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ObjectiveGhrelin is an orexigenic peptide that becomes post-translationally modified. Natural autoantibodies to ghrelin (ghrelin-aAb) have been described in healthy subjects, in eating disorders and rheumatic diseases, with potential clinical relevance. Despite these important reports, the data base on the prevalence and physiological role is small and technical approaches for assessing ghrelin-aAb are few, encouraging respective research for improving knowledge on the potential endocrine significance.MethodsA novel immunoprecipitation assay was generated based on a fusion protein of human ghrelin with a reporter gene. Assay quality was verified with commercial antibodies. Assay characteristics and matrix effects were determined, including stability of natural ghrelin-aAb to freezing, signal linearity in dilution experiments, and comparison of different matrices. Three groups of serum samples were analyzed for ghrelin-aAb, comprising commercial sera from healthy subjects and patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus.ResultsThe newly generated ghrelin-aAb assay proved sensitive, robust and reliable over a broad concentration range. Results from serum and plasma differed slightly. The signals from serum remained stable towards freezing and thawing, and in dilution experiments. Applying a mathematical criterion for outliers (P75 + 1.5-times IQR), an average prevalence of 11%–12% of positive samples was identified in the different human cohorts, with no significant sex-or disease-related difference.General significanceA novel diagnostic autoantibody assay detected ghrelin-aAb with a similar prevalence in diabetic patients and controls, suggesting that autoimmunity to ghrelin plays little role in diabetes mellitus, but may be of relevance in other diseases where ghrelin signaling is essential.

This study was conducted at Al-Rasheedia Research Station 5 Km North of Mosul city in plastic pot and placed under natural conditions and watered for the two consecutive growing seasons 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 to study the effect of five sowing dates (1st November. 15th November. 1st December. 15th December. 1st January) on two species of Atriplex; Atriplex halimus and Atriplex lentiformis. The data was analyzed as a factorial experiment in a completely Randomized Design (CRD) with six replicates. Results showed significantly superiority of the first date of sowing 1st November on other dates. Height of plant. root depth and root diameter for the two growing seasons 2008/2009 and 2009/2010. Also on the dry weight of leaves. stems. roots and plant for the two growing seasons. High values were recorded under the first date of sowing 1st November but the low values were recorded under the last date of sowing 1st January for all characters. Also. the results showed significantly superiority of Atriplex halimus on Atriplex lentiformis for all characters under study. There was a significant interaction between the two growing seasons in height of plant. root depth. root diameter and plant dry weight

In this paper, a food web model consisting of two-predator one-prey with the defensive switching of predation avoidance is proposed and analyzed. It is assumed that the prey growth logistically in the absence of predators and defends itself from relatively abundant predator species by switching to another habitat with relatively rare predator species. Sufficient conditions for the stability of the non-trivial equilibrium point are obtained. The Lyapunov function is constructed to establish the global asymptotic stability of the non-trivial equilibrium point when the intensity of defensive switching equal one. Numerical simulations for different sets of parameter values and for different sets of initial conditions are carried out. It has been shown that the system has a globally asymptotically stable non-trivial point when the two predators have the same mortality rates.

A good quality of life is one of the many indicators that determine the success of hemodialysis (HD) therapy. Factors that significantly affect the quality of life of patients with renal failure who undergo HD include sociodemographic condition, mental state (depression), severity of kidney disease, accompanying disorders, HD duration, non-adherence towards prescribed medication and nutritional problems. Among said factors, the metabolic and nutritional disorder commonly known as protein energy wasting (PEW), plays an important role in the clinical course of renal failure patients. The aim of nutrition management in patients with renal failure is to slow down the progression of kidney disease, improve quality of life, and reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.

In the present work, a thermal treatment technique is applied for the synthesis of Ce x Sn 1-x O 2 nanoparticles. Using this method has developed understanding of how lower and higher precursor values affect the morphology, structure, and optical properties of Ce x Sn 1-x O 2 nanoparticles. Ce x Sn 1-x O 2 nanoparticle synthesis involves a reaction between cerium and tin sources, namely, cerium nitrate hexahydrate and tin (II) chloride dihydrate, respectively, and the capping agent, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). The findings indicate that lower x values yield smaller particle size with a higher energy band gap, while higher x values yield a larger particle size with a smaller energy band gap. Thus, products with lower x values may be suitable for antibacterial activity applications as smaller particles can diffuse through the cell wall faster, while products with higher x values may be suitable for solar cell energy applications as more electrons can be generated at larger particle sizes. The synthesized samples were profiled via a number of methods, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). As revealed by the XRD pattern analysis, the Ce x Sn 1-x O 2 nanoparticles formed after calcination reflect the cubic fluorite structure and cassiterite-type tetragonal structure of Ce x Sn 1-x O 2 nanoparticles. Meanwhile, using FT-IR analysis, Ce-O and Sn-O were confirmed as the primary bonds of ready Ce x Sn 1-x O 2 nanoparticle samples, whilst TEM analysis highlighted that the average particle size was in the range 6-21 nm as the precursor concentration (Ce(NO 3 ) 3 ·6H 2 O) increased from 0.00 to 1.00. Moreover, the diffuse UV-visible reflectance spectra used to determine the optical band gap based on the Kubelka-Munk equation showed that an increase in x value has caused a decrease in the energy band gap and vice versa.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease caused by mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). This infection causes the release of proinflammatory cytokines that affect hemostasis. Pulmonary TB infection causes an increased activation of procoagulant factors, decreased anticoagulant factors and suppresses fibrinolysis which causes hypercoagulable. Our study is conducted to assess the association between pulmonary TB infection (PTB) with hemostatic parameters before and after intensive phase treatment., Methods: This was an analytic observational prospective cohort design. The study was conducted at the Community Center for Lung Health in South Sulawesi. Studied subjects were recruited by consecutive sampling, in which the patients who met the inclusion criteria received intensive phase of ATD treatment. PT, aPTT, fibrinogen, and D-dimer were measured before treatment and after the intensive phase of ATD. These data were analyzed using the SPSS Version 22., Results: In this study, 30 subjects are new cases of PTB. Prothrombin time, aPTT and D-dimer levels were higher in far advanced lesions and smear-positive sputum group (p<0.001). There was a significant level decrease in PT, aPTT, fibrinogen, D-dimer after intensive phase treatment (p<0.001)., Conclusion: Pulmonary tuberculosis infection is associated with hypercoagulability which is characterized by an increase in hemostatic parameters and has significant improvement after intensive phase of ATD treatment., (Copyright © 2020, Babol University of Medical Sciences.)

