Cell Line ; Child ; Dysgerminoma ; etiology ; Female ; Fibroblasts ; Gonadal Dysgenesis ; genetics ; Gonadal Dysgenesis, 46,XY ; genetics ; pathology ; Humans ; In Vitro Techniques ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; etiology ; Risk

The mutagenic effect of HpD on cell SCE and the reactions of cell SCE to different sources of light combined with HpD were studied using V79 cells. There were 6 doses of HpD: 1 microgram/ml, 3 micrograms/ml, 5 micrograms/ml, 10 micrograms/ml, 50 micrograms/ml and 100 micrograms/ml. The dose of 5 micrograms/ml is equal to the maximum dose of HpD used in the clinic (HpD per milliliter of patient's blood). Our experiments demonstrated that when the cells were cultured in the dark and HpD was added to the medium no more than 5 micrograms/ml, the SCE frequencies were not increased. The cells were irradiated with different sources of light without HpD, both the fluorescence and ultraviolet light could promote SCE but the light of daylight lamp and red light did not increase it. But when HpD was added into culture medium at the dose of less than 5 micrograms/ml, every light could increase the cell SCE intensively except the daylight lamp light. The red light was more notable than the others by relation analysis.
Cells, Cultured ; Fluorescence ; Hematoporphyrin Photoradiation ; Hematoporphyrins ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Light ; Photochemotherapy ; Sister Chromatid Exchange ; drug effects ; Ultraviolet Rays

BACKGROUND: Conventional epidural anesthesia technique is a blind procedure, which relies solely on the palpation of the landmarks. Pregnancy makes epidural insertion more difficult because of the exaggeration of the lumbar iordosis, increase in subcutaneous fat, and difficulty in positioning due to the gravid uterus. These changes may make the conventional palpation technique less reliable in placing the epidural catheter during labor. Preprocedure ultrasound may be used as an adjunct in facilitating lumbar epidural insertion. OBJECTIVES: The objective of the study was to determine the efficacy of preprocedure ultrasound in facilitating lumbar epidural insertion. This was achieved by determining the number of attempts, number of needle redirections, and incidence of adverse events with and without the use of ultrasound. METHODS: The study was a randomized controlled trial. Forty two (42) subjects were enrolled in the study and were randomized into either the preprocedure ultrasound gorup or the conventional palpation technique group. Efficacy of the technique was measured according to the following variables: number of attempts, number of redirections, incidence of traumatic insertion and incidence of accidental dural puncture. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the number of attempts (p value of 0.03) and needle redirections (p value of 0.04) between the two (2) groups. There was no significant difference noted in the proportion of subjects with accidental dural puncture and traumatic insertion between the two (2) groups (p=1.00). CONCLUSION: The number of attempts and needle redirections were significantly lower in those with ultrasound use compared to those without. No adverse events were noted on both groups. RECOMMENDATIONS Future studies may focus on the obese population utilizing larger samples wherein the landmarks needed for epidural placement are extremely difficult to identify. The lenght of time required to successfully insert the epidural with and without the use of preprocedure ultrasound can also be considered.

To investigate the questions that Muslim patients, embryologists, paramedics, clinical counsellor and doctors may have pertaining to the compliance of Assisted Reproductive Technique (ART) to Shari’aa. Methods: As a preliminary study, an open-ended survey was administered to participants. Participants for the survey comprised of 21 patients, 2 embryologists, 2 doctors, 4 paramedics and 1 counsellor. Results: Data analysis showed that most of the participants posed questions that fall into six classifications which are: Munakahat (Family Law), social Hukm, Fiqh Ibadah, Fiqh Qadha (Islamic Hukm), General Fiqh and Usul Fiqh. Conclusion: It is clear that even though the participants were rather familiar with some of the existing Fatwas pertaining to ART and IVF in Malaysia, there are still remaining doubts which need to be clarified. This indicates that there are challenges faced in seeking and providing ART treatment to Muslim patients. This needs to be addressed perhaps in the form of Shari’aa-compliant guidelines to provide a clear explanation of each process and procedure in fertility treatment.

