The triticeous cartilage — redefining of morphology, prevalence and function

Background: Triticeous cartilage is a small cartilaginous component of the laryngeal skeleton. This cartilage, located in posterior end of the thyrohyoid ligament, presents in different shapes. Radiological studies indicate clinical and anatomical importance of the triticeous cartilage but these studies have limited information due to inadequate inspection method. Computed tomographic angiography is able to evaluate the triticeous cartilage with using three-dimensional images in more detail. The aim of this study is to describe prevalence and morphological properties of the triticeous cartilage. Materials and methods: We examined computed tomographic angiography images of 746 patients (368 women, 378 men) retrospectively. Shapes, calcification degrees, volumes, lengths and wideness of the triticeous cartilage were evaluated by OsiriX-Lite software. Results: According to our results, triticeous cartilage presents common in the examined population (68.1%). The prevalence of the triticeous cartilage was higher in men than in women. We also found that the degree of calcification was not related with age and gender. Conclusions: Clinical importance of the triticeous cartilage is that it could be misdiagnosed with atherosclerosis in common carotid artery because the triticeous cartilage is located almost at same level as the bifurcation of the common carotid artery. Therefore, clinicians should be aware about the triticeous cartilage

Antimicrobial Activity of Flavonoids against Extended-Spectrum &#946-Lactamase (ES&#946L)-Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae

Purpose: In the present study, six flavonoids (5,7-dimethoxyflavanone-4'-O-&#946-D-glucopyranoside, 5,7- dimethoxyflavanone-4'-O-[2''-O-(5'''-O-trans-cinnamoyl)-&#946-D-apiofuranosyl]-&#946-D-glucopyranoside, naringenin-7-O-&#946-D-glucopyranoside, 5,7,3'-trihydroxy-flavanone-4'-O-&#946-D-glucopyranoside, rutin, and nicotiflorin) isolated from Galium fissurense, Viscum album ssp. album and Cirsium hypoleucum were screened against extended-spectrum &#946-lactamase producing multidrug-resistant (trimetoprimesulphametoxazole, sulbactam-ampicillin, clavulonate-amoxicilin, ceftriaxon, cefepime, imipenem, ceftazidime, tobramicin, gentamicin, ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin) bacteria Klebsiella pneumoniae (ES&#946Ls). Methods: We performed susceptibility testing according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI, formerly NCCLS) and used an inhibition endpoint for determination of the minimum inhibition concentrations (MICs). Results: All the flavonoids showed in vitro antimicrobial activity against all the isolated strains of K. pneumoniae similar to the control antibacterial (ofloxacin) at the concentrations of 32 - 64 μg ml-l; another control, ampicillin, had no activity. Since, ES&#946L-producing strains are known to be resistant to all &#946-lactam antibiotics, our results fall notably within the concentration range for antimicrobial activity. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the study of the activity of these flavonoids against (ES&#946L)-producing K. pneumoniae and may throw light to the low-toxicity of flavonoids, and their potentials for developing therapies for infections caused by ES&#946L-producing bacteria in the future. Further work is under investigation to identify their precise antibacterial mechanism. Keywords: Antimicrobial activity, ES&#946Ls, Flavonoids, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Ofloxacin, Ampicillin.Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research Vol. 7(4) 2008: pp. 1151-115

Heteroptera (hemiptera) species determined in pistachio orchards of Siirt province with a new record for fauna of Turkey: Yotvata nergal Linnavuori, 1993

This study was carried out at pistachio orchards of Siirt province (Merkez and Aydınlar) between 2008-2009. The insect species obtained with this study in pistachio orchards were; Palomena mursili Linnavuori, 1984, Stagonomus bipunctatus Linnaeus, 1758, Macroscytus brunneus Fabricius, 1803, Lethaeus cribratissimus Stål, 1858, Stenodema turanica Reuter, 1904, Pseudoloxops sangrudanus Linnavuori, 2006 , Psallus perrisi Mulsant and Rey, 1852 Macrolophus glaucescens Fieber, 1858, Acrorrhinium atricorne Linnavuori, 2006, Campylomma diversicornis Reuter, 1878, Nanopsallus carduellus Horváth, 1888, Camptocera glaberrima Walker, 1872, Anthocoris minki Dohrn, 1860, Yotvata nergal, Alloeotomus cyprius Wagner, 1953, Calocoris roseomaculatus angularis De Geer, 1773, Horistus orientalis Gmelin, 1790, Deraeocoris serenus Douglas and Scott, 1868, Beosus quadripunctatus Müller, 1766, Megalonotus maximus Puton, 1895, Nysius cymoides Spinola, 1837, Cantacader quadricornis Lepeletier and Serville, 1828 , Lethaeus picipes Herrich- Schäffer, 1853, Acrorrhinium conspersus Noualhier, 1895, Trigonotylus pulchellus Hahn, 1834 and Alloeomimus kurdus Hoberlandt, 1953. Yotvata nergal Linnavuori, 1993 is a new record for entomo-fauna of Turkey

