Development and Evaluation of In-House ELISAs for the Detection of SARS-CoV-2-Specific Antibodies in COVID-19 Patients in Sri Lanka.

COVID-19 serological tests complement the molecular diagnostics and can be used as important tool for serosurveillance and vaccine efficiency evaluation. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the diagnostic performance of an in-house ELISA for retrospective serosurveillance of SARS-CoV-2. Total IgG and IgM levels in sera of PCR positive SARS-CoV-2 patients ( = 50) from North Colombo Teaching Hospital were evaluated and compared with sera ( = 50) collected from prepandemic healthy individuals as controls.

Living Conditions and Malaria: A Longitudinal Study in a Rural Malaria-Endemic Area of Sri Lanka.

This study was conducted in a rural malaria-endemic community in Sri Lanka in 2014-2015 because malaria was no longer endemic in the area as of November 2012. Data on sociodemographic factors, living conditions, malaria infections, and use of mosquito protection methods during the period from 1990 to 2015 were collected through a household survey in a systematically selected sample of 724 households, covering >10% of the population in the area. Malaria incidence data were obtained from Anti-Malaria Campaign, and Malaria Research Unit of the University of Colombo.

Effects of post-fermentation addition of green tea extract for sulfur dioxide replacement on Sauvignon Blanc wine phenolic composition, antioxidant capacity, colour, and mouthfeel attributes.

This study examines the feasibility of replacing SO in a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc wine with a green tea extract. The treatments included the control with no preservatives (C), the addition of green tea extract at 0.1 and 0.

Clinical Exome Gene Panel Analysis of a Cohort of Urothelial Bladder Cancer Patients from Sri Lanka.

Background: Bladder cancer has a high rate of recurrence and high mortality rates in those who progress to muscle invasive disease. Biomarkers and molecular sub classification of tumours beyond standard histopathology has been proposed to address therapeutic dilemmas. The Cancer Genome Atlas project and other studies have contributed to the enhanced knowledge base of the mutational landscape of urothelial bladder cancer.

Characterization of antigens of Enterobius vermicularis (pinworm) eggs.

Enterobiasis (pinworm infection) caused by Enterobius vermicularis is a common parasitic infection prevalent worldwide especially in children. Infection is diagnosed by microscopic detection of E. vermicularis eggs on perianal swabs.

Assessment of iron overload in a cohort of Sri Lankan patients with transfusion dependent beta thalassaemia and its correlation with pathogenic variants in HBB, HFE, SLC40A1, and TFR2 genes.

Background: Iron overload (IO) is a complication in transfusion dependent beta thalassaemia (TDT). Pathogenic variants in genes involving iron metabolism may confer increased risk of IO. The objective of this study was to determine the magnitude of the cardiac and hepatic IO and determine whether pathogenic variants in HFE, SLC40A1 and TFR2 genes increase the risk of IO in a cohort of TDT patients in Sri Lanka.

Ion Transport Modulators Differentially Modulate Inflammatory Responses in THP-1-Derived Macrophages.

Ion transport modulators are most commonly used to treat various noncommunicable diseases including diabetes and hypertension. They are also known to bind to receptors on various immune cells, but the immunomodulatory properties of most ion transport modulators have not been fully elucidated. We assessed the effects of thirteen FDA-approved ion transport modulators, namely, ambroxol HCl, amiloride HCl, diazoxide, digoxin, furosemide, hydrochlorothiazide, metformin, omeprazole, pantoprazole, phenytoin, verapamil, drug X, and drug Y on superoxide production, nitric oxide production, and cytokine expression by THP-1-derived macrophages that had been stimulated with ethanol-inactivated BCG.

Dynamics of maternally transferred antibodies against measles, mumps, and rubella in infants in Sri Lanka.

Background: Determining the dynamics of maternally transferred antibodies against measles, mumps, and rubella infections in infants is important for making evidence-based policy decisions regarding the timing of vaccination.

Methods: The levels of serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) developed against measles, mumps, and rubella infections were assessed using commercial ELISA kits in mother-newborn pairs (n = 294) and 6-12-month-old infants (n = 280) recruited from Colombo District, Sri Lanka. Antibody levels of mothers and their newborns were assessed with respect to sex and parity.

Ion Transport Modulators as Antimycobacterial Agents.

There is an urgent need for better and safer therapeutic interventions for tuberculosis (TB). We assessed the effects of FDA-approved ion transport modulators, namely, ambroxol HCl, amiloride HCl, diazoxide, digoxin, furosemide, hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), metformin, omeprazole, pantoprazole, phenytoin, verapamil, and drug X and Y on the growth of free and intracellular BCG. Free and intracellular BCG were cultured in the presence or absence of the test drugs for 3 to 9 days and then quantified.

Health in rural Sri Lanka: A cross-sectional survey of three rural districts.

Introduction: Sri Lanka has a predominantly rural population. However, there is a dearth of research on health and socioeconomic issues in this group.

Objective: To describe basic socioeconomic characteristics and health profile in a rural population.

Persistence of Immune Responses Through 36 Months in Healthy Adults After Vaccination With a Novel 4-Antigen Vaccine (SA4Ag).

Background: causes serious health care- and community-associated disease, requiring improved preventive measures such as vaccines. The investigational 4-antigen vaccine (SA4Ag), comprising capsular polysaccharide serotypes 5 and 8 (CP5 and CP8) conjugated to CRM, recombinant mutant clumping factor A (rClfA), and recombinant manganese transporter protein C (rP305A or rMntC), was well tolerated, inducing robust functional immune responses to all 4 antigens through 12 months postvaccination. This is a serological extension study through 36 months postvaccination.

