The Prevalence of Norovirus in returning international travelers with diarrhea

Background: There is a high incidence of diarrhea in traveling populations. Norovirus (NV) infection is a common cause of diarrhea and is associated with 7% of all diarrhea related deaths in the US. However, data on the overall prevalence of NV infection in traveling populations is limited. Furthermore, the prevalence of NV amongst travelers returning to Europe has not been reported. This study determined the prevalence of NV among international travelers returning to Germany from over 50 destinations in and outside Europe. Methods: Stool samples of a total of 104 patients with a recent (< 14days) history of international travel (55 male, mean age 37 yrs.) were tested for the presence of NV genogroup (GG) I and II infection using a sensitive and well established quantitative RT PCR method. 57 patients experienced diarrhea at the time of presentation at the Department of Infectious Diseases & Tropical Medicine. The remaining 47 patients had no experience of diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms for at least 14 days prior to their date of presentation at our institute. Results: In our cohort, NV infection was detected in 15.7% of returning travelers with diarrhea. The closer to the date of return symptoms appeared, the higher the incidence of NV, ranging as high as 21.2% within the first four days after return. Conclusions: In our cohort, NV infection was shown to be frequent among returning travelers especially in those with diarrhea, with over 1/5 of diarrhea patients tested positive for NV within the first four days after their return to Germany. Due to this prevalence, routine testing for NV infection and hygienic precautions may be warranted in this group. This is especially applicable to patients at an increased risk of spreading the disease, such as healthcare workers, teachers or food-handlers

Pathways of cellular internalisation of liposomes delivered siRNA and effects on siRNA engagement with target mRNA and silencing in cancer cells

Design of an efficient delivery system is a generally recognised bottleneck in translation of siRNA technology into clinic. Despite research efforts, cellular processes that determine efficiency of siRNA silencing achieved by different delivery formulations remain unclear. Here, we investigated the mechanism(s) of cellular internalisation of a model siRNA-loaded liposome system in a correlation to the engagement of delivered siRNA with its target and consequent silencing by adopting siRNA molecular beacon technology. Probing of cellular internalisation pathways by a panel of pharmacological inhibitors indicated that clathrin-mediated (dynamin-dependent) endocytosis, macropinocytosis (dynamine independent), and cell membrane cholesterol dependent process(es) (clathrin and caveolea-independent) all play a role in the siRNA-liposomes internalization. The inhibition of either of these entry routes was, in general, mirrored by a reduction in the level of siRNA engagement with its target mRNA, as well as in a reduction of the target gene silencing. A dramatic increase in siRNA engagement with its target RNA was observed on disruption of endosomal membrane (by chloroquine), accompanied with an increased silencing. The work thus illustrates that employing molecular beacon siRNA technology one can start to assess the target RNA engagement – a stage between initial cellular internalization and final gene silencing of siRNA delivery systems

Demographic, clinical and antibody characteristics of patients with digital ulcers in systemic sclerosis: data from the DUO Registry

OBJECTIVES: The Digital Ulcers Outcome (DUO) Registry was designed to describe the clinical and antibody characteristics, disease course and outcomes of patients with digital ulcers associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc). METHODS: The DUO Registry is a European, prospective, multicentre, observational, registry of SSc patients with ongoing digital ulcer disease, irrespective of treatment regimen. Data collected included demographics, SSc duration, SSc subset, internal organ manifestations, autoantibodies, previous and ongoing interventions and complications related to digital ulcers. RESULTS: Up to 19 November 2010 a total of 2439 patients had enrolled into the registry. Most were classified as either limited cutaneous SSc (lcSSc; 52.2%) or diffuse cutaneous SSc (dcSSc; 36.9%). Digital ulcers developed earlier in patients with dcSSc compared with lcSSc. Almost all patients (95.7%) tested positive for antinuclear antibodies, 45.2% for anti-scleroderma-70 and 43.6% for anticentromere antibodies (ACA). The first digital ulcer in the anti-scleroderma-70-positive patient cohort occurred approximately 5 years earlier than the ACA-positive patient group. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides data from a large cohort of SSc patients with a history of digital ulcers. The early occurrence and high frequency of digital ulcer complications are especially seen in patients with dcSSc and/or anti-scleroderma-70 antibodies

Synthetic Cathinones—Prevalence and Motivations for Use

This book chapter reviews the prevalence and motivations for use of synthetic cathinones with respect to their availability, legal status, numbers and seized amounts

Diminishing benefits of urban living for children and adolescents’ growth and development

AbstractOptimal growth and development in childhood and adolescence is crucial for lifelong health and well-being1–6. Here we used data from 2,325 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight from 71 million participants, to report the height and body-mass index (BMI) of children and adolescents aged 5–19 years on the basis of rural and urban place of residence in 200 countries and territories from 1990 to 2020. In 1990, children and adolescents residing in cities were taller than their rural counterparts in all but a few high-income countries. By 2020, the urban height advantage became smaller in most countries, and in many high-income western countries it reversed into a small urban-based disadvantage. The exception was for boys in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in some countries in Oceania, south Asia and the region of central Asia, Middle East and north Africa. In these countries, successive cohorts of boys from rural places either did not gain height or possibly became shorter, and hence fell further behind their urban peers. The difference between the age-standardized mean BMI of children in urban and rural areas was &lt;1.1 kg m–2 in the vast majority of countries. Within this small range, BMI increased slightly more in cities than in rural areas, except in south Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and some countries in central and eastern Europe. Our results show that in much of the world, the growth and developmental advantages of living in cities have diminished in the twenty-first century, whereas in much of sub-Saharan Africa they have amplified.</jats:p