Changes in zinc-α2-glycoprotein (ZAG) plasma concentrations pre and post Roux-En-Y gastric bypass surgery (RYGB) or a very low calorie (VLCD) diet in clinically severe obese patients: Preliminary Study

The purpose of this preliminary study was to investigate changes in plasma concentrations of zinc-α2-glycoprotein (ZAG), a lipid mobilizing hormone, in obese subjects following Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass (RYGB) surgery or a very low calorie diet (VLCD). Fasting blood concentrations and anthropometric measurements were measured pre and 12 weeks post intervention. 14 healthy, obese individuals underwent either RYGB (N=6) surgery or a VLCD (N=8). Body composition and fasting plasma ZAG concentrations were measured at baseline (pre) and 12 weeks post intervention (post). At pre-intervention baseline, there was no difference in plasma ZAG between the two intervention groups. Post-intervention, there was a significant overall reduction (F(1,11) = 32.8, p<0.001) in plasma ZAG, which was significant only within the RYGB group from pre to post intervention (33.2 ± 5.7 µg/ml to 26.7 ± 4.8 µg/ml (p<0.015)) and significantly greater than the change within the VLCD group. The change in ZAG was inversely correlated across groups with BMI reduction (r= -0.60, p<0.05), % body fat reduction (r= -0.68, p<0.015), reduction in weight (r= -0.58, p<0.05), and % weight loss (r= -0.70, p<0.05). Overall, subjects who underwent RYGB or VLCD had a significant reduction in plasma ZAG. This reduction was significant within the RYGB group alone, who lost a larger amount of weight than the VLCD group, which suggests that ZAG may have a protective effect during marked weight loss

Ammonia-Nitrogen Recovery from Synthetic Solution using Agricultural Waste Fibers

In this study, modification of Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) fibers as a means to recover ammonianitrogen from a synthetic solution was investigated. Methods: The EFB fiber was modified using sodium hydroxide.Adsorption-desorption studies of ammonia nitrogen into the modified EFB fiber were investigated Findings: Theincrease in adsorption capacity was found to be proportional with the increase of pH up to 7, temperature and ammoniaconcentration. The maximum adsorption capacity is 0.53-10.89 mg/g. The attachment of ammonia nitrogen involves ionexchange-chemisorption. The maximum desorption capacity of 0.0999 mg/g. Applications: This study can be used as abaseline for designing a low cost adsorbent system for ammonia nitrogen recovery drainage and industrial wastewater aswell as EFBs-palm oil mill effluent composting

Polycystic ovary syndrome

The document attached has been archived with permission from the editor of the Medical Journal of Australia. An external link to the publisher’s copy is included.Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects 5-20% of women of reproductive age worldwide. The condition is characterized by hyperandrogenism, ovulatory dysfunction and polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) - with excessive androgen production by the ovaries being a key feature of PCOS. Metabolic dysfunction characterized by insulin resistance and compensatory hyperinsulinaemia is evident in the vast majority of affected individuals. PCOS increases the risk for type 2 diabetes mellitus, gestational diabetes and other pregnancy-related complications, venous thromboembolism, cerebrovascular and cardiovascular events and endometrial cancer. PCOS is a diagnosis of exclusion, based primarily on the presence of hyperandrogenism, ovulatory dysfunction and PCOM. Treatment should be tailored to the complaints and needs of the patient and involves targeting metabolic abnormalities through lifestyle changes, medication and potentially surgery for the prevention and management of excess weight, androgen suppression and/or blockade, endometrial protection, reproductive therapy and the detection and treatment of psychological features. This Primer summarizes the current state of knowledge regarding the epidemiology, mechanisms and pathophysiology, diagnosis, screening and prevention, management and future investigational directions of the disorder.Robert J Norman, Ruijin Wu and Marcin T Stankiewic

Does true Gleason pattern 3 merit its cancer descriptor?

Nearly five decades following its conception, the Gleason grading system remains a cornerstone in the prognostication and management of patients with prostate cancer. In the past few years, a debate has been growing whether Gleason score 3 + 3 = 6 prostate cancer is a clinically significant disease. Clinical, molecular and genetic research is addressing the question whether well characterized Gleason score 3 + 3 = 6 disease has the ability to affect the morbidity and quality of life of an individual in whom it is diagnosed. The consequences of treatment of Gleason score 3 + 3 = 6 disease are considerable; few men get through their treatments without sustaining some harm. Further modification of the classification of prostate cancer and dropping the label cancer for Gleason score 3 + 3 = 6 disease might be warranted

