A nationwide multicentre study in Turkey for establishing reference intervals of haematological parameters with novel use of a panel of whole blood

IntroductionA nationwide multicentre study was conducted to establish well-defined reference intervals (RIs) of haematological parameters for the Turkish population in consideration of sources of variation in reference values (RVs). Materials and methodsK2-EDTA whole blood samples (total of 3363) were collected from 12 laboratories. Sera were also collected for measurements of iron, UIBC, TIBC, and ferritin for use in the latent abnormal values exclusion (LAVE) method. The blood samples were analysed within 2 hours in each laboratory using Cell Dyn and Ruby (Abbott), LH780 (Beckman Coulter), or XT-2000i (Sysmex). A panel of freshly prepared blood from 40 healthy volunteers was measured in common to assess any analyser-dependent bias in the measurements. The SD ratio (SDR) based on ANOVA was used to judge the need for partitioning RVs. RIs were computed by the parametric method with/without applying the LAVE method. ResultsAnalyser-dependent bias was found for basophils (Bas), MCHC, RDW and MPV from the panel test results and thus those RIs were derived for each manufacturer. RIs were determined from all volunteers’ results for WBC, neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils, MCV, MCH and platelets. Gender-specific RIs were required for RBC, haemoglobin, haematocrit, iron, UIBC and ferritin. Region-specific RIs were required for RBC, haemoglobin, haematocrit, UIBC, and TIBC. ConclusionsWith the novel use of a freshly prepared blood panel, manufacturer-specific RIs’ were derived for Bas, Bas%, MCHC, RDW and MPV. Regional differences in RIs were observed among the 7 regions of Turkey, which may be attributed to nutritional or environmental factors, including altitude

Nurse instructors' perception towards distance education during the pandemic

Background: The nursing department also completely switched to distance education during the COVID-19 pandemic. This new situation made the studies regarding attitudes, experiences, and difficulties of nursing in-structors towards distance education more important. Objectives: To determine the factors affecting the perceptions of nurse instructors towards distance education during the pandemic. Design: This is a descriptive and cross-sectional study. Participants: A total of 389 nurse instructors working at a university constituted the sample. Methods: An information form and the Perceptions of Distance Education scale were used for data collection. The data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, arithmetic mean, Cronbach Alpha internal consistency analysis, t-test, one-way ANOVA and Kruskal Wallis test were used in the analysis of the data. Result: The nurse instructors' distance education perception scale score and perception regarding basic perspective, and resource access subdimension scores were at a medium level and the education-planning sub-dimension score at a high level. Those whose opinions on distance education changed compared to the pre-COVID-19 period, those who received education related to distance education, those who used new practices in the lessons, those who believed that distance education is effective, and those who thought that nursing is a suitable program for distance education had higher distance education perception scores. Conclusions: It was determined that difficulties experienced by nurse instructors in distance education negatively affected the perception of distance education, and that positive experiences in distance education affected the perception positively. It is recommended to organize trainings for instructors to improve distance education skills, to encourage students to participate in classes, and to support nurse lecturers in overcoming difficulties

Comparison of the health-promoting lifestyles of nursing and non-nursing students in Istanbul, Turkey

WOS: 000260672100008PubMed ID: 19128303Undertaking a health-related course at university can facilitate an awareness of health-promoting lifestyles. We carried out a descriptive and cross-sectional study with 1616 university students in Istanbul, Turkey. Students from the nursing schools were compared to those from the schools of social sciences using a Turkish version of the Health-promoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP) II after a validation study. The nursing students had more positive health-promoting lifestyles than those of the non-nursing students. Furthermore, fourth-year nursing students had higher scores in most of the subscales of the HPLP II than did the students from the lower years; conversely, the fourth-year non-nursing students had lower scores. The sociodemographic variables, self-perceived health status, relations with family and friends, and self-perceived academic performance were associated with the HPLP. The implications are discussed for the curricula and on-campus facilities that focus on health promotion activities

