5 research outputs found
A new enrichment diagnostic platform for semen culture
Urogenital bacterial infections have been described in literature as a potential cause of infertility. For the consequences that a failure in diagnosis could have on the evolution of male urogenital infectious disease, an accurate microbiological procedure to investigate the bacterial species composition of seminal fluid plays a crucial role to better understand the eventual correlation with infertility. In order to improve the quality of semen culture investigations, we have developed a new enrichment diagnostic platform. Semen samples of 540 infertile men were simultaneously analyzed using the standard microbiological semen culture method and an alternative new experimental technique (Brain Heart Infusion broth, BHI, enrichment). Our results established the possibility to apply BHI enrichment to detect bacteria from semen samples with higher sensitivity (100%) and negative predictive value (100%) than the standard technique
A new enrichment diagnostic platform for semen culture
Urogenital bacterial infections have been described in literature as a potential cause of infertility. For the consequences that a failure in diagnosis could have on the evolution of male urogenital infectious disease, an accurate microbiological procedure to investigate the bacterial species composition of seminal fluid plays a crucial role to better understand the eventual correlation with infertility. In order to improve the quality of semen culture investigations, we have developed a new enrichment diagnostic platform. Semen samples of 540 infertile men were simultaneously analyzed using the standard microbiological semen culture method and an alternative new experimental technique (Brain Heart Infusion broth, BHI, enrichment). Our results established the possibility to apply BHI enrichment to detect bacteria from semen samples with higher sensitivity (100%) and negative predictive value (100%) than the standard technique
Congenital anomalies and variations of the bile and pancreatic ducts: magnetic resonance cholangio-pancreatography findings, epidemiology and clinical significance
Purpose. The objective of this paper is to document the
magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP)
findings and the epidemiology of congenital anomalies and
variations of the bile and pancreatic ducts and to discuss
their clinical significance.
Materials and methods. Three-hundred and fifty patients
of both sexes (150 females, 200 males, age range 0–76
years, average age 38 years) underwent MRCP for
clinically suspected lithiasic, neoplastic or inflammatory
disease of the bile and pancreatic ducts. Patients were
imaged with a 1.5-T superconductive magnet (Magnetom
Vision, Siemens, Erlangen, Germany), a four-channel
phased-array body coil, breath-hold technique, with
multislice T2-weighted half-Fourier acquisition single-shot
turbo spin echo (HASTE), MIP reconstructions, and a
single-shot T2-weighted turbo-spin-echo sequence rapid
acquisition with relaxation enhancement (RARE) with
different slice thicknesses. Studies in oncological patients
were completed with fat saturation 3D T1 gradient-echo
sequences during the intravenous injection of gadolinium
diethylene triamine pentaacetate acid (DTPA) (0.2 ml/kg).
Results. MRCP demonstrated recurrent and therefore
normal bile and pancreatic ducts in 57% of patients. In the
remaining 42.3%, it documented anatomical variants (41%) and congenital anomalies (1.3%). Variants of the
intrahepatic bile duct were seen in 21% of cases: crossover
anomaly (6.7%), anterior branch of the right hepatic duct
draining the IV and VII segments that flow together with
the left bile duct (3.1%) and anterior and posterior
branches of the right hepatic duct that flow together with
the common hepatic duct (3.3%). Variants of the
extrahepatic bile ducts were present in 8.8% of patients:
low insertion of the cystic duct into the common hepatic
duct (4.5%), emptying of the cystic duct into the right
hepatic duct (2.7%) and a second-order large branch
draining into the cystic duct (1.6%). MRCP identified a
double gall bladder in 3% of patients and anatomical
variants of the biliopancreatic system in 8.2%: pancreas
divisum (5.2%) and a long sphincter of Oddi (3%). Finally,
congenital anomalies were diagnosed in 1.3% of cases: bile
duct cysts (0.3%), atresia of the bile ducts (0.3%) and
multiple biliary hamartomatosis (0.7%).
Conclusions. The congenital anomalies and anatomical
variants of the bile and pancreatic ducts present a complex
spectrum of frequent alterations, which are worthy of
attention in both the clinical and surgical settings and are
readily identified by MRCP.
Keywords Bile and pancreatic ducts · Anatomical
variations · Congenital anomalies · MRC
Glycine-replaced derivatives of [Pro3,DLeu9]TL, a temporin L analogue: evaluation of antimicrobial, cytotoxic and hemolytic activities
In this study we designed and synthesized a new library of antimicrobial peptides correlated to [Pro3,DLeu9]TL 1, a temporin L derivative devoid of cytolytic effects in vitro, and investigated the correlation between the α-helical content of the compounds and their antibacterial, cytotoxic and hemolytic activities. We systematically replaced Gly in position 10 of reference peptide with several amino acids. Structure-activity relationship studies of these analogues were performed by means of antimicrobial and cytotoxicity assays along with CD spectroscopy analyses. NMR analysis was also accomplished for compound 10. As well, the most promising peptides were additionally evaluated for their activity against some clinical strains isolated from human skin and for their mechanism of action by studying the kinetics of membrane perturbation of some representative microbial strains. We identified novel analogues with interesting properties that make them attractive lead compounds for potential topical application