Experimental demonstration of high sensitivity refractive index sensing based on magnetic plasmons in a simple metallic deep nanogroove array.

A high-performance wide-angle refractive index sensor based on a simple one-dimensional (1D) metallic deep nanogroove array with a high aspect ratio is experimentally fabricated and demonstrated. The 1D deep groove array is featured by the excitation of magnetic plasmon (MP), referring to an effective coupling of incident electromagnetic waves with a strong magnetic response induced inside the deep grooves. Utilizing the MP resonances that are extremely sensitive to the surrounding dielectric medium, we successfully achieve a refractive index sensitivity (RIS) up to ∼1300 nm/RIU, which is higher than that of most experimentally designed plasmonic sensors in the infrared region. Importantly, benefiting from angle-independent MP resonances with strong confinement of the magnetic field inside the deep grooves and strong electric field localization at the groove openings, we demonstrate wide-angle sensing capability valid in a broadband infrared region with an excellent linear dependence on the change of refractive index. Such a MP-based sensor, together with its simple 1D flat nature and ease of fabrication, has great potential for the practical design of high sensitive, cost-effective and compact sensing devices.

Appropriate technologies for upgrading wastewater treatment plants: methods review and case studies in China.

Upgrading existing wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is a more challenging task than constructing new plants. The aim is usually to overcome overloading and to reduce pollution concentrations in the effluent. There are various methods that can be used to upgrade WWTPs. This article reviews some of the methodologies, such as inserting new tanks as additional treatment steps and modifying the WWTP by introducing new technologies. A number of effective technologies are reviewed in terms of their basic concepts, operational conditions, and treatment performances. Examples of WWTPs in China that have been successfully upgraded using these technologies are also highlighted.

Sensitivity of various body indices and visceral adiposity index in predicting metabolic syndrome among Chinese patients with adult growth hormone deficiency.

AIM: Adult growth hormone deficiency (AGHD) refers to decreased secretion of growth hormones in the adults, which is associated with increased clustering of conventional cardiovascular risk factors such as central obesity, insulin resistance and dyslipidemia. Metabolic syndrome (MetS), a recognized risk factor of cardiovascluar diseases, shares some clinical features. Given that the prevalence of MetS is on the rise in patients with AGHD, and that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in that population, the alternative, simple, non-invasive methods of assessing MetS among this population are needed. This study aims to determine the sensitivity of five anthropometric indices [Body mass index (BMI), Waist circumference (WC), Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), Waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and Visceral adiposity index (VAI)] in predicting metabolic syndrome in Chinese population-based patients with adult growth hormone deficiency. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 96 Chinese patients with adult growth hormone deficiency were included in this study. They were compared with equal number of apparently healthy persons with similar characteristics (matched with age and gender) to the previous group. Anthropometric measurements including weight, height, serum lipids indices, blood pressure (BP), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), WC were measured. BMI, WHR, WHtR, and VAI were calculated. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: AGHD patients with MetS had higher WC (91.00 ± 8.28 vs 78.01 ± 7.12), BMI (24.95 ± 2.91 VS 23.30 ± 2.80), WHR (0.92 ± 0.06 VS 0.87 ± 0.07), WHtR (0.53 ± 0.06 VS 0.47 ± 0.05), VAI [(5.59 (4.02, 7.55) VS 1.69 (0.87, 3.05)] levels in comparison to those without MetS. Meantime WC, BMI, WHR, WHtR, VAI was positively correlated to MetS components. ROC curve for participants with AGHD showed that VAI had the highest SS of 92% (BMI 0.812; WHR 0.706; WHtR 0.902; VAI 0.920, respectively) for prediction of MetS in AGHD. The optimal cutoff values for different adiposity markers in predicting MetS were as follows: WC (79.65), BMI (23.46); WHR (0.89); WHtR (0.54); VAI (2.29). CONCLUSION: In conclusion, our study showed all adiposity measures of interest present themselves as easy and practical tools for use in population studies and clinical practice for evaluating MetS in AGDH and VAI was identified as the best in Chinese AGHD patients among them.

Outdoor, indoor, and personal black carbon exposure from cookstoves burning solid fuels.

