Because abnormalities of the immune system may be involved in the pathogenesis of idiopathic congestive cardiomyopathy (ICCM), we studied suppressor cell function in patients with ICCM. Previously described in vitro techniques were modified for optimal demonstration of concanavalin A (con A)-inducible suppressor activity by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBM). Baseline responses in the mix...

Pancreaticobiliary maljunction (PBM) is a congenital anomaly defined as junction of the pancreatic and bile ducts located outside the duodenal wall beyond the influence of the sphincter of Oddi, usually forming a markedly long common channel. Other names are “anomalous arrangement of pancreaticobiliary ducts” or “anomalous union of biliopancreatic ducts” [1]. Average length of common channel is...

A standard radioactive chromium (51Cr) release assay was used to assess the in vitro phagocytosis and lysis of bovine erythrocytes by cultured splenic, bone marrow and peripheral blood monocyte-derived (PBM) macrophages isolated from healthy and Trypanosoma congolense and T. vivax-infected cattle of the Boran and N'Dama breeds. Recombinant cytokines (rHuTNF-alpha and rBolFN-gamma) and non-acid-...

Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes transmit the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, which causes the majority of fatal malaria cases worldwide. The hematophagous lifestyle defines mosquito reproductive biology and is exploited by P. falciparum for its own sexual reproduction and transmission. The two main phases of the mosquito reproductive cycle, previtellogenic (PV) and postblood meal (PB...

Gaseous elemental (GEM), particulate bound (PBM) and gaseous oxidised (GOM) mercury species were monitored between 2009 and 2011 at the rural monitoring site, Auchencorth Moss, Scotland using the Tekran speciation monitoring system. GEM average for the three year period was 1.40±0.19 ng m(-3) which is comparable with other northern hemisphere studies. PBM and GOM concentrations are very low in ...

Acoustic variability of speakers arises due to differences in their vocal tract characteristics. These individual speaker characteristics are reflected in a speech signal when speakers pronounce a given phoneme. The current work hypothesizes that clusters within a phoneme spoken by multiple speakers roughly correspond to different speakers. Based on this hypothesis, a Gaussian mixture model (GM...

BACKGROUND Preoperative and hospital-acquired anaemia is common among surgical patients. It is associated with an increased risk of morbidity and mortality and a strong risk factor for allogeneic blood transfusions with their own inherent risks. Patient Blood Management (PBM) concepts aim to increase and preserve autologous erythrocyte volume and to optimise haemotherapy. They thus have great p...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Photobiomodulation (PBM) has been proposed as a potential therapy for spinal cord injury (SCI). We aimed to demonstrate that 810 nm light can penetrate deep into the body and promote neuronal regeneration and functional recovery. STUDY DESIGN/MATERIALS AND METHODS Adult rats underwent a T9 dorsal hemisection, followed by treatment with an 810 nm, 150 mW diode laser (...

INTRODUCTION Synchronous double cancer of the gallbladder and pancreas that is associated with congenital biliary dilatation (CBD) and pancreaticobiliary maljunction (PBM) is extremely rare. PBM is frequently reported in Asia, particularly in Japan. We report a surgical case of synchronous double cancer in a patient with primary gallbladder and pancreatic cancer. PRESENTATION OF CASE A 72-yea...