Adenocarcinoma of the gall bladder presenting with haematuria.
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Abdominal Pain↗
Biomedical subjects
A Ahmed
Publications and source records attributed to A Ahmed.
Guidelines for antibiotic use.
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Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
Uropathogens and their susceptibility pattern: a retrospective analysis.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency and antibiotic susceptibility pattern of uro-pathogens. SETTING: Department of Pathalogy, Ziauddin Medical Hospital Laboratory, Karachi. METHOD: A retrospective analysis was done on all the urine samples sent for culture and sensitivity during a seven months period. Two thousand eight hundred and forty four urine samples were received and inoculated in cysteine lactose electrolyte deficient agar (CLED). Positive samples were identified, processed and antibiotic susceptibility was carried out. Data was analyzed using Microsoft Excel 97. RESULTS: E. coli (45.6%) was the leading uropathogen followed by candida spp. (10.5%), enterococcus spp. (10.2%). For E. coli ampicillin, ceftazidime, nitrofurantoin and gentamycin sensitivity was 26%, 20%, 79.5%, 65% respectively. Enterococcus isolates showed 60% resistance to ampicillin. CONCLUSION: The resistant pattern of uro-pathogens causing urinary tract infections to common antimicrobial agents is changing and must be taken into account when selecting treatment strategies. Therefore, antibiotic policy should be made according to local surveillance data.
Drug Resistance, Microbial↗
Proximal renal tubular acidosis associated with osteomalacia.
Vitamin D deficiency is relatively common among older persons and those with spinal cord injuries. We report a case of proximal renal tubular acidosis in a 44-year-old quadriplegic nursing home resident who had limited sunlight exposure. Laboratory studies showed a low level of serum bicarbonate, a normal serum anion gap, and a positive urine anion gap. There was no history of diarrhea. Serum calcium and phosphorus levels were 6.9 mg/dL and 3.7 mg/dL, respectively. Proximal renal tubular acidosis due to osteomalacia was suspected, which was confirmed by a low serum 25-hydroxycholecalciferol level (< 5 ng/mL) with an elevated serum parathyroid hormone level. Treatment with vitamin D and a calcium supplement led to normalization of laboratory values.
Acidosis, Renal Tubular↗
Co-existing granular cell tumor and adenocarcinoma of the lung: a case report and review of the literature.
Granular cell tumor (GCT) of the lung is a rare tumor, constituting less than 10% of all GCTs. It is a multicentric tumor and infiltrates into adjoining tissue, but malignant GCT of the lung has not been reported. Diagnosis is usually obtained with bronchoscopic biopsy. Treatment options include bronchoscopic extirpation, laser therapy, and sleeve resection. We present a case of GCT co-existing with adenocarcinoma of the lung and review the literature.
Adenocarcinoma, Bronchiolo-Alveolar↗
Impaired splenic function in systemic amyloidosis: diagnostic importance of peripheral blood film.
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Adult↗
Multiple antibiotic resistance among gram negative bacteria isolated from milk in Karachi.
A total of 100 Gram negative bacteria isolated from milk in Karachi were screened for their resistance to eleven commonly used antibiotics. The concentration of antibiotics used was 100 microg/ml. About 46% were found to resist antibiotics at the concentration of 100 microg/ml giving different patterns. The resistant bacteria were tested for the presence of R plasmids, both transferable and non-transferable, by conjugation, spontaneous segregation and curing with acridine orange and ethidium bromide. Among the resistant bacteria tested, eight were found to carry non-transferable R plasmids.
Journal Article↗
Evaluation of Acetaminophen tablets by control test.
Various pharmacopoeial and non-pharmacopoeial control test applied to Acetaminophen tablets were used to evaluate for the uniformity of weight, diameter, thickness, medicaments, hardness and friability. The tests were intended to check the compliance of the prepared tablets with the accepted specifications.
Journal Article↗
Population norms for the MMSE in the very old: estimates based on longitudinal data. Mini-Mental State Examination.
