Novel use of an exchange catheter to facilitate intubation with an Aintree catheter in a tall patient with a predicted difficult airway: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>The Aintree intubating catheter (Cook^®Medical Inc., Bloomington, IN, USA) has been shown to successfully facilitate difficult intubations when other methods have failed. The Aintree intubating catheter (Cook^®Medical Inc., Bloomington, IN, USA) has a fixed length of 56 cm, and it has been suggested in the literature that it may be too short for safe use in patients who are tall.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We present the case of a 32-year-old, 180 cm tall Caucasian woman with a predicted difficult airway who presented to our facility for an emergency cesarean section. After several failed intubation attempts via direct laryngoscopy, an airway was established with a laryngeal mask airway. After delivery of a healthy baby, our patient's condition necessitated tracheal intubation. A fiber-optic bronchoscope loaded with an Aintree intubating catheter (Cook^®Medical Inc., Bloomington, IN, USA) was passed through the laryngeal mask airway into the trachea until just above the carina, but was too short to safely allow for the passage of an endotracheal tube.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We present a novel technique in which the Aintree intubating catheter (Cook^®Medical Inc., Bloomington, IN, USA) was replaced with a longer (100 cm) exchange catheter, over which an endotracheal tube was passed successfully into the trachea.</p

Chemical Composition and Antioxidant Activity of Essential Oils in Origanum vulgare subsp. gracile at different Phenological Stages and Plant Parts

Origanum vulgare, a popular flavoring herb, is valued for several biological properties. The present study focused on the chemical composition and antioxidant activity of the essential oils of Origanum vulgare subsp. gracile in different plant parts and at different phenological stages. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of the essential oil identified 41 constituents that varied with plant age and organ. The phenolic monoterpenoid carvacrol (18.1–79.2%) was predominant in all the essential oil samples. Other major constituents were p-cymene (3.9–18.0%), γ-terpinene (0.9–15.8%), carvacrol methyl ether (0.8–9.9%), and (Z)-α-bisabolene (0.5–8.7%). Among the different plant parts and phenological growth stages, the highest levels of carvacrol were identified in the essential oils from flowers (79.2%), roots (70%), and the early vegetative growth (67.34%). All the essential oils exhibited high radical-scavenging properties as shown in the DPPH* assay. The essential oils from flowers, however, exhibited the highest antioxidant activity and could be used as a preservative agent on an industrial scale

Essential oil profile of oregano (Origanum vulgare L.) populations grown under similar soil and climate conditions

Oregano (Origanum vulgare L.) is one of the most commercially important herbs in the Lamiaceae family. It is a rich source of bioactive components including phenolic glucosides, flavonoids, tannins, sterols, triterpenes, resins and essential oil. In the present study, the variation of the essential oil compositions among seven populations of Iranian oregano, originating from different bioclimate and geographical zones and grown under similar soil and climate conditions, was assessed in two harvest years (2014 and 2015). The essential oil content showed a wide variability, ranging from 0.12% to 1.76% (v/w), and was correlated to the chemical profile. GC-FID and GC-MS analyses of the essential oils identified a total of forty-two constituents in the seven populations sampled in both years. Carvacrol (0.3–46.8%), linalyl acetate (0.2– 44.3%), (Z)-α-bisabolene (0.0–40.3%), (E)-β-caryophyllene (0.0–24.0%), and caryophyllene oxide (0.1–21.3%) were identified as the main components of the essential oils, depending on the populations and harvest year. The highest amounts of these components were recognized in the essential oil of Baneh, Rasht, Gilan, Kaleybar and Ardabil populations, respectively. According to cluster and principal component analyses (PCA), the studied populations grouped into four main chemotypes: i.e., chemotype I (carvacrol), chemotype II ((Z)-α-bisabolene), chemotype III (linalyl acetate), chemotype IV (caryophyllene oxide/germacrene D/(E)-β-caryophyllene). Variability of essential oil constituents in oregano populations studied can primarily be explained by differences in efficiency and/or activity of the methylerythritol 4- phosphate (MEP) and mevalonate pathways. Intraspecific chemical variability in Iranian oregano provides possibility of selection of those with specific aromas and chemical profiles for industrial intentions. The results also provided new insight for development of effective conservation strategies, domestication and breeding programs in Iranian O. vulgare germplasm

Effect of salinity stress on the physiological characteristics, phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of Thymus vulgaris L. and Thymus daenensis Celak

