Infectious bursal disease (IBD) considered as one of the major viral diseases threatening the poultry industry worldwide. The causative agent of the IBD is Infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) which replicates in developing B lymphocytes in the bursa of Fabricius leading to its destruction and bursal inflammation. In this study, we investigated a technology to produce therapeutic recombinant antibodies against IBDV in bacteria by constructing a bacterial displayed recombinant scFv library from immunized chickens, followed by screening the scFv library by fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) with FITC-labeled VP2. Twelve VP2-binding scFv clones with unique sequences were obtained, with overall amino acid homology of 81.53%. The complementarity determining region (CDR) 3 in the heavy chain displayed the lowest homology, while the amino acid sequences in framework regions and CDR2 of both chains and CDR1 of the heavy chain are relatively conserved. Twelve VP2-binding scFv clones were expressed in E.coli and purified through denaturation and denaturation of inclusion bodies. Our ELISA results showed that all scFvs exhibited binding ability and specificity to VP2 and various IBDV strains. In addition, two scFvs showed significant neutralizing activity to IBDV (B-87 strain) as these scFvs inhibited cytopathic effect of chicken embryo fibroblast (DF1) caused by IBDV. In conclusion, our study provides a lead candidate for further development of therapeutic antibodies for IBDV infection.

Rhabdomyosarcoma is a soft tissue pediatric sarcoma composed of cells which show morphological, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural evidence of skeletal muscle differentiation. To date four major subtypes have been recognized: embryonal, alveolar, spindle cell/sclerosing and pleomorphic. All these subtypes are defined, at least in part, by the presence of rhabdomyoblasts, i.e. cells with variable shape, densely eosinophilic cytoplasm with occasional cytoplasmic cross-striations and eccentric round nuclei. It must be remembered, however, that several benign and malignant pediatric tumours other than rhabdomyosarcoma may exhibit rhabdomyoblaststic and skeletal muscle differentiation. This review focuses on the most common malignant pediatric neoplasm that may exhibit rhabdomyoblastic differentiation, with an emphasis on the most important clinicopathological and differential diagnostic considerations.

When Total Hip Arthroplasty (THA) is required in a patient with developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH), bone deficiency in the acetabular roof often remains a problem. The iliac crest (IC) has long been the preferred source of autograft material, but graft harvest is associated with frequent complications and pain. Autologous bone graft can also be obtained from the femoral head (FH) for reconstruction of the acetabulum in hip arthroplasty. However, in certain challenging clinical scenarios, incorporation of the femoral head autograft appears less successful than the iliac crest autograft. The difference in potential for proliferation and osteoblastic differentiation between the two sites has still not been evaluated; therefore, it is not known how to compensate for this difference when it is present. We designed this study to evaluate the number of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in both the iliac crest and femoral head of the same patient. We also determined the best operating room procedure for loading the femoral head with MSCs to achieve equivalent numbers of MSCs as in the IC. Twenty patients (8 men and 16 women) undergoing THA for DDH were enrolled in the study. The mean age was 55.5 years (range 41–65 years). Bone marrow aspirates were obtained from three depths within the femoral head and the aspirates were quantified relative to matched iliac crest aspirates that were obtained from the same patient at the same time. The cell count, progenitor cell concentration (cells/mL marrow), and progenitor cell prevalence (progenitor cells/million nucleated cells) were calculated. Aspirates of FH marrow demonstrated less concentrations of mononuclear cells compared with matched controls from the iliac crest. Progenitor cell concentrations were consistently lower in FH aspirates compared to matched controls from the iliac crest (p = 0.05). The concentration of osteogenic progenitor cells was, on average, 40% lower in the FH aspirates than in the paired iliac crest samples (p = 0.05). However, with bone marrow aspirated from the iliac crest, we were able to load the femoral head autograft with sufficient MSCs to obtain the same number as present in an iliac crest. With concentrated bone marrow from the IC, supercharging the femoral autograft with MSCs to numbers above that present in the IC was possible in the operating room, and the number of MSCs supercharged in the femoral head was predictable. Based on these findings we suggest that FH graft supercharged with BM-MSCs from the IC is comparable to IC graft for osseous graft supplementation especially in THA for patients with DDH.

