Objective: To search for alternative splicing aberrations in PD patients’ blood leukocytes. Methods: We applied exon microarrays to profile PD patients’ blood leukocyte mRNA. Exon level splicing analysis served as a basis for downstream classification and functional analyses. Results: Patients and carefully matched controls were classified by the selleck inhibitor splicing exon profiles of their leukocyte transcripts. Specifically, many exons were downregulated in PD patients compared to controls. Functional analysis highlighted aberrant

splicing of PD-related transcripts and impaired NF-kappa B cascade and immune response. Conclusion: PD patient’s blood leukocytes exhibit alternative splicing of numerous transcripts. The aberrant alternative splicing in PD patients’ blood cells has potential implications for early diagnosis and future therapeutics. Copyright (C) 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel”
“The placenta grows rapidly for a short period with high blood flow during pregnancy and has multifaceted functions, such as its barrier function, Metabolism inhibitor nutritional transport, drug metabolizing activity and endocrine action. Consequently, the placenta is a highly susceptible target organ for drug-or chemical-induced adverse

effects, and many placenta-toxic agents have been reported. However, histopathological examination of the placenta is not generally performed, and the placental toxicity index is only the placental weight change in rat reproductive BMN 673 nmr toxicity studies. The placental cells originate from the trophectoderm of the embryo and the endometrium of the dam, proliferate and differentiate into a variety of tissues with interaction each other according to the development sequence, resulting in formation of a placenta. Therefore, drug-or chemical-induced placental lesions show various histopathological features depending on the toxicants and the exposure period, and the pathogenesis of placental toxicity is complicated. Placental weight assessment appears not to be enough to evaluate placental toxicity, and reproductive toxicity studies should pay more attention to histopathological evaluation of placental tissue.

The detailed histopathological approaches to investigation of the pathogenesis of placental toxicity are considered to provide an important tool for understanding the mechanism of teratogenicity and developmental toxicity with embryo lethality, and could benefit reproductive toxicity studies. (DOI: 10.1293/tox.24.95; Toxicol Pathol 2011; 24: 95-111)”
“Lichen amyloidosis (LA) is a type of primary localized cutaneous amyloidosis characterized by multiple pruritic discrete hyperkeratotic papules with amyloid deposition in the papillary dermis. Two patients with LA had been treated with topical corticosteroids, but with no effect on the eruptions. The present authors then started treating the affected area by superficial ablation using a CO2 surgical laser (LASER 30C, Lumenis Inc., Yokneum, Israel) at a setting of 10-15 watts with a 0.12-second pulse duration, 0.