Publications by authors named "Darras A"

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex autoimmune disease known for its diverse clinical presentations, and one severe complication is lupus nephritis (LN), which significantly contributes to morbidity and mortality. While LN often presents within the first 5 years of SLE diagnosis, renal vein thrombosis (RVT) is a rare vascular complication with a high risk of mortality and morbidity. This case report discusses the rare occurrence of RVT as the initial presentation of SLE in a 32-year-old Sudanese male patient, currently working in Palestine, presenting with flank pain, hematuria, fever, and lower limb edema.

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Evaporation of blood droplets and diluted blood samples is a topic of intensive research, as it is considered a potential low-cost diagnostic tool. So far, samples with a volume fraction down to a few percent of red blood cells have been studied, and these were reportedly dominated by a "coffee-ring" deposit. In this study, samples with lower volume fractions were used to investigate the growth of the evaporative deposit from sessile droplets in more detail.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the use of osmotic gradient ektacytometry (Osmoscan) as a potential diagnostic tool to differentiate neuroacanthocytosis syndromes (NAS) from other neurodegenerative diseases.
  • Significant differences in red blood cell properties were found in NAS patients compared to healthy controls and patients with other conditions, particularly in specific osmolality measurements.
  • While some Osmoscan parameters showed promise, only two of them achieved 100% specificity for distinguishing NAS from other diseases, highlighting the need for further research with larger samples to solidify diagnostic criteria.
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Article Synopsis
  • Sword lily is a valuable cut flower, and understanding how it responds to salt stress is important for its production.
  • Melatonin (MT) has shown promise in helping plants cope with stress, suggesting it could be a viable alternative to chemical treatments.
  • MT application improved growth, photosynthetic pigments, and stress resistance in sword lily under salt stress, making it a potentially effective strategy for maintaining flower quality and reducing reliance on harmful agrochemicals.
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Blood is a highly complex fluid with rheological properties that have a significant impact on various flow phenomena. In particular, it exhibits a non-Newtonian elongational viscosity that is comparable to polymer solutions. In this study, we investigate the effect of three different anticoagulants, namely EDTA (ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid), heparin, and citrate, on the elongational properties of both human and swine blood.

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Objectives: This scoping review sought to evaluate the current literature regarding the following outcomes in relation to rurality: stage at diagnosis, clinical characteristics, treatment characteristics, and survival outcomes of head and neck cancer (HNC).

Data Sources: A literature search was performed using PubMed (MEDLINE), Science Direct, EMBASE, SCOPUS, and Web of Science databases.

Review Methods: A 20-year study cutoff from the initial search was used to increase the comparability of the studies regarding population and standards of clinical care.

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We investigated highlanders, permanently living at an altitude of 5100 m and compared Chronic Mountain Sickness (CMS) patients with control volunteers. While we found differences in systemic parameters such as blood oxygen content, hematocrit, hemoglobin concentration, and blood viscosity, the mechanical and rheological properties of single red blood cells did not differ between the two investigated groups.

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The ability to change shape is essential for the proper functioning of red blood cells (RBCs) within the microvasculature. The shape of RBCs significantly influences blood flow and has been employed in microfluidic lab-on-a-chip devices, serving as a diagnostic biomarker for specific pathologies and enabling the assessment of RBC deformability. While external flow conditions, such as the vessel size and the flow velocity, are known to impact microscale RBC flow, our comprehensive understanding of how their shape-adapting ability is influenced by channel confinement in biomedical applications remains incomplete.

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Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) is a clinical parameter used as a nonspecific marker for inflammation, and recent studies have shown that it is linked to the collapse of the gel formed by red blood cells (RBCs) at physiological hematocrits (i.e. RBC volume fraction).

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PIEZO1 channels are mechanically activated cation channels that play a pivotal role in sensing mechanical forces in various cell types. Their dysfunction has been associated with numerous pathophysiological states, including generalized lymphatic dysplasia, varicose vein disease, and hereditary xerocytosis. Given their physiological relevance, investigating PIEZO1 is crucial for the pharmaceutical industry, which requires scalable techniques to allow for drug discovery.

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Bifurcations and branches in the microcirculation dramatically affect blood flow as they determine the spatiotemporal organization of red blood cells (RBCs). Such changes in vessel geometries can further influence the formation of a cell-free layer (CFL) close to the vessel walls. Biophysical cell properties, such as their deformability, which is impaired in various diseases, are often thought to impact blood flow and affect the distribution of flowing RBCs.

