Fatty acid composition of ovule in kutum (Rutilus frisii kutum Komensky, 1901)

Fatty acid composition of ovules (ovulated oocytes) from kutum (Rutilus frisii kutum) was investigated to assess their relationship to gonad biological characteristics, larval size, fertilization, and hatching success. Forty-eight kutum were captured in the wild during the spawning season. Results revealed an inverse relationship between linoleic acid (18:2n-6) and ovule weight (P?<?0.05). Arachidonic acid (20:4n-6) and eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5n-3) contents showed a direct correlation with the number of ovules per gram (P?<?0.05); the latter had an inverse relationship with the ratio of surface to volume (P?<?0.01). There was a direct and significant correlation between docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3) and ovule weight (P?<?0.05). High unsaturated fatty acid levels indicated a direct relationship with egg and yolk diameters and also an inverse correlation with ovule surface to volume ratio (P?<?0.l05). Direct relationships were found between polyunsaturated fatty acids and the diameter of egg and yolk as well as the ratio of surface to volume (P?<?0.05). There was a direct correlation between saturated fatty acid content and the number of eggs (per gram) (P?<?0.01). Total lipid and weight of newly hatched larvae represented a direct relationship (P?<?0.05). Despite living in brackish water and migrating to fresh water during the reproductive season, kutum exhibited greater similarity in ovule fatty acid composition to saltwater fish than species in fresh water. Moreover, with respect to biological characteristics, this species shows more significant relationships with n-3 fatty acids than with n-6 fatty acids.     

Hospital-acquired infections in a tertiary hospital in Iran before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Wiener Medizinische Wochenschrift - Infection prevention protocols are the accepted standard to control nosocomial infections. These protective measures intensified after the coronavirus 2019...     

Three-Dimensional Printing of Cell Exclusion Spacers (CES) for Use in Motility Assays

Purpose

Cell migration/invasion assays are widely used in commercial drug discovery screening. 3D printing enables the creation of diverse geometric restrictive barrier designs for use in cell motility studies, permitting on-demand assays. Here, the utility of 3D printed cell exclusion spacers (CES) was validated as a cell motility assay.

Methods

A novel CES fit was fabricated using 3D printing and customized to the size and contour of 12 cell culture plates including 6 well plates of basal human brain vascular endothelial (D3) cell migration cells compared with 6 well plates with D3 cells challenged with 1uM cytochalasin D (Cyto-D), an F-actin anti-motility drug. Control and Cyto-D treated cells were monitored over 3 days under optical microscopy.

Results

Day 3 cell migration distance for untreated D3 cells was 1515.943μm?±?10.346μm compared to 356.909μm?±?38.562μm for the Cyt-D treated D3 cells (p?<?0.0001). By day 3, untreated D3 cells reached confluency and completely filled the original voided spacer regions, while the Cyt-D treated D3 cells remained significantly less motile.

Conclusions

Cell migration distances were significantly reduced by Cyto-D, supporting the use of 3D printing for cell exclusion assays. 3D printed CES have great potential for studying cell motility, migration/invasion, and complex multi-cell interactions.

     

Outcome of secondary alveolar bone grafting before and after eruption of the canine in Jordanian patients with cleft lip and palate

This prospective study was carried out at the Cleft Lip and Palate Centre at King Abdullah University Hospital and Maxillofacial Unit at Jordan University of Science and Technology during the period of 2000 to 2006. The sample consisted of 77 secondary alveolar bone grafts (62 patients), which were performed according to the same standardized surgical technique by a single maxillofacial surgeon.The objective was to assess the outcome of secondary alveolar bone grafting (SABG) before (early SABG) and after (late SABG) the eruption of the permanent maxillary canine in unilateral and bilateral Jordanian cleft subjects. Patients were divided into four groups: early unilateral SABG (22), late unilateral SABG (25), early bilateral SABG (8), and late bilateral SABG (7). Follow-up period ranged from 6 months to 5 years. Periapical or occlusal radiographs were used to assess the outcome of SABG. The degree of bony fill in the cleft area was assessed using the 4-point Kindelan scale. Only Grade 1 (more than 75% bony fill) cases were considered successful. Early unilateral SABG had a success rate of 90% while late unilateral SABG rate was 80%. The overall success rate of the unilateral SABG (85%) was higher than the rate for the bilateral cases (56%). Our findings support the conclusion that the outcome of early SABG is superior to late SABG. The overall success rate of SABG sample (74%) compared relatively well with other published results.     

