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Research conducted at Zainoel Abidin General Hospital in Banda Aceh between January 2022 and July 2023, focused on the prevalence and susceptibility patterns of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli associated with nosocomial infections. This study employed a retrospective descriptive methodology to analyze clinical specimens from both the intensive care unit (ICU) and non-ICU settings. Of the 520 isolates examined, 365 (70.19%) were identified as ESBL-producing Escherichia coli. The age group of 56-65 had the highest prevalence (28.21%), with female patients contributing 52.50% of the isolates. Both ESBL-producing and non-ESBL-producing E. coli had almost equivalent prevalence among patients treated in the ICU and non-ICU, accounting for 67%. Antibiotic susceptibility testing revealed high levels of resistance to carbapenem. Conversely, polymyxin B showed complete susceptibility (100%) and cefoxitin exhibited an 85% susceptibility rate. These findings underscore the alarm resistance levels of ESBL-producing Escherichia coli isolates.

An accurate tree diameter (DBH) measurement is a significant component of forest inventory. This study assessed the reliability of remote dendrometers to measure tree DBH. We compared direct caliper measurements (reference measurements) to the remote measurements collected from a laser caliper and a smartphone at 0.5 m, 1 m, and 1.5 m distances from each tree within three forest types (pine, oak, and poplar forests). In general, all remote dendrometers underestimated the mean diameter compared to direct caliper measurements, regardless of forest types and distances. We observed that the mean deviation of direct caliper measurement and smartphone measurement at 1.5 m within a pine forest and oak forest were the lowest (0.3 cm and 0.36 cm, respectively). The deviations between direct caliper measurements and smartphone measurements at a 0.5 m distance, across forest types, were noticeably larger compared to others. An ANOVA test was used to determine whether significant deviations existed between caliper measurements and remote measurements at a specific distance, and among three different forest types. We rejected the null hypothesis, which suggested that there were no statistically significant differences (p

Determination of land ownership and boundaries is one of the most important purposes of the urban and rural land laws. There can be some boundary problems while preparing forestry area of any urban area when there is not consistency between the borders constructed by different state organizations like land cadastre, forest cadastre and forest management and planning teams. This study aims to illustrate these conflicts in forestry applications process of two different areas (Ağva and Beykoz) having different characteristics. The study was carried out in Ağva and Beykoz districts in the province of Istanbul and focused on the integration in the land and forest cadastral systems. The Beykoz and Ağva Forest Planning Units have different characteristics in terms of population (urban and rural) and social impacts. Analyses of the data obtained from the field studies which it was utilized for the investigation of the data obtained from various base maps, were carried out using GIS software. Many inhabitants of the villages in the Ağva Planning Unit had migrated from the district. Thus, in accordance with Boundary Law number of 6831 part of 2/B some parcels of villages in Ağva were determined to be acting forest and were reassigned as forest land. In Beykoz, however, areas of this nature were few and the destruction of the forests was great. The spatial analysis of the study made it possible to remove discrepancies occurring in the cadastral situation by preparing forest management plans. Consequently, if land cadastre and forest cadastre units carry out work in coordination to determine the cadastral situation, a basis for forest management plans can be established and cadastral problems greatly reduced.

Amoebiasis caused by Entamoeba histolytica is an important issue in world public health because it is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Entamoeba histolytica is the only species of its genus that commonly causes mild irritation, injury, to inflammation of the walls of the colon and cecum. In some cases, parasites also invade other organs, especially the liver, lungs, kidneys, and brain. Methods: Our article search uses the help of four search engines namely Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, and Springer. Results: Entamoeba histolytica is not easily transmitted from animals to humans, due to the fact that this parasite rarely encysts in the intestinal lumen of animals which is an important factor in the transmission of this parasite. And conversely, subclinical amebiasis in humans acts as the dominant host for transmission of this parasite either from human to human or from human to animal.

