Lyme Borreliosis-associated Risk Factors in Residents of Beijing Suburbs: a Preliminary Case-control Study / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

A population-based case-control study was conducted to evaluate the relative factors in the environments, agricultural works, outdoor activities, and the effectiveness of Lyme borreliosis (LB)- associated personal protective measures in Beijing. Thirty-four cases and 272 controls were personally interviewed by well-trained interviewers. Venous blood samples were taken from each subject. Sowing or harvesting in summer (OR=2.571, 95% CI: 1.109-5.962), living in house with weeding in the yard (OR=2.247, 95% CI: 1.062-4.755), and residence at the plain area (OR=2.630, 95% CI: 1.050-6.588) were the independent relative factors for seropositive LB. Wearing long pants and clothes with cuffs was the only protective behavior against tick bite (OR=0.186, 95% CI: 0.041-0.846). The findings showed that local farmers were easily infected with LB and almost no protective measure was taken against LB infection. Infection with LB was easier in residents of plain regions. Pets raising and outdoor activities were not the risk factors for infection with LB. Further studies are needed to fully understand the risk of infection with LB in China.

Clinical and molecular biologic characteristics of childhood acute leukemia with mixed lineage leukemia gene rearrangement / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective To analyze the frequency of mixed lineage leukemia (MLL) gene rearrangement,the frequent types of fusion genes and clinical characteristics of childhood acute leukemia (AL) with MLL gene rearrangement.Methods Morphological and molecular characteristics of 87 AL patients with MLL gene rearrangement were studied and analyzed.MLL fusion gene was detected by way of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR).Results Eighty-seven cases with MLL gene rearrangement were found in 1209 AL patients with incidence of 6.41％ and 9.36％ respectively in ALL and in acute myelocytic leukemia (AML) respectively.Fifty-eight cases of ALL were all B-ALL,28 cases of AML included 17 cases of M5,5 cases of M4,4 cases of M2,1 case of M3 and 1 case of M6.While there was 1 case of mixed of lineage leukemia and myeloid and T-lymphoblastic antigen presentation.The clonal chromosomal aberration was detected in 45 out of 76 cases (59.21％),and chromosome 11q23 aberration were observed in 28 cases (36.84％).There were 7 different kinds of fusion genes,including MLL-AF9 in 25 cases,dupMLL in 25 cases,MLL-AF4 in 17 cases,MLL-AF10 in 9 cases,MLL-ENL in 8 cases,MLL-AFlq in 2 cases,and MLL-AF6 in 1 case.Among the cases of MLL-AF4,MLL-AF9,MLL-AF10,MLL-ENL and dupMLL,there were statistical differences in lineage,age and initial white blood cell count (WBC) (all P ＜ 0.05).Conclusions In childhood AL with MLL gene rearrangement,B-ALL is more common in ALL,whereas M5 and M4 are more common in AML.The common types of fusion genes are dupMLL,MLL-AF9 and MLL-AF4.Patients with the different kinds of MLL fusion gene may present different clinical characteristics.The most common ALL cases are those with MLL/AF4 and MLL/ENL who may be younger with higher WBC than the others.

Investigation on Ehrlichia chaffeensis and Anaplasma phagocytophilum infection among farmers and domestic animals in rural areas of Beijing, China / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective To investigate the status of Ehrlichia (E.)chaffeensis and A naplasma (A.) phagocytophilum infection among farming populations and domestic animals in the rural area of Beijing,China.Methods Blood samples from 562 farmers and 163 blood samples including 90 goats,71 ox and 2 dogs,were collected.Specificity of IgG antibodies against E.chaffeensis and A.phagocytophilum were tested by micro-indirect immunofluorescent assay (mIFA).16S rRNA genes of A.phagocytophilum were amplified from the domestic animal blood samples and products were sequenced and analyzed by nested PCR.Results The positive rates of E.chaffeensis and A.phagocytophilum antibody were 16.5％ and 14.0％ respectively for farmers.The total positive rates of A.phagocytophilum were 2.3％ and 0 for both goats and oxen respectively.No antibody was found for the 2 tested dogs.The PCR positive rates were 48.9％ and 23.9％ for goats and oxen respectively.Three dominant varieties of A.phagocytophilum were demonstrated in goats and oxen.Conclusion The prevalence rates of E.chaffeensis and A.phagocytophilum were identified in the rural areas of Beijing.

Establishment of minireplicon system for severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus / 病毒学报

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus is a newly emerging virus in China, enveloped with a tripartite, single-stranded RNA genome of negative polarity. The regulatory elements for viral transcription and replication, as well as encapsidation and packaging signals, are thought to be located within these noncoding regions (NCRs). The terminal nucleotides are genus specific and highly conserved. The function of the remaining nucleotides of the NCRs is still not well understood. In this study, we developed the plasmid-driven RNA polymerase I minireplicon system for SFTSV firstly, using reporter genes GFP and luciferase. The function of the noncoding regions of the three Bunyaviridae RNA segments (L, M, S) in transcription was analyzed. Reporter genes are successfully expressed in SFTSV minireplicon system. Our results suggest that the NCRs of SFTSV from all three segments contain the necessary signals to initiate transcription. Quantitative detection of the luciferase expression level shows that promoter activity in the three segments is different.

