A simple and successful treatment for rupture and defect of the posterior third superior sagittal sinus caused by open depressed skull fracture: A case report.

It is extremely dangerous to treat the posterior third of the superior sagittal sinus (PTSSS) surgically, since it is usually not completely ligated. In this report, the authors described the case of a 27-year-old man with a ruptured and defective PTSSS caused by an open depressed skull fracture, which was treated by ligation of the PTSSS and the patient achieved a positive recovery. The patient's occiput was hit by a height-limiting rod and was in a mild coma. A CT scan showed an open depressed skull fracture overlying the PTSSS and a diffuse brain swelling. He underwent emergency surgery. When the skull fragments were removed, a 4 cm segment of the superior sagittal sinus (SSS) and the adjacent dura mater were removed together with bone fragments. Haemorrhage occurred and blood pressure dropped. We completed the operation by ligating the severed ends of the fractured sagittal sinus. One month after the operation, apart from visual field defects, he recovered well. In our opinion, in primary hospitals, when patients with severely injured PTSSS cannot sustain a long-time and complicated operation, e.g., the bypass using venous graft, and face life-threatening conditions, ligation of the PTSSS is another option, which may unexpectedly achieve good results.

Traumatic pseudoaneurysms of external carotid artery branch: Case series and treatment considerations.

PURPOSE: To explore the diagnosis and treatment of traumatic external carotid branch pseudoaneurysms. METHODS: Eleven cases of traumatic external carotid artery branch pseudoaneurysms were admitted in our hospital. Digital subtraction angiography was performed in all patients. It revealed that the pseudoaneurysms originated from the internal maxillary artery in 5 cases, superficial temporal artery in 5 cases and occipital artery in 1 case. Five cases of internal maxillary artery pseudoaneurysms and 2 cases of superficial temporal artery pseudoaneurysms were treated by embolization; the other 3 cases were surgically resected. RESULTS: Complete cessation of nasal bleeding was achieved in all the 5 pseudoaneurysms of internal maxillary artery after the endovascular therapies. Scalp bleeding stopped and scalp defect healed up in 2 patients with superficial temporal artery pseudoaneurysms treated by interventional therapy. All patients were followed up for 0.5-2.0 years without recurrence of nosebleed and scalp lump. CONCLUSION: For patients with repeated severe epistaxis after craniocerebral injury, digital subtraction angiography should be performed as soon as possible to confirm traumatic pseudoaneurysm. Endovascular therapy is an effective method for traumatic internal maxillary artery pseudoaneurysms. For patients with scalp injuries and pulsatile lumps, further examinations including digital subtraction angiography should be performed to confirm the diagnosis. Surgical treatment or endovascular therapy for scalp traumatic pseudoaneurysm is effective.

LncRNA NORAD/miR-202-5p regulates the drug resistance of A549/DDP to cisplatin by targeting P-gp.

In this study, we established the DDP-resistant NSCLC cell line A549/DDP to detect the effect of NORAD on cisplatin resistance of A549/DDP cells. NORAD was highly expressed in A549/DDP cells compared with A549 cells. The MTT data showed that knockdown of NORAD enhanced the inhibition rate of cisplatin on the A549/DDP cells and decreased IC50 value. The colony formation and MTT assay suggested that cisplatin inhibited cell proliferation, and knockdown of NORAD enhanced the inhibitory effect of cisplatin on A549/DDP cells. Besides, we found that NORAD silence reduced the P-gp expression but not BCRP, LRP and MRP. Moreover, NORAD could directly bind to miR-202-5p, and ABCB1 was a target of miR-202-5p. The MTT assay found that miR-202-5p inhibitor reversed the effects of NORAD silence on cisplatin resistance of A549/DDP cells. Then, the Western blot data showed that knockdown of NORAD reduced P-gp expression, and miR-202-5p inhibitor enhanced P-gp expression. ABCB1 overexpression reversed the inhibitory effect of NORAD knockdown on A549/DDP cells. Moreover, NORAD could directly bind to miR-202-5p, and ABCB1 was a target of miR-202-5p. Inhibition of miR-202-5p and overexpression of ABCB1 eliminated the effects of NORAD silence on cisplatin resistance of A549/DDP cells. Overexpression of miR-202-5p suppressed P-gp expression in A549/DDP cells. Collectively, our data showed that NORAD could enhance the DDP resistance of A549/DDP cells and potentially increased P-gp expression by sponging the miR-202-5p.

