Development and preliminary evaluation of a fluorescence RPA assay for the rapid detection of Necator americanus / 中国热带医学

@#Abstract: Objective To establish a rapid detection assay based on fluorescence recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) targeting Necator americanus eggs, and to evaluate its efficacy, providing technical support for rapid detection of Necator americanus in fecal samples. Methods The fluorescence RPA primers and probe were designed based on the cox1 gene of Necator americanus and then screened the optimal combination to develop the assay. The genomic DNA of Necator americanus eggs was diluted to 7 concentration gradients including 100 pg/µL, 10 pg/µL, 1 pg/µL, 100 fg/µL, 10 fg/µL, 1 fg/µL, 0.1 fg/µL, to determine the detection limit of the assay. The specificity of the assay was demonstrated by detected genomic DNA from Schistosoma japonicum, Ascaris lumbricoides, Clonorchis sinensis and Fasciola hepatica. A total of 44 fecal samples were collected and DNA extraction was performed, and the modified Kato-Katz method, semi-nest PCR method, and fluorescent RPA method were simultaneously used for detection to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity. Results The established fluorescence RPA assay can specifically amplify a fragment of 194 bp of the Necator americanus cox1 gene within 20 min, with a detection limit of 10 fg/µL. There was no cross-reactivity with Schistosoma japonicum, Ascaris lumbricoides, Clonorchis sinensis, Fasciola hepatica after specificity validation. In 44 fecal samples, 27 positive samples were detected by the fluorescence RPA assay, and 26 positive samples were detected by both the Kato-Katz and the semi-nested PCR. The fluorescence curve of sample number 1 was slightly higher than the negative control in the later stage of the reaction, but did not show a similar trend to the positive control, and was therefore judged to be a suspected negative sample. Compared with the Kato-Katz method and the semi-nest PCR method, The sensitivity of the fluorescent RPA method were 100.00% and the specificity were 94.44%, and the consistency of the detection results was good (Kappa=0.953>0.75). Conclusions The assay based on the fluorescence RPA is an efficient, sensitive and specific technique for detecting Necator americanus and it can be applied for surveillance and early warning of hookworm infection.

Research progress of hookworm detection technology / 中国热带医学

@#As one of the species of soil-transmitted helminths (STH), hookworm infection is widely prevalent in tropical and subtropical developing countries. Hookworm is harmful to human health mainly including anemia, digestive tract symptoms, female infection can also cause menopause, abortion, infection in infants and young children can lead growth retardation. With the development of economy and implementation of mass drug administration strategies, the infection of hookworm in human body has decreased continuously, but there are still a large number of mild infection cases which clinical symptoms are not obvious, easy to cause missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis. Several zoonotic hookworm species can cause large-scale infections in cats, dogs and other animals, so as to increase the risk of human hookworm infection. Therefore, it is important to find a highly sensitive and rapid detection techniques to identify hookworm species. In this paper, the existing detection techniques of hookworm were reviewed and their application were prospected to provide ideas for hookworm detection at present situation.

Association between monocyte lymphocyte ratio and abdominal aortic calcification in US adults: A cross-sectional study

Abstract Background This study aimed to evaluate the association between Monocyte Lymphocyte Ratio (MLR) and Abdominal Aortic Calcification (AAC) in adults over 40 years of age in the United States. Methods Data were collected from the 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). AAC was quantified by the Kauppila score system based on dual-energy X-Ray absorptiometry. Severe AAC was defined as a total AAC score > 6. The lymphocyte count and monocyte count can be directly obtained from laboratory data files. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to determine the association between MLR and the AAC score and severe AAC. Results A total of 3,045 participants were included in the present study. After adjusting for multiple covariates, MLR was positively associated with higher AAC score (β = 0.21, 95% CI 0.07, 0.34, p = 0.0032) and the odds of severe AAC increased by 14% per 0.1 unit increase in the MLR (OR = 1.14, 95% CI 1.00, 1.31, p = 0.0541). The Odds Ratio (OR) (95% CI) of severe AAC for participants in MLR tertile 3 was 1.88 (1.02, 3.47) compared with those in tertile 1 (p for trend = 0.0341). Subgroup analyses showed that a stronger association was detected in the elderly compared with non-elderly (p for interaction = 0.0346) and diabetes compared with non-diabetes (borderline significant p for interaction = 0.0578). Conclusion In adults in the United States, MLR was associated with higher AAC scores and a higher probability of severe AAC. MLR may become a promising tool to predict the risk of AAC.

