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While numerous ancient human DNA datasets from across Europe have been published till date, modern-day Poland in particular, remains uninvestigated. Besides application in the reconstruction of continent-wide human history, data from this region would also contribute towards our understanding of the history of the Slavs, whose origin is hypothesized to be in East or Central Europe. Here, we present the first population-scale ancient human DNA study from the region of modern-day Poland by establishing mitochondrial DNA profiles for 23 samples dated to 200 BC - 500 AD (Roman Iron Age) and for 20 samples dated to 1000-1400 AD (Medieval Age). Our results show that mitochondrial DNA sequences from both periods belong to haplogroups that are characteristic of contemporary West Eurasia. Haplotype sharing analysis indicates that majority of the ancient haplotypes are widespread in some modern Europeans, including Poles. Notably, the Roman Iron Age samples share more rare haplotypes with Central and Northeast Europeans, whereas the Medieval Age samples share more rare haplotypes with East-Central and South-East Europeans, primarily Slavic populations. Our data demonstrates genetic continuity of certain matrilineages (H5a1 and N1a1a2) in the area of present-day Poland from at least the Roman Iron Age until present. As such, the maternal gene pool of present-day Poles, Czechs and Slovaks, categorized as Western Slavs, is likely to have descended from inhabitants of East-Central Europe during the Roman Iron Age

Factorial analysis of slaughter characteristics of fattening pigs fed different additives – Enzyme and probiotic in mixtures

To successfully investigate slaughter characteristics of fattening pigs fed in different ways, this experiment was carried out on Experimental Farm of the Institute for Animal Husbandry, Belgrade- Zemun. Investigation of correlation between slaughter traits of pigs fed with different additives in their nutrition was done by factorial analysis. Slaughter characteristics in three groups of fattening pigs fed in different ways were observed. The first group (variant 1) consisted of fatteners fed diets without any special additives. The second group (variant 2) consisted of pigs fed diets containing enzyme Rovabio, and the third group (variant 3) probiotic Lacture + Microbond. This study was aimed at coming to conclusion based on the results of factorial analysis of the observed traits to the greatest extent which determined slaughter traits of pigs fed diets containing different additives. The results obtained in general, that is, the structure of separated factors showed that different slaughter characteristics are realized with different nutrition.Key words: Fattening pigs, slaughter characteristics, enzyme Rovabio, probiotic Lacture + Microbond, factorial analysis

Assessment of the reliability of the serbian version of the sickness impact profile questionnaire in patients with chronic viral hepatitis

© 2015, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved. SUMMARY Introduction Health-related quality of life (HRQL) of chronic patients has been researched as the ultimate goal of modern treatment of chronic diseases to improve patients’ quality of life. Objective The objective was to assess the reliability of the Serbian version of the Sickness Impact Profile (SIP) questionnaire on the sample of patients with chronic viral hepatitis. Methods The research covered 102 patients with chronic hepatitis (47 type B and 55 type C). The assessment of the reliability of the SIP questionnaire was performed by testing the internal consistency of the questions by calculating the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. The factor analysis was used to assess whether the grouping of the questions within dimensions matches the distribution of the questions in the original English version of the questionnaire administered to U.S. patient population. Results The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the entire questionnaire is 0.925, 0.869 for the physical dimension, and 0.857 for the psychosocial dimension. After running a factor analysis of the psychosocial dimension, “emotional instability” was extracted as the key factor, confirming the results of previous research. Compared with the English version of the questionnaire, the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of the Serbian version does not diverge significantly, whereas the factor analysis confirms the classification of the questionnaire into two dimensions. Conclusion Our study has shown that the Serbian version of the SIP questionnaire is a reliable tool for assessing the HRQL of patients with chronic hepatitis B and C before starting treatment

Relationship between intact HIV-1 proviruses in circulating CD4+ T cells and rebound viruses emerging during treatment interruption.

Combination antiretroviral therapy controls but does not cure HIV-1 infection because a small fraction of cells harbor latent viruses that can produce rebound viremia when therapy is interrupted. The circulating latent virus reservoir has been documented by a variety of methods, most prominently by viral outgrowth assays (VOAs) in which CD4+ T cells are activated to produce virus in vitro, or more recently by amplifying proviral near full-length (NFL) sequences from DNA. Analysis of samples obtained in clinical studies in which individuals underwent analytical treatment interruption (ATI), showed little if any overlap between circulating latent viruses obtained from outgrowth cultures and rebound viruses from plasma. To determine whether intact proviruses amplified from DNA are more closely related to rebound viruses than those obtained from VOAs, we assayed 12 individuals who underwent ATI after infusion of a combination of two monoclonal anti-HIV-1 antibodies. A total of 435 intact proviruses obtained by NFL sequencing were compared with 650 latent viruses from VOAs and 246 plasma rebound viruses. Although, intact NFL and outgrowth culture sequences showed similar levels of stability and diversity with 39% overlap, the size of the reservoir estimated from NFL sequencing was larger than and did not correlate with VOAs. Finally, intact proviruses documented by NFL sequencing showed no sequence overlap with rebound viruses; however, they appear to contribute to recombinant viruses found in plasma during rebound

Natural radionuclides in soil profiles surrounding the largest coal-fired power plant in Serbia