A multigene phylogentic analysis of Potato virus Y and its application in strain identification.

The objective of this study is to develop a rapid and accurate multigene phylogenetic analysis to identify Potato virus Y (PVY) strains. The phylogenetic relationships of strains within the PVY species were evaluated with isolate-strain association using five datasets of concatenated sequences from the P1, HC-pro, VPg and CP genes to determine the best dataset for PVY strain identification. Results from phylogenetic analyses and Bayesian tip-association significance (BaTS) tests indicated that the major PVY strains could be distinguished using the P1, VPg and CP concatenated sequences datasets but not the remaining concatenated sequence datasets. Phylogenetic trees reconstructed from the concatenated sequences of P1, VPg and CP genes revealed that the ML and NJ trees had broadly similar topologies and that both were better than the maximum clade credibility tree (MCC). Additionally, the full genome of HLJ26, one isolate randomly selected for the multigene phylogenetic analysis, was clustered with high confidence among members of the PVYNTN-NW (SYR-Ⅱ) strain, which includes isolates of SYR-Ⅱ-2-8, SYR-Ⅱ-Be1 and SYR-Ⅱ-DrH. This suggests that it was a PVYNTN-NW (SYR-Ⅱ) isolate. Recombination analysis of this isolate identified four putative recombination joints in the P1, HC-pro/P3, VPg and the 5'-terminus of CP. This pattern is similar to that observed in the genomic structure of PVYNTN-NW (SYR-I), supporting the classification of this isolate as the PVYNTN-NW strain (SYR-Ⅱ). Simultaneously, two expected fragments of approximately 1 000 and 400 bp in size were also amplified from the isolate by a multiplex RT-PCR, consistent with the expected band pattern of the PVYNTN-NW (SYR-Ⅱ) strain. This further supports the utility of the multigene phylogenetic method in identifying PVY strains. We propose that the major PVY strains could be distinguished accurately using multigene phylogenetic analysis based on the concatenated sequences from the P1, VPg and CP genes.

FOXA1 Expression Significantly Predict Response to Chemotherapy in Estrogen Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer Patients.

PURPOSE: Most estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer responds poorly to chemotherapy and no single cost-effective biomarker capable of selecting chemosensitive ones has been found yet. We investigated FOXA1 for its role in predicting chemosensitivity of this subgroup in neoadjuvant chemotherapy settings. METHODS: We reviewed pathologic slides of 123 patients who were diagnosed with ER-positive breast cancer on core needle biopsy and underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy at our institution between 2002 and 2012. FOXA1 expression and pathologic response were evaluated. We then statistically analyzed FOXA1 expression and its relationship with chemosensitivity. RESULTS: FOXA1 expression before NAC was correlated with poor chemoresponse in ER-positive as well as luminal A and luminal B breast cancer patients (p = 0.002, 0.001, and 0.049 respectively). Significant association between change of FOXA1 staining position after NAC and chemosensitivity also was observed (p = 0.024). Multivariate analysis identified FOXA1 expression before NAC as an independent predictor of chemosensitivity in ER-positive and luminal A breast cancer patients [p = 0.002; relative risk (RR) 0.163; 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.053-0.500, and p = 0.002; RR 0.055; 95 % CI 0.008-0.353, respectively]. Additionally, change of FOXA1 staining position after NAC was shown to be an independent predictor of chemoresponse in luminal B subtype breast cancer patients (p = 0.012; RR 0.153; 95 % CI 0.035-0.665). CONCLUSIONS: FOXA1 expression can independently predict chemosensitivity of ER-positive breast cancer patients.

[Comparative analysis of population genetic structure of Potato virus Y from different hosts].

