Spurious automated red cell parameters due to cold agglutinins--a report of two cases

Although automation in hematology has resulted in improved accuracy of results, there are certain clinical conditions in which even the technologically advanced cell counters give out spurious results. It is therefore important that operators of these instruments are aware of these factitious results and the clues in the automated data that can be of help in identifying them. Two cases with spurious automated red cell parameters due to cold agglutinins are reported here.     

Evaluation of germ tube test in various media

One of the most valuable tests for the rapid presumptive identification of Candida albicans is germ tube production. Previously researchers have concluded superior results with serum in germ tube test. However, handling of pooled human serum has danger of acquisition of hepatitis and HIV infections. Therefore, in the present study we compared various media--pooled human serum, sterile horse serum, peptone water and tryptic soy broth. It was observed that human serum remains to be the best with 100% positivity for identification of C. albicans followed by horse serum (76.3%), peptone water (61.8%) and tryptic soy broth (61.8%).     

Sudomotor sympathetic hypofunction in Down's syndrome

General sympathetic dysfunction has been proposed as an explanation for the inability to reach normal heightened attention in Down's syndrome (DS). The present study on 15 DS subjects (group average age +/- SD, 14.3 +/- 3.6 years; 11 males) and in an equal number of age- and gender-matched normal subjects (NS), evaluated activity in different subdivisions of the sympathetic nervous system. DS subjects had (i) lower skin conductance levels (i.e., lower sudomotor sympathetic activity) and (ii) higher heart rates than NS. In response to auditory stimuli, DS subjects showed abnormal SSR responses (also indicating sudomotor sympathetic activity) but normal cutaneous vasoconstriction. Hence the results suggest that sympathetic dysfunction in DS is restricted to the sudomotor subdivision, activity of which has been associated with attention and recognition.     

Pharmacological studies on nitro‐naproxen (naproxen‐2‐nitrooxyethylester)

Naproxen‐2‐nitrooxyethylester (S‐(+)‐2‐(6‐methoxy‐2‐naphthyl)propanoic acid‐2‐nitrooxyethylester, LE‐EK06) was synthesized from naproxen and 2‐nitrooxyethylbromide as a novel nitric oxide–releasing derivative of naproxen. Molar equivalents of LE‐EK06 (6.93–27.73 mg/kg, p.o.) to naproxen dose‐dependently exhibited greater antinociceptive activity in comparison to naproxen in a writhing assay. The compound (5.54–22.18 mg/kg, p.o.) showed greater anti‐inflammatory activity at 2 h after as comparable to its effect at 4 h after carrageenan challenge in rats. Further, LE‐EK06 (9.45 mg/kg, p.o.) was more potent in the carrageenan‐evoked hyperalgesia. LE‐EK06 (11.09 mg/kg, p.o.) and naproxen (8.0 mg/kg, p.o.) showed a comparable inhibitory effect on exudate formation and migration of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) in a carrageenan‐induced pleurisy test. Further, the compound (11.09 mg/kg, p.o.) significantly reduced myeloperoxidase activity in carrageenan‐treated paw and demonstrated significantly less gastrotoxicity in acute and chronic (21 days) studies. The scanning electron microscopy revealed that LE‐EK06 showed only mild gastric damage (slight disruption of mucus layer) in comparison to naproxen. The present study suggested that naproxen‐2‐nitrooxyethylester (LE‐EK06) represents a novel gastric sparing NSAID. Drug Dev. Res. 61:66–78, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Neurilemmoma of cervical sympathetic chain

Neurilemmoma of the cervical sympathetic chain is a rare nerve tumour. Less than 40 confirmed cases have been reported in the literature.1 2 Sometimes they can he mistaken as carotid body tumour but usual presentation of these lesions is an asymptomatic neck mass. Because of the rarity of the tumour we report another case of neurilemmoma arising from cervical sympathetic chain in a 19 years old male.     

Supravital staining: It's role in detecting early malignancies

The efficacy of supravital staining in the detection of malignancies in oro and oropharyngeal lesions and its role in the detection of malignant changes in premalignant lesions were studied. This prospective study comprises 90 cases of clinically suspicious lesions and it was done over a period of 3 years. Most of the patients had multiple risk factors for the development of malignancy. All underwent staining with a modified solution of 1% toluidine blue (TB). In our study the overall sensitivity was 97.29% and the specificity was 62.5%.     

Objective assessment of the human visual attentional state

Primary objective

The purpose of this study was to develop an objective way to assess human visual attention using the alpha-band component of the visual-evoked potential (VEP).

Design and methods

Six different attentional conditions were tested: eyes-open, eyes-closed, eyes-closed with backwards number counting, and three rapid-serial visual presentation (RSVP) tasks. Eighteen visually normal, young-adult subjects (ages 21–28 years) were tested binocularly at 1 m for each condition on two separate days. The Diopsys? NOVA-TR system was used to obtain the visual-evoked potential (VEP) and extracted alpha wave and its related power spectrum. Additionally, the Visual Search and Attention Test (VSAT) was administered as a subjective measure of visual attention.

Results

Subjects exhibited significant decreases in power in the alpha band when comparing the eyes-closed with the eyes-open conditions, with power in the eyes-closed condition being, on average, twice as large. The response from the other four conditions did not reflect the differential attentional demands. The ratio of the power in the eyes-closed condition to the eyes-open condition in the lower-alpha frequencies (8–10 Hz) was found to be significantly correlated with the group’s performance on the VSAT, especially the 10-Hz component.

Conclusions

An individual’s ability to attenuate their alpha component during visual processing may be a predictor of their visual attentional state. These findings solidify the role of the VEP alpha subcomponent as an objective electrophysiological correlate of visual attention, which may be useful in the diagnosis and treatment of human visual attention disorders in the future.     

Reduction of 4-nitrophenol using green-fabricated metal nanoparticles

Noble metal (silver (Ag), gold (Au), platinum (Pt), and palladium (Pd)) nanoparticles have gained increasing attention due to their importance in several research fields such as environmental and medical research. This review focuses on the basic perceptions of the green synthesis of metal nanoparticles and their supported-catalyst-based reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP). The mechanisms for the formation of these nanoparticles and the catalytic reduction of 4-NP are discussed. Furthermore, the parameters that need to be considered in the catalytic efficiency calculations and perspectives for future studies are also discussed.

Noble metal (silver (Ag), gold (Au), platinum (Pt), and palladium (Pd)) nanoparticles have gained increasing attention due to their importance in several research fields such as environmental and medical research.