Black carbon (BC) emissions from solid fuel combustion are associated with increased morbidity and mortality and are important drivers of climate change. We studied BC measurements, approximated by particulate matter (PM2.5 ) absorbance, in rural Yunnan province, China, whose residents use a variety of solid fuels for cooking and heating including bituminous and anthracite coal, and wood. Measurements were taken over two consecutive 24-h periods from 163 households in 30 villages. PM2.5 absorbance (PMabs ) was measured using an EEL 043 Smoke Stain Reflectometer. PMabs measurements were higher in wood burning households (16.3 × 10(-5) /m) than bituminous and anthracite coal households (12 and 5.1 × 10(-5) /m, respectively). Among bituminous coal users, measurements varied by a factor of two depending on the coal source. Portable stoves (which are lit outdoors and brought indoors for use) were associated with reduced PMabs levels, but no other impact of stove design was observed. Outdoor measurements were positively correlated with and approximately half the level of indoor measurements (r = 0.49, P < 0.01). Measurements of BC (as approximated by PMabs ) in this population are modulated by fuel type and source. This provides valuable insight into potential morbidity, mortality, and climate change contributions of domestic usage of solid fuels.

Prediction of endotracheal tube size in pediatric patients: Development and validation of machine learning models.

Objective: We aimed to construct and validate machine learning models for endotracheal tube (ETT) size prediction in pediatric patients. Methods: Data of 990 pediatric patients underwent endotracheal intubation were retrospectively collected between November 2019 and October 2021, and separated into cuffed and uncuffed endotracheal tube subgroups. Six machine learning algorithms, including support vector regression (SVR), logistic regression (LR), random forest (RF), gradient boosting tree (GBR), decision tree (DTR) and extreme gradient boosting tree (XGBR), were selected to construct and validate models using ten-fold cross validation in training set. The optimal models were selected, and the performance were compared with traditional predictive formulas and clinicians. Furthermore, additional data of 71 pediatric patients were collected to perform external validation. Results: The optimal 7 uncuffed and 5 cuffed variables were screened out by feature selecting. The RF models had the best performance with minimizing prediction error for both uncuffed ETT size (MAE = 0.275 mm and RMSE = 0.349 mm) and cuffed ETT size (MAE = 0.243 mm and RMSE = 0.310 mm). The RF models were also superior in predicting power than formulas in both uncuffed and cuffed ETT size prediction. In addition, the RF models performed slightly better than senior clinicians, while they significantly outperformed junior clinicians. Based on SVR models, we proposed 3 novel linear formulas for uncuffed and cuffed ETT size respectively. Conclusion: We have developed machine learning models with excellent performance in predicting optimal ETT size in both cuffed and uncuffed endotracheal intubation in pediatric patients, which provides powerful decision support for clinicians to select proper ETT size. Novel formulas proposed based on machine learning models also have relatively better predictive performance. These models and formulas can serve as important clinical references for clinicians, especially for performers with rare experience or in remote areas.

Endogenous nerve growth factor regulates collagen expression and bladder hypertrophy through Akt and MAPK pathways during cystitis.

Type I collagen forms the main constituent of the extracellular matrix in visceral organs. We reported here that cyclophosphamide (CYP)-induced cystitis significantly increased the production of type I collagen in the inflamed bladder leading to increases in the bladder weight and the thickness of the bladder wall. The endogenous nerve growth factor (NGF) in the urinary bladder regulated type I collagen expression because the neutralizing NGF antibody attenuated cystitis-induced type I collagen up-regulation in the inflamed bladder. Neutralizing NGF antibody also subsequently reversed cystitis-induced increases in bladder weight. Further studies on the intermediate signaling pathways mediating NGF-induced type I collagen expression in the inflamed bladder during cystitis revealed that Akt, JNK, and ERK1/2 activities were increased in the inflamed bladder, whereas p38 MAPK remained unchanged. Suppression of endogenous NGF level with neutralizing NGF antibody significantly blocked the increased activity of Akt, JNK, and ERK1/2 in the inflamed bladder during cystitis. These results indicate that endogenous NGF plays an important role in the activation of Akt and MAPK in the urinary bladder and in bladder hypertrophy during cystitis.