Objectives: We analyzed the indications of cesarean section (CS) using Robson Ten-Group. Classification Systems (RTGCS) and comparison between private and public health facilities in Addis Abeba hospitals, Ethiopia, 2017. Methods: Facility-based retrospective cross-sectional study was carried out between January 1 and December 31, 2017, including 2411 mothers who delivered by CS were classified using the RTGCS. Data were entered into SPSS version 20 for cleaning and analyzing. Binary logistic regression and AOR with 95% CI were used to assess the determinants of the CS. Results: The overall CS rate was 41% (34.8% and 66.8% in public & private respectively, p < .0001). The leading contributors for CS rate in the private were Robson groups 5,1,2,3 whereas in the public 5,1,3,2 on descending order. Robson group 1 (nulliparous, cephalic, term, spontaneous labor) and group 3 [Multiparous (excluding previous cesarean section), singleton, cephalic, ≥ 37 weeks’ gestation& spontaneous labor], the CS rate was over two-fold higher in the private than the public sector. Women in Robson groups 1, 2, 5 & 9 are two and more times higher for the absolute contribution of CS in private than public. The top medical indications of CS were non-reassuring fetal status (NRFS, 39.1%) and repeat CS for previous CS scars (39.4%) in public and private respectively. Mothers who delivered by CS in private with history of previous CS scar (AOR 2.9, 95% CI 1.4-6.2), clinical indications of maternal request (AOR 7.7, 95% CI 2.1-27.98) and pregnancy-induced hypertension (AOR 4.2, 95% CI 1.6-10.7), induced labor (AOR 2.5, 95% CI 1.4-4.6) and pre-labored (AOR 2.2, 95% CI 1.6-3.0) were more likely to undergo CS than in public hospital. Conclusion: The prevalence of CS was found to be high, and was significantly higher in private hospitals than in a public hospital. Having CS scar [having previous CS scar, Robson group 5(Previous CS, singleton, cephalic, ≥ 37 weeks’ gestation) and an indication of repeat CS for previous CS scar] is the likely factor that increased the CS rate in private when compared within the public hospital. Recommendation: It is important that efforts to reduce the overall CS rate should focus on reducing the primary CS, encouraging vaginal birth after CS (VBAC). Policies should be directed at the private sector where CS indication seems not to be driven by medical reasons solely. 

Introduction: It is estimated that more than 200 million girls and women alive today have undergone female genital mutilation. Female genital mutilation still remains to be a serious problem for large proportion of women in most sub-Saharan Africa countries including Sudan, with a high prevalence of 88%. Objective: The main objective was to identify the factors associated with FGM among daughters of reproductive aged woman. Materials and methods: A community based cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 mothers, the total sample was collected in ACTH based on the number of reproductive age mothers with at least one daughter older than 5 years. A structured and interviewer administered questionnaire was used to collect data. The data obtained was analyzed by the use of the SPSS software. Results: Out of 200 mothers, 113 (56.5%) had at least one circumcised daughter. Knowledge about genital mutilation (AOR = 4.29, 95% CI: 1.13-15.37), attitude (AOR = 48.53, 95% CI: 14.45-198.69) and mothers circumcision status (AOR = 14.03, 95% CI: 2.81- 95.45) were the most significantly associated with FGM. Furthermore, having good knowledge, positive attitude, high socio-economic status, being literate, being of Christian religion and living in urban area had lower odds of having a circumcised daughter. Conclusion: In this study, more than half of the mothers had at least one circumcised daughter. Mothers’ knowledge, attitude, circumcision status, socio-economic status, age, residence, educational level and religion were significantly associated with female genital mutilation.

A 26 year nulliparous woman presented to the OPD with complaint of painless swelling in the vulva for the last 1.5 years which gradually increased in size causing difficulty in walking. 

