Ocular movements were studied electro-oculographically in 10 normal subjects and 10 patients with alternating strabismus. Fixation and pursuit movements and to a less extent the saccadic movements were...Full Text Available
An increased compendium of drugs useful in ocular motor system dysfunction has expanded our capacity to treat selected ocularmotility disorders. Adjunctive therapeutic modes (e.g., Fresnel prisms and orthoptic exercises) can also be beneficial. PAN and see-saw nystagmus can be treated with baclofen. Downbeat nystagmus may respond to clonazepam therapy, and prisms may help if the nystagmus can be modified with convergence. Congenital nystagmus may respond minimally to drugs (e.g., baclofen), but prisms or surgical procedures, or both, are still the primary treatment modalities. Innovar may be helpful in patients with severe, incapacitating vestibular disorders, and scopolamine alone or in combination with promethazine may be beneficial in patients with milder ambulatory acute peripheral vestibular disorders. Benign positional vertigo is best treated initially with positional exercises before drug therapy is instituted. ...
AIM: To evaluate the effects of ginger on gastric motility and emptying, abdominal symptoms, and hormones that influence motility in dyspepsia.METHODS: Eleven patients with functional dyspepsia...Full Text Available
This article discusses three largely unrecognized aspects related to fluid movement in ocular tissues; namely, a) the dynamic changes in water permeability observed in corneal and conjunctival...Full Text Available
Xenorhabdus is a major insect pathogen symbiotically associated with nematodes of the family Steinernematidae. This motile bacterium displays swarming behavior on suitable media, but...Full Text Available
SUMMARYMotile dendritic filopodial processes are thought to be precursors of spine synapses, but how motility relates to cell-surface cues required for axon-dendrite recognition...Full Text Available
The effects of sennosides on colonic motility were investigated in eight conscious dogs chronically fitted with two strain gauge transducers in the proximal colon, an intracolonic silicone catheter...Full Text Available
AIMS/BACKGROUND: This study was undertaken to document visual function and acuity in patients with Aicardi syndrome, and to determine whether there is any relation between ocular features of the syndrome...Full Text Available
Background and objectives: The objective of this study was to describe the prevalence of ocular fundus pathology in the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) study, a multicenter, longitudinal study...Full Text Available
Nearly every drug may cause changes to ocular tissues through a variety of mechanisms. Medication overdoses, drug–drug interactions but also chronic administration of medications at...Full Text Available
PurposeTo report unusual ocular manifestations of branchio-oculo-facial syndrome (BOFS) caused by a novel mutation in activating enhancer binding protein 2 alpha (TFAP2A).MethodsFull...Full Text Available
PurposeTo investigate the effects of laser photocoagulation (LP)-induced ocular hypertension (OHT) on the survival and retrograde axonal transport of retinal ganglion cells (RGC),...Full Text Available
PurposeTo detail the highly variable ocular phenotypes of a French family affected with an autosomal dominantly inherited vitreoretinopathy and to identify the disease gene.MethodsSixteen...Full Text Available
Glycine is a major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the spinal cord and brainstem. Recently, in vivo analysis of glycinergic synaptic transmission has been pursued in zebrafish using...Full Text Available
Seventy-seven patients developed retinal breaks following an episode of ocular contusion, and 65 (84.4%) of these developed rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. Surgical treatment successfully restored...Full Text Available
Aim:To present three patients with ocular disease who developed a range of complications following use of traditional medications.Settings...Full Text Available
... Secondly, the electrode- tissue interface may have ... stimulation of the optic nerve in a ... Ocular Electronic Vision Prosthesis, Australasian Ophthalmic ...
The eye is an easily accessible, highly compartmentalised and immune-privileged organ that offers unique advantages as a gene therapy target. Significant advancements have been made in understanding...Full Text Available
Engineered overexpression of protein kinase Cα (PKCα) was previously shown to endow nonmotile MCF-10A human breast cells with aggressive motility. A traceable mutant of PKCα...Full Text Available
Background: Intestinal failure (IF) is the dependence upon parenteral nutrition to maintain minimal energy requirements for growth and development. It may occur secondary to a loss of bowel length, disorders of motility, or both. Short bowel syndrome (SBS) is a malabsorptive state resulting from surgical resection, congenital defect, or diseases associated with loss of absorptive surface area. A particularly vexing problem is associated with whole bowel and/or segmental intestinal dysmotility. Motility disorders within the context of SBS and IF may relate to rapid intestinal transit secondary to loss of intestinal length, dysmotility associated with loss or poor antegrade peristalsis, or gastroparesis. Therapy may be classified into medical (prokinetic and antidiarrheal agents) and surgica...
Many aspects of cellular motility and mechanics are cyclic in nature such as the extension and retraction of lamellipodia or filopodia. Inherent to the cycles of extension and retraction that test the environment is the production of mechano-chemical signals that can alter long-term cell behavior, transcription patterns, and cell fate. We are just starting to define such cycles in several aspects of cell motility, including periodic contractions, integrin cycles of binding and release as well as the normal oscillations in motile activity. Cycles of local cell contraction and release are directly coupled to cycles of stressing and releasing extracellular contacts (matrix or cells) as well as cytoplasmic mechanotransducers. Stretching can alter external physical properties or sites exposed b...