Anatomic site variability in rat skeletal uptake and desorption of fluorescently labeled bisphosphonate.

OBJECTIVES: Bisphosphonates commonly used to treat osteoporosis, Paget's disease, multiple myeloma, hypercalcemia of malignancy and osteolytic lesions of cancer metastasis have been associated with bisphosphonate-associated jaw osteonecrosis (BJON). The underlying pathogenesis of BJON is unclear, but disproportionate bisphosphonate concentration in the jaw has been proposed as one potential etiological factor. This study tested the hypothesis that skeletal biodistribution of intravenous bisphosphonate is anatomic site-dependent in a rat model system. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fluorescently labeled pamidronate was injected intravenously in athymic rats of equal weights followed by in vivo whole body fluorimetry, ex vivo optical imaging of oral, axial, and appendicular bones and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid bone decalcification to assess hydroxyapatite-bound bisphosphonate. RESULTS: Bisphosphonate uptake and bisphosphonate released per unit calcium were similar in oral and appendicular bones but lower than those in axial bones. Hydroxyapatite-bound bisphosphonate liberated by sequential acid decalcification was the highest in oral, relative to axial and appendicular bones (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates regional differences in uptake and release of bisphosphonate from oral, axial, and appendicular bones of immune deficient rats.

Effects of cyclic AMP on development and secondary metabolites of Monascus ruber M-7.

AIM: To study effects of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) on development and secondary metabolites of Monascus ruber M-7. METHODS AND RESULTS: Plate culture, liquid-state fermentation (LSF) and solid-state fermentation (SSF) were used to evaluate effects of cAMP on colonial growth, spore formation and polyketide production of Strain M-7. The results revealed that the variation trends of colonial sizes, numbers of sexual spores and red pigment contents of M-7 were in a dose-dependent manner. And generally they increased and decreased with cAMP concentrations in the ranges of low cAMP concentrations and high cAMP concentrations, respectively. But the variation trends of numbers of asexual spores and citrinin production in both LSF and SSF were opposite to those of colonial sizes, sexual sporulation and red pigment. CONCLUSIONS: The regulation of cAMP on development and secondary metabolites in Strain M-7 was in a dose-dependent pattern. And red pigment might convert to citrinin under changing cAMP concentrations. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: The effects of cAMP on Strain M-7 in SSF give a new clue to enhance beneficial polyketides and reduce citrinin produced by M. ruber.

First Report of Tobacco curly shoot virus Infecting Pepper in China.

