, 1999; Schauer et al, 2002), is conserved among all organisms

, 1999; Schauer et al., 2002), is conserved among all organisms. Because redox status or disulfide bond formation may be important in HemA regulation, each of the three cysteines of HemA was individually changed to alanine, resulting in the mutants C50A, C74A, and C170A. These were expressed in E. coli from a plasmid bearing the native hemA promoter, but controlled by the lac operator and repressor. Both C74A and C170A complemented an E. coli hemA mutant when expressed at physiological levels,

thereby demonstrating that they encode functional 3-MA proteins. As expected, plasmids encoding either a sequenced amber mutant allele of hemA (Q369Am) or the C50A mutant protein were unable to complement in the same test. As a first assessment of the regulatory phenotype of the HemA Cys mutants, HemA was analyzed by Western blot of lysates prepared from overnight cultures (Fig. 2a). In a previous report, we observed that HemA protein is undetectable by Western blot in wild-type cultures grown overnight, http://www.selleckchem.com/products/U0126.html whereas HemA[KK], a regulatory mutant, is maintained at easily detectable levels (Wang et al., 1999b). HemA[C170A] was nearly as

abundant as HemA[KK], whereas HemA levels in C50A, C74A, and wild-type were at or below the limit of detection, suggesting that of the three mutants, C170A alone displays a regulatory defect. To verify this, the CysAla mutants were assessed for correct regulation by comparing HemA levels in the absence and presence of ALA (Fig. 2b). In ALA-supplemented

cultures, where the wild type is unstable, HemA levels were much higher in the C170A mutant compared with the wild-type strain and the C74 mutant (Fig. 2b), and slightly higher than HemA[KK] in a similar test (Fig. 2c). We conclude that HemA[C170A] is a regulatory mutant. This effect was further investigated using purified proteins. Initial attempts to overexpress either native or His-tagged HemA protein using selleck the standard T7 system were unsuccessful (unpublished data); however, we observed that constructs bearing an amber mutant allele of hemA (Q369Am) allowed overexpression of the truncated protein (Wang et al., 1997), at a high level similar to that observed for other proteins we have purified (e.g. HemL, RpoS). This prompted us to test whether relatively short C-terminal truncations could be overexpressed at high levels as well. The hemA gene from S. enterica was inserted into a plasmid derived from pET3 under the control of a T7 promoter (Studier & Moffatt, 1986). Various constructs encoded either full-length HemA (amino acids 1–418) or one of several small C-terminal truncations, all bearing a C-terminal His6 tag in addition. Protein overexpression was induced by a standard protocol in E. coli BL21(DE3)/pLysS (Studier & Moffatt, 1986).

Each variable distribution was tested for normality If assumptio

Each variable distribution was tested for normality. If assumptions for the parametric tests were not met, nonparametric equivalents were employed, including Wilcoxon rank sum and Fisher’s

exact tests. We examined the data from a quality improvement perspective: deficiencies that were noted in the data tabulation were identified and, from these, a repeat survey tool was created. We plan to test this new, improved survey tool in the future by combining the information in the current database with an expanded version. Data collection demonstrated an 18% return rate of the survey over the collection period. Of travelers who returned the survey, 31% had traveled to Asia, 30% went to Africa, 20% to South America, and 14% to Central America. Of all travelers, 3.6% went to high-income destinations in Europe and Australia and 1.4% traveled to multiple continents. Illness Proteases inhibitor was reported in 104 (19.8%) of the cohort. The most common illnesses were gastrointestinal related,

reported by 75 (14.3%) of all travelers (Figure 1). Gastrointestinal illness accounted for 76% of all reported illness. The majority of the gastrointestinal cases were diarrheal disease, although nausea and vomiting were also commonly reported. Respiratory illness, accounting for 14% of all illness reported, was the next most common, occurring in 17 (3.4%) of all respondents. Systemic illness, skin disorders, and “other” illness made up the remainder of the reported illness (Figure Selleck Carfilzomib 1). Of those travelers who reported

