Ph. Eur. testing for histamine and depressor substances using guinea-pigs and cats: the end of an era. Strategy for removal of animal tests for histamine and depressor substances and their vestiges from the Ph. Eur.

For more than 50 years, assays have been used for testing pharmaceutical product safety due to their assumed ability to broadly detect potential unidentified contaminants. As part of these in vivo tests, the animal tests for depressor substances and histamine have been described in the European Pharmacopoeia since its first edition in 1977. Both tests measure the effect of histamine and histamine-like substances, using guinea-pigs and cats respectively.

An integrated digital workflow for long-term interim combined fixed and removable prostheses.

Interim prostheses are required for the management of complex prosthodontic treatment which sometimes comprises both fixed and removable prostheses in the same arch. The traditional workflow for interim combined fixed and removable prostheses is time consuming and results can be unpredictable. A novel integrated digital workflow was adopted in the management of long-term interim combined fixed and removable prostheses.

Trueness of 3-dimensionally printed complete arch implant analog casts.

Statement Of Problem: Although a completely digital workflow has numerous advantages, a physical definitive cast may be especially helpful for the accurate assembly of components of complex complete arch-fixed prostheses, the evaluation of esthetic and occlusion features, or prosthesis fabrication. Research on the accuracy of additive complete arch casts with implants positioned with a large anterior-posterior (A-P) spread is sparse.

Purpose: The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the trueness of complete arch 4-implant analog casts with a large A-P distribution fabricated with different 3-dimensional (3D) printers.

Effect of the attachments on clinical outcomes of mandibular distal extension implant-supported removable partial dentures: A systematic review.

Statement Of Problem: Healing abutments and attachments have been used for implant-supported removable partial dentures (ISRPDs). However, the effects of these abutments and attachments on the clinical outcomes of the implants and prostheses are elusive because of the lack of standardized research protocols.

Purpose: The purpose of this systematic review was to determine the clinical outcomes of mandibular distal extension ISRPDs with healing abutments and attachments by analyzing qualified studies.

Comparison of strength of milled and conventionally processed PMMA complete-arch implant-supported immediate interim fixed dental prostheses.

Statement Of Problem: A typical conversion process of a complete-arch immediate loading protocol entails preparing holes in a complete denture for connection to interim copings, which reduces the strength of the prosthesis. The excellent mechanical properties of milled polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) disks may provide interim prostheses with improved strength.

Purpose: The purpose of this in vitro study was to measure the flexural strength and failure load of simulated acrylic resin immediate implant-supported interim prostheses fabricated by conventional processing and computer-aided manufacturing.

Longitudinal Soft Tissue Changes During Periodontal Ligament-Mediated Immediate Implant Placement with the Root-Membrane Technique.

Purpose: To assess longitudinal volumetric changes during immediate implant placement with simultaneous intentional retention of the buccal aspect of the root.

Materials And Methods: This study assessed 10 cases drawn from a previously reported cohort that had study casts available pretreatment and at least 2 years after periodontal ligament (PDL)-mediated immediate implant placement. Gypsum casts were scanned using a laser scanner and converted into digital three-dimensional rendered files.

Epidemiological surveillance and wild-type MIC distribution of Legionella pneumophila in north-western Spain. 2003-2016.

Purpose: To perform epidemiological surveillance of Legionella pneumophila in recreational swimming pools in the city of Valladolid (Spain), an area with a continental climate and low incidence of legionella-associated infections. Additionally, wild-type minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) distributions for eight antibiotics commonly used for the treatment of legionellosis were calculated from the isolates obtained.

Methods: Twelve recreational pools were enrolled between June 2003 and December 2016 and 7221 water samples were taken from three different points of the water network (tank, tap and shower).

Accuracy of 3-dimensional computer-aided manufactured single-tooth implant definitive casts.

Statement Of Problem: The integration of the digital workflow into routine prosthodontic practice for single-tooth implant surgery and fixed prosthesis fabrication has occurred at a remarkable pace in the last 5 years. With the greater demands of esthetics and precision, the definitive implant analog cast must ensure accurate implant positioning as well as an accurate relationship to adjacent teeth.

Purpose: The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the accuracy of the 3-dimensional (3D) implant position of definitive casts produced by 3D printing and analog technology.

Effect of simulated intraoral variables on the accuracy of a photogrammetric imaging technique for complete-arch implant prostheses.

Statement Of Problem: Conventional impression techniques to obtain a definitive cast for a complete-arch implant-supported prosthesis are technique-sensitive and time-consuming. Direct optical recording with a camera could offer an alternative to conventional impression making.

