[A case of orbital rhabdomyosarcoma combined with neurofibromatosis type 1 in a child].

This article presents a case of orbital rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) in a child who also had neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF-1). Although NF-1 is a common neurogenetic disease, there are few reports of its combination with orbital RMS. The patient underwent surgical removal of the tumor at the age of one, but the cancer recurred after five years. Following pathological and genetic diagnosis, the patient was confirmed to have orbital RMS combined with NF-1. After surgical treatment and chemotherapy, the patient's eye condition has stabilized. This article focuses on analyzing the clinical manifestations of this case and reviews relevant literature to improve our understanding of this disease in children.

[Analysis of the efficacy of transnasal endoscopic annulus of zinn area decompression in the treatment of dysthyroid optic neuropathy].

Objective: To evaluate the early efficacy and safety of transnasal endoscopic decompression in the annulus of zinn (AZ) region for refractory dysthyroid optic neuropathy (DON) and to preliminarily analyze the correlated factors of postoperative visual function outcome. Methods: From July 2021 to January 2023, 35 patients (56 eyes) with DON who received AZ area decompression in Peking University Third Hospital were included retrospectively, including 9 males (13 eyes) and 26 females (43 eyes), aging (52.2±12.0) years. Among them, 35 eyes underwent two-wall (medial and inferior) orbital decompression using an endonasal endoscopic approach, while 21 eyes received three-wall (medial, lateral, and inferior) orbital decompression through a combined approach. Key parameters such as best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), visual field (MD value), eyeball prominence, intraocular pressure, and complications were recorded. Postoperative data were collected one month after surgery. The statistical analysis was performed using paired t-test and Spearman correlation analysis. Results: Significant outcomes were observed post surgery in BCVA, visual field, intraocular pressure and proptosis (t value was 8.37, 6.17, 4.50, and 9.20, respectively, all P<0.001). The reduction in proptosis was statistically significant between the 2-wall and 3-wall orbital decompression groups (t=-2.82, P=0.007). Changes in BCVA, visual field, and intraocular pressure before and after surgery was greater in the 3-wall orbital decompression group compared to 2-wall orbital decompression group, although the difference was not statistically significant (all P>0.05). Change in postoperative visual acuity and visual field was significantly positively correlated with preoperative visual acuity and preoperative visual field (all P<0.001). Similarly, change in intraocular pressure and proptosis was positively correlated with preoperative intraocular pressure and preoperative protrusion (all P<0.001). Preoperative diplopia was reported in seven patients (20.0%), and two new cases (5.7%) were noted post-operation, which resolved within 3 months after surgery. Conclusions: Endoscopic endonasal decompression of the AZ area is a safe and effective surgical treatment for DON, with notable improvements in BCVA. Furthermore, three-orbital wall decompression seems to yield better outcomes in terms of eye retraction.

[Correlation analysis of age and microbial characteristics in saliva and feces of high-risk population of upper gastrointestinal cancer].

Objective: To explore the correlation between age and diversity and microbial composition in saliva and feces microbiota in high-risk population of upper gastrointestinal cancer. Methods: Based on the national project on early diagnosis and early treatment of upper gastrointestinal cancer, 38 participants were enrolled in Linzhou in Henan province in August 2019. The participant information was collected by questionnaire. Saliva and feces specimens were collected from each participant for 16S rRNA sequencing and bioinformatics analysis. Spearman rank correlation was used to analyze the correlation between age and α diversity (Observed ASVs and Shannon index) and relative abundance of microbiota (phyla, genera, and species) in saliva and feces. Results: The median age (age range) of 38 participants was 54 (43-60) years old, and there were 16 males (42.1%). The Observed ASVs of saliva was negatively correlated with age (rs=-0.35, P<0.05), but the observed ASVs of feces was not correlated with age. In saliva, the relative abundance of Treponema (rs=‒0.44, P<0.05), Alloprevotella (rs=‒0.42, P<0.05), and Porphyromonas (rs=‒0.41,P<0.05) were significantly negatively correlated with age. At the species level, the relative abundance of Porphyromonas endodontalis, Alloprevotella tannerae, Haemophilus influenza, Moraxella bovoculi, Prevotella sp.oral clone ID019, and Prevotella sp.oral clone ASCG10 in saliva were significantly negatively correlated with age, and the rs values were -0.50, -0.40, -0.38, -0.35, -0.33 and -0.33 (P<0.05), respectively. In feces, the relative abundance of Enterobacteria (rs=-0.35, P<0.05), Escherichia (rs=-0.33, P<0.05), and Bifidobacteria (rs=0.33, P<0.05) were correlated with age. At the species level, the relative abundance of Romboutsia sedimentorum, Citrobacter murliniae, and bacteroides uniformis in feces were correlated with age, and the rs values were -0.42, -0.37 and 0.36 (P<0.05), respectively. Conclusion: Age of the high-risk population of upper gastrointestinal cancer is correlated with the relative abundance of microbiota in saliva and feces.

