In contrast to the extensive data on anogenital infection (Table

In contrast to the extensive data on anogenital infection (Table 11), there are no data to date on vaccine

efficacy against oropharyngeal HPV infections. This deficit is an important consideration, since the incidence of HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer (mostly attributable to HPV16) appears to be increasing dramatically, at least in industrialized countries [87]. It is uncertain whether a trial to specifically evaluate oropharyngeal efficacy will be conducted. The premalignant precursors of oropharyngeal cancer cannot be routinely identified, making it difficult to contemplate a trial with intraepithelial neoplasia as a surrogate endpoint [88]. Current routine HPV DNA sampling methods appear to have relatively low sensitivity for detecting oropharyngeal infections, making trials using persistent infection endpoints difficult as well. Finally, approval Akt inhibitor review of a trial with a placebo-controlled trial might be difficult, given that the vaccines are approved for other indications in the prospective study populations. Regarding other oral lesions, it would helpful to establish a surveillance system for recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, since its frequency in infants of

Gardasil®-vaccinated women is likely to decrease. In conclusion, the profiles of the HPV VLP vaccines established in the randomized clinical trials illustrate their potential as high value public health interventions and strongly support their wide spread implementation to prevent anogenital HPV infections and their associated neoplasia. The primary focus must now be on implementation issues to maximize the rapid, effective and cost-efficient Screening Library cell line delivery of the vaccines to those individuals that are most likely to benefit from them. The work was partially supported by public grants from TCL the European Commission (7th Framework Programme grant HEALTH-F3-2010-242061, PREHDICT), from the Instituto de Salud

Carlos III (Spanish Government) (grants FIS PI10/02995, RCESP C03/09, RTICESP C03/10, RTIC RD06/0020/0095 and CIBERESP) and from the Agència de Gestió d’Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca – Generalitat de Catalunya (Catalonian Government) (grants AGAUR 2005SGR00695 and AGAUR 2009SGR126), who had no role in data collection, analysis or interpretation of results. Disclosed potential conflicts of interest JTS: Named inventor on U.S. government-owned HPV vaccine-related patents that are licensed to Merck & Co., GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi Pasteur and Shantha Biotechnics and is entitled to limited royalties as specified by federal law. XC: Institutional support: HPV vaccine trials and epidemiological studies sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Sanofi Pasteur MSD. Screening and HPV testing trials partially supported by Qiagen. Personal support: Travel grants to scientific meetings and honorarium for consultancy are occasionally granted by either GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Sanofi Pasteur MSD.

Our attempt to control bias by recruiting individuals unfamiliar

Our attempt to control bias by recruiting individuals unfamiliar to the moderator was not wholly achieved (11/16, 69%) due to the moderator’s clinical role within service delivery. All participants were inner city inhabitants, mainly of white ethnicity and with moderate COPD, which limits the study’s generalisability somewhat. Also, the current study only reflects views of patients who were able to access pulmonary rehabilitation locations independently. Since inadequate transport is associated with some patients’ ability to participate in pulmonary rehabilitation (Keating et al 2011), the selection bias introduced by our inclusion criteria is a limitation. These data highlight the

difficulties experienced by people with COPD in maintaining an active lifestyle and suggest that confidence is an important determinant learn more of physical activity participation in COPD. Health services should look to work in collaboration with local authorities and voluntary organisations to increase opportunities for people with COPD to be physically active, recognising the importance of continued peer and professional support. Ethics:

The Faculty of Health Research Ethics and Governance Committee, University of Brighton; Lewisham Local Research Ethics Committee, University Hospital Lewisham; and the Research and Development Committee Cell Cycle inhibitor of King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust approved this study. All participants gave written informed consent prior to data collection. eAddenda: Appendix 1 available at jop.physiotherapy.asn.au Lynda Haggis and Rebecca Hopwood from the Lambeth and Southwark Pulmonary Rehabilitation Team, King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. “
“Summary of: Scholtes VA et al (2012) Effectiveness of functional progressive resistance exercise training on walking ability in children with cerebral palsy: a randomized controlled trial. Res Dev Disabil 33: 181–188.

