bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Pasireotide (SOM230) protects the retina from ischemia induced retinopathies
Authors: KOKONA D , MASTRODIMOU N , PEDIADITAKIS S , CHARALAMPOPOULOS I , SCHMID HA 
Published: December 2011

AbstractPurpose The aim of the present study was to investigate the neuroprotective properties of SOM230, a new metabolically stable analogue of somatostatin, with a 12h plasma half‐life and high affinity for the sst1,2,3,5 receptor subtypes.Methods Female Sprague‐Dawley rats (250‐300g) were employed in an ex vivo model of retinal chemical ischemia and an in vivo model of retinal AMPA excitotoxicity. Immunohistochemistry, TUNEL staining, FACS and western blot analysis were employed to examine retinal cell loss and neuroprotection.Results Chemical ischemia led to the loss of ChAT, bNOS, and PKC immunoreactivity which was reversed by SOM230 in a concentration dependent manner (10‐4‐10‐7 M). Partial protection was observed even at the low concentration of 10‐7M. CYN‐154806 (10‐5M; sst2 antagonist) reversed SOM230 (10‐5M) neuroprotective actions. Similarly, SOM230 (10‐5, 10‐6, 10‐7 M) was neuroprotective (dose‐dependent) in vivo, as was shown by bNOS immunoreactivity studies. An approximate 80% neuroprotection was observed with the dose of 10‐7M. These data were substantiated by TUNEL staining and FACS analysis. The anti‐apoptotic Bcl2 protein was found to be involved in the neuroprotection.Conclusion SOM230 appears very efficacious in its anti‐apoptotic neuroprotective properties, in both models of retinal ischemia, affording neuroprotection at the concentration or dose of 100nM. These data suggest that sst2/5 analogs with similar pharmacokinetic properties may play an important role alone or in a multi drug treatment in ensuring the most efficacious retinal therapy. [This study was funded by the Graduate Program of Neuroscience to K.T, and the C. Spyraki award to D.K.]
A novel device for the measurement of intraocular pressure, ocular rigidity and pulsatile blood flow.
Authors: KARYOTAKIS NG , GINIS H , TSILIMBARIS MK , SIGGELAKI EM , PALLIKARIS IG 
Published: December 2011

AbstractPurpose Several instruments and methods are applied for the non invasive measurement of intraocular pressure, ocular rigidity and pulsatily blood flow. Most of this instruments and methods are based on the deformation force‐area principle. The purpose of this study was to present a novel device for the measurement of intraocular pressure, ocular rigidity and pulsatily blood flow.Methods The device consists of an opto‐mechanical head comprising a deformation sensor and a force sensor, a camera and a microstepping motor. The deformation sensor is an optoelectronic device consisting of two beamsplitters a plano‐convex lens, an illuminating fiber and a receiving fiber. Eighty three eyes were enrolled in a preliminary study, the intraocular pressure was measured with the novel device followed by a Goldman applanation tonometer measurement.Results The average IOP measured by the device was 17 (std 5.38) mmHg and the average rigidity coefficient was 0.01013 (std 0.039)μl‐1, the IOP measured by the GAT was 13.9 (std 3.23) mmHg. The statistical analysis indicated a significant statistical difference (p=9*10‐8) between the two devices.Conclusion Significant errors of the measurement are related to the centration of the optical head and the hand driven indentation. To overcome these limitations the device was upgraded with the addition of a coaxial camera for centration control and a microstepping motor for the applanation movement. An investigation of the accuracy and repeatability of the system with these new additions is underway.
Effect of lacritin, a novel glycoprotein, on ocular surface and tear film integrity
Authors: SAMUDRE S , LATTANZIO F , WILLIAMS P , MCKOWN R , LAURIE G 
Published: December 2011