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Deltamethrin and imidacloprid are commonly used insecticides for controlling sub-sucking insects in greenhouses. However, their application may cause sublethal effects on the aphid coccinellid predator (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Here, we study (i) the toxicity and the effect of two sublethal doses (LD and LD) of deltamethrin and imidacloprid on in a laboratory microcosm and (ii) the residual toxicity of the two insecticides in a greenhouse.

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Blood flow in the microcirculatory system is crucially affected by intrinsic red blood cell (RBC) properties, such as their deformability. In the smallest vessels of this network, RBCs adapt their shapes to the flow conditions. Although it is known that the age of RBCs modifies their physical properties, such as increased cytosol viscosity and altered viscoelastic membrane properties, the evolution of their shape-adapting abilities during senescence remains unclear.

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Erythrocyte (or red blood cell) sedimentation rate (ESR) is a physical derived parameter of blood which is often used in routine health checks and medical diagnosis. For instance, in the case of inflammation, a higher ESR is observed due to the associated increase in fibrinogen and other plasma proteins. It was believed that this increase was due to the formation of larger aggregates of red blood cells (RBCs) caused by the increase in fibrinogen.

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Introduction: Melatonin (MLT) is a bioactive molecule involved in the physiological functioning of plants. Reports related to preharvest applications of melatonin on the postharvest performance of cut flowers are not available in the literature.

Materials & Methods: This study evaluated the effects of different concentrations of exogenous MLT [0 mM (MT0), 0.

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The distribution of red blood cells (RBCs) in the microcirculation determines the oxygen delivery and solute transport to tissues. This process relies on the partitioning of RBCs at successive bifurcations throughout the microvascular network, and it has been known since the last century that RBCs partition disproportionately to the fractional blood flow rate, therefore leading to heterogeneity of the hematocrit (i.e.

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The interest in sustainable horticulture has recently increased, given anthropogenic climate change. The increasing global population will exacerbate the climate change situation induced by human activities. This will elevate global food demands and the vulnerability of horticultural systems, with severe concerns related to natural resource availability and usage.

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When exposed to an external magnetic field, 2D layers of spherical superparamagnetic colloids form specific structures which depend on the features of the external field. If the magnetic field is constant along time, superparamagnetic colloids self-organize into chains oriented in the direction of the field. If the magnetic field is rotating in the plane of the suspension, below a critical frequency, the superparamagnetic beads still aggregate into chains, but these chains rotate with the magnetic field.

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Article Synopsis
  • * Improving plant tolerance to salt stress is crucial for food security as the world population continues to grow, and one method gaining attention is "plant priming," which involves treating plants with specific chemicals at different growth stages.
  • * The review highlights various molecules like hydrogen sulfide, nitric oxide, and melatonin, among others, showing their potential to enhance salt-stress tolerance in crops and promote better growth and yields.
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The erythrocyte (or red blood cell) sedimentation rate (ESR) is commonly interpreted as a measure of cell aggregation and as a biomarker of inflammation. It is well known that an increase of fibrinogen concentration, an aggregation-inducing protein for erythrocytes, leads to an increase of the sedimentation rate of erythrocytes, which is generally explained through the formation and faster settling of large disjoint aggregates. However, many aspects of erythrocyte sedimentation conform well with the collapse of a particle gel rather than with the sedimentation of disjoint aggregates.

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The erythrocyte sedimentation rate is one of the oldest medical diagnostic methods whose physical mechanisms remain debatable today. Using both light microscopy and mesoscale cell-level simulations, we show that erythrocytes form a soft-particle gel. Furthermore, the high volume fraction of erythrocytes, their deformability, and weak attraction lead to unusual properties of this gel.

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The erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) is one of the oldest medical diagnostic tools. However, currently there is some debate on the structure formed by the cells during the sedimentation process. While the conventional view is that erythrocytes sediment as separate aggregates, others have suggested that they form a percolating gel, similar to other colloidal suspensions.

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Introduction: The extended half-life of dalbavancin justifies a once-a-week dosing schedule and is supposed to favour early discharge. These advantages may therefore compensate for the cost of dalbavancin, but no real-life assessment has been conducted to date. We aimed to assess the real-life budget impact of dalbavancin through its impact on the length of stay in French hospitals.

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(Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is a common aphidophagous coccinellid predator used in biological control against aphid pests. Knowing toxicity, lethal, and sublethal effects of insecticides on natural enemies is essential in order to incorporate them into Integrated Pest Management (IPM). In the present study, the lethal and sublethal effects of imidacloprid and deltamethrin were evaluated on the fourth instar larvae of and subsequently on the full life cycle.

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