SummaryIn vivo tumor cell migration through integrin-dependent pathways is key to the metastatic behavior of malignant cells. Using quantitative in vivo...Full Text Available
The second messenger signaling molecule bis-(3′-5′)-cyclic dimeric guanosine monophosphate (c-di-GMP) regulates many processes in bacteria, including motility, pathogenesis,...Full Text Available
Recent reports suggested that phosphatase of regenerating liver (PRL)-3 might be involved in colorectal carcinoma metastasis with an unknown mechanism. Here we demonstrated that PRL-3 expression was...Full Text Available
The bulk alignment of actin filament sliding movement, powered by randomly oriented myosin molecules, has been observed and studied using an in vitro motility assay. The well established,...Full Text Available
Two gram-negative, motile bacteria isolated from deep subsurface sediments mineralized the nitrogen-containing polyaromatic hydrocarbon quinoline under aerobic conditions and transformed quinoline to...Full Text Available
BackgroundAnimals carrying genetic mutations have provided powerful insights into the role of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) in motility. One classic model is...Full Text Available
Proteins that metabolize or bind the nucleotide second messenger cyclic diguanylate regulate a wide variety of important processes in bacteria. These processes include motility, biofilm formation, cell...Full Text Available
Motivation: Cell tracking is an important method to quantitatively analyze time-lapse microscopy data. While numerous methods and tools exist for tracking cells in 2D time-lapse images,...Full Text Available
Integumentary wounds in mammalian fetuses heal without scar; this scarless wound healing is intrinsic to fetal tissues and is notable for absence of the contraction seen in postnatal (adult) wounds....Full Text Available
Sunlight exposure has been suggested as a cause of AMD. To examine this, we collected detailed histories of ocular sun exposure in 838 watermen who work on the Chesapeake Bay. The presence and severity...Full Text Available
OJECTIVEThis study seeks to identify practices of self-medication in the treatment of ocular emergencies. We examine patients’ use of both homemade preparations and manufactured...Full Text Available
Radiotherapy can be very significant as the treatment for ocular lesions, eyes need to be preserved as properly as possible on their functions and cosmetics. The application of conventional X ray therapy has been gradually abandoned as conventional X ray therapy ceased to be accepted as the general treatment for malignant tumors. Consequently the necessity of electron beam therapy has been rising even as the substituted method for conventional X ray therapy. The department of radiology of Gunma University was obliged to establish a new therapy for ocular lesions, and has been trying electron beam therapy since 1973. It is concluded that electron beam therapy is not at all inferior to conventional X ray therapy as reported above. Basic therapeutic methods for ocular lesions are the following: 1) For epidermoid carcinoma, 600 rads at a time, 3600 - 4200 rads in total is applied by 8 MeV electron twice a week method. 2) For ...
A 37 year old male was referred to our centre for management of episcleritis with peripheral keratitis in the right eye. He had a history of ocular discomfort in the right eye of 1 week duration. Slitlamp...Full Text Available
ABSTRACTObjectivesTo test the feasibility of human immune globulin (IG, Gamimune N, 10%) as a new treatment for endophthalmitis, the ocular tolerance, distribution,...Full Text Available
PurposeTo describe ocular findings for a 34-year-old man with chronic solar retinopathy using high-speed ultrahigh-resolution (UHR) optical coherence tomography (OCT).Full Text Available
AIMS: To examine the frequency of intraocular metastases in patients who had died of cancer, in an eye bank and necropsy population sample. METHODS: The first group included 302 cancer cases received...Full Text Available
Background & objectives:Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) is a painful and vision-threatening ocular infection. The differentiation of Acanthamoeba...Full Text Available
PurposeOcular surface disease following penetrating keratoplasty has been shown to increase patient morbidity and adversely affect graft survival. Five cases of dense central subepithelial...Full Text Available
Unruptured cerebral aneurysms often present with neuro-ophthalmological symptoms but ocular autonomic involvement from an aneurysm of the posterior circulation has not previously been reported. A patient...Full Text Available
Genome-wide association studies have linked lung cancer risk with a region of chromosome 15q25.1 containing CHRNA3, CHRNA5 and CHRNB4 encoding a3, a5 and b4 subunits of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR), respectively. One of the strongest associations was observed for a non-silent single-nucleotide polymorphism at codon 398 in CHRNA5. Here, we have used pharmacological (antagonists) or genetic (RNA interference) interventions to modulate the activity of CHRNA5 in non-transformed bronchial cells and in lung cancer cell lines. In both cell types, silencing CHRNA5 or inhibiting receptors containing nAChR a5 with a-conotoxin MII exerted a nicotine-like effect, with increased motility and invasiveness in vitro and increasing calcium influx. The effects on motility were enhanced by addit...
Endogenous opioid peptides (EOP) are molecules affecting many biological functions influencing productive and reproductive performance. They increase in stress conditions and interact with specific opioidergic receptors (OR): delta, kappa and mu. Several studies in other animal species suggest that they can also affect sperm cell motility. In fish the ionic external environment modulates the increase of intracellular calcium ion that is required to activate sperm motility after spawning. In mammals OR are functionally associated to calcium channels and in fishes calcium is highly required for fish sperm activation. In this study the presence of OR on spermatozoa of two Perciform fish, the sharpsnout seabream (Diplodus puntazzo, family Sparidae) and the European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labr...
