Coinciding Changes in B Lines Patterns, Haemoglobin and Hematocrit Values Can Predict Outcomes of Weaning from Mechanical Ventilation

BACKGROUND: Weaning from invasive mechanical ventilation (MV) is considered as a daily challenging practice in the management of critically ill patients. The use of lung ultrasound and change in haemoglobin and hematocrit during weaning may help to predict weaning outcomes. AIM: We aimed in our study to make a focused view over the changes occurred in lungs during weaning from MV which were detected by lung ultrasound through increase in B lines with the occurrence of weaning induced pulmonary oedema (WIPE), coinciding with this changes the occurrence of hemoconcentration was detected through increase in Hb and HCT values after SBT. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sixty patients who fulfilled readiness criteria for weaning from MV. Spontaneous breathing trial (SBT) on T-piece for 120 minutes was performed under close hemodynamic monitoring. Lung ultrasound was performed using eight lung zones protocol to detect both the presence and the trend of change in B lines before and after SBT. For all the studied patients, haemoglobin and hematocrit values were checked just before and at the end of SBT. RESULTS: Patient who failed to pass SBT showed significant increase in lung segments showing B pattern, haemoglobin and hematocrit levels (p-value < 0.001 for all) also those patients had significantly higher duration of ICU stay (p-value < 0.001) Despite mortality rate was higher among patients who failed SBT yet it was statistically insignificant (p-value 0.104). CONCLUSION: lung ultrasound and both haemoglobin and hematocrit levels correlate with weaning outcomes

Effect of Age and Periods of Rigor Mortis on Quality of Sarcoplasmic Proteins Separation from Meat’s Protein by Using Electrophoresis Technique

We were separated sarcoplasmic proteins from beef meats on 12 and 28 months ,mutton meats on 6 and 12 months and  chicken meats on 25 and 40 days  on rigor mortis stage and after rigor mortis stage by using  electrophoresis technique. The results showed the following: Sarcoplasmic proteins differ on all types of meats below number of bands separation from it’s as differ of age of animal and stage of rigor mortis ,On beef meat proteins showed presence of 10 and 8  bands on 12 and 28 months on stage of rigor-post  mortis the bands separation from sarcoplasmic, On the mutton meat we separation 10 bands of sarcoplasmic proteins on  6 and 12 months on stage of rigor-post mortis, We found 11 bands of sarcoplasmic proteinson on chicken meats on 25 and 40 days respectively.The band of  phosphorylase b (PHb) and phosphorylase b kinase (PHbK) enzymes  showed as one big pale band,while phosphor glucomutase)  PGM), pyruvate kinase (PK), phosphoglucose isomerase) PGI), enolase (EN),  creatine kinase) CK), phosphoglycerate kinase (PGAK), aldolase  (ALD), glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), lactate  dehydrogenase (LDH), phosphoglycerate mutase) PGAM), triosephosphate isomerase (TPI) and myoglobin ( Mb ) showed as thin and pale bands. Keywords: Beef meat , mutton meat, chicken meat,  meat’s protein, sarcoplasmic proteins, electrophoresis, rigor morti

Peptide-carbohydrate mimicry: synthesis and immunological evaluation of experimental bacterial vaccines

One of the most pressing global issues in human health today includes the need to develop new, safer, and more effective vaccines against the ever increasing range of emerging, re-emerging, and antibiotic-resistant infectious diseases. The discovery that peptides could mimic the structure of microbial polysaccharides in carbohydrate-specific immunological reactions, and hence have potential as surrogate vaccines, is emerging as a new paradigm in vaccine research and development to replace traditional carbohydrate vaccines against microbial infections. While the basis and origin of mimicry at the molecular level between these two chemically unrelated molecules (carbohydrate and peptide), but functionally equivalent molecular structures have been determined, the requirements for immunogenicity of these carbohydrate-mimetic peptides in raising a long-lasting, cross-reactive protective immune response against the original microbial polysaccharides are currently unknown. This knowledge is fundamental for the development of effective surrogate vaccines to target microbial surface carbohydrates. This thesis deals with the examination of the immunogenicity in mice of two carbohydrate-mimetic peptides, DRPVPY and MDWNMHAA, both identified from phage-displayed libraries, as mimics of the cell-surface polysaccharides of two pathogenic bacteria Streptococcus Group A and Shigella flexneri Y. As a crucial part of the studies, an efficient strategy has been developed to synthesize experimental vaccines comprising these two mimetic peptides, as well as a polysaccharide (ten repeating units) of Shigella flexneri Y. The results obtained from the immunogenicity studies provide insight into the requirements for immunologically cross-reactive mimics of carbohydrates, as well as demonstrate whether these two mimetic peptides could be used as surrogates in the development of vaccines against the two respective bacterial pathogens. Rational drug design, which is emerging as a powerful technique to improve upon initial discoveries, has been used in this thesis work to design a second generation of ligands for anti-carbohydrate antibodies, hopefully with much higher affinity. Two glycopeptides comprising features of both the original polysaccharide and the mimetic peptide have been designed by molecular modeling using information based on X-ray crystal structures of the two bound original ligands. Synthetic strategies have successfully been developed in this thesis work to synthesize the designed chimeric glycopeptides

Does TAME induced contraction involve an endothelium dependent nitric oxide-cyclic GMP mediated pathway?

