Aflatoxin M1 Levels in Raw Milk, Pasteurised Milk and Infant Formula.

The incidence of contamination of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) in milk samples collected from the Jordanian market was investigated by using the competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. A total of 175 samples were collected during 2014-2015. All tested samples were contaminated with various levels of AFM1 ranging from 9.

Trend in cumulative cases and mortality rate among visceral leishmaniasis patients in Eastern Sudan: a 14-year registry, 2002-2015.

Background: Leishmaniasis is one of the neglected infectious diseases of the world. This disease largely affects individuals of low socio-economic level, mainly in developing countries.

Methods: The aim of this study was to investigate the cumulative number of cases, case fatality rate, and trend in incidence and mortality rate of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in Eastern Sudan.

Towards Water Soluble Mitochondria-Targeting Theranostic Osmium(II) Triazole-Based Complexes.

The complex [Os(btzpy)₂][PF₆]₂ (, btzpy = 2,6-bis(1-phenyl-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)pyridine) has been prepared and characterised. Complex exhibits phosphorescence (λ = 595 nm, τ = 937 ns, φ = 9.3% in degassed acetonitrile) in contrast to its known ruthenium(II) analogue, which is non-emissive at room temperature.

Impact of IL1B gene polymorphisms and interleukin 1B levels on susceptibility to spontaneous preterm birth.

Objective: Genetic factors influence susceptibility to preterm birth (PTB) and the immune pathway of PTB that involves the production of cytokines such as interleukins has been implicated in PTB disease. The aim of this study is to investigate the association of interleukin 1β (IL1B) gene polymorphisms and IL1B levels with spontaneous PTB.

Study Design: Peripheral maternal blood from 495 women was used for extraction of DNA and genotyping was carried out using the Sequenom MassARRAY platform.

Expert Opinion Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Older People: Does Age Make a Difference?

As many people are living longer, much older patients are now commonly being seen in clinical practice. The management of coronary disease in this group presents formidable challenges. We review the epidemiology of coronary disease in this population and report on the burden of comorbidity, influence of frailty, problems with polypharmacy, interactions and compliance for the older patient.

Germline NLRP1 Mutations Cause Skin Inflammatory and Cancer Susceptibility Syndromes via Inflammasome Activation.

Inflammasome complexes function as key innate immune effectors that trigger inflammation in response to pathogen- and danger-associated signals. Here, we report that germline mutations in the inflammasome sensor NLRP1 cause two overlapping skin disorders: multiple self-healing palmoplantar carcinoma (MSPC) and familial keratosis lichenoides chronica (FKLC). We find that NLRP1 is the most prominent inflammasome sensor in human skin, and all pathogenic NLRP1 mutations are gain-of-function alleles that predispose to inflammasome activation.

Effects of nicotine on bone during orthodontic tooth movement in male rats. Histological and immunohistochemical study.

Objectives: To investigate the effects of nicotine on orthodontic tooth movement and accompanying histological and immunohistochemical changes in rats.

Methods: An experimental study conducted at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia between 2013 and 2014. Thirty-two rats randomly divided into 4 groups.

Effect of early adjunctive use of oral sildenafil and inhaled nitric oxide on the outcome of pulmonary hypertension in newborn infants. A feasibility study.

Introduction: Inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) is the standard therapy for infants with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN). Recently, sildenafil has been evaluated as an alternative or adjunctive pulmonary vasodilator.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of adding sildenafil as an early adjunctive therapy together with iNO when treating newborns with PPHN and/or hypoxemic respiratory failure.

Towards quantifying the role of exact exchange in the prediction hydrogen bond spin-spin coupling constants involving fluorine.

The effect of a fraction of Hartree-Fock exchange on the calculated spin-spin coupling constants involving fluorine through a hydrogen bond is analyzed in detail. Coupling constants calculated using wavefunction methods are revisited in order to get high-level calculations using the same basis set. Accurate MCSCF results are obtained using an additive approach.

Evaluation of Semiautomated IS6110-Based Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Typing for Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a High-Burden Setting.

The manual IS6110-based restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) typing method is highly discriminatory; however, it is laborious and technically demanding, and data exchange remains a challenge. In an effort to improve IS6110-based RFLP to make it a faster format, DuPont Molecular Diagnostics recently introduced the IS6110-PvuII kit for semiautomated typing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis using the RiboPrinter microbial characterization system. This study aimed to evaluate the semiautomated RFLP typing against the standard manual method.

Immediate compared with on-demand maternal full feeding after planned caesarean delivery: a randomised trial.

Objective: To evaluate immediate compared with on-demand full maternal oral feeding after caesarean delivery STUDY DESIGN: A randomised trial.

Setting: Obstetric unit of a university hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Population: Women admitted for a planned caesarean under spinal anaesthesia.

Population-based resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates to pyrazinamide and fluoroquinolones: results from a multicountry surveillance project.

Background: Pyrazinamide and fluoroquinolones are essential antituberculosis drugs in new rifampicin-sparing regimens. However, little information about the extent of resistance to these drugs at the population level is available.

Methods: In a molecular epidemiology analysis, we used population-based surveys from Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belarus, Pakistan, and South Africa to investigate resistance to pyrazinamide and fluoroquinolones among patients with tuberculosis.

Insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1, Bishop score, and sonographic cervical length: tolerability and prediction of vaginal birth and vaginal birth within 24 hours following labour induction in nulliparous women.

Objective: To evaluate the tolerability of cervical insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1 (IGFBP-1) and its value as a predictor of successful labour induction, compared with Bishop score and transvaginal ultrasound (TVUS) cervical length.

