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Journal of Investigative Medicine High... 2023A barium esophagram is a diagnostic test used for the evaluation of dysphagia. However, this test has the potential risk for aspiration of the barium contrast. Barium...
A barium esophagram is a diagnostic test used for the evaluation of dysphagia. However, this test has the potential risk for aspiration of the barium contrast. Barium aspiration typically localizes to the right lower lobe or left lingular lobe. We present a case of barium aspiration localized to the right middle lobe that persisted on chest X-ray. A 62-year-old male with a past medical history of hypertension, long-term back pain, gastritis, and anxiety presented with the complaints of hoarseness of voice, dysphagia, and weight loss for several months. During the esophagram, the patient aspirated the barium contrast. Chest X-ray confirmed the aspiration in the right middle lobe with a tree in bud appearance suggesting involvement of bronchioles. Three months later, a repeat chest X-ray revealed residual contrast. Pulmonary complications are directly related to the amount of aspirated barium and can include hypoxia, respiratory failure, secondary aspiration pneumonia, shock, and acute respiration distress syndrome. The prognosis of a barium aspiration is dependent on the amount of barium aspirated.
Topics: Humans; Middle Aged; Barium; Deglutition Disorders; Hypoxia; Respiratory Distress Syndrome; Pneumonia, Aspiration
PubMed: 37341445
DOI: 10.1177/23247096231181867 -
Environmental Health and Preventive... May 2020Well water could be a stable source of drinking water. Recently, the use of well water as drinking water has been encouraged in developing countries. However, many kinds... (Review)
Review
Well water could be a stable source of drinking water. Recently, the use of well water as drinking water has been encouraged in developing countries. However, many kinds of disorders caused by toxic elements in well drinking water have been reported. It is our urgent task to resolve the global issue of element-originating diseases. In this review article, our multidisciplinary approaches focusing on oncogenic toxicities and disturbances of sensory organs (skin and ear) induced by arsenic and barium are introduced. First, our environmental monitoring in developing countries in Asia showed elevated concentrations of arsenic and barium in well drinking water. Then our experimental studies in mice and our epidemiological studies in humans showed arsenic-mediated increased risks of hyperpigmented skin and hearing loss with partial elucidation of their mechanisms. Our experimental studies using cultured cells with focus on the expression and activity levels of intracellular signal transduction molecules such as c-SRC, c-RET, and oncogenic RET showed risks for malignant transformation and/or progression arose from arsenic and barium. Finally, our original hydrotalcite-like compound was proposed as a novel remediation system to effectively remove arsenic and barium from well drinking water. Hopefully, comprehensive studies consisting of (1) environmental monitoring, (2) health risk assessments, and (3) remediation will be expanded in the field of environmental health to prevent various disorders caused by environmental factors including toxic elements in drinking water.
Topics: Animals; Arsenic; Barium; Drinking Water; Environmental Exposure; Environmental Health; Environmental Monitoring; Humans; Mice; Water Pollutants, Chemical; Water Wells
PubMed: 32460744
DOI: 10.1186/s12199-020-00855-8 -
MBio Feb 2023Barium and strontium are often used as proxies of marine productivity in palaeoceanographic reconstructions of global climate. However, long-searched biological drivers...