Effectiveness of targeting fathers for breastfeeding promotion: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Further research gaps exist in relation to the promotion of breastfeeding. Robust scientific evidence obtained by a meta-analysis would provide objectively summarized data while enabling the assessment of consistency of findings. This review includes the first documented meta-analysis done on the effectiveness of targeting fathers for promoting breastfeeding (BF).

Applying spatial-temporal image correlation to the fetal kidney: Repeatability of 3D segmentation and volumetric impedance indices.

Introduction: Spatiotemporal image correlation (STIC) can evaluate fetal renal impedance using four-dimensional volumetric indices. We assessed repeatability of three-dimensional kidney segmentation and the repeatability of the resultant indices.

Methods: In each of 57 healthy pregnant women, three renal artery pulsed-wave Doppler (PWD) traces and three STIC volumes were acquired from the same fetal kidney and segmented by two observers.

Anaesthetic issues in robotic-assisted minimally invasive surgery.

Over the past decade there has been an exponential increase in the number of robotic-assisted surgical procedures performed in Australia and internationally. Despite this growth, there are no level I or II studies examining the anaesthetic implications of these procedures. Available observational studies provide insight into the significant challenges for the anaesthetist.

Brompheniramine and Chlorpheniramine Pharmacokinetics Following Single-Dose Oral Administration in Children Aged 2 to 17 Years.

Two pediatric studies characterized brompheniramine and chlorpheniramine pharmacokinetics in a total of 72 subjects, aged 2 to 17 years. A single age-/weight-based oral dose, ranging from 1 to 4 mg, was administered with 2 to 6 oz of water at least 2 hours after a light breakfast. Plasma samples were obtained before and for 72 hours after dosing and analyzed using high-pressure liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

Neutrophil killing of in diabetes, obesity and metabolic syndrome: a prospective cellular surveillance study.

Background: Obesity, metabolic syndrome (MetS), and diabetes are frequent in surgical populations and can enhance susceptibility to postoperative surgical site infections. Reduced neutrophil function has been linked with diabetes and risk of infection. Therefore, neutrophil function in diabetic and obese subjects (± MetS) was assessed in this prospective serological and cellular surveillance study to determine whether vaccines administered to protect against infections after surgery could be effective in these populations.

The effects of haemodilution with albumin on coagulation in vitro as assessed by rotational thromboelastometry.

We investigated the in vitro viscoelastic changes of progressive haemodilution with 4% albumin compared with normal saline (NS) using rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM(®), Pentapharm Co., Munich, Germany). Whole blood samples obtained from 20 healthy volunteers were diluted in vitro with 4% albumin or NS by 10%, 20% and 40%.

Open-label trial of immunogenicity and safety of a 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in adults ≥ 50 years of age in Mexico.

This open-label multicenter clinical trial conducted in Mexico assessed the immunogenicity and safety of a 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) in adults ≥ 50 years of age not previously vaccinated with the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23). The PCV13 elicited a robust immune response in this study population, as reflected by the magnitude of fold rises in functional antibody levels measured by serotype-specific opsonophagocytic activity (OPA) assays before and 1 month after vaccination. Although the prevaccination OPA geometric mean titers (GMTs) for the majority of the serotypes were significantly lower in the 50- to 64-year age group than those in the ≥ 65-year age group, the postvaccination immune responses were generally similar.

Association of high plasma TNF-alpha levels and TNF-alpha/IL-10 ratios with TNF2 allele in severe P. falciparum malaria patients in Sri Lanka.

Plasma levels of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines of Plasmodium falciparum-infected patients with severe malaria (SM; n = 62) and uncomplicated malaria (UM; n = 69) from Sri Lanka were assessed. SM patients had significantly higher levels of TNF-alpha (P < 0·01), IL-6 (P < 0·01), and IL-10 (P < 0·05) compared to the UM patients. Plasma IL-2 levels of these patients were undetectable.

Strain-specific protective effect of the immunity induced by live malarial sporozoites under chloroquine cover.

The efficacy of a whole-sporozoite malaria vaccine would partly be determined by the strain-specificity of the protective responses against malarial sporozoites and liver-stage parasites. Evidence from previous reports were inconsistent, where some studies have shown that the protective immunity induced by irradiated or live sporozoites in rodents or humans were cross-protective and in others strain-specific. In the present work, we have studied the strain-specificity of live sporozoite-induced immunity using two genetically and immunologically different strains of Plasmodium cynomolgi, Pc746 and PcCeylon, in toque monkeys.

Growing pains: twin family study evidence for genetic susceptibility and a genetic relationship with restless legs syndrome.

Background: Growing pains (GP) is a prevalent familial childhood disorder of unknown aetiology. Familial occurrence of GP, and individual and familial association of GP with restless legs syndrome (RLS) has been reported.

Methods: We applied a twin family design to search for evidence of genetic susceptibility to GP, and for a genetic relationship between GP and RLS.

Somatosensory test responses in children with growing pains.

Purpose: To further the understanding of growing pains (GP), in particular, the nature of this pain disorder.

Methods: This study included 33 children aged 5-12 years who met criteria for GP (cases) and 29 children without GP of similar age and sex (controls). Nineteen controls were siblings of cases.