Non-invasive detection of iron deficiency by fluorescence measurement of erythrocyte zinc protoporphyrin in the lip

Worldwide, more individuals have iron deficiency than any other health problem. Most of those affected are unaware of their lack of iron, in part because detection of iron deficiency has required a blood sample. Here we report a non-invasive method to optically measure an established indicator of iron status, red blood cell zinc protoporphyrin, in the microcirculation of the lower lip. An optical fibre probe is used to illuminate the lip and acquire fluorescence emission spectra in similar to 1 min. Dual-wavelength excitation with spectral fitting is used to distinguish the faint zinc protoporphyrin fluorescence from the much greater tissue background fluorescence, providing immediate results. In 56 women, 35 of whom were iron-deficient, the sensitivity and specificity of optical non-invasive detection of iron deficiency were 97% and 90%, respectively. This fluorescence method potentially provides a rapid, easy to use means for point-of-care screening for iron deficiency in resource-limited settings lacking laboratory infrastructure

Non-invasive detection of iron deficiency by fluorescence measurement of erythrocyte zinc protoporphyrin in the lip

Worldwide, more individuals have iron deficiency than any other health problem. Most of those affected are unaware of their lack of iron, in part because detection of iron deficiency has required a blood sample. Here we report a non-invasive method to optically measure an established indicator of iron status, red blood cell zinc protoporphyrin, in the microcirculation of the lower lip. An optical fibre probe is used to illuminate the lip and acquire fluorescence emission spectra in similar to 1 min. Dual-wavelength excitation with spectral fitting is used to distinguish the faint zinc protoporphyrin fluorescence from the much greater tissue background fluorescence, providing immediate results. In 56 women, 35 of whom were iron-deficient, the sensitivity and specificity of optical non-invasive detection of iron deficiency were 97% and 90%, respectively. This fluorescence method potentially provides a rapid, easy to use means for point-of-care screening for iron deficiency in resource-limited settings lacking laboratory infrastructure

Dynamik als Leitprinzip zur Revitalisierung des Leipziger Auensystems

10 Thesen zur Revitalisierung der Leipziger Aue, eine Vision, ein konkreter Maßnahmenkatalog mit Karte zu Dynamisierungsoptionen und ein Ausblick mit Realisierungsvorschläge

Reoperative aortic root and transverse arch procedures: A comparison with contemporaneous primary operations

ObjectivesLong-term survival and risk factors affecting outcome after reoperative root/ascending aorta and transverse arch procedures have not been clearly described.MethodsTwo hundred patients (138 male patients; age, 60 ± 15 years) underwent reoperative root/ascending aorta (n = 100) or transverse arch (n = 100) procedures at our institution from January 1998 to December 2004 and were compared with 480 consecutive contemporaneous patients with primary procedures (323 male patients; age, 62 ± 16 years; 335 proximal aorta and 145 transverse arch procedures).ResultsReoperative proximal aorta procedures had a higher hospital mortality (7%) than primary root/ascending aorta procedures (3%), but there was a less dramatic difference in operative mortality after primary and reoperative arch procedures (9% vs 10%). Separate multivariable analyses of root/ascending aorta procedures and arch procedures revealed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and age to be significant risk factors for death after either procedure. In addition, an ejection fraction of less than 30% posed a significant risk for proximal aortic surgery, and diabetes and nonelective operations predicted poorer outcome after arch operations. For survivors of root/ascending aorta operations, there was no significant difference in long-term outcome between reoperations and primary procedures, with both restoring longevity to expected levels for an age- and sex-matched normal population. Patients undergoing arch operations, however, continued to have a poorer long-term outlook than their normal peers.ConclusionsIn this series, reoperations in the transverse arch carry the same risk as primary arch procedures, but a higher operative mortality is seen with reoperative than with primary root/ascending aorta procedures. The long-term outlook is better for patients undergoing root/ascending operations than for patients undergoing aortic arch operations, with no difference in the longevity of patients undergoing primary procedures versus reoperations

Visualization and Curve-Parameter Estimation Strategies for Efficient Exploration of Phenotype Microarray Kinetics

The Phenotype MicroArray (OmniLog® PM) system is able to simultaneously capture a large number of phenotypes by recording an organism's respiration over time on distinct substrates. This technique targets the object of natural selection itself, the phenotype, whereas previously addressed '-omics' techniques merely study components that finally contribute to it. The recording of respiration over time, however, adds a longitudinal dimension to the data. To optimally exploit this information, it must be extracted from the shapes of the recorded curves and displayed in analogy to conventional growth curves.The free software environment R was explored for both visualizing and fitting of PM respiration curves. Approaches using either a model fit (and commonly applied growth models) or a smoothing spline were evaluated. Their reliability in inferring curve parameters and confidence intervals was compared to the native OmniLog® PM analysis software. We consider the post-processing of the estimated parameters, the optimal classification of curve shapes and the detection of significant differences between them, as well as practically relevant questions such as detecting the impact of cultivation times and the minimum required number of experimental repeats.We provide a comprehensive framework for data visualization and parameter estimation according to user choices. A flexible graphical representation strategy for displaying the results is proposed, including 95% confidence intervals for the estimated parameters. The spline approach is less prone to irregular curve shapes than fitting any of the considered models or using the native PM software for calculating both point estimates and confidence intervals. These can serve as a starting point for the automated post-processing of PM data, providing much more information than the strict dichotomization into positive and negative reactions. Our results form the basis for a freely available R package for the analysis of PM data

NCX1 represents an ionic Na+ sensing mechanism in macrophages

Inflammation and infection can trigger local tissue Na(+)accumulation. This Na+-rich environment boosts proinflammatory activation of monocyte/macrophage-like cells (M phi s) and their antimicrobial activity. Enhanced Na+-driven M phi function requires the osmoprotective transcription factor nuclear factor of activated T cells 5 (NFAT5), which augments nitric oxide (NO) production and contributes to increased autophagy. However, the mechanism of Na(+)sensing in M phi s remained unclear. High extracellular Na(+)levels (high salt [HS]) trigger a substantial Na(+)influx and Ca(2+)loss. Here, we show that the Na+/Ca(2+)exchanger 1 (NCX1, also known as solute carrier family 8 member A1 [SLC8A1]) plays a critical role in HS-triggered Na(+)influx, concomitant Ca(2+)efflux, and subsequent augmented NFAT5 accumulation. Moreover, interfering with NCX1 activity impairs HS-boosted inflammatory signaling, infection-triggered autolysosome formation, and subsequent antibacterial activity. Taken together, this demonstrates that NCX1 is able to sense Na(+)and is required for amplifying inflammatory and antimicrobial M phi responses upon HS exposure. Manipulating NCX1 offers a new strategy to regulate M phi function

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements