Smoking, Habitual Tea Drinking and Metabolic Syndrome in Elderly Men Living in Rural Community: The Tianliao Old People (TOP) Study 02

The literature shows an inconsistent relationship between lifestyle behaviors and metabolic syndrome (MetS), especially in the elderly. We designed this study to investigate the interrelationships among cigarette smoking, tea drinking and MetS, and to verify the factors associated with MetS in elderly males dwelling in rural community. In July 2010, with a whole community sampling method, 414 male subjects aged over 65 dwelling in Tianliao township were randomly sampled. The response rate was 60.8%. Each subject completed the structured questionnaires including sociodemographic characteristics, habitual behaviors (including cigarette smoking and tea drinking habits) and medical history. After an overnight fast, the laboratory and anthropometric data were obtained. MetS was confirmed according to the criteria defined by the modified NCEP ATP III for the male Chinese population. Subjects were split into either non-MetS or MetS groups for further analysis. Of the 361 subjects with complete data, 132 (36.6%) elderly men were classified as having MetS. Using binary logistic regression, body mass index, serum uric acid, high sensitivity C-reactive protein, HOMA index, current smokers (OR = 2.72, 95%CI: 1.03 ∼ 7.19), total smoking amount > = 30 (OR = 2.78, 95%CI: 1.31 ∼ 5.90) and more than 20 cigarettes daily (OR = 2.54, 95%CI: 1.24 ∼ 5.18) were positively associated with MetS. Current un- or partial fermented tea drinker (OR = 0.42, 95%CI: 0.22 ∼ 0.84), tea drinking habit for 1–9 years (OR = 0.36, 95%CI: 0.15 ∼ 0.90) and more than 240cc daily (OR = 0.35, 95%CI: 0.17 ∼ 0.72) were negatively associated with MetS. In conclusion, this study suggests that smoking habit was positively associated with MetS, but tea drinking habit was negatively associated with MetS in elderly men dwelling in rural community

Implementasi Model Pola Asuh Orangtua Untuk Meningkatkan Kemandirian Anak

Penelitian ini mengkaji implementasi Model Pola Asuh Orangtua untuk Meningkatkan Kemandirian Anak (PAO-MKA) di SMP Makassar. Model PAO-MKA dikembangkan oleh Sunarty (2014), dan telah melalui uji validitas ahli dan praktisi/Guru BK, dan hasilnya valid, dan siap diimplemantasikan. Permasalahan penelitian adalah apakah Model PAO-MKA efektif meningkatkan kemandirian anak?. Tujuan penelitian adalah untuk mengetahui keefektifan Model PAO-MKA dalam upaya meningkatkan kemandirian anak. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kuantitatif, dengan jenis penelitian pra-experimental, model one group pretest-posttes design. Eksperimen dilaksanakan di SMPN 8 Makassar. Subyek penelitian terbagi ke dalam dua kelompok, yakni kelompok anak dan orangtuanya, masing-masing berjumlah 30 orang. Subyek anak diperlukan dalam kaitannya dengan pengukuran tingkat kemandirian anak. Sementara subyek orangtua diperlukan dalam kaitannya dengan implementasi Model PAO-MKA. Data dianalisis dengan uji statistik inferensial, yakni uji t atau uji perbedaan mean. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa terdapat perbedaan yang positif dan signifikan antara tingkat kemandirian anak sebelum (pretest) dan sesudah (posttest) pelatihan dan penerapan model PAO-MKA. Dengan adanya perbedaan tersebut maka Model PAO-MKA dinyatakan efektif meningkatkan kemandirian anak

Evaluation of a Field-Deployable Reverse Transcription-Insulated Isothermal PCR for Rapid and Sensitive On-Site Detection of Zika Virus

Background: The recent emergence of Zika virus (ZIKV) in Brazil and its precipitous expansion throughout the Americas has highlighted the urgent need for a rapid and reliable on-site diagnostic assay suitable for viral detection. Such point-of-need (PON), low-cost diagnostics are essential for ZIKV control in vulnerable areas with limited resources. Methods: We developed and evaluated a ZIKV-specific field-deployable RT-iiPCR reagent set targeting the E gene for rapid detection of ZIKV in ZIKV-spiked human and mosquito specimens, and compared its performance to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) RT-qPCR assays targeting the E and NS2B genes, respectively. Results: These assays demonstrated exclusive specificity for ZIKV (African and Asian lineages), had limits of detection ranging from 10 to 100 in vitro transcribed RNA copies/μl and detection endpoints at 10 plaque forming units/ml of infectious tissue culture fluid. Analysis of human whole blood, plasma, serum, semen, urine, and mosquito pool samples spiked with ZIKV showed an agreement of 90% (k = 0.80), 92% (k = 0.82), 95% (k = 0.86), 92% (k = 0.81), 90% (k = 0.79), and 100% (k = 1), respectively, between the RT-iiPCR assay and composite results from the reference RT-qPCR assays. Overall, the concurrence between the ZIKV RT-iiPCR and the reference RT-qPCR assays was 92% (k = 0.83). Conclusions: The ZIKV RT-iiPCR has a performance comparable to the reference CDC and PAHO RT-qPCR assays but provides much faster results (~1.5 h) with a field-deployable system that can be utilized as a PON diagnostic with the potential to significantly improve the quality of the health care system in vulnerable areas

