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E Skyttä

Publications and source records attributed to E Skyttä.

14 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Radiographic joint space in rheumatoid elbow joints. A 15-year prospective follow-up study in 74 patients.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate radiographically the humeroulnar (HU) and humeroradial (HR) joint spaces in patients with long-term rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: An inception cohort of 74 patients with RA were followed for 15 yr. At the end-point, 148 elbows were radiographed by a standard method. The HU and HR joint spaces were examined from the anteroposterior radiographs by measuring the shortest tangential distance in the middle of the joints. Destruction of the elbow joints, assessed with the Larsen method on a scale of 0-5, was studied in relation to the joint-space measurements. RESULTS: Mean (s.d.) HU joint space (n=148) in RA patients was 2.5 (1.1) mm, range 0-4 mm [2.9 (0.8) mm in men and 2.4 (1.1) mm in women]. Mean (s.d.) HR joint space (n=140) was 2.3 (0.9) mm, range 0-4 mm [2.5 (0.8) mm in men and 2.3 (1.0) mm in women]. HU and HR spaces of the affected joints (Larsen grades 2-5) [1.9 (s.d. 1.1) and 1.8 (0.9) mm respectively] were notably narrower than those of the unaffected (Larsen grades 0-1) joints [3.1 (0.7) and 2.9 (0.6) mm]. All the joints graded as Larsen 4 or 5 (n=13) had a value of 0 mm for both joint spaces. Both the HU and the HR joint-space narrowing was associated with increasing destruction (Larsen grading) of the joint. [r= -0.69 (95% CI -0.77 to -0.60) and r= -0.70 (-0.78 to -0.60)]. The monotonic narrowing was significantly increasing from unaffected (Larsen 0, 1), slightly (2), moderately (3) to severely (4, 5) affected joints (P<0.001). A step in this process occurred between Larsen grades 3 and 4, when the mean joint space diminished from 1.4 and 1.5 respectively to 0 mm. CONCLUSIONS: Joint-space narrowing is a frequent consequence of rheumatoid affection of the elbow joint. HR joint space decreases together with HU joint space; however, the HR joint space is already slightly narrower at the start. The narrowing is a rather late phenomenon, occurring only after erosive destruction. This should be borne in mind when using the Larsen method to evaluate changes in the elbow joint.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Inhibition of growth of nonproteolytic Clostridium botulinum type B in sous vide cooked meat products is achieved by using thermal processing but not nisin.

The safety of refrigerated processed foods of extended durability (REPFEDs) with respect to nonproteolytic Clostridium botulinum is under continuous evaluation. In the present study, mild (P7.0(85.0) values 0 to 2 min [P, pasteurization value; z-value 7.0 degrees C; reference temperature 85.0 degrees C]) and increased (P7.0(85.0) values 67 to 515 min) heat treatments were evaluated in relation to survival of nonproteolytic C. botulinum type B spores in sous vide processed ground beef and pork cubes. The use of two concentrations of nisin in inhibition of growth and toxin production by nonproteolytic C. botulinum in the same products was also evaluated. A total of 96 samples were heat processed and analyzed for C. botulinum by BoNT/B gene-specific polmerase chain reaction and for botulinum toxin by a mouse bioassay after storage of 14 to 28 days at 4 and 8 degrees C. Predictably, after mild processing all samples of both products showed botulinal growth, and one ground beef sample became toxic at 8 degrees C. The increased heat processing, equivalent to 67 min at 85 degrees C. resulted in growth but not toxin production of C. botulinum in one ground beef sample in 21 days at 8 degrees C: in the pork cube samples no growth was detected. The increased heating of both products resulted in higher sensory quality than the milder heat treatment. Nisin did not inhibit the growth of nonproteolytic C. botulinum in either product; growth was detected in both products at 4 and 8 degrees C, and ground beef became toxic with all nisin levels within 21 to 28 days at 8 degrees C. Aerobic and lactic acid bacterial counts were reduced by the addition of nisin at 4 degrees C. The study demonstrates that the mild processing temperatures commonly employed in sous vide technology do not eliminate nonproteolytic C. botulinum type B spores. The intensity of each heat treatment needs to be carefully evaluated individually for each product to ensure product safety in relation to nonproteolytic C. botulinum.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Safety evaluation of sous vide-processed products with respect to nonproteolytic Clostridium botulinum by use of challenge studies and predictive microbiological models.