Tongue image segmentation and tongue color classification based on deep learning / 数字中医药（英文）

@#Objective To propose two novel methods based on deep learning for computer-aided tongue diagnosis, including tongue image segmentation and tongue color classification, improving their diagnostic accuracy. Methods LabelMe was used to label the tongue mask and Snake model to optimize the labeling results. A new dataset was constructed for tongue image segmentation. Tongue color was marked to build a classified dataset for network training. In this research, the Inception + Atrous Spatial Pyramid Pooling (ASPP) + UNet (IAUNet) method was proposed for tongue image segmentation, based on the existing UNet, Inception, and atrous convolution. Moreover, the Tongue Color Classification Net (TCCNet) was constructed with reference to ResNet, Inception, and Triple-Loss. Several important measurement indexes were selected to evaluate and compare the effects of the novel and existing methods for tongue segmentation and tongue color classification. IAUNet was compared with existing mainstream methods such as UNet and DeepLabV3+ for tongue segmentation. TCCNet for tongue color classification was compared with VGG16 and GoogLeNet. Results IAUNet can accurately segment the tongue from original images. The results showed that the Mean Intersection over Union (MIoU) of IAUNet reached 96.30%, and its Mean Pixel Accuracy (MPA), mean Average Precision (mAP), F1-Score, G-Score, and Area Under Curve (AUC) reached 97.86%, 99.18%, 96.71%, 96.82%, and 99.71%, respectively, suggesting IAUNet produced better segmentation than other methods, with fewer parameters. Triplet-Loss was applied in the proposed TCCNet to separate different embedded colors. The experiment yielded ideal results, with F1-Score and mAP of the TCCNet reached 88.86% and 93.49%, respectively. Conclusion IAUNet based on deep learning for tongue segmentation is better than traditional ones. IAUNet can not only produce ideal tongue segmentation, but have better effects than those of PSPNet, SegNet, UNet, and DeepLabV3+, the traditional networks. As for tongue color classification, the proposed network, TCCNet, had better F1-Score and mAP values as compared with other neural networks such as VGG16 and GoogLeNet.

The application of system epidemiology theory and methodology in occupational epidemiology / 中国职业医学

@#Abstract: Occupational epidemiology aims to explore the effect of occupational hazards on the health of workers and understand ， their mechanisms. It plays an important role in occupational health and occupational medicine.Currently occupational ， ， exposures in the workplace are complex and diverse and multiple factors affect workers´ health at the same time. Therefore it is important to elucidate the pathogenesis of occupational disease caused by occupational hazards and implement early - - intervention. System epidemiology collects data on multi level exposure and multi omics information to conduct network analysis - on the relationship amongrisk factors. and to study the mechanisms of exposures and health outcomes based on multi level data. ， ， ， ， Using the study design of system epidemiology occupational environmental lifestyle and social factors are combined as a ， system to evaluate the health of workers which can better evaluate the adverse health effects caused by occupational hazards. - ， ， The studies base on multi omics design will explore the pathogenesis of occupational diseases at the molecular cellular and tissue levels to evaluate the impact of occupational hazards on workers´ health and to explore interventions from multiple - perspectives to reduce the occurrence of occupational or work related diseases.

Epidemiological characteristics of hospital admission cases with chemical poisoning in Guangdong Province，2016 -2020 / 中国职业医学