Advanced technologies, such as electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), are a valuable tool which can enhance and simplify the industrial process monitoring if used correctly. State-of-the-art approaches for screening the cell growth of for example yeast during the brewing process still heavily rely on offline methods such as methylene blue or florescence dye-based staining, and/or the usage of flow cytometric measurements. These methods, while being accurate, are very time consuming and require heavy manual effort. Furthermore, the time span needed to obtain the counting result can lead to a time-delayed response signal and can impact the quality of the final product. In recent studies, applications of low-frequency EIS in the α-regime were used for the determination of cell counts and the metabolic state in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This method has proven to be a reliable tool which has also shown high potential in industrial scale applications. The online biomass monitoring, as well as viable cell count, for feasibility study was performed in-house at Stiegl Brewery in Salzburg/Austria founded in 1492.

Primary umbilical cutaneous endometriosis is a rare umbilical endometrioma that affects women who are within the reproductive age group. It may be associated with infertility and severe dysmenorrhea and can be difficult to diagnosed in an asymptomatic patient. We report a case of a 38-year-old nulliparous with seven years history of infertility and severe dysmenorrhea. Her hormonal profile assay and hysterosalpingogram results were normal while her husband semen analysis was also within normal range. She complained of monthly bleeding from a painful rubbery multilobate cutaneous nodule on the umbilicus of one year duration. She was diagnosed of cutaneous endometriosis. The diagnosis was confirmed histologically and she had surgical excision with good outcome.

The lumbar epidural analgesia is commonly used for labour analgesia. The “loss of resistance to air” LORA technique is commonly used for recognition of epidural space. One of the rare complications of this technique is Pneumocephalus (PC). We want to present a case of Pneumocephalus which the mother developed during epidural analgesia in labour. The patient complained of severe headache immediately after attempt at epidural catheter insertion. The symptoms progressively worsened following delivery. A postnatal anaesthetic review was performed and an urgent CT scan of the brain was arranged that showed pneumocephalus. A conservative management pathway was followed with liberal analgesia, oxygen inhalation and keeping the patient mostly in supine position. Her symptoms regressed in severity over the next three days and subsided after one week. We believe that the amount of air used for LORA should be minimized; LORA should not be used after dural puncture and the use of normal saline would alleviate the risk.

During the last few decades painstaking efforts have been made to eliminate iodine deficiency through the world. Nowadays in regions where dietary iodine intake is adequate or borderline, the main focus is increasing dietary iodine supply in the target population during pregnancy and the first years of life. Severe iodine deficiency during pregnancy increases the risk of irreversible brain damage, intellectual disability, neurologic abnormalities, stunted growth, increased pregnancy loss, infant mortality, impairments in child development and cretinism. The potential effects of mild-to-moderate iodine deficiency are debated. Results from animal studies and observational human studies indicate that maternal mild-to-moderate iodine deficiency disturbs thyroid function in pregnancy and it also may affects fetal neurodevelopment. The effect of supplementation of iodine on thyroid function of pregnant women and their newborn, neurodevelopment of infants and cognitive performance of children have been investigated using iodine nutrition in pregnancy, based on median urinary iodine concentration. However they have found conflicting results regarding the benefits or harms of iodine supplementation in pregnancy. Although many epidemiological, interventional and clinical studies have supported the association between thyroid function in pregnant women and later psychomotor and mental development of their children, the effect of iodine supplementation in pregnant women on neurodevelopment of children is inconclusive. Even in areas with well-established universal salt iodization program, pregnancy could be at risk of having iodine deficiency and despite WHO/ICCIDD/UNICEF recommendation which believe that dietary iodine fortification during pregnancy depends primarily on the extent of pre-existing iodine deprivation, systematic dietary fortification needs to be implemented in this vulnerable group. However, iodine supplementation of mildly iodine deficient pregnant women may not have beneficial effects in their thyroid function or neurodevelopment of their children.