Monradsimmons0715

The multiplex PCR assay with a cocktail of all the four primer pairs detected four thrips vectors efficiently and could discriminate all of them concurrently in a single reaction. CONCLUSION The multiplex PCR reported in this study could identify the major thrips vectors reported in India. The assay will be useful in ascertaining distribution profile of major thrips vectors, disease epidemiology, screening large samples, and quarantine.BACKGROUND Visual impairment disproportionately affects people in the low-income countries. A high proportion of visual impairment can be prevented or cured. Yet, care seeking for eye health is restricted for women and older adults. This article uses the intersectionality approach to understand how eye care seeking behaviour changes in men and women with increase in age and visual impairment in a poor and underserved region of India. It brings forth the commonalities and differences between the various groups. METHODS The article is based on qualitative data. Persons aged 50 years and more are categorized into young-old, middle-old and old-old. Men and women with low vision/ high visual impairment have been selected from each of the three age groups. In-depth interviews have been carried out with 24 study participants. Data saturation has been attained. The JHPIEGO Gender Analysis Framework underpins the study. The narrative data has been coded in NVivo 10 software. RESULTS Various symptoms are associated wit presents a granulated understanding of eye care seeking behaviour among older adults in India. Such differentials need to be taken cognizance of in programmes promoting universal access to health care. Existing conceptualizations on access to health care need to be revisited.BACKGROUND The current guidelines recommend both repeat stenting and drug-coated balloons (DCB) for in-stent restenosis (ISR) lesions, if technically feasible. However, real-world clinical data on the interventional strategies in patients with left main bifurcation (LMB)-ISR have not been elucidated. METHODS Seventy-five patients with LMB-ISR, who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) between January 2009 and July 2015, were retrospectively reviewed for the present study (repeat drug eluting stent [DES] implantation [n = 51], DCB angioplasty [n = 24]). RESULTS Analysis of the baseline characteristics showed that the patients in the DCB group had a lower incidence of non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction/ST segment elevation myocardial infarction at the index PCI (8.3% vs. 25.5%; p = 0.12), higher low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol level (92.9 mg/dL vs. 81.7 mg/dL; p = 0.09), and more "stent-in-stent" lesions (25% vs. 7.8%; p = 0.07) than those in the DES group. A smaller post-procedural minimal target lesion lumen diameter was also noted in the DCB group than in the DES group (2.71 mm vs. 2.85 mm; p = 0.03). The cumulative incidence rates of major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) were similar between both groups (median follow-up duration, 868 days; MACE rate, 25% in the DCB group vs. 25.5% in the DES group; p = 0.96). learn more The multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that the true bifurcation of ISR was an independent risk predictor of MACEs (hazard ratio, 4.62; 95% confidence interval, 1.572-13.561; p  less then  0.01). CONCLUSIONS DES and DCB showed comparable long-term clinical results in patients with LMB-ISR lesions.BACKGROUND Dolichospermum circinale is a filamentous bloom-forming cyanobacterium responsible for biosynthesis of the paralytic shellfish toxins (PST), including saxitoxin. PSTs are neurotoxins and in their purified form are important analytical standards for monitoring the quality of water and seafood and biomedical research tools for studying neuronal sodium channels. More recently, PSTs have been recognised for their utility as local anaesthetics. Characterisation of the transcriptional elements within the saxitoxin (sxt) biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) is a first step towards accessing these molecules for biotechnology. RESULTS In D. circinale AWQC131C the sxt BGC is transcribed from two bidirectional promoter regions encoding five individual promoters. These promoters were identified experimentally using 5' RACE and their activity assessed via coupling to a lux reporter system in E. coli and Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. Transcription of the predicted drug/metabolite transporter (DMT) encoded by sxtPER was found to initiate from two promoters, PsxtPER1 and PsxtPER2. In E. coli, strong expression of lux from PsxtP, PsxtD and PsxtPER1 was observed while expression from Porf24 and PsxtPER2 was remarkably weaker. In contrast, heterologous expression in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 showed that expression of lux from PsxtP, PsxtPER1, and Porf24 promoters was statistically higher compared to the non-promoter control, while PsxtD showed poor activity under the described conditions. CONCLUSIONS Both of the heterologous hosts investigated in this study exhibited high expression levels from three of the five sxt promoters. These results indicate that the majority of the native sxt promoters appear active in different heterologous hosts, simplifying initial cloning efforts. Therefore, heterologous expression of the sxt BGC in either E. coli or Synechocystis could be a viable first option for producing PSTs for industrial or biomedical purposes.BACKGROUND The effects of whole grain diet on cardiovascular risks in obese and overweight adults is not well established. Our goal was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis on the effect of whole grain diet on cardiovascular risks in obese/overweight adults. METHODS PubMed, Embase and Cochrane were systematically scanned for randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and studies were selected based on certain inclusion and exclusion criteria. The primary outcome was the effectiveness of whole grain food consumption in reducing body weight. The secondary outcomes were the effect of whole grain food consumption on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors including plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), insulin resistance index, blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), C-reactive protein (CRP), and waist circumference in obese/overweight adults. RESULTS Our results showed that whole grain consumption was associated with lower body weight (mean difference (MD) = - 0.5, 95% confidence intervals (CI) [- 0.