Comparative transcriptomic analysis of the different developmental stages of ovary in red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii.

BACKGROUND: The red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii is a freshwater species that possesses high adaptability, environmental tolerance, and fecundity. P. clarkii is artificially farmed on a large scale in China. However, the molecular mechanisms of ovarian development in P. clarkii remain largely unknown. In this study, we identified four stages of P. clarkii ovary development, the previtellogenic stage (stage I), early vitellogenic stage (stage II), middle vitellogenic stage (stage III), and mature stage (stage IV) and compared the transcriptomics among these four stages through next-generation sequencing (NGS). RESULTS: The total numbers of clean reads of the four stages ranged from 42,013,648 to 62,220,956. A total of 216,444 unigenes were obtained, and the GC content of most unigenes was slightly less than the AT content. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Anosim analysis demonstrated that the grouping of these four stages was feasible, and each stage could be distinguished from the others. In the expression pattern analysis, 2301 genes were continuously increase from stage I to stage IV, and 2660 genes were sharply decrease at stage IV compared to stages I-III. By comparing each of the stages at the same time, four clusters of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were found to be uniquely highly expressed in stage I (136 genes), stage II (43 genes), stage III-IV (49 genes), and stage IV (22 genes), thus exhibiting developmental stage specificity. Moreover, in comparisons between adjacent stages, the number of DEGs between stage III and IV was the highest. GO enrichment analysis demonstrated that nutrient reservoir activity was highest at stage II and that this played a foreshadowing role in ovarian development, and the GO terms of cell, intracellular and organelle participated in the ovary maturation during later stages. In addition, KEGG pathway analysis revealed that the early development of the ovary was mainly associated with the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway and focal adhesion; the middle developmental period was related to apoptosis, lysine biosynthesis, and the NF-kappa B signaling pathway; the late developmental period was involved with the cell cycle and the p53 signaling pathway. CONCLUSION: These transcriptomic data provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of ovarian development in P. clarkii. The results will be helpful for improving the reproduction and development of this aquatic species.

Furazolidone-based triple and quadruple eradication therapy for Helicobacter pylori infection.

AIM: To evaluate the efficacy of furazolidone-based triple and quadruple therapy in eradicating Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) in a multi-center randomized controlled trial. METHODS: A total of 720 H. pylori positive patients with duodenal ulcer disease were enrolled at 10 different hospitals in Jiangxi province in China. The patients were randomly assigned to four treatment groups as follows: patients in Groups 1 and 3 received rabeprazole (10 mg), amoxicillin (1000 mg) and furazolidone (100 mg) twice daily for 7 and 10 d, respectively; patients in Groups 2 and 4 received rabeprazole (10 mg), bismuth (220 mg), amoxicillin (1000 mg) and furazolidone (100 mg) twice daily for 7 and 10 d, respectively. The primary outcome measure was H. pylori eradication rate 4 wk after treatment by intention-to-treat and per protocol analysis, while the secondary outcome measures were symptom and sign changes at the end of treatment and 4 wk after the end of treatment, as well as the proportion of patients who developed adverse events. RESULTS: The demographic data of the four groups were not significantly different. Overall, 666 patients completed the scheme and were re-assessed with the (13)C-urea breath test. The intention-to-treat analysis of the H. pylori eradication rates in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 were 74.44%, 82.78%, 78.89% and 86.11%, respectively. The H. pylori eradication rate in Group 4 was significantly higher than that in Group 1. According to the per protocol analysis, the H. pylori eradication rates in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 were 81.21%, 89.22%, 85.54% and 92.26%, respectively. The H. pylori eradication rate in Group 4 was significantly higher than that in Group 1. The number of adverse events was 15 (8.3%), 16 (8.9%), 15 (8.3%) and 17 (9.4%) in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively, including dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, skin rash, itchy skin, and malaise. The symptoms were relieved without special treatment in all of the patients. CONCLUSION: Both 7- and 10-d quadruple furazolidone-based therapies achieve satisfactory H. pylori eradication rates.

[Efficacy of triple versus quadruple furazolidone-based eradication regimens for Helicobacter pylori infection].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the eradication efficacies of triple versus quadruple furazolidone-based regimens for Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection. METHODS: A total of 357 outpatients with H. pylori infection were enrolled from June to December 2010. There were 200 males and 157 females with an average age of (42 ± 12) years. A diagnosis of duodenal ulcer was made according to their endoscopic examination results. They were randomly assigned into 4 treatment groups: 7-day triple (n = 89) and 10-day triple (n = 91), rabeprazole 10 mg, amoxicillin 1 000 mg and furazolidone 100 mg twice daily for 7 and 10 days respectively. 7-day quadruple (n = 88) and 10-day quadruple (n = 89), rabeprazole 10 mg, bismuth 220 mg, amoxicillin 1 000 mg and furazolidone 100 mg twice daily for 7 and 10 days respectively.H. pylori status was re-assessed with (14)C-urea breath test after 4-week therapy. RESULTS: Among them, 323 cases completed the study. According to the analysis of intention-to-treat (ITT), the H. pylori eradication rates were 71.91% (64/89) in 7-day triple, 81.32% (74/91) in 10-day triple, 78.41% (69/88) in 7-day quadruple and 83.15% (74/89) in 10-day quadruple groups. No significant deviation existed among all groups (P > 0.05). According the per-protocol (PP) analysis, H. pylori eradication rates were 78.05% (64/82) in 7-day triple, 88.10% (74/84) in 10-day triple, 87.34% (69/79) in 7-day quadruple and 94.87% (74/78) in 10-day quadruple groups. Significant deviation existed among all groups (P = 0.017). The H. pylori eradication rate in 10-day quadruple group was significantly higher than that in 7-day triple group (P = 0.002). The total adverse reaction rate was 7.00% (25/357). No significant difference existed among all groups (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Quadruple treatments provide higher H. pylori eradication rates than triple therapies. A 10-day treatment may improve H. pylori eradication rate. And 10-day quadruple regimen with furazolidone and bismuth may be effective for H. pylori infection.