In recent years, whitefly-transmitted begomovirues (family Geminiviridae) have caused severe leaf curl disease on tobacco and tomato in southern China, but have not been found on pepper. In August 2009, pepper plants (Capsicum frutescens) grown in the field in Panzhihua City of Sichuan Province (southwestern China), from where the occurrence of begomoviruses has not been reported previously, showed stunting, leaf yellowing, and mild curling symptoms. To identify possible begomoviruses, total DNA was extracted from three infected pepper plants (SC117, SC118, and SC119) with typical symptoms. Using degenerate primer pair PA/PB specific for members of the genus Begomovirus (2), a 500-bp DNA fragment covering parts of the intergenic region and V2 gene of the genome of begomoviruses was amplified from all samples. No amplification was observed from healthy plant extracts. The PCR product from SC118 was cloned and two clones were chosen to be sequenced. Alignment of the partial DNA sequences revealed that the cloned products from isolate SC118 were nearly identical (98.5%) and most closely related to Tobacco curly shoot virus isolate Y35 (TbCSV-[China:Yunnan 35:2001]; Accession No. AJ420318) (96.9 and 97.3% identity, respectively). Therefore, the entire genome of isolate SC118 was sequenced. Overlap primers TbCSV-F(5'-CCGCCGTCTCAACTTCGACAG-3') and TbCSV-R(5'-ATCTGCTGGTCGCTTCGACAT-3') were designed to amplify the full-length genome of SC118. The complete genome sequence of SC118 was determined to be 2,746 nucleotides (Accession No. GU001879) long, with two open reading frames (ORFs) in the virion-sense strand and four ORFs in the complementary-sense strand, typical of the Old World begomoviruses. A comparison with other reported sequences of begomoviruses shows that the genome of SC118 shares the highest nucleotide sequence identity (99.7%) with TbCSV-[China:Yunnan 35:2001]. When PCR was used to detect TbCSV from the other two isolates (SC117 and SC119) with TbCSV specific primer pair Y35F1 and Y35+10R (4), which amplified the fragment covering the whole C2 and C3 genes and the partial C1 and V1 genes of the genome of TbCSV, an amplicon of approximately 1.0 kb was obtained from all samples. To determine whether a satellite molecule was associated with the three virus isolates, a universal betasatellite abutting primer pair (beta01 and beta02) was used (1). No amplification product was detected. In previous studies, it was demonstrated that only 11 isolates were associated with betasatellites among 39 TbCSV-infected, field-collected samples (3), and betasatellites could be associated with noncognate begomoviruses (4). Therefore, the three isolates examined in this study are too few to come to a conclusion that betasatellites are not associated with TbCSV infection of pepper plants. A detailed search for the presence of betasatellites needs to be conducted to draw a definitive conclusion. The above results confirmed that samples SC117, SC118, and SC119 were infected by TbCSV. To our knowledge, this is the first report of TbCSV on pepper in China. References: (1) R. W. Briddon et al. Mol. Biotechnol. 20:317, 2002. (2) D. Deng et al. Ann. Appl. Biol. 125:327, 1994. (3) Z. Li et al. Phytopathology 95:902, 2005. (4) L. Qing et al. Phytopathology 99:716, 2009.

Ala42S100A8 ameliorates psychological-stress impaired cutaneous wound healing.

Although wound healing is generally a successful, carefully orchestrated and evolutionary sound process, it can be disregulated by extrinsic factors such as psychological-stress. In the SKH-1 restraint stress model of cutaneous wound healing, the rate of wound closure is approximately 30% slower in stressed mice. Delay in healing is associated with exaggerated acute inflammation and deficient bacterial clearance at the wound site. It has been suggested that wound hypoxia may contribute to the mechanisms of impaired cutaneous wound healing in the mouse SKH-1 model. Optimal healing of a cutaneous wound is a stepwise repair program. In its early phase, an inflammatory oxidative burst generated by neutrophils is observed. About 40% of neutrophils cytosolic protein weight is comprised of two calcium binding proteins S100A8 and S100A9. Our previous work has shown that S100A8 act as an oxidation-sensitive repellent of human neutrophils in-vitro. Ala(42)S100A8, a site-directed mutant protein is resistant to oxidative inhibition and inhibits neutrophil recruitment in-vivo. Accordingly, we tested the hypothesis that S100A8 may ameliorate wound healing in this model. We examined the effect of wild-type and ala(42)S100A8 for their ability to ameliorate wound closure rates. The data indicated that a single local application of ala(42)S100A8 ameliorated the decreased rate of wound closure resulting from stress. This occurred without significantly affecting wound bacterial clearance. Wild-type S100A8 only had a partial beneficial effect on the rate of wound closure. Those findings support further translational studies of S100 based intervention to ameliorate impaired wound healing.

Effects of light exposure and use of intraocular lens on retinal pigment epithelial cells in vitro.

To investigate the effect of a blue light-filtering intraocular lens (IOL) and a UV-absorbing IOL on light-induced damage to retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells laden with the lipofuscin fluorophore N-retinylidene-N-retinylethanolamine (A2E), A2E-laden RPE cells were exposed to white light which was filtered by either a blue light-filtering IOL or a UV-absorbing IOL. After 30 min of illumination the cell viability and the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS), free glutathione (GSH), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) were determined. In the absence of an IOL, the white light exposure decreased cell viability to 37.2% of the nonirradiated control. The UV-absorbing IOL tended to reduce light-induced cell death; however, the decrease was not significant. The blue light-filtering IOL significantly attenuated light-induced cell damage, increasing cell viability to 79.5% of the nonirradiated control. The presence of the blue light-filtering IOL significantly increased GSH and PEDF levels, and decreased ROS and VEGF levels. This study suggests that a blue light-filtering IOL may be more protective against A2E-induced light damage and inhibit more light-induced ROS and VEGF production than a conventional UV-absorbing IOL.

