Munasarjastruuma. Haigusjuhu kirjeldus koos erialakirjanduse ülevaatega

Munasarjastruuma ehk struma ovarii (SO) on haruldane munasarjakasvaja. SO sisaldab enamasti hormonaalselt aktiivset kilpnäärmekude, mis võib põhjustada hüpertüreoidismi. Valdav osa sellistest moodustistest on healoomulised, aga ligikaudu 5% ka halvaloomulised. SO operatsioonieelne kliiniline ja radioloogiline diagnoosimine on keeruline, sest haigus väljendub sageli mittespetsiifiliste sümptomitena ja võib radioloogilistel uuringutel imiteerida pahaloomulist munasarjakasvajat. Diagnoosi kinnitavad tavaliselt histopatoloogilise uuringu tulemused. Artiklis on esitatud ühe SO haigusjuhu kirjeldus koos radioloogiliste uuringute tulemustega

Söömishäiretest põhjustatud amenorröa ja viljatus

Naise normaalne reproduktiivne funktsioon on kompleksne protsess, milles elustiilil ja toitumisel on tähtis osa. Nälgimine või oluline kaalulangus võib põhjustada puberteedieas tütarlastel soolise arengu peetust ja primaarset amenorröad, reproduktiivses eas kasvab menstruatsioonifunktsiooni häirete, sekundaarse amenorröa ja viljatuse sagedus. Raseduse iseeneslikke katkemisi, kaasasündinud arengurikkeid, perinataalse suremuse sagenemist ning madalakaaluliste laste sündi seostatakse viljastumis- ja rasedusaegse nälgimisega. Vaegtoitumise või nälgimise tagajärjel kujunenud reproduktiivse funktsiooni häired ja naiseviljatus on enamasti küll pöörduva iseloomuga, kuid teatud juhtudel on täielik tervenemine ja fertiilsuse taastumine väga pikaajaline protsess. Eesti Arst 2004; 83 (6): 374–37

Spontaanabort – immunoloogilisi aspekte

Raseduse iseeneslik katkemine on üks sagedasemaid raseduse tüsistusi, kusjuures sageli jäävad habituaalsete abortide põhjused selgusetuks. 50%-l juhtudest on habituaalsete abortide põhjus ema organismi puudulikust immuunvastusest tulenev lootemuna äratõukereaktsioon. Rasedus mõjutab autoimmuunsete haiguste kulgu. Samal ajal osa autoimmuunhaigusi suurendab raseduse katkemise tõenäosust, mille põhjuseks peetakse alanenud immuuntolerantsust. Raseduse iseenesliku katkemise võimalike immunoloogiliste mehhanismide väljaselgitamine ning adekvaatne ravi on olulised nii spontaanabordi profülaktika kui ravi aspektist. Eesti Arst 2003; 82 (3): 177–18

Application of luciferase assay for ATP to antimicrobial drug susceptibility

The susceptibility of bacteria, particularly those derived from body fluids, to antimicrobial agents is determined in terms of an ATP index measured by culturing a bacterium in a growth medium. The amount of ATP is assayed in a sample of the cultured bacterium by measuring the amount of luminescent light emitted when the bacterial ATP is reacted with a luciferase-luciferin mixture. The sample of the cultured bacterium is subjected to an antibiotic agent. The amount of bacterial adenosine triphosphate is assayed after treatment with the antibiotic by measuring the luminescent light resulting from the reaction. The ATP index is determined from the values obtained from the assay procedures

Rapid method for determination of antimicrobial susceptibilities pattern of urinary bacteria

Method determines bacterial sensitivity to antimicrobial agents by measuring level of adenosine triphosphate remaining in the bacteria. Light emitted during reaction of sample with a mixture of luciferase and luciferin is measured

Determination of antimicrobial susceptibilities on infected urines without isolation

A method is described for the quick determination of the susceptibilities of various unidentified bacteria contained in an aqueous physiological fluid sample, particularly urine, to one or more antibiotics. A bacterial adenosine triphosphate (ATP) assay is carried out after the elimination of non-bacterial ATP to determine whether an infection exists. If an infection does exist, a portion of the sample is further processed, including subjecting parts of the portion to one or more antibiotics. Growth of the bacteria in the parts are determined, again by an ATP assay, to determine whether the unidentified bacteria in the sample are susceptible to the antibiotic or antibiotics under test

