Detection of tubercular antibody and antigen in sera of bone and joint tuberculosis     

J. Pramanik  A. N. Lodam  C. M. Badole  M. V. R. Reddy  K. R. Patond  B. C. Harinath 《Indian journal of clinical biochemistry : IJCB》2000,15(1):22-28

Trichloroacetic acid (TCA) solubilized and DEAE fractionatedMycobacterium tuberculosis H₃₇Ra excretory-secretory (ES) antigen viz., Mtb EST DE1 and affinity purified goat antibodies to the TCA solubilized ES antigen (Mtb EST) were explored in detecting tubercular antibody and antigen respectively in sera of bone and joint tuberculosis by indirect and sandwich ELISA. Out of total 36 bone & joint tuberculosis cases, tubercular antibody was detected by indirect ELISA in 30 patients (sensitivity 83%), while circulating tubercular antigen was detected by sandwich ELISA in 27 patients (sensitivity 75%). Out of 34 non tubercular disease control cases, 10 patients showed positive reaction for antibody while only 4 patients showed positive reaction for antigen. In another group of 34 healthy subjects who were screened, 4 individuals showed positive reaction for tubercular antibody and 2 cases for antigen. This study shows that antigen detection assay using affinity purified anti Mtb EST antigen antibody is superior with overall specificity of 91% as compared to antibody detection assay with 75% specificity in bone & joint tuberculosis.  相似文献   

Molecular biology and immunology of fungal allergens     

Viswanath P. Kurup  Banani Banerjee  Kevin J. Kelly  Jordan N. Fink 《Indian journal of clinical biochemistry : IJCB》2000,15(1):31-42

Fungi are non-chlorophyllus microorganisms, which constitutes the main source of outdoor and indoor allergens. The antigens present in the spores and fragments of hyphae induce allergic responses in sensitized patients. The frequently recognized fungi associated with asthma include Alternaria, Cladosporium, Aspergillus, and Penicillium. With the advent of molecular biology techniques a number of fungal genes encoding relevant allergens have been cloned and the expressed allergens purified and characterized. In this review, we have presented the recent developments, where recombinant allergens have been used in the precise diagnosis of fungal allergy. We have also discussed the role played by these allergens and the T- and B-cell epitopes in the immune mechanism in fungal allergy.  相似文献   

New age adjuvants and delivery systems for subunit vaccines     

Sridevi Kurella  Monika Manocha  Leenu Sabhnani  Beena Thomas  D. N. Rao 《Indian journal of clinical biochemistry : IJCB》2000,15(1):83-100

The dramatic advancements in the field of vaccinology has led to the formulation of chemically well defined vaccines composed of synthetic peptides and recombinant proteins derived from the immunologically dominant regions of the pathogens. Though these subunit vaccines are safer compared to the traditional vaccines they are known to be poorly immunogenic. This necessitates the use of adjuvants to enhance the immunogenicity of these vaccine formulations. The most common adjuvant for human use is alum. Research in the past has focused on the development of systemic immunity using conventional immunization protocols. In the present are, the emphasis is on the development and formulation of alternative adjuvants and delivery systems in generating systemic as well as mucosal immunity. This review mainly focuses on a variety of adjuvants (particulate as well as non-particulate) used with protective antigens of HIV, malaria, plague, leprosy using modified delivery vehicles. The experience of our laboratory and other researchers in this field clearly proves that these new age adjuvants and delivery systems undoubtedly generate enhanced immune response-both humoral and cell mediated. The choice of antigens, the nature of adjuvant used and the mode of delivery employed have a profound effect on the type of immune response generated. Besides the quantity, the quality of the antibodies generated also play a vital role in protection against these diseases. Some of the adjuvants and delivery systems used promoted high titre and affinity antibodies, which were shown to be cytophilic in nature, an important criteria in providing protection to the host. Thus the studies on these adjuvants/delivery systems with respect to various infectious diseases indicate their active role in efficient modulation of immune response along with safety and permissibility.  相似文献   

A test strip for the estimation of urea in serum     

Hemant Kumar  Ashok Kumar  Poonam Kumari  N. B. Tulsani 《Indian journal of clinical biochemistry : IJCB》2000,15(2):124-127

We have developed a biostrip for determination of urea in serum. The test strip is based on enzymatic assay where urease has been immobilized on the chromatographic paper along with chromogen, phenol red. The chromogen is easily soluble in water and does not require other components for the color change. Serum urea reacts with urease and water to liberate ammonia and carbon dioxide. The liberated ammonia changes the pH of the reaction medium, which is monitored by the chromogen phenol red. A single step working reagent strip has been developed and the reaction is completed within 50 seconds at room temperature. With this test strip urea concentration is measured in serum as low as 0.15 g/L. The speed and convenience of determining urea in serum by this strip instantly makes it well suited for individuals, physicians and emergency centres.  相似文献   

Assessment of oxidative stress and effect of antioxidant supplementation during radiotherapy in carcinoma of upper digestive tract     

