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Helicobacter pylori (H.pylori) is the most prominent causative agent of gastroduodenal diseases all over the world. Other manifestations such as urticaria and coronary heart diseases, also are suspected to be induced by H.pylori. Non invasive methods are preferred for diagnosis; and ELISA, because of its reliability, speed, sensitivity and specificity is widely preferred as diagnostic tool. Previously we have used IFA, and here, we report an indirect ELISA technique for H.pylori diagnosis. First, 9 strains, of H.pylori isolated from biopsies, were cultured, and the soluble crude antigen was used to coat ELISA plates. Antigen concentration and conjugated antiserum dilution were optimised using checker board method. In this study the gold standard was: rapid urease test, culture and direct smear. Patient serum dillution and the cut-off value was determind, using 22 negative and 30 positive confirmed samples according to ROC curve and the results were compared with a commercial kit. The sensitivity and specificity of this method were 93.2 percent and 95.4 percent respectively. A commercial ELISA Kit, was used and compared simultaneously. The sensitivity and specificity were 87.8 percent and 73 percent respectively. Therefore, regarding the acceptable sensitivity and specificity, ease of work of ELISA, being economical and non-invasive, it can be employed in diagnosis of H.pylori infection and also in epidemiological studies.

Previous literature supports the variations in microRNAs expression levels among lymphoma patients due to EBV infection. These alterations can be observed in both EBV-encoded-microRNAs and EBV-induced cellular microRNAs. Moreover, changes in the microRNA profile could be significant in disease progression. This study aimed to assess published literature to obtain a microRNA profile for both EBV-encoded microRNAs and EBV-induced cellular microRNAs among lymphoma patients. We searched common available electronic databases by using relevant keywords. The result demonstrated that EBV infection could alter the microRNA expression levels among lymphoma patients. In Burkitt lymphoma, hsa-miR197 and miR510 were most frequently assessed human micro RNAs. Also, miR-BART6-3P and miR-BART17-5P were the most frequent viral micro RNAs in Burkitt lymphoma. Other human important micro RNAs were hsa-miR155 (in Diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL)), hsa-miR145 (in Nasal natural killer T cell lymphoma (NNKTCL)), miR-96, miR-128a, miR-128b, miR-129, and miR-205 (in Classic Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL)), miR-21, miR-142-3P, miR-126, miR-451 and miR-494-3P (in Nasal natural killer cell lymphoma (NNKCL)). Also, viral assessed micro RNAs were miR-BART1-5P (in DLBCL and NNKTCL), miR-BART-5 (in CHL), and EBV-miR-BART20-5P (in NNKCL). In conclusion, it could be suggested that EBV-encoded-microRNAs and EBV-induced cellular-microRNAs can be utilized as helpful factors for different types of lymphoma diagnoses or prognostic factors. Moreover, the mentioned microRNAs can also be promising therapeutic targets and can be used to modulate the oncogenes.

Purpose of Review: The purpose of this manuscript is to illuminate the diagnostic challenges in patients who present with both headache and neck pain., Recent Findings: The differential diagnosis for headache and neck pain includes many conditions. Furthermore, cervical musculoskeletal abnormalities including head forward posture and myofascial trigger points may play an overlapping role in many of these conditions. Multiple headache disorders may be present within the same patient. A multidisciplinary team approach addressing all components of the headache may lead to better outcomes for these patients.

Objective: The aim of this systematic review is to identify the efficacy of different categories of treatments for menstrual migraines as found in randomized controlled trials or open label studies with similar efficacy endpoints., Background: Menstrual migraine is very common and approximately 50% of women have increased risk of developing migraines related to the menstrual cycle. Attacks of menstrual migraine are usually more debilitating, of longer duration, more prone to recurrence, and less responsive to acute treatment than nonmenstrual migraine attacks., Methods: Search for evidence was done in 4 databases that included PubMed, EMBASE, Science Direct, and Web of Science. Eighty-four articles were selected for full text review by 2 separate readers. Thirty-six of the 84 articles were selected for final inclusion. Articles included randomized controlled and open label trials that focused on efficacy of acute and preventative therapies for menstrual migraine. Secondary analyses where excluded because the initial study population was not women with menstrual migraine., Results: After final screening, 11 articles were selected for acute and 25 for preventive treatment of menstrual migraine. These were further subdivided into treatment categories. For acute treatment: triptans, combination therapy, prostaglandin synthesis inhibitor, and ergot alkaloids. For preventive treatment: triptans, combined therapy, oral contraceptives, estrogen, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, phytoestrogen, gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist, dopamine agonist, vitamin, mineral, and nonpharmacological therapy were selected. Overall, triptans had strong evidence for treatment in both acute and short term prevention of menstrual migraine., Conclusions: Based on this literature search, of all categories of treatment for menstrual migraine, triptans have the most extensive research with strong evidence for both acute and preventive treatment of menstrual migraine. Further randomized controlled trials should be performed for other therapies to strengthen their use in the care of menstrual migraine patients., (© 2015 American Headache Society.)

