Biological control of Heterodera cajani and Fusarium udum by Bacillus subtilis, Bradyrhizobium japonicum and Glomus fasciculatum on pigeonpea

#Bacilus subtilis, #Bradyrhizobium japonicum et #Glomus fasciculatum sont utilisés, seuls ou en combinaison, pour le traitement d'un flétrissement complexe du pois d'Angole causé par le nématode #Heterodera cajani et le champignon #Fusarium udum. Les traitements à l'aide de ces trois agents, seuls ou en combinaison, effectués sur des plants inoculés par les deux parasites augmentent le poids sec des racines, le nombre de nodules et le taux de phosphore, et diminuent le nombre de nématode ainsi que l'indice de flétrissement. #B. subtilis appliqué seul sur des plants inoculés par l'un ou l'autre parasite provoque un accroissement du poids sec des racines équivalent à celui causé par #G. fasciculatum. Cependant, dans le cas de plants inoculés par les deux parasites, le poids sec des racines est supérieur à celui observé lors de l'utilisation de #G. fasciculatum ou de #B. japonicum. Cet accroissement du poids sec des racines est plus prononcé si le traitement comporte à la fois #G. fasciculatum et #B. subtilis ou si le troisième agent de contrôle, #B. japonicum, est également présent. L'utilisation des trois agents de contrôle provoque une plus forte nodulation et une plus importante diminution du nombre des nématodes. Les combinaisons comportant #B. japonicum et #G. fasciculatum augmentent l'infestation racinaire par ce dernier alors qu'une combinaison de #G. fasciculatum et de #B. subtilis produit l'effet inverse. (Résumé d'auteur

Q-probes study of replicate specimens at the clinical laboratory, the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi

Objective: The aim of this Q-probes study was to evaluate the precision of replicate specimens.Methods: This Q-probes study done at the Clinical Laboratory, The Aga Khan University Hospital Karachi is about routine chemistry analytes because of their importance in critical care patients. The analytes data was collected for six months from April to September 2002. There were total 358 samples, which were given for reanalysis during this period under the constant working conditions. After analysis, results of both the runs on different days, were compared to determine the percent difference between the results. After calculating the percent difference, the results were either accepted or rejected on the basis of guidelines set by CLIA 88(Clinical Laboratories Improvement Amendment 1988).Results: Among 358 results, 5 were rejected according to the criteria selected. All of these results were then subjected to statistical analysis for calculating statistical significance. As our Null hypothesis was that the prevalence of rejected results were more than 2% with an acceptable limit of less than or equal to 2%. We failed to accept the Null hypothesis that means that it did not exceed the acceptable limits (p-value = 0.962930) with the Confidence Interval range of 0.2 -2.6 where Upper Confidence Interval is still less than 5% for a p-value of 0.05. The rejection of null hypothesis favors high precision between the two sets of results in our studied population.CONCLUSION: It is concluded that Q-Probes study of replicate specimens at the Clinical Laboratory at The Aga Khan University Hospital is within the acceptable limits. These figures show that a high quality precision is maintained among the observed specimens. This is an ongoing exercise and studies like these should be a continuous process to maintain and enhance the quality of Laboratory results)

Systematic review of prognostic importance of extramural venous invasion in rectal cancer

AIM: To systematically review the survival outcomes relating to extramural venous invasion in rectal cancer. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted using PRISMA guidelines. An electronic search was carried out using MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane library databases, Google scholar and Pubmed until October 2014. Search terms were used in combination to yield articles on extramural venous invasion in rectal cancer. Outcome measures included prevalence and 5-year survival rates. These were graphically displayed using Forest plots. Statistical analysis of the data was carried out. RESULTS: Fourteen studies reported the prevalence of extramural venous invasion (EMVI) positive patients. Prevalence ranged from 9%-61%. The pooled prevalence of EMVI positivity was 26% [Random effects: Event rate 0.26 (0.18, 0.36)]. Most studies showed that EMVI related to worse oncological outcomes. The pooled overall survival was 39.5% [Random effects: Event rate 0.395 (0.29, 0.51)]. CONCLUSION: Historically, there has been huge variation in the prevalence of EMVI through inconsistent reporting. However the presence of EMVI clearly leads to worse survival outcomes. As detection rates become more consistent, EMVI may be considered as part of risk-stratification in rectal cancer. Standardised histopathological definitions and the use of magnetic resonance imaging to identify EMVI will improve detection rates in the future

Comparison of causes and manifestations of pain in Parkinson’s disease patients to healthy controls

