Mutations in Influenza A Virus (H5N1) and Possible Limited Spread, Turkey, 2006

We report mutations in influenza A virus (H5N1) strains associated with 2 outbreaks in Turkey. Four novel amino acid changes (Q447L, N556K, and R46K in RNA polymerase and S133A in hemagglutinin) were detected in virus isolates from 2 siblings who died

Needle-free delivery of measles virus vaccine to the lower respiratory tract of non-human primates elicits optimal immunity and protection

Publication history: Accepted - 8 June 2017; Published online - 1 August 2017.Needle-free measles virus vaccination by aerosol inhalation has many potential benefits. The current standard route of vaccination is subcutaneous injection, whereas measles virus is an airborne pathogen. However, the target cells that support replication of liveattenuated measles virus vaccines in the respiratory tract are largely unknown. The aims of this study were to assess the in vivo tropism of live-attenuated measles virus and determine whether respiratory measles virus vaccination should target the upper or lower respiratory tract. Four groups of twelve cynomolgus macaques were immunized with 104 TCID50 of recombinant measles virus vaccine strain Edmonston-Zagreb expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein. The vaccine virus was grown in MRC-5 cells and formulated with identical stabilizers and excipients as used in the commercial MVEZ vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India. Animals were immunized by hypodermic injection, intra-tracheal inoculation, intra-nasal instillation, or aerosol inhalation. In each group six animals were euthanized at early time points post-vaccination, whereas the other six were followed for 14 months to assess immunogenicity and protection from challenge infection with wild-type measles virus. At early time-points, enhanced green fluorescent protein-positive measles virus-infected cells were detected locally in the muscle, nasal tissues, lungs, and draining lymph nodes. Systemic vaccine virus replication and viremia were virtually absent. Infected macrophages, dendritic cells and tissueresident lymphocytes predominated. Exclusive delivery of vaccine virus to the lower respiratory tract resulted in highest immunogenicity and protection. This study sheds light on the tropism of a live-attenuated measles virus vaccine and identifies the alveolar spaces as the optimal site for respiratory delivery of measles virus vaccine.This study was funded by the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Grand Challenges in Global Health initiative (grant number: DUPREX09GCGH0)

Effect of Siberian Light Crude Oil on Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) Cultivars

The environmental petroleum contamination problem is getting increasingly important as the need for fertile land increases. Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is a forage legume, which has uses in petroleum phytoremediation. In this study, three local cultivars of alfalfa from Eastern Anatolia were screened for their potential with respect to their for petroleum phytoremediation capacity and the effect of symbiotic nitrogen fixation of a symbiotic bacteria, Rhizobium meliloti, was evaluated. Local alfalfa cultivars; Savas, 1313 and 1312 were germinated and grown at soil mixed contaminated with different Siberian Light (SBL) crude oil concentrations for one month. Paralel studies were conducted with the application of R. meliloti. It could be said that the alfalfa cultivars are not very tolerant to the higher concentration of petroleum hydrocarbon contamination, but can only manage to grow on slightly contaminated areas

Evaluation of the phytoremediation capacity of Lemna minor L. in crude oil spiked cultures

Phytoremediation of freshwater contaminated with crude oil is a technology that can restore damaged freshwater areas. Lemna minor is a small vascular plant that reproduces rapidly, is sensitive to a wide variety of pollutants, and is easy to culture. This study aimed to evaluate the phytoremediation capacity of L. minor in crude oil spiked cultures. Cultivation was carried out for 7 days in a greenhouse with a natural photoperiod and in nutrient solutions containing 0.5%, 1%, 2%, and 3% crude oil. Extracts were analyzed using GC/MS and synchronous UV fluorescence spectroscopy. After a week of cultivation, the fresh weight of plants in the control medium increased by 117%. The presence of crude oil up to 0.5% v/v reduced growth as much as 50% relative to the control plants. C-17/Pr and C-18/Ph ratios decreased especially in the presence of 0.5% to 2% v/v crude oil in the growth media. In 0.5% oil concentrations, both unplanted control samples and plant samples contained no 1-4 ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. However, at oil applications of 0.5% and 1%, the plant samples contained 5 ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; their intensity was approximately two times lower than that of the unplanted control samples. It can be concluded that the biodegradation potential of L. minor strongly depends on the concentration of crude oil contaminants. Finally, the phytoremediative capacity of L. minor is only suitable for cleaning of freshwater resources containing small amounts of oil contaminants

ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBON FINGERPRINTS IN Trifolium spp.

