ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the feasibility and prospects of nested real-time PCR(NR-PCR)technique for Treponema palladium(Tp)detection in various samples of different stages of syphilis from patients preliminarily diagnosed as syphilis. Methods Targeting the Tp polA gene, NR-PCR was performed to detect Tp DNA in various samples from the patients with various stages of syphilis at the first clinic visit, including skin tissue fluid swabs, serum, whole blood, cerebrospinal fluid(CSF)and earlobe blood. Data were analyzed with SPSS software version 13. Results A total of 368 clinical samples were collected from 200 patients with syphilis. With a detection limit of 2 Tp/ml, NR-PCR showed that the total positive rate for Tp DNA was 71.7%(264/368). The Tp DNA positive rate was highest in earlobe blood samples (92.0%, 23/25), followed by CSF samples(90.2%, 46/51), skin tissue fluid swabs(74.3%, 26/35), serum samples(66.9%, 99/148)and whole blood samples(64.2%, 70/109). There was good agreement between NR-PCR results and serologic test results, with a consistency rate of 76.0%(152/200). Furthermore, the Tp DNA positive rate did not differ between patients with primary(12/19)and secondary syphilis(14/16)in skin tissue fluid swabs(χ2 = 2.62, P > 0.05), and was slightly but insignificantly higher in patients with secondary syphilis than those with primary syphilis in the serum samples(χ2=3.6, P=0.06). The Tp DNA positive rate of whole blood samples was also higher in patients with secondary syphilis than those with any other types of syphilis. Among patients with neurosyphilis, no significant difference was observed in the Tp DNA positive rate between earlobe blood samples and CSF samples(P=0.06). Among patients with latent syphilis, the Tp DNA positive rate was significantly higher in serum samples with an RPR titer of ≥ 1:8 than those with an RPR titer of≤1:4. Conclusion NR-PCR is feasible for detecting Tp DNA in various kinds of samples, and the Tp DNA positive rate is influenced by stages of syphilis and types of samples, as well as RPR titers.
ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPX-1) gene, rs3448, rs1050450, rs1800668, and rs1987628, and the susceptibility to noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) among Chinese Han population.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A case-control study was conducted to investigate the threshold shift of the left ear at 3000 Hz among the workers of Chinese Han population who were exposed to the same level of sound pressure. Two hundred and one (10%) of the subjects with the highest level of threshold shift were recruited in susceptible group, while 202 of (10%) of the subjects with the lowest level of threshold shift were recruited in tolerant group. Targeted occupational health survey and questionnaire survey were performed among these people. For each individual, genome DNA was extracted from 5 ml of fasting peripheral venous blood. Four SNPs (GPX-1 rs3448, rs1050450, rs1800668, and rs1987628) were genotyped by the TaqMan SNP genotyping kit. The main effects of SNPs and the association between NIHL susceptibility and SNPs were analyzed by logistic regression.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The C allele of rs1987628 was a risk factor for NIHL, with an odds ratio (OR) of 2.531 (95%CI: 1.878-3.411) as compared with the T allele. The CC genotype of rs1987628 was more associated with NIHL than the TT genotype (OR = 3.500, 95% CI: 1.984-6.174; adjusted OR = 3.544, 95% CI: 1.974 ∼ 6.364).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Among Chinese Han population, GPX-1 SNP rs1987628 may be associated with the susceptibility to NIHL.</p>
Subject(s)
Adult , Female , Humans , Male , Young Adult , Case-Control Studies , Genetic Predisposition to Disease , Glutathione Peroxidase , Genetics , Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced , Genetics , Polymorphism, Single NucleotideABSTRACT
Deflazacort (DFZ, a prodrug) is well absorbed and rapidly metabolized into the active metabolite 21-hydroxydeflazacort (21-OH DFZ) after oral administration. The aim of this study is to evaluate the pharmacokinetic properties of 21-OH DFZ in healthy Chinese volunteers after a single and multiple oral administration of DFZ tablets under fed condition. Twelve volunteers (six males and six females) were administered a single dose of 6 mg or 12 mg or 24 mg of DFZ in three different periods separately, according to the 3 x 3 Latin square design. Between each administration period there was a washout period of one week. The multiple-dose study of 12 mg dose DFZ per day for 7 consecutive days was started after a 1 w washout period when the single-dose study completed. The pharmacokinetic parameters of 21-OH DFZ after the single oral administration of 6 mg, 12 mg and 24 mg DFZ tablets were as follows: (37.7 +/- 11.6), (61.5 +/- 17.7) and (123 +/- 23) ng x mL(-1) for C(max); (1.90 +/- 0.32), (1.96 +/- 0.27) and (2.13 +/- 0.34) h for t1/2; (96.6 +/- 25.9), (190 +/- 44) and (422 +/- 107) ng x h x mL(-1) for AUC(0-14 h), respectively. After the multiple dose administration, the mean plasma concentration at steady-state C(av) was (7.00 +/- 1.66) ng x mL(-1) and the degree of plasma concentration fluctuation DF was 7.7 +/- 1.2. The results showed that the pharmacokinetic characteristics of 21-OH DFZ in healthy Chinese volunteers were linear over the dose range of 6 to 24 mg. No significant gender differences were found in the pharmacokinetics of 21-OH DFZ in healthy Chinese volunteers. After the multiple dose administration of 12 mg DFZ for 7 d, no accumulation of 21-OH DFZ in healthy Chinese volunteers was observed.