OBJECTIVE: To report the percentile distribution of Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores in older people by age, sex, and education level, estimated from longitudinal data, after correcting for loss due to dropout. METHODS: The Cambridge City over 75 Cohort is a population-based study of a cohort of 2106 subjects age 75 years and older at study entry followed up over 9 years. At each of the four waves, cognitive function was assessed using MMSE. Based on these data, the relationship between age and MMSE score was modeled. Percentile distributions by age, sex, and education level were provided using inverse probability weighting to correct for dropouts. RESULTS: Performance on MMSE was related to age in men and women. In women, at age 75, MMSE score ranged from 21 (10th percentile) to 29 (90th percentile). At age 95, the range was 10 (10th percentile) to 27 (90th percentile). The upper end of MMSE distribution was slightly modified with age, whereas the lower end of the distribution was very sensitive to age effect. A similar pattern was observed in both sexes. CONCLUSION: These findings provide norms for MMSE scores in subjects age 75 years and older from longitudinal population-based data. Such norms can be used as reference values to determine where an individual's score lies in relation to his or her age, sex, and education level.
Aged↗
Engineering blood meal-activated systemic immunity in the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti.
Progress in molecular genetics makes possible the development of alternative disease control strategies that target the competence of mosquitoes to transmit pathogens. We tested the regulatory region of the vitellogenin (Vg) gene of Aedes aegypti for its ability to express potential antipathogen factors in transgenic mosquitoes. Hermes-mediated transformation was used to integrate a 2.1-kb Vg-promoter fragment driving the expression of the Defensin A (DefA) coding region, one of the major insect immune factors. PCR amplification of genomic DNA and Southern blot analyses, carried out through the ninth generation, showed that the Vg-DefA transgene insertion was stable. The Vg-DefA transgene was strongly activated in the fat body by a blood meal. The mRNA levels reached a maximum at 24-h postblood meal, corresponding to the peak expression time of the endogenous Vg gene. High levels of transgenic defensin were accumulated in the hemolymph of bloodfed female mosquitoes, persisting for 20-22 days after a single blood feeding. Purified transgenic defensin showed antibacterial activity comparable to that of defensin isolated from bacterially challenged control mosquitoes. Thus, we have been able to engineer the genetically stable transgenic mosquito with an element of systemic immunity, which is activated through the blood meal-triggered cascade rather than by infection. This work represents a significant step toward the development of molecular genetic approaches to the control of vector competence in pathogen transmission.
Aedes↗
DDRT-PCR: use of agarose gels for detection of amplified products.
The present study focuses on the detection of differentially expressed genes in migrating (healing) and nonmigrating (normal) corneal epithelium on agarose gel using a modified procedure of differential display reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (DDRT-PCR). Rabbit corneal epithelial organ cultures were used to obtain nonmigrating and migrating samples. RNA was extracted using Trizol LS reagent. PCR was modified in order to allow detection of amplified products on 3% agarose gel with ethidium bromide staining. Products were also resolved on 6% denaturing polyacrylamide-urea gels and observed by silver staining. Agarose gels showed two prominent bands that were heavily expressed in the 458 bp and 587 bp region of the nonmigrating samples. In addition light bands were visible in the region corresponding to 234 bp and 450 bp. In the migrating samples, two light bands were visible in the region of 267 bp and 300 bp. Eight amplicons, six in the nonmigrating corneal epithelial sample and two in the migrating corneal epithelial samples, were also found to be differentially expressed when products were run on 6% denaturing polyacrylamide-urea gels. Thus, DDRT-PCR products can be detected on agarose gels and prove very helpful and economical in the initial studies of DDRT-PCR.
Animals↗
A neural basis for general intelligence.
