mahiwaga

I’m a sucker for cross-disciplinary, cross-age demographic topics, and Grand Rounds today was given by Martina Brueckner, M.D., a pediatric cardiologist and scientist from Yale.

She talked about how cilia are responsible for generating the left-right asymmetry in mammals. The most obvious of these asymmetries are organ position: the liver is on the right, the spleen and the stomach are on the left. But major organs themselves are asymmetric: the left side of the heart is much more muscular than the right side, for example, and the left side of the brain is usually bigger than the right in most people.

It has been known that primary cilial dyskinesia can be associated with situs inversus totalis (in Kartagener’s syndrome but also with other heterotaxies such as situs ambiguus that is more frequently associated with congenital heart disease.

Cilial dysfunction is also associated with polycystic kidney disease. While the cilia themselves may be normal, what is abnormal are either of two genes: polycystin-1 or polycystin-2. Interestingly, these are mechanosensitive cation channels which regulate the flow of calcium. Even more interesting, these types of channels can be inhibited by gadolinium.

My addled brain made this immediate jump: cilia are everywhere in the body, gadolinium is thought to cause nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, maybe it these mechanosensitive/strech-activated cation channels that mediate this serious adverse affect?

Now, granted, it’s certain to be much more complicated than that. The toxicity of free gadolinium ions has not been really looked at specifically, although some effects are known from exposure to the class of rare earth metals. One of the proposed mechanisms of NSF is that, since in renal failure, the gadolinium-chelate complex hangs around for quite a while, there’s enough time for the free gadolinium ion to dissociate.

Another paper talks about an association between the development of NSF in the setting of a pro-inflammatory condition. This would actually make sense, since it is known that cytokines promote fibrosis and scar formation.

The study of NSF is still in its infancy. In the mean time, it’ll be difficult to get any sort of imaging done in anyone with seriously boxed kidneys.

Well, this is a fun little puzzle from Google Blogoscoped

I’ve translated them to Ruby-esque code fragments (with some Rails-isms sprinkled in.)

1. original:

   // idiom 1  
   cop[0].goodInPercent = 100;  
   cop[1].goodInPercent = 0;  

   my version:

   GoodCop=cop[0]  
   BadCop=cop[1]  
   return GoodCop + BadCop  

2. original:

   // idiom 2  
   isCrowd = personCounter >= 3;  

   my version:

   assert (3 == isCrowd)

3. original:

   // idiom 3  
   injury += insult;  

   my version:

   return (insult + injury)

4. // idiom 4  
   1: board.draw();  
   goto 1;  

   my version:

   def Board.back    
     Board.type = 'drawing'  
   end     

5. original:

   // idiom 5  
   if (bird[1].feather == bird[2].feather) {  
       bird[1].flock(bird[2]);  
   }  

   my version:

   flock.collect {|bird| feathers.each {|feather| bird.find_by_feather(feather)}}  

6. original:

   // idiom 6  
   a = getThickness('blood');  
   b = getThickness('water');  
   assert(a > b);  

   Blood.SpecificGravity = 1.0506 # reference: http://www.clinchem.org/cgi/content/abstract/20/5/615    
   Water.SpecificGravity = 1.0000  
   assert (Blood.SpecificGravity > Water.SpecificGravity)  

   (See: [Specific Gravity of Blood and Plasma at 4 and 37°C][2]) [2]: http://www.clinchem.org/cgi/content/abstract/20/5/615 “Trudnowski and Rico · “Specific Gravity of Blood and Plasma at 4 and 37°C” · Clinical Chemistry 1974 20(5):615”

7. original:

   // idiom 7  
   a_spade_a_spade();

   my version:

   class Spade  
     def Spade.call(value)   
       Spade.name = value  
     end  
   end  
   
   Spade.call ('Spade')

8. original:

   // idiom 8  
   die(1000);  
   function die(max) {  
       for (i = 1; i <= max; i++) {  
           cut();  
       }  
   }

   my version:

