“
“Background. Immunosuppressive regimen is associated with several metabolic adverse effects. Bone loss and fractures are frequent after transplantation and involve multifactorial mechanisms.\n\nMethods. A retrospective analysis of 130 patients submitted to simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation (SPKT) and an identification of risk factors involved in de novo Charcot neuroarthropathy by multivariate analysis were used; P<0.05 was considered significant.\n\nResults. Charcot neuroarthropathy was diagnosed in 4.6% of SPKT recipients during the first year. Cumulative glucocorticoid doses (daily dose plus methylprednisolone pulse) during the first 6 months both

adjusted to body weight (978 mg/kg) and not adjusted to body weight were associated with Charcot neuroarthropathy SBE-β-CD concentration (P=0.001 and P<0.0001, respectively). Age, gender, race, time on dialysis, time of diabetes history, and posttransplantation hyperparathyroidism were not related to Charcot neuroarthropathy after SPKT.\n\nConclusions. Glucocorticoids are the main risk factors for de novo Charcot neuroarthropathy after SPKT. Protocols including glucocorticoid avoidance or minimization should be considered.”
“The andromonoecious poplar is an exceptional model system for studying sex-specific flower development in dioecious plants. There is increasing evidence

that epigenetic regulation, particularly DNA methylation, is an important regulatory factor during flower development. Here, methylation-sensitive amplified NVP-LDE225 polymorphism (MSAP) was HER2 inhibitor used to screen for sex-specific DNA methylation alterations in the andromonoecious poplar. The sequences of 27 sex-specific amplified fragments were obtained

from DNA prepared from sex-specific flower tissues. PtGT2, PtPAL3, and PtCER4, which are homologous to MF26, MF29, and MF35, respectively, were cloned as candidate genes. Expression analysis and DNA methylation pattern profiling of the three candidate genes revealed that gene expression upregulation was always associated with gene body methylation. The results suggested that DNA methylation sites have the potential to regulate the genes’ transcript levels. These three genes were shown to play important roles during different phases of flower development. This study will help to provide candidates for future experiments aimed at understanding the mechanism, whereby DNA methylation regulates gene expression in poplar.\n\nWe report the first screen for sex-specific DNA methylation alterations in the andromonoecious poplar. 27 sex-specific methylation sites were identified. The gene expression levels and DNA methylation patterns were detected for three candidate genes.”
“OBJECTIVES: LaparoEndoscopic Single-Site (LESS) surgery presents many technical and ergonomic obstacles. The solution to these current limitations may lie within emerging technologies, primarily the doVinci robotic platform.