A Study into the Causes of Floods and its Socio-economic Effects on the People of Sawaba in the Bolgatanga Municipality, Upper East, Ghana

ABSTRACT Flooding is a phenomenon which can occur if the amount of precipitation in an area exceeds the evaporation rate and infiltration capacity of the soil and it i

Involvement of toll-like receptor 9 polymorphism in cervical cancer development

The role played by the polymorphism located in Toll-like Receptor 9 (TLR9) as a risk factor of cervical cancer remains elusive. Therefore, we studied the association of the TLR9 −1486 T/C (rs187084) and C2848T (rs352140) polymorphisms with cervical cancer. The TLR9 −1486 T/C and C2848T polymorphism was genotyped in 426 patients and 460 unrelated healthy females from the Polish population. Logistic regression analysis adjusting for age, pregnancy, oral contraceptive use, tobacco smoking, and menopausal status showed that both the TLR9 −1486 T/C and C2848T polymorphisms could be a genetic risk factor for cervical cancer. For the TLR9 −1486 T/C polymorphism, the adjusted OR for patients with the C/T genotype versus T/T genotype was 1.371 (95 % CI 1.021–1.842, p = 0.0361), the adjusted OR for the C/C genotype vs the T/T genotype was 1.300 (95 % CI 1.016–1.507, p = 0.0096), and the adjusted OR for the C/T or C/C genotype vs the T/T genotype was 1.448 (95 % CI 1.099–1.908, p = 0.0083). For the C2848T polymorphism, the adjusted OR for patients with the C/T genotype vs C/C genotype was 1.443 (95 % CI 1.019–2.043, p = 0.0380), the adjusted OR for the T/T genotype vs the C/C genotype was 1.237 (95 % CI 1.016–1.507, p = 0.0328), and the adjusted OR for the T/C or T/T genotype vs the C/C genotype was 1.345 (95 % CI 0.976–1.855, p = 0.0700). Our studies suggest that the TLR9 −1486 T/C and C2848T polymorphisms may be a genetic risk factor for cervical cancer

In Cina il made in Italy deve imparare a crescere

I prodotti italiani non sono esportati nel Paese asiatico stabilmente e perdono progressivamente terreno: mancano campagne mirate a diffondere e far conoscere le tradizioni del nostro Paese, le etichette e le caratteristiche dei prodotti sono solo in italiano e soprattutto sono scarsi gli investimenti in promozione e marketin

In vitro antifungal susceptibility of Trichophyton violaceum isolated from tinea capitis patients.

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Evaluation of two molecular techniques for rapid detection of the main dermatophytic agents of tinea capitis

BACKGROUND: Tinea capitis is very common in Western China, with the most widespread aetiological agent being Trichophyton violaceum, while Microsporum canis is prevalent in the remainder of China. Conventional diagnostics and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequencing analyses have proven relatively limited due to the close phylogenetic relationship of anthropophilic dermatophytes. Therefore, alternative molecular tools with sufficient specificity, reproducibility and sensitivity are necessary. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate two molecular techniques [multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) and rolling circle amplification (RCA)] for rapid detection of the aetiological agents of tinea capitis, T. violaceum and M. canis. METHODS: Probes of RCA and MLPA were designed with target sequences in the rDNA ITS gene region. Strains tested consist of 31 T. violaceum, 22 M. canis and 24 reference strains of species that are taxonomically close to the target species. RESULTS: The specificity and reproducibility of RCA and MLPA in detection of T. violaceum and M. canis were both 100% in both species. Sensitivity testing showed that RCA was positive at concentrations down to 1·68 × 10(6) copies of DNA in the TvioRCA probe, and 2·7 × 10(8) copies of DNA in McRCA. MLPA yielded positive results at concentrations of DNA down to 1·68 × 10(1) copies in the TvioMLPA probe and 2·7 × 10(2) in McMLPA. CONCLUSIONS: The two techniques were sufficiently specific and sensitive for discriminating the target DNA of T. violaceum and M. canis from that of closely related dermatophytes. RCA and MLPA are advantageous in their reliability and ease of operation compared with standard polymerase chain reaction and conventional methods

In vitro antifungal susceptibility of Trichophyton violaceum isolated from tinea capitis patients

OBJECTIVES: Trichophyton violaceum is an anthropophilic dermatophyte that is endemic to parts of Africa and Asia and is sporadic in Europe. T. violaceum mainly causes tinea capitis in both children and adolescents. Although the infections caused by T. violaceum are of considerable medical importance, its antifungal susceptibility profile remains poorly examined. METHODS: In this study, we tested the in vitro antifungal susceptibility of a set of clinical T. violaceum isolates obtained from tinea capitis patients, using the CLSI broth microdilution method. We tested eight antifungals and used isolates collected from Western China (21), Eastern China (12), the Middle East (1), Europe (20), South Africa (7) and Canada (1). RESULTS: The geometric means of the MICs of the antifungals for all isolates were as follows (in increasing order): posaconazole, 0.021 mg/L; terbinafine, 0.023 mg/L; voriconazole, 0.062 mg/L; amphotericin B, 0.20 mg/L; itraconazole, 0.34 mg/L; caspofungin, 0.56 mg/L; fluconazole, 4.23 mg/L; and flucytosine, 8.46 mg/L. No statistically significant differences in the susceptibility profiles of T. violaceum were detected within the geographical regions tested. CONCLUSIONS: Posaconazole, terbinafine and voriconazole were shown to be the most potent antifungal agents against T. violaceum isolates obtained from tinea capitis patients worldwide. These results might help clinicians in developing appropriate therapies that have a high probability of successfully treating tinea capitis due to T. violaceum