@#Objective To analyze the epidemiological characteristics of hospital admission cases with chemical poisoning in Guangdong Province from 2016 to 2020. Methods Data of hospital admissions for chemical poisoning in Guangdong Province from 2016 to 2020 were collected through Guangdong Province Health Statistics Network Reporting System，and descriptive analysis was conducted. The seasonal characteristics of the number of hospitalized poisoning cases were analyzed by the concentration method，the seasonal index（SI）was calculated by the weighted annual ratio averaging method，and the spatial auto-correlation of regional poisoning trend was analyzed by the global and local spatial autocorrelation. Results From 2016 to 2020，the number of hospital admissions for chemical poisoning in Guangdong Province was 54 656，showing a general decreasing trend. The sex ratio（male to female）was 0.90 ∶1.00. The top three types of hospitalization rates were carbon monoxide poisoning，alcohol poisoning and organic solvent poisoning. The main poisoning groups were students and children， farmers，workers and unemployed people，accounting for 31.74%，18.53%，13.91% and 10.39%，respectively. The 74.37% of poisoning cases were cured or improved and discharged，and the case fatality rate was 0.48%. The top three hospitalization rates in age group of 0-<5 years were organic solvent，metal and carbon monoxide poisoning. The hospitalization rate of carbon monoxide poisoning ranked the first among all age groups of ≥5 years. The top three regions with the highest average annual hospitalization rate were Shaoguan City （25.14/105 ），Qingyuan City （17.04/105 ） and Meizhou City （16.09/105 ）. Carbon monoxide poisoning had a strong seasonality（M=0.77），with high incidence months of January，February and December（SI were 3.60，3.08 and 2.48，respectively）. The inpatients with chemical poisoning showed non-random distribution and spatial correlation（all P<0.01），with a high-high clustering among 13 districts and counties in northern Guangdong（all P<0.05）. Conclusion The number of hospital admission cases of chemical poisoning showed an overall decreasing trend in Guangdong Province from 2016 to 2020. The main types of poisoning were carbon monoxide poisoning，alcohol poisoning and organic solvent poisoning. The spatial distribution of chemical poisoning types showed spatial correlation and there were high-high clustering areas.

Pin1 aggravates renal injury induced by ischemia and reperfusion in rats via Nrf2/HO-1 mediated endoplasmic reticulum stress

Purpose: To investigate the role of peptidyl-prolyl cis/trans isomerase 1 (Pin1) on renal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury and underlying mechanism. Methods: By establishing the in vitro and in vivo models of renal I/R, the role of Pin1 was explored by using molecular assays. Results: In renal I/R, endogenous Pin1 level was up-regulated in I/R-impaired kidney. Suppression of Pin1 with juglone afforded protection against I/R-mediated kidney dysfunction, and reduced I/R-induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in vivo. Consistent with the in vivo results, repression of Pin1 with juglone or gene knockdown with si-Pin1 conferred cytoprotection and restricted hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R)-driven ER stress in HK-2 cells. Simultaneously, further study uncovered that Nrf-2/HO-1 signals was the association between Pin1 and ER stress in response to renal I/R. In addition, Nrf-2/HO-1 signal pathway was inactivated after kidney exposed to I/R, as indicated by the down-regulation of Nrf-2/HO-1 levels. Furthermore, inhibition of Pin1 remarkably rescued the inactivation ofNrf-2/HO-1. Conclusions: Pin1 modulated I/R-mediated kidney injury in ER stress manner dependent on Nrf2-HO-1 pathway in I/R injury.

Four novel mutations of ADAR1 in Chinese patients with dyschromatosis symmetrica hereditaria

Background: Novel mutations in adenosine deaminase acting on RNA 1 gene (ADAR1) are responsible for dyschromatosis symmetrica hereditaria (DSH). DSH patients display a mixture of hyperpigmented and hypopigmented macules on the dorsal aspects of the extremities, and freckle-like macules on the face. Aims: To provide new evidence for further study of the etiopathogenisis of DSH. Methods: Genomic DNA was extracted and used as a template for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of all 15 coding exons as well as intron-exon boundaries of ADAR1. The PCR products were sequenced directly. Results: We identified eight mutations of ADAR1 in four Chinese pedigrees and four individual patients, which were c.2722G>T, p.(Asp908Tyr), c.1657delA, p.(Ser553fs), c.2563_2564delCT, p.(Leu855fs), c.526T>G, p.(Leu176Val) as well as four previously reported mutations c. 3363_3364insT, p.(Lys1122fs), c. 2865_2866delGT, p.(Val955fs), c.1630C>T, p.(Arg544X), and c.2894C>T, p.(Pro965Leu). In silico analysis predicted that all the mutations reported were pathogenic. Limitations: We did not study how ADAR1 played its role in DSH. So, the exact pathogenic mechanism of ADAR1 in DSH patients wasn't clarified in this study. Conclusion: We found four novel ADAR1 mutations in this study. Our results enlarge the database on ADAR1 mutations associated with DSH.