[Prepared by Nora Shields, CAP Editor.] Question: Does functional progressive resistance exercise (PRE) Fossariinae improve walking ability and participation in school-aged children with cerebral palsy (CP)? Design: Randomised, controlled trial with concealed allocation and blinded outcome assessment. Setting: Three special schools for children with physical disability in the Netherlands. Participants: Ambulatory children (Gross Motor Function Classification System 1–3) with spastic unilateral or bilateral cerebral palsy aged 6–13 years. Botulinum toxin injections in the previous three months or orthopaedic surgery in the previous six months were exclusion criteria. Randomisation of 51 participants allocated 26 to the functional PRE group and 25 to a usual care group. Interventions: The intervention group participated in a 12-week functional PRE program, three times a week for 60 minutes in groups of 4 or 5.

Serum total protein (TP) was measured by Biuret method (Dimension

Serum total protein (TP) was measured by Biuret method (Dimension RXL, Dade Behring). Serum AGEs was expressed as a ratio of AGEs fluorescence intensity to total protein (AGEs/TP ratio). All analyses were performed in triplicates. Data analysis was carried out as per protocol (PP) principle. Data were KU-57788 nmr expressed as number of patients (N), mean ± SD or mean difference ± SE of difference. The differences between baseline and after intervention were expressed as change

values (Δ) at week 8 and week 16. Discrete data were evaluated by Pearson’s Chi-square or Fisher’s Exact test. Two factor repeated measures analysis of variance (RM-ANOVA) with multiple comparisons by Bonferroni or Friedman test were used to assessed the effects of treatment, time, and their interaction. Independent t-test or Mann–Whitney test was utilized in comparing the effect between 2 groups at each time point. Paired t-test or Wilcoxon Signed Rank test was applied to compare the change values after 8 weeks and

16 weeks of treatment within group. The 2-sided hypothesis was used in all tests and P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Thirty-eight T2DM patients were completely participated in this study. They were Caspase activity assay randomized to continuously take either 6 g/day of dried-fruit powder of MC equivalent to 6.26 ± 0.28 mg of charantin (N = 19), or placebo (N = 19) for 16 weeks. All baseline characteristics at week 0 between the 2 groups did not differ ( Table 1). Mean dietary intake at the same period of the time was not different between groups, and all nutrient intakes of each group did not alter throughout the study ( Table 2). This indicated that food consumption of all patients was maintained throughout the study. Percentage of ingested capsules did not differ between the MC and placebo groups (96.11 ± 3.07%

and 94.50 ± 3.11%, respectively) indicating that both groups had good compliance. None of patient was non-adherent which defined as failure to take assigned investigational product (less than 80% base upon capsule counting). Laboratory and physical assessments at baseline and mean change from baseline at week 8 and week 16 were shown in Table 3. All parameters at second baseline of the MC and placebo groups were not different. Body weight, body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure (BP) did not differ between groups and did not alter throughout the trial. The results showed that mean decrement of A1C was significantly different between the groups and between each time point of the intervention. After 8 weeks of the treatment, the mean reduction from baseline of A1C of the MC group (−0.27 ± 0.30%) was more than that of the placebo group (−0.02 ± 0.43%), and the mean difference was 0.25 ± 0.12% (P = 0.042). In addition, the mean decrement of A1C from baseline after consumption of MC for 16 weeks (−0.50 ± 0.45%) was significantly greater than that of the placebo group (−0.20 ± 0.45%), and the mean difference between them was 0.31 ± 0.15% (P = 0.044).

The hamstring exercise (the Nordic curl) involves the player usin

The hamstring exercise (the Nordic curl) involves the player using hamstrings to resist forward falling of the trunk from a kneeling position. Players completed 2–3 sets of

5–12 repetitions of the exercise for 1–3 sessions per week. Outcome measures: The primary outcome was the number of overall, new, and recurrent acute hamstring injuries during one full soccer season. A hamstring injury was defined as any acute physical complaint in the region of the posterior thigh sustained during a soccer MEK inhibitor drugs match or training. Recurrence of an injury already reported in the trial period was not included to avoid recording the same injury more than once. Results: 50 teams with 942 players completed the study. At the end of the season, there had been 15 hamstring injuries (12 new, 3 recurrent) in the eccentric hamstring exercise group and 52 injuries (32 new, 20 recurrent) in the control group. The number needed to treat (NNT) to prevent 1 hamstring injury (new or recurrent) was 13 (95% CI 9 to 23). The NNT to prevent 1 new injury was 25 (95% CI 15 to 72) and the NNT for recurrent injury was 3 (95%

