Non invasive immunologic markers of virus-induced liver disease are unmet needs. We tested the clinical significance of quantitative total and IgM-anti-HBc in well characterized chronic-HBsAg-carriers. Sera (212) were obtained from 111 HBsAg-carriers followed-up for 52 months (28-216) during different phases of chronic-HBV-genotype-D-infection: 10 HBeAg-positive, 25 inactive-carriers (HBV-DNA≤2...

OBJECTIVE To study the spectrum of clinical presentation of coeliac disease and the role of IgA anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies titer in the diagnosis and effect of gluten-free diet on such titers in children. METHODS The prospective study was conducted in the paediatric department of Combined Military Hospital, Kharian from Sep 2011 to Sep 2012. Children of 1-12 years of age presenti...

Domestic fowl in small groups are assumed to establish hierarchical systems based on individual recognition. Conversely, interactions in large groups are modulated by badges of status. Previous studies suggested that birds differing in phenotypic appearance (PA) became targets for aggression, possibly mistaking altered PA for badges of status. We evaluated the impact of altering PA on 0, 30, 50...

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to determine the prevalence of increased alanine aminotransferase (ALT), defined by a gender-specific cutoff value, among normal weight and overweight children; and to assess the relationship of increasing ALT levels with cardiometabolic risk factors. METHODS This cross-sectional study was conducted among school students, aged 6-18 years in Isfahan, Iran. Based on t...

Histidine decarboxylase from Lactobacillus 30u has been crystallized in a variety of forms which together indicate a revised subunit structure for the native particle. Octahedral crystals of the wild type enzyme obtained at room temperature from ammonium sulfate solutions in microdiffusion cells belong to tetragonal space group 14122 with a = b = 222 A and c = 107.5 A. Trigonal and hexagonal pl...

Accepted for publication 13 January 1992 Abstract Objective-To examine the induction of antistreptokinase antibodies after giving streptokinase or anistreplase to patients with acute myocardial infarction. Design-Patients were randomly allocated to receive either 15 x 10' IU, streptokinase or 30U anistreplase in a double blind study. Blood samples were collected immediately before treatment and...

I thank Soćıas and colleagues for their letter [1] in response to my editorial [2]. Soćıas et al. continue to claim that female sex workers are at significant risk of acquiring HCV infection via sexual contact, citing a study by Feldman et al. [3]. Despite the declarative title, the data in the study of Feldman et al. do not support sexual transmission of HCV, nor do they support permucosal tra...

Mycetoma is a chronic, specific, granulomatous progressive, and destructive inflammatory disease of mainly the foot caused by either fungi (eumycetoma) or bacteria (actinomycetoma) [1]. Mycetoma is endemic in many tropical and subtropical regions, and it prevails in what is known as the mycetoma belt, which stretches in bands between the latitudes of 15u South and 30u North of the equator. With...

Tropical storms (cyclones, hurricanes, or typhoons) are the most severe form of mechanical disturbance of coral reefs. In 2005, severe tropical cyclone Ingrid crossed the far northern Great Barrier Reef, a region that had not been affected by a major disturbance for several decades, and where benthic data had been collected before the cyclone crossed. This storm provided a unique opportunity to...

Methods for the computation of invariants and symmetries of nonlinear evolution, wave, and lattice equations are presented. The algorithms are based on dimensional analysis, and can be implemented in any symbolic language, such as Mathematica. Invariants and symmetries are shown for several well-known equations. Our Mathematica package allows one to automatically compute invariants and symmetri...