The value of spectrophotometric intracutaneous analysis in the noninvasive diagnosis of nonmelanoma skin cancers.

Background: Spectrophotometric intracutaneous analysis (SIAscopy) is a recently introduced, noninvasive, rapid and practical method for monitoring pigmented lesions, which calculates the amount of collagen, melanin and haemoglobin deep in the papillary dermis.

Aim: To evaluate the value of SIAscopy in the diagnosis of nonmelanoma skin cancers (NMSC).

Methods: In total, 80 lesions of 76 patients were clinically evaluated by the first investigator, and the data recorded.

Therapeutic plasma exchange in patients with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura: a retrospective multicenter study.

Unlabelled: Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a particular form of thrombotic microangiopathy typically characterized by thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, fever, neurological abnormalities, and renal dysfunction. TTP requires a rapid diagnosis and an adapted management in emergency. Daily sessions of therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) remain the basis of management of TTP.

Concurrent occurrence of human and equine West Nile virus infections in Central Anatolia, Turkey: the first evidence for circulation of lineage 1 viruses.

Background: West Nile fever is an important zoonotic infection caused by West Nile virus (WNV), a member of the Flaviviridae. Previous serological data from Turkey suggest widespread WNV circulation. This report includes cases of human and equine WNV infections occurring concurrently, and manifesting as central nervous system infections, in two neighboring provinces of Central Anatolia, Turkey.

A variation of the cords of the brachial plexus on the right and a communication between the musculocutaneous and median nerves on the left upper limb: a unique case.

During routine anatomical dissection of the upper extremity of a 64-year-old cadaver for educational purposes, we observed variations in the brachial plexus on each side. On the right an anomaly of cord formation was present and on the left there was a communication between the musculocutaneous nerve (MCN) and median nerve (MN). On the right side the brachial plexus showed two trunks, superior (C5 and C6) and inferior (C7, C8, and T1); the middle trunk was absent.

Use of cardiac CT angiography imaging in an epidemiology study - the Methodology of the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study cardiovascular disease substudy.

Objective: The methodology for use of cardiac CT angiography (CTA) in low risk populations is not well defined. In order to present a reference for future studies, we present CTA methodology that is being used in an epidemiology study- the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS).

Methods: The Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) is an on-going multicenter prospective, observational cohort study.

Differences in coronary atherosclerotic plaque burden and composition according to increasing age on computed tomography angiography.

Rationale And Objectives: Few data were available regarding the underlying burden of specific plaque types with increasing ages. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship of coronary artery calcium (CAC) score with total coronary plaque burden and the difference of underlying coronary plaque composition across differing aging groups using 64-slice multidetector computed tomography.

Materials And Methods: Multidetector computed tomographic images of 781 consecutive patients were evaluated using a 15-coronary segment model.

Urbach-Wiethe disease (lipoid proteinosis).

Lipoid proteinosis is a rare autosomal recessive disorder of variable severity that may involve the skin, mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract and internal organs that may display different clinical manifestations based on the site of involvement. A 34-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital with a complaint of hoarseness present since childhood but had worsened in recent years. A dermatological examination revealed light brown papillomatous skin lesions on the dorsum of both hands and elbows present for a long duration.

A dilemma in the electrophysiology lab: where is the coronary sinus in a patient with left inferior vena cava with hemiazygos continuation?

Occasionally, electrophysiological interventions are complicated by an unusual or an anomalous cardiovascular anatomy. We report our experience of a case of situs ambiguous and symptomatic heart failure of which anomalous venous anatomy and coronary sinus variation had prevented a successful endocardial placement of a left ventricular lead for cardiac synchronization therapy.

Docosahexaenoic acid provides protective mechanism in bilaterally MPTP-lesioned rat model of Parkinson's disease.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a major polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) in the phospholipid fraction of the brain, is essential for normal cellular function. Neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease (PD) often exhibit significant declines in PUFAs. The aim of this study was to observe the effects of DHA supplementation in an experimental rat model of PD created with '1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine' (MPTP).

The effect of pneumatic tube system on complete blood count parameters and thrombocyte donation in healthy donors.

This paper is the first report whether or not pneumatic tube system affects the selection of apheresis donors according to the results of complete blood count. According to the apheresis guidelines, hemoglobin level must be ≥12.5g/dL and platelet level ≥150/μL to be a donor.

Determination of eprosartan mesylate and hydrochlorothiazide in tablets by derivative spectrophotometric and high-performance liquid chromatographic methods.

Two new simple and selective assay methods have been presented for the analysis of eprosartan mesylate (EPR) and hydrochlorothiazide (HCT) in pharmaceutical formulations. The first method is based on first-derivative ultraviolet spectrophotometry with zero-crossing measurements at 246 and 279 nm for EPR and HCT, respectively. The assay was linear over the concentration ranges 3.

Efficacy of royal jelly on methotrexate-induced systemic oxidative stress and damage to small intestine in rats.

The aim of this present study is to investigate the mucositis caused by methotrexate (MTX), as well as whether the application of royal jelly (RJ) has a protective effect on oxidative stress. This present study included six groups each consisted of 12 Wistar rats. Distilled water (po: peroral) was given to the 1st group as placebo for 10 days and MTX (20 mg/kg, intraperitoneal: ip) on the 7th day.

Identification of respiratory chain gene mutations that shorten replicative life span in yeast.

