Urinary Tumor Markers Could Predict Survival in Bladder Carcinoma

The early diagnosis of bladder cancer is important for effective treatment of the disease. This study aimed to evaluate the nuclear matrix protein 22 (NMP 22), soluble epithelial cadherin (E-cadherin), cathepthin-D and total protein with clinico-pathological features of bladder cancer, and to determine the relation between each marker and tumor progression after treatment. The study includes 65 patients with bladder cancer, 14 benign urinary diseases and 11 healthy volunteers. Patients were categorized according to bilharzial infestation, T stage, tumor grade, size and the presence of lymph node metastasis. Forty patients were followed for disease progression after surgery. There was a significant increase of NMP22, E-cadherin, cathepthin-D and total protein detected in cancer group compared to healthy and benign groups. It was found that NMP 22 and E-cadherin had highest sensitivity (84.4, 76.9 %, respectively) while, total ddedprotein showed highest specificity (77.4 %). Tumor size correlated with urinary NMP22 (r = 0.3, p = 0.02), although, E-cadherin, cathepsin-D and total protein correlated with tumor size (r = 0.3, 0.28, 0.2; p = 0.01, p = 0.01, 0.04, respectively) and lymph node metastasis (r = 0.32, 0.34, 0.2; p = 0.003, 0.005, 0.04, respectively). Elevated pretreatment urinary NMP22, E-cadherin and total protein levels was associated significantly with bladder cancer recurrence (p = 0.02, 0.001, 0.005, respectively). In conclusion, determination of urinary NMP22, E-cadherin and total protein in bladder cancer patients or persons at risk of developing bladder cancer will help in early detection of the disease and prediction of recurrence. The use of a combination of tumor markers is markedly useful than the assessment of single one.     

Assessment of Some Biochemical Oxidative Stress Markers in Male Smokers with Chronic Periodontitis

The present study aims to assess and compare the biochemical oxidative stress markers in male smokers and non-smokers with chronic periodontitis. One hundred thirty-four male chronic periodontitis patients and 64 apparently healthy male volunteers were recruited for the study. The periodontal status was evaluated by measuring gingival index, plaque index, papillary bleeding index and clinical attachment loss using UNC-15 probe. The biochemical markers estimated were total antioxidant capacity, RBC-superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, vitamin C, malondialdehyde and C-reactive protein. The obtained results indicate higher oxidative stress in chronic periodontitis. Smokers with chronic periodontitis show significantly higher periodontal clinical parameters and relatively higher systemic oxidative stress. Vitamin C estimation may be an important biochemical parameter in conjunction with clinical parameters for diagnosis of chronic periodontitis in smokers.     

Planar lens integrated capillary action microfluidic immunoassay device for the optical detection of troponin I

Optical based analysis in microfluidic and lab-on-a-chip systems are currently considered the gold standard methodology for the determination of end point reactions for various chemical and biological reaction processes. Typically, assays are performed using bulky ancillary apparatus such as microscopes and complex optical excitation and detection systems. Such instrumentation negates many of the advantages offered by device miniaturisation, particularly with respect to overall portability. In this article, we present a CO₂ laser ablation technique for rapidly prototyping on-chip planar lenses, in conjunction with capillary action based autonomous microfluidics, to create a miniaturised and fully integrated optical biosensing platform. The presented self-aligned on-chip optical components offer an efficient means to direct excitation light within microfluidics and to directly couple light from a LED source. The device has been used in conjunction with a miniaturised and bespoke fluorescence detection platform to create a complete, palm sized system (≈60 × 80 × 60 mm) capable of performing fluoro-immunoassays. The system has been applied to the detection of cardiac Troponin I, one of the gold standard biomarkers for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction, achieving a lower detection limit of 0.08 ng/ml, which is at the threshold of clinically applicable concentrations. The portable nature of the complete system and the biomarker detection capabilities demonstrate the potential of the devised instrumentation for use as a medical diagnostics device at the point of care.     

