An Improved Animal Model of Multiple Myeloma Bone Disease

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a plasma cell malignancy that causes an accumulation of terminally differentiated monoclonal plasma cells in the bone marrow, accompanied by multiple myeloma bone disease (MMBD). MM animal models have been developed and enable to interrogate the mechanism of MM tumorigenesis. However, these models demonstrate little or no evidence of MMBD. We try to establish the MMBD model with severe bone lesions and easily accessible MM progression. 1 x 10(6) luciferase-expressing 5TGM1 cells were injected into 8-12 week-old NOD SCID gamma mouse (NSG) and C57BL/KaLwRij mouse via the tail vein. Myeloma progression was assessed weekly via in vivo bioluminescence (BL) imaging using IVIS-200. The spine and femur/tibia were extracted and scanned by the micro-computer tomography for bone histo-morphometric analyses at the postmortem. The median survivals were 56 days in NSG while 44.5 days in C57BL/KaLwRij agreed with the BL imaging results. Histomorphic and DEXA analyses demonstrated that NSG mice have severe bone resorption that occurred at the lumbar spine but no significance at the femur compared to C57BL/KaLwRij mice. Based on these, we conclude that the systemic 5TGM1 injected NSG mouse slowly progresses myeloma and develops more severe MMBD than the C57BL/KaLwRij model

Evaluation of the genetic effects of the in vitro antimicrobial activities of Rhazya stricta leaf extract using molecular techniques and scanning electron microscope

Rhazya stricta plants have always played a major role in the treatment of human and animal diseases and it has main role in the folk medicine. The aim of this study was to explore the potential antimicrobial activities of the aqueous leaves extract of R. stricta on Gram-negative and Gram-positive food-borne bacteria and evaluate the antimicrobial effect at the molecular level. The results indicate that the aqueous leaves extract of R. stricta exhibited the antimicrobial activity against tested microorganisms. A clear, but significantly smaller, inhibition zones were formed after the treatment of two Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli and Aeromonas hydrophila) and one Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) with the aqueous leaves extract of R. stricta (50 mg) comparing with those formed after the treatment with streptomycin (15 mg). Moreover, the results obtained after the treatments of bacterial strains with elevated concentrations of aqueous extracts of the wild plant of R. stricta leaves reveled that the extract has potent lethal activities as the growth turbidity decreased as the concentration or time of exposure increased. In addition, the observation by the scanning electron microscope showed that cells of the bacterial strains were damaged after the treatment with plant extracts. The noticed antimicrobial effect was explored at the molecular level, using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of the plasmid DNA and random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis of the genomic DNA extracted from the control (untreated) and R. stricta leaf extract-treated bacterial strains. The results demonstrate polymorphic band pattern for most treated microbes compared with the wild type (untreated) strain. Concerning gene expression under the same conditions, total protein contents of the three treated bacteria showed significantly gradual increase in all of the treatment doses compared to control. In addition, the SDS-PAGE of the bacterial cellular proteins resulted in the induction of some protein bands under the treatment conditions. All these results strongly point out the mutagenicity, lethal and antimicrobial effect of the leaves extract of R. stricta. The results indicate the possibility of using the leaves extract of R. stricta as a source of antibacterial compounds for treatment of infections caused by multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial pathogens.Keywords: Medicinal plants, Rhazya stricta, antimicrobial, mutagenicity, RAPD, RFLP, SEM, E. coli, S. aureus, A. hydrophilaAfrican Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(21), pp. 3171-318

Genetic diversity and DNA fingerprint study in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L) cultivars grown in Egypt using simple sequence repeats (SSR) markers

A collection of ten cultivars of tomato grown in Egypt were screened with 20 simple sequence repeat (SSR) primers in order to determine genetic identities, genetic diversity and genetic relationships among these  cultivars. On an average, 38 alleles were amplified using SSR primers with scorable fragment sizes ranging  from approximately 75 to 275 bp. 23 alleles were polymorphic thus revealing 60.5% of polymorphism. The  genetic similarity estimated according to SSR data was scaled between 17.6 and 93.2%, suggesting the  potential of SSR markers in discriminating among plants of close or distant genetic backgrounds. Unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) clustering grouped the cultivars into two groups where the  two Egyptian cultivars Edkawy and Giza 80 were clustered in different group. In addition, clustering was found  consistent with the known information regarding growth habit. The genetic distance information obtained in  this study might be useful to breeder for planning crosses among these cultivars.Key words: Tomato cultivars, diversity, Simple sequence repeats (SSR), Egypt

Laparoscopic Hernia Repair in Infancy and Childhood; Evaluation of Two Different Techniques

Background/Purpose: There are many techniques available for laparoscopic hernia repair in infancy and childhood. The objective of this study is to compare two different laparoscopic techniques as regards operative time, recurrence rate, hydrocele formation and post operative cosmetic results. Materials & Methods: A prospective randomized controlled study was carried out in the Pediatric Surgery Unit of Al- Azhar University Hospitals, over three years period. ne-hundred and fifty patients with congenital inguinal hernia were randomized into two equals groups; (n = 75). Group A was subjected to purse-string suture around the internal inguinal ring (IIR) using two needle holders (TNH). Group B was subjected to laparoscopic hernia repair of inguinal hernia by Reverdin Needle (RN). Inclusion criteria included; bilateral inguinal hernia, recurrent hernia, hernia in obese child, incarcerated hernia and hernia on ipsilateral with questionable contralateral side. Exclusion criteria included; unilateral inguinal hernia, and hernia with undescended testicles. The main outcome measurements were; operative time, hospital stay, postoperative hydrocele formation, recurrence rate, and cosmetic results. Results: There were no significant differences as regard age, sex and mode of presentation between both groups. All cases were completed successfully without conversion. There were significant statistical differences in the operative time between the studied groups, while there were no significant statistical differences in the hospital stay, post operative hydrocele formation and recurrence rate. The cosmetic result is excellent in group B. Conclusion: Laparoscopic hernia repair by RN is an effective line of hernia repair in infancy and childhood. It resulted in marked reduction of operative time and excellent cosmetic results with low recurrence. Index Word: Laparoscopic, Reverdin Needle, Purse-string, Intracorporeal sutures

