9.8 x 10(9)/ml), motility (78-89%), and standardized (300 x 10(5) sperm/egg) fertilizing ability (18.9-22.6% hatched embryos) were found. Total gossypol concentrations in blood plasma differed significantly among treatments, and the levels were among the highest ever recorded in animals fed cottonseed-supplemented diets (2.9 +/- 0.2, 11.7 +/- 4.1, 21.7 +/- 1.4, and 29.9 +/- 3.9 microg/ml, for treatments 2-5, respectively). The major portion of gossypol in blood plasma was protein-bound (81-93%). This was in contrast to minute amounts of gossypol present in seminal plasma, mostly in free form (0.02-0.18 microg/ml), which indicates the presence of a barrier between general circulation and the testis with respect to gossypol distribution in lower vertebrates. Thus, the reproductive parameters of male rainbow trout examined in this study were not significantly affected by feeding cottonseed meal for 131 days.

Soluble-polymer supported synthesis of a prostanoid library: identification of antiviral activity

[formula: see text] The prostaglandins are potent natural products taking part in many biological processes. The "convergent generation of diversity" from a "toolbox" of prostanoid components, augmented with additional polymer-supported transformations, can enable construction of valuable libraries. A parallel-pool strategy was used to assemble a small library of prostanoids. The inhibition of a herpes-family virus demonstrated the potential for new drug discovery.

Tc-99m MIBI SPECT is useful for noninvasively predicting the presence of MDR1 gene-encoded P-glycoprotein in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

PURPOSE

Resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs continues to be one of the major unsolved problems in the treatment of cancer. Multidrug resistance is defined as the ability of cells exposed to a single drug to develop resistance to a broad range of structurally and functionally unrelated drugs as a result of enhanced outward transport of drugs mediated by P-glycoprotein that is encoded by multidrug resistance genes. Recent evidence has shown that Tc-99m MIBI is a suitable transport substrate for P-glycoprotein. A potential advantage of Tc-99m MIBI SPECT is its superiority to diagnose noninvasively the presence of P-glycoprotein overexpression in vivo. In this study, the authors determined the association of enhanced MIBI efflux in Tc-99m MIBI SPECT with overexpression of P-glycoprotein in hepatocellular carcinoma.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Thirty-five patients with hepatocellular carcinoma were enrolled in the study. Tc-99m MIBI SPECT was performed 10 minutes after intravenous injection of 20 mCi Tc-99m MIBI. All patients had liver biopsy or surgery within 1 week of MIBI imaging. Immunohistochemical study of the biopsy or resected hepatocellular carcinoma specimens was performed using the avidin-biotin-peroxidase technique with monoclonal antibody JSB-1 directed against P-glycoprotein.

RESULTS

On Tc-99m MIBI SPECT, 30 of 35 (85.7%) patients with hepatocellular carcinoma had no Tc-99m MIBI uptake in tumor lesions, whereas five patients with hepatocellular carcinoma had Tc-99m MIBI uptake in tumor lesions. P-glycoprotein expression was observed in tumor tissues of all the patients without Tc-99m MIBI uptake, whereas among the five patients with Tc-99m MIBI uptake, no P-glycoprotein expression was seen in tumor lesions (P < 0.015).

CONCLUSION

Tc-99m MIBI SPECT is useful for noninvasively predicting the presence of MDR1 gene-encoded P-glycoprotein in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

Microcephaly-cardiomyopathy syndrome: confirmation of the phenotype

We report a 9 year old girl with microcephaly and self-limiting dilated cardiomyopathy. Additional features include mental retardation, delayed developmental milestones, and minor dysmorphic features. This is the second reported case of this phenotype, which is believed to be a new autosomal recessive syndrome.

Survey of the Korean population for 9 short tandem repeat loci

The short tandem repeats with repeat units ranging from two to several nucleotides became a powerful tool in the field of forensic identification and paternity determination as well as for research in human gene mapping. Allele and genotype frequencies for 9 short tandem repeats including HUMCSF1PO, HUMTH01, HUMPLA2A1, HUMF13A01, HUMCYAR04, HUMLIPOL, HUMHPRTB, HUMCD4, and HUMFABP were determined using PCR and subsequent analysis of the PCR products by denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis followed by silver-staining. DNA samples were obtained from about 100 Korean people and amplified in a thermocycler adopting glass capillaries rather than traditional tubes. We found that the bovine serum albumin was an essential additive for the capillary PCR, presumably to coat the inner surface of the capillary which may adsorb Taq DNA polymerase. The capillary thermocycler was very effective in reducing the cycling time such that most of the amplification reactions could be finished within 30 min albeit the PCR product was less than that for the tube systems. All loci except HUMHPRTB met the Hardy-Weinberg expectations according to the exact test. The cumulative power of discrimination (PD) was 0.9999998 and the power of exclusion (POE) for the paternity test was a little low, being 0.9873989.

