Evaluation of transvaginal ultrasound role in the prediction of adenomyosis: correlation with histopathology

Background: Adenomyosis is a common gynecologic disorder that primarily affects women of reproductive age that has reported incidence of 5-70% in surgical and postmortem specimens. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of various transvaginal sonographic findings in adenomyosis by comparing them with histopathological results and to determine the most valuable sonographic feature in the diagnosis of adenomyosis.Methods: All transvaginal US findings were correlated with those from histologic examination. The frequency of presenting symptoms and signs of adenomyosis were evaluated. Transvaginal US depicted 10 of 12 pathologically proved cases of adenomyosis. Adenomyosis was correctly ruled out in 33 of 38 patients.Results: Transvaginal US had a sensitivity of 83%, a specificity of 86%, and a positive and negative predictive value of 66% and 94%, respectively. Of the 10 patients with true-positive findings at transvaginal US, the myometrium demonstrated heterogeneous with or without the presence of cysts in nine (75%) patients, linear striation in four (33.3%) patients and globular uterus in six (50%) patients. Three (25%) of 12 cases of adenomyosis had an enlarged uterus, adenomyosis was a significant association with high parity.Conclusions: Adenomyosis can be diagnosed with a considerable accuracy by transvaginal ultrasound. The most common sonographic criteria of adenomyosis are heterogeneous myometrial appearance while the most specific criteria are myometrial cysts, sub-endometrial echogenic linear striations and globular configuration of the uterus

A Literature Review on Agile Methodologies Quality, eXtreme Programming and SCRUM

most applied methods in the software development industry. However, agile methodologies face some challenges such as less documentation and wasting time considering changes. This review presents how the previous studies attempted to cover issues of agile methodologies and the modifications in the performance of agile methodologies. The paper also highlights unresolved issues to get the attention of developers, researchers, and software practitioners

Ecophysiology of microbial communities associated with marine sponges Ircinia strobilina and Mycale laxissima

Marine sponges are hosts to many microorganisms that can constitute up to 60% of the sponge biomass. Complex symbiotic interactions may exist between sponges and associated microorganisms. My primary goal was to develop a model sponge system for laboratory studies of complex symbioses between bacteria and marine invertebrates. Two sets of aquaculture systems were designed in order to optimize the conditions for culturing marine sponges Mycale laxissima and Ircinia strobilina. Bacterial communities associated with the sponges were characterized using culture-based and molecular techniques. There was a substantial change in the diversity and composition of bacterial communities upon transfer into aquaculture. This work shows a potential for maintaining healthy marine sponges in closed aquaculture systems, a necessary foundation for using sponges in aquaculture as a laboratory model. There is a limited knowledge of the contributions of bacteria to sponges, and thereby indirectly to the coral reef ecosystem. I examined the role of sponge-associated bacteria in nitrogen fixation. Nitrogen fixation was demonstrated in sponges using nitrogen isotopic composition. The potential for nitrogen fixation by symbionts was assessed by amplification of nifH gene fragments from total DNA and RNA extracted from sponges. Diverse nifH genes were detected, and gene expression studies proved that nifH genes were expressed in sponge-associated bacteria. These nifH transcripts were closely related to cyanobacterial nifH genes. This is the first demonstration of the expression of bacterial genes in sponge symbionts. Cyanobacterial symbionts are likely fixing nitrogen and provide fixed nitrogen to their hosts. Quorum sensing in sponges is hypothesized to play a role in colonization by symbionts and the regulation of symbiosis between sponges and associated bacteria. Alpha- and gamma-proteobacterial isolates were tested for the production of acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs) using diffusion bioassays coupled with thin-layer chromatography fractionation. Isolates affiliated with the Silicibacter-Ruegeria subgroup of the Roseobacteria clade were the main producers of AHLs. These findings demonstrate that sponge associated bacteria show a high incidence of production of complex suites of AHLs involved in cell signaling. This research contributes to the field of sponge microbiology by advancing the understanding of the roles of symbionts and interactions with their hosts

Geochemical and biomarker characteristics of crude oils and source rock hydrocarbon extracts: An implication to their correlation, depositional environment and maturation in the Northern Western Desert, Egypt