The aim of this study is to investigate competency requirements of Iranian public librarians in library educational departments and working places. A group of 72 people from public libraries answered to questions. Questions cover all areas of library performances. The results show that the traditional competencies such as cataloging, management of collections, information resources and acquisition tools are still important for public librarians. However, the generic knowledge and skills of information services were recommended by respondents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feasible diagnostic assays are required to detect new tuberculosis (TB) cases and monitor treatment. This study aimed to evaluate evidence on tryptophan (Trp) and its metabolites as proposed biomarkers for TB. Through specific keyword searches, we identified 170 relevant literature sources and included seven publications (from 2013 to 2023). The biomarker used in these studies were indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase (IDO) activity, IDO-1 gene expression, and plasma IDO protein, measured using ELISA, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, ultraperformance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry, and transcriptional profiling. The studies encompassed a pediatric case-control and six studies involving adults, pregnant women with TB-HIV, and individuals with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, active TB, and latent TB. The assessment of IDO activity and IDO protein level demonstrated promising performance in distinguishing active TB from controls and in evaluating treatment failure and recurrent cases to controls. Trp and its metabolites fulfilled nearly all of target product profile criteria for detecting active TB. This study highlights the potential of utilizing host Trp and its metabolites as non-sputum-based biomarker for TB infection.

Background: Indonesia has the second highest tuberculosis (TB) cases globally. This study aimed to determine the sociodemographic factors associated with TB and rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB) cases among presumptive pulmonary TB patients in Aceh Referral Hospital. Study Design: A retrospective cross-sectional study., Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional review of presumptive pulmonary TB patients having a sputum test at the clinical microbiology laboratory was conducted from January 2015 to December 2021. Patient characteristics and drug susceptibility data were abstracted from the hospital information system of TB (SITB) and analyzed by univariate and bivariate analysis., Results: The Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) was detected in 32.8% sample (1,521/4,637). Of the TB-confirmed cases, 14.1% (215/1,521) were resistant to rifampicin (RR-TB). Most of them were male patients (71.63%), were in the age range of 35-54 years (48.7%), lived in rural areas of the country (56.3%), and were previously TB-treated cases (65.5%). Overall, 35-44-year-old patients (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=2.11, 95% CI=1.25, 3.5, P <0.05) were more likely to have RR-TB compared to>65-year-old patients. Gender and residence were not associated with RR-TB ( P >0.05). Case detection decreased in pandemic conditions (19.5% in 2019 to 13.9% and 7.91% in 2020 and 2021, respectively)., Conclusion: The findings revealed the dynamic cases and sociodemographic factors of TB and RR-TB in a province referral hospital in Indonesia for 7 years. The cases of TB and RR-TB among presumptive TB patients were 32.8% and 14.1%, respectively. The cases were found to be more noticeable in males, adults (45-54 years old), and patients residing in rural areas., (© 2024 The Author(s); Published by Hamadan University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.)

Irrational antibiotic use in Indonesia is considered high, yet there are still lacks reliable information regarding the issue. The quantity of antibiotic use studies, in particular during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, was not well reported. The aim of this study was to evaluate antibiotic use in COVID-19 patients at a province referral hospital in Aceh, Indonesia, Dr Zainoel Abidin Hospital, and to assess the association between antibiotic use and COVID-19 clinical outcomes. The defined daily dose (DDD) method was used and expressed in DDDs per 100 patient-days as in hospital setting. The data were obtained from inpatient confirmed COVID-19 patients between March 2020 and December 2021. A logistic regression was used to determine the association between patients' characteristics and antibiotic usage with clinical outcomes. A total of 361 treated COVID-19 patients were included using a random sampling technique and analyzed. Out of 361 patients, 89.2% of them were treated with antibiotic(s). All the antibiotics were given empirically except for cefazoline (5.5%) that was used as prophylaxis to obstetric patients who underwent the c-section. Azithromycin was the most prescribed antibiotic and levofloxacin had the highest DDD. Our data suggested that there was no association between antibiotic use and clinical outcomes of COVID-19 patients ( p =0.128). Having sepsis and another pulmonary disease however were associated with mortality of COVID-19 patients with adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 14.14; 95%CI 2.94-67.90, p =0.001 and aOR 8.64; 95%CI 3.30-22.63, p <0.001, respectively. In addition, patients older than 60-year-old had a higher chance to an unfavorable outcome compared to those younger than 30-year-old, aOR: 7.61; 95%CI: 1.07-53.94. In conclusion, the use of antibiotics is prevalent among COVID-19 and it is not directly associated with clinical outcomes., Competing Interests: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Author(s).)

