Recurrent Talaromyces marneffei Infection Presenting with Intestinal Obstruction in a Patient with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Talaromyces marneffei is an important opportunistic pathogen mainly afflicting the HIV-infected patients, in rare instance, it could cause infection in non-HIV-infected individuals. We report a 51-year-old Chinese woman who, with histories of SLE for 14 years and disseminated talaromycosis for 4 years, occurred partial intestinal obstruction that was demonstrated to be caused by Talaromyces marneffei infection. The randomly amplified polymorphic DNA results of paraffin-embedded tissues from both the present episode and the previous infection suggested that the present infection was a recurrent. The patient was performed excision of involved intestine and treated with oral itraconazole at a daily dose of 400 mg for 3 months, leading to an excellent response. However, she died with unknown reason more than a year later. We also reviewed the literature on Talaromyces marneffei infection associated with SLE as well as intestinal talaromycosis alone.

In vitro activities of erythromycin, tetracycline and levofloxacin alone and in dual combinations against ureaplasma spp.

PURPOSE: It was the aim of our study to evaluate the in vitro activities of tetracycline (TET), erythromycin (ERY) and levofloxacin (LVX) alone and in dual combinations against ureaplasmas. METHODS: The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 51 ureaplasmal strains were determined by microdilution assay. RESULTS: TET was the most active when the antibiotics were used alone. The combinations resulted in significantly decreased MICs for every agent compared with the use of single antibiotics (p < 0.05, respectively), except for ERY in the ERY-LVX pair (p > 0.05), and decreased the MICs more significantly in the strains with an MIC ≥4 mg/l compared with MIC <4 mg/l, except for the TET-ERY pair. The ERY-LVX pair increased ERY MICs significantly in the MIC <4 mg/l group (p < 0.05). The combinations resulted in more beneficial MICs in strains where both agents had an MIC ≥4 mg/l compared with those where either had an MIC ≥4 mg/l, as well as in strains where either agent had an MIC <4 mg/l compared with those where both had an MIC <4 mg/l. CONCLUSIONS: Drugs in dual combinations always give more beneficial MICs against ureaplasmas than one agent alone. Combinational benefits prefer strains with a higher initial MIC.

In vitro study of low intensity ultrasound combined with different doses of PDT: Effects on C6 glioma cells.

The aim of this study was to study the effects of killing C6 glioma cells induced by hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether (HMME)-mediated sonodynamic therapy combined with photodynamic therapy (SPDT). In the SPDT group, the cells were treated with sonication at an intensity of 0.5 W/cm(2) and a frequency of 1 MHz, followed by different doses of light irradiation. The growth inhibition rate following treatment was determined by MTT assay. The apoptotic rate was examined by a flow cytometry. Cleavage of caspase 3, 8 and 9 was investigated by immunoblotting. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) were measured by a fluorescence microplate reader. The effect of SPDT on the glioma cells was also studied in the absence or presence of various ROS scavengers. The growth inhibition rate of C6 glioma cells treated with SPDT was significantly higher compared with sonodynamic therapy (SDT) or photodynamic therapy (PDT) alone at light doses <200 J/cm(2). The growth inhibition rate of C6 glioma cells treated with SPDT did not rise significantly when the light dose increased to >120 J/cm(2). The apoptosis rate was the highest in the SPDT group, when the light dose was at 80 J/cm(2). A greater amount of ROS were generated in the SPDT group than in the groups treated with SDT or PDT alone. The addition of NaN(3) or mannitol resulted in a decrease in the growth inhibition rate with SPDT. In conclusion, our data indicate that SPDT powerfully kills C6 glioma cells in vitro through the synergistic effects of SDT and PDT. The pathway of PDT inducing C6 glioma cell apoptosis includes both the mitochondrial and death receptor pathways. Furthermore, ROS may play an important role in SPDT.

Calcium overload induces C6 rat glioma cell apoptosis in sonodynamic therapy.

PURPOSE: Our aim was to study calcium overload-induced apoptosis and its relation to reactive oxygen species (ROS) in rat C6 glioma cells after sonodynamic treatment (SDT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether (HMME) was used as the sonosensitizer. The concentration of intracellular Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)](i)) was measured by fluorometry. Apoptosis and necrosis rates were evaluated by a flow cytometry. Moreover, sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+) -ATPase (SERCA(2)), cytochrome c (cyto-c) and cleaved caspase-3 were investigated by immunoblotting. RESULTS: Our study indicated that [Ca(2 +)](i) and ROS increased in cells of SDT group, the apoptosis rate, quantity of cyto-c and cleaved caspase-3 markedly increased after SDT. Furthermore, N-Acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) or 1,2-bisethane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid tetrakis ester (BAPTA-AM) could decrease the apoptosis rate, the release of cyto-c and cleaved caspase-3 in SDT group, SERCA(2) degradation was found in SDT group and could also be prevented by the addition of NAC. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that HMME-SDT can induce C6 cell death through both necrosis and apoptosis. ROS in C6 cells play a decisive role in HMME-SDT-induced cell death. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) may be a major target of HMME-SDT, ROS can induce SERCA(2) degradation, causing the elevation of [Ca(2+)](i).

[Genomic sequence of hepatitis A virus L-A-1 vaccine strain].

OBJECTIVE: To study the genome sequence of hepatitis A virus L-A-1 strain which has been applied for live attenuated vaccine production in China, to compare with other HAV strains, to understand some characteristics of L-A-1 strain, and to find the mechanism of attenuation and cell adaptation. METHODS: Genome fragments were prepared by antigen-capture PCR from infected cell (2BS), PCR products were cloned into T vector, sequenced and analyzed by using bioinformatics program. RESULTS: Analysis of the genomic sequences(nt 25-7,418) showed that the open reading frame contains 6,675 nucleotides in length encoding 2,225 amino acids. Sequence homology comparison showed 98.00% and 94.00% homology at nucleotide level, and 98.51% and 98.65% homology at amino acid level with international strains MBB and HM 175, respectively. Through comparison with other attenuated, cell adapted and cytopathic effect (CPE) strains, L-A-1 strain had mutation at nt 152, 591, 646, 687 and insertion at nt 180-181 in 5?NTR and had mutation at nt 3,889 (aa 1 052-Val) in 2B region, these mutations and insertion are molecular basis for cell adaptation; mutation at nt 4,185 (aa 1 152-Lys) in 2C region should be attenuated marker; deletion in 3A region (nt 5,020-5,025) that caused two amino acids deletion is virus fast growth basis. CONCLUSION: Through analyzing L-A-1 strain genomic sequence, certain sites related to cell adaptation and attenuation were found.