Pinworm infection in school children of four districts of Malakand region, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Illnesses caused by human pinworm remains a pediatric health problem in developing nations including Pakistan. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of Enterobius vermicularis in school children of four districts in Malakand region, Pakistan. Four hundred faecal specimens were screened from May 2014 to July 2017 using normal saline and Lugol Iodine solution. Twenty three (5.75%) individuals were found infected with E. vermicularis. Five children (1.25%) were infected with only E. vermicularis and eighteen (4.5%) were mixed with other helminths. E. vermicularis 23 (5.75%), hookworm 11 (2.75%), Ascaris lumbricoides 5 (1.25%), Taenia saginata 2 (0.5%) and Trichuris trichuira 4 (1%) were detected. Age wise 5-8 years were more parasitized followed by 13-15 and 9-12 years of age (0.0296, P<0.05). Male children were highly (0.06700, P<0.05) infected than female. Children in Malakand district were found more infected followed by Dir Upper, similar infection rate was noted in children of districts Lower Dir and Swat (0.0192, P<0.05). Children in primary level were highly (0.0013, P<0.05) infected than those of middle and high levels. Enterobiosis is still the most common parasitic diseases in children. Studies on enterobiosis should be conducted time by time to recognize the hazardous of such parasitic infection in remote areas of the country.

Comparative Efficacy and Safety of Anterograde vs. Retrograde Iodine Staining During Esophageal Chromoendoscopy: A Single-Center, Prospective, Parallel-Group, Randomized, Controlled, Single-Blind Trial

Background and Aim: Chromoendoscopy with iodine staining is an important diagnostic method for esophageal carcinomas or precancerous lesions. Unfortunately, iodine staining can be associated with numerous adverse events (AEs). We found that the starting position of spraying iodine solution is likely the main reason of causing AEs. We conducted this work to determine whether clinical outcomes from anterograde iodine staining were superior to those achieved after retrograde iodine staining.Methods: A total of 134 subjects with a health risk appraisal flushing (HRA-F) score of &gt;6 for esophageal cancer were randomly assigned to receive anterograde or retrograde iodine staining in the esophagus. The primary endpoints were the pain and the amount of iodine solution consumption. The secondary endpoints were iodine-staining effect, detection yield, and response to starch indicator.Results: Nine patients suffered from pain and six patients revealed positive response to starch indicator in retrograde iodine-staining group; however, no patient reported pain (0/67) and all patients revealed a negative response to starch indicator in anterograde iodine-staining group. The amount of iodine solution consumption in anterograde iodine-staining group (4.97 mL) was significantly lower than that (6.23 mL) in retrograde iodine-staining group; however, the iodine-staining effect and detection yield were comparable between the two groups.Conclusions: Anterograde iodine staining during Lugol chromoendoscopy appears to be as effective, but significantly safer than retrograde iodine staining.

Isolation and selection of amylase-producing microbes isolated from ragi tape and cassava tape available on the markets

Amylase has an important role in biotechnology development and occupies an important position in the world enzyme market, as a biocatalyst in various industrial fields. This study has the goal to find microbial isolates that have the ability to produce amylase enzymes. The study was conducted in two stages, namely: 1) Isolation and selection of microbes that can produce amylase enzymes using starch as substrate, was incubated for 4-7 days at 30°C. Microbial isolates that can produce amylase enzymes are characterized by the presence of clear zones around the colony after the addition of an iodine solution of 1% in the overgrown media of microbes, 2) Test the activity of amylase enzymes using a dinitrosalicylic acid reagent test. The activity of the amylase enzyme is determined by measurement using a spectrophotometer at a wavelength of 540 nm. The sample used comprised of 7 types of ragi tape and 2 samples from cassava tape that has been fermented for 5-7 days. The results obtained in the first stage were 65 microbial isolates, 16 of which had clear zones, consisting of 7 isolates from ragi tape samples and 9 isolates from cassava tape samples. In the enzyme activity test, there are several isolates that have the potential to produce amylase enzymes, these include R5I4 (0.897 ± 0.018 U/mL), R2I5.1 (0.814 ± 0.011 U/mL), R5I3 (0.727 ± 0,042 U/mL) (derived from cassava ragi tape samples) and T2I2.2 (0.812 ± 0.013 U/mL), T2I6.1 (0.817 ± 0.010 U/mL), T2I2.1 (0.735 ± 0.023 U/mL), T1I4 (0.755 ± 0.020 U/mL) (derived from cassava tape samples). The isolate with the highest enzyme activity is the R5I4 which has the value enzyme activity of 0.897 ± 0.018 U/mL and with a fairly high or moderate category, while the lowest enzyme activity is the T1I1.1 isolate of 0.284 ± 0.020 U/mL.