Correlation of virulence genes to clinical manifestations and outcome in patients with Streptococcus dysgalactiae subspecies equisimilis bacteremia

Background/PurposeStreptococcus dysgalactiae subsp. equisimilis (SDSE) is increasingly recognized as a human pathogen responsible for invasive infection and streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS). The pathogen possesses virulence genes that resemble those found in Streptococcus pyogenes (GAS). We analyzed the association between these specific toxic genes, clinical presentations, and outcome in patients with SDSE infections.MethodsPatients (older than 18 years) with community-acquired invasive bacteremia caused by SDSE bacteremia who were undergoing treatment at China Medical University Hospital from June 2007 to December 2010 were included in this study. Multiplex polymerase chain reaction was performed to identify virulence genes of the SDSE isolates. Demographic data, clinical presentations, and outcome in patients with SDSE infections were reviewed and analyzed.ResultsForty patients with 41 episodes of SDSE bacteremia were reviewed. The median age of the patients with SDSE infection was 69.7 years; 55% were female and 78% had underlying diseases. Malignancy (13, 33%) and diabetes mellitus (13, 33%) were the most common comorbidities. The 30-day mortality rate was 12%. Compared with the survivors, the non-survivors had a higher rate of diabetes mellitus (80% vs. 26%), liver cirrhosis (60% vs.11%), shock (60% vs.17%), STSS (60% vs. 8%), and a high Pittsburgh bacteremia score >4 (40% vs. 6%). Most isolates had scpA, ska, saga, and slo genes, whereas speC, speG, speH, speI, speK, smez, and ssa genes were not detected. speA gene was identified only in one patient with STSS (1/6, 17%). All isolates were susceptible to penicillin, cefotaxime, levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, vancomycin, and linezolid.ConclusionIn invasive SDSE infections, most isolates carry putative virulence genes, such as scpA, ska, saga, and slo. Clinical SDSE isolates in Taiwan remain susceptible to penicillin cefotaxime, and levofloxacin

Pericytes regulate vascular immune homeostasis in the CNS.

Pericytes regulate the development of organ-specific characteristics of the brain vasculature such as the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and astrocytic end-feet. Whether pericytes are involved in the control of leukocyte trafficking in the adult central nervous system (CNS), a process tightly regulated by CNS vasculature, remains elusive. Using adult pericyte-deficient mice (Pdgfb ret/ret ), we show that pericytes limit leukocyte infiltration into the CNS during homeostasis and autoimmune neuroinflammation. The permissiveness of the vasculature toward leukocyte trafficking in Pdgfb ret/ret mice inversely correlates with vessel pericyte coverage. Upon induction of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), pericyte-deficient mice die of severe atypical EAE, which can be reversed with fingolimod, indicating that the mortality is due to the massive influx of immune cells into the brain. Additionally, administration of anti-VCAM-1 and anti-ICAM-1 antibodies reduces leukocyte infiltration and diminishes the severity of atypical EAE symptoms of Pdgfb ret/ret mice, indicating that the proinflammatory endothelium due to absence of pericytes facilitates exaggerated neuroinflammation. Furthermore, we show that the presence of myelin peptide-specific peripheral T cells in Pdgfb ret/ret ;2D2 tg mice leads to the development of spontaneous neurological symptoms paralleled by the massive influx of leukocytes into the brain. These findings indicate that intrinsic changes within brain vasculature can promote the development of a neuroinflammatory disorder

Women with endometriosis have higher comorbidities: Analysis of domestic data in Taiwan

AbstractEndometriosis, defined by the presence of viable extrauterine endometrial glands and stroma, can grow or bleed cyclically, and possesses characteristics including a destructive, invasive, and metastatic nature. Since endometriosis may result in pelvic inflammation, adhesion, chronic pain, and infertility, and can progress to biologically malignant tumors, it is a long-term major health issue in women of reproductive age. In this review, we analyze the Taiwan domestic research addressing associations between endometriosis and other diseases. Concerning malignant tumors, we identified four studies on the links between endometriosis and ovarian cancer, one on breast cancer, two on endometrial cancer, one on colorectal cancer, and one on other malignancies, as well as one on associations between endometriosis and irritable bowel syndrome, one on links with migraine headache, three on links with pelvic inflammatory diseases, four on links with infertility, four on links with obesity, four on links with chronic liver disease, four on links with rheumatoid arthritis, four on links with chronic renal disease, five on links with diabetes mellitus, and five on links with cardiovascular diseases (hypertension, hyperlipidemia, etc.). The data available to date support that women with endometriosis might be at risk of some chronic illnesses and certain malignancies, although we consider the evidence for some comorbidities to be of low quality, for example, the association between colon cancer and adenomyosis/endometriosis. We still believe that the risk of comorbidity might be higher in women with endometriosis than that we supposed before. More research is needed to determine whether women with endometriosis are really at risk of these comorbidities

