Developing a platform of environmental omics for the green-lipped mussel Perna viridis

Session Track: Aquatic and terrestrial ecotoxicologyOral presentationConference Theme: Science across bridges, borders and boundariesThe green-lipped mussel Perna viridis is an important marine biomonitor species in pollution monitoring and ecotoxicological studies in Asia-Pacific region, and considered as a subtropical equivalent biomonitor of the temperate Mytilus species. However, the genomic information of P. viridis is still largely unexplored when compared with Mytilus species. This study aimed to establish a transcriptomic profile of P. viridis using the next generation sequencing technology and provide a good representative set of genomic information for elucidation of toxic mechanisms upon pollution stresses and identification of a suite of suitable biomarkers for monitoring marine pollution and environmental stresses. To obtain a wide spectrum of environmental-associated transcripts, adult mussels (4-5 cm shell length) were collected from different locations in Hong Kong and from those after 24-hour exposures to various challenges of physical stresses and chemical pollutants, so as to cover a wide range of stress-associated transcription patterns for future environmental studies. Two males and females from each location and from each treatment were chosen for obtaining the three target tissues (i.e., hepatopancreas, gill and adductor muscle). For each sex and each tissue type, a total RNA sample was extracted from pooled tissues from the field and laboratory treated mussels. The RNA sample was subjected to cDNA library construction, followed by the RNA-sequencing using a Solexa GAIIx (Illumina). Including the splicing variants, a de novo assembly of a total length of 295,064,579 base-pair (bp) contig was obtained, with 233,257 contigs assembled of an average size of 1264 bp. The 192,879 non-redundant assembled transcripts were blasted against the NCBI nr database and three molluscan EST databases, and resulted in 44,713 transcripts with at least a blast hit, and having a top match with the sequences from the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas (27,651 transcripts). A total of 5,131 transcripts were assigned with KEGG annotation involving in 329 pathways. Based on multivariate statistical analysis, expression patterns of genes from stress associated responses and detoxification were strongly tissue-specific but the differences between genders were little. The anticipated genomic database generated from this study will further strengthen the role of P. viridis as a universal marine biomonitor in the Asia-Pacific region.published_or_final_versio

De novo transcriptome analysis of Perna viridis highlights tissue-specific patterns for environmental studies

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Long-term results of endoscopic-assisted cranionasal resection for olfactory neuroblastoma - single centre experience of fourteen patients

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Oropharyngeal mucositis-specific quality-of-life measure in patients with cancer therapy.

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De novo transcriptome analysis for mechanistic study of organotin-mediated endocrine disruption in Reishia Clavigera

Poster presentation: P-63Human ImpactsMany endocrine disrupting compounds are bioaccumulative and toxic to a wide range of marine organisms, leading to reproductive impairment, development of cancer and abnormal metabolism. For instance, organotin compounds (OTs) such as tributyltin and triphenyltin can induce the development of imposex (i.e., superimposition of male sexual organs) in females of over 200 gastropod species. OTs have been widely used as biocides in antifouling paints and industrial applications. Thus they have been released into the marine environment, posing risks to non-target marine organisms and human health. Although many studies have been conducted to ...postprin

Pulmonary artery sarcoma diagnosed by endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration

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Acute Kawasaki Disease: Not Just for Kids

Kawasaki Disease is a small-to-medium-vessel vasculitis that preferentially affects children. Kawasaki Disease can occur in adults, but the presentation may differ from that observed in children. Typical findings in both adults and children include fever, conjunctivitis, pharyngitis, and skin erythema progressing to a desquamating rash on the palms and soles. Adults more frequently present with cervical adenopathy (93% of adults vs. 15% of children), hepatitis (65% vs. 10%), and arthralgia (61% vs. 24–38%). In contrast, adults are less frequently affected by meningitis (10% vs. 34%), thrombocytosis (55% vs. 100%), and coronary artery aneurysms (5% vs. 18–25%). We report a case of acute Kawasaki Disease in a 24-year-old man who presented with rash, fever, and arthritis. He was successfully treated with high-dose aspirin and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Our case highlights the importance of considering Kawasaki Disease in adults presenting with symptoms commonly encountered in a general medical practice

Hepatolithiasis with biliary ascariasis – a case report

BACKGROUND: Biliary ascariasis is regarded as possible etiological factor for hepatolithiasis. Here we report one case of a patient with hepatolithiasis with biliary ascariasis who developed a liver abscess, which was treated with partial hepatectomy. CASE PRESENTATION: A young adult female presented with epigastric pain and vomiting with repeated attacks of cholangitis. ERCP showed evidence of multiple intrahepatic calculi with the development of abscess in the left lobe of liver. The patient underwent partial hepatectomy and was found to have biliary ascariasis on histology. She was treated with antihelmenthic therapy and has had an uneventful postoperative period of 2 years. CONCLUSION: Biliary ascariasis with hepatolithiasis, although rare, should be considered in endemic countries

The value of hippocampal and temporal horn volumes and rates of change in predicting future conversion to AD.

Hippocampal pathology occurs early in Alzheimer disease (AD), and atrophy, measured by volumes and volume changes, may predict which subjects will develop AD. Measures of the temporal horn (TH), which is situated adjacent to the hippocampus, may also indicate early changes in AD. Previous studies suggest that these metrics can predict conversion from amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to AD with conversion and volume change measured concurrently. However, the ability of these metrics to predict future conversion has not been investigated. We compared the abilities of hippocampal, TH, and global measures to predict future conversion from MCI to AD. TH, hippocampi, whole brain, and ventricles were measured using baseline and 12-month scans. Boundary shift integral was used to measure the rate of change. We investigated the prediction of conversion between 12 and 24 months in subjects classified as MCI from baseline to 12 months. All measures were predictive of future conversion. Local and global rates of change were similarly predictive of conversion. There was evidence that the TH expansion rate is more predictive than the hippocampal atrophy rate (P=0.023) and that the TH expansion rate is more predictive than the TH volume (P=0.036). Prodromal atrophy rates may be useful predictors of future conversion to sporadic AD from amnestic MCI