AbstractPurpose Dry eye is extremely common and debilitating. Treatment options are palliative at best and do not address the underlying pathology. Lacritin, a newly discovered glycoprotein, is secreted naturally in human tears by the lacrimal gland. Human recombinant lacritin stimulated tear secretion in normal rabbits and is well tolerated, leading us to hypothesize that topical application of lacritin will not adversely affect ocular surface and tear film integrity.Methods We compared full length lacritin construct with cyclosporin (Restasis®), in terms of tear break up time (TBUT) and goblet cell density using impression cytology. Lacritin (10, 50 μg/ml), or cyclosporin (0.05%), were administered bilaterally to New Zealand white rabbits three times daily for 14d (n=4/group).Results TBUT after lacritin (10 or 50 μg/ml) treatment was 12±2sec, which was similar to vehicle alone, but significantly decreased after cyclosporine treatment for 14d (6±3sec, p<0.001). Preliminary results indicate that goblet cell density decreased by 7±8% after cyclosporine but was not decreased after lacritin. No local irritant effects were noted by slit lamp examination after lacritin treatment, but redness and mild congestion were present in the cyclosporin group.Conclusion Thus, treatment with lacritin was better tolerated than cyclosporin. This data suggests that lacritin does not adversely ocular surface and tear film integrity when compared to cyclosporine. Evaluation with inflammatory markers, such as CD‐11c, is currently ongoing. Glycoproteins, such as, lacritin, represent a new, unique therapeutic approach that may more closely address the pathology of dry eye.
Commercial interest
Glare visual performance in young subjects under night driving conditions
Authors: PEREZ CARRASCO MJ , PUELL MC , PALOMO‐ALVAREZ C , BARRIO AR , GONZALEZ‐RUGARCIA A , LOPEZ‐SERRANO T 
Published: December 2011

AbstractPurpose Purpose: Under night driving conditions visual performance is compromised and become worse with disability glare, age and certain ocular pathologies. The aim of this study was to analyze mesopic visual function of young subjects.Methods Methods: The sample included 37 right eyes of healthy young adults (22.2 ± 1.8 years). The selected criteria were: Best‐corrected VA of at least 0.04 logMAR, and refraction ≤± 3.75. Under mesopic (0.1 to 0.2 cd/m2) luminance conditions and with the best‐optical correction in the right eye, the logMAR VA was measured using high‐contrast (HC‐96%) and low‐contrast (LC‐10%) logMAR Bailey‐Lovie letter charts, and the mesopic contrast sensitivity (CS) without / with glare was assessed with Mesotest II. The intraocular straylight was measured with the C‐Quant.Results Results: Under mesopic conditions, the HC and LC logMAR VA was 0.28 ± 0.1 and 0.70 ± 0.1 respectively, showing a significant correlation between them (Pearson’s correlation = 0.75; p< 0.00); The mesopic log CS without glare was 0.19 ± 0.1 and with glare was 0.11 ± 0.1. Disability glare induced a 42% decrease in mesopic log CS (p < 0.00). LC logMAR VA was significant correlated with mesopic log CS without and with glare (Pearson’s correlation = 0.4, p< 0.02, and 0.42, p< 0.02 respectively). The intraocular straylight Log (s) was 0.87 ± 0.1, but did not show any significant association with logMAR VA nor the log CS without and with glare under mesopic luminance conditions.Conclusion Conclusions: The results indicated that mesopic assessment of the low contrast logMAR VA and log CS without and with glare might potentially predict the glare visual performance under night driving conditions.
Halo size in healthy subjects
Authors: PUELL MC , RODRIGUEZ‐ORTEGA J , PEREZ‐CARRASCO MJ , PALOMO‐ALVAREZ C , BARRIO AR 
Published: December 2011

AbstractPurpose The measurement of the halo size has been proposed as an objective method to characterize the quality of vision in refractive surgery patients who complain of night vision problems. Our purpose was to know the size of halo in the visual field of healthy subjects using a commercial campimeter and to analyze the effect of age.Methods Measurements were obtained in the better eye of 90 healthy subjects (mean age 46.5±19.4). Halo was measured using the MON CV‐3 campimeter that is equipped with high luminance light sources (200,000 cd/m2) which generated the halo source. The test was performed using optotypes of low luminance (1 cd/m2 and 5 cd/m2) presented over a dark background at a distance of 2.5 m. Optotypes were viewed under a visual angle of 15 arc minutes. Three measurements were taken starting from the side opposite to the light source. The outer limit of the halo was recorded and the visual angle subtended by the radius of the halo was then calculated in arc minutes. Furthermore, the pupil size was evaluated under mesopic conditions with the Colvard pupillometer.Results Mean halo size was 111.7 ± 41.4 arc min using optotypes of 1 cd/m2 and 44.5 ± 30.3 arc min with 5 cd/m2. A significant positive correlation was found between halo and age at both luminance levels: 1 cd/m2 (r = 0.56; p = 0.00001) and 5cd/m2 (r = 0.57; p = 0.00001). With age there was a significant increase of halo size of 10 arc min per decade at both luminance levels. The halo size did not depend on the pupil diameter.Conclusion In healthy eyes, halo size in the visual field increased significantly across the lifespan. Measuring the size of the halo using a campimeter is a useful tool for assessing visual impairment caused by glare.
A new method for assessing central and peripheral visual acuity
Authors: CHUNG H , LEE YW , SEO JM 
Published: December 2011

