Data Resource: Vascular Risk in Adult New Zealanders (VARIANZ) datasets.

INTRODUCTION: The Vascular Risk in Adult New Zealanders (VARIANZ) datasets contain a range of routinely-collected New Zealand health data relevant to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and related conditions. The datasets enable exploration of cardiovascular-related treatment, service utilisation, outcomes and prognosis. PROCESSES: Each dataset is constructed by anonymised individual-level linkage of eight national administrative health databases to identify all New Zealand adults aged ≥20 years who have recorded contact with publicly-funded New Zealand health services during a given year from 2006 onwards, when data quality is considered sufficient. DATA CONTENTS: Individual-level data for each VARIANZ dataset can include variables covering demography, dispensing of cardiovascular disease (CVD) preventive medications and prior hospitalisations for atherosclerotic CVD, heart failure, atrial fibrillation and diabetes. If required, VARIANZ datasets can be individually linked to follow-up national routinely collected health data in subsequent years, including all-cause mortality events and fatal/non-fatal CVD events, to create VARIANZ longitudinal cohorts. Bespoke linkage can also be undertaken to include other national and regional administrative health data such as non-CVD related hospitalisations in order to explore CVD comorbidities or novel risk factors. Furthermore, a subset of the VARIANZ datasets based on specific health contacts (such as CVD hospitalisations only) can also be identified, and some data can be requested for years prior to 2006. The New Zealand routinely-collected health databases used to construct the VARIANZ datasets do not capture primary care diagnostic classifications or certain CVD risk factor data such as smoking status, blood pressure or lipid profiles. CONCLUSION: The Vascular Risk in Adult New Zealanders (VARIANZ) datasets capture the majority of the New Zealand population in a given year and are available from 2006 onwards, or earlier than 2006 for some datasets based on specific health contacts. VARIANZ data can be used to explore a range of research questions regarding management, outcomes and prognosis for CVD.

[Analysis on epidemiology and spatial-temporal clustering of human brucellosis in Fujian province, 2011-2016].

Objective: To analyze the epidemiological characteristics and spatial distribution of human brucellosis in Fujian province during 2011-2016, and provide evidence for the prevention and control of the disease. Methods: The surveillance data of human brucellosis in Fujian during 2011-2016 was analyzed with software R 3.3.1, ArcGIS 10.3.1, GeoDa 1.8.8 and SaTScan 9.4.3. Results: During 2011-2016, a total of 319 human brucellosis cases were reported, the incidence increased year by year (F=11.838, P=0.026) with the annual incidence of 0.14/100 000. The male to female rate ratio of the incidence was 2.50 ∶ 1. Farmers and herdsmen accounted for 57.37%. The incidence was 0.40/100 000 in Zhangzhou and 0.32/100 000 in Nanping, which were higher than other areas. The number of affected counties (district) increased from 12 in 2011 to 28 in 2016, showing a significant increase (F=13.447, P=0.021). The Moran's I of brucellosis in Fujian between January 2011 and December 2016 was 0.045, indicating the presence of a high value or low value clustering areas. Local spatial autocorrelation analysis showed that, high-high clustering area (hot spots) were distributed in Zhangpu, Longhai, Longwen, etc, while high-low clustering areas were distributed in Nan'an and Jiaocheng, etc. Temporal scanning showed that there were three clustering areas in areas with high incidence, the most possible clustering, occurring during January 1, 2013- December 31,2015, covered 6 counties, including Yunxiao, Pinghe, Longhai, etc, and Zhangpu was the center, (RR=7.96, LLR=92.62, P<0.001). Conclusions: The epidemic of human brucellosis in Fujian is becoming serious, and has spread to general population and non-epidemic areas. It is necessary to strengthen the prevention and control of human brucellosis in areas at high risk.

Funnel compression suture: a conservative procedure to control postpartum bleeding from the lower uterine segment.

Bleeding from the lower uterine segment (LUS) during caesarean section remains a life-threatening obstetric problem, particularly in women with placenta praevia or partial placenta accreta in the LUS. Various conservative measures for the surgical treatment of postpartum haemorrhage have been studied for decades. In this paper we describe a funnel compression suture to staunch intractable bleeding from LUS for placenta praevia accreta. The suture brings the anterior and posterior walls of the LUS together using absorbable thread and was successful in the overwhelming majority of women. It is an easy, safe and effective conservative surgical treatment to stop severe bleeding of the LUS.

Long-wavelength emission InAs quantum dots grown on InGaAs metamorphic buffers.

In this work, InAs quantum dots (QDs) grown on a linear graded InGaAs metamorphic buffer layer by molecular beam epitaxy have been investigated. The growth of the metamorphic buffer layers was carefully optimized, yielding a smooth surface with a minimum root mean square of roughness of less than 0.98 nm as measured by atomic force microscopy (AFM). InAs QDs were then grown on the buffer layers, and their emission wavelength at room-temperature is 1.49 microm as measured by photoluminescence (PL). The effects of post-growth rapid thermal annealing (RTA) on the optical properties of the InAs QDs were investigated. After the RTA, the PL peak of the QDs was blue-shifted and the full width at half maximum decreased.

Isolation and molecular characterization of a porcine teschovirus 1 isolate from China.

Porcine teschovirus 1 (PTV-1) (Swine/CH/IMH/03) was isolated from piglets in a farm in Inner Mongolia Province, P.R. China. It was confirmed by electron microscopy, RT-PCR, and sequencing. Comparison of the sequences of the amino acid and nucleotides and phylogenetic analysis of the polyprotein showed that PTV Swine/CH/IMH/03 strain is PTV-1. The isolated virus has closest relationship with Talfan strain, they shared 98.9% and 99.5% homology of amino acids and nucleotides, respectively, in the ORF of polyprotein. To our knowledge, this is the first report about isolation and identification of a PTV in China.

Construction and selection of the natural immune Fab antibody phage display library from patients with colorectal cancer.

AIM: To construct the natural immune Fab antibody phage display libraries of colorectal cancer and to select antibodies related with colorectal cancer. METHODS: Extract total RNA from tissue of local cancer metastasis lymph nodes of patients with colorectal cancer. RT-PCR was used to amplify the heavy chain Fd and light chain kappa and the amplification products were inserted successively into the vector pComb3 to construct the human libraries of Fab antibodies. They were then panned by phage display technology. By means of Dot immunoblotting and ELISA, the libraries were identified and the Fab phage antibodies binding with antigens of colorectal cancer were selected. RESULTS: The amplified fragments of Fd and kappa gained by RT-PCR were about 650 bp. Fd and kappa PCR products were subsequently inserted into the vector pComb3, resulting in a recombination rate of 40% and the volume of Fab phage display library reached 1.48 x 10(6). The libraries were enriched about 120-fold by 3 cycles of adsorption-elution-multiplication (panning). Dot immunoblotting showed Fab expressions on the phage libraries and ELISA showed 5 clones of Fab phage antibodies which had binding activities with antigens of colorectal cancer. CONCLUSION: The natural immune Fab antibody phage display libraries of colorectal cancer were constructed. They could be used to select the relative antibodies of colorectal cancer.