Adaptability and responsiveness: keys to operational measures in a regional hospital radiology department during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The rapid and mostly uncontrolled spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic over the past 4 months has overwhelmed many healthcare systems worldwide. In Singapore, while our public healthcare institutions were considered well prepared due to our prior experience with the SARS outbreak, there was an unexpected surge of infected patients over the recent 2 months to deal with. We describe our radiology department's experience in modifying operational practices and implementing strict infection control measures aimed at minimizing disease transmission and mitigating the potential impact of possible staff infection.

A practical and adaptive approach to lung cancer screening: a review of international evidence and position on CT lung cancer screening in the Singaporean population by the College of Radiologists Singapore.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death around the world, being the top cause of cancer-related deaths among men and the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths among women in Singapore. Currently, no screening programme for lung cancer exists in Singapore. Since there is mounting evidence indicating a different epidemiology of lung cancer in Asian countries, including Singapore, compared to the rest of the world, a unique and adaptive approach must be taken for a screening programme to be successful at reducing mortality while maintaining cost-effectiveness and a favourable risk-benefit ratio.

The Acutely Injured Elbow.

The acutely injured elbow can present as a diagnostic challenge, encompassing a spectrum of conditions that involve the various osseous and soft tissue structures of this complex joint. Imaging plays a vital role in the management of these patients by providing an accurate interpretation of the underlying trauma sustained, which can have important implications on the preservation of joint function and stability. This article examines the mechanisms, patterns, classifications, and imaging findings of acute elbow injuries, providing key concepts for the radiologist in the interpretation of these injuries.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Cysts, Cystlike Lesions, and Their Mimickers Around the Knee Joint.

While interpreting routine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the knee joint, a radiologist may encounter various cystic lesions such as ganglion, synovial, and meniscal cysts, among others. In some cases, MRI may demonstrate cystlike lesions around the knee due to fluid distention of normal bursa and recesses, the diagnosis of which should not be difficult if a radiologist is familiar with their characteristic location and MRI appearance. In addition, there are cyst mimickers such as hematomas, abscesses, vascular lesions, and neoplasms around knee joint that may pose a diagnostic challenge on routine MRI.

Dectin-1-Mediated Pathway Contributes to Fusarium proliferatum-Induced CXCL-8 Release from Human Respiratory Epithelial Cells.

species are causative agents of human respiratory disorders and are distributed widely in our environment. Little is known of their interaction with human respiratory epithelial cells, which may contribute to allergic airway responses. In this study, we report on the release of C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 8 (CXCL-8) from human bronchial epithelial BEAS-2B cells upon stimulation with extracts.

Dual-energy CT in gout - A review of current concepts and applications.

Dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) is a relatively recent development in the imaging of gouty arthritis. Its availability and usage have become increasingly widespread in recent years. DECT is a non-invasive method for the visualisation, characterisation and quantification of monosodium urate crystal deposits which aids the clinician in the early diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of this condition.

Clinics in diagnostic imaging (174). L5 vertebral superior facet osteoblastoma (OB).

A 25-year-old man presented with chronic low back pain and occasional radiation to the right lower limb. Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography (CT) of the lumbar spine showed an osteolytic expansile lesion with a central sclerotic nidus in the right superior facet of the L5 vertebra and surrounding marrow oedema. The diagnosis of osteoblastoma was made based on imaging findings and confirmed after CT-guided biopsy.

Vacuolar Serine Protease Is a Major Allergen of Fusarium proliferatum and an IgE-Cross Reactive Pan-Fungal Allergen.

Purpose: Fusarium species are among prevalent airborne fungi and causative agents of human respiratory atopic disorders. We previously identified a 36.5-kDa F.

Radiology of soft tissue tumors.

Magnetic resonance imaging is the mainstay of diagnostic imaging for soft tissue masses, but plain film, ultrasound, and computed tomography all have roles. A subset of lesions has specific imaging features that enable a confident radiological diagnosis with appropriate clinical correlation. Many soft tissue masses have nonspecific appearances and should be considered for biopsy in a specialist center.

The transaldolase, a novel allergen of Fusarium proliferatum, demonstrates IgE cross-reactivity with its human analogue.

Fusarium species are among airborne fungi and recognized as causative agents of human atopic disorders. However, Fusarium allergens have not been well characterized and the lack of information limits clinical diagnosis and treatment of fungal allergy. The purpose of this study is to identify and characterize important allergens of F.

Artifacts in dual-energy CT gout protocol: a review of 50 suspected cases with an artifact identification guide.

Objective: The objective of our study was to discover the types and incidence of artifacts in dual-energy CT (DECT) using datasets of 50 consecutive patients who underwent a four-limb DECT protocol for the evaluation of suspected gout. Identification of artifacts and techniques for artifact reduction are discussed.

Conclusion: Artifacts commonly occur in DECT performed for gout assessment but are usually readily recognizable.

Automated segmentation of visceral and subcutaneous (deep and superficial) adipose tissues in normal and overweight men.

Purpose: To develop an automatic segmentation algorithm to classify abdominal adipose tissues into visceral fat (VAT), deep (DSAT), and superficial (SSAT) subcutaneous fat compartments and evaluate its performance against manual segmentation.

Materials And Methods: Data were acquired from 44 normal (BMI 18.0-22.

Epitope mapping and in silico characterization of interactions between Der p 7 allergen and MoAb WH9.