This updated meta-analysis sought to determine whether the pro-inflammatory potential of diet is a risk factor for breast cancer (BrCa) development, for the first time focusing on the effects of design heterogeneity. The search was performed using Scopus, PubMed, and Embase databases. Data were extracted from twenty-one eligible studies, including eleven cohorts (336,085 participants/20,033 incidence cases), and ten case-control studies (9,833 cases/12,752controls). The random-effect was used to calculate the relative risk (RR) using STATA 16 software. The highest dietary inflammatory index (DII) vs. the lowest category showed 16% increased risk of BrCa (95% CI: 1.06-1.26; I 2  = 62.8%, P (I 2 ) < 0.001). This was notable in post-menopausal status (RR = 1.13, 95% CI: 1.04-1.22), women with body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m 2 (RR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.07-1.63), and study populations from developing countries (RR = 1.79, 95% CI: 1.12-2.47). Methodological covariates were subject to subgroup meta-analyses and showed stronger results among case-control studies (RR = 1.50, 95% CI: 1.20-1.80), studies considered age-matched controls (RR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.19-1.93) and hospital-based controls (RR = 2.11, 95% CI: 1.58-2.64), and cohort studies identified by prolong follow-up durations (RR = 1.13, 95% CI: 1.03-1.22). This updated meta-analysis highlighted the pro-inflammatory diet as a risk factor for BrCa, especially among women in post-menopausal status, obese groups, and developing countries. Meta-analysis in methodological subgroups could improve results, less affected by heterogeneity, and suggested subclassification with important implications for future epidemiological designs and even clinical management., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.)

Background: This study explored the association between diet-associated inflammation and the risk of different molecular subtypes of breast cancer (BrCA) in a large, population-based case-control study conducted in northwestern Iran., Methods: The study consisted of 1007 women with histopathologically confirmed BrCA and 1004 controls admitted to hospitals in Tabriz, northwestern Iran, for nonneoplastic conditions. Dietary Inflammatory Index scores and energy-adjusted Dietary Inflammatory Index (E-DII) scores, with and without supplements, were computed on the basis of dietary intake collected using a validated 136-item food frequency questionnaire., Results: Women with the highest E-DII scores (quartile 4) versus those with the lowest E-DII scores (quartile 1) showed a significantly increased BrCA risk (odds ratio for quartile 4 vs quartile 1 [OR Q4vsQ1 ], 1.87; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.42-2.47), particularly for lobular carcinoma (OR Q4vsQ1 , 3.07; 95% CI, 1.34-7.02). Findings were similar for premenopausal women diagnosed with luminal A BrCA (OR Q4vsQ1 , 2.71; 95% CI, 1.74-4.22) or luminal B BrCA (OR Q4vsQ1 , 2.86; 95% CI, 1.39-5.89). Women consuming the most proinflammatory diets were 3 times more likely to have triple-negative BrCA (OR Q4vsQ1 , 3.00; 95% CI, 1.002-8.96) while compared to luminal A BrCA. The BrCA risk for women consuming diets in the highest half of E-DII scores (E-DII > 0) was 59% greater than the risk for those in the lowest half (95% CI, 1.29-1.97). Also, higher E-DII scores that took into account supplements were associated with larger tumor sizes (T3 > 5 cm; P < .05)., Conclusions: A proinflammatory diet, as indicated by higher E-DII scores, appears to increase the risk of BrCA in Iranian women. Large increases in risk were seen in invasive molecular subtypes of BrCA. Anti-inflammatory diets are suggested to prevent the risk of overall BrCA and more aggressive forms of BrCA in particular., (© 2022 American Cancer Society.)