Sixteen different types of sous vide-processed products were evaluated for safety with respect to nonproteolytic group II Clostridium botulinum by using challenge tests with low (2. 0-log-CFU/kg) and high (5.3-log-CFU/kg) inocula and two currently available predictive microbiological models, Food MicroModel (FMM) and Pathogen Modeling Program (PMP). After thermal processing, the products were stored at 4 and 8 degrees C and examined for the presence of botulinal spores and neurotoxin on the sell-by date and 7 days after the sell-by date. Most of the thermal processes were found to be inadequate for eliminating spores, even in low-inoculum samples. Only 2 of the 16 products were found to be negative for botulinal spores and neurotoxin at both sampling times. Two products at the high inoculum level showed toxigenesis during storage at 8 degrees C, one of them at the sell-by date. The predictions generated by both the FMM thermal death model and the FMM and PMP growth models were found to be inconsistent with the observed results in a majority of the challenges. The inaccurate predictions were caused by the limited number and range of the controlling factors in the models. Based on this study, it was concluded that the safety of sous vide products needs to be carefully evaluated product by product. Time-temperature combinations used in thermal treatments should be reevaluated to increase the efficiency of processing, and the use of additional antibotulinal hurdles, such as biopreservatives, should be assessed.

Botulinum Toxins↗
PubMed2000

Lactic acid permeabilizes gram-negative bacteria by disrupting the outer membrane.

The effect of lactic acid on the outer membrane permeability of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium was studied utilizing a fluorescent-probe uptake assay and sensitization to bacteriolysis. For control purposes, similar assays were performed with EDTA (a permeabilizer acting by chelation) and with hydrochloric acid, the latter at pH values corresponding to those yielded by lactic acid, and also in the presence of KCN. Already 5 mM (pH 4.0) lactic acid caused prominent permeabilization in each species, the effect in the fluorescence assay being stronger than that of EDTA or HCl. Similar results were obtained in the presence of KCN, except for P. aeruginosa, for which an increase in the effect of HCl was observed in the presence of KCN. The permeabilization by lactic and hydrochloric acid was partly abolished by MgCl(2). Lactic acid sensitized E. coli and serovar Typhimurium to the lytic action of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) more efficiently than did HCl, whereas both acids sensitized P. aeruginosa to SDS and to Triton X-100. P. aeruginosa was effectively sensitized to lysozyme by lactic acid and by HCl. Considerable proportions of lipopolysaccharide were liberated from serovar Typhimurium by these acids; analysis of liberated material by electrophoresis and by fatty acid analysis showed that lactic acid was more active than EDTA or HCl in liberating lipopolysaccharide from the outer membrane. Thus, lactic acid, in addition to its antimicrobial property due to the lowering of the pH, also functions as a permeabilizer of the gram-negative bacterial outer membrane and may act as a potentiator of the effects of other antimicrobial substances.

Cell Membrane↗
PubMed1997

A study of the microflora of some recycled fibre pulps, boards and kitchen rolls.

Current methodology used for studying the microflora of pulps and boards was assessed and some improvements are recommended. Microbiological quality of 37 samples including recycled fibre pulps, boards, kitchen rolls, virgin fibre sheets and circulating process water were investigated. The papermaking process had drastically reduced the total microbial counts. The dominant microflora in all the samples were aerobic bacteria. The amounts in boards were only 10(3)-10(6) cfu g-1 d.w., whereas the untreated pulps contained 10(8)-10(10) cfu g-1 d.w. Aerobic, anaerobic and facultatively anaerobic spore-forming bacteria formed a large group in the bacterial flora of pulp samples (10(3)-10(6) and 10(2)-10(4) cfu g-1 d.w., respectively). In the boards the maximum numbers of aerobic spore-forming bacteria were about 10(4) cfu g-1 d.w. and the numbers of anaerobic and facultatively anaerobic spore formers were negligible. Moulds were common in the untreated pulp sampled at 10(2)-10(6) cfu g-1 d.w., but their occurrence in boards was close to the detection limit. Yeasts were common only in the pulps of one mill, and were found to be present in the circulation process water. Both mesophilic and thermophilic actinomycetes were detected in pulps at levels up to 10(2)-10(5) cfu g-1 d.w. However, no mesophilic actinomycetes were detected in boards, although some boards contained up to 10(2) cfu g-1 d.w. of thermophilic actinomycetes. The virgin fibre sheets were practically free of microbes. Only a few bacterial colonies were detected from the kitchen rolls.

