Leucocyte-depleted blood cardioplegia.

The effect of the depletion of leucocytes from cardioplegic and initial myocardial reperfusion blood on the inflammatory response and myocardial protection in patients with unstable angina undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) was studied. Patients were allocated randomly to a leucocyte-depleted (LD) group or a control group. The LD group received continuous retrograde LD isothermic blood cardioplegia and the control group received isothermic blood cardioplegia.

Glucose mediates the translocation of NeuroD1 by O-linked glycosylation.

O-Linked GlcNAc modification of nuclear and cytosolic proteins has been shown to regulate the function of many cellular proteins. Increased O-linked glycosylation, observed under chronic hyperglycemia conditions, has been implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetes. However, the exact role of O-GlcNAc modification in regulating glucose homeostasis remains to be established.

Phanerochaete chrysosporium soluble proteome as a prelude for the analysis of heavy metal stress response.

A 2-D reference map in pI range 3-10 was constructed for the soluble protein fraction of Phanerochaete chrysosporium growing vegetatively under standard conditions. Functional annotation could be made for 517 spots out of 720 that were subjected to MALDI-TOF-MS analysis, according to the specific accession numbers from the P. chrysosporium genomic database.

The effect of different finishing and polishing systems on the surface roughness of different composite restorative materials.

Aim: The purpose of this in vitro study was to examine the effect of two different finishing systems on the surface roughness of different types of composite restorative materials.

Methods And Materials: Thirty specimens, 8 mm in diameter and 3 mm in depth, were prepared using a microfill composite (Clearfil ST, Kuraray Co. Ltd.

Efficacies of caspofungin and a combination of caspofungin and meropenem in the treatment of murine disseminated candidiasis.

Disseminated candidiasis is relatively common in immunocompromised patients. The treatment protocol of these patients usually includes broad-spectrum antibiotics and also emprical antifungals initiated due to unresponsiveness to antibiotics. In this study the efficacies of caspofungin and meropenem - separately and together - in mice with disseminated candidiasis were studied.

[Short communication: prevalence of fungal allergy in patients applied to hospital with symptoms of atopic disease in Kocaeli, Turkey].

The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of fungal sensitization and to detect the IgE and eosinophilic cationic protein (ECP) levels in the positive cases inhabiting in Kocaeli province (located in Northwest region of Turkey). The results of mixed fungus tests of 1.799 patients (870 male, 929 female) ages between 3-80 years old who were admitted to Kocaeli University Medical Faculty Hospital in the period of January 2002-January 2005, with the symptoms of atopic disease such as upper/lower respiratory tract symptoms, asthma and/or rhinitis and/or eczema, were evaluated retrospectively.

Glucose induces MafA expression in pancreatic beta cell lines via the hexosamine biosynthetic pathway.

MafA is a basic leucine zipper transcription factor that regulates gene expression in both the neuroretina and pancreas. Within the pancreas, MafA is exclusively expressed in the beta cells and is involved in insulin gene transcription, insulin secretion, and beta cell survival. The expression of the mafA gene within beta cells is known to increase in response to high glucose levels by an unknown mechanism.

Biocompatibility of heparin-coated cardiopulmonary bypass circuits in coronary patients with left ventricular dysfunction is superior to PMEA-coated circuits.

Background: Several coating techniques for extracorporeal circulation have been developed to diminish the systemic inflammatory response during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical effectiveness and biocompatibility of heparin-coated and poly-2-methoxyethylacrylate (PMEA)-coated CPB circuits on coronary patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction.

Methods: Thirty-six patients who underwent elective coronary artery bypass grafting were divided into two equal groups: group H (n = 18), heparin-coated; group P (n = 18), PMEA coated.

Improved and simplified liquid chromatography/atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry method for the analysis of underivatized free amino acids in various foods.

An improved analytical method which offers rapid, accurate determination and identification of 22 amino acids in a variety of matrices, e.g. baby foods, juices, honey is reported.

Preincisional infiltration of tonsils with ropivacaine in post-tonsillectomy pain relief: double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled intraindividual study.

Objective: To determine whether pre-emptive ropivacaine has an influence on postoperative pain in adult patients undergoing tonsillectomy.

Design: A prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Setting: University hospital.

Adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in patients with bipolar I disorder in remission: preliminary study.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a syndrome that typically first appears in early childhood, can occur in individuals of all ages. Prospective studies have demonstrated that at least half of children diagnosed as having ADHD continue to suffer the symptoms of this disorder in their adult life with significant impacts on their social status, achievement level and sense of well-being. The purpose of this preliminary study was to determine the rate of ADHD in patients with bipolar disorder (BD) and to examine the effects of comorbid ADHD on several clinical and sociodemographic variables of bipolar patients.

The use of DNA microsatellite loci for "Caretta caretta" identification.

Caretta carettas, one of the members of Chelonidae family, live primarily in water, except the periods of their ovulation where they come out to the shores to lay their eggs. Following an incubation period of 50-60 days, the newborns return to sea water to continue their 10-12-year life. Studies using marking methodology of the animals have shown that females return to the same place for ovulation every 2-3 years.

Factors affecting in vitro plant regeneration of the critically endangered Mediterranean knapweed (Centaurea tchihatcheffii Fisch et. Mey).

Habitat destruction has resulted in the extinction of many plant species from the earth, and many more face extinction. Likely, the annual endemic Mediterranean knapweed (Centaurea tchihatcheffii) growing in the Golbasi district of Ankara, Turkey is facing extinction and needs urgent conservation. Plant tissue culture, a potentially useful technique for ex situ multiplication, was used for the restoration of this ill-fated plant through seed germination, micropropagation from stem nodes, and adventitious shoot regeneration from immature zygotic embryos.

