Klinička primjena RT-PCR u otkrivanju DNK tuberkuloze u kombinaciji s TB-IGRA u dijagnostici plućne tuberkuloze s negativnim nalazom sputuma

The aim was to investigate detection of pulmonary alveolar lavage fluid tuberculosis DNA by real-time fluorescent polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) combined with clinical application of the sputum smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis diagnosis with TB interferon-γ release assay (TB-IGRA). From October 2014 to October 2015, 632 outpatients and inpatients treated in our hospital were randomly selected, of which 459 patients as the research group managed with RT-PCR detection combined with TB-IGRA and 173 patients as the control group undergoing electronic bronchoscopy alveolar lavage fluid detection, with detection results statistically evaluated. The positive rate in the research group was 96.51%, i.e. significantly higher than that in the control group (66.47%), yielding a statistically significant difference (χ2=109.68, p=0.00). The true positive rate was 97.7% in the research group and 67.92% in the control group; the true positive rate was significantly higher in the research group patients as compared with the control group, yielding a statistically significant difference (χ2=112.04, p=0.00). The sensitivity and specificity, as well as Youden index were significantly higher in the research group as compared with the control group. In conclusion, TB DNA detection by RT-PCR combined with TB-IGRA is a very good method of diagnosing tuberculosis, and it can be implemented in clinical diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis.Cilj istraživanja bio je ispitati otkrivanje DNK tuberkuloze u plućnom alveolarnom ispirku pomoću lančane reakcije polimeraze u stvarnom vremenu s fluorescentnim bojama (RT-PCR) u kombinaciji s kliničkom primjenom dijagnostike plućne tuberkuloze s negativnim nalazom sputuma pomoću testa otpuštanja TB interferona-γ (TB-IGRA). Od listopada 2014. do listopada 2015. godine nasumce su odabrane 632 osobe bolnički i izvanbolnički liječene u našoj bolnici, od kojih je 459 uključeno u ispitnu skupinu podvrgnutu otkrivanju pomoću RT-PCR u kombinaciji s testom TB-IGRA, a 173 u kontrolnu skupinu podvrgnutu elektroničkom otkrivanju u bronhoskopskom alveolarnom ispirku; rezultati su statistički obrađeni. Stopa pozitivnih nalaza bila je 96,51% u ispitnoj skupini, odnosno značajno viša od one u kontrolnoj skupini (66,47%), uz statistički značajnu razliku (χ2=109,68; p=0,00). Stopa stvarno pozitivnih nalaza bila je 97,7% u ispitnoj skupini i 67,92% u kontrolnoj skupini, dakle značajno viša kod bolesnika ispitne skupine u usporedbi s kontrolnom skupinom, uz statistički značajnu razliku (χ2=112,04; p=0,00). Osjetljivost i specifičnost, kao i Youdenov indeks bili su značajno viši u ispitnoj skupini u usporedbi s kontrolnom skupinom. U zaključku, otkrivanje TB DNK pomoću RT-PCR u kombinaciji s TB-IGRA vrlo je dobra metoda za dijagnosticiranje tuberkuloze, koja se može primjenjivati u kliničkoj dijagnostici plućne tuberkuloze

Control of Intestinal Inflammation, Colitis-Associated Tumorigenesis, and Macrophage Polarization by Fibrinogen-Like Protein 2

Fibrinogen-like protein 2 (Fgl2) is critical for immune regulation in the inflammatory state. Elevated Fgl2 levels are observed in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but little is known about its functional significance. In this study, we sought to investigate the role of Fgl2 in the development of intestinal inflammation and colitis-associated colorectal cancer (CAC). Here, we report that Fgl2 deficiency increased susceptibility to dextran sodium sulfate-induced colitis and CAC in a mouse model. During colitis development, the expression of the membrane-bound and secreted forms of Fgl2 (mFgl2 and sFgl2, respectively) in the colon were increased and predominantly expressed by colonic macrophages. In addition, using bone marrow chimeric mice, we determined that Fgl2 function in colitis is strictly related to its expression in the hematopoietic cells. Loss of Fgl2 induced the polarization of M1, but suppressed that of M2 both in vivo and in vitro, independent of intestinal inflammation. Thus, Fgl2 suppresses intestinal inflammation and CAC development through its role in macrophage polarization and may serve as a therapeutic target in inflammatory diseases, including IBD

