HPLC analysis of some allowable-antibiotic multiresidues in farmed rainbow trout in Iran

This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of antibiotic residues in rainbow trout muscle samples (n?=?74) obtained from Iranian trout farms. The levels of the antibiotics were determined by in-house validated HPLC methods. Oxytetracycline, tetracycline, enrofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, and florfenicol residues were detected in 6.76%, 37.8%, 31.1%, 10.8%, and 14.9% of the samples, respectively; while chlortetracycline was not detected. The detected range of concentrations for positive samples was 8.94–81.2 μg/kg for oxytetracycline, 7.99–98.4 μg/kg for tetracycline, 6.75–87.4 μg/kg for enrofloxacin, 5.83–11.5 μg/kg for ciprofloxacin, and 49.9–313.6 μg/kg for florfenicol. None of the samples exceeded the maximum residue levels (MRLs) established by the Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran. The co-occurrence of antibiotics was detected in 40.5% of the analyzed samples. The frequency of co-occurrence of enrofloxacin-tetracycline was the highest (16.2%). Despite the fact that concentrations of the analyzed antibiotics in trout samples did not exceed the MRLs, their co-occurrence in such a level could be a serious public health problem.     

Significance of vascular endothelial growth factor in growth and peritoneal dissemination of ovarian cancer

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a key regulator of angiogenesis which drives endothelial cell survival, proliferation, and migration while increasing vascular permeability. Playing an important role in the physiology of normal ovaries, VEGF has also been implicated in the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer. Essentially by promoting tumor angiogenesis and enhancing vascular permeability, VEGF contributes to the development of peritoneal carcinomatosis associated with malignant ascites formation, the characteristic feature of advanced ovarian cancer at diagnosis. In both experimental and clinical studies, VEGF levels have been inversely correlated with survival. Moreover, VEGF inhibition has been shown to inhibit tumor growth and ascites production and to suppress tumor invasion and metastasis. These findings have laid the basis for the clinical evaluation of agents targeting VEGF signaling pathway in patients with ovarian cancer. In this review, we will focus on VEGF involvement in the pathophysiology of ovarian cancer and its contribution to the disease progression and dissemination.     

Adenovirus-mediated expression of 5-HT1B receptors in cardiac ventricle myocytes; coupling to inwardly rectifying K channels

The 5-HT_1B receptor is expressed on nerve terminals where it inhibits neurotransmitter release. When expressed ectopically in fibroblasts, the 5-HT_1B receptor inhibits adenylyl cyclase. However, in the central nervous system, the effect of this receptor on neurotransmitter release appears to be cAMP-independent. We therefore investigated alternative effector systems that might be activated by the 5-HT_1B receptor. We constructed a recombinant adenovirus that allows expression of high levels of the 5-HT_1B receptor in a variety of cells. We chose cardiac ventricle myocytes because they express a muscarinic-gated, inwardly rectifying K⁺ channel (i_KACh). In infected ventricle cells, both 5-HT and the muscarinic receptor agonist, carbachol, elicited a similar inwardly rectifying K⁺ current. The currents elicited by these agonists were pertussis-toxin sensitive and were not additive. These results suggest a common signal transduction pathway for 5-HT_1B and muscarinic receptors in ventricle cells.     

A Serious but Rare Complication of Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding: Bowel Obstruction Due to Caecal Volvulus

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) is a widely performed surgical procedure for the treatment of morbid obesity. LAGB complications have declined since its development in the early 1990s. However, LAGB complications are still occurring and can sometimes be serious and life threatening. These complications are related either to the band or to the access port, such as band slippage or tubing disconnection, retrospectively. We report a rare case of bowel obstruction due to caecal volvulus caused by connecting tube used in LAP-BAND system in a bariatric operation, which obstructed a caecal loop, in a female who had undergone LAGB 2 years previously. Diagnosis of bowel obstruction was established with plain abdominal radiograph appearances. Follow-up abdominal computed tomography findings confirmed the diagnosis of caecal obstruction and revealed the underlying cause for this obstruction. Surgery was performed, and intraoperative examination demonstrated that connecting tube of the LAP-BAND system was a main causative factor. We can hypothesize that bowel obstruction secondary to LAGB operation may become frequently diagnosed as more LAGB operations performed worldwide. The emergence of many problems, such as this, can be minimized with enhancement in the development of better surgical materials, proper operative technique, and close postoperative management and follow-up.     

The Application of a Performance-Based Self-Administered Intra-procedural Checklist on Surgical Trainees During Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

Introduction

Surgical checklists are in use to reduce errors for safer surgery. We aimed to study the effect of a previously designed performance-based self-administered intra-procedural checklist on the performance of trainees during elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Methods

Twenty-four laparoscopic cholecystectomies were enrolled into the study. Six surgical trainees each performed four procedures, two without the checklist and directly followed by two procedures with the checklist. A soft beeping sound reminded each trainee to apply the checklist every 4 min during the procedures. The unedited videos were analysed using the human reliability analysis technique for the number of consequential errors, number of interventions by the trainer, number of instrument movements and time execution. The trainees’ satisfaction was assessed on a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire. Nonparametric test was used for data analysis. p value was defined as significant when p < 0.05.

Results

Participants performed statistically better with the application of the checklist compared to when no checklist was used, respectively: Median [IQR] total number of errors 1.51 [0.80] versus 3.84 [1.42] (p = 0.002) and consequential errors 0.20 [0.12] versus 0.45 [0.42] (p = 0.005), and the number of instrument movements per time decreased from 11.90 [5.34] to 10.38 [5.16] (p = 0.04). With the introduction of the checklist, the number of interventions by the trainer per time decreased from 2.79 [1.85] to 0.43 [1.208] (p = 0.003). The trainees satisfaction score was 4.5 [1] for the first question, 4 [1] for the second question and 4 [2] for the third question.

Conclusion

The self-administered intra-procedural checklist improved the performance of surgical trainees and decreased the number of interventions by the trainer during laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The trainees were generally satisfied using the checklist during the procedures.

     

Type-specific multiple sequencing primers: a novel strategy for reliable and rapid genotyping of human papillomaviruses by pyrosequencing technology

DNA sequencing is the gold standard method for accurate microbial and viral typing. However, DNA sequencing techniques have been facing limitations in typing of human papillomaviruses when the specimen harbors multiple genotypes and yields nonspecific amplification products, resulting in nonspecific and noninterpretable sequence data. To address these limitations we have developed a type-specific multiple sequencing primer DNA-sequencing method. This new strategy is suitable for sequencing and typing of samples harboring different genotypes (co-infections with multiple genotypes) and yielding nonspecific amplifications, thus eliminating the need for nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR), stringent PCR conditions, and cloning. The new approach has also proved useful for amplicons containing low PCR yield or subdominant types, avoiding reperforming of amplifications. We have applied the multiple sequencing primer method for genotyping of clinically relevant human papillomaviruses in a clinical test panel by using a combined pool of seven type-specific sequencing primers for HPV-6, -11, -16, -18, -31, -33, and -45. Furthermore, we introduced a sequence pattern recognition approach when there was a plurality of genotypes in the sample to facilitate typing of more than one target DNA in the sample. The multiple sequencing primer method has proved to be a multifaceted approach for typing of human papillomaviruses by DNA sequencing technologies.