Barium and strontium are often used as proxies of marine productivity in palaeoceanographic reconstructions of global climate. However, long-searched biological drivers for such correlations remain unknown. Here, we report that taxa within one of the most abundant groups of marine planktonic protists, diplonemids (Euglenozoa), are potent accumulators of intracellular barite (BaSO), celestite (SrSO), and strontiobarite (Ba,Sr)SO. In culture, accumulates Ba and Sr 42,000 and 10,000 times higher than the surrounding medium, forming barite and celestite representing 90% of the dry weight, the greatest concentration in biomass known to date. As heterotrophs, diplonemids are not restricted to the photic zone, and they are widespread in the oceans in astonishing abundance and diversity, as their distribution correlates with environmental particulate barite and celestite, prevailing in the mesopelagic zone. We found diplonemid predators, the filter-feeding zooplankton that produces fecal pellets containing the undigested celestite from diplonemids, facilitating its deposition on the seafloor. To the best of our knowledge, evidence for diplonemid biomineralization presents the strongest explanation for the occurrence of particulate barite and celestite in the marine environment. Both structures of the crystals and their variable chemical compositions found in diplonemids fit the properties of environmentally sampled particulate barite and celestite. Finally, we propose that diplonemids, which emerged during the Neoproterozoic era, qualify as impactful players in Ba/Sr cycling in the ocean that has possibly contributed to sedimentary rock formation over long geological periods. We have identified that diplonemids, an abundant group of marine planktonic protists, accumulate conspicuous amounts of Sr and Ba in the form of intracellular barite and celestite crystals, in concentrations that greatly exceed those of the most efficient Ba/Sr-accumulating organisms known to date. We propose that diplonemids are potential players in Ba/Sr cycling in the ocean and have possibly contributed to sedimentary rock formation over long geological periods. These organisms emerged during the Neoproterozoic era (590 to 900 million years ago), prior to known coccolithophore carbonate biomineralization (~200 million years ago). Based on reported data, the distribution of diplonemids in the oceans is correlated with the occurrence of particulate barite and celestite. Finally, diplonemids may provide new insights into the long-questioned biogenic origin of particulate barite and celestite and bring more understanding of the observed spatial-temporal correlation of the minerals with marine productivity used in reconstructions of past global climate.
Topics: Barium; Barium Sulfate; Strontium; Oceans and Seas; Plankton; Minerals
PubMed: 36645306
DOI: 10.1128/mbio.03279-22 -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Oct 2022Barium titanate (BT) recently gained new interest in the preparation of dielectric and piezoelectric lead-free materials for applications in sensors, electronics, energy...
Barium titanate (BT) recently gained new interest in the preparation of dielectric and piezoelectric lead-free materials for applications in sensors, electronics, energy harvesting and storage fields. Barium titanate nanocomposites can achieve attractive performance, provided that the compatibility between ceramic particles and polymeric matrices is enhanced to the benefit of the physical properties of the final composite. Tuning the particle-matrix interface through particle functionalization represents a viable solution. In this work, surface functionalization of BT nanoparticles (NPs), obtained by hydrothermal synthesis, with 3-glycidyloxypropyltrimethoxysilane, 2-[(acetoxy(polyethyleneoxy)propyl]triethoxysilane and triethoxysilylpropoxy(polyethyleneoxy)dodecanoate, was performed after optimizing the hydroxylation process of the NPs to improve their surface reactivity and increase the yield of grafting. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance and thermogravimetric analysis were used to quantify the molecules grafted onto the ceramic nanoparticles. Both bare and functionalized particles were employed in the realization of epoxy- and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based nanocomposites. Functionalization was proven to be beneficial for particle dispersibility and effective for particle alignment in the PDMS matrix. Moreover, the dielectric constant measurements revealed the potential of PDMS-based nanocomposites for applications in the field of dielectric elastomers.
Topics: Barium; Dimethylpolysiloxanes; Elastomers; Laurates; Nanocomposites; Organosilicon Compounds; Titanium
PubMed: 36235034
DOI: 10.3390/molecules27196499 -
Science Progress 2023The ceramic-polymer composite materials are widely known for their exceptional mechanical and biological properties. Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a biodegradable polymer... (Review)
Review
The ceramic-polymer composite materials are widely known for their exceptional mechanical and biological properties. Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a biodegradable polymer material extensively used in various biomedical applications. At the same time, barium titanate (BT), a ceramic material, exhibits piezoelectric properties similar to bone, which is essential for osseointegration. Furthermore, a composite material that combines the benefits of PCL and BT results in an innovative composite material with enhanced properties for biomedical applications. Thus, this review is organised into three sections. Firstly, it aims to provide an overview of the current research on evaluating biological properties, including antibacterial activity, cytotoxicity and osseointegration, of PCL polymeric matrices in its pure form and reinforced structures with ceramics, polymers and natural extracts. The second section investigates the biological properties of BT, both in its pure form and in combination with other supporting materials. Finally, the third section provides a summary of the biological properties of the PCLBT composite material. Furthermore, the existing challenges of PCL, BT and their composites, along with future research directions, have been presented. Therefore, this review will provide a state-of-the-art understanding of the biological properties of PCL and BT composites as potential futuristic materials in biomedical applications.
Topics: Biocompatible Materials; Barium; Polyesters; Polymers
PubMed: 38031343
DOI: 10.1177/00368504231215942 -
Nucleic Acids Research Dec 2019DNA can form many structures beyond the canonical Watson-Crick double helix. It is now clear that noncanonical structures are present in genomic DNA and have biological...