Autoregulation of the Drosophila disconnected gene in the developing visual system

The Drosophila disconnected (disco) gene is required for the formation of appropriate connections between the larval optic nerve and its target cells in the brain. The disco gene encodes a nuclear protein with two zinc fingers, which suggests that the gene product is a transcription factor. Here, we present data supporting this notion. We find that disco expression in the optic lobe primordium, a group of cells contacted by the developing optic nerve, depends on an autoregulatory feedback loop. We show that wild-type disco function is required for maintenance of disco mRNA and protein expression in the developing optic lobe. In addition, we demonstrate that ubiquitous Disco activity supplied by a heat-inducible gene construct activates expression from the endogenous disco gene specifically in the optic lobe primordium. Consistent with a role of Disco as a transcriptional regulatory protein, we show that portions of the Disco protein are capable of activating the transcription of reporter constructs in a heterologous system. Moreover, we find that the zinc finger portion of Disco binds in vitro to sequences located near the disco transcription unit, suggesting that Disco autoregulates its transcription in the optic lobe primordium by direct binding to a regulatory element in its own promoter.

Amycolatopsis thermoflava sp. nov., a novel soil actinomycete from Hainan Island, China

A soil isolate, which had been assigned to the genus Nocardia, was shown to have properties consistent with its classification in the genus Amycolatopsis. An almost complete nucleotide sequence of the 16S rDNA of the strain was determined following cloning and sequencing of the amplified gene. The sequence was aligned with those available for members of the family Pseudonocardiaceae and related taxa and phylogenetic trees were inferred using three tree-making algorithms. The organism consistently formed a distinct monophyletic clade with the type strain of Amycolatopsis methanolica, but DNA-DNA relatedness data showed that the two strains belonged to distinct genomic species. The organism was also distinguished from the type strains of all validly described species of Amycolatopsis using a battery of phenotypic properties. The genotypic and phenotypic data show that the strain merits recognition as a new species of the genus Amycolatopsis. The name proposed for the new species is Amycolatopsis thermoflava sp. nov. The type strain is IFO 14333T.

Altered serum cytokine and immunoglobulin levels in the workers exposed to antimony

1 Antimony (Sb), an industrial and environmental toxicant, is known to cause dermatitis and pulmonary inflammations, but the immunomodulatory effects of environmental or occupational exposure to Sb have not been reported. To initiate investigation of Sb-induced alterations of the immune system, the concentrations of the IgG subclasses, IgE, interleukin-2, interferon-gamma, and interleukin-4 in sera obtained from workers exposed to Sb through antimony trioxide manufacture were determined and compared with those of control subjects. 2 The serum levels of IgG1, an immunoglobulin involved in host defense against many microbial infections, were significantly lower in the sera of Sb-exposed individuals than the controls. The serum concentrations of IgE, an immunoglobulin mediating allergic hypersensitivity, also were lower in the Sb-exposed workers than the controls. In addition, the levels of interleukin-2 and interferon-gamma, multifunctional cytokines for T-cell mediated immunity, were lowered in the factory workers. 3 A significant positive correlation between IgG4 and urine Sb levels was found among the Sb-exposed workers, indicating a possible role of IgG4 in Sb-mediated pulmonary or skin pathogenesis. 4 The present study provides the first report on immune alterations induced by occupational exposure to Sb and suggests that Sb exposure disturbs immunohomeostasis in humans observed as a function of aberrant serum cytokine and immunoglobulin levels, which could influence health.

A metal complex that binds alpha-amino acids with high and predictable stereospecificity

Molecular recognition is the key step in a wide range of controlled separation and chemical transformation processes, with enzymes performing this task with an unsurpassed degree of selectivity. Enzymes contain only 20 simple amino acids, yet it remains difficult to rationalize or even predict these stereospecific recognition events. Nonetheless, the rational design of receptors able to recognize amino acids stereospecifically is attracting considerable interest because therapeutic drugs, that may be developed from chiral amino acid intermediates, are increasingly required in enantiomerically pure form. Early work has stimulated the development of efficient receptors based on small molecules, but binding of amino acids with high and predictable stereospecificity remains difficult to achieve. Directed molecular evolution, on the other hand, does select for RNA sequences or antibodies that bind amino acids with high specificity, but typically without providing insights into the molecular recognition mechanisms involved. Here we show that a rationally designed metal complex formed from a trivalent cobalt ion and a tetradentate ligand binds natural amino acids, including the simple yet challenging amino acid alanine, with high and predictable regio- and stereospecificity. We expect that our approach will allow the binding as well as separation and stereospecific catalytic formation of its target amino acids.

