8 research outputs found
Quantitative analysis of gallstones in Libyan patients
Gallstone disease is one of the major surgical problems in the Libyan population; it is probably related to diet, especially excessive consumption of meat. The study was conducted to determine the composition of gallstones and their possible etiology in a Libyan population. The chemical composition of gallstones from 41 patients (six males and 35 females) was analyzed. The stones were classified into cholesterol, pigment, and mixed stones (MS). Cholesterol stones (CS) showed a significantly higher cholesterol content than pigment stones (PS) (p=0.0085) though not significantly higher than MS. Their phospholipid content and inorganic phosphates were higher than in the other types of stones and oxalate content was significantly elevated in comparison with MS (p=0.0471). In MS, the cholesterol, bile acids, and bilirubin were intermediate between cholesterol and PS, whereas triglycerides were significantly more than PS (p=0.0004). Bilirubin (0.0001) and bile acids (p=0.0009) were significantly higher than CS (p=0.0001). However, they contained the lowest amounts of sodium, potassium, magnesium, and oxalate. In PS, bilirubin (p=0.0001) was significantly higher than both groups. Bile acid content was significantly higher than CS (p=0.0001) but not significantly more than MS. They showed the highest values of calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, and chlorides compared to the other types of stones. High levels of cholesterol in stones and dyslipidemia associated with mixed as well as cholesterol gallstones suggest an etiological association and efforts to reduce dietary fat among the Libyan population may lead to decreased cholesterol and mixed gallstones
Enhanced Production of Antimicrobial Compounds by Three Salt-Tolerant Actinobacterial Strains Isolated from the Sundarbans in a Niche-Mimic Bioreactor
A novel reactor system, the rotating disk bioreactor
(RDBR), was used to mimic the niche environmental
conditions of three salt-tolerant estuarine actinobacteria
isolated from the Sundarbans region off the Bay of Bengal,
designated MS310 (99% similar in its 16S rRNA gene
sequence to Streptomyces parvallus), MS3/20 and MS1/7.
The RDBR, operated at a rotational speed of one revolution
per day, 50% submergence of discs, aeration rate of 1.0 vvm,
and with a sucrose-containing medium, faithfully mimicked
the intertidal estuarine habitat of these marine isolates, and
supported biofilm formation and production of antimicrobial
metabolites—in particular, actinomycin D by MS310. Onset
of antibiotic production by MS310 occurs at 20 h in the
RDBR compared to 55 h in a conventional stirred-tank
bioreactor (STBR). Furthermore, peak antimicrobial activity is attained much earlier in the RDBR with MS310 (at 45 h)
than that reported with a terrestrial strain of S. parvallus
grown in a STBR (at 144 h). Peak antimicrobial activity of
metabolites produced by MS1/7 and MS3/20 were also
attained earlier in the RDBR (at 25 and 12 h, respectively)
than in a STBR (at 80 and 28 h, respectively). Antibiotic
synthesis in the three isolates, in general, appears to be
associated with their growth. Overall, the RDBR may be
considered the preferred alternative to the STBR for
production of antimicrobials by biofilm-forming estuarine
bacteria for its much higher surface/volume ratio, lower
costs, and easy operability