A genetic diversity study of antifungal Lactobacillus plantarum isolates

Lactobacillus plantarum is a lactic acid bacterium commonly found on fruits and vegetables and also used in a variety of food fermentations. Strains from this species are also regularly reported as having antifungal or probiotic activity. Genotyping methods can be used to differentiate strains of the same species thus determining if strains are related or not. However for L.\ua0plantarum, the currently used methods have limitations including DNA band profile interpretation difficulty and cost. In this study, a new genotyping method based on multi-locus variable number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) was developed and compared to a previously reported randomly amplified polymorphic DNA-PCR (RAPD-PCR) method for L.\ua0plantarum. With a selection of 13 antifungal strains of L.\ua0plantarum isolated from heterogeneous sources (cheese, silage, sauerkraut, vegetables and a probiotic product), RAPD-PCR revealed 9 different profiles resulting in a Hunter-Gaston discrimination index (D-value) of 0.94. The new MLVA method which compares the lengths of 4 repetitive regions within LPXTG motif-containing surface protein genes differentiated the 13\ua0L.\ua0plantarum strains into 10 different subtypes leading to a D-value of 0.95. Interestingly 11 additional L.\ua0plantarum isolates obtained in a previous study during a screen for antifungal activity against the common cheese spoilage mould Penicillium commune all possessed the same RAPD-PCR and MLVA profile as each other and the commercial probiotic strain L.\ua0plantarum 299v. This study demonstrates that the new MLVA method can be used to simply and inexpensively differentiate L.\ua0plantarum strains and provide information regarding strain relatedness and thus potential insight into strain properties

Neutrophil to lymphocyte with monocyte to lymphocyte ratio and white blood cell count in prediction of lung cancer

BackgroundLung cancer is the most common cause of cancer deaths in both sexes, while it is very difficult for screenings and early detection. AimsThis study aims to clarify the role of systematic inflammation markers, including white blood cell (WBC), neutrophil (NEU), monocyte (MONO), platelet (PLT), neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte to lymphocyte ratio (MLR) and platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in prediction of lung cancer. Methods A case-control study was conducted on 1,315 primary lung cancer patients and 1,315 healthy adults with matched age and gender at Cho Ray hospital. NLR, MLR and PLR were calculated by using neutrophil, lymphocyte, monocyte and platelet count which were recalled from laboratory database. With 600 cases in the derivation set, the logistic regression with univariate analysis was used to identify the impacted marker, then developing the optimal prediction model for lung cancer by logistic regression with multivariate method. The diagnostic values of optimal model consisting of sensitivity (Sen), specificity (Spe), positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) value were extracted and verified on all data, in validation set. Results The median values of WBC, NEU, MONO, PLT, NLR, MLR and PLR in lung cancer were not significantly difference between histological subtypes and clinical stages (p > 0.05), but higher than the values in control group (p < 0.01). Multivariates analysis shows that NLR, MLR and WBC were three parameters that have the significant impact of the optimal prediction model (p < 0.01). The AUC value, sensitivity and specificity of the optimal model for lung cancer detection were 0.881, 73.5 per cent (95 per cent CI:70.3–76.6) and 87.7 per cent (95 per centCI:85.2–89.9), respectively. Whereas, the PPV and NPV values of prediction model were 85.7 per cent (95 per cent CI:82.8–88.2) and 76.8 (95 per centCI:73.9–79.5), respectively. Among three biomarkers, the AUC values of NLR (0.853) and MLR (0.842) were higher than the value of WBC (0.752) (p < 0.01).ConclusionThe results of this study show that NLR with MLR and WBC in optimal prediction model are promising biomarkers for lung cancer screening that could be applied in clinical practice with the advantage of convenience and low cost

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

Appropriating conditions for acquisition highcontent α – amylase of germinated brown rice variety Oryza stiva Anhdao

