Evaluation of CD11b expression on peripheral blood neutrophils for early detection of neonatal sepsis

Neonatal sepsis is a disease of infants who are less than 1 month of age. These infants are clinically ill, and their blood culture are positive for bacteria. The reported incidence of neonatal sepsis for all infants is 1 to 10 per 1000 live births. The mortality rate is 4.2-26%. The clinical signs are not specific and diagnosis of neonatal sepsis is one of the most difficult tasks in clinical medicine. The aim of this work was determination of CD11b sensitivity and specificity for early detection of neonatal sepsis. We studied 65 neonates with gestational age of 27 to 38 weeks who were suspected for sepsis within the 28 days of life. Whole blood was obtained from neonates to determine CD11b expression on peripheral blood neutrophils by flow cytometry. C-Reactive protein (CRP) was measured qualitatively. Neonates were divided into two groups. Classification was based on the result of the blood culture. In the sepsis group all of the neonates (n=8) showed positive blood culture and clinical symptoms. In the suspected group (n=57) the neonates showed clinical signs but blood cultures were negative. Sensitivity and specificity of CD11b were 75%, 100% respectively. Also positive and negative predictive values of CD11b were 100% and 86% respectively. Results of present study and previous studies showed that measurement of neutrophil surface markers can be useful for diagnosis of infection in the early phases. Also, the quantitative measurement of CRP in addition to CD11b further enhances the ability to diagnose infections and improves sensitivity and negative predictive value by 100%.     

Effect of chlorhexidine application on long-term shear bond strength of resin cements to dentin

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of chlorhexidine [CH] on dentin bond strength of three resin cements after 1 year of water storage.MethodsA flat middle dentin surface was prepared on 120 extracted premolars. The teeth were randomly divided into 6 groups of 20 specimens each according to the resin cement used: Panavia F2.0, Variolink II, and RelyX Unicem, with or without CH application. After cementation of an indirect composite rod [Z250], one subgroup [n = 10] was tested after 24 h in water at 37 °C and the other subgroup [n = 10] was tested after 1 year storage in water plus thermocycling. A shear bond strength [SBS] test was performed. The data [in MPa] were analyzed with ANOVA and Tukey tests [P < 0.05].ResultsThree-way ANOVA [resin cement, CH and time] indicated that Variolink II had the highest strength [16.65 ± 3.60] and RelyX Unicem had the lowest strength [9.30 ± 4.07]. Chlorhexidine application increased SBS [13.31 ± 4.61] compared to samples without CH [12.16 ± 5.04] [P = 0.04]. Initial SBS [15.63 ± 4.37] was significantly higher than after 1 year of storage [9.85 ± 3.36] [P < 0.001]. Separate two-way ANOVA for 24-h and 1-year data showed that cement had a significant effect but CH and its interaction had no significant effect at 24 h, whereas at 1 year the two factors and their interaction differed significantly [P ≤ 0.001].ConclusionsChlorhexidine 2% can diminish the loss of bonding effectiveness over time associated to etch-and-rinse and self-etch cements, although it appears not have any effect on self-adhesive cement.     

Hypnotherapy in management of pain and reexperiencing of trauma in burn patients

This study examined the effects of hypnosis on both pain and reexperiencing of trauma in burn patients. Forty-four patients hospitalized for burn care were randomly assigned to either hypnotherapy or a control group. Direct and indirect hypnotic suggestions were used to reduce pain and reexperiencing of trauma. All patients received routine burn care. Pain reports were quantified by using a self-report numeric rating scale ranging from 0 to 5. The number of recalled vivid, troubling events of the trauma in 24-hour intervals was used for rating the reexperiencing of trauma. The hypnotherapy group showed significantly lower pain ratings than the control group and reported a significant reduction in pain from baseline. There was a significant reduction in trauma reexperience scores in the hypnotherapy group but not the control group. The findings support the efficacy of hypnotherapy in the management of both pain and reexperiencing of trauma in burn patients.     

