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

Iridoid glycosides from Morinda tomentosa and their endoplasmic reticulum stress modulation activity

Three iridoids 1 - 3, asperulosidic acid, daphylloside, and asperuloside, were isolated from the methanol extract of the leaves of Morinda tomentosa. Their chemical structures were elucidated by 1D- and 2D-NMR spectra and in comparison with those reported in the literature. The effects of these compounds on the endoplasmic reticulum stress in XBP1-eGFP-transfected the 293 T cells were measured. Compound 3 significantly reduced the ER-stress both in DMSO-treated and thapsigargin-treated cells. Unlike this compound, compound 3 selectively reduced thapsigargin-induced ER-stress without any effect on the level of XBP1 splicing in DMSO-treated cells. These results suggested that compounds 2 and 3 can be suggested as new ER stress regulators

Severe malaria not responsive to artemisinin derivatives in man returning from Angola to Vietnam.

Resistance to artemisinin derivatives, the most potent antimalarial drugs currently used, has emerged in Southeast Asia and threatens to spread to Africa. We report a case of malaria in a man who returned to Vietnam after 3 years in Angola that did not respond to intravenous artesunate and clindamycin or an oral artemisinin-based combination

Safety and efficacy of fluoxetine on functional outcome after acute stroke (AFFINITY): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Background Trials of fluoxetine for recovery after stroke report conflicting results. The Assessment oF FluoxetINe In sTroke recoverY (AFFINITY) trial aimed to show if daily oral fluoxetine for 6 months after stroke improves functional outcome in an ethnically diverse population. Methods AFFINITY was a randomised, parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial done in 43 hospital stroke units in Australia (n=29), New Zealand (four), and Vietnam (ten). Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years) with a clinical diagnosis of acute stroke in the previous 2–15 days, brain imaging consistent with ischaemic or haemorrhagic stroke, and a persisting neurological deficit that produced a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 1 or more. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 via a web-based system using a minimisation algorithm to once daily, oral fluoxetine 20 mg capsules or matching placebo for 6 months. Patients, carers, investigators, and outcome assessors were masked to the treatment allocation. The primary outcome was functional status, measured by the mRS, at 6 months. The primary analysis was an ordinal logistic regression of the mRS at 6 months, adjusted for minimisation variables. Primary and safety analyses were done according to the patient's treatment allocation. The trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12611000774921. Findings Between Jan 11, 2013, and June 30, 2019, 1280 patients were recruited in Australia (n=532), New Zealand (n=42), and Vietnam (n=706), of whom 642 were randomly assigned to fluoxetine and 638 were randomly assigned to placebo. Mean duration of trial treatment was 167 days (SD 48·1). At 6 months, mRS data were available in 624 (97%) patients in the fluoxetine group and 632 (99%) in the placebo group. The distribution of mRS categories was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (adjusted common odds ratio 0·94, 95% CI 0·76–1·15; p=0·53). Compared with patients in the placebo group, patients in the fluoxetine group had more falls (20 [3%] vs seven [1%]; p=0·018), bone fractures (19 [3%] vs six [1%]; p=0·014), and epileptic seizures (ten [2%] vs two [<1%]; p=0·038) at 6 months. Interpretation Oral fluoxetine 20 mg daily for 6 months after acute stroke did not improve functional outcome and increased the risk of falls, bone fractures, and epileptic seizures. These results do not support the use of fluoxetine to improve functional outcome after stroke

The Willingness of Parents to Vaccinate Their Children Aged from Five to under Twelve Years with COVID-19 Vaccines between February and March 2022 in Vietnam

