In temperate locations, terminal apices on evergrowing (also called evergreen) peach trees keep growing in winter until killed by low temperatures, while the lateral buds go into dormancy. A recessive allele of a single gene (evergrowing or evg) controls this trait in peach. The amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) technique and bulked segregant analysis were applied to construct a local genetic linkage map for the evg gene from the cross Empress op op dwarf x Evergrowing (P.I. 442380). This map, comprising nine AFLP markers and the evg locus, covers a total genetic distance of 79.3 cM. Four dominant AFLP markers (EAT/MCAC, ETT/MCCA2, EAT/MCTA, and ETT/MACC) were linked to the evg locus at distances of 1, 5.3, 6.7, and 11.7 cM, respectively. EAT/MCAC and EAT/MCTA were converted into polymorphic sequence-tagged sites. Microsatellite markers in the evg region were developed from peach bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clones that hybridized to the AFLP marker fragments. Using three microsatellite anchor markers (pchgms12, pchgms17, and pchgms19), the local genetic linkage map was integrated into one minor linkage group of a previously constructed peach rootstock genetic linkage map. Three AFLP markers from the rootstock genetic linkage map were found linked to the evg locus.

Base Sequence↗

PubMedDate not supplied

A deletion affecting several gene candidates is present in the Evergrowing peach mutant.

Evergrowing (EVG) peach is one of only two described mutants affecting winter dormancy in woody perennial species. EVG peach does not set terminal buds, cease new leaf growth, nor enter into a dormant resting phase in response to winter conditions. The EVG mutation segregates in F2 progeny as a single recessive nuclear gene. A local molecular genetic linkage map around EVG was previously developed using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers, and a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) contig that contains the EVG mutation was assembled. A MADS box coding open reading frame (ORF) was found in a BAC of this contig and used as a probe. The probe detected a polymorphism between the wild-type and mutant genomes, and the polymorphism is indicative of a deletion in EVG peach. The EVG gene region contained six potential MADS-box transcription factor sequences, and the deletion in EVG affected at least four of these. The deletion was bracketed using RFLP analysis, which showed that it is contained within a segment of the genome no greater than 180 kb.

Base Sequence↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Response to phytohemagglutinin in mixed cultures of homologous, normal lymphocytes and those from patients with chronic lymphatic leukemia].

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Cell Transformation, Neoplastic↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Determinants of depression in 111 Italian patients with systemic sclerosis].

BACKGROUND: A high prevalence of depressive symptoms has been described in systemic sclerosis (SSc), but no clear association with organ involvement or objective indices of disease severity has been depicted. To date, no effort has been made to determine the prevalence of depressive symptoms in Italian patients with SSc or to clarify their cause. METHODS: One-hundred-eleven SSc patients were asked to fill in the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) questionnaire, the scleroderma Health Assessment Questionnaire (sHAQ) and two additional questions assessing the patient's familiar support and the social consequences of the patient's change in physical appearnace. RESULTS: Thirty-seven subjects (33.4%) presented mild to severe depressive symptoms (BDI >/=17). On univariate analysis the diffuse cutaneous form of the disease (p=0.019), higher pulmonary systolic pressures on echocardiogram (p=0.016), lower FVC percentage of predicted values (p=0.022), higher sHAQ values (p<0.001) or higher VAS values for pain (p=0.007), lung involvement (p=0.02), Raynaud's phenomenon severity (p=0.002), ulcers severity (p=0.006) or disease severity (p<0.001), were associated with the presence of pathologic depressive symptoms. On multivariate analysis only the VAS for disease severity relevant to BDI scores (p=0.016). Social behaviour changes due to SSc-related physical involvement were reported in 14 patients (38%) with depressive symptoms (p=0,006) and were more likely to be observed in younger patients (p=0.001) with a more severe Raynauds's phenomenon (p=0.013). CONCLUSIONS: Mild to severe depressive symptoms are common in SSc patients especially in those with a worse perception of disease severity, these patients should be carefully monitored and a psychological assistance counselled whenever necessary.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Non-invasive assessment of pulmonary artery involvement in Takayasu's arteritis.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate pulmonary involvement in Italian patients with Takayasu's arteritis (TA). METHODS: A prospective analysis of 15 Italian patients with TA was carried out, including evaluation by perfusion and ventilation lung scintigraphy (planar and tomographic), standard chest X-ray, spirography and color-doppler echocardiography. All the patients were free of respiratory symptoms when examined. RESULTS: In all patients standard chest X-rays and ventilation scintigraphies were normal. 9/15 patients showed unmatched segmental perfusion defects (41 by planar evaluation vs. 48 by SPET). The number of defects was greater in the right lung than in the left (26 vs 18), with a higher frequency of moderate or large defects. Thirteen patients underwent spirography, which proved to be abnormal in 5 cases. Two of these patients were also positive on scintigraphy. No patient showed alterations attributable to TA on color-doppler echocardiography, except for 3 patients with mild to moderate aortic valve regurgitation. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that vascular pulmonary involvement is frequent in TA (60% of cases) even in the absence of clinical signs. The planar image, simpler than the SPET to acquire, was sufficient to make an accurate diagnosis. Italian patients seem to show a pattern of extrapulmonary and pulmonary vascular involvement very similar to that reported in Japanese subjects, and different from that observed in other ethnic groups.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Five-year follow-up of 165 Italian patients with undifferentiated connective tissue diseases.

