Objectives: Within a clinical trial of antibiotic therapy, we examined the correlation between clinical observations, blood tests and local measurements of skin damage, with serum procalcitonin levels.
Methods: The data is from a subset of the patients recruited into a clinical trial of antibiotic therapy for cellulitis (clindamycin for cellulitis, NCT01876628) whose procalcitonin levels were correlated with clinical and laboratory measurements. We selected the variables strongly correlated with procalcitonin and evaluated the predictive value of the baseline procalcitonin on the primary trial outcome.
Results: 136 patients provided 307 procalcitonin levels which were correlated with 8 variables. The strongest correlations (correlation coefficient of >0.5) with procalcitonin were the affected skin area (0.537), C-reactive protein (0.574) and neutrophil:lymphocyte ratio (0.567). Receiver operator characteristic curves demonstrated poor sensitivity and specificity of procalcitonin in predicting primary outcome. Procalcitonin baseline levels were low but decreased as patients recovered.
Conclusions: Procalcitonin levels are generally low in limb cellulitis and cannot be used to confirm the diagnosis or the need for antibiotic therapy. Procalcitonin is a poor predictor of early improvement. 相似文献
Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the prognostic value of leptin in patients with proven coronary artery disease (CAD) (N?=?1907).
Methods: AtheroGene is a contemporary CAD cohort study (N?=?3229). Median follow-up time was 3.8 (Quartile 1/3 with 2.8/4.9) years.
Results: Leptin concentration was associated with a hazard ratio (HR) for the fully adjusted model of HR?=?1.32 in women but was not significant in men. The endpoint cardiovascular death and non-fatal myocardial infarction was observed in 167 patients.
Conclusion: In women with known CAD, increased leptin concentration is useful for predicting cardiovascular death and non-fatal myocardial infarction. 相似文献
Objective: The aim of the study was to analyze these parameters in children with various stages of CKD.
Material and methods: The study group consisted of 41 CKD children, 19 patients on haemodialysis (HD), 22 children on automated peritoneal dialysis (APD) and 23 controls. Serum concentrations of MCP-1, MCSF and neopterin were assessed by ELISA. Correlations to matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their tissue inhibitors (TIMPs) were analyzed.
Results: MCP-1, MCSF and neopterin were significantly elevated in all patients versus controls and the highest values concerned HD children. A single HD session lessened the concentrations of all parameters, yet they rose back before the next HD session. All markers correlated with MMPs and TIMPs in different combinations.
Conclusions: Systemic inflammation and cell migration are triggered by CKD and additionally aggravated by chronic dialysis, with the more evident negative impact of HD than APD. Discrepancies in MCP1, MCSF and neopterin serum concentrations suggest they may serve as new markers of cellular and inflammatory responses in children with CKD. 相似文献
Methods: Eighty subjects were divided into two groups: 20 patients with AgP and 20 patients with CP with their 20 corresponding matched controls, based on clinical attachment loss (CAL), probing pocket depth (PPD), and bleeding on probing (BOP). Saliva reactive oxygen species (ROS), lipid peroxidation, and non-enzymatic antioxidant defences were measured by luminol-dependent chemiluminescence assay, as thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARs) and total radical-trapping antioxidant potential (TRAP), respectively. Pearson's correlation and multivariate analysis were used to determine the relationship between ROS and TBARs and the clinical parameters.
Results: ROS and TBARs were increased in AgP while TRAP was decreased, comparing with CP. In AgP, a strong and positive correlation was observed between ROS and TBARs and they were closely associated with CAL and PPD.
Discussion: In AgP, but not in CP, oxidative stress is a high contributor to periodontal pathology and it is closely associated with the clinical periodontal status. 相似文献
Sulfur was added to soils in quantities of 20 to 400 mmol sulfur kg-1 soil. Plants were grown under fluorescent light in 1.5 l ($OS 13 cm) pots for 28 d.
Within 700 h soil pH decreased significantly in all soils, depending on S8 dosage. In the acid soil, pH decreased from pH 6.5 to about 4 at the highest treatment level, while pH in one of the calcareous soils dropped even below pH 4. The effect was smaller in the second calcareous soil.
NaNO3-extractable Cd and Zn increased up to 26-and 13-fold, respectively, in the acid soil, while in the calcareous soils, maximum increases were 9-and 11-fold, respectively.
Increased NaNO3-extractable concentrations translated well into shoot concentrations (dry matter) in plants. Shoot Zn concentrations in H. annuus, for example, increased from 930 in the controls to 4300 mg kg-1 in the highest S8 treatment. However, effects observed in the plants were generally smaller than in the soils. In addition, in some variants growth was negatively affected, resulting in reduced metal removal from the soils. 相似文献
Areas covered: In this review, we summarize the different pitfalls and challenges that the protein-protein cross-linking field is confronted with when using mass spectrometry approaches. We additionally focus on native disulfide bridges as an example and provide some examples of cross-links that are important in the biomedical field.
Expert commentary: The current flow of methodological improvements, mainly from the chemical cross-linking field, has delivered a significant contribution to deciphering native and insult-induced cross-links. Although an automated data analysis of proteome-wide peptide cross-linking is currently only possible in chemical cross-linking experiments, the field is well on the way towards a more automated analysis of native and insult-induced cross-links in raw mass spectrometry data that will boost its potential in biomedical applications. 相似文献
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Aims: We investigated the effect of plant sex on rhizosphere nematode communities associated with Corema album, a dioecious shrub occurring in coastal habitats.
