Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0851184 (thinning)
 11,252 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

To elucidate changes in the sclera of myopic eyes free of other obvious pathological features, morphometric and ultrastructural studies on the posterior sclera at the foveola of the three lid-fused monkeys that had developed high myopia were performed. The myopic eyes showed increased axial length, and their scleral thickness was about half that of the control eyes. Furthermore, a gradual increase in the size of collagen bundles and fibrils from the inner to the outer layer of the sclera was observed in the control eyes, but was not evident in the myopic eyes. From the present study, it can be speculated that an alteration of fibrillogenesis in the sclera is a key feature of scleral thinning in lid-suture myopia, and that axial elongation of the eyeball results from a combination of altered fibrillogenesis and mechanical expansion.
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PMID:Scleral change in experimentally myopic monkeys. 233 55

The fusion of large unilamellar phosphatidylserine liposomes (PS LUV) induced by La3+ has been monitored using the 1-aminoapthalene-3,6,8-trisulfonic acid/p-xylenebis(pyridinium bromide) (ANTS/DPX) fluorescence assay for the mixing of aqueous contents. The fusion event is extensive and nonleaky, with up to 95% mixing of contents in the fused liposomes. However, addition of excess EDTA leads to disruption of the fusion products in a way that implies the existence of metastable intermembrane contact sites. The maximal fusion activity occurs between 10 and 100 microM La3+ and fusion can be terminated rapidly, without loss of contents, by the addition of excess La3+, e.g., 1 mM La3+ at pH 7.4. This observation is explained by the very large intrinsic binding constant (approximately 10(5) M-1) of La3+ to the PS headgroup, as measured by microelectrophoresis. Addition of 1 mM La3+ causes charge reversal of the membrane and a large positive surface potential. La3+ binding to PS causes the release of a proton. These data can be explained if La3+ can chelate to PS at two sites, with one of the sites being the primary amino group. This binding model successfully predicts that at pH 4.5 fusion occurs up to 2 mM La3+, due to reduced La3+ binding at low pH. We conclude that the general mechanism of membrane fusion includes three kinetic steps. In addition to (a) aggregation, there is (b) the close approach of the surfaces, or thinning of the hydration layer, and (c) the formation of intermembrane intermediates which determine the extent to which membrane destabilization leads to fusion (mixing of aqueous contents), as opposed to lysis. The lifetime of these intermembrane intermediates appears to depend upon La3+ binding to both PS sites.
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PMID:La3+-induced fusion of phosphatidylserine liposomes. Close approach, intermembrane intermediates, and the electrostatic surface potential. 338 13

Internal fixation of the spine combined with limited or no fusion has been advocated in the treatment of thoracolumbar fractures, spondylolisthesis, and severe juvenile spinal deformities. Internal fixation without arthrodesis of canine facet joints has been shown to result in the irreversible gross and histologic findings typical of osteoarthritis. Surgery was performed in eight patients for the treatment of thoracolumbar fractures. In each patient, Harrington distraction instrumentation was placed across at least two vertebral segments above and below the fused area. Instrumentation was removed six to 26 months following the initial surgery. A unilateral partial facetectomy was performed at the facet joint above the lower Harrington hook. Gross examination of the facet joints revealed areas of fibrillation, fissures, and thinning of the normal cartilaginous surface characteristic of osteoarthritis. Histologic examination revealed consistent areas of erosion of the vascular tidemark, osteophyte formation, subchondral remodeling, fibrillation, and loss of the normal cartilage cellularity. These findings were consistent with the histologic appearance of osteoarthritis. Internal fixation of the spine without arthrodesis is not an innocuous procedure and may be a predisposing factor in the development of symptomatic spinal arthritis.
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PMID:The effect of internal fixation without arthrodesis on human facet joint cartilage. 647 98