DNA can form many structures beyond the canonical Watson-Crick double helix. It is now clear that noncanonical structures are present in genomic DNA and have biological functions. G-rich G-quadruplexes and C-rich i-motifs are the most well-characterized noncanonical DNA motifs that have been detected in vivo with either proscribed or postulated biological roles. Because of their independent sequence requirements, these structures have largely been considered distinct types of quadruplexes. Here, we describe the crystal structure of the DNA oligonucleotide, d(CCAGGCTGCAA), that self-associates to form a quadruplex structure containing two central antiparallel G-tetrads and six i-motif C-C+ base pairs. Solution studies suggest a robust structural motif capable of assembling as a tetramer of individual strands or as a dimer when composed of tandem repeats. This hybrid structure highlights the growing structural diversity of DNA and suggests that biological systems may harbor many functionally important non-duplex structures.
Topics: Barium; Base Pairing; Crystallography, X-Ray; DNA; Drug Stability; G-Quadruplexes; Hydrogen Bonding; Models, Molecular; Nucleic Acid Conformation; Nucleic Acid Denaturation; Nucleotide Motifs; Oligonucleotides
PubMed: 31724696
DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkz1008 -
Proceedings. Biological Sciences Nov 2018As upper-level predators, sharks are important for maintaining marine food web structure, but populations are threatened by fishery exploitation. Sustainable management...
As upper-level predators, sharks are important for maintaining marine food web structure, but populations are threatened by fishery exploitation. Sustainable management of shark populations requires improved understanding of migration patterns and population demographics, which has traditionally been sought through physical and/or electronic tagging studies. The application of natural tags such as elemental variations in mineralized band pairs of elasmobranch vertebrae cartilage could also reveal endogenous and exogenous processes experienced by sharks throughout their life histories. Here, elemental profiles were characterized in vertebrae encompassing complete life histories (birth-to-death) of shortfin mako (), common thresher () and blue shark () of known tag and recapture locations in the eastern North Pacific Ocean. All sharks were injected with oxytetracycline at initial capture, released and subsequently recaptured, with individual liberty times ranging from 215 days to 6 years. Vertebral band pairs forming over the liberty intervals were verified by counting the number of band pairs deposited since the oxytetracycline band. Regular oscillations in vertebrae manganese (Mn) content corresponded well with the number of validated band pairs, suggesting that Mn variation could be used to age sharks. Increases in vertebrae barium concentration were correlated with times when individuals occupied areas with high coastal upwelling indices, the timing and spatial intensity of which varied from year to year. Interspecific relationships were probably influenced by behavioural differences in horizontal and vertical habitat use, feeding habits and thermoregulatory physiology. These results indicate that vertebral sclerochronology has the potential to advance our knowledge of elasmobranch life history including age and growth estimation and environmental reconstruction.
Topics: Age Determination by Skeleton; Age Factors; Animals; Barium; Ecosystem; Manganese; Pacific Ocean; Seawater; Sharks; Spine
PubMed: 30404878
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1760 -
IEEE Journal of Translational... 2022Dysphagia, commonly referred to as abnormal swallowing, affects millions of people annually. If not diagnosed expeditiously, dysphagia can lead to more severe...
Dysphagia, commonly referred to as abnormal swallowing, affects millions of people annually. If not diagnosed expeditiously, dysphagia can lead to more severe complications, such as pneumonia, nutritional deficiency, and dehydration. Bedside screening is the first step of dysphagia characterization and is usually based on pass/fail tests in which a nurse observes the patient performing water swallows to look for dysphagia overt signs such as coughing. Though quick and convenient, bedside screening only provides low-level judgment of impairment, lacks standardization, and suffers from subjectivity. Recently, high resolution cervical auscultation (HRCA) has been investigated as a less expensive and non-invasive method to diagnose dysphagia. It has shown strong preliminary evidence of its effectiveness in penetration-aspiration detection as well as multiple swallow kinematics. HRCA signals have traditionally been collected and investigated in conjunction with videofluoroscopy exams which are performed using barium boluses including thin liquid. An HRCA-based bedside screening is highly desirable to expedite the initial dysphagia diagnosis and overcome all the drawbacks of the current pass/fail screening tests. However, all research conducted for using HRCA in dysphagia is based on thin liquid barium boluses and thus not guaranteed to provide valid results for water boluses used in bedside screening. If HRCA signals show no significant differences between water and thin liquid barium boluses, then the same algorithms developed on thin liquid barium boluses used in diagnostic imaging studies, it can be then directly used with water boluses. This study investigates the similarities and differences between HRCA signals from thin liquid barium swallows compared to those signals from water swallows. Multiple features from the time, frequency, time-frequency, and information-theoretic domain were extracted from each type of swallow and a group of linear mixed models was tested to determine the significance of differences. Machine learning classifiers were fit to the data as well to determine if the swallowed material (thin liquid barium or water) can be correctly predicted from an unlabeled set of HRCA signals. The results demonstrated that there is no systematic difference between the HRCA signals of thin liquid barium swallows and water swallows. While no systematic difference was discovered, the evidence of complete conformity between HRCA signals of both materials was inconclusive. These results must be validated further to confirm conformity between the HRCA signals of thin liquid barium swallows and water swallows.
