1,720,974 research outputs found
Molecular strategies in genetic diagnosis of transthyretin-related hereditary amyloidosis.
No full textTransthyretin-related hereditary (TTR) amyloidoses represent a clinically heterogeneous group of diseases associated with various point mutations of the TTR gene. We propose a molecular strategy for the diagnosis of this group of disorders
p.H282N and p.Y191H: 2 novel CYP21A2 mutations in Italian congenital adrenal hyperplasia patients
No full textElectromyographic findings in cransthyretin (TTR)-related familial amyloid polyneuropathy (FAP)
No full textAffected members and asymptomatic relatives of 9 Italian families with transthyretin (TTR)-related hereditary amyloidosis carrying different TTR mutations (Met30, Pro36, Ala47, Ala49, Gln89) were followed up with repeated EMG investigations. In 3 patients, spontaneous myoclonic discharges with synkinesia were found in the facial muscles. EMG signs of chronic denervation with features of proximal neural involvement were also found in proximal limb muscles. Neuropathy worsened step-wise with progressing clinical stage. Sympathetic skin responses progressively decreased, disappearing in the late stages of the disease. Symptomatic relatives carrying the TTR mutations had significantly reduced sensory conduction velocities and amplitudes of compound motor action potentials. Follow-up studies in 3 patients after liver transplant showed progression of sensory-motor neuropathy 1 year after the transplant, and a slight improvement 18 months later. Based on our electrophysiological findings and a review of the literature, we propose that TTR-related FAP type I be considered not only a peripheral neuropathy, but also a meningoradiculopathy due to deposition of amyloidogenic TTR in the leptomeninges
Novel transthyretin missense mutation (Thr34) in an Italian family with hereditary amyloidosis
No full textWe report on the genetic and molecular characterisation of an Italian family with a late-onset, autosomal dominant transthyretin amyloidosis. The transthyretin gene was analysed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), restriction generating PCR, and sequencing, allowing us to discover in one allele a novel point mutation. It consists of a G to C transversion at position 1692 of the genomic sequence, leading to a Thr for Arg substitution at the position 34 of the polypeptidic chain. This mutation is associated with a severe sensory-motor peripheral neuropathy and a restrictive cardiomyopathy
Capillary electrophoresis of polymerase chain reaction‐amplified products in polymer networks: The case of Kennedy's disease
No full textIn Kennedy disease (an X-linked motoneuronal disorder associated with an increase in the number of (CAG)n triplet repeats in the first exon of the Androgen receptor gene; about twice as many as in normal conditions), polymerase chain reaction-amplified genic products exhibit two DNA fragments in the heterozygous female carriers, one with a range between 468 and 495 bp in the normal polymorphic population and a fragment corresponding to the pathological state that reaches 573 bp. These fragments are easily separated by gel-slab electrophoresis and detected by intercalating dye staining (ethidium bromide). As an alternative procedure, capillary zone electrophoresis in polymer networks, consisting of 8% polyacryloylaminoethoxyethanol at 0% cross-linker, offers a simple procedure for separation and on-line detection via UV absorbance at 254 nm, thus avoiding additional staining steps. The capillary column can be repeatedly used for up to 80-100 times and the electropherogram is stored on a magnetic support. Easy comparison among different runs is obtained by aligning all tracings to an internal standard of a 650 bp fragment added as a marker
A new mutation (TTR Ala‐47) in the transthyretin gene associated with hereditary amyloidosis
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Androgen receptor gene (CAG)n repeat analysis in the differential diagnosis between Kennedy disease and other motoneuron disorders
No full textAn increase in the number of (CAG)n repeats in the first coding exon of the androgen receptor (AR) gene has been strongly associated with Kennedy disease (KD) (spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy). This is an X-linked hereditary disorder characterized by motoneuron degeneration occurring in adults together with gynecomastia and hyperestrogenemia. We have performed AR gene molecular analysis in several members of a large family with KD as well as in 25 sporadic patients suffering from heterogeneous motoneuron disease (MND). An increase in the length of the (CAG)n repeats was detected, as expected, in all the affected males and in obligatory carrier females, some of which had minor signs of lower motoneuron involvement. There was only one possible exception, one young male with initial signs of the disease, who had an apparent normal length allele. An increased pathological allele was also found in 3 patients with MND. This indicates that the analysis of (CAG)n repeats of the AR gene plays a role in the differential diagnosis of this heterogeneous group of neurological diseases
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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