Broiler Chicken Behavior and Activity Are Affected by Novel Flooring Treatments

The objective was to determine broiler chicken behavioral differences in response to novel flooring treatments. Broilers (n = 182) were housed in 14 pens (a random subset from a larger-scale study including 42 pens), with 13 birds/pen. One of seven flooring treatments were randomly allocated to 14 pens (2 pens per treatment). The flooring treatments (provided from day 1 {1} or day 29 {29}) included regularly replaced shavings (POS), a mat with 1% povidone-iodine solution (MAT), and the iodine mat placed on a partially slatted floor (SLAT). In addition, a negative control treatment was included with birds kept on used litter from day 1 (NEG). Behavior was recorded in weeks 1, 2, 5, and 6. In week 5, treatments affected the behavioral repertoire (p ≤ 0.035). Birds in POS-1 showed more locomoting, preening and activity overall compared to MAT and/or SLAT treatments. Birds in POS-29 showed more drinking, foraging, preening and overall activity than birds in MAT and/or SLAT treatments. In week 6, birds in the POS-1 treatment spent more time foraging compared to birds in all MAT and SLAT treatments (p ≤ 0.030). In addition, birds in the POS-1 treatment spent more time preening than birds in the MAT-1 treatment (p = 0.046). Our results indicate that access to partially slatted flooring and/or disinfectant mats does not benefit broiler chicken welfare in terms of their ability to express highly motivated behaviors. Access to clean, regularly replaced litter is beneficial for broiler chicken welfare in terms of their ability to express their normal behavioral repertoire.

Qualitative tests for the determination of fraud in raw milk: evaluation of the influence of analytical parameters of the tests and the stability of the samples as a function of time and preservation form

The present work aimed to evaluate the robustness of qualitative tests of frauds of addition of chlorine/hypochlorite, hydrogen peroxide and starch in raw milk, which parameters have the greatest influence on these analytical methods, and to evaluate the influence of time and mode of preservation of intentionally adulterated samples. The effects of the variation of some parameters of the analytical procedures were evaluated, making combinations between the different factors, determining the degree of influence of these variations on the tests. The stability time of the frauds in the samples was evaluated, keeping them under refrigeration (3±2 °C) and carrying out the tests on the same day, and under freezing (≤ -18 °C) for 5, 9 and 15 days, later analyzed, verifying if the frauds were detected. According to the results, it could be observed that the chlorine/hypochlorite detection method was adequate, detecting the addition of the adulterant in all combinations of variables and in all forms of conservation of the samples. The method for detecting the addition of hydrogen peroxide proved to be adequate for the samples analyzed immediately (< 24 h), detecting the presence of the substance in all combinations. However, the method did not detect the presence of peroxide in the combinations for the frozen samples, indicating that the method can generate false negatives in samples that are not fresh. The starch detection method did not detect the presence of this contaminant in all combinations of variables. The combinations that used only a drop of the Lugol’s iodine solution showed false negatives, so the amount of added solution is a critical variable for the method. However, for the other combinations, the method proved to be adequate for both fresh and frozen samples, detecting the addition of starch, regardless of storage time.

Sequential Application of Lugol’s Iodine Test after Acetic Acid for Detecting Cervical Dysplasia: A Prospective Cohort Study

Applying Lugol’s iodine solution to the cervix followed by colposcopic assessment is an established standard test to identify low grade/high grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSIL/HSIL). Here, we assessed the performance of Lugol’s iodine test during colposcopy using a standardized protocol with 5% acetic acid followed by 5% Lugol’s iodine solution and recording the most severe acetowhite (MSAWL) and iodine-negative (MSINL) lesions in a prospective cohort of consecutive women referred to our specialized colposcopy unit. The primary study endpoint was the sensitivity/specificity of MSINL for the detection of LSIL/HSIL. Secondary endpoints were the time to first appearance of the MSINL, MSINL staining intensity, and fading of MSINL. Three hundred and twenty women were included. The sensitivity and specificity of MSINL for the detection of LSIL/HSIL was 81.4 (95%—confidence interval (CI) 77.3–85.0)% and 29.5 (24.2–35.5)%, respectively. Ninety-six MSINL were identified exclusively by Lugol’s iodine test (no pathology, n = 46; LSIL, n = 29; HSIL, n = 21) (number needed to biopsy to identify one additional LSIL/HSIL = 1.9). In 17/320 (5.3%) patients, the clinical management was changed based on the result of Lugol’s iodine test. Video analysis showed an instant appearance of the MSINL within 10 s in 100% of cases. Intensity of MSINL significantly correlated with the presence/absence of LSIL/HSIL (Spearman rank order correlation; p < 0.0001). Fading of iodine-induced staining intensity over time was not observed. Thus, Lugol’s iodine showed moderate sensitivity and poor specificity, but changed clinical management in 5% of cases when used in addition to acetic acid.