Prevalence, Haematological and Molecular Studies of Haemonchus contortus Isolated from Goat at AL-Muthanna Province, Iraq.

Parasitic infections, especially helminthes infections of the gastrointestinal tract due to the latent symptoms, play a vital role in the growth and efficiency of ruminants. The current research was performed to determine the prevalence of haemonchosis in goats and the effect of some risk factors, such as age, sex, and months on the infection rate. Also, our study includes investigating the haematological and biochemical changes in the haemonchosis-infected goat, then utilizing the PCR technique to confirm the H. contortus diagnosis in goats. The result of the epidemiological study revealed that only 73 out of 693 examined goats were positive to infect with Haemonchus spp. at an infection rate of 10.53%. The incidence of Haemonchosis was related to climatic conditions, with the highest (23.07 %) and lowest (4.34 %) percentages occurring in October and June, respectively. Furthermore, the highest (14.01 %) and lowest (4.76 %) infection percentages were recorded in goats aged > 5 years and 9 months to 2 years old, respectively. According to sex, infection percentages were (14.24%) and (7.02 %) for females and males, respectively. Haematological and biochemical parameters results revealed that infected goats suffered from a gradual decline in Hb concentration, pocket cell volume, total erythrocyte count, total leucocyte count, lymphocyte, neutrophil, total serum protein and albumin, while eosinophil count was increased significantly. Also, serum enzymes ALP, ALT, and AST showed significant increases in infected goats. The result of PCR showed that specific primers (HcI-F, HcI-R) successfully amplify the ITS-2 rDNA gene with 295bp -long fragment to H. controtus. Due to the effect of age, sex and season on H. contortus infection, it is crucial to have control and prevention programs and treatment schedules in the herd.

Comparison between Antimicrobial and Antibiofilm Activity of Exopolysaccharides (EPS) Extracted from Lactobacillus reuteri and Streptococcus mitis against Oral Bacteria.

Due to the increased resistance to antibiotics and chemical biocides, the use of bacterial exopolysaccharides has been considered. The objective of the current study was to investigate the strength of the antibacterial and antibiofilm activity of EPS extracted from Lactobacillus reuteri and Streptococcus mitis because previous studies showed there were structural differences between EPS, during this study, EPS extracted from Lactobacillus reuteri and Streptococcus miti by ethanol precipitation method and estimated antibacterial and antibiofilm activity against several Oral Bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus hominis, Acinetobacter baumannii, Raoultella ornithinolytica, Streptococcus thoraltensis in different concentration as (100,150,200,250,300 mg/ml ), the results showed carbohydrates rate in extracted EPS from L. reuteri and S. mitis were recorded was 85, 80 % respectively.The concentration 100 and 150 mg/ml for EPS from L. reuteri and S. mitis, there was no inhibitory effect, except in S. aureus (1.1±0.10) and S. hominis (1.0±0.10) at 100 mg/ml, 3.1±2.01, 2.1±0.54 mg/ml respectively at 150 mg/ml concentration but no significant differences (P≤0.05). However, the antibacterial effect of that EPSs started at the concentration of 200 and upwards, where different results were recorded between the concentrations of both EPSs against all bacteria isolated (P≤0.05), On the other hand, the effect of EPS from L. reuteri and S. mitis was clear against the formation of biofilm compared with the control, worth mentioning that EPS from L. reuteri was more effective compared with EPS from S. mitis in all isolates (P≤0.05) except for S. thoraltensis where it was noted that the EPS from S. mitis is more effective than EPS from L. reuteri. Through the results obtained in this study, it was noted that the difference in the structural nature of EPS has an important role in its effectiveness as an antibacterial and anti-biofilm formation and, as it was found that the EPS from L. reuteri showed more effectiveness than EPS from S. mitis and thus the mechanism of preventing and inhibiting bacteria depending of the structural nature of EPS.

Factors influencing the shade matching performance of dentists and dental technicians when using two different shade guides.

INTRODUCTION: In recent years increased patient aesthetic expectations have brought about closer scrutiny of shade taking and communication processes with the aim of increasing the chances of success of obtaining good indirect restoration appearance. When shade matching, the most popular approach is to match the shade of the natural dentition using a shade guide to specify the shade of the final restoration before fabrication. A recent alternative approach is to also specify the shade of the tooth preparation to facilitate its replication in the die upon which the restoration will be made. OBJECTIVE: To assess (1) the colour vision ability of a sample of dentists and dental technicians and correlate this to their shade matching performance in a simulated clinical situation, and (2) the accuracy and reproducibility of shade matches using two shade guides. DESIGN: In vitro study. METHOD: Consenting dentists and dental technicians within Dundee Dental School and Hospital undertook a Farnsworth-Munsell 100 (FM-100) Hue test and matched (on two separate occasions) the shades of six prepared extracted teeth, containing either a veneer or crown preparation, using both the IPS Natural Die Material shade guide (Ivoclar Vivadent) (IPS) and the Vitapan Classical shade guide (VITA Zahnfabrik) (VC). RESULTS: Eighteen dental technicians (16 males and 2 females) and 40 dentists (21 males and 19 females) completed the study. The raw data revealed that many subjects were inconsistent in their approach to shade matching. The IPS guide afforded greater reproducibility. No significant effects (p >0.05) of subject gender and age upon overall shade matching performance were demonstrated. Performance in the FM-100 Hue test did not statistically affect (p >0.05) the outcome of matching using the guides. CONCLUSIONS: Within the limitations of this study, (a) the FM-100 Hue test was not a good predictor of dental shade matching performance, and (b) both guides performed well in the areas of shade they covered, with the Vita Classical guide matching well shades of natural unstained teeth and the IPS guide matching more closely stained/discoloured preparations.

Acute adult supraglottitis: current management and treatment.

Acute adult supraglottitis can be a serious, life-threatening disease because of its potential for sudden upper airway obstruction. Symptoms and signs of this disease may be nonspecific and may resemble those of upper respiratory tract infection. Unexplained sore throat with tenderness of the anterior neck over the hyoid bone warrant careful examination by flexible laryngoscopy to rule out laryngeal congestion and edema. Laboratory tests are usually not helpful in picking up the diagnosis. Following diagnosis, patients should be hospitalized, started on intravenous antibiotics and their airway closely monitored, as airway obstruction may develop.

Modification of forearm vascular function following short-term handgrip exercise training.

This study examined the effect of low (25% of maximum voluntary contraction) and high (75% of maximum voluntary contraction) intensity short-term handgrip exercise training on localized vascular function. Forearm blood flow was evaluated in twenty-eight healthy men (age: 23 +/- 4.3) pre- and post-training in both forearms at rest, following forearm occlusion and following forearm occlusion combined with handgrip exercise using strain gauge plethysmography. The 4-week program consisted of non-dominant handgrip exercise performed 5 d/wk for 20 min at either low or high intensity. Following training a significant increase in forearm blood flow was noted for the nondominant arm in both groups after forearm occlusion (low intensity group: 16.51%; high intensity group: 20.72%; p = 0.001) and forearm occlusion combined with handgrip exercise (low intensity group: 17.71%; high intensity group: 29.27%; p = 0.001). No significant group by test interaction (p = 0.632) was found. These data show improved unilateral vasodilatory responsiveness after short-term handgrip training. In addition, the degree of change is most notable following the greatest vasodilatory stimulus. Lastly, a lack of group by treatment interaction suggests the change may be independent of training stimulus.