1. The ability of alcoholic-precipitated extracts of beef tissue-brain, spleen, heart, and kidney-to stimulate the growth of Staphylococcus aureus, in vitro, and to convert the yellow S form to a white R variant with altered biochemical characteristics conforming to those of an avirulent organism, has been confirmed. 2. The avirulence of the white R variant has been established by tests in vivo...

BACKGROUND Total mesorectal excision (TME) remains commonplace for T1-2 rectal cancer owing to fear of undertreating a small proportion of patients with node-positive disease. Molecular stratification may predict cancer progression. It could be used to select patients for organ-preserving surgery if specific biomarkers were validated. METHODS Gene methylation was quantified using bisulphite p...

OBJECTIVES Serum samples, collected from 94 European wild boar (Sus scrofa) during the hunting seasons 2006 -2010 from different regions of Greece, were examined in order to estimate the role of these wildlife species as reservoir of pathogens important for livestock and/or public health. MATERIALS AND METHODS The assays used for this purpose were commercial indirect ELISA for the detection o...

Out of 270 students in 17 blind school institutions in Malawi 73 per cent were blind before the age of three. The most common cause for the blindness was ocular infection (75-2 per cent). Meales, as a single cause, was responsible for 43-7 per cent of the cases and smallpox for 5-2 per cent. Bacterial infections were incriminated in 26-3 per cent of the cases. Most of these had received traditi...

BACKGROUND For more than a century, appendicectomy has been the treatment of choice for appendicitis. Recent trials have challenged this view. This study assessed the benefits and harms of antibiotic therapy compared with appendicectomy in patients with non-perforated appendicitis. METHODS A comprehensive search was conducted for randomized trials comparing antibiotic therapy with appendicect...

The results of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a group of 52 patients older than 69 years (group 1) were compared with the results of the same operation in a group of 338 younger patients (group 2). In group 1, 23 per cent of patients had acute cholecystitis and 13 per cent were operated on after an episode of acute pancreatitis. In group 2, 8 per cent of patients had acute cholecystitis and 4 ...

The assessment of visual function in a series of 130 consecutive patients of perforating eye injuries, revealed that visual acuity of 6/12 or better was regained in 63 per cent, between 6/60 and 6/18 in 9-2 per cent, less than 6/60 in 15-3 per cent, and enucleation was necessary in 9-2 per cent. In 3 per cent, the eyes were retained as blind, symptomfree, and cosmetically satisfactory organs. T...

introduction the mating of related individuals produces an inbred offspring and leads to an increased homozygosity in the progeny, genetic variance decrease within families and increase between families. the ration of homozygosity for individuals was calculated by inbreeding coefficient. inbred individuals may carry two alleles at a locus that are replicated from one gene in the previous genera...