Soma Gupta  K. K. Singh  V. J. Vyas  V. N. Chaturvedi  M. V. R. Reddy  B. C. Harinath 《Indian journal of clinical biochemistry : IJCB》2000,15(1):52-55

Oxidative stress was studied by estimating plasma levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), beta carotene, vitamin E and erythrocytic superoxide dismutase(E-SOD) activity in 50 cases of carcinoma of upper digestive tract which included carcinoma of oral cavity, pharynx and oesophagus. While plasma MDA level was found to be increased (3.5±1.0 nmole/ml), a significant decrease in beta carotene (81.2±14.5mg%), vitamin E (8.5±1.1 mg/L) level and E-SOD activity (657.0±80.6 U/G Hb) were observed in carcinoma of upper digestive tract. Patients were treated with radiotherapy which itself was toxic enough and produced its deleterious effects by generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). As antioxdiants can detoxify ROS, beneficial effect if any, of antioxidant administration during radiotherapy was studied in two groups of patients, group A (n=5, supplemented with antioxidants) and group B (n=5, without antioxidant supplementation). Plasma MDA level was found to be elevated in both the groups but the increase in group B was significant, compared to pretreatment level. Further, body weight was found to be significantly decreased in group B patients, which was maintained in group A patients. Moreover, group A patients showed significant elevation in beta carotene concentration, thus showing beneficial effect of administration of antioxidants during radiotherapy without disturbing the desirable therapeutic effect of radiotherapy.  相似文献   

Philosophical foundations of quantum field theory   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Huggett  N 《The British journal for the philosophy of science》2000,51(4):617-637

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Information and its value to health workers in rural Uganda: a qualitative perspective*     

Maria G. N. Musoke 《Health information and libraries journal》2000,17(4):194-202

A study was conducted in 1998/99 to investigate the accessibility and use of information by health workers in rural Uganda. Data were collected qualitatively using semi‐structured interviews. As a qualitative study, it focused in‐depth on a relatively small sample of health workers selected purposefully. Different categories of health workers were interviewed. Data were analysed using a grounded theory approach. In this paper, two main categories that emerged from the data will be discussed, namely: value of information and constraints. Information was valuable in clinical work, information dissemination, decision making, administration and detection. Constraints to effective information use included the quality and relevance of the information as well as the difficulties of sometimes putting theory into practice. Finally, the concepts that emerged from the analysis of the use of information pointed directly to the information needs of the health workers studied, which shows that information was valuable in meeting those needs. Some implications of the study and areas for further research are highlighted.  相似文献   

Children born at risk: What's happening in kindergarten?     

Jill N. Reic  Jerry W. Cleland  Stephanie R. Stilson  J. Clifford Kaspar  Deborah L. Holmes 《Psychology in the schools》1993,30(1):50-52

Many studies examine the development of infants born at risk for medical and developmental problems during the early years of life, but far fewer follow these children into their school years. This project compared high-risk vs. low-risk children in their performance on the WPPSI at pre- and postkindergarten levels. In general, both groups of children demonstrated increases in performance; however, their patterns of performance were different. The high-risk children showed increases predominantly in the Performance areas of the test, whereas the low-risk children demonstrated increases predominantly in the Verbal areas.  相似文献   

Variable uses of alternative conceptions: A case study in current electricity     

Patricia M. Heller  Fred N. Finley 《科学教学研究杂志》1992,29(3):259-275

Recent research related to the design of science instruction is often based on conceptual change theory and requires assessments of what knowledge students bring to instruction. The premise of this study was that it is also important to understand when and how students apply their knowledge. Fourteen elementary and middle school teachers in an in-service physics course were asked to solve qualitatively a variety of series and parallel circuit problems and explicate their reasoning. These teachers were found to share a common core of strongly held propositions that formed a coherent, but incorrect and contradictory model of sequential current flow. Yet their predictions about the circuits were highly variable. The variability in predictions resulted from differences and contradictions in additional “protective belts” of propositions, and differences in the ways in which the teachers changed and selectively applied those propositions to different problems. Understanding the variations in not only what teachers knew, but also the differences in when and how they applied their knowledge complicated the task of designing instruction. However, it also made possible the design of more precise instruction in which the teachers were required to recognize, confront, and reconcile specific inconsistencies in their beliefs.  相似文献   

Parental anxiety,language, assertion,and expectation factors in subsequent understanding and recall of assessment information     

Jerome Zake  Robert N. Wendt 《Psychology in the schools》1991,28(2):156-164

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between initial understanding of information given by the school psychologist at parent conferences and characteristics of parents (anxiety, parental expectations, assertion, and language level). Demographic variables were also explored as they related to postassessment recall and understanding of data. Results indicated that language level of the parent, age of the parent, and SES were significantly related to recall. Anxiety, assertion, and expectation of results were not significant factors. Implications for practice and training are discussed.  相似文献