Surveillance for seasonal influenza virus prevalence in hospitalized children with lower respiratory tract infection in Guangzhou, China during the post-pandemic era.

Influenza A(H1N1)pdm09, A(H3N2) and B viruses have co-circulated in the human population since the swine-origin human H1N1 pandemic in 2009. While infections of these subtypes generally cause mild illnesses, lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) occurs in a portion of children and required hospitalization. The aim of our study was to estimate the prevalence of these three subtypes and compare the clinical manifestations in hospitalized children with LRTI in Guangzhou, China during the post-pandemic period. METHODS: Children hospitalized with LRTI from January 2010 to December 2012 were tested for influenza A/B virus infection from their throat swab specimens using real-time PCR and the clinical features of the positive cases were analyzed. RESULTS: Of 3637 hospitalized children, 216 (5.9%) were identified as influenza A or B positive. Infection of influenza virus peaked around March in Guangzhou each year from 2010 to 2012, and there were distinct epidemics of each subtype. Influenza A(H3N2) infection was more frequently detected than A(H1N1)pdm09 and B, overall. The mean age of children with influenza A virus (H1N1/H3N2) infection was younger than those with influenza B (34.4 months/32.5 months versus 45 months old; p<0.005). Co-infections of influenza A/ B with mycoplasma pneumoniae were found in 44/216 (20.3%) children. CONCLUSIONS: This study contributes the understanding to the prevalence of seasonal influenza viruses in hospitalized children with LRTI in Guangzhou, China during the post pandemic period. High rate of mycoplasma pneumoniae co-infection with influenza viruses might contribute to severe disease in the hospitalized children.published_or_final_versio

The activity of signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) in relation to thermal and hydraulic dynamics of an alluvial stream, UK

Signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) are an invasive species of global significance because of their detrimental impacts on freshwater environments and native organisms. The movement of signal crayfish was continuously monitored for 150-days through a 20-m reach of an alluvial stream in the UK. Passive integrated transponder-tags were attached to crayfish, allowing their location to be monitored relative to 16 antennae which were buried beneath the river bed. The activity of crayfish was related to water depth and temperature, which were continuously monitored within the instrumented reach. Crayfish were highly nocturnal, with less than 6% of movements recorded during daylight hours. Activity declined from September and was minimal in November when water temperature was low and flow depth was high. However, relations between environmental parameters and crayfish activity had poor explanatory power which may partly reflect biological processes not accounted for in this study. Water depth and temperature had a limiting relationship with crayfish activity, quantified using quantile regression. The results extend existing data on signal crayfish nocturnalism and demonstrate that, although signal crayfish can tolerate a range of flows, activity becomes limited as water temperature declines seasonally and when water depth remains high in autumn and winter months

Diel turbidity cycles in a headwater stream: evidence of nocturnal bioturbation?

Purpose: A small number of recent studies have linked daily cycles in stream turbidity to nocturnal bioturbation by aquatic fauna, principally crayfish, and demonstrated this process can significantly impact upon water quality under baseflow conditions. Adding to this limited body of research, we use high-resolution water quality monitoring data to investigate evidence of diel turbidity cycles in a lowland, headwater stream with a known signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) population and explore a range of potential causal mechanisms. Materials and methods: Automatic bankside monitoring stations measured turbidity and other water quality parameters at 30-min resolution at three locations on the River Blackwater, Norfolk, UK during 2013. Specifically, we focused on two 20-day periods of baseflow conditions during January and April 2013 which displayed turbidity trends typical of winter and spring seasons, respectively. The turbidity time-series, which were smoothed with 6.5 hour Savitzky-Golay filters to highlight diel trends, were correlated against temperature, stage, dissolved oxygen and pH to assess the importance of abiotic influences on turbidity. Turbidity was also calibrated against suspended particulate matter (SPM) over a wide range of values via linear regression. Results and discussion: Pronounced diel turbidity cycles were found at two of the three sites under baseflow conditions during April. Spring night-time turbidity values consistently peaked between 21:00 and 04:00 with values increasing by ~10 nephelometric turbidity units (NTU) compared with the lowest recorded daytime values which occurred between 10:00 and 14:00. This translated into statistically significant increases in median midnight SPM concentration of up to 76% compared with midday, with night-time (18:00 – 05:30) SPM loads also up to 30% higher than that recorded during the daytime (06:00 – 17:30). Relating turbidity to other water quality parameters exhibiting diel cycles revealed there to be neither any correlation that might indicate a causal link, nor any obvious mechanistic connections to explain the temporal turbidity trends. Diel turbidity cycles were less prominent at all sites during the winter. Conclusions: Considering the seasonality and timing of elevated turbidity, visual observations of crayfish activity, and an absence of mechanistic connections with other water quality parameters, the results presented here are consistent with the hypothesis that nocturnal bioturbation is responsible for generating diel turbidity cycles under baseflow conditions in headwater streams. However, further research in a variety of fluvial environments is required to better assess the spatial extent, importance and causal mechanisms of this phenomenon

