Distributions of PCNA and Cas-3 in rat uterus during early pregnancy.

The aim of present study was to determine the distributions of proliferating cell nuclear agent (PCNA) and Cas-pase-3 (Cas-3) and their possible roles in implantation and decidualization during early pregnancy at immunohistochemical level. The tissue samples from pregnant animals between gestational days 1-5 were incubated by PCNA and Cas-3 antibodies and the obtained results were evaluated quantitatively. It was observed that PCNA immunoreactivity in uterine luminal epithelium and glandular epithelium reduced as from day 2 of gestation and disappeared as from day 4 of gestation. PCNA staining intensity in stromal cells and myometrium increased gradually with progressing gestation. While Cas-3 immunoreactivity was strongly detected in luminal and glandular epithelium throughout the whole gestational period, its reactivity markedly increased as from day 3 of gestation. In conclusion, it may suggest that the blastocyst implantation induces the uterine luminal epithelial cell death and stromal cell proliferation around the embryo in the uterus

Portable Microfluidic Integrated Plasmonic Platform for Pathogen Detection

Timely detection of infectious agents is critical in early diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases. Conventional pathogen detection methods, such as enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), culturing or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) require long assay times, and complex and expensive instruments, which are not adaptable to point-of-care (POC) needs at resource-constrained as well as primary care settings. Therefore, there is an unmet need to develop simple, rapid, and accurate methods for detection of pathogens at the POC. Here, we present a portable, multiplex, inexpensive microfluidic-integrated surface plasmon resonance (SPR) platform that detects and quantifies bacteria, i.e., Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) rapidly. The platform presented reliable capture and detection of E. coli at concentrations ranging from ~105 to 3.2 × 107 CFUs/mL in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) and peritoneal dialysis (PD) fluid. The multiplexing and specificity capability of the platform was also tested with S. aureus samples. The presented platform technology could potentially be applicable to capture and detect other pathogens at the POC and primary care settings

Live Cell Imaging of Bone Marrow Stromal Cells on Nano-pitted and Polished Titanium Surfaces: A Micro-Incubator in vitro Approach

Current orthopedic implants are not conducive for optimal integration of the biomaterial with newly-formed tissue (osseointegration) inside a patient’s body. In this study, medical-rade Ti-6Al-4V was used as a substrate due to its biocompatibility and ability to facilitate cellular adhesion and proliferation. Live cell imaging was conducted on bone marrow stromal cells, genetically modified to express the green fluorescent protein (GFP), from the 24-96 hours growth period, with the first 24 hours of growth being held inside a lab-scale incubator. Periodic images were recorded on nanopitted anodized and polished Ti-6Al-4V substrates to study how substratestiffness influences adhesion and proliferation. Collected images were analyzed for mitosis, adhesion, and filopodia-stretchability using ImageJ, an image processing program. Images were enhanced in order to perform cell counts at 24, 48, 72, and 96 hours of growth. Continuous recordings were produced to account for the number of mitosis occurrences and cellular migration on each of the substrates. Based on the conducted experiments, it appears that polished Ti-6Al-4V has a higher cell adherence than “nanopitted” anodized surface and an improved rate of proliferation which may be because the cells once adhered on the nano-pitted surface have less ability to detach in-order to undergo mitosis.https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/u_poster_2014/1004/thumbnail.jp

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Correction to: Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Herpetic Keratouveitis following Intravitreal Ranibizumab Injection in a Case with Diabetic Macular Edema

Purpose The purpose of this study is to report a case of herpetic keratouveitis that developed soon after intravitreal ranibizumab injection. Case Report A 54-year-old man with bilateral proliferative diabetic retinopathy and severe macular edema received intravitreal ranibizumab injections in both eyes within 3 days interval. One week after the injection, patient presented with acute vision loss in his right eye. Slit-lamp biomicroscopy revealed diffuse corneal edema and severe flare in the anterior chamber with intraocular pressure (IOP) rise. After epithelial dendritic corneal ulcer was visualized, he was diagnosed with right herpetic keratouveitis that was treated with oral valacyclovir, as well as topical acyclovir ointment and prednisolone acetate drops. However, recalcitrant IOP rise had to be treated with a single session transscleral diode laser cyclophotocoagulation. Conclusion Herpetic keratouveitis can be seen as a rare complication of intravitreal ranibizumab injection. To our best knowledge, this is the first case with herpes keratouveitis developed following intravitreal ranibizumab injection

Space-Time Block Code Classification for MIMO Signals

22nd IEEE Signal Processing and Communications Applications Conference (SIU) -- APR 23-25, 2014 -- Karadeniz Teknik Univ, Trabzon, TURKEYWOS: 000356351400489Signal identification techniques developed for the purpose of blind and noncooperative identification of the transmission parameters of unknown communication signals have been employed both in military and civilian applications. Blind identification of the Space-Time Block Codes (STBC) used in a multiantenna transmisson can be regarded as one of the new and most significant challenges presented to the signal identification systems by the Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO) transmission systems. In this work, we present novel STBC classification algorithms that exploit the cyclostationary characteristics of the coded transmit signals as discriminating features.IEEE, Karadeniz Tech Univ, Dept Comp Engn & Elect & Elect Eng

Central Serous Chorioretinopathy During Glucocorticoid Therapy For Cluster Headache

Central serous chorioretinopathy is an uncommon retinal disease. It is characterized by an accumulation of subretinal fluid at the posterior pole of the fundus and formed in an area surrounding the serous retinal detachment. It manifests generally as a visual loss or an abnormal colour vision. It is often idiopathic but may also be associated with numerous pathological, conditions that require frequent corticosteroid treatment (1). At least 200 cases of patients who developed central serous chorioretinopathy during glucocorticoid therapy have been reported in the literature. Corticosteroids (prednisone and dexamethazone) are quite useful for a rapid remission in patients with episodic cluster headache (2). In this report a case of central serous chorioretinopathy developed after the treatment of cluster headache period with corticosteroids is presented. This complication depending on the treatment of cluster headache with short period of corticosteroid application should be kept in mind and these patients should be observed carefully

Measuring the value of energy storage systems in a power network

The increased use of renewable generators and their intermittent behavior motivates network operators to deploy energy storage systems. In this study, energy storage types, locations, and capacities are optimized for a capacitated electric power network with renewable generation. Short term operational decisions that include charging/discharging schedules and capacity management of the storage systems are included in this optimization framework to capture hourly, daily, and seasonal fluctuations of the demand, renewable generation, and energy prices. A Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) formulation is developed but because of the computational complexity, a mathematical programming based metaheuristic algorithm is proposed. With a numerical study, the proposed heuristic method is proved to be highly effective compared to the MILP formulation and an existing state of the art algorithm. The effects of storage installation costs, line capacities, demand and generation variance on the values of storage systems and on the installation decisions are analyzed through numerical studies