Phytoremediation of petroleum hydrocarbons from soil is a promising approach because of its low cost and environmentally friendly nature. This work intends to contribute to this area by investigating the potentials of common forage legumes, red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) and white clover (Trifolium repens L.), for petroleum oil phytoremediation. Five different cultivars of red clover (Namuq, 79, 818, Lakeland, 1881) and 3 cultivars of white clover (361, 453, 455) were used to evaluate intra- and interspecific variability in terms of their phytoremediative potential. The seeds were germinated in soil mixed with 1, 5 and 7% (v/v) Siberian light crude oil (SBL), and the seedlings were grown for 30 days at the same media. Germination ratio (%), stem length, number and width of leaves were used as physiological parameters for pre-evaluation of plantlets for oil tolerance. It was shown that white clover is not tolerant to oil contamination, whereas red clover can prevail up to 7% of crude oil application despite the significant decrease in the biomass. The most tolerant cultivar of red clover was Lakeland. Aliphatic hydrocarbon fingerprints observed in the GC-MS chromatograms of leaf extracts pointed out this cultivar as a valuable source of information for understanding the tolerance mechanism of plants to hydrocarbons

A geriatric patient with diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis

The most frequent health problems seen in senility are chronic and degenerative diseases. A 75-year-old male patient with the complaints of weight loss and difficulty in swallowing was admitted to our hospital from a nursing home. Upper system fiber-optic gastrointestinal endoscopy was performed and a mass at the junction of the hypopharynx and esophagus just below recessus piriformis obstructing almost the whole of the lumen and blocking the distal passage was detected. Computed tomography revealed marked narrowing secondary to osseous hypertrophy in the air column of the hypopharynx and proximal esophagus. Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis or Forestier’s disease is an idiopathic disease characterized by the ossification of the anterior longitudinal ligament of vertebra and some of the extraspinal ligaments. In the present case we aim to discuss an elderly patient who suffered from dysphagia and weight loss and the diagnostic stages

Hepatitis B Virus Vaccination Rates among Medical Laboratory Workers: A Multi-centered Assessment

Conclusion: Present study is the first multicenter study to reflect the HBV vaccination rates among laboratory workers across the entire country. Medical laboratory personnel possess the risk of acquiring hepatitis B infection, so that formation of awareness is necessary by education. Anti-HB positivity screened, seronegative all personnel should be vaccinated against hepatitis B and after vaccination anti-HBs should be monitored periodically

Comparative transcriptome analysis of Zea mays in response to petroleum hydrocarbon stress

The use of plants for the improvement of soils contaminated with hydrocarbons has been a primary research focus in phytoremediation studies. Obtaining insights regarding genes that are differentially induced by petroleum hydrocarbon stress and understanding plant response mechanisms against petroleum hydrocarbons at molecular level is essential for developing better phytoremediation strategies to remove these hazardous contaminants. The purpose of this study was to analyze the transcriptomal profile changes under hydrocarbon stress in maize plants and identify the genes associated with the phytoremediative capacity. Zea mays GeneChips were used to analyze the global transcriptome profiles of maize treated with different concentrations of petroleum hydrocarbons. In total, 883, 1281, and 2162 genes were differentially induced or suppressed in the comparisons of 0 (control) vs. 1% crude petroleum, 1 vs. 5% crude petroleum, and 0 vs. 5% crude petroleum, respectively. The differentially expressed genes were functionally associated with the osmotic stress response mechanism, likely preventing the uptake of water from the roots, and the phytoremediative capacity of plants, e.g., secretory pathway genes. The results presented here show the regulatory mechanisms in the response to petroleum hydrocarbon pollution in soil. Our study provides global gene expression data of Z. mays in response to petroleum hydrocarbon stress that could be useful for further studies investigating the biodegradation mechanism in maize and other plants

Methylation Status of Alu and LINE-1 Interspersed Repetitive Sequences in Behcet's Disease Patients

Behcet's Disease (BD) is a multisystem chronic inflammatory disease. The pathology is believed to involve both genetic susceptibility and environmental factors. Hypomethylation leading to activation of interspersed repetitive sequences (IRSs) such as LINE-1 and Alu contributes to the pathologies of autoimmune diseases and cancer. Herein, the epigenetic changes of IRSs in BD were evaluated using combined bisulfite restriction analysis-interspersed repetitive sequences (COBRA-IRS). DNA from neutrophils and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of BD patients with ocular involvement that were in active or inactive states and healthy controls were used to analyze LINE-1 and Alu methylation levels. For Alu sequences, significant differences were observed in the frequency of (CC)-C-u-C-u alleles between PBMCs of patients and controls (p = 0.03), and between inactive patients and controls (p = 0.03). For neutrophils, the frequency of (CC)-C-u-C-u was significantly higher between patients and controls (p = 0.006) and between inactive patients and controls (p = 0.002). The partial methylation ((CC)-C-u-C-m + (CC)-C-m-C-u) frequencies of Alu between inactive patients and control samples also differed (p = 0.02). No statistically significant differences for LINE-1 were detected. Thus, changes in the methylation level of IRS elements might contribute to the pathogenesis of BD. The role of Alu transcripts in BD should be investigated further