On six 400 m2 plots over 3 years, we excluded the sessile subduction and conveyer-belt feeding polychaete Arenicola marina which generates a pit-and-mound topography at the sediment surface from intertidal sands near the island of Sylt, Germany. This experiment was used to test whether other abundant deposit feeding polychaetes (the discretely motile and surface feeding ragworm Nereis diversicolor and the subsurface-feeding, motile orbiniid polychaete Scoloplos cf. armiger) benefit from competitive release. Ragworms took advantage from the absence of lugworms. Presumably they responded to a more stable and nutritious surface layer at lugworm exclusion plots (relief from inhibitive bioturbation). Contrary to this, S. cf. armiger was negatively affected by the exclusion of A. marina. It may ...
Contents The study aimed at testing the effectiveness of dimethylformamide, alone or combined with glycerol, as cryoprotectant for freezing ram semen. Ejaculates from nine rams were cryopreserved in Tris-based extenders, containing 5% of glycerol, association of dimethylformamide with glycerol, in four proportions achieving 5% of cryoprotectors in the media and pure dimethylformamide (2, 3, 4 and 5%) in replacement to glycerol. The samples were diluted to 100--106 sptz/ml and stored in 0.25-ml straws in liquid nitrogen. After thawing (37C for 30-s), motility was preserved better by the extender containing 5% of glycerol (p-<-0.05). The extenders containing pure dimethylformamide, or more than 2% in combination with glycerol, provided sperm motilities close to zero. Plasma and acrosomal mem...
Objective: The aim of this study was to compare symptoms and anterior segment tolerability with short-term (3-day) administration of once-daily timolol hemihydrate 0.5%, timolol maleate in sorbate 0.5%, and generic timolol maleate gel-forming solution 0.5% in the treatment of glaucoma and/or ocular hypertension. Methods: In this prospective, randomized, double-masked, active-controlled, 3-period crossover pilot study, eligible patients had primary open-angle, pigmentdispersion, or exfoliation glaucoma, and/or ocular hypertension in >=1 eye; had a best corrected visual acuity of 1.0 or better in each eye, as measured using the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) visual acuity testing chart; were receiving 1 glaucoma medication; and had an untreated intraocular pressure (IOP) ...
Abstract The aim was to utilize data from a study of occupational indoor environments to analyze symptoms and physiological signs in relation to the home environment. A medical investigation was performed at the workplace among university staff (n = 173) from four university buildings in Bergen, in March 2004. Tear film break up time (BUT) was measured by two methods. Nasal patency was measured by acoustic rhinometry. Nasal lavage fluid analysis (NAL) included eosinophilic cationic protein (ECP); myeloperoxidase (MPO), lysozyme and albumin. Atopy was assessed by total serum IgE and specific IgE (Phadiatop). Totally 21%, 21%, 18%, 11%, and 27% had weekly ocular, nasal, facial dermal symptoms, headache and tiredness, respectively, 15% had a damp dwelling, and 20% had a cat or dog. Multiple l...
Abstract Purpose: We investigated the effects of various rinsing and healing protocols on corneal wound repair and inflammation following alkali burn in rabbits. Methods: We conducted in vitro, in vivo and ex vivo studies. First, different rinse solutions were tested in vitro after incubation of ocular cells with methanol or NaOH. Cell viability was then assessed using the neutral red test (cytofluorometry). Second, NaOH was applied to rabbit corneas and associations of rinse solutions (NaCl 0.9% or controlled ionization marine solutions) with N-acetylcysteine or vegetable oils (from Calophyllum inophyllum and Aleurites moluccana) were tested in vivo. The regeneration of the corneal epithelium and the infiltration of inflammatory cells were evaluated using in vivo confocal microscopy and e...
Purpose To investigate the influence of timolol maleate 0.5% gel-forming solution and brinzolamide 1% ophthalmic suspension on contrast sensitivity, ocular higher-order aberration (HOA), and corneal surface light scattering. Design Prospective, comparative study. Participants Forty normal volunteers were enrolled in this study. Methods We evaluated contrast sensitivity, ocular HOA, and corneal light scattering before and 2, 5, 10, and 15 minutes after instillation of antiglaucoma eyedrops. Contrast sensitivity function was assessed with the CSV-1000RN chart (Vector Vision Co., Greenville, OH). Higher-order aberration was measured for a 4-mm pupil using the Hartmann-Shack aberrometer (KR-9000PW; Topcon, Tokyo, Japan). Corneal surface light scattering was quantitatively evaluated by using th...
The docking protein p130Cas is a prominent Src substrate found in focal adhesions (FAs) and is implicated in regulating critical aspects of cell motility including FA disassembly and protrusion of the...Full Text Available
Fifty-six tuberculosis patients and twenty-eight control subjects were evaluated in a comprehensive investigation of cellular and humoral immune function in pulmonary TB. The patient group showed significantly...Full Text Available
125I-seeds are extensively used in ocular and interstitial brachytherapy for the treatment of various malignant lesions. Quality assurance and classification performance testing of indigenously produced 125I-seeds were carried out for ensuring their safety in different brachytherapy applications. The sources were found to qualify Class -43211 specifications, in accordance with AERB SS-3 and ISO-2919. (author)
PurposeOptic nerve aplasia (ONA, OMIM 165550) is a very rare unilateral or bilateral condition that leads to blindness in the affected eye, and is usually associated with other ocular...Full Text Available
Ocular and urogenital tract infections with Chlamydia trachomatis can progress to chronic inflammatory diseases that produce blindness and tubal infertility. The pathophysiology of these chronic disease...Full Text Available
We compared the efficacy of timolol maleate ophthalmic gel-forming solution 0.5% QD with that of levobunolol hydrochloride 0.5% BID, as measured by change in intraocular pressure (IOP), effect on heart rate, and ocular tolerability. The study had a positive-controlled, double-masked, randomized, multicenter, 12-week, two-period (6 weeks each), crossover design. One hundred fifty-two patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension were randomized to receive either timolol maleate gel-forming solution QD or levobunolol BID for 6 weeks, followed by a crossover to the alternate treatment. IOP and heart rate were measured at morning trough and peak during weeks 3, 6, 9, and 12. Timolol maleate gel-forming solution QD was comparable to levobunolol BID in reducing IOP at peak and trough. Although the effects on peak heart rate were similar between the two medications, the effect on trough heart rate of timolol maleate gel-forming solution QD ...
