Drug susceptibility testing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by the broth microdilution method with 7H9 broth

In this study, we have evaluated the broth microdilution method (BMM) for susceptibility testing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. A total of 43 clinical isolates of M. tuberculosis and H37Rv as a control strain were studied. All isolates were tested by the proportion method and the BMM for isoniazid (INH), rifampicin (RIF), streptomycin (STR), and ethambutol (ETM). The proportion method was carried out according to the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) on Löwenstein-Jensen (LJ) medium. The BMM was carried out using 7H9 broth with 96 well-plates. All strains were tested at 3.2-0.05 µg/ml, 16-0.25 µg/ml, 32-0.5 µg/ml, and 32-0.5 µg/ml concentrations for INH, RIF, STR, and ETM, respectively. When the BMM was compared with the proportion method, sensitivity was 100, 100, 96.9, and 90.2%, while specificity was 100, 85.7, 90.9, and 100% for INH, RIF, STR, and ETM, respectively. The plates were examined 7, 10, 14, and 21 days after incubation. The majority of the result were obtained at 14th days after incubation, while the proportion method result were ended in 21-28 days. According to our results, it may be suggested that the BMM is suitable for early determining of multidrug-resistance-M. tuberculosis strains in developed or developing countries.

A study of the cambial zone and conductive phloem of common beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) using an image analysis method. I. Influence of tree age on the structure

Quantification is a major problem when using histology to study the influence of ecological factors on tree structure. This paper presents a method to prepare and to analyse transverse sections of cambial zone and of conductive phloem in bark samples. The following paper (II) presents the automated measurement procedure. Part I here describes and discusses the preparation method, and the influence of tree age on the observed structure. Highly contrasted images of samples extracted at breast height during dormancy were analysed with an automatic image analyser. Between three young (38 years) and three old (147 years) trees, age-related differences were identified by size and shape parameters, at both cell and tissue levels. In the cambial zone, older trees had larger and more rectangular fusiform initials. In the phloem, sieve tubes were also larger, but their shape did not change and the area for sap conduction was similar in both categories. Nevertheless, alterations were limited, and demanded statistical analysis to be identified and ascertained. The physiological implications of the structural changes are discussed.

454 Users Successfully 'weaned off' Methadone

A total of 454 methadone users successfully completed treatment programmes aimed at weaning them off the heroin substitute last year - but more than 2,000 others left the state's maintenance programme during the same period for a variety of reasons, new figures have revealed. According to statistics released under the Freedom of Information Act, there were 9,760 methadone users around the country last year, with the majority in the Dublin area. However, over 2,778 clients of the methadone maintenance service left the HSE's central treatment lists during the year. A summary of the reasons reveals that in 1,268 instances, they did so after either being released or committed to prison.This resource was contributed by The National Documentation Centre on Drug Use.

Trabecular Bone Score: A Noninvasive Analytical Method Based Upon the DXA Image.

The trabecular bone score (TBS) is a gray-level textural metric that can be extracted from the two-dimensional lumbar spine dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) image. TBS is related to bone microarchitecture and provides skeletal information that is not captured from the standard bone mineral density (BMD) measurement. Based on experimental variograms of the projected DXA image, TBS has the potential to discern differences between DXA scans that show similar BMD measurements. An elevated TBS value correlates with better skeletal microstructure; a low TBS value correlates with weaker skeletal microstructure. Lumbar spine TBS has been evaluated in cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. The following conclusions are based upon publications reviewed in this article: 1) TBS gives lower values in postmenopausal women and in men with previous fragility fractures than their nonfractured counterparts; 2) TBS is complementary to data available by lumbar spine DXA measurements; 3) TBS results are lower in women who have sustained a fragility fracture but in whom DXA does not indicate osteoporosis or even osteopenia; 4) TBS predicts fracture risk as well as lumbar spine BMD measurements in postmenopausal women; 5) efficacious therapies for osteoporosis differ in the extent to which they influence the TBS; 6) TBS is associated with fracture risk in individuals with conditions related to reduced bone mass or bone quality. Based on these data, lumbar spine TBS holds promise as an emerging technology that could well become a valuable clinical tool in the diagnosis of osteoporosis and in fracture risk assessment. © 2014 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

Contact tracing investigation after professional exposure to tuberculosis in a Swiss hospital using both tuberculin skin test and IGRA.

SETTING: A 950 bed teaching hospital in Switzerland. AIM: To describe the result of a contact investigation among health care workers (HCW) and patients after exposure to a physician with smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis in a hospital setting using standard tuberculin skin tests (TST) and Interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA). METHOD: HCW with a negative or unknown TST at hiring had a TST two weeks after the last contact with the index case (T0), repeated six weeks later if negative (T6). All exposed HCW had a T-SPOT.TB at T0 and T6. Exposed patients had a TST six weeks after the last contact, and a T-SPOT.TB if the TST was positive. RESULTS: Among 101 HCW, 17/73 (22%) had a positive TST at T0. TST was repeated in 50 at T6 and converted from negative to positive in eight (16%). Twelve HCW had a positive T-SPOT.TB at T0 and ten converted from negative to positive at T6. Seven HCW with a positive T-SPOT.TB reverted to negative at T6 or at later controls, most of them with test values close to the cut-off. Among 27 exposed patients tested at six weeks, ten had a positive TST, five of them confirmed by a positive T-SPOT.TB. CONCLUSIONS: HCW tested twice after exposure to a case of smear-positive pulmonary TB demonstrated a possible conversion in 10% with T-SPOT and 16% with TST. Some T-SPOT.TB reverted from positive to negative during the follow-up, mostly tests with a value close to the cut-off. Due to the variability of the test results, it seems advisable to repeat the test with values close to the cut-off before diagnosing the presence of a tuberculous infection.

