Better retention of Malaysian opiate dependents treated with high dose methadone in methadone maintenance therapy

Background  

Methadone is a synthetic opiate mu receptor agonist that is widely used to substitute for illicit opiates in the management of opiate dependence. It helps prevent opiate users from injecting and sharing needles which are vehicles for the spread of HIV and other blood borne viruses. This study has the objective of determining the utility of daily methadone dose to predict retention rates and re-injecting behaviour among opiate dependents.     

Diazotrophic growth of Rhodospirillum rubrum with 2-oxoglutarate as sole carbon source affects regulation of nitrogen metabolism as well as the soluble proteome

2-Oxoglutarate plays a central role as a signal in the regulation of nitrogen metabolism in the phototrophic diazotroph Rhodospirillum rubrum. In order to further study the role of this metabolite, we have constructed an R. rubrum strain that has the capacity to grow on 2-oxoglutarate as sole carbon source, in contrast to wild-type R. rubrum. This strain has the same growth characteristics as wild-type with malate as carbon source, but showed clear metabolic differences when 2-oxoglutarate was used. Among other things, the regulation of nitrogen metabolism is altered, which can be related to different modification profiles of the regulatory PII proteins.     

Patients with coeliac disease have a characteristic gliadin antibody pattern

By use of an immunoblotting technique we have investigated the specificity of circulating IgG antibodies with respect to reactions with the alpha-, beta-, gamma- and omega-fractions of gliadin in patients with coeliac disease and in patients with diarrhoea of other causes. Untreated coeliac patients show a characteristic reactivity against polypeptides in the gamma-fraction, with an Mr of 35 and 45 kilodaltons, but only minor reactivity against the other fractions. One coeliac patient exclusively had antibodies to a 80 kilodalton component. Such a reaction pattern was not observed in other groups of patients with diarrhoea, as they had only weak reactions against the gamma-fraction but a stronger reaction against the other fractions. This might indicate that enterocytes of coeliac patients specifically take up distinct polypeptides of gamma-gliadin and by transcellular transport present them to immunocompetent cells. The results also suggest that there are distinct components of gliadin that provoke symptoms in different coeliac patients, indicating a heterogenecity of the disease. The study might lead to new diagnostic methods and to elucidation of the pathogenetic mechanisms behind coeliac disease.     

Ribosome and free amino acid content in muscle during hemodialysis

Patients (N = 8) with chronic renal failure and uremia treated with hospital hemodialysis were in a pilot study investigated before and after a single hemodialysis session. The extracorporeal dialysis circuit was flushed regularly with saline to avoid clotting and the use of heparin. Percutaneous skeletal muscle biopsies were taken before and after the dialysis to determine the content of free amino acids together with the concentration and size distribution of ribosomes before and after dialysis. After dialysis the alanine concentration in muscle decreased by 20% (P less than 0.05), while all other amino acids were unaffected. The total ribosome concentration per mg of DNA decreased by 31% (P less than 0.01) and the relative proportion of polyribosomes by 7% (P less than 0.05) after the dialysis compared to predialytic values. All individual plasma amino acids decreased during the dialysis procedure except for threonine and arginine, which were unaltered, and leucine and isoleucine, which increased. The decline in ribosome and polyribosome content together with the changes in amino acid levels indicate a low capacity for protein synthesis and increased catabolism in muscle of hemodialyzed patients.     

Levels of benzene concentrations emitted from motor vehicles in various sites in Nibong Tebal, Malaysia

Benzene is classified as carcinogenic compound which is emitted mainly from cars. In this study, benzene was measured at various sites in Nibong Tebal (urban, suburban, town, and rural) of different traffic volume, and traffic counts were performed simultaneously. Monitoring was carried out during the morning and afternoon traffic peaks. The aim of this study is to monitor benzene concentration at several development sites with different traffic flow. The monitoring was done by using indoor air quality meter. The results obtained from monitoring show that the mean concentrations of benzene ranged from 54.7 ppb in the suburban area to 115.1 ppb in the town area. Multiple linear regression analysis correlated the benzene concentrations with traffic volume, temperature, humidity, and time of monitoring as predictors. The results show that R ² of the model was 0.97 in Taman Cowin site, and it was 0.47 in Taman Nibong Tebal Jaya site. Negative correlation was found between benzene concentration and temperature while there was positive correlation with humidity being found through the study. Pearson’s correlation indicates that gasoline vehicular exhaust could be the major source of benzene. The UK Air Quality Standards stipulated that the annual mean of ambient benzene should not exceed 5 ppb or 16.25 μg/m³. The results show that the current concentrations of benzene exceeded the permissible limits set by the UK standards.     

