Blood-feeding adaptations and virome assessment of the poultry red mite Dermanyssus gallinae guided by RNA-seq.

Dermanyssus gallinae is a blood-feeding mite that parasitises wild birds and farmed poultry. Its remarkably swift processing of blood, together with the capacity to blood-feed during most developmental stages, makes this mite a highly debilitating pest. To identify specific adaptations to digestion of a haemoglobin-rich diet, we constructed and compared transcriptomes from starved and blood-fed stages of the parasite and identified midgut-enriched transcripts.

Bilateral anterior sacrospinous ligament suspension associated with a paravaginal repair with mesh: short-term clinical results of a pilot study.

Introduction And Hypothesis: This study aims to assess anatomical and functional results of bilateral anterior sacrospinous ligament suspension associated with paravaginal repair with mesh.

Methods: Forty-eight patients were operated between March 2007 and August 2008. Mean age was 67 years old.

Formulation and dosage form design in drug-induced topical irritation of the gastrointestinal tract.

To test drugs for topical effects on gastrointestinal mucosa, a new in situ rabbit colon model was used that permits direct application of drugs in suspensions from gel cups, solutions, or commercially available tablets and capsules onto rabbit colonic mucosa for up to 8 hr. For each agent tested an irritation index was calculated--the product of the area of the mucosa affected by drug exposure and a numerical score for observed effect. Irritation indices ranged from 0 (no effect) to 25.

Assessment and validation of animal models to evaluate topical effects of substances on gastrointestinal mucosa.

The in situ rabbit colon model is a sensitive and reproducible test to evaluate the topical effect of up to three substances applied to the colonic mucosa. Vibra-Tabs (doxycycline hyclate), Inderal (propranolol hydrochloride), and Slow-K (potassium chloride) were compared for topical effects in the Carlborg-Densert cat esophagus model, the Alphin-Droppleman cat gastric mucosa model adapted for dog intestine, and the rabbit colon. Because results were comparable in all models, additional dosage formulations were subsequently tested only in the rabbit colon model.

Transit of pharmaceutical dosage forms through the small intestine.

The gastrointestinal transit of pharmaceutical dosage forms has been measured in 201 studies in normal subjects using gamma scintigraphy. Solutions, small pellets, and single units (matrix tablets and osmotic pumps) were administered with different amounts of food in the stomach, ranging from fasted state to heavy breakfast. Gastric emptying was affected by the nature of the dosage form and the presence of food in the stomach.