scholarly journals HIGHLY SENSITIVE DETECTION OF LEAD IONS IN WATER USING ETCHED FBG

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
V.K Kulkarni ◽  
A.S. Lalasangi ◽  
S.B. Patil ◽  
S.R. Mannopantar ◽  
M.S. Jadhav ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hydrofluoric Acid ◽  
Living Organism ◽  
Toxic Element ◽  
World Health ◽  
Phase Mask ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Grating Region ◽  
Fibre Bragg Gratings ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Highly Sensitive Detection

- Lead is a soft, ductile, malleable and naturally present in earth’s crust. Lead is highly toxic element affects living organism even at lower concentration. Lead is used in many industries and its disposable is very difficult. Therefore, it may lead to various environmental hazardous problems. World Health Organization (WHO) and other organisation specify the presence of lead in drinking water not greater than 20 ppb. In the present work, a simple, affordable and precise way to detect the concentration of lead in water using Fibre Bragg gratings (FBG) is presented. FBG are formed using Phase mask technique and the cladding part over the grating region is etched with 40% Hydrofluoric acid (HF) solution. The sensor so developed is sensitive enough to find the presence of lead in water in the range 5-25 ppb.

scholarly journals HCV Detection, Discrimination, and Genotyping Technologies

Sensors ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 3423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shrikant Warkad ◽  
Satish Nimse ◽  
Keum-Soo Song ◽  
Taisun Kim
Keyword(s):  
Hepatitis C ◽  
Hcv Infection ◽  
World Health ◽  
Clinical Samples ◽  
Infected People ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 71 million people were living with Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection worldwide in 2015. Each year, about 399,000 HCV-infected people succumb to cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and liver failure. Therefore, screening of HCV infection with simple, rapid, but highly sensitive and specific methods can help to curb the global burden on HCV healthcare. Apart from the determination of viral load/viral clearance, the identification of specific HCV genotype is also critical for successful treatment of hepatitis C. This critical review focuses on the technologies used for the detection, discrimination, and genotyping of HCV in clinical samples. This article also focuses on advantages and disadvantages of the reported methods used for HCV detection, quantification, and genotyping.

scholarly journals COVID-19 testing: Essential for tracking infection and helping authority to overcome the challenges of spread

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 90-92
Author(s):  
Rano Mal Piryani ◽  
Suneel Piryani ◽  
Shomeeta Piryani ◽  
Ganesh Dangal ◽  
Muzaherul Huq ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
Blood Sample ◽  
Ribonucleic Acid ◽  
World Health ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Infected People ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Health Organization

COVID-19 is mainly transmitted through droplet infection and spread very fast compared to SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. For the countries, it is important to know at what stage the COVID-19 epidem­ic is? So, as to take appropriate steps to contain the epidemic. This will only be known by testing the suspects and contacts of confirmed cases. If there is poor testing, then most of the infected people may remain undetected, however they could spread the virus to hundreds of other people and potential contacts, which could not be known and quarantined in time continuing the spread. If there is quality assured, highly sensitive and specific testing along with adequate isolation and quarantine, then the spread will be limited. There are two types of tests available for COVID-19: the tests directly detecting the viral ribonucleic acid (RNA) collected in nasopharyngeal or throat swabs, and tests detecting antibodies from the blood sample. At this point in time, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests are used for confirmation of the disease while antibodies tests may provide information regarding the prevalence of infection. World Health Organization advices the countries to increase the testing and get to know the level of epidemic and act accordingly for containment of infection.

scholarly journals A Model of Tuberculosis Screening for Pregnant Women in Resource-Limited Settings Using Xpert MTB/RIF

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eleanor R. Turnbull ◽  
Nzali G. Kancheya ◽  
Jennifer B. Harris ◽  
Stephanie M. Topp ◽  
German Henostroza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
World Health ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Tuberculosis Screening ◽  
Pilot Studies ◽  
Resource Limited ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Mother And Child ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Diagnostic Technologies

Timely diagnosis and treatment of maternal tuberculosis (TB) is important to reduce morbidity and mortality for both the mother and child, particularly in women who are coinfected with HIV. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends the integration of TB/HIV screening into antenatal services but available diagnostic tools are slow and insensitive, resulting in delays in treatment initiation. Recently the WHO endorsed Xpert MTB/RIF, a highly sensitive, real-time PCR assay forMycobacterium tuberculosisthat simultaneously detects rifampicin resistance directly from sputum and provides results within 100 minutes. We propose a model for same-day TB screening and diagnosis of all pregnant women at antenatal care using Xpert MTB/RIF. Pilot studies are urgently required to evaluate strategies for the integration of TB screening into antenatal clinics using new diagnostic technologies.