Computed tomography has proven useful in children with craniosynostosis for the evaluation of deformity of the skull base, calvarium, and parenchymal brain structures. A retrospective analysis of 24 children seen during a 4-year period who had adequate preoperative, postoperative, and follow-up scans was carried out. Bone windows were used, and both bone thinning adjacent to fused sutures and thickening of affected sutures were demonstrated. Changes in calvarial contour were easily followed. Current trends in craniofacial reconstructive surgery have placed emphasis on skull base abnormalities; these are readily measured on axial computed tomographic (CT) sections, and postoperative progress may be monitored by serial scanning. In addition, new data revealing distortion of brain structures and cerebrospinal fluid pathways in these children have been obtained with CT scans. These soft tissue abnormalities had not been appreciated before the CT era, and they add a new dimension to the evaluation of these disorders. We think that these abnormalities indicate a local pressure increase on the brain at the fusion site. The restoration of parenchymal changes toward normal during the postoperative period correlated well with cosmetic improvement.
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PMID:Craniosynostosis: computed tomographic evaluation of skull base and calvarial deformities and associated intracranial changes. 730 Oct 80

Single layers of MgF2 and LaF3 were deposited upon superpolished fused-silica and CaF2 substrates by ion-beam sputtering (IBS) as well as by boat and electron beam (e-beam) evaporation and were characterized by a variety of complementary analytical techniques. Besides undergoing photometric and ellipsometric inspection, the samples were investigated at 193 and 633 nm by an optical scatter measurement facility. The structural properties were assessed with atomic-force microscopy, x-ray diffraction, TEM techniques that involved conventional thinning methods for the layers. For measurement of mechanical stress in the coatings, special silicon substrates were coated and analyzed. The dispersion behavior of both deposition materials, which was determined on the basis of various independent photometric measurements and data reduction techniques, is in good agreement with that published in the literature and with the bulk properties of the materials. The refractive indices of the MgF2 coatings ranged from 1.415 to 1.440 for the wavelength of the ArF excimer laser (193 nm) and from 1.435 to 1.465 for the wavelength of the F2 excimer laser (157 nm). For single layers of LaF3 the refractive indices extended from 1.67 to 1.70 at 193 nm to approximately 1.80 at 157 nm. The IBS process achieves the best homogeneity and the lowest surface roughness values (close to 1 nm(rms)) of the processes compared in the joint experiment. In contrast to MgF2 boat and e-beam evaporated coatings, which exhibit tensile mechanical stress ranging from 300 to 400 MPa, IBS coatings exhibit high compressive stress of as much as 910 MPa. A similar tendency was found for coating stress in LaF3 single layers. Experimental results are discussed with respect to the microstructural and compositional properties as well as to the surface topography of the coatings.
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PMID:Ultraviolet optical and microstructural properties of MgF2 and LaF3 coatings deposited by ion-beam sputtering and boat and electron-beam evaporation. 1206 2

A new capillary electrophoresis interface to electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (CE/ESI-MS) is introduced in which the electrical connection to the CE capillary outlet/ESI electrode is achieved by transfer of small ions related to the background electrolyte (BGE) through a porous section near the CE capillary outlet. In this design, only a small section of the capillary wall is made porous. The porous section is created by first thinning a small section of the capillary wall by drilling a well into it and then etching the remaining thin wall porous. This design has two advantages over previous designs (in which the whole circumference of the capillary was made porous): first, the capillary interface is more robust because only a small section of it is made porous, and therefore, no liquid junction is needed to secure the porous section. The electrical connection is achieved simply by inserting the capillary outlet containing the porous junction into the existing ESI needle and filling the needle with the BGE. Second, the time required to make the fused silica porous is reduced from approximately 1 h to a few minutes. In addition, there is no dead volume associated with the porous design, and because the actual metal/liquid contact occurs outside of the CE capillary, bubble formation due to redox reactions of water at the electrode does not affect CE/ESI-MS performance. The performance of this interface is demonstrated by the analyses of peptide and protein mixtures.
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PMID:Capillary electrophoresis to mass spectrometry interface using a porous junction. 1272 Mar 61