Chinese herbal decoction as a complementary therapy for atrophic gastritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Chinese herbal decoction (CHD) has been extensively used in the treatment of atrophic gastritis (AG) in China and other Far Eastern countries. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the efficacy and safety of CHD in AG.Materials and Methods: Pubmed, Embase, Cochrane central register of controlled trials (central), VIP, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Sinomed, Wanfang data were searched (up to December 2015). Randomized controlled trials recruiting patients with AG comparing CHD (alone or with western medicine (WM)) with WM were eligible. Dichotomous data were pooled to obtain relative risk (RR), with a 95% confidence interval (CI).Results: Forty-two articles including 3,874 patients were identified. CHD, used alone or with WM, had beneficial effect over WM in the improvement of clinical manifestations (RR=1.28; 95% CI 1.22-1.34) and pathological change (RR=1.42; 95% CI 1.30-1.54) for AG patients. However, the H. pylori eradication effect of CHD was not supported by the existing clinical evidence, because of the significant study heterogeneity (I2>50%) and inconsistency between the primary results and sensitivity analysis.Conclusions: CHD, if prescribed as a complementary therapy to WM, may improve the clinical manifestations and pathological change for AG patients. But its monotherapy for H. pylori eradication is not supported by enough clinical evidence.Keywords: atrophic gastritis; Helicobacter pylori; Chinese herbal decoction; meta-analysi

Cloning and analysis of a NBS-LRR disease resistance gene candidate PnAG1 from peanut ( Arachis hypogaea L.)

Background: Based on the conserved sequences of a known NBS resistance gene, a pair of degenerate primers was designed to amplify the NBS-LRR resistance gene from peanut using PCR and RACE methods. Results: Analyzing the amino acid sequence by BLAST on NCBI, which was deduced from the 1088bp-long gene named PnAG1-2, showed that it had a certain homology with some resistance proteins, among which Arachis cardenasii resistance protein gene had the highest homology (66%). Relative quantification PCR analysis indicated that PnAG1-2 gene expresses more in J11 (an A. flavus-resistant variety) than in JH1012 (an A. flavus-susceptible variety) when the harvest time was coming. Conclusions: In this study, the NBS-LRR resistance sequence was successfully cloned from peanut and prokaryotic expression was done on the gene, which provided a foundation for cultivating anti-A. flavus peanut varieties

On the Upper Limits of Oxidation States in Chemistry.

The concept of oxidation state (OS) is based on the concept of Lewis electron pairs, in which the bonding electrons are assigned to the more electronegative element. This approach is useful for keeping track of the electrons, predicting chemical trends, and guiding syntheses. Experimental and quantum-chemical results reveal a limit near +8 for the highest OS in stable neutral chemical substances under ambient conditions. OS=+9 was observed for the isolated [IrO4 ]+ cation in vacuum. The prediction of OS=+10 for isolated [PtO4 ]2+ cations is confirmed computationally for low temperatures only, but hasn't yet been experimentally verified. For high OS species, oxidation of the ligands, for example, of O-2 with formation of . O-1 and O-O bonds, and partial reduction of the metal center may be favorable, possibly leading to non-Lewis type structures

The cross-reactivity of the enterovirus 71 to human brain tissue and identification of the cross-reactivity related fragments