Nucleotide sequences of P3 and pipo genes of Potato virus Y (PVY) from potato and tobacco were compared to investigate the effect of hosts on the population genetic structure. Meanwhile, mutation, natural selection and gene flow were evaluated to determine evolutionary forces responsible for the population genetic dynamics. The fixation indices of population differentiation (FST) of PVY from tobacco and potato were 0.116 and 0.120, respectively with significant difference, suggesting a moderate genetic differentiation between the two populations. Genetic variation analysis showed that nucleotide identities in P3 and pipo genes among the viral isolates from tobacco were respectively in the range of 85.2%-100% and 76.5%-100% while that from potato were respectively in the range of 95.7%-100% and 93.0%-100%, indicating higher genetic variation in PVY from tobacco than that from potato. Moreover, purifying selection was detected on the majority of polymorphic sites within P3 gene, suggesting that most of mutations in the gene were harmful and consequently being eliminated by natural selection. Conversely, positive selection was detected on two polymorphic sites, suggesting that these two mutations were beneficial to PVY. Neither purifying nor positive selection was detected in pipo gene, indicating neutral evolution of the gene. The values of gene flow (Nm) between PVY populations from tobacco and potato in P3 and pipo genes were 1.91 and 1.83, respectively, suggesting strong gene flow also contributes significantly to the population genetic dynamics of PVY population. In summary, this study indicates there was a significant genetic variation in PVY hosted by tobacco and potato, and mutation, natural selection and gene flow all contribute to the genetic diversity and population dynamic of the virus.

[Sequence variation and protein structure of pipo gene in Potato virus Y].

The objectives of this study were to understand the sequence variation and the putative protein structure of pipo gene in the Potato virus Y (PVY) collected from Solanum tuberosum. The pipo gene in PVY was cloned using a pair of degenerate primers designed from its conserved region and its sequences were used to re-construct phylogenetic tree in Potyvirus genera by a Bayesian inference method. An expected fragment of 235 bp was amplified in all 20 samples by RT-PCR and the pipo genes in the 20 samples assayed shared more than 92% nucleotide sequence similarity with the published sequences of PVY strains. Among the 20 pipo gene sequences, 13 polymorphic sites were detected, including 4 parsimony informative sites and 9 singleton variable sites. These results indicate that PVY pipo gene is highly conserved but some sequence variations exist. Further analyses suggest that the pipo gene encodes a hydrophilic protein without signal peptide and transmembrane region. The protein has theoretical isoelectric points (pI) ranging from 11.26 to 11.62 and contains three highly conserved regions, especially between aa 10 and 59. The protein is likely located in the mitochondria and has a-helix secondary structure. Bayesian inference of phylogenetic trees reveals that PVY isolates are clustered in the same branch with high posterior probability, while Sunflower chlorotic mottle virus (SoCMoV) and Pepper severe mosaic virus (PepSMV) are closely related, consisting with the classification of Potyvirus genera using other approaches. Our analyses suggest that the pipo gene can be a new marker for phylogenetic analysis of the genera. The results reported in this paper provide useful insights in the genetic variation and the evolution of PVY and can stimulate further research on structure and function of the PIPO protein.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy combined with endocrine therapy for hormone receptor-positive breast cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to conduct a comparative analysis of the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant chemotherapy combined with endocrine therapy against the backdrop of single neoadjuvant chemotherapy or endocrine therapy, specifically in the context of hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer treatment. METHODS: We conducted a thorough literature search across several databases, including China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, Weipu, Chinese Journal Full-text Database, PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE, adhering to the guidelines outlined in the PRISMA statement. Our specific focus was on identifying randomized controlled trials that directly compared the combined approach of neoadjuvant chemotherapy and endocrine therapy with single chemotherapy or endocrine therapy in the context of treating HR+ breast cancer. Subsequently, we utilized statistical packages implemented in R software to perform comparative analyses of key clinical indicators, encompassing the complete response, objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate, pathological complete response (pCR), and adverse reactions. RESULTS: A total of 11 randomized controlled trials, involving 1359 patients, all of whom met our inclusion criteria and were thus included in our comprehensive analysis. Within this cohort, 688 patients (50.63%) administered neoadjuvant chemotherapy combined with endocrine therapy (NCET), 642 patients (47.24%) received neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NCT) alone, while 29 patients (2.13%) underwent neoadjuvant endocrine therapy (NET) alone. The results of our meta-analysis revealed that NCET exhibited a statistically significant enhancement in both ORR and pCR (P < .05). Nonetheless, when compared to NCT or NET, NCET did not yield a significant impact on complete response, disease control rate, and safety (P > .05). In addition, NCET demonstrated a significant improvement in ORR among patients with HR+, HER2-negative breast cancer (P < .05). However, it was also linked to a heightened incidence of serious adverse reactions within this particular patient subgroup (P < .05). CONCLUSION: The combination of Neoadjuvant chemotherapy and endocrine therapy stands out as a significant contributor to enhancing the ORR and pCR for HR+ breast cancer patients. For breast cancer patients with HER2- status, NCET demonstrates a remarkable improvement in ORR but is also associated with the emergence of adverse reactions.

