A new and efficient method has been designed to prepare 2,2'-arylene-substituted bis(4H-3,1-benzoxazin-4-one) derivatives by using the mixture of cyanuric chloride and N,N-dimethylformamide in a microwave-assisted reaction. The method used and presented here has good rate enhancement and excellent yields.
Infection following grade IIIB open tibial fracture is common. The primary aim of managing this condition is to achieve control of infection before the bone reconstruction procedure is performed. The outcomes for such patients have not been evaluated in the literature. This study was conducted to examine the outcome of a multi-stage procedure for the treatment of infected grade IIIB open tibial fractures.
Introduction Cervical cancer caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV) is a common cancer in women. There is no published data on the recent incidence of cervical dysplasia, cervical cancer and genital warts caused by the different types of HPVs in Brunei Darussalam.
Methods A cross-sectional, retrospective study was conducted utilising data from patients diagnosed with cervical cancer during the period 2005–2009 in Brunei Darussalam. The varying incidences of different types of cervical lesions among various ethnic and age groups, and in the overall population, were determined.
Results The mean age-standardised incidence of invasive cervical cancer during the five-year period was 24.9 per 100,000 women per year (95% confidence interval [CI] 21.7, 28.1). Age-specific invasive cervical cancer incidence peaked in the age group 45–59 years. Chinese females tended to have a higher incidence of invasive cervical cancer (28.2 per 100,000 women per year; 95% CI 17.8, 38.7) than Malay females (20.6 per 100,000 women per year; 95%
CI 17.1, 24.2), while other ethnic groups in Brunei Darussalam had a significantly lower incidence (6.5 per 100,000 women per year; 95% CI 3.0, 10.0).
Conclusion The results suggest that Brunei Darussalam has a relatively higher incidence of cervical cancer compared to its neighbouring countries. The findings support the need for more comprehensive screening, public education programmes and vaccination against HPV in the country.
Liver transplantation is the only solution for end-stage liver diseases. The common hepatic artery (CHA) arises from the coeliac trunk (CT), and the right (RHA) and left hepatic (LHA) arteries are its terminal branches. An abnormal arterial pattern would influence the surgical outcome. The anterior layer of the lesser omentum of a female cadaver was cleaned to identify the CHA, which was traced backwards for its origin and toward the porta hepatis for its terminal branches. In this case, the replaced RHA originated from the CT and ran posterior to the portal vein and the common bile duct. The replaced LHA arose from the left gastric artery. The CHA originated from the CT and branched out as the middle hepatic and gastroduodenal arteries. The replaced RHA and LHA with alteration in relation to the neighbouring structures is a complex and rare variant. Knowledge of this uncommon arterial anomaly is beneficial for hepatobiliary surgeons.
Tuberculosis remains an important cause of morbidity and mortality, especially in underdeveloped and developing nations. Manifestations could be nonspecific and may mimic many other conditions, including malignancies. Oesophageal involvement is surprisingly rare despite the high prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis and the close proximity of these two structures. We report two cases of oesophageal tuberculosis; a 73-year-old man with simultaneous oesophageal, stomach and duodenal involvement, and a 45-year-old man with isolated oesophageal involvement. Underlying malignancies were initially suspected in both cases, but they were eventually diagnosed as tuberculosis.
We report a case of systemic diffuse large B-cell lymphoma presenting with extensive infiltration of the skin. A 56-year-old woman presented with a two-month history of pruritic erythematous plaques and nodules over the neck, trunk and upper limbs. She also had night sweats, weight loss, lethargy and reduced effort tolerance. Systemic examination revealed a pale, ill appearance with hepatosplenomegaly and lymphadenopathy. Blood investigations showed pancytopenia (haemoglobin 6.3 g/dL, total white cell count 3.0 × 10(9)/L, platelet count 138 × 10(9)/L) with a few suspicious mononuclear cells and a mildly elevated lactate dehydrogenase level (478 U/L). Skin biopsy demonstrated diffuse sheets and nodular infiltrates of CD20 and CD79a positive neoplastic cells in the dermis and subcutis. Computed tomography revealed multiple cervical, axillary, mediastinal, para-aortic and mesenteric lymph nodes. Bone marrow aspiration and trephine biopsy confirmed marrow involvement by non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The patient was treated with chemotherapy, which resulted in resolution of the skin lesions.
