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Hemiplegic migraine is a common cause of acute brain attack in pediatrics. MR imaging sequences useful in differentiating hemiplegic migraine from other entities include arterial spin-labeling, SWI, MRA, and DWI. There has been limited exploration on the simultaneous use of these sequences in pediatrics. We present 12 pediatric patients with acute hemiplegic migraine or migraine with aura who underwent MR imaging within 12 hours of symptom onset. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were performed on arterial spin-labeling; and qualitative analysis, on SWI and MRA sequences. All 12 patients had normal DWI and abnormal arterial spin-labeling findings. Furthermore, we observed a more rapid transition from hypoperfusion to rebound hyperperfusion in 3 patients compared with prior reports. These findings support the use of multimodal MR imaging to distinguish migraine with aura from stroke and the simultaneous use of these MR imaging sequences to improve understanding of perfusion changes during migraine with aura.

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AIMS: Cyanogenic glycosides are phytotoxic secondary metabolites produced by some crop plants. The aim of this study was to identify lactic acid bacteria (LAB) capable of catabolizing amygdalin, a model cyanogenic glycoside, for use in the biodetoxification of amygdalin-containing foods and feeds. METHODS AND RESULTS: Amygdalin-catabolizing lactobacilli were characterized using a combination of cultivation-dependent and molecular assays. Lactobacillus paraplantarum and Lactobacillus plantarum grew robustly on amygdalin (Amg(+)), while other LAB species typically failed to catabolize amygdalin (Amg(-)). Interestingly, high concentrations of amygdalin and two of its metabolic derivatives (mandelonitrile and benzaldehyde) inhibited the growth of Lact. plantarum RENO 0093. The differential regulation of genes tentatively involved in cyanohydrin metabolism illustrated that the metabolism of amygdalin- and glucose-grown cultures also differed significantly. CONCLUSIONS: Amygdalin fermentation was a relatively uncommon phenotype among the LAB and generally limited to strains from the Lact. plantarum group. Phenotype microarrays (PM) enabled strain-level discrimination between closely related strains within a species and suggested that phenotypic differences might affect niche specialization. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Amygdalin-degrading lactobacilli with practical application in the biodetoxification of amygdalin were characterized. These strains show potential for use as starter cultures to improve the safety of foods and feeds.

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BACKGROUND: Symptomatic intervertebral disc degeneration is being recently reported in younger population, questions the basis of its degenerative etiology. Latest evidences show that genetics play a significant role. Collagen IX, an important constituent of disc, is found to be altered in genetically predisposed individuals. Mutations have been reported in COL9A2 and COL9A3 genes, which encode Collagen IX, in Finnish and various other populations. The purpose of the present study is to test the significance of these genes in the Indian population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred proven cases of intervertebral disc disease (IDD) of various regions of spine were selected for the study, along with matched controls. They were tested for the above mentioned alleles by allelic discrimination method with real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) study after isolation of DNA from blood sample. Each blood sample was classified into one of the three types - homozygous, heterozygous, and wild (normal) type allele - separately for COL9A2 and COL9A3 genes. RESULTS: Homozygosity for COL9A2 allelic variation was associated with 100% occurrence of the disease. Heterozygous allele of COL9A2 was significantly higher in the study group (42%) as compared to the control group (17%). In contrast, allelic variation in COL9A3 gene was found to have no significant correlation with disc disease. There was no single patient with homozygous allelic variation for COL9A3, suggesting predominance of COL9A2 variation in the Indian population. CONCLUSION: This candidate gene strategy approach adds considerably to our knowledge of genetic makeup of Indian populations in relation with disc disease. This study highlights importance of COL9A2 gene variation especially of homozygous variety in contrast to COL9A3 variation in causing disc disease in Indian population.