Clinicopathologic variables predicting tumor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: To identify clinicopathologic variables that could predict pathologic tumor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy for patients with locally advanced gastric cancer. METHODS: The study enrolled 108 patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery between July 2004 and December 2010. Tumor responses to neoadjuvant chemotherapy were assessed in terms of tumor regression. Statistical analyses were performed to identify factors associated with pathologic tumor response. RESULTS: Tumor regression was found in 22.2% (24/108) patients, patients with tumor regression observed better overall survival as compared to that of patients without tumor regression. Univariate and multivariate analyses observed that both tumor differentiation and tumor size were independent predictors of tumor regression. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that both tumor differentiation and tumor size is the most important clinical predicator of pathologic tumor response, it may be of benefit in the selection of treatment options in locally advanced gastric cancer.

Complete genome sequence of narcissus late season yellows virus infecting Chinese narcissus in China.

The complete genome sequence of a Chinese narcissus isolate of narcissus late season yellows virus from Zhangzhou, China (NLSYV-ZZ), was determined to be 9,651 nucleotides in length, excluding the 3'-terminal poly (A) tail, by amplification and sequencing of virus RNA. The viral genome contains a single long open reading frame of 9,315 nucleotides encoding a polyprotein of 3,105 amino acids. The polyprotein was predicted to be cleaved into ten mature proteins by three viral proteases. Complete genome sequence comparison and phylogenetic analysis indicated that NLSYV-ZZ was most closely related to narcissus yellow stripe virus (NYSV), which was also isolated from narcissus. These viruses shared 69.9 % identity in their complete nucleotide sequences and 77.0 % identity in their polyprotein amino acid sequences.

Sentinel lymph node biopsy predicts lymph node metastasis in early gastric cancer: a retrospective analysis.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Minimally invasive treatments have emerged as the frontline therapy for patients with early gastric cancer (EGC). However, some cT1N0 patients with EGC may have lymph node metastasis because of inadequate evaluation. This study aimed to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of sentinel lymph node (SLN) and tried to find out feasible criteria for SLN-guided minimally invasive surgery for EGC. METHODS: A solitary metastasis lymph node was taken as SLN, the features of lymph node metastasis were analyzed retrospectively in 255 patients with EGC, and the result was then compared with a SLN biopsy in 23 patients with EGC. RESULTS: Depth of invasion and tumor size were independent risk factors for lymph node metastasis in EGC. The lymph node metastasis rate for mucosal carcinoma with a diameter <4 cm was 2.5%, and it was 13.3% when the diameter was ≥ 4 cm (p = 0.040). For submucosal carcinoma, it was 25.4% when the tumor diameter was <3 cm and 50.5% when the diameter was ≥ 3 cm (p = 0.003). The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of SLN biopsy in EGC was 100%, respectively. The distribution characteristics of SLN were consistent with those of lymph node metastasis in EGC. CONCLUSIONS: SLN-guided minimally invasive surgery could be safely performed in EGC according to feasible criteria.

[Prognostic effect of postoperative resection-margin status for intraoperative positive resection margins in patients with advanced gastric cancer].

OBJECTIVES: To investigate prognostic effect of postoperative resection-margin status for intraoperatively positive resection margin in advanced gastric cancer and discuss the treatment choice for intraoperatively positive resection margins. METHODS: A retrospective study was investigated in 64 advanced gastric cancer patients with positive resection margin after potentially curative resection. The survival between 50 patients who was re-excised to a negative resection margin (NR group) and 14 patients who were left with positive resection margin (PR group) was compared. Prognostic factors were analyzed using univariate and multivariate Cox regression model analysis. RESULTS: The median survival in the PR group was 17.0 months (95%CI: 11.6 - 22.4) as compared with 23.0 months (95%CI: 20.5 - 25.5) in the NR group (P = 0.045). However, resection-margin status lost significance on multivariate analysis. In the subgroup of D2 lymphadenectomy, the median survival in the PR group and NR group were 17.0 months (95%CI: 12.0 - 22.0) and 24.0 months (95%CI: 19.8 - 28.1) respectively; multivariate analysis further identified resection margin status as an independent prognostic factor. CONCLUSIONS: Re-excision for intraoperatively positive margin to negative margin improves the prognosis of the patients with advanced gastric cancer, and re-excision is the first choice when intraoperative frozen section detects a positive margin. Routine frozen section of resection margin should be mandatory in all advanced gastric cancer undergoing potentially curative surgery.