Aging is the progressive accumulation of alterations in cells that elevates the risk of death. The mitochondrial theory of aging postulates that free radicals produced by the mitochondrial respiratory system contribute to the aging process. However, the roles of individual electron transfer chain (ETC) components in cellular aging have not been elucidated.

Topographical connections of the substantia nigra pars reticulata to higher-order thalamic nuclei in the rat.

The substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNR) is the ventral subdivision of the substantia nigra and contains mostly GABAergic neurons. The present study explores whether the SNR relates to all dorsal thalamic nuclei equally or just to a particular group of nuclei, such as first or higher-order nuclei. Injections of biotinylated dextran amine (BDA) were made into the SNR of 10 male adult rats.

Toscana virus (TOSV) exposure is confirmed in blood donors from Central, North and South/Southeast Anatolia, Turkey.

Toscana virus (TOSV), a sandfly fever virus serotype of medical and public health importance, is a major pathogen involved in aseptic meningtis occurring in Mediterranean countries and poses a threat to the residents as well as travellers. Limited data on TOSV activity are present from Turkey despite being located in the endemic zone. We aimed to identify TOSV exposure in 1115 healthy blood donors at the Hacettepe University Hospital Blood Bank in Ankara, Turkey, using commercial indirect fluorescence assays (IFAs) and virus neutralization test (VNT) for antibody detection and specificity confirmation.

The influence and the mechanism of docosahexaenoic acid on a mouse model of Parkinson's disease.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on the oxidative stress that occurs in an experimental mouse model of Parkinson's disease (PD). An experimental model of PD was created by four intraperitoneal injections of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) (4 × 20 mg/kg, at 12h intervals). Docosahexaenoic acid was given daily by gavage for 4 weeks (36 mg/kg/day).

Do the quantitative relationships of synaptic junctions and terminals in the thalamus of genetic absence epilepsy rats from Strasbourg (GAERS) differ from those in normal control Wistar rats.

Abnormal functional properties of the thalamocortical connections were reported in the absence of epilepsy. The present study compares the ratios of terminals ('RL'-round vesicles, large terminals, 'RS'-round vesicles, small terminals and 'F'-flattened vesicles) and synapse in three first-order (ventrobasal, lateral geniculate and anteroventral) and in three higher-order (posterior, lateral posterior and mediodorsal) thalamic nuclei of genetic absence epilepsy rats from Strasbourg (GAERS) with our earlier quantitative studies of normal Wistar rats to show whether quantitative differences were present in GAERS as compared to Wistar rat. Rats were perfused transcardially, the brains were removed and cut as 300 μm coronal sections.

Relation of subclinical left and right ventricular dysfunctions measured by computed tomography angiography with the severity of coronary artery disease.

Objective: Ventricular dysfunction in asymptomatic patients is directly linked to the eventual development of symptomatic congestive heart failure. This study investigates whether subclinical left ventricular (LV) and right ventricular (RV) dysfunctions measured by computed tomography angiography is associated with the severity of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Methods And Results: We studied 1608 consecutive patients with suspected CAD (age 62 ± 10 years, 64% male), who underwent coronary artery calcium (CAC) scanning and computed tomography angiography.

Physical deformity associated with psychotic symptoms in two patients with schizophrenia.

Movement disorders and related physical deformities may sometimes be observed in patients with chronic psychotic disorders. In this article, we present the case of two patients with physical deformities associated with chronic psychotic disorders. In the first case, the patient had never sought psychiatric care despite her long-standing psychiatric disorder.

Synaptic organization of the rat thalamus: a quantitative study.

First-order thalamic nuclei receive driving afferents from ascending pathways and transmit processed information to the cortex. Higher-order thalamic nuclei receive driver messages from layer 5 of cortex and transmit information from one cortical area to the other. The different types of axon terminals RL (round vesicles, large terminals), RS (round vesicles, small terminals) and F (flattened vesicles) and their synaptic junctions have been here compared in three first-order (ventrobasal, lateral geniculate and anteroventral) and three higher-order (posterior, lateral posterior and mediodorsal) thalamic nuclei of the rat.

The effect of sodium metabisulfite on visual evoked potentials in rats with hypercholesterolemia.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of hypercholesterolemia on visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and sulfite additional effects. Rats were assigned as follows: control (C), sulfite (S), hypercholesterolemia (H), vitamin E (E), sulfite + vitamin E (SE), hypercholesterolemia + sulfite (HS), hypercholesterolemia + vitamin E (HE), and hypercholesterolemia + sulfite + vitamin E (HSE). Hypercholesterolemic diet led significant increase in plasma cholesterol levels of rats.

Non-contrast cardiac computed tomography can accurately detect chronic myocardial infarction: Validation study.

Background: This study evaluates whether non-contrast cardiac computed tomography (CCT) can detect chronic myocardial infarction (MI) in patients with irreversible perfusion defects on nuclear myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI).

Methods: One hundred twenty-two symptomatic patients with irreversible perfusion defect (N = 62) or normal MPI (N = 60) underwent coronary artery calcium (CAC) scanning. MI on these non-contrast CCTs was visually detected based on the hypo-attenuation areas (dark) in the myocardium and corresponding Hounsfield units (HU) were measured.

The effects of docosahexaenoic acid on glial derived neurotrophic factor and neurturin in bilateral rat model of Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder marked by cell death in the Substantia nigra (SN). Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is the major polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) in the phospholipid fraction of the brain and is required for normal cellular function. Glial cell line derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and neurturin (NTN) are very potent trophic factors for PD.