Some smokers have an accelerated loss of lung function, possibly due to a chronic bronchial inflammation in which granulocytes are involved. Eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) and lactoferrin (LF) are granule proteins in the eosinophil and neutrophil granulocyte, respectively. We wanted to investigate the relationship of serum (s) ECP and LF concentrations to smoking history and lung function al...

Many children with recurrent wheezing in early childhood develop asthma. Objective parameters to describe different groups of wheezers are limited, but tidal flow volume (TFV) response to inhaled salbutamol has demonstrated differences between children with and without asthma. Also, eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) has been associated with declining lung function in older children. We therefor...

OBJECTIVES To quantify practitioner administration of the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP) among adolescent patients, and to determine if such administration is associated with physician knowledge and attitudes regarding efficacy, side effects, and appropriate use. DESIGN Survey of pediatricians. SETTING The survey address list was generated from a database of active Fellows of the Americ...

The crop is a known source of Salmonella and Campylobacter contamination. Previously, we evaluated lactic acid in the drinking water during a simulated pretransport feed withdrawal (FW) and reported 0.44% lactic acid significantly (P < 0.05) reduced the number of Salmonella recovered in market-age broiler crops. However, total consumption of the organic acid-treated drinking water was reduced. ...

To evaluate the use of eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) in monitoring disease activity in childhood asthma, serum ECP in 175 asthmatic children was assessed. Forty five patients with cystic fibrosis, 23 with lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI), and 87 healthy children were used as controls. Serum ECP concentrations (34.3 micrograms/l v 9.8 micrograms/l) were significantly higher in child...

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of Xiaochuanping powder (XP), a traditional Chinese prescription for the treatment of cough and asthma, on serum concentrations of eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and interleukin (IL)-4, eosinophil counts, as well as expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-1 in the lung tissue...

Chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) is a common side effect of allogeneic stem cell transplantation and a major cause of morbidity and mortality in affected patients. Especially skin, eyes and oral mucosa are affected. This can lead to pain and functional impairment. Extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP) is an effective immunomodulatory therapy with minimal side effects but its mode of actio...

BACKGROUND The Eosinophil Cationic Protein (ECP) is a potent multifunctional protein. Three common polymorphisms are present in the ECP gene, which determine the function and production of the protein. The aim was to study the relationship of these ECP gene polymorphisms to signs and symptoms of allergy and asthma in a community based cohort (The European Community Respiratory Health Survey (EC...

An extended membrane system with a dynamic nested structure, which is integrated the evolution-communication mechanism of cell-like P evolutional symport/antiport rules and active membranes (ECP), evolutionary mechanisms particle swarm optimization (PSO) improved PSO inspired by starling flock behavior (SPSO), named DSPSO-ECP, designed developed to try break application restrictions systems in ...