BACKGROUND In the search for fast, simple and better ways for diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB), there is need to discover and evaluate new biomarkers that are found in samples other than sputum to determine their effectiveness. This study examined the utility of saliva vis-a-vis serum by evaluating levels of biomarkers found in saliva and serum from TB suspects. METHODS Study enrolled tuberculo...

We describe a simple, direct kinetic method for determination of salivary a-amylase (1,4 a-o-glucan 4-glucanohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.1). The assay makes use of a well-defined substrate, p-nitrophenyl a-maltoside, which is hydrolyzed by a-amylase to a chromogenic product, p-nitrophenol. Activity is determined by directly monitoring the increase in absorbance of the reaction mixture. Amylase activity...

BACKGROUND Salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) is considered a biomarker of sympathetic activation in humans, but there is controversy regarding the existence of sAA in dogs. The hypothesis of this study was that sAA exists in dogs and it could change in situations of sympathetic stimulation. Therefore, the aims of this study were: 1) to demonstrate the presence of alpha-amylase in saliva of dogs by W...

The Affymetrix Drug Metabolism Enzymes and Transporters (DMET) microarray is the first assay to offer a large representation of SNPs conferring genetic diversity across known pharmacokinetic markers. As a convenient and painless alternative to blood, saliva samples have been reported to work well for genotyping on the high density SNP arrays, but no reports to date have examined this applicatio...

Search for hepatitis C virus (HCV) in body fluids other than blood is important when assessing possible nonparenteral routes of viral transmission. However, the role of oral fluids in HCV transmission remains controversial. Our aim was to compare the prevalence of HCV antibody (HCV Ab) levels in saliva, and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) of HCV seropositive hemodialysis patients. Serum, saliva...

Studies have shown that music confers plasticity to the brain. In a preliminary pilot study, we examined the effect of music listening on steroid hormones and the relationship between steroid hormone receptor polymorphisms and musical ability. Twenty-one subjects (10 males and 11 females) were recruited and divided into musically talented and control groups. The subjects selected (1) music they...

to determine the prognostic value of response to treatment in patients with focal segmental glomerulo-sclerosis. fsgs includes 10-15% of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome in children. bulk of evidence supports disease relationship with immune system. unfortunately, responses to immunosuppressive drugs are not desirable and progression to end-stage renal disease is common. we analyzed 62 out of 99 c...

To study lipid interference in steroid radioimmunoassays in which dextran-coated charcoal is used as the separating agent, we tested triolein and phosphatidylcholine as model hydrophobic and amphipathic lipids, respectively. Addition of either caused distortion of the standard curve to an extent that was inversely related to the polarity of the steroid molecule. Both lipids form a dispersion th...