[Precision medicine and renal cell carcinoma: current situation and the future].

The prevalence of renal cell carcinoma is increasing in recent years. With the development of research, we know more about the mechanism and biological characteristics of renal cell carcinoma. Currently, the most used prognosis evaluation methods are clinical factors based prognostic prediction models. New drugs, typified by the checkpoint inhibitors, have achieved great success in the treatment of renal cell carcinoma, on the basis of traditional tyrosine kinase inhibitor. With recognition of more prognosis and treatment related biomarkers, directive role for the prognosis prediction and treatment options could be expected.

[Identification of the feature of immune cells infiltration in inherited renal carcinoma with von Hippel-Lindau syndrome].

Objective: To investigate the feature of immune cells infiltration in inherited renal carcinoma with von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome and their relationship with clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis. Methods: The samples were collected from patients with VHL syndrome renal carcinoma who were diagnosed and treated surgically at the Department of Urology, Peking University First Hospital from 2010 to 2019. RNA-Seq was performed on 6 pairs of VHL syndrome renal carcinoma and adjacent normal tissues. To identify the specific infiltrated immune cells, RNA-Seq data was converted into the infiltration data of 14 types of immune cells using the TIP tool. Immunohistochemical staining was used to verify the expression of the markers of these specific infiltrated immune cells in the paraffin sections of 54 paired VHL syndrome renal carcinoma and adjacent normal tissues, and to analyze their relationship with clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis. Results: Compared with adjacent normal tissues, CD4 Naive infiltration level was significantly down-regulated (0.289±0.009 vs 0.200±0.012,P<0.001) and CD4 Memory infiltration level was significantly up-regulated (0.123±0.014 vs 0.222±0.016,P<0.001) in VHL syndrome renal carcinoma. Immunohistochemical staining results showed that CD45RA (a CD4 Naive cell marker) expression was significantly reduced (50.9±1.9 vs 15.6±0.9,P<0.001) and CD45RO (a CD4 Memory cell marker) expression was significantly increased (22.2±1.1 vs 80.8±4.3,P<0.001) in VHL syndrome renal carcinoma. Besides, lower CD45RA expression and higher CD45RO expression were associated with higher histological grade, advanced tumor stage and shorter disease-free survival (all P<0.01). In addition, CD45RA expression was positively correlated with VHL expression (r=0.693 3, P<0.000 1) and CD45RO expression was negatively correlated with VHL expression (r=-0.609 0, P<0.000 1). Conclusions: This study found that CD4 Naive and CD4 Memory cells may be differentially infiltrated immune cells in VHL syndrome renal carcinoma, and their infiltration levels were associated with the expression of VHL and the prognosis of patients.

[Clinicopathological and prognostic characteristics of clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma].