Different Epitopes of EV71 Caspid Proteins, Other than VP1, become the Candidate of the EV71 Vaccine Development.

腸病毒七十一型是腸病毒中最主要造成口手足症以及神經方面嚴重併發症的病毒。腸病毒七十一型和小兒麻痺病毒同屬於微小RNA病毒科（picornaviridae），其外殼蛋白由四種結構蛋白（VP1, VP2, VP3和VP4）組合而成。大部分的腸病毒七十一型的疫苗研究著重在無活性的病毒顆粒跟VP1這個結構蛋白上。雖然VP1被廣泛認為是腸病毒七十一型最重要的抗原決定位，但是卻沒有直接的證據可以證明這一點。除此之外，在疫苗的研發中，只有無活性的病毒顆粒可以保護初生鼠抵抗腸病毒七十一型的感染也降低了受到感染的初生鼠的死亡率，但以VP1結構蛋白當作疫苗則至今都沒有很好的效果。而在小兒麻痺病毒的研究中，已經有三到四個中和抗原決定位被發現，而這些決定位至散佈在三個主要在病毒表面的結構蛋白，VP1-VP3。在本研究中，我們開始研究其他有別於VP1的蛋白，如VP3和VP0（VP0是VP2和VP4的前驅蛋白）。利用大腸桿菌系統，來表現帶有His tag的結構蛋白，VP1、VP3、VP0。我們使用個別的結構蛋白與無活性的病毒顆粒和CFA/IFA等佐劑混合，用腹腔注射的方式致敏老鼠，得到的抗體去測試其中和病毒的能力。抗整個病毒的抗體有較其他單獨純化的結構蛋白有更好的中和效果，而除了VP1蛋白有中和效果外，目前初步的實驗結果也顯示VP0和VP3有中和病毒的效果，但其效果都不及整個病毒所引起的免疫反應。利用ELISA分析病毒特異性抗體，我們發現其中VP1特異性抗體較VP3及VP0特異性抗體多。之後，我們將抗病毒血清與不同的蛋白作用後，再進行中和測試。結果顯示，只有病毒顆粒與抗病毒血清作用後，有明顯抑制血清中和病毒的能力，而其他蛋白只有些微的減低抗病毒血清中和病毒的能力。另一方面，我們以VP1蛋白為主，配合著其他結構蛋白一起致敏老鼠看其引起的免疫反應是否可以達到無活性病毒致敏的免疫反應，而改採用鼻腔給予的方式致敏老鼠，希望在局部黏膜位置產生IgA，可以在第一道防線阻斷病毒的入侵感染。而實驗結果顯示只有無活性病毒致敏可以引發良好的免疫反應，推斷可能其他蛋白給予的量太低而無法達到良好的免疫反應。除此之外，顆粒性抗原、可與M細胞接觸的抗原能夠引發較好的黏膜免疫反應。因此，在未來腸病毒七十一型黏膜疫苗的研究上，應採取整個病毒顆粒去致敏老鼠。而在安全性的考量上，將開發腸病毒七十一型假病毒顆粒來開發黏膜疫苗。Enterovirus 71 has been the most important enterovirus to cause hand-foot-and-mouth disease accompanied with neurological complication. EV71, like the poliovirus, belongs to the Picornaviridae family and there are four kinds of structural proteins, VP1-VP4, to assemble the virions. It is generally considered that VP1 is the most important antigenic determinant of EV71. Therefore, previous studies on the EV71 vaccine most focused on the inactivated virus and VP1, but inactivated virus vaccine had better protection than VP1 subunit vaccine. In addition, studies on poliovirus showed that three to four neutralizing antigenic sites have been described, involving residues of all three major structural proteins, VP1-VP3. Based on the reasons above, we want to identify neutralizing epitopes of EV71 Caspid, other than VP1, to improve vaccine. We purified other recombinant caspid proteins, other than VP1, to immunize BALB/c mice accompanied with CFA/IFA or cholera toxin as adjuvant. We demonstrated the VP0 (VP0 is the propeptide of VP2 and VP4) and VP3 can induce specific antibodies. In the neutralization test, we also found that anti-VP0 and anti-VP3 serum can protect RD cell against virus infection as well as anti-VP1 serum. Further, serum samples from EV71-immunized mice had the best neutralization effect. About the antigen saturation study, only inactivated virus could block neutralization effect of anti-virus serum. We suggested that denatured VP1, VP3, and VP0 might lose most of conformational epitopes during the purification and had low affinity with anti-virus serum. In the other hand, we estimated the component of anti-virus serum by ELISA and we found that VP1-specific antibody was more than VP3 and VP4-specific antibody. Then, we combined different structural proteins with different ratio to immunize BALB/c mice via nasal route for the reason that induction of mucosal immunity to protect virus infection in the first line of defense. The results showed that only inactivated virus can elicit great magnitude of immune response. In conclusion, antibodies induced by EV71 capsid proteins, other than VP1, had neutralization effect and whole virus could induce the best neutralizing antibodies and mucosal immunity. We estimated components of anti-virus serum by ELISA and considered that VP1 might be more important neutralizing epitopes in virus infection. We considered that intact virus is the proper candidate of the EV71 vaccine development. Thus, we will design enterovirus-like particle for development of mucosal vaccine.封面 口試委員簽名單 致謝.......................................................................................................................i ABSTRACT..........................................................................................................iii. 中文摘要................................................................................................................v CONTENTS..........................................................................................................vii INTRODUCTION 1.1 Epidemiology of enterovirus type 71...................................................1 1.2 Clinical syndrome caused by EV71.....................................................3 1.3 Classification of EV71..........................................................................3 1.4 Structural and properties of EV71........................................................5 1.5 Antigenic determinant sites of EV71...................................................7 1.6 Gene variation of EV71.........................................................................9 1.7 Molecular genetics of virulence...........................................................12 1.8 Study of EV71vaccine..........................................................................14 1.9 The aim and motive...............................................................................16 METHODS AND MATERIALS 2.1 Reagents................................................................................................18 2.2 Methods.................................................................................................23 RESULTS 3.1 Expression of EV71 structural proteins.............................................39 3.2 Generation of anti-virus, anti-VP0, anti-VP1, and anti-VP3 polyclonal antibodies .............................................................................................41 3.3 Immune response after intranasal delivery of different protein in BALB/c mice......................................................................................................45 DISCUSSION.......................................................................................................50 GRAPH..................................................................................................................57 REFERENCE........................................................................................................76 APPENDIX............................................................................................................8