Actinomycetaceae↗
PubMed1993

Production and characterization of antibacterial compounds produced by Pediococcus damnosus and Pediococcus pentosaceus.

The broad-spectrum antibacterial activity exhibited by three Pediococcus strains isolated from beer was preliminarily characterized. Factors affecting the production rate of bacterial inhibitors were screened and the effects of simultaneous cultivation of Lactococcus and Pediococcus on the production of inhibitory substances were studied. The antibacterial activity against a range of Gram-negative test organisms was not affected by catalase or proteolytic enzymes and was extremely thermotolerant. Production of the inhibitors was maximal between pH 6 and pH 7. A growth medium containing unhopped end-fermented wort was beneficial for the production of inhibitors, particularly by the Pediococcus damnosus strain, and anaerobic growth conditions were preferable. The antagonistic activity against the Gram-negative test organism Salmonella infantis could be demonstrated after an incubation period of only 2 d if the Pediococcus and Lactococcus strains were incubated simultaneously as a mixed population.

Aerobiosis↗
PubMed1991

The effect of Pediococcus damnosus and Pediococcus pentosaceus on the growth of pathogens in minced meat.

The antibacterial effects of one strain of Pediococcus damnosus and two strains of Pediococcus pentosacaeus against Clostridium perfringens, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella infantis and Yersinia enterocolitica were investigated. Growth inhibition studies were conducted in juice from minced meat incubated at +6 degrees C and +15 degrees C for various periods after the inoculation with pediococci. Inhibitory effects were seen for all bacteria tested.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Genotoxicity and PAC analysis of particulate and vapour phases of environmental tobacco smoke.

Samples of indoor air were collected from an office room (88 m3) both before smoking and during experimental smoking of 96 cigarettes by 10 persons within 6 h. The particulates were collected on glass-fibre filters and the vapour-phase compounds on XAD-2 resin. The samples were extracted with acetone and analysed quantitatively for polycyclic aromatic compounds and qualitatively with GC-MS. The extracts of filters and XAD-2 resins were fractionated into neutral/acidic and 2 basic (strong and weak bases) fractions; all these fractions were tested with the sister-chromatid exchange (SCE) assay in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and with the Salmonella/microsome test (strain TA98). Total concentrations of PAC were 205 ng/m3 in the background sample and 1207 ng/m3 after contamination by cigarette smoking. The total PAC concentrations were 4-6 times higher in the vapour phase than in the particulate phase. The fractions of the particulate samples collected before smoking showed mainly marginal genotoxic activity, whereas after smoking their genotoxicity increased dramatically. The fractions of the vapour phase samples were not genotoxic before smoking, but after smoking the neutral/acidic and strong basic fractions induced responses in both assays. The SCE assay was more sensitive towards the vapour-phase mutagens of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). The relative responses of the two basic fractions, whereas the fraction containing neutral and acidic compounds was the most potent in the SCE assay. In the Salmonella test, the mutagenic activity was mainly detected with metabolic activation, while the induction of SCE in CHO cells was also seen without an exogenous metabolic activation system.

Air Pollutants, Occupational↗
PubMed1980

Mutagenic activity in foundry air.

