Application of molecular markers in the research of genetic diversity in medical helminths / 中国热带医学

@#Human-animal parasitic diseases caused by medical helminths are hazardous to human health. Genetic polymorphism studies on medical helminth populations can not only understand the biological characteristics and genetic structure of their populations, but also help reveal how they adapt to their parasitic environment, thus contributing to deepen our understanding of the epidemiological patterns of parasitic diseases and improve our understanding of accurate prevention and control of parasitic diseases. With the development of molecular biology, molecular markers such as DNA barcodes, simple sequence repeats, and single nucleotide polymorphism markers have been widely used to study the genetic relationships among parasite populations and individuals, and to reveal the genetic variation of parasite populations and the evolution of species origins. In this paper, we systematically review the application of three molecular markers commonly used in the study of genetic polymorphism in medical helminths, with a view to laying the foundation for related research.

Estimate the population size of transgender women based on the capture-recapture method in Tianjin / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective: To investigate the population size of transgender women (TGW) in Tianjin and analyze the characteristics of their sexual behaviors to provide a basis for AIDS prevention and control. Methods: To estimate the population size of TGW in Tianjin using the capture-recapture method. At the same time, an anonymous questionnaire was collected to conduct a multi-factor logistic analysis of the TGW population's sexual behavior. Results: A total of 213 TGW were investigated. Tianjin's estimated TGW population size was 599 (95%CI: 407-792). Multivariate logistic analysis of the use of condoms consistently showed that compared with TGW without regular sex partners, those with regular sex partners had a lower proportion of consistent condom use (aOR=0.44, 95%CI: 0.23-0.82) and had received HIV tests in the last year were more likely to adhere to condom use than those who had not been tested (aOR=2.73, 95%CI: 1.06-6.99). Conclusion: It is necessary to strengthen HIV mobilization testing among the TGW population and their regular sexual partners to improve condom use.

Effects of pre-injection of pressors on pressor response and bispectral index of patients receiving lower abdominal surgery under total intravenous anesthesia

Surgery in the lower abdomen can cause many adverse reactions in nervous system, metabolic and endocrine systems. Conventional intravenous anesthesia applied for lower abdominal surgery can cause the drop in blood pressure leading to hypoperfusion of vital organs. Hence, an ideal anesthesia state is required to make patients unconscious, unaware and have no postoperative memory during anesthesia. In this study, we investigated the effects of pre-injection of different pressors on the pressor response and bispectral index (BIS) of patients receiving lower abdominal surgery under total intravenous anesthesia. For this, 300 patients undergoing lower abdominal surgery under total intravenous anesthesia were divided into normal saline (Gr. A), ephedrine (Gr. B) and phenylephrine groups (Gr. C) (n=100). Hemodynamics indices were recorded before anesthesia induction (T0) and 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 min after drug injection (T1-T5, respectively). We observed the following reactions and recorded. BIS values at T0-T5 as well as the time points when the values rose to 65, 75, 85 and 95 and those for respiratory recovery, consciousness recovery and extubation after stopping target-controlled infusion were recorded. Compared with Gr. A, Gr. B had significantly higher systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR) and cardiac output (CO) at T1-T5 (P <0.05), and Gr. C had higher SBP, DBP, MAP and lower HR (P <0.05). Adverse reactions viz., intraoperative hypotension, hypertension, postoperative bradycardia, tachycardia, nausea and vomiting were also observed. The incidence rates of hypotension and total adverse reactions in groups B and C were significantly lower than those of Gr. A (P <0.05). Group B had significantly higher BIS values at T1-T5 than those of Gr. A (P <0.05). The time when BIS values recovered to 65 and 75 in group B was significantly shorter than that of Gr. A (P <0.05). Pre-injection of ephedrine and phenylephrine to patients undergoing lower abdominal surgery under total intravenous anesthesia elevated the blood pressure and reduced the incidence rate of adverse reactions without affecting the recovery time.

