Posterior mediastinal extralobar pulmonary sequestration misdiagnosed as a neurogenic tumor: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary sequestration-both intralobar and extralobar-is a rare congenital developmental malformation. Extralobar pulmonary sequestrations (EPS) have their own pleura but are separated from the bronchus and usually occur in the left lung. They are mainly found mainly between the lower lobe and the mediastinum. EPS is rarely found within the mediastinum itself, even rarer so in the posterior mediastinum. CASE SUMMARY: We report the case of a 27-year-old man who was misdiagnosed with a neurogenic tumor based on preoperative contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging findings. Contrast-enhanced chest CT revealed a posterior mediastinal mass measuring 1.2 cm × 1.4 cm × 3.3 cm, which consisted of some cystic areas and showed slight enhancement. The mass was in the 11th paravertebral region and attached to the 11th thoracic vertebra behind the descending aorta in the posterior mediastinum. An arteriole originating from the intercostal artery and a vein originating directly from the hemiazygos vein were found in the pedicle of the mass. The mass was resected in a uniport video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. During the operation, the pyramid-shaped mass appeared well-encapsulated. Postoperative histopathology established a diagnosis of EPS. One month later, a follow-up CT of the thorax showed good recovery. CONCLUSION: Although EPS rarely occurs in the posterior mediastinum, its diagnosis should be considered when posterior mediastinal tumors are suspected.

Changes of volatile organic compounds and bioactivity of Alternaria brassicae GL07 in different ages.

Plant endophytes are rich in secondary metabolites and are widely used in medicine, chemical, food, agriculture, and other fields. Here, an endophytic fungus is isolated from Ginkgo biloba L. leaves and identified as Alternaria brassicae GL07 through genotypic characterizations. It can produce fruity scented volatiles. The analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was done by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. A total of 32 components were identified; and at different culture times, the composition of VOCs was different. It had more components in the first two weeks, but a fewer components on the 21st day. More olefins, ketone, aldehyde, and alcohol were found in the growth period and more amines and esters were found in the decline period. Also, 2,5-dihydroxyacetophenone, ß-ionone, and nonanal were found. They were the same ingredients in Ginkgo essential oils and some of them were isolated for the first time in the volatile constituents of endophytes. The antioxidant activity and whitening activities of all extracts were also evaluated. When cultured for 10 days, it had the strongest 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (IC50 , 0.56 g/L), hydroxyl radical scavenging ability (IC50 , 0.47 g/L), reducing ability, and tyrosinase inhibition ability (IC50 , 5.18 g/L), which may be due to a large amount of ketones and alcohols produced during the log phase. This demonstrates the potential of A. brassicae GL07 to produce bioactive compounds and to be used for perfume and cosmetic industries.

Chemical Composition, Security and Bioactivity of the Red Pigment from Penicillium purpurogenum Li-3.

The chemical composition, security and bioactivity of pigments from Penicillium purpurogenum Li-3 strain screened by our group were firstly studied in this work. DPPH and the filter disc diffusion method were used to determine the biological activities of the red pigments. The pigment was characterized by UV/VIS, FT-IR, NMR and UPLC-Q-TOF-MS. HPLC/MS was used to detect mycotoxins (citrinin) in fermentation broth. An acute toxicity was detected in the embryos of zebrafish. As a consequence, the crude red pigment from the AcOEt fraction showed better DPPH scavenge capacity and antibacterial activity. Spectroscopic (UV, FT-IR, 13 C-NMR) and UPLC-Q-TOF-MS analysis revealed that the Penicillium purpurogenum Li-3 red pigment (RPs) was monascus-like pigment and its molecular weight was 439.1997. Moreover, the red pigment was shown to be weak cytotoxic against the zebrafish embryos. The yield of the red pigment increased 69 % under optimized culture conditions. These outstanding properties will enlarge the application of RPs for natural food additives, new antioxidant and antibacterial drug development.