We propose an analytical and conceptual framework for a systematic and comprehensive assessment of disease seasonality to detect changes and to quantify and compare temporal patterns. To demonstrate ...the proposed technique, we examined seasonal patterns of six enterically transmitted reportable diseases (EDs) in Massachusetts collected over a 10-year period (1992–2001). We quantified the timing and intensity of seasonal peaks of ED incidence and examined the synchronization in timing of these peaks with respect to ambient temperature. All EDs, except hepatitis A, exhibited well-defined seasonal patterns which clustered into two groups. The peak in daily incidence of Campylobacter and Salmonella closely followed the peak in ambient temperature with the lag of 2–14 days. Cryptosporidium, Shigella, and Giardia exhibited significant delays relative to the peak in temperature (~40 days, P<0·02). The proposed approach provides a detailed quantification of seasonality that enabled us to detect significant differences in the seasonal peaks of enteric infections which would have been lost in an analysis using monthly or weekly cumulative information. This highly relevant to disease surveillance approach can be used to generate and test hypotheses related to disease seasonality and potential routes of transmission with respect to environmental factors.
Despite of medical advances, the number of patients suffering on non-healing chronic wounds is still increasing. This fact is attended by physical and emotional distress and an economic load. The ...majority of chronic wounds are infected of harmful microbials in a protecting extracellular matrix. These biofilms inhibit wound healing. Biofilm-growing bacteria developed unique survival properties, which still challenge the appropriate wound therapy. The present in-vitro biofilm models are not suitable for translational research. By means of a novel in-vivo like human plasma biofilm model (hpBIOM), this study systematically analysed the influence of 3 probiotics on the survival of five clinically relevant pathogenic microorganisms.
Human plasma was used to produce the innovate biofilm. Pathogenic microorganisms were administered to the plasma. By stimulating the production of a fibrin scaffold, stable coagula-like discs with integrated pathogens were produced. The five clinically relevant pathogens P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, S. epidermidis, E. faecium and C. albicans were challenged to the probiotics L. plantarum, B. lactis and S. cerevisiae. The probiotics were administered on top of the biofilm and the survival was quantified after 4 h and 24 h of incubation. For statistics, two-way ANOVA with post-hoc Tukey's HSD test was applied. P-value > 0.05 was considered to be significant.
SEM micrographs depicted the pathogens on the surface of the fibrin scaffold, arranged in close proximity and produced the glycocalyx. The application of probiotics induced different growth-reducing capacities towards the pathogens. B. lactis and S. cerevisiae showed slight bacteria-reducing properties. The survival of C. albicans was not affected at all. The most antimicrobial activity was detected after the treatment with L. plantarum.
This study successfully reproduced a novel human biofilm model, which provides a human wound milieu and individual immune competence. The success of bacteriotherapy is dependent on the strain combination, the number of probiotics and the activity of the immune cells. The eradicating effect of L. plantarum on P. aeruginosa should be emphasized.
Abstract Objective Dentine hypersensitivity is an increasing problem in dentistry. Several products are available that claim to occlude open dentine tubules and to reduce dentine hypersensitivity. ...The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of several different products on dentine tubule occlusion using qualitative and quantitative methods. Materials and methods Dentine discs were prepared from extracted human premolars and molars. The dentine discs were brushed with 6 different experimental toothpastes, 1 positive control toothpaste and 1 negative control without toothpaste; the brushing simulated a total brushing time of 1 year. Half of the discs were etched with lemon juice after toothpaste application. Standardized scanning electron microphotographs were taken and converted into binary black and white images. The black pixels, which represented the open dentine tubules, were counted and statistically evaluated. Then, half of the dentine discs were broken, and the occlusion of the dentine tubules was investigated using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Results The number of open dentine tubules decreased significantly after brushing with 5 of the 6 tested toothpastes. A significant effect was observed after acid erosion for 3 of the 6 tested toothpastes. EDS revealed partly closed dentine tubules after brushing with 3 toothpastes; however, no partly closed dentine tubules were observed after acid erosion. Conclusions Some toothpastes are capable of partial dentine tubule occlusion. This occlusion is unstable and can be removed with acid erosion. Clinical significance Desensitizing toothpastes are the most common products that are used against dentine hypersensitivity, and these toothpastes affect dentine tubule occlusion.
The fluorimetry method for assaying cellobiohydrolase activity (CBHA), originally developed for pure cultures of microorganims, has been modified for studying samples of the digestive tract content ...of wild small mammals. Several fixation methods for the samples have been studied. The optimal fixation agent is 86% glycerol. A mathematical model of the dependence of the measured CBHA values on the concentration of chyme in samples has been developed. The model confirmed the effect of the chyme concentration on the analyzed results in the range of 5–15 g/L. The optimal concentration of chyme is equal to 10 g/L; i.e., a sample should contain 0.2 g of chyme in 1 mL of 86% glycerol, so the sample collection and fixation could be easily performed in the field.
Objectives
: This study examined the influence of lower extremity body composition and muscle strength on the severity of mobility-disability in community-dwelling older adults.
