Pineapple by-products are good sources of bromelain, a complex enzyme with commercial applications. This study evaluated the feasibility of producing bromelain powders from pineapple waste using an ...organic solvent-free approach. Pineapple by-products (from var. MD2), including cores, peels, crowns, stems, and basal stems, were homogenized with deionized water, and the pH of the mixture was adjusted to 4.5 and 9 (isoelectric points of fruit bromelain and stem bromelain), clarified, ultra-filtered, and freeze-dried to produce bromelain powders. The enzymatic activity of the bromelain powders was measured using the gelatin and casein digestion methods. The bromelain powders from the crowns did not show significant enzymatic activity (
< 0.05). Meanwhile, bromelain powders produced from the cores and peels had an enzymatic activity of 694 gelatin digesting units (GDU)/g and 124 casein digesting units (CDU)/mg, and 1179 GDU/g and 217 CDU/mg, respectively. Bromelain powders from the basal stems showed the highest enzymatic activity (2909 GDU/g and 717 CDU/mg). Increasing the pH of the liquid mixture before the purification and freeze drying significantly (
< 0.05) reduced the enzymatic activity of the bromelain powders. Using a practical and organic solvent-free approach, this study demonstrates the feasibility of producing bromelain powders with high enzymatic activity from pineapple waste.
A better understanding of MOX fuel in-pile behaviour requires a very detailed characterization of the Pu distribution in the pellet before and after irradiation. Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) ...can be used to determine the distributions of chemical elements with a spatial resolution of 1
μm. This paper describes the development of X-ray microanalysis techniques to produce semi-quantitative ‘maps’ of plutonium concentrations in order to rapidly characterize large areas of the fuel microstructure (1
mm
2) with reasonable accuracy. A new segmentation technique based on statistical compatibility is then proposed, so as to finely describe the MIMAS MOX fuel microstructure. Two materials were finely characterized to demonstrate the reliability of this new method. In each case, the results demonstrate the good and reliable accuracy of this new characterization methodology. The analysis method used is currently able to identify three so-called phases (Pu-rich agglomerates, a coating phase and uranium-rich agglomerates), as well as to quantify the plutonium distribution and the plutonium content of these three phases. The impact of the fabrication process on the microstructure can be seen both in the surface distribution variations of the plutonium and in the local plutonium content variations.
Surgical management of thyroid orbitopathy Chiarelli, Angelo G.M; De Min, Valeria; Saetti, Roberto ...
Journal of plastic, reconstructive & aesthetic surgery,
02/2010, Letnik:
63, Številka:
2
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Summary Purpose To examine the outcomes of orbital surgical decompression in patients affected by thyroid orbitopathy with mild-to-severe proptosis. The surgical procedures included fat removal alone ...or combined with orbital bone walls fracture. Methods An analysis of a retrospective case series of 56 patients (115 orbits) who underwent orbital decompression for Graves' orbitopathy between July 1997 and September 2006 using different surgical techniques: orbital fat decompression alone or combined with bone decompression via coronal, trans-palpebral or trans-nasal access; the endoscopic trans-nasal access for medial orbital wall decompression associated with fat removal has been the procedure of choice in the last 5 years. Results The mean proptosis reduction was 3.40 mm (0–8 mm) by fat removal and 5.40 mm (1–10 mm) by fat removal and bone decompression combined. The association of both procedures reduces the amount of fat to be removed, avoiding enophthalmos and thus decreasing the number of orbital walls to be fractured. The incidence of new-onset primary-gaze diplopia was 38%. Most of the patients subsequently underwent eyelid surgery to reduce retraction and to achieve symmetry. Conclusions Orbital decompression is effective in reducing proptosis, exposure keratopathy and congestive apex symptoms, and in improving cosmesis. Endoscopic nasal decompression combined with orbital fat removal allows a precise and gradual medial and infero-medial wall decompression; it permits a less aggressive approach to the bone orbital decompression on the whole. In any case, surgical procedures need to be tailored to the individual patient, knowing that further operations are essential to improve cosmetic results after proptosis correction.
Arterial stiffness, measured by pulse wave velocity (PWV), is highly predictive of mortality in dialysis patients. As such, PWV is frequently used in clinical research studies and may have a role in ...clinical practice if shown to be suitably reliable. Measurement of PWV using the SphygmoCor system is known to be an observer-dependent technique. The aim of this study was to investigate the ability of 4 observers to acquire reproducible PWV and pulse wave analysis (PWA) measurements after a 6-week training period.
Reproducibility of this technique was investigated using repeated measurements of the carotid-femoral PWV and PWA of the radial pulse by the 4 observers after a period of training. Both healthy volunteers and individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD) were recruited for this study. Measurements were considered to have met quality control if 2 consecutive measurements were visually acceptable, within 1.5 m/s of each other and had a standard deviation of less than 10%. A fixed-effect analysis of variance was used to test the variation in measurements between the observers; the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to assess the statistical agreement between the observers.
A total of 20 individuals volunteered for PWV and PWA measurements (13 with CKD and 7 without); the mean age was 58 years (range 24-83). The average PWV was 9.4 +/- 3.6 m/s. There was no significant difference shown between the 4 observers' measurements (p = 0.25). Further, there was good statistical agreement between the observers (ICC = 0.95).
After a period of training it is possible for multiple observers to have reproducible measurements of PWV and PWA. Assurance of reproducibility is important when more than one individual is collecting data in a study, particularly when assessing changes over time.
We describe the case of a 6-year-old boy with a de novo deletion of the long arm of chromosome 1 encompassing band 1q31.1-q32.1, minor facial anomalies, mild developmental delay, and behavioral ...disorders. His postnatal karyotype was normal. Using array-comparative genomic hybridization, we identified and characterized a de novo 1q interstitial deletion of about 15.6 Mb, which partially overlaps those of other reported cases. We considered the gene content of the deleted region in an attempt to compare the clinical features of our patient with these other cases, even though they were not characterized molecularly in detail. The most remarkable difference was the absence of microcephaly. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a de novo 1q31.1-q32.1 deletion. Moreover, it illustrates how molecular delineation associated with fine clinical characterization can improve the genotype-phenotype correlations of classical cytogenetic abnormalities.
Fungal peritonitis (FP) is a serious complication for peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients, determining hospitalization, technique failure, catheter loss and death. In the 2005 update, treatment ...recommendations for FP from the International Society of Peritoneal Dialysis (ISPD) advocate catheter removal immediately after fungi are identified by microscopy or culture. The availability of more effective medical treatments could therefore be of great importance. The aim of this report is to describe a case of a 43-year-old, diabetic, HIV positive PD patient with fluconazole resistant Candida peritonitis, who was treated with an i.p. taurolidine solution. Taurolidine is a non-antibiotic antimicrobial, with broad bactericidal and fungicidal properties. It has been used during surgery for lavage of the peritoneum in cases of peritonitis. Its mechanism of action is related to direct toxic action on micro-organisms, through a chemical reaction between active taurolidine derivatives and structures on the cell wall. Treatment failed because the patient had severe burning pain during i.p. administration of the drug, limiting its dose. PD catheter removal allowed complete recovery. It remains undetermined if, with different doses and methodology, taurolidine could be more effective in treating bacterial and/or fungal peritonitis. Currently, catheter removal remains the most effective therapy of fungal peritonitis.
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