AbstractOil–oil and oil–source rock correlations are used in this study in order to achieve their relationship, depositional environments and diagenetic processes in the source rocks. Three oil samples and source rock hydrocarbon extracts were analyzed using relative geochemical analyses, and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry are used for this purpose. The results revealed that the extracts of the Alam El Bueib and Khatatba formations are derived from mixed organic sources in which terrestrial dominates marine sources, and deposited in transitional environments under less anoxic conditions. The extracts of Bahariya formation are derived from mixed marine inputs with a limited terrestrial contribution. The Alam El Bueib oil shows more contribution of terrestrial than marine sources. Also, a genetic close relation between them supported the indigenous mixed source of Alam El Bueib oil which related to different sources including the Khatatba, Alam El Bueib and Bahariya formations. Accordingly, the Alam El Bueib formation can be considered as an important source for petroleum generation in the Northern Western Desert

MicroRNAs as Potential Biomarkers for Childhood Epilepsy

BACKGROUND: Epilepsy is the most frequent chronic neurologic condition in childhood. Its clinical diagnosis is based on electroencephalograms (EEG) and neuroimaging techniques. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) modulate gene expression of several genes and are aberrantly expressed in several diseases. AIM: Evaluation of using circulating miR-106b and miR-146a as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers in children patients with epilepsy. METHODS: Thirty epileptic children and twenty controls were enrolled in our study. They were assessed for the expression pattern of miR-106b and miR-146a in plasma using quantitative real-time PCR and determination of plasma Immunoglobulin levels. RESULTS: MiR-146a and miR-106b expression patterns were significantly up-regulated in children patients than that in normal controls. Plasma Immunoglobulins were differentially expressed in epileptic patients in comparison with healthy controls. No correlations were found between expression levels of miRNAs (miR-146a and miR-106b) and clinical data or immunoglobulin levels in children patients with epilepsy. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that up-regulated plasma miR-106b and miR-146a could be used as biomarkers for epilepsy evaluation

Influence of preharvest spraying with the chemical salts on grey mold disease and keeping quality of table grapes during storage

The efficacy of calcium chloride, calcium nitrate, potassium metabisulfate, calcium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate to protect grape bunches during harvesting was studied under storage conditions. This experiment was carried out in a private vineyard, El-Khatatba region, Alexandria desert road, Egypt during 2014 and 2015 growing seasons on Thompson seedless variety. The chemical used at 0.1 and 0.2% g /liter water. The healthy grape bunches of all treatments were harvested at proper ripeness, packed in perforated plastic bags, put inside carton boxes and stored at 0oC under 90-95% R.H. for 36 days. Other grape bunches either treated or untreated with the salts were artificially inoculated with spore suspension of Botrytis cinerea at a concentration of 3x106 spores/ml before packing and cold storage. Disease severity of grape bunches with B. cinerea was estimated after 36 days of cold storage. All treatments exhibited disease reduction under field conditions of Thompson seedless grape variety. The field applications of salts gave a significant reduction of botrytis rot during storage. In this respect, the grape rots were significantly reduced when sprayed by the salts three times

Autonomic Dysfunction Predicts Early Cardiac Affection in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis

Objective: To detect the early preclinical alterations in cardiac autonomic control as well as altered cardiac function in systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients and their relevance to the clinical features of the disease using noninvasive methods. Methods: 30 SSc patients and 15 healthy controls matched for age and sex underwent clinical examination, serological analysis, and echocardiographic assessment including Doppler flow imaging to evaluate cardiac function, and 24-hour Holter monitoring analyzed for arrhythmia and heart rate variability (HRV) in the time and frequency domains. Results: The trans-mitral Doppler of early to atrial wave (E/A) ratio was reversed in five patients (16.6%) and the tricuspid E/A ratio was reversed in 10 patients (33.3%). Holter analysis for SSc patients revealed an increased prevalence of premature ventricular contractions (PVC) $ 10/h (P = 0.02), supra-ventricular tachycardias (SVTs) (P = 0.2), and total PVC count (P = 0.0000). Highly significant (P = 0.000) impairment in all HRV parameters was demonstrated in the SSc patients. Total skin thickness score (TSS), Raynaud’s phenomenon and anti-scleroderma 70 (anti-SCL70) showed significant positive correlations with all arrhythmia parameters, while showing a significant negative correlation with the impaired ventricular diastolic function and various HRV parameters. No correlation was found between arrhythmia and HRV parameters and disease duration, disease type, or presence of anti-centromere antibodies. Conclusion: Low heart rate variability, increased TSS and the presence of anti-SCL70 are correlated with preclinical cardiac involvement in SSc patients and may predict the likelihood of malignant arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death. Therefore, noninvasive HRV evaluation before clinical cardiac involvement in these patients might be beneficial when added to the clinical and laboratory assessments in detecting high-risk patients, and may allow for implementation of preventive measures and initiation of appropriate therapy early in the course of the disease