Universal positive correlations between different cognitive tests motivate the concept of "general intelligence" or Spearman's g. Here the neural basis for g is investigated by means of positron emission tomography. Spatial, verbal, and perceptuo-motor tasks with high-g involvement are compared with matched low-g control tasks. In contrast to the common view that g reflects a broad sample of major cognitive functions, high-g tasks do not show diffuse recruitment of multiple brain regions. Instead they are associated with selective recruitment of lateral frontal cortex in one or both hemispheres. Despite very different task content in the three high-g-low-g contrasts, lateral frontal recruitment is markedly similar in each case. Many previous experiments have shown these same frontal regions to be recruited by a broad range of different cognitive demands. The results suggest that "general intelligence" derives from a specific frontal system important in the control of diverse forms of behavior.
Adult↗
Management of gallstones and their complications.
The accurate differentiation of gallstone-induced biliary colic from other abdominal disease processes is the most crucial step in the successful management of gallstone disease. Despite the availability of many imaging techniques to demonstrate the presence of gallstones, clinical judgment ultimately determines the association of symptoms with cholelithiasis and its complications. Adult patients with silent or incidental gallstones should be observed and managed expectantly, with few exceptions. In symptomatic patients, the intervention varies with the type of gallstone-induced complication. In this article, we review the salient clinical features, diagnostic tests and therapeutic options employed in the management of gallstones and their complications.
Cholagogues and Choleretics↗
Decline across different domains of cognitive function in normal ageing: results of a longitudinal population-based study using CAMCOG.
Dementia is an important cause of disability in the elderly. There is evidence that cognitive impairment in dementia is on a continuum with cognitive impairment in the non-demented elderly. In order to investigate this possibility, we need detailed knowledge about the population distribution of cognitive function and change in cognitive function. The aim of this study is to describe the change in different domains of cognitive function over 4 years in a population-based sample of non-demented elderly people, and to investigate the effect of sociodemographic variables and baseline cognitive function on change in each of the cognitive domains. Respondents from two group general practice lists (n = 503) were interviewed using the Cambridge Cognitive Examination (CAMCOG) at the incidence wave of the Cambridge City Over-75 Cohort Study and after a mean time period of 3.9 years. One hundred and thirty five of 212 non-demented subjects seen at follow-up completed the CAMCOG at both interviews. The annual rate of change in total CAMCOG score was -1.6 points per year (p < 0.001). There was statistically significant decline in all of the CAMCOG subscales. Greater decline in the Memory subscale was associated with less education (p = 0.03). Greater decline in the Attention/Calculation subscale was associated with manual social class (p = 0.05). Greater decline in the Perception subscale was associated with older age (p = 0.03). Decline in specific cognitive domains may indicate a reversible phase of cognitive impairment and deserves further investigation.
Aged↗
The prediction of coronary atherosclerosis employing artificial neural networks.
BACKGROUND: Atherosclerosis is a complex histopathologic process that is analogous to chronic inflammatory conditions. Several factors have been shown to correlate with the extent of atherosclerosis. Whereas hypertension, obesity, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, smoking, and family history are all well documented, recent literature points to additional associated factors. Thus, antibodies to oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL), cytomegalovirus (CMV), Chlamydia pneumonia, Helicobacter pylori, as well as homocysteine and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels have all been implicated as independent markers of accelerated atherosclerosis. HYPOTHESIS: In the current study we attempted to formulate a system by which to predict the extent of coronary atherosclerosis as assessed by angiographic vessel occlusion. METHODS: The 81 patients were categorized as having single-, double-, triple-, or no vessel involvement. The clinical data concerning the "classic" risk factors were obtained from clinical records, and sera were drawn from the patients for determination of the various parameters that are thought to be associated with atherosclerosis. RESULTS: Using four artificial neural networks, we have found the most effective parameters predictive of coronary vessel involvement were (in decreasing order of importance) antibodies to oxLDL, to cardiolipin, to CMV, to Chlamydia pneumonia, and to beta 2-glycoprotein I (beta 2GPI). Although important in the prediction of vessel occlusion, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, CRP levels, and diabetes were less accurate. CONCLUSION: The results of the current study, if reproduced in a larger population, may establish an integrated system based on the creation of artificial neural networks by which to predict the extent of atherosclerosis in a given subject fairly and noninvasively.