The current study used data surveyed with 5357 parents/guardians (parents would be used to represent both &lsquo;parents&rsquo; and &lsquo;guardians&rsquo; hereafter) between February and March 2022 in Vietnam to examine their willingness to vaccinate their children with current COVID-19 vaccines. It applied the multinomial logistic regression model to examine the association between the willingness of parents and selected influential factors. In addition, the reasons that made parent hesitant or unwilling to vaccinate their children were investigated. Moreover, it identified parents&rsquo; preferences for vaccine origins. Approximately, 75.4% of the parents were willing, 21.3% were hesitant and 3.3% were unwilling to vaccinate their children. The most common reasons that made the parents hesitant or unwilling to vaccinate their children were their concerns about the vaccine safety, efficacy and immunity. The most and the second most preferred vaccines were those developed/originated in the US and EU, respectively. Parents who were more likely to vaccinate their children included those whose children were insured, who regularly vaccinated their children, who belonged to the vaccine priority groups, who possessed sufficient knowledge about the ways to prevent the virus or about the herd immunity, and who perceived that their children might be infected with the virus and whose children were afraid of needles. Parents who were less likely to vaccinate their children included those who were the family main income source, who had savings, and who had tertiary education or higher

Coagulation in Treatment of Swine Slaughterhouse Wastewater

In this study, wastewater taken from the Nam Phong swine slaughterhouse, Ho Chi Minh City, was used to evaluate the treatment efficiency of common coagulants, including Alum (Aluminum Sulfate - Al2(SO4)3.18H2O), Poly-Aluminum Chloride (PAC), and Ferrous Sulfate (FeSO4.7H2O), using a jar-test system. The experiments were conducted using the one-factor-at-a-time method to examine three variables which are pH, stirring speed, and coagulant dosage. The results showed that both Alum and PAC perform over 90% removal of colour, turbidity, COD, and total phosphorus (TP) from slaughterhouse wastewater at pH 7 with a stirring speed of 75 revolutions per minute (RPM) and average coagulant dosages of 450 mg/L for Alum and 550 mg/L for PAC. Meanwhile, under the appropriate conditions of pH equal to 10 and 75 RPM with a chemical dosage of 350 mg/L, COD and TP removal efficiencies by Ferrous Sulfate exceed 87%, but those of turbidity and colour only reach 25%. This finding could be a promising coagulation method as a pre-treatment for the swine slaughterhouse wastewater

Assessment of water quality of some aquaculture ponds in Ho Chi Minh City

Eutrophication in aquaculture ponds is one of the major issues related to both the environment and the health of consumers. This study has selected and conducted a water-quality survey of nine freshwater aquaculture ponds in Ho Chi Minh City. The empirical results showed that these ponds were seriously polluted with COD and BOD5 whose values did not meet the B2 column of the Vietnamese National Technical Regulation on Surface Water Quality (QCVN 08-MT:2015/BTNMT). On the other hand, most N-NH4+ and N-NO2- concentrations in the ponds met the threshold value of B2 column. The values of the chlorophyll-a are greater than 10 μg/L, indicating that investigated ponds are in a state of eutrophication. In addition, the results of the TSI calculations showed that most of the sites that are in hypereutrophication state and phosphorus is identified as the eutrophication limit factor in these sites.Phú dưỡng hóa nguồn nước nuôi trồng thủy sản là một trong các vấn đề lớn liên quan đến cả môi trường và sức khỏe người tiêu dùng. Nghiên cứu này đã lựa chọn và tiến hành khảo sát chất lượng nước của chín ao hồ nuôi thủy sản trên địa bàn thành phố Hồ Chí Minh. Kết quả phân tích cho thấy các ao hồ trên bị ô nhiễm hữu cơ nặng với thông số COD và BOD5 đều không đạt chuẩn B2 theo quy chuẩn kỹ thuật quốc gia về chất lượng nước mặt (QCVN 08-MT:2015/BTNMT). Về mặt ô nhiễm các chất dinh dưỡng, nồng độ N-NH4+ và N-NO2- đa số chỉ thỏa mãn loại B2, thậm chí vượt ngưỡng quy định của cột B2. Các giá trị của thông số chlorophyll-a đều lớn hơn 10 μg/L, chứng tỏ các ao hồ khảo sát đều đang trong tình trạng phú dưỡng. Thêm vào đó, kết quả tính toán chỉ số TSI cho thấy hầu hết các vị trí nghiên cứu đang ở trạng thái siêu phú dưỡng và photpho được xác định là yếu tố giới hạn sự phú dưỡng của các vị trí khảo sát nêu trên