Brown rice is a food ingredient which has high nutritious values. During germination, some nutritious and functional components are increased such as lysine, vitamin E, B1, B6, magnesium, calcium, iron… and especially γ – amino butyric acid. Enzyme activity will also change during the germination of the grains. The α – amylase activity of ungerminated grains is very low, only 34.91 UI/g. This is because the enzyme is hibernating and not activated. During germination, enzyme activity will increase. Submerge the Anhdao brown glutinous rice for 6 hours at 30oC in solutions with different pH values (2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 6.0). The results show that at pH 3.0 the activity of α – amylase enzyme reaches the highest value of 82.93 UI/g. After the submersion, incubate the germinated brown rice in unentirely anaerobic condition at different temperature of 25, 30, 35, 37oC. The result showed that at 35oC after 24 hours of incubation, the α – amylase activity reaches the highest value of 89.82 UI/g. Examine the dynamic of changes of α – amylase activity against time at 35oC, we can see that in the first 28 hours the α – amylase activity increased significantly. Highest α – amylase activity reaches 97.10 UI/g after 28 hours of incubation. In reality, people usually use enzyme from germinated grains for many food manufacturing industries. α – amylase activity increases during incubation, which can bring promising prospects for processing sugar syrup and prebiotics food from germinated rice.Gạo lứt là một nguyên liệu thực phẩm có giá trị dinh dưỡng cao. Trong quá trình nảy mầm các thành phần dinh dưỡng và chức năng của hạt gạo lứt được tăng lên ví dụ như lysine, các vitamin E, B1, B6, magie, canxi, sắt… và đặc biệt là γ – amino butyric acid. Hoạt tính của hệ enzyme sẽ thay đổi trong suốt quá trình nảy mầm của hạt gạo. Hoạt tính enzyme α – amylase của hạt gạo chưa nảy mầm là rất thấp, chỉ đạt 34,91UI/g, do enzyme của hạt đang ở trạng thái ngủ chưa được kích hoạt. Trong quá trình nảy mầm thì hoạt tính của α – amylase tăng lên. Tiến hành ngâm gạo lứt giống nếp Anh Đào trong 6 tiếng, ở 30oC trong nước ngâm có pH khác nhau (pH 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 6.0). Kết quả cho thấy, ở pH 3.0 hoạt độ enzyme α – amylase cao nhất đạt 82,93 UI/g. Sau quá trình ngâm, tiến hành ủ nẩy mầm gạo lứt yếm khí không hoàn toàn ở những nhiệt độ khác nhau 25, 30, 35, 37oC, kết quả ở 35oC sau 24 giờ ủ hoạt độ enzyme α – amylase đạt cao nhất là 89,82 UI/g. Khảo sát động học sự thay đổi của hoạt độ enzyme α – amylase theo thời gian ở nhiệt độ ủ 35oC, kết quả cho thấy,trong 28 giờ đầu hoạt độ của α – amylase tăng mạnh. Hoạt độ α – amylase cao nhất đạt 97,10 UI/g sau 28 giờ ủ. Trong thực tế người ta đã sử dụng enzyme từ hạt nảy mầm cho rất nhiều ngành sản xuất thực phẩm. Hoạt độ của α-amylase sau quá trình ủ mầm tăng lên, có thể đem lại triển vọng sử dụng để chế biến dịch đường và các sản phẩm có tính prebiotic từ gạo lứt nảy mầm

Water quality of the Red River system in the period 2012 - 2013: Short communication

