Fernandopulle

Treatment failure to intralesional sodium stibogluconate (IL-SSG) is a health challenge for cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in Sri Lanka. A randomized controlled proof of principle clinical trial, with two arms (viz., radio frequency-induced heat therapy [RFHT] by a ThermoMed™ device (Model 1.8, Thermosurgery Technologies, Inc., Phoenix, AZ) and thermotherapy by a handheld exothermic crystallization thermotherapy for CL [HECT-CL] device) was conducted on 40 CL treatment failures to IL-SSG, from three hospitals in Tangalle, Hambantota, and Anuradhapura, from January 2017 to January 2018, followed up for 180 days post-thermotherapy with a final follow-up in February 2020...

Gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GIST) are neoplasms which originate from the mesenchymal tissue of the gastrointestinal tract. We report on a GIST presenting with acute gastrointestinal bleeding that mimicked an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) on imaging and at surgery. A 61-year-old female presented with a short history of melaena and severe anaemia. After resuscitation, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy showed a profusely bleeding varix in the proximal jejunum which was treated with glue injection. Contrast-enhanced CT showed a heterogeneous lesion in the proximal jejunum with strong arterial phase enhancement, supplied by a branch of the superior mesenteric artery and drained by a prominent tributary of the superior mesenteric vein, suggestive of an AVM...

Neurons decentralize protein synthesis from the cell body to support the active metabolism of remote dendritic and axonal compartments. The neuronal RNA transport apparatus, composed of cis-acting RNA regulatory elements, neuronal transport granule proteins, and motor adaptor complexes, drives the long-distance RNA trafficking required for local protein synthesis. Over the past decade, advances in human genetics, subcellular biochemistry, and high-resolution imaging have implicated each member of the apparatus in several neurodegenerative diseases, establishing failed RNA transport and associated processes as a unifying pathomechanism...

BACKGROUND: Neuromuscular-blocking agents (NMBAs) can cause both IgE-dependent and IgE-independent anaphylactic reactions, with activation of the mast cell receptor MRGPRX2 being important to the latter. Sugammadex, a reversal agent for certain aminosteroid NMBAs, has been proposed as an antidote for these anaphylactic events with conflicting outcomes. OBJECTIVE: We further characterize the involvement of MRGPRX2 in NMBA-induced mast cell activation and determine how this is influenced by sugammadex...

Proximity-based in situ labeling techniques offer a unique way to capture both stable and transient protein-protein and protein-organelle interactions. Combining this technology with mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomics allows us to obtain snapshots of molecular microenvironments with nanometer resolution, facilitating the discovery of complex and dynamic protein networks. However, a number of technical challenges still exist, such as interferences from endogenously biotinylated proteins and other highly abundant bystanders, how to select the proper controls to minimize false discoveries, and experimental variations among biological/technical replicates...

BACKGROUND: Nutritional psychiatry is an emerging field of research and it is currently exploring the impact of nutrition and obesity on brain function and mental illness. Prior studies links between obesity, nutrition and depression among women. However, less is known how food insecurity may moderate that relationship. METHODS: Data were employed from the Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiology Surveys (CPES), 2001-2003. Two logistic regression models were Logistic regression was used to determine the association between obesity, gender, food insecurity, and past year Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMN) of the pancreas complicated by fistula formation to adjacent organs are an uncommon phenomenon. We present an IPMN of the pancreas with malignant transformation and multiple fistulae to the stomach and duodenum. Case Presentation . A 50-year-old female was referred for investigation of recent epigastric pain and a past history of recurrent pancreatitis. Imaging with computed tomography showed a gross dilatation of the entire pancreatic duct with a heterogeneous enhancement of the periductal parenchyma...

Women's delay in seeking medical advice for abnormal vaginal discharge can cause serious effects such as infertility, ectopic pregnancy, and advanced cervical cancer. Family healthcare workers are in a unique position to help in the promotion of vaginal health. A nonrandomized controlled trial was conducted among a sample of family healthcare workers in the intervention (n = 37) and a control (n = 37) group to assess the effectiveness of an educational intervention, which was a 2-day intensive workshop combining reading materials...