Analysis on psychoactive substances use in men who have sex with men in Tianjin / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective: To understand the use of psychoactive substances and its related factors in men who have sex with men (MSM) in Tianjin. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in MSM recruited in Tianjin by snowball sampling from September 2017 to December 2020, the information about their social demographic information, use of psychoactive substances and behavioral characteristics were collected, meanwhile the blood samples were taken from them for HIV/syphilis detections. Multivariate logistic regression was used to explore related factors about psychoactive substances use. Results: A total of 9 218 MSM were included in the study, in whom 43.5% (4 013/9 218) had ever used psychoactive substances, including 92.6% (3 718/4 013)who used Rush and 17.2% (692/4 013) who used multi substances. Multivariate analysis showed that, the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who were in Han ethnic group was 0.68 (95%CI:0.51-0.91) compared with those who were in minor ethnic group; the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who were married or cohabited, divorced or widowed were 0.65 (95%CI: 0.57-0.71), 0.80 (95%CI: 0.65-0.97) respectively compared with those who were unmarried; the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who had the first homosexual sex at age of ≥30 years was 0.57 (95%CI: 0.44-0.74) compared with those who had the first homosexual sex at age of <30 years; the OR of psychoactive substances use in local MSM in Tianjin was 1.12 (95%CI: 1.03-1.23) compared with those who were not local residents in Tianjin; the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM with education level of college or above was 1.29 (95%CI: 1.12-1.49) compared with those with education level of junior middle school or below; the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who had anal sex in the past six months was 1.93 (95%CI: 1.34-2.77) compared with those who had no anal sex; the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who had >2 homosexual partners in the last week was 1.62 (95%CI: 1.41-1.87) compared with those who had ≤2 homosexual partners; the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who had homosexual commercial sex in the past six months was 1.99 (95%CI: 1.62-2.45) compared with those who had no homosexual commercial sex; the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who had sexually transmitted diseases in the last year was 2.39 (95%CI: 1.82-3.12) compared with those who had no sexually transmitted diseases and the OR of psychoactive substances use in MSM who received peer education services in the last year was 1.63 (95%CI: 1.50-1.78) compared with those who received no peer education services. Conclusion: The prevalence of psychoactive substances use is high in MSM in Tianjin, and there are many influencing factors. It is necessary to conduct targeted interventions according to the influencing factors.

Analysis on exercise capacity of patients with pneumoconiosis and different degrees of pulmonary dysfunction / 中国职业医学

OBJECTIVE: To explore the exercise capacity of patients with occupational pneumoconiosis with varying degrees of pulmonary dysfunction. METHODS: A total of 488 hospitalized occupational pneumoconiosis patients were selected as study subjects using the judgment sampling method and examined for pulmonary function test and cardiopulmonary exercise test(CPET). Among them, 272 patients with normal lung function were assigned as the control group, and 216 patients with abnormal lung function as the case group. The case group was divided into mild, moderate and severe pulmonary dysfunction subgroups according to the forced expiratory volume in one second/predicted value ratio(FEV_1%pred).RESULTS: The FEV_1%pred, maximal voluntary ventilation(MVV), maximum exercise tidal volume(VT_(max)), breathing reserve(BR), maximal Watt(W_(max)), maximum oxygen uptake(VO_(2max)) and anaerobic threshold(AT) in patients of the case group were lower than that in the control group(all P<0.05). The FEV_1%pred, MVV, VT_(max), W_(max), and VO_(2max) in patients in the 3 subgroups of abnormal lung function were decreased(all P<0.05) compared with the control group. The VO_(2max) and AT decreased in the case group with the increase of the degree of pulmonary dysfunction(P<0.05). The FEV1%pred, MVV, maximal exercise minute ventilation and VT_(max) of the study subjects were positively correlated with VO_(2max) and AT(all P<0.01), but the BR had no correlation with VO_(2max) and AT(all P>0.05). CONCLUSION: The more serious the abnormal degree of pulmonary function in the patients with occupational pneumoconiosis, the more obvious the decline of their exercise ability, showing a dose-effect relationship.

Amyloid precursor protein regulates 5-fluorouracil resistance in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells by inhibiting the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway / 浙江大学学报（英文版）（B辑：生物医学和生物技术）

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignant tumor with high morbidity and mortality globally. It accounts for the majority of primary liver cancer cases. Amyloid precursor protein (APP), a cell membrane protein, plays a vital role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease, and has been found to be implicated in tumor growth and metastasis. Therefore, to understand the relationship between APP and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) resistance in liver cancer, Cell Counting Kit-8, apoptosis and cell cycle assays, western blotting, and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analysis were performed. The results demonstrated that APP expression in Bel7402-5-FU cells was significantly up-regulated, as compared with that in Bel7402 cells. Through successful construction of APP-silenced (siAPP) and overexpressed (OE) Bel7402 cell lines, data revealed that the Bel7402-APP751-OE cell line was insensitive, while the Bel7402-siAPP cell line was sensitive to 5-FU in comparison to the matched control group. Furthermore, APP overexpression decreased, while APP silencing increased 5-FU-induced apoptosis in Bel7402 cells. Mechanistically, APP overexpression and silencing can regulate the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway and the expression of apoptotic suppressor genes (B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) and B-cell lymphoma-extra large (Bcl-xl)). Taken together, these results preliminarily revealed that APP overexpression contributes to the resistance of liver cancer cells to 5-FU, providing a new perspective for drug resistance.

Advances in etiology, epidemiology and genetic diversity of Thelazia callipaeda / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

Thelazia callipaeda, T. californiensis and T. gulosa are three causative agents of human thelaziasis. Most of the reported cases were caused by T. callipaeda, occurring in the old world, particularly in Asian and European countries. T. californiensis and T. gulosa have rarely been reported infecting humans in North America. T. callipaeda has long been called the oriental eye worm, referring to its traditional distribution across eastern and southeastern Asia (i.e., China, Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, and India) where infection is endemic in animals and humans, usually in poorer rural areas and mainly among children and the elderly. The identification of the parasite was mainly based on the characteristics of oral and genital organs. In Asia and Europe, vectors for this nematode are male Phortica okadai and P. variegata drosophilids respectively, which feed on ocular secretions of hosts and transmit infective stage larvae to domestic and wild carnivores, lagomorphs, and humans. China probably has the largest number of cases with thelaziasis in the world, and lots of cases have been existed in other Asian countries such as Japan and Korea. Although a few of human cases have been reported, there were high infection rates of wild animals and domesticated dogs and cats in most of European countries. Based on the cox1 gene, a total of 21 haplotypes were identified in the samples from worldwide, in which, one circulated only in European countries (h1), while the other 20 haplotypes were distributed in Korea, Japan and China. In general, the Chinese clinical isolates of T. callipaeda expressed high genetic diversity. The population differences between Europe and Asian countries were greater than those among China, Korea and Japan. The T. callipaeda populations from Europe and Asia should be divided into two separate sub-populations. These two groups started to diverge during the middle Pleistocene.

Application of 3D printing technology in preparation of scaffolds for periodontal tissue regeneration / 口腔疾病防治

@#How to obtain ideal regeneration of periodontal tissue remains a challenge in the clinical treatment of periodontitis. Three-dimensional printing technology is based on computer-aided design, which produces materials with specific 3D shapes by layer-by-layer superposition, and has been applied to periodontal tissue regeneration therapy, this method offers hope to achieve ideal periodontal regeneration. This article reviews the application of 3D printing technology in the field of periodontal tissue regeneration. The literature review results show that 3D printing technology can design three-dimensional structures using computer software in advance and produce materials with specific three-dimensional structures. 3D printing technology mainly includes selective laser sintering, selective laser melting, extrusion forming printing and 3D bioprinting. At present, the support materials prepared by 3D printing technology include ceramic materials, polymer materials and metals. Submaterials have been extensively studied given their high adjustability, and 3D-printed personalized titanium mesh has been applied in the clinic. Multiphase materials prepared by 3D-printing technology can regenerate periodontal tissue in animal experiments, but the effect is not good in patients with periodontitis. In addition, 3D printing of composite scaffolds for periodontal tissue regeneration need to be further studied.

Four new sesquiterpene derivatives from Dendrobium findlayanum / 中国天然药物

Three new sesquiterpene glycosides with alloaromadendrane and ylangene-derived type aglycones, named dendrofindlayanosides A-C (1-3), one new cyclopacamphane type sesquiterpene named dendrofindlayanobilin A (4), together with five known compounds have been isolated from stems of Dendrobium findlayanum. Their structures were determined on the basis of spectroscopic and chemical methods.

Tissue-engineered heart: electrophysiological properties and long-term safety / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND: Insufficiency of donor heart and ethics are the major obstacles to heart transplantation. Theoretically, a tissue-engineered heart is an important means to solve the donor heart insufficiency. OBJECTIVE: To review the scaffold materials, seed cells and cell incubation methods in the construction of tissue-engineered heart, thus providing references for the future study on the tissue-engineered heart.METHODS: A retrieval of PubMed and Web of Science databases was performed for the articles addressing the construction of tissue-engineered heart from 2004 to 2016. Totally 2 921 articles were searched, and finally 53 eligible articles were included in accordance with the inclusion and exclusion criteria. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:In vitro organ culture and the function of tissue-engineered heart are the difficulties in the construction of tissue-engineered heart.In vitro construction of tissue-engineered heart requires the supply of nutrients,gases,temperature and corresponding electrical stimulation. Myocardial cells, scaffold materials and organ culture system are indispensable for the tissue-engineered heart construction. Therefore, it is highly important to optimize the decellular process, select an ideal seed cell and improve its adhesion, proliferation and differentiation, improve the electrophysiological properties of the tissue-engineered heart by gene regulation, and confirm the long-term safety of the tissue-engineered heart.