Effect of parental morphine addiction on hippocampal long-term potentiation in rats offspring

Attention to addiction of women alone for fetus and infant's health has caused the possible role of father's status was less considered, while some developmental impairments including decrease of liter size, weight loss, congenital deficiencies, behavioral disorders, and learning and memory impairments in offspring with addicted father have been reported. In this study the effects of addiction of one or both parents to morphine on male and female offspring hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP), were assessed. One hundred twenty female and 48 male rats (4-5 months, 250-270 g) were used. Forty females and 16 males were addicted by oral administration of morphine (32 mg/kg twice daily) for 5 days before mating. Then each two males with five females were housed (coupled) per cage as five groups for coupling: (A) addicted females+5% dextrose males (add.F); (B) addicted males+5% dextrose females (add.M); (C) addicted females+addicted males (add.MF); (D) 5% dextrose females+intact males (dex.F); (E) 5% dextrose males+intact females (dex.M). In puberty offspring LTP was induced in hippocampal dentate gyrus by stimulation of perforant path (pp). Changes of population spikes (PS) amplitude and LTP slope at 0, 5, 30, 60 and 120 min were evaluated. Slope of LTP at 30, 60 and 120 min, and amplitude of PS at 60 and 120 min in add.F and add.M offspring were significantly lower than dextrose groups (P<0.01). LTP slope and PS amplitude of male and female offspring did not different between add.F and add.M groups. Our results suggest that both parental and paternal addiction to morphine may cause memory deficiency through reduction of LTP in hippocampus.     

Nifedipine suppresses morphine-induced thermal hyperalgesia: evidence for the role of corticosterone

It has been shown that systemic administration of morphine induced a hyperalgesic response at an extremely low dose. We have examined the effect of nifedipine, as a calcium channel blocker, on morphine-induced hyperalgesia in intact and adrenalectomized rats and on hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity induced by ultra-low dose of morphine. To determine the effect of nifedipine on hyperalgesic effect of morphine, nifedipine (2 mg/kg i.p. and 10 microg i.t.) that had no nociceptive effect, was injected concomitant with morphine (1 microg/kg i.p. and 0.01 microg i.t. respectively). The tail-flick test was used to assess the nociceptive threshold, before and 30, 60, 120, 180, 240 and 300 min after drug administration. The data showed that low dose morphine systemic administration could produce hyperalgesic effect in adrenalectomized rats equivalent to sham-operated animals while intrathecal injection of morphine only elicited hyperalgesia in sham-operated animals. Nifedipine could block morphine-induced hyperalgesia in sham and adrenalectomized rats and even a mild analgesic effect was observed in the adrenalectomized group which was reversed by corticosterone replacement. Systemic administration of low dose morphine produced significant increase in plasma level of corticosterone. Nifedipine has an inhibitory effect on morphine-induced corticosterone secretion. Thus, the data indicate that dihydropyridine calcium channels are involved in ultra-low dose morphine-induced hyperalgesia and that both the pattern of morphine hyperalgesia and the blockage of it by nifedipine are modulated by manipulation of the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis.     

NMDA receptors of dorsal hippocampus are involved in the acquisition, but not in the expression of morphine-induced place preference

