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Copyright of Microbiological Journal / Mikrobiolohichnyi Zhurnal is the property of D.K. Zabolotny Institute of Microbiology & Virology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Pilonidal sinuses are a well-described surgical condition first recognised in the 19th century. They have most commonly been reported in the intergluteal cleft; involvement of other sites is limited to isolated case reports. Association of this condition with tuberculosis is rare and how the two conditions affect each other's causation is poorly understood. We report a rare case showing tubercular pathology in a chronic pilonidal sinus on the forehead of a young lady. A careful review of the lesion was required before labelling it as non-tubercular. The histopathological similarity between a foreign body reaction and tuberculosis in such lesions may confuse the clinician, and therefore differentiation is important to prevent morbidity associated with anti-tubercular therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The direct relationship between facilitative glucose transporters (GLUTs) and metabolic diseases opens new avenues for sensing metabolic deregulations and drives the development of molecular probes for GLUT-targeted detection of metabolic diseases. Radiotracer-based molecular imaging probes have been effectively utilized in reporting alterations in sugar uptake as an indication of metabolic deregulations, cancer development, or inflammation. Progress in developing fluorophore-based tools facilitated GLUT-specific analyses using more accessible fluorescence-based instrumentation. However, restrictions on the emission range of fluorophores and the requirement for substantial post-treatments to reduce background fluorescence have brought to light the critical directions for improvement of the technology for broader use in screening applications. Here we present turn-on GLUT activity reporters activated upon cells' internalization. We demonstrate a specific delivery of a sizable rhodamine B fluorophore through GLUT5 and showcase a stringent requirement in conjugate structure for maintaining a GLUT-specific uptake. With the turn-on GLUT probes, we demonstrate the feasibility of high-throughput fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry-based GLUT activity screening in live cells and the probes' applicability for assessing sugar uptake alterations in vivo ., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest.

Facilitative carbohydrate transporters (GLUTs, SLC2 gene family) are transmembrane proteins transporting hexoses and other sugars based on cellular metabolic demands. While a direct link between GLUTs and metabolic disorders has framed them as important biological and medicinal targets, targeting disease-relevant GLUTs remains challenging. In this study, we aimed to identify substrate-GLUT interactions that would discriminate between major fructose transporters. We examined the uptake distribution for conformational and configurational isomers of fructose using the corresponding conformationally locked fluorescently labeled mimetics as probes for assessing GLUT preferences in real time. Through comparative analysis of the uptake of the probes in the yeast-based single GLUT expression systems and the multi-GLUT mammalian cell environment, we established the ability of fructose transporters to discriminate between fructose conformers and epimers. We demonstrated that recreating the conformational and configurational mixture of fructose with molecular probes allows for the specific probe distribution, with fructofuranose mimetic being taken up preferentially through GLUT5 and β-d-fructopyranose mimetic passing through GLUT2. The uptake of α-d-fructopyranose mimetic was found to be independent of GLUT5 or GLUT2. The results of this study provide a new approach to analyzing GLUT5 and GLUT2 activity in live cells, and the findings can be used as a proof-of-concept for multi-GLUT activity screening in live cells. The research also provides new knowledge on substrate-GLUT interactions and new tools for monitoring alterations in GLUT activities.

Background and Objective: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major health issue in developing nations such as India along with underreporting of TBI data because of a lack of major studies targeting the population with TBI. Various lacunae from field to tertiary centers are responsible for this significant burden of TBIs. We studied the epidemiologic profile of 1150 patients with TBI including the predictors of the outcome of TBIs in a tertiary health care institution in North India to identify the modifiable factors that could be used to improve the outcome and reduce the TBI burden., Methods: Patients presenting with TBI to a level I trauma center were identified and enrolled in the study. Data regarding patient information from accident to discharge or death were collected as per designed format and analyzed to determine outcome predictors., Results: Mean age was 36 ± 15.8 years and 84.6% of patients were male; road traffic accident was the mode of injury in 64.26% of cases. Lack of adequate prehospital care was seen in our study. Glasgow Coma Scale score on admission, Injury Severity Score, and Rotterdam CT score were found to be the 3 statistically significant predictors of outcome in patients with TBI., Conclusions: Knowledge about the causes, pattern, and distribution of patients with TBI from this study is helpful in policy making, research, health management, and rehabilitation at the national level in ours and in other nations., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background/aim: In developing countries, enteric perforation due to typhoid continues to have very high morbidity and mortality rates irrespective of the type of operative procedure performed. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a free omental sheet graft in perforated typhoid enteritis, in comparison to other methods of enteric perforation repair in terms of decreased morbidity, mortality and cost-effectiveness., Method: A non-randomized study of 114 patients with enteric perforations was carried out over a period of 4.5 years. The study was divided in two groups; group I includes 38 cases in which a free omental sheet graft was used in typhoid enteritis with perforation and group II includes 76 cases in which other surgical procedures for enteric perforation repair were used. The outcomes were measured in relation to postoperative complications and mortality., Results: The incidence of complications including faecal fistula was 2.6% in group I (free omental sheet graft group) versus 32.89% in group II. The mortality rate of 2.6% was also lower in group I versus 19.7% in group II., Conclusion: This study concludes that the use of free omental sheet graft on typhoid enteric perforation site is effective in lowering the repair leak rate and thereby decreases the morbidity and mortality associated with these procedures. By lowering the complication rates, it also entails reduction in financial burden.

Representatives of 200 urban and 200 rural households were interviewed to determine the extent and appropriateness of the use of chloroquine obtained over-the-counter for malaria prophylaxis. Malaria prophylaxis was taken by 38 urban and 65 rural respondents. Chloroquine was the only drug used and was found in 7 urban and 40 rural households. The presence of chloroquine was detected in 4/130 urban and 11/136 rural urine samples tested. Knowledge about chloroquine was unsatisfactory with 6 urban and 10 rural respondents aware that chloroquine could have harmful adverse effects. The doses of chloroquine taken for prophylaxis varied widely, and of the 103 respondents who took prophylaxis only 16% (urban) and 31% (rural) were taking the correct dose. Self-medication accounts for a substantial, little acknowledged, portion of chloroquine use. To limit appropriate use of a powerful, potentially dangerous antimalarial drug and perhaps extend the useful therapeutic life of chloroquine clear recommendations and population education are needed.

1. A questionnaire examining the use of, and knowledge about over-the-counter (OTC) drugs was administered verbally to representatives from 200 urban and 200 rural households. Self-medication was common in both groups but there were more drugs present in rural (336 items) than urban homes (231 items) with the differences largely due to the more frequent presence of traditional medicines in rural homes. 2. Analgesics were the commonest items in the homes of both groups. A positive urine screening test for aspirin, chloroquine, or antibiotics was found in 25% of urban and 27% of rural samples tested. Respondents who elected to use an OTC drug for a particular symptom usually chose an appropriate drug. 3. Rural respondents were more likely to use traditional medicines particularly for the treatment of cough, abdominal pain, and diarrhoea. 4. Knowledge about dosages, the possibility of adverse reactions, and the seriousness of potential poisoning with OTC drugs was inadequate and needs to be corrected for more efficient self-medication.