ABSTRACT
We aimed to summarize evidence on the accuracy of procalcitonin (PCT) test in differentiating fungal infection from other causes of infection. We searched electronic database for original researches that reported diagnostic performance of PCT alone or compare with other biomarkers to diagnose invasive fungal infection (IFI). We included 8 qualifying studies studying 474 episodes of suspected fungal infection with 155 (32.7%) probable or proven IFIs. Four studies compared IFI to bacterial sepsis, in which the pooled positive likelihood ratios and negative likelihood ratios were 4.65 (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.46-8.79) and 0.15 (95% CI, 0.05-0.41), respectively. Another 4 studies compared IFI to uninfected individuals, in which the pooled positive likelihood ratios and negative likelihood ratios were 4.01 (95% CI, 2.04-7.88) and 0.23 (0.07-0.77), respectively. The existing literature suggests good diagnostic accuracy for the PCT test for discrimination between IFIs and bacterial infection or noninfectious conditions. Given the high heterogeneity, medical decisions should be based on both PCT test results and clinical findings.
Subject(s)
Bacterial Infections/diagnosis , Calcitonin/blood , Candidiasis, Invasive/diagnosis , Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis/diagnosis , Protein Precursors/blood , Adult , Bacterial Infections/blood , Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide , Candidiasis, Invasive/blood , Databases, Bibliographic , Diagnosis, Differential , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis/blood , Likelihood Functions , Predictive Value of TestsABSTRACT
The interactions of baicalein, baicalin and scutellarin with lysozyme (LYSO) were studied by fluorescence and UV spectroscopy. The results showed that all the three flavones can quench the fluorescence of LYSO via static quenching with the distance between the donor and acceptor less than 7 nm. The hydroxyl at B-ring gave flavones an advantage to binding with LYSO. Electrostatic forces played a major role in stabilizing baicalein-LYSO complex and baicalin-LYSO complex, whereas hydrophobic interactions in scutellarin-LYSO. Furthermore, the presence of pantothenic acid can increase the binding constant and the number of binding sites between flavones and LYSO.
