Study of Effector CD8+ T Cell Interactions with Cortical Neurons in Response to Inflammation in Mouse Brain Slices and Neuronal Cultures

Cytotoxic CD8+ T cells contribute to neuronal damage in inflammatory and degenerative CNS disorders, such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The mechanism of cortical damage associated with CD8+ T cells is not well understood. We developed in vitro cell culture and ex vivo brain slice co-culture models of brain inflammation to study CD8+ T cell–neuron interactions. To induce inflammation, we applied T cell conditioned media, which contains a variety of cytokines, during CD8+ T cell polyclonal activation. Release of IFNγ and TNFα from co-cultures was verified by ELISA, confirming an inflammatory response. We also visualized the physical interactions between CD8+ T cells and cortical neurons using live-cell confocal imaging. The imaging revealed that T cells reduced their migration velocity and changed their migratory patterns under inflammatory conditions. CD8+ T cells increased their dwell time at neuronal soma and dendrites in response to added cytokines. These changes were seen in both the in vitro and ex vivo models. The results confirm that these in vitro and ex vivo models provide promising platforms for the study of the molecular details of neuron–immune cell interactions under inflammatory conditions, which allow high-resolution live microscopy and are readily amenable to experimental manipulation

Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography—A Promising Imaging Modality in Diagnosing Coronary Artery Disease

BackgroundTraditionally, information on coronary artery lesions is obtained from invasive coronary angiography (CAG). The clinical applicability and diagnostic performance of the newly developed 64-slice multislice computed tomography (MSCT) scanner in coronary angiographic evaluation is not well evaluated.MethodsCoronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) was performed in 345 patients (119 women, 226 men; mean age, 59.64 ±11.67 years). Concomitant CAG was performed in 53 patients. The diagnostic performance of CCTA for detecting significant lesions was compared with that of CAG by 3 independent cardiologists.ResultsAll CCTA was performed without complication. Comparison between CCTA and CAG was made in the 53 patients who underwent both studies. Sensitivity, specificity and the positive and negative predictive values for the 53 patients were: 81%, 99%, 87% and 99%, respectively.ConclusionThe 64-slice MSCT, developed in recent years, allows reliable noninvasive evaluation of coronary artery morphology, including plaque, stenosis and congenital anomaly. The diagnostic accuracy of MSCT scans for detecting lesions makes it a good imaging substitute for CAG in the evaluation of these coronary segments. [J Chin Med Assoc 2008;71(5):241–246

Pseudomonas aeruginosa sepsis with ecthyma gangrenosum and pseudomembranous pharyngolaryngitis in a 5-month-old boy

Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection that induced pseudomembranous laryngopharyngitis and ecthyma gangrenosum simultaneously in a healthy infant is rare. We reported on a previously healthy 5-month-old boy with initial presentation of fever and diarrhea followed by stridor and progressive respiratory distress. P. aeruginosa sepsis was suspected because ecthyma gangrenosum over the right leg was found at the emergency department, and the diagnosis was confirmed by the blood culture. Fiberscope revealed bacterial pharyngolaryngitis without involvement of the trachea. Because of early recognition and adequate treatment, including antimicrobial therapy, noninvasive ventilation, incision, and drainage, he recovered completely without any complications

Optimal Truck Dispatching For Construction Waste Conveyance

Abstract—Waste from the construction industry has to be conveyed to and disposed at specific waste-treatment plants. Decision makers, who work in environmental protection companies, usually schedule and dispatch the trucks used for conveying construction waste to plants manually, which is neither efficient nor effective. In practice, there are space and capacity limitations in every construction site and waste-treatment plant, meaning that the amount of the construction waste for transporting and disposing at a specific time and position is restricted. Moreover, when the number of trucks is insufficient, the responsible environmental protection companies could also hire vehicles from car rental companies. Given these considerations, coupled with the related operational constraints and objective of construction waste conveyance in practice, in this study we employ a time-space network flow technique to develop an optimal scheduling model that can assist decision makers in dispatching both their own and rented trucks for conveying construction waste efficiently. The model is formulated as an integer network flow problem with side constraints. Finally, a case study using the real data from an environmental protection company in Taiwan is performed and the results indicate that the model could be useful for dispatching trucks efficiently and thus decreasing the conveyance cost

Antimicrobial Susceptibility and Multiplex PCR Screening of AmpC Genes From Isolates of Enterobacter cloacae, Citrobacter freundii, and Serratia marcescens