scholarly journals Impact of wildfires on particulate matter in the Euro-Mediterranean in 2007: sensitivity to the parameterization of emissions in air quality models

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marwa Majdi ◽  
Solene Turquety ◽  
Karine Sartelet ◽  
Carole Legorgeu ◽  
Laurent Menut ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
World Health ◽  
Fire Emissions ◽  
Fire Plumes ◽  
Emissions Modeling ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. This study examines the uncertainties on air quality modeling associated with the integration of wildfire emissions in chemistry-transport models (CTMs). To do so, aerosol concentrations during the summer 2007, which was marked by severe fire episodes in the Euro-Mediterranean region especially in Balkan (20–31 July 2007, 24–30 August 2007) and Greece (24–30 August 2007), are analysed. Through comparisons to observations from surface networks and satellite remote sensing, we evaluate the abilities of two CTMs, Polyphemus/Polair3D and CHIMERE, to simulate the impact of fires on the regional particulate matter (PM) concentrations and optical properties. During the two main fire events, fire emissions may contribute up to 90 % of surface PM2.5 concentrations, with a significant regional impact associated with long-range transport. Good general performances of the models and a clear improvement of PM2.5 and aerosol optical depth (AOD) are shown when fires are taken into account in the models with high correlation coefficients. Two sources of uncertainties are specifically analysed in terms of surface PM concentrations and AOD using sensitivity simulations: secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation from intermediate and semi-volatile organic compounds (I/S-VOCs) and emissions' injection heights. The analysis highlights that surface PM2.5 concentrations are highly sensitive to injection heights (with a sensitivity that can be as high as 50 % compared to the sensitivity for I/S-VOCs emissions which is lower than 30 %). However, AOD which is vertically integrated is less sensitive to the injection heights (mostly below 20 %), but highly sensitive to I/S-VOCs emissions (with sensitivity that can be as high as 40 %). The maximum dispersion, which quantifies uncertainties related to fire emissions modeling, is up to 75 % for PM2.5 in Balkan and Greece, and varies between 36 and 45 % for AOD above fire regions. The simulated number of daily exceedance of World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations for PM2.5 over the considered region reaches 30 days in regions affected by fires and ∼ 10 days in fire plumes which is slightly underestimated compared to available observations. The maximum dispersion (σ) on this indicator is also large (with σ reaching 15 days), showing the need for better understanding of the transport and evolution of fire plumes in addition to fire emissions.

scholarly journals The Role of Antigen Rapid Diagnostic Test in COVID-19 Diagnosis

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-111
Author(s):  
Ronni Mol Joji ◽  
Mohammad Shahid
Keyword(s):  
Diagnostic Tests ◽  
Point Of Care ◽  
Rapid Diagnostic Tests ◽  
World Health ◽  
Complementary Role ◽  
Reverse Transcription Quantitative Pcr ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Random Screening

Since the emergence of a novel infection due to the SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19), the World Health Organization has urged countries to develop diagnostic tests to combat the pandemic. Molecular assays were developed following the release of the gene sequence of the virus in January 2020. Reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) is taken as the gold standard for the diagnosis of COVID-19. However, due to its limitations, highly sensitive methods for detecting antigens (antigen rapid diagnostic tests) have been developed that would help in a timely and accurate diagnosis. Antigen rapid diagnostic tests (Ag-RDTs) can help guide patient management at the point of care by random screening, re-testing, and timely decision-making in the field of public health. When the affordability and validity of the diagnostic assay are involved, no assay can show 100% correct results. Further studies need to be done to better understand the response of the Ag-RDTs in different settings. Nevertheless, Ag-RDTs can play a complementary role in the response and case management of COVID-19.

scholarly journals Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra is highly sensitive for the diagnosis of tuberculosis lymphadenitis in an HIV-endemic setting

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Minnies ◽  
Byron W.P. Reeve ◽  
Loren Rockman ◽  
Georgina Nyawo ◽  
Charissa C. Naidoo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Investigation ◽  
False Negative ◽  
Needle Aspiration ◽  
World Health ◽  
Number Of Patients ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Specimen Processing ◽  
Increased Sensitivity ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Low Sensitivity