illness during travel, 30 sought medical attention (29.4% of ill respondents). The destinations with the highest risk of reported illness were South America (27.3% of all respondents); Asia, including India, (21.5%); and Africa with 17.4% (Table 1). There was no difference in the rates of self-reported illness among travelers to Africa, Asia, South America, and Central America (p = 0.37). Serious illness (defined as illness requiring medical attention) occurred in 8.1% of travelers to South America, 5.7% of travelers to Asia, 5.2% of travelers to Central America, and 4.3% of travelers to Africa. Both general illness and serious illness were rarely reported among travelers to developed countries in Europe and Australia. Gastrointestinal Methamphetamine illness, particularly traveler’s diarrhea (TD), was the most common affliction. Despite receiving pre-travel counseling, a significant portion of travelers to developing regions reported diarrhea. Rates exceeded 25% in Africa and South America: 26.9 and 28.3%, respectively (Table 1). Rates of TD were slightly lower in Asia at 20.2%. The differences in TD rates between these continents were not significant (p = 0.30). The duration of travel was found to be a significant risk factor for acquiring illness abroad. We stratified our responses into quartiles regarding durations of travel (Figure 2). Of travelers going abroad for less than 2 weeks, only 11.6% (27/232) developed any degree of illness, whereas 40.

Both protozoan and bacterial strain, as well as their particular

Both protozoan and bacterial strain, as well as their particular combinations, significantly influenced the outcome of their interactions (Table 1). Pseudomonas fluorescens CHA0 was especially harmful (Figs 1 and 2, Table 1). This strain efficiently restrains growth of various plant-pathogenic fungi, inhibits egg hatch and cause mortality of plant-pathogenic nematode juveniles, (Keel et al., 1992; Siddiqui et al., 2006) and inhibits several nontarget fungi (Winding et al., 2004). Jousset et al. (2006) found that only mutants CSF-1R inhibitor completely devoid of metabolite production (GacA/GacS-negative)

supported protozoan growth, which suggests that the high toxicity of CHA0 is linked to the production of a broad

range of different secondary www.selleckchem.com/products/Everolimus(RAD001).html metabolites. We observed that the strains producing extracellular metabolites, i.e. CHA0 and DSS73, were more harmful to protozoa than strains that mainly produce membrane-bound metabolites, i.e. DR54 and MA342 (Fig. 1). To analyze this matter further, we arranged our Pseudomonas strains into three groups: those without secondary metabolites, those that produce membrane-bound secondary metabolites, and a group of bacteria producing extracellular secondary metabolites. We then correlated growth rates of each of these three groups to the growth rates of E. aerogenes. We found a very high correlation between the growth rates of E. aerogenes and the supposedly harmless Pseudomonas (r2=0.85, P=0.0002); we obtained no correlation at all between Enzalutamide supplier E. aerogenes and the Pseudomonas with extracellular metabolites (r2=0.02, P=0.36), whereas Pseudomonas with membrane-bound metabolites correlated better and almost significantly (r2=0.26, P=0.08). We suggest that the relatively increased ability to cope with membrane-bound toxins in organisms with higher growth rates can be attributed to egestion of harmful remnants enclosed in the food vacuole (membrane parts) whereas

extracellular metabolites are in contact with the cell surface and are difficult to avoid. This is in accordance with the mechanism discussed by Deines et al. (2009). They elegantly showed that volume-specific clearance rate correlated positively with toxin tolerance; probably because organisms with a relative higher clearance rate use their food less efficiently, and egest cell remnants that contain harmful substances. Everything else being equal, volume-specific clearance rate and intrinsic growth rate will correlate. Hence, we suggest that egestion of harmful remnants can explain the higher tolerance. The ability of protozoa to grow on specific bacteria did not correlate particularly well with low-level taxonomic group (Table 1). For example, the two strains of B. designis reacted quite differently to the presented bacteria.

Both this database and pharmacy dispensing records were checked t

Both this database and pharmacy dispensing records were checked to identify discrepancies.

The inpatient regimen was considered correct if it matched the outpatient regimen. For those patients not followed at the hospital HIV clinic, admission data were also checked to rule out transcription errors. Drug–drug interactions were checked for contraindicated or not recommended combinations using national and international MI-503 mw HIV websites [9–11]. If an error or interaction was detected, the pharmacist phoned the attending physician or nurse or added a footnote with a recommendation to the computerized prescription, so that the attending physician could see it the following day. The acceptance of the pharmacist’s recommendations was also reviewed during the following days. If the error was not corrected within 48 h of the recommendation, the prescription was classed as not accepted. Data were entered into an Access 2.0 database (Microsoft Corp., Redmond, WA, USA). For the descriptive analysis, qualitative variables were expressed as percentages and frequencies; quantitative variables were expressed as the mean (standard deviation [SD]). Fisher’s exact test was used to analyse contingency tables. Odds ratios (ORs) for risk factors associated with HAART-related problems

