Reappearance of Risk of Schistosomiasis Transmission and the Response After 27 Years of Interrupted Transmission - Guangdong Province, China, 2019.

WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT THIS TOPIC?: No live specimens of the snail Oncomelania hupensis (O. hupensis) and indigenous infected cases of schistosomiasis japonicum have been found in Guangdong Province since 1993, but live O. hupensis was found again in 2019. This study conducted O. hupensis identification and elimination. WHAT IS ADDED BY THIS REPORT?: In 2019, live O. hupensis specimens were detected by routine surveillance in areas in Qujiang of Shaoguan City and Yingde of Qingyuan City, and an emergency response was launched immediately. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE?: The suspected habitat of O. hupensis in originally endemic areas of schistosomiasis in Guangdong is still complicated, so it is necessary to record suspected habitats comprehensively and carry out scientific routine surveillance for O. hupensis.

Potential of resveratrol in mitigating advanced glycation end-products formed in baked milk and baked yogurt.

Baked milk and baked yogurt are two newly developed dairy products in the market. Throughout the processing, a long-time-high-temperature baking procedure was involved to enhance the formation of a brownish color and desirable flavors; meanwhile, advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) were extensively produced through Maillard reaction (MR). Resveratrol was first developed as a potential inhibitor of AGEs formation. The resveratrol at 1 µmol/L was achieved the highest inhibitory rate against the formation of dicarbonyl compounds in the baked milk (3-deoxyglucosone (3-DG): 68.77%, methylglyoxal (MG): 50.46%) and baked yogurt (3-DG: 35.50%, MG: 37.11%). Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of resveratrol on the formation of four AGEs was observed compared with those without adding resveratrol. The content of NƐ-(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML) and NƐ-(hydroxyethyl) lysine (CEL) as the two commonly detected AGEs were decreased by higher than 30% and 27% in the baked milk and baked yogurt, respectively, when the concentration of resveratrol was 0.1 µmol/L. Moreover, the generation of furosine was significantly inhibited by 1 µmol/L resveratrol, which was decreased to less than 40% and 60% in the baked milk and baked yogurt, respectively. The generation of pyrraline, in particular, was completely inhibited at a resveratrol concentration ranging from 0.1 to 10 µmol/L. Furthermore, the additional level of 0.1 µmol/L resveratrol achieved a high inhibitory effect of AGEs, and such an additional level would not alter the color and flavor profile of the baked milk and baked yogurt. Considering the high solubility of resveratrol in milk fat, it is speculated that resveratrol mainly acted at an early stage of the degradation, i.e., through the inhibition of the autocatalytic lipid oxidation that generates dicarbonyl compounds but played less as a dicarbonyl compounds scavenger. Significance of this study is developing resveratrol as the additive to inhibit the AGEs formation in the baked milk and baked yogurt without altering overall color and flavors, which let the dairy products become safer to consume.

Kinetic study on the generation of furosine and pyrraline in a Maillard reaction model system of d-glucose and l-lysine.

A kinetic model for Maillard reaction (MR) model system of d-glucose and l-lysine was established; activation energy (Ea) of each step was calculated. Potential generation pathways of furosine and pyrraline were a combination of either 3-deoxyglucosone (3-DG) or methylglyoxal (MG) with l-lysine. Ea value for furosine generated through 3-DG pathway was 81.70 ± 14.01 kJ mol-1, which was significantly higher than that through MG pathway (52.08 ± 4.48 kJ mol-1). As for pyrraline, Ea for the 3-DG pathway (53.45 ± 4.02 kJ mol-1) was significantly lower than that through the MG pathway (110.22 ± 18.77 kJ mol-1). Results of the kinetic study indicated that furosine was preferred to be generated through the MG pathway since MG is more likely to react with each other and form a furan ring as a precursor of furosine. Pyrraline was more easily to be generated from the 3-DG pathway through cyclization of 1,4-dicarbonyl compounds to pyrrole.

Recent advances of ultrasound-assisted Maillard reaction.

Maillard reaction (MR) is one of the most important chemical reactions in the food science domain with a long history of more than 100 years. As for ultrasound-assisted MR (US-MR), it has gradually drawn attention in a recent decade. Purpose of this paper is to provide a systematic review on recent advances of US-MR in model systems, glycation of protein, and food processing. Fundamental studies on simple MR model systems (i.e. reducing sugar and amino acid) have reported a promoted generation of colored and volatile MR products (MRPs). Critical steps influenced by US and possible mechanisms have been elucidated simultaneously. Other studies focused on modification of proteins which undergoes a glycation between proteins and saccharides as the initial stage of MR. Since the MR rate is extremely low in the presence of protein and saccharide, US becomes a promising mean of promoting the glycation. As a result, a number of functional properties of glycated protein obtained by US are significantly promoted, which extend their utilization in the food industry. The rest of studies reviewed in this article are concentrated on applying US to process real foods. Many attributes changed during US-assisted processing are induced by MR. Positive aspects brought by the promoted US-MR include enhanced antioxidant capacity and organoleptic properties (e.g. desirable color, low bitterness, enhanced flavor, etc.), as well as inhibited hazards (e.g. advanced glycation end-products, acrylamide, etc.) formed in the processed foods. Meanwhile, the promoted MR by US may also inevitably bring some negative aspects to the processed foods due to unfavored yellowish/browning colors, off-flavors and hazard components.

Susceptibility of Ureaplasma urealyticum to Methylene Blue-Mediated Photodynamic Antimicrobial Chemotherapy: An in vitro Study.

The aim of this study was to detect the susceptibility of Ureaplasma urealyticum to methylene blue-mediated photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy (PACT). Three U. urealyticum strains including the standard serotype 1 and 5, and a clinically collected strain were used in this study. Strains were first incubated in 96-well culture plates in the presence of methylene blue with decreasing concentrations (from 1 to 0.015625 mg mL(-1)) for 20 or 60 min, and then submitted to irradiation with a light-emitting diode laser with a power density of 100 mW cm(-2) for 8, 17, 34 or 68 min. Regrowth of the strains was performed soon after irradiation. A significant inactivation effect was observed after PACT. Longer incubation time induced more extensive inactivation of U. urealyticum. No difference in response to PACT was observed between the two biovars of U. urealyticum. It was concluded that PACT had a significant inactivation effect on U. urealyticum, and it might be a promising alternative treatment for resistant U. urealyticum infections.

Single-nucleotide polymorphisms of MAMDC1 are associated with rash and photosensitivity, but not disease risk, of systemic lupus erythematosus in Chinese mainland population.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex immune disease affected by both genetic dispositions and environmental factors. Recently, the polymorphisms in MAMDC1 gene have been reported to associate with disease risk of SLE in European population. However, whether this association is replicated in Chinese population is unknown yet. A total of 491 SLE patients and 533 controls were recruited. Unlabeled probe-based high-resolution melting analysis (HRMA) was used in genotyping. HRMA with unlabeled probe successfully distinguished all genotypes. SNP rs961616 was associated with rash [P = 0.015, odds ratio (OR) = 0.73, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.57-0.94] and photosensitivity (P = 0.001, OR = 0.63, 95%CI = 0.48-0.84), but not the disease risk (P = 0.133, OR = 0.88, 95%CI = 0.74-1.04), of SLE in Chinese population. Polymorphisms of rs961616 in MAMDC1 gene were associated with rash and photosensitivity, but not disease risk, of systemic lupus erythematosus in Chinese population.

The association between single-nucleotide polymorphisms of NCF2 and systemic lupus erythematosus in Chinese mainland population.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex immune disease. The genetic variation in the NCF2 gene was found to associate with SLE in US and European populations. However, the association of rs10911363 with SLE was not extensively studied in Chinese mainland population. A total of 488 SLE patients and 380 controls were recruited. Unlabeled probe-based high-resolution melting analysis (HRMA) was used in genotyping. HRMA with unlabeled probe successfully distinguished all genotypes. Neither genotype nor allele frequencies of single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs10911363 showed statistically significant differences between SLE patients and controls. The association of SNP rs10911363 with the diagnostic criteria of SLE was also examined. Minor allele (G) of rs10911363 was found to significantly associate with the incidence of arthritis (p = 0.024, odds ratio (OR) = 1.35, and 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.04-1.75) and increased abnormalities of antinuclear antibody (p = 0.002, OR = 1.51, and 95%CI = 1.17-1.95) and anti-DNA (p = 0.013, OR = 1.40, and 95%CI = 1.07-1.82). Polymorphisms of rs13277113 in NCF2 gene were associated with arthritis and autoantibody production, but not disease risk, of SLE in Chinese population.

Identification of BANK1 polymorphisms by unlabelled probe high resolution melting: association with systemic lupus erythematosus susceptibility and autoantibody production in Han Chinese.

OBJECTIVES: The three functional SNPs of BANK1 (rs10516487, rs17266594 and rs3733197) have been shown to be associated with SLE in Caucasian populations. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the association of BANK1 polymorphisms with SLE could be replicated in a Chinese population and whether the autoantibody production is relevant to BANK1 polymorphisms. METHODS: Genotyping of three variants in BANK1 was carried out by unlabelled probe high resolution melting (HRM) assay in 264 SLE cases and 268 controls in a Chinese Han population living in Shanghai region. The genotype frequencies of the detected polymorphisms were analysed in relation to the production of autoantibodies (ANA, anti-dsDNA, anti-RNP, anti-SSA, anti-SSB and anti-Smith) in SLE patients. RESULTS: Samples with the target genotypes were accurately detected and easily distinguishable by unlabelled probe HRM assay. The frequencies of the rs10516487 C allele and the rs17266594 T allele were significantly increased compared with the controls (C allele: 88.6 vs 83.2%, P = 0.011; T allele: 88.3 vs 83.2%, P = 0.019). However, the frequencies of the rs3733197 G allele were not associated with SLE (G allele: 79.9 vs 79.1%, P = 0.741). The rs10516487 and rs17266594 polymorphisms were significantly associated with high-titre ANA (≥1 : 320) and production of anti-SSA antibodies in SLE patients compared with the control subjects. CONCLUSIONS: Genotyping using unlabelled probes is a rapid, accurate and cost-effective closed-tube method. This study implies that rs10516487 and rs17266594 polymorphisms might contribute to individual susceptibility to SLE and influence the ANA/SSA autoantibody response in SLE patients in Chinese population.

High-resolution melting analysis of ADAMTS9 methylation levels in gastric, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers.

ADAMTS (a disintegrin and metalloprotease with thrombospondin motifs) is a family of proteins characterized by the presence of a metalloproteinase domain linked to a variety of specialized ancillary domains. The ADAMTS9 gene (ADAM metallopeptidase with thrombospondin type 1 motif, 9); has been characterized as a novel tumor suppressor gene in and epigenetically silenced in association with lymph node metastases in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. High-resolution melting (HRM) analysis has been used as a tool for analysis of promoter methylation. Here, we report HRM analysis used to detect the methylation levels of ADAMTS9 gene in 100 gastric cancers, 100 colorectal cancers, 70 pancreatic cancers, and an equal number of adjacent normal tissues. The frequency of ADAMTS9 methylation in all three types of cancers was significantly higher than in normal tissues. Consistent with previous reports, expression levels of ADAMTS9 were inversely correlated with methylation levels. There was no significant association between ADAMTS9 methylation status and tumor-node-metastasis staging in all three types of cancers. In summary, application of HRM analysis to large numbers of clinical samples is a rapid and high-throughput way to investigate the epigenetic status of ADAMTS9. The present study is novel in evaluating the prevalence of ADAMTS9 methylation based on a large number of tumor samples and showing that epigenetic regulation of ADAMTS9 was associated with carcinogenesis.

BS69 undergoes SUMO modification and plays an inhibitory role in muscle and neuronal differentiation.

BS69, an adenovirus E1A binding protein, has been described as a co-repressor in association with various transcription factors. But its characteristics and exact biological functions remain largely unknown at present. Now we intensively investigated the localization of BS69 and its various truncated derivatives and found that: (a) BS69 forms oligomer through its C-terminus and (b) both PHD and MYND domain are important for the localization of BS69. Furthermore, we provided evidence showing that BS69 interacts with PIAS1 (a well-characterized SUMO E3 enzyme) and Ubc9 (the only SUMO E2 enzyme so far identified) through its distinct regions. And PIAS1 significantly increases the SUMO modification of BS69. More importantly, in terms of the biological function of BS69, we found that BS69 plays an inhibitory role in the muscle and neuronal differentiation process. By taking advantage of several PHD and MYND domain mutants of BS69, we found that the PHD domain plays indispensable roles in the localization, sumoylation and function of BS69. Thus, our work contributed to the more intensive understanding of BS69.