OBJECTIVE: To study those conditions with a proven or hypothesised immunologic pathogenesis and denominated under a working definition of undifferentiated connective tissue diseases (UCTD). METHODS: A multicentre prospective study was organised involving 10 tertiary referral centers of internal medicine in Italy, with the aim of describing the natural history of UCTD and the prevalence of its different clinical and immunological manifestations. RESULTS: After a five-year follow-up period, data on 165 patients were available for analysis. UCTDs occur mainly in females in their fourth decade of life. Articular and mucocutaneous features and Raynaud's phenomenon represent the most common findings. Nevertheless, we also detected a relatively high incidence of permanent major organ damage. Regarding the immunologic parameters, we documented some conflicting results in the correlation between serologic abnormalities and clinical features. In 10 patients UCTD evolved to a major disease, generally systemic lupus erythematosus or Sjögren's syndrome. CONCLUSION: A low rate of evolution to a defined autoimmune disease, the limited use of steroid or immunosuppressive therapy, and a favourable course in the majority of cases are the main characteristics of patients with UCTDs.

Adolescent↗

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Two incidental cases of abdominal aortic aneurysm and gallbladder cancer. Further data influencing the management of patients affected by aneurysm and gallbladder disease.

Abdominal aortic aneurysm and cholelithiasis are two common diseases in the elderly population. The prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysms ranges between 1.8 and 6.6% in autoptic series and it's estimated that 2.5% of the over sixty year old population is affected. Carcinoma of the gallbladder is the most common malignant tumor of the biliary tract and in the United States is the fifth most frequent digestive tract malignancy; it's incidence ranges between 2 to 10 cases of 100,000 persons/year. No adequate guidelines are now available to assist the surgeon, in the case of concomitant gallbladder disease and abdominal aortic aneurysm. In this paper the management of abdominal aortic aneurysm in a patient with gallbladder disease is discussed in order to assist the surgeon deciding whether to perform concomitant aneurysm resection and cholecystectomy. In 162 aneurysmectomies (1987-1997) 18 (11.11%) patients underwent combined aneurysmectomy and cholecystectomy operation. The patients ranged in age from 49 to 88 years (average 69 years). In two cases the anatomo-histological specimen examinations (twelve sections) demonstrated a gallbladder carcinoma. The overall mortality rate was 5.56% either for aneurysmectomy alone or for combined therapy. In case of abdominal aortic aneurysm and concomitant gallbladder disease, in choosing simple endoaneurysmectomy, the surgeon has to consider the risk of early and late complications of leaving a diseased gallbladder in place. In case of concomitant performance of both operations, the risks of a possible septic graft contamination must be considered. We believe that the patient may be best served by performing the vascular and nonvascular procedures in the same operation. In this paper a new proof, till now never considered in the international literature, is presented to support our opinion: the possibility of concomitant unknown cancer or precancerous lesions in a lithiasic gallbladder. Diagnosis of these lesions is, indeed, not easy to perform in the preoperative phase and is often a postoperative anatomo-histological detection.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of long-term cyclic iloprost therapy in systemic sclerosis with Raynaud's phenomenon. A randomized, controlled study.

