Safety, Efficacy of an Accelerated Regimen of Low-Dose Recombinant Tissue-Type Plasminogen Activator for Reperfusion Therapy of Acute Pulmonary Embolism

Controversy persists regarding the safety and efficacy of an accelerated low-dose recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (rt-PA) regimen for reperfusion therapy in acute pulmonary embolism. This study describes the outcomes of an accelerated low-dose rt-PA regimen for the treatment of acute pulmonary embolism in Vietnamese patients. This was a case series from October 2014 to October 2020 from 9 hospitals across Vietnam. Patients presenting with acute pulmonary embolism with high to intermediate mortality risk were administered alteplase 0.6 mg per kilogram (maximum of 50 mg) over 15 min. The main outcomes were the proportion who survived to hospital discharge and at 3 months as well as in-hospital hemorrhage (major and minor according to International Society of Thrombosis and Hemhorrage definitions). A total of 80 patients were enrolled: 48 (60%) with high risk for mortality and 32 patients (40%) with intermediate risk for mortality. A total of 7 (8.8%) died in hospital. All deaths occurred in the high-risk mortality group. The 73 patients who were discharged alive remained alive at 3 months follow up. During hospitalization, 1 patient (1.3%) suffered major bleeding, and 7 (8.8%) had minor bleeding. An accelerated thrombolytic regimen with alteplase 0.6 mg/kg (maximum of 50 mg) over 15 min for acute pulmonary embolism appeared be effective and safe in a case series of Vietnamese patients.

13C labeling indicates that the epoxide-containing amino acid of HC-toxin is biosynthesized by head-to-tail condensation of acetate

HC-toxin, cyclo(D-Pro-L-Ala-D-Ala-L-Aeo), where Aeo stands for 2-amino-9,10-epoxi-8-oxodecanoic acid, is a potent inhibitor of histone deacetylase. Previous molecular genetic studies indicated that HC-toxin biosynthesis requires a dedicated fatty acid synthase. The incorporation of [13C]acetate into HC-toxin was studied using NMR. The pattern of incorporation of 13C was consistent with the carbons of Aeo being derived from head-to-tail condensation of acetate.

Reciprocal up- and down-regulation of BDNF mRNA in tetanus toxin-induced epileptic focus and inhibitory surround in cerebral cortex

Chronic focal epilepsy is associated with synaptic plasticity and growth of new connections. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is associated with each of these processes in normal brain and shows acute up-regulation in models of generalized epilepsy. Here, using an experimental model of focal epilepsy, we show persistent up-regulation of BDNF mRNA, independent of that of other growth factors, in association with the development and persistence of chronic seizures. In situ hybridization histochemistry revealed that rats perfused within 2-3 days after seizure onset had widespread increases in BDNF mRNA levels in the neocortex. Rats perfused at later times, however, showed focal up-regulation of BDNF mRNA at the injection site and down-regulation in a surrounding cortical zone. Nerve growth factor and neurotrophin-3 mRNAs were not significantly altered. These reciprocal changes in BDNF gene expression in the epileptic focus and the cortical surround may contribute to plastic changes in epileptic neuronal circuits that accompany the transition from acute to chronic epilepsy. BDNF down-regulation in the surround is likely to be associated with the inhibitory surround that hampers seizure spread, but facilitates the persistence of a chronic epileptic focus.

Methyl Isocyanide Hot Bands in the Region 1300-1560 cm-1

The hot bands accompanying the fundamentals nu6 and nu3 of CH3NC in the region 1300-1560 cm-1 observed in high-resolution Fourier transform recordings complemented by diode laser spectra have been analyzed. The observed transitions comprise 16 subbands of the pair of perpendicular E-E bands nu6± + nu8± - nu8± and nu7-/+ + 2nu80 - nu8± whose upper states form a Fermi dyad, 18 subbands of the A1,2-E perpendicular bands nu6-/+ + nu8± - nu8±/nu7± + 2nu8±2 - nu8± with upper states forming another Fermi dyad, and 8 subbands of the bi-parallel E-E band nu3 + nu8± - nu8±. The anharmonic, Coriolis, and l-type interactions which couple these upper states with each other and with the states nu7-/+ + 2nu8±2, nu4 + 3nu8±1, and nu4 + 3nu8±3 have been included in an 18 x 18 Hamiltonian matrix whose eigenvalues model the upper levels of the observed transitions. The values of 46 upper state spectroscopic constants and interaction constants have been adjusted by least squares to 950 observed lines. The results provide a reliable quantitative picture of the interacting states and yield accurate values for the spectroscopic constants of the various states and for the anharmonic constants x68, x68 (g68), and x38. Copyright 1997Academic Press