Cytopathology practice in Kumasi: A 2-year retrospective audit

Aim: Surgical pathology service is generally unavailable in most developing countries and comes with challenges. Cytopathology is a reliable, inexpensive adjunct to surgical histopathology. We present a retrospective review of the various cytopathology cases received at the department. Materials and Methods: A retrospective review of 836 cytopathology cases from January 2010 to December 2011 at the Department of Pathology of our hospital was conducted. All cytopathology reports and records from the department were retrieved and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 16 for windows. Results: A total of 836 (mean age 38.18 ± 22.18) cases were reviewed, at an average of approximately 418 cases performed a year (5.7% of the total workload). More than half (58.0%) of the cases received had no clinical diagnosis indicated on request forms. Seventy-seven percent (77%) of the cases were diagnosed as either definite or nondefinite. The breast was the most aspirated specimen site (20.2%). Benign cases formed 45.0% of all the cases and 29.0% were malignant. There were more benign than malignant cases with respect to all sites aspirated except the breast (18.3%), lymph nodes (35.0%), and soft tissues (11.7%) where the reverse occurred. Conclusion: Patronage of cytopathology in Kumasi is increasing and serves as a quick, cheap, and effective alternate means for diagnosis. Improving and expanding on the current practice will ensure that pathologists in practice sustain and improve diagnostic cytopathology and provide material for training young pathologists

Assessment of Wound-Healing Properties of Medicinal Plants: The Case of Phyllanthus muellerianus

Phyllanthus muellerianus (Family Euphorbiaceae) is a shrub, which is widely distributed in West Africa and employed traditionally as a wound-healing agent especially in Ghana. The aim of the study was to determine the in vivo wound-healing activity of aqueous aerial part extract of P. muellerianus (PLE) and its major isolate, geraniin. Excision and incision wound models were used to determine the wound-healing activity. Wounds were treated with PLE (0.25, 0.5, and 1% w/w) and geraniin (0.1, 0.2, and 0.4% w/w) aqueous creams. PLE and geraniin significantly (p < 0.001) increased wound contraction rate and hydroxyproline production compared to untreated wounds. Histological studies of wound tissues showed high levels of fibroblasts and increased collagen content and cross-linking in PLE and geraniin-treated wound tissues. Immuno-histochemical investigations revealed high levels of TGF-β1 in PLE and geraniin-treated wound tissues compared to the untreated wound tissues. Tensile strength of incised wounds was significantly (p < 0.05) high in PLE and geraniin-treated wounds. PLE (0.1–100 μg/mL) significantly (p < 0.001) reduce LDH release from HaCaT-keratinocytes compared to the untreated cells. PLE and geraniin possess wound healing and cytoprotective effect

Effect of circulating ceramides on adiposity and insulin resistance in patients with type 2 diabetes: An observational cross‐sectional study

Abstract Introduction Insulin resistance (IR) is one of the common chronic metabolic disorders in Africa and elsewhere. Accumulation of lipids in the body may be due to an imbalance in the metabolism of lipids, glucose and proteins. Ceramides are a sphingolipid class of lipids that are biologically active and vital in the production of more complex lipids. Circulating ceramides are thought to have a role in the development of obesity‐related IR, although the precise involvement remains unclear. Aim To investigate the impact of circulating ceramide on IR and body adiposity in people with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methodology The study was observational and cross‐sectional. There were a total of 84 volunteers with T2DM and 75 nondiabetics (control). The participants' ages, body mass indexes (BMI), waist circumferences, and blood pressure (BP) were among the clinical parameters assessed. Ceramide levels, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), lipids, basal insulin levels and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) were also measured. Additionally, the homeostatic model assessment for IR (HOMA‐IR) and beta cell function (HOMA‐β) were computed. Results T2DM and control participants had different mean values for anthropometric parameters, BP, FPG, HbA1c, lipids, insulin, HOMA‐IR, HOMA‐β and ceramide levels (p < .05 for all). HOMA‐IR, HOMA‐β and cardiovascular risk were significant correlates with ceramide levels in the T2DM group (r = 0.24; −0.34; 0.24, p < .05, respectively). Further, FPG (OR = 1.83, p = .01) and ceramide (OR = 1.05, p = .01) levels were significant predictors of IR in the case group. Conclusion Patients with T2DM exhibited high ceramide concentrations, which, when combined with high FPG, were associated with IR. The consequences of circulating ceramides in health and disease; however, merit further research

Determination of Haematological Reference Ranges in Healthy Adults in Three Regions in Ghana