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>EV71 occasionally cause a series of severe neurological symptoms, including aseptic meningitis, encephalitis, and poliomyelitis-like paralysis. However, the neurological destruction mechanism was remained to be clarified. This study described the cross reaction between EV71 induced IgG and human brain tissue.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Cross reaction of the IgG from 30 EV71 infected patients' sera to human tissues of cerebra was observed, which suggested that some EV71 antigens could induce IgG cross-reactivity to human cerebra. To identify the regions of EV71 virus that containing above antigens, the polypeptide of virus was divided into 19 peptides by expression in prokaryotes cell. Mouse anti-sera of these peptides was prepared and applied in immunohistochemical staining with human adult and fetus brain tissue, respectively. The result indicated the 19 peptides can be classified into three groups: strong cross-reactivity, weak cross-reactivity and no cross-reactivity with human brain tissue according the cross reaction activity. Then, the increased Blood Brain Barrier (BBB) permeability and permits IgG entry in neonatal mice after EV71 infection was determined.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>EV71 induced IgG could enter BBB and cross-reacted with brain tissue in EV71 infected neonatal mice, and then the peptides of EV71 that could induce cross-reactivity with brain tissue were identified, which should be avoided in future vaccine designing.</p

CHINESE HERBAL DECOCTION AS A COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY FOR ATROPHIC GASTRITIS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS

Background: Chinese herbal decoction (CHD) has been extensively used in the treatment of atrophic gastritis (AG) in China and other Far Eastern countries. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the efficacy and safety of CHD in AG. Materials and Methods: Pubmed, Embase, Cochrane central register of controlled trials (central), VIP, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Sinomed, Wanfang data were searched (up to December 2015). Randomized controlled trials recruiting patients with AG comparing CHD (alone or with western medicine (WM)) with WM were eligible. Dichotomous data were pooled to obtain relative risk (RR), with a 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: Forty-two articles including 3,874 patients were identified. CHD, used alone or with WM, had beneficial effect over WM in the improvement of clinical manifestations (RR=1.28; 95% CI 1.22-1.34) and pathological change (RR=1.42; 95% CI 1.30-1.54) for AG patients. However, the H. pylori eradication effect of CHD was not supported by the existing clinical evidence, because of the significant study heterogeneity (I2>50%) and inconsistency between the primary results and sensitivity analysis. Conclusions: CHD, if prescribed as a complementary therapy to WM, may improve the clinical manifestations and pathological change for AG patients. But its monotherapy for H. pylori eradication is not supported by enough clinical evidence

Evolution of Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Avian Influenza Viruses in Vietnam between 2001 and 2007

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 viruses have caused dramatic economic losses to the poultry industry of Vietnam and continue to pose a serious threat to public health. As of June 2008, Vietnam had reported nearly one third of worldwide laboratory confirmed human H5N1 infections. To better understand the emergence, spread and evolution of H5N1 in Vietnam we studied over 300 H5N1 avian influenza viruses isolated from Vietnam since their first detection in 2001. Our phylogenetic analyses indicated that six genetically distinct H5N1 viruses were introduced into Vietnam during the past seven years. The H5N1 lineage that evolved following the introduction in 2003 of the A/duck/Hong Kong/821/2002-like viruses, with clade 1 hemagglutinin (HA), continued to predominate in southern Vietnam as of May 2007. A virus with a clade 2.3.4 HA newly introduced into northern Vietnam in 2007, reassorted with pre-existing clade 1 viruses, resulting in the emergence of novel genotypes with neuraminidase (NA) and/or internal gene segments from clade 1 viruses. A total of nine distinct genotypes have been present in Vietnam since 2001, including five that were circulating in 2007. At least four of these genotypes appear to have originated in Vietnam and represent novel H5N1 viruses not reported elsewhere. Geographic and temporal analyses of H5N1 infection dynamics in poultry suggest that the majority of viruses containing new genes were first detected in northern Vietnam and subsequently spread to southern Vietnam after reassorting with pre-existing local viruses in northern Vietnam. Although the routes of entry and spread of H5N1 in Vietnam remain speculative, enhanced poultry import controls and virologic surveillance efforts may help curb the entry and spread of new HPAI viral genes