Biomed

The aim of the study was to assess the level of selected systemic oxidative stress parameters during the first week of orthodontic treatment with fixed appliances. Fifty-four males with malocclusion and having a similar lifestyle were randomized using a computer based procedure and allocated to either the treatment group (TG; n=27;24.6 ± 1.7 years) or control group (CG; n=27;24.7 ± 1.7 years). Capillary blood was collected at baseline and 6 hours, 24 hours, and 7 days after archwire insertion. At the same time points, capillary blood was retrieved in the CG. In order to determine the oxidative stress, both the reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation and the antioxidative defense (AD) potential were measured using the ROS testing and oxygen free radicals defense (equivalent to antioxidant defense) testing, respectively, by a blinded operator. The ratio between ROS and AD (ROS/AD) was calculated and data were analyzed using nonparametric tests. No drop-outs or harms were detected. At ...

Treatment of knee osteoarthritis (OA) remains a challenging concern. Preclinical studies provided accumulating evidence on resveratrol efficacy in ameliorating degenerative articular damage. The present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of resveratrol as monotherapy on the serum level of type II collagen (Coll 2-1) and aggrecan in patients with knee osteoarthritis. The study was an open-labeled noncontrolled clinical trial. Resveratrol 500 mg/day in a single oral dose was given to the patients with knee osteoarthritis for 90 days. The serum levels of Coll-2-1, aggrecan, and biomarkers of inflammation were measured pre- and posttreatment. Hematological profiles and both hepatic and renal function markers were investigated at the baseline and at the end of the treatment for evaluating the tolerability and safety of resveratrol. Visual Analog Scale (VAS) for pain and Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) for disease activity were clinically assessed monthly. Adm...

Prediction of nosocomial infections among patients is an important part of clinical surveillance programs to enable the related personnel to take preventive actions in advance. Designing a clinical surveillance program with capability of predicting nosocomial infections is a challenging task due to several reasons, including high dimensionality of medical data, heterogenous data representation, and special knowledge required to extract patterns for prediction. In this paper, we present details of six data mining methods implemented using cross industry standard process for data mining to predict central line-associated blood stream infections. For our study, we selected datasets of healthcare-associated infections from US National Healthcare Safety Network and consumer survey data from Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems. Our experiments show that central line-associated blood stream infections (CLABSIs) can be successfully predicted using AdaBoost metho...

Occupational accidents in the construction sector are analyzed in this study of the relation between the age of the injured worker, days off work due to the injury, and accident severity. A further aim is to establish whether accumulated fatigue during the working day and throughout the week has a similar effect on all workers, regardless of age. A total of three million four hundred and thirty-eight thousand, one hundred and forty-five (3,438,145) accidents are analyzed in this study; the total of all accidents are notified in Spain by workers from the sector over the period 1996-2015. The results confirmed a direct link between worker age and both days off work due to the injury and accident severity. They also confirmed that the workers injured in accidents in the afternoon hours were older than the workers injured in the morning hours. In consequence, the average number of days off work due to injury following an accident of the older workers was also larger and the accidents ar...

Purpose. To evaluate structural changes in response to antivascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) treatment in patients with long-term type 1 choroidal neovascularization (CNV) by optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA). Method. This is a longitudinal study that involved a total of 51 eyes with type 1 CNV (35 female and 16 male eyes). Structural OCT and OCTA were performed on all the subjects. AngioVue OCTA (XR Avanti, Optovue, Inc., Fremont, CA) was used to obtain qualitative and quantitative information. All eyes were treated with an anti-VEGF ProReNata (PRN) approach and were followed for a mean of 38.9 months (SD±7.22). Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was assessed at each follow-up timepoint. Results. We observed two kinds of possible evolution of type 1 CNV: “positive evolution,” including stabilization in 20% of patients and chronicity in 35%, and “negative evolution,” in which fibrosis was shown in 18% of patients, chorioretinal atrophy in 25...

