A pill, a cup of tea, and a cigarette: Male body in Egypt at the age of viagra

From disciplined self to ‘Viagra-self’ is a transition that men experience in the ‘age of Viagra’. My field work looks at how chemically enhanced sexual performance has been normalized in a specific way that signifies the deliberate control over human’s sexual performance. How the sexual relationship - in a specific socio-cultural context - becomes the most available path to seek happiness ‘inbesat’, in low priced form. The ‘Viagra-self’ learns how to invest in parts of the body in order to perform, to experience how the chemically enhanced body can proclaims control and time (sexual) performance. The Viagra-self, in the era of performance, learns that it has to perform although it has an exhausted body that has to work restless in order to live. The age of oral ‘sexual enhancing pills’ is built around a whole pharmaceutical industry that include Viagra; generic Egyptian pills such as Virecta, Eric, Dur Joy, other Chinese pills such as Dragon and Tiger King, in addition to Tramadol - since it is used by Egyptian men as sexual enhancing pill. In that respect, it is becoming increasingly evident how global pharmaceutical industry finds a new site for exercising its power and authority over the human body. The industry of ‘sexual enhancers‘ extends the possible spaces of subsumption that it include human sexual experience, at night after the ‘official‘ end of the work day, at home, and in the beds. I attempt to show how imaginations, rationalities, dreams, fears, and desires are being shaped and reshaped in the age of Viagra. Hence, I chose to conduct my research among public servants ‘muwazzafin’ in Cairo, irrespective if they are ‘diagnosed’ as patients of ‘sexual dysfunction’ or not, and regardless if they use ‘enhancing pills’ or not. I look at the ways through which ‘enhancing pills’ live with those public servants’ daily experiences at streets, in their children’s songs, their coffee talks, and in transportations. I also move to assist a pharmacist in a local pharmacy in Imbaba neighborhood –where one of my interlocutor’s family lives. ‘Sexual enhancers’ are part of a larger market of growing global pharmacological industry that exercises increasing control over human bodies. A local pharmacy is a place in which people negotiate their pain, disappointments, dreams, hopes and above all their coping mechanisms. I also explore how pharmacological companies find their mediators in Imbaba through a local pharmacy. I then move with another interlocutor to his work place in one of Cairo’s governmental agencies to study how Viagra and Tramadol are being circulated as gifts and how a whole ‘net-work’ is being operated by the ‘light-gift’ of the sexual enhancing pills. I consider this ‘sexual gift’ net-work a ‘desiring-up’ site the sense that it constitutes social recognition of a specific sexual performance

3D printing for bio-synthetic biliary stents

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is an additive manufacturing method that holds great potential in a variety of future patient-specific medical technologies. This project validated a novel crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol (XL-PVA) 3D printed stent infused with collagen, human placental mesenchymal stem cells (PMSCs), and cholangiocytes. The biofabrication method in the present study examined 3D printing and collagen injection molding for rapid prototyping of customized living biliary stents with clinical applications in the setting of malignant and benign bile duct obstructions. XL-PVA stents showed hydrophilic swelling and addition of radiocontrast to the stent matrix improved radiographic opacity. Collagen loaded with PMSCs contracted tightly around hydrophilic stents and dense choloangiocyte coatings were verified through histology and fluorescence microscopy. It is anticipated that design elements used in these stents may enable appropriate stent placement, provide protection of the stent-stem cell matrix against bile constituents, and potentially limit biofilm development. Overall, this approach may allow physicians to create personalized bio-integrating stents for use in biliary procedures and lays a foundation for new patient-specific stent fabrication techniques

Development of an error detection and recovery technique for a SPARC V8 processor in FPGA technology

Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) found widespread use in many areas of applications, including safety and mission-critical systems. More and more manufacturers are choosing to implement designs on FPGAs. However, SRAM-based FPGAs are proven to be much more prone to Single Event Upsets (SEUs) compared to traditional Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) designs. Moreover, SEU affects FPGAs in more severe ways compared to ASIC. Techniques to provide fault-tolerance for SRAM-based FPGAs become essential to maintain their advantages over other technologies. This thesis presents a fault-tolerance technique for pipeline architectures in FPGA technology. It provides fault-tolerance against SEUs in the design and is able to detect faults in the FPGA configuration. It also proposes an additional mechanism that detects all SEUs independent of their location. Pipeline operation can be resumed with known techniques of partial reconfiguration. Both designs occupy a much smaller area compared to known techniques such as TMR in combination with Scrubbing. They introduce no additional time penalty in case of fault-free operation. Fault injection and simulation were used to validate the design and calculate the fault coverage

A Novel Calcium-Activated Potassium Channel Controls Membrane Potential and Intracellular pH in Trypanosoma cruzi

Trypanosoma cruzi develops in environments where nutrient availability, osmolarity, ionic concentrations, and pH undergo significant changes. The ability to adapt and respond to such conditions determines the survival and successful transmission of T. cruzi. Ion channels play fundamental roles in controlling physiological parameters that ensure cell homeostasis by rapidly triggering compensatory mechanisms. Combining molecular, cellular and electrophysiological approaches we have identified and characterized the expression and function of a novel calcium-activated potassium channel (TcCAKC). This channel resides in the plasma membrane of all 3 life stages of T. cruzi and shares structural features with other potassium channels. We expressed TcCAKC in Xenopus laevis oocytes and established its biophysical properties by two-electrode voltage clamp. Oocytes expressing TcCAKC showed a significant increase in inward currents after addition of calcium ionophore ionomycin or thapsigargin. These responses were abolished by EGTA suggesting that TcCAKC activation is dependent of extracellular calcium. This activation causes an increase in current and a negative shift in reversal potential that is blocked by barium. As predicted, a single point mutation in the selectivity filter (Y313A) completely abolished the activity of the channels, confirming its potassium selective nature. We have generated knockout parasites deleting one or both alleles of TcCAKC. These parasite strains showed impaired growth, decreased production of trypomastigotes and slower intracellular replication, pointing to an important role of TcCAKC in regulating infectivity. To understand the cellular mechanisms underlying these phenotypic defects, we used fluorescent probes to evaluate intracellular membrane potential, pH, and intracellular calcium. Epimastigotes lacking the channel had significantly lower cytosolic calcium, hyperpolarization, changes in intracellular pH, and increased rate of proton extrusion. These results are in agreement with previous reports indicating that, in trypanosomatids, membrane potential and intracellular pH maintenance are linked. Our work shows TcCAKC is a novel potassium channel that contributes to homeostatic regulation of important physiological processes in T. cruzi and provides new avenues to explore the potential of ion channels as targets for drug development against protozoan parasites.Fil: Barrera, Patricia Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza Dr. Mario H. Burgos; ArgentinaFil: Skorka, Christopher. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología; ArgentinaFil: Boktor, Michael. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología; ArgentinaFil: Dave, Noopur. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología; ArgentinaFil: Jimenez, Veronica. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Instituto de Histología y Embriología; Argentin

The expandable Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion - 2 year follow up

Study Design: This was a retrospective, observational study. Objectives: We hypothesize that the expandable transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) cage achieves satisfactory clinical outcomes while allowing for safe placement, improvement, and maintenance of foraminal and disc dimensions at 24 months postsurgery with low risk of cage migration, subsidence, and nerve injury. Methods: TLIF with expandable cages was performed in 54 patients (62 levels) over a 24-month-period using open midline or minimally invasive surgery techniques with placement of Globus Caliber, Rise, or Altera expandable cages. All patients underwent clinical and radiological assessment at 6 weeks, 6 months, 1, and 2 years postoperatively. Clinical outcome was measured by Oswestry disability index (ODI), visual analog pain score for both back and leg (visual analog scores [VASs]). Radiological assessment was done by X-ray standing lateral position. Results: There were significant clinical improvements in ODI, VAS leg, and VAS back at all postoperative time points. Disc height, foraminal height, focal Cobb angle, and global Cobb angle were significantly increased and maintained at all time points for 24 months (P < 0.001). Dural tear occurred in one patient (1.9%). There were neither intra- or postoperative neurological complications nor cage subsidence nor migration. Conclusions: These preliminary results indicate that the use of an expandable interbody cage achieves good clinical outcomes by improving and maintaining foraminal dimensions and disc height with minimal complication rate