Objective: To analyze the epidemiological, clinicopathological and prognostic characteristics of clear cell papillary renal cell carcinoma (CCPRCC) based on Chinese patient population. Method: Patients with renal cell carcinoma diagnosed at Peking University First Hospital from June 2016 to June 2020 were included in this study based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. All cases were grouped according to CCPRCC, clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), and papillary renal cell carcinoma (pRCC), and the general clinical, postoperative pathological and follow-up data of the patients were retrospectively analyzed. Result: A total of 18 CCPRCC patients were enrolled in this study, accounting for 0.44% (18/4 110) of the postoperative pathologically confirmed renal cell carcinoma cases in our hospital during this time period. The age range of the included patients was 28-86 years old, with a median age of 49.5 years old. There were 11/18 males and 7/18 females. All CCPRCC patients had no family history of renal malignant tumors. Among them, only one patient with CCPRCC had related clinical symptoms, that was intermittent waist and abdomen pain, while the other 17 cases were found by physical examination without any related symptoms. Compared with ccRCC and pRCC, there was no significant difference in their end stage renal disease history(χ2ccRCC=0.291, χ2pRCC=1.161,all P>0.05). The maximum diameter of CCPRCC tumor was smaller than pRCC (χ2=-2.280,P =0.027) but not significantly different from ccRCC (χ2=-0.579,P =0.565). The majority of patients with CCPRCC were in pT1, their pathological stage was earlier than the other two types, and their overall survival was better than ccRCC and pRCC (P<0.05). Conclusion: CCPRCC is a type of renal cell carcinoma with unique epidemiology, clinicopathology and prognostic characteristics. Patients with this subtype have an earlier clinical stage and a better prognosis than ccRCC and pRCC.

[Progress in risk factors and potential biomarkers of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma].

Esophageal cancer is the main malignant cancer in China. In 2015, the incidence and mortality of esophageal cancer were 17.87 per 100 000 and 13.68 per 100 000, respectively, ranking 6th and 4th in the incidence and death. Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is the main pathological type of esophageal cancer, accounting for 86.3% of new cases. ESCC's pathogenesis is still not clear and its related risk factors remain to be explored. There are no detection biomarkers that can be widely applied in the whole country nowadays. In order to provide a scientific basis for exploring the pathogenesis of ESCC and improve screening technology, this paper summarizes the research status of various risk factors and potential biomarkers of ESCC.

Long noncoding RNA SNHG14 promotes breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion via sponging miR-193a-3p.

Since this article has been suspected of research misconduct and the corresponding authors did not respond to our request to prove originality of data and figures, "Long noncoding RNA SNHG14 promotes breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion via sponging miR-193a-3p, by S.-D. Xie, C. Qin, L.-D. Jin, Q.-C. Wang, J. Shen, J.-C. Zhou, Y.-X. Chen, A.-H. Huang, W.-H. Zhao, L.-B. Wang, published in Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2019; 23 (6): 2461-2468. DOI: 10.26355/eurrev_201903_17393. PMID: 30964172" has been withdrawn. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. https://www.europeanreview.org/article/17393.

[Introduction of the Prediction model Risk Of Bias ASsessment Tool: a tool to assess risk of bias and applicability of prediction model studies].

This paper introduceds the tool named as "Prediction model Risk Of Bias ASsessment Tool" (PROBAST) to assess the risk of bias and applicability in prediction model studies and the relevant items and steps of assessment. PROBAST is organized into four domains including participants, predictors, outcome and analysis. These domains contain a total of 20 signaling questions to facilitate structured judgment of risk of bias occurring in study design, conduct or analysis. Through comprehensive judgment, the risk of bias and applicability of original study is categorized as high, low or unclear. PROBAST enables a focused and transparent approach to assessing the risk of bias of studies that develop, validate, or update prediction models for individualized predictions. Although PROBAST was designed for systematic reviews, it can be also used more generally in critical appraisal of prediction model studies.

[Status of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use in areas with a high incidence of upper gastrointestinal cancer in China: a multi-center cross-sectional survey].

Objective: To describe the status of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) use in areas with a high incidence of upper gastrointestinal cancer in China. Methods: This study was based on the National Key Research and Development Program of "National Precision Medicine Cohort of Esophageal Cancer" and "Study on Identification and Prevention of High-risk Populations of Gastrointestinal Malignancies (Esophageal cancer, Gastric cancer and Colorectal cancer)" . From January 2017 to August 2018, 212 villages or communities with a high incidence of esophageal cancer or gastric cancer were selected from 12 regions in 6 provinces. A total of 35 910 residents aged between 40 and 69 years old who met the inclusion criteria and signed the informed consent were investigated and enrolled in this study. The use of NSAIDs, demographic characteristics, health-related habits, height, weight, and blood pressure were collected by the questionnaire and physical examination. The status of main NSAIDs (aspirin, acetaminophen and ibuprofen) use with the difference varying in genders, age groups and regions were analyzed by using χ(2) test and Cochran-Armitage trend analysis method. Results: Of 35 910 subjects, the mean age was (54.6±7.1) years old and males accounted for 43.42% (15 591). The overall prevalence of NSAIDs intake was 4.56% (1 638), but it significantly varied in different provinces (P<0.001). The overall prevalence of NSAIDs intake was 4.87% (1 750) in females, which was significantly higher than that in males 4.24% (1 524) (P<0.001). The prevalence of NSAIDs intake increased with age (P for trend <0.001). As the frequency of NSAIDs intake increased, the incidence of gastrointestinal symptoms, gastrointestinal ulcers and black stools increased (P for trend <0.05 for all). Conclusion: The use of NSAIDs is prevalent in some areas with a high incidence of upper gastrointestinal cancer in China. The increased use of NSAIDs may lead to more adverse effects related to the gastrointestinal tract.