Carbapenem non-susceptible Acinetobacter baumannii (CNSAB) is an important pathogen that causes nosocomial bacteremia among critically ill patients worldwide. The magnitude of antibiotic resistance of A. baumanii in Indonesia is expected to be significant; however, the data available are limited. The aim of this study was to analyze the genetic profiles of CNSAB isolates from patients with bacteremia in Indonesia. CNSAB isolates from blood cultures of bacteremia patients in 12 hospitals in Indonesia were included. The blood cultures were conducted using the BacT/Alert or BACTEC automated system. The CNSAB were identified with either Vitek 2 system or Phoenix platform followed by a confirmation test using a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay, targeting the specific gyrB gene. The carbapenemase genes were detected by multiplex PCR. In total, 110 CNSAB isolates were collected and were mostly resistant to nearly all antibiotic classes. The majority of CNSAB isolates were susceptible to tigecycline and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX), 45.5% and 38.2%, respectively. The bla OXA-51-like gene was identified in all CNSAB isolates. Out of the total, 83.6% of CNSAB isolates had bla OXA-23-like gene, 37.3% bla OXA-24-like gene, 4.5% bla NDM-1 gene, 0.9% bla IMP-1 gene, and 0.9% bla VIM gene. No bla OXA-48-like gene was identified. The bla OXA-23-like gene was the predominant gene in all except two hospitals. The presence of the bla OXA-24-like gene was associated with resistance to tigecycline, amikacin, TMP-SMX and cefoperazone-sulbactam, while bla OXA-23-like gene was associated with resistance to TMP-SMX and cefoperazone-sulbactam. In conclusion, the bla OXA-23-like gene was the predominant gene among CNSAB isolates throughout Indonesia. A continuous national surveillance system needs to be established to further monitor the genetic profiles of CNSAB in Indonesia.

In early December 2019, an outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), occurred in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. On January 30, 2020 the World Health Organization declared the outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. As of February 14, 2020, 49,053 laboratory-confirmed and 1,381 deaths have been reported globally. Perceived risk of acquiring disease has led many governments to institute a variety of control measures. We conducted a literature review of publicly available information to summarize knowledge about the pathogen and the current epidemic. In this literature review, the causative agent, pathogenesis and immune responses, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment and management of the disease, control and preventions strategies are all reviewed., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The membrane proximal external region (MPER) of HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein (gp) 41 is an attractive vaccine target for elicitation of broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) by vaccination. However, current details regarding the quaternary structural organization of the MPER within the native prefusion trimer [(gp120/41) 3 ] are elusive and even contradictory, hindering rational MPER immunogen design. To better understand the structural topology of the MPER on the lipid bilayer, the adjacent transmembrane domain (TMD) was appended (MPER-TMD) and studied. Membrane insertion of the MPER-TMD was sensitive both to the TMD sequence and cytoplasmic residues. Antigen binding of MPER-specific bNAbs, in particular 10E8 and DH511.2&#95;K3, was significantly impacted by the presence of the TMD. Furthermore, MPER-TMD assembly into 10-nm diameter nanodiscs revealed a heterogeneous membrane array comprised largely of monomers and dimers, as enumerated by bNAb Fab binding using single-particle electron microscopy analysis, arguing against preferential trimeric association of native MPER and TMD protein segments. Moreover, introduction of isoleucine mutations in the C-terminal heptad repeat to induce an extended MPER α-helical bundle structure yielded an antigenicity profile of cell surface-arrayed Env variants inconsistent with that found in the native prefusion state. In line with these observations, electron paramagnetic resonance analysis suggested that 10E8 inhibits viral membrane fusion by lifting the MPER N-terminal region out of the viral membrane, mandating the exposure of residues that would be occluded by MPER trimerization. Collectively, our data suggest that the MPER is not a stable trimer, but rather a dynamic segment adapted for structural changes accompanying fusion., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interest.