AbstractPurpose This research aims to assess central and peripheral visual acuity in human.Methods We assume that visual acuity will decrease in peripheral vision because the density of human photoreceptor cone cells diminishes exponentially. We designed a program to measure visual acuity in two different models (minimum discernible, minimum separable) According to the distance between subject’s eye and screen, this program has 3 cases (basic, release, accumulate model), which are classified by position of nodal points. In addition, there is a selection of four different line patterns to define visual field. After all these options are selected, the program displays various‐sized circles (discernible model) and Landolt rings (separable model) on the locations of screen corresponding to the visual angle.Results Distribution of visual acuity according to the visual angle could be acquired by proposed method. Central visual acuity was nearly 20/20 and the peripheral visual acuity was diminished according to the increment of visual angle in normal volunteers.Conclusion Distribution of the visual acuity according to the visual angle corresponded to the density of the photoreceptor cone cells, not to the density of the rod cells. Developed program and system might be useful for other researches concerning visual acuity.
Real-Time PCR Using Mycobacteriophage DNA for Rapid Phenotypic Drug Susceptibility Results for Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Authors: Pholwat Suporn , Ehdaie Beeta , Foongladda Suporn , Kelly Kimberly , Houpt Eric 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACT

Managing drug-resistant
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
requires drug susceptibility testing, yet conventional drug susceptibility testing is slow, and molecular testing does not yield results for all antituberculous drugs. We addressed these challenges by utilizing real-time PCR of mycobacteriophage D29 DNA to evaluate the drug resistance of clinical
M. tuberculosis
isolates. Mycobacteriophages infect and replicate in viable bacterial cells faster than bacterial cells replicate and have been used for detection and drug resistance testing for
M. tuberculosis
either by using reporter cells or phages with engineered reporter constructs. Our primary protocol involved culturing
M. tuberculosis
isolates for 48 h with and without drugs at critical concentrations, followed by incubation with 10
3
PFU/ml of D29 mycobacteriophage for 24 h and then real-time PCR. Many drugs could be incubated instantly with
M. tuberculosis
and phage for 24 h alone. The change in phage DNA real-time PCR cycle threshold (

C
T

) between control
M. tuberculosis
and
M. tuberculosis
treated with drugs was calculated and correlated with conventional agar proportion drug susceptibility results. Specifically, 9 susceptible clinical isolates, 22 multidrug-resistant (MDR), and 1 extensively drug-resistant (XDR)
M. tuberculosis
strains were used and

C
T

control-

C
T

drug cutoffs of between +0.3 and −6.0 yielded 422/429 (98%) accurate results for isoniazid, rifampin, streptomycin, ethambutol, amikacin, kanamycin, capreomycin, ofloxacin, moxifloxacin, ethionamide, para-aminosalicylic acid, cycloserine, and linezolid. Moreover, the Δ

C
T

values correlated with isolate MIC for most agents. This D29 quantitative PCR assay offers a rapid, accurate, 1- to 3-day phenotypic drug susceptibility test for first- and second-line drugs and may suggest an approximate MIC.
Staph ID/R: a Rapid Method for Determining Staphylococcus Species Identity and Detecting the
mecA
Gene Directly from Positive Blood Culture
Authors: Pasko Chris , Hicke Brian , Dunn John , Jaeckel Heidi , Nieuwlandt Dan , Weed Diane , Woodruff Evelyn , Zheng Xiaotian , Jenison Robert 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACT

Rapid diagnosis of staphylococcal bacteremia directs appropriate antimicrobial therapy, leading to improved patient outcome. We describe herein a rapid test (<75 min) that can identify the major pathogenic strains of
Staphylococcus
to the species level as well as the presence or absence of the methicillin resistance determinant gene,
mecA
. The test, Staph ID/R, combines a rapid isothermal nucleic acid amplification method, helicase-dependent amplification (HDA), with a chip-based array that produces unambiguous visible results. The analytic sensitivity was 1 CFU per reaction for the
mecA
gene and was 1 to 250 CFU per reaction depending on the staphylococcal species present in the positive blood culture. Staph ID/R has excellent specificity as well, with no cross-reactivity observed. We validated the performance of Staph ID/R by testing 104 frozen clinical positive blood cultures and comparing the results with
rpoB
gene or 16S rRNA gene sequencing for species identity determinations and
mecA
gene PCR to confirm
mecA
gene results. Staph ID/R agreed with
mecA
gene PCR for all samples and agreed with
rpoB
/16S rRNA gene sequencing in all cases except for one sample that contained a mixture of two staphylococcal species, one of which Staph ID/R correctly identified, for an overall agreement of 99.0% (
P
< 0.01). Staph ID/R could potentially be used to positively affect patient management for
Staphylococcus
-mediated bacteremia.
Real-Time Qualitative PCR for 57 Human Adenovirus Types from Multiple Specimen Sources
Authors: Buckwalter Seanne P. , Teo Rose , Espy Mark J. , Sloan Lynne M. , Smith Thomas F. , Pritt Bobbi S. 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACT

