Background and Aims: Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a virulent viral infection that affects a number of organs and systems. This study examined if SARS may result in cardiovascular complications. Methods and Results: 121 patients (37.5 (SD13.2) years, 36% male) diagnosed to have SARS were assessed continuously for blood pressure, pulse, and temperature during their stay in hopsital. Hypotension occurred in 61 (50.4%) patients in hospital, and was found in 28.1%, 21.5%, and 14.8% of patients during the first, second, and third week, respectively. Only one patient who had transient echocardiographic evidence of impaired left ventricular systolic function required temporary inotropic support. Tachycardia was present in 87 (71.9%) patients, and was found in 62.8%, 45.4%, and 35.5% of patients from the first to third week. It occurred independent of hypotension, and could not be explained by the presence of fever. Tachycardia was also present in 38.8% of patients at follow up. Bradycardia only occurred in 18 (14.9%) patients as a transient event. Reversible cardiomegaly was reported in 13 (10.7%) patients, but without clinical evidence of heart failure. Transient atrial fibrillation was present in one patient. Corticosteroid therapy was weakly associated with tachycardia during the second (x 2 = 3.99, p = 0.046) and third week (x 2 = 6.53, p = 0.01), although it could not explain tachycardia during follow up. Conclusions: In patients with SARS, cardiovascular complications including hypotension and tachycardia were common but usually self limiting. Bradycardia and cardiomegaly were less common, while cardiac arrhythmia was rare. However, only tachycardia persisted even when corticosteroid therapy was withdrawn.

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Among dialysis patients, Asian Americans had a markedly lower adjusted RR than whites. The effect of BMI on survival differed by race. Compared with the respective general population, dialysis patients had the same relative increase in death rates for both races. The difference in death rates between the United States and Japan does not appear to be primarily treatment related, but rather is related to background death rates.

Summary Bmi1 is required for the self-renewal of stem cells in many tissues including the lung epithelial stem cells, Bronchioalveolar Stem Cells (BASCs). Imprinted genes, which exhibit expression from only the maternally- or paternally-inherited allele, are known to regulate developmental processes but their role in adult cells remains a fundamental question. Many imprinted genes were de-repressed in Bmi1 knockout mice, and knockdown of Cdkn1c (p57) and other imprinted genes partially rescued the self-renewal defect of Bmi1 mutant lung cells. Expression of p57 and other imprinted genes was required for lung cell self-renewal in culture and correlated with repair of lung epithelial cell injury in vivo. Our data suggest that Bmi1-dependent regulation of expressed alleles at imprinted loci, distinct from imprinting per se, is required for control of lung stem cells. We anticipate that the regulation and function of imprinted genes is crucial for self-renewal in diverse adult tissue-specific stem cells.

PAI-1 can regulate TGF-beta expression by binding to uPAR and activating the extracellular-regulated signal kinase (ERK)/MAPK pathway. Therefore, PAI-1 contributes to diabetic nephropathy by regulating TGF-beta and renal ECM production and may be a therapeutic target in diabetic nephropathy.

Background: Hirschsprung disease (HSCR) is a congenital disorder characterized by an absence of ganglion cells in the nerve plexuses of the lower digestive tract.HSCR has a complex pattern of inheritance and is sometimes associated with mutations in genes of the receptor tyrosine kinase (RET) and endothelin receptor B (EDNRB) signaling pathways, which are crucial for development of the enteric nervous system. Methods: Using PCR amplification and direct sequencing, we screened for mutations and polymorphisms in the coding regions and intron/exon boundaries of the RET, GDNF, EDNRB, and EDN3 genes of 84 HSCR patients and 96 ethnically matched controls. Results: We identified 10 novel and 2 previously described mutations in RET, and 4 and 2 novel mutations in EDNRB and in EDN3, respectively. Potential diseasecausing mutations were detected in 24% of the patients. The overall mutation rate was 41% in females and 19% in males (P ‫؍‬ 0.06). RET mutations occurred in 19% of the patients. R114H in RET was the most prevalent mutation, representing 7% of the patients or 37% of the patients with RET mutations. To date, such a high frequency of a single mutation has never been reported in unrelated HSCR patients. Mutations in EDNRB,

NCT00730743 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov).

The initial extent of radiographic opacification may be useful for prognostic prediction. Radiographic progression correlates well with that of important clinical and laboratory parameters and may be used as an objective prognostic indicator early in SARS.