Background: Tuberculosis lymphadenitis (TBL) is the most common extrapulmonary TB (EPTB) manifestation. Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra (Ultra) is a World Health Organization-endorsed diagnostic test, but performance data for TBL, including on non-invasive specimens, are limited. Methods: Fine needle aspiration biopsies (FNABs) from outpatients (≥18 years) with presumptive TBL (n=135) underwent: 1) routine Xpert (later Ultra once programmatically available), 2) a MGIT 960 culture (if Xpert- or Ultra-negative, or rifampicin-resistant), and 3) study Ultra. Concentrated paired urine underwent Ultra. Primary analyses used a microbiological reference standard (MRS). Results: In a head-to-head comparison (n=92) of FNAB study Ultra and Xpert, Ultra had increased sensitivity [91% (95% confidence interval 79, 98) vs. 72% (57, 84); p=0.016] and decreased specificity [76% (61, 87) vs. 93% (82, 99); p=0.020], and detected patients not on treatment. HIV nor alternative reference standards affected sensitivity and specificity. In patients with both routine and study Ultras, the latter detected more cases [+20% (0, 42); p=0.034] and, further indicative of potential laboratory-based room-for-improvement (e.g., specimen processing optimisation), false-negative study Ultras were more inhibited than true-positives. Study Ultra false-positives had less mycobacterial DNA than true-positives [trace-positive proportions 59% (13/22) vs. 12% (5/51); p<0.001]. “Trace” exclusion or recategorization removed potential benefits offered over Xpert. Urine Ultra had low sensitivity [18% (7, 35)]. Conclusions: Ultra on FNABs is highly sensitive and detects more TBL than Xpert. Patients with FNAB Ultra-positive “trace” results, most of whom will be culture-negative, may require additional clinical investigation. Urine Ultra could reduce the number of patients needing invasive sampling.

scholarly journals Epidemiology and Clinical Characteristics of COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 268-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyi Huang ◽  
Fengxiang Wei ◽  
Liang Hu ◽  
Lijuan Wen ◽  
Ken Chen
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Manifestations ◽  
Supportive Therapy ◽  
Epidemiological Studies ◽  
World Health ◽  
Severe Illness ◽  
Rna Detection ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Insight Into

Since December 2019, there has been an outbreak of a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection in Wuhan, China. Meanwhile, the outbreak also drew attention and concern from the World Health Organization (WHO). COVID-19 is another human infectious disease caused by coronavirus. The transmission of COVID-19 is potent and the infection rate is fast. Since there is no specific drug for COVID-19, the treatment is mainly symptomatic supportive therapy. In addition, it should be pointed out that patients with severe illness need more aggressive treatment and meticulous care. Recently, accurate RNA detection has been decisive for the diagnosis of COVID-19. The development of highly sensitive RT-PCR has facilitated epidemiological studies that provide insight into the prevalence, seasonality, clinical manifestations and course of COVID-19 infection. In this review, we summarize the epidemiology and characteristics of COVID-19.

scholarly journals Blueberry Extracts as a Novel Approach to Prevent Ozone-Induced Cutaneous Inflammasome Activation

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Erika Pambianchi ◽  
Francesca Ferrara ◽  
Alessandra Pecorelli ◽  
Brittany Woodby ◽  
Mary Grace ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Technology ◽  
Skin Toxicity ◽  
Living Organism ◽  
Skin Inflammation ◽  
Outdoor Environment ◽  
World Health ◽  
Inflammasome Activation ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Health Organization

The World Health Organization estimates that 7 million people die every year due to pollution exposure. Among the different pollutants to which living organism are exposed, ozone (O3) represents one of the most toxic, because its location which is the skin is one of the direct tissues exposed to the outdoor environment. Chronic exposure to outdoor stressors can alter cutaneous redox state resulting in the activation of inflammatory pathways. Recently, a new player in the inflammation mechanism was discovered: the multiprotein complex NLRP1 inflammasome, which has been shown to be also expressed in the skin. The topical application of natural compounds has been studied for the last 40 years as a possible approach to prevent and eventually cure skin conditions. Recently, the possibility to use blueberry (BB) extract to prevent pollution-induced skin toxicity has been of great interest in the cosmeceutical industry. In the present study, we analyzed the cutaneous protective effect of BB extract in several skin models (2D, 3D, and human skin explants). Specifically, we observed that in the different skin models used, BB extracts were able to enhance keratinocyte wound closure and normalize proliferation and migration responses previously altered by O3. In addition, pretreatment with BB extracts was able to prevent ozone-induced ROS production and inflammasome activation measured as NRLP1-ASC scaffold formation and also prevent the transcripts of key inflammasome players such as CASP1 and IL-18, suggesting that this approach as a possible new technology to prevent cutaneous pollution damage. Our data support the hypothesis that BB extracts can effectively reduce skin inflammation and be a possible new technology against cutaneous pollution-induced damage.