Frequency of sister chromatid exchange in chrysotile-exposed workers

Chrysotile, which is an industrial carcinogen, has been shown to induce a dose-dependent increase in the frequency of sister chromatid exchange (SCE) in vitro. Authors designed this study to examine the increase of SCEs frequency in the workers occupationally exposed to chrysotile. Heparinized whole blood samples from 45 chrysotile-exposed and 45 control volunteers were cultured for 72 h. The significant difference of SCE frequency was found between chrysotile-exposed workers and control group. The highest SCEs frequency was found in chrysotile-exposed smokers, and the lowest in control non-smokers. The effect of chrysotile exposure on SCEs was marginally significant after controlling the effects of age and smoking by multiple regression analysis.

An incidental case of human Heterophyes nocens infection diagnosed by sectional morphology in a biopsy specimen of the small intestine

A case of human infection with Heterophyes nocens (Heterophyidae) was incidentally found in a biopsy specimen of the Meckel's diverticulum at the upper part of the small intestine. The patient was a 58-year-old man living in a rural area of Talsonggun, Kyongsangbuk-do. He had gastrointestinal symptoms such as epigastric pain, indigestion, and abdominal discomfort for 3 months, and severe diarrhea, abdominal pain, and vomiting for about 1 month before hospitalization. Endoscopy of the upper part of the small intestine revealed a Meckel's diverticulum, and it was excised and histopathologically examined. Three adult flukes were incidentally found sectioned in the mucosa, and they were identified as H. nocens. The patient had a history of eating raw mullets at a fish market in Pusan 6 months ago, and the mullets were presumed to be the source of infection. This case brings a considerable interest in that specific diagnosis of heterophyid infections could be done by sectional morphology of the worms.

Identification and characterization of human Fas associated factor 1, hFAF1

We have identified and characterized a cDNA encoding human Fas associated factor 1 (hFAF1) cDNA and a shorter form of hFAF1 cDNA [hFAF1(s)] with a 456 bp internal in-frame deletion from a human HeLa cDNA library. The nucleotide sequences of hFAF1 and hFAF1(s) were identical except for the deletion. GST-hFAF1 fusion protein bound to the in vitro translation product of Fas. The N-terminal region (amino acid 1 approximately 201) including the upstream ubiquitin homology domain of hFAF1 could bind with the death domain of Fas unlike that of qFAF1 whose binding region with Fas could not be determined. However hFAF1 did not bind to the death domain of Fas mutant, lpr(cg). hFAF1 was expressed abundantly in testis, skeletal muscle, and heart as 2.8 kb mRNA. Polyclonal antibody against hFAF1 detected 74 kD protein, a deduced protein size from the ORF and 40 kD protein in some cell lines.

Competitive binding of calmodulin isoforms to calmodulin-binding proteins: implication for the function of calmodulin isoforms in plants

In plants, multiple calmodulin (CaM) isoforms exist in an organism which vary in their primary structures in as much as 32 residues out of their 148 amino acids. These CaM isoforms show differences in their expression patterns and/or target enzyme activation ability. To further understand the biological significance of CaM isoforms, we examined whether CaM isoforms act on specific regulatory targets. In gel overlay assays on various soybean tissue extracts, surprisingly, two soybean CaM isoforms (SCaM-1 and SCaM-4) did not show significant differences in their target binding protein profiles, although they exhibited minor differences in their relative target binding affinities. In addition, both SCaM isoforms not only effectively bound five known plant CaMBPs, but also showed competitive binding to these proteins. Finally, immunolocalization experiments with the SCaM proteins in sections of various tissues using specific antibodies revealed similar distribution patterns for the SCaM isoforms except for root tissues, which indicates that the SCaM isoforms are concomitantly expressed in most plant tissues. These results suggest that CaM isoforms may compete for binding to CaMBPs in vivo. This competitive nature of CaM isoforms may allow modulation of Ca(2+)/CaM signaling pathways by virtue of relative abundance and differential target activation potency.