Few data are available on the quality of Red river water that is used for multi-purposes, including for domestic water demand in some rural areas. This paper presents the observation results of the Red River water quality in two years 2012 and 2013. The monitoring results showed that the average concentrations of nutrients (N, P) were still far lower than the allowed value of the Vietnamese standard limits for surface water quality (QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT, column A2). Due to the impoundment of two big dams in the Da tributary, the suspended solids contents in river water decreased remarkably. The dissolved heavy metal (DHM) concentrations varied in a high range: Cu: 10 – 80 μg.l-1; Zn: 2 – 88 μg.l-1; Cr: 0.2 – 5.1 μg.l-1; Pb: 2 - 107 μg.l-1; Cd: 2 – 12 μg.l-1; Mn: 2 - 35 μg.l-1; and Fe: 160 – 2370 μg.l-1. Most of the mean values of DHM were lower than the allowed values of the QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT, but at several points of time, several DHM (e.g. Fe, Cd, Pb) contents exceeded the allowed values. The Total Coliform (TC) and Fecal Coliform (FC) densities varied in a high range: TC: 23 to 13,000MPN.100ml-1 and FC: 0 to 1,600MPN.100ml-1 and they exceeded the allowed values QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT at several points observed. The dissolved organic carbon (DOC) contents were in low level and the particulate organic carbon (POC) content mainly derived from soil organic leaching and erosion in the basin. The results underlined the need for regularly monitoring the river water quality, and there should be some effective solutions to manage and treat the waste sources in order to provide safe water for different actual purposes use in the Red River basin.Rất ít số liệu sẵn có về chất lượng nước sông Hồng, dòng sông được sử dụng cho nhiều mục đích, bao gồm cả cung cấp nước sinh hoạt ở một số vùng nông thôn. Bài báo trình bày các kết quả quan trắc chất lượng nước sông Hồng trong hai năm 2012 và 2013. Kết quả quan trắc cho thấy chất dinh dưỡng (N, P) thấp xa so với giới hạn cho phép của tiêu chuẩn Việt Nam về chất lượng nước mặt (QCVN 08: 2008/BTNMT cột A2). Do có hai hồ chứa trên sông Đà, hàm lượng chất rắn lơ lửng trong nước sông giảm đáng kể. Các kim loại nặng hòa tan (DHM) có hàm lượng dao động trong khoảng rộng: Cu: 10-80 μg.l-1; Zn: 2-88 μg.l-1; Cr: 0,2-5,1 μg.l-1; Pb: 2-107 μg.l-1; Cd: 2-12 μg.l-1; Mn: 2-35 μg.l-1; và Fe: 160 - 2370 μg.l-1. Hầu hết các giá trị trung bình của DHM thấp hơn giá trị cho phép của quy chuẩn QCVN 08: 2008/BTNMT, tuy nhiên, tại một số thời điểm, một số DHM (ví dụ Fe, Cd, Pb) có hàm lượng vượt quá giới hạn cho phép. Mật độ tổng coliform (TC) và coliform phân (FC) dao động trong khoảng rộng: TC: 23 đến 13,000MPN.100ml-1 và FC: 0 đến 1,600MPN.100ml-1 và tại một số thời điểm mật độ TC và FC vượt giá trị cho phép của Quy chuẩn QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT. Hàm lượng cabon hữu cơ hòa tan (DOC) ở mức thấp, và hàm lượng cacbon hữu cơ dạng không tan (POC) chủ yếu có nguồn gốc từ đất rửa trôi và xói mòn trong lưu vực. Kết quả quan trắc nhấn mạnh nhu cầu giám sát thường xuyên chất lượng nước sông, và nên có các giải pháp hiệu quả để quản lý và xử lý các nguồn gây ô nhiễm trong lưu vực nhằm cung cấp nước sạch cho các mục đích sử dụng nước sông Hồng như hiện nay

Water quality of the Red River system in the period 2012 - 2013: Short communication

Few data are available on the quality of Red river water that is used for multi-purposes, including for domestic water demand in some rural areas. This paper presents the observation results of the Red River water quality in two years 2012 and 2013. The monitoring results showed that the average concentrations of nutrients (N, P) were still far lower than the allowed value of the Vietnamese standard limits for surface water quality (QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT, column A2). Due to the impoundment of two big dams in the Da tributary, the suspended solids contents in river water decreased remarkably. The dissolved heavy metal (DHM) concentrations varied in a high range: Cu: 10 – 80 μg.l-1; Zn: 2 – 88 μg.l-1; Cr: 0.2 – 5.1 μg.l-1; Pb: 2 - 107 μg.l-1; Cd: 2 – 12 μg.l-1; Mn: 2 - 35 μg.l-1; and Fe: 160 – 2370 μg.l-1. Most of the mean values of DHM were lower than the allowed values of the QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT, but at several points of time, several DHM (e.g. Fe, Cd, Pb) contents exceeded the allowed values. The Total Coliform (TC) and Fecal Coliform (FC) densities varied in a high range: TC: 23 to 13,000MPN.100ml-1 and FC: 0 to 1,600MPN.100ml-1 and they exceeded the allowed values QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT at several points observed. The dissolved organic carbon (DOC) contents were in low level and the particulate organic carbon (POC) content mainly derived from soil organic leaching and erosion in the basin. The results underlined the need for regularly monitoring the river water quality, and there should be some effective solutions to manage and treat the waste sources in order to provide safe water for different actual purposes use in the Red River basin.Rất ít số liệu sẵn có về chất lượng nước sông Hồng, dòng sông được sử dụng cho nhiều mục đích, bao gồm cả cung cấp nước sinh hoạt ở một số vùng nông thôn. Bài báo trình bày các kết quả quan trắc chất lượng nước sông Hồng trong hai năm 2012 và 2013. Kết quả quan trắc cho thấy chất dinh dưỡng (N, P) thấp xa so với giới hạn cho phép của tiêu chuẩn Việt Nam về chất lượng nước mặt (QCVN 08: 2008/BTNMT cột A2). Do có hai hồ chứa trên sông Đà, hàm lượng chất rắn lơ lửng trong nước sông giảm đáng kể. Các kim loại nặng hòa tan (DHM) có hàm lượng dao động trong khoảng rộng: Cu: 10-80 μg.l-1; Zn: 2-88 μg.l-1; Cr: 0,2-5,1 μg.l-1; Pb: 2-107 μg.l-1; Cd: 2-12 μg.l-1; Mn: 2-35 μg.l-1; và Fe: 160 - 2370 μg.l-1. Hầu hết các giá trị trung bình của DHM thấp hơn giá trị cho phép của quy chuẩn QCVN 08: 2008/BTNMT, tuy nhiên, tại một số thời điểm, một số DHM (ví dụ Fe, Cd, Pb) có hàm lượng vượt quá giới hạn cho phép. Mật độ tổng coliform (TC) và coliform phân (FC) dao động trong khoảng rộng: TC: 23 đến 13,000MPN.100ml-1 và FC: 0 đến 1,600MPN.100ml-1 và tại một số thời điểm mật độ TC và FC vượt giá trị cho phép của Quy chuẩn QCVN 08:2008/BTNMT. Hàm lượng cabon hữu cơ hòa tan (DOC) ở mức thấp, và hàm lượng cacbon hữu cơ dạng không tan (POC) chủ yếu có nguồn gốc từ đất rửa trôi và xói mòn trong lưu vực. Kết quả quan trắc nhấn mạnh nhu cầu giám sát thường xuyên chất lượng nước sông, và nên có các giải pháp hiệu quả để quản lý và xử lý các nguồn gây ô nhiễm trong lưu vực nhằm cung cấp nước sạch cho các mục đích sử dụng nước sông Hồng như hiện nay

