Backround/objectives: We investigated a technique that facilitates the coiling of a regular straight catheter (with integral stylet) behind the sciatic nerve in an ultrasound (US) regional anaesthesia simulator, and then applied our findings to a series of orthopedic-trauma patients.
Methods: We conducted a randomized study of two methods of perineural catheter advancement in a sciatic nerve block Blue Phantom simulator. Two groups of twenty catheters each (method A and method B) were evaluated under real-time ultrasound imaging.
The spider mite Tetranychus urticae is a major agricultural pest with a global distribution, extremely diverse host range and a remarkable ability to develop resistance to a wide variety of acaricides. P450 mono-oxygenases have been frequently associated with resistance development in this species. In particular enzymes of the CYP392A-subfamily were shown to metabolize a number of key acaricides, including abamectin, amitraz, fenpyroximate and the active metabolite of pyflubumide.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFScreen exposure has both negative and positive effects on the level of language skills a child acquires. The purpose of this review is to address current literature on the possible relationship between unsupervised screen exposure and language development in children and to provide recommendations to caregivers regarding screen exposure of children, taking into consideration the possible effects. A scoping review was conducted using the PubMed/MEDLINE (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online) database.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols are a comprehensive therapeutic approach that prioritizes the well-being of patients. It encompasses several aspects such as providing sufficient nutritional support, effectively managing pain, ensuring appropriate fluid management and hydration, and promoting early mobilization after surgery. The advent of ERAS theory has led to a shift in focus within modern ERAS protocols.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackround: Stored product protection from insect pests relies heavily on the use of phosphine. The most serious drawback of phosphine is the development of resistance in major stored product insects worldwide, including the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) and the lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica (F.).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA 36-year-old woman with no significant medical history was in active labour and requested labour analgesia. While the epidural technique was performed at the L4-L5 interspace, using the loss of resistance to air technique (LORA), inadvertent dural puncture occurred. Since the patient reported no headache or discomfort, the same procedure was repeated at the L3-L4 interspace successfully.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction Dizziness and vertigo represent well-established symptoms of COVID-19. An overexpression of cytokines, a condition often described with the term "cytokine storm" or "hypercytokinemia", is a key characteristic of SARS-Cov-2 infection and plays a pivotal role in disease progression and prognosis. Among them, IL-6 is of major importance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe cytochrome P450 family (P450s) of arthropods includes diverse enzymes involved in endogenous essential physiological functions and in the oxidative metabolism of xenobiotics, insecticides and plant allelochemicals. P450s can also establish insecticide selectivity in bees and pollinators. Several arthropod P450s, distributed in different phylogenetic groups, have been associated with xenobiotic metabolism, and some of them have been functionally characterized, using different in vitro and in vivo systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCytochrome P450 mediated metabolism is a well-known mechanism of insecticide resistance. However, to what extent qualitative or quantitative changes are responsible for increased metabolism, is not well understood. Increased expression of P450 genes is most often reported, but the underlying regulatory mechanisms remain widely unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF(1) Background: The Hypotension Prediction Index (HPI) is an algorithm that predicts hypotension, defined as mean arterial pressure (MAP) less than 65 mmHg for at least 1 min, based on arterial waveform features. We tested the hypothesis that the use of this index reduces the duration and severity of hypotension during noncardiac surgery. (2) Methods: We enrolled adults having moderate- or high-risk noncardiac surgery with invasive arterial pressure monitoring.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Decisions on which pesticide to use in agriculture are expected to become more difficult, as the number of available chemicals is decreasing. For Tetranychus urticae (T. urticae), a major pest for which a number of candidate markers for pesticide resistance are in place, molecular diagnostics could support decision-making for the rational use of acaricides.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica is a serious pest of stored grains. Fumigation and contact insecticides play a major role in managing this pest globally. While insects are developing genetic resistance to chemicals, hormonal analogues such as s-methoprene play a key role in reducing general pest pressure as well as managing pest populations that are resistant to fumigants and neurotoxic contact insecticides.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOverexpression of the cytochrome P450 monooxygenase CYP392A16 has been previously associated with abamectin resistance using transcriptional analysis in the two-spotted spider mite , an important pest species worldwide; however, this association has not been functionally validated in vivo despite the demonstrated ability of CYP392A16 to metabolize abamectin in vitro. We expressed CYP392A16 in vivo via a Gal4 transcription activator protein/Upstream Activating Sequence (GAL4/UAS) system in flies, driving expression with detoxification tissue-specific drivers. We demonstrated that CYP392A16 expression confers statistically significant abamectin resistance in toxicity bioassays in only when its homologous redox partner, cytochrome P450 reductase (TuCPR), is co-expressed in transgenic flies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Tetranychus urticae is a notorious crop pest with a worldwide distribution that has developed resistance to a wide range of acaricides. Here, we investigated the resistance levels of a T. urticae population collected from an ornamental greenhouse in Peloponnese, Greece, and analyzed its resistance mechanisms at the molecular level.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArch Med Sci
May 2020
Introduction: The use of generic drugs is continuously growing; however, there are limited epidemiological data regarding the therapeutic equivalence of each original drug formulation with its generic counterparts. We evaluated the 12-month composite endpoint of recurrent acute myocardial infarction, ischaemic stroke, cardiac deaths, or hospitalisation due to a major bleeding in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients treated with original clopidogrel or a generic clopidogrel formulation, in relation to sociodemographic and clinical characteristics.
