A case of fatal strongyloidiasis in a patient with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and molecular characterization of the isolate

Strongyloides stercoralis is a human intestinal parasite which may lead to complicated strongyloidiasis in immunocompromised. Here, a case of complicated strongyloidiasis in a patient with chronic lymphocytic leukemia is reported. Presence of numerous S. stercoralis larvae in feces and sputum confirmed the diagnosis of hyperinfection syndrome in this patient. Following recovery of filariform larvae from agar plate culture of the stool, the isolate was characterized for the ITS1 region of ribosomal DNA gene by nested-PCR and sequencing. Albendazole therapy did not have cure effects; and just at the beginning of taking ivermectin, the patient died. The most important clue to prevent such fatal consequences is early diagnosis and proper treatment

A comparative study between the efficacy of systemic meglumine antimoniate therapy with standard or low dose plus oral omiprazole in the treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis

Background & objectives: Pentavalent antimony compounds are the first line of drugs in the treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis. However, because of their potential toxic effects, many investigations are performed to find an effective and safe treatment for cutaneous leishmaniasis patients. Our objective in this investigation was to compare the effect of oral omeprazole and low dose systemic meglumine antimoniate (MA) and standard dose of systemic MA in the treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Methods: This was a randomized double-blinded clinical trial. In 150 patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis who were randomly divided into three groups and were treated with: (i) MA 60 mg/kg/day/IM and oral placebo for three weeks; (ii) MA 30 mg/kg/day/IM and oral omeprazole 40 mg/day for three weeks; and (iii) MA 30 mg/kg/day/IM and oral placebo for three weeks. All the patients were visited every two weeks from the beginning of the trial up to six weeks and then at 8 and 12 weeks. The effectiveness of the treatment was classified in three levels as complete response, partial response and no response. Data were analyzed by SPSS 10 using KI square, Mann-Whitney, Kaplan-Mayer and ANOVA tests.Results: Rate of complete response for three months (12 weeks) after starting the treatments was 93% for the group treated with standard dose of glucantime and placebo, 89% for the group treated with omeprazole and low dose glucantime and 80% for the group treated with low dose glucantime and placebo and these differences were significant (p<0.05). The highest response rate was for the group treated with standard dose of glucantime and placebo.Interpretation & conclusion: Although oral omeprazole and low dose of systemic MA showed less efficacy in comparison to standard dose of systemic MA in the treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis, it still can be considered as a replacement therapy in high risk patients (such as patients with heart, kidney and/or liver disease) under close supervision of physician

Distribution of the right-lateral strike-slip motion from the Main Recent Fault to the Kazerun Fault System (Zagros, Iran): Evidence from present-day GPS velocities

International audienceGPS measurements across the Kazerun Fault System in the Zagros mountain belt provide first instantaneous velocities on the different segments. These results are closely consistent with the geological fault slip rates (over 150 ka), implying stable velocities over a longer period. The present-day strike-slip motion is distributed from the Main Recent Fault to the N-trending Kazerun Fault System along a preferential en-echelon fault zone included in a more distributed fan-shape fault pattern. The Hormuz salt decoupling layer cannot be the only cause of a sedimentary spreading because seismicity attests these faults are rooted in the basement. The Dena fault (3.7 mm/yr) transfers the MRF fault slip mainly to the Kazerun (3.6 mm/yr) and slightly to the High Zagros and Sabz Pushan faults (1.5 mm/yr), and the Kazerun fault further to the Kareh Bas fault (3.4 mm/yr). Total geological horizontal offsets associated with GPS slip rates help inferring precise fault slip onset ages. The successive onsets deduced by this approach imply that the right-lateral strike-slip activity of the MRF has propagated in time southeastward to the Dena segment, and then to the Kazerun segment and to the Kareh Bas fault

Present-day crustal deformation and plate kinematics in the Middle East constrained by GPS measurements in Iran and northern Oman