Machine learning methods applied on dental fear and behavior management problems in children.

The etiologies of dental fear and dental behavior management problems in children were investigated in a database of information on 2,257 Swedish children 4-6 and 9-11 years old. The analyses were performed using computerized inductive techniques within the field of artificial intelligence. The database held information regarding dental fear levels and behavior management problems, which were defined as outcomes, i.e. dependent variables. The attributes, i.e. independent variables, included data on dental health and dental treatments, information about parental dental fear, general anxiety, socioeconomic variables, etc. The data contained both numerical and discrete variables. The analyses were performed using an inductive analysis program (XpertRule Analyser, Attar Software Ltd, Lancashire, UK) that presents the results in a hierarchic diagram called a knowledge tree. The importance of the different attributes is represented by their position in this diagram. The results show that inductive methods are well suited for analyzing multifactorial and complex relationships in large data sets, and are thus a useful complement to multivariate statistical techniques. The knowledge trees for the two outcomes, dental fear and behavior management problems, were very different from each other, suggesting that the two phenomena are not equivalent. Dental fear was found to be more related to non-dental variables, whereas dental behavior management problems seemed connected to dental variables.     

Lumbar back and posterior pelvic pain during pregnancy: a 3-year follow-up

This study is a prospective, consecutive, 3-year cohort study of women with back pain in an index pregnancy. The aim was to describe the physical status and disability among women with back pain 3 years after delivery. Pain was identified as lumbar back pain, posterior pelvic pain or combined lumbar as well as posterior pelvic pain. Previous studies have established that all three types of pain can be reduced by structured physiotherapy during pregnancy, and the beneficial effect may last for several years. Though it is known that some women have residual pain for a long time, the relative incidence of the three pain types and their degree of disability associated with each have never been reported. Neither has any study presented findings of a physical examination of women 3 years post partum with a focus on the type of pain. All women who were registered as having experienced back pain during an index pregnancy were interviewed by mail 3 years post partum. Women who had residual back pain filled in an additional questionnaire and were physically examined. Out of 799 pregnant women, 231 had some type of back pain during the index pregnancy, and 41 women had pain 3 years later. Women with combined lumbar and posterior pelvic pain were significantly more disabled ( P<0.05) and had significantly lower endurance in the lumbar back and hip abduction muscles ( P<0.01). Some 5% of all pregnant women, or 20% of all women with back pain during pregnancy, had pain 3 years later. The key problem may be poor muscle function in the back and pelvis.     

Fluorine uptake in bovine enamel from various treatment agents

Bovine tooth enamel with a low and uniform fluorine content was used for the study of fluorine uptake by the Micro-Acid-Drop enamel biopsy technique from different treatment agents commonly used in Sweden. The fluorine concentration in the enamel was also measured after an exposure of the treated test surfaces in artificial saliva for 90 minutes. Sodium fluoride 0.2% and 2%, ferric aluminum fluoride solution and Duraphat varnish showed a high uptake of fluorine in the enamel with the highest concentration in the surface layer. Fluor Protector and the toothpastes showed a considerably lower fluorine uptake. After immersion in artificial saliva of the specimens, the concentration of fluorine in the enamel decreased.     

Updates on k13 mutant alleles for artemisinin resistance in Plasmodium falciparum

Background

In the fight against malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum, the successes achieved by artemisinin were endangered by resistance of the parasites to the drug. Whole genome sequencing approach on artemisinin resistant parasite line discovered k13 gene associated with drug resistance. In vitro and in vivo studies indicated mutations in the k13 gene were linked to the artemisinin resistance.