Evaluation of HPV infection and presence of licensed HPV vaccine genotypes among genital warts in Foshan, China

ObjectiveThis study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and presence of licensed HPV vaccine genotypes among patients with genital warts in Foshan, China from 2015 to 2022, to provide useful references for the detection, prevention and control of genital warts in Foshan.MethodsThe present study retrospectively analyzed the HPV detection rates in patients with genital warts. A total of 1,625 patients were seen at the Second People’s Hospital of Foshan, Guangdong Province, China, from 2015 to 2022. Samples were collected from various lesions and genotyped for 21 genotypes of HPV by infusion hybridization. The classification principle of HPV genotypes in this study: (1) Based on the relationship between HPV and carcinogenicity; (2) Based on the number of HPV genotypes infected; (3) Based on the HPV genotypes of licensed HPV vaccines.ResultsThe detection rate of any HPV in patients with genital warts was 80.37% (1,306/1,625). The detection rates of HPV for low-risk infection, co-infection and high-risk infection were 49.48% (804/1,625), 24.92% (405/1,625) and 5.97% (97/1,625), respectively. Single infection was the predominant type (51.94%, 844/1625). HPV-6 and HPV-11 were the predominant types of single infection; HPV-6 and HPV-52 were the predominant types of paired combinations of multiple infection. 82.22% (1,336/1,625) of the cases had an age distribution of ≤ 24, 25–34, and 35–44. The distribution of some HPV genotypes had age specificity, annual specificity and gender specificity. The genotype detection rates of 2v, 4v and 9v showed a decreasing trend with ages (all P < 0.05). The genotype detection rates of 4v and 9v showed a decreasing trend over the 8-year period (both P < 0.05). The genotype detection rates of 4v and 9v in the male group were higher than those in the female group (both P < 0.05). The genotype detection rate of 9v was significantly higher than that of 2v and 4v in the female group (both P < 0.05).ConclusionOur study demonstrated that low-risk infection and single infection were the main types of HPV infection in patients with genital warts, mainly among young patients. Our study provides epidemiological data for the detection, prevention and control of genital warts in China

Limited artemisinin resistance-associated polymorphisms in Plasmodium falciparum K13-propeller and PfATPase6 gene isolated from Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea

Objective: With emergence and geographically expanding of antimalarial resistance worldwide, molecular markers are essential tool for surveillance of resistant Plasmodium parasites. Recently, single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the PF3D7_1343700 kelch propeller (K13-propeller) domain are shown to be associated with artemisinin (ART) resistance in vivo and in vitro. This study aims to investigate the ART resistance-associated polymorphisms of K13-propeller and PfATPase6 genes in Plasmodium falciparum isolates from Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea (EG). Methods: A total of 172 samples were collected from falciparum malaria patients on Bioko Island between 2013 and 2014. The polymorphisms of K13-propeller and PfATPase6 genes were analyzed by Nest-PCR and sequencing. Results: Sequences of K13-propeller and PfATPase6 were obtained from 90.74% (98/108) and 91.45% (139/152) samples, respectively. The 2.04% (2/98) cases had non-synonymous K13-propeller A578S mutation but no found the mutations associated with ART resistance in Southeast Asia. For PfATPase6, the mutations were found at positions N569K and A630S with the mutation prevalence of 7.91% (11/139) and 1.44% (2/139), respectively. In addition, a sample with the mixed type at position I723V was discovered (0.72%, 1/139). Conclusions: This study initially offers an insight of K13-propeller and PfATPase6 polymorphisms on Bioko Island, EG. It suggests no widespread ART resistance or tolerance in the region, and might be helpful for developing and updating guidance for the use of ART-based combination therapies (ACTs). Keywords: Plasmodium falciparum, Polymorphism, Artemisinin resistance, K13-propelle

Research on Technological Innovation as Seen through the Chinese Looking Glass

The rapid development of the Chinese economy during the 1990's has intensified research on technological innovation. Recent policy emphasis on innovation as a path to sustainable economic growth will only accelerate work on this important topic. The work by individuals and groups at various research institutes and universities has mainly been published in leading Chinese scholarly journals. In this paper, we develop a framework and do a substantive review of the literature to characterize the state of knowledge about technological innovation in China, with special emphasis on: 1) conceptual contributions, 2) empirical results, and 3) connections between innovation and performance