Preparation and in vitro performance evaluation of doxorubicin loaded lipid calcium phosphate nanoparticles with shell-core structure / 药学学报

As an important drug carrier, liposome has the advantages of high biocompatibility and low immunogenicity. It has been widely used in the field of drug delivery, especially the targeted treatment of tumors. However, traditional liposomes are composed of flowing dynamic phospholipid membranes, which are easy to fuse together, resulting in aggregation and drug leakage. In addition, the lower degree of polyethylene glycol (PEG) modification also limits the targeted delivery performance of the vector in vivo. In view of the problems, a nanoparticle-targeted drug delivery system combining the inorganic carrier calcium phosphate with liposomes was designed, namely lipid calcium phosphate (LCP). Using doxorubicin (DOX) as a model drug, doxorubicin-loaded lipid calcium phosphate nanoparticles (DOX/LCP) were prepared by reverse microemulsion method, and the preparation conditions were investigated. The structure and morphology of calcium phosphate cores were observed by infrared spectroscopy, EDS spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The particle size, encapsulation efficiency, drug loading, stability and release behavior in vitro of DOX/LCP were investigated. Confocal microscopy and flow cytometry were used to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate the uptake of DOX in drug-resistant tumor cell line MCF-7/DOX by LCP, respectively, and the thiazolium MTT colorimetric method was used to examine its cytotoxicity. LCP exhibited a typical core-shell structure with good size uniformity and dispersibility. The particle size was in (48.6 ±3.9) nm, the potential was in (−12.1 ±1.2) mV, and the encapsulation efficiency was above 80%. Moreover, it has a good stability in simulated plasma. In vitro release of LCP had a significant pH dependence. When the pH of the environment was 7.4, the cumulative release within 24 hours was less than 20%; as the pH of the release medium decreases, the release rate of DOX/LCP was accelerated gradually. Accumulated release over 24 hours exceeded 90% in the pH 4.5 medium. LCP significantly promoted the uptake and accumulation of DOX by drug-resistant cells, and the inhibition rate of drug-resistant tumors was significantly increased in vitro. The half maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of LCP/DOX and free DOX were 4.6 and 11.8 μg·mL−1, respectively, and there was a significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.05). In summary, the LCP prepared in this study had a small particle size, high encapsulation efficiency and good stability. It had environmental responsiveness and potential inhibition of tumor drug resistance, which suggests a potential in the clinical application.

Efficient regeneration and genetic transformation platform applicable to five Musa varieties

Background: Banana (Musa spp.) is an important staple food, economic crop, and nutritional fruit worldwide. Conventional breeding has been seriously hampered by their long generation time, polyploidy, and sterility of most cultivated varieties. Establishment of an efficient regeneration and transformation system for banana is critical to its genetic improvement and functional genomics. Results: In this study, a vigorous and repeatable transformation system for banana using direct organogenesis was developed. The greatest number of shoots per explant for all five Musa varieties was obtained using Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with 8.9 µM benzylaminopurine and 9.1 µM thidiazuron. One immature male flower could regenerate 380­456, 310­372, 200­240, 130­156, and 100­130 well-developed shoots in only 240­270 d for Gongjiao, Red banana, Rose banana, Baxi, and Xinglongnaijiao, respectively. Longitudinal sections of buds were transformed through particle bombardment combined with Agrobacterium-mediated transformation using a promoterless ß-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene; the highest transformation efficiency was 9.81% in regenerated Gongjiao plantlets in an optimized selection medium. Transgenic plants were confirmed by a histochemical assay of GUS, polymerase chain reaction, and Southern blot. Conclusions: Our robust transformation platform successfully generated hundreds of transgenic plants. Such a platform will facilitate molecular breeding and functional genomics of banana.

Application of morcellator in 1.94 μm thulium laser enucleation of benign prostatic hyperplasia with volume >80 ml / 中国内镜杂志

Objective To investigate the effect of 1.94 μm thulium laser enucleation of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) with volume >80 ml by morcellator. Methods From September 2014 to June 2016, there were 95 BPH patients with prostate volume over 80 ml treated by thulium laser were divided into two groups according to the surgical procedure: 45 cases in group A, prostate tissue were washed out of bladder after vapoenucleation by 1.94 μm thulium laser; 50 cases in group B, the enucleated prostate tissue were extracted by morcellator. The operation time, the decreasing level of hemoglobin on the first day after surgery, the hospitalization time, the gland tissue weight, catheterization duration, short-term incidence of complications, and the IPSS, PVP, Qmax, QOL in 3 months after surgeon of the two groups were observed and recorded. Results There was significant difference in operation time and gland tissue weight between the two groups. The group B have significantly short operation time compared with group A (P < 0.05), and obtained gland tissue remarkably exceed the group A (P < 0.05). No significant difference was found in hemoglobin level, hospitalization time, catheterization duration, and short-term complication between the two groups (P > 0.05). The IPSS, PVR, Qmax and QOL of 3 month, after operation were significantly improved but without any significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.05). Conclusion Vaporization cutting tissue or morcellating tissue after 1.94 μm thulium laser enucleation has high safety, good curative effect and low complication, while extraction prostate tissue by morcellator can shorten the operation time and get more tissues.

