Epidemiology of group B Streptococcus ST-17 clone in pregnant women of South Taiwan.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to utilize a simple molecular assay to simultaneously detect both group B Streptococcus (GBS) and virulent ST-17 rectovaginal colonization. We also attempted to estimate the prevalence of maternal GBS and ST-17 carriers and to evaluate their seasonal association. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We used an optimized multiplex PCR method employing scp-B and ST-17 primers to analyze DNA extracted from rectovaginal swabs of 3,064 cases collected over 3 years. The incidence trends, seasonal variations, and temperature preference were analyzed. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of maternal colonization for GBS and ST-17 clone were 13.25 and 2.48%, respectively. The ST-17 to GBS ratio was 18.72%. The occurrence of ST-17 colonization was significantly associated with seasonal variations with a preference for lower temperatures. CONCLUSIONS: We developed a novel multiplex PCR method suitable for the simultaneous detection of GBS and ST-17 clone. The phenomenon of lower temperature preference for ST-17 clone necessitates further investigation. The epidemiological data for GBS and ST-17 incidence are especially important to establish a public policy for universal GBS screening in the future.

Low-dose LBH589 increases the sensitivity of cisplatin to cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer cells.

OBJECTIVE: There is a need to develop alternative therapeutic strategies to overcome cisplatin-associated resistance in patients with ovarian cancer. Histone deacetylation (HDAC) associated with inactivation of genes has been implicated in the epigenetic silencing of tumor suppressor genes affecting critical biological activities in cancer cells and may be an important factor in acquired cisplatin-associated resistance. In this report, we tested a combination of cisplatin and LBH589 (histone deacetylation inhibitor) in cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer cells to explore the reversal effect of cisplatin resistance and changes of gene expression. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To detect the synergistic effects of antiproliferation between cisplatin and LBH589 in ovarian cancer cells, we performed a cell viability assay and a clonogenic assay. To investigate the differences of gene expression between cells treated by cisplatin alone and cotreated with cisplatin and LBH589, a microarray mRNA analysis was performed. RESULTS: In the presence of low-dose LBH589, the inhibition concentration value of cisplatin for A2780-cp70 cells was much lower than with cisplatin treatment alone. Gene expression profiles identified that a total of 354 genes had been significantly upregulated and a total of 63 genes been downregulated with LBH589 cotreatment. CONCLUSION: We hypothesized that combination of cisplatin and LBH589 can override cisplatin-associated resistance in ovarian cancer cells. These results provide initial evidence for testing this combination in clinical use.

High prevalence of genital human papillomavirus type 52 and 58 infection in women attending gynecologic practitioners in South Taiwan.

BACKGROUND: We attempted to determine the prevalence of genital human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in women attending gynecologic practitioners in South Taiwan. METHODS: The population included 4383 women aged 16-78 seeking HPV testing at primary gynecologic practitioners regardless of their cervical cytology results. HPV DNA was identified from cervical swabs using semi-nested polymerase chain reaction with MY11, MY09/HMB01, and MY11/bioGP6+ primers. Genotyping for high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) was done separately by a HR-HPV chip, which contained 13 type-specific oligonucleotides on a nylon membrane. RESULTS: The overall HPV prevalence was 19.3% (849/4383), 11.1% (488/4383) were confirmed as HR-HPV positive. Among the women with HR-HPV infection, HPV-16 was the most prevalent type (22.1%; 108/488), followed by HPV-52 (21.3%; 104/488), and HPV-58 (19.9%; 97/488). Multiple infections were detected in 73 women (15.0%; 73/488). For women with age 30 or younger, the overall HPV and HR-HPV prevalence were 32.0% and 20.7%, respectively, which were significantly higher than those of women age older than 30 (17.2% and 9.5%, P < 0.001). More multiple infections (22.1% vs. 12.4%) were also found in women with age 30 or younger (P = 0.021). However, the relative contribution of types to the overall HR-HPV positive among different age groups remains the same. CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed an HPV prevalence that is similar compared with worldwide levels. HPV prevalence and multiple infections rate were decreasing across the age groups. Unlike most previous studies, the relative high prevalence of HPV 52 and 58 among South Taiwan women has important implications in vaccine prophylaxis.

A simple method for the detection and genotyping of high-risk human papillomavirus using seminested polymerase chain reaction and reverse hybridization.

BACKGROUND: To develop a simple and cost-effective method for the detection and genotyping of high-risk human papillomaviruses (HPV) using seminested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and reverse hybridization. METHODS: Cervical swabs for HPV testing were collected from 127 women with normal cervical cytology and 57 patients with cervical lesions of various degrees. After DNA isolation, PCR amplification was first carried out using MY11 and MY09/HMB01 primers, then labeled by seminested PCR using the first PCR products and MY11/bioGP6+ primers. One fifth of the second PCR products were resolved by gel electrophoresis. Genotyping for high-risk HPV was done separately, using the remaining products, by a high-risk HPV chip, which contained 13 type-specific oligonucleotides on a nylon membrane. The final result was detected by colorimetric change on the chip under direct visualization. RESULTS: High-risk HPV DNA was detected in 19 (15%) of 127 women with normal cervical smear cytology, in 26 (89.7%) of 29 patients with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), and in 27 (96.4%) of 28 patients with invasive cervical carcinoma. Multiple high-risk HPV infections were detected in five cases. HPV type 16 was the most frequent type of infection, comprising 34.5% and 53.6% of the patients with CIN and invasive carcinoma, respectively. The samples without a visible 190-bp band on electrophoresis exclusively showed negative hybridization results. This method could detect one to two copies of the HPV-16 genome derived from one SiHa cell. The overall sensitivity of HPV detection was 25 to 50 copies of HPV genome for each specimen. Thirteen high-risk types and twenty-four different types of HPV DNA showed specific hybridization without any cross-reaction. CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrated the feasibility and optimistic prospects for this simple and cheap method of high-risk HPV genotyping. This technology can be easily set up in a routine molecular laboratory and would probably be of great value in cervical cancer prevention programs.