Effective Placement Methods of Vermicompost Application in Urban Tree Species: Implications for Sustainable Urban Afforestation

Knowledge on growth and nutrient uptake characteristics of urban trees and effective strategies to grow trees can help accomplish the goal of urban afforestation initiatives in a sustainable way. Thus, the study investigated the effects of different vermicompost (VC) application placements on the growth and nutrient uptake of three contrasting tree species (fast-growing Betula platyphylla and Larix kaempferi and slow-growing Chamaecyparis obtusa) to provide implications for growing tree stocks for sustainable urban afforestation programs. Five placement methods were used in the greenhouse trial: no fertilization (CON), surface placement (VCs), subsurface placement at 6-cm depth (VCc), bottom placement (35-cm depth (VCb)), and mixed with soil (VCm). We measured the growth parameters such as height, root collar diameter (RCD), and biomass and analyzed foliar nutrient concentrations in response to different placement treatments of VC. Relative height growth was the highest at VCc (132% (B. platyphylla), 114% (L. kaempferi)) and VCs ((57%) C. obtusa). Significant improvement in aboveground and belowground biomass growth of all species at VCs and VCc compared to the other treatments was also observed. Generally, VC treatments significantly increased N concentration compared to CON in all species. In conclusion, fertilizing the fast- and slow-growing urban tree species using VCs and/or VCc is relevant to growing high quality planting stocks for sustainable urban afforestation purposes

Multimodal analysis of methylomics and fragmentomics in plasma cell-free DNA for multi-cancer early detection and localization

Despite their promise, circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA)-based assays for multi-cancer early detection face challenges in test performance, due mostly to the limited abundance of ctDNA and its inherent variability. To address these challenges, published assays to date demanded a very high-depth sequencing, resulting in an elevated price of test. Herein, we developed a multimodal assay called SPOT-MAS (screening for the presence of tumor by methylation and size) to simultaneously profile methylomics, fragmentomics, copy number, and end motifs in a single workflow using targeted and shallow genome-wide sequencing (~0.55×) of cell-free DNA. We applied SPOT-MAS to 738 non-metastatic patients with breast, colorectal, gastric, lung, and liver cancer, and 1550 healthy controls. We then employed machine learning to extract multiple cancer and tissue-specific signatures for detecting and locating cancer. SPOT-MAS successfully detected the five cancer types with a sensitivity of 72.4% at 97.0% specificity. The sensitivities for detecting early-stage cancers were 73.9% and 62.3% for stages I and II, respectively, increasing to 88.3% for non-metastatic stage IIIA. For tumor-of-origin, our assay achieved an accuracy of 0.7. Our study demonstrates comparable performance to other ctDNA-based assays while requiring significantly lower sequencing depth, making it economically feasible for population-wide screening