Relationship between breast arterial calcification on mammography with coronary CT angiography findings

Background

Breast arterial calcification is a frequently benign finding on mammography that usually is not reported. An increasing attention has been formed to determine the association between breast arterial calcification (BAC) and Coronary artery disease. In the current study we have aimed to evaluate the relationship between BAC on mammography with coronary CT angiography findings.

Methods

The case control study was carried out on 60 women; 30 CAD and 30 healthy subjects as control, admitted to Golestan hospital radiology department. The mammography was performed in two views; Craniocaudal (CC) view and mediolateral oblique (MLO) and BAC was graded based on the severity and extent of calcifications. Coronary Arterial Calcification (CAC) were scored by Agatston criteria.

Results

Overly, 36 patients (60%) were positive for BAC. Twenty six out of them (72%) were CAD. There was a positive significant correlation between BAC and CAD. The sensitivity and specificity of BAC for CAD were 69% and 47%, respectively. Moreover, the severe BAC scores were significantly higher in CAD patients than non-CAD.

Conclusion

Our findings in line with several previous studies indicated the positive significant association between BAC and CAD occurrence. While the sensitivity and specificity of BAC in diagnosis of CAD is low, suggested the using of BAC just as a CAD risk factor. The relatively low sample size is the major limitation of the study.

     

Epithelial CaSR deficiency alters intestinal integrity and promotes proinflammatory immune responses

The intestinal epithelium is equipped with sensing receptor mechanisms that interact with luminal microorganisms and nutrients to regulate barrier function and gut immune responses, thereby maintaining intestinal homeostasis. Herein, we clarify the role of the extracellular calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) using intestinal epithelium-specific Casr^−/− mice. Epithelial CaSR deficiency diminished intestinal barrier function, altered microbiota composition, and skewed immune responses towards proinflammatory. Consequently, Casr^−/− mice were significantly more prone to chemically induced intestinal inflammation resulting in colitis. Accordingly, CaSR represents a potential therapeutic target for autoinflammatory disorders, including inflammatory bowel diseases.     

Simulation of DNA bases in water: Comparison of the Monte Carlo algorithm with molecular mechanics force fields

The interaction between the nucleic acid bases and solvent molecules has an important effect in various biochemical processes. We have calculated total energy and free energy of the solvation of DNA bases in water by Monte Carlo simulation. Adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine were first optimized in the gas phase and then placed in a cubic box of water. We have used the TIP3 model for water and OPLS for the nucleic acid bases. The canonical (T, V, N) ensemble at 25 degrees C and Metropolis sampling technique have been used. Good agreement with other available computational data was obtained. Radial distribution functions of water around each site of adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine have been computed and the results have shown the ability of the sites for hydrogen bonding and other interactions. The computations have shown that guanine has the highest value of solvation free energy and N7 and N6 in adenine and guanine, N3 in cytosine, and N3 and O4 in thymine have the largest radial distribution function. Monte Carlo simulation has also been performed using the CHARMM program under the same conditions, and the results of two procedures are compared.     

Production of nitric oxide by murine macrophages induced by lipophosphoglycan of Leishmania major

Protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania cause a number of important human diseases. One of the key determinants of parasite infectivity and survival is the surface glycoconjugate lipophosphoglycan (LPG). In addition, LPG is shown to be useful as a transmission blocking vaccine. Since culture supernatant of parasite promastigotes is a good source of LPG, we made attempts to characterize functions of the culture supernatant, and membrane LPG isolated from metacyclic promastigotes of Leishmania major. The purification scheme included anion-exchange chromatography, hydrophobic interaction chromatography and cold methanol precipitation. The purity of supernatant LPG (sLPG) and membrane LPG (mLPG) was determined by SDS-PAGE and thin layer chromatography. The effect of mLPG and sLPG on nitric oxide (NO) production by murine macrophages cell line (J774.1A) was studied. Both sLPG and mLPG induced NO production in a dose dependent manner but sLPG induced significantly higher amount of NO than mLPG. Our results show that sLPG is able to promote NO production by murine macrophages.     

Identification of biomolecule mass transport and binding rate parameters in living cells by inverse modeling

Background  

Quantification of in-vivo biomolecule mass transport and reaction rate parameters from experimental data obtained by Fluorescence Recovery after Photobleaching (FRAP) is becoming more important.     

Fusarium rot in cucumber greenhouses of Jiroft region

The present work was done to identify Fusarium species that cause Fusarium rot in greenhouse cucumber crop in Jiroft region (Kerman, Iran), in 2006–2007. During these years, a vast sampling was done from several greenhouses of Jiroft. The plants with rot symptoms as well as the soil samples of greenhouse were transferred to lab. The isolates of plants and soil samples were detached by direct isolation of the infected tissue and soil suspension methods, respectively. Totally 120 isolates were obtained, which were classified into the following six species according to their morphological and physiological characteristics: Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium solani, Fusarium culmorum, Fusarium monoliforme, Fusarium sambucinum, Fusarium subglutinans. It is the first time that three of these taxons, i.e. F. culmorum, F. monoliforme and F. subglutinan are reported in cucumber of Iran. Pathogenesis studies of the isolates were done by mycelium placement and spore suspension injection methods in sterile soil under greenhouse conditions. Then the disease symptoms were investigated.     

An integro-partial differential equation for modeling biofluids flow in fractured biomaterials

A novel mathematical model in the framework of a nonlinear integro-partial differential equation governing biofluids flow in fractured biomaterials is proposed, solved, verified, and evaluated. A semi-analytical solution is derived for the equation, verified by a mass-lumped Galerkin finite element method (FEM), and calibrated with two in vitro experimental datasets. The solution process uses separation of variables and results in explicit expression involving complete and incomplete beta functions. The proposed semi-analytical model shows reasonable agreements with the finite element simulator as well as with two in vitro experimental time series and can be successfully used to simulate biofluids (e.g. water, blood, oil, etc.) flow in natural and synthetic porous biomaterials.     

A fluorescence spectroscopy assay for real-time monitoring of enzyme immobilization into mesoporous silica particles

Mesoporous silica particles are used as support material for immobilization of enzymes. Here we investigated a fluorescence-based assay for real-time monitoring of the immobilization of lipase, bovine serum albumin, and glucose oxidase into micrometer-sized mesoporous silica particles. The proteins are labeled with the dye epicocconone, and the interaction with the particles is observed as an increase in emission intensity of the protein–dye conjugates that can be quantified if correcting for a comparatively slow photobleaching. The immobilization occurs in tens of minutes to hours depending on particle concentration and type of protein. In the limit of excess particles over proteins, the formation of the particle–protein complexes can be described by a single exponential growth for all three investigated proteins, and the fitted pseudo-first-order rate constant increases linearly with particle concentration for each protein type. The derived second-order rate constant k varies with the protein hydrodynamic radius according to k ∼ R_H^{−4.70±0.01}, indicating that the rate-limiting step at high particle concentrations is not the diffusional encounter between proteins and particles but rather the entry into the pores, consistent with the hydrodynamic radii of the three proteins being smaller but comparable to the pore radius of the particles.