First Report of Tobacco mosaic virus in Abutilon theophrasti in China.

Velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti Medic), a tall, fecund, self-fertile annual plant in the family Malvaceae, is widely grown in China as a fiber crop and for its medicinal properties. In July of 2008, we observed diffuse chlorotic and necrotic spots on the oldest leaves of velvetleaf plants in the field in Shanxi Province. Sap extracts from six symptomatic plants were tested by direct antigen coated ELISA using polyclonal antibodies specific to Potato virus Y (PVY) and monoclonal antibodies specific to Tomato mosaic virus (ToMV), Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), and Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). Five of the six samples were negative for ToMV, CMV, and PVY but positive for TMV. Double-stranded RNA extracted from leaves of the five velvetleaf plants was used as template for reverse transcription (RT)-PCR as described by Krajacica et al. (1) and Li et al. (2) with some modifications. One-step RT-PCR was performed using a Quant One Step RT-PCR Kit (TIANGEN BIOTECH CO., LTD., Beijing, China) with sense (5'-CTGTTTAGCCGGTTTGGT-3'), and antisense (5'-TCCCTTTACGGACATCAC-3') primers (3) designed to specifically amplify a fragment of the movement protein coding region of TMV. The expected 470-bp fragments were amplified from dsRNA from these five plants and the amplicon from each plant was cloned and sequenced (GenBank Accession No. FJ873800). Comparisons of a consensus sequence derived from the five amplicons with the nucleotide sequences available in the NCBI database using BLAST showed 99% identity with TMV from South Korea (GenBank Accession No. AB354955) and Spain (Accession No. AJ308692) and 98% with TMV from China (Accession No. AF165190). The serological, RT-PCR results and sequence data revealed that these velvetleaf plants were infected by TMV. On the basis of the serological analysis and genome sequence comparisons, this isolate was tentatively designated as TMV-Velvetleaf. To our knowledge, this is the first report of TMV in Abutilon theophrasti Medic in China. References: (1) M. Krajacic et al. J. Chromatogr A. 1144:111, 2007. (2) H. Li et al. Agric. Sci. Chin. 6:86, 2007. (3) Y. B. Niu et al. Chin. Biotechnol. 29:76, 2009.

Infrared Laser Pulses Excite Action Potentials in Primary Cortex Neurons In Vitro.

Infrared neural modulation (INM) has been well studied in the peripheral nervous system (PNS) for potential clinical applications. However, limited research has been conducted on the central nervous systems (CNS). In this study, we aimed at investigating the feasibility of using pulsed infrared (IR) laser with a wavelength of 1940 nm to excite network activity of cultivated rat cortex neurons.We cultured rat cortex neurons, forming neural networks with spontaneous neural activity, on glass multi-electrode arrays (MEAs). Laser at a power of 600 mW and a pulse rate of 10 Hz were used to stimulate the neural networks using the optics of an inverted microscope. Pulse durations were varied from 200 µs to 1 ms. The spike rate was calculated to evaluate the change of the neural network activity during the IR stimuli and the corresponding frequency components of neural response were calculated to examine whether recorded spikes were evoked by the IR pulse or not. A temperature model was adapted from a previous study to estimate the temperature rise during laser pulsing.We observed that the IR irradiation with a pulse duration of 800 µs and 1 ms could excite neuronal action potentials. The temperature rose 18.5 and 23.9 °C, for pulse durations of 800 µs and 1 ms, respectively. Thus, in addition to previously shown inhibition of IR irradiation with a wavelength of 1550 nm, we demonstrate an optical method that can modulate neural network activity in vitro. The preliminary results from this paper also suggested that MEA recording technology coupled with a laser and microscope systems can be exploited as a new approach for future studies to understand mechanisms and characterize laser parameters of INM for CNS neurons.