Molecular cloning and expression analysis of a mouse phospholipase C-delta1

We describe here the molecular cloning and expression analysis of mouse PLC-delta1 (mPLC-delta1), a key enzyme in cell signal transduction. A mouse brain cDNA library was screened in order to isolate the mPLC-delta1 cDNA. The mPLC-delta1 cDNA was 2660 bp in length. The predicted open reading frame encodes a protein of 756 amino acids with an estimated molecular mass of 85 kDa. The deduced amino acid sequence exhibits 96.9% and 92.7% identity with the sequence of rat and human PLC-delta1, respectively. The mPLC-delta1 mRNA was highly expressed in brain, heart, lung, and testis. We found that transcripts of mPLC-delta1 are present in almost all regions of mouse brain examined, implying that the enzyme may play a role in some fundamental cellular process in brain. In male reproductive tract, mPLC-delta1 mRNA was widely expressed in the epididymis as well as in the testis. In situ hybridization studies indicate that distribution of mPLC-delta1 mRNA in mouse testis is discrete and unique. The expression of mPLC-delta1 mRNA was defined in the periphery of each seminiferous tubule, especially in spermatogonia, which might imply that mPLC-delta1 plays a role in proliferation of spermatogonia. To the best our knowledge, this is the first report to demonstrate the high expression of mPLC-delta1 mRNA in spermatogonia of testis. Taken together, these results suggest that mPLC-delta1 may carry out fundamental roles in almost all of mouse tissues, especially in brain and specific roles in testis.

A case of methemoglobinemia after ingestion of an aphrodisiac, later proven as dapsone

Methemoglobin (MetHb) is an oxidation product of hemoglobin in which the sixth coordination position of ferric iron is bound to a water molecule or to a hydroxyl group. The most common cause of acquired MetHb-emia is accidental poisoning which usually is the result of ingestion of water containing nitrates or food containing nitrite, and sometimes the inhalation or ingestion of butyl or amyl nitrite used as an aphrodisiac. We herein report a case of MetHb-emia after ingestion of an aphrodisiac, later identified as dapsone by gas chromatograph/mass selective detector (GC/MSD). A 24-year old male was admitted due to cyanosis after ingestion of a drug purchased as an aphrodisiac. On arterial blood gas analysis, pH was 7.32, PaCO2 26.8 mmHg, PaO2 75.6 mmHg, and bicarbonate 13.9 mmol/L. Initial pulse oxymetry was 89%. With 3 liter of nasal oxygen supplement, oxygen saturation was increased to 90-92%, but cyanosis did not disappear. Despite continuous supplement of oxygen, cyanosis was not improved. On the fifth hospital day, MetHb was 24.9%. Methylene blue was administered (2 mg/kg intravenously) and the patient rapidly improved. We proved the composition of aphrodisiac as dapsone by the method of GC/MSD.

Clinical outcomes of acute myocarditis in childhood

OBJECTIVE

To describe clinical outcomes of a paediatric population with histologically confirmed lymphocytic myocarditis.

DESIGN

A retrospective review between November 1984 and February 1998.

SETTING

A major paediatric tertiary care hospital.

PATIENTS

36 patients with histologically confirmed lymphocytic myocarditis.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Survival, cardiac transplantation, recovery of ventricular function, and persistence of dysrhythmias.

RESULTS

Freedom from death or cardiac transplantation was 86% at one month and 79% after two years. Five deaths occurred within 72 hours of admission, and one late death at 1.9 years. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support was used in four patients, and three patients underwent heart replacement. 34 patients were treated with intravenous corticosteroids. In the survivor/non-cardiac transplantation group (n = 29), the median follow up was 19 months (range 1.2-131.6 months), and the median period for recovery of a left ventricular ejection fraction to > 55% was 2.8 months (range 0-28 months). The mean (SD) final left ventricular ejection and shortening fractions were 66 (9)% and 34 (8)%, respectively. Two patients had residual ventricular dysfunction. No patient required antiarrhythmic treatment. All survivors reported no cardiac symptoms or restrictions in physical activity.

CONCLUSIONS

Our experience documents good outcomes in paediatric patients presenting with acute heart failure secondary to acute lymphocytic myocarditis treated with immunosuppression. Excellent survival and recovery of ventricular function, with the absence of significant arrhythmias, continued cardiac medications, or restrictions in physical activity were the normal outcomes.

Generation of cerebellar granule neurons in vivo by transplantation of BMP-treated neural progenitor cells

Cerebellar granule neurons, the most abundant class of CNS neurons, have a critical role in cerebellar function. Granule neurons are generated at the dorsal border of the mesencephalon and metencephalon, the rhombic lip. In the mouse embryo, rhombic lip cells express a number of granule neuron markers, notably the bHLH transcription factor Math1. Dorsal midline cells adjacent to the rhombic lip express Bmp6, Bmp7 and Gdf7, three genes encoding peptide growth factors of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) family. These BMPs induced the expression of granule neuron markers in cultured neural tissue. Moreover, BMP-treated neural cells formed mature granule neurons after transplantation into the early postnatal cerebellum, suggesting that BMPs initiate the program of granule cell specification.