High GP73 Expression Correlates with Poor Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy and Survival in Gastric Cancer: A Tissue Microarray Study.

Golgi protein 73 (GP73) is a type II Golgi transmembrane protein which is overexpressed in several cancers, however, its role in gastric cancer is still unclear. The aim of this study is to investigate if high GP73 expression is associated with pathological tumor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and prognosis for patients with gastric cancer. A total of 348 patients with gastric cancer, who had undergone surgery between 1999 and 2011 were retrospectively reviewed, GP73 expression was examined in tumor tissues using tissue microarray and the correlations between its expression and pathological response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy as well as patients prognosis were analyzed. We found that GP73 expression was not associated with clinicopathologic features including tumor size, differentiation and TNM stage. High expression of GP73 was associated with less pathological tumor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and poor survival in gastric cancer, multivariate analysis showed GP73 expression was an independent predictive factor for pathological response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and for prognosis in patients with gastric cancer. Our results suggest that GP73 expression correlates with the effect of neoadjuvant chemotherapy and is a promising biomarker to identify patients with poor prognosis.

Low level of serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in gastric cancer correlates with cancer progression but not survival.

BACKGROUND: The clinical significance of lipid profile in gastric cancer remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to investigate the correlation between serum lipid profiles and patient clinical parameters as well as prognosis in gastric cancer. METHODS: The preoperative plasma lipid profile levels of 358 gastric cancer patients, who were operated in between 2001 and 2009, were retrospectively evaluated, and the correlation between these factors and patient clinical parameters as well as survival were analyzed. RESULTS: There was a significant association between serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level (HDL-C <54.2 mg/dL) and cancer progression, Logistic regression analysis revealed that lower level of serum HDL-C was an independent risk factor for deeper cancer invasion, nodal metastasis as well as late stage in patients with gastric cancer. However, no significant association was reported between other lipid markers [triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) and apolipoprotein A (apoA)] and lymph node involvement as well as stage of disease. In univariate analysis and multivariate analyses regarding patient's survival, there was no significant association between the groups in terms of TG, TC, HDL-C, LDL-C, VLDL and apoA. CONCLUSIONS: Low level of serum HDL-C in gastric cancer correlates with cancer progression but not patient's survival.

Effects of puerarin on receptor for advanced glycation end products in nephridial tissue of streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

To explore the effects of puerarin on mRNA expression of advanced glycation end products (AGE) specIfic cellular receptor (RAGE) in renal cortex of diabetic rats induced by streptozotocin (STZ). We induced Diabetic rats by an intraperitoneal injection of STZ in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. 30 male SD rats were randomly divided into 3 groups, diabetes adding puerarin group (DP group, n = 11, intraperitoneal injection of puerarin 100 mg/kg d), Diabetes group (D group, n = 11) and normal control group (C group, n = 8). The body weight (BW) and blood glucose (BG) were measured every 2 weeks. eight weeks later, all rats were sacrificed and the expression of RAGE mRNA was detected in renal cortex by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), respectively, and renal AGEs content was determined by fluorescence microscopy. Compared with those of control group, the BW and BG were lower in DP group and D group at 8th week (P < 0.01). RAGE/beta-actin ratio were 0.263 +/- 0.023, 0.435 +/- 0.010, 0.141 +/- 0.045, respectively, in DP group, D group and C group, and there was significant difference between every two groups (P < 0.01). The renal AGEs fluorescence intensity of DP group was weaker than D group, stronger than C group. Puerarin can protect the renal tissue from the impairment of hyperglycemia and AGE by decreasing AGEs contents and inhibiting of the expression of RAGE mRNA in the kidney.

Changes of histology and expression of MMP-2 and nm23-H1 in primary and metastatic gastric cancer.

