In situ PCR for Mycobacterium tuberculosis in endoscopic mucosal biopsy specimens of intestinal tuberculosis and Crohn disease

Tuberculosis and Crohn disease are granulomatous disorders affecting the intestinal tract with similar clinical manifestations and pathologic features. We evaluated the use of in situ polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex-specific primers for IS61 10 to differentiate these 2 disorders in archival mucosal biopsy specimens. In situ PCR was positive in 6 of 20 tuberculosis biopsy specimens and I of 20 Crohn disease biopsy specimens. Staining was localized to a site of granulomatous inflammation in 3 of the tuberculosis specimens and in the Crohn, disease specimen. In the other tuberculosis biopsy specimens, positive staining was localized to inflammatory granulation tissue and to a focus of intact mucosa without granulomatous inflammation. The presence of M tuberculosis DNA in Crohn disease could be due to coexisting latent tuberculosis or indicate a role for these bacteria in triggering an abnormal immune response. Therefore, in situ PCR is potentially useful to differentiate intestinal tuberculosis from Crohn disease, if the sensitivity is improved

Expressive Messaging on Mobile Platforms

We present a design for expressive multimodal messaging on mobile platforms. Strong context, simple text messages, and crude animations combine well to produce surprisingly expressive results

One-Watt level mid-IR output, singly resonant, continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator pumped by a monolithic diode laser

We report more than 1.1 Watt of idler power at 3373 nm in a singly resonant optical parametric oscillator (SRO), directly pumped by a single-frequency monolithic tapered diode laser. The SRO is based on a periodically poled MgO:LiNbO3 crystal in a four mirror cavity and is excited by 8.05 W of 1062 nm radiation. The SRO pump power at threshold is 4 W. The internal slope-efficiency and conversion efficiency reach 89% and 44% respectively. The signal and idler waves are temperature tuned in the range of 1541 to 1600 nm and 3154 to 3415 nm respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest output obtained for a diode pumped optical parametric oscillator (OPO), and the first time a SRO is directly pumped by a monolithic tapered diode laser

Indigenous knowledge management - multimedia capture of oral history (New lamps for old)

The history or origins of a village has always been transmitted through oral storytelling by the older generations who have lived in that village for a long time. In order to collect and preserve this tacit knowledge, Perbadanan Perpustakaan Awam Selangor (PPAS) the Selangor State Public Library, in collaboration with Discovery Research Consultant Management Sdn. Bhd and Unit Perancang Ekonomi Negeri Selangor (The Selangor Stae Ecomonic Unit) decided to collect oral histories of villages in Sabak Bernam, which is one of the districts in Selangor, a state in Peninsular Malaysia. With the realization that knowledge is a core resource, they captured and documented all the oral histories (tacit knowledge) into a book (explicit knowledge) called “KOLEKSI CERITA RAKYAT: DAERAH SABAK BERNAM”. Through the oral histories told to them by the older inhabitants, they managed to collect 53 stories of villages in Sabak Bernam. Though the PPAS initiatives were good, the book failed to catch the younger generation’s attention. Now in conjunction with the Faculty of Creative Multimedia, Multimedia University, they have taken one step further by converting the book into animation format

Surgical trainee research collaboratives in the UK: an observational study of research activity and publication productivity.

OBJECTIVES: To analyse the research activity and publication output of surgical trainee research collaboratives in the UK. SETTING: Surgical trainee research collaboratives in the UK. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 24 collaboratives were included in this study from 33 identified organisations. We excluded one group that focused purely on systematic review of the literature and eight groups for which we could not identify suitable data sources (website or trainee committee contact). PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME: Primary data-points were identified for each collaborative including surgical subspeciality, numbers and types of projects. For published articles, secondary outcomes including study population size, journal impact factor, number of citations and evidence level were collected. RESULTS: A total of 24 collaboratives met our inclusion criteria with a portfolio of 80 projects. The project types included audit (46%), randomised clinical trial (16%), surveys (16%), cohort studies (10%), systematic reviews (2.5%) and other or unidentifiable (9.5%). A total of 35 publications were identified of which just over half (54%) were original research articles. The median size of studied population was 540 patients with a range from 108 to 3138. The published works provided a varied compilation of evidence levels ranging from 1b (individual RCT) to 5 (expert opinion) with a median level of 2b (individual cohort study). The West Midlands Research Collaborative had the highest number of publications (13), citations (130) and h-index (5). CONCLUSIONS: The experience of UK-based trainee research collaboratives provides useful insights for trainees and policymakers in global healthcare systems on the value and feasibility of trainee-driven high quality surgical research.AABJ is funded by the Wellcome Trust (grant number R43608). PJH is supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre and by an NIHR Research Professorship.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from BMJ Publishing Group via http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2015-01037

Estimating body composition in adolescent sprint athletes : comparison of different methods in a 3 years longitudinal design

A recommended field method to assess body composition in adolescent sprint athletes is currently lacking. Existing methods developed for non-athletic adolescents were not longitudinally validated and do not take maturation status into account. This longitudinal study compared two field methods, i.e., a Bio Impedance Analysis (BIA) and a skinfold based equation, with underwater densitometry to track body fat percentage relative to years from age at peak height velocity in adolescent sprint athletes. In this study, adolescent sprint athletes (34 girls, 35 boys) were measured every 6 months during 3 years (age at start = 14.8 +/- 1.5yrs in girls and 14.7 +/- 1.9yrs in boys). Body fat percentage was estimated in 3 different ways: 1) using BIA with the TANITA TBF 410; 2) using a skinfold based equation; 3) using underwater densitometry which was considered as the reference method. Height for age since birth was used to estimate age at peak height velocity. Cross-sectional analyses were performed using repeated measures ANOVA and Pearson correlations between measurement methods at each occasion. Data were analyzed longitudinally using a multilevel cross-classified model with the PROC Mixed procedure. In boys, compared to underwater densitometry, the skinfold based formula revealed comparable values for body fatness during the study period whereas BIA showed a different pattern leading to an overestimation of body fatness starting from 4 years after age at peak height velocity. In girls, both the skinfold based formula and BIA overestimated body fatness across the whole range of years from peak height velocity. The skinfold based method appears to give an acceptable estimation of body composition during growth as compared to underwater densitometry in male adolescent sprinters. In girls, caution is warranted when interpreting estimations of body fatness by both BIA and a skinfold based formula since both methods tend to give an overestimation

Initiation of Absconding-Swarm Emigration in the Social Wasp Polybia occidentalis

When a colony of the swarm-founding social wasp Polybia occidentals loses its nest to severe weather or predation, the adult population evacuates and temporarily clusters on nearby foliage. Most of the adults remain inactive in the cluster, while foragers bring in nectar and scout wasps search the surrounding area for a new nesting site. After several hours, the scouts stimulate the rest of the swarm to leave the cluster and follow their pheromone trail to the chosen site. How scouts communicate to their swarm-mates that a site has been chosen and how they induce the swarm to depart are unknown. Video records of six Costa Rican swarms were used to quantitatively document changes in the frequencies of social behaviors leading to swarm departure. This was accomplished by going backward through the video record and following the behavior of individuals prior to their departure. Analysis of the behavior of scouts and inactive wasps indicated an increase in the frequency with which scouts bump into inactive wasps prior to swarm departure, as well as a shift in the behavior of inactive wasps from primarily receiving bumps to bumping others before departure. Thus, bumping is propagated by recently activated individuals before they take off. These observations suggest that not only is bumping an activation stimulus that causes swarm members to depart for the new nest site, but it is contagious, leading to its amplification throughout the swarm