A Human Case of Zoonotic Dog Tapeworm, Dipylidium caninum (Eucestoda: Dilepidiidae), in China

We described a human case of zoonotic dog tapeworm, Dipylidium caninum (Eucestoda: Dilepidiidae), rarely occurring in China. The mother of a 17 month-old boy noted the appearance of small white and active worms over a month period in her son’s feces, but the boy was asymptomatic except mild diarrhea. We observed 3 tapeworm proglottids resembling cucumber seeds in his stool sample. Microscopically, each proglottid had 2 genital pores, 1 on each lateral edge, and numerous egg capsules in the uterus. The patient was successfully treated with a single oral dose of praziquantel. Adult worms were recovered in the diarrheic stool after praziquantel treatment and purgation. His family had household pet dogs for several years, and he might have acquired the infection by ingestion of infected fleas of his pet dogs. A history of dog or cat pets and flea bites may be important clues to diagnosis of D. caninum infection. The infected pets should also be treated.

Preoperative application of combination of portal venous injection of donor spleen cells and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin prolongs the survival of cardiac allografts in mice

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the effects of preoperative portal venous injection of donor spleen cells (PVIDSC) and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin in the acute rejection of cardiac allograft in mice and the underlying mechanisms.@*METHODS@#Homogenous female B6 mice and BALB/c mice were used as recipients and donors of heart transplantation. These mice were randomly divided into different groups and received PVIDSC alone, rapamycin alone, or PVIDSC and rapamycin combined therapy. In addition, the underlying mechanism was studied by measuring a number of cytokines.@*RESULTS@#Preoperative combination of PVIDSC and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin significantly prolonged the survival of heterotopic cardiac allograft in mice, but had no effects on the survival time of cardiac allografts in mice pre-sensitized by skin grafting. Preoperative combination of PVIDSC and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin increased the expression of IL-10 and Foxp3 and reduced the expression of INF-. Short-term preoperative administration of rapamycin promotes the expression of CD4CD25Foxp3 regulator T cells. However, preoperative using alone of rapamycin, or combination of PVIDSC and rapamycin had no effects on the inhibition of proliferation of memory T cells.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Preoperative application of combination of PVIDSC and rapamycin significantly prolonged the survival time of cardiac allografts in mice but not in mice pre-sensitized by skin grafting. This may be explained by the fact that combination of PVIDSC and rapamycin inhibited the cellular immune response and induced the expression of IL-10 from Tr1 cells and CD4CD25FoxP3 regulatory T cells.

Preoperative application of combination of portal venous injection of donor spleen cells and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin prolongs the survival of cardiac allografts in mice

Objective To investigate the effects of preoperative portal venous injection of donor spleen cells (PVIDSC) and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin in the acute rejection of cardiac allograft in mice and the underlying mechanisms. Methods Homogenous female B6 mice and BALB/c mice were used as recipients and donors of heart transplantation. These mice were randomly divided into different groups and received PVIDSC alone, rapamycin alone, or PVIDSC and rapamycin combined therapy. In addition, the underlying mechanism was studied by measuring a number of cytokines. Results Preoperative combination of PVIDSC and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin significantly prolonged the survival of heterotopic cardiac allograft in mice, but had no effects on the survival time of cardiac allografts in mice pre-sensitized by skin grafting. Preoperative combination of PVIDSC and intraperitoneal injection of rapamycin increased the expression of IL-10 and Foxp3 and reduced the expression of INF-. Short-term preoperative administration of rapamycin promotes the expression of CD4

Effects of Head-down Tilt on Nerve Conduction in Rhesus Monkeys / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Few studies have focused on peripheral nerve conduction during exposure to microgravity. The -6° head-down tilt (HDT) comprises an experimental model used to simulate the space flight environment. This study investigated nerve conduction characteristics of rhesus monkeys before and after prolonged exposure to HDT.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Six rhesus monkeys (3-4 years old) were tilted backward 6° from the horizontal. Nerve conduction studies (NCSs) were performed on the median, ulnar, tibial, and fibular motor nerves. Analysis of variance with a randomized block design was conducted to compare the differences in the NCS before and 7, 21, and 42 days after the -6° HDT.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The proximal amplitude of the CMAP of the median nerve was significantly decreased at 21 and 42 days of HDT compared with the amplitude before HDT (4.38 ± 2.83 vs. 8.40 ± 2.66 mV, F = 4.85, P = 0.013 and 3.30 ± 2.70 vs. 8.40 ± 2.66 mV, F = 5.93, P = 0.004, respectively). The distal amplitude of the CMAP of the median nerve was significantly decreased at 7, 21, and 42 days of HDT compared with the amplitude before HDT (7.28 ± 1.27 vs. 10.25 ± 3.40 mV, F = 4.03, P = 0.039; 5.05 ± 2.01 vs. 10.25 ± 3.40 mV, F = 6.25, P = 0.04; and 3.95 ± 2.79 vs. 10.25 ± 3.40 mV, F = 7.35, P = 0.01; respectively). The proximal amplitude of the CMAP of the tibial nerve was significantly decreased at 42 days of HDT compared with the amplitude before HDT (6.14 ± 1.94 vs. 11.87 ± 3.19 mV, F = 5.02, P = 0.039).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>This study demonstrates that the compound muscle action potential amplitudes of nerves are decreased under simulated microgravity in rhesus monkeys. Moreover, rhesus monkeys exposed to HDT might be served as an experimental model for the study of NCS under microgravity.</p>

Effect of dexamethasone contamination in drinking water on intestinal flora in mice / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the effect of water pollution with dexamethasone on intestinal flora in mice.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Twenty Balb/c mice were randomly divided into control group and low-, moderate- and high-dose dexamethasone groups. The mice in dexamethasone groups were exposed to dexamethasone sodium phosphate in drinking water at doses of 0.035, 0.225, and 2.25 ng for 36 days. The changes in behaviors, fur condition, and feces of the mice were observed daily. All the mice were sacrificed at 36 days and the tissues in the ileocecal region was collected for denaturant gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of 16S rDNA V6 variable regions of microbes and sequence analysis with BLAST.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The mice in the 3 dexamethasone groups all showed aggressive behaviors. Cluster analysis of DGGE graph showed relatively stable floras in the ileocecal region in all the mice, but principal component analysis identified differences in the dominating flora among the groups. Diversity analysis of the flora revealed significantly increased amount and types of bacteria in the intestinal flora in all the 3 dexamethasone groups (P<0.05 or 0.01) compared with the control group. Sequence analysis of 16S rDNA V6 regions showed 15 common bacterial species and 2 differential species between the dexamethasone groups and the control group with changes in the type and proportion of the dominating bacterium in the dexamethasone groups. Lactobacillus colonization was detected in the control group but not in moderate- and high-dose dexamethasone groups, and Shigella species were found in the latter two groups.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Water contamination with dexamethasone can affect the nervous system of mice, cause changes in the types and amounts of intestinal bacteria and the dominating bacteria, and inhibit the colonization of probiotics in the intestinal floras to increase the risk of invasion by intestinal pathogenic bacteria.</p>

Serodiagnosis of trichinellosis by ELISA using recombinant nudix hydrolase of Trichinella spiralis

Trichinella spiralis nudix hydrolase (TsNd) gene encoding a 46 kDa protein was expressed in Escherichia coli and the potential of recombinant TsNd protein (rTsNd) as an antigen for the serodiagnosis of trichinellosis was investigated by ELISA and compared with those of ELISA with T. spiralis muscle larval excretory–secretory (ES) antigens. The sensitivity of both ELISA was 100% (30/30), for the detection of anti-Trichinella IgG antibodies in sera of the experimentally infected mice, and the specificity of rTsNd-ELISA and ES-ELISA was 100% (54/54) and 98% (53/54), respectively (P>0.05). Serum anti-Trichinella antibodies were firstly detected by rTsNd-ELISA at 14 days post infection (dpi), then continued to increase with a detection rate of 100% at 36 dpi. The anti-Trichinella antibody levels at different times after infection were statistically different (P<0.05). The results showed that the rTsNd might be a potential candidate antigen for specific serodiagnosis of trichinellosis. But, it needs to be further evaluated with sera of the patients with trichinellosis and other helminthiasis.

