Vertical transmission of Kaposi's sarcoma

AIDS related Kaposi's sarcoma is commonly seen in homosexual men, only occasionally in men and women with heterosexually acquired HIV, and extremely rarely in children. The case of an HIV infected mother and her vertically infected child who both developed visceral Kaposi's sarcoma is reported. It is proposed that the putative Kaposi's sarcoma agent may also be transmitted vertically.     

Dural infolding during C1-2 myelography

Inward buckling of the dura at C1-2 may occasionally occur with hyperextension of the neck and can result in a difficult or unsuccessful puncture when the posterior lateral C1-2 approach is used for cervical myelography. In this circumstance, placement of the head in a neutral or slightly flexed position may widen the posterior subarachnoid space and facilitate the needle puncture.     

Negative charge distribution and density on the surface of oxygenated normal and sickle red cells

Negative charges on the external surface of red cells were visualized by colloidal iron hydroxide labelling of 50% of the membrane area after osmotic hemolysis and glutaraldehyde fixation. Counts were made over randomly selected areas on electron micrographs at 350,000 x magnification. Statistical analyses showed that at the 95% level of confidence there was no significant difference between oxygenated normal (AA) and sickle (SS) cells in either the distribution or the density of negative charges.     

The Prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in Children,Taiz District,Yemen

Background

This is the first work done on cryptosporidiosis among the children in Taiz, Yemen.

Methods

A number of 712 samples were collected from children of different ages (ranging from 1 month to 12 years) from Dec 2006 to Aug 2007. The collected samples were examined by Sheather''s sugar floatation and Modified Ziehl- Neelsen stain as well as ELISA methods. The test results were statistically analyzed by SPSS software.

Results

The overall positive percentage was 43.7%. The higher incidence (36.2%) was occurred in males while the lowest incidence (32.7%) was observed in females (r=0.876; P=0.001). The correlation between infected cases and the type of drinking water was r =0.121. Among the cases examined by ELISA (92 cases), 26.1% were infected. The correlation between seropositivity and gender was r=0.652 (P=0.031).

Conclusion

Cryptosporidium spp. is a significant pathogen among children at Taiz. Fresh water supplies, education, eating habits and domestic animals are considered the main sources for transmission of cryptosporidiosis.     

Tissue Mineral Concentrations Are Profoundly Altered in Neonatal Piglets Fed Identical Diets via Gastric,Central Venous,or Portal Venous Routes

Background: Because gut absorption and liver sequestration are major mechanisms of mineral homeostasis, intestinal and hepatic bypass with parenteral feeding can lead to mineral toxicities. We employed a piglet model with multiple feeding routes to identify target organs susceptible to abnormal accumulation of minerals and to determine the importance of intestinal or hepatic metabolism. Methods: Fifteen 2‐ to 4‐day‐old piglets were fed identical complete elemental diets continuously for 8 days via central venous (intravenous [IV]), gastric (intragastric [IG]), or portal (intraportal [IP]) catheters. Concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, copper, iron, manganese, sodium, potassium, and chloride were measured in small intestinal mucosa, liver, kidney, and femur. Results: Compared with IG‐fed piglets, mineral sequestration patterns in IV‐ and IP‐fed piglets can be attributed to bypass of intestinal absorption inefficiencies, with moderate accumulations of minerals in tissues involved in mineral homeostasis. However, differences between IP and IV feeding were notable for iron, manganese, and copper, suggesting first‐pass hepatic metabolism is key to homeostasis of these minerals. Moreover, manganese and copper sequestration patterns reflected that for zinc, suggesting induction of metallothionein by parenteral zinc could interfere with metabolism of other minerals. Conclusions: We conclude that parenteral delivery of minerals to neonates needs to consider not only absorption efficiency but also mineral interactions and potentially toxic accumulation in target tissues, with particular concern for iron, copper, and zinc.     

维生素D_3对报告载体荧光素酶表达的作用

目的：　研究１,２５－二羟维生素Ｄ３ 对结肠癌细胞系Ｃａｃｏ－２ 细胞中报告基因表达的作用,并探讨在报告载体ｐＧＬ２ 序列中存在潜在的抑制性维生素Ｄ应答元件（ＶＤＲＥ）的可能性。方法：　采用磷酸钙沉淀法将报告载体转染入Ｃａｃｏ－２ 细胞。Ｃａｃｏ－２细胞经不同浓度１,２５－二羟维生素Ｄ３ 处理后测定细胞裂解液中表达的荧光素酶活性。结果：　应用ｐＧＬ２ 报告载体时,当用ｐＳＧ５－ＶＤＲ表达载体共转染后,１,２５－二羟维生素Ｄ３显著地抑制Ｃａｃｏ－２ 细胞荧光素酶的表达（Ｐ＜ ０．０５）;而未使用该表达载体共转染则无抑制作用（Ｐ＞ ０．０５）。应用ｐＧＬ３ 报告载体时,不同浓度的１,２５－二羟维生素Ｄ３ 对ｐＬＧ３转染后Ｃａｃｏ－２ 细胞表达的荧光素酶活性均无显著抑制作用（Ｐ＞ ０．０５）,该作用不依赖是否存在有ｐＳＧ５－ＶＤＲ表达载体共转染。结论：１,２５－二羟维生素Ｄ３ 对报告载体ＰＧＬ２ 荧光素酶表达具有抑制作用,而对ｐＧＬ３ 则否;类似人类ＰＴＨ基因中的潜在抑制性ＶＤＲＥ存在于报告载体ｐＧＬ２,在ｐＧＬ３ 中该ＶＤＲＥ业已改变。