Laboratory results interpretation for diagnostic accuracy and clinical decision-making in this period of evidence-based medicine requires cut-off values or reference ranges that are reflective of the geographical area where the individual resides. Several studies have shown significant differences between and within populations, emphasizing the need for population-specific reference ranges. This cross-sectional experimental study sought to establish the haematological reference values in apparently healthy individuals in three regions in Ghana. Study sites included Nkenkaasu, Winneba, and Nadowli in the Ashanti, Central, and Upper West regions of Ghana, respectively. A total of 488 healthy participants were recruited using the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (United States National Consensus Committee on Laboratory Standards, NCCLS) Guidance Document C28A2. Medians for haematological parameters were calculated and reference values determined at 2.5th and 97.5th percentiles and compared with Caucasian values adopted by our laboratory as reference ranges and values from other African and Western countries. RBC count, haemoglobin, and haematocrit (HCT) were significantly higher in males compared to females. There were significant intraregional and interregional as well as international variations of haematological reference ranges in the populations studied. We conclude that, for each geographical area, there is a need to establish geography-specific reference ranges if accurate diagnosis and concise clinical decisions are to be made

Molecular Characterization of Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase: Do Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms Affect Hematological Parameters in HIV-Positive Patients?

This descriptive, cross-sectional study aimed at evaluating the prevalence of G6PD deficiency and the 376A ⟶ G, 202G ⟶ A single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) among HIV patients attending care at a teaching hospital in Ghana and determine how the SNPs affect haematological profile in HIV. A total of 200 HIV-positive Ghanaians were recruited. Venous blood samples were obtained and complete blood count, and G6PD screening and genotyping for the 376A ⟶ G, 202G ⟶ A SNPs were performed. Out of the 200 participants, 13.0% (26/200) were G6PD-deficient based on the methemoglobin reductase technique, with 1.5% (3/200) and 11.5% (23/200) presenting with partial and full enzyme defect, respectively. Among the 13.0% participants with G6PD deficiency, 19.2% (5/26), 30.8% (8/26), and 19.2% (5/26) presented with 376A ⟶ G only (enzyme activity (EA): 1.19 U/g Hb), 202G ⟶A only (EA: 1.41 U/g Hb), and G202/A376 SNPs (EA: 1.14 U/g Hb), respectively. Having the 376A ⟶ G mutation was associated not only with lower red blood cell (RBC) count (3.38 × 106/µL (3.16–3.46) vs 3.95 × 106/µL (3.53–4.41), p = 0.010) but also with higher mean cell volume (MCV) (102.90 (99.40–113.0) vs 91.10 fL (84.65–98.98), p = 0.041) and mean cell haemoglobin (MCH) (33.70 pg (32.70–38.50) vs 30.75 pg (28.50–33.35), p = 0.038), whereas possessing the 202G ⟶ A mutation was associated with higher MCV only (98.90 fL (90.95–102.35) vs 91.10 fL (84.65–98.98), p = 0.041) compared to G6PD nondeficient participants. The prevalence of G6PD deficiency among HIV patients in Kumasi, Ghana, is 13.0% prevalence, comprising 1.5% and 11.5% partial and full enzyme defect, respectively, based on the methemoglobin reductase technique among HIV patients in Ghana. Among G6PD-deficient HIV patients, the prevalence of G202/A376 SNPs is 19.2%. The 376A ⟶ G mutation is associated not only with lower RBC count but also with higher MCV and MCH, whereas the 202G ⟶ A mutation is associated with higher MCV compared to the normal G6PD population

Apparent activation energies of protein–protein complex dissociation in the gas–phase determined by electrospray mass spectrometry

We have developed a method to determine apparent activation energies of dissociation for ionized protein–protein complexes in the gas phase using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry following the Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus quasi-equilibrium theory. Protein–protein complexes were formed in solution, transferred into the gas phase, and separated from excess free protein by ion mobility filtering. Afterwards, complex disassembly was initiated by collision-induced dissociation with step-wise increasing energies. Relative intensities of ion signals were used to calculate apparent activation energies of dissociation in the gas phase by applying linear free energy relations. The method was developed using streptavidin tetramers. Experimentally determined apparent gas-phase activation energies for dissociation ( E#A m0gEA m0g# ) of complexes consisting of Fc parts from immunoglobulins (IgG-Fc) and three closely related protein G' variants (IgG-Fc•protein G'e, IgG-Fc•protein G'f, and IgG-Fc•protein G'g) show the same order of stabilities as can be inferred from their in-solution binding constants. Differences in stabilities between the protein–protein complexes correspond to single amino acid residue exchanges in the IgG-binding regions of the protein G' variants