In the present study, involvement of the N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors of the CA1 region of dorsal hippocampus (intra-CA1) in the acquisition or expression of morphine-induced conditioned place preference in rats was studied. Male Wistar rats were used in these experiments. NMDA-receptor agonist (NMDA) and antagonist (MK-801) were injected into the CA1 region of the dorsal hippocampus (intra-CA1) and morphine was injected subcutaneously. An unbiased conditioned place preference paradigm was used to study the effect of these agents. In the first set of experiments, the drugs were used during the development of conditioned place preference by morphine or they were used alone in order to see if they induce conditioned place preference or conditioned place aversion. Our data showed that subcutaneous (s.c.) injection of morphine sulphate (2.5-10 mg/kg) induced conditioned place preference in rat. NMDA (0.1-1 microg/rat) or MK-801 (1-4 microg/rat) did not induce conditioned place preference or conditioned place aversion. Intra-CA1 administration of different doses of NMDA (0.1-1 microg/rat) increased, while MK-801 (1-4 microg/rat) decreased morphine-induced place preference. MK-801 reversed the effect of NMDA on morphine response. In the second set of experiments, when the drugs were used before testing on Day 5, in order to test their effects on the expression of morphine (7.5 mg/kg)-induced place preference, intra-CA1 administration of NMDA or MK-801 did not alter the morphine response. None of the drugs influenced locomotion. It is concluded that NMDA receptor of the CA1 region of hippocampus are involved in the acquisition but not expression of morphine-induced place preference.     

A case of granulomatous mastitis with erythema nodosum and arthritis

Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis is an inflammatory mass in the breast. Patients typically present with a firm breast mass, often associated with inflammation of the overlying skin. Nipple retraction, peau d’orange-like changes, and axillary adenopathy may be present. We describe a 23-year-old pregnant woman with arthritis, erythema nodosum, and mastitis.     

Cellular and molecular interactions between MC3T3-E1 pre-osteoblasts and nanostructured titanium produced by high-pressure torsion

Ultra-fine surface features are commonly used to modulate cellular activity on a variety of materials. The continuing challenge for materials in contact with bone is the development of a material with both favorable surface and bulk properties to modulate not only the cell-substrate interactions, but also to ensure the long-term stability of the implant. In a combined approach involving material sciences and cell and molecular biology, the nature and mechanism of cell-substrate interaction, in particular, the molecular machinery controlling cell response to the surface of the nanostructured titanium based material produced by the high pressure torsion (HPT) process is assessed. The degree of pre-osteoblast attachment and rate of growth, which are regulated through the activity and interaction of proteins present in the extracellular matrix and associated with cytoskeleton and focal adhesion, are notably increased on the HPT-processed titanium substrates. The improved cell activity is attributed to the nanostructured feature of these substrates consisting of ultra-fine crystals (<50 nm) and a distinct surface oxide layer which provide higher degree of surface wettability. These findings demonstrate the advantages of HPT-processed titanium over the conventional and coated titanium implants, as both mechanical properties and cellular response are improved.     

Tumor-Derived Matrix Metalloproteinase-13 (MMP-13) Expression in Benign and Malignant Breast Lesions

Introduction: Breast carcinoma is the most common malignancy and the leading cause of cancer death in women. Matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP-13) is a hypothetical prognostic marker in invasive breast cancer. This study aimed to determine MMP-13 expression in benign and malignant breast lesions and to evaluate the correlation between MMP-13 expression and tumor characteristics in invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC). Materials and Method: We evaluated cytoplasmic expression of MMP-13 based on staining index using immunohistochemistry (IHC) in epithelial cells, stromal fibroblasts of IDC (n=90) and benign epithelial breast (n=90) lesions. Correlation between IHC and tumor size, lymph node status, distance metastasis, estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and Her-2/neu was assessed. Results: MMP-13 expression was 45% and 38.8% in malignant epithelial cells and peritumoral fibroblasts, respectively. Only low level of MMP-13 expression was seen in benign breast lesions (8.8% in epithelial component and 2.2% in stromal fibroblasts), while high level of MMP-13 expression was noted in malignant tumors, mainly grade II or III. Cytoplasmic MMP-13 expressions in epithelial tumor cells was correlated significantly with peritumoral fibroblasts. MMP-13 expression was directly correlated with distant metastasis and tumor stage in epithelial tumoral cells and was inversely correlated with progesterone expression in both tumoral and stromal cells. Conclusion: This study showed that MMP-13 was a moderator for tumor invasion and metastasis and could be an independent predictor of poor prognosis in breast cancer. The role of MMP-13 in predicting the risk of malignant transformation in benign lesions should be further investigated.