Fibromyalgia: dental aspects

Fibromyalgia is a disease accompanied by diffuse chronic pain for >3 months and tenderness on palpation in at least 11 of 18 anatomic points (American College of Rheumatology criteria). Gnathalgia was also included in the revised fibromyalgia criteria in 2010. Some patients have facial pain spots, symptoms and signs of temporomandibular dysfunction in combination with chronic fatigue and sleep disorder. The paper presents the results of an anonymous questionnaire survey in patients with a valid diagnosis of fibromyalgia. The patients with this disease require a follow-up by a family physician, a rheumatologist, and a dentist

DIAGNOSIS OF OSTEOARTHROSIS IN PRIMARY HEALTH CARE OF BULGARIA

Osteoarthrosis is the most common rheumatic disease and occurs in more than 50% of all rheumatic patients. These patients are diagnosed and treated by rheumatologists, orthopedists, and neurologists in the primary health care ofBulgaria. The problems in these patients are primarily encountered by general practitioners (family physicians) who estimate the need for specialized medical care. The paper considers the organizational aspects of primary medical carefor patients with ostheoarthosis. Six-year data are analyzed

Recombinant aprotinin produced transgenic corn seed: Extraction and purification studies

Expression in transgenic plants is potentially one of the most economical systems for large-scale production of valuable peptide and protein products. However, the downstream processing of recombinant proteins produced in plants has not been extensively studied. In this work, we studied the extraction and purification of recombinant aprotinin, a protease inhibitor used as a therapeutic compound, produced in transgenic corn seed. Conditions for extraction from transgenic corn meal that maximize aprotinin concentration and its fraction of the total soluble protein in the extract were found: pH 3.0 and 200 mM NaCl. Aprotinin, together with a native corn trypsin inhibitor (CTI), was captured using a tryspin-agarose column. These two inhibitors were separated using an agarose-IDA-Cu2+ column that proved to efficiently absorb the CTI while the recombinant aprotinin was collected in the flowthrough with purity of at least 79%. The high purity of the recombinant aprotinin was verified by SDS-PAGE and N-terminal sequencing. The overall recombinant aprotinin recovery yield and purification factor were 49% and 280, respectively. Because CTI was also purified, the recovery and purification process studied has the advantage of possible CTI co-production. Finally, the work presented here introduces additional information on the recovery and purification of recombinant proteins produced in plants and corroborates with past research on the potential use of plants as biorreactors. (C) 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.80326827

Supercritical fluid extraction of black pepper (Piper nigrun L.) essential oil

Fixed bed extraction of black pepper essential oil using supercritical carbon dioxide as a solvent was studied. Composition of the extracted oil was obtained by chromatographic analysis, and solubility of the oil was determined using the dynamic method of extraction. Experiments were conducted at 30 degrees C, 40 degrees C and 50 degrees C and 150, 200 and 300 bar. Solubility varied from 0.09 to 0.15 g oil/g CO2 and increased with the solvent density. In the extraction curves (mass of oil versus mass of CO2) it was possible to identify the constant extraction rate period as well as the failing and diffusion rate periods. About 70% of the total oil was extracted during the constant rate period. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.14323524