Citation information: Rosenfield M. Computer vision syndrome: a review of ocular causes and potential treatments. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 2011, 31, 502-515. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-1313.2011.00834.x ABSTRACT: Computer vision syndrome (CVS) is the combination of eye and vision problems associated with the use of computers. In modern western society the use of computers for both vocational and avocational activities is almost universal. However, CVS may have a significant impact not only on visual comfort but also occupational productivity since between 64% and 90% of computer users experience visual symptoms which may include eyestrain, headaches, ocular discomfort, dry eye, diplopia and blurred vision either at near or when looking into the distance after prolonged computer use. This paper reviews the principal ocular causes for this condition, namely oculomotor anomalies and dry eye. Accommodation and vergence responses to ...
The authors present an unusual case of a patient with orbital metastases from renal carcinoma involving the extra ocular muscles bilaterally. The importance of computed tomography for the differential diagnosis with other orbital lesions is emphasized. (author)
Aim: The purpose of this prospective study was to evaluate the value of immunoscintigraphy (ISG) with anti-225.28S in clinically suspected ocular melanoma. Methods: For this purpose standardized ISG was performed in 36 patients using both planar acquisition and emission computed tomography (ECT). Ocular melanoma was present in 31 patients. In 21 patients therapy was enucleation of the eye. These specimens were evaluated by histology and immunohistochemistry in 11 of 21 patients. Results: Regarding the clinical diagnosis, ISG was positive only in 15 of 31 patients with ocular melanoma, regarding histology in 11 of 21 and regarding immunohistochemistry in 5 of 6 patients with a positive immunoreaction. 5 patients showed no immunoreactivity, their ISG was negative. Conclusion: Thus a good correlation between ISG and immunohistochemistry was observed. However ISG using the cutaneous melanoma antibody 225.28S cannot be ...
Most of the general population is exposed to carbaryl and other contemporary-use insecticides at low levels. Studies of laboratory animals, in addition to limited human data, show an association between carbaryl exposure and decreased semen quality. In the present study we explored whether environmental exposures to 1-naphthol (1N), a metabolite of carbaryl and naphthalene, and 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (TCPY), a metabolite of chlorpyrifos and chlorpyrifos-methyl, are associated with decreased semen quality in humans. Subjects (n=272) were recruited through a Massachusetts infertility clinic. Individual exposures were measured as spot urinary concentrations of 1N and TCPY adjusted using specific gravity. Semen quality was assessed as sperm concentration, percent motile sperm, and percent sperm with normal morphology, along with sperm motion parameters (straight-line velocity, curvilinear velocity, and linearity). Median TCPY and 1N concentrations were 3.22 and ...
The effects of a timolol maleate gel-forming solution (TMGS) on intraocular pressure (IOP), blood pressure (BP), and pupil size (PS) were evaluated in normotensive dogs. TMGS was administered once daily to six normotensive beagle dogs. TMGS administration reduced IOP and PS. The hypotensive effect persisted for 24 hr after the administration. The mean reduction in IOP was 5.3 mm Hg (P<0.01). The changes in BP and PS were not significant. These results suggest that TMGS can potentially be used in the treatments of glaucoma and ocular hypertension in dogs. PMID:16820724
Objective: To retrospectively evaluate the results of conservative therapy using escorpal iodine-125 (model 6711, Amershan) plaque for brachytherapy of choroidal melanoma. Materials And Methods: We evaluated 49 patients with choroidal melanoma treated at 'Hospital do Cancer', Sao Paulo, Brazil, from March 2001 to January 2003. The following clinical parameters were analyzed and correlated with local control and survival rate: gender, age, lesion dimension, treatment duration, as well as doses in apex and base of the tumors. Results: The maximum diameter and height of the base of the tumors treated were 17 mm and 12 mm, respectively. Doses at those points ranged from 213 to 463 Gy (median: 347 Gy) and 51 to 250 Gy (median: 91 Gy), respectively. The actuarial rates of ocular preservation, disease free survival and ocular preservation in 2-years were 96%, 93.5% and 96.3%, respectively. A tumor height < 6 mm was the only ...
Male traits that correlate with fertilization success include testis size and structure, ejaculate size, ejaculation frequency, and sperm motility. Two hypotheses potentially explain interspecific differences in these traits: sperm competition and sperm limitation. We examined variation in six traits associated with fertilization success in three closely-related species of bitterling fish; the European bitterling (Rhodeus amarus), the Chinese rose bitterling (Rhodeus ocellatus), and the Chinese bitterling (Rhodeus sinensis). Interspecific differences indicated that the three study species have evolved different sperm allocation strategies. Rhodeus amarus displayed the most developed reproductive apparatus with a number of traits associated with both high levels of sperm production and fert...
