β1-Adrenoceptor in infantile hemangioma
Propranolol, a nonselective β1- and β2-adrenoceptor inhibitor, was recently introduced into the therapy of severe proliferating infantile hemangioma (IH). However, the underlying mechanism of its action is still unclear. Rössler and colleagues report distinctions between IH and vascular malformations with regard to β-adrenoceptor-subtype messenger RNA levels.
Propofol, asphyxia, and the fetal lamb heart
Seehase et al. hypothesized that using maternal propofol anesthesia during emergency cesarean section would diminish cardiac injury in preterm fetuses exposed to global severe asphyxia in utero. In investigating whether propofol decreased the activity of proapoptotic caspase-3 in pregnant ewes, they found that propofol administration offered better cardiac protection than isoflurane.
Inspiration and aeration
Recent phase-contrast X-ray imaging studies suggest that inspiration is the primary driver of lung aeration and airway liquid clearance at birth, which brings into question the role of adrenaline-induced activation of epithelial sodium channels (ENaCs). In a study in newborn rabbits, Siew and coauthors found that pressures generated by inspiration had a larger role in airway liquid clearance than ENaCs did. Their findings indicate that inspiration is a major determinant of airway liquid clearance and functional residual capacity development during positive-pressure ventilation.
Newborn gene expression in CP
Gene expression in archived blood spots in newborns may reflect pathophysiological disturbances useful in understanding the etiology of cerebral palsy (CP). Using archived, unfrozen residual blood spot specimens from 53 newborns with CP and 53 controls, Ho and colleagues quantified the expression of gene sets representing four physiological pathways hypothesized to contribute to CP. They found three gene sets—each reflecting a separate pathophysiological pathway—that were significantly dysregulated in newborns who later developed CP.
Immunodepression in VLBW infants
Birth and intensive care present major immunologic challenges for very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) infants. Palojärvi and colleagues found in a group of such infants that postnatal immunodepression was associated with gestational age and was also a predisposing factor for late infections.
See Low monocyte HLA-DR expression as an indicator of immunodepression in very low birth weight infants
Genome expression in ROP
Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is one of the most common preventable causes of blindness and impaired vision among children in developed countries. Pietrzyk and coauthors compared whole-genome expression in the first month of postnatal life in infants with and without ROP. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed that genes in four pathways related to inflammatory response differed between groups defined by ROP and gestational age.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Editor’s Focus. Pediatr Res 73, 387 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/pr.2013.32
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/pr.2013.32