CI 2 to 6). Apart from short term muscle soreness no adverse INCB018424 concentration events were reported in the exercise group. Conclusion: An eccentric strengthening exercise program for the hamstring muscles that can be performed during training can help prevent hamstring injuries in soccer players. It is well documented that acute hamstring muscle strain is the most common injury in many sports that involve repeated bouts of sprinting, including soccer (Ekstrand et al 2011) and Australian Rules football (Orchard and Seward 2011). Prevention of primary and recurrent injury is therefore paramount, but unfortunately little evidence currently exists to support the efficacy of preventive interventions (Goldman and Jones 2011). This rigorous large-scale trial is extremely relevant for physiotherapists who treat sports people

with acute hamstring muscle strains, Digestive enzyme as it provides the strongest evidence yet that eccentric strength training can significantly reduce the incidence rate of both primary and especially recurrent injury. The intervention was not complicated nor did it rely upon expensive gym-based equipment: repeated sessions of the Nordic hamstring exercise were performed over a 10-week period, and the dosage prescribed produced a preventive effect for at least 12 months. While the Nordic hamstring exercise might be considered an intense load, particularly for people who are unaccustomed to eccentric strength training, it is important to note that no injuries were actually experienced during the conduct of the exercise program. Thus, even though the intervention likely evoked considerable muscle soreness, it was safe.

Since production costs must be considered for implementation of a

Since production costs must be considered for implementation of a vaccination program, further research specifically designed for evaluating performance effects may be warranted. We found the overall

fecal prevalence of E. coli O157:H7 and prevalence of high shedders in this large commercial feedlot population were relatively high as expected for summer-fed cattle supplemented with distiller’s grains. We conclude that this DFM, BIBW2992 mw Bovamine® (labeled for 106 CFU/head/day of Lactobacillus), administered alone or in combination with the SRP® vaccine, does not significantly affect fecal shedding. However, the SRP® vaccine significantly reduces fecal prevalence of E. coli O157:H7 and prevalence of high shedders, and therefore may be an effective intervention for E. coli O157:H7 Selleckchem GSK1349572 control in commercial feedlots. We thank Neil Wallace, Xiaorong Shi,

Kansas State University student workers, and Adam’s Land and Cattle Company personnel for technical assistance. This study was supported by the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U. S. Department of Agriculture (Grant # 2008-35201-04679) and Kansas State University. The vaccine and direct fed microbial products were kindly provided by Pfizer Animal Health, Ltd. and Nutrition Physiology Corp., respectively. In addition, Pfizer Animal Health provided unrestricted supplemental funds that

enabled testing samples for high shedders. Pfizer Animal Health and Nutrition Physiology Corp. employees were not involved in the study design; the collection, analysis and interpretation of data; the writing of the report; or the decision to submit the article for publication. The manuscript is contribution number 12-324-J from the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station. “
“The 1980s saw tremendous progress towards universal childhood immunization, as many developing countries received foreign aid and technical support from WHO and 17-DMAG (Alvespimycin) HCl UNICEF to build and sustain national immunization programs. By 1990, coverage with three doses of Diphteria–Tetanus–Pertussis vaccine (DTP3) was said to have attained 79% globally, though sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia lagged behind other regions, with only 52% and 68% coverage. Limited improvements in coverage have been achieved since 1990 [1], but new efforts are underway to establish universal immunization. As part of the polio eradication initiative, many countries conduct national and sub-national “catch-up” campaigns to vaccinate all children, and the GAVI Alliance has supplied funding for strengthening routine immunization services since 2000.

