Development and characterization of Rift Valley fever virus-like particles.

Rift Valley fever (RVF) is an acute, febrile zoonotic disease that is caused by the RVF virus (RVFV) and spread by arthropod vectors. RVF is currently prevalent in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, and causes substantial economic losses. Furthermore, this disease poses a serious threat to animal and human health in regions worldwide, making it a serious public health concern. However, RVFV vaccines for human use are still unavailable, and hence there is an urgent need for novel efficient vaccines against RVFV. Vaccine preparation techniques have become a crucial factor in developing new vaccines. In the current study, the N and G protein genes of RVFV were inserted into the pFastBacDual baculovirus expression vector downstream of the pP10 and pPH promoters. The resultant recombinant vector, pFastBacDual-S-M, was transfected into Sf9 insect cells by lipofection. The recombinant baculovirus, named rBac-N-G, was retrieved and infected into Sf9 insect cells to generate RVFV virus-like particles (VLPs). Using polyclonal antibodies against RVFV proteins in immunofluorescence and western blot analyses, we positively identified the presence of the RVFV proteins in VLP preparations. Sucrose density gradient centrifugation and transmission electron microscopy revealed that the morphology of the RVFV VLPs was consistent with previous reports of RVFV virions. This study describes a technique for efficient production of RVFV VLPs, and has laid the foundation for future VLP-based RVFV vaccines.

Effect of hyperphosphatemia on gene expression of the Na-Pi cotransporter in rats.

We investigated the effect of high phosphorus content on the sodium-phosphate cotransporter (NaPi-IIa and NaPi-IIl). Forty-eight Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 3 groups: high-phosphorus group (HP) with fructose diphosphate sodium injection; self-manufactured low-phosphorus diet group (LP); and normal diet group (NP). At the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 6th weeks, 4 rats from each group were sacrificed for detecting serum levels of calcium, phosphorus, and intact parathyroid hormone. Semi-quantitative retrovirus-polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the expression of NaPi-IIa and NaPi-III mRNA in kidney. At the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 6th weeks, serum phosphorus and parathyroid hormone levels in HP group were significantly higher than those in LP and NP groups (P < 0.05). Serum calcium levels in the 3 groups showed no difference (P > 0.05). Comparing the expression of NaPi-IIa mRNA in HP group with LP and NP groups, NaPi-IIa mRNA expression was significantly reduced in HP group (P < 0.05), while NaPi-IIa mRNA expression in LP group began increasing at the 4th week (P < 0.05). At the 1st, 2nd, and 4th weeks, the expression of NaPi-III mRNA in HP, LP, and NP groups showed no clear differences (P > 0.05), while at the 6th week in HP group, NaPi-III mRNA expression was slightly increased compared to in LP and NP groups (P < 0.05). Hyperphosphatemia significantly affected NaPi-IIa and NaPi-III mRNA expression, and a factor promote an increase in intact parathyroid hormone independently of calcium.

Establishment and characterization of a rat model of hyperphosphatemia.

We established a rat model of hyperphosphatemia and investigated the systemic effects of high phosphorus (P). Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into high (HP), low (LP), and normal (NP) P groups (N = 12 each), which received injections of fructose diphosphate sodium, or were fed self-manufactured low phosphorus or normal diets, respectively. In each group, 4 rats were sacrificed at the first, third, and sixth week to detect the serum (Scr) and urinary creatinine and P, and calcium (Ca) levels. The HP group's serum P and intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) were significantly higher than those in the other groups at the first, third, and sixth weeks, (P < 0.05); the LP group's serum P was lower than the NP group's at the third week (P < 0.05), while at the sixth week, the serum P and iPTH were lower (P < 0.05). No significant differences were detected for blood Ca+ (P > 0.05). The HP group's Scr increased (P < 0.01), whereas the fractional excretion decreased (P < 0.05) significantly. Thighbone and lumbar spine bone densities differed significantly between groups in the third week (P < 0.05); LP group densities were lower than NP group measures (P < 0.05). Crystallized stones were not observed microscopically following hematoxylin and eosin staining of the kidney. We successfully established a hyperphosphatemia rat model, and high blood P was found to significantly influence renal function and bone density. These results might provide a foundation to study the effects of hyperphosphatemia in rats.

Expression and clinical value of the soluble major histocompatibility complex class I-related chain A molecule in the serum of patients with renal tumors.

We investigated the expression and clinical value of the soluble major histocompatibility complex class I-related chain A (sMICA) molecule in the serum of patients with renal tumors. Sixty patients diagnosed with renal tumors were enrolled in the experimental group, whereas 20 healthy volunteers served as the control group. The sMICA levels were measured via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and the results were analyzed in combination with data from pathol-ogy examination. The experimental group had a statistically significant higher sMICA level (P < 0.05) than the control group. The sMICA level was higher in patients with malignant tumors than in those with be-nign tumors. We also observed a positive relationship among different tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) pathological stages with more advanced diseases exhibiting higher sMICA levels. As a tumor-associated antigen, MICA has a close relationship with renal tumorigenesis and immune es-cape. Our results indicated that sMICA levels were related to tumor pathol-ogy, TNM stage, and metastasis. Therefore, sMICA might be a potential marker for tumor characteristics, prognosis, and recurrence prediction.

[Cutaneous pili migrans]. / Pili migrans (poil migrant cutané).

INTRODUCTION: Cutaneous pili migrans, caused by a hair shaft or fragment embedded in the superficial skin, and occasionally in the middle dermis, is a rare condition characterized by creeping eruption with a black line at the advancing end, which resembles the lesion associated with cutaneous larva migrans. CASE REPORT: We present the case of a 38-year-old Chinese housewife with a 30-day history of painfully and slowly moving black linear eruption on the dorsal aspect of her left foot. The more she walked, the further the line extended and the more pain she felt, particularly on walking rapidly. A black hair shaft was removed from the lesion, which healed completely. DISCUSSION: Pili migrans is an extremely rare condition with only 22 cases being reported to date. The hair shaft penetrates into the superficial layers of the epidermis following injury or occasionally for no known reason. The spectacular clinical picture is similar to that seen in the interdigital spaces of hairdressers in whom there are only small hair fragments on occasion, with no movement of the lesion.

Design and development of an expert system to assist diagnosis and treatment of chronic hepatitis using traditional Chinese medicine.

The treatment of chronic hepatitis with traditional Chinese medicine shows good therapeutic effectiveness in clinical practice. Since the process for the diagnosis in Chinese medicine is quite different from that of modern Western medicine, many physicians of modern medicine cannot practise it readily and effectively. We describe an expert system designed to support physicians who may not be familiar with the domain of traditional Chinese medicine, to treat chronic hepatitis by using Chinese medicine. This system was developed by logic programming language PROLOG, where the knowledge of Chinese medicine is represented in a semantic network structure and the reasoning strategy is based on the hypothesize-and-test approach. This system can guide the user to collect patient information easily, and based on those items of information this leads to the possible diagnosis and treatment for chronic hepatitis using Chinese medicine. The results of this system are compared with 40 patient case records and analysed by a specialist in Chinese medicine.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in seborrheic keratosis.

We studied 89 seborrheic keratoses. In four cases, light microscopy and electron microscopy demonstrated that seborrheic keratoses may be associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.