Salinity stress is one of the most important challenges in agriculture systems. The present work was aimed to evaluated the effects of saline irrigation, using different NaCl concentrations (0, 30, 60, and 90 mM), on growth, physiological characteristics, phenolic compounds, and antioxidant activity of Thymus vulgaris and Thymus daenensis, that are two of the most important medicinal and aromatic plants in Iran. An analytical method based on HPLC-DAD has been developed to identify the main metabolites (mainly phenolic compounds) in thyme extracts. The results indicated that concentrations of 60 and 90 mM NaCl significantly decreased the plant dry matter production by about 28 and 40% in T. vulgaris and 34 and 39% in T. daenensis, respectively, compared with untreated plants. Application of NaCl also induced an increase in Na+content in shoots and leaves while the K+ and Ca2+contents decreased with the salinity stress. Total phenolic content increased by around 20% after the application of 60 mM NaCl, compared with control plants. Also, an increase in leaf flavonoid content by 38.6% and 36.6% was observed in plants grown under salt stress conditions after the application of 60 and 90 mM NaCl, respectively. Both investigated species were rich in phenolic acids, flavonoids, and phenolic monoterpenes. Cinnamic acid was the major constituent in both species. This compound increased by 31.4% in T. vulgaris treated with 60 mM NaCl compared with the control. Concentrations of 60 and 90 mM NaCl increased significantly the amount of gallic and rosmarinic acids in T. vulgaris (25 and 31.6%, respectively) and T. daenensis (20.4 and 27.6%, respectively). On the other hand, the mentioned NaCl concentrations did not significantly change the content of caffeic, syringic, and vanillic acids in T. vulgaris. Interestingly, the higher amount of chlorogenic acid (increase of 4.4%) in T. vulgaris was found under control condition, whereas in T. daenensis this compound increased when salinity stress intensified. The main outcome of the present study was the en- hancement of thyme phenolic content under salt stress treatments. Furthermore, salinity stress significantly influenced the antioxidant activities of plant extracts and may be recommended as an appropriate approach to enhance the antioxidant capacity of medicinal plants. In conclusion, the obtained data demonstrated that salinity stress decreased significantly the yield of both species, whereas improved the phenolic contents and antioxidant capacity of thyme plants

Effect of salinity stress on the physiological characteristics, phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of Thymus vulgaris L. and Thymus daenensis Celak

Salinity stress is one of the most important challenges in agriculture systems. The present work was aimed to evaluated the effects of saline irrigation, using different NaCl concentrations (0, 30, 60, and 90 mM), on growth, physiological characteristics, phenolic compounds, and antioxidant activity of Thymus vulgaris and Thymus daenensis, that are two of the most important medicinal and aromatic plants in Iran. An analytical method based on HPLC-DAD has been developed to identify the main metabolites (mainly phenolic compounds) in thyme extracts. The results indicated that concentrations of 60 and 90 mM NaCl significantly decreased the plant dry matter production by about 28 and 40% in T. vulgaris and 34 and 39% in T. daenensis, respectively, compared with untreated plants. Application of NaCl also induced an increase in Na+content in shoots and leaves while the K+ and Ca2+contents decreased with the salinity stress. Total phenolic content increased by around 20% after the application of 60 mM NaCl, compared with control plants. Also, an increase in leaf flavonoid content by 38.6% and 36.6% was observed in plants grown under salt stress conditions after the application of 60 and 90 mM NaCl, respectively. Both investigated species were rich in phenolic acids, flavonoids, and phenolic monoterpenes. Cinnamic acid was the major constituent in both species. This compound increased by 31.4% in T. vulgaris treated with 60 mM NaCl compared with the control. Concentrations of 60 and 90 mM NaCl increased significantly the amount of gallic and rosmarinic acids in T. vulgaris (25 and 31.6%, respectively) and T. daenensis (20.4 and 27.6%, respectively). On the other hand, the mentioned NaCl concentrations did not significantly change the content of caffeic, syringic, and vanillic acids in T. vulgaris. Interestingly, the higher amount of chlorogenic acid (increase of 4.4%) in T. vulgaris was found under control condition, whereas in T. daenensis this compound increased when salinity stress intensified. The main outcome of the present study was the en- hancement of thyme phenolic content under salt stress treatments. Furthermore, salinity stress significantly influenced the antioxidant activities of plant extracts and may be recommended as an appropriate approach to enhance the antioxidant capacity of medicinal plants. In conclusion, the obtained data demonstrated that salinity stress decreased significantly the yield of both species, whereas improved the phenolic contents and antioxidant capacity of thyme plants