Point-of-care testing system for digital single cell detection of MRSA directly from nasal swabs.

We present an automated point-of-care testing (POCT) system for rapid detection of species- and resistance markers in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) at the level of single cells, directly from nasal swab samples. Our novel system allows clear differentiation between MRSA, methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA) and methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci (MR-CoNS), which is not the case for currently used real-time quantitative PCR based systems.

Crizanlizumab for the Prevention of Pain Crises in Sickle Cell Disease.

Background: The up-regulation of P-selectin in endothelial cells and platelets contributes to the cell-cell interactions that are involved in the pathogenesis of vaso-occlusion and sickle cell-related pain crises. The safety and efficacy of crizanlizumab, an antibody against the adhesion molecule P-selectin, were evaluated in patients with sickle cell disease.

Methods: In this double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 2 trial, we assigned patients to receive low-dose crizanlizumab (2.

MANAGEMENT OF PHEOCHROMOCYTOMA IN THE ABSENCE OF ALPHA BLOKERS: A CASE REPORT FROM AYDER REFERRAL HOSPITAL.

A 13-year-old girl with right adrenal pheochromocytoma pretreated with Nifedipine, underwent surgical removal of the tumor. General anesthesia with Propofol infusion and pethidine analgesia was performed. To control the blood pressure (BP), Nitroglycerine infusions were administered successfully.

Long-term effect of the complement inhibitor eculizumab on kidney function in patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.

Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) is a debilitating and life-threatening disease in which lysis of PNH red blood cells frequently manifests with chronic hemolysis, anemia, and thrombosis. Renal damage in PNH is associated with chronic hemosiderosis and/or microvascular thrombosis. We determined the incidence of renal dysfunction or damage, defined by stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD), in a large cohort of PNH patients and evaluated the safety and efficacy of the complement inhibitor eculizumab in altering its progression.

Anti-GD1a antibodies activate complement and calpain to injure distal motor nodes of Ranvier in mice.

The motor axonal variant of Guillain-Barré syndrome is associated with anti-GD1a immunoglobulin antibodies, which are believed to be the pathogenic factor. In previous studies we have demonstrated the motor terminal to be a vulnerable site. Here we show both in vivo and ex vivo, that nodes of Ranvier in intramuscular motor nerve bundles are also targeted by anti-GD1a antibody in a gradient-dependent manner, with greatest vulnerability at distal nodes.