, 2004+; Wardle et al , 2001+; Wood et al , 2010+) These include

, 2004+; Wardle et al., 2001+; Wood et al., 2010+). These included a lack of clear information, this website misunderstanding of food messages and the perception of healthy eating messages as complex, especially sugar content and the classification of fats, a balanced diet (misinterpreted as a balance of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ foods) and the ‘5-a-day’ message (misinterpreted as five portions of fruit). Existing attitudes to health were also found

to be important in behaviour change ( Dibsdall et al., 2002++; Lawrence et al., 2009+; Nic Gabhainn et al., 1999+; Whelan et al., 2002+; Withall et al., 2009+; Wood et al., 2010+), and in particular there seemed to be contradicting attitudes depending on how in control people felt over their health. Some

deliberately sought a healthy lifestyle and cheap healthy foods, whereas others were not concerned with their health or healthy food. Other barriers were lack of perceived control over weight, no clear perceived links between lack of exercise and chronic conditions, and food and health, with some people believing it was not good to be ‘too healthy’. Perceived capabilities could learn more also constitute a barrier or facilitator of change ( Coleman et al., 2008++; Lawrence et al., 2009+; Peerbhoy et al., 2008+; Stead et al., 2004+). Barriers included a poor initial level of fitness and perceptions of a lack of sporting capability, cooking skills and confidence in cooking meals from scratch and being able to eat ‘5-a-day’, although the latter could be overcome by enhancing skills in a non-threatening way and using peer and family support. Some people, however, expressed confidence in cooking and experimenting with food. Barriers related to people’s current lifestyle ( Gough and Conner, 2006++; Lawrence et al., 2009+; Nic Gabhainn et al., 1999+; Price, 2007+; Whelan et al., 2002+; Withall et al., 2009+)

included commitments and responsibilities, stress, comfort eating, being stuck in a rut, embarrassment, the belief that activity around the home is sufficient and lack of time. Conversely, boredom was cited as a reason for unhealthy eating, with some people aware of the apparent contradiction. Health professionals Linifanib (ABT-869) suggested that mental health problems such as depression could have an impact. Many barriers centred around affordability ( Dibsdall et al., 2002++; Kennedy et al., 1998+; Lawrence et al., 2009+; Parry et al., 2007+; Peerbhoy et al., 2008+; Price, 2007+; Whelan et al., 2002 +; Withall et al., 2009+), including the cost of buying healthy food, perceived lack of affordable food locally, public transport costs, the cost of cooking different meals to suit different preferences, marketing strategies promoting unhealthy foods and wasting money buying food that the family would not eat. Health professionals felt that healthy food could be prioritised when shopping, and budgeting could be covered in nutritional education programmes.

g A-EA-2005 Seven anti-FMDV bovine post-vaccinal sera were used

g. A-EA-2005. Seven anti-FMDV bovine post-vaccinal sera were used in the study. Two were against the two existing vaccine strains, A-KEN-05-1980 and A-ETH-06-2000 raised in Kenya and Ethiopia [21], respectively, by administering the commercially prepared vaccine. The animals vaccinated with A-KEN-05-1980 were bled on 21 day following vaccination. The animals vaccinated with A-ETH-06-2000 received a boost on 21-day post-vaccination and bled one week later. BAY 73-4506 ic50 The rest five bvs were raised in cattle

against one existing vaccine strain (A-ERI-1998) and four candidate vaccine strains (A-EA-1981, A-EA-1984, A-EA-2005 and A-EA-2007) following the method previously described [23]. The candidate vaccine strains were selected taking into account the genotypes currently circulating in the region. For each antigen, sera from four or five animals were pooled for use in the neutralisation test. The homologous neutralising antibody titres of each pooled serum

are presented in Table 1a. The 2D-VNT test was carried out using the pooled post-vaccination bovine sera according to Rweyemamu and colleagues. [24]. Antibody titres were calculated from regression data as the log10 reciprocal antibody dilution required for 50% neutralisation of 100 tissue culture infective units of virus (log10SN50/100 TCID50). The antigenic relationship of viruses is given by the ratio: ‘r1’ = neutralising antibody titre against the heterologous virus/neutralising antibody titre against the homologous virus.

