In addition, the recombinant xylanase was active over the range of pH 3.5-7.5 with maximum activity at pH 5.0. The enzyme was highly specific towards xylans but exhibited very low activities towards cellulosic

substrates. Using Birchwood xylan, the determined apparent K(m) and k(cat) values were 0.11 mg/ml and 106 s(-1), respectively. These properties should make the enzyme an attractive candidate for various industrial applications. (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier Inc.”
“Purpose: As the American population ages, benign prostatic hyperplasia and its associated lower urinary tract symptoms have become increasingly important causes of chronic morbidity. We assessed the comparative effectiveness of 2 common forms of surgical therapy, transurethral prostate resection and laser therapy, for benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Materials and Methods: Using patient level discharge selleck compound data and revisit files from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality we evaluated a cohort of patients who underwent transurethral prostate resection or laser therapy for benign prostatic hyperplasia in 2005 in California. Short-term outcomes, including in hospital complications, length of stay, 30-day

rehospitalization, 30-day repeat surgery and 30-day emergency room visits, were compared between the therapies by regression analysis. Long-term re-treatment, defined as the absence of secondary procedures for benign prostatic hyperplasia or complications of therapy, was assessed by survival analysis. Selleckchem SP600125 Analysis was adjusted for medical comorbidity, race, age and insurance status.

Results: Data on 11,645 hospital discharges showed that mean length of stay was shorter for laser therapy than for transurethral prostate resection (0.70 vs 2.03 days, p <0.0001). The 30-day repeat visit occurred in 16% of laser and 17.7% of resection cases (p = 0.0338). The 4-year re-treatment rate was 8.3% for resection and 12.8% for laser

therapy (p <0.0001). After adjustment patients with resection were 37% less likely to require repeat therapy than those with laser therapy (HR 0.64, p <0.0001).

Conclusions: selleck chemicals llc Laser procedures and transurethral prostate resection provide effective management of benign prostatic hyperplasia/lower urinary tract symptoms. Laser procedures are associated with less need for hospitalization than transurethral prostate resection but appear to involve a trade-off in long-term efficacy.”
“Immune comorbidities often are reported in subsets of patients with neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism spectrum disorders and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. A common immunopathology is an increase in serum autoantibodies against myelin basic protein (MBP) relative to control patients. Increases in autoantibodies suggest possible deficits in self-tolerance that may contribute to the formation of brain-specific autoantibodies and subsequent effects on the central nervous system (CNS).