Aged↗
A neural basis for general intelligence
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Journal Article↗
Angiopoietin-1 and angiopoietin-2 activate trophoblast Tie-2 to promote growth and migration during placental development.
Human placental development involves coordinated angiogenesis and trophoblast outgrowth that are compromised in intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). As Tie-2((-/-)) mice exhibit growth retardation and vascular network malformation, the expression of Tie-2 and its ligands, angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1) and angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2), were investigated in human placenta from normal pregnancies and those complicated by severe IUGR. Ribonucleotide protection assays showed no significant change in the expression of Ang-2 mRNA between gestationally matched normal and IUGR placentas; however, immunoblots revealed that Ang-2 protein was significantly decreased in IUGR, suggesting that this may contribute to the abnormal development of the villous vasculature. In situ hybridization studies showed that Ang-1 and Tie-2 were detected in the cyto/syncytiotrophoblast bilayer in first-trimester placenta, whereas Ang-2 mRNA was restricted to the cytotrophoblast, suggesting their role in trophoblast function. At term, Ang-1 mRNA and immunoreactive protein were restricted to the paravascular tissues of the primary stem villi, supporting its role in vessel maturation. In contrast, Ang-2 was expressed throughout the term villous core, perhaps to permit the developing placental vascular network to remain in a state of fluidity. As these studies also revealed that trophoblast, in addition to endothelial cells, expressed Tie-2 receptors, we investigated the potential role of Ang-1/Ang-2 on trophoblast proliferation, migration, and the release of NO. Using spontaneously transformed first-trimester trophoblast cell lines that exhibit cytotrophoblast-like (ED(27)) and extravillous trophoblast-like (ED(77)) properties, we show that the addition of Ang-2 (250 ng/ml) stimulated DNA synthesis in ED(27) trophoblast cells and triggered the release of NO. Ang-1 stimulated trophoblast (ED(77)) migration in a dose-dependent manner that was inhibited by recombinant Tie-2-FC. These data thus imply, for the first time, a specific role for angiopoietins as regulators of trophoblast behavior in the development of the utero/fetoplacental circulation, an action independent of their well-established roles in vascular endothelium.
Angiopoietin-1↗
Helicobacter pylori inhibits gastric cell cycle progression.
Helicobacter pylori infection of the gastric mucosa is associated with changes in gastric epithelial cell proliferation. In vitro studies have shown that exposure to H. pylori inhibits proliferation of gastric cells. This study sought to investigate the cell cycle progression of gastric epithelial cell lines in the presence and absence of H. pylori. Unsynchronized and synchronized gastric epithelial cell lines AGS and KatoIII were exposed to H. pylori over a 24-h period. Cell cycle progression was determined by flow cytometry using propidium iodide (PI), and by analysis of cyclin E, p21, and p53 protein expression using Western blots. In the absence of H. pylori 40, 45, and 15% of unsynchronized AGS cells were in G(0)-G(1), S, and G(2)-M phases, respectively, by flow cytometry analysis. When AGS cells were cultured in the presence of H. pylori, the S phase decreased 10% and the G(0)-G(1) phase increased 17% after 24 h compared with the controls. KatoIII cells, which have a deleted p53 gene, showed little or no response to H. pylori. When G1/S synchronized AGS cells were incubated with media containing H. pylori, the G(1) phase increased significantly (25%, P < 0.05) compared with controls after 24 h. In contrast, the control cells were able to pass through S phase. The inhibitory effects of H. pylori on the cell cycle of AGS cells were associated with a significant increase in p53 and p21 expression after 24 h. The expression of cyclin E was downregulated in AGS cells following exposure of AGS cells to H. pylori for 24 h. This study shows that H. pylori-induced growth inhibition in vitro is predominantly at the G(0)-G(1) checkpoint. Our results suggest that p53 may be important in H. pylori-induced cell cycle arrest. These results support a role for cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors in the G(1) cell cycle arrest exerted by H. pylori and its involvement in changing the regulatory proteins, p53, p21, and cyclin E in the cell cycle.
Antigens, Bacterial↗