Design: A prospective study.

Setting: A tertiary hospital in Malaysia.

Cost-Effectiveness of Automated Digital Microscopy for Diagnosis of Active Tuberculosis.

Background: Automated digital microscopy has the potential to improve the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB), particularly in settings where molecular testing is too expensive to perform routinely. The cost-effectiveness of TB diagnostic algorithms using automated digital microscopy remains uncertain.

Methods: Using data from a demonstration study of an automated digital microscopy system (TBDx, Applied Visual Systems, Inc.

HIV coinfection influences the inflammatory response but not the outcome of cerebral malaria in Malawian children.

Objectives: Study of the effect of HIV on disease progression in heterogeneous severe malaria syndromes with imprecise diagnostic criteria has led to varying results. Characteristic retinopathy refines cerebral malaria (CM) diagnosis, enabling more precise exploration of the hypothesis that HIV decreases the cytokine response in CM, leading to higher parasite density and a poor outcome.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed data on clinical progression and laboratory parameters in 877 retinopathy-positive CM cases admitted 1996-2011 (14.

Molecular and morphological characterisation of two species of the genus Ellipsomyxa Køie, 2003 (Ceratomyxidae) from the gall-bladder of Liza saliens (Risso) off Tunisian coasts of the Mediterranean.

During examination of some species of the family Mugilidae, two coelozoic myxozoans were observed in the gall-bladder of the leaping mullet, Liza saliens (Risso). Spore morphology allowed us to allocate them to the genus Ellipsomyxa Køie, 2003, one of which is described here as new. Ellipsomyxa kalthoumi n.

An uncommon and insidious presentation of renal cell carcinoma with tumor extending into the inferior vena cava and right atrium: a case report.

Background: Renal cell carcinoma is a potentially lethal cancer with aggressive behavior and it tends to metastasize. Renal cell carcinoma involves the inferior vena cava in approximately 15% of cases and it rarely extends into the right atrium. A majority of renal cell carcinoma are detected as incidental findings on imaging studies obtained for unrelated reasons.

Testing a dual-modality system that combines full-field digital mammography and automated breast ultrasound.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to test a novel dual-modality imaging system that combines full-field digital mammography (FFDM) and automated breast ultrasound (ABUS) in a single platform. Our Aceso system, named after the Greek goddess of healing, was specifically designed for the early detection of cancer in women with dense breast tissue.

Materials And Methods: Aceso was first tested using two industry standards: a Contrast Detail Mammography (CDMAM) phantom as endorsed by European Reference Organisation for Quality Assured Breast Screening and Diagnostic Services was used to assess the FFDM images; and the CIRS 040GSE ultrasound phantom was imaged to evaluate the quality of the ABUS images.

Clinical relevance of trace element measurement in patients on initiation of parenteral nutrition.

Background and Aims Serum zinc, copper and selenium are measured in patients prior to commencing on parenteral nutrition; however, their interpretation can be difficult due to acute phase reactions. We assessed (i) the relationship of raised C-reactive protein with trace elements and albumin (ii) benefits of measuring trace elements when C-reactive protein is raised in patients requiring short-term parenteral nutrition. Methods Samples were collected for zinc, copper, selenium and albumin at baseline and then every two weeks and correlated with C-reactive protein results in patients on parenteral nutrition.

Field evaluation of a novel preservation medium to transport sputum specimens for molecular detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a rural African setting.

Objectives: To assess the performance of an innovative method of transporting sputum to centralised facilities for molecular detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: using a swab to inoculate sputum in a transport medium, PrimeStore(®) Molecular Transport Medium (PS-MTM).

Methods: Two sputum specimens were obtained from suspected patients with tuberculosis (TB) at rural healthcare facilities in South Africa. A swab was taken from each specimen and placed into PS-MTM, prior to it being processed by either liquid culture or Xpert MTB/RIF assay (Xpert).

Multicenter Noninferiority Evaluation of Hain GenoType MTBDRplus Version 2 and Nipro NTM+MDRTB Line Probe Assays for Detection of Rifampin and Isoniazid Resistance.

Less than 30% of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) patients are currently diagnosed, due to laboratory constraints. Molecular diagnostics enable rapid and simplified diagnosis. Newer-version line probe assays have not been evaluated against the WHO-endorsed Hain GenoType MTBDRplus (referred to as Hain version 1 [V1]) for the rapid detection of rifampin (RIF) and isoniazid (INH) resistance.

Physiochemical Changes and Optimization of Phosphate-Treated Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei ) Using Response Surface Methodology.

The objective of this study was to determine the factors responsible for the changed physiochemical properties of unpeeled shrimp treated in cold phosphate solution (2~4°C) with the intervention of 4 factors: phosphate concentration, dipping time, rotation speed, and volume of brine solution. Response surface analysis was used to characterize the effect of the phosphate treatment on shrimps by running 33 treatments for optimizing the experiment. For each treatment, phosphate amount, moisture content, and weight gain were measured.

Genotypic diversity of the Killer Cell Immunoglobulin-like Receptors (KIR) and their HLA class I Ligands in a Saudi population.

Killer Cell Immunoglobulin-like Receptors (KIR) have been used as good markers for the study of genetic predisposition in many diseases and in human genetic population dynamics. In this context, we have investigated the genetic diversity of KIR genes and their main HLA class I ligands in Saudi population and compared the data with other studies of neighboring populations. One hundred and fourteen randomly selected healthy Saudi subjects were genotyped for the presence or absence of 16 KIR genes and their HLA-C1, -C2, -Bw4Thr80 and Bw4Ile80 groups, using a PCR-SSP technique.