Combined biofuel production from cotton stalk and seed with a biorefinery approach

CELIKTAS, Melih Soner/0000-0003-0597-5133; OGUT, TUBA CEREN/0000-0002-8775-2285; Bastabak, Benginur/0000-0002-4359-9880WOS: 000538051200015Due to usage of fossil fuels, the depletion of world crude oil reserves and increased deteriorating climate conditions have reached a high level. These circumstances have led researches to search for alternative and efficient fuels. the main biofuels considered are bioethanol and biodiesel. in this study, ethanol and biodiesel production from cotton stalk and seed were aimed using liquid hot water (LHW) along with consecutive processes, where separate saccharification and fermentation (SHF) process was carried out. the maximum ethanol concentrations of 0.348 g/L and 0.721 g/L were achieved at 24 h and 72 h, respectively. For biodiesel conversion, cottonseed oil was subjected to transesterification, where the main interest was to utilize the by-product, glycerol. Three different glycerol concentrations were investigated in terms of ethanol fermentation using Escherichia coli K1 active culture. the maximum ethanol concentration of 0.415 g/L was achieved at 20 mL glycerol concentration for 48 h. Overall, cotton stalk and seed have the potential to be utilized on an industrial scale

Clinical phenotype of hereditary spastic paraplegia due to KIF1C gene mutations across life span.

Hereditary spastic paraplegias (HSPs) are a group of genetic disorders resulting in pyramidal tract impairment, predominantly in lower limbs. KIF1C gene has recently been identified as one of the genetic causes of HSP and associated with pure or complicated HSP. We present three patients with complicated HSP from two unrelated families, who had early onset progressive cerebellar signs and developed pyramidal tract signs during follow-up. Whole exome sequencing in these patients followed by segregation analysis identified novel truncating KIFIC mutations (c.463C> T; p.R155* and c.2478delA; p.A1a828Argfs*13). Neuroimaging findings showed cerebral and upper cervical spinal atrophy, bilateral symmetrical pyramidal tract involvement, and focal cerebral white matter lesions. Patients with KIFIC mutations may present with cerebellar signs and pyramidal findings may emerge later, therefore complicated HSP should be considered in the differential diagnosis of unidentified cases with cerebellar dysfunction. (C) 2018 The Japanese Society of Child Neurology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Let's raise the awareness of MS specialists concerning the frequency and impact of RLS in MS and consequently the life quality of patients with MS: Striking results of the 'RELOMS-T' Study

70th Annual Meeting of the American-Academy-of-Neurology (AAN) -- APR 21-27, 2018 -- Los Angeles, CAWOS: 000453090800408Amer Acad Neuro

The Turkish experience of COVID-19 infection in people with NMOSD and MOGAD: A milder course?

Background: COVID-19 is a multisystemic infection with variables consequences depending on individual and comorbid conditions. The course and outcomes of COVID-19 during neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disorders (MOGAD) are not clearly known. Objective/methods: The aim of this study was to examine the features and outcomes of COVID-19 infection in NMOSD and MOGAD patients. The patients' demographic and clinical factors, disease modifying treatment (DMT) used and disease information of COVID-19 infection were recorded. Conditions leading to hospitalization and severe exposure to COVID-19 infection were also analyzed. Results: The study included 63 patients from 25 centers. Thirty-two patients (50.8%) belong to AQP-4 seropositive group, 13 (20.6%) and 18 (28.6%) were in MOG-positive and double-seronegative groups, respectively. Risk factors for severe COVID-19 infection and hospitalization were advanced age, high disability level and the presence of comorbid disease. Disease severity was found to be high in double-seronegative NMOSD and low in MOGAD patients. No statistically significant effect of DMTs on disease severity and hospitalization was found. Conclusion: In NMOSD and MOGAD patients, advanced age, high disability and presence of comorbid disease pose risks for severe COVID-19 infection. There was no direct significant effect of DMTs for COVID-19 infection. © 2021 Elsevier B.V