Three Dimensional Orbital Magnetic Resonance T2-Mapping in the Evaluation of Patients with Graves' Ophthalmopathy / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

The clinical application of orbital magnetic resonance (MR) T2-mapping imaging in detecting the disease activity of Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO),and the predictive values of therapy response to intravenous glucocorticoid (ivGC) were investigated.Approved by the local institutional review board (IRB),106 consecutive patients with GO were included in this prospective study.All subjects were divided into two groups according to the patients' clinical activity score (CAS):the CAS positive group (CAS ≥3) or the CAS negative group (CAS ＜3).T2 relaxation time of extraocular muscles (T2RT;ms) and the areas of four extra-ocular muscles (AEOMs;mm2) were measured by 3D T2-mapping MR sequence before and after methylprednisolone treatment,so as the CAS and some ophthalmic examinations including visual acuity,intra-ocular pressure,eyeball movement,diplopia and proptosis.In addition,24 healthy volunteers were recruited as the control group.The mean T2RT and AEOMs in CAS positive group were higher than those in CAS negative group.Both CAS positive and negative groups had significantly higher mean T2RT and AEOMs than the control group (P＜0.01).There was a positive correlation between T2RT and AEOMs values in GO patients,both of them had a positive correlation with CAS and the ophthalmic examinations.It was concluded that to evaluate the activity of GO,CAS was mostly related to inflammation symptoms of ocular surface,more than that,T2RT and AEOMs were also related to abnormal findings of the ophthalmic examinations including high ocular pressure,impaired eyeball movement,diplopia and proptosis.T2RT and AEOMs can reflex the inflammation state of ocular muscles better.CAS combined with 3D T2-mapping MR imaging could improve the sensitivity of detection of active GO so as the prediction and evaluation of the response to methylprednisolone treatment.

The Mutagenesis of Lactobacillus Thermophilus for Enhanced L-(+)-Lactic Acid Accumulation Induced by Heavy Ion Irradiation

ABSTRACT Screening promising L. thermophiles with high productivity, high efficiency and strong adaptability are very important in lactic acid industry. For this purpose, 80MeV/u carbon ions were applied to irradiate L. thermophiles. After high-throughput screening, a mutant, named SRZ50, was obtained. Different carbon sources or nitrogen sources were provided to investigate carbon or nitrogen source utilization between mutant SRZ50 and wild type, and different fermentation periods were also chose to study fermentation characteristic between mutant SRZ50 and wild type. The results showed that mutant SRZ50 exhibited the enhanced L-(+)-lactic acid production from wild type. When glucose or fructose was the sole carbon source, the L(+)-lactic acid production by mutant SRZ50 was both the highest, respectively, 23.16 ± 0.72 g/L or 23.24 ± 0.66 g/L, which had a significant increase from that of wild type (P<0.01), following obvious increase in biomass (P<0.05). When yeast powder was the sole nitrogen source, it can promote mutant SRZ50 to accumulate the highest L-(+)-lactic acid accumulation, which also had a significant increase from that of wild type (P<0.01). Under different fermentation periods, it was obtained that mutant SRZ50 all exhibited significant increase in L-(+)-lactic acid accumulation from wild type. In conclusion, a mutant strain with improved production profiles for L-(+)-lactic acid, was obtained, indicating that heavy ions can be an efficient tool to improve metabolic product accumulations in microbes.

Ginkgolide B Modulates BDNF Expression in Acute Ischemic Stroke

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the neuroprotective effects of Ginkgolide B (GB) against ischemic stroke-induced injury in vivo and in vitro, and further explore the possible mechanisms concerned. METHODS: Transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAO) mice and oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R)-treated N2a cells were used to explore the neuroprotective effects of GB. The expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) was detected via Western blot and qRT-PCR. RESULTS: GB treatment (4 mg/kg, i. p., bid) significantly reduced neurological deficits, water content, and cerebral infarct volume in tMCAO mice. GB also significantly increased Bcl-2/Bax ratio, reduced the expression of caspase-3, and protected against OGD/R-induced neuronal apoptosis. Meanwhile, GB caused the up-regulation of BDNF protein in vivo and in vitro. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that GB might protect the brain against ischemic insult partly via modulating BDNF expression.

