Case Western Reserve University

About: Case Western Reserve University is a education organization based out in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Cancer. The organization has 54617 authors who have published 106568 publications receiving 5071613 citations. The organization is also known as: Case & Case Western.

Antifungal Agents: Mode of Action, Mechanisms of Resistance, and Correlation of These Mechanisms with Bacterial Resistance

Abstract: The increased use of antibacterial and antifungal agents in recent years has resulted in the development of resistance to these drugs. The significant clinical implication of resistance has led to heightened interest in the study of antimicrobial resistance from different angles. Areas addressed include mechanisms underlying this resistance, improved methods to detect resistance when it occurs, alternate options for the treatment of infections caused by resistant organisms, and strategies to prevent and control the emergence and spread of resistance. In this review, the mode of action of antifungals and their mechanisms of resistance are discussed. Additionally, an attempt is made to discuss the correlation between fungal and bacterial resistance. Antifungals can be grouped into three classes based on their site of action: azoles, which inhibit the synthesis of ergosterol (the main fungal sterol); polyenes, which interact with fungal membrane sterols physicochemically; and 5-fluorocytosine, which inhibits macromolecular synthesis. Many different types of mechanisms contribute to the development of resistance to antifungals. These mechanisms include alteration in drug target, alteration in sterol biosynthesis, reduction in the intercellular concentration of target enzyme, and overexpression of the antifungal drug target. Although the comparison between the mechanisms of resistance to antifungals and antibacterials is necessarily limited by several factors defined in the review, a correlation between the two exists. For example, modification of enzymes which serve as targets for antimicrobial action and the involvement of membrane pumps in the extrusion of drugs are well characterized in both the eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells.

Targeted Disruption of Mouse EGF Receptor: Effect of Genetic Background on Mutant Phenotype

Abstract: Gene targeting was used to create a null allele at the epidermal growth factor receptor locus (Egfr). The phenotype was dependent on genetic background. EGFR deficiency on a CF-1 background resulted in peri-implantation death due to degeneration of the inner cell mass. On a 129/Sv background, homozygous mutants died at mid-gestation due to placental defects; on a CD-1 background, the mutants lived for up to 3 weeks and showed abnormalities in skin, kidney, brain, liver, and gastrointestinal tract. The multiple abnormalities associated with EGFR deficiency indicate that the receptor is involved in a wide range of cellular activities.

Cosmological constraints from the SDSS luminous red galaxies

Abstract: We measure the large-scale real-space power spectrum P(k) using luminous red galaxies (LRGs) in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and use this measurement to sharpen constraints on cosmological parameters from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP). We employ a matrix-based power spectrum estimation method using Pseudo-Karhunen-Loeve eigenmodes, producing uncorrelated minimum-variance measurements in 20 k-bands of both the clustering power and its anisotropy due to redshift-space distortions, with narrow and well-behaved window functions in the range 0.01h/Mpc 0.1h/Mpc and associated nonlinear complications, yet agree well with more aggressive published analyses where nonlinear modeling is crucial.