were analysed using a generalized estimating equation model. This multivariate model takes into account the correlation between different admissions belonging to the same patient. The statistical analysis was performed ZD1839 http://www.selleckchem.com/products/KU-60019.html using stata (StataCorp. 2007, Stata Statistical Software, Release 10; Stata Corporation, College Station, TX, USA). Over a 1-year period, we reviewed the prescriptions for 247 admissions of 189 HIV-infected patients who received antiretroviral therapy. Forty-one patients were admitted more than once during the study period. Table 1

summarizes the demographic characteristics of these patients. The distribution of admissions by service was as follows: infectious diseases unit, 135 (54.7%); other medical units, 58 (23.5%); surgery services, 38 (15.4%); intensive care units, nine (3.6%); and units with surgical and nonsurgical patients, seven (2.8%). A total of 60 antiretroviral drug-related problems were identified in 41 patients (21.7% of the admitted patients had at least one antiretroviral problem). The types of HAART-related errors found are shown in Table 2. The most common was drug–drug interaction (33.3%), not only between antiretroviral agents, but also between antiretrovirals and other drugs. Atazanavir was the drug most commonly involved in interactions. The second most common problem was incorrect dose (16.7%), and the third most common was dose omission (15%), followed by lack of dosage reduction in patients with renal or hepatic impairment (11.7%), omission of one or more antiretroviral medications (10%), addition of an alternative antiretroviral drug (8.3%) and incorrect schedule according to outpatient treatment (5%).

Xylan contains a backbone of β-linked d-xylose residues that can

Xylan contains a backbone of β-linked d-xylose residues that can be decorated with acetyl-, l-arabinose, d-galactose, (4-O-methyl-)d-glucuronic acid and ferulic acid. Mannan contains a β-linked d-mannose backbone that can be decorated with α- and β-linked d-galactose and, depending on the origin, can contain single d-glucose residues interrupting the mannose main chain (referred to as glucomannan). Xyloglucan contains a β-linked d-glucose backbone that is decorated with α-linked d-xylose residues. Attached to these residues are d-galactose, l-arabinose and/or l-fucose residues. d-Galactose is the only component common to all three hemicelluloses and is also found in pectin (Pauly & Keegstra, 2010).

The enzymatic hydrolysis of these polysaccharides is subject to significant industrial interest, JQ1 nmr both in the food and feed as well as the wood-manufacturing sector (Bhat, 2000). Amongst microorganisms with

an ability to produce plant cell wall degrading enzymes, fungi are by far the most interesting Vemurafenib in vivo group. Besides certain Trichoderma species, black Aspergilli such as Aspergillus niger are the most important organisms because of their high protein secretion capacity and wide range of cell wall degrading enzyme activity (de Vries & Visser, 2001). In recent years, considerable knowledge has been accumulated on the enzyme systems and genes involved in degrading hemicelluloses to their monomers and also about the further metabolism of the hemicellulose monomers in fungi (Flipphi et al., 2009). With respect to d-galactose, information has been obtained in Trichoderma reesei (Seiboth et al., 2002, 2003, 2004; Karaffa et al., 2006) and Aspergillus nidulans (Fekete et al., 2004; Christensen et al., 2011). In addition to the Leloir pathway, these fungi possess a second pathway for d-galactose catabolism, which, in analogy to the l-arabinose catabolic pathway, uses reductive and oxidative reactions to convert

d-galactose into d-fructose-6-phosphate (Seiboth & Metz, 2011). Although genome information from A. niger has shown the presence of all genes/enzymes needed to degrade d-galactose (Flipphi Docetaxel solubility dmso et al., 2009), only few experimental data are available on its metabolism (Mojzita et al., 2011; Koivistoinen et al., 2012). This may be due to the fact that with the exception of Aspergillus brasiliensis, d-galactose is considered a very poor carbon source for black Aspergilli including A. niger (Meijer et al., 2011), which hampers efforts to cultivate it on d-galactose. Growth on d-galactose containing complex carbohydrates may also be affected, depending on which other carbon sources are present and the ratio of these and galactose in the carbohydrate. The aim of this study was to analyse and understand the physiological background of this phenomenon in A. niger. Aspergillus niger N402 (FGSC A733; cspA1) was used in this study (Bos et al.,1988).

