Ischemia modified albumin is an indicator of oxidative stress in multiple sclerosis

Introduction: Oligodendrocytes need iron in processes of energy generation and myelination. However, excessive levels of iron may exert iron induced oxidative stress and thus lead to tissue degeneration. Monitoring oxidative stress will be of paramount importance in follow-up of patients with many diseases including multiple sclerosis (MS). The aim of this study was to measure total anti-oxidative status (TAS), total oxidative status (TOS) and ischemia modified albumin (IMA) in stable relapse remitting MS (RRMS) patients. Materials and methods: Thirty-five RRMS patients (15 males and 20 females; median age 42 (20-55) years) and thirty-five age-sex matched healthy controls (13 males and 22 females; median age 37 (21-60) years) were included in this study. All patients were diagnosed with MS according to the criteria of McDonald. Results: IMA levels were significantly higher in RRMS patients (P < 0.001), while TAS and TOS did not show any significant difference between groups (P = 0.870 and P = 0.460, respectively). Conclusions: Our results suggest IMA as a more efficient serum marker than TAS and TOS in detecting the oxidative stress in MS patients. Serum oxidative stress markers should be included in future study protocols besides clinical and radiological parameter

Cloning of anti-hbsag single chain variable fragments from hybridoma cells for one-step elisa

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a worldwide health problem. More than 400 million people are chronic HBV carriers in the world. Infected individuals are at a high risk of developing liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma as the main consequences of HBV. The discoveries of fast diagnostic systems and new therapeutic applications are crucial in the fight against viral hepatitis. In this paper we present the generation of a single-chain variable fragment (scFv) from a mouse monoclonal antibody specific to the HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) and demonstrate its expression as a bacterial alkaline phosphatase (AP) fusion protein. In this study, we constructed scFvs from hybridoma cells expressing HBsAg-specific antibody using phage display technology and expressed them in Escherichia coli. The anti-HBsAg scFvs were inserted into pQE-2 vector to produce scFv antibody genetically fused to bacterial AP. Reproducibility of the recombinant HBsAg-scFv fusion protein was tested using Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Present preliminary findings indicate that the anti-HBsAg-scFv AP conjugate could be further used for the development of one-step ELISA for the detection of HBV

Recent results on heavy-ion induced reactions of interest for neutrinoless double beta decay at INFN-LNS

Abstract. The possibility to use a special class of heavy-ion induced direct reactions, such as double charge exchange reactions, is discussed in view of their application to extract information that may be helpful to determinate the nuclear matrix elements entering in the expression of neutrinoless double beta decay halflife. The methodology of the experimental campaign presently running at INFN - Laboratori Nazionali del Sud is reported and the experimental challenges characterizing such activity are describe

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P &lt; 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

RELATIONSHIP AMONG SLEEP QUALITY, QUALITY OF LIFE AND ACADEMIC SELF-EFFICACY OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Research Articl

Duration of the constitution-making process as an indicator of post-constitutional political uncertainty: the insurance theory revisited

Criticizing the insurance theory, this paper asserts that to measure post-constitutional political uncertainty, one should consider not only the power distribution among the "political" actors but the power distribution among "all" actors involved in the constitution-making process, including the public and civil society. Comparing the constitution-making processes of the constitutions of Egypt (2012) and Tunisia (2014), this study presents the “duration of the constitution-making process” as an alternative measure of power distribution among all actors. The theoretical framework asserts that the long constitution-making process increases, the possibility of deliberation at the public level. That will help to develop trust among polarized political actors and improve political actors’ perception of the public as a credible control and constraint mechanism. This will ensure that the incoming government will respect the newly established institutions and lead to the establishment of an independent and powerful judiciary. In the second part of the paper, to test this argument, I use a large data set that covers information on the content and design processes of 140 countries’ most recent constitutions adopted between 1945-2018. The empirical results indicate that as the duration of the constitution-making increases, the number of constitutional guarantees for judicial independence increases