Methods: Rhizosphere samples were collected from males and females in three populations (150 plants), during fruiting and flowering. Nematode communities were characterised and compared between plant sexes through statistical analyses of the abundance of trophic groups, plant parasitic nematode (PPN) genera and ecological indices.
Results: Free-living nematodes showed no statistically significant differences owing to plant sex. Conversely, PPN community composition was significantly different between plant sexes during fruiting but not flowering, suggesting that physiological requirements over the annual phenological cycle of the plant influence ecological interactions with the rhizosphere.
Of the 13 PPN genera identified, the ectoparasitic Criconema and Hemicriconemellawere more abundant in the rhizosphere of males during fruiting, whereas the endoparasitic Meloidogyne associated more frequently with females, suggesting that plant host suitability is related to PPN feeding strategy.
Conclusions: It appears that interactions of individuals of different sexes of C. album with the rhizosphere nematode community vary with phenological stage, especially for PPN. 相似文献
Methods: This cross-sectional study included 30 chronic stroke patients. After recording demographical data, clinical, ultrasonographic, and electrophysiological evaluations were performed. Clinical evaluations included Brunnstrom Recovery Stages (BRS), Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA), Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), Motricity index (MI), Functional Independence Measurement (FIM), and Functional Ambulation Scale (FAS). For ultrasonographic measurements, median and ulnar nerves were scanned. Median and ulnar nerve conduction studies were performed bilaterally.
Results: Mean ages of the patients were 62.2?±?13.0 years (range 24–84 years; 22 males, 8 females). There was no significant difference in median/ulnar nerve ultrasonographic measurements between paretic and non-paretic sides (p?>?.05), whereas median nerve motor conduction velocity was significantly slower and median nerve F-wave latency was prolonged on the paretic side (p?<?.05). The median and ulnar nerve compound motor action potential (CMAP) amplitudes of paretic sides were positively correlated with lower extremity BRS and FAS scores. Median CMAP amplitudes were also positively correlated with FIM scores and ulnar CMAP amplitudes were positively correlated with motricity scores. Moreover, on the paretic side, there were positive correlations of median SNAP amplitudes with FIM and FAS scores (p?<?.05).
Conclusions: Our results showed electrophysiological changes in peripheral nerves on the paretic upper extremities, however, no morphological change was determined. Further studies with larger number of patients and longer follow-up periods are needed to clarify the effect of stroke and spasticity on the peripheral nervous system. 相似文献
Methods: Total RNA from eight soft gingival tissues and eight biopsy samples of HNSCC patients and total DNA and RNA from blood of healthy controls (n?=?150) and HNSCC patients (n?=?150) was processed for expression and genotyping studies. Blood from patients receiving chemo-radiotherapy was processed for follow-up study.
Results: qRT-PCR revealed significant increase in mRNA expression of DMEs in biopsy and blood samples of HNSCC patients when compared to controls. Similar alterations were observed in cancer marker genes in these samples. Patients with variant genotypes of DMEs showed greater magnitude of alterations in mRNA expression when compared to wild type controls. Responders of chemo-radiotherapy showed significant decline in induction of mRNA expression of DMEs and cancer marker genes
Conclusions: The data suggest that peripheral blood expression profiles could be used to monitor tobacco-induced HNSCC as well as the treatment response. 相似文献
Patients and methods: A number of previously validated serum biomarkers were tested in a group of 500 patients with coronary artery disease and examined for their association with severity of coronary lesion according to Gensini score determined by coronary angiography.
Results: Lowest extent of coronary lesions was associated with significant increase in apoA-I levels and with significantly increased ratios of adiponectin to endothelin and leptin to insulin. In male but not in female patients, adiponectin to endothelin ratio below 7.0 was associated with Gensini score representing early to high coronary lesions (p?=?0.02). In female but not in male patients, leptin to insulin ratio below 3.5 was associated with Gensini score representing early to high coronary lesions (p?=?0.013).
Conclusion: Leptin to insulin and adiponectin to endothelin ratios are novel derived biomarkers useful for noninvasive diagnostics of initial stages of coronary lesions in patients with coronary artery disease. 相似文献
Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the association of CD40 polymorphisms (-1?C>T (rs1883832) and 945G>T (rs4810485)) and myocardial infarction (MI), and to test the association of CD40 gene haplotypes with MI in Tunisians.
Materials and methods: Three hundred and fifty MI patients and 301 apparently healthy controls were included in the study. The polymorphisms of CD40 were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP).
Results: There were significant differences in the genotype and allele frequencies of CD40 gene -1?C>T (rs1883832) polymorphism between cases and controls. Stratifying according to gender, the association between the TT genotype and MI was statistically significant in males, only. Haplotype analysis revealed that the C-T and T-G haplotypes were associated with an increased risk of MI (p?=?0.012 and p?<?0.001, respectively).
Conclusions: Our work showed a significant association between the -1?C>T (rs1883832) polymorphism of the CD40 gene and MI in the Tunisians. 相似文献