Background/PurposeThe emergence of multiple drug resistance in Enterobacteriaceae is of particular concern. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility and screen for the ampC gene in three members of the Enterobacteriaceae family (Enterobacter cloacae, Citrobacter freundii, and Serratia marcescens) found at Taichung Veterans General Hospital during the past 5 years using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR).MethodsThe susceptibility of thirty isolates from each of the three Enterobacteriaceae family members to five antimicrobial agents (ceftazidime, flomoxef, imipenem, moxifloxacin, and colistin) was assessed. The susceptibility was analyzed by disk diffusion, screening and confirmatory tests for extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBL) and minimum inhibitory concentration tests according to the recommendations of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. The detection of ampC genes (3 families, including DHA, EBC and CIT) was performed by multiplex PCR. To detect the coexistence of ESBL genes, PCR was performed using five primer pairs: TEM, SHV, SHV-5, CTX-M-3, and CTX-M-14.ResultsOf the 90 isolates, 53 (58.9%) were positive in the screening test for ESBL. Resistance genes were detected in 12 (22.6%) of these isolates: ampC gene of DHA type in one E. cloacae isolate and EBC type in three E. cloacae isolates; ampC gene of CIT type in four C. freundii isolates; CTX-M-3-like in one C. freundii isolate and one S. marcescens isolate; TEM in three E. cloacae isolates, three C. freundii isolates and two S. marcescens isolates; SHV in one C. freundii isolate.ConclusionAntibiotic phenotypes cannot accurately distinguish the resistance mechanisms caused by ampC or ESBL, and especially in ESBL-ampC combinations. However, PCR is a useful technique for the identification of the different types of resistance genes

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Nasal Colonization among Adult Patients Visiting Emergency Department in a Medical Center in Taiwan

Within the past 10 years, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has not only been a hospital pathogen but also a community pathogen. To understand the carriage rate of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among the adult patients visiting emergency department (ED), we conducted this study.From May 21 to August 12, 2009, a total of 502 adult patients visiting emergency department (ED) of a tertiary care hospital in northern Taiwan were recruited in this study and surveyed for nasal carriage of MRSA. A questionnaire regarding the risk factors for MRSA acquisition was also obtained. The overall prevalence of MRSA nasal carriage among the patients was 3.8%. The carriage rate was significantly higher in patients with risk factors for MRSA acquisition (5.94%) than those without risk factors (2.12%). Patients with urinary complaints, diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease and current percutaneous tube usage were significantly associated with MRSA colonization. By multiple logistic regression analysis, only current usage of catheters or tubes was the independent predictor for MRSA nasal colonization. Of the 19 MRSA, most isolates belonged to one of two linages, characterized as sequence type (ST) 239 (32%) and ST 59 (58%). The latter linage, accounting for 83% of 6 isolates from patients without risk factors, is a community-associated (CA) clone in Taiwan, while the former linage is among healthcare-associated clones.A substantial proportion of patients visiting ED, particularly with current usage of percutaneous catheter or tubes, in northern Taiwan carried MRSA, mostly community strains, in nares

Enhanced acoustic mode coupling resulting from an internal solitary wave approaching the shelfbreak in the South China Sea

Author Posting. © Acoustical Society of America, 2013. This article is posted here by permission of Acoustical Society of America for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 133 (2013): 1306-1319, doi:10.1121/1.4789358.Internal waves and bathymetric variation create time- and space-dependent alterations in the ocean acoustic waveguide, and cause subsequent coupling of acoustic energy between propagating normal modes. In this paper, the criterion for adiabatic invariance is extended to the case of an internal solitary wave (ISW) encountering a sloping bathymetry (i.e., continental shelfbreak). Predictions based on the extended criterion for adiabatic invariance are compared to experimental observations from the Asian Seas International Acoustics Experiment. Using a mode 1 starter field, results demonstrate time-dependent coupling of mode 1 energy to higher adjacent modes, followed by abrupt coupling of mode 5–7 energy to nonadjacent modes 8–20, produces enhanced mode coupling and higher received levels downrange of the oceanographic and bathymetric features. Numerical simulations demonstrate that increasing ISW amplitude and seafloor slope enhance the coupling of energy to adjacent and nonadjacent modes. This enhanced coupling is the direct result of the simultaneous influence of the ISW and its proximity to the shelfbreak, and, compared to the individual effect of the ISW or shelfbreak, has the capacity to scatter 2–4 times the amount of acoustic energy from below the thermocline into the upper water column beyond the shelfbreak in realistic environments.The ASIAEX and NLIWI experiments were supported jointly by the National Science Council of Taiwan and the U.S. Office of Naval Research