A fundamental debate in the philosophy of science is whether our central concepts are true or only useful instruments to help predict and manipulate the world. The first position is termed 'realism' and the second 'instrumentalism'. Strong support for the instrumentalist position comes from the 'pessimistic induction' (PI) argument. Given that many key scientific concepts once considered true (...

Depression is a most common, debilitating and life threatening illness and most serious mental health problem that people face nowadays. It is characterized by change in mood, lack of interest in surroundings, feeling of sadness, gloominess or melancholy. According to WHO report, depression is the fourth leading causes of disability worldwide with a prevalence of approximately 5% in general pop...

PURPOSE The innate immune receptor NOD2 is a genetic cause of uveitis (Blau syndrome). Intriguingly, in the intestine where polymorphisms of NOD2 predispose to Crohn's disease, NOD2 reportedly suppresses inflammation triggered by the bacterial cell wall component, peptidoglycan (PGN). Whether NOD2 exerts a similar capacity in the regulation of ocular inflammation to PGN has not been explored. ...

Galen (129-c. 216 AD) was a key figure in the early development of Western physiology. His teachings incorporated much of the ancient Greek traditions including the work of Hippocrates and Aristotle. Galen himself was a well-educated Greco-Roman physician and physiologist who at one time was a physician to the gladiators in Pergamon. Later he moved to Rome, where he was associated with the Roma...

Quantitative measurements of fluorescein in the eye are widely used in studying the function of the bloodretinal barrier, but they also can be of value in measuring the flow rate of the tears and aqueous humor and the barriers offered by the corneal layers and the other anterior structures of the eye. Concentrations down to 10~ g/ml can be determined in the ocular humors, and this allows measur...

The rates of accumulation of C-14-labeled alpha aminoisobutyric acid (a-AIB) in the aqueous and vitreous humors and lenses of rabbit eyes following parenteral administration have been determined. The distribution ratios of a-AIB in the aqueous humor of the posterior and anterior chambers, the vitreous humor, and the lens 24 hours after parenteral administration were found to be 0.75, 0.98, 0.1,...

The ancient Greek medical theory based on balance or imbalance of humors disappeared in the western world, but does survive elsewhere. Is this survival related to a certain degree of health care efficiency? We explored this hypothesis through a study of classical Greco-Arab medicine in Mauritania. Modern general practitioners evaluated the safety and effectiveness of classical Arabic medicine i...

We determined the ocular kinetics of pefloxacin, a new fluoroquinolone, when administered by the intramuscular route to albino and pigmented rabbits. In serum of albino rabbits, the area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) for the experimental period was 31.4 +/- 1.07 micrograms.h/ml (mean +/- standard deviation); the AUCs in the aqueous and vitreous humors were high (10.5 +/- 1.90 and 12....

The oldest known written reference to fever exists in Akkadian cuneiform inscriptions from the 6th century BC, most likely derived from an ancient Sumerian pictogram of a flaming brazier used to symbolize both fever and the local warmth of inflammation. Theoretical constructs of the pathogenesis of fever did not emerge until several centuries later, when hippocratic physicians proposed that bod...

The concept of a “life energy” can be found in many cultures in the present time, as well as in past eras reaching back to the ancients. Variously called qi (chi), ki, the “four humors,” prana, “archaeus,” “cosmic aether,” “universal fluid,” “animal magnetism,” and “odic force,” among other names, this purported biofield is beginning to yield its properties and interactions to the scientific me...