Snake bite has been regarded as an important health problem in Myanmar since early 1960’s. In the recent years, there has been growing interest in alternative therapies and therapeutic use of natural products, especially those derive from plants. In Myanmar and Indian traditional medicine, various plants have used as a remedy for treating snake bite. The present study was carried out to evaluate the effects of alcohol extract of Tamarind (Tamarindus indica Linn.) seed on some biologic properties of Russell’s viper (Daboia russelli siamensis) venom (RVV). The Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) enzyme, coagulase enzyme and caseinolytic enzyme activities of Russell’s viper venom (RVV) were reduced when mixed and incubated with the extract. When the RVV and the different amount of extracts were preincubated and injected intramuscularly into mice, all of them survived, but all the mice in the control group died. On the other hand, when RVV were injected first followed by the extract into mice, all of them died. If the extract was injected near the site where Russell’s viper venom was injected, all the mice survived for more than 24 hours and the survival time prolonged but they all died within 96 hours. In conclusion, according to the results obtained, the extract neutralizes some biologic properties of the Russell’s viper venom and prolonged the survival time if the extract was injected near the site where the Russell’s viper venom was injected.

Salmonella infections occur worldwide, in both developed and developing countries, and a major contributor to morbidity and economic costs. A total of 32 Salmonella isolates isolated from dogs (n=15/162), cats (n=1/126) and snakes (n=16/42) in the Klang valley, Peninsular Malaysia during 2012-2013, were used in this study and 6 serovars were identified. The isolates were then characterized for their susceptibility to commonly used antimicrobial agents using the standard disk diffusion method. The presence of relevant resistance genes and class 1 integrons were investigated by using PCR. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was carried out to determine the genetic diversity of these Salmonella strains. Higher resistance rates were observed for tetracycline (40.6%), nalidixic acid (21.9%), sulphamethazole-trimethoprim (18.7%), ampicillin (18.7%) followed by chloramphenicol (15.6%), streptomycin (6.25%), enrofloxacin (12.5%), cephalexin (6.25%), cephalothin (6.25%) and amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (3.12%). Nine percent (3/32) presented a single type of resistance, 6% (2/32) showed resistance to two classes of antimicrobials and 34% (11/32) were multidrugresistant (MDR) (resistant to 3 or more antimicrobials). Analysis of the carriage of resistance genes in the isolates revealed that seven (blaTEM-1, strA, strB, sulII, dfrhI, tetA, and cmlA) out of 10 resistance genes were present. Classes 1 integrons were present in 68.75% (11/16) of the resistance strains. PFGE analysis showed that the strains were very diverse and certain PFGE pattern clusters correlated well with antimicrobial resistance phenotypes. In conclusion, high rates of multidrug resistance were found among the dogs Salmonella strains.

Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide endemic zoonotic infection caused by the obligate coccidian parasite Toxoplasma gondii. To assess the seroprevalence of T. gondii infection among hospital population of Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), a cross-sectional study was conducted using serum samples of 102 participants. Samples were screened for the presence of anti-Toxoplasma IgG and IgM antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Only one sample recorded as IgM positive (0.98%) (1/102; 95% CI = 0.02– 5.34%), whereas 44.12% (45/102; 95% CI = 34.29–54.29%) were IgG positive. The study showed that seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis significantly differs between age groups (p < 0.001), with high prevalence of T. gondii infection (37.8%) among patients aged less than one month. Moreover, the study indicated a significant difference in the prevalence of toxoplasmosis between males and females. Additionally, a significant dependent relationships were observed (p = 0.003), when the reasons of toxoplasma serology request was considered, and the highest prevalence (59.6%) observed in congenital toxoplasmosis. In conclusion, the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis in our study group was high. The study provides preliminary information about the seroprevalence and epidemiology of T. gondii infection among the hospital population in HUSM.