Two factors of oxidative stress and inflammatory processes are implicated in pathogenesis of acne vulgaris. Silymarin has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. This study was done to evaluate the effect of oral silymarin in the treatment of acne vulgaris compared to doxycycline and also their combination therapy. This randomized controlled trial was performed on 60 patients with acne vulgaris were divided into three groups of 20 patients, including: Silymarin (Group 1), Doxycycline (Group 2), and both compounds (Group 3). The patients' response was monitored every month and the lesions were evaluated using photography and two methods of Global Acne Grading system (GAGS) and Acne Severity Index (ASI). According to the results, the response to silymarin was not significantly different with doxycycline in the GAGS index (p = .260), but was lower in the ASI (p = .021). In this study, the synergistic effects of silymarin and doxycycline combination have been investigated in comparison with doxycycline. Although the improvement was more favorable in combination group, there was no statistically significant difference (p = .9 in ASI and p = .5 in GAGS). The results of our study suggest that although the silymarin monotherapy is not as effective as doxycycline for the treatment of acne vulgaris, it can be a therapeutic option., (© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Glassing matrix deuteration could be a beneficial sample preparation method for 13 C dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) when large electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) width free radicals are used. However, it could yield the opposite DNP effect when samples are doped with small EPR width free radicals. Herein, we have investigated the influence of solvent deuteration on the 13 C nuclear and electron relaxation that go along with the effects on 13 C DNP intensities at 3.35 T and 1.2 K. For 13 C DNP samples doped with trityl OX063, the 13 C DNP signals decreased significantly when the protons are replaced by deuterons in glycerol:water or DMSO:water solvents. Meanwhile, the corresponding solid-state 13 C T 1 relaxation times of trityl OX063-doped samples generally increased upon solvent deuteration. On the other hand, 13 C DNP signals improved by a factor of ∼1.5 to 2 upon solvent deuteration of samples doped with 4-oxo-TEMPO. Despite this 13 C DNP increase, there were no significant differences recorded in 13 C T 1 values of TEMPO-doped samples with nondeuterated or fully deuterated glassing matrices. While solvent deuteration appears to have a negligible effect on the electron T 1 relaxation of both free radicals, the electron T 2 relaxation times of these two free radicals generally increased upon solvent deuteration. These overall results suggest that while the solid-phase 13 C DNP signals are dependent upon the changes in total nuclear Zeeman heat capacity, the 13 C relaxation effects are related to 2 H/ 1 H nuclear spin diffusion-assisted 13 C polarization leakage in addition to the dominant paramagnetic relaxation contribution of free radical centers.

Optimal efficiency of dissolution dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) is essential to provide the required high sensitivity enhancements for in vitro and in vivo hyperpolarized 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and imaging (MRI). At the nexus of the DNP process are the free electrons, which provide the high spin alignment that is transferred to the nuclear spins. Without changing DNP instrumental conditions, one way to improve 13 C DNP efficiency is by adding trace amounts of paramagnetic additives such as lanthanide (e.g., Gd 3+ , Ho 3+ , Dy 3+ , Tb 3+ ) complexes to the DNP sample, which has been observed to increase solid-state 13 C DNP signals by 100-250%. Herein, we have investigated the effects of paramagnetic transition metal complex R-NOTA (R = Mn 2+ , Cu 2+ , Co 2+ ) doping on the efficiency of 13 C DNP using trityl OX063 as the polarizing agent. Our DNP results at 3.35 T and 1.2 K show that doping the 13 C sample with 3 mM Mn 2+ -NOTA led to a substantial improvement of the solid-state 13 C DNP signal by a factor of nearly 3. However, the other transition metal complexes Cu 2+ -NOTA and Co 2+ -NOTA complexes, despite their paramagnetic nature, had essentially no impact on solid-state 13 C DNP enhancement. W-band electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements reveal that the trityl OX063 electron T 1 was significantly reduced in Mn 2+ -doped samples but not in Cu 2+ - and Co 2+ -doped DNP samples. This work demonstrates, for the first time, that not all paramagnetic additives are beneficial to DNP. In particular, our work provides a direct evidence that electron T 1 reduction of the polarizing agent by a paramagnetic additive is an essential requirement for the improvement seen in solid-state 13 C DNP signal.