Purpose: The purpose of this in vitro study was to test a novel intraoral image capture protocol to obtain 3-dimensional (3D) implant spatial measurement data under simulated oral conditions of vertical opening and lip retraction.

Usefulness of a single-assay chemiluminescence test (Tularaemia VIRCLIA IgG + IgM monotest) for the diagnosis of human tularemia. Comparison of five serological tests.

The aim of this work was to ascertain the usefulness of a new commercially-available single-assay chemiluminescence test (CHT) for the diagnosis of human tularemia (Tularaemia VIRCLIA IgG + IgM monotest, Vircell, Santa Fe, Granada, Spain). A total of 773 sera from 773 patients including 364 initial sera from patients with diagnosed tularemia, patients with suspected tularemia not confirmed (100), healthy people (152), patients with serology positive to Brucella (97), patients diagnosed with other infectious diseases (30), and patients diagnosed with autoimmune diseases (30) were included. All sera were tested by CHT, "in-house" microagglutination test (MAT), immunochromatographic test (ICT) (Virapid Tularaemia, Vircell, Santa Fe Granada, Spain), and "in-house" ELISA IgG, and ELISA IgM.

A meta-analysis of in vitro antibiotic synergy against Acinetobacter baumannii.

The aim of the work was to describe the different in vitro models for testing synergism of antibiotics and gather the results of antibiotic synergy against multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDR-Ab). The different original articles were obtained from different web sites. In order to compare the results obtained by the different methods for synergy testing, the Pearson chi-square and the Fischer tests were used.

A new approach to determine the susceptibility of bacteria to antibiotics directly from positive blood culture bottles in two hours.

The rapid identification and antibiotic susceptibility test of bacteria causing bloodstream infections are given a very high priority by clinical laboratories. In an effort to reduce the time required for performing antibiotic susceptibility test (AST), we have developed a new method to be applied from positive blood culture bottles. The design of method was performed using blood culture bottles prepared artificially with five strains which have a known susceptibility.

Role of calcifying nanoparticle in the development of hyperplasia and vascular calcification in an animal model.

Objective: Calcifying nanoparticles (NPs) have been detected recently in calcified human arterial specimens and are involved in the process of calcification. This study was designed to test the hypothesis that human-derived NPs could worsen the response to arterial endothelial injury and induce vascular calcification.

Methods: The right carotid artery of 24 New Zealand rabbits was injured with an angioplasty balloon.

Molecular epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in a Spanish hospital over a 4-year period: clonal replacement, decreased antimicrobial resistance, and identification of community-acquired and livestock-associated clones.

This study was carried out on 189 methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clinical isolates collected in a third-level hospital in Valladolid, Spain, between 2005 and 2008 in order to investigate the changes in molecular epidemiology and genetic backgrounds associated with the changes in resistance phenotypes produced over time. The MRSA isolates were classified as belonging to 10 different clones, including the identification of a novel MRSA clone, ST2422-MRSA-IV, belonging to CC121; 1 CA-MRSA strain from a USA300 clone; another from ST97-MRSA-IV, associated with clones adapted to livestock (LA-MRSA); and 2 strains belonging to a new spa type (t10258) related to the ST8-MRSA-IV clone. Sixty-two percent of the strains belonging to Spanish-prevalent MRSA sequence type ST125 harboured composite or multiple SCCmec elements including SCCmec type IV plus ccrA/B4 (ST125-SCCmec IV/VI).

Clonal nature and diversity of resistance, toxins and adhesins genes of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus collected in a Spanish hospital.

In this study we determined the prevalence of genes coding for antimicrobial resistance, toxins, enzymes, immunoevasion and adhesins factors among 189 meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains isolated from a third level hospital in Valladolid (Spain) between 2005 and 2008 in order to examine the relationship between these pathogenicity determinants, both individually and in combination, and the genetic background of main MRSA strains that are presents in Spanish hospitals. MRSA isolates were first characterised epidemiologically by a combination of molecular typing strategies like spa, SCCmec and multilocus sequence typing, and then, a cluster analysis based on pathogenicity factors genes was performed according to the hybridisation pattern of 65 virulence, 36 resistance, 15 adhesins, and 11 set/ssl genes on a Diagnostic DNA microarray (Alere StaphyType DNA microarray Jena, Germany). CC5-agr type II [ST125-SCCmecIV/VI (32.