The arterial content of hyaluronan (HA) undergoes diffuse changes as part of the diabetic macroangiopathy. Because HA influences the phenotype of vascular cells in vitro such as proliferation, migration, and secretion, it is tempting to speculate that diabetes-induced hastened cardiovascular disease may be linked to the increased amount of HA. To explore the pathophysiological role of altered HA content in the arterial wall in vivo, we created transgenic (Tg) mice with HA overexpression in smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in large and small vessels, targeted by the alpha smooth-muscle-cell-actin (alphaSMA) promoter fused to the human hyaluronan synthase 2 (hHAS2) cDNA. RT-PCR demonstrated hHAS2 mRNA expression in the tunica media of large and small vessels. In situ hybridization confirmed that hHAS2 mRNA was targeted to the SMCs. The aortic HA content was elevated in the Tg mice, and by immunohistochemistry, it was seen that HA accumulated in the tunica media. The secretory profile of high- and low-molecular HA was similar in wild-type and Tg animals. Overproduction of HA in the aorta resulted in thinning of the elastic lamellae in Tg mice. Our data suggest that this may lead to increased mechanical stiffness and strength, as determined by controlled stretching until failure. Finally, overproduction of HA on the genetic background of the ApoE-deficient mouse strain promoted atherosclerosis development in the aorta. These results indicate that a single component of the diabetic macroangiopathy, diffuse accumulation of HA, accelerates the progression of atherosclerosis.
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PMID:Overexpression of hyaluronan in the tunica media promotes the development of atherosclerosis. 1570 63

Could it be the thinning of the ozone layer (see p. 645) that has indirectly caused our baffling faux pas in recent issues? In reporting the formation by the National Academy of Sciences of a Committee on Environmental Research to be headed by Cornell President Emeritus Dale Corson (11 October, p. 192), we inexplicably fused the distinguished careers of physicist Corson and former Dartmouth president John Kemeny. It was the latter who headed the President's Commission that investigated the accident at Three Mile Island, whereas Corson's distinctions include heading the NAS's "Corson Panel" on scientific communications and national security and founding the Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable. Three weeks earlier (in "Mycomummy," 20 September, p. 1353), we misspelled Coccidioides, a fungus whose petrified spores were found in the ancient skeleton of a Sinaguan indian.
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PMID:Errata. 1777 83

Phospholipid vesicles exhibit a natural characteristic to fuse and reform into a continuous single bilayer membrane on hydrophilic solid substrates such as glass, mica, and silica. The resulting solid-supported bilayer mimics physiological tendencies such as lipid flip-flop and lateral mobility. The lateral mobility of fluorescently labeled lipids fused into solid-supported bilayers is found to change upon deposition on the membrane surface of an amphipathic alpha-helical peptide (AH) derived from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS5A protein. The binding of the AH peptide to a phospholipid bilayer, with the helical axis parallel to the bilayer, leads to immobilization of the bilayer. We used AFM to better understand the mechanistic details of this specific interaction, and determined that the diminished fluidity of the bilayer is due to membrane thinning. Utilizing this specific interaction between AH peptides and lipid molecules, we demonstrate a novel process for the creation of lipid partition by employing AH peptides as agents to immobilize lipid molecules, thus creating a patterned solid support with partition-defined areas of freely mobile lipid bilayers. This architecture could have a wide range of applications in novel sensing, biotechnology, high-throughput screening, and biomimetic strategies.
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PMID:Creation of lipid partitions by deposition of amphipathic viral peptides. 1780 21

A method for on-demand droplet fusion in a microfluidic channel is presented using the flow created from a single explosively expanding cavitation bubble. We test the technique for water-in-oil droplets, which are produced using a T-junction design in a microfluidic chip. The cavitation bubble is created with a pulsed laser beam focused into one droplet. High-speed photography of the dynamics reveals that the droplet fusion can be induced within a few tens of microseconds and is caused by the rapid thinning of the continuous phase film separating the droplets. The cavitation bubble collapses and re-condenses into the droplet. Droplet fusion is demonstrated for static and moving droplets, and for droplets of equal and unequal sizes. Furthermore, we reveal the diffusion dominated mixing flow and the transport of a single encapsulated cell into a fused droplet. This laser-based droplet fusion technique may find applications in micro-droplet based chemical synthesis and bioassays.
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PMID:Fast on-demand droplet fusion using transient cavitation bubbles. 2148 78


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