Attainment of high NMR signal enhancements is crucial to the success of in vitro or in vivo hyperpolarized NMR or imaging (MRI) experiments. In this work, we report on the use of a superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticle (SPION) MRI contrast agent Feraheme (ferumoxytol) as a beneficial additive in 13 C samples for dissolution dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP). Our DNP data at 3.35 T and 1.2 K reveal that addition of 11 mM elemental iron concentration of Feraheme in trityl OX063-doped 3 M [1- 13 C] acetate samples resulted in a substantial improvement of 13 C DNP signal by a factor of almost 3-fold. Concomitant with the large DNP signal increase is the narrowing of the 13 C microwave DNP spectra for samples doped with SPION. W-band electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy data suggest that these two prominent effects of SPION doping on 13 C DNP can be ascribed to the shortening of trityl OX063 electron T 1 as explained within the thermal mixing DNP model. Liquid-state 13 C NMR signal enhancements as high as 20,000-fold for SPION-doped samples were recorded after dissolution at 9.4 T and 297 K, which is about 3 times the liquid-state NMR signal enhancement of the control sample. While the presence of SPION in hyperpolarized solution drastically reduces 13 C T 1 , this can be mitigated by polarizing smaller aliquots of DNP samples. Moreover, we have shown that Feraheme nanoparticles (~30 nm in size) can be easily and effectively removed from the hyperpolarized liquid by simple mechanical filtration, thus one can potentially incorporate an in-line filtration for these SPIONS along the dissolution pathway of the hyperpolarizer-a significant advantage over other DNP enhancers such as the lanthanide complexes. The overall results suggest that the commercially-available and FDA-approved Feraheme is a highly efficient DNP enhancer that could be readily translated for use in clinical applications of dissolution DNP., Competing Interests: Notes The authors declare no competing financial interest.

Dissolution dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) is one of the most successful techniques that resolves the insensitivity problem in liquid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and imaging (MRI) by amplifying the signal by several thousand-fold. One way to further improve the DNP signal is the inclusion of trace amounts of lanthanides in DNP samples doped with trityl OX063 free radical as the polarizing agent. In practice, stable monomeric gadolinium complexes such as Gd-DOTA or Gd-HP-DO3A are used as beneficial additives in DNP samples, further boosting the DNP-enhanced solid-state 13 C polarization by a factor of 2 or 3. Herein, we report on the use of a trimeric gadolinium complex as a dopant in 13 C DNP samples to improve the 13 C DNP signals in the solid-state at 3.35 T and 1.2 K and consequently, in the liquid-state at 9.4 T and 298 K after dissolution. Our results have shown that doping the 13 C DNP sample with a complex which holds three Gd 3+ ions led to an improvement of DNP-enhanced 13 C polarization by a factor of 3.4 in the solid-state, on par with those achieved using monomeric Gd 3+ complexes but only requires about one-fifth of the concentration. Upon dissolution, liquid-state 13 C NMR signal enhancements close to 20 000-fold, approximately 3-fold the enhancement of the control samples, were recorded in the nearby 9.4 T high resolution NMR magnet at room temperature. Comparable reduction of 13 C spin-lattice T 1 relaxation time was observed in the liquid-state after dissolution for both the monomeric and trimeric Gd 3+ complexes. Moreover, W-band electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) data have revealed that 3-Gd doping significantly reduces the electron T 1 of the trityl OX063 free radical, but produces negligible changes in the EPR spectrum, reminiscent of the results with monomeric Gd 3+ -complex doping. Our data suggest that the trimeric Gd 3+ complex is a highly beneficial additive in 13 C DNP samples and that its effect on DNP efficiency can be described in the context of the thermal mixing mechanism.

A fragment of the human prion protein spanning residues 106-126 (PrP106-126) recapitulates many essential properties of the disease-causing protein such as amyloidogenicity and cytotoxicity. PrP106-126 has an amphipathic characteristic that resembles many antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). Therefore, the toxic effect of PrP106-126 could arise from a direct association of monomeric peptides with the membrane matrix. Several experimental approaches are employed to scrutinize the impacts of monomeric PrP106-126 on model lipid membranes. Porous defects in planar bilayers are observed by using solution atomic force microscopy. Adding cholesterol does not impede defect formation. A force spectroscopy experiment shows that PrP106-126 reduces Young's modulus of planar lipid bilayers. We use Raman microspectroscopy to study the effect of PrP106-126 on lipid atomic vibrational dynamics. For phosphatidylcholine lipids, PrP106-126 disorders the intrachain conformation, while the interchain interaction is not altered; for phosphatidylethanolamine lipids, PrP106-126 increases the interchain interaction, while the intrachain conformational order remains similar. We explain the observed differences by considering different modes of peptide insertion. Finally, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy shows that PrP106-126 progressively decreases the orientational order of lipid acyl chains in magnetically aligned bicelles. Together, our experimental data support the proposition that monomeric PrP106-126 can disrupt lipid membranes by using similar mechanisms found in AMPs.

