Vascular pythiosis in a thalassemic patient.

Pythium insidiosum is a fungus that causes disease in both animals and humans. Human pythiosis is an emerging disease in the tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions of the world, occurring in localized and systemic or vascular forms. Most patients with arterial pythiosis have an underlying hemoglobinopathy, such as thalassemia.

Raised serum chondroitin sulfate epitope level in ovarian epithelial cancer.

Objective: To determine the value of serum chondroitin sulfate epitope WF6 and hyaluronan (HA) levels as a biomarker for early detection of ovarian epithelial cancer and other gynecological disorders.

Method: Serum WF6 CS epitope and HA were measured in 91 patients with ovarian epithelial cancer, 39 patients with non-cancer gynecological disorders and 30 healthy women. Serum chondroitin sulfate (CS) WF6 epitope was determined by a competitive immunoassay with the monoclonal antibodies WF6, which specifically recognizes an epitope in native CS chains.

Identification of emerging human-pathogenic Pythium insidiosum by serological and molecular assay-based methods.

Pythium insidiosum is a pathogen that causes disease in both animals and humans. Human infection is rare; however, when it does occur, most patients, especially those having underlying hemoglobinopathy syndromes, such as thalassemia, exhibit a severe form. We identified four isolates of P.