Azithromycin as an add-on treatment for persistent uncontrolled asthma in adults: protocol of a systematic review and meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Clinical management of asthma remains a public challenge. Despite standard treatment with inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) and long-acting beta-agonists (LABAs), asthma remains uncontrolled in a substantial number of chronic asthma patients who risk reduced lung function and severe exacerbations. Azithromycin could have add-on effects for these patients. This study is proposed to systematically evaluate the efficacy of azithromycin as an add-on treatment for adults with persistent uncontrolled symptomatic asthma. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Two reviewers will perform a comprehensive search of PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) and four Chinese electronic databases including China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), WanFang Data and VIP Database from inception to May 2019. Only randomised controlled trials will be included. There is no restriction on language or publication status. Combined oral azithromycin and an ICS or/and a LABA will be compared with standard treatment alone or with a placebo. The primary outcomes are the number or frequency of asthma exacerbations, changes in asthma symptoms and lung function. Secondary outcomes include the number or frequency of inhalations of beta-agonists with or without corticosteroids for rescue use, eosinophil counts in blood or sputum, adverse events and others. A meta-analysis will be attempted to provide an estimate of the pooled treatment effect. Otherwise, qualitative descriptions of individual studies will be given. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is not required because no primary data will be collected. Study findings will be presented at scientific conferences or published in a peer-reviewed journal. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42019117272.

Clinical significance of a set of single nucleotide polymorphisms of hepatitis B virus core gene in Chinese Han patients with chronic hepatitis B.

To evaluate clinical significance of a set of SNPs of HBV core gene, a modified PCR-RFLP assay developed by Hannoun was adapted to determine HBV SNPs in 312 Chinese Han patients with chronic hepatitis B. Five typical RFLP patterns were found and named RFLP patterns C, D, E, G, and C/G mixture. The distribution of RFLP patterns was as follows: C, 61.5%; D, 2.6%; E, 9.6%; G, 16.7%; C/G mixture, 9.6%. The PCR amplicons of core gene were cloned into pGM-T, then colony PCR combined with RFLP and sequencing were used to confirm the presence of cleavage sites of Tsp509I and SNPs. 5 SNPs, A261T, A336C, A336T T337C and T385C, were found to be associated with RFLP patterns change and only SNP A336C or A336T caused the substitution of Glu-83 with Asp in HBcAg. The serum HBV DNA level in RFLP pattern C was higher than that in RFLP pattern G and C/G mixture, respectively, most possibly which associating with aminoacid change, Glu83Asp. The rate of elevated serum ALT levels in RFLP pattern C/G mixture was significantly lower than that in RFLP patterns C and G, respectively. The PCR amplicons of HBV S gene were sequenced and genotyped with HBV genotyping tools. It was found that RFLP patterns E and G were categorized into genotype B, RFLP pattern C showed two genotypes (B, C), and RFLP pattern D coincided with HBV genotype D, therefore, the modified PCR-RFLP can be adapted to determine HBV SNPs, not genotypes in Chinese Han patients with chronic hepatitis B.

The cry3Aa gene of Bacillus thuringiensis Bt886 encodes a toxin against long-horned beetles.

This report describes the identification of a new toxigenic strain of Bacillus thuringiensis specific for long-horned beetles. B. thuringiensis Bt866 encodes a cry3Aa-like gene (Bt886cry3Aa) that is 1,956 bp in length and is predicted to encode an 85.78-kDa protein. The gene is highly similar to cry3Aa1, differing in only six nucleotides and four amino acids. The four disparate amino acids occur within the conserved domains of the Cry3Aa toxin. The expression of Bt866cry3A in Escherichia coli cells resulted in a high level of toxicity toward Apriona germari Hope larvae. More than 75% of the larvae were killed; and the remaining survivors exhibited slower growth. These results indicate that the toxigenic strain Bt886cry3Aa encodes a protein that is specific against long-horned beetles. Genetic engineering of the Bt866cry3Aa gene into poplar plantations may provide resistance to long-horned beetles.