We revisit a recently proposed agent-based model of active biological motion and compare its predictions with own experimental findings for the speed distribution of bacterial cells, Salmonella typhimurium. Agents move according to a stochastic dynamics and use energy stored in an internal depot for metabolism and active motion. We discuss different assumptions of how the conversion from internal to kinetic energy d(v) may depend on the actual speed, to conclude that d 2 v ? with either ? = 2 or 1 ? < 2 are promising hypotheses. To test these, we compare the model?s prediction with the speed distribution of bacteria which were obtained in media of different nutrient concentration and at different times. We find that both hypotheses are in line with the experimental observations, with ? bet...
Changes in cell density and cyst flux of Alexandrium tamarense, paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxin contents in shellfishes, and environmental parameters were measured in two stations in Daya Bay, South China Sea from March 2005 to July 2006. Vegetative cells of A. tamarense occurred sporadically; however, they presented abundantly during the winter months. Meanwhile, cyst flux reached its maximum level just following the peak abundance of motile cells. The PSP contents in shellfish were generally low, but higher in winter with the maximum of 14,015 @mg STX equiv./kg. The majority of toxins were found in digestive glands, with a maximum of 66,227 @mg STX equiv./kg. There were significant positive relationships between toxin level and vegetative cell density and cyst flux. This indica...
Abstract Septins are highly conserved cytoskeletal GTP-binding proteins implicated in numerous cellular processes from apoptosis to vesicle trafficking. Septins have been associated with leukemia and solid tumor malignancies, including breast, ovarian, and prostate. We previously reported that high SEPT9_i1 expression in human mammary epithelial cell lines (HMECs) led to malignant cellular phenotypes such as increased cell proliferation, invasiveness, motility, and genomic instability. Our goal here was to better understand how SEPT9_i1 expression might contribute to genomic instability and malignant progression. First, we confirmed that even transient expression of SEPT9_i1 was sufficient to increase aneuploidy in HMECs. We then analyzed SEPT9_i1 by immunoprecipitation and immunofluoresce...
The effects of oral administration of aqueous extract of Bulbine natalensis Baker stem at daily doses of 25, 50, and 100mg/kg body weight on the reproductive function of Wistar rats were evaluated. The indices of mating and fertility success as well as quantal frequency increased after 7 days of treatment in all the dose groups except the 100mg/kg body weight group. The number of litters was not statistically different (P>0.05) from the control. Whereas the absolute weights of the epididymis, seminal vesicle, and prostate were not affected, that of the testes was significantly increased. The epididymal sperm count, motility, morphology, and viscosity were not different from the control after 7 days of treatment. The male rat serum testosterone, progesterone, luteinizing hormone, and follic...
One proposed solution to the problem of ballast-mediated aquatic invasions involves chemically treating ballast water to kill key target organisms. Here, we examine the efficacy of three commercially available ballast water biocides using vegetative microalgae, dinoflagellate resting cysts and bacteria as test organisms. Chemicals tested were the ballast water biocides SeaKleen and Peraclean Ocean, and the chlorine dioxide biocide Vibrex. Results demonstrate that the applicability of each of the three chemical biocides as a routine ballast water treatment is limited by factors such as cost, biological effectiveness and possible residual toxicity of the discharged ballast water (assessed on the basis of impact on motility of vegetative marine microalgae). Of the three biocides tested, Perac...
To define the quantitative and qualitative effects of gossypol (GP) on deer (Cervus elaphus) semen, the animals were fed cottonseed (CS). Adult stags each received 350?g of CS for 109?days. Animals received 15?mg of gossypol per kilogram body weight per day. Quantitative and qualitative parameters of experimental ejaculates (n?=?182) were compared to ejaculates (n?=?571) of control animals (n?=?5) collected during three previous natural reproductive seasons. Ejaculate fractions were evaluated by classical methods used in domestic animals. In this paper, we show that mature male deer fed CS exhibited morphological changes and decreased motility of spermatozoa and abnormalities in spermatogenesis. Radioimmunoassay measured concentrations of various steroid hormones (T-testosterone, A4-andros...
Monocelis lineata is a complex of cryptic species (three in the Mediterranean and one in the Atlantic) widespread in midlittoral habitats. Throughout the range, populations with or without an ocular pigmented shield are found. We investigated the genetic structure of the North-East Atlantic populations with the aim of shedding light on their phylogeography and reconstructing possible patterns of recolonization after the Wrmian glaciation. Fourteen samples were investigated using cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and 13 by inter-simple sequence repeats (ISSRs). COI did not exhibit a clear pattern of decreased genetic diversity along a latitudinal gradient. Populations from Ferrol (Spain), Doolin (Ireland), and Helsingr (Denmark) showed a higher genetic variability, whereas a reduction in...