oneidensis mutant by electroporation (Myers & Myers, 1997) and se

oneidensis mutant by electroporation (Myers & Myers, 1997) and selected on LB medium containing the appropriate antibiotic. Microscopic visualization of biofilms, biofilm parameter analysis, and image processing were performed as described previously (Thormann et al., 2005, 2006). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was performed at the Cell Science Imaging Facility at Stanford

University on LM-grown cells stained with 2% uranyl acetate-negative stain on 200-mesh formvar-coated TEM copper grids. Images were obtained using a JEOL TEM1230 transmission electron microscope (Jeol Ltd, Tokyo, Japan). In a previous genetic screen, we had identified genes involved in pilus biogenesis and function, including mshA (coding for the main structural subunit of the MSHA pilus) and a homolog to

pilT, as well as genes of the mxd operon, to be critical for biofilm formation under hydrodynamic conditions (Thormann BIBW2992 purchase et al., 2004). The biofilm phenotypes of ΔmshA and Δmxd mutants are opposite of each other in that ΔmshA biofilms do not form a contiguous surface coverage and remain loosely structured, whereas Δmxd mutant biofilms completely cover the substratum surface, but lack a three-dimensional structure (Fig. 1). Here, we examined biofilms of a constructed ΔmshAΔmxdB double mutant and found that they were entirely deficient in the initial attachment and biofilm formation (Fig. 1). The expression of mshA in trans rescued this phenotype in a static biofilm system this website such that the complemented double mutant exhibited biofilm formation to the same extent as the ΔmxdB mutant (data not shown). The initial adhesion phenotypes associated with the single and double mutants Tangeritin observed in LM were also observed in MM (data not shown). These data suggest that the mshA and mxd genes encode a complementary set of molecular machineries that constitute the dominant mechanisms enabling biofilm formation under the conditions tested. In the same

genetic screen, we also identified SO3351, a pilT homolog required for type IV pili-mediated twitching motility in other microorganisms (Mattick, 2002; Thormann et al., 2004). To test whether pilT behaves, in a genetic sense, as an msh class gene, we constructed ΔpilTΔmshA and ΔpilTΔmxdB double mutants. Biofilms of a ΔpilTΔmshA double mutant were very similar in architecture to those of a ΔpilT mutant (Fig. 1), and ΔpilTΔmxdB mutant biofilms exhibited a phenotype similar to the ΔmshAΔmxdB mutant (Fig. 1). The expression of pilT in trans rescued this phenotype in a static biofilm system such that the complemented double mutant exhibited the same extent of biofilm formation as the ΔmxdB mutant (data not shown). The initial adhesion phenotypes associated with the single and double mutants observed in LM were also observed in MM (data not shown). Various attempts to observe twitching motility in S.

At present, migration of cysticercosis from endemic areas to none

At present, migration of cysticercosis from endemic areas to nonendemic areas can be possible. Since this is a food-borne disease without requirement of human vector, passing of disease to the new setting can be expected if there is no strict food control. Of interest, most previous reports usually focused on the traveling history to the endemic area without concern for the tasting of imported food from the endemic area. As a conclusion, traveling of contaminated food can be the source of neurocysticersosis that should selleck products not be forgotten. “
“Travel-related risk can be defined as the threat of

an adverse event affecting a person’s health whilst traveling, which interferes with the trip or necessitates the use of health services.”[1] International travel can expose travelers to various risks to health, which depend on many factors including the destination and the person. What is certain is learn more that there is no shortage of people traveling. The United Nations World Tourism Organization estimates that there was a 4% increase in international tourist arrivals in 2011 to 982 million and that the 1 billion estimated international tourist arrivals was expected to be exceeded in 2012.[2] Travel for leisure, recreation, and holidays makes up 51% of inbound tourism

with 27% traveling for visiting friends and relatives, health, religion, and related purposes and 15% traveling for business and professional

