Search results for " POLYMER"
showing 10 items of 3533 documents
Performance characteristics of the new Abbott Real Time MTB assay for detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in respiratory specimens
2015
The performance of the Abbott Real Time MTB assay for detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in respiratory specimens was evaluated using a standard culture as the reference. The overall concordance between both methods was 0.95. The assay displayed an excellent sensitivity (100% for smear-positive/92.3% for smear-negative specimens) and specificity (100%).
Performance of a Highly Sensitive Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Real-Time PCR Assay for Diagnosis of Pulmonary Tuberculosis in a Low-Prevalence …
2018
ABSTRACT The potential impact of routine real-time PCR testing of respiratory specimens from patients with presumptive tuberculosis in terms of diagnostic accuracy and time to tuberculosis treatment inception in low-prevalence settings remains largely unexplored. We conducted a prospective intervention cohort study. Respiratory specimens from 1,020 patients were examined by acid-fast bacillus smear microscopy, tested by a real-time Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex PCR assay (Abbott RealTi me MTB PCR), and cultured in mycobacterial media. Seventeen patients tested positive by PCR (5 were acid-fast bacillus smear positive and 12 acid-fast bacillus smear negative), and Mycobacterium tubercul…
Kinetics of torque teno virus DNA load in saliva and plasma following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation
2018
Plasma torque teno virus (TTV) DNA load directly correlates with the degree of T-cell immune reconstitution early after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). Here, the kinetics of oral TTV DNA shedding was examined to assess whether quantitation of TTV DNA load in saliva may either replace or complement that in plasma for predicting lymphocyte (ALC) reconstitution after engraftment. This prospective observational study enrolled 38 nonconsecutive allo-HSCT recipients. Saliva and plasma specimens were collected at baseline (pretransplant) and at around days +30, +50, and +90 after allo-HSCT. TTV DNA was quantitated in both specimen types by real-time PCR. ALCs were m…
Hepatitis C virus early kinetics and resistance-associated substitution dynamics during antiviral therapy with direct-acting antivirals
2018
The emergence of resistance-associated substitutions (RASs) can compromise the high efficacy of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs). Little is known about RASs selection at very early time points during DAA treatment. Therefore, we analyzed the potential emergence of RASs immediately after therapy initiation. Samples of 71 patients treated with different DAAs were collected at baseline, during therapy (hours 4 and 8; days 1-7; weeks 2-4) or until target not detected. HCV-RNA levels were determined by qPCR, and RASs were detected by deep sequencing. Sixty-three (89%) patients achieved a sustained virological response (SVR), 7 (10%) relapsed, and 1 (1%) experienced a breakthrough. Almost all non-…
Mutation analyses in 17 patients with deficiency in acid β-galactosidase: three novel point mutations and high correlation of mutation W273L with Mor…
2001
An inherited deficiency in beta-galactosidase can result in GM1 gangliosidosis, with several phenotypes of generalized or chronic psychomotor deterioration, as well as in Morquio disease type B, a characteristic mucopolysaccharidosis free of neurological symptoms. We performed mutation analyses in 17 juvenile and adult patients from various European regions with a deficiency in beta-galactosidase and skeletal abnormalities. Fifteen of these had the Morquio B phenotype and have remained neurologically healthy until now while the two others exhibited psychomotor retardation of juvenile onset. A two-base substitution (851-852TG--CT; W273L) was present in 14 of the 15 Morquio B cases. Even if o…
Pre-emptive antiviral therapy for active CMV infection in adult allo-SCT patients guided by plasma CMV DNAemia quantitation using a real-time PCR ass…
2013
Pre-emptive antiviral therapy for active CMV infection in adult allo-SCT patients guided by plasma CMV DNAemia quantitation using a real-time PCR assay: clinical experience at a single center
Heavy resistance exercise training and skeletal muscle androgen receptor expression in younger and older men
2010
Effects of heavy resistance exercise on serum testosterone and skeletal muscle androgen receptor (AR) concentrations were examined before and after a 21-week resistance training period. Seven healthy untrained young adult men (YT) and ten controls (YC) as well as ten older men (OT) and eight controls (OC) volunteered as subjects. Heavy resistance exercise bouts (5 × 10 RM leg presses) were performed before and after the training period. Muscle biopsies were obtained before and 1h and 48 h after the resistance exercise bouts from m.vastus lateralis (VL) to determine cross-sectional area of muscle fibers (fCSA) and AR mRNA expression and protein concentrations. No changes were observed in YC …
Cocaine abuse determination by ion mobility spectrometry using molecular imprinting
2016
A cocaine-based molecular imprinted polymer (MIP) has been produced by bulk polymerization and employed as selective solid-phase extraction support for the determination of cocaine in saliva samples by ion mobility spectrometry (IMS). The most appropriate conditions for washing and elution of cocaine from MIPs were studied and MIPs were characterized in terms of analyte binding capacity, reusability in water and saliva analysis, imprinting factor and selectivity were established and compared with non-imprinted polymers. The proposed MIP-IMS method provided a LOD of 18μgL-1 and quantitative recoveries for blank saliva samples spiked from 75 to 500μgL-1 cocaine. Oral fluid samples were collec…
Individual and common antigen-recognition sites of liver-derived T cells in patients with autoimmune hepatitis.
2003
Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is characterized by dense T-cell infiltrations in the liver tissue, but little is known how T cells influence the pathogenesis. To address this question, the distribution of T-cell receptor variable beta-chain (TCR Vbeta) transcripts of peripheral blood and liver-infiltrating T cells from previously untreated patients with newly diagnosed acute exacerbated AIH was investigated. Furthermore, the lengths and sequences of complementary-determining region 3 (CDR3) were studied. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis and CDR3 spectratyping revealed multiple clonal expansions of liver-infiltrating T cells but not peripheral T cells within vari…
Herpes Simplex I virus impairs regenerative outcomes of periodontal regenerative therapy in intrabony defects: a pilot study.
2011
Aim To evaluate the impact of herpesvirus type-1 and -2 on the clinical outcomes of periodontal regenerative procedures in isolated deep intrabony pockets, in an experimental population with no detectable periodontal pathogens. Materials and Methods Seventeen periodontal intraosseous defects in 17 moderate-to-advanced periodontitis patients were treated with regenerative therapy and amelogenins. Microbiological evaluation was performed at baseline (after the completion of initial therapy) and at 1 year to exclude the presence of periodontal pathogens. Herpesviruses-1 and -2 DNA were quantified in the pocket tissues associated to the intrabony defect using molecular assays. Clinical attachme…