Stratigraphic significance of siliceous microfossils collected during Nautiperc dives (Off Peru, 5°-6° S)

The geological evolution of the northern Peru convergent margin can be traced using samples collected during deep-sea dives of the submersible Nautile. In the Paita area (5 degrees-6 degrees S), the sedimentary sequence was intensively sampled along the main scarp of the middle slope area. It consists of Upper Miocene (7-9 Ma) to Pleistocene siltstone, sandstone and rare dolostone. The age distribution of these samples is the basis for a new geologic interpretation of the multichannel seismic line CDP3. Siliceous microfossils (both diatoms and radiolarians) show influence of both cold and temperate waters (local species mixed with upwelling ones). Diatom assemblages studied from the NP1-13 and NP1-15 dives bear a strong resemblance to assemblages from the Pisco Formation of southern Peru. Micropaleontological data from siliceous microfossils, provide evidence for two main unconformities, one is at the base of the Quaternary sequence and the other corresponds to a hiatus of 1 Myr, separating the Upper Miocene (7-8 Ma) sediments from uppermost Miocene (5-6 Ma) sediments. During the past 400 kyr, a wide rollover fold developed in the middle slope area associated with a major seaward dipping detachment fault. A catastrophic debris avalanche occurred as the result of an oversteepening of the landward flank of the rollover fold. The gravity failure of the slope, recognized by SeaBEAM and hydrosweep mapping, displaced enough material to produce a destructive tsunami which occurred 13.8 +/- 2.7 kyr ago.

Mycobacterium avium restriction fragment lenght polymorphism-IS IS1245 and the simple double repetitive element polymerase chain reaction typing method to screen genetic diversity in Brazilian strains

Simple double repetitive element polymerase chain reaction (MaDRE-PCR) and Pvu II-IS1245 restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) typing methods were used to type 41 Mycobacterium avium isolates obtained from 14 Aids inpatients and 10 environment and animals specimens identified among 53 mycobacteria isolated from 237 food, chicken, and pig. All environmental and animals strains showed orphan patterns by both methods. By MaDRE-PCR four patients, with multiple isolates, showed different patterns, suggesting polyclonal infection that was confirmed by RFLP in two of them. This first evaluation of MaDRE-PCR on Brazilian M. avium strains demonstrated that the method seems to be useful as simple and less expensive typing method for screening genetic diversity in M. avium strains on selected epidemiological studies, although with limitation on analysis identical patterns except for one band.

Mycobacterium bovis identification by a molecular method from post-mortem inspected cattle obtained in abattoirs of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

The presence of Mycobacterium bovis in bovine carcasses with lesions suggestive of tuberculosis was evaluated. Seventy-two carcass samples were selected during slaughter inspection procedures in abattoirs in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Seventeen (23.6%) of samples showed colonies suggestive of mycobacteria that were confirmed to be acid-fast bacilli by Ziehl-Neelsen staining. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using primers specific for M. bovis identified M. bovis in 13 (76.5%) isolates. The PCR-restriction enzyme pattern analysis using gene encoding for the 65-kDa protein and two restriction enzymes identified the remaining four isolates that were represented by two M. tuberculosis complex and two nontuberculous mycobacteria. The results are indicative of infection of slaughter cattle by M. bovis and other mycobacteria in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul.

A method for testing the host specificity of ectoparasites: give them the opportunity to choose

Host-choice experiments were carried out with rodent and bat ectoparasites on Ilha Grande, state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We constructed experimental chambers that enclosed three different rodent or bat host species, and then introduced a selected set of ectoparasitic arthropods. When given the opportunity to choose among host species, the ectoparasites showed a strong tendency to select their primary hosts, and reject novel host species. These kinds of simple experiments can be valuable tools for assessing the ability of ectoparasites to locate and discern differences between host species, and make choices about which hosts to infest, and which hosts to avoid.

Off to a good start: all you need to know about breastfeeding your baby

This book presents the reasons why mothers and babies benefit from breastfeeding and explains how to breastfeed successfully. It covers issues including how breastfeeding works, positioning and attachment, how to know if breastfeeding is going well, expressing milk, breastfeeding and babies in special care, advice on breastfeeding and bed-sharing, dealing with common problems, fitting breastfeeding into your life, and going back to work.

Representing diffusion MRI in 5D for segmentation of white matter tracts with a level set method.

We present a method for segmenting white matter tracts from high angular resolution diffusion MR. images by representing the data in a 5 dimensional space of position and orientation. Whereas crossing fiber tracts cannot be separated in 3D position space, they clearly disentangle in 5D position-orientation space. The segmentation is done using a 5D level set method applied to hyper-surfaces evolving in 5D position-orientation space. In this paper we present a methodology for constructing the position-orientation space. We then show how to implement the standard level set method in such a non-Euclidean high dimensional space. The level set theory is basically defined for N-dimensions but there are several practical implementation details to consider, such as mean curvature. Finally, we will show results from a synthetic model and a few preliminary results on real data of a human brain acquired by high angular resolution diffusion MRI.

Application of synthetic peptides in development of a serologic method for laboratory diagnosis of schistosomiasis mansoni

The immunoreactivity of seven peptides synthesized from Schistosoma mansoni proteins, was evaluated by dot-blot and ELISA assays using two different sensitization methodologies. The best results were obtained on wells of the Costar 3590 microplates coated with peptides P1, P2, P3, P6, and P7 using conventional methodology. The signals increased considerably (p < 0.0003) on wells sensitized with P1 to P6 using alternative methodology. In contrast, the well coated with peptide P7 presented lower signal when compared with conventional methodology (p = 0.0019). These results, establish the basis for the application of synthetic peptides for laboratory diagnosis of schistosomiasis mansoni.