Human adenoviruses (HAdVs) are ubiquitous double-stranded DNA viruses that cause a wide array of diseases in humans including pharyngitis, pneumonia, gastroenteritis, hemorrhagic cystitis, and keratoconjunctivitis. They also cause life-threatening opportunistic infections in immunocompromised individuals and are responsible for outbreaks in certain populations. Diagnosis is traditionally by cell culture or antigen detection methods. However, some HAdVs can take up to 4 weeks to isolate, and diarrheagenic types 40 and 41 will not grow in routine cell culture. Therefore, the goal of this study was to design a rapid, real-time PCR assay to detect all known 57 HAdV types from multiple different specimen sources. Primers and fluorescence resonance energy transfer hybridization probes were designed to target a 185-bp region of the penton base gene of HAdV. The analytical sensitivity was determined to be 10 copies/μl for HAdV types showing exact primer/probe homology in specimen matrix. Using whole-virus strains, the analytical sensitivity for representative HAdV types ranged from 10
−1
to 10
3
50% tissue culture infective dose (TCID
50
)/ml. The assay demonstrated 100% sensitivity and 99% specificity. This real-time PCR assay provides a rapid method for the detection of all 57 known HAdV types from respiratory specimens, blood, stool, urine, and ocular swabs.
A New Real-Time Quantitative PCR for Diagnosis and Monitoring of HIV-1 Group O Infection
Authors: Gueudin Marie , Leoz Marie , Lemée Véronique , De Oliveira Fabienne , Vessière Aurélia , Kfutwah Anfumbom , Plantier Jean-Christophe 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACT

The correct diagnosis and monitoring of HIV-1 group O (HIV-O) infection are essential for appropriate patient management, for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission, and for the detection of dual HIV-M/HIV-O infections. HIV-O RNA quantification is currently possible with two commercial kits (from Abbott and Roche), which quantify HIV-M and HIV-O strains indifferently; therefore, they cannot be used for the specific identification of HIV-O infection. We designed a new real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR assay) (INT-O), which we compared with our previous version, LTR-O, and with the Abbott RealTime HIV-1 kit. Specificity was assessed with 27 HIV-1 group M strains and the prototype strain of group P. Clinical performances were analyzed by using 198 stored plasma samples, representative of HIV-O genetic diversity. Analytical sensitivity, repeatability, and reproducibility were also determined. The detection limit of the INT-O assay was 40 copies/ml, and its specificity was 100%. The repeatability and reproducibility were excellent. Analysis of clinical samples showed a good correlation between the INT-O and LTR-O assays (
r
= 0.8240), with an improvement of analytical sensitivity. A good correlation was also obtained between the INT-O and Abbott assays (
r
= 0.8599) but with significantly higher values (0.19 logs) for the INT-O method, due to marked underquantifications for some patients. These results showed that HIV-O genetic diversity still has an impact on RNA quantification. The new assay, INT-O, allows both the specific diagnosis of HIV-O infection and the quantification of diverse HIV-O strains. Its detection limit is equivalent to that of commercial kits. This assay is cheap and suitable for use in areas in which strains of HIV-1 groups M and O cocirculate.
Occurrence of Putative Virulence Genes in Arcobacter Species Isolated from Humans and Animals
Authors: Douidah Laid , de Zutter Lieven , Baré Julie , De Vos Paul , Vandamme Peter , Vandenberg Olivier , Van den Abeele Anne-Marie , Houf Kurt 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACT

