Ruthenium red is a well known inhibitor of Ca2؉ uptake into mitochondria in vitro. However, its utility as an inhibitor of Ca 2؉ uptake into mitochondria in vivo or in situ in intact cells is limited because of its inhibitory effects on sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca 2؉ release channel and other cellular processes. We have synthesized a ruthenium derivative and found it to be an oxygen-bridged dinuclear ruthenium amine complex. It has the same chemical structure as Ru360 reported previously (Emerson, J., Clarke, M. J., Ying, W-L., and Sanadi, D. R. (1993) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 115, 11799 -11805). Ru360 has been shown to be a potent inhibitor of Ca 2؉ -stimulated respiration of liver mitochondria in vitro. However, the specificity of Ru360 on Ca 2؉ uptake into mitochondria in vitro or in intact cells has not been determined. The present study reports in detail the potency, the effectiveness, and the mechanism of inhibition of mitochondrial Ca 2؉ uptake by Ru360 and its specificity in vitro in isolated mitochondria and in situ in isolated cardiac myocytes. Ru360 was more potent (IC 50 ‫؍‬ 0.184 nM) than ruthenium red (IC 50

Although the terminology and context of general practice vary internationally, themes relating to the perceived role of general practitioners were consistent. General practitioners are considered well placed to provide palliative care due to their breadth of clinical responsibility, ongoing relationships with patients and families, and duty to visit patients at home and coordinate healthcare resources. These factors, valued by service users, should influence future practice and policy development.

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Undergraduate ethics teaching has made significant progress in the past decade, with evidence showing that students and trainee doctors feel more confident in identifying and analysing ethical issues. There is general consensus that ethics education should enable students and doctors to take ethically appropriate actions, and nurture moral integrity. However, the literature reports that doctors continue to find it difficult to take action when faced with perceived unethical behaviour. This has been evident in recent healthcare scandals, in which care has fallen below acceptable ethical standards, despite the presence of professional ethical guidelines and competencies. The National Foundation Training Programme forms the first 2 years of training for new UK doctors. We designed a Foundation Doctor (FD)-led teaching programme in which medical students were invited to bring cases and experiences from clinical placements for small group discussion facilitated by FDs. The aim was to enable students to act ethically in practice through developing moral sensitivity and moral identity, together with skills in ethical reasoning and tools to address barriers to taking ethical action. FDs were chosen as facilitators, based on the evidence that near-peer is an effective form of teaching in medicine and may provide positive role models for students. This article reviews the background rationale for the programme and its design. Important themes emerging from the case discussions are explored. Student and FD facilitator feedbacks are evaluated, and practical challenges to the implementation of this type of programme are discussed.