A Eu-MOF-Based Fluorescent Sensing Probe for the Detection of Tryptophan and Cu2+ in Aqueous Solutions.

Abnormal tryptophan (Trp) metabolism can be used as an important indicator of chronic hepatitis, paranoia, Parkinson's disease and other diseases. Deficiency or excessive accumulation of Cu2+ can cause diseases such as Wilson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. Eu-based metal-organic framework (Eu-MOF) was successfully prepared for fluorescence sensing of Trp and Cu2+ in an aqueous solution (pH = 7.4). Eu-MOF showed high selectivity and sensitivity for Trp and Cu2+ with detection limits of 0.22 µM and 0.09 µM and Ksv of 6.17 × 103 M- 1 and 2.37 × 104 M- 1 respectively. Trp and Cu2+ had overlapped UV absorption spectra with that of Eu-MOF and competed for the excitation light source. Trp also attenuated the antennae effect of organic ligands on Eu-MOF, thus quenching the red fluorescence of Eu-MOF. This study provides insights into the application of MOFs in bioanalysis and diagnostics.

Assessment of Fallopian Tube Fimbria Patency With 4-Dimensional Hysterosalpingo-Contrast Sonography in Infertile Women.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of 4-dimensional (4D) hysterosalpingo-contrast sonography (HyCoSy) for assessing fallopian tube fimbria patency in infertile women. METHODS: Seventy-seven infertile female patients with obstruction at the tubal fimbria or partial obstruction with pelvic adhesions were included. All of the patients underwent 4D HyCoSy enhanced by dynamic observation after a flush of normal saline and were followed with laparoscopic chromopertubation using methylene blue within 6 months. RESULTS: The overall accordance between 4D HyCoSy and laparoscopic chromopertubation was 92.9%. The sensitivity and specificity of 4D HyCoSy with laparoscopic chromopertubation as a reference standard were 93.8% and 92.2%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Four-dimensional HyCoSy can be the preferred method for assessment of tubal fimbria patency and pelvic adhesions surrounding the ovaries, with its advantages of accuracy, noninvasiveness, and a good safety profile.

[Establishment of induced pluripotent stem cell lines from human amniotic fluid cells with 1q21.1 microdeletion].

OBJECTIVE: To reprogram the 1q21.1 microdeletion pluripotent stem cells in order to establish an ideal model for further studying its pathogenesis. METHODS: Human amniotic fluid-derived cells induced pluripotent stem cells (hAF-iPSCs) were induced from amniotic fluid cells harboring the 1q21.1 microdeletion by retroviral vectors encoding Oct4, Sox2, c-Myc and Klf4. Characteristics of the 1q21.1 microdeletion hAF-iPSCs were determined, which included in vitro pluripotency, karyotype, microarray analysis, the capacity of differentiation in vivo and in vitro, etc. RESULTS: hAF-iPSCs derived from amniotic fluid cells harboring the 1q21.1 microdeletion have maintained self renewal, with expression of pluripotency marker genes detectable at mRNA level. Stem cell surface antigens were tested by immunocytochemistry. The 1q21.1 microdeletion hAF-iPSCs showed a normal karyotype after long-term culturing in vitro, and harbored the same microdeletion as confirmed by microarray analysis. The cells have maintained their differentiation capacity both in vivo and in vitro. CONCLUSION: The hAF-iPSCs harboring the 1q21.1 microdeletion have all the characteristics of normal pluripotent stem cells, and can be used for directed differentiation into specific cells, which may provide an ideal model for studying the pathogenesis of 1q21.1 microdeletion in vitro.

[Detection for chromosomal aberrations in 43 fetuses with spontaneous abortion and stillbirth by array-based comparative genomic hybridization].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the value of array-based comparative genomic hybridization (array-CGH) for analyzing tissues derived from spontaneous abortion and stillbirth. METHODS: Agilent Human Genome CGH Microarray 4×44 K chip and Affymetrix Cytoscan 750 K Array were utilized to detect genome-wide copy number variations (CNV) in 43 fetuses with spontaneous abortion and stillbirth. All identified CNV were analyzed with references from Database of Genomic variants (DGV), database of DECIPHER, ISCA and OMIM, as well as comprehensive literature review to determine whether the identified CNVs were pathogenic. Parental DNA of two cases was also analyzed with the same arrays for pathogenic or unknown significant CNVs. RESULTS: All of the 43 specimens were successfully analyzed. Clinically significant chromosomal aberrations were identified in 32 (74.4%) of the samples, which included 26 aneuploidies and 10 pathogenic CNV. CONCLUSION: Array-CGH is a fast and effective method for analyzing tissues derived from spontaneous abortions and stillbirths which may be difficult to culture for karyotype analysis.

Prenatal diagnosis of hemivertebrae--A likely association with 7q deletion.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the possible cause of a prenatal case of hemivertebrae with a 7q terminal deletion. CASE REPORT: This case describes a fetus with hemivertebrae in thoracic vertebrae as the sole antenatal sonographic finding. Genetic testing was performed in order to find more information after the abnormal ultrasound finding. The array-based comparative genomic hybridization results showed that the fetus had approximately 6.4 Mb deletion of 7q36. We discussed the two genes (SHH and HLXB9) that may be associated with hemivertebrae in the deletion region and reviewed several literatures about 7q36 deletion. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that the phenotype of hemivertebra in our case may be related to the deletion of 7q36.