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) is a technique that uses a microwave-driven transfer of high spin alignment from electrons to nuclear spins. This is most effective at low temperature and high magnetic field, and with the invention of the dissolution method, the amplified nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) signals in the frozen state in DNP can be harnessed in the liquid-state at physiologically acceptable temperature for in vitro and in vivo metabolic studies. A current optimization practice in dissolution DNP is to dope the sample with trace amounts of lanthanides such as Gd 3+ or Ho 3+ , which further improves the polarization. While Gd 3+ and Ho 3+ have been optimized for use in dissolution DNP, other lanthanides have not been exhaustively studied for use in C13 DNP applications. In this work, two additional lanthanides with relatively high magnetic moments, Dy 3+ and Tb 3+ , were extensively optimized and tested as doping additives for C13 DNP at 3.35 T and 1.2 K. We have found that both of these lanthanides are also beneficial additives, to a varying degree, for C13 DNP. The optimal concentrations of Dy 3+ (1.5 mM) and Tb 3+ (0.25 mM) for C13 DNP were found to be less than that of Gd 3+ (2 mM). W-band electron paramagnetic resonance shows that these enhancements due to Dy 3+ and Tb 3+ doping are accompanied by shortening of electron T 1 of trityl OX063 free radical. Furthermore, when dissolution was employed, Tb 3+ -doped samples were found to have similar liquid-state C13 NMR signal enhancements compared to samples doped with Gd 3+ , and both Tb 3+ and Dy 3+ had a negligible liquid-state nuclear T 1 shortening effect which contrasts with the significant reduction in T 1 when using Gd 3+ . Our results show that Dy 3+ doping and Tb 3+ doping have a beneficial impact on C13 DNP both in the solid and liquid states, and that Tb 3+ in particular could be used as a potential alternative to Gd 3+ in C13 dissolution DNP experiments.

Dye-decolorizing peroxidases (DyPs) are a family of heme peroxidases, in which a catalytic distal aspartate is involved in H 2 O 2 activation to catalyze oxidations in acidic conditions. They have received much attention due to their potential applications in lignin compound degradation and biofuel production from biomass. However, the mode of oxidation in bacterial DyPs remains unknown. We have recently reported that the bacterial Tc DyP from Thermomonospora curvata is among the most active DyPs and shows activity toward phenolic lignin model compounds ( J. Biol. Chem. 2015 , 290 , 23447). Based on the X-ray crystal structure solved at 1.75 Å, sigmoidal steady-state kinetics with Reactive Blue 19 (RB19), and formation of compound II-like product in the absence of reducing substrates observed with stopped-flow spectroscopy and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), we hypothesized that the Tc DyP catalyzes oxidation of large-size substrates via multiple surface-exposed protein radicals. Among 7 tryptophans and 3 tyrosines in Tc DyP consisting of 376 residues for the matured protein, W263, W376, and Y332 were identified as surface-exposed protein radicals. Only the W263 was also characterized as one of surface-exposed oxidation sites. SDS-PAGE and size-exclusion chromatography demonstrated that W376 represents an off-pathway destination for electron transfer, resulting in the crosslinking of proteins in the absence of substrates. Mutation of W376 improved compound I stability and overall catalytic efficiency toward RB19. While Y332 is highly conserved across all four classes of DyPs, its catalytic function in A-class Tc DyP is minimal possibly due to its extremely small solvent accessible areas. Identification of surface-exposed protein radicals and substrate oxidation sites is important for understanding DyP mechanism and modulating its catalytic functions for improved activity on phenolic lignin., Competing Interests: Notes The authors declare no competing financial interest.

