Optimal Ratio of Degenerate Primer Pairs Improves Specificity and Sensitivity of PCR

Purpose We examined indices of narrative microstructure as metrics of language development and impairment in Arabic-speaking children. We examined their age sensitivity, correlations with standardized measures, and ability to differentiate children with average language and language impairment. Method We collected story narratives from 177 children (54.2% boys) between 3.08 and 10.92 years old ( M = 6.25, SD = 1.67) divided into six age bands. Each child also received standardized measures of spoken language (Receptive and Expressive Vocabulary, Sentence Imitation, and Pseudoword Repetition). Several narrative indices of microstructure were examined in each age band. Children were divided into (suspected) developmental language disorder and typical language groups using the standardized test scores and compared on the narrative indicators. Sensitivity and specificity of the narrative indicators that showed group differences were calculated. Results The measures that showed age sensitivity included subject omission error rate, number of object clitics, correct use of subject–verb agreement, and mean length of utterance in words. The developmental language disorder group scored higher on subject omission errors (Cohen's d = 0.55) and lower on correct use of subject–verb agreement (Cohen's d = 0.48) than the typical language group. The threshold for impaired performance with the highest combination of specificity and sensitivity was 35th percentile. Conclusions Several indices of narrative microstructure appear to be valid metrics for documenting language development in children acquiring Gulf Arabic. Subject omission errors and correct use of subject–verb agreement differentiate children with typical and atypical levels of language development.

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Specificity and Sensitivity of Hemosiderin-Laden Macrophages in Routine Bronchoalveolar Lavage in Children

Yearbook of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine ◽

10.1016/s1077-9108(08)70692-3 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 2008 ◽

pp. 258-259

Author(s):

M. Vazquez

Keyword(s):

Bronchoalveolar Lavage ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity

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A randomized cross-over trial in patients suspected of PAD on diagnostic accuracy of ankle-brachial index by Doppler-based versus four-point oscillometry based measurements

VASA ◽

10.1024/0301-1526/a000808 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 48 (6) ◽

pp. 516-522 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Verena Mayr ◽

Mirko Hirschl ◽

Peter Klein-Weigel ◽

Luka Girardi ◽

Michael Kundi

Keyword(s):

Diagnostic Accuracy ◽

Ankle Brachial Index ◽

Area Under The Curve ◽

High Volume ◽

Epidemiologic Studies ◽

Lower Sensitivity ◽

Oscillometric Device ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity ◽

Time Requirements ◽

Peripheral Arterial

Summary. Background: For diagnosis of peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAD), a Doppler-based ankle-brachial-index (dABI) is recommended as the first non-invasive measurement. Due to limitations of dABI, oscillometry might be used as an alternative. The aim of our study was to investigate whether a semi-automatic, four-point oscillometric device provides comparable diagnostic accuracy. Furthermore, time requirements and patient preferences were evaluated. Patients and methods: 286 patients were recruited for the study; 140 without and 146 with PAD. The Doppler-based (dABI) and oscillometric (oABI and pulse wave index – PWI) measurements were performed on the same day in a randomized cross-over design. Specificity and sensitivity against verified PAD diagnosis were computed and compared by McNemar tests. ROC analyses were performed and areas under the curve were compared by non-parametric methods. Results: oABI had significantly lower sensitivity (65.8%, 95% CI: 59.2%–71.9%) compared to dABI (87.3%, CI: 81.9–91.3%) but significantly higher specificity (79.7%, 74.7–83.9% vs. 67.0%, 61.3–72.2%). PWI had a comparable sensitivity to dABI. The combination of oABI and PWI had the highest sensitivity (88.8%, 85.7–91.4%). ROC analysis revealed that PWI had the largest area under the curve, but no significant differences between oABI and dABI were observed. Time requirement for oABI was significantly shorter by about 5 min and significantly more patients would prefer oABI for future testing. Conclusions: Semi-automatic oABI measurements using the AngER-device provide comparable diagnostic results to the conventional Doppler method while PWI performed best. The time saved by oscillometry could be important, especially in high volume centers and epidemiologic studies.