ANTIHYPERGLYCEMIC EFFECTS OF THYMOQUINONE IN DIABETIC RATS

To investigate the antihyperglycemic potent of thymoquinone (TQ), this study has been conducted in streptozotocin-induced diabetic male rats.Diabetes was induced by single injection with streptozotocin (60 mg/kg b.w., i.p.). Rat ≥ 200 mg/dl of blood glucose was used as diabetic.Sixty five adult male rats (aged 56 days and weighted 138±8.8g) were divided into five groups, non-diabetic control (were drenched with drinking water) and four diabetic groups(DM, TQ50,TQ100, and DMI) were drenched with drinking water,TQ (50 mg/kg, bw), TQ (100 mg/kg, bw), and injected with insulin (4 IU/animal), respectively, for 42 days. During the experiment,body weight gains were recorded and blood samples were obtained weekly for assessment of plasma glucose and insulin concentrations. TQ treated male rats showed normal activity and body health throughout the experiment. Significant decrease of body weight gain has been recorded in untreated diabetic (DM) and insulin treated diabetic (DMI) groups as compared with that of intact control (C) and TQ treated diabetic (TQ50 and TQ100) groups, started from the fourth day of experiment, while DM group registered the lowest body weight gain among the experimental groups. Results of blood glucose concentrations referred to significant elevation in diabetic groups as compared with intact control. While in comparison between the diabetic groups, blood glucose concentration decreased significantly TQ50, TQ100, and DMI groups compared with DMI group. It has been found that insulin treated (DMI) and TQ treated (TQ50 and TQ100) male rats recorded no significant difference in serum insulin concentration when compared with each other but they were significantly lower than that of intact control male rats (C), but the average means of these four groups were significantly higher than that of non-treated diabetic male rats (DM).These changes were time dependent during the studied experimental period. It can be concluded that drenching of 100 mg/kg of TQ has potent hypoglycemic effect in experimentally-induced diabetic male rats

Prenatal exposures and exposomics of asthma

This review examines the causal investigation of preclinical development of childhood asthma using exposomic tools. We examine the current state of knowledge regarding early-life exposure to non-biogenic indoor air pollution and the developmental modulation of the immune system. We examine how metabolomics technologies could aid not only in the biomarker identification of a particular asthma phenotype, but also the mechanisms underlying the immunopathologic process. Within such a framework, we propose alternate components of exposomic investigation of asthma in which, the exposome represents a reiterative investigative process of targeted biomarker identification, validation through computational systems biology and physical sampling of environmental medi

Noise Level in Textile Industries: Case Study Al-Hillah Textile Factory-Company for Textile Industries, Al-Hillah-Babylon-Iraq

In this study, Al-Hillah Textile Factory, in Al-Hillah city-Iraq follows to State Company for Textile Industries was selected to study the intensity of noise in 2014. Measurements of the noise level were carried out in different workshops for each of the production stages including the spinning machinery workshop (parts 1 and 2), the rotating machinery room, the preparations room, and the textile machinery room (Roti model), weaving machines: Techmash model room Russian-made model room, Sheets' machinery room, and operator machines room; using two noise meters (model 2237 Fulfici). Fifty samples were collected in each part of these rooms to give realistic results for the noise level. After recording the noise level data, the highest and lowest values and the average of noise intensity readings were calculated in each of the rooms and compared with the global standards permitted by the EPA for industrial facilities. The results of this study showed that the general rate of noise intensity in all rooms exceeded the permissible limits, which impose a noise level of 65-70dB for such industrial establishments according to EPA recommendations in 2008

Synergistic use of Landsat 8 OLI image and airborne LiDAR data for above-ground biomass estimation in tropical lowland rainforests

Developing a robust and cost-effective method for accurately estimating tropical forest's carbon pool over large area is a fundamental requirement for the implementation of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+). This study aims at examining the independent and combined use of airborne LiDAR and Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) data to accurately estimate the above-ground biomass (AGB) of primary tropical rainforests in Sabah, Malaysia. Thirty field plots were established in three types of lowland rainforests: alluvial, sandstone hill and heath forests that represent a wide range of AGB density and stand structure. We derived the height percentile and laser penetration variables from the airborne LiDAR and calculated the vegetation indices, tasseled cap transformation values, and the texture measures from Landsat 8 OLI data. We found that there are moderate correlations between the AGB and laser penetration variables from airborne LiDAR data (r = −0.411 to −0.790). For Landsat 8 OLI data, the 6 vegetation indices and the 46 texture measures also significantly correlated with the AGB (r = 0.366–0.519). Stepwise multiple regression analysis was performed to establish the estimation models for independent and combined use of airborne LiDAR and Landsat 8 OLI data. The results showed that the model based on a combination of the two remote sensing data achieved the highest accuracy (R 2 adj = 0.81, RMSE = 17.36%) whereas the models using Landsat 8 OLI data airborne LiDAR data independently obtained the moderate accuracy (R 2 adj = 0.52, RMSE = 24.22% and R 2 adj = 0.63, RMSE = 25.25%, respectively). Our study indicated that texture measures from Landsat 8 OLI data provided useful information for AGB estimation and synergistic use of Landsat 8 OLI and airborne LiDAR data could improve the AGB estimation of primary tropical rainforest.This work was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia [grant number RACE0004-STW-2012]