The Italian interest group (IG) on atopic eczema and urticaria is member of the Italian Society of Allergology and Immunology. The aim of our IG is to provide a platform for scientists, clinicians, and experts. In this review we discuss the role of skin microbiota not only in healthy skin but also in skin suffering from atopic dermatitis (AD). A Medline and Embase search was conducted for studies evaluating the role of skin microbiota. We examine microbiota composition and its development within days after birth; we describe the role of specific groups of microorganisms that colonize distinct anatomical niches and the biology and clinical relevance of antimicrobial peptides expressed in the skin. Specific AD disease states are characterized by concurrent and anticorrelated shifts in microbial diversity and proportion ofStaphylococcus. These organisms may protect the host, defining them not as simple symbiotic microbes but rather as mutualistic microbes. These findings reveal links b...

Ancestral sequence reconstruction is a well-known problem in molecular evolution. The problem presented in this study is inspired by sequence reconstruction, but instead of leaf-associated sequences we consider only their lengths. We call this problem ancestral gene length reconstruction. It is a problem of finding an optimal labeling which minimizes the total length's sum of the edges, where both a tree and nonnegative integers associated with corresponding leaves of the tree are the input. In this paper we give a linear algorithm to solve the problem on binary trees for the Manhattan cost function s(v, w) = |π(v) - π(w)|.

A simple and versatile method for the synthesis of 1,5-benzodiazepines is via condensation of o-phenylenediamines (OPDA) and ketones in the presence of catalytic amount of H-MCM-22 using acetonitrile as solvent at room temperature. In all the cases, the reactions are highly selective and are completed within 1–3 h. The method is applicable to both cyclic and acyclic ketones without significant differences. The reaction proceeds efficiently under ambient conditions with good-to-excellent yields.

Background. Preserved blood cells undergo progressive structural and functional changes that may affect their function, integrity, and viability after transfusion. The impact of transfusion of stored blood on potassium, sodium, or acid-base balance in the recipient may be complex, but information on it is inconsistent. This study therefore sought to determine the changes in the potassium and sodium levels in whole blood stored at 4°C for 28 days and clinical outcomes when such blood are transfused. Methods. Whole blood were taken into double CPDA-1 bags and 50 ml transferred into the satellite bags for the study. Electrolyte concentration determinations were made on each of the blood sample on days 0, 7, 14, 21, and 28 using the Vitalab Selectra Junior chemistry analyser. The remaining blood in the main bags was transfused after the 28-day period, and biochemical analysis carried out on the patients before and after the transfusion. One-way ANOVA was used for the analysis of varianc...

Hyperlipidic diets limit glucose oxidation and favor amino acid preservation, hampering the elimination of excess dietary nitrogen and the catabolic utilization of amino acids. We analyzed whether reduced urea excretion was a consequence of higher NO x ; (nitrite, nitrate, and other derivatives) availability caused by increased nitric oxide production in metabolic syndrome. Rats fed a cafeteria diet for 30 days had a higher intake and accumulation of amino acid nitrogen and lower urea excretion. There were no differences in plasma nitrate or nitrite. NO(x) and creatinine excretion accounted for only a small part of total nitrogen excretion. Rats fed a cafeteria diet had higher plasma levels of glutamine, serine, threonine, glycine, and ornithine when compared with controls, whereas arginine was lower. Liver carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase I activity was higher in cafeteria diet-fed rats, but arginase I was lower. The high carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase activity and ornithine levels s...

The present study was designed to compare the body composition and indicators of chronic inflammatory grade, such as leptin, adiponectin, and resistin concentrations in irregularly active and active SCI subjects. Thirty-two male subjects participated in this study. They were divided into three groups: able-bodied control irregularly active (control, n = 11 ), irregularly active with SCI (SCI-IA, n = 8 ), and physically active with SCI (SCI-PA, n = 13 ). The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assessed serum concentrations of leptin, adiponectin, and resistin. All volunteers performed the maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max) test, 24 h total energy expenditure (TEE), and body composition by skinfold thicknesses. Leptin concentrations were higher in the SCI-IA group when compared to the other groups, while no significant differences were found between the SCI-PA and control cohorts. In addition, no significant differences were found among groups for serum adiponectin and resistin conc...

