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Bi 2 Sr 2-x Na x Co 2 O x (x = 0.0, 0.025, 0.050, 0.075, 0.100, and 0.125) samples were prepared through the solid-state route and textured using the laser floating zone technique. Microstructural analysis of as-grown samples showed well oriented grains and a relatively high amount of secondary phases due to their incongruent melting. Annealing procedure has drastically decreased the number and amount of secondary phases. Moreover, Na-doping has further decreased the secondary phases content and improved grain alignment. These modifications have been reflected in a large decrease of electrical resistivity with the annealing procedure. The maximum power factor values have been obtained in 0.075 Na-doped annealed samples, 0.20 mW/K 2 m, which are much higher than the best values obtained in textured materials through hot uniaxial pressing. Magnetic properties were very similar for all samples, with paramagnetic Curie temperature and effective magnetic moment values of −48.6 K and ≈2 μ B , respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although some of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are reported to be safe for NSAID-intolerant patients, they should not be suggested before confirming the safety by single-blind oral drug provocation tests. Various test protocols are used in different allergy centers. The aim of this survey was to find out if testing three drugs a day could be a safe, time-saving and cost-effective method. Methods: We have enrolled 84 patients into this survey between September 1, 2002, and July 31, 2004. Results: Their mean age was 37.3 ± 11.0 years; 63 (75%) patients were female. By reliable history, the NSAID most commonly causing intolerance was aspirin (46.4%), and the most common reaction to analgesic intolerance was angioedema (60.7%). Eighty-seven tests were performed with meloxicam, rofecoxib, celecoxib, benzydamine, azapropazone, codeine and paracetamol in various triple combinations. Seventeen of the triple tests were positive, and one of them was suspiciously positive. After repeating these 18 tests with the same analgesics in the same order on 54 separate days, we have determined the responsible analgesics for 14 of the triple tests. There were no reactions when four of the triple tests were repeated on separate days (two of the triple tests demonstrated urticaria and the other two angioedema). Five patients had nausea and vomiting, and 2 had abdominal pain and other dyspeptic complaints during the tests. If we had performed the tests by the classical method, 264 days would have elapsed instead of 148 days (including the extra tests that we have performed after positive triple tests and gastrointestinal symptoms). Conclusion: The triple oral drug provocation testing seems to be a safe, time-/manpower-saving and cost-effective method for determining safe alternatives for NSAID-intolerant patients. Copyright © 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The aim was to determine the clinical characteristics of patients with seasonal rhinitis (SR) and to disclose differences in the treatment of SR between an adult allergy clinic and other clinics over time. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted based on clinical records of 774 out of 955 patients diagnosed with SR in an adult allergy clinic between 1 January 1991 and 31 December 2003. Results: The mean age of the patients was 29.1 ± 9.29 years and 62.7% were female. The most common major complaints of the patients were nasal symptoms in 82.3%. The mean duration of the disease was 6.76 ± 6.8 years. The patients were symptomatic with a mean of 3.5 ± 1.7 months a year, mostly during the period between April and July. Skin prick tests were positive in 685 patients (90.3%), where the most common sensitivity was against timothy grass (85.1%). The most common accompanying allergic diseases were food hypersensitivity in 14%, bronchial asthma in 13.4%, and drug allergy and/or intolerance in 9.6%. Although the use of specific immunotherapy and short-acting sedative antihistamines decreased over time, the use of nasal steroids and long-acting nonsedative antihistamines tended to increase before admission to our clinic. Older age (OR: 1.77, 95% CI: 1.06–2.94), presence of familial atopy (OR: 1.72, 95% CI: 1.04–2.85), respiratory symptoms (OR: 2.10, 95% CI: 1.75–2.50), ocular symptoms (OR: 0.77, 95% CI: 0.61–0.98) and metal allergy (OR: 0.25, 95% CI: 0.07–0.89) were associated with the development of asthma in patients with SR. Conclusion: SR lasts approximately 3.5 months and the main cause in Ankara, Turkey is grass pollen sensitivity. Patients with any other allergic conditions make up 39.8% of the patients. SR patients are referred to allergy clinics quite late, which might be due to SR not being considered as a serious disease. Copyright © 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Regorafenib is an oral protein kinase inhinitor approved fot the treatment of metastatic colorecral cancer. We present a first successful case of desensitization in regorafenib-related fix-drug eruption in the literature. Case report: A 44-year-old female patient was diagnosed with metastatic colorectal adenocarcinoma. The patient received regorafenib treatment for malignancy recurrence. The patient was admitted to adult allergy clinic with developing recurrent fix drug eruption in the second cycle, on the 10th day of regorafenib treatment. The patient was given the third cycle of regorafenib treatment with a 6-day desensitization protocol, the first day of which consisted of 6 steps and and the third cycle was successfully completed. Management and outcome: Regorafenib-mediated delayed hypersensitivity reactions occur less frequently and and regorafenib hypersensitivity reactions are difficult to manage and experience is limited. This is the first successful desensitization protocol developed by us for regorafenib-related fix drug eruption and more cases are needed to be reported to confirm the desensitization protocol. Discussion: There is only one successful regorafenib desensitization protocol for severe delayed hypersensivity reaction in the literature, but there is no protocol developed for mild type delayed hypersensivity reaction. The management of fix-drug eruption primarily involves discontinuation and avoidance of the offending drug but our patient had a mild delayed-type reaction and there was no alternative to regarofenib treatment. We developed the rapid 6-step desensitization protocol (Day 1). According to this protocol, the patient was able to continue regorafenib treatment successfully. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The study aimed to determine whether allergic conditions accompany analgesic intolerance. Methods: A total of 132 analgesic‐intolerant patients with bronchial asthma admitted to the adult allergy unit from January 1991 to October 1997 and 103 patients with bronchial asthma randomly selected from among the asthmatics referred to our department between January and October 1997 were enrolled in the study. Those having analgesic intolerance and bronchial asthma were accepted as group I; patients having only asthma were accepted as group II. A standard questionnaire was completed for all the patients. Physical examination, routine skin prick tests, determination of total IgE levels and blood type, and oral analgesic provocation tests were also performed. Results: The results showed that some allergic conditions were significantly more common in group I (22.7% and 7.8% for food allergy/intolerance [P<0.05], 16.7% and 7.8% for antibiotic allergy, 16.7% and 2.9% for dermographism, 9.8% and 1.0% for metal allergy, and 9.1% and 1.0% for chronic urticaria for groups I and II, respectively [P<0.001]). In addition, the mean of the total IgE level in the serum was higher in group I than group II (77.6 and 53.7 IU/ml; P<0.05), and the cumulative analgesic consumption was more in group I (14.2±17.1 and 9.1±12.5 boxes; P<0.05). Conclusions: Dermographism; chronic urticaria; antibiotic, metal, and food allergy; high levels of total IgE; and a high amount of cumulative analgesic consumption may be the conditions accompanying analgesic intolerance in asthmatics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a letter to the editor concerning efficacy of paracetamol in asthma.

This work investigates the uncertainty associated to the presence of multiple subsets of predictors yielding data-driven models with the same, or similar, predictive accuracy. To handle this uncertainty effectively, we introduce a novel input variable selection algorithm, called Wrapper for Quasi Equally Informative Subset Selection (W-QEISS), specifically conceived to identify all alternate subsets of predictors in a given dataset. The search process is based on a four-objective optimization problem that minimizes the number of selected predictors, maximizes the predictive accuracy of a data-driven model and optimizes two information theoretic metrics of relevance and redundancy, which guarantee that the selected subsets are highly informative and with little intra-subset similarity. The algorithm is first tested on two synthetic test problems and then demonstrated on a real-world streamflow prediction problem in the Yampa River catchment (US). Results show that complex hydro-meteorological datasets are characterized by a large number of alternate subsets of predictors, which provides useful insights on the underlying physical processes. Furthermore, the presence of multiple subsets of predictors—and associated models—helps find a better trade-off between different measures of predictive accuracy commonly adopted for hydrological modelling problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Large particles entering the nose are collected by nasal hair present in the anterior nares. Increased hair density provides an improvement in the filtering efficiency of the nose, while reduced amounts of nasal hair cause a decrease in its efficiency. The amount of nasal hair can vary between individuals, which can make a difference in the filtering efficiency of the nose. Reduced filter function of the nose leads to increased exposure of the airways to allergens. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of nasal hair density on the risk of developing asthma in seasonal rhinitis (SR) patients. Methods: A standard questionnaire was filled in, and physical examination and allergy tests were performed in 233 patients. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to the amount of nasal hair [few (few or none), moderate and many]. The association between asthma and nasal hair density was assessed. Results: Asthma was detected in 75 patients (32.2%), and of these, 45 (60%) also had pollen asthma. The rate of asthma was 44.7, 26.2 and 16.7% in the few, moderate and many groups, respectively (p = 0.002). Few nasal hairs significantly increased the risk of developing asthma [odds ratio (95% confidence interval): few, reference; moderate, 0.41 (0.21-0.78); many, 0.19 (0.06-0.55); p = 0.002]. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the amount of nasal hair providing a nose filtration function has a protective effect on the risk of developing asthma in SR patients. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on this subject in the literature. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Mannich bases derived from allomaltol were synthesized. • Their impact on cell viability of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231, was investigated. • Necrosis and apopitosis had taken place in MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7, respectively. • Compound 5 didn't provoke drug resistance in MCF-7 cells. • The advantages over the chemotherapeutics used for breast cancer are indicated. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women that shows a predisposition to metastasize to the distant organs. Kojic acid is a natural fungal metabolite exhibiting various biological activities. Compounds derived from kojic acid have been extensively studied and proved to demonstrate anti-neoplastic features on different cancer types. In the present study, allomaltol-structural analog of kojic acid and its seven derivatives including four novel compounds, have been synthesized, characterized and their possible impact on breast cancer cell viability was investigated. It was discovered that compound 5, bearing 3,4-dichlorobenzyl piperazine moiety, could decrease the viability of both MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cell lines distinctively. To ascertain the death mechanism, cells were subjected to different tests following the application of IC 50 concentration of compound 5. Data obtained from lactate dehydrogenase activity and gene expression assays pointed out that necrosis had taken place predominantly in MDA-MB-231. On the other hand, in MCF-7 cells, the p53 apoptotic pathway was activated by overexpression of the pro-apoptotic TP53 and Bax genes and suppression of the anti-apoptotic Mdm-2 and Bcl-2 genes. Furthermore, Bax/Blc-2 ratio was escalated by 3.5 fold in the study group compared to the control. Compound 5 did not provoke drug resistance in MCF-7 cells since the Mdr-1 gene expression, drug efflux, and H 2 O 2 content remained unaltered. As for MDA-MB-231 cells, only a 1.4 fold increase in the Mdr-1 gene expression was detected. These results indicate the advantage of the allomaltol derivative over the chemotherapeutic agents conventionally used for breast cancer treatment that can be highly toxic and mostly lead to drug resistance. Thus, this specific allomaltol derivative offers an alternative therapeutic approach for breast cancer which needs further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Aspirin desensitization ( AD) treatment at doses of up to 1300 mg/day improves outcomes in aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease ( AERD). The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of aspirin 300 mg/day in the treatment of patients with AERD. Methods The study included 40 patients diagnosed in our clinic as AERD that were desensitized and treated with aspirin 300 mg/day between December 2005 and December 2012. Changes from the baseline status were analyzed at 1 year and at 3 years of follow-up. Results Of the 40 patients included, 24 (60%) were female and median (interquartile range [ IQR]) age was 45 (40-51) years. Median ( IQR) duration of AD was 31.5 (10.5-48.5) months. In total, 29 patients continued treatment for at least 1 year and 18 patients for at least 3 years. The annual rate of use of systemic corticosteroid regimens, episodes of sinusitis, and surgery was significantly lower both at 1 year ( P = 0.002, P = 0.01, and P < 0.001, respectively) and at 3 years ( P = 0.001, P = 0.03, and P = 0.002, respectively). Significant improvement was observed in the nasal congestion score ( P = 0.01) and sense of smell score ( P = 0.05) at 1 year and in the postnasal drainage score ( P = 0.01) at 3 years. Conclusion Daily treatment with aspirin 300 mg had beneficial effects in patients with AERD, especially for the control of upper airway disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Data are limited about the value of skin tests in the diagnosis of proton pump inhibitor ( PPI)-induced hypersensitivity reactions and the cross-reactivity between PPIs. We aimed to assess the role of skin testing in the diagnosis of PPI-related immediate hypersensitivity reactions and the cross-reactivity patterns among PPIs. Methods The study was designed in a prospective, national, multicentre nature. Sixty-five patients with a suggestive history of a PPI-induced immediate hypersensitivity reaction and 30 control subjects were included. Standardized skin prick and intradermal tests were carried out with a panel of PPIs. Single-blind, placebo-controlled oral provocation tests ( OPTs) with the PPIs other than the culprit PPI that displayed negative results in skin tests ( n = 61) and diagnostic OPTs with the suspected PPI ( n = 12) were performed. Results The suspected PPIs were lansoprazole ( n = 52), esomeprazole ( n = 11), pantoprazole ( n = 9), rabeprazole ( n = 2), and omeprazole ( n = 1). The sensitivity, specificity, and negative and positive predictive values of the skin tests with PPIs were 58.8%, 100%, 70.8%, and 100%, respectively. Fifteen of the 31 patients with a hypersensitivity reaction to lansoprazole had a positive OPT or skin test result with at least one of the alternative PPIs (8/52 pantoprazole, 6/52 omeprazole, 5/52 esomeprazole, 3/52 rabeprazole). Conclusion Considering the high specificity, skin testing seems to be a useful method for the diagnosis of immediate-type hypersensitivity reactions to PPIs and for the evaluation of cross-reactivity among PPIs. However, OPT should be performed in case of negativity on skin tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]