MeSH terms: Female; Humans; Middle Aged; Pancytopenia/etiology; Pruritus/etiology; Skin Neoplasms/complications; Skin Neoplasms/drug therapy; Skin Neoplasms/pathology; Skin Neoplasms/secondary*; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse/complications; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse/drug therapy; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse/pathology*
Litsea elliptica Blume has been traditionally used to treat headache, fever, and stomach ulcer, and has also been used as an insect repellent. The acute and subacute toxicities of L. elliptica essential oil were evaluated orally by gavage in female Sprague-Dawley rats. For the acute toxicity study, L. elliptica essential oil was administered in doses from 500 to 4000 mg/kg (single dose), and in the subacute toxicity test, the following doses were used: 125, 250, and 500 mg/kg, for 28 consecutive days. In the acute toxicity study, L. elliptica essential oil caused dose-dependent adverse behaviours and mortality. The median lethal dose value was 3488.86 mg/kg and the acute non-observed-adversed-effect level value was found to be 500 mg/kg. The subacute toxicity study of L. elliptica essential oil did not reveal alterations in body weight, and food and water consumptions. The haematological and biochemical analyses did not show significant differences between control and treated groups in most of the parameters examined, except for the hemoglobin, mean cell hemoglobin concentration, mean cell volume, mean cell hemoglobin, serum albumin, and serum sodium. However, these differences were still within the normal range. No abnormalities or histopathological changes were observed in the liver, pancreatic islet of Langerhans, and renal glomerulous and tubular cells of all treated groups. In conclusion, L. elliptica essential oil can be classified in the U group, which is defined as a group unlikely to present an acute hazard according to World Health Organization (WHO) classification.
Two reef margin species of tropical sea urchins, Echinometra sp. C (Ec) and Echinometra oblonga (Eo), occur sympatrically on Okinawa intertidal reefs in southern Japan. Hybridization between these species was examined through a series of cross-fertilization experiments. At limited sperm concentrations, where conspecific crosses reached near 100% fertilization, both heterospecific crosses showed high fertilization rates (81%-85%). The compatibility of the gametes demonstrated that if gamete recognition molecules are involved in fertilization of these species, they are not strongly species-specific. We found that conspecific crosses reached peak fertilization levels much faster than did heterospecific crosses, indicating the presence of a prezygotic barrier to hybridization in the gametes. Larval survival, metamorphosis, and juvenile and adult survival of hybrid groups were nearly identical to those of their parent species. Hybrids from crosses in both directions developed normally through larval stages to sexually mature adults, indicating that neither gametic incompatibility nor hybrid inviability appeared to maintain reproductive isolation between these species. In adults, Ec×Ec crosses gave the highest live weight, followed by Eo (ova)×Ec (sperm), Ec (ova)×Eo (sperm), and Eo×Eo. Other growth performance measures (viz., test size, Aristotle's lantern length, and gonad index) of hybrid groups and their parental siblings showed the same trends. The phenotypic color patterns of the hybrids were closer to the maternal coloration, whereas spine length, tube-foot and gonad spicule characteristics, pedicellaria valve length, and gamete sizes showed intermediate features. Adult F(1) hybrids were completely fertile and displayed high fertilization success in F(1) backcrosses, eliminating the likelihood that hybrid sterility is a postzygotic mechanism of reproductive isolation. Conversely, intensive surveys failed to find hybrid individuals in the field, suggesting the lack or rarity of natural hybridization. This strongly suggests that reproductive isolation is achieved by prezygotic isolating mechanism(s). Of these mechanisms, habitat segregation, gamete competition, differences in spawning times, gametic incompatibility or other genetic and non-genetic factors appear to be important in maintaining the integrity of these species.
Ocular parasitosis in human is more prevalent in geographical areas where environmental factors and poor sanitary conditions favor the parasitism between man and animals. Lesions in the eye can be due to damage directly caused by the infectious pathogen, indirect pathology caused by toxic products, or the immune response incited by infections or ectopic parasitism. The epidemiology of parasitic ocular diseases reflects the habitat of the causative parasites as well as the habits and health status of the patient. An ocular examination may provide clues to the underlying disease/infection, and an awareness of the possibilities of travel-related pathology may shed light on an ocular presentation. This paper is a comprehensive review of the parasitic diseases of the eye. The majority of the clinically important species of parasites involved in eye infection are reviewed in this paper. Parasites are discussed by the disease or infection they cause.
Oxidative stress and free radicals have been implicated in the pathogenesis of osteoporosis. Therefore, antioxidant compounds have the potential to be used in the prevention and treatment of the disease. In this study, we investigated the effects of virgin coconut oil (VCO) on bone microarchitecture in a postmenopausal osteoporosis rat model. VCO is a different form of coconut oil as it is rich with antioxidants. Three-month-old female rats were randomly grouped into baseline, sham-operated, ovariectomized control (Ovx), and ovariectomized rats fed with 8% VCO in their diet for six weeks (Ovx+VCO). Bone histomorphometry of the right femora was carried out at the end of the study. Rats supplemented with VCO had a significantly greater bone volume and trabecular number while trabecular separation was lower than the Ovx group. In conclusion, VCO was effective in maintaining bone structure and preventing bone loss in estrogen-deficient rat model.