Interest in arcobacters in veterinary and human public health has increased since the first report of the isolation of arcobacters from food of animal origin. Since then, studies worldwide have reported the occurrence of arcobacters on food and in food production animals and have highlighted possible transmission, especially of
Arcobacter butzleri
, to the human population. In humans, arcobacters are associated with enteritis and septicemia. To assess their clinical relevance for humans and animals, evaluation of potential virulence factors is required. However, up to now, little has been known about the mechanisms of pathogenicity. Because of their close phylogenetic affiliation to the food-borne pathogen
Campylobacter
and their similar clinical manifestations, the presence of nine putative
Campylobacter
virulence genes (
cadF
,
ciaB
,
cj1349
,
hecA
,
hecB
,
irgA
,
mviN
,
pldA
, and
tlyA
) previously identified in the recent
Arcobacter butzleri
ATCC 49616 genome sequence was determined in a large set of human and animal
Arcobacter butzleri
,
Arcobacter cryaerophilus
, and
Arcobacter skirrowii
strains after the development of rapid and accurate PCR assays and confirmed by sequencing and dot blot hybridization.
Multidrug-Resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae Serotype 6D Clones in South Korea
Authors: Ko Kwan Soo , Baek Jin Yang , Song Jae-Hoon 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACTTo investigate the characteristics of mainStreptococcus pneumoniaeclones of serotype 6D (ST282 and ST3171) in South Korea, antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed, and 11 genes around thecpslocus were sequenced on ST2826D, ST31716D, and ST816Aisolates. The antimicrobial susceptibility patterns were very similar between clones belonging to the same clonal complex, ST816Aand ST2826D; nonsusceptibilities to penicillin and cefuroxime, high MICs of ceftriaxone, and high resistance rates to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. However, ST31716Disolates showed resistance to only macrolides and clindamycin. The sequences of 11 genes around thecpslocus indicated the same genetic backgrounds between the ST816Aand ST2826Disolates. On the other hand, ST31716Disolates showed nucleotide and amino acid differences from ST816Aand ST2826Disolates in most genes, indicating a different genetic background. The mosaic structure ofdexBgene in ST2826Disolates indicated that recombination might occur in thedexBgene. Our results suggest that the multidrug-resistant ST2826Dpneumococcal clone has emerged by serial genetic recombination, including capsular switch.
Effect of Pneumococcal Vaccination on Nasopharyngeal Carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, and Staphylococcus aureus in Fijian Children
Authors: Dunne Eileen M. , Manning Jayne , Russell Fiona M. , Robins-Browne Roy M. , Mulholland E. Kim , Satzke Catherine 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACT

The 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) reduces carriage of vaccine type
Streptococcus pneumoniae
but leads to replacement by nonvaccine serotypes and may affect carriage of other respiratory pathogens. We investigated nasopharyngeal carriage of
S. pneumoniae
,
Haemophilus influenzae
,
Moraxella catarrhalis
, and
Staphylococcus aureus
in Fijian infants participating in a pneumococcal vaccine trial using quantitative PCR. Vaccination did not affect pathogen carriage rates or densities, whereas significant differences between the two major ethnic groups were observed.
The Vaccinia Virus O1 Protein Is Required for Sustained Activation of Extracellular Signal-Regulated Kinase 1/2 and Promotes Viral Virulence
Authors: Schweneker Marc , Lukassen Susanne , Späth Michaela , Wolferstätter Michael , Babel Eveline , Brinkmann Kay , Wielert Ursula , Chaplin Paul , Suter Mark , Hausmann Jürgen 
Published: December 2011

ABSTRACT

Sustained activation of the Raf/MEK/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway in infected cells has been shown to be crucial for full replication efficiency of orthopoxviruses in cell culture. In infected cells, this pathway is mainly activated by the vaccinia virus growth factor (VGF), an epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like protein. We show here that chorioallantois vaccinia virus Ankara (CVA), but not modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA), induced sustained activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) in infected human 293 cells, although both viruses direct secretion of functional VGF. A CVA mutant lacking the O1L gene (CVA-ΔO1L) demonstrated that the O1 protein was required for sustained upregulation of the ERK1/2 pathway in 293 cells as well as in other mammalian cell lines. The highly conserved orthopoxvirus O1L gene encodes a predicted 78-kDa protein with a hitherto-unknown function. CVA-ΔO1L showed reduced plaque size and an attenuated cytopathic effect (CPE) in infected cell cultures and reduced virulence and spread from lungs to ovaries in intranasally infected BALB/c mice. Reinsertion of an intact O1L gene into MVA, which in its original form harbors a fragmented O1L open reading frame (ORF), restored ERK1/2 activation in 293 cells but did not increase replication and spread of MVA in human or other mammalian cell lines. Thus, the O1 protein was crucial for sustained ERK1/2 activation in CVA- and MVA-infected human cells, complementing the autocrine function of VGF, and enhanced virulence
in vivo
.