Well Blog: Doctor and Patient: What Body Language Says About Doctors
Subtle gestures, body positions, eye contact, touch and expressions that pass between individuals is as critical a part of doctor-patient communication as verbal expression, new research shows. (Source: NYT Health)

hERG K+ channel-associated cardiac effects of the antidepressant drug desipramine
This study was designed to provide a more complete picture of cellular effects associated with desipramine. hERG channels were expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes and human embryonic kidney (HEK 293) cells, and potassium currents were recorded using patch clamp and two-electrode voltage clamp electrophysiology. Ventricular action potentials were recorded from guinea pig cardiomyocytes. Protein trafficking and cell viability were evaluated in HEK 293 cells and in HL-1 mouse cardiomyocytes by immunocytochemistry, Western blot analysis, or colorimetric MTT assay, respectively. We found that desipramine reduced hERG currents by binding to a receptor site inside the channel pore. hERG protein surface expression was reduced after short-term treatment, revealing a previously unrecognized me...