Phylogenetic location of the spirometra sparganum isolates from China, based on sequences of 28S rDNA D1

The phylogenetic location of Chinese Spirometra sparganum isolates remains unclear. The aim of this study was to explore the phylogenetic location of the Spirometra sparganum isolates from China. The 28S ribosomal DNA [rDNA] D1 sequences of 14 Spirometra sparganum isolates collected from thirteen locations in China were analyzed by using Neighbor-Joining [NJ], maximum parsimony [MP] and Bayesian inference [BI], respectively. To investigate the deep variance of 28S rDNA D1 region among included species, the secondary structure of 28S rDNA D1 region was also calculated using the program RNA structure. The genus Spirometra as a monophyletic group was evidenced by two inference methods [MP and BI]. All sequences within the genus Spirometra had a bulge of a cytosine residue [Bulge C] in the stem 13 of the secondary structure model of 28S rRNA D1 region. Varietal sites in sequences from all thirteen Chinese isolates were appeared in loops. In loops, adenine was the most abundant base [averagely 41.9%] followed by guanine [averagely 30.0%], and cytosine [averagely 15.1%]. In stems, the average percentage of G + C [58.3%] was higher than the percentage of A + T [41.7%]. The 'Bulge C' in the stem 13 of the 28S rDNA D1 secondary structure could be as a suitable mark to identify the Spirometra species

Updated relationship between testosterone and prostate cancer / 中华男科学杂志

Androgen deprivation therapy can effectively suppress the progression of prostate cancer, but accumulating evidence for the relationship of testosterone with prostate cancer challenges the conventional wisdom. High levels of testosterone are not risk factors for prostate cancer, nor promote its development. On the contrary, a low testosterone level indicates a worse pathological stage. So far there has been no strong evidence to prove the role of testosterone in the occurrence and progression of prostate cancer. Therefore, the relationship between testosterone and prostate cancer is quite complicated and deserves further investigation.

Immunoproteomic analysis of the excretory-secretory proteins from spirometra mansoni sparganum

Sparganosis is caused by the invasion of Spirometra sparganum into various tissues/organs. Subcutaneous sparganosis can be diagnosed by biopsy, while visceral/cerebral sparganosis is not easy to be diagnosed. The diagnosis depends largely on the detection of specific anti-sparganum antibodies. The specificity of the ELISA could be increased by using S. mansoni sparganum excretory-secretory [ES] antigens, but it also had the cross-reactions with sera of patients with cysticercosis or paragonimiasis. The aim of this study was to identify early specific diagnostic antigens in S. mansoni sparganum ES proteins. The sparganum ES proteins were analyzed by two-dimensional electrophoresis [2-DE] and Western blot probed with early sera from infected mice at 14 days post-infection. The immunoreactive protein spots were characterized by MALDI-TOF/ TOF-MS. A total of approximately 149 proteins spots were detected with isoelectric point [pI] varying from 3 to 7.5 and molecular weight from 20 to 115 kDa and seven protein spots with molecular weight of 23-31 kDa were recognized by the infection sera. Three of seven spots were successfully identified and characterized as the same S. mansoni protein [cysteine protease], and the proteins of other 4 spots were not included in the databases. The cysteine protease from S. mansoni ES proteins recognized by early infection sera might be the early diagnostic antigens for sparganosis

Cutaneous Gnathostomiasis with Recurrent Migratory Nodule and Persistent Eosinophilia: a Case Report from China

The present study reports a human case of cutaneous gnathostomiasis with recurrent migratory nodule and persistent eosinophilia in China. A 52-year-old woman from Henan Province, central China, presented with recurrent migratory reddish swelling and subcutaneous nodule in the left upper arm and on the back for 3 months. Blood examination showed eosinophila (21.2%), and anti-sparganum antibodies were positive. Skin biopsy of the lesion and histopathological examinations revealed dermal infiltrates of eosinophils but did not show any parasites. Thus, the patient was first diagnosed as sparganosis; however, new migratory swellings occurred after treatment with praziquantel for 3 days. On further inquiring, she recalled having eaten undercooked eels and specific antibodies to the larvae of Gnathostoma spinigerum were detected. The patient was definitely diagnosed as cutaneous gnathostomiasis caused by Gnathostoma sp. and treated with albendazole (1,000 mg/day) for 15 days, and the subsequent papule and blister developed after the treatment. After 1 month, laboratory findings indicated a reduced eosinophil count (3.3%). At her final follow-up 18 months later, the patient had no further symptoms and anti-Gnathostoma antibodies became negative. Conclusively, the present study is the first report on a human case of cutaneous gnathostomiasis in Henan Province, China, based on the past history (eating undercooked eels), clinical manifestations (migratory subcutaneous nodule and persistent eosinophilia), and a serological finding (positive for specific anti-Gnathostoma antibodies).