Molecular typing of Clostridium perfringens toxins recovered from Central Saudi Arabia.

Objective: This study reports on comparisons between polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and conventional diagnostic methods for typing Clostridium perfringens toxins collected from Central Saudi Arabia.

Methods: Fecal samples from 150 animals showing signs of enterotoxaemia were collected from 24 April 2009 to 25 September 2009, from different farms located in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Twenty-seven toxigenic strains of Clostridium perfringens were recovered from 150 fecal and intestinal content samples were identified and typed by conventional methods.

Development of a human whole blood assay for prediction of cytokine release similar to anti-CD28 superagonists using multiplex cytokine and hierarchical cluster analysis.

Anti-CD28 superagonist (SA) mediated cytokine release syndrome (CRS), an adverse event resulting in systemic release of cytokines, is an emergent issue in drug development. CRS is of potential concern for all monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) particularly those directed against cell surface targets on lymphocytes. Concern regarding patient safety requires development of novel methods to predict these adverse reactions.

Direct UPLC-MS-MS validated method for the quantification of 5-aminolevulinic acid: application to in-vitro assessment of colonic-targeted oral tablets.

A reliable, sensitive, specific, and rapid ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric (UPLC-MS-MS) method was developed for the determination of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) in orally-administered colonic delivery system. The prepared system is a compression-coated tablet using granulated chitosan as the coat layer. L-Tyrosine (TYR) was used as an internal standard with no need for derivatization.

The effect of one night of continuous positive airway pressure therapy on oxidative stress and antioxidant defense in hypertensive patients with severe obstructive sleep apnea.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of one night of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy on oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation) levels and the antioxidant activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in hypertensive patients with severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Methods: The study group consisted of 34 hypertensive, non-smoking patients with a mean age of 45.09 ± 11.

Biopharmaceutical applications of nanogold.

The application of nanogold in biopharmaceutical field is reviewed in this work. The properties of nanogold including nanogold surface Plasmon absorption and nanogold surface Plasmon light scattering are illustrated. The physical, chemical, biosynthesis methods of nanogold preparation are presented.

A report on the association of influenza B virus with respiratory tract infection of hospitalized children in Saudi Arabia.

Influenza viruses are recognized as one of the major causes of respiratory tract infection in young children and elderly people throughout the world. In this report, influenza B virus was detected when 200 clinical samples of nasopharyngeal aspirates, collected from hospitalized children aged from one month to three years with respiratory tract infections, were tested by Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR). PCR products on the conserved regions sequence of the non-structural gene identified the presence of influenza B virus in the clinical samples.