scholarly journals The Challenges to be a Regulatory Affair Associate: Day-To-Day Questions on How to Reach Consensus between Manufacturers of Pharmaceutical Products and Government Regulatory Authorities

2020 ◽  
pp. 37-40
Author(s):  
Elene Chikobava ◽  
Irma Beridze
Keyword(s):  
Living Organism ◽  
Pharmaceutical Products ◽  
World Health ◽  
Main Task ◽  
Professional Career ◽  
Regulatory Authorities ◽  
Regulatory Affairs ◽  
Authorization Holder ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Registration Dossier

The modern pharmaceutical industry is one of the main branches in the healthcare segment and is considered to be the most highly regulated industries worldwide. The regulation is provided by a specialist, named Regulatory Affairs Manager (syn.: Regulatory Affairs Executive or Regulatory Affairs Associate), involved in authorization process of pharmaceutical products. When person graduates from University with medical, pharmaceutical or even chemical diploma, he/she never thinks about professional career as a Regulatory Affairs Manager, because this specialty is new, about 40 years old. What is a Regulatory Affairs Associate’s duty? One category-Regulatory Affairs Associate inside the manufacturing office, whose duty is to prepare registration dossier based on the process of artworks and Patient Information Leaflet preparation, prior to completing Common Technical Document (CTD) format dossier; other category (national regulatory affairs Associate)-are those who are ensuring mediation between Manufacturer and Government Regulatory Authorities. Regardless of differences of each Government requirement for dossier registration, the main task of each Regulatory Affairs Associate is to prepare Dossier for submission which will pass successful registration. For this purpose, the National Regulatory Affairs Associate should ensure that manufacturer/Marketing Authorization Holder (MAH)’s dossier is complete and in line with different documentation requirements, following the national requirements and in case such requirement don’t exist-with the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO) and International Council for Harmonization (ICH). On the other hand, National Regulatory Affairs Associate is working with National Regulatory Affairs officers to correct and align deficiencies in documentation in accordance with the National requirements. Each drug as a living organism (innovative drugs even have birthdays), which is subject to many changes reflected in the registration dossier: whether in its pharmaceutical part (composition, production process, stability etc.,) or pharmacological (therapeutic indications, side effects and others), as a consequence the Regulatory Affairs Manager is constantly involved in registration of an infinite number of Variations. The main goal of Regulatory structures-both governmental and private-is to ensure the safety, quality and efficacy of medicines.

scholarly journals SARS-CoV-2 Disease through Viral Genomic and Receptor Implications: An Overview of Diagnostic and Immunology Breakthroughs

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 793
Author(s):  
Alessio Danilo Inchingolo ◽  
Angelo Michele Inchingolo ◽  
Ioana Roxana Bordea ◽  
Giuseppina Malcangi ◽  
Edit Xhajanka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
World Health ◽  
Viral Agent ◽  
Rapid Diagnostics ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Infection Mechanisms ◽  
Protection Efficacy ◽  
Rapid Dissemination ◽  
Health Organization

The SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2), which is believed to have originated in China towards the end of November 2019, has now spread across the globe, causing a pandemic in 192 countries. The World Health Organization has called it the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Rapid dissemination of the virus occurs mainly through the saliva (Flügge’s droplets) and aerosol, together with nasal and lachrymal passages. The literature associated with the recent advancement in terms of rapid diagnostics and SARS-CoV-2 vaccines has thoroughly studied the role of ACE2 receptors and Furin, as well as viral agent access into the host cell and its significant persistence at the level of the oral mucosa, which represents the main access to the virus. The purpose of this review was to underline the processes of SARS-CoV-2 infection mechanisms and novel breakthroughs in diagnostics and vaccines. Different technologies, such as the RT-PCR molecular test and the antigenic test, have been developed to identify subjects affected by the SARS-CoV-2 in order to improve the tracking of infection geographical diffusion. Novel rapid and highly sensitive diagnostic tests has been proposed for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 to improve the screening capability of suspected contagions. The strengthening of the vaccination campaign represents the most effective means to combat the SARS-CoV-2 infection and prevent severe manifestations of the virus—different classes of vaccines have been developed for this purpose. Further attention on the novel SARS-CoV-2 variant is necessary in order to verify the protection efficacy and virulence reduction of the infective agent in the recent vaccine campaign.

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