Activation of the STING-IRF3 pathway promotes hepatocyte inflammation, apoptosis and induces metabolic disorders in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

BACKGROUND: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common result of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Hepatocyte injury and metabolic disorders are hallmarks of NAFLD. Stimulator of interferon genes (STING) and its downstream factor interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) trigger inflammatory reaction in response to the presence of cytosolic DNA. STING has recently been shown to play an important role in early alcoholic liver disease. However, little is known about the role of STING-IRF3 pathway in hepatocyte injury. Here, we aimed to examine the effect of STING-IRF3 pathway on hepatocyte metabolism, inflammation and apoptosis. METHODS: We examined the activation of the STING-IRF3 pathway, a high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mouse model, and determined the role of this pathway in a free fatty acid (FFA)-induced hepatocyte inflammatory response, injury, and dysfunction in L-O2 human liver cells. RESULTS: STING and IRF3 were upregulated in livers of HFD-fed mice and in FFA-induced L-O2 cells. Knocking down either STING or IRF3 led to a significant reduction in FFA-induced hepatic inflammation and apoptosis, as evidenced by modulation of the nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway, inflammatory cytokines, and apoptotic signaling. Additionally, STING/IRF3 knockdown enhanced glycogen storage and alleviated lipid accumulation, which were found to be associated with increased expression of hepatic enzymes in glycolysis and lipid catabolism, and attenuated expression of hepatic enzymes in gluconeogenesis and lipid synthesis. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that the STING-IRF3 pathway promotes hepatocyte injury and dysfunction by inducing inflammation and apoptosis and by disturbing glucose and lipid metabolism. This pathway may be a novel therapeutic target for preventing NAFLD development and progression.

The recombinant nonstructural polyprotein NS1 of porcine parvovirus (PPV) as diagnostic antigen in ELISA to differentiate infected from vaccinated pigs.

To differentiate pigs infected with porcine parvovirus (PPV) from those vaccinated with inactivated whole-virus vaccine, an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on detection of a nonstructural polyprotein 1 (NS1) was developed. A threshold of 0.23 optical density units was established and the assay had high specificity (100), sensitivity (88), accuracy (90) and positive predictive value (100) using haemagglutination inhibition as the standard method. A reproducibility test revealed that the coefficients of variation of sera within-plates and between-run were less than 10%. The assay showed no cross-reactivity with antibodies to porcine reproductive respiratory syndrome virus, pseudorabies virus, foot and mouth disease virus, Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, Toxoplasma or Chlamydia. Sera obtained from pigs infected with PPV reacted with recombinant NS1 protein in the ELISA. Sera from pigs vaccinated with inactivated whole virus did not recognize this protein in the ELISA. In contrast, antibodies against PPV whole virus were present in both PPV-infected and vaccinated animals. Serum conversion against NS1 was first detected 10 days after infection and NS1-specific antibodies were detectable up to half a year post infection. In conclusion, the PPV-NS1 ELISA can differentiate PPV-infected versus inactivated PPV-vaccinated pigs and could be applied in disease diagnosis and surveillance.

Lipid Accumulation Product: a Simple and Accurate Index for Predicting Metabolic Syndrome in Patients with Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency.

PURPOSE: It has been demonstrated that metabolic risk factors were increased in adult growth hormone deficiency (AGHD) patients. Lipid accumulation product (LAP) is a novel biomarker of central lipid accumulation related to risk of metabolic syndrome (MS), diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the ability of LAP to identify MS in AGHD Patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 75 AGHD patients and 75 controls matched with age and gender were enrolled. The general anthropometries and blood biochemical indexes were measured. Body mass index(BMI), waist-hip ratio (WHR), LAP, HOMA-IR were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to find out the cut-off points of LAP to predict MS. RESULTS: Compared with control group, waist circumference (WC), WHR, Systolic blood pressure (SBP), Diastolic blood pressure (DBP), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG) and LAP were increased in AGHD group, while high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) level was lower in AGHD group (P<0.05). The prevalence of MS was 41.3% in AGHD patients. AGHD patients with MS had significantly higher LAP levels compared to those without MS. LAP was highly correlated with components of MS. ROC analysis showed that LAP was a significant discriminator for MS in AGHD patients, and the optimal cutoff point of LAP to predict MS was 44.96 (96.8% sensitivity, 86.4% specificity). CONCLUSIONS: LAP was associated with MS and had a strong and reliable diagnostic accuracy for MS in AGHD patients.

