The complete mitochondrial genome of Paragonimus ohirai (Paragonimidae: Trematoda: Platyhelminthes) and its comparison with P. Westermani congeners and other trematodes

We present the complete mitochondrial genome of Paragonimus ohirai Miyazaki, 1939 and compare its features with those of previously reported mitochondrial genomes of the pathogenic lung-fluke, Paragonimus westermani, and other members of the genus. The circular mitochondrial DNA molecule of the single fully sequenced individual of P. ohirai was 14,818 bp in length, containing 12 protein-coding, two ribosomal RNA and 22 transfer RNA genes. As is common among trematodes, an atp8 gene was absent from the mitogenome of P. ohirai and the 50 end of nad4 overlapped with the 30 end of nad4L by 40 bp. Paragonimusohirai and four forms/strains of P. westermani from South Korea and India, exhibited remarkably different base compositions and hence codon usage in protein-coding genes. In the fully sequenced P. ohirai individual, the non-coding region started with two long identical repeats (292 bp each), separated by tRNAGlu. These were followed by an array of six short tandem repeats (STR), 117 bp each. Numbers of the short tandem repeats varied among P. ohirai individuals. A phylogenetic tree inferred from concatenated mitochondrial protein sequences of 50 strains encompassing 42 species of trematodes belonging to 14 families identified a monophyletic Paragonimidae in the class Trematoda. Characterization of additional mitogenomes in the genus Paragonimus will be useful for biomedical studies and development of molecular tools and mitochondrial markers for diagnostic, identification, hybridization and phylogenetic/epidemiological/evolutionary studies

The ribosomal transcription units of Haplorchis pumilio and H. taichui and the use of 28S rDNA sequences for phylogenetic identification of common heterophyids in Vietnam

Background: Heterophyidiasis is now a major public health threat in many tropical countries. Species in the trematode family Heterophyidae infecting humans include Centrocestus formosanus, Haplorchis pumilio, H. taichui, H. yokogawai, Procerovum varium and Stellantchasmus falcatus. For molecular phylogenetic and systematic studies on trematodes, we need more prospective markers for taxonomic identification and classification. This study provides near-complete ribosomal transcription units (rTU) from Haplorchis pumilio and H. taichui and demonstrates the use of 28S rDNA sequences for identification and phylogenetic analysis. Results: The near-complete ribosomal transcription units (rTU), consisting of 18S, ITS1, 5.8S, ITS2 and 28S rRNA genes and spacers, from H. pumilio and H. taichui from human hosts in Vietnam, were determined and annotated. Sequence analysis revealed tandem repetitive elements in ITS1 in H. pumilio and in ITS2 in H. taichui. A phylogenetic tree inferred from 28S rDNA sequences of 40 trematode strains/species, including 14 Vietnamese heterophyid individuals, clearly confirmed the status of each of the Vietnamese species: Centrocestus formosanus, Haplorchis pumilio, H. taichui, H. yokogawai, Procerovum varium and Stellantchasmus falcatus. However, the family Heterophyidae was clearly not monophyletic, with some genera apparently allied with other families within the superfamily Opisthorchioidea (i. e. Cryptogonimidae and Opisthorchiidae). These families and their constituent genera require substantial re-evaluation using a combination of morphological and molecular data. Our new molecular data will assist in such studies. Conclusions: The 28S rDNA sequences are conserved among individuals within a species but varied between genera. Based on analysis of 40 28S rDNA sequences representing 19 species in the superfamily Opisthorchioidea and an outgroup taxon (Alaria alata, family Diplostomidae), six common human pathogenic heterophyids were identified and clearly resolved. The phylogenetic tree inferred from these sequences again confirmed anomalies in molecular placement of some members of the family Heterophyidae and demonstrates the need for reappraisal of the entire superfamily Opisthorchioidea. The new sequences provided here supplement those already available in public databases and add to the array of molecular tools that can be used for the diagnosis of heterophyid species in human and animal infections

The effect of polyamine 70000 (BT70) on the zinc plating process in the non-cyanide alkaline plating bath

The effect of polyamine having molecular weight 70,000u (BT70) in the non-cyanide alkaline plating bath on the morphological zinc electrodeposited coating was investigated. The obtained results from the reflectance of electrodeposited zinc coating by a suitable range of electro-current density and SEM images showed that BT70 had effect on the zinc plating in comparison with the zinc deposits from plating bath without BT70. The electrodeposited coating surface was rough and poor adhesion. However, adding BT70 into the plating bath led to the surface roughness of electrodeposited coating and grand size being reduced. Zinc electrodeposited coating from a plating bath containing BT70 at 0.5 g/L, respectively, experienced the highest reflectance, equal 46 % of the electrodeposited coating from the bath containing commercial additives. Hull method showed that the zinc deposited coating surface became smoother with the presence of polyamine in non-cyanide alkaline zinc plating solution. The zinc deposited coating had a semi-gloss scope at 10 A/dm2. If the BT70 content increased, the semi-gloss scop and the gloss of samples’ surfaces also grew up. Keywords. Polyamine, additive, non-cyanide alkaline zinc plating, zinc coating

Preimplantation Genetic Testing of Aneuploidy by Next Generation Sequencing: Association of Maternal Age and Chromosomal Abnormalities of Blastocyst

