Monodromy groups of real Enriques surfaces

We compute the monodromy groups of real Enriques surfaces of hyperbolic type. The principal tools are the deformation classification of such surfaces and a modified version of Donaldson's trick, relating real Enriques surfaces and real rational surfaces. © 2012 Elsevier B.V

Remembering Ihsan Doǧramaci.

[No abstract available

Diagnostic value of combined serum biomarkers for the evaluation of liver fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C infection: A multicenter, noninterventional, observational study

Background/Aims: The hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is important cause of chronic hepatitis. Liver biopsy is considered the gold standard for assessment of fibrosis but this procedure is an invasive procedure. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of non-invasive serum biomarkers, separately and in combinations, on liver fibrosis in treatment-naive chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients. Materials and Methods: Two hundred and sixteen treatment-naive CHC patients were enrolled from 32 locations across Turkey in this open-labelled, non-interventional prospective observational study. FibroTest®, aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index(APRI), aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase ratio (AAR), fibrosis index based on four factors (FIB-4), Age-platelet(AP) index and Forns index were measured and compared with Metavir scores got from liver biopsies. Results: Data from 182 patients with baseline liver biopsy were suitable for analysis. One hundred and twenty patients (65.9%) had F0-F1 fibrosis and 62 patients (34.1%) had F2-F4 fibrosis. APRI 0.732 area under the curve(AUC) indicated advanced fibrosis with 69% sensitivity and 77% specificity. FIB-4 0.732 AUC and FibroTest 0.715 AUC indicated advanced fibrosis with 69% and 78.4% sensitivity, and 75% and 71.4% specificity, respectively. The combined use of tests also led to an increase in AUC and specificity. Combinations of FibroTest with APRI and/or FIB-4, and FIB-4 with APRI were optimal for the evaluation of liver fibrosis. Conclusion: Fibrotest, FIB-4, APRI, AP index and Forns index exhibit good diagnostic performance for determining liver fibrosis in CHC patients, and the use of at least two tests together will increase their diagnostic value still further. © Copyright 2018 by The Turkish Society of Gastroenterology

Discovery of os cordis in the cardiac skeleton of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

Cardiovascular diseases, especially idiopathic myocardial fibrosis, is one of the most significant causes of morbidity and mortality in captive great apes. This study compared the structure and morphology of 16 hearts from chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) which were either healthy or affected by myocardial fibrosis using X-ray microtomography. In four hearts, a single, hyperdense structure was detected within the right fibrous trigone of the cardiac skeleton. High resolution scans and histopathology revealed trabecular bones in two cases, hyaline cartilage in another case and a focus of mineralised fibro-cartilaginous metaplasia with endochondral ossification in the last case. Four other animals presented with multiple foci of ectopic calcification within the walls of the great vessels. All hearts affected by marked myocardial fibrosis presented with bone or cartilage formation, and increased collagen levels in tissues adjacent to the bone/cartilage, while unaffected hearts did not present with os cordis or cartilago cordis. The presence of an os cordis has been described in some ruminants, camelids, and otters, but never in great apes. This novel research indicates that an os cordis and cartilago cordis is present in some chimpanzees, particularly those affected by myocardial fibrosis, and could influence the risk of cardiac arrhythmias and sudden death

Factors influencing the consumption of seafood in Istanbul, Turkey | İstanbul, Türkiye'deki su ürünleri tüketimini etkileyen faktörler

Scientific data on the attitudes and knowledge of Turkish people regarding seafood consumption is very limited. Therefore, consumption habits and preferences of Turkish people for seafoods were evaluated, based on the example of Istanbul, which is the most crowded and cosmopolitan city of Turkey. Only 15.53% (151) of the 972 participants stated they never consume seafoods but none of them considered seafoods unhealthy. Their main reason for not consuming is odor and taste. A significant proportion of the participants (84.47%) were well aware of the nutrition value of seafoods. Former negative experiences didn't decrease consumption frequency. The rate of seafood consumers and the consumption frequency increases proportional to the age of the consumers. Most of the respondents (34.84%) consume seafood once a week and they believe that they should consume seafoods more often. If seafoods were more available, many participants (44.10%) stated that they would consume seafoods. The top three preferred fish were fatty species, while the most favorite seafood was mussel. Octopus was the most unfavorable seafood, and most of the participants were not familiar with surimi. Respondents mostly (96.59%) preferred to consume fresh seafoods, and canning was the favorite (37.64%) processing technology

Benign episodic unilateral mydriasis (case report)

Benign episodic unilateral mydriasis is a descriptive condition with recurrent unilateral mydriasis in adults, especially women with migraine. We report a 20 year-old male presenting with paroxysmal left pupil mydriasis and diagnosed as benign episodic unilateral mydriasis after exclusion of other reasons causing anisocoria

Chitin extraction and chitosan production from Chilopoda (Scolopendra cingulata) with identification of physicochemical properties

ISSN: 1555-6107 (electronic version). IF 0.919The Chilopoda is found in a broad array of terrestrial habitats from tropical rain forests to deserts and there are more than 8000 species worldwide. Chitin and chitosan were obtained from Scolopendra cingulata for the first time in this study and physico-chemically characterized. The dry weight chitin content of S. cingulata was found to be 8% of body weight, and it produced chitosan yields of 66%. Analyses results revealed that Chilopoda chitin was in the α-form. The chitosan derived from Chilopoda chitin has a low molecular weight (2.278 kDa). The surface morphology of chitin from S. cingulata consists of dispersed nanopores and nanofibresBiologijos katedraVytauto Didžiojo universiteta