Background: Both clinical and experimental evidence have been published over the past few decades supporting the existence of a close relationship between the elevated levels of serum uric acid with cardiovascular events and acute kidney injury (AKI). This study aimed to determine the effect of serum uric acid levels on the incidence of AKI in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients., Methods: A retrospective cohort study with a cross sectional design was performed. The research was conducted at Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo Hospital from October 2019 to December 2019. Nonrandom sampling was employed in the medical records. All patients who met the inclusion criteria were at > 18 years old and diagnosed with ACS with AKI. The demographic data of age, sex and serum uric acid levels were recorded. The data obtained were analyzed using the SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences)., Results: There were 158 subjects of ACS patients with AKI and 135 without AKI. There was a significant correlation between high uric acid levels with the incidence of AKI in ACS (p<0.001). Patients with high serum uric acid levels were 9.5 times at risk of developing AKI compared to those with normal serum uric acid levels., Conclusion: High uric acid level is one of the risk factors for AKI in ACS and indicates 9.5 times at risk of developing AKI compared to normal serum uric acid level. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor serum uric acid level and kidney function in ACS patients., (Copyright © 2020, Babol University of Medical Sciences.)

Organophosphorus (OP) compounds are highly toxic synthetic compounds which have been used as pesticides and developed as warfare nerve agents. They represent a threat to both military and civilian populations. OP pesticides affect the nervous system and are thought to have caused at least 5 million deaths since their discovery in the 1930s. At present the treatment of OP nerve agent poisoning commonly involves the use of parenteral oximes. However, the blood brain barrier (BBB) remains a challenge in the delivery of oximes to the central nervous system (CNS). This is because almost all macromolecule drugs (including oximes) fail to pass through the BBB to reach the CNS structures. The presence of a permanent cationic charge in oximes has made these compounds inefficient in crossing the BBB. Thus, oximes are unable to reactivate acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in the CNS. Using current structural and mechanistic understanding of the BBB under both physiological and pathological conditions, it becomes possible to design delivery systems for oximes and other drugs that are able to cross the BBB effectively. This review summarises the recent strategies in the development of oximes which are capable of crossing the BBB to treat OP poisoning. Several new developments using oximes are reviewed along with their advantages and disadvantages. This review could be beneficial for future directions in the development of oxime and other drug delivery systems into the CNS., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Background: Chronic microvascular complications consist of diabetic nephropathy (DN), diabetic retinopathy (DR), and diabetic neuropathy. Diabetic nephropathy is assessed through albuminuria, and diabetic retinopathy is assessed through fundoscopy. Several studies have assessed the albuminuria in diabetic retinopathy but have found inconclusive results. This study aims to investigate the albumin excretion rate in patients with diabetic retinopathy., Methods: A cross sectional design was applied in this study. The diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus was determined based on the anamnesis and laboratory examinations. The study was conducted at Dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo Hospital and Hasanuddin University Hospital in Makassar during November 2018 until April 2019. The stages of diabetic retinopathy were based on funduscopic examinations. In addition, the blood pressure, BMI, albumin excretion rate, lipid profile, and HbA1C were also examined. Chi Square and Kappa tests were performed in the statistical analysis., Results: 120 subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus were observed. Of the total subjects, the number of females within the age of 36-79 years made up the biggest fraction. There was a significant relation between hypertension comorbidity with the albumin excretion rate and grading diabetic retinopathy where the A3 and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) percentages were higher in the hypertension group at 68.8% and 54.5%. There was also a significant correlation between incidence of albuminuria with diabetic retinopathy. Particularly, proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) remained associated with albuminuria, while non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) was related to non-albuminuria., Conclusion: Albuminuria incidence confirms association with diabetic retinopathy grading.