Author Archives: Tigran Dadalyan
Will dengue vaccination be cost-effective for an epidemic country? The case of Argentina
Dengue is one of the major tropical diseases, causing a huge burden in terms of suffering, deaths and economic costs globally. Many research institutions and pharmaceutical companies throughout the world have been trying to develop a vaccine
Aggregating anions or cations? H-bonding found to trump electrostatics in ionic liquids
Two of the most persistent and vexing conceptual problems of modern physical chemistry concern (i) the fundamental nature of the hydrogen bond and (ii) the molecular-level structure and dynamics of condensed liquids, which H-bonding often dominates. In recent years,
Necessity of global consensus for implementing new initiatives for treatment of aluminum phosphide poisoning
Aluminum phosphide (ALP) is an agricultural pesticide that is used worldwide to kill pests and rodents. It is effective and cheap pesticide that make it readily available especially in developing countries. Its global attention arises from the
Rare disease day; 500 years ago
A rare disease is a life-threatening or chronically debilitating condition with a very low prevalence. Several institutions such as Food and Drug Administration (FDA), European Medical Agency (EMA) and Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) have put in place
How cells crawl… that’s right, crawl
Within our bodies, every cell must crawl – some only a few millionths of an inch, while others, like nerve fibers, must make their way from the spinal cord to the tips of our toes. The ability
Protecting titanium implants from infection
Certain microorganisms are capable of growing in layers, forming biofilms on medical surfaces, like implants, heart valves, etc… Biofilm-associated infections on implants are responsible for 15-25 % of implant failures as biofilms are resistant to most of the
Girls should know whether they experienced a first menstruation after birth
Within a few days of birth in approximately 5% of neonates a vaginal bleeding appears lasting 1-3 days. This Neonatal Menstrual-like Bleeding is described in the lay literature as an unusual, but physiological direct consequence of the
What predicts clinician dropout of a state-sponsored training program on best practices for improving children’s mental health?
In the U.S. , 1 in 5 children currently have or will have a serious mental disorder. State mental health systems care for many of these youth and are increasingly looking for ways to both improve the
Cortisol levels as index for vulnerability to stress
Stress exposure is known to precipitate psychological disorders. However, large differences exist in how individuals respond to stress; whereas some people thrive under stressful situations, others break down and are at risk to develop psychopathology. One important
Routine brain MRIs may not be needed after meningioma surgery
A meningioma is a very common form of a brain tumor that tends to affect elderly patients and women. Most patients with meningiomas do not need any treatment, however, certain groups undergo surgical removal of the tumor.
Mixing Insulin with phospholipids at the air/water interface
The Insulin monomer is unstable and tends to macroscopically aggregate in aqueous solutions during storage. This is a consequence of solid fibers formed by aggregation of monomers and dimers under low pH conditions; and causes loss of
Humans become morning people with higher age
Sleep timing of humans can be classified alongside a continuum from early to late sleepers. Morning people or Larks get up early, have an early activity, and go to bed early bed. Evening types or Owls are
Digital model of the cancer cell
We are postulating that human cells should be analyzed as analog/digital systems (biological computers) capable of digitalizing the analog information from the environment, processing that information in digital form and producing a programmed action according to that
Moral considerations and in-utero babies
As life-saving technology increases, we must ensure that moral decision-making keeps up. Consider a baby in-utero, who has a large tumour likely to make normal birth difficult and dangerous, for mother and child. Attempts to deliver the
Human motor neurones: so well-known or still unknown?
Movements, the fundamental base of normal human life, are produced when our skeletal muscles contract and relax, submitting to control by special nervous cells, the so-called motor neurones (motoneurones) placed in the spinal cord. It is surprising
Revisiting NMDA receptor inhibitors that work differently hoping to treat brain injury and stroke
Over-activation of NMDA receptors, a subtype of glutamate receptors, has long been suspected to contribute to the development of the penumbral zone of damage that develops hours after a traumatic brain injury or stroke occurs. This area
Sperm DNA damage and its role in fertility
One way or another, it takes two people to make a baby. Under normal circumstances, a sperm and an egg fuse to make an embryo however there are numerous occasions under which this process needs a little
Cardiovascular disease burden in Hodgkin lymphoma survivors
In developed countries, lymphomas are the third most frequent tumors among the pediatric cancers following leukemias and central nervous system tumors. With substantial increase in survivors of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), late complications of treatment have become extremely
Does acute kidney injury affect other organs?
Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) is a common and serious condition with no specific treatment. AKI has been estimated to cost the NHS in the UK alone between £451-626 million per year. Recovery from a single episode of