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Phenotyping and Genotyping of Coagulation Factor V Leiden

Thrombosis and Haemostasis ◽

10.1055/s-0038-1650258 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 75 (02) ◽

pp. 267-269 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

H Engel ◽

L Zwang ◽

H H D M van Vliet ◽

J J Michiles ◽

J Stibbe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Factor V Leiden ◽

Coagulation Factor ◽

Diagnostic Value ◽

Resistance Test ◽

Amplification Refractory Mutation System ◽

Factor V ◽

Chain Reactions ◽

Apc Resistance ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity ◽

Coagulation Factor V

SummaryThe currently used activated Protein C resistance test demonstrated to be of limited diagnostic value for the detection of the mutant Factor V Leiden. Moreover, this assay is not useful for patients under anticoagulant therapy. A modification of the APC resistance test, applying Factor V deficient plasma is described which demonstrates a specificity and sensitivity of 1.0. The superiority of the modified APC resistance test over the existing APC resistance test was verified by genotyping.For that purpose, the Amplification Refractory Mutation System (ARMS) was applied to the detection of the G to A mutation at position 1691 in the gene encoding coagulation Factor V. The mutation at that position could be easily detected by using each of two allele-specific oligonucleotide primers concomitantly with one common primer in two separate polymerase chain reactions, thereby amplifying a fragment of 186 base-pairs of the Factor V gene.

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Comparação de testes coproparasitológicos em criadouro comercial de psitacídeos exóticos

Revista Agraria Academica ◽

10.32406/v3n52020/100-107/agrariacad ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 3 (5) ◽

pp. 100-107

Author(s):

Marina Camargo de Sousa ◽

◽

Julia Ronzani Vial ◽

Rodrigo Hidalgo Friciello Teixeira ◽

Andrea Cristina Higa Nakaghi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Statistical Tests ◽

Companion Animals ◽

Clinical Importance ◽

Breeding Site ◽

Chi Square ◽

Fecal Samples ◽

Breeding Sites ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity ◽

Nematode Eggs ◽

Commercial Breeding

Birds of the psittaciform order, composed by the Psittacidae and Loridae family have several characteristics making them more frequently kept as companion animals, promoting the increase of breeding sites in Brazil. The present study aimed to analyze the specificity and sensitivity of three different coproparasitological tests, Willis, Hoffman and Direto de feces, through statistical tests: Chi-Square and Kappa. 70 fecal samples of exotic parrots were collected from a commercial breeding site and these were submitted to the three tests, totaling 210 coproparasitological exams. Among the tests performed, 29,5% were positive for nematode eggs, cestodes and oocysts. Coproparasitological exams are inexpensive, have clinical importance, indicating the population of endoparasites and therapeutic treatments.

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Comparison of specificity and sensitivity of diagnostic methods of postmenopausal osteoporosis in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Practical medicine ◽

10.32000/2072-1757-2018-16-6-130-134 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 16 (6) ◽

pp. 130-134

Author(s):

G. M. Nurullina ◽

◽

G. I. Akhmadullina ◽

Keyword(s):

Diabetes Mellitus ◽

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus ◽

Postmenopausal Osteoporosis ◽

Diagnostic Methods ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity

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COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SPECIFICITY AND SENSITIVITY FOR IHHNV DETECTION BETWEEN REAL-TIME PCR AND LAMP METHODS

Acta Hydrobiologica Sinica ◽

10.3724/sp.j.1035.2010.00984 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 36 (5) ◽

pp. 984-989

Author(s):

Zhe ZHAO ◽

Chun-Hua REN ◽

Xiao JIANG ◽

Lü-Ping ZHANG ◽

Juan FENG ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Comparative Study ◽

Real Time ◽

Real Time Pcr ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity

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Methods for the Quantification of Salivary Cortisol and of a-amylase in Biosensors and Portable Devices

Revista de Chimie ◽

10.37358/rc.17.12.5994 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 68 (12) ◽

pp. 2857-2859

Author(s):