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR)-based hybrid experimental and computational approaches were applied to determine the structure of a full-length E. coli integral membrane sulfurtransferase, dimeric YgaP, and its structural and dynamic changes upon ligand binding. The solution NMR structures of the YgaP transmembrane domain (TMD) and cytosolic catalytic rhodanese domain were reported recently, but the tertiary fold of full-length YgaP was not yet available. Here, systematic site-specific EPR analysis defined a helix-loop-helix secondary structure of the YagP-TMD monomers using mobility, accessibility and membrane immersion measurements. The tertiary folds of dimeric YgaP-TMD and full-length YgaP in detergent micelles were determined through inter- and intra-monomer distance mapping and rigid-body computation. Further EPR analysis demonstrated the tight packing of the two YgaP second transmembrane helices upon binding of the catalytic product SCN(-), which provides insight into the thiocyanate exportation mechanism of YgaP in the E. coli membrane.

Tobacco smoking is one of the most important risk factors for the development of oral mucosal lesions such as leukoplakia and hairy tongue. Controversy exists in the literature, however, about the prevalence of oral lesions in smokers. The aim of this study was to evaluate oral lesions in male smokers compared with nonsmokers in Hamadan. A total of 516 male participants were assessed, 258 of whom were smokers and 258 of whom were healthy nonsmokers. The prevalence of lesions was evaluated by clinical observation and biopsy. We found that the most prevalent lesions among smokers were gingival problems and coated tongue; smokers had significantly more lesions than did nonsmokers. Malignant and premalignant lesions were found in a higher age range. Among all participants in our study, we found a large number of oral mucosal lesions in smokers that had a strong correlation with smoking. Dental services need to implement care and health education for smokers to promote health.

Objective: Impacted canines require a combination of both surgical and orthodontic management. In this study, patients treated for bone-impacted canines of the hard palatal were evaluated to assess which radiographic factors influenced the feasibility to move impacted maxillary permanent canines from the hard palate into the alveolar arch., Materials and Methods: Eighty patients aged 12 to 24 (average 16 years) were treated surgically and orthodontically to align 146 bone-impacted canines of the hard palate (from 1994 to 2008). Factors such as age, sex, angulation of the canine to the midline (CAM), anomaly of the canine root (RA), overlap of the adjacent lateral incisor root (OALIR), and ratio of root formation (RRF) upon treatment were documented. Radiographic records and demographic data were assessed. The following radiographic measurements of canine position were made from the orthopantomogram (OPG): (1) angulation to the midline, (2) anteroposterior position of the root, (3) overlap of the adjacent incisor. RA or dilaceration was assessed from the OPG, maxillary occlusal (MO), and periapical (PA) radiographs. Whether the impacted canine had responded to surgical exposure and was orthodontically aligned, or surgically removed and discarded was also recorded. The data were analyzed to assess and correlate significance., Results: Eighty patients aged 12 to 24 (19 males and 61 females) with 146 bone-impacted permanent canines of the hard palatal were treated. One hundred and three teeth (70.54%) had responded to surgical exposure and orthodontic alignment within 9 to 12 months. Forty-three impacted canine teeth (29.46%) had to be surgically removed because of ankylosis and no movement after 8 to 9 months using 50 to 60 g of traction force via elastic chains. Data analysis via chi-square and Pearson correlation tests showed that as the CAM increased (> 45 degrees), the canine was more likely to be unresponsive to treatment (P < .001). Increased overlap (> half the root) of the adjacent lateral incisor root (OALIR) via the canine crown influenced the treatment results negatively (P < .001). Additionally, presence of RA was also negatively influential (P < .001). However, the anteroposterior position of the canine did not influence the treatment results significantly, neither did age, sex, nor amount of root formation., Conclusion: Bone-impacted canines of the hard palatal are more likely to respond to surgical exposure and orthodontic management if AM is less than 45 degrees on the OPG; there is no RA found on OPG, periapical (PA), and maxillary occlusal (MO) radiographs; and OALIR by the canine crown is nonexistent or less than grade 2 (half the root) on the OPG.