Purpose: The determination of tumor volume in ocular tumors is very important for the planning and success of radiation therapy. This study uses an animal model to evaluate the accuracy of MR-based volumetry of ocular tumors. Materials and methods: In a total of 25 porcine eyes obtained from the slaughterhouse, ocular tumors were produced by injecting a mixture of hand creme and Gd-DTPA under ophthalmoscopic guidance. The injected volume varied between 0.05 ml and 2.7 ml. The eyes were examined with a 1.5 Tesla scanner and a 4 cm circular surface coil especially developed for ocular MRI. After data transfer to a separate workstation, volumetric analysis was carried out by three independent radiologists using semiautomated software. The determined volume was compared with the injected volume. Results: Of the 25 prepared porcine eyes, 23 were suitable for volumetric analysis. The injection of the mixture ...
Abstract A 3-month, open-label, single-center study was conducted to determine whether a uniquely formulated and physiologically balanced topical treatment serum containing multiple growth factors, cytokines, peptides, antioxidants and depigmenting agents could improve the visible signs of facial photodamage. Thirty-seven females, aged 32-55 years, with mild to severe, fine and coarse peri-ocular wrinkles were enrolled and completed the study. Subjects applied the treatment serum to the face twice daily for 3 months in conjunction with a basic skincare regimen. Clinical evaluations of photodamage were performed at baseline and months 1, 2 and 3. Cutometer measurements and subject self-assessment questionnaires were also conducted during the study. Clinical evaluations showed statistically ...
To evaluate the relationship between sperm motility and total seminal plasma zinc concentration and high molecular weight zinc bound protein values in infertile Iraqi men. A case-control study was conducted at the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department, College of Medicine, Al-Nahrain University, Baghdad, Iraq between March 2005 to February 2006. The subjects for the study included 60 infertile male patients who were recruited Al-Kadhimiya Teaching Hospital, and Institute of Embryo Research and Infertility Treatment, Baghdad, Iraq. They were categorized according to their seminal parameters to oligozoospermia (n=32), azoospermia (n=22), and asthenozoospermia (n=6). Thirty nine fertile men (age range 31.87 +/- 3.76 years) were selected as controls, whose partners had conceived within the last year before participation with this study, and having normal spermiogram parameters. Seminal plasma zinc concentration and high molecular weight zinc binding proteins (HMW-Zn) ...
It has been proposed that the gastrointestinal tract environment containing high levels of neuroendocrine hormones is important for gut-derived Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. In this study, we report that the hormone norepinephrine increases P. aeruginosa PA14 growth, virulence factor production, invasion of HCT-8 epithelial cells, and swimming motility in a concentration-dependent manner. Transcriptome analysis of P. aeruginosa exposed to 500 microM, but not 50 microM, norepinephrine for 7 h showed that genes involved in the regulation of the virulence determinants pyocyanin, elastase, and the Pseudomonas quinolone signal (PQS, 2-heptyl-3-hydroxy-4-quinolone) were upregulated. The production of rhamnolipids, which are also important in P. aeruginosa infections, was not significantly altered in suspension cultures upon exposure to 500 microM norepinephrine but decreased on semisolid surfaces. Swarming motility, a phenotype that is directly ...
Objectives: To investigate optical coherence tomography consistency on foveal thickness, foveal volume, and macular volume measurements in patients with and without diffuse diabetic macular edema. Introduction: Optical coherence tomography represents an objective technique that provides cross-sectional tomographs of retinal structure in vivo. However, it is expected that poor fixation ability, as seen in diabetic macular edema, could alter its results. Several authors have discussed the reproducibility of optical coherence tomography, but only a few have addressed the topic with respect to diabetic maculopathy. Methods: The study recruited diabetic patients without clinically evident retinopathy (control group) and with diffuse macular edema (case group). Only one eye of each patient was evaluated. Five consecutive fast macular scans were taken using Ocular Coherence Tomography 3; the 6 mm macular map was chosen. The consistency in measurements of foveal thickness, ...
The genus Conexibacter (Monciardini et al. 2003) represents the type genus of the family Conexibacteraceae (Stackebrandt 2005, emend. Zhi et al. 2009) with Conexibacter woesei as the type species of the genus. C. woesei is a representative of a deep evolutionary line of des-cent within the class Actinobacteria. Strain ID131577T was originally isolated from temperate forest soil in Gerenzano (Italy). Cells are small, short rods that are motile by peritrichous fla-gella. They may form aggregates after a longer period of growth and, then as a typical charac-teristic, an undulate structure is formed by self-aggregation of flagella with entangled bacteri-al cells. Here we describe the features of the organism, together with the complete sequence and annotation. The 6,359,369 bp long genome of C. woesei contains 5,950 protein-coding and 48 RNA genes and is part of the Genomic Encyclopedia of Bacteria and Archaea project.
Actinosynnema mirum Hasegawa et al. 1978 is the type species of the genus, and is of phylogenetic interest because of its central phylogenetic location in the Actino-synnemataceae, a rapidly growing family within the actinobacterial suborder Pseudo-nocardineae. A. mirum is characterized by its motile spores borne on synnemata and as a producer of nocardicin antibiotics. It is capable of growing aerobically and under a moderate CO2 atmosphere. The strain is a Gram-positive, aerial and substrate mycelium producing bacterium, originally isolated from a grass blade collected from the Raritan River, New Jersey. Here we describe the features of this organism, together with the complete genome sequence and annotation. This is the first complete genome sequence of a member of the family Actinosynnemataceae, and only the second sequence from the actinobacterial suborder Pseudonocardineae. The 8,248,144 bp long single replicon genome with its 7100 protein-coding and 77 RNA ...
