HLA-Cw6 increases the risk of psoriasis and early onset before twenty-seven years of age among the Vietnamese population.

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that affects people all over the world. It is linked to the HLA-Cw6 allele, which is more common in Caucasians than in Asians and varies across ethnic groups. We investigated the association between the disease severity and the onset age of HLA-Cw6 prevalence in Vietnamese psoriasis patients. In 121 psoriasis patients and 30 healthy controls, we looked at the relationship between HLA-Cw6 and clinical features. We found that patients with psoriasis had significantly higher levels of HLA-Cw6 (64.5%) than controls (26.7%) (p=0.0001), with an odds ratio of 4.98 (2.04-12.15). Positive HLA-Cw6 patients had a significantly lower mean age of psoriasis onset than negative HLA-Cw6 patients. Patients with mild psoriasis (100%) were more likely to have the AA genotype, while patients with moderate to severe psoriasis (47.2% and 59.0%, respectively) and those with high PASI scores (55.1% and 54.1%, respectively) were more likely to have the TA genotype. Thus, HLA-Cw6 is a major genetic risk factor for psoriasis in Vietnamese patients, especially early-onset cases. Variations in HLA-Cw6 genotypes also affect disease severity.

Comorbidity Burden and Treatment Patterns of Psoriasis in Vietnam: Real-World Data from the EXPAND Study.

INTRODUCTION: Psoriasis is a multi-faceted, immune-mediated inflammatory disease associated with a wide range of comorbidities. Real-world data on treatment patterns, comorbidities, and economic burden in patients with psoriasis are needed for comprehensive patient care in Vietnam. METHODS: A retrospective chart review study was conducted using secondary data extracted from patients' medical records of two hospitals in Vietnam, with the aim of identifying adult patients with a confirmed diagnosis of psoriasis. The index date was defined as the date of first diagnosis between 1 January 2020 and 31 October 2021. Sociodemographic factors, disease characteristics, comorbidities, medication usage, drug survival, and medication costs were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 661 patients were identified (mean ± standard deviation [SD] age 43.5 ± 14.8 years). The most prevalent comorbidity was dyslipidemia (49.6% of patients), followed by hypertension (23.4%), and psoriatic arthritis (10.4%). In total, 44% of patients received biologic therapies. Overall, 66.7% and 54.3% of patients receiving biologic and non-biologic therapies, respectively, had ≥ 1 comorbidity. Only 23.2% of patients with psoriasis-related comorbidities stopped therapy with biologics. Biologics had a longer retention time (17.0 months) than non-biologics (6.0 months) in patients with comorbidities. Patients with comorbidities had significantly higher total annual healthcare costs than those without comorbidities (in US dollars: USD901 vs. USD304; p < 0.001), mainly due to the relatively higher costs associated with the use of biologics. CONCLUSION: Patients with psoriasis in Vietnam experience a high disease and economic burden due to comorbidities. Evidence from this real-world study supports the need for routine monitoring of and an appropriate treatment course for psoriasis-related comorbidities.

Outbreak of Sexually Transmitted Nongroupable Neisseria meningitidis-Associated Urethritis, Vietnam.

We report on an outbreak of nongroupable Neisseria meningitidis-associated urethritis, primarily among men who have sex with men in southern Vietnam. Nearly 50% of N. meningitidis isolates were resistant to ciprofloxacin. This emerging pathogen should be considered in the differential diagnosis and management of urethritis.

Long-Term Effectiveness and Drug Survival of Secukinumab in Vietnamese Patients with Psoriasis: Results from a Retrospective ENHANCE Study.