this website The significance of differences between ‘r1-values’ obtained by the polyclonal antiserum was evaluated according to standard criteria [25]. The sequences of the entire capsid coding region (P1) of the viruses were generated. RNA extraction from the cell culture grown viruses, reverse transcription (RT), polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify the P1 region, sequencing, sequence analysis and assembling, and alignment were performed as described previously [26]. MEGA 5 [27] was used to determine nucleotide and aa variations. The aa variability of the capsid coding region of the type A viruses were determined as described by Valdar [28]. The aligned, complete P1 nucleotide sequences were used to determine the most suitable nucleotide substitution model using jModelTest CYTH4 [29] and MEGA [27] resulting in the selection of a General time reversal (GTR) model with a combination of gamma distribution and proportion of invariant sites (GTR + G + I). Then, Bayesian analysis was performed using the BEAST software package v1.5.4 [30]. In BEAUti v1.5.4, the ages of the viruses were defined by the date of sample collection and the analysis used GTR + G + I model to describe rate heterogeneity among sites. Variations in substitution rate among branches were evaluated by comparing four different clocks in BEAST. The maximum clade credibility (MCC) phylogenetic tree was inferred using the Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method.

In Mali and Rwanda, Meningitis A (Men A) and HPV vaccines were in

In Mali and Rwanda, Meningitis A (Men A) and HPV vaccines were introduced respectively using a campaign-based approach. In Mali, the introduction was through a mass catch-up campaign organised in three separate phases and in Rwanda through a school-based delivery model that was part of the national immunisation

schedule. In the remaining countries the new vaccines, pneumococcal vaccine (PCV) and rotavirus, were introduced into the routine, infant immunisation programme. Within countries, two to four regions were selected based on their vaccination coverage (high, average and low compared to national figures). Two to three districts were selected purposively within each region, representing different vaccination coverage rates as well as both urban and rural areas. One to five health facilities were selected per district, based on an increasing Erastin mw distance from the main urban centre and to include Kinase Inhibitor Library a range of provider types (Table 2). Three methods of data collection were used: 1. Semi-structured interviews with key informants selected at national, regional and

district levels. The qualitative data collection and analysis were framed by an adapted version of the WHO health system building blocks (see Table 3) [17]. Semi-structured interviews at the national level were conducted with key informants from the Ministry of Health and stakeholders from other relevant organisations (e.g. WHO, UNICEF, Inter-agency Coordinating Committee members and, in Rwanda, teachers). Regional- and district-level health service managers and staff specialised in immunisation or logistics management were also interviewed. The interviews included questions on the health system building

block components detailed in Table 3; where interviewees’ roles were more specialised, questions focused on their areas of expertise. Interviews were recorded when permitted and possible. All those recorded were transcribed and, when necessary, translated. Notes were made of interviews not recorded. A researcher-administered questionnaire was completed with one staff member in each facility. Questions were adapted from the WHO’s post-introduction evaluation (PIE) tool however and were structured around the study framework (Table 3) [18]. Data were gathered on coverage of the new vaccine and the diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (DTP) as well as ANC service use, from routine service use records held in facilities and/or districts. Monthly data were collected for 1 year before and after the new vaccine was introduced in that facility/district (only 5 and 10 months afterwards in Kenya and Cameroon, respectively, due to the timing of data collection). In Rwanda and Mali (for Men A), data were collected 1 month before, during and after the campaign. Thematic content analysis was used to explore the interview data within Open Code software [19].

Trout sera titers are comparable to those found in salmonids vacc

Trout sera titers are comparable to those found in salmonids vaccinated with DNA vaccines for rhabdovirus that varied depending on fish size, vaccine dose, time after vaccination, etc. [14] and [15]. Similar IPNV-seropositive percentage

was also observed, from 33 to 100% of fish, after vaccination of salmonids with laboratory Ulixertinib chemical structure or commercial recombinant vaccines [8], [9] and [13]. Finally, we also evaluated the viral load after IPNV-challenge in controls and pIPNV-PP vaccinated trout by means of real-time PCR. We assayed the viral load in the head kidney at 7 days post-IPNV injection since this is one of the main replication targets for IPNV and at this time there is a peak in the detection of IPNV VP2 gene expression through PCR [32] and [39]. This approximation through means of reduction in viral load has been already assayed [8] and [23] and constitutes an approximation to field challenges, mainly for those challenges difficult to develop and analyse such as in the case of IPNV [12] and [13]. The viral load in pIPNV-PP vaccinated trout after IPNV injection, measured by IPNV VP1 gene transcripts, was 665-fold lower than Palbociclib research buy in fish injected with PBS alone. As observed before, the injection of the empty plasmid produced a little reduction of the viral

load, a 27-fold decrease of IPNV VP1 transcripts, when compared to the PBS controls. The same applied to a previous report from our group showing that the empty plasmid or the VHSV DNA vaccine decreased the viral load after VHSV challenge [23] although comparison between the two studies are difficult since the viral pathogenesis is different. In comparison, using a recombinant VP2 vaccine produced in yeast, the viral load was only decreased 22.4-fold when administered by intraperitoneal injection and 12.25-fold when delivered by immersion [8]. In conclusion, we have generated a DNA vaccine Resminostat consisting of a plasmid encoding the IPNV polyprotein (pIPNV-PP), based on the long