Estimates of local biodiversity change over time stand up to scrutiny

We present new data and analyses revealing fundamental flaws in a critique of two recent meta-analyses of local-scale temporal biodiversity change. First, the conclusion that short-term time series lead to biased estimates of long-term change was based on two errors in the simulations used to support it. Second, the conclusion of negative relationships between temporal biodiversity change and study duration was entirely dependent on unrealistic model assumptions, the use of a subset of data, and inclusion of one outlier data point in one study. Third, the finding of a decline in local biodiversity, after eliminating post-disturbance studies, is not robust to alternative analyses on the original dataset, and is absent in a larger, updated dataset. Finally, the undebatable point – noted in both original papers – that studies in the ecological literature are geographically biased, was used to cast doubt on the conclusion that, outside of areas converted to croplands or asphalt, the distribution of biodiversity trends is centered approximately on zero. Future studies may modify conclusions, but at present, alternative conclusions based on the geographic-bias argument rely on speculation. In sum, the critique raises points of uncertainty typical of all ecological studies, but does not provide an evidence-based alternative interpretation.PostprintPeer reviewe

Different temporal trends in vascular plant and bryophyte communities along elevational gradients over four decades

Despite many studies showing biodiversity responses to warming, the generality of such responses across taxonomic groups remains unclear. Very few studies have tested for evidence of bryophyte community responses to warming, even though bryophytes are major contributors to diversity and functioning in many ecosystems. Here, we report an empirical study comparing long-term change in bryophyte and vascular plant communities in two sites with contrasting long-term warming trends, using "legacy" botanical records as a baseline for comparison with contemporary resurveys. We hypothesized that ecological changes would be greater in sites with a stronger warming trend and that vascular plant communities, with narrower climatic niches, would be more sensitive than bryophyte communities to climate warming. For each taxonomic group in each site, we quantified the magnitude of changes in species' distributions along the elevation gradient, species richness, and community composition. We found contrasted temporal changes in bryophyte vs. vascular plant communities, which only partially supported the warming hypothesis. In the area with a stronger warming trend, we found a significant increase in local diversity and dissimilarity (beta-diversity) for vascular plants, but not for bryophytes. Presence-absence data did not provide sufficient power to detect elevational shifts in species distributions. The patterns observed for bryophytes are in accordance with recent literature showing that local diversity can remain unchanged despite strong changes in composition. Regardless of whether one taxon is systematically more or less sensitive to environmental change than another, our results suggest that vascular plants cannot be used as a surrogate for bryophytes in terms of predicting the nature and magnitude of responses to warming. Thus, to assess overall biodiversity responses to global change, abundance data from different taxonomic groups and different community properties need to be synthesized.Peer reviewe

Du réchauffement aux conséquences écologiques : s’adapter, migrer ou disparaître?

Le réchauffement climatique est un phénomène planétaire menant à des changements dans les conditions environnementales, tels que la température et la quantité de précipitations, posant un défi de taille pour les espèces sauvages. De nombreux scientifiques étudient les réponses biologiques des plantes et des animaux face à ces changements. Cet article est un aperçu des connaissances scientifiques sur les stratégies et réponses écologiques que les organismes vivants utilisent pour faire face, notamment, à l’augmentation des températures à l’échelle globale. Toutefois, pour certaines espèces, le réchauffement survient à une vitesse trop rapide, menant à leur disparition, et laissant parfois place à de nouvelles espèces

A rapid method for the determination of microbial susceptibility using the firefly luciferase assay for adenosine triphosphate (ATP)

Luciferase assay for adenosine triphosphate (ATP) was optimized for pure bacteria in broth in order to evaluate if changes in bacterial ATP content could be used as a rapid measure of antibiotic effect on microorganisms. Broth cultures of log phase bacteria were incubated at 310 K (37 C) for 2.5 hours at antimicrobial concentrations which resulted in the best discrimination between sensitive and resistant strains. Eighty-seven strains of 11 bacterial species were studied for their susceptibility to 12 commonly used antimicrobial agents: ampicillin, Penicillin G, nafcillin, carbenicillin, cephalothin, tetracycline, erythromycin, clindamycin, gentamicin, nitrofurantoin, colistin, and chloramplenicol. The major advantage of the ATP system over existing methods of rapid microbial susceptibility testing is that the assay can be made specific for bacterial ATP