Competency-based Learning: The effectiveness of targeted resident education and clinical auditing feedback on completed death certificate accuracy rates

Background: Death certification is an integral part of physician practice, yet common errors are being encountered from this vital source of health information. Most medical training programs lack formal curricula for this important skill. Accurate information from DC will help in improve our mortality data which can be use public health purposesObjectives: This study evaluated the effect of a multifaceted educational intervention on accuracy of completing death certification in a tertiary-based paediatric residency programMethod: A pre-post intervention and control cohort study over 12- month period to assess the effect of our multifaceted intervention accuracy rate of completed DC was conducted. The intervention consisted of a 3-part program (distribution of educational material, presentation by a skilled instructor, skills workshop, and clinical mortality/auditing feedback sessions). Primary outcome was the difference in scores preand post-intervention and also the rate of accuracy on the MAHI death certificate scoring system.Results: The mean score before the intervention was 6.8±2.7 and 7.1±2.3 in both the intervention and control cohorts respectively. The mean score after the intervention was 16.3±2.5 and 7.3±2.8 in both the intervention and control cohorts respectively indicating an increase in scores. The mean difference in pre- and post-tutorial scores was significant (t=20.39, p=0.0001).Conclusions: We found that using a multifaceted educational intervention to train junior physicians on how to correctly complete a DC was effective in a residency-based pediatric programKeywords: Death certificate, medical education, multifaceted training, heath information, Nigeria

Comments About Hamiltonian Formulation of Non-Linear Massive Gravity with Stuckelberg Fields

We perform the Hamiltonian analysis of some form of the non-linear massive gravity action that is formulated in the Stuckelberg formalism. Following seminal analysis performed in arXiv:1203.5283 [hep-th] we find that this theory possesses one primary constraint which could eliminate one additional mode in this theory. We performed the explicit Hamiltonian analysis of two dimensional non-linear massive gravity and we found that this is theory free from the ghosts.Comment: 17 pages,v2:typos corrected, references added, v3. Rewritten the main body of the paper after publication of the paper arXiv:1203.5283 [hep-th] where the primary constraint was identified so that the conclusion is different from the first version of the paper. It is also version that is accepted for publication in JHEP. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1202.5899, arXiv:1204.2957, arXiv:1109.305

Confirmation of the Secondary Constraint and Absence of Ghost in Massive Gravity and Bimetric Gravity

In massive gravity and in bimetric theories of gravity, two constraints are needed to eliminate the two phase-space degrees of freedom of the Boulware-Deser ghost. For recently proposed non-linear theories, a Hamiltonian constraint has been shown to exist and an associated secondary constraint was argued to arise as well. In this paper we explicitly demonstrate the existence of the secondary constraint. Thus the Boulware-Deser ghost is completely absent from these non-linear massive gravity theories and from the corresponding bimetric theories.Comment: 15 page

Combined use of maxillomandibular swing approach and neurosurgical ultrasonic aspirator in the management of extensive clival chordoma: A case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Chordoma is a rare malignant tumour with an incidence of metastasis of less than 10 percent. Usually arising from clivus its posterior extension may involve the brainstem before presenting as nasal mass and obstruction. Surgery is the main mode of treatment with adjuvant radiotherapy. However surgery is rarely possible for a large intracranial lesion.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report the case of an adolescent patient with a chordoma extending posteriorly to the brainstem and anteriorly to the nasopharynx and managed by the combination of resection using a maxillomandibular swing approach and the use of a neurosurgical ultrasonic aspirator.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Maxillomandibular swing approach provides good access for large nasopharyngeal tumour extending brainstem area.</p

On Consistent Theories of Massive Spin-2 Fields Coupled to Gravity

We consider the issues that arise out of interpreting the ghost-free bimetric theory as a theory of a spin-2 field coupled to gravity. This requires identifying a gravitational metric and parameterizing deviations of the resulting theory from general relativity. To this end, we first consider the most general bimetric backgrounds for which a massless and a massive spin-2 fluctuation with Fierz-Pauli mass exist. These backgrounds coincide with solutions in general relativity. Based on this, we obtain nonlinear extensions of the massive and massless spin-2 fields. The background value of the nonlinear massive field parameterizes generic deviations of the bimetric theory from GR. It is also shown that the nonlinear massless field does not have standard ghost-free matter couplings, and hence cannot represent the gravitational metric. However, an appropriate gravitational metric can still be identified in the weak gravity limit. Hence in the presence of other neutral spin-2 fields, the weak gravity limit is crucial for compatibility with general relativity. We also write down the action in terms of the nonlinear massive spin-2 field and obtain its ghost-free couplings to matter. The discussion is then generalized to multimetric theories.Comment: Latex, 31 page