Material And Methods: Consecutive Greek ACS patients ( = 1194) hospitalised in the Aegean islands and the Attica region were enrolled.
The use of CRISPR-Cas9 has revolutionized functional genetic work in many organisms, including more and more insect species. However, successful gene editing or genetic transformation has not yet been reported for chelicerates, the second largest group of terrestrial animals. Within this group, some mite and tick species are economically very important for agriculture and human health, and the availability of a gene-editing tool would be a significant advancement for the field.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArch Insect Biochem Physiol
March 2020
Stink bugs are an emerging pest in many regions of the world but their molecular biology is still poorly understood. While several transcriptomes are available, the lack of validated gene manipulation tools like RNA interference (RNAi) in species such as the southern green stinkbug Nezara viridula precludes the characterization of individual genes in vivo. Such tools are particularly useful in performing high-throughput screens to search for essential genes that can be prioritized as potential insecticide targets.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Spirodiclofen is an acaricide that targets lipid biosynthesis by inhibiting acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase. Spirodiclofen resistance in spider mites has been previously documented and was associated with overexpression of CYP392E10, a cytochrome P450 mono-oxygenase that metabolizes spirodiclofen. However, additional mechanisms have been suggested in several studies and a carboxyl/choline esterase gene, CCE04, was shown to be overexpressed in two genetically different strains, SR-VP and SR-TK, both exhibiting high spirodiclofen resistance levels.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOverexpression of the cytochrome P450 monooxygenase CYP6A51 has been previously associated with pyrethroid resistance in the Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly) Ceratitis capitata, an important pest species worldwide; however, this association has not been functionally validated. We expressed CYP6A51 gene in Escherichia coli and produced a functional enzyme with preference for the chemiluminescent substrate Luciferin-ME EGE. In vitro metabolism assays revealed that CYP6A51 is capable of metabolizing two insecticides that share the same mode of action, λ-cyhalothrin and deltamethrin, whereas no metabolism or substrate depletion was observed in the presence of spinosad or malathion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is one of the most important risk factors for delayed onset and progressive hearing loss in children. However, the relevant literature is limited, heterogeneous and currently insufficient to provide guidance toward the effective monitoring of hearing acuity in these children.
Objectives: The aim of this study was to provide a systematic review focused on types of hearing loss that may escape diagnosis through universal neonatal hearing screening and/or present significant changes during childhood, such as progressive, fluctuating and late-onset hearing loss.
The frequency of insecticide/acaricide target-site resistance is increasing in arthropod pest populations and is typically underpinned by single point mutations that affect the binding strength between the insecticide/acaricide and its target-site. Theory predicts that although resistance mutations clearly have advantageous effects under the selection pressure of the insecticide/acaricide, they might convey negative pleiotropic effects on other aspects of fitness. If such fitness costs are in place, target-site resistance is thus likely to disappear in the absence of insecticide/acaricide treatment, a process that would counteract the spread of resistance in agricultural crops.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol
September 2018
Objectives: During the last twenty years, auditory steady-state responses (ASSRs) are being used as an alternative and adjunct to the auditory brainstem response (ABR) for threshold estimation. This study aims at comparing and finding correlations between air-conduction thresholds using the traditional click ABR and the relatively recently used chirp ASSR test methods, for a large pediatric population.
Methods: One hundred and thirty children referred to our Clinic from Hospitals and Clinics of Western Greece ranging in age from 5 to 79 months (mean age = 32.
Comput Methods Programs Biomed
November 2017
Background And Objective: Intravascular optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an invaluable tool for the detection of pathological features on the arterial wall and the investigation of post-stenting complications. Computational lumen border detection in OCT images is highly advantageous, since it may support rapid morphometric analysis. However, automatic detection is very challenging, since OCT images typically include various artifacts that impact image clarity, including features such as side branches and intraluminal blood presence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe mechanisms underlying insecticide and acaricide resistance in insects and mites are often complex, including additive effects of target-site insensitivity, increased metabolism and transport. The extent to which target-site resistance mutations contribute to the resistance phenotype is, however, not well studied. Here, we used marker-assisted backcrossing to create 30 congenic lines carrying nine mutations (alone, or in combination in a few cases) associated with resistance to avermectins, pyrethroids, mite growth inhibitors and mitochondrial complex III inhibitors (QoI) in a polyphagous arthropod pest, the spider mite Tetranychus urticae.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Neonicotinoids, pyrethroids and ketoenols are currently used for the control of Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae). In this study, insecticide resistance status and mechanisms were investigated using classical bioassays and molecular techniques.
Results: Dose-response bioassays were performed on 19 Greek populations, among the 35 different whitefly populations used for the whole analysis.