9 research outputs found
Importance of Clinical Suspicion in Rapid Diagnostic Test Negativity in Malaria: Two Case Reports
Introduction: Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by infection with Plasmodium parasites. Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) have been used for the diagnosis of malaria without special equipment by unskilled personnel over the last 15 years. The treatment should only be given after the clinical diagnosis confirmed by RDT or microscopy. RDTs' specificity and sensitivity have been reported as >95% by the World Health Organization - Foundation for Initiative New Diagnostics (WHO-FIND).
Case report: A 30-years-old male and a 23-years-old female presented to our emergency department with fever and history of a visit to a malaria-endemic country. Plasmodium trophozoites were seen in the blood smear samples via light microscopy. However, RDTs were negative. The patients were treated according to their pathogens.
Conclusion: Rarely, RDT might result in a false negative in the diagnosis of malaria. People travelling to endemic areas should be closely monitored. Emergency department physicians should not neglect microscopy which is the gold standard for diagnosis of malaria
Supramolecular GAG-like Self-Assembled Glycopeptide Nanofibers Induce Chondrogenesis and Cartilage Regeneration
Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) and glycoproteins are vital components of the extracellular matrix, directing cell proliferation, differentiation, and migration and tissue homeostasis. Here, we demonstrate supramolecular GAG-like glycopeptide nanofibers mimicking bioactive functions of natural hyaluronic acid molecules. Self-assembly of the glycopeptide amphiphile molecules enable organization of glucose residues in close proximity on a nanoscale structure forming a supramolecular GAG-like system. Our in vitro culture results indicated that the glycopeptide nanofibers are recognized through CD44 receptors, and promote chondrogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. We analyzed the bioactivity of GAG-like glycopeptide nanofibers in chondrogenic differentiation and injury models because hyaluronic acid is a major component of articular cartilage. Capacity of glycopeptide nanofibers on in vivo cartilage regeneration was demonstrated in microfracture treated osteochondral defect healing. The glycopeptide nanofibers act as a cell-instructive synthetic counterpart of hyaluronic acid, and they can be used in stem cell-based cartilage regeneration therapies. © 2015 American Chemical Society
SelfâHealing Supramolecular Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering Applications
Selfâhealing supramolecular hydrogels have emerged as a novel class of biomaterials that combine hydrogels with supramolecular chemistry to develop highly functional biomaterials with advantages including native tissue mimicry, biocompatibility, and injectability. These properties are endowed by the reversibly crossâlinked polymer network of the hydrogel. These hydrogels have great potential for realizing yet to be clinically translated tissue engineering therapies. This review presents methods of selfâhealing supramolecular hydrogel formation and their uses in tissue engineering as well as future perspectives.Selfâhealing supramolecular hydrogels are a novel class of biomaterials that offer unique advantages in tissue engineering. This review describes important methods of supramolecular hydrogel formation as well as recent advances and emerging applications of these hydrogels in regenerative medicine.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147853/1/mabi201800313_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147853/2/mabi201800313.pd
Chondrogenic Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells on Glycosaminoglycan-Mimetic Peptide Nanofibers
Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are important
extracellular matrix components
of cartilage tissue and provide biological signals to stem cells and
chondrocytes for development and functional regeneration of cartilage.
Among their many functions, particularly sulfated glycosaminoglycans
bind to growth factors and enhance their functionality through enabling
growth factorâreceptor interactions. Growth factor binding
ability of the native sulfated glycosaminoglycans can be incorporated
into the synthetic scaffold matrix through functionalization with
specific chemical moieties. In this study, we used peptide amphiphile
nanofibers functionalized with the chemical groups of native glycosaminoglycan
molecules such as sulfonate, carboxylate and hydroxyl to induce the
chondrogenic differentiation of rat mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs).
The MSCs cultured on GAG-mimetic peptide nanofibers formed cartilage-like
nodules and deposited cartilage-specific matrix components by day
7, suggesting that the GAG-mimetic peptide nanofibers effectively
facilitated their commitment into the chondrogenic lineage. Interestingly,
the chondrogenic differentiation degree was manipulated with the sulfonation
degree of the nanofiber system. The GAG-mimetic peptide nanofibers
network presented here serve as a tailorable bioactive and bioinductive
platform for stem-cell-based cartilage regeneration studies
Supramolecular GAG-like Self-Assembled Glycopeptide Nanofibers Induce Chondrogenesis and Cartilage Regeneration
Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) and glycoproteins
are vital components
of the extracellular matrix, directing cell proliferation, differentiation,
and migration and tissue homeostasis. Here, we demonstrate supramolecular
GAG-like glycopeptide nanofibers mimicking bioactive functions of
natural hyaluronic acid molecules. Self-assembly of the glycopeptide
amphiphile molecules enable organization of glucose residues in close
proximity on a nanoscale structure forming a supramolecular GAG-like
system. Our in vitro culture results indicated that the glycopeptide
nanofibers are recognized through CD44 receptors, and promote chondrogenic
differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. We analyzed the bioactivity
of GAG-like glycopeptide nanofibers in chondrogenic differentiation
and injury models because hyaluronic acid is a major component of
articular cartilage. Capacity of glycopeptide nanofibers on in vivo
cartilage regeneration was demonstrated in microfracture treated osteochondral
defect healing. The glycopeptide nanofibers act as a cell-instructive
synthetic counterpart of hyaluronic acid, and they can be used in
stem cell-based cartilage regeneration therapies