Objective To assess the manifestations of pain in PD (Parkinson’s disease ) patients versus healthy controls.Methods Data on pain was collected from 127 patients and an equivalent number of controls using two self-report questionnaires: the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) and a custom-made questionnaire focusing on specific details not covered by the former. Additional analysis was conducted within the patient group only to analyze the potential effects of factors relating to PD on the various measure of interest relating to pain.Results Parkinson disease patients had lower odds of experiencing pain in both arms (ExpB=0.061, p<0.001), greater probability of demonstrating pain in both legs (ExpB=2.409, p=0.024), and an increase difficulty in localizing pain (ExpB=2.958, p=0.030). There was no relationship between duration of pain (F=12.414, p=0.001) or arthritis (ExpB=0.724, p=0.309) and pain in PD. The likelihood of experiencing nagging pain (ExpB=3.533, p=0.028), but not other forms, was much more strongly associated with PD patients than normal controls. When all other types of pain were controlled for, pain in PD is more likely associated with akathesic pain (ExpB=9.046, p<0.001).Conclusion There are major differences between pain in PD patients and pain in normal controls, which could have implications on the pathophysiology and adequate management of pain in different populations.Key words: Healthy controls, movement disorders, pain, Parkinson’s diseas

CSF oligoclonal bands in multiple sclerosis

Objective: To study the significance of oligoclonal bands in neurological disorders, specifically in Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Methods: The study was designed to assess the sensitivity and specificity of the test methodology of CSF electrophoresis by performing the retrospective analysis of CSF samples sent for oligoclonal bands (OCB). A total of 603 samples were received by the Clinical Laboratories, Department of Pathology of The Aga Khan University, during a period of 54 months (January 1993-June 1997). All of these samples were analyzed by performing CSF protein electrophoresis. One hundred thirty three out of 603 samples showed evidence of OCB. Out of these, 24 patients were registered with Section of Neurology, Department of Medicine, The Aga Khan University Hospital. These 24 patients were finally selected for analysis. Relevant clinical details such as age, sex and clinical presentations were recorded. Results: Fifteen (62%) out of 24 patients with positive OCB were diagnosed as cases of MS. Four (17%) patients were diagnosed to have subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE). Five (21%) patients were having other inflammatory neurological disorders. Conclusion: The overall relative sensitivity and specificity for multiple sclerosis were found to be 100% and 62.5% respectively. Lack of specificity was attributed to the fact that OCB were positive in other neurological disorders as well

Intratumoral CD8⁺ T cells with stem cell-like properties: Implications for cancer immunotherapy.

Intratumoral PD-1 <sup>+</sup> TCF1 <sup>+</sup> CD8 <sup>+</sup> T cells with stem cell-like properties mediate cellular expansion and tumor control in response to immunotherapy

Bacterial isolates from neutropenic febrile pediatric patients and their sensitivity patterns to antibiotics

Patients on cytotoxic therapy often develop neutropenia and fever. Our interest was to identify the common pathogens isolated from such patients and to study the sensitivity patterns of these organisms to the antibiotics used in their treatment. Thus, guidelines can be established by hospitals to identify which antibiotics can be used in the treatment of these patients when the results of cultures and sensitivities are not available. We conducted a retrospective study of neutropenic pediatrics presenting to AKUH from July, 1990 to June, 1996. A total of 153 isolates in 35 different patients were studied. Samples for culture were taken from the sites at risk. The majority of samples consisted of blood, stool, pus and urine. Twenty stool samples were also sent for microscopy. Malignancies were both hematological and non-hematological. Gram negatives were isolated in 52.9%, gram positives in 33.9% and parasites in 13.2%. Salmonella paratyphi B was the most commonly isolated organism, followed by Pseudomonas aeroginosa, Giardia lamblia was the most common parasite. Sensitivity patterns of these organisms to antibiotics studied showed that Escheria coli had the lowest sensitivity rate being only 40% sensitive to Aztreonam and 64% sensitive to Ofloxacillin. A comparison was made between our findings and those reported in literature, as well as the risk factors for developing neutropenia. A guide to management is also discussed

Characterization of quality indices on storage of puree of mutant (dg and og^c) and normal tomatoes

The investigations carried out so far on high pigment tomatoes are confined to their nutritional aspects only. We present the comparative results of the first study on the kinetics of changes in chemical and sensory quality attributes in puree prepared from two colour mutants [dark green (dg) and old gold crimson (ogc)] and seven normal tomato genotypes during storage. Puree of mutant tomatoes BCT-115 and BCT-119, carrying dg and ogc genes, showed the less significant changes in TSS (7.52 and 6.02 °Brix), acidity (3.16 and 3.05%), pH (4.04 and 4.03), total sugar (12.4 and 11.13%), ascorbic acid (20.74 and 19.69 mg/100 g), lycopene (7.78 and 542 mg/100 g), and β-carotene (3.08 and 2.26 mg/100 g) during two months storage at 25 °C. Nevertheless, puree prepared from Berika and BCT-115 (dg) had higher colour (7.63 and 7.13), taste (7.4 and 7.37) and flavour (7.3 and 7.37) sensory scores during two months of storage at 25°C. These results provide new data on the effect of genotypes on the stability of quality for storage of tomato puree and insist on the utilization of these genotypes for breeding new processing cultivars in the near future