   Death.find_by_cut('1000')

9. original:

   // idiom 9  
   prey = 'worm';  
   time = getCurrentTime();  
   if (time >= 4 && time <= 8) {  
       bird.catch(prey);  
   }  

   my version:

   bird = Creature.new(:shift => 'early')  
   worm = Creature.new  
   if bird.shift == 'early'   
     bird.catch(worm)  
   end  

10. original:

    // idiom 10  
    while ( rome.fire() ) {  
        doFiddle();  
    }  

    my version:

    Nero(:instrument => 'fiddle') while Rome.is_burning?  

11. original:

    // idiom 11  
    function getValue(garbage) {  
        return garbage;  
    }

    my version:

    Value.In(:Garbage)  
    print Value.Out    
    ==>Garbage  

12. original:

    // idiom 12  
    take(salt * .01);  

    my version:

    Salt.take(:mass => 0.06479891, :unit => 'gram')  

13. original:

    // idiom 13  
    var here = false;  
    var there = false;  

    my version:

    assert (!(here or there) == true)  

14. original:

    // idiom 14  
    if (i == 2) {  
        tango();  
    }

    my version:

    def self.takes(value)   
      if value == 2 then self.tango();  
    end  

    </li>

    original:

    // idiom 15  
    days = 365;  
    for (day = 1; day <= days; day++) {  
        if ( random(0,100) <= 50 ) apple++;  
    }  
    if (apple <= days) doctor();

    my version:

    year.collect {|day| if day.apple_count > 0 then doctor.keep_away()}

    original:

    // idiom 16  
    if ( !dogs.sleep() ) {  
        disturb(dogs);  
    }  

    my version:

    if dog.is_asleep? then dog.lay()  

    original:

    // idiom 17  
    function tunnel() {  
        var dark;  
        for (i = 0; i < 10; i++) {  
            dark = true;  
        }  
        dark = !dark;  
        return dark;  
    }

    my version:

    Class Tunnel   
      def self.is_there_light?   
        return (self.position == END)
      end  
    end  

    original:

    // idiom 18  
    if ( ape.inLineOfSight(it.x, it.y) ) ape.do(it);

    my version:

    if monkey.does_see?(:actor) then monkey.do(Monkey.action_seen(:actor))  

    original:

    // idiom 19  
    return way.my || way.high;

    my version:

    return way(:my) || way(:high)  

    original:

    // idiom 20  
    hay[ random(0, hay.length - 1) ] = 'needle';

    my version:

    hay = Stack.new  
    hay.find('needle')  

    original:

    // idiom 21  
    a = 0;  
    b = 1;  
    hand[a].wash(hand[b]);  
    hand[b].wash(hand[a]);

    my version:

    hand['left'].wash(hand['right'])  
    hand['right'].wash(hand['left'])  

    original:

    // idiom 22  
    function getGain(pain) {  
        return pain >= 1;  
    }

    my version:

    if (pain.level == 0) then gain.level = 0  

    original:

    // idiom 23  
    if (cooks >= 3) {  
        broth = null;  
    }

    my version:

    if cook.count >= 3 then broth.is_spoiled? = true  

    original:

    // idiom 24  
    if (a != 'cake') a.eat();

    my version:

    Class Cake  
      def Cake.have()    
        Cake.is_had? = Cake.is_eaten? ? false : true  
      end 
    
      def Cake.eat()   
        Cake.is_eaten? = Cake.is_had? ? false : true  
      end
    end  

    original:

    // idiom 25  
    doesStand = you == me;

    my version:

    if We.is_united? then We.stand()  
    if We.is_divided? then We.fall()  

    original:

    // idiom 26  
    var location = getLocation();  
    if (location == 'rome') {  
        do( location.getCitizen() );  
    }

    my version:

    if person.locale == 'Rome' then person.behavior(:Roman)

    </ol>