A detailed study on the conflicting role that colloid stability plays in magnetophoresis is presented. Magnetic iron oxide particles (MIOPs) that were sterically stabilized via surface modification with poly(sodium 4-styrene sulfonate) of different molecular weights (i.e., 70 and 1000 kDa) were employed as our model system. Both sedimentation kinetics and quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) measurements suggested that PSS 70 kDa is a better stabilizer as compared to PSS 1000 kDa. This observation is mostly attributed to the bridging flocculation of PSS 1000 kDa decorated MIOPs originated from the extended polymeric conformation layer. Later, a lab-scale high gradient magnetic separation (HGMS) device was designed to study the magnetophoretic collection of MIOPs. Our experimental results revealed that the more colloidally stable the MIOP suspension is, the harder it is to be magnetically isolated by HGMS. At 50 mg/L, naked MIOPs without coating can be easily captured by HGMS at separation efficiency up to 96.9 ± 2.6%. However, the degree of separation dropped quite drastically to 83.1 ± 1.2% and 67.7 ± 4.6%, for MIOPs with PSS 1000k and PSS 70k coating, respectively. This observation clearly implies that polyelectrolyte coating that was usually employed to electrosterically stabilize a colloidal system in turn compromises the magnetic isolation efficiency. By artificially destroying the colloidal stability of the MIOPs with ionic strength increment, the ability for HGMS to recover the most stable suspension (i.e., PSS 70k-coated MIOPs) increased to >86% at 100 mM monovalent ion (Na(+)) or at 10 mM divalent ion (Ca(2+)). This observation has verified the conflicting role of colloidal stability in magnetophoretic separation.
A multi-residue analytical method was developed to quantify nine antibiotics and one hormone in soil, broiler manure and manure compost. The developed method was based on ultrasonic extraction with MeOH:ACN:EDTA:McIlvaine buffer, solid phase extraction (SPE) using HLB (3 cc/60 mg) cartridge, followed by instrumental analysis using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) with 25 min total run time. It was validated and tested on soil, broiler manure and manure compost samples and showed that the method is able to simultaneously detect and quantify the target analytes with good selectivity and sensitivity. The developed method was linear in a concentration range from its instrumental quantification limit (IQL) to 500 ng/mL, with correlation coefficients higher than 0.999. The overall method performance was good for the majority of the analytes, with recoveries range from 63% to 121% in all the sample matrices. The method quantification limit (MQL) for the 10 target analytes in the soil, broiler manure and manure compost samples were 2-10, 3-16 and 5-15 μg/kg dry weight (DW), respectively. The method has also included tilmicosin, an antibiotic known to be reported in the environment for the first time. The developed method was then applied on broiler manure samples and its relative manure amended agricultural soil samples to identify and quantify veterinary antibiotic and hormone residues in the environment. These analytes were detected in broiler manure and soil samples, with maximum concentrations reaching up to 78516.1 μg/kg DW (doxycycline) and 1331.4 μg/kg DW (flumequine), respectively. The results showed that the method can potentially be adopted for the analysis of veterinary antibiotic and hormone wastes in solid environmental matrices.
MeSH terms: Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents/analysis*; Anti-Bacterial Agents/isolation & purification; Chickens; Chromatography, Liquid/methods*; Malaysia; Manure/analysis*; Progesterone/analysis; Progesterone/isolation & purification; Soil/chemistry*; Reproducibility of Results; Linear Models; Veterinary Drugs/analysis*; Veterinary Drugs/isolation & purification; Solid Phase Extraction; Tandem Mass Spectrometry/methods*
Oil palm empty fruit bunch pellets were subjected to pyrolysis in a multimode microwave (MW) system (1 kW and 2.45 GHz frequency) with and without the MW absorber, activated carbon. The ratio of biomass to MW absorber not only affected the temperature profiles of the EFB but also pyrolysis products such as bio-oil, char, and gas. The highest bio-oil yield of about 21 wt.% was obtained with 25% MW absorber. The bio-oil consisted of phenolic compounds of about 60-70 area% as detected by GC-MS and confirmed by FT-IR analysis. Ball lightning (plasma arc) occurred due to residual palm oil in the EFB biomass without using an MW absorber. The bio-char can be utilized as potential alternative fuel because of its heating value (25 MJ/kg).