Isolation and Mechanical Measurements of Myofibrils from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes.

Summary: Tension production and contractile properties are poorly characterized aspects of excitation-contraction coupling of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs). Previous approaches have been limited due to the small size and structural immaturity of early-stage hiPSC-CMs. We developed a substrate nanopatterning approach to produce hiPSC-CMs in culture with adult-like dimensions, T-tubule-like structures, and aligned myofibrils. We then isolated myofibrils from hiPSC-CMs and measured the tension and kinetics of activation and relaxation using a custom-built apparatus with fast solution switching. The contractile properties and ultrastructure of myofibrils more closely resembled human fetal myofibrils of similar gestational age than adult preparations. We also demonstrated the ability to study the development of contractile dysfunction of myofibrils from a patient-derived hiPSC-CM cell line carrying the familial cardiomyopathy MYH7 mutation (E848G). These methods can bring new insights to understanding cardiomyocyte maturation and developmental mechanical dysfunction of hiPSC-CMs with cardiomyopathic mutations. : In this article, Pioner and colleagues reported contractile properties of isolated myofibrils from hiPSC-CMs with highly mature morphology. This approach permits quantitative assessment of maturation and contractile properties of hiPSC-CMs and can be used to study the development of contractile dysfunction in genetically based cardiac diseases. The authors present a patient-derived cell line carrying a novel familial cardiomyopathy MYH7 mutation (E848G)

A comparative evaluation of the effect of internet-based CME delivery format on satisfaction, knowledge and confidence

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Internet-based instruction in continuing medical education (CME) has been associated with favorable outcomes. However, more direct comparative studies of different Internet-based interventions, instructional methods, presentation formats, and approaches to implementation are needed. The purpose of this study was to conduct a comparative evaluation of two Internet-based CME delivery formats and the effect on satisfaction, knowledge and confidence outcomes.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Evaluative outcomes of two differing formats of an Internet-based CME course with identical subject matter were compared. A Scheduled Group Learning format involved case-based asynchronous discussions with peers and a facilitator over a scheduled 3-week delivery period. An eCME On Demand format did not include facilitated discussion and was not based on a schedule; participants could start and finish at any time. A retrospective, pre-post evaluation study design comparing identical satisfaction, knowledge and confidence outcome measures was conducted.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Participants in the Scheduled Group Learning format reported significantly higher mean satisfaction ratings in some areas, performed significantly higher on a post-knowledge assessment and reported significantly higher post-confidence scores than participants in the eCME On Demand format that was not scheduled and did not include facilitated discussion activity.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The findings support the instructional benefits of a scheduled delivery format and facilitated asynchronous discussion in Internet-based CME.</p

Identifying the structure of Zn-N-2 active sites and structural activation

Identification of active sites is one of the main obstacles to rational design of catalysts for diverse applications. Fundamental insight into the identification of the structure of active sites and structural contributions for catalytic performance are still lacking. Recently, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and density functional theory (DFT) provide important tools to disclose the electronic, geometric and catalytic natures of active sites. Herein, we demonstrate the structural identification of Zn-N-2 active sites with both experimental/theoretical X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectra. Further DFT calculations reveal that the oxygen species activation on Zn-N-2 active sites is significantly enhanced, which can accelerate the reduction of oxygen with high selectivity, according well with the experimental results. This work highlights the identification and investigation of Zn-N-2 active sites, providing a regular principle to obtain deep insight into the nature of catalysts for various catalytic applications

