Hair analysis for THCA-A, THC and CBN after passive in vivo exposure to marijuana smoke.

Condensation of marijuana smoke on the hair surface can be a source of an external contamination in hair analysis and may have serious consequences for the person under investigation. Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA-A) is found in marijuana smoke and in hair analysis, but is not incorporated into the hair through the bloodstream. Therefore it might be a promising marker for external contamination of hair and could facilitate a more accurate interpretation of analytical results.

Optical coherence tomography does not support optic nerve involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Background And Purpose: In recent years a possible non-motor involvement of the nervous system in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has come into the focus of research and has been investigated by numerous techniques. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) - with its potential to reveal neuroaxonal retinal damage - may be an appropriate tool to investigate whether the anterior visual pathway is involved. Our aim was to determine whether OCT-based measures of retinal nerve fiber layer, ganglion cell layer, inner nuclear layer and outer nuclear layer thickness are abnormal in ALS, or correlated with disease severity.

Quantification of Myocardial Perfusion Reserve Using Dynamic SPECT Imaging in Humans: A Feasibility Study.

Unlabelled: Myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) is well established in the diagnosis and workup of patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease (CAD); however, it can underestimate the extent of obstructive CAD. Quantification of myocardial perfusion reserve with PET can assist in the diagnosis of multivessel CAD. We evaluated the feasibility of dynamic tomographic SPECT imaging and quantification of a retention index to describe global and regional myocardial perfusion reserve using a dedicated solid-state cardiac camera.

Development and validation of an LC-MS/MS method for quantification of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA-A), THC, CBN and CBD in hair.

For analysis of hair samples derived from a pilot study ('in vivo' contamination of hair by sidestream marijuana smoke), an LC-MS/MS method was developed and validated for the simultaneous quantification of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA-A), Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabinol (CBN) and cannabidiol (CBD). Hair samples were extracted in methanol for 4 h under occasional shaking at room temperature, after adding THC-D(3), CBN-D(3), CBD-D(3) and THCA-A-D(3) as an in-house synthesized internal standard. The analytes were separated by gradient elution on a Luna C18 column using 0.

Myocardial perfusion imaging with a solid-state camera: simulation of a very low dose imaging protocol.

Unlabelled: High-sensitivity dedicated cardiac camera systems provide an opportunity to lower the injected doses for SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI), but the exact limits for lowering doses have not been determined. List-mode data acquisition allows for reconstruction of various fractions of acquired counts, enabling a simulation of gradually lower administered dose. We aimed to determine the feasibility of very low dose MPI by exploring the minimal count level in the myocardium required for accurate MPI.

Prion removal capacity of plasma protein manufacturing processes: a data collection from PPTA member companies.

Background: The variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease incidence peaked a decade ago and has since declined. Based on epidemiologic evidence, the causative agent, pathogenic prion, has not constituted a tangible contamination threat to large-scale manufacturing of human plasma-derived proteins. Nonetheless, manufacturers have studied the prion removal capabilities of various manufacturing steps to better understand product safety.

Long-term survival in HIV positive patients with up to 15 Years of antiretroviral therapy.

Background: Life expectancy has increased for newly diagnosed HIV patients since the inception of combination antiretroviral treatment (cART), but there remains a need to better understand the characteristics of long-term survival in HIV-positive patients. We examined long-term survival in HIV-positive patients receiving cART in the Australian HIV Observational Database (AHOD), to describe changes in mortality compared to the general population and to develop longer-term survival models.

Methods: Data were examined from 2,675 HIV-positive participants in AHOD who started cART.

Regioselective synthesis of isotopically labeled Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA-A-D3) by reaction of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-D3 with magnesium methyl carbonate.

For the reliable quantification of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA-A), the biogenetic precursor of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), in biological matrices by LC-MS/MS and GC-MS(/MS), an isotopically labeled internal standard was synthesized starting from Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-D(3) (THC-D(3)). Synthesis strategy was based on a method reported by Mechoulam et al. in 1969 using magnesium methyl carbonate (MMC) as carboxylation reagent for the synthesis of cannabinoid acids.

The requirement for recombination factors differs considerably between different pathways of homologous double-strand break repair in somatic plant cells.

In recent years, multiple factors involved in DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair have been characterised in Arabidopsis thaliana. Using homologous sequences in somatic cells, DSBs are mainly repaired by two different pathways: synthesis-dependent strand annealing (SDSA) and single-strand annealing (SSA). By applying recombination substrates in which recombination is initiated by the induction of a site-specific DSB by the homing endonuclease I-SceI, we were able to characterise the involvement of different factors in both pathways.

LC-MS/MS analysis of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A in serum after protein precipitation using an in-house synthesized deuterated internal standard.

An assay based on liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry is presented for the fast, precise and sensitive quantitation of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A (THCA) in serum. THCA is the biogenetic precursor of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol in cannabis and has aroused interest in the pharmacological and forensic field especially as a potential marker for recent cannabis use. After addition of deuterated THCA, synthesized from D(3)-THC as starting material, and protein precipitation, the analytes were separated using gradient elution on a Luna C18 column (150 × 2.

Pathogen safety profile of a 10% IgG preparation manufactured using a depth filtration-modified process.

Gamunex®-C is a highly purified liquid 10% IgG preparation manufactured by a process that includes caprylate precipitation and incubation, and chromatography steps. In the original process, caprylate precipitation was followed by cloth filtration to remove impurities. The highly porous cloth filter has since been replaced with a tight depth filter.

Eliminating the routine postoperative surgical abortion visit.

Background: The objective of this study was to determine whether replacing the "routine" postoperative visit after surgical abortion with an "as indicated" visit is associated with an increase in the rates of either failed abortion (continuing pregnancy) or repeat abortion.

Methods: We compared the rate of continuing pregnancy in 50,702 first-trimester surgical abortion patients who were offered routine postoperative visits in one time period (1/1/00-4/30/07) to the rate in 20,315 first-trimester surgical abortion patients from a later time period (5/1/07-12/31/09) in which routine postoperative visits had been discontinued. We also compared the rate of repeat abortion within 1 year of the initial procedure for both first- and second-trimester surgical abortion patients for the same time periods.

In planta gene targeting.

The development of designed site-specific endonucleases boosted the establishment of gene targeting (GT) techniques in a row of different species. However, the methods described in plants require a highly efficient transformation and regeneration procedure and, therefore, can be applied to very few species. Here, we describe a highly efficient GT system that is suitable for all transformable plants regardless of transformation efficiency.

Incidence and risk factors associated with chlamydia in men who have sex with men: a cohort analysis of Victorian Primary Care Network for Sentinel Surveillance data.

Background: Chlamydia is the most commonly notified sexually transmitted infection (STI) in Australia. Incidence studies of chlamydia in men who have sex with men (MSM) are rare and offer important public health information.

Objective: To determine chlamydia incidence in MSM presenting at high caseload clinics and describe predictors of infection.

Inactivation and neutralization of parvovirus B19 Genotype 3.

Background: Parvovirus B19 (B19V) is a common contaminant of human plasma donations. Three B19V genotypes have been defined based on their DNA sequence. Reliable detection of Genotype 3 DNA has proved problematic because of unexpected sequence variability.

Watch this! Observed tool use affects perceived distance.

Recent research has shown that being able to interact with an object causes it to be perceived as being closer than objects that cannot be interacted with. In the present study, we examined whether that compression of perceived space would be experienced by people who simply observed such interactions by others with no intention of performing the action themselves. Participants judged the distance to targets after observing an actor reach to an otherwise unreachable target with a tool (Experiment 1) or illuminate a distant target with a laser pointer (Experiment 2).

Clinical outcomes of patients with severe aortic stenosis at increased surgical risk according to treatment modality.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the role of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) compared with medical treatment (MT) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) at increased surgical risk.

Background: Elderly patients with comorbidities are at considerable risk for SAVR.

Methods: Since July 2007, 442 patients with severe AS (age: 81.

Distinct eosinophil cytokine expression patterns in skin diseases - the possible existence of functionally different eosinophil subpopulations.

Background: The function of eosinophils has been attributed to host defense, immunomodulation, and fibrosis. Although eosinophils are found among infiltrating cells in a broad spectrum of skin diseases, their pathogenic role remains uncertain. This study aimed to analyze the cytokine expression by eosinophils in different skin diseases.

Risk factors for HIV seroconversion in men who have sex with men in Victoria, Australia: results from a sentinel surveillance system.

Objectives: HIV diagnosis rates in men who have sex with men (MSM) began increasing in Australia 10 years ago, and there has been a major resurgence of syphilis. We determined predictors of HIV positivity and seroconversion among MSM in Victoria, Australia.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective longitudinal analysis of data from MSM who underwent HIV testing between April 2006 and June 2009 at three primary care clinics.

Estimating viral titres in solutions with low viral loads.

An important consideration in the manufacture of products derived from animal or human sources is the virus reduction capacity of the manufacturing process as estimated using validated bench-scale models of relevant manufacturing steps. In these studies, manufacturing process intermediates are spiked with virus and processed using the bench-scale model and the resulting viral titres of input and output samples are typically determined using cell-based infectivity assays. In these assays, the Spearman-Kärber (SK) method is commonly used to estimate titres when there is one or more positive observation (i.

Clinical outcome and predictors for adverse events after transcatheter aortic valve implantation with the use of different devices and access routes.

Background: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is a treatment option for high-risk patients with severe aortic stenosis. Previous reports focused on a single device or access site, whereas little is known of the combined use of different devices and access sites as selected by the heart team. The purpose of this study is to investigate clinical outcomes of TAVI using different devices and access sites.

Optimized in-phase and opposed-phase MR imaging for accurate detection of small fat or water fractions: theoretical considerations and experimental application in emulsions.

Object: To optimize strategies and measurement parameters for quantification of small fat and water fractions (<10%) in mixtures of both components by 4-point in-phase and opposed-phase gradient-echo imaging and to compare theoretical results with in-vitro experiments using emulsions.

Materials And Methods: Theoretical analysis was based on steady-state signal equations for spoiled GRE-sequences and on relaxation properties of water and fat components. For quantification, signals were corrected for T2*-decay, T1-decay, and signal contributions from double bonds.

Trends in detectable viral load by calendar year in the Australian HIV observational database.

Background: Recent papers have suggested that expanded combination antiretroviral treatment (cART) through lower viral load may be a strategy to reduce HIV transmission at a population level. We assessed calendar trends in detectable viral load in patients recruited to the Australian HIV Observational Database who were receiving cART.

Methods: Patients were included in analyses if they had started cART (defined as three or more antiretrovirals) and had at least one viral load assessment after 1 January 1997.