No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

BackgroundRapid, economical, and quantitative assays for measurement of camelid serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) are limited. In camelids, failure of transfer of maternal immunoglobulins has a reported prevalence of up to 20.5%. An accurate method for quantifying serum IgG concentrations is required.ObjectiveTo develop an infrared spectroscopy‐based assay for measurement of alpaca serum IgG and compare its performance to the reference standard radial immunodiffusion (RID) assay.AnimalsOne hundred and seventy‐five privately owned, healthy alpacas.MethodsEighty‐two serum samples were collected as convenience samples during routine herd visits whereas 93 samples were recruited from a separate study. Serum IgG concentrations were determined by RID assays and midinfrared spectra were collected for each sample. Fifty samples were set aside as the test set and the remaining 125 training samples were employed to build a calibration model using partial least squares (PLS) regression with Monte Carlo cross validation to determine the optimum number of PLS factors. The predictive performance of the calibration model was evaluated by the test set.ResultsCorrelation coefficients for the IR‐based assay were 0.93 and 0.87, respectively, for the entire data set and test set. Sensitivity in the diagnosis of failure of transfer of passive immunity (FTPI) ([IgG] <1,000 mg/dL) was 71.4% and specificity was 100% for the IR‐based method (test set) as gauged relative to the RID reference method assay.Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceThis study indicated that infrared spectroscopy, in combination with chemometrics, is an effective method for measurement of IgG in alpaca serum.

IL-17 antagonists were effective, with an acceptable safety profile, for patients with plaque psoriasis. Vigilance because of the potential for infection will be necessary for IL-17 antagonists.

<b><i>Objective:</i></b> The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of endoscopic selective vidian neurectomy in the treatment of severe persistent allergic rhinitis (AR) combined with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) with nasal polyps (ARwCRSwNP). <b><i>Methods:</i></b> One hundred thirty patients with moderate to severe persistent ARwCRSwNP were enrolled at Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, from September 2015 to September 2017. Patients were divided into 2 groups. Sixty-one patients (the control group) underwent conventional surgical treatment for CRS with nasal polyps and received conservative treatment for AR. Sixty-nine patients (the experimental group) received conventional surgical treatment for CRS with nasal polyps plus endoscopic selective vidian neurectomy with amputation of the posterior nasal nerve and pharyngeal branch of the vidian nerve. Clinical parameters, including visual analog scale (VAS) score, Lund-Kennedy endoscopic mucosal morphology score, and Lund-Mackay sinus computed tomography (CT) scan lesion range score, were used to analyze and evaluate the preoperative and postoperative data. Comparisons were based on patient scores, and preoperative and postoperative scores obtained at 6, 12, and 24 months were analyzed. <b><i>Results:</i></b> The experimental group had higher therapeutic efficacy in nasal obstruction, nasal itching, rhinorrhea, sneezing, and general symptoms than the control group (<i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.05). No complications such as tear-secretion disorder or atrophic rhinitis occurred in the experimental group, and no significant difference in complications incidence was observed between the 2 groups (<i>p</i> &#x3e; 0.05). <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Endoscopic selective vidian neurectomy is an effective and safe technique for the management of moderate to severe persistent ARwCRSwNP.

BackgroundFollowing the recent development of a new approach to quantitative analysis of IgG concentrations in bovine serum using transmission infrared spectroscopy, the potential to measure IgG levels using technology and a device better designed for field use was investigated. A method using attenuated total reflectance infrared (ATR) spectroscopy in combination with partial least squares (PLS) regression was developed to measure bovine serum IgG concentrations. ATR spectroscopy has a distinct ease-of-use advantage that may open the door to routine point-of-care testing. Serum samples were collected from calves and adult cows, tested by a reference RID method, and ATR spectra acquired. The spectra were linked to the RID-IgG concentrations and then randomly split into two sets: calibration and prediction. The calibration set was used to build a calibration model, while the prediction set was used to assess the predictive performance and accuracy of the final model. The procedure was repeated for various spectral data preprocessing approaches.ResultsFor the prediction set, the Pearson’s and concordance correlation coefficients between the IgG measured by RID and predicted by ATR spectroscopy were both 0.93. The Bland Altman plot revealed no obvious systematic bias between the two methods. ATR spectroscopy showed a sensitivity for detection of failure of transfer of passive immunity (FTPI) of 88 %, specificity of 100 % and accuracy of 94 % (with IgG <1000 mg/dL as the FTPI cut-off value).ConclusionATR spectroscopy in combination with multivariate data analysis shows potential as an alternative approach for rapid quantification of IgG concentrations in bovine serum and the diagnosis of FTPI in calves.

No abstract