Collaboration among diverse stakeholders involved in the value transformation of health care requires consistent use of terminology. The objective of this study was to reach consensus definitions for the terms value-based care , value-based payment , and population health . A modified Delphi process was conducted from February 2017 to July 2017. An in-person panel meeting was followed by 3 rounds of surveys. Panelists anonymously rated individual components of definitions and full definitions on a 9-point Likert scale...

Recent work on the biophysics of proteins with low complexity, intrinsically disordered domains that have the capacity to form biological condensates has profoundly altered the concepts about the pathogenesis of inherited and sporadic neurodegenerative disorders associated with pathological accumulation of these proteins. In the present review, we use the FUS, TDP-43 and A11 proteins as examples to illustrate how missense mutations and aberrant post-translational modifications of these proteins cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and fronto-temporal lobar degeneration (FTLD)...

Long-distance RNA transport enables local protein synthesis at metabolically-active sites distant from the nucleus. This process ensures an appropriate spatial organization of proteins, vital to polarized cells such as neurons. Here, we present a mechanism for RNA transport in which RNA granules "hitchhike" on moving lysosomes. In vitro biophysical modeling, live-cell microscopy, and unbiased proximity labeling proteomics reveal that annexin A11 (ANXA11), an RNA granule-associated phosphoinositide-binding protein, acts as a molecular tether between RNA granules and lysosomes...

CRISPR/Cas9-based functional genomics have transformed our ability to elucidate mammalian cell biology. However, most previous CRISPR-based screens were conducted in cancer cell lines rather than healthy, differentiated cells. Here, we describe a CRISPR interference (CRISPRi)-based platform for genetic screens in human neurons derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). We demonstrate robust and durable knockdown of endogenous genes in such neurons and present results from three complementary genetic screens...

A gastric diverticulum is an outpouching from the stomach wall. It is usually seen in the posterior gastric wall and the gastric antrum. Diverticula arising from the pyloric region are extremely rare. A 59-year-old female presented with progressively worsening symptoms of gastric outlet obstruction associated with dyspepsia and vague abdominal pain for 5 years. A large, thin-walled, wide-mouthed, false gastric diverticulum (filled with undigested food) arising from the pylorus associated with gastric outlet stenosis was found by endoscopy and CT imaging...

BACKGROUND: The quality of life in many patients is affected by skin lesions. Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), the commonest form of leishmaniasis, is no exception. In Sri Lanka, CL is an emerging parasitological condition with over 3,000 cases within the last decade. Lesions are often seen on exposed parts of the body which may cause social stigma, and hence a study was done to assess the changes in quality of life of CL patients. METHOD: A total of 294 patients (200 civilians and 94 army personnel) answered a previously validated Sinhala self-administered Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) questionnaire and an interviewer-administered questionnaire...

The Centre of Forensic Sciences has validated the Precision ID Ancestry Panel on the Ion S5™ Massively Parallel Sequencing instrument for use in forensic casework. The focus of this paper is the development of reporting guidelines for implementation of the biogeographic ancestry inference service based on the Admixture Prediction results produced using the Torrent Suite™ Software (Thermo Fisher Scientific). The Admixture Prediction algorithm estimates the genetic ancestry of a sample using seven root populations (Europe, East Asia, Oceania, America, Africa, South Asia, and Southwest Asia)...

OBJECTIVES: There has been a global increase in the incidence and prevalence of NAFLD. We assessed the knowledge and awareness of NAFLD among gastroenterology doctors in three state sector hospitals. RESULTS: 80 medical officers and 58 post-graduate trainee doctors/consultants responded. 110 (79.7%) considered NAFLD a major health problem whilst 97 (70.3%) thought the prevalence of NAFLD was 10-40%. 52.9% saw 12-24 patients with NAFLD/year. A vast majority knew the risk factors for NAFLD: 127 (92...

Accurate modeling of human neuronal cell biology has been a long-standing challenge. However, methods to differentiate human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to neurons have recently provided experimentally tractable cell models. Numerous methods that use small molecules to direct iPSCs into neuronal lineages have arisen in recent years. Unfortunately, these methods entail numerous challenges, including poor efficiency, variable cell type heterogeneity, and lengthy, expensive differentiation procedures...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.