Amoebic forms of Blastocystis spp. -evidence for a pathogenic role

Background: Blastocystis spp. are one of the most prevalent parasites isolated from patients suffering from diarrhea, flatulence, constipation and vomiting. It�s pathogenicity and pathophysiology remains controversial to date. Protease activity and amoebic forms have been reported previously in symptomatic isolates but there has been no conclusive evidence provided to correlate the protease activity and any specific life cycle stage of the parasite thus far. Methods: Symptomatic isolates with amoebic form were tested for protease activity and compared with symptomatic and asymptomatic isolates without amoebic form for 10 days culture period. Results: The present study demonstrates an elevated protease activity in cultures having a higher percentage of amoebic forms seen in symptomatic isolates. The growth curve demonstrated a significantly (p < 0.05) higher average number of parasite counts in asymptomatic compared to symptomatic isolates. Symptomatic isolates showed amoebic forms with percentages ranging from 5 to 17. Elevated protease activity was demonstrated in isolates that had higher percentages of amoebic forms with intense bands at higher molecular weight proteases (60 � 100 kDa). As days of culture proceeded, the protease quantification also showed a steady increase. Conclusion: This study elucidates a correlation between protease activity and percentage of amoebic forms. The finding implies that these forms could play a role in exacerbation of intestinal symptoms during Blastocystis spp. infection

AN AUTOMATED SOLUTION FOR AVOIDING ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION ON ROADS

The primary reason for such systems would be to alleviate traffic jam that is available in each and every major city. We offer a complete-blown implementation on actual smartphones, with an extensive assessment of their precision and efficiency. Our results make sure smartphone-based TISs can provide accurate traffic condition estimation while being secure and privacy protecting. Nonetheless, to make use of smartphone-based TISs, we have to ensure their privacy and security as well as their effectiveness. Simultaneously, as TISs require fine-grained location information, the privacy from the adding participants should be protected. This requirement for privacy is intensified poor smartphone-based TISs. Growing smartphone transmission, combined with wide coverage of cellular infrastructures, renders wise phone based traffic human resources (TISs) a beautiful option. This is actually the motivation of the paper: We leverage condition-of-the-art cryptographic schemes and easily available telecommunication infrastructure. We present an extensive solution for smartphone-based traffic estimation that is known as secure and privacy protecting

Clinicopathological Profile of Pure Neuroendocrine Neoplasms of the Esophagus: A South Indian Center Experience

Purpose. Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) of the esophagus are very uncommon with only a few studies published worldwide. Studies on clinical profile, management, and outcomes are very uncommon. Methods. We report the largest single institution retrospective review of 43 patients of pure esophageal NENs out of our registry of gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors treated between 2005 and 2014. Data on the incidence, tumor location, clinical symptoms, stage at presentation, grading, treatment protocol, and treatment outcomes was collected and analyzed. Results. Among 1293 cases of esophageal cancers, pure esophageal NENs were diagnosed in 43 cases. The mean patient age was 55.8 years. The male : female ratio was 1.5 : 1. 81.4% of the tumors were located in the lower third of the esophagus and gastroesophageal junction. Neuroendocrine carcinomas (NEC; G3) accounted for the vast majority of NENs (83.7%). 53.5% patients were Stage IV and 32.5% were Stage III at presentation. The combined median survival of stages II and III patients was 18.25 months, with treatment. The median survival of treated patients with metastatic disease was 6.5 months. Conclusion. Esophageal NENs most commonly were neuroendocrine carcinomas, presented in metastatic stage and were associated with poor prognosis. Grade 2 (G2) tumors had better outcomes than NEC (G3). In nonmetastatic disease, presence of lymph node metastasis and unresectable disease had poorer outcomes

Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4% (62.3 (55.1–70.8) million) to 6.4% (58.3 (47.6–70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target of <5% in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2% (30 (22.8–38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0% (55.5 (44.8–67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic

Twelve-month observational study of children with cancer in 41 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction Childhood cancer is a leading cause of death. It is unclear whether the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted childhood cancer mortality. In this study, we aimed to establish all-cause mortality rates for childhood cancers during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the factors associated with mortality. Methods Prospective cohort study in 109 institutions in 41 countries. Inclusion criteria: children &lt;18 years who were newly diagnosed with or undergoing active treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, retinoblastoma, Wilms tumour, glioma, osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, medulloblastoma and neuroblastoma. Of 2327 cases, 2118 patients were included in the study. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality at 30 days, 90 days and 12 months. Results All-cause mortality was 3.4% (n=71/2084) at 30-day follow-up, 5.7% (n=113/1969) at 90-day follow-up and 13.0% (n=206/1581) at 12-month follow-up. The median time from diagnosis to multidisciplinary team (MDT) plan was longest in low-income countries (7 days, IQR 3-11). Multivariable analysis revealed several factors associated with 12-month mortality, including low-income (OR 6.99 (95% CI 2.49 to 19.68); p&lt;0.001), lower middle income (OR 3.32 (95% CI 1.96 to 5.61); p&lt;0.001) and upper middle income (OR 3.49 (95% CI 2.02 to 6.03); p&lt;0.001) country status and chemotherapy (OR 0.55 (95% CI 0.36 to 0.86); p=0.008) and immunotherapy (OR 0.27 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.91); p=0.035) within 30 days from MDT plan. Multivariable analysis revealed laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR 5.33 (95% CI 1.19 to 23.84); p=0.029) was associated with 30-day mortality. Conclusions Children with cancer are more likely to die within 30 days if infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, timely treatment reduced odds of death. This report provides crucial information to balance the benefits of providing anticancer therapy against the risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children with cancer