[Dentification and correction of the lead-time bias and length bias in cancer screening studies].

Lead-time bias and length bias were common systematic errors in observational screening studies, which might be a common cause of overstating or distorting the true screening effects. One of key concerns in observational screening studies was how to estimate the screening effects based on the consideration of these two biases. This paper illustrated how to identify and correct the lead-time bias using the tumor volume doubling time and the non-homogeneous Poisson process, and how to correct the length bias using a weighted method. The application conditions of each method were also discussed to present several useful toolboxes to correct the lead-time bias and length bias appropriately and evaluate the effectiveness of the cancer screening program accurately.

Long noncoding RNA SNHG14 promotes breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion via sponging miR-193a-3p.

OBJECTIVE: Breast cancer (BC) is one of the most ordinary fatal cancers. Recent studies have identified the vital role of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the development and progression of BC. In this research, lncRNA SNHG14 was studied to identify how it functioned in the development and metastasis of BC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: SNHG14 expression of tissues was detected by Real Time-quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR) in 50 paired patients with BC. And cell proliferation assay, colony formation assay, and transwell assay were enrolled to observe the biological behavior changes of BC cells through gain or loss of SNHG14. In addition, luciferase assays and RNA immunoprecipitation assay (RIP) were performed to discover the potential targets of SNHG14 in BC cells. RESULTS: SNHG14 expression level of BC samples was higher than that of adjacent ones. Besides, cell growth ability and cell invaded ability of BC cells were inhibited after SNHG14 was silenced, while cell growth ability and cell invaded ability of BC cells were promoted after SNHG14 was overexpressed. In addition, miR-193a-3p was upregulated after silence of SNHG14 in BC cells, while miR-193a-3p was downregulated after overexpression of SNHG14 in BC cells. Furthermore, luciferase assays and RNA immunoprecipitation assay (RIP) showed that miR-193a-3p was a direct target of SNHG14 in BC. CONCLUSIONS: Our study uncovers a new oncogene in BC and suggests that SNHG14 could enhance BC cell proliferation and invasion via sponging miR-193a-3p, which provided a novel therapeutic target for BC patients.

[A brief review on studies of the Chinese Red Army medical aid].

The Chinese Red Army medical aid not only has collected and collated existing data but also has studied related contents.With regard to the collection of data and materials, there were both medical-health thematic data and medical-health data covered by the comprehensive data, reprinted and translated of documentary data.With respect to medical aid research, there were both comprehensive and thematic studies. Among thematic studies, included medical institutions, health teams, methodology, role of health work, medical aid with traditional Chinese Medicine, and the research of Red Army medical staff.Looking forward to the future research, we should focus on literature mining and data expansion, innovation of research perspective, integrated application of multidisciplinary research methods, diversity of research subjects and the "normalization" of research results.

[An analysis of the new "three tubes" method in the treatment of spontaneous esophageal rupture].

To investigate the clinical efficacy, feasibility and safety of new "three tubes" method in the treatment of spontaneous esophageal rupture. A total of 22 patients with spontaneous esophageal rupture were retrospectively analyzed. Through the new "three tubes" method of treatment, patients achieved leak cured with reduced hospital stay, less medical expenses and early resumption of oral diet. The new "three tubes" method for spontaneous esophageal rupture has the advantages of easy handling, minimal invasion, few complication and exact curative effect.

[Clinical application and optimization of HEAD-US quantitative ultrasound assessment scale for hemophilic arthropathy].