INTRODUCTION: Psoriasis (PsO), an immune-mediated inflammatory skin disorder, has substantial negative impact on patients' quality of life. Secukinumab, an approved treatment for moderate-to-severe plaque PsO, has an established long-term efficacy and safety profile. This study aims to provide real-world evidence of long-term effectiveness and retention rate of secukinumab in Vietnamese patients with PsO. METHODS: This retrospective, observational study collected medical records of adult patients with moderate-to-severe PsO receiving secukinumab treatment from Ho Chi Minh City Hospital of Dermato-Venereology. The primary objective was to evaluate secukinumab effectiveness in PsO as measured by 75% improvement in psoriasis area and severity index (PASI 75) at month 12. Secondary objectives were PASI 90/100, absolute PASI ≤ 3 and ≤ 5, Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), and retention rate over 48 months. RESULTS: In total, 232 patients with moderate-to-severe PsO met inclusion criteria; 68.1% were male, with median age and age of onset of 39 and 27.5 years, respectively. Median time from onset of PsO to secukinumab treatment was 120 months, 95.3% were prior biologics/disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs naive and 41.4% received concomitant therapies for PsO; 82.3% had national insurance coverage. At month 12, 93.9% of patients achieved PASI 75 (primary endpoint); 80.2/56.9% achieved PASI 90/100; 91.4 and 84.8% patients achieved absolute PASI ≤ 5 and ≤ 3, respectively. The response was sustained over 48 months, with 91.9%/78.0%/52.0% of patients achieving PASI 75/90/100, 89.5% and 82.1% patients achieving absolute PASI ≤ 5 and ≤ 3, respectively. At month 12, 61.4% of patients achieved DLQI 0/1 which was sustained up to month 48 (69.2%). Secukinumab adherence rate of 84.9% at month 12 dropped to 34.2% at month 48. Patients receiving concomitant therapy and national insurance showed higher adherence rate. CONCLUSION: Secukinumab demonstrated long-term effectiveness in real-world Vietnamese patients with moderate-to-severe PsO, with treatment adherence being higher in patients having concomitant therapies and national insurance.

New onset of psoriasis following COVID-19 vaccination.

The cutaneous side effects of COVID-19 vaccines are being studied and their immunogenicity is most likely linked to the pathophysiology of psoriasis. Although uncommon, several cases of exacerbation and new onset of psoriasis have been reported globally after vaccination. To contribute to the literature on this intriguing topic, we present three cases of de novo psoriasis in adult patients following COVID-19 vaccination. Our observations and a literature review show that this occurrence is independent of the type and brand of vaccines.

Generalized erythrodermic psoriasis triggered by vaccination against severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2.

Generalized erythrodermic psoriasis (GEP) is a rare and potentially life-threatening variant of psoriasis. Possible triggers that have been identified to date include poorly controlled psoriasis, medications, abrupt discontinuation of anti-psoriatic treatment, and underlying systemic illnesses. However, vaccines have rarely been reported to exacerbate GEP. Herein, we report two unique cases with GEP exacerbated following a dose of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine for COVID-19 (as their second dose, the first being the mRNA-1273 vaccine). Based on our observations and a literature review, vaccination was considered the most likely trigger of GEP due to the close temporal relationship between the second vaccination and the onset of GEP.

Three new species of the genus Miridiba Reitter, 1902 (Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) from Vietnam along with a new country record.

Three new species of the genus Miridiba Reitter, 1902 from Vietnam are described and illustrated: Miridiba apicespinosa P.V. Pham & Keith, new species, M. ngoclinhensis P.V. Pham & Keith, new species, and M. quangnamensis P.V. Pham & Keith, new species. Miridiba bannaensis Gao & Fang, 2018 is reported for the first time from Vietnam. Additionally, an updated checklist and a key to all Vietnamese species are provided.

Notes on the genus Netelia, subgenus Parabates (Ichneumonidae, Tryphoninae), with description of a new species from Oriental Region.

The characters that define the subgenus Parabates of the genus Netelia are investigated. The shape of the basal apodeme of the aedeagus is considered to be a synapomorphy of this subgenus, suggesting the monophyly of Parabates. A new species, Netelia (Parabates) fusciapicalis n. sp. belonging to the ishiharai group is described from Taiwan, Vietnam and Laos. This is the sixth extant species of the subgenus, the first record of the genus Netelia from Vietnam and Laos, and the first record of the subgenus Parabates from Taiwan.

Dicamptus Szépligeti (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Ophioninae) from Vietnam.

A new species of Darwin wasp of the genus Dicamptus Szépligeti (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Ophioninae), D. curvus Pham, Matsumoto Shimizu sp. nov., is described on the basis of type specimen from Lai Chau Province, northwest Vietnam. The new species probably belongs to the giganteus species group and is easily distinguishable from the other species of the group by the smaller indices of fore wing AI and CI as well as the form of sclerites. Two species, D. cantoni Gauld Mitchell and D. reticulatus (Cameron), are recorded for the first time from Vietnam; and additional distribution records for D. nigropictus (Matsumura) in Vietnam are provided. Through the present study, a total of four Dicamptus species have been recognized in Vietnam and illustrated.

A review of the genus Apophysius Cushman (Ichneumonidae: Phygadeuontinae), with descriptions of six new species.