Comparison of the physicochemical properties of a biosimilar filgrastim with those of reference filgrastim.

Recombinant human granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (filgrastim) is a therapeutic protein used primarily to reduce incidence and duration of severe neutropenia and its associated, and serious, complications. We have developed a biosimilar filgrastim (Hospira filgrastim; Nivestim) designed to be comparable to Amgen filgrastim (Neupogen). An extensive characterization study assessed the physiochemical similarity of Hospira filgrastim to Amgen filgrastim.

Influence of brucellosis history on serological diagnosis and evolution of patients with acute brucellosis.

Serological diagnosis of human brucellosis is problematic in endemic brucellosis regions and with patients having a history of brucellosis. The aim of this study is to ascertain the serologic and evolutionary behavior of the tests of serum agglutination, Coombs anti-Brucella, immunocapture-agglutination, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) IgG, IgA, IgM and ELISA-IgG avidity against Brucella lipopolysaccharide (S-LPS), in patients with acute brucellosis based on whether or not a history of brucellosis exists. Titers and seropositivity in all the tests assayed were higher in the patients having brucellosis history (from 90.

[Seroprevalence of viral hepatitis in a representative general population of an urban public health area in Castilla y León (Spain)].

Introduction: Viral hepatitis is a major social, health and economic problem worldwide, requiring strict epidemiological control.

Methods: This study presents the viral hepatitis seroprevalence in a representative sample from an urban health care area in Valladolid (Spain).

Results: Antibody prevalence was as follows: anti-HAV 52%; anti-HBc, 8.

Utility of an immunocapture-agglutination test and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test against cytosolic proteins from Brucella melitensis B115 in the diagnosis and follow-up of human acute brucellosis.

The utility of an immunocapture-agglutination (Brucellacapt, Vircell SL, Granada, Spain) test and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay IgG, IgA, and IgM (ELISA-IgG, ELISA-IgA, ELISA-IgM) against cytosolic proteins from Brucella melitensis B115 (R) was compared with ELISA-IgG, ELISA-IgA, and ELISA-IgM against smooth lipopolysaccharide (S-LPS) from B. melitensis 16M (S), serum agglutination test (SAT), and Coombs test in the diagnosis and follow-up for 10 months of 51 patients with acute brucellosis. The sensitivities of ELISA tests against cytosolic proteins varied from 49.

Seroepidemiologic study of Leishmania infantum infection in Castilla-Leon, Spain.

Leishmaniasis has increased in importance in recent years because infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has emerged as a risk factor for this disease. However, the actual prevalence of leishmaniasis in the general population of Spain is unknown. We present a study of the seroprevalence of infection with Leishmania infantum in the general population of Castilla-Leon, Spain.

[Seroprevalence of infection due to Echinococcus granulosus in the population of Castilla and León (Spain)].

Introduction: Human hydatidosis is a prevalent zoonotic disease in the Castilla y León region of Spain. The aim of this study is to investigate the seroprevalence of Echinococcus granulosus infection in this region.

Methods: We studied 4824 serum samples from a random, representative population of healthy individuals from each province of Castilla y León, obtained over one year.

Utility of a commercial immunoblot kit (BAG-Borrelia blot) in the diagnosis of the preliminary stages of Lyme disease.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of a commercial immunoblot (IgG and IgM BAG-Borrelia blot) in the serologic diagnosis of the early stages of Lyme disease. A total of 42 sera from patients with Lyme disease (24 patients with localized early stage (LES) and 18 patients with disseminated early stage (DES)) and 129 sera from patients with non-Lyme diseases (specificity control sera) were studied. IgG anti-p41 from Borrelia burgdorferi s.

Serologic evidence of human infection by Francisella tularensis in the population of Castilla y León (Spain) prior to 1997.

Prior to an outbreak in Castilla y León in December 1997, tularaemia was practically non-existent in Spain. In this paper we studied the prevalence of antibodies against Francisella tularensis in a representative sample of the population (4825 people) from Castilla y León (Spain) in samples collected before this outbreak. Antibodies against F.

[Prevalence of antibodies against Francisella tularensis in Castilla y León (Spain) before 1997].

Background And Objectives: The aim of this paper was determine the prevalence of antibodies against Francisella tularensis in the representative sample of people from Castilla-León (Spain) before epidemic outbreak of end 1997.

Subjects And Method: We obtain 4,825 sera (between april-1996 and april-1997) of people from Castilla-León. All sera were tested by a microagglutination technique to detect antibodies against Francisella tularensis.