BACKGROUND: Aneuploidy is a major cause of miscarriages and implantation failure. Preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (PGT-A) by Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) is able to detect of the numeral and structural chromosomal abnormalities of embryos in vitro fertilization (IVF). AIM: This study was aimed to assess the relationship between maternal age and chromosomal abnormalities NGS technology. METHODS: 603 human trophectoderm (TE) biopsied samples were tested by Veriseq kit of Illumina. The relation of marternal age and chromosomal abnormality of blastocyst embryo was evaluated. RESULTS: Among the 603 TE samples, 247 samples (42.73%) presented as chromosomal abnormalities. The abnormalities occurred to almost chromosomes, and the most popular aneuploidy observed is 22. Aneuploidy rate from 0.87% in chromosome 11 to 6.06% in chromosome 22. The rate of abnormal chromosome increased dramatically in group of mother's ages over 37 (54.17%) comparing to group of mother's ages less than 37 (38.05%) (p < 0.000). The Abnormal chromosome and maternal age has a positive correlation with r = 0.4783 (p<0.0001). CONCLUSION: These results showed high rate abnormal chromosome and correlated with advanced maternal age of blastocyst embryos

Purification and characterization of novel fibrinolytic proteases as potential antithrombotic agents from earthworm Perionyx excavatus

Six protease fractions, namely FI, FII, FIII-1, FIII-2, FIII-3 and FIV, were isolated from Perionyx excavatus earthworm biomass by acetone precipitation, followed by serial chromatography using anion exchange, hydrophobic interaction and size exclusion chromatography. All fractions exhibited strong hydrolytic activity towards casein. The activity of six fractions towards fibrin, determined by fibrin plate assay, ranged from 44 to 831 plasmin unit.mg-1 and ranked as FIII-3 > FIII-2 > FI > FIII-1 > FIV > FII. Casein degradation was optimal at pH 7 and 11, and at 45-60°C. All fractions were considerably stable at high temperature and wide pH range. They were completely inhibited by phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF). The molecular weights (MW) and isoelectric points (pI) determined by 2D-electrophoresis were 27.5-34.5 kDa, and 4.3-5.2, respectively. Tandem mass spectrometry (MS) analysis was used to deduce the amino acid sequences of some peptides from FIII-1 and FIII-2. The sequences shared 16.9% and 13.2% similarity, respectively, with the fibrinolytic enzymes from two related earthworm species, Lumbricus rubellus and Eisenia fetida. The P. excavatus proteases were classified as serine proteases. They could perform rapid hydrolysis on both coagulated fibrous fibrin and soluble fibrinogen monomers without the presence of activators such as tPA or urokinase

A Measure of Smoothness in Synthesized Speech

The articulators typically move smoothly during speech production. Therefore, speech features of natural speech are generally smooth. However, over-smoothness causes "muffleness" and, hence, reduction in ability to identify emotions/expressions/styles in synthesized speech that can affect the perception of naturalness in synthesized speech. In the literature, statistical variances of static spectral features have been used as a measure of smoothness in synthesized speech but they are not sufficient enough. This paper proposes another measure of smoothness that can be efficiently applied to evaluate the smoothness of synthesized speech. Experiments showed that the proposed measure is reliable and efficient to measure the smoothness of different kinds of synthesized speech

Optimization of the leaching process of the printed circuit boards production’s sludge for copper recovery via electrolysis

Copper is the main component of printed circuit boards (PCBs) which is the main part of an electronic device. The manufacture of PCBs often releases huge amount of sludge which contained copper. Derived from the demand of the industrial park about the wasted sludge treatment and the reducing of the plantation of natural mineral resources, the copper recovery process from PCBs manufacture's wasted sludge was studied. The process of copper leaching by sulfuric acid solution was studied using experimental planning methods using the simulation software Modde 5.0. The parameters were calculated and simulated to evaluate the effect of the acid concentration, leaching time, and the ratio between the solid and liquid phases on the leaching efficiency. The obtained results by simulation were compared with real experimental results. The obtained results from this study are planning in the actual deployment of the Hanoi Urban Environment One Member Limited Company in Vietnam. Keywords. Printed circuit board, copper sludge, leaching

Adsorption of ciprofloxacin using composite Film from PVA, agarose and maltodextrin

Rintangan antibiotik ialah salah satu masalah yang paling membimbangkan hari ini. Oleh itu, membran komposit telah digunakan secara meluas untuk penyingkiran antibiotik daripada air. Filem PVA/Agarosa/Maltodekstrin telah disintesis dengan tuangan dengan pelbagai nisbah komponen. Ia dinilai untuk ciri melalui kelembapan, keterlarutan, pengembangan dan keputusan BET. Keputusan menunjukkan bahawa filem PVA/Agarosa/Maltodekstrin mempamerkan daya maju terbaik dalam persekitaran akuatik melalui keterlarutan rendah (68.88% ± 0.03), bengkak tinggi (431.77% ± 5.89) dan isi padu liang (0.034969 cm³/g). Kapasiti penjerapan PVA/Agarosa/Maltodekstrin telah diuji untuk beberapa antibiotik seperti Ciprofloksacin, Tetracycline, Oxy-Tetracycline dan Chloramphenicol. Keputusan menunjukkan bahawa Ciprofloksacin telah dikeluarkan oleh filem PVA/Agarosa/Maltodekstrin lebih baik daripada antibiotik lain. Penjerapan antibiotik tertinggi diperoleh pada 20 minit, suhu 30 °C, dos 2 g/L, pH 6 dan kepekatan antibiotik 40 mg/L. Penjerapan Ciprofloksacin telah diramalkan melalui model kinetik dan isoterma penjerapan. Keserasian kinetik Pseudo First Order dan isoterma Dubinin-Radushkevich telah menunjukkan bahawa penjerapan berlaku mengikut mekanisme penjerapan fizikal dengan interaksi elektrostatik pada permukaan bahan. Kapasiti penjerapan maksimum direkodkan pada 4.48 mg/g berdasarkan isoterma Dubinin-Radushkevich