Saskatchewan Health

About: Saskatchewan Health is a government organization based out in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Health care. The organization has 442 authors who have published 489 publications receiving 7728 citations.

Biological availability of iron to the freshwater cyanobacterium anabaena flos-aquae1

Abstract: Iron acquisition from various ferric chelates and colloids was studied using iron-limited cells of Anabaena flos-aquae (Lyng.) Breb UTEX 1444, a cyanobacterial strain that produces high levels of siderophores under ironlimitation. Various chelators of greatly varying affinity for Fe 3 + (HEDTA, EDDHA, desferrioxamine mesylate, HBED, 8-hydroxyquinoline) were assayed for the degree of iron acquisition by iron-limited cyanobacterial cells. Iron uptake rates (measured by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry) varied approximately inversely with calculated [Fe 3 + ] (calculated as pFe) and decreased with increasing chelator-to-iron ratio. No iron uptake was observed when Fe 3 + was chelated with HBED, the strongest of the tested chelators. Iron-limited Anabaena cells were able to take up iron from 8-hydroxyquinoline (oxine or 8HQ), a compound sometimes used to quantify aquatic iron bioavailability. Iron bound to purified humic acid was poorly available but did support some growth at high humic acid concentrations. These results suggest that for cyanobacteria, even tightly bound iron is biologically available, including to a limited extent iron bound to humic acids. However, iron bound to some extremely strong chelators (e.g. HBED) is likely to be biologically unavailable.

Adherence to the Gluten-free Diet and Health-related Quality of Life in an Ethnically Diverse Pediatric Population With Celiac Disease.

Abstract: Objectives:Celiac disease (CD) is an autoimmune disease that requires lifelong adherence to a gluten-free diet (GFD). Adherence to the GFD in childhood may be poor and adversely influence health-related quality of life (HRQOL). The study purpose was to determine sociodemographic and socioeco

Rapid Genotyping of Hepatitis C Virus by Primer-Specific Extension Analysis

Abstract: Infection by hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the leading cause of chronic liver disease worldwide (19). The overall prevalence of HCV infection in the United States is 1.8%, with most of the patients unaware of their infection and at risk for developing cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (15, 21). HCV is a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus that displays extensive genetic heterogeneity (1). At least six major HCV genotypes comprising numerous, more closely related subtypes have been identified (26). HCV genotypes display significant differences in their global distribution and prevalence, making genotyping a useful method for determining the source of HCV transmission in an infected localized population (11). Furthermore, in addition to viral load and liver histology, the genotype of the infecting HCV strain appears to be an important determinant of the severity and aggressiveness of liver infection, as well as patient response to antiviral therapy (26). Consequently, several methods for genotyping HCV have been developed, including direct DNA sequencing (2, 5, 6), type-specific PCR (17), restriction fragment length polymorphism (16), line probe assays (22, 23), primer-specific and mispair extension analysis (7, 8), heteroduplex mobility analysis by temperature gradient capillary electrophoresis (14), and denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography (13). The majority of the HCV genotyping assays in use today were designed to identify only the dominant HCV genotype in a sample and consequently are unable or limited in their ability to identify multiple genotypes in patients infected with more than one strain of HCV. Hu et al. (7) have found that of the HCV infections determined to contain mixed genotypes by DNA sequencing, only 36%, 17%, and 14% were accurately identified as mixtures by type-specific PCR, line probe, and restriction fragment length polymorphism analyses, respectively. Furthermore, DNA sequencing itself was unable to detect 40% of the mixed-genotype infections and could not reliably detect genotypes that were present in mixtures at levels below 25% (7). Consequently, most currently available genotyping methods are unable to assess the prevalence of mixed-genotype infections, which may have a significant impact on the interpretation of clinical studies addressing genotype-specific responses to interferon and interferon combination therapies. As injection drug use is the major risk factor for HCV infection in Canada, accounting for 71% of the cases (3), the occurrence of mixed-genotype infections may be more common than previously reported, as this route of transmission may result in multiple exposures to different HCV strains in habitual users. Moreover, individuals infected with HCV via repeated blood transfusions are also potential carriers of multiple HCV genotypes. We have developed a novel genotyping method to identify the most prevalent genotypes among HCV-infected Canadians, which is based on primer-specific extension analysis (PSEA) of HCV PCR amplicons, called PSEA-HCV. That is, primers specific for genotypes 1, 2, 3, and 4 and subtypes 1a, 1b, 2a/c, and 2b were designed to bind to variable regions within the amplified 5′ untranslated region (UTR) of the HCV genome. The PSEA-HCV assay, utilizing the inefficiency of Taq DNA polymerase to extend a mismatch at the 3′ end of a primer, has demonstrated predicted products against known HCV genotypes. Another primer targeted for a conserved region among all genotypes was designed for use as an internal control (IC). We report here on the PSEA strategy and its performance against known HCV genotypes typed by INNO-LiPA HCV II (23). Simulated mixed infections were also assayed by PSEA-HCV, and this work demonstrates the ability of this novel method to identify multiple genotypes and in ratios of up to 31:1.

Bedside Glucose Monitoring-Is it Safe? A New, Regulatory-Compliant Risk Assessment Evaluation Protocol in Critically Ill Patient Care Settings.

Abstract: Objectives:New data have emerged from ambulatory and acute care settings about adverse patient events, including death, attributable to erroneous blood glucose meter measurements and leading to questions over their use in critically ill patients. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration published new,