The phygadeuontine genus Apophysius (Ichneumonidae) is reviewed for the first time. Six new species are described, A. baolocensis Pham, Matsumoto Broad sp. nov., A. constrictus Pham, Matsumoto Broad sp. nov. and A. taynguyenensis Pham, Matsumoto Broad sp. nov. from the Central Highlands of Vietnam, A. latus Pham, Matsumoto, Konishi, Sheng Broad sp. nov. from China and Vietnam, A. takasukai Pham, Konishi Broad sp. nov. from the Cameron Highlands, Malaysia, and A. pentaceratops Broad sp. nov. from Sarawak, Malaysia. A key to the nine known species of the genus Apophysius is included.

First records of the genus Spilopteron Townes (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Acaenitinae) from Vietnam, with descriptions of five new species.

The genus Spilopteron Townes, 1960 (Ichneumonidae: Acaenitinae) is reported for the first time from Vietnam. Five of the seven reported species are described as new, comprising: S. brunneum sp. nov., S. lamdongensis sp. nov., S. nigromaculatum sp. nov., S. tamdaoensis sp. nov., and S. tumidium sp. nov. In addition, two further species, S. flaviapicus Wang Huang, 1993, and S. fuscomaculatum Wang, 1988, are recorded for the first time from the country.

Taxonomic study of the genus Townesia Ozols (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Pimplinae) with description of a new species from China and a key to world species.

Five species of the genus Townesia Ozols are reported. One, Townesia sulcata Sheng & Li, sp. nov. collected from Liaoning province, China, is new to science. In addition, digital images and a taxonomic key to the all species of Townesia are presented.

Two new species of the genus Ishigakia (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae, Acaenitinae) from Vietnam based on morphological and molecular evidence.

The genus Ishigakia is reported from Vietnam for the first time, and two new species (I. babeensis sp. nov. and I. duongi sp. nov.) are described from Northeast Vietnam using morphological and genetic data. These new species are also inserted in the key to world species of Ishigakia provided by Ito Maeto (2016).

A review of the genus Triancyra Baltazar (Ichneumonidae: Rhyssinae) from Vietnam, with descriptions of three new species.

The genus Triancyra Baltazar, 1961 and two species, viz. Triancyra aurea Wang Hu, 1992 and Triancyra graptothoracalis Wang Huang, 1992, are reported for the first time from Vietnam. In addition, three species are described as new: Triancyra acuta sp. nov., and Triancyra mystaxa sp. nov. from Dak Lak Province in Central Highlands, and Triancyra cucphuongensis sp. nov. from Ninh Binh Province in northern Vietnam. A key for all five Vietnamese Triancyra is also compiled.

Differential Antioxidant Responses and Perturbed Porphyrin Biosynthesis after Exposure to Oxyfluorfen and Methyl Viologen in Oryza sativa.

We compared antioxidant responses and regulation of porphyrin metabolism in rice plants treated with oxyfluorfen (OF) or methyl viologen (MV). Plants treated with MV exhibited not only greater increases in conductivity and malondialdehyde but also a greater decline in Fv/Fm, compared to plants treated with OF. MV-treated plants had greater increases in activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) as well as transcript levels of SODA and CATA than OF-treated plants after 28 h of the treatments, whereas increases in ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activity and transcript levels of APXA and APXB were greater in OF-treated plants. Both OF- and MV-treated plants resulted in not only down-regulation of most genes involved in porphyrin biosynthesis but also disappearance of Mg-porphyrins during the late stage of photooxidative stress. By contrast, up-regulation of heme oxygenase 2 (HO2) is possibly part of an efficient antioxidant response to compensate photooxidative damage in both treatments. Our data show that down-regulated biosynthesis and degradation dynamics of porphyrin intermediates have important roles in photoprotection of plants from perturbed porphyrin biosynthesis and photosynthetic electron transport. This study suggests that porphyrin scavenging as well as strong antioxidative activities are required for mitigating reactive oxygen species (ROS) production under photooxidative stress caused by OF and MV.

A review of the genus Phalgea Cameron (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Acaenitinae) with description of a new species from Vietnam.

In this paper, the genus Phalgea is reviewed. A new species, Phalgea maculata sp. nov., is described and illustrated  from Vietnam. In addition, P. melaptera Wang 1989 is recorded as new for the country. It is the first time the subfamily Acaenitinae is reported from Vietnam.

First record of the genus Zaglyptus Förster (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Pimplinae) from Vietnam, with description of one new species.

The ichneumonid wasp genus Zaglyptus Förster, 1868 is reported for the first time from Vietnam, with three species found in the country. One new species, Zaglyptus guptai sp. nov., is described based on material collected in Chu Yang Sin NP, Dak Lak Province. Two other species, Z. glaber Gupta and Z. nigrolineatus, Gupta are recorded as new for the country. In addition, the subspecies Z glaber singaporensis Gupta is synonymised with the nominate subspecies.