Background. Endometriosis is the most prevalent gynecological disease with elusive etiology. The mysterious entity and the lack of noninvasive diagnostic methods affect women’s lives negatively. This study is aimed at finding the relationship between miR-340-5p, 92a-3p, and miR-381-3p and the pathogenesis of endometriosis in endometrial mesenchymal stem-like cells (eMSCs) of endometriosis and assessing their potential as a noninvasive biomarker in plasma. Methods. Peripheral blood and eMSC specimens were collected from suspected women of endometriosis before laparoscopy. Total RNA was isolated from plasma and cultured eMSCs to synthesize complementary DNA. The expression of miR-340-5p, miR-92a-3p, and miR-381-3p was analyzed by RT-qPCR. To understand these miRNAs’ role, we also did a bioinformatic analysis. Results. There was a downregulation of miR-340-5p, miR-92a-3p, and miR-381-3p in plasma, and the upregulation of miR-340-5p and the downregulation of miR-92a-3p and miR-381-3p in...

Background. Birth asphyxia is the leading cause of neonatal mortality in Kenya. Quality care during neonatal resuscitation (NR) can contribute to a reduction in neonatal mortality related to birth asphyxia by 30 percent. This study assessed the quality of care (QoC) during NR for newborns with birth asphyxia. Methods. Direct observations of 138 newborn resuscitations were done in labor ward and maternity theatre. Twenty-eight healthcare providers were observed 3–5 times using a structured checklist. Descriptive and inferential statistics were calculated and quality of care scores computed. Ordered logistic regression model identified HCPs characteristics associated with the QoC scores during NR. Results. Overall QoC scores were good for airway clearance (83%). Suctioning in meconium presence (40%) was poorly performed. Years of experience working in maternity were associated with good drying/stimulation (β = 1.86, P=0.003, CI = 0.626–3.093) and airway maintenance (β = 1.887, P=0.009...

The study is to identify the extraction of intracellular inulinase (exo- and endoinulinase) and invertase as well as optimization medium composition for maximum productions of intra- and extracellular enzymes fromAspergillus nigerATCC 20611. From two different methods for extraction of intracellular enzymes, ultrasonic method was found more effective. Response surface methodology (RSM) with a five-variable and three-level central composite design (CCD) was employed to optimize the medium composition. The effect of five main reaction parameters including sucrose, yeast extract, NaNO3, Zn+2, and Triton X-100 on the production of enzymes was analyzed. A modified quadratic model was fitted to the data with a coefficient of determination (R2) more than 0.90 for all responses. The intra-extracellular inulinase and invertase productions increased in the range from 16 to 8.4 times in the optimized medium (10% (w/v) sucrose, 2.5% (w/v) yeast extract, 2% (w/v) NaNO3, 1.5 mM (v/v) Zn+2, and 1%...

Objective. We studied the prevalences of video game use (VGU) and addiction (VGA) in gambling disorder (GD) patients and compared them with subjects with non-video game use (non-VGU) in relation to their gambling behavior, psychopathology, and personality characteristics.Method. A sample of 193 GD patients (121 non-VGU, 43 VGU, and 29 VGA) consecutively admitted to our pathological gambling unit participated in the study.Assessment. Measures included the video game dependency test (VDT), symptom checklist-90-revised, and the temperament and character inventory-revised, as well as a number of other GD indices.Results. In GD, the observed prevalence of VG (use or addiction) was 37.3% (95% CI:30.7%÷44.3),VGU 22.3% (95% CI:17.0%÷28.7), and VGA 15% (95% CI:10.7%÷20.7). Orthogonal polynomial contrast into logistic regression showed positive linear trends for VG level and GD severity and other measures of general psychopathology. After structural equation modeling, higher VG total scores w...

Under changing climate, water scarcity and frequent incidence of diseases like stripe rust pose the biggest threat to sustainable crop production which jeopardizes nutritional security. A study was executed to rationalize crop water requirement and evaluate wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Bohoth 3) yield losses by stripe rust infection under irrigated conditions. Seven water treatments included three irrigations in three stages/season ( S 3 ), four irrigations ( S 4 ), and five irrigations ( S 5 ) at the different sensitive growth stages, full ( F ), and two deficit irrigation levels including D 1 = 80 % of field capacity (FC) and D 2 = 70 % (FC) along with farmers’ practice of irrigation as control ( C ). Results revealed that F and D 1 boosted grain yield by 31 and 14%. Overall, F irrigation regime resulted in the highest grain production (2.93 ton/ha) as well as biomass yield (13.2 ton/ha). However, D 2 had the highest value of grain protein (15.9%) and achieved the highest appli...