reasons.[2] Just over half of travelers travel by air (51%) with the remainder traveling by road (41%), rail (6%), and sea (2%).[2] Up to 75% of travelers to the tropics and sub-tropics report some kind of health impairment or use of medication, even if minor.[3] Mortality among travelers depends on the destination, but is uncommon. Among Swiss travelers, the mortality rate of travelers going to developing countries is about 0.8 to 1.5 per 100,000 per month.[3] A risk assessment is undertaken as part of the pre-travel health consultation for those who seek medical advice prior to departure. It involves evaluating both the risks of the destination and of the individual traveling to this destination.[4] When making a pre-travel risk assessment, travel health advisers generally focus on the Palmatine probability of harm and the severity of possible consequences of travel and balance these with the probability and the severity of possible consequences of any interventions.[5] The purpose of the risk assessment is to help identify travelers at special risk, eg, those with medical conditions, pregnant travelers, children or older travelers, and/or those travelers who may be undertaking travel which has special risks, such as long-term travelers, adventure travelers, or those undertaking a pilgrimage or going to a high-risk destination.[6] Risks may be categorized as preventable, avoidable, manageable, or unexpected.

1 199 00 Overall, 706% of contractors and employers agreed wit

1 19.9 0.0 Overall, 70.6% of contractors and employers agreed with the statement that ‘becoming an HLP has been worthwhile from a business RXDX-106 price perspective’, and 91.5% felt it was ‘worthwhile in terms of staff development’. The results demonstrate that commissioners value the HLP concept as this could provide a mechanism to increase volume, quality and reliability of community pharmacy services to meet local health needs. For reasons of commercial confidentiality

no ‘hard’ data was available on the effect of HLP on income. However, HLP uptake in additional pharmacies may be evidence in itself of the benefits to the business. Public health teams understood the potential of the HLP concept in helping to improve the health of the local population. The results of the contractor/employer survey showed that the overall effect

of HLP implementation was positive for all types of community pharmacy; whilst the benefits experienced varied between different types, there was something in HLP for everyone. Rebecca Venables1, Hannah Batchelor1, Heather Stirling1,2, John Marriott1 1University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK, 2University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire, Coventry, UK The age at which a child transitions from liquids to tablets is influenced by nurses, pharmacists, doctors and paediatric patients The mean age at which paediatric consultants and pharmacists considered prescribing or dispensing tablets for children was lower than for GPs Greater awareness regarding the use of tablets in younger STI571 cost children in

specialist paediatric centres needs to be communicated into primary care however which could result in benefits for patients in terms of convenience and for GPs in reducing costs. The choice to use a solid or liquid preparation may be influenced by healthcare professionals or children/parents/carers. There has been very limited work done outside of HIV populations to determine the factors that influence child preference to take solid dosage forms. Similarly, little is known about the factors (including child age) that may influence decisions to prescribe, supply and administer solid dosage forms to paediatric patients. Literature to date has not reported healthcare professionals’ views of tablet use versus child age. A mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative) questionnaire was distributed to paediatric: consultants, pharmacists, nurses and also GPs during routine CPD training sessions at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire and Birmingham Children’s Hospital. This questionnaire had approval from NRES as well as the University of Birmingham ethics committee (FormPIC Project). Statistical analysis used ANOVA followed by Tukey’s HSD post-hoc test (conducted using IBM SPSS 20). The age at which tablets were considered to be appropriate for use in children was lower amongst the specialist healthcare professionals compared to GPs as shown in figure 1.

1 199 00 Overall, 706% of contractors and employers agreed wit

1 19.9 0.0 Overall, 70.6% of contractors and employers agreed with the statement that ‘becoming an HLP has been worthwhile from a business JAK inhibitor perspective’, and 91.5% felt it was ‘worthwhile in terms of staff development’. The results demonstrate that commissioners value the HLP concept as this could provide a mechanism to increase volume, quality and reliability of community pharmacy services to meet local health needs. For reasons of commercial confidentiality

no ‘hard’ data was available on the effect of HLP on income. However, HLP uptake in additional pharmacies may be evidence in itself of the benefits to the business. Public health teams understood the potential of the HLP concept in helping to improve the health of the local population. The results of the contractor/employer survey showed that the overall effect

of HLP implementation was positive for all types of community pharmacy; whilst the benefits experienced varied between different types, there was something in HLP for everyone. Rebecca Venables1, Hannah Batchelor1, Heather Stirling1,2, John Marriott1 1University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK, 2University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire, Coventry, UK The age at which a child transitions from liquids to tablets is influenced by nurses, pharmacists, doctors and paediatric patients The mean age at which paediatric consultants and pharmacists considered prescribing or dispensing tablets for children was lower than for GPs Greater awareness regarding the use of tablets in younger PLX4032 molecular weight children in