International audienceA network of 27 GPS sites was implemented in Iran and northern Oman to measure displacements in this part of the Alpine-Himalayan mountain belt. We present and interpret the results of two surveys performed in 1999 September and 2001 October. GPS sites in Oman show northward motion of the Arabian Plate relative to Eurasia slower than the NUVEL-1A estimates (e.g. 22 +/- 2 mm yr-1 at N8°+/- 5°E instead of 30.5 mm yr-1 at N6°E at Bahrain longitude). We define a GPS Arabia-Eurasia Euler vector of 27.9°+/- 0.5°N, 19.5°+/- 1.4°E, 0.41°+/- 0.1° Myr-1. The Arabia-Eurasia convergence is accommodated differently in eastern and western Iran. East of 58°E, most of the shortening is accommodated by the Makran subduction zone (19.5 +/- 2 mm yr-1) and less by the Kopet-Dag (6.5 +/- 2 mm yr-1). West of 58°E, the deformation is distributed in separate fold and thrust belts. At the longitude of Tehran, the Zagros and the Alborz mountain ranges accommodate 6.5 +/- 2 mm yr-1 and 8 +/- 2 mm yr-1 respectively. The right-lateral displacement along the Main Recent Fault in the northern Zagros is about 3 +/- 2 mm yr-1, smaller than what was generally expected. By contrast, large right-lateral displacement takes place in northwestern Iran (up to 8 +/- mm yr-1). The Central Iranian Block is characterized by coherent plate motion (internal deformation -1). Sites east of 61°E show very low displacements relative to Eurasia. The kinematic contrast between eastern and western Iran is accommodated by strike-slip motions along the Lut Block. To the south, the transition zone between Zagros and Makran is under transpression with right-lateral displacements of 11 +/- 2 mm yr-1

Difference in the GPS deformation pattern of North and Central Zagros (Iran)

International audienceMeasurements on either side of the Kazerun fault system in the Zagros Mountain Belt, Iran, show that the accommodation of the convergence of the Arabian and Eurasian Plates differs across the region. In northwest Zagros, the deformation is partitioned as 3–6 mm yr−1 of shortening perpendicular to the axis of the mountain belt, and 4–6 mm yr−1 of dextral strike-slip motion on northwest–southeast trending faults. No individual strike-slip fault seems to slip at a rate higher than ~2 mm yr−1. In southeast Zagros, the deformation is pure shortening of 8 ± 2 mm yr−1 occurring perpendicular to the simple folded belt and restricted to the Persian Gulf shore. The fact that most of the deformation is located in front of the simple folded belt, close to the Persian Gulf, while seismicity is more widely spread across the mountain belt, confirms the decoupling of the surface sedimentary layers from the seismogenic basement. A comparison with the folding and topography corroborates a southwestward propagation of the surface deformation. The difference in deformation between the two regions suggests that right-lateral shear cumulates on the north–south trending Kazerun strike-slip fault system to 6 ± 2 mm yr−1

Constructing Two-Dimensional Voronoi Diagrams via Divide-and-Conquer of Envelopes in Space

We present a general framework for computing two-dimensional Voronoi diagrams of different site classes under various distance functions. The computation of the diagrams employs the Cgal software for constructing envelopes of surfaces in 3-space, which implements a divide-and-conquer algorithm. A straightforward application of the divide-andconquer approach for Voronoi diagrams yields highly inefficient algorithms. We show that through randomization, the expected running time is near-optimal (in a worst-case sense). We believe this result, which also holds for general envelopes, to be of independent interest. We describe the interface between the construction of the diagrams and the underlying construction of the envelopes, together with methods we have applied to speed up the (exact) computation. We then present results, where a variety of diagrams are constructed with our implementation, including power diagrams, Apollonius diagrams, diagrams of line segments, Voronoi diagrams on a sphere, and more. In all cases the implementation is exact and can handle degenerate input