33 +/- 0.85 Delta E were evidenced in used endotracheal tubes, as compared to virgin samples (p < 0.0001). Chromatic changes

were independent from intubation duration. DSC and TGA analyses showed a loss of DEHP from used tubes, as indicated by increase of the glass transition temperature Wnt inhibitor (Tg) and DEHP weight loss. In vivo application of tubes was associated with an aging process whose effects on the optical and spectral properties were similar to those observed following artificial aging processes. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that significant spectrocolorimetric, DSC and TGA changes occur in endotracheal tubes after application, thus demonstrating for the first time the occurrence of in vivo materials degradation and DEHP leakage from medical devices worldwide used for neonatal ventilation. Copyright (c) 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel”
“Background. Survivin is a member of the inhibitors of apoptosis protein AG-881 cost family that plays an important role in carcinogenesis. Here, we examined the association between survivin expression and clinical outcome in urothelial carcinoma of the bladder (UCB). Methods. A total of 56

histopathologically confirmed UCB patients were recruited from the Department of Urology of Chiayi Christian Hospital from August 2007 to May 2009. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to detect the survivin expression in tumor tissues. The -31 C/G polymorphism in survivin promoter region was determined by polymerase chain reaction-restricted fragment length

polymorphism. Results. The frequency of high survivin expression was significantly higher in muscle-invasive tumors (66.6%) than in non-muscle-invasive tumors (34.2%) (P = 0.042) and in poorly differentiated (85.7%) tumors than in moderately differentiated tumors (30.8%) (P = 0.0014). The higher frequency of risk genotypes (C/C and C/G) was found in the median (72.7%) and high (68.0%) survivin expression groups. The multivariate analysis showed that a high survivin expression level was a potential predictive biomarker of poor overall survival (P = 0.02). Conclusion. Our results suggest that the high survivin expression was associated with tumor stage and grade and may present a predictive marker of overall survival in UCB.”
“Two, novel, tetradentate Schiff-base ligands. namely bis-5-phenylazosalicylaldehyde diethylenetriimine and bis-5-[(4-methoxyphenyl)azo]salicylaldehyde diethylenetriimine, as well check details as their Cu(2+), Ni(2+), and VO(2+) complexes, were synthesized and characterized using elemental analysis, infrared and also UV-Visible spectroscopy, (1)HNMR and mass spectra. The thermal stability of the free ligands and the related metal complexes, as determined using differential scanning calorimetry and thermal gravimetric analysis, were found to be thermally stable upto 240-275 degrees C depending on the type of ligand and the central metal atom. The lambda(max) of the ligands and their transition metal complexes in the region 300-800 nm are discussed.