Turner syndrome and associated problems in turkish children: A multicenter study

Objective: Turner syndrome (TS) is a chromosomal disorder caused by complete or partial X chromosome monosomy that manifests various clinical features depending on the karyotype and on the genetic background of affected girls. This study aimed to systematically investigate the key clinical features of TS in relationship to karyotype in a large pediatric Turkish patient population. Methods: Our retrospective study included 842 karyotype-proven TS patients aged 0-18 years who were evaluated in 35 different centers in Turkey in the years 2013-2014. Results: The most common karyotype was 45,X (50.7%), followed by 45,X/46,XX (10.8%), 46,X,i(Xq) (10.1%) and 45,X/46,X,i(Xq) (9.5%). Mean age at diagnosis was 10.2±4.4 years. The most common presenting complaints were short stature and delayed puberty. Among patients diagnosed before age one year, the ratio of karyotype 45,X was significantly higher than that of other karyotype groups. Cardiac defects (bicuspid aortic valve, coarctation of the aorta and aortic stenosi) were the most common congenital anomalies, occurring in 25% of the TS cases. This was followed by urinary system anomalies (horseshoe kidney, double collector duct system and renal rotation) detected in 16.3%. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis was found in 11.1% of patients, gastrointestinal abnormalities in 8.9%, ear nose and throat problems in 22.6%, dermatologic problems in 21.8% and osteoporosis in 15.3%. Learning difficulties and/or psychosocial problems were encountered in 39.1%. Insulin resistance and impaired fasting glucose were detected in 3.4% and 2.2%, respectively. Dyslipidemia prevalence was 11.4%. Conclusion: This comprehensive study systematically evaluated the largest group of karyotype-proven TS girls to date. The karyotype distribution, congenital anomaly and comorbidity profile closely parallel that from other countries and support the need for close medical surveillance of these complex patients throughout their lifespan. © Journal of Clinical Research in Pediatric Endocrinology

Integrating transposable elements in the 3D genome

Chromosome organisation is increasingly recognised as an essential component of genome regulation, cell fate and cell health. Within the realm of transposable elements (TEs) however, the spatial information of how genomes are folded is still only rarely integrated in experimental studies or accounted for in modelling. Whilst polymer physics is recognised as an important tool to understand the mechanisms of genome folding, in this commentary we discuss its potential applicability to aspects of TE biology. Based on recent works on the relationship between genome organisation and TE integration, we argue that existing polymer models may be extended to create a predictive framework for the study of TE integration patterns. We suggest that these models may offer orthogonal and generic insights into the integration profiles (or "topography") of TEs across organisms. In addition, we provide simple polymer physics arguments and preliminary molecular dynamics simulations of TEs inserting into heterogeneously flexible polymers. By considering this simple model, we show how polymer folding and local flexibility may generically affect TE integration patterns. The preliminary discussion reported in this commentary is aimed to lay the foundations for a large-scale analysis of TE integration dynamics and topography as a function of the three-dimensional host genome

Face familiarity, distinctiveness, and categorical perception

Four experiments with faces support the original interpretation of categorical perception (CP) as only present for familiar categories. Unlike in the results of Levin and Beale (2000), no evidence is found for face identity CP with unfamiliar faces. Novel face identities were shown to be capable of encoding for immediate sorting purposes but the representations utilized do not have the format of perceptual categories. One possibility explored was that a choice of a distinctive face as an end-point in a morphed continuum can spuriously produce effects that resemble CP. Such morphed continua provided unequal psychological responses to equal physical steps though much more so in a better likeness paradigm than for forced-choice recognition. Thus, researchers doing almost the same experiments may produce very different results and come to radically different conclusions

Beyond the ‘East-West’ dichotomy: global variation in cultural models of selfhood

Markus and Kitayama’s (1991) theory of independent and interdependent self-construals had a major influence on social, personality, and developmental psychology by highlighting the role of culture in psychological processes. However, research has relied excessively on contrasts between North American and East Asian samples, and commonly used self-report measures of independence and interdependence frequently fail to show predicted cultural differences. We revisited the conceptualization and measurement of independent and interdependent self-construals in 2 large-scale multinational surveys, using improved methods for cross-cultural research. We developed (Study 1: N = 2924 students in 16 nations) and validated across cultures (Study 2: N = 7279 adults from 55 cultural groups in 33 nations) a new 7-dimensional model of self-reported ways of being independent or interdependent. Patterns of global variation support some of Markus and Kitayama’s predictions, but a simple contrast between independence and interdependence does not adequately capture the diverse models of selfhood that prevail in different world regions. Cultural groups emphasize different ways of being both independent and interdependent, depending on individualism-collectivism, national socioeconomic development, and religious heritage. Our 7-dimensional model will allow future researchers to test more accurately the implications of cultural models of selfhood for psychological processes in diverse ecocultural contexts