Der p 7 is an important house dust mite allergen. However, antigenic determinants of Der p 7 are largely unknown. The purpose of this study is to analyze the determinants of Der p 7 and determine the structural basis of interactions between Der p 7 and WH9, an IgE-binding inhibition mouse monoclonal antibody (MoAb).

High level expression of Acidothermus cellulolyticus β-1, 4-endoglucanase in transgenic rice enhances the hydrolysis of its straw by cultured cow gastric fluid.

Background: Large-scale production of effective cellulose hydrolytic enzymes is the key to the bioconversion of agricultural residues to ethanol. The goal of this study was to develop a rice plant as a bioreactor for the large-scale production of cellulose hydrolytic enzymes via genetic transformation, and to simultaneously improve rice straw as an efficient biomass feedstock for conversion of cellulose to glucose.

Results: In this study, the cellulose hydrolytic enzyme β-1, 4-endoglucanase (E1) gene, from the thermophilic bacterium Acidothermus cellulolyticus, was overexpressed in rice through Agrobacterium-mediated transformation.

Tropical pyomyositis and necrotizing fasciitis.

Pyomyositis is a purulent infection of skeletal muscle that arises from hematogenous spread, usually with abscess formation. Necrotizing fasciitis is a more severe, rapidly progressive infection involving the superficial and deep fascia with necrosis and fluid collections that can be life threatening if left untreated. Both conditions may coexist, and concomitant cellulitis is often seen.

Evaluation of the new AJCC staging system for resectable hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the validity of the 7th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) TNM system (TNM-7) for patients undergoing hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: Partial hepatectomies performed for 879 patients from 1993 to 2005 were retrospectively reviewed. Clinicopathological factors, surgical outcome, overall survival (OS), and disease-free survival (DFS) were analyzed to evaluate the predictive value of the TNM-7 staging system.

Proteomic modification in gills and brains of medaka fish (Oryzias melastigma) after exposure to a sodium channel activator neurotoxin, brevetoxin-1.

Although brevetoxins (PbTxs) produced by the marine dinoflagellate Karenia brevis are known to be absorbed across gill membranes and exert their acute toxic effects through an ion-channel mediated pathway in neural tissue, the exact biochemical mechanism concerning PbTxs neurotoxicity in neural tissue and gas-exchange organs has not been well elucidated. In this study, we calculated the LC(50) value of PbTx-1 using the medaka fish model, and presented the molecular responses of sub-acute exposure to PbTx-1 with proteomic method. By adopting two-dimensional electrophoresis, the abundances of 14 and 24 proteins were found to be remarkably altered in the gills and brains, respectively, in response to toxin exposure.

Homology modeling and monoclonal antibody binding of the Der f 7 dust mite allergen.

The group 7 allergens are important allergenic specificities for mite-sensitive patients and may need to be incorporated into new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. However, little is known about their biological and structural features. Position-specific iterative BLAST showed that they had strong ancestral homology to two related families of lipid-binding proteins, namely, the bactericidal permeability-increasing (BPI) proteins and the odorant-binding protein.

Pen ch 13 major fungal allergen decreases CD44 expression in human bronchial epithelial cells.

Background: Pen ch 13 is an alkaline serine protease major allergen from Penicilliumchrysogenum. CD44 adhesion molecules play important roles in resolving lung inflammation and repairing epithelial damages during bronchial asthma. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Pen ch 13 on CD44 of human bronchial epithelial cells.

Lys89, Lys90, and Phe91 are critical core amino acid residues of the Pen ch 18 major fungal allergen recognized by human IgE antibodies.

A vacuolar serine protease (Pen ch 18) has been identified as a major allergen of Penicillium chrysogenum. The molecular features of antigenic determinant(s) on Pen ch 18 recognized by human IgE antibodies, however, have remained unclear. Here, we show that a dominant IgE epitope on the N-terminally processed Pen ch 18 allergen was narrowed down to residues 83-91.

Vacuolar serine protease is a major allergen of Cladosporium cladosporioides.

Background: Cladosporium is an important allergenic fungus worldwide. We report here a major allergen of C. cladosporioides.

Aspergillus and Penicillium allergens: focus on proteases.

Penicillium and Aspergillus species are prevalent airborne fungi. It is imperative to identify and characterize their major allergens. Alkaline and/or vacuolar serine proteases are major allergens of several prevalent Penicillium and Aspergillus species.

Lys, pro and trp are critical core amino acid residues recognized by FUM20, a monoclonal antibody against serine protease pan-fungal allergens.

Background: Alkaline/vacuolar serine proteases comprise a major group of pan-fungal allergens from several prevalent airborne fungal species. It is of importance to characterize antigenic determinant(s) recognized by monoclonal antibodies against these major allergens.

Methods: The antigenic determinant of fungal serine proteases recognized by a monoclonal antibody, FUM20, was analyzed by dot immunoassay of synthetic peptides immobilized on cellulose membrane.

A vacuolar serine protease (Rho m 2) is a major allergen of Rhodotorula mucilaginosa and belongs to a class of highly conserved pan-fungal allergens.

Background: Rhodotorula mucilaginosa is one of the most frequently encountered species of yeasts in our environment. We reported here a major allergen of R. mucilaginosa.

Accumulation and depuration of paralytic shellfish poisoning toxins by laboratory cultured purple clam Hiatula diphos Linnaeus.

Purple clams (Hiatula diphos Linnaeus) accumulate paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins produced by a toxic strain of the dinoflagellate Alexandrium minutum Halim in a laboratory study. The maximal toxicity of PSP toxins attained 31.3m MU/g after 20 days exposure.