Protective mechanism of cardiac stem cells against myocardial apoptosis / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND:Myocardial apoptosis can lead to many kinds of heart diseases, but most of the conventional treatments cannot get desired effects. The emergence of cardiac stem cel related theory that subverts the previous view of myocardial cel s provides a new idea for the treatment of a variety of heart diseases. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the protective mechanism of cardiac stem cel s in myocardial apoptosis. METHODS:Cardiac stem cel s were isolated from five neonatal rats. Another 20 Wistar rats were selected to make myocardial infarction models, and then model rats were equivalently randomized into observation and control groups. One day after modeling, rats in each group were given injection of cardiac stem cel s or culture solution. Fourteen days after injection, myocardial apoptosis index was calculated and expression of apoptosis-related proteins was detected in both groups. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:After continuous 3 days of culture, a completely spread growth in the cardiac tissues was visible, and a smal amount of cel s similar to fibrocytes climbed out from the cardiac tissue sample. These cel s isolated using magnetic bead method were sub-cultured for 5 days, and found to be regrouped again. Compared with the control group, the apoptotic index, Fas and Fasl expression were significantly lower (P<0.05), and Bcl-2 expression was significantly higher in the observation group (P<0.05). Al these findings show that cardiac stem cel transplantation can effectively regulate the expression of apoptosis-related proteins and inhibit the apoptosis of myocardial cel s in rats with myocardial infarction.

Comparative Evaluation Of Treatment Protocol Of Complex & Compound Odontoma A Retrospective Study.

Background & Objective: To document and discuss clinical features, evaluation for need of treatment of 30 radiographically and histopathologically proven cases of compound and complex odontomes of the jaw bones monitored and operated by single surgeon during 5 years. Methodology: A retrospective investigation of 30 cases of compound composite and complex composite odontomes was done. The study was performed using medical records, panoramic radiographs and pathological reports. Data gathered included age/gender, location, chief complaints, effect on dentition and treatment rendered. Results: 16 cases of compound odontoma detected in 1st & 2nd decades of life had 6 accidentally discovered on radiographs and 10 complaining of missing permanent teeth. 14 cases of complex odontoma discovered during 3rd -6th decades , 8 with complaint of the pain & paraesthesia of the affected region and 6 discovered accidentally on radiographs. None of the odontomes showed gender predilection. Considering the state of presentation, associated complaints and possible complications surgical treatment was done in symptomatic patients & asymptomatic patients were kept on follow up. Chi-square test performed was statistically insignificant (Chi Sq=0.089, df=1, p-Value >0.1). Conclusion: Odontoma, a benign odontogenic tumor usually has least propensity towards aggressiveness or malignant transformation. Treatment protocol of individual cases should be customized by considering the presenting complaints ,symptoms & natural progression of the concerned lesion. Considering the above factors, all cases of odontomes need not be surgically removed unless it grows to a potential large size causing gross facial deformities, pain & paraethesia of affected facial region or impaction of multiple permanent teeth.

Continuous renal replacement therapy in children with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome: A case series

There is a lack of definitive information regarding the precise indications, implementation, and outcomes of continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) for the treatment of critically ill children. Six children (three boys, three girls) aged from 3 days to 8 years, all of whom had multiple organ failure, were submitted to bedside CRRT using M60 filter membranes. Modified Port carbonate formula was used and clotting time was maintained between 20 and 30 minutes. Activated partial thromboplastin time was 1.5- to 2-fold normal. One patient discontinued treatment due to family decision. Marked improvements were seen in the remaining five patients, including normalization of blood urea nitrogen and creatinine levels, stabilization of electrolytes, and improvements in markers of organ function. Of note, one patient (a six-year-old male) underwent the treatment for 241 hours. All five patients were subsequently discharged and recovered uneventfully. CRRT is effective for the management of children who are critically ill due to multiple organ failure.

