Quick and robust method for trace determination of MeHg in rice and rice products without derivatisation

Peer reviewedPostprin

Postoperative infection following strabismus surgery: case series and increased incidence in a single large referral center

Purpose To identify and analyze cases of postoperative infection following strabismus surgery at a large referral center and to report the incidence, risk factors, and outcomes. Methods An electronic database search identified strabismus procedures at Duke Eye Center from July 1996 to October 2017. Diagnosis codes for periocular infections were used to further identify patients with possible infections following strabismus surgery. Results Of 9,111 strabismus surgeries, 13 (0.14%) met criteria for probable infection, all occurring since October 2012 (0/6580 before vs 13/2531 [0.51%] after; P < 0.0001). Mean age of infection cases was 11.4 years; 11 patients (85%) were under 18 years of age. Associated previous diagnoses were genetic abnormalities with associated developmental delay (n = 5 [38%]), previous skin or ear infection (n = 4 [31%]), and acute or chronic rhinitis (n = 3 [23%]). Infection site cultures revealed methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (n = 3 [23%]), methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (n = 3 [23%]), and Streptococcus pyogenes/group-A Streptococcus (n = 2 [15%]). Only 1 case had bilateral infection. Infection remained extraocular in all cases, but one eye lost light perception secondary to optic atrophy. No common surgeon/procedure/preparation-related risks were identified. Conclusions A unifying explanation for the increase in post–strabismus surgery infections at Duke Eye Center was not identified. Potential risk factors include age <18 years, developmental delay, immune compromise, preceding nonocular infection, and bacterial colonization

Epidemiology of Lumpy Skin Disease in Egypt between 2006 and 2018

Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) is a notifiable vector-borne disease transmitted by blood-feeding insects affecting cattle populations. LSD is a severe disease that is leading to economic losses. In this study, we displayed the prevalence of LSD in Egypt through retrospective and survey studies to point out the possible hazards of this serious disease. The 2006–2018 passive surveillance data were obtained from OIE-Wahis. A survey was conducted on 326 cattle, collected from 40 villages in 2017, using a structured questionnaire. Between 2006 and 2018, a total of 577 positive LSD outbreaks were reported. For spatial distribution, the Delta region showed the highest significant prevalence of 88% in the 2006 outbreak. Afterwards, Upper Egypt recorded the highest LSD prevalence between 2014 and 2018. The temporal distribution showed an alternative seasonal prevalence of LSD. In the cross-sectional study, the Delta had the highest prevalence, followed by Upper Egypt. Between the seasons, autumn had the highest prevalence followed by winter. Animals over the age of two years had the highest prevalence of risk factors. Dairy animals had a high significant prevalence. Housing animals in the open, the presence of farms near markets and repeated visits to markets, all had a high prevalence. The abundance of biting-flies significantly increased the prevalence. Almost all of the farmers were significantly unaware of the disease. The absence of periodic cleaning, animal isolation, and proper carcass disposal, all significantly increased LSD prevalence especially in unvaccinated animals. In conclusion, the retrospective and cross-sectional studies showed that LSD is an endemic disease with both spatial and temporal distributions. In addition, the survey pointed out the husbandry and biosecurity breaches that magnify LSD prevalence. Therefore, raising disease awareness and applying strategic prevention and control measures are the practical pillars against LSD

A new highly automated sputter equipment for in situ investigation of deposition processes with synchrotron radiation

8 pags., 7 figs., 1 tab.HASE (Highly Automated Sputter Equipment) is a new mobile setup developed to investigate deposition processes with synchrotron radiation. HASE is based on an ultra-high vacuum sputter deposition chamber equipped with an in-vacuum sample pick-and-place robot. This enables a fast and reliable sample change without breaking the vacuum conditions and helps to save valuable measurement time, which is required for experiments at synchrotron sources like PETRA III at DESY. An advantageous arrangement of several sputter guns, mounted on a rotative flange, gives the possibility to sputter under different deposition angles or to sputter different materials on the same substrate. The chamber is also equipped with a modular sample stage, which allows for the integration of different sample environments, such as a sample heating and cooling device. The design of HASE is unique in the flexibility. The combination of several different sputtering methods like standard deposition, glancing angle deposition, and high pressure sputter deposition combined with heating and cooling possibilities of the sample, the large exit windows, and the degree of automation facilitate many different grazing incidence X-ray scattering experiments, such as grazing incidence small and wide angle X-ray scattering, in one setup. In this paper we describe in detail the design and the performance of the new equipment and present the installation of the HASE apparatus at the Micro and Nano focus X-ray Scattering beamline (MiNaXS) at PETRA III. Furthermore, we describe the measurement options and present some selected results. The HASE setup has been successfully commissioned and is now available for users.We would like to thank Dimitri Novikov (DESY) and Carsten Richter (DESY, TU Freiberg) for their help concerning the reflectivity measurements and the fits of the XRR measurements, as well as Reinhard Eisenberg (DESY) for the preparation of the video film.Peer reviewe