specialist paediatric centres needs to be communicated into primary care isothipendyl which could result in benefits for patients in terms of convenience and for GPs in reducing costs. The choice to use a solid or liquid preparation may be influenced by healthcare professionals or children/parents/carers. There has been very limited work done outside of HIV populations to determine the factors that influence child preference to take solid dosage forms. Similarly, little is known about the factors (including child age) that may influence decisions to prescribe, supply and administer solid dosage forms to paediatric patients. Literature to date has not reported healthcare professionals’ views of tablet use versus child age. A mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative) questionnaire was distributed to paediatric: consultants, pharmacists, nurses and also GPs during routine CPD training sessions at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire and Birmingham Children’s Hospital. This questionnaire had approval from NRES as well as the University of Birmingham ethics committee (FormPIC Project). Statistical analysis used ANOVA followed by Tukey’s HSD post-hoc test (conducted using IBM SPSS 20). The age at which tablets were considered to be appropriate for use in children was lower amongst the specialist healthcare professionals compared to GPs as shown in figure 1.

51  Limketkai BN, Mehta SH, Sutcliffe CG et al Relationship of l

51  Limketkai BN, Mehta SH, Sutcliffe CG et al. Relationship of liver disease stage and antiviral therapy with liver-related events and death in adults coinfected with HIV/HCV. JAMA 2012; 308: 370–378. 52  Jain MK, Seremba E, Bhore R et al. Change in fibrosis score as a predictor of mortality among HIV-infected patients

with viral hepatitis. AIDS Patient Care STDS 2012; 26: 73–80. 53  Cozzi Lepri A, Prosperi M, LoCaputo S et al. Fib4 is an independent predictor Selleckchem AZD5363 of serious liver disease among HIV-infected patients with or without HBV/HCV co-infection in the Icona foundation study. Infection 2010; 38: 73–74. 54  Vu TM, Sutcliff C, Mehta S et al. Baseline liver stiffness measured by transient elastography is independently associated with risk of end-stage liver disease and death among HIV/HCV co-infected adults. J Hepatol 2011; 54(Suppl 1): S470. 55  Martinez SM, Crespo G, Navasa M, Forns X. Noninvasive assessment of liver fibrosis. Hepatology 2011; 53: 325–335.

56  Lin ZH, Xin YN, Dong QJ et al. Performance of the aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index for the staging of hepatitis C-related fibrosis: an updated meta-analysis. Hepatology 2011; 53: Osimertinib 726–736. 57  Sebastiani G, Castera L, Halfon P et al. The impact of liver disease aetiology and the stages of hepatic fibrosis on the performance of non-invasive fibrosis biomarkers: an international study of 2411 cases. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2011; 34: 1202–1216. 58  Resino S, Asensio C, Bellón JM et al. Diagnostic accuracy of the APRI, FIB-4, and the Forns index for predicting liver fibrosis in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients: a validation study. J Infect 2011; 63: 402–405. 59  Boursier J, Salmon D, Winnock P et al. Non-invasive diagnosis of liver fibrosis by fibroscan, blood tests, and their combination in HIV-HCV co-infected patients. filipin J Hepatol 2012; 56(Suppl 2): S408. 60  Peters

M, Bacchetti R, Boylan A et al. Utility of enhanced liver fibrosis (ELF) marker as a predictor of mortality in HIV/HCV co-infected women from the Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS). 6th IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention. Rome, Italy. July 2011 [Abstract WEABO103]. 61  Sanchez-Conde M, Miralles P, Bellon JM et al. Use of transient elastography (FibroScan) for the noninvasive assessment of portal hypertension in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients. J Viral Hepat 2011; 18: 685–691. 62  Friedrich-Rust M, Ong MF, Martens S et al. Performance of transient elastography for the staging of liver fibrosis; a meta-analysis. Gastroenterology 2008; 134: 960–974. 63  Castera L, Vergniol J, Foucher J et al. Prospective comparison of transient elastography, Fibrotest, APRI, and liver biopsy for the assessment of fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C. Gastroenterology 2005; 128: 343–350. 64  Stebbing J, Farouk L, Panos G et al. A meta-analysis of transient elastography for the detection of hepatic fibrosis.