Topics: Auscultation; Barium; Deglutition; Deglutition Disorders; Humans; Water
PubMed: 34963825
DOI: 10.1109/JTEHM.2021.3134926 -
Journal of Biomedical Materials... Nov 2012Microbeads of alginate crosslinked with Ca(2+) and/or Ba(2+) are popular matrices in cell-based therapy. The aim of this study was to quantify the binding of barium in...
Microbeads of alginate crosslinked with Ca(2+) and/or Ba(2+) are popular matrices in cell-based therapy. The aim of this study was to quantify the binding of barium in alginate microbeads and its leakage under in vitro and accumulation under in vivo conditions. Low concentrations of barium (1 mM) in combination with calcium (50 mM) and high concentrations of barium (20 mM) in gelling solutions were used for preparation of microbeads made of high-G and high-M alginates. High-G microbeads accumulated barium from gelling solution and contained higher concentrations of divalent ions for both low- and high-Ba exposure compared with high-G microbeads exposed to calcium solely and to high-M microbeads for all gelling conditions. Although most of the unbound divalent ions were removed during the wash and culture steps, leakage of barium was still detected during storage. Barium accumulation in blood and femur bone of mice implanted with high-G beads was found to be dose-dependent. Estimated barium leakage relevant to transplantation to diabetic patients with islets in alginate microbeads showed that the leakage was 2.5 times lower than the tolerable intake value given by WHO for high-G microbeads made using low barium concentration. The similar estimate gave 1.5 times higher than is the tolerable intake value for the high-G microbeads made using high barium concentration. To reduce the risk of barium accumulation that may be of safety concern, the microbeads made of high-G alginate gelled with a combination of calcium and low concentration of barium ions is recommended for islet transplantation.
Topics: Alginates; Animals; Barium; Calcium; Cross-Linking Reagents; Femur; Gels; Glucuronic Acid; Hexuronic Acids; Laminaria; Macrocystis; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Microspheres
PubMed: 22700168
DOI: 10.1002/jbm.a.34237 -
Journal of Molecular Biology Aug 2020Barium (Ba) is a classic permeant blocker of potassium (K) channels. The "external lock-in effect" in barium block experiments, whereby the binding of external K impedes...
Barium (Ba) is a classic permeant blocker of potassium (K) channels. The "external lock-in effect" in barium block experiments, whereby the binding of external K impedes the forward translocation of the blocker, provides a powerful avenue to investigate the selectivity of the binding sites along the pore of potassium channels. Barium block experiments show that the external lock-in site is highly selective for K over Na. Wild-type KcsA was crystallized in low K conditions, and the crystals were soaked in solutions containing various concentrations of barium. Structural analysis reveals open and closed gate conformations of the KcsA channel. Anomalous diffraction experiments show that Ba primarily binds to the innermost site S4 of the selectivity filter of the open-gate conformation and also the site S2, but no binding is detected with the closed-gate conformation. Alchemical free-energy perturbation calculations indicate that the presence of a Ba ion in the selectivity filter boosts the specificity of K binding relative to Na in the external sites S0-S2.
Topics: Barium; Binding Sites; Crystallography, X-Ray; Models, Molecular; Molecular Dynamics Simulation; Potassium Channels; Protein Binding; Protein Conformation
PubMed: 32615129
DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2020.06.012