β-Sitosterol Glucoside-Loaded Nanosystem Ameliorates Insulin Resistance and Oxidative Stress in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats

β-Sitosterol glucoside (SG), isolated from Senecio petasitis (Family Asteraceae), was loaded in self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery systems (SEDDS) in a trial to enhance its solubility and biological effect. Various co-surfactants were tested to prepare a successful SEDDS. The selected SG-loaded SEDDS had a droplet size of 134 ± 15.2 nm with a homogenous distribution (polydispersity index 0.296 ± 0.02). It also demonstrated a significant augmentation of SG in vitro release by 4-fold compared to the free drug suspension. The in vivo insulin sensitivity and antidiabetic effect of the prepared SG-loaded SEDDS were further assessed in streptozotocin-induced hyperglycemic rats. The hypoglycemic effect of SG-loaded nanosystem was evidenced by decreased serum glucose and insulin by 63.22% and 53.11%, respectively. Homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) index demonstrated a significant reduction by 5.4-fold in the diabetic group treated by SG-loaded nanosystem and exhibited reduced glucagon level by 40.85%. In addition, treatment with SG-loaded nanosystem significantly decreased serum MDA (malondialdehyde) and increased catalase levels by 38.31% and 64.45%, respectively. Histopathological investigations also supported the protective effect of SG-loaded nanosystem on the pancreas. The promising ability of SG-loaded nanosystem to ameliorate insulin resistance, protect against oxidative stress, and restore pancreatic β-cell secretory function warrants its inclusion in further studies during diabetes progression

Les réseaux de politique publique comme facteur d'influence du choix des instruments de politique énergétique canadienne à des fins environnementales de 1993 à nos jours