This paper describes a microscale in vivo sensor platform device for the simultaneous detection of multiple biomarkers. We designed the polymer-based biosensors incorporating multiple active isolated areas, as small as 70 μm × 70 μm, for antigen detection. The fabrication approach involved conventional micro- and nano-fabrication processes followed by site-specific electrophoretic directed assembly of antibody-functionalized nanoparticles. To ensure precise and large-scale manufacturing of these biosensors, we developed a semi-automated system for the attachment of the 250-μm biosensor to a 300-μm catheter probe. Our fabrication and post-processing procedures should enable large-scale production of such biosensor devices at lower manufacturing cost. The principle of detection with these biosensors involved a simple fluorescence-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. These biosensors exhibit high selectivity (ability to selectively detect multiple biomarkers of different diseases), specificity (ability to target generic to specific disease biomarkers), rapid antigen uptake, and low detection limits (for carcinoembryonic antigen, 31.25 pg mL(-1); for nucleosomes, 62.5 pg mL(-1)), laying the foundation for potential early detection of various diseases.

The precise, size-selective assembly of nanoparticles gives rise to many applications where the assembly of nano building blocks with different biological or chemical functionalizations is necessary. We introduce a simple, fast, reproducible-directed assembly technique that enables a complete sorting of nanoparticles with single-particle resolution. Nanoparticles are size-selectively assembled into prefabricated via arrays using a sequential template-directed electrophoretic assembly method. Polystyrene latex (PSL) nanoparticles with diameters ranging from 200 to 50 nm are selectively assembled into vias comparable to nanoparticle diameter. We investigate the effects of particle size and via size on the sorting efficiency. We show that complete sorting can be achieved when the size of the vias is close to the diameter of the nanoparticles and the size distribution of the chosen nanoparticles does not overlap. The results also show that it is necessary to keep the electric field on during the insertion and removal of the template. To elucidate the versatility and nil effects that the electrophoresis assembly technique has on the assembled nanoparticle characteristics, we have assembled cancer-specific monoclonal antibody-2C5-coated nanoparticles and have also shown that they can successfully measure low concentrations of the nucleosome (NS) antigen.

We investigated the effects of operator-applied force on diffuse optical spectroscopy (DOS) by integrating a force transducer into the handheld probe. Over the typical range of contact forces measured in the breasts of eight patients, absorption and reduced scattering coefficients (650 to 1000 nm) variance was 3.1 +/- 1.0% and 1.0 +/- 0.4%. For trained operators, we observed <5% variation in hemoglobin and <2% variation in water and lipids. Contact force is not a significant source of variation, most likely because of a relatively wide probe surface area and the stability of the DOS method for calculating tissue optical properties.

Diffuse optical spectroscopy (DOS) has been used to monitor and predict the effects of neoadjuvant (i.e., presurgical) chemotherapy in breast cancer patients in several pilot studies. Because patients with suspected breast cancers undergo biopsy prior to treatment, it is important to understand how biopsy trauma influences DOS measurements in the breast. The goal of this study was to measure the effects of a standard core breast biopsy on DOS measurements of tissue deoxyhemoglobin, hemoglobin, water, and bulk lipid concentrations. We serially monitored postbiopsy effects in the breast tissue in a single subject (31-year-old premenopausal female) with a 37x18x20 mm fibroadenoma. A baseline measurement and eight weekly postbiopsy measurements were taken with a handheld DOS imaging instrument. Our instrument used frequency domain photon migration combined with broadband steady-state spectroscopy to characterize tissues via quantitative measurements of tissue absorption and reduced scattering coefficients from 650 to 1000 nm. The concentrations of significant near-infrared (NIR) absorbers were mapped within a 50 cm(2) area over the biopsied region. A 2-D image of a contrast function called the tissue optical index (TOI=deoxyhemoglobinxwaterbulk lipid) was generated and revealed that a minimum of 14 days postbiopsy was required to return TOI levels in the biopsied area to their prebiopsy levels. Changes in the TOI images of the fibroadenoma also reflected the progression of the patient's menstrual cycle. DOS could therefore be useful in evaluating both wound-healing response and the effects of hormone and hormonal therapies in vivo.

We investigate the effective friction encountered by a mass sliding on a granular layer as a function of bed thickness and boundary roughness conditions. The observed friction has minima for a small number of layers before it increases and saturates to a value that depends on the roughness of the sliding surface. We use an index-matched interstitial liquid to probe the internal motion of the grains with fluorescence imaging in a regime where the liquid has no significant effect on the measured friction. The shear profiles obtained as a function of depth show a decrease in slip near the sliding surface as the layer thickness is increased. We propose that the friction depends on the degree of grain confinement relative to the sliding surfaces.

We investigate the gravity driven rapid failure of a granular step composed of noncohesive steel beads. The step is initially held together with electromagnets, and released when the current is switched off. We visualize the surface and the motion of the grains during the entire relaxation. The initial failure occurs at the surface and the subsequent flow is also confined to the surface as the step relaxes to its final state. The final shape of the surface is almost linear, depends on the initial angle of the step, and is not sensitive to the size of the grains. The average final slope of the pile is only slightly lower than the angle of repose of a pile formed by slowly pouring particles on to a flat surface. The evolution of the step is compared with a proposed convective-diffusion model of our system. The qualitative features of the relaxation are captured by the model after a flow-dependent dissipation parameter is introduced.