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Top 7 in medicine

A snapshot of the most highly ranked articles in medicine and related areas, from Faculty of 1000

Written byBob Grant
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linkurl:1. A shared anesthetic binding site;http://f1000.com/7989960?key=lsbbqk514qfry3m Though general anesthetics are commonly used in medicine, how they work on a molecular level is poorly understood. New research suggests that certain ligand-gated ion channels share a binding site for a couple different general anesthetics; knowledge which could help in the development of new drugs.H. Nury et al., linkurl:"X-ray structures of general anaesthetics bound to a pentameric ligand-gated ion channel," Nature, 469:428-31, 2011.;http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/21248852?dopt=Abstract&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m Evaluations by Ashley Fiamengo and Roderic Eckenhoff, UPenn; Edward Bertaccini, Stanford Univ Sch Med; Douglas Raines, Mass Gen Hosp; Gregg Homanics Univ Pitt; Stuart Forman, Mass Gen Hosp; Xiangdong Chen and Douglas Bayliss Univ Virg Hlth Sci Cntr. linkurl:Free F1000 Evaluation;http://f1000.com/7989960?key=lsbbqk514qfry3m linkurl:2. A new C. diff treatment?;http://f1000.com/8445961?key=pvp2j4xbpmyphjn
Clostridium difficile colonies
Image: Wikimedia commons, CDC/Dr. Holdeman
The antibiotic vancomycin is the standard treatment for infection by increasingly virulent strains of Clostridium difficile, but recurrence rates are high. A phase III clinical trial of more than 600 patients showed that treatment with a new, more narrow-spectrum antibiotic, fidaxomicin, can reduce the recurrence rate.T.J. Louie et al., linkurl:" Fidaxomicin versus vancomycin for Clostridium difficile infection," N Engl J Med, 364:422-31, 2011.;http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/21288078?dopt=Abstract&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m Evaluations by Carmel Curtis and Peter Wilson, Univ Coll Lon Hosp; Joyce Popoola, St George's Hosp, UK; Venkataraman Subramanian, Univ Nottingham; Vinay Acharya and Tor Savidge, Univ TX Med Branch. linkurl:Free F1000 Evaluation;http://f1000.com/8445961?key=pvp2j4xbpmyphjn linkurl:3. Better ventilation, more transplantable lungs;http://f1000.com/7306957?key=bhhgw5hjk52v9fw Using a lower tidal volume and higher levels of positive end-expiratory pressure than is commonly used to ventilate brain dead patients can significantly increase the probability that their lungs will be harvestable for transplant.L. Mascia et al., linkurl:"Effect of a lung protective strategy for organ donors on eligibility and availability of lungs for transplantation: a randomized controlled trial," JAMA, 304:2620-7, 2010.;http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/21156950?dopt=Abstract&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m Evaluations by Alexander Benson and Ivor Douglas, Univ CO Denver Hlth; Thomas Luecke, Univ Hosp Mannheim, Univ Heidelberg; Claude Guerin, Hospices Civils de Lyon. linkurl:Free F1000 Evaluation;http://f1000.com/7306957?key=bhhgw5hjk52v9fw linkurl:4. A mechanism for endocrine tumor troubles;http://f1000.com/8932956?key=lsc9vyxsgnw0s1m Mutations in a potassium channel gene could be the root of certain types of hormone-secreting endocrine tumors, which cause severe hypertension, constitutive hormone production and unrestrained cell proliferation.M. Choi et al., linkurl:"K+ channel mutations in adrenal aldosterone-producing adenomas and hereditary hypertension," Science, 331:768-72, 2010.;http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/21311022?dopt=Abstract&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m Evaluations by Peter J Fuller, Prince Henry's Inst of Med Rsrch, Australia; Lee S Weinstein, NIDDK/NIH. linkurl:Free F1000 Evaluation;http://f1000.com/8932956?key=lsc9vyxsgnw0s1m linkurl:5. The microRNA behind hypertension;http://f1000.com/8598956?key=sz3tz7z9kw1hlty A microRNA, miR-204, is critical to the etiology of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). In both humans and mouse models with PAH, downregulation of miR-204 caused enhanced proliferation and reduced apoptosis of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells, two consequences of the condition.A. Courboulin et al., linkurl:"Role for miR-204 in human pulmonary arterial hypertension," J Exp Med, 208:535-48, 2011.;http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/21321078?dopt=Abstract&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m Evaluations by Brian Graham, James Hunt and Rubin Tuder, Univ CO Denver; Matthias Brock and Lars Huber, Univ Hospl Zurich. linkurl:Free F1000 Evaluation;http://f1000.com/8598956?key=sz3tz7z9kw1hlty linkurl:6. New molecular phenotypes for asthma;http://f1000.com/1164541?key=j82bn842jl17rxm Inflammation caused by a specific type of T-helper cells (Th2), which is mediated by a specific suite of cytokines, is characteristic of most cases of asthma. Now, researchers can distinguish between two subtypes of asthma -- Th2-high and Th2-low -- based on expression of certain cytokines in bronchial biopsies, among other molecular phenotypes.P.G. Woodruff et al., linkurl:"T-helper type 2-driven inflammation defines major subphenotypes of asthma," Am J Respir Crit Care Med, 180:388-95, 2009.;http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/19483109?dopt=Abstract&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m Evaluations by Bradley Chipps, Capital Allergy and Respiratory Cntr; Pranab Haldar, Inst Lung Health, UK; Kristie Ross and James Chmiel, Case Western Reserve Univ; Bruce Levy, Brigham & Women's Hosp. linkurl:Free F1000 Evaluation;http://f1000.com/1164541?key=j82bn842jl17rxm linkurl:7. Real time tracking of kidney damage;http://f1000.com/8607958?key=6c7p5xnb76230hn A reporter gene, incorporated into the mouse genome, allowed investigators to detect, pinpoint, and quantify acute kidney injury in vivo and in real time.N. Paragas et al., linkurl:"The Ngal reporter mouse detects the response of the kidney to injury in real time," Nat Med, 17:216-22, 2011.;http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez/21240264?dopt=Abstract&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m Evaluations by Florian Toegel and Christof Westenfelder, Univ Utah Med Cntrs; Matthieu Legrand, Lariboisière Hosp. linkurl:Free F1000 Evaluation;http://f1000.com/8607958?key=6c7p5xnb76230hn The F1000 Top 7 is a snapshot of the highest ranked articles from a 30-day period on Faculty of 1000 Medicine and, as calculated on March 17, 2011. Faculty Members evaluate and rate the most important papers in their field. To see the latest rankings, search the database, and read daily evaluations, visit linkurl:http://f1000.com.;http://f1000.com
**__Related stories:__*** linkurl:Top 7 in biochemistry;http://www.the-scientist.com/news/display/58051/
[15th March 2011]*linkurl:Top 7 in immunology;http://www.the-scientist.com/news/display/58041/
[8th March 2011]*linkurl:Top 7 in medicine;http://www.the-scientist.com/news/display/57969/
[31st January 2011]
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Meet the Author

  • Bob Grant

    From 2017 to 2022, Bob Grant was Editor in Chief of The Scientist, where he started in 2007 as a Staff Writer. Before joining the team, he worked as a reporter at Audubon and earned a master’s degree in science journalism from New York University. In his previous life, he pursued a career in science, getting a bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology from Montana State University and a master’s degree in marine biology from the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Bob edited Reading Frames and other sections of the magazine.

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