Using Flipped Mobile Learning in the Beginning Level Writing Class for Overseas Chinese Students: A Case Study of LINE Application

[[abstract]]　　本研究目的在使用LINE作為寫作平台，以行動學習之概念發展翻轉式華語寫作教學課程，並了解學習者之科技接受度、學習興趣、社會比較傾向與作文成效之影響。本研究以臺灣中部某大學初級僑生華語班的18位學生為對象，進行為期十四週的翻轉式寫作課程，使用半結構式訪談與問卷調查法分析，研究結論如下。 　　本研究寫作課程結合自由寫作教學法之概念與IBDP課程架構，學習者能學習不同的寫作文體與寫作型態，透過教師引導讓初級華語寫作的學習者能組織構思，從真實經驗發想創作。IBDP題材結合生活中真實的題材應用，如標語、傳單等，擴大寫作型態的範圍，開啟寫作新樣貌。 　　量化資料以SPSS 20.0軟體，進行描述性統計、獨立樣本t檢定以及相關分析，檢驗得知，學習者的「科技接受度」對其「學習興趣」無顯著影響、學習者的「向上比較傾向」對其「學習興趣」有顯著影響、「作文高分組與作文低分組」的學習者對「科技接受度」、「學習興趣」、「向上比較傾向」無顯著差異。[[abstract]]　　The purpose of this study was to develop a Chinese writing course which designed on mobile learning and flipped learning. In addition, it realizes the impact on acceptance in technology, interest in learning, students’ upward comparison and the score of writing. There were 18 students in the course, completed in fourteen weeks of experimental teaching. This writing course was implemented with LINE platform, a popular social media in Asia. Major results and conclusions drawn from this study are stated here: 　　This research writing course combined the concept of free writing and IBDP theme. The study found that learners can learn different writing subjects and writing styles. Through the guidance of teachers, learners of beginner Chinese writing can organize their ideas and think from real experiences. IBDP frameworks combined real-life themes in life, such as slogans and leaflets and so on. It expanded the scope of writing styles and opened a new page. 　　The quantitative data was analyzed by descriptive statistics, independent sample t test and correlation analysis. Students’ technology acceptance had non-statistically significant on learning interest. Students’ upward comparison had significant impact on learning interest. There were no statistically significant differences between technology acceptance, learning interest and upward comparison for top-ranking (percentile rank>73) and lowest-ranking (percentile rank<27) students.[[note]]碩