Tridimensional localization of bone and soft tissue injuries in complex facial trauma is fundamental for treatment. The face can be conceptualized as 3 groups of interconnected osseous struts that are oriented in the horizontal, sagittal and coronal planes. Each group of struts is closely related to specific soft tissue structures that are susceptible to injury. Any single CT section in the coronal plane or in the axial plane contains parts of one or more these struts. Facial CT in biplane were performed in 32 patients of facial trauma. The most common site of facial fractures is found in middle part of horizontal struts, geometrically in anteromedial portion of the inferior orbital fissure of the face. The most common soft tissue injury combined with facial fracture is hematoma and/or herniated orbital contents into the maxillary sinus. The serious combined soft tissue injuries were ocular rupture, retroorbital hematoma and optic nerve injury resulting blindness. ...
Objective: To analyze the early response of uveal melanomas in patients treated with ruthenium-106 brachytherapy. Materials And Methods: In the period between April 2002 and July 2003, 20 patients diagnosed with uveal melanoma were submitted to ruthenium-106 brachytherapy. The calculated dose delivered at the apex of the tumor ranged between 55 Gy and 100 Gy. Patients with lesions greater than 5 mm were submitted to transpupillary thermotherapy concomitantly with ophthalmic plaque insertion. Results: As regards the lesions site, 75% of the lesions were located in the choroid, 15% in the iris, and the remainder 10% in the ciliary body. In a median 19-month-follow-up, the progression-free survival for brachytherapy was 69%, and 87% for associated brachytherapy and transpupillary thermotherapy. A significant tumor height reduction was observed after treatment. No patient was submitted to enucleation. Conclusion: Our preliminary results show that ruthenium-106 brachytherapy is an ...
We compared experimental wave aberrations in pseudophakic eyes with aspheric intraocular lenses (IOLs) to simulate aberrations from numerical ray tracing on customized computer eye models using corneal topography, angle ?, ocular biometry, IOL geometry, and IOL tilt and decentration measured on the same eyes. We found high correlations between real and simulated aberrations even for the eye with only the cornea, and these increased on average when the IOL geometry and position were included. Relevant individual aberrations were well predicted by the complete eye model. Corneal spherical aberration and horizontal coma were compensated by the IOL, and in 58.3% of the cases IOL tilt and decentration contributed to compensation of horizontal coma. We conclude that customized computer eye models are a good representation of real eyes with IOLs and allow understanding of the relative contribution of optical, geometrical and surgically-related factors to image quality. ...
Biological wound dressings sterilized with gamma radiation, such as amnion and pig skin, are a reality in Mexico. These tissues are currently processed in the tissue bank and sterilized in the Gamma Industrial Irradiation Plant; both facilities belong to the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ) (National Institute of Nuclear Research). With the strong support of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the bank was established at the ININ and the Mexican Ministry of Health issued its sanitary license on July 7, 1999. The Quality Management System of the bank was certified by ISO 9001:2000 on August 1, 2003; the scope of the system is 'Research, Development and Processing of Biological Tissues Sterilized with Gamma Radiation'. At present, more than 150 patients from 16 hospitals have been successfully treated with these tissues. This paper presents a brief description of the tissue processing, as well as the present Mexican clinical experience with children and adult ...
S100A4, a member of the Ca(2+)-activated S100 protein family, regulates the motility and invasiveness of cancer cells. Moreover, high S100A4 expression levels correlate with poor patient survival in several cancers. Although biochemical, biophysical, and structural data indicate that S100A4 is a noncovalent dimer, it is unknown if two functional S100A4 monomers are required for the productive recognition of protein targets and the promotion of cell invasion. To address this question, we created covalently linked S100A4 dimers using a glycine rich flexible linker. The single-chain S100A4 (sc-S100A4) proteins exhibited wild-type affinities for calcium and nonmuscle myosin-IIA, retained the ability to regulate nonmuscle myosin-IIA assembly, and promoted tumor cell invasion when expressed in S100A4-deficient colon carcinoma cells. Mutation of the two calcium-binding EF-hands in one monomer, while leaving the other monomer intact, caused a 30-60-fold reduction in ...
Acanthamoeba castellanii myosins IA and IB demonstrate the catalytic properties of a myosin and can support analogues of contractile and motile activity in vitro, but their single, low molecular weight heavy chains, roughly globular shapes, and inabilities to self-assemble into filaments make them structurally atypical myosins. The authors present the complete amino acid sequence of the 128-kDa myosin IB heavy chain, which they deduced from the nucleotide sequence of the gene and which reveals that the polypeptide is a fusion of myosin-like and non-myosin-like sequences. Specifically, the amino-terminal approx. 76 kDa of amino acid sequence is highly similar to the globular head sequences of conventional myosins. By contrast, the remaining approx. 51 kDa of sequence shows no similarity to any portion of conventional myosin sequences, contains regions that are rich in glycine, proline, and alanine residues, and lacks the distinctive sequence characteristics of an ...
Acanthamoeba castellanii myosins IA and IB demonstrate the catalytic properties of a myosin and can support analogues of contractile and motile activity in vitro, but their single, low molecular weight heavy chains, roughly globular shapes, and inabilities to self-assemble into filaments make them structurally atypical myosins. The authors present the complete amino acid sequence of the 128-kDa myosin IB heavy chain, which they deduced from the nucleotide sequence of the gene and which reveals that the polypeptide is a fusion of myosin-like and non-myosin-like sequences. Specifically, the amino-terminal #approx# 76 kDa of amino acid sequence is highly similar to the globular head sequences of conventional myosins. By contrast, the remaining #approx# 51 kDa of sequence shows no similarity to any portion of conventional myosin sequences, contains regions that are rich in glycine, proline, and alanine residues, and lacks the distinctive sequence characteristics of an ...
The OASIS Registry started annual collection of longitudinal data on patients on home parenteral nutrition (HPN) in 1984. This report describes outcome profiles on 1594 HPN patients in seven disease categories. Analysis showed clinical outcome was principally a reflection of the underlying diagnosis. Patients with Crohn's disease, ischemic bowel disease, motility disorders, radiation enteritis, and congenital bowel dysfunction all had a fairly long-term clinical outcome, whereas those with active cancer and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) had a short-term outcome. The long-term group had a 3-year survival rate of 65 to 80%, they averaged 2.6 complications requiring hospitalization per year, and 49% experienced complete rehabilitation. The short-term group had a mean survival of 6 months; they averaged 4.6 complications per year and about 15% experienced complete rehabilitation. The registry data also indicated HPN was used for 19,700 patients in 1987 with ...
A novel, obligately anaerobic, extremely thermophilic, cellulolytic bacterium, designated OB47T, was isolated from Obsidian Pool, Yellowstone National Park, WY, USA. The isolate was a non-motile, non-spore forming, Gram-positive rod approximately 2 m long by 0.2 m wide and grew at temperatures between 55-85oC with the optimum at 78oC. The pH range for growth was 6.0-8.0 with values of near 7.0 being optimal. Growth on cellobiose produced the fastest specific growth rates at 0.75 hr-1. The organism also displayed fermentative growth on glucose, maltose, arabinose, fructose, starch, lactose, mannose, sucrose, galactose, xylose, arabinogalactan, Avicel, xylan, filter paper, processed cardboard, pectin, dilute acid-pretreated switchgrass and Populus. OB47T was unable to grow on mannitol, fucose, lignin, Gelrite, acetate, glycerol, ribose, sorbital, carboxymethylcellulose and casein. Yeast extract stimulated growth and thiosulfate, sulfate, nitrate, and sulfur were not ...
Laser safety standards and eye protection (filters) are designed to limit ocular exposures to prevent retinal lesions, yet eyesafe laser exposures can disrupt vision by causing glare and flashblindness. Protective filters can have opposing effects on vision function. They reduce laser exposures but also reduce task luminance and contrast. Filters alone may interfere with vision and consequently reduce work safety and performance. It is therefore important to be able to predict the effects of both laser exposures and protective filters to assess trade-offs between protection and visual function. This paper briefly reviews the methods, concepts, and experimental database used in our laboratory to predict laser, filter, and laser-plus-filter effects on tasks involving visual detection. The modeling approach uses estimates of the spatial distribution of light in the retinal image of the laser source to predict glare, flashblindness, and retinal lesions. It also ...
Spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP), a form of Hebbian plasticity, is inherently stabilizing. Whether and how GABAergic inhibition influences STDP is not well understood. Using a model neuron driven by converging inputs modifiable by STDP, we determined that a sufficient level of inhibition was critical to ensure that temporal coherence (correlation among presynaptic spike times) of synaptic inputs, rather than initial strength or number of inputs within a pathway, controlled postsynaptic spike timing. Inhibition exerted this effect by preferentially reducing synaptic efficacy, the ability of inputs to evoke postsynaptic action potentials, of the less coherent inputs. In visual cortical slices, inhibition potently reduced synaptic efficacy at ages during but not before the critical period of ocular dominance (OD) plasticity. Whole-cell recordings revealed that the amplitude of unitary IPSCs from parvalbumin positive (Pv+) interneurons to pyramidal neurons ...
We aim to examine the spectrum of bacteria causing corneal infections and their antibiotic susceptibility patterns. This will serve as a guideline for empiric therapy of corneal infections. We conducted the study over a period of 18 months from March 2001 through December 2002 in King Abdul-Aziz University Hospital, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Corneal specimens taken from 200 patients were inoculated directly onto different types of media. The isolates were identified and then tested against the appropriate topical or systemic antibiotics. Sixty-seven (33.5%) of the total specimens were culture positive and 133 (66.5%) were culture negative. Fourteen (7%) of these showed organisms in the Gram stained smears and correlated well with the culture reports. Of the 67 positive cultures, 53 (79.1%) were Gram-positive bacteria mostly coagulase-negative Staphylococci 29 (43.3%) followed by Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) 13 (19.4%). Among Gram-negative bacteria 14 (20.9%), ...
Evaluation of severe functional gastrointestinal motility disorders requires an investigation of the entire gastrointestinal tract. This should be possible with a single radionuclide imaging study. The purpose of this study was (1) to define normal values of small-bowel transit in men and women and (2) to assess a possible difference between gender or test meal, since it has been shown that women have slower gastric emptying than men, and gastric emptying of solids is slower than liquids. A standard gastric-emptying test for a solid (technetium-99m sulphur colloids, 230 Kcal) and liquid (indium-111 DTPA water) test meal was performed in 12 healthy male and 12 healthy female volunteers. After 135 min, the volunteer was place in the supine position for static imaging of the abdomen every 15 min for 6 h. Decay and crossover-corrected geometric mean gastric-emptying data were fit to a modified power exponential function to determine the 10% stomach emptying time for ...