Objective: To assess the feasibility of HEAD-US scale in the clinical application of hemophilic arthropathy (HA) and propose an optimized ultrasound scoring system. Methods: From July 2015 to August 2017, 1 035 joints ultrasonographic examinations were performed in 91 patients. Melchiorre, HEAD-US (Hemophilic Early Arthropathy Detection with UltraSound) and HEAD-US-C (HEAD-US in China) scale scores were used respectively to analyze the results. The correlations between three ultrasound scales and Hemophilia Joint Health Scores (HJHS) were evaluated. The sensitivity differences of the above Ultrasonic scoring systems in evaluation of HA were compared. Results: All the 91 patients were male, with median age of 16 (4-55) years old, including 86 cases of hemophilia A and 5 cases hemophilia B. The median (P25, P75) of Melchiorre, HEAD-US and HEAD-US-C scores of 1 035 joints were 2(0,6), 1(0,5) and 2(0,6), respectively, and the correlation coefficients compared with HJHS was 0.747, 0.762 and 0.765 respectively, with statistical significance (P<0.001). The positive rates of Melchiorre, HEAD-US-C and HEAD-US scale score were 63.0% (95%CI 59.7%-65.9%), 59.5% (95%CI 56.5%-62.4%) and 56.6% (95%CI 53.6%-59.6%) respectively, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.001). Even for 336 cases of asymptomatic joints, the positive rates of Melchiorre, HEAD-US-C and HEAD-US scale score were 25.0% (95%CI 20.6%-29.6%), 17.0% (95%CI 12.6%-21.1%) and 11.9% (95%CI 8.4%-15.7%) respectively, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.001). There were significant changes (P<0.05) in the ultrasonographic score of HA before and after onset of hemorrhage in 107 joints of 40 patients. The difference in variation amplitude of HEAD-US-C scores and HEAD-US scores before and after joint bleeding was statistically significant (P<0.001). Conclusion: Compared with Melchiorre, there were similar good correlations between HEAD-US, HEAD-US-C and HJHS. HEAD-US ultrasound scoring system is quick, convenient and simple to use. The optimized HEAD-US-C scale score is more sensitive than HEAD-US, especially for patients with HA who have subclinical state, which make up for insufficiency of sensitivity in HEAD-US scoring system.

Expression of GLUT-1 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma and its clinical significance.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between the expression of glucose transporter-1 (GLUT-1) and the clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sixty-three patients with NPC (the NPC group) and 24 patients with chronic nasopharyngitis (the control group) who were treated between December 2014 and February 2016 were selected for this study. Pathological nasopharyngeal tissues were collected from patients. The expression of GLUT-1 was detected by immunohistochemistry. The expression of GLUT-1 was correlated with clinicopathological features and survival time. RESULTS: The positive GLUT-1 expression rate in the NPC group was 58.73% (37/63), which was significantly higher than in the control group (29.17%, 7/24) (p<0.01). The positive GLUT-1 expression rate was significantly correlated with clinical stage, lymph node metastasis, and Epstein-Barr (EB) virus infection (p<0.05). The 3-year survival rate of GLUT-1-positive NPC patients was 75.00% and was significantly lower than that of GLUT-1-negative NPC patients (88.89%) (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: GLUT-1 was highly expressed in the nasopharyngeal tissues of patients with NPC, and its expression was associated with clinical stage, lymph node metastasis, and EB virus infection.

