Studies on evaluation of inactivated lyophilized equine influenza vaccine in Egypt

Two batches of egg adapted monovalent inactivated freeze dried equine influenza vaccine [EIV] were evaluated. There was no abnormal appearance of the freezed disc, prepared from locally isolated strains. The efficacy was tested by lab animal [Guinea pigs] and target animal [horse], The vaccine proved to be safe and potent for both guinea pigs and horses. The mean haemagglutination inhibition [HI] antibodies of the vaccine reconstituted in DEAE-Dextran solution [as a solvent and adjuvant] were 120.4 and 153.7 in G. pigs, 179.2 and 230.4 in horses for the two batches of vaccine respectively. The keeping quality of the local prepared vaccine was studied. Shelf validity was stable at 4°C for one year, could be kept at -20°C for 3 years and 10 months at 40°C

Comparative genetic characterization between isolated pox virus from dove and some avian pox strains

Avipoxviruses from different geographic regions of the world have been characterized to study their genetic and biological properties, but so far, no such work has been performed on Egyptian isolates. Lesions suggestive of avian pox; found on Egyptian wild dove; were used for isolation of pox virus in a previous study. The resulting virus was propagated in chorio-allantoic membrane [CAM] of specific pathogen free [SPF] Embryonated chicken eggs [ECE]. PCR was carried out on the DNA of the dove poxvirus [DPV], pigeon poxvirus [PPV] and a vaccinal strain of fowl pox virus [FPV], then restriction fragment length polymorphism [RFLP] assay was carried out on the resulting amplicons of 578 bp length; using EcoRV and NlaIII restriction enzymes. The restriction profile revealed that the dove pox virus is identical to the PPV and both are different from FPV. The results of immunoblotting analysis of the 3 pox viruses against chicken anti FPV revealed that in spite of the minor antigenic differences observed between them the DPV is closely related to the PPV. In conclusion the Egyptian wild doves are found to play a serious role in the epidemiology of PPV among pigeon flocks

Assessment of two quantitative techniques for hepatitis C viraemia

In Egypt, chronic hepatitis due to Hepatitis C Virus is an important public health problem. 40 patients with chronic hepatitis C were randomly selected. The aim of this study was the quantitative measurement of serum hepatitis C virus [HCV] RNA. We compared two commercial available assays, Roche Amplicor HCV Monitor kits and Chiron branched DNA signal amplification [bDNA] assay, in quantitative measurement of serum HCV RNA virus. In this study [84.4%] of the samples positive by Roche Amplicor were positive by bDNA assay. Our results were consistent with previous reports. Amplicor test kit was more sensitive than bDNA assay but the difference was not statistically significant. The statistical correlation between the two quantitative techniques was highly significant using Chi-square and Spearman's correlation. The two assays were highly correlated and the relationship between the log values obtained by both assays generated the following equation: log10 bDNA = 0.47x log10 Roche [PCR] + 3.86. In conclusion, Roche Amplicor HCV Monitor kits and the Chiron branched DNA signal amplification assay are equally sensitive in the quantitative measurement of serum HCV RNA in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Both assays are suitable for assessing patients with chronic hepatitis C before therapy and for evaluating treatment regimens. This new approach of serum HCV RNA quantification will lead to a better standardization and comparison of controlled trials of chronic hepatitis C treatments

Angiocardiografia com tecnécio-99m na avaliaçäo do pseudo-aneurisma do ventrículo esquerdo / Angiocardiography with technetium-99m in the evaluation of left ventricular pseudoaneurysm

O falso aneurisma do ventrículo esquerdo, ao contrário do verdadeiro, tem evoluçäo frequente para ruptura e morte do paciente, podendo ter o prognóstico alterado desde que o diagnóstico e tratamento cirúrgico sejam efetuados oportunamente. Dentre as técnicas cardiovasculares de avaliaçäo näo invasiva, a angiocardiografia com tecnécio-99m - seja em "primeira passagem" ou sincronizada com o eletrocardiograma - vem sendo cada vez mais utilizada. Assim, foram revistos, retrospectivamente, 283 exames obtidos até seis meses após um enfarto do miocárdio dentre 1.564 exames rotineiramente realizados em 2 hospitais que dispöem de cardiologia nuclear. Identificaram-se 3 pacientes com pseudo-aneurisma do ventrículo esquerdo confirmado por ecocardiograma bidimensional e cateterismo cardíaco. Os achados típicos da cintigrafia incluiam: 1. formaçäo de uma câmara cardíaca extra; 2. enchimento tardio em relaçäo ao ventrículo esquerdo; 3. orifício de entrada estreito; e 4. expansäo paradoxal sistólica. A ausência de músculo cardíaco nas paredes do pseudo-aneurisma foi observado em 2 casos também submetidos à cintigrafia miocárdica com tálio-201. Nossos dados mostram que a angiocardiografia com radionucídos é um método näo invasivo útil e de grande importância clínica para o diagnóstico do pseudo-aneurisma, podendo ser recomendado alternativamente ou associado ao ecocardiograma