Au cours de la dernière décennie, les modes de la gouvernance ont pris place dans un contexte totalement différent de celui qu'ils avaient auparavant. Les gouvernements modernes se rendent compte qu'ils perdent de plus en plus leur capacité à élaborer et à gérer les changements d'une manière autonome. Ainsi, les fonctions et les activités traditionnellement accomplies exclusivement par le gouvernement engagent de nos jours une gamme d'acteurs étatiques et non étatiques. À l'encontre du concept traditionnel de l'État contrôleur, la gouvernance contemporaine est ainsi devenue moins une question d'offre de service et davantage une gestion indirecte des réseaux de politique publique. Dans cette entreprise, les gouvernements contemporains, cherchant plus d'information, de soutien et de légitimité en matière de formulation des décisions, ont besoin d'établir des relations avec les divers groupes d'intérêt qui, à leur tour, voulaient plus de promotion et de protection en faveur de leurs intérêts à travers leur implication au processus de l'élaboration et de la mise en œuvre des politiques publiques. Ainsi, l'approche des réseaux de politique publique représente aujourd'hui un courant considérable au sein du champ d'analyse des politiques publiques. Toutefois, les préoccupations des chercheurs pour cette approche, dans le domaine des politiques énergétiques à des fins environnementales, semblent récentes, et les études réalisées sont encore trop peu nombreuses. Au Canada, au début des années 1990, le gouvernement ainsi que plusieurs groupes d'intérêts, des différents secteurs énergétique, industriel et environnemental, ont commencé à intensifier leurs efforts pour s'attaquer au problème du changement climatique d'origine énergétique, généré surtout par le secteur de l'industrie. Au cours de la dernière décennie, la question touchant plutôt le sujet du développement énergétique durable représente le plus important domaine des politiques publiques ayant surgi récemment dans l'agenda politique du pays. Notre projet de recherche, par le truchement de l'approche des réseaux de politique publique, s'attarde à décrire et à expliquer le processus de la formulation d'une politique particulière, soit la politique énergétique à des fins de protection de l'environnement, élaborée en 1993. Il s'agit de mettre en évidence les facteurs affectant le choix des instruments de ces politiques publiques dans leur contexte national. Ainsi, la question générale de cette recherche est : Comment les phases évolutives de la formation d'un réseau de politique, en l'occurrence le Conseil canadien de l'énergie (CCE), mènent à des caractéristiques particulières à ce réseau; et comment celles-ci déterminent-elles les types des instruments de politique publique choisis, particulièrement ceux de la récente orientation des politiques énergétiques canadiennes à des fins environnementales élaborées en 1993? Afin d'atteindre l'objectif de notre recherche, deux facteurs primordiaux sont utilisés, soit la circulation de l'information et l'exercice du contrôle sur les ressources des acteurs. L'analyse des caractéristiques du réseau en fonction des liens forts et des liens faibles autant que la présence ou l'absence des trous structuraux nous permettent de bien identifier les positions des différents acteurs, étatiques et non étatiques, sur le plan de l'information et du contrôle, qui à leur tour, nous semble-t-il, constituent des facteurs affectant les types des instruments des politiques publiques choisis : instruments substantifs, qui indiquent le degré de l'intervention du gouvernement, et instruments procéduraux, qui mettent plutôt l'accent sur le degré de l'influence du gouvernement sur les acteurs non étatiques. L'étude soutient que l'approche des réseaux se distingue notamment par son potentiel à expliquer l'interrelation relative entre idées, intérêts et institutions, ce qui a son tour est susceptible de permettre une meilleure compréhension des processus de l'élaboration des politiques énergétiques et environnementales canadiennes. Qui plus est, le fait de recourir à ce cadre d'analyse permet d'approcher autrement le sujet étudié en essayant de comprendre et d'expliquer non seulement les interactions entre les différents acteurs cibles, mais aussi le dynamisme et l'évolution de ces relations dans leur durée, comme étant des déterminants primordiaux en matière de sélection des instruments des politiques

CXCR3 renal expression in glomerulonephritis in children: is there a connection with the course of the disease?

Background: Glomerulonephritis (GN) is a common childhood disease that may represent a significant cause of chronic kidney disease at one point of its course. The role of chemokines in glomerulonephritis, has been long anticipated and studied and the possible link between certain chemokines and different renal pathologies, if proved, can pave the road for future use of such markers for early prognosis and possible therapies for this common disease.Objective: in this study, we aimed at detecting CXCR3 in the renal biopsies done for children with glomerulonephritis and to correlate it to the nature of renal pathology and response to therapy.Methods: The glomerular and interstitial expression of CXCR3 in renal biopsies done for 22 patients with glomerulonephritis was studied using immunohistochemical staining. Pathologies already diagnosed in these biopsies were proliferative GN (mesangioproliferative GN, diffuse proliferative GN, focal proliferative GN, IgA nephropathy and crescentic GN) as well as non-proliferative GN (Minimal change disease, focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, membranous nephropathy, diffuse mesangial sclerosis and advanced hypertensive nephrosclerosis). History, clinical findings and laboratory investigations in the initial presentation and at the time of the study were obtained.Results: The degree of glomerular and interstitial CXCR3 expression did not vary with gender, age of presentation, response to steroids, or cumulative doses of steroids. Percentage of strong glomerular CXCR3 expression was much higher in proliferative GN compared to non-proliferative GN although the difference was not statistically significant, percentage of renal dysfunction was more among strong glomerular and mild/moderate interstitial CXCR3 expression with no statistically significant difference from the counterparts.Conclusion: Our study revealed that enhanced CXCR3 renal expression on glomerular and interstitial levels did not affect the response to steroids along the course of the disease and so can probably act as a therapeutic target rather than a prognostic marker.Keywords: glom. CXCR3, int. CXCR3, glomerulonephritis, renal biops