This study evaluates the influence of the largest Serbian coal-fired power plant on radionuclide concentrations in soil profiles up to 50 cm in depth. Thirty soil profiles were sampled from the plant surroundings (up to 10 km distance) and analyzed using standard methods for soil physicochemical properties and gamma ray spectrometry for specific activities of natural radionuclides (K-40, Ra-226 and Th-232) Spatial and vertical distribution of radionuclides was determined and analyzed to show the relations between the specific activities in the soil and soil properties and the most influential factors of natural radionuclide variability were identified. The radiological indices for surface soil were calculated and radiological risk assessment was performed. The measured specific activities were similar to values of BACKGROUND: levels for Serbia. The sampling depth did not show any significant influence on specific activities of natural radionuclides. The strongest predictor of specific activities of the investigated radionuclides was soil granulometry. All parameters of radiological risk assessment were below the recommended values and adopted limits. It appears that the coal-fired power plant does not have a significant impact on the spatial and vertical distribution of natural radionuclides in the area of interest, but technologically enhanced natural radioactivity as a consequence of the plant operations was identified within the first 1.5 km from the power plant

Antimicrobial treatment of Corynebacterium striatum invasive infections: a systematic review

The aim of this study was to establish an evidence-based guideline for the antibiotic treatment of Corynebacterium striatum infections. Several electronic databases were systematically searched for clinical trials, observational studies or individual cases on patients of any age and gender with systemic inflammatory response syndrome, harboring C. striatum isolated from body fluids or tissues in which it is not normally present. C. striatum had to be identified as the only causative agent of the invasive infection, and its isolation from blood, body fluids or tissues had to be confirmed by one of the more advanced diagnostic methods (biochemical methods, mass spectrometry and/or gene sequencing). This systematic review included 42 studies that analyzed 85 individual cases with various invasive infections caused by C. striatum. More than one isolate of C. striatum exhibited 100% susceptibility to vancomycin, linezolid, teicoplanin, piperacillin-tazobactam, amoxicillin-clavulanate and cefuroxime. On the other hand, some strains of this bacterium showed a high degree of resistance to fluoroquinolones, to the majority majority of β-lactams, aminoglycosides, macrolides, lincosamides and cotrimoxazole. Despite the antibiotic treatment, fatal outcomes were reported in almost 20% of the patients included in this study. Gene sequencing methods should be the gold standard for the identification of C. striatum, while MALDI-TOF and the Vitek system can be used as alternative methods. Vancomycin should be used as the antibiotic of choice for the treatment of C. striatum infections, in monotherapy or in combination with piperacillin-tazobactam. Alternatively, linezolid, teicoplanin or daptomycin may be used in severe infections, while amoxicillin-clavulanate may be used to treat mild infections caused by C. striatum

The epidemiology of Candida species isolated from urinary tract infections

Candida spp. are members of a genus, including closely related fungal species that cause a variety of infections. Objectives: The aim of this study was the isolation of various Candida species from vulvovaginitis and urethra of patients in Neyshabur, Northeast Iran from 2013 to 2015. Methods: This descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study was performed to identify Candida spp. causing vulvovaginitis and Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) at a referral laboratory in Neyshabur district, Khorasan Razavi Province. A total of 451 vaginal and midstream urine samples were collected. Ten micro-liters of each specimen was cultured on CHROM agar plates and then incubated at 37°C for 24 to 48 hours, aerobically. Candida species were identified based on colony morphology, germ tube production and micro-morphology on corn meal agar including 1% Tween 80. Results: The mean age of the patients was 34.7_16.3. Candida albicans was the predominant species isolated. Moreover, age groups of 21 to 30 and 0 to 1 years were the most and the least infected individuals. Moreover, Candida spp. were significantly morecommon in females compared to males (P value 103. Conclusions: In this study, C. albicans was the most common species isolated from patients with vulvovaginitis and UTI, and significantly more common amongst females compared to males. The prevalence of candida spp. had significantly declined from 2013 to 2015. Moreover, the candida spp. counts were mostly higher than 103cfu/mL

Relationship between latent and rebound viruses in a clinical trial of anti-HIV-1 antibody 3BNC117.

A clinical trial was performed to evaluate 3BNC117, a potent anti-HIV-1 antibody, in infected individuals during suppressive antiretroviral therapy and subsequent analytical treatment interruption (ATI). The circulating reservoir was evaluated by quantitative and qualitative viral outgrowth assay (Q2VOA) at entry and after 6 mo. There were no significant quantitative changes in the size of the reservoir before ATI, and the composition of circulating reservoir clones varied in a manner that did not correlate with 3BNC117 sensitivity. 3BNC117 binding site amino acid variants found in rebound viruses preexisted in the latent reservoir. However, only 3 of 217 rebound viruses were identical to 868 latent viruses isolated by Q2VOA and near full-length sequencing. Instead, 63% of the rebound viruses appeared to be recombinants, even in individuals with 3BNC117-resistant reservoir viruses. In conclusion, viruses emerging during ATI in individuals treated with 3BNC117 are not the dominant species found in the circulating latent reservoir, but frequently appear to represent recombinants of latent viruses

Experience with developing antibiotic stewardship programmes in Serbia : potential model for other Balkan countries?

Introduction: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and inappropriate use of antibiotics in children are important issues. Consequently, there is a need to develop comprehensive stewardship programmes even in hospitals with limited resources starting with children’s hospitals. Method: Retrospective observational analysis of antimicrobial utilization and resistance patterns over five years in a tertiary care children’s hospital in Serbia. Results: Cumulative AMR decreased but were still high, with high cumulative resistance rates among the most widely used antibiotics in the hospital. Total antibiotic use decreased from 2010 to 2014 although there was still high prescribing of reserved antibiotics. Conclusion: Concerns with inappropriate use, and high resistance rates, among some antibiotics used in the hospital are being used to develop guidance on future antibiotic use in this hospital, building on the recently introduced antibiotic stewardship programme, as well as encourage other hospitals in Serbia to review their policies