Pharmacogenetics: data, concepts and tools to improve drug discovery and drug treatment

Variation in the human genome is a most important cause of variable response to drugs and other xenobiotics. Susceptibility to almost all diseases is determined to some extent by genetic variation. Driven by the advances in molecular biology, pharmacogenetics has evolved within the past 40 years from a niche discipline to a major driving force of clinical pharmacology, and it is currently one of the most actively pursued disciplines in applied biomedical research in general. Nowadays we can assess more than 1,000,000 polymorphisms or the expression of more than 25,000 genes in each participant of a clinical study – at affordable costs. This has not yet significantly changed common therapeutic practices, but a number of physicians are starting to consider polymorphisms, such as those in CYP2C9, CYP2C19, CYP2D6, TPMT and VKORC1, in daily medical practice. More obviously, pharmacogenetics has changed the practices and requirements in preclinical and clinical drug research; large clinical trials without a pharmacogenomic add-on appear to have become the minority. This review is about how the discipline of pharmacogenetics has evolved from the analysis of single proteins to current approaches involving the broad analyses of the entire genome and of all mRNA species or all metabolites and other approaches aimed at trying to understand the entire biological system. Pharmacogenetics and genomics are becoming substantially integrated fields of the profession of clinical pharmacology, and education in the relevant methods, knowledge and concepts form an indispensable part of the clinical pharmacology curriculum and the professional life of pharmacologists from early drug discovery to pharmacovigilance

Excimer laser treatment combined with riboflavin ultraviolet-A (UVA) collagen crosslinking (CXL) in keratoconus: a literature review

Purpose!#!To review the clinical outcome of keratoconus patients after excimer laser treatment with combined riboflavin UV-A collagen crosslinking (CXL) treatment was reviewed in light of the UDVA, CDVA and HOA.!##!Methods!#!Following a PubMed-based literature review of studies on excimer laser treatment with combined riboflavin UV-A CXL published between 2009 and 2018, peer-reviewed English-written studies were evaluated using the GRADE approach ( www.gradeworkinggroup.org ). The current review focused on the change in the (un)corrected distance visual acuity (UDVA; CDVA) and higher-order aberrations (HOA) as well as the prevalence of postoperative complications.!##!Results!#!Five studies with a total of 573 eyes were included, thereby reporting on 479 eyes were treated with the aforementioned combination therapy. The control group consisted of 94 eyes in total. Changes between pre- and postoperative CDVA and/or UDVA were statistically significant in all five studies after at least a 24-month follow-up period for the combined excimer laser-assisted CXL treatment in comparison with the CXL-only treatment option. Three studies described statistically significant reduction in the number of total HOA, in particular, those related to coma and spherical aberration. Corneal haze was reported in four studies, but the condition was successfully treated in all cases.!##!Conclusion!#!Current studies suggest that CDVA, UDVA and HOA in low-to-moderate keratoconic patients improved in a combined treatment without sacrificing biomechanical stability of the cornea. However, long-term results are needed, as the studies in our review have a follow-up period of 68 months or less

Preparation of sustained release apremilast-loaded PLGA nanoparticles: in vitro characterization and in vivo pharmacokinetic study in rats

Md Khalid Anwer,1 Muqtader Mohammad,1 Essam Ezzeldin,2,3 Farhat Fatima,1 Ahmed Alalaiwe,1 Muzaffar Iqbal2,3 1Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj 11942, Saudi Arabia; 2Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia; 3Bioavailability Laboratory, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia Background: Apremilast (APM) is a novel, orally administered small molecule drug approved for treatment of psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis. Due to its low solubility and permeability, it is classified as a class IV drug according to BCS classification. Dose titration is recommended during APM treatment due to its tolerability and twice-daily dosing regimen issues. Materials and Methods: In this study, three different APM-loaded PLGA nanoparticles (F1&ndash;F3) were prepared by single emulsion and evaporation method. Based on particle size, PDI, zeta potential (ZP), entrapment efficiency (%EE), drug loading (%DL), and spectral characterization, the nanoparticles (F3) were optimized. The F3 nanoparticles were further evaluated for in vitro release and in vivo pharmacokinetic studies in rats. Results: The optimized nanoparticles (F3) had particles size 307.3&plusmn;8.5 nm with a low PDI value 0.317, ZP of -43.4&plusmn;2.6 mV, EE of 61.1&plusmn;1.9% and DL of 1.9&plusmn;0.1%. The in vitro release profile showed a sustained release pattern of F3 nanoparticles of APM. The pharmacokinetic results showed 2.25 times increase in bio-availability of F3 nanoparticles compared to normal APM suspension. Moreover, significant increase in half-life and mean residence time confirms long-term retention of F3 nanoparticles. Conclusion: Bioavailability enhancement along-with long-term retention of the APM-loaded PLGA nanoparticles might be helpful for the once-daily regimen treatment. Keywords: apremilast, Poly(D,L-lactide-coglycolide), nanoparticles, bioavailability, sustained releas