406-408Two enzyme inhibitors namely L-NAME, a nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor and methylene blue, a guanylate cyclise inhibitor, were used to elucidate whether N-α-tosyl L-arginine methyl ester (TAME)-induced contract ions in toad intestinal rings in vitro are mediated through a nitric oxide (NO)- cyclic GMP (c-GMP) pathway. Moreover, a NO precursor, L-arginine was also used to investigate its effect on TAME-induced contractions. Our findings provide evidence that TAME-induced contractions have both an endothelium-dependent and an endothelium-independent component. Based on our findings we now propose that TAME induced contraction involves an endothelium-dependent component mediated through NO and c-GMP

Immunological Evidence for Functional Rather than Structural Mimicry by a Shigella flexneri Y Polysaccharide-Mimetic Peptide▿ †

An approach to vaccine design is the use of molecules that mimic the immunogenic element of interest. In this context, the interaction of MDWNMHAA, a peptide mimic of the Shigella flexneri Y O polysaccharide (PS), with an anti-carbohydrate monoclonal antibody, as studied previously by X-ray crystallography, suggested the presence of functional rather than structural mimicry and a bound peptide conformation that was not represented significantly in the free-ligand ensemble. The antibody response elicited by an MDWNMHAA-carrier protein (tetanus toxoid [TT]) conjugate has now been investigated in BALB/c mice. The mice were immunized following a homologous prime/boost strategy using MDWNMHAA-TT as the immunogen. The mice showed anti-peptide antibody (immunoglobulin G [IgG]) titers that increased after being boosted. High anti-lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (IgG) titers were observed after the last boost. A faster immune response, with cross-reactive titers, was observed with a peptide conjugate with 30% more copies of the peptide. The binding of anti-peptide polyclonal antibodies to LPS could be inhibited by LPS, PS, MDWNMHAA, and MDWNMHAA-bovine serum albumin, as assessed by inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Conversely, mice immunized with PS-TT showed IgG anti-peptide titers. These data demonstrate the cross-reactivity of the antibody response and support the hypothesis that functional, as opposed to structural, mimicry of the S. flexneri Y O PS by MDWNMHAA or the underrepresentation of the bound ligand conformation in the free-ligand ensemble does not compromise immunological cross-reactivity. Prime/boost strategies were performed with a heterologous boost of PS-TT or MDWNMHAA-TT. They led to high anti-LPS titers after only three injections, suggesting alternatives to improve the immunogenicity of the carbohydrate-mimetic peptide and confirming the antigenic mimicry

Epidemiological characterization of symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 cases and positivity in subsequent RT-PCR tests in the United Arab Emirates.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases could be symptomatic or asymptomatic. We (1) characterized and analyzed data collected from the first cohort of reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)-confirmed COVID-19 cases reported in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, according to the symptomatic state, and (2) identified factors associated with the symptomatic state. The association between the symptomatic state and testing positive in three subsequent RT-PCR testing rounds was also quantified. Between February 28 and April 8, 2020, 1,249 cases were reported. Sociodemographic characteristics, working status, travel history, and chronic comorbidities of 791 cases were analyzed according to the symptomatic state (symptomatic or asymptomatic). After the first confirmatory test, the results of three subsequent tests were analyzed. The mean age of the 791 cases was 35.6 ± 12.7 years (range: 1-81). Nearly 57.0% of cases were symptomatic. The two most frequent symptoms were fever (58.0%) and cough (41.0%). Symptomatic cases (mean age 36.3 ± 12.6 years) were significantly older than asymptomatic cases (mean age 34.5 ± 12.7 years). Compared with nonworking populations, working in public places (adjusted odds ratio (aOR), 1.76, 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.11-2.80), healthcare settings (aOR, 2.09, 95% CI: 1.01-4.31), or in the aviation and tourism sectors (aOR, 2.24, 95% CI: 1.14-4.40) was independently associated with the symptomatic state. Reporting at least one chronic comorbidity was also associated with symptomatic cases (aOR, 1.76, 95% CI: 1.03-3.01). Compared with asymptomatic cases, symptomatic cases had a prolonged duration of viral shedding and consistent odds of ≥2 positive COVID-19 tests result out of the three subsequent testing rounds. A substantial proportion of the diagnosed COVID-19 cases in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi were asymptomatic. Quarantining asymptomatic cases, implementing prevention measures, and raising awareness among populations working in high-risk settings are warranted