Plasma radio-metabolite analysis of PET tracers for dynamic PET imaging: TLC and autoradiography.

Background: In molecular imaging with dynamic PET, the binding and dissociation of a targeted tracer is characterized by kinetics modeling which requires the arterial concentration of the tracer to be measured accurately. Once in the body the radiolabeled parent tracer may be subjected to hydrolysis, demethylation/dealkylation and other biochemical processes, resulting in the production and accumulation of different metabolites in blood which can be labeled with the same PET radionuclide as the parent. Since these radio-metabolites cannot be distinguished by PET scanning from the parent tracer, their contribution to the arterial concentration curve has to be removed for the accurate estimation of kinetic parameters from kinetic analysis of dynamic PET.

Candidate modifier genes for immune function in 22q11.2 deletion syndrome.

Background: The 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11.2DS) is the most common contiguous microdeletion affecting humans and exhibits extreme phenotypic heterogeneity.

Comparative analytical evaluation of the respiratory TaqMan Array Card with real-time PCR and commercial multi-pathogen assays.

In this study, a multicenter evaluation of the Life Technologies TaqMan(®) Array Card (TAC) with 21 custom viral and bacterial respiratory assays was performed on the Applied Biosystems ViiA™ 7 Real-Time PCR System. The goal of the study was to demonstrate the analytical performance of this platform when compared to identical individual pathogen specific laboratory developed tests (LDTs) designed at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), equivalent LDTs provided by state public health laboratories, or to three different commercial multi-respiratory panels. CDC and Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) LDTs had similar analytical sensitivities for viral pathogens, while several of the bacterial pathogen APHL LDTs demonstrated sensitivities one log higher than the corresponding CDC LDT.

Optimization of a real-time RT-PCR assay reveals an increase of genogroup I norovirus in the clinical setting.

Although norovirus has been identified as the most common cause of gastroenteritis, the majority of cases have no etiologic agent identified. In this study, we describe the optimization of a real-time RT-PCR assay for the improved detection of genogroup I norovirus in patient specimens based upon sequence data from a collection of representative clinical norovirus sequences. The redesigned assay demonstrated a 64 fold increase in sensitivity, a 2 log decrease in the limit of detection, and an 18% increase in amplification efficiency, when compared to the standard assay.

Inactivation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis mannosyltransferase pimB reduces the cell wall lipoarabinomannan and lipomannan content and increases the rate of bacterial-induced human macrophage cell death.

The Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb) cell wall contains an important group of structurally related mannosylated lipoglycans called phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosides (PIMs), lipomannan (LM), and mannose-capped lipoarabinomannan (ManLAM), where the terminal alpha-[1-->2] mannosyl structures on higher order PIMs and ManLAM have been shown to engage C-type lectins such as the macrophage mannose receptor directing M.tb phagosome maturation arrest.