Influence of expectation and campus racial climate on undergraduates' interracial interaction

In this study, the authors examine the influence of interracial interaction expectation and campus racial climate perception on attitudes toward interracial interaction which, in turn, influences the levels of interracial interaction among students at a multicultural university in Malaysia. Interaction across race is fundamental to students' growth and development. Responses from 193 Malay and 165 Chinese students were analysed by means of hierarchical regression. Results support the hypothesized influence of interracial interaction expectation and campus racial climate perception on attitudes toward interracial interaction for the Chinese students. For the Malay students, however, only interracial interaction expectation is significant. Attitudes toward interracial interaction, in turn, significantly predict levels of interracial interaction for both groups. The results support the hypothesized differential strength of relationships among the variables for the two racial groups. Implications for higher education are discussed.     

Two Plausible Indicators to Use with State Accountability Measures: An Analysis of NAEP Math Data

Using National Assessment of Educational Progress mathematics data, a predictive model indicated that states could be classified as “No Score Gain” or “Score Gain” states based on median household income and the percentage of students participating in free and reduced-price lunch. Implications associated with the findings suggested that these two indicators could be used in adjusting or customizing Adequate Yearly Progress targets in schools serving impoverished communities. The result would be that Adequate Yearly Progress targets would be more realistic, and schools and their stakeholders would realize continuous improvement if incremental increases in expected growth were monitored and maintained.     

Reduction of the non-uniform illumination using nonlocal variational models for document image analysis

In this paper, we investigate two new reflectance and illumination decomposition models based on a nonlocal partial differential equation (PDE) applied to text images. Taking into consideration the higher regularity level of the illumination compared to the reflectance, we propose a nonlocal PDE which deals with repetitive structures and textures that characterize the text image much better compared to the classical local PDEs. The aim of this approach is to use the repetitive features of the reflectance to efficiently extract it from the non-uniform illumination. This idea is motivated by extending the range of application of the nonlocal operators to such a problem. Numerical experiments on both grayscale and color text images show the performance and strength of the proposed nonlocal PDE.     

What Did It Take to Scale Up and Sustain Udaan,a School-Based Adolescent Education Program in Jharkhand,India?

Since 2006, Udaan—a school-based adolescent education program in Jharkhand, India—was the only at-scale state-run program in the country. To determine factors that contributed to Udaan's scale-up and longevity, this study drew information from programmatic reports and interviews with the Centre for Catalyzing Change staff. Key factors for Udaan's success included an enabling policy environment, a willing government that supported and operationalized the program, a knowledgeable and committed NGO partner, sustained funding, and a commitment to constant improvement through evaluation. Udaan provides an example of a well-designed, implemented, and evaluated school-based adolescent health program that has been operating at scale over a sustained period. Other programs in India and elsewhere can benefit from learning from Udaan's experience.     

The impact of video modelling on improving social skills in children with autism

Children with autism often show a lack of the interactive social skills that would allow them to engage with others successfully. They therefore frequently need training to aid them in successful social interaction. Video modelling is a widely used instructional technique that has been applied to teach children with developmental disabilities such as autism, and has been shown to be effective in teaching a variety of skills. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of video modelling on social skills development in children with autism living in the United Arab Emirates. The research was carried out by Mohammed Alzyoudi, AbedAlziz Sartawi and Osha Almuhiri, all from the United Arab Emirates University. A sample of five boys with autism was chosen to participate in this study. The boys ranged in age between five and seven years. Each child was asked to watch a videotape which presented two individuals interacting in a role‐play setting. One person portrayed a therapist giving cues, while the second portrayed a child acting appropriately and demonstrating correct social behaviours. The boys were then asked to complete a social task and their performance was compared against baseline assessment measures. The results of this study indicate that this is an effective instruction method. Results are discussed and implications for further research and practice are provided.