ORF of the segment A, which is properly translated as a polyprotein to be later processed through the active VP4-protease activity into preVP2, mature VP2 and VP3 proteins. Fish EPC cells transfected with this plasmid expressed the vaccine, which induced expression of Mx and showed structures resembling VLPs. Finally, rainbow trout vaccination with our plasmid regulated the expression of immune-relevant genes in a much lower extent compared to the rhabdoviral DNA vaccines, significantly induced neutralizing antibodies and was capable of decreasing the viral load after challenge. Even though further studies are necessary to demonstrate if this DNA vaccine is completely protective using good challenge models, our work provides a new effective fish DNA vaccine with a different mode of action compared to rhabdovirus DNA vaccines.

ATP can induce a P2Y1-mediated release of adenosine from Müller c

ATP can induce a P2Y1-mediated release of adenosine from Müller cells that inhibits their swelling in

tissues submitted to hypotonic conditions (Uckermann et al., 2006). Activation of P2Y1 receptors selleckchem is also involved in Müller cell gliosis after ouabain-induced cell injury in the fish retina (Battista et al., 2009). Although ATP is released from Müller cells when calcium transients are induced in the retina (Newman, 2001), the mechanism by which these cells release this nucleotide is poorly understood. In the present study, we investigated the release of ATP from Müller glia cells of the chick embryo retina by examining quinacrine staining and by measuring the extracellular levels of ATP in purified Müller glia cultures. Our data revealed that glial cells could be labeled with quinacrine, a reaction that was prevented by incubation of the cells with bafilomycin A1, a potent inhibitor of vacuolar ATPases. Moreover, 50 mM KCl, glutamate and kainate were able to decrease quinacrine staining in the cells as well as to increase the extracellular levels of ATP in the medium. Glutamate-induced rise in extracellular ATP was completely blocked by the glutamatergic antagonists DNQX and MK-801, as well as by BAPTA-AM and bafilomycin A1, suggesting that glutamate, through activation of NMDA and non-NMDA receptors, induces the release of ATP from retinal Müller Selleck Epacadostat cells through a calcium-dependent exocytotic mechanism.

Glutamine, penicillin-G, streptomycin sulfate, glutamate, kainate, 6,7-dinitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (DNQX), dizocilpine maleate (MK-801), BAPTA-AM, EGTA, quinacrine, Evans blue were from Sigma (St. Louis, MO, USA); ATP determination kit, MEM, Fetal Bovine Serum, Life Technologies Inc.; trypsin, Worthington Biochemical (Freehold, NJ, USA); all other reagents were of analytical grade. The use of animals was in accordance with the “NIH guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals” and approved by the department’s also commission for animal care. Glial cultures were obtained according to a previous published procedure (Cossenza and Paes De Carvalho, 2000). Retinas from White-Leghorn chick embryos

were used and monolayer retinal cultures enriched in glial cells prepared. Neuroretinas from 8-day-old embryos were dissected from other structures of the eye and immediately transferred to 1 mL of Ca2+ and Mg2+-free balanced salt solution (CMF). Trypsin, at a final concentration of 0.1%, was added and the suspension incubated at 37 °C for 20–25 min. Trypsin solution was removed and the retinas resuspended in MEM containing 5% fetal calf serum, 2 mM glutamine, 100 U/mL penicillin and 100 mg/mL streptomycin. The tissues were mechanically dissociated by successive aspirations of the medium. For quinacrine staining experiments, the cells were seeded at a density of 2.5 × 103 cells/mm2 on 40 mm plastic Petri dishes. For experiments measuring the extracellular levels of ATP, cells were seeded on 4-well dishes, at the same density.