A simple and versatile method for the synthesis of 1,5-benzodiazepines is via condensation of o-phenylenediamines (OPDA) and ketones in the presence of catalytic amount of H-MCM-22 using acetonitrile as solvent at room temperature. In all the cases, the reactions are highly selective and are completed within 1–3 h. The method is applicable to both cyclic and acyclic ketones without significant differences. The reaction proceeds efficiently under ambient conditions with good-to-excellent yields.

Sleep plays an important role in maintaining neuronal circuitry, signalling and helps maintain overall health and wellbeing. Sleep deprivation (SD) disturbs the circadian physiology and exerts a negative impact on brain and behavioural functions. SD impairs the cellular clearance of misfolded neurotoxin proteins like α-synuclein, amyloid-β, and tau which are involved in major neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. In addition, SD is also shown to affect the glymphatic system, a glial-dependent metabolic waste clearance pathway, causing accumulation of misfolded faulty proteins in synaptic compartments resulting in cognitive decline. Also, SD affects the immunological and redox system resulting in neuroinflammation and oxidative stress. Hence, it is important to understand the molecular and biochemical alterations that are the causative factors leading to these pathophysiological effects on the neuronal system. This review is an attempt in this d...

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are valuable candidates in tissue engineering and stem cell-based therapy. Traditionally, MSCs derived from various tissues have been successfully expanded in vitro using adherent culture plates commonly called as monolayer two-dimensional (2D) cultures. Recently, many studies demonstrated that stemness and multilineage differentiation potential could be enhanced to greater extent when MSCs are cultured as suspended aggregates by means of three-dimensional (3D) culturing techniques. However, there are limited reports on changed mitochondrial metabolism on 3D spheroid formation of MSCs. Therefore, the present study was aimed at investigating the stemness, differentiation potential, and mitochondrial metabolism capacity of 3D dental pulp-derived MSC (DPSC) spheroids in comparison to monolayer cultured DPSCs. We isolated dental pulp-derived MSCs (DPSCs) and successfully developed a 3D culture system which facilitated the formation of MSC spheroids. The cel...

The aim of the current study is to assess the prevalence of Campylobacter infection in broiler chickens, raised in intensive production conditions, and to evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility of recovered Campylobacter isolates. A total of 590 cloacal swab samples were taken from 13 broiler chicken flocks in the North East of Tunisia. All samples were tested for the presence of thermophilic Campylobacter by culture and PCR, targeting the mapA and ceuE genes, respectively. Susceptibility to antimicrobial drugs was tested against 8 antibiotics. Prevalence of Campylobacter infection, relationship with geographic origins and seasons, antimicrobial resistance rates and patterns were analyzed. Total prevalence of Campylobacter infection in broiler flocks was in the range of 22.4%, with a predominance of C. jejuni (68.9%), followed by C. coli (31.1%). Positive association was highlighted between the infection level and the season (P < 0.001), but no link was emphasized considering ...

Around 5 million annual births in EU and 131 million worldwide give a unique opportunity to collect lifesaving Wharton's jelly derived mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-MSC). Evidences that these cells possess therapeutic properties are constantly accumulating. Collection of WJ-MSC is done at the time of delivery and it is easy and devoid of side effects associated with collection of adult stem cells from bone marrow or adipose tissue. Likewise, their rate of proliferation, immune privileged status, lack of ethical concerns, nontumorigenic properties make them ideal for both autologous and allogeneic use in regenerative medicine applications. This review provides an outline of the recent findings related to WJ-MSC therapeutic effects and possible advantage they possess over MSC from other sources. Results of first clinical trials conducted to treat immune disorders are highlighted.

Nucleic acid extraction (NAE) plays a vital role in molecular biology as the primary step for many downstream applications. Many modifications have been introduced to the original 1869 method. Modern processes are categorized into chemical or mechanical, each with peculiarities that influence their use, especially in point-of-care diagnostics (POC-Dx). POC-Dx is a new approach aiming to replace sophisticated analytical machinery with microanalytical systems, able to be used near the patient, at the point of care or point of need. Although notable efforts have been made, a simple and effective extraction method is still a major challenge for widespread use of POC-Dx. In this review, we dissected the working principle of each of the most common NAE methods, overviewing their advantages and disadvantages, as well their potential for integration in POC-Dx systems. At present, it seems difficult, if not impossible, to establish a procedure which can be universally applied to POC-Dx. We a...

Fermenticin HV6b is a class IIa antimicrobial peptide produced byLactobacillus fermentumHV6b MTCC 10770 isolated from human vaginal ecosystem. It shows growth inhibition of a wide range of opportunistic pathogens of humans, for example,Bacteroides,Gardnerella vaginalis,Mobiluncus,Staphylococci,andStreptococci,associated with bacterial vaginosis in humans. It does possess an impressive sperm immobilization and spermicidal activity tested against human sperms which makes it an attractive proposition for formulating antibacterial vaginosis and contraceptive products. Apart from this,in vitrostudies conducted against four different tissue models have indicated its potential to be used as a component of anticancerous drug therapy as it is reported to induce apoptosis in cancerous cells. This information could be integrated in future studies focusing onin vivoassessment of anticancerous activity of lactic acid bacterial toxins or bacteriocins.

Background. Job satisfaction and working atmosphere are important for optimal health care delivery. The study aimed to document working atmosphere and job satisfaction of health care professionals in Kenya and to explore associations between job satisfaction, staff characteristics, and working atmosphere.Methods. Data from the integrated quality management system (IQMS) for the health sector in Kenya were used. Job satisfaction was measured with 10 items and with additional 5 items adapted to job situation in Kenya. Working atmosphere was measured with 13 item questionnaire. A stepwise linear regression analysis was performed with overall job satisfaction and working atmosphere, aspects of job satisfaction, and individual characteristics.Results. Out of 832 questionnaires handed out, 435 questionnaires were completed (response rate: 52.3%). Health care staff indicated high commitment to provide quality services and low levels regarding the adequacy and functionality of equipment at ...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of two endocrown designs and computer aided design/manufacturing (CAD/CAM) materials on stress distribution and failure probability of restorations applied to severely damaged endodontically treated maxillary first premolar tooth (MFP). Two types of designs without and with 3 mm intraradicular extensions, endocrown (E) and modified endocrown (ME), were modeled on a 3D Finite element (FE) model of the MFP. Vitablocks Mark II (VMII), Vita Enamic (VE), and Lava Ultimate (LU) CAD/CAM materials were used for each type of design. von Mises and maximum principle values were evaluated and the Weibull function was incorporated with FE analysis to calculate the long term failure probability. Regarding the stresses that occurred in enamel, for each group of material, ME restoration design transmitted less stress than endocrown. During normal occlusal function, the overall failure probability was minimum for ME with VMII. ME restoration design w...

Olive tree pruning, as one of the most abundant lignocellulosic residues in Mediterranean countries, has been evaluated as a source of sugars for fuel and chemicals production. A mild acid pretreatment has been combined with a fungal pretreatment using either two endophytes (sp. andsp.) or a saprophyte (sp. I-62). The use of endophytes is based on the important role that some of them play during the initial stages of wood decomposition. Without acid treatment, fungal pretreatment withsp. provided a nonsignificant enhancement of 4.6% in glucose digestibility, compared to control. When a mild acid hydrolysis was carried out after fungal pretreatments, significant increases in glucose digestibility from 4.9% to 12.0% (compared to control without fungi) were observed for all fungal pretreatments, with maximum values yielded bysp. However, despite the observed digestibility boost, the total sugar yields (taking into account solid yield) were not significantly increased by the pretreatmen...

Introduction. Irrational medicine use is a global problem, and one of its manifestation is inappropriate prescribing that occurs when medicines are not prescribed in accordance with the guideline. Objective. The aim of the study was to assess prescription completeness and drug use pattern of the hospital using the WHO core drug use indicators. Methods. 1000 prescriptions were collected retrospectively from prescriptions written for 1 year from outpatient pharmacies of the hospital. Exit interview was employed to assess patient care indicators. The health facility indicators were checked by assessing the presence of drug formulary and availability of key medicines at the facility. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results. It was found that only name of the patients was filled in all the prescriptions. Other informations were below the standard. The average number of drugs per prescription was 1.65. Percentages of encounter by generic name, with antibiotic and injections, wer...