Non-celiac gluten sensitivity: All wheat attack is not celiac

Currently, 1% of the United States population holds a diagnosis for celiac disease (CD), however, a more recently recognized and possibly related condition, “non-celiac gluten sensitivity” (NCGS) has been suggested to affect up to 6% of the United States public. While reliable clinical tests for CD exist, diagnosing individuals affected by NCGS is still complicated by the lack of reliable biomarkers and reliance upon a broad set of intestinal and extra intestinal symptoms possibly provoked by gluten. NCGS has been proposed to exhibit an innate immune response activated by gluten and several other wheat proteins. At present, an enormous food industry has developed to supply gluten-free products (GFP) with GFP sales in 2014 approaching $1 billion, with estimations projecting sales to reach$2 billion in the year 2020. The enormous demand for GFP also reflects a popular misconception among consumers that gluten avoidance is part of a healthy lifestyle choice. Features of NCGS and other gluten related disorders (e.g., irritable bowel syndrome) call for a review of current distinctive diagnostic criteria that distinguish each, and identification of biomarkers selective or specific for NCGS. The aim of this paper is to review our current understanding of NCGS, highlighting the remaining challenges and questions which may improve its diagnosis and treatment

African-American inflammatory bowel disease in a Southern U.S. health center

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) remain significant health problems in the US and worldwide. IBD is most often associated with eastern European ancestry, and is less frequently reported in other populations of African origin e.g. African Americans ('AAs'). Whether AAs represent an important population with IBD in the US remains unclear since few studies have investigated IBD in communities with a majority representation of AA patients. The Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in Shreveport (LSUHSC-S) is a tertiary care medical center, with a patient base composed of 58% AA and 39% Caucasian (W), ideal for evaluating racial (AA vs. W) as well and gender (M vs. F) influences on IBD.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In this retrospective study, we evaluated 951 visits to LSUHSC-S for IBD (between 2000 to 2008) using non-identified patient information based on ICD-9 medical record coding (Crohn's disease 'CD'-555.0- 555.9 and ulcerative colitis 'UC'-556.0-556.9).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Overall, there were more cases of CD seen than UC. UC and CD affected similar ratios of AA and Caucasian males (M) and females (F) with a rank order of WF > WM > AAF > AAM. Interestingly, in CD, we found that annual visits per person was the highest in AA M (10.7 ± 1.7); significantly higher (* -p < 0.05) than in WM (6.3 ± 1.0). Further, in CD, the female to male (F: M) ratio in AA was significantly higher (*- p < 0.05) (1.9 ± 0.2) than in Caucasians (F:M = 1.3 ± 0.1) suggesting a female dominance in AACD; no differences were seen in UC F: M ratios.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although Caucasians still represent the greatest fraction of IBD (~64%), AAs with IBD made up >1/3 (36.4%) of annual IBD cases from 2000-2008 at LSUHSC-S. Further studies on genetic and environments risks for IBD risk in AAs are needed to understand differences in presentation and progression in AAs and other 'non-traditional' populations.</p

Effect of blood glucose level on standardized uptake value (SUV) in F-18- FDG PET-scan : a systematic review and meta-analysis of 20,807 individual SUV measurements

Objectives To evaluate the effect of pre-scan blood glucose levels (BGL) on standardized uptake value (SUV) in F-18-FDG-PET scan. Methods A literature review was performed in the MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane library databases. Multivariate regression analysis was performed on individual datum to investigate the correlation of BGL with SUVmax and SUVmean adjusting for sex, age, body mass index (BMI), diabetes mellitus diagnosis, F-18-FDG injected dose, and time interval. The ANOVA test was done to evaluate differences in SUVmax or SUVmean among five different BGL groups (200 mg/dl). Results Individual data for a total of 20,807 SUVmax and SUVmean measurements from 29 studies with 8380 patients was included in the analysis. Increased BGL is significantly correlated with decreased SUVmax and SUVmean in brain (p <0.001, p <0.001,) and muscle (p <0.001, p <0.001) and increased SUVmax and SUVmean in liver (p = 0.001, p = 0004) and blood pool (p=0.008, p200 mg/dl had significantly lower SUVmax. Conclusion If BGL is lower than 200mg/dl no interventions are needed for lowering BGL, unless the liver is the organ of interest. Future studies are needed to evaluate sensitivity and specificity of FDG-PET scan in diagnosis of malignant lesions in hyperglycemia.Peer reviewe

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection