AIMS To examine biomarkers of oxidative stress (oxs), and endothelin (ET)-1, in hypertensive patients with atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis (ARAS) and to evaluate the effect of percutaneous transluminal renal angioplasty (PTRA). METHODS Baseline measurements were made immediately before renal angiography in patients with suspected ARAS (significant ARAS, n = 83, and non-RAS, n = 59) and ...

BACKGROUND/AIMS The contribution of emergent cardiovascular risk factors to atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis (ARAS) is debated. We investigated the relationship of lipoprotein(a) and prothrombotic factors with ARAS in hypertension. METHODS In 50 hypertensive patients with angiographic evidence of ARAS and 58 hypertensive patients who had comparable cardiovascular risk factor burden but n...

PURPOSE Although multiple serum antiretinal autoantibodies (ARAs) have been reported in patients with paraneoplastic and non-paraneoplastic autoimmune retinopathy ((n)pAIR), not all retinal antigens involved in (n)pAIR are specified. This study aims to serologically identify patients with presumed (n)pAIR through determination of both known and unknown ARAs by autoantibody profiling. METHODS ...

We report on patients with post-traumatic fatigue and hypersomnia who showed injury of the lower portion of the ascending reticular activating system (ARAS) between the pontine reticular formation (RF) and the intralaminar thalamic nucleus (ILN) following mild traumatic brain injury (TBI), using diffusion tensor tractography (DTT).Two patients with mild TBI resulting from a car accident were en...

BACKGROUND The established risk factors for atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis (ARAS) include hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, obesity, smoking, old age and family history. In the last few years, several emerging risk factors have been proposed as predictors of ARAS, namely homocysteine, fibrinogen, C-reactive protein, lipoprotein(a) and creatinine. METHODS We searched Pubmed...

Basal elements in archaeal promoters, except for putative initiator elements encompassing transcription start sites, are well characterized. Here, we employed the Sulfolobus araS promoter as a model to study the function of the initiator element (Inr) in archaea. We have provided evidence for the presence of a third core promoter element, the Sulfolobus Inr, whose action depends on a TATA box a...

INTRODUCTION Action of the ascending reticular activating system (ARAS) on the cerebral cortex is responsible for achievement of consciousness. In this study, we attempted to reconstruct the lower single component of the ARAS from the reticular formation (RF) to the thalamus in the normal human brain using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). METHODS Twenty six normal healthy subjects were recruit...

Percutaneous transluminal renal stenting (PTRS) does not consistently improve renal function in patients with atherosclerotic renovascular disease, but the mechanisms underlying irreversible kidney injury have not been fully elucidated. We hypothesized that renal dysfunction after PTRS is linked to ongoing renal microvascular (MV) remodeling. Pigs were studied after 10 wk of atherosclerosis and...

We report on a stroke patient who showed recovery of hypersomnia concurrent with the recovery of an injured ascending reticular activating system (ARAS), which was demonstrated by diffusion tensor tractography (DTT).A 70-year-old female patient underwent coiling of the left ruptured posterior communicating artery after subarachnoid hemorrhage and both extraventricular drainage for management of...

Revascularization improves blood pressure but not renal function in most patients with atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis (ARAS), possibly related to injury incurred during renal reperfusion. Bendavia, a novel tetrapeptide that inhibits mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening, reduces apoptosis, oxidative stress, and ischemia-reperfusion injury in experimental models. However, its...