OxLDL upregulates growth-regulation oncogene alpha expression in human endothelial cells.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of oxLDL on CXC chemokine growth-regulated oncogene alpha (GRO alpha) expression in human endothelial cells and the possible functional significance of the effect. METHODS: LDL was isolated by sequential ultracentrifugation and oxidized to oxLDL. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction with GAPDH as internal standard was applied and CXC chemokine GRO alpha mRNA in endothelial ECV304 cells was examined. ELISA was used to determine GRO alpha protein expression on ECV304 cells surface and in the medium. With static cell adhesion assays, the physiological significance of elevated GRO alpha expression was tested. RESULTS: OxLDL, not LDL, treatment of ECV304 cells significantly induced the expression of GRO alpha mRNA that was not detectable in untreated cells. Induction of expression was first evident at 1 h, became maximal at 2 h, and was substantially decreased by 4 h. In a concentration- and time-dependent manner, oxLDL, and not LDL, induced a significant upregulation of GRO alpha surface expression in ECV304 cells that was at a barely detectable level in unstimulated ECV304 cells. GRO alpha protein in the medium did not change significantly. Exposure of ECV304 cells to 40 micrograms protein/ml oxLDL for 24 h resulted in a marked increase in the number of U937 cells bound to ECV304 cells and antibodies to GRO alpha inhibited adhesion. CONCLUSION: OxLDL functionally upregulated GRO alpha expression in endothelial cells.

Molecular studies and prenatal diagnosis of phenylketonuria in Chinese patients.

Phenylketonuria (PKU) is one of the most common inborn errors of metabolic disorders. Although PKU induced mental retardation can be prevented after neonatal screening by following treatment with low phenylalanine diet, some parents are seeking prenatal diagnosis. We screened for mutations in exon 3 and 7 of the PAH gene using the DGGE and restriction enzyme method, in combination with STR linkage analysis. Prenatal diagnosis was carried out in 8 PKU families. With this strategy, we are able to make prenatal diagnosis in about 65-70% PKU families. All diagnosis was confirmed in the newborn.

A comparative study of Phyllanthus amarus compound and interferon in the treatment of chronic viral hepatitis B.

Fifty-five patients with chronic viral hepatitis B were randomly divided into two groups. Thirty patients were treated with Phyllanthus amarus compound (PA Co) for three months in the treatment group, another 25 patients were treated with domestic recombinant human interferon alpha-1b (IFN-alpha 1b) for three months as controls. The total effective rate in the treatment group was 83.3%, showing no significant difference from the control (p>0.05). The normalization rates of ALT, A/G and SB in the treatment group were 73.3%, 80.0% and 78.2% respectively, which were significantly higher than that in the control (p<0.05). The negative conversion rates of HBeAg and HBV-DNA in the treatment group were 42.3% and 47.8%, showing no significant difference from the control (p>0.005). It is indicated that PA Co has remarkable effect for chronic viral hepatitis B in recovery of liver function and inhibition of the replication of HBV.

[Production of monoclonal antibodies to broad bean wilt virus and application in virus detection].

Six hybridoma cell lines secretion monoclonal antibodies(MAbs) against broad bean wilt virus(BBWV) were produced by fusing mouse myeloma cells(SP 2/0) with spleen cells from BAL B/c immunized by the BBWV particles. The hybridoma cell lines secreted MAbs stably after cultured in vitro for 3 months or stored in liquid nitrogen and then revived for several times. The titres of ascitic fluids of six MAbs ranged from 1:256,000 to 1:640,000 when measured by indirect ELISA. In agarose gel immunodiffusion test, it showed that the six MAbs represented the same isotype of murine antibodies, IgG1. Six MAbs could detect 4 tested BBWV isolates, but didn't crossreact with other 5 plant viruses. The result of Western blot showed that all the six MAbs can react with the 44.7 kD large coat protein subunit of BBWV. This is the first report of production of MAbs against BBWV.