[Effectiveness of unilateral selective laser trabeculoplasty for primary open angle glaucoma].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effectiveness of unilateral selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) on the both eyes of patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). METHODS: This was a self-controlled clinical study. Thirty-two patients of 32 eyes with OAG who used same anti-glaucoma medications for both eyes were included aat the Department of Ophthalmology Peking University third Hospital from February 2010 to April 2014. SLT was performed for the poorly controlled eye for each patient. Patients were examined before operation and 1 hour, 1 week, 1 month, 3 months and 6 months after operation. The intraocular pressure was examined after 1 hour of SLT. The rest time points were examined by visual acuity, intraocular pressure (IOP), slit lamp microscope, fundus ophthalmoscope and visual field. The paired t test (Bonferroni) was used to compare the IOP at each time point after SLT with the baseline IOP before SLT. Single factor analysis of variance was used to compare the percentage of IOP drop. Linear correlation analysis was used to analyze the amplitude of the decrease of IOP between treated eyes and untreated eyes at 6-month post-operatively and analyze the IOP between preoperative eyes and 6-month post-operative eyes. The magnitude of the decrease of IOP in patients with glaucoma medication and 6 months after surgery was analyzed. We also analyzed the types of antiglaucoma medications and IOP reductions range for 6 month after SLT. RESULTS: The preoperative mean IOP was (18.9±2.5) mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) in the treated eye of patients with OAG. Mean IOP reduction for 1 week, 1, 3, and 6 months after SLT were (1.7±2.9) mmHg, (2.5±2.5) mmHg, (3.5±2.8) mmHg, (3.4±2.5) mmHg and the percentage of IOP reduction were (8±16) %, (13±13) % (18±14) %, (18±12) % respectively (compared with the baseline, P< 0.05) . With the success criteria of IOP reduction ≥3.0 mmHg or ≥20%, the success rate of SLT in the treated eye after 1 week, 1, 3, 6 months was 38%, 52%, 50% and 60% respectively. For the untreated fellow eyes, the preoperative mean IOP was (17.3±2.4) mmHg. Mean IOP reduction for 1 week, 1month, 3 month, and 6 month after SLT were (1.1±2.0) mmHg, (1.0±2.7) mmHg, (2.6±2.2) mmHg and (2.5±2.2) mmHg respectively (compared with the baseline, P<0.05) . There was a positive correlation between preoperative IOP and IOP reduction either in the treated or in the untreated eyes at 6-month post-SLT (R=0.63, P<0.01; R=0.60, P<0.01) . There was a positive correlation in IOP reduction between treated eyes and untreated eyes at 6-month post-operative (R=0.66, P<0.01). All patients didn't need further treatment such as another laser treatment or surgery. Anti-glaucoma medications were remained unchanged after SLT. CONCLUSIONS: In poorly anti-glaucoma medication controlled Chinese POAG eyes with mean IOP about 18.0 mmHg, unilateral STL can reduce the IOP about 18% at 6-month post-operative for the treated eyes. There was also a continuous IOP reduction effects for the fellow eyes.(Chin J Ophthalmol, 2016, 52: 410-415).

Effects of microwave radiation and conductive heating on Tribolium castaneum microstructure.

Microwave radiation and conductive heating were used to completely kill adult Tribolium castaneum (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) in wheat flour to protect the flour during storage without significantly effecting its quality. The microstructure of T. castaneum was analyzed to reveal the mechanisms leading to death under microwave and heat treatments. Microwave radiation and conductive heating had different effects on the microstructure of the cuticle of adult T. castaneum and on the ultrastructure of the cells of the epidermis, fat body, and midgut. Both treatments caused a large cavity to appear in the nucleus and the disappearance of mitochondria and the Golgi apparatus. After microwave treatment, there was little change in the surface microstructure but the epidermis was of uneven thickness and the four outer layers of the cuticle were thinner. Nuclear size was essentially unchanged, but fat body cells were fewer and coalesced together. In contrast, conductive heating led to a disordered arrangement of cells on the surface of T. castaneum and indistinct boundaries between layers of the cuticle. The nuclei were enlarged and the fat body cells noticeably fewer and indistinct with a scattered distribution. Thus, microwave treatment produced less severe effects on the surface microstructure and cellular ultrastructure of T. castaneum than did conductive heating. It is concluded that these cellular and surface changes were responsible for the death of T. castaneum.

A catalogue of molecular, physiological and symbiotic properties of soybean-nodulating rhizobial strains from different soybean cropping areas of China.

We have analysed 198 fast-growing soybean-nodulating rhizobial strains from four different regions of China for the following characteristics: generation time; number of plasmids; lipopolysaccharide (LPS), nodulation factors (LCOs) and PCR profiles; acidification of growth medium; capacity to grow at acid, neutral, and alkaline pH; growth on LC medium; growth at 28 and 37 degrees C; melanin production capacity; Congo red absorption and symbiotic characteristics. These unbiased analyses of a total subset of strains isolated from specific soybean-cropping areas (an approach which could be called "strainomics") can be used to answer various biological questions. We illustrate this by a comparison of the molecular characteristics of five strains with interesting symbiotic properties. From this comparison we conclude, for instance, that differences in the efficiency of nitrogen fixation or competitiveness for nodulation of these strains are not apparently related to differences in Nod factor structure.