Diagnostic potential of IS6110, 38kDa, 65kDa and 85B sequence-based polymerase chain reaction in the diagnosis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in clinical samples

Purpose: The correlation between the presence of specific gene sequence of M. tuberculosis and specific diagnosis of clinical tuberculosis is not known. This study compared the results of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of M. tuberculosis specific DNA sequences (IS6110, 65kDa, 38kDa and mRNA coding for 85 B protein) from different clinical samples of pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Methods: One hundred and seventy-two clinical samples from suspected tuberculosis patients were tested for smear examination, culture (LJ and rapid BACTEC 460 TB system) and PCR. PCR was performed with specific primers for the targets: IS6110, 65kDa, 38kDa and 85B. Results: Each PCR test was found to have a much higher positivity than conventional test and BACTEC culture (P 0.05). Smear positive samples (56) and the samples (36) showing positive results by conventional methods (smear and LJ medium culture) and BACTEC were found to be positive by all PCR protocols. No significant difference was found between the four PCR protocols (P >0.05). The primer specific for amplifying the 123bp IS6110 fragment gave the highest positivity (83%), followed by 65kDa, 38kDa and 85B RT-PCR in descending order. Conclusions: These data suggest that the presence of IS6110 correlates more closely with the diagnosis of clinical tuberculosis than that of 65kDa, 38kDa and 85B     

"Were-wolf" cutaneous tuberculosis

Lupus vulgaris is a variant of cutaneous tuberculosis. Its more destructive and mutilating clinical forms have become rarer in consonance of a general decline of cutaneous tuberculosis. It is rarely seen now in developed countries due to stringent control measures, improved quality of living and effective therapeutic regimens. Misdiagnosis, neglect, or late diagnosis may result in severe, ulcerative and mutilating "wolf eaten" skin lesions.This paper describes four such cases of "were-wolf" cutaneous tuberculosis. Early diagnosis and treatment is important to prevent much of the disfigurement.     

Appraisal of Laparoscopic Liver Resection in the Treatment of Liver Metastasis with Special Reference to Outcome in Colorectal Malignancies

Treatment of metastatic liver disease is at the crossroads of an evolutionary transformation with more and more reports reiterating the benefits of resectional therapy in various cancers. A quest for application of laparoscopic approaches to the management of liver metastasis has arisen due to the projected benefits of less morbidity, early recovery, and equivalent oncological outcome in selected malignancies. However, the diverse and heterogenous data on indications, operative technique, and outcome evaluation make a comparative analysis of these studies difficult. This review is an appraisal of technique and outcome of minimally invasive liver resection as reported in the current literature with special reference to treatment of metastatic colorectal cancers.     

Evaluation of Antioxidant Enzymes Activity and Malondialdehyde Levels in Patients With Chronic Periodontitis and Diabetes Mellitus

Background: The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of diabetes, a known risk factor for periodontitis, on activities of antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione reductase (GR), and catalase (CAT) as well as levels of free radical damage marker malondialdehyde (MDA) in blood and saliva of individuals with chronic periodontitis (CP). Methods: Sixty patients with CP (30 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus [DMCP] and 30 systemically healthy patients [CP]) and 60 periodontally healthy individuals (30 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and 30 systemically healthy patients [PH]) were included in this study. After clinical measurements, blood and saliva samples were collected. SOD, GR, and CAT activities in red blood cell lysate and saliva and MDA levels in plasma and saliva samples were spectrophotometrically assayed. An analysis of variance test followed by a post hoc test was used to compare the intragroup and intergroup variances among the study groups. Results: MDA levels in both the periodontitis groups were higher than in the periodontally healthy groups, but the difference between the CP and DMCP groups did not reach statistical significance (P >0.05). There was a highly significant difference between the CP and PH groups for all the enzymes studied except for SOD in blood. Only salivary SOD and GR activities were significantly different in the CP and DMCP groups. Conclusions: This study favors the role of oxidative stress in both diabetes and periodontitis. It shows that the compensatory mechanism of the body is partially collapsed because of excessive production of free radicals during periodontitis and is not able to cope with increased free radical generation attributable to diabetes, thereby worsening the situation.     

Food poisoning associated methemoglobinemia: Time to wake up

Dear editor,With interest we read the recent article on methemoglobinemia by Chan et al.[1]Through this letter,we would like to add few additional comments regarding methemoglobinemia and its relevance in medicine practice with regards to food poisoning.While Chan et al[1]successfully managed their patient of methemoglobinemia and could pinpoint choy sum as the responsible agent,we wonder if there were any more cases of choy sum related to methemoglobinemia detected at the same time in the community?     

Intersectionality as an Analytic Framework for Understanding the Experiences of Mental Health Stigma Among Racialized Men

International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction - The objective of this research was to use intersectionality to explore Asian men’s experiences of stigma and mental illness to tease out...     

Estrogen treatment of spinal cord injury attenuates calpain activation and apoptosis

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating neurologic injury, and currently, the only recommended pharmacotherapy is high-dose methylprednisolone, which has limited efficacy. Estrogen is a multi-active steroid with anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic effects. Estrogen may modulate intracellular Ca2+ and prevent inflammation. For this study, male rats were divided into three groups. Sham-group animals received a laminectomy at T12. Injured rats received both laminectomy and 40 gram centimeter force SCI. Estrogen-group rats received 4 mg/kg 17beta-estradiol (estrogen) at 15 min and 24 hr post-injury, and vehicle-group rats received equal volumes of dimethyl sulfoxide. Animals were sacrificed at 48 hr post-injury, and 1-cm segments of the lesion, rostral penumbra, and caudal penumbra were excised. The degradation of 68 kD neurofilament protein (NFP) and estrogen receptors (ER) was examined by Western blot analysis. Protein levels of calpain and the activities of calpain and caspase-3 were also examined. Levels of cytochrome c were determined in both cytosolic and mitochondrial fractions. Cell death with DNA fragmentation was examined using the TUNEL assay. At the lesion, samples from both vehicle and estrogen treated animals showed increased levels of 68 kD NFP degradation, calpain content, calpain activity, cytochrome c release, and degradation of ERalpha and ERbeta, as compared to sham. In the caudal penumbra, estrogen treatment significantly attenuated 68 kD NFP degradation, calpain content, calpain activity, levels of cytosolic cytochrome c, and ERbeta degradation. At the lesion, vehicle-treated animals displayed more TUNEL+ cells, and estrogen treatment significantly attenuated this cell death marker. We conclude that estrogen may inhibit cell death in SCI through calpain inhibition.