MeSH terms: Conservation of Energy Resources/methods*; Energy Transfer; Fruit/radiation effects*; Microwaves*; Plant Extracts/radiation effects*; Incineration/methods*; Biomass; Arecaceae/radiation effects*; Biofuels/radiation effects*
Thermophilic treatment of palm oil mill effluent (POME) was studied in a novel integrated anaerobic-aerobic bioreactor (IAAB). The IAAB was subjected to a program of steady-state operation over a range of organic loading rate (OLR)s, up to 30 g COD/L day in order to evaluate its treatment capacity. The thermophilic IAAB achieved high chemical oxygen demand (COD), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and total suspended solids (TSS) removal efficiencies of more than 99% for OLR up to 18.5 g COD/L day. High methane yield of 0.32 LCH(4) (STP)/g COD(removed) with compliance of the final treated effluent to the discharge limit were achieved. This is higher than that of the mesophilic system due to the higher maximum specific growth rate (μ(max)) of the thermophilic microorganisms. Besides, coupling the model of Grau second order model (anaerobic system) with the model of Monod (aerobic system) will completely define the IAAB system.
Novel heterogeneous catalysts from calcium oxide (CaO)/calcined calcium carbonate (CaCO(3)) loaded onto different palm oil mill boiler ashes were synthesised and used in the transesterification of crude palm oil (CPO) with methanol to yield biodiesel. Catalyst preparation parameters including the type of ash support, the weight percentage of CaO and calcined CaCO(3) loadings, as well as the calcination temperature of CaCO(3) were optimised. The catalyst prepared by loading of 15 wt% calcined CaCO(3) at a fixed temperature of 800°C on fly ash exhibited a maximum oil conversion of 94.48%. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) revealed that the CaCO(3) was transformed into CaO at 770°C and interacted well with the ash support, whereas rich CaO, Al(2)O(3) and SiO(2) were identified in the composition using X-ray diffraction (XRD). The fine morphology size (<5 μm) and high surface area (1.719 m(2)/g) of the fly ash-based catalyst rendered it the highest catalytic activity.
In this study, a twin-chamber upflow bio-electrochemical reactor packed with palm shell granular activated carbon as biocarrier and third electrode was used for sequential nitrification and denitrification of nitrogen-rich wastewater under different operating conditions. The experiments were performed at a constant pH value for the denitrification compartment. The effect of variables, namely, electric current (I) and hydraulic retention time (HRT), on the pH was considered in the nitrification chamber. The response surface methodology was used based on three levels to develop empirical models for the study on the effects of HRT and current values as independent operating variables on NH(4)(+)-N removal. The results showed that ammonium was reduced within the function of an extensive operational range of electric intensity (20-50 mA) and HRT (6-24h). The optimum condition for ammonium oxidation (90%) was determined with an I of 32 mA and HRT of 19.2h.
MeSH terms: Quaternary Ammonium Compounds/isolation & purification*; Quaternary Ammonium Compounds/chemistry; Biodegradation, Environmental; Charcoal/chemistry*; Electrochemistry/instrumentation*; Ultrafiltration/instrumentation*; Water Pollutants, Chemical/isolation & purification*; Water Pollutants, Chemical/chemistry; Water Purification/methods*; Bioreactors*; Arecaceae/chemistry*; Nitrification; Waste Water/analysis
A draft genome sequence of Pichia kudriavzevii M12 is presented here. The genome reveals the presence of genes encoding enzymes involved in xylose utilization and the pentose phosphate pathway for bioethanol production. Strain M12 is also a potential producer of phytases, enzymes useful in food processing and agriculture.
MeSH terms: Ethanol/metabolism; Base Sequence; Molecular Sequence Data; 6-Phytase/genetics; Pichia/genetics*; Genome, Fungal*; Sequence Analysis, DNA
Post-operative hypocalcemia (POH) may complicate parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism. This study investigates the relationship between POH and pre-operative risk factors to identify a simple method to predict POH risk.
Throughout Asia, people who use drugs are confined in facilities referred to as compulsory drug detention and rehabilitation centers. The limited transparency and accessibility of these centers has posed a significant challenge to evaluating detainees and detention conditions directly. Despite HIV being highly prevalent in this type of confined setting, direct evaluation of detainees with HIV and their access to medical care has yet to be reported in the literature.
MeSH terms: Adult; Health Services Accessibility*; Humans; Malaysia/epidemiology; Male; Morbidity; Rehabilitation Centers*; HIV Infections/complications*; HIV Infections/drug therapy; Substance-Related Disorders/complications*; Substance-Related Disorders/epidemiology*; Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active