DNA analysis as a tool for breast cancer malpractice determination: an interdisciplinary approach.

Malpractice in breast cancer can be seen as false-negative or false-positive findings which may result in either late or incorrect therapies. Biopsy material can be unintentionally interchanged, leading to incorrect treatment, and psychological damage to the patient. There is an obvious need for individualization of the tissue samples in such cases.

Ataxin-10 interacts with O-linked beta-N-acetylglucosamine transferase in the brain.

Modification by O-GlcNAc involves a growing number of eucaryotic nuclear and cytosolic proteins. Glycosylation of intracellular proteins is a dynamic process that in several cases competes with and acts as a reciprocal modification system to phosphorylation. O-Linked beta-N-acetylglucosamine transferase (OGT) levels are highest in the brain, and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer disease have been shown to involve abnormally phosphorylated key proteins, probably as a result of hypoglycosylation.

Prevalence, susceptibility profile and proteinase production of yeasts causing vulvovaginitis in Turkish women.

In this study the prevalence of vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), antifungal susceptibility and proteinase production of isolated Candida species were investigated. Vaginal swabs were collected from symptomatic women with vulvovaginitis attending the Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic of Kocaeli University, Turkey. The relation between risk factors, such as pregnancy, diabetes mellitus, antibiotic and corticosteroid use, history of sexually transmitted diseases and contraceptive methods, was recorded.

Using n-alkanes for identification of oils in domestic wastewaters.

The aim of this work was to investigate whether linear aliphatic hydrocarbons had a usable potential for the determination of waste oil in wastewater. For that, n-alkanes analyses of wastewater samples from five sampling points (P1-P5) of the sewage system of Konya-Turkey were carried out by gas chromatographic technique and the parameters of carbon predominance index (ICP), n-C17/n-C18 and unresolved complex mixture (UCM)/n-alkanes ratios were determined. It was found that sampling points P1, P2, and P3, which had ICP values 1.

The central retinal artery and regression of the hyaloid artery in perinatal cattle.

The arterial supply to the retina and lens of 10 fetal, 10 neonatal and four adult Zavot-bred cattle of both sexes was studied macroscopically and by stereoscopic microscopy by means of vascular perfusion with latex, giving special emphasis on the hyaloid artery. The central retinal artery ramified in four major retinal arterioles, which formed a compact network throughout the retina (holangiotic or euangiotic pattern). The hyaloid artery was patent in all fetal stages and extended through the vitreous cavity of the eye to the caudal surface of the capsule of the lens.

Melatonin does not inhibit hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal activity in waking young men.

The pineal hormone melatonin is mainly secreted during night-time which, in humans, is the normal time of sleep. It has been proposed that, during this period, melatonin exerts an inhibitory influence on secretory activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) system, although there is little evidence for this view in humans. In blind humans, a single oral dose of melatonin at bed time suppressed nocturnal cortisol secretion.

Ataxin-10 interacts with O-GlcNAc transferase OGT in pancreatic beta cells.

Several nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins in metazoans are modified by O-linked N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc). This modification is dynamic and reversible similar to phosphorylation and is catalyzed by the O-linked GlcNAc transferase (OGT). Hyperglycemia has been shown to increase O-GlcNAc levels in pancreatic beta cells, which appears to interfere with beta-cell function.

Morphometric characteristics of the ophthalmic rete in the goose living at high altitudes and cold climate conditions.

This study has aimed at observing in detail the degree of complexity in the formation of the ophthalmic rete in geese living at high altitudes and very cold climate conditions in Kars and its province of Turkey. The 15 adult geese were injected with red and blue coloured latex, dissection was performed, the rete was examined, and the vessels were counted macroscopically and by stereoscopic microscopy. The size and the afferent and efferent vessels of the rete were mostly in parallel with the literature.

Local anesthesia in transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy: EMLA cream as a new alternative technique.

Objectives: The aims of the present study were to evaluate the efficacy of eutectic mixture of local anesthetics (EMLA) cream in transrectal-guided prostate biopsy and to compare its effect with that of other injectable anesthetic procedures.

Material And Methods: Eighty male patients with prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels > 4 ng/ml or who had prostate nodules on digital rectal examination were randomly divided into four groups. In Group 1 (controls), prostate biopsy was performed after application of a placebo cream.

Survey for co-occurrence of ochratoxin A and aflatoxin B1 in dried figs in Turkey by using a single laboratory-validated alkaline extraction method for ochratoxin A.

A survey was carried out to determine the co-occurrence of ochratoxin A and aflatoxin B1 in dried figs from Turkey. Samples from two seasons of crops (2003 and 2004) intended for export to the European Union and the 2004 crop obtained from the domestic Turkish market were analyzed. Affinity column cleanup methods were employed for determining separately ochratoxin A and aflatoxin B1, but for ochratoxin A an alkaline extraction procedure was employed (in contrast to the conventionally employed acidic extraction), which gave consistently higher toxin recovery.

Effectiveness of eutectic mixture of local anesthetic cream and occlusive dressing with low dosage of fentanyl for pain control during shockwave lithotripsy.

Background And Purpose: To investigate the effect and usefulness of Eutectic Mixture of Local Anesthetic (EMLA) applied with an occlusive dressing and used simultaneously with a low dose of fentanyl during shockwave lithotripsy (SWL).

Patients And Methods: One hundred sixty patients with kidney stones, aged between 19 and 68 years, were randomly divided into seven groups that were treated as follows: group 1: fentanyl 1 microg/kg by intravenous infusion (IV); group 2: IV fentanyl 0.25 microg/kg; group 3: occlusive dressing and IV fentanyl 0.