Cristina Mihaela Ghiciuc ◽

Andreea Silvana Szalontay ◽

Luminita Radulescu ◽

Sebastian Cozma ◽

Catalina Elena Lupusoru ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Real Time ◽

Medical Practice ◽

Salivary Cortisol ◽

Clinical Studies ◽

Large Scale ◽

Psychological Research ◽

Portable Devices ◽

Salivary Amylase ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity

There is an increasing interest in the analysis of salivary biomarkers for medical practice. The objective of this article was to identify the specificity and sensitivity of quantification methods used in biosensors or portable devices for the determination of salivary cortisol and salivary a-amylase. There are no biosensors and portable devices for salivary amylase and cortisol that are used on a large scale in clinical studies. These devices would be useful in assessing more real-time psychological research in the future.

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Prospective Application of Aptamer-based Assays and Therapeutics in Bloodstream Infections

Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry ◽

10.2174/1389557520666200212105813 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (10) ◽

pp. 831-840

Author(s):

Weibin Li

Keyword(s):

Pathogenic Bacteria ◽

Genetic Diagnosis ◽

Bloodstream Infections ◽

High Specificity ◽

Peptide Sequence ◽

High Morbidity ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity ◽

Prospective Application ◽

Small Molecule Therapeutics

Sepsis is still a severe health problem worldwide with high morbidity and mortality. Blood bacterial culture remains the gold standard for the detection of pathogenic bacteria in bloodstream infections, but it is time-consuming, and both the sophisticated equipment and well-trained personnel are required. Immunoassays and genetic diagnosis are expensive and limited to specificity and sensitivity. Aptamers are single-stranded deoxyribonucleic acid (ssDNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) oligonucleotide or peptide sequence generated in vitro based on the binding affinity of aptamer-target by a process known as Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX). By taking several advantages over monoclonal antibodies and other conventional small-molecule therapeutics, such as high specificity and affinity, negligible batch-to-batch variation, flexible modification and production, thermal stability, low immunogenicity and lack of toxicity, aptamers are presently becoming promising novel diagnostic and therapeutic agents. This review describes the prospective application of aptamerbased laboratory diagnostic assays and therapeutics for pathogenic bacteria and toxins in bloodstream infections.

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Detectability of Plasma Proteins in SRM Measurements

Current Proteomics ◽

10.2174/1570164615666180718151135 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 74-81 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Olga I. Kiseleva ◽

Elena A. Ponomarenko ◽

Yulia A. Romashova ◽

Ekaterina V. Poverennaya ◽

Andrey V. Lisitsa

Keyword(s):

Blood Plasma ◽

Human Plasma ◽

Limit Of Detection ◽

Human Blood Plasma ◽

Analytical Sensitivity ◽

Plasma Proteome ◽

Protein Targets ◽

Blood Plasma Sample ◽

Specificity And Sensitivity ◽

Human Plasma Proteome

Background: Liquid chromatography coupled with targeted mass spectrometry underwent rapid technical evolution during last years and has become widely used technology in clinical laboratories. It offers confident specificity and sensitivity superior to those of traditional immunoassays. However, due to controversial reports on reproducibility of SRM measurements, the prospects of clinical appliance of the method are worth discussing. Objective: The study was aimed at assessment of capabilities of SRM to achieve a thorough assembly of the human plasma proteome. Method: We examined set of 19 human blood plasma samples to measure 100 proteins, including FDA-approved biomarkers, via SRM-assay. Results: Out of 100 target proteins 43 proteins were confidently detected in at least two blood plasma sample runs, 36 and 21 proteins were either not detected in any run or inconsistently detected, respectively. Empiric dependences on protein detectability were derived to predict the number of biological samples required to detect with certainty a diagnostically relevant quantum of the human plasma proteome. Conclusion: The number of samples exponentially increases with an increase in the number of protein targets, while proportionally decreasing to the logarithm of the limit of detection. Analytical sensitivity and enormous proteome heterogeneity are major bottlenecks of the human proteome exploration.

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