Breeding productivity, nest-site selection and conservation needs of the endemic Turkestan Ground-jay Podoces panderi

The Turkestan Ground-jay Podoces panderi, a corvid endemic to the deserts of Central Asia, is both understudied and under-protected. Using standardised nest-monitoring protocols and nest cameras, we estimated its breeding productivity for the first time as 0.586 fledglings per nesting attempt (inter-quartile range, IQR 0.413‒0.734), strongly constrained by a diverse set of predator species (accounting for 88% of failures), supporting the broad pattern that a wide spectrum of nest predators operate in arid environments. The probability of nest success for the 35 days from the start of incubation to fledging was low, 0.186 ± 0.06 se (N = 37), with no influence of season date, nest height or nest shrub species. However, pervasive shrub harvest severely limited availability of taller shrubs for nest-site selection, and thus our ability to detect any effect of height on nest survival. Mean clutch size was 4.8 ± 0.8 sd while hatching probability of an egg from a clutch surviving incubation was 0.800 ± 0.050 se and fledging probability was 0.824 ± 0.093 se for individual chicks in successful nests (i.e. that fledged one or more chicks). Two shrub genera, saxaul Haloxylon spp. and Calligonum spp., were used for nesting more frequently than expected (χ152 = 784.02, P < 0.001), highlighting their importance to breeding habitat suitability. This near-sole reliance on these taller shrub genera, both targeted for illegal cutting, indicates that habitat degradation may lead to increased predation and declines in productivity. Habitat conservation is, therefore, likely to be the most important management strategy for the species and other components of desert systems, as management of so diverse a set of nest predators would be both impractical and inappropriate

Biochemical Characterization of a Structure-Specific Resolving Enzyme from Sulfolobus islandicus Rod-Shaped Virus 2

Sulfolobus islandicus rod shaped virus 2 (SIRV2) infects the archaeon Sulfolobus islandicus at extreme temperature (70°C–80°C) and acidity (pH 3). SIRV2 encodes a Holliday junction resolving enzyme (SIRV2 Hjr) that has been proposed as a key enzyme in SIRV2 genome replication. The molecular mechanism for SIRV2 Hjr four-way junction cleavage bias, minimal requirements for four-way junction cleavage, and substrate specificity were determined. SIRV2 Hjr cleaves four-way DNA junctions with a preference for cleavage of exchange strand pairs, in contrast to host-derived resolving enzymes, suggesting fundamental differences in substrate recognition and cleavage among closely related Sulfolobus resolving enzymes. Unlike other viral resolving enzymes, such as T4 endonuclease VII or T7 endonuclease I, that cleave branched DNA replication intermediates, SIRV2 Hjr cleavage is specific to four-way DNA junctions and inactive on other branched DNA molecules. In addition, a specific interaction was detected between SIRV2 Hjr and the SIRV2 virion body coat protein (SIRV2gp26). Based on this observation, a model is proposed linking SIRV2 Hjr genome resolution to viral particle assembly

International consensus on natural orifice specimen extraction surgery (NOSES) for colorectal cancer

In recent years, natural orifice specimen extraction surgery (NOSES) in the treatment of colorectal cancer has attracted widespread attention. The potential benefits of NOSES including reduction in postoperative pain and wound complications, less use of postoperative analgesic, faster recovery of bowel function, shorter length of hospital stay, better cosmetic and psychological effect have been described in colorectal surgery. Despite significant decrease in surgical trauma of NOSES have been observed, the potential pitfalls of this technique have been demonstrated. Particularly, several issues including bacteriological concerns, oncological outcomes and patient selection are raised with this new technique. Therefore, it is urgent and necessary to reach a consensus as an industry guideline to standardize the implementation of NOSES in colorectal surgery. After three rounds of discussion by all members of the International Alliance of NOSES, the consensus is finally completed, which is also of great significance to the long-term progress of NOSES worldwide.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio