Histological analysis showed high connexin 43 coupling, few inflammatory cells, and low fibrotic markers in myocardium implanted with these phorbol myristate acetate-activated MSCs. Infarct hearts implanted with these cells exhibited restoration of conduction velocity through decreased tissue heterogeneity and improved myocardial contractility. These findings have major implications for the development of better cell types for LB-100 electromechanical integration of cell-based treatment for infarcted myocardium.”
“This paper studies

integrated simultaneous carbon and nitrogen removal as well as worm predation, in a circulating fluidized bed biofilm reactor (CFBBR) operated with an anoxic-aerobic bioparticle recirculation. A lab-scale CFBBR with a 8.5-liter reaction zone comprising 2 L anoxic and 6.5 L aerobic compartments was designed to evaluate the aquatic Oligochaete worm effect. Long-term (200 days) performance showed that stable and high-rate chemical oxygen demand (COD) with sodium acetate as the carbon source and total HDAC inhibitor nitrogen (NH4Cl

as nitrogen source) conversions were achieved simultaneously, with low sludge production of 0.082 g VSS (volatile suspended solids) g COD-1 at pseudo-steady-state. Worm predation, which causes considerable sludge reduction of the bioparticle process, was studied. The results proved that the worm predation has a significant impact on the pseudo-steady-state selleck chemical performance of the CFBBR, decreasing biomass yield, decreasing oxygen concentration and increasing expanded bed height. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Acute renal failure (ARF) is common after cardiac surgery and more frequent after complex cardiac surgery. While the incidence of ARF is increasing after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, trends in other forms of cardiac surgery

remain unclear. We investigated the trend of ARF in various cardiac procedures and compared patterns using CABG surgery as a reference group. The study population consisted of discharges from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample from 1988 to 2003, grouped according to surgery as: CABG, CABG with mitral valve, CABG with other valve, valve alone, and heart transplant. Standard diagnostic codes were used to identify ARF among discharges. Multivariable regression was used to determine trends in ARF among various procedures with CABG as a reference group. The incidence of ARF increased in all five groups (p < 0.001) over the 16-year period. The ARF incidence was highest in the heart transplant group (17%). Compared to the CABG population, patients following heart transplantation developed ARF at higher rates during the study period. In contrast, while ARF increased over time in other groups, the rates of rise were slower than in CABG patients. Among heart surgery procedures, ARF incidence is highest in heart transplantation.