Processing and immobilization of chondroitin-4-sulphate by UV laser radiation.

Chondroitin-4-sulphate (ChS A) was immobilized by matrix assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE) with the aid of a UV KrF* excimer laser source. Distilled water was used as solvent for the preparation of the frozen composite MAPLE targets. The surface morphology, chemical structure and functional properties of laser transferred ChS A were investigated as a function of laser processing conditions. The results indicate that the amount of laser immobilized material, structure, and functional properties can be controlled by the laser fluence value used for the irradiation of the MAPLE targets. Under selected irradiation conditions besides the molecular structure, the functional properties of the laser processed ChS A molecules can be maintained.

Can Anaplasma ovis in small ruminants be neglected any longer?

Anaplasma species are obligate intracellular rickettsial pathogens transmitted by ticks with an impact on human and animal health. Anaplasma ovis infects sheep and goats in many regions of the world, and it can be diagnosed by different methods like Giemsa staining, PCR or competitive ELISA. In this study, a PCR based on the gene coding for major surface protein 4 (MSP-4) was used to examine field samples collected from sheep in different countries. Altogether, 1161 blood samples from Turkey (n = 830), Iraq (n = 195), Sudan (n = 96) and Portugal (n = 40) were examined, of which 31.4%, 66.6% 41.6% and 82.5%, respectively, were positive. This indicates high prevalence of A. ovis in the countries under investigation, and it can be assumed that the situation in other areas of the world might be similar. Thus, A. ovis should be considered as an important constraint of livestock production, and further efforts are needed to better understand the epidemiology and to implement suitable control measures.

Animal health: harmonisation and distribution of pathogen detection and differentiation tools.

Quality and safe meat production and livestock husbandry are important foci for addressing the wider underlying economic and political challenges. In the last few years, an intense focus of the scientific community has been placed on breakouts of livestock diseases especially in Asia, which have spread into neighbouring countries including Europe. These outbreaks had a serious impact on the livelihood of the farmers as well as the economy of the affected countries. Given this, the establishment of a network of diagnostic facilities is a great demand both at the national and regional levels. In most of the cases, diagnostic assays are either not available or they are not validated. The aim of this collaborative network was to: 1 Distribute and harmonize diagnostic tools required for pathogen detection and differentiation. 2 Build the capacity to ensure the conduction of integrated disease control measures.

Optical biosensing of nitrite ions using cytochrome cd1 nitrite reductase encapsulated in a sol-gel matrix.

Nitrite is an important human health and environmental analyte. As such, the European Union (EU) has imposed a limit for nitrite in potable water of 0.1 mg l-1 (2.18 microM). In order to develop an optical biosensing system for the determination of nitrite ions in environmental waters, cytochrome cd1 nitrite reductase has been extracted and purified from the bacterium Paracoccus pantotrophus. The protein has been spectroscopically characterised in solution and important kinetic parameters of nitrite reduction of the cytochrome cd1 enzyme, i.e., Km, Vmax and kcat have been determined. The influence of pH on the activity of the cytochrome cd1 has been investigated and the results suggest that this enzyme can be used for the determination of nitrite in the pH range 6-9. Biosensing experiments with the cytochrome cd1 in solution suggested that the decrease in intensity of the absorption band associated with the d1 haem (which is the nitrite binding site), at 460 nm, with increasing nitrite concentrations would enable the measurement of this analyte with the optimum limit of detection. The cytochrome cd1 has been encapsulated in a bulk sol-gel monolith with no structural changes observed and retention of enzymatic activity. The detection of nitrite ions in the range 0.075-1.250 microM was achieved, with a limit of detection of 0.075 microM. In order to increase the speed of response, a sol-gel sandwich thin film structure was formulated with the cytochrome cd1. This structure enabled the determination of nitrite concentrations within ca. 5 min. The sol-gel sandwich entrapped cytochrome cd1 enzyme was found to be stable for several months when the films were stored at 4 degrees C.

[Adverse drug reactions in the Spanish medical bibliographic literature: a comparison of 3 periods]. / Reacciones adversas a medicamentos en la bibliografía médica española: comparación de tres períodos.

BACKGROUND: A quantitative and qualitative assessment of reports on suspected adverse drug reactions (ARD) in Spanish medical literature was carried out. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The periods analysed were 1972-1974, 1986-1988 and 1992-1994, and the medical journals were Anales de Medicina Interna, Medicina Clínica and Revista Clínica Española. We selected all articles including specific information on suspect ADR. RESULTS: The percentage of articles has increased considerably (1972-1974: 2.1%, 1986-1988: 5.7%, and 1992-1994: 8.2%). In spite of this growth, the qualitative data studied have not significantly improved. CONCLUSIONS: It is necessary to device some mechanism in order to improve ADR reporting.

A solid-phase enzyme linked immunosorbent assay using monoclonal antibodies, for the detection of African swine fever virus antigens and antibodies.

An improved solid-phase enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using monoclonal antibodies was developed to detect an African swine fever virus protein (VP73) in pig samples. The use of monoclonal antibodies against VP73 allowed a sensitive and specific sandwich ELISA. This assay detected a limiting antigen concentration of 0.05 microgram/ml of VP73, lower than the detection limit of 0.6 microgram/ml obtained by using polyclonal antibodies by the same ELISA. The whole virus particle was detected with this method to a limit of 2.3 x 10(2) PFU/ml. At the same time, an indirect ELISA was developed to detect ASFV antibodies. The results also indicate that this method may be a useful technique for epidemiological surveys.