Expression and function of vascular endothelial growth factor and angiopoietins in rat brain after cerebral ischemia / 中华病理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To examine the temporal and spatial expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiopoietins (Ang) in rat brain after cerebral ischemia, and to elucidate the roles they played in angiogenesis and vascular permeability.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Rats were subjected to either middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) or sham operation. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression of VEGF, Ang-1 and Ang-2 at different time points after ischemia. CD31 was used to label endothelial cells after MCAO. Vascular permeability was determined by Evans blue.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>VEGF was markedly increased at 2 h, had an initial peak at 12 h (0.7249 ± 0.1933, P < 0.01), and a second peak at 7 days (0.5264 ± 0.1519, P < 0.01). Ang-2 mRNA and protein significantly increased after MCAO, both of them peaked at 12 h (0.6747 ± 0.2416, P < 0.01; 1.1197 ± 0.1780, P < 0.01). In contrast, Ang-1 mRNA and protein gradually decreased after MCAO, respectively reaching a minimum at 3 d (0.3220 ± 0.1427, P < 0.01) and 1 d (0.1298 ± 0.0293, P < 0.01). Changes in the expression of these factors correlated with the progress of angiogenesis and vascular permeability. Evans blue test revealed that the vascular permeability gradually increased, and peaked at day 1 after ischemia [(6.219 ± 0.887) µg/g, P < 0.01].</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Dynamic temporal changes in VEGF, Ang-1 and Ang-2 expression stimulate the cerebral angiogenesis after focal cerebral ischemia.</p>

Diagnosis and prognosis study of breast carcinoma with micropapillary component / 中华病理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the diagnostic criteria, clinicopathologic characteristics and prognosis of invasive micropapillary carcinoma (IMPC) of breast.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>All cases of breast carcinoma diagnosed during the period from 1989 to 2001 were retrospectively reviewed. One hundred examples with IMPC component, according to the 2003 World Health Organization classification of breast tumors, were identified. The clinicopathologic features and follow-up data of these cases were analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Amongst the 100 cases of IMPC studied, 69% (69/100) had evidence of lymphovascular invasion. The incidence of regional lymph node metastasis was 84.8% (84/99). Follow-up information was available in 98 patients (mean of follow-up duration = 60.1 months). Eleven patients (11.2%) had local recurrence within a mean of 26.4 months after the operation, while 38 patients (38.8%) had distant metastases within a mean of 36.0 months. Thirty-six patients (36.7%) died of the disease. The overall 5-year survival rate was 59% and the 10-year survival rate was 48%. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that the prognosis of patients was adversely affected by the presence of lymphovascular invasion and family history of breast cancer. On the other hand, tamoxifen therapy and adjuvant chemotherapy improved survival.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Breast carcinoma with IMPC component is associated with poor prognosis, despites the relative proportion of this architectural pattern. The overall prognosis is related to the presence of lymphovascular invasion and family history of breast cancer. Hormonal therapy and individualized chemotherapy can improve the survival rate.</p>

Targeted down-regulation of p53 gene expression by individual antisense RNA in vitro / 中华病理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of specific blockage of mutant p53 gene by individualized antisense RNA in vitro.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Mutation status of p53 in human breast cancer cell lines was determined by immunocytochemical staining, PCR-SSCP and sequencing. Single strand antisense transcription system targeting specific p53 mutation site (mt-p53) was constructed, and corresponding antisense RNA was prepared. The hybridization of antisense RNA with its corresponding mt-p53 gene was confirmed by in-situ hybridization. Human breast cancer cells were transfected with antisense RNA by cationic liposome-mediated method. Time course of effects of antisense RNA was investigated by immunocytochemical staining and cell growth inhibiting assay. Expression of mt-p53 protein was examined by Western blot. Cell proliferation was evaluated by MTT assay and cell cycle distribution was determined by flow cytometry (FCM). Apoptosis was determined by TUNEL assay.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Mutation of p53 exon 8 was found in MDA-MB-231 cells and antisense transcription system (pGEM3zf (+/-) p53exon8) was then constructed successfully. In transfected MDA-MB-231 cells, hybridization signals were observed in cytoplasm. Fourth-eight hours after transfection, the antisense RNA (ASp53exon8'RNA) had a significant retarding effect on p53 related proliferation inhibition, along with a decrease of p53 protein expression.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>ASp53exon8'RNA specifically blocks mt-p53 gene expression, resulting in an inhibition of MDA-MB-231 cell proliferation. Such an approach may be used as a therapeutic option against human malignancy.</p>

Using recombinant antigens of Hantavirus to study the kinetics of serum IgA, IgG, IgM antibodies in the acute-phase of hemorrhagic fever renal syndrome / 中华实验和临床病毒学杂志

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>To observe the features of serum specific IgA, IgG, IgM antibodies in the acute phase of hemorrhagic fever renal syndrome (HFRS).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The nucleocapsid (NP) protein and glycoproteins (GP) of Hantavirus were expressed by recombinant baculovirus, and used as ELISA antigens to test 61 serial sera of 14 acute phase HFRS patients.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Seoul like virus RNA were detected from 11 of 14 patients. An early and strong IgA, IgG and IgM antibody response to recombinant NP (rNP) was observed in almost all HFRS cases. The titers of antibody to rNP was apparently higher than that to Rgp. In the early stage, titer of IgG antibody elevated most drastically among all the three classes of antibodies to rNP, followed by IgM and IgA antibody responses. The elevation trend of IgM and IgA antibodies to rNP stayed nearly at the same level, but the IgA titers to rNP were apparently higher than that of IgM. Among the antibodies to rGP, IgA changed distinctly greater than IgG. The elevation trend of IgM could be found during first week after the onset, and the titers dropped gradually after the second week. IgM antibodies of one case who was viral RNA positive were not detected at early stage, but IgA titers were high. The only severe case of the 14 patients kept the lower IgA, IgG and IgM during the whole acute phase.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>HFRS patients kept an early and strong humoral response to NP and GPs in acute phase of HFRS.IgA could be used together with IgM to improve the diagnostic accuracy.</p>