Methods
: Fifty-seven ...older males and females (age 74.2 ± 7 yrs; BMI 28.9 ± 6 kg/m
2
) underwent an objective assessment of lower extremity functional performance, the Short Physical Performance Battery test (SPPB). Participants were subsequently classified as having moderate (SPPB score > 7: n = 38) or severe mobility impairments (SPPB score ≤ 7: n = 19). Body composition was assessed using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and provided measures of bone mineral density (BMD), total leg lean mass (TLM) and total body fat. Maximal hip extensor muscle strength was estimated using the bilateral leg press exercise. Multiple logistic regression analysis was utilized to identify the significant independent variables that predicted the level of mobility-disability.
Results
: TLM was a strong independent predictor of the level of functional impairment, after accounting for chronic medical conditions, BMD, body fat, body weight and habitual physical activity. In a separate predictive model, reduced muscle strength was also a significant predictor of severe functional impairment. The severity of mobility-disability was not influenced by gender (p = 0.71). A strong association was elicited between TLM and muscle strength (r = 0.78, p < 0.01).
Conclusions
: These data suggest that lower extremity muscle mass is an important determinant of physical performance among functionally-limited elders. Such findings may have important implications for the design of suitable strategies to maintain independence in older adults with compromised physical functioning. Additional studies are warranted to assess the efficacy of lifestyle, exercise or therapeutic interventions for increasing lean body mass in this population.
The validity of recall of early menstrual characteristics is of interest because of their putative role in the etiology of breast cancer and other diseases. A retrospective follow-up of the Newton ...Girls Study (1965–1975) provided an opportunity to assess the accuracy and precision of recall of several early menstrual characteristics. In 1998–1999, 57 percent of the original 793 Newton Girls Study participants completed a mailed questionnaire to assess the accuracy of recall for age and body size at menarche, usual cycle length during the first 2 years, and age at regularity. Recalled and original age at menarche were highly correlated (r = 0.79, p < 0.001). The body mass index percentile at menarche was well correlated with recalled body size at menarche (r = 0.61, p < 0.001), but with some evidence of systematic bias. Overall, a woman's recall of menarcheal age and body size was better than recall of cycle length and occurrence of regularity. The failure to identify certain menstrual characteristics as exposures for subsequent disease may reflect limitations in the accuracy and precision of the recalled measures.
Calcium is one of the most widespread and, consequently, low-cost metals on Earth. It has been applied for a long time in modifying and alloying alloys of heavy metals, in particular, lead and ...copper. It is used as a modifier in cast irons and steels. Calcium began being applied for alloying light alloys based on aluminum and magnesium comparatively recently. In this review, the application fields of metallic calcium and its influence on the structure and properties of various alloys are considered. Alloys based on aluminum–calcium eutectic have been systematically investigated over last few years, and it has been established that they possess casting properties no worse than these of silumins, and they can be hot-rolled and cold-rolled with a high degree of deformation. Ternary and more complex phase diagrams of systems including calcium are constructed and multicomponent alloys based on them are investigated. All these circumstances make it possible to outline several groups of new promising Ca-containing aluminum alloys: (i) alloys hardening without quenching due to the isolation of nanodimensional particles of Al
3
Zr, Al
3
Sc, and Al
3
(Zr,Sc) phases; (ii) high-strength alloys alloyed with traditional hardening elements of the aluminum solid solution, such as zinc and magnesium; and (iii) composite alloys having more than 20% eutectic intermetallic compounds in the structure. All these materials have reduced density, an improved set of operational properties, increased corrosion resistance, and high manufacturability when producing cast and deformed half-finished products.
Using the fermentation and HPLC methods, we have studied the dynamics of lactose, glucose, and galactose fermentation and the formation of ethyl alcohol by the dairy yeasts
Kluyveromyces marxianus
,
...K. lactis,
and interstrain hybrids. Hybrids of
K. lactis
H1-2 (NRRL Y-1118 × NRRL Y-1140) and H3-1 (NRRL Y-1140 × VKM Y-1333), as well as
K. marxianus
VKM Y-1337 showed the highest fermentation activity. Interstrain hybridization was proven to be a promising method for creating dairy strains of
Kluyveromyces
that actively ferment lactose.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), from 2000 to 2014, reported cases of legionellosis per 100 000 population increased by 300% in the USA, although reports on disease ...seasonality are inconsistent. Using two national databases, we assessed seasonal patterns of legionellosis in the USA. We created a monthly time series from 1993 to 2015 of reported cases of legionellosis from the CDC, and from 1997 to 2006 of medical claims of legionellosis-related hospitalisation in older adults from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS). We split the study time interval into two segments (before and after 2003), and applied a Poisson harmonic regression model to each dataset and each segment. The time series of monthly counts exhibited a significant shift of seasonal peaks from mid-September (9.676 ± 0.164 months) before 2003 to mid-August (8.452 ± 0.042 months) after 2003, along with an alarming increase in the amplitude of seasonal peaks in both CDC and CMS data. The lowest monthly reported cases of legionellosis in 2015 (281) exceed the maximum value reported before 2003 (206). We also observed a discrepancy between CDC and CMS data, suggesting that not all cases of legionellosis diagnosed by hospital-based laboratories were reported to the CDC. Improved reporting of legionellosis is required to better inform the public and organise disease prevention.
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