AIM: To investigate the changes of histology and expression of MMP-2 and nm23-H1 in primary and metastatic gastric cancer. METHODS: One hundred and seventy-seven gastric cancer patients with lymph node and/or distal metastasis between 1997 and 2001 were reviewed. Differences in histology of the primary and metastatic gastric cancer were assessed. MMP-2 and nm23-H1 immunoreactivity was compared in 44 patients with tumor infiltration to the serosa layer. RESULTS: Poorly and moderately differentiated metastatic gastric cancer was found in 88.7% (157/177) and primary gastric cancer in 75.7% (134/177) of the patients. The histological type of metastatic gastric cancer that was not completely in accordance with the preponderant histology of primary gastric cancer was observed in 25 patients (14.1%). MMP-2 immunoreactivity in metastatic gastric cancer was significantly stronger than that in primary gastric cancer, while nm23-H1 immunoreactivity showed no difference in primary and metastatic gastric cancer. CONCLUSION: Metastatic gastric cancer presents more aggressive histological morphology and higher MMP-2 immunoreactivity than primary gastric cancer. This heterogeneity may elicit a possible mechanism of gastric cancer metastasis.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy versus surgery alone for locally advanced gastric cancer: a retrospective comparative study.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Preoperative chemotherapy is considered an effective treatment option for patients with gastric cancer. We retrospectively evaluated neoadjuvant chemotherapy with oxaliplatin, leucovorin and 5-flurouracil (OLF) in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer to determine its feasibility, as well as impact on the curative resection rate and patients' survival. METHODOLOGY: A total of 87 patients with locally advanced gastric cancer that underwent preoperative chemotherapy combined with surgery or surgery alone were randomly matched according to the clinical TNM stage. The clinical responses to chemotherapy were assessed. The curative rate, postoperative complications and patients' survival between both groups were compared. RESULTS: The two groups were well matched. Complete or partial response was observed in 51.7% (15/29) of patients in the OLF group, and three (10.3%) of them had complete pathologic response. The curative resection rates were 89.7% in the OLF group and 77.6% in the surgery alone group. The postoperative complications were equal for both groups. The mean survival is 20.6 months in the OLF group vs. 19.9 months in the surgery alone group (p=0.02). CONCLUSIONS: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy using OLF combination is active in gastric cancer and the toxicity level is acceptable. This treatment improves the curative resection rate and patients' survival in locally advanced gastric cancer.

Antiphytoviral activity of bruceine-D from Brucea javanica seeds.

BACKGROUND: Brucea javanica (L.) Merr. is widely distributed throughout the southern parts of China and has been used in traditional medicine to treat a variety of diseases. The objective of the present study was to identify the active antiphytoviral compound in the seeds of B. javanica and evaluate the inhibitory activity of the compound against plant virus. RESULTS: Bioassay-guided fractionation of the most active extract from the seeds led to the isolation of an antiphytoviral compound which was identified as bruceine-D by conventional spectroscopy methods. The compound exhibited significant inhibitory activity against the infection and replication of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), with IC(50) values of 13.98 and 7.13 mg L(-1) respectively. The compound also showed a strong inhibitory effect on the infectivity of potato virus Y (PVY) and cucumber mosaic virus (CMV). Furthermore, the compound could effectively inhibit systemic TMV infection in the host tobacco plant under glasshouse conditions. CONCLUSION: The results suggested that bruceine-D from Brucea javanica may have the potential to be used as a natural viricide, or a lead compound for new viricides.

A novel endogenous badnavirus exists in Alhagi sparsifolia.

We report the recovery of a 7068-nt viral sequence from the "viral fossils" embedded in the genome of Alhagi sparsifolia, a typical desert plant. Although the full viral genome remains to be completed, the putative genome structure, the deduced amino acids and phylogenetic analysis unambiguously demonstrate that this viral sequence represents a novel species of the genus Badnavirus. The putative virus is tentatively termed Alhagi bacilliform virus (ABV). Southern blotting and inverse polymerase chain reaction (PCR) data indicate that the ABV-related sequence is integrated into the A. sparsifolia genome, and probably does not give rise to functional episomal virus. Molecular evidence that the ABV sequence exists widely in A. sparsifolia is also presented. To our knowledge, this is the first endogenous badnavirus identified from plants in the Gobi desert, and may provide new clues on the evolution, geographical distribution as well as the host range of the badnaviruses.

Anti-tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) triterpenoid saponins from the leaves of Ilex oblonga.

Ten triterpene saponins have been isolated from a MeOH extract of the leaves of Ilex oblonga. In their structures, six new triterpenoid saponins were named as oblonganosides H-M (2, 4, 5, and 8-10). All structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis. Among the triterpenoid saponins, three compounds (7, 8, and 10) showed obvious activities in inhibiting multiplication of the tobacco mosaic virus (TMV).