Background： Direct ZN （Ziehl-Neelsen） sputum smear microscopy for diagnosis of TB （tuberculosis） has low sensitivity, especially in TB/HIV co-infected patients. Sputum concentration by bleach （NaOCI） with sedim...Background： Direct ZN （Ziehl-Neelsen） sputum smear microscopy for diagnosis of TB （tuberculosis） has low sensitivity, especially in TB/HIV co-infected patients. Sputum concentration by bleach （NaOCI） with sedimentation has been used to increase the sensitivity of sputum smear microscopy in many settings but with varying results. Objective： To determine whether bleach plus centrifugation significantly improves the detection of AFB （acid-fast bacilli） in ZN smear-negative sputum specimens. Methods： Three hundred and seventy sputum specimens were collected from new TB suspects attending a Nairobi referral district hospital and processed for direct microscopy using ZN technique and culture on Lowenstein Jensen Media. All smear-negative specimens were treated with 3.5% bleach and left to stand for 30 min before centrifugation. The bleach treated smears were processed and examined using ZN technique. Results： Of the 370 specimens, 200 （54%） were positive culture. The number of sputum samples that were smear-positive by direct ZN was 138 （37.2%）, with a sensitivity of 66%. After treatment of direct ZN smear-negative specimens with 3.5% bleach and centrifugation, the total number of AFB smear-positive samples increased to 171 with an increase in sensitivity of 66% to 81.1% （15.1%）. Conclusion： In this study, bleach with centrifugation significantly increased the yield of sputum smear microscopy. Further evaluation of these techniques in routine programmes is required especially in settings where the burden of TB/HIV is high.展开更多
A highly sensitive and selective two-photon sensing scheme for detection of cartap was developed by using Au@Ag bimetallic core-shell nanoparticles.Cartap was found to induce the aggregation of Au@Ag nanoparticles and...A highly sensitive and selective two-photon sensing scheme for detection of cartap was developed by using Au@Ag bimetallic core-shell nanoparticles.Cartap was found to induce the aggregation of Au@Ag nanoparticles and up to 700-fold enhancement in two-photon photoluminescence.Huge enhancement in two-photon photoluminescence allows achieving a detection limit of as low as 0.0062 mg/kg,which is better than the conventional colorimetric methods.This two-photon sensing scheme has a broad dynamic range and displays excellent selectivity in detection of cartap against over other ten kinds of commonly used insecticides.展开更多
文摘Background： Direct ZN （Ziehl-Neelsen） sputum smear microscopy for diagnosis of TB （tuberculosis） has low sensitivity, especially in TB/HIV co-infected patients. Sputum concentration by bleach （NaOCI） with sedimentation has been used to increase the sensitivity of sputum smear microscopy in many settings but with varying results. Objective： To determine whether bleach plus centrifugation significantly improves the detection of AFB （acid-fast bacilli） in ZN smear-negative sputum specimens. Methods： Three hundred and seventy sputum specimens were collected from new TB suspects attending a Nairobi referral district hospital and processed for direct microscopy using ZN technique and culture on Lowenstein Jensen Media. All smear-negative specimens were treated with 3.5% bleach and left to stand for 30 min before centrifugation. The bleach treated smears were processed and examined using ZN technique. Results： Of the 370 specimens, 200 （54%） were positive culture. The number of sputum samples that were smear-positive by direct ZN was 138 （37.2%）, with a sensitivity of 66%. After treatment of direct ZN smear-negative specimens with 3.5% bleach and centrifugation, the total number of AFB smear-positive samples increased to 171 with an increase in sensitivity of 66% to 81.1% （15.1%）. Conclusion： In this study, bleach with centrifugation significantly increased the yield of sputum smear microscopy. Further evaluation of these techniques in routine programmes is required especially in settings where the burden of TB/HIV is high.
基金the Ministry of Education, Singapore (R-143-000-607-112)the National Research Foundation, Prime Minister’s Office, Singapore under its Competitive Research Program (NRF-CRP10-2012-04)Medium Sized Centre Programme
文摘A highly sensitive and selective two-photon sensing scheme for detection of cartap was developed by using Au@Ag bimetallic core-shell nanoparticles.Cartap was found to induce the aggregation of Au@Ag nanoparticles and up to 700-fold enhancement in two-photon photoluminescence.Huge enhancement in two-photon photoluminescence allows achieving a detection limit of as low as 0.0062 mg/kg,which is better than the conventional colorimetric methods.This two-photon sensing scheme has a broad dynamic range and displays excellent selectivity in detection of cartap against over other ten kinds of commonly used insecticides.