Organic, cyclohexane soluble foundry air contaminants were assayed for their mutagenic activity with the Ames test. The samples studied were also analyzed for benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) concentrations by glass capillary gas chromatography. All the samples showed mutagenicity towards the strains Salmonella typhimurium TA 98 and TA 100 after metabolic activation. Correlations between the amount of BaP and the mutagenicity were calculated and then compared to the corresponding dose response correlations of known BaP concentrations.

Air Pollutants↗
PubMed1980

Mutagenicity of aerosols from the oxidative thermal decomposition of rigid polyurethane foam.

The aerosol fraction of the oxidative thermal decomposition products (700 degrees C) of rigid polyurethane foam was collected on glass fiber filters and fractionated into either-soluble neutral, acidic, and basic fractions and water-soluble compounds. The fractions showed mutagenic activity in a bacterial fluctuation test with Salmonella typhimurium TA98 or Escherichia coli CM891 as the tester strains. All the fractions induced mutations in both strains after metabolic activation with rat liver S-9 mix. The basic and the water-soluble fractions were mutagenic for S. typhimurium TA 98 even without activation. Thin-layer chromatography showed the presence of several primary aromatic amines in the aerosol. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were not detected by glass capillary gas chromatogaphy.

Aerosols↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Purity of recycled fibre-based materials.

In order to study the purity of recycled fibre-based materials, products containing recycled fibre as well as recycled pulp were examined with regard to their chemical impurities, toxicity and microbiological quality. The study was carried out to clarify both qualitatively and quantitatively the variations in microbiological quality. The levels of several classes of chemical substances were analysed and semi-volatile and volatile substances identified. The toxicity and mutagenicity of virgin fibre and recycled fibre materials were screened using the Photobacter toxicity test and the Ames Salmonella mutagenicity test. Preliminary chemical characterization of the mutagens was carried out. Identification of the compounds found in the mutagenic fractions was performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The concentration of various substances analysed was found to be low, although the variety of substances present appeared to be very broad. Preliminary chemical characterization revealed that some samples contained compounds known to have mutagenic or other toxic activity. Also, the recycled fibre pulps contained large amounts of various microbes, the microbial load consisting mainly of aerobic spore-forming bacteria. The paper-making process was found to clearly have reduced the total microbial counts.

Benzofurans↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Etanercept and urticaria in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Etanercept, a tumor necrosis factor receptor p75 Fc fusion protein (TNFR:Fc; Enbrel), has preliminarily been shown to be effective in the management of methotrexate-resistant polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). Reported side-effects have been minor, for example injection site reactions and upper respiratory tract infections, not necessitating discontinuation of the medication (1, 2). We report on 2 patients who developed an urticaria-like rash with prurigo appearing bilaterally on the extensor surfaces of the elbows subsequent to etanercept injections.

Antirheumatic Agents↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Stapling of knees with valgus deformity in children with juvenile chronic arthritis.

OBJECTIVE: Leg length discrepancy and excessive knee valgus are potential complications of juvenile chronic arthritis of the knee. The aim of the present study was to evaluate retrospectively the safety and efficacy of temporary stapling of the knee epiphyses in management of valgus deformities of the knee in children with JCA. METHODS: Medical data of the patients with temporary epiphyseodesis due to knee valgus deformity (KVD) were studied. 177 knees in 112 patients were found with sufficient data for evaluation. Patient documents and radiographs of these patients were evaluated. RESULTS: Mean age at the time of operation was 8 years (range: 2 - 17) in 19 males and 93 females. The patients are predominantly affected by aggressive polyarticular disease. Preoperative mean valgus angle was 11 degrees (IQR: 9, 14) and at staple removal 4 degrees (IQR: 2, 5). In 120 of 177 knees (68% [95% CI: 61 - 74], p < 0.001) the physiological angle (3-8 degrees) was reached. Median time of stapling was 10 months (IQR: 8, 13). Five reversible and one irreversible (3% [95% CI: 2 to 7]) major complications were documented among the 177 stapled knees. CONCLUSION: Temporary epiphyseal stapling enables flexible correction of KVD in children with JCA. Low complication rate encourages the use of the method. Prompt follow-up is, however, important in avoing excess over-correction to varus.

Adolescent↗