Genetic characterization of duck hepatitis B viruses from Anhui Province, China.

Duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV) infection model was frequently used as the experimental model for human hepatitis B virus (HBV) research. In order to decipher the genetic characteristics of DHBVs from Anhui province of China, 120 duck liver tissue samples were collected and subjected to PCR screening, and 28 samples were detected as DHBV positive. Subsequently, five DHBV-positive samples were selected for genome-wide amplification and a comprehensive analysis. Comparative analysis of complete genome sequences using the MegAlign program showed that five strains of DHBVs shared 94.5-96.3% with each other and 93.2-98.7% with other reference strains in GenBank. The phylogenetic analysis showed that all five DHBV strains belonged to the evolutionary branch of "Chinese DHBV" isolates or DHBV-2. Importantly, three potential intra-genotypic recombination events, between strains AAU-6 and Guilin, strains AAU-1 and GD3, and strains AAU-6 and AAU-1, were respectively found using the RDP and SimPlot softwares and considered the first report in avihepadnaviruses. These results not only improve our understanding for molecular prevalence status of DHBV among ducks, but also provide a reference for recombination mechanism of HBV.

Perinatal Inflammatory Biomarkers and Respiratory Disease in Preterm Infants.

OBJECTIVE: To measure plasma levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and several cytokines (Interleukin [IL]-6 IL-8, IL-10) during the first week of life to examine the relationship between protein expression and likelihood of developing respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) and bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). STUDY DESIGN: Levels of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and VEGF were measured from plasma obtained from preterm patients during the first week of life. Newborns were recruited from a single center between April 2009 and April 2019. Criteria for the study included being inborn, birth weight of less than 1500 grams, and a gestational age of less than 32 weeks at birth. RESULTS: The development of RDS in preterm newborns was associated with lower levels of VEGF during the first week of life. Higher plasma levels of IL-6 and IL-8 plasma were associated with an increased likelihood and increased severity of BPD at 36 weeks postmenstrual age. In contrast, plasma levels of VEGF, IL-6, IL-8, and IL-10 obtained during the first week of life were not associated with respiratory symptoms and acute care use in young children with BPD in the outpatient setting. CONCLUSIONS: During the first week of life, lower plasma levels of VEGF was associated with the diagnosis of RDS in preterm infants. Preterm infants with higher levels of IL-6 and IL-8 during the first week of life were also more likely to be diagnosed with BPD. These biomarkers may help to predict respiratory morbidities in preterm newborns during their initial hospitalization.

Diagnosis and Acute Management of E-Cigarette or Vaping Product Use-Associated Lung Injury in the Pediatric Population: A Systematic Review.

OBJECTIVE: To assess quantitative data on the presentation, investigative findings, patterns of lung injury, and interventions of pediatric cases of e-cigarette or vaping-associated lung injury (EVALI) in the acute care setting. STUDY DESIGN: A literature search using keywords was performed on April 17, 2020, in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Three thousand five hundred fifty-eight articles were retrieved from MEDLINE via PubMed, Embase via OVID, CINAHL via EBSCO, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library. Studies were evaluated for inclusion based on predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria by 2 independent reviewers. RESULTS: The search yielded a total of 3558 individual results, 145 of which were evaluated by full text review, resulting in 23 articles included in this systematic review. Two of these articles were identified by manual search of article references. A total of 61 cases of EVALI were described, and 10 major patterns of lung injury were identified for which presenting symptoms, diagnostic and laboratory investigations, interventions, and outcomes were synthesized. CONCLUSIONS: Cases of EVALI in the pediatric population have been reported in patients as young as 13 years and often present with respiratory, constitutional, abdominal, and cardiovascular signs and symptoms. Diagnostic findings vary based on the underlying lung injury pattern. However, typical patterns of common findings were identified, including the presence of ground-glass opacities on computed tomography scan and leukocytosis. Mainstays of treatment include the use of corticosteroids, antibiotics, and ventilatory support, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Outcomes range from complete or near complete recovery of lung function to death.

Plasma and Cerebrospinal Fluid Candidate Biomarkers of Neonatal Encephalopathy Severity and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes.

OBJECTIVES: To identify candidate biomarkers in both plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) that are associated