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

In vitro and in vivo thermal stress induces proliferation of Blastocystis sp.

Blastocystis sp. is known to be the most commonly found intestinal protozoan parasite in human fecal surveys and has been incriminated to cause diarrhea and abdominal bloating. Binary fission has been widely accepted as the plausible mode of reproduction for this parasite. The present study demonstrates that subjecting the parasites in vitro to higher temperature shows the proliferation of parasite numbers in cultures. Transmission electron microscopy was used to compare the morphology of Blastocystis sp. subtype 3 isolated from a dengue patient having high fever (in vivo thermal stress) and Blastocystis sp. 3 maintained at 41 °C (in vitro thermal stress) and 37 °C (control). Fluorescence stains like acridine orange (AO) and 4′,6′-diamino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) were used to demonstrate the viability and nuclear content of the parasite for both the in vitro and in vivo thermal stress groups of parasites. Blastocystis sp. at 37 °C was found to be mostly vacuolar whereas the in vitro thermal stressed isolates at 41 °C were granular with electron dense material seen to protect the granules within the central body. Parasites of the in vivo thermal stressed group showed similar ultrastructure as the in vitro ones. AO and DAPI staining provided evidence that these granules are viable which develop into progenies of Blastocystis sp. These granular forms were then observed to rupture and release progenies from the mother cells whilst the peripheral cytoplasmic walls were seen to degrade. Upon exposure to high temperature both in vitro and in vivo, Blastocystis sp. in cultures show higher number of granular forms seen to be protected by the electron dense material within the central body possibly acting as a protective mechanism. This is possibly to ensure the ability to survive for the granules to be developed as viable progenies for release into the host system

Effect of Ni doping on the microstructure and high Curie temperature ferromagnetism in sol-gel derived titania powders

Undoped, 0.05 and 0.5 mol% Ni-doped TiO2 powders were prepared by a modified sol-gel route. The doping effects on the microstructure and magnetism for the powdered samples have been systematically investigated. Doping of Ni in TiO2 inhibited rutile crystal growth. The probable reason for this is discussed on the basis of band calculation based analysis of electronic structures of 3d transition metal-doped TiO2 and the energetic, transformation kinetics and phase stability of anatase over rutile as the function of particle size. Room temperature ferromagnetism (RTFM) with the saturation magnetization of 12 m emu g(-1) and Curie temperature as high as 820K is observed only in case of 0.05 mol% Ni:TiO2 powdered sample, whereas undoped TiO2 was diamagnetic and 0.5 mol% Ni:TiO2 was paramagnetic in nature. The role of any magnetic impurity or any Ni metal in the origin of the RTFM has been ruled out by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high resolution TEM (HRTEM) analysis, whereas magnetic force microscopy (MFM) established the presence of magnetic domains, supporting the intrinsic diluted magnetic semiconductor behavior. The observed ferromagnetism has been attributed to the spin ordering through exchange interaction between holes trapped in oxygen orbitals adjacent to Ni substitutional sites

Attenuation of Hydrogen Peroxide and Ferric Reducing/Antioxidant Power Serum Levels in Colorectal Cancer Patients with Intestinal Parasitic Infection

Background: This study assessed several common oxidative indices in subjects infected with intestinal parasites, as well as in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients both with and without intestinal parasites. Method: Serum levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), ferric reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) were measured, as were plasma levels of advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), all according to established methods. The presence of intestinal parasites was confirmed by stool examination. Results: All intestinal parasiteinfected subjects and CRC patients showed the presence of oxidative stress. Thirtysix percent of the CRC patients had intestinal parasitic infections. The levels of H2O2 and FRAP in parasite-infected subjects were significantly higher than in CRC patients, but these levels were significantly lower in the CRC patients with parasitic infections. Conclusion: Parasitic infection and CRC may contribute to oxidative stress independently, but when present together, the oxidative stress burden imposed by parasites may be attenuated