OBJECTIVE: Iloprost is a stable prostacyclin analogue which has been shown to be effective in the short-term symptomatic treatment of Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) secondary to systemic sclerosis (SSc). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of long-term cyclic therapy with iloprost in comparison with nifedipine on the skin score, pulmonary function and Raynaud's severity score in patients with SSc and RP. METHODS: We conducted a 12-month prospective, randomised, parallel-group, blind-observer trial to compare the effects of intravenously infused iloprost (2 ng/kg/min on 5 consecutive days over a period of 8 hours/day and subsequently for 8 hours on one day every 6 weeks) with those of conventional vasodilating therapy with nifedipine (40 mg/day for os) in 46 patients with SSc and RP. RESULTS: At 12 months, iloprost but not nifedipine reduced the skin score (iloprost: from 13.26 +/- 2.05 to 9.26 +/- 1.32, p = 0.002; nifedipine: from 10.83 +/- 2.09 to 12.17 +/- 3.02, p = n.s.; iloprost vs nifedipine: p = 0.016) and the RP severity score (iloprost: from 2.17 +/- 0.2 to 1.22 +/- 0.13, p = 0.02 vs baseline; nifedipine: from 2.08 +/- 0.34 to 1.33 +/- 0.22, p = n.s.). Carbon monoxide diffusing capacity (DLCO), expressed as % of the predicted normal value, worsened significantly in the nifedipine group (from 69.6 +/- 7.4% to 61.5 +/- 6.5%, p = 0.044) and remained stable in patients treated with iloprost (from 53.2 +/- 4.8 to 56.0 +/- 4.6%, iloprost vs nifedipine: p = 0.026). CONCLUSION: In SSc patients, cyclic intravenous iloprost infusion is able to control vasospastic disease. Our results suggest that it might also act as a disease-modifying agent, as it seems to improve the course of the disease. Further studies principally focused on organ involvement and the natural history of the disease are needed to confirm our results.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Coagulative modifications in patients with systemic sclerosis treated with iloprost or nifedipine.

This study compared iloprost and nifedipine to ascertain whether they could improve parameters of endothelial and platelet functions in the treatment of Raynaud's phenomenon secondary to systemic sclerosis. Thirteen patients affected by systemic sclerosis were treated with intravenous infusion of iloprost, and 7 patients were treated with oral nifedipine. Blood samples were taken at baseline and after 6 and 12 months of therapy to assess main serological indexes of endothelial damage, thrombin activation, fibrinolysis, as well as natural inhibitors of coagulation. After 12 months of therapy, the patients treated with iloprost had a significant decrease in thrombomodulin levels (p = 0.02) and a significant increase in tissue-plasminogen activator levels (p = 0.007), in comparison with the patients taking nifedipine (p = 0.007). Moreover, patients treated with nifedipine showed increased levels of thrombin-antithrombin complex after 12 months of therapy in comparison with baseline values (p = 0.03) and in comparison with the values of the patients treated with iloprost over the same period (p = 0.05). These preliminary results thus seem to indicate that iloprost plays an important, if at least partial, role in the protection and restoration of endothelial integrity in patients with systemic sclerosis.

Blood Coagulation↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Takayasu's arteritis: a changing disease.

Takayasu's arteritis (TA) is a chronic, giant-cell vasculitis of unknown etiology, which primarily involves the aorta, its main branches and coronary and pulmonary arteries. This review focuses on the epidemiological, diagnostic, and clinical aspects of the disease, which have been changed since the first description made by Mikito Takayasu in 1908. The article also summarizes the data collected by the Italian Registry of TA in the period 1993-1998.

Asia↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Lymphocyte-endothelium interaction in systemic sclerosis and Raynaud's phenomenon.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate interactions of immune cells with vascular endothelium in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and in patients with idiopathic or autoimmune Raynaud's phenomenon (RP). METHODS: Lymphocytes obtained from 11 patients with SSc, 9 with RP and 14 control subjects were pre-stimulated in vitro with alloantigens and cultured together with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Lymphocyte adhesion and induction of endothelial HLA-class 11 molecules were measured by flow cytometry. Lymphocyte cytotoxicity against HUVECs was also evaluated. In some cases cells were cultured under experimental conditions of hypoxia and reoxygenation. RESULTS: Lymphocyte adhesion and induction of endothelial cell expression of HLA-DR molecules were similar in controls and SSc patients, but significantly lower in RP (p < 0.05 and p < 0.03, respectively). Cytotoxic activity of lymphoblasts against endothelial cells was negligible in all patient groups. Under experimental conditions of hypoxia and reoxygenation lymphocyte adhesion was significantly greater than in normoxic conditions in SSc patients, while it was similar to normoxia in control subjects and RP patients. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that in RP patients there may be regulatory mechanisms of lymphocyte response able to control the processes that lead to lymphocyte adhesion and endothelial HLA-DR molecule induction. These mechanisms could play an important role in RP, and might possibly be lost in clinically evident SSc.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Churg-Strauss vasculitis with brain involvement following hepatitis B vaccination.

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Churg-Strauss Syndrome↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Results of lumbar gangliectomy interventions. Report of cases and current indications].

The role of lumbar gangliectomy is examined by analysing cases of vascular interventions on the aorto-ilaco-femoral sector at the Department of Surgical Clinical Medicine II and at the Department of Surgical Anatomy and Surgery Studies of the University of Milan during the period 1966-1973. The steady, marked decrease in the incidence of operations on the Vegetative Nervous System, parallely with a notable rise in reconstructive operations is noted. The extension of indications to reconstructive operations alters the attitude to be assumed with regard to lumbar gangliectomy. Analysis of long-term results of indirect operations, however, confirms the validity of the method as a function of the restrictive attitude of present-day indications.

Age Factors↗