A rapid screening test for detection of IgA deficiency

A solid-phase red cell adherence (SPRCA) assay has been developed to screen blood donors for IgA deficiency, and 6117 donor sera have been screened by this method. Eighteen sera were found to be IgA deficient, which represents a frequency of 1 in 340. Seventeen of these sera were retested by passive hemagglutination inhibition, which has a sensitivity of approximately 0.1 mg per dL. Eight sera were confirmed as IgA deficient, and nine were found to contain low levels of IgA (less than 1 mg/dL). The approximate sensitivity of the SPRCA assay is 1 mg per dL. The speed, simplicity, and sensitivity of this assay make it a good alternative to conventional methods of screening.     

Ovarian carcinoma relapsing as a cerebellopontine angle tumour

Involvement of the central nervous system in epithelial ovarian carcinoma is rare. A 46-year-old woman with ovarian carcinoma relapsing with brain metastasis is described. She received radiotherapy for the metastasis and survived for 18 months.     

Effect of treatment of dentofacial deformities on the electromyographic activity of masticatory muscles

Individuals with dentofacial deformities present changes in masticatory muscles. The objective of the present study was to determine the influence of interdisciplinary treatment in cases of class III dentofacial deformities regarding the EMG activity of the temporal (T) and masseter (M) muscles. The study was conducted on 15 patients with class III dentofacial deformities who were submitted to orthodontic, oromyofunctional and surgical treatment and assigned to groups P1 (before surgery) and P2 (6-9 months after surgery). Fifteen individuals with no alterations in facial morphology or dental occlusion and without signs or symptoms of temporomandibular joint dysfunction were used as controls (CG). The T and M muscles were submitted to EMG bilaterally in the situations of mastication and mastication plus biting, with analysis of amplitude interval and root mean square. For all muscles tested, there was a difference between CG, P1 and P2; CG was higher than P2 and P2 higher than P1 in all situations assessed. We conclude that there was an increase in EMG activity in the T and M muscles after surgical correction of the dentofacial deformity accompanied by interdisciplinary treatment, although the values were still lower than those obtained for CG.     

Replication of a common fragile site, FRA3B, occurs late in S phase and is delayed further upon induction: implications for the mechanism of fragile site induction

The FRA3B at 3p14.2 is the most highly expressed of the common fragile sites observed when DNA replication is perturbed by aphidicolin or folate stress. The molecular basis for chromosome fragility at FRA3B is unknown. In contrast to the rare fragile sites, including FRAXA, no repeat motifs, such as trinucleotide repeats, have been identified within FRA3B. Several lines of evidence suggest that fragile sites are regions of DNA whose replication is unusually sensitive to interference. We have used fluorescence in situ hybridization to determine the relative timing of replication of FRA3B sequences. Our studies revealed that FRA3B sequences are late replicating. Exposure to aphidicolin, an inhibitor of both DNA polymerase alpha and delta, results in a reproducible delay in the timing of replication, and some cells enter G2without having completed replication of FRA3B sequences. Our results support a model in which common fragile sites are sequences that initiate replication late in S phase or are slow to replicate, and the chromosomal breaks and gaps observed in metaphase cells are due to unreplicated DNA.      

Low prevalence of <Emphasis Type="Italic">H. pylori</Emphasis> Infection in HIV-Positive Patients in the Northeast of Brazil

Background  

This study conducted in Northeastern Brazil, evaluated the prevalence of H. pylori infection and the presence of gastritis in HIV-infected patients.     

Neck mass due to thrombosis of the jugular vein in patients with cancer

The hypothesis that jugular thrombosis (JT) may cause a mass in the cervical region is usually overlooked. The objective of the present study was to identify the characteristics of neck masses resulting from JT in cancer patients and to analyze the possible reasons for their formation. A retrospective study was conducted on 8 patients with JT affected by 3 types of neoplasia, ie, carcinomas (3 cases), adenocarcinomas (3 cases), and lymphomas (2 cases) located in the breast, digestive apparatus, lymphatic system (2 cases each), lung and an undetermined site (1 case each), diagnosed over the last 12 years. The most frequent symptom of JT was the presence of a mass in the supraclavicular space (62.5% of cases) deeply located on the anterior margin of the sternocleidomastoid muscle and diagnosed by computed tomography and ultrasound. The masses were slightly hardened, with a clearly defined upper limit and an imprecise lower limit and with an irregular surface. The patients also presented with cough, hoarseness, pain during movements, facial edema, and collateral circulation. In one of the patients with a lung cancer, JT symptoms preceded the symptoms of cancer by 2 months. Hypercoagulation, compression, and invasion of a vessel possibly explain the occurrence of JT in these patients.     

Lower age at menarche affects survival in older Australian women: results from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Ageing

Background  

While menarche indicates the beginning of a woman's reproductive life, relatively little is known about the association between age at menarche and subsequent morbidity and mortality. We aimed to examine the effect of lower age at menarche on all-cause mortality in older Australian women over 15 years of follow-up.     

Tracheal Neovascularization

Tracheal segmental free grafts always tend to undergo necrosis with consequent occlusion of the airway. Revascularized grafts are impossible to carry out, since the trachea is devoid of a major vascular pedicle that would permit microvascular reconstruction. On the other hand, neovascularized grafts carry a potential for success but have not been sufficiently studied. Neovascularization of a six-ring circumferential tracheal segment (CTS) was studied in dogs using a sternohyoid muscle (SM) flap. Three different procedures were carried out. In group 1 the six-ring CTS was inside a free graft. In group 2 the SM was freed from its proximal connection and rotated to wrap a corresponding six-ring CTS; it was then sutured and left in place for 21 days. After this period it was again approached, and the six-ring CTS was sectioned and sutured back in place, leaving the distally pedicled SM untouched. In group 3 an identical procedure was carried out, but the SM flap was left with a proximally rather than a distally based flap. All surviving animals were followed up for at least 1 year, and the results were analyzed by clinical and tracheoscopic observations and by macroscopic and microscopic studies after the animals were killed. All animals in group 1 died within 18 days; the studies showed necrosis and occlusion of the CTS. In groups 2 and 3 there was no degenerative change of the CTS, whose aspect was close to normal on macroscopic and microscopic examination. We conclude that the free CTS graft is totally inviable. In contrast, neovascularization of the CTS occurs when the segment is first wrapped around with an SM flap. This ensures CTS viability and opens new perspectives for homotransplantation.