Molecular cloning and expression analysis of the MaASR1 gene in banana and functional characterization under salt stress

Background Abscisic acid (ABA)-, stress- and ripening-induced protein (ASR) is plant-specific hydrophilic transcriptional regulators involved in sucrose stress and wounding in banana. However, it is not known whether banana ASR genes confer salt stress tolerance. The contexts of the study was to analysis the sequence characterization of banana ASR1, and identify its expression patterns and function under salt stress using quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and overexpression in Arabidopsis. The purpose was to evaluate the role of banana ASR1 to salt stress tolerance employed by plants. Results A full-length cDNA isolated from banana fruit was named MaASR1, and it had a 432 bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding 143 amino acids. MaASR1 was preferential expression in roots and leaves compared to low expression in fruits, rhizomes and flowers. Under salt stress, the expression of MaASR1 quickly increased and highest expression level was detected in roots and leaves at 4 h, and then gradually decreased. These results suggested that MaASR1 expression was induced under salt stress. MaASR1 protein was localized in the nucleus and plasma membrane. MaASR1 was transformed to Arabidopsis and verified by southern and northern analysis, transgenic lines L14 and L38 integrated one and two copies of MaASR1, respectively, while overexpression in transgenic lines provided evidence for the role of MaASR1 to salt stress tolerance. Conclusions This study demonstrated that overexpression of MaASR1 in Arabidopsis confers salt stress tolerance by reducing the expression of ABA/stress-responsive genes, but does not affect the expression of the ABA-independent pathway and biosynthesis pathway genes.

Purification and characterization of 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (6-PGD) from grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) hepatopancreas.

6-Phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (6-PGD, E.C.: 1.1.1.44) was purified and characterized from the hepatopancreas of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) for the first time. Grass carp represents the second largest aquaculture industry in the world after silver carp, constituting 14.7% of the world aquaculture production, with an average annual increase of 14% in China, mainly as a source of food. The purification procedure involved a single 2’, 5’-ADP-Sepharose 4B affinity chromatographic step by using different elution buffers. The enzyme was purified 309-fold with a specific activity of 5.259 U/mg protein and yield of 68%. The purity and subunit molecular weights of the 6-PGD were checked on SDS-PAGE and purified enzyme showed a single band on the gel. The subunit molecular mass was 57 kDa, with an optimum pH, temperature and ionic strength at 7.96, 50oC and 100 mM Tris-HCl, respectively. The Km values of 6-PGA and NADP+ were 0.019 and 0.0052 mM, respectively, while Vm of 6-PGA and NADP+ was 0.69 U/ml. Dissociation constants (Ki) for 6-PGA and NADP+ were 2.05 and 0.12 mM, respectively. NADPH inhibited the enzyme in a competitive manner and its Ki value was 0.032 mM. The Cu2+, Zn2+, Cd2+ and Al3+ showed inhibitory effects on the enzyme with IC50 values of 0.293, 0.099, 0.045 and 1.526 mM, respectively. All tested metals inhibited the enzyme in a competitive manner, indicating that these metals might be toxic even at low concentrations for the 6-PGD. As the fish is one of valuable foodstuff of animal sources for human consumption, under certain environmental conditions, metal ions accumulated in fish up to a lethal concentration may be harmful for human health. Therefore, it is impending to reduce the concentration of metal ions in contaminated lakes and rivers for fishery and also for human health.

A Microtus fortis protein, serum albumin, is a novel inhibitor of Schistosoma japonicum schistosomula

Schistosomiasis is an endemic parasite disease and praziquantel is the only drug currently in use to control this disease. Experimental and epidemiological evidence strongly suggests that Microtus fortis ( Mf ) is a naturally resistant vertebrate host of Schistosoma japonicum . In the present study, we found that Mf serum albumin ( Mf -albumin) and the conditioned medium of pcDNA3.1- Mf -albumin caused 46.2% and 38.7% schistosomula death rates in 96 h, respectively, which were significantly higher than that of the negative control (p < 0.05). We also found that mice injected with Mf -albumin had a 43.5% reduction in worm burden and a 48.1% reduction in liver eggs per gram (p < 0.05) in comparison to the control animals. To characterise the mechanisms involved in clearance, schistosomula were incubated with fluorescein isothiocyanate-labelled Mf -albumin and fluorescent enrichment effects were found in the gut lumen of schistosomula after 48 h of incubation. Next, digestive tract excretions from schistosomula were collected and the sensitivity of Mf -albumin to digestive tract excretions was evaluated. The results indicated that schistosomula digestive tract excretions showed indigestibility of Mf -albumin. The death of schistosomula could be partially attributed to the lack of digestion of Mf -albumin by digestive tract excretions during the development of the schistosomula stage. Therefore, these data indicate the potential of Mf -albumin as one of the major selective forces for schistosomiasis.