Serum levels of alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E) in Parkinson's disease.

To elucidate the possible role of vitamin E in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD), we compared serum levels of alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E), measured by high-performance liquid chromatography, and the vitamin E/cholesterol ratio of 42 Parkinson's disease (PD) patients using their spouses as the control group. The serum levels of vitamin E did not differ significantly between the groups (13.84 +/- 0.56 micrograms/ml for PD and 14.80 +/- 0.57 micrograms/ml for controls), nor did the vitamin E/cholesterol ratio (0.64 +/- 0.03 for both groups). There was no influence of antiparkinsonian therapy on vitamin E or the vitamin E/cholesterol ratio. Serum levels of the vitamin E and vitamin E/cholesterol ratio did not correlate with age, age at onset, scores of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale or the Hoehn and Yahr staging in the PD group. These results suggest that serum vitamin E concentrations do not play a role in the pathogenesis of PD.     

The Chemical Protecting Group Concept Applied in Crosslinking of Natural Tissues with Glutaraldehyde Acetals

This work describes the results of the controlled crosslinking of collagen matrices by glutaraldehyde based on a double protection strategy, glutaraldehyde acetals and lysine protonation due to the acidic conditions of acetal formation. Materials crosslinked by this approach were characterized by thermal stability comparable to those obtained by conventional procedures with mechanical properties expected for bioprosthesis manufacture and with a higher stability toward collagenase hydrolysis. The integrity of the microfibrillar structure was confirmed by optical and scanning electronic microscopy. The results indicate that the glutaraldehyde acetals procedure may be of potential use for the crosslinking of bovine pericardium used in the manufacture of bioprosthetic devices. Advantages may be related to the production of materials with homogeneous crosslinking distributions, associated with better definition in the nature of the chemical link that they introduce, due to a better distribution of glutaraldehyde within the tissue matrix before the crosslinking reaction is allowed to occur. As a result, materials with improved biological and mechanical properties are expected.     

Endocrinology: Intravenous albumin does not prevent the development of severe ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome in an in-vitro fertilization programme

A cohort study was undertaken to compare the effect at the timeof oocyte retrieval of the i.v. administration of either 1000ml of lactated Ringer' solution or 1000 ml of a 5% solutionof human albumin on in-vitro fertilization patients at riskfor severe ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS). A totalof 207 patients with an oestradiol concentration > 10 000pmol/l and/or > 15 follicles (>10 mm diameter) on theday of human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) injection were reviewed.Of these, 158 women received 500 ml of lactated Ringer’ssolution both before and after egg retrieval, and 49 women receivedtwo infusions of 500 ml of 5% human albumin in normal salineat the time of egg retrieval. Severe OHSS developed in two patientswho received human albumin and in 10 women who did not receivethe albumin. This difference was not statistically significant.There were no differences between the two groups in terms ofage, number of follicles punctured at transvaginal oocyte retrievalor oestradiol concentration at the time of HCG injection. Theadministration of a 5% human albumin solution does not preventthe development of severe OHSS in at risk patients. It doesappear to blunt the severity of the condition.     

Evolution of foot-and-mouth disease virus

Foot-and-mouth disease virus evolution is strongly influenced by high mutation rates and a quasispecies dynamics. Mutant swarms are subjected to positive selection, negative selection and random drift of genomes. Adaptation is the result of selective amplification of subpopulations of genomes. The extent of adaptation to a given environment is quantified by a relative fitness value. Fitness values depend on the virus and its physical and biological environment. Generally, infections involving large population passages result in fitness gain and population bottlenecks lead to fitness loss. Very different types of mutations tend to accumulate in the foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) genome depending on the virus population size during replication. Quasispecies dynamics predict higher probability of success of antiviral strategies based on multivalent vaccines and combination therapy, and this has been supported by clinical and veterinary practice. Quasispecies suggest also new antiviral strategies based on virus entry into error catastrophe, and such procedures are under investigation. Studies with FMDV have contributed to the understanding of quasispecies dynamics and some of its biological implications.     

Simple and rapid detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex organisms in bovine tissue samples by PCR.

Mycobacterium bovis is a slowly growing microorganism, and confirmation of the diagnosis by conventional culture is a lengthy process. A simple, rapid method for the extraction of DNA from bovine tissue samples was developed and used in a PCR designed for the diagnosis of tuberculosis. Tissues from 81 cattle from tuberculosis-infected herds (group 1) and 19 cattle from tuberculosis-free herds (group 2) were tested in this PCR, and the results were compared with those of conventional culture. The PCR assay detected 71.4% of the culture-positive animals from group 1. Tissue from all animals in group 2 were negative in the PCR assay and by culture. The described method could be used as a rapid screening technique which would be complementary to culture of tissue specimens for the routine diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis. The PCR technique is much faster than culture and reduces the time for diagnosis from several months to 2 days. It also provides for the detection of M. bovis when rapidly growing Mycobacterium spp. are present in the sample and may be able to detect the presence of M. bovis in samples even when organisms have become nonviable.     

Patterns of reactivity to lipid transfer proteins of plant foods and Artemisia pollen: an in vivo study

BACKGROUND: Lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) are major allergens of Rosaceae fruits in the Mediterranean area. IgE-cross-reactivity has been demonstrated in vitro among LTPs from peach, apple, chestnut and Artemisia pollen. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reactivity to LTPs from peach, apple, chestnut and Artemisia pollen by means of skin prick tests (SPTs). METHODS: Forty-seven patients allergic to peach (peach group), 20 patients sensitized to Artemisia pollen with no food allergies (Artemisia group), and 12 control subjects were skin tested with fresh peach, as well as with whole extracts and purified LTPs of peach, apple, chestnut and Artemisia pollen. RESULTS: The rates of positive SPTs for peach, apple, chestnut and Artemisia LTPs were, respectively, 91, 77, 23, and 36% in the peach group, and 30, 5, 15 and 40% in the Artemisia group. No response was observed in the control subjects. SPTs with peach LTP strongly correlated with SPTs conducted with fresh peach. In the peach group, the most frequent pattern of reactivity to LTPs was the combination peach-apple (45%), followed by peach-apple-Artemisia-chestnut (21%). Significant correlations were found between peach and apple LTPs, and between Artemisia and chestnut LTPs. Positive SPTs to chestnut LTP were only observed in patients with positive SPTs to Artemisia LTP. All the patients with positive case histories to chestnut reacted to chestnut LTP. CONCLUSIONS: LTPs are plant panallergens with different patterns of cross-reactivity. They are major allergens of Rosaceae fruits and seem to be involved in allergic reactions to unrelated foodstuffs such as chestnut, probably through sensitization to the cross-reactive Artemisia LTP. Rosaceae LTPs could be useful tools for in vivo diagnosis of Rosaceae fruit allergy.     

Profilin-mediated food-induced allergic reactions are associated with oral epithelial remodeling

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High-Level Mupirocin Resistance among Spanish Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

 Twelve strains of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus with high-level resistance to mupirocin were studied. The MIC of methicillin was 16 to 128 mg/l and the MIC of mupirocin ≥512 mg/l. All of the isolates carried a plasmid of about 30 MDa, and one strain lost resistance to mupirocin when the plasmid was cured. Three different resistance patterns were found: six strains were resistant to ciprofloxacin, kanamycin, and 10 mg/l of cadmium sulfate; two strains were resistant to these agents as well as to gentamicin, erythromycin, clindamycin, mercury chloride, and ethidium bromide; and four strains were resistant to the previously named agents as well as to rifampicin and tetracycline. The use of this valuable topical antibiotic, especially in long-term-care facilities, should be monitored to avoid dissemination of resistance.