Calorie restriction promotes remyelination in a Cuprizone-Induced demyelination mouse model of multiple sclerosis

Metabolic Brain Disease - Over the past few decades several attempts have been made to introduce a potential and promising therapy for Multiple sclerosis (MS). Calorie restriction (CR) is a dietary...     

Bilateral tibial lengthening over the nail: our experience of 143 cases

Introduction

Using lengthening over an intramedullary nail as a technique for cosmetic purposes improves the individuals’ quality of life and provides more satisfactory results due to less external fixator period.

Methods

This study reports a case series of 143 individuals who underwent bilateral tibial lengthening over an intramedullary nail for cosmetic purposes together with the review of parameters related to the surgery and complications. Level of satisfaction was measured with the standard visual analog scale at least 1 year after removal of external fixator.

Results

In this study, mean (SD) age of patients was 26.6 (7.26) years. 85 (59.4 %) participants were male and 58 (40.6 %) were female. Mean end lengthening of all individuals was 6.65 cm. The mean external fixator period was 93.7 days. Complication rate was 0.74 per segment but it decreased to 0.45 when pin-tract infection was excluded. Complications were categorized based on Paley et al.’s classification as 129 problems, 85 obstacles and no sequelae. Interestingly, 44 (30.8 %) individuals had no problem and obstacle.

Conclusions

Lengthening over an intramedullary nail provides bone formation in equal quality to that obtained by the conventional Ilizarov method, along with lower rate of complications. The large number of individuals involved in our study is a remarkable benefit which could be used as an appropriate sample to compare results for outcomes and complications.     

Management of pelvic organ prolapse and quality of life: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Introduction and hypothesis

One of the main outcomes in the assessment of the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse in women is quality of life. Using quality of life as an outcome measure is increasing in the majority of clinical trials. The aim of current study was to determine the effects of the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse on patients’ quality of life using systematic review and meta-analysis.

Methods

A systematic search for finding randomized controlled studies on pelvic organ prolapse published before October 2012 was conducted. The JAMA users’ guide to the medical literature quality assessment scales for randomized clinical trials was used to assess the quality of included articles. The mean difference in total quality of life score between before and after intervention (surgical or pelvic floor training) with 95 % confidence interval (CI) was considered as a primary summary measure. Egger’s test was used to evaluate the publication bias. Heterogeneity was assessed using I² Index.

Results

Fifty-seven RCT were critically appraised. Thirty-two articles were eligible after critical evaluation. Mean difference in change in the total quality of life score with 95 % CI for surgical treatment was 74.03 (66.3–81.6) by PFDI-20 and was 44.57 (22.53–66.65) by PFIQ-7. The mean difference in changed in the total quality of life score with 95 % CI was 1.32 (?2.8–5.4) for pelvic floor training (PFT).

Conclusion

We found that surgical interventions on prolapse can improve the quality of life of women. There was a relative effect of PFT on the quality of life of women with prolapse in systematic review. This effect was not seen in meta-analysis, probably because of finding few eligible studies to pool the effect size.     

Association between nocturnal blood pressure dipping and insulin resistance in children affected by NAFLD

The aim of this study was to analyse the relationship between insulin–glucose metabolism, nocturnal blood pressure dipping and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in obese adolescents without diabetes. One hundred one consecutive children, with biopsy-proven NAFLD, were included in this study. Blood samples were drawn for the analyses of liver function tests, insulin–glucose metabolism and lipid profile appraisal. An ambulatory blood pressure measurement (ABPM) was performed. Seventy-six children (75.3 %) were systolic nondippers, and 23 of them were diastolic nondippers (30.3 %). No differences were found in the anthropometric parameters between the two groups. When compared to the systolic dippers, the systolic nondippers had higher medians of mean nocturnal blood pressure, glucose at 0, 60 and 120 min in the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), OGTT insulin at all time points and insulin-resistance values. No correlation of histopathological features with dipping/nondipping statuses was found. Conclusions: We found an association between a nocturnal blood pressure fall and measures of insulin levels, independent of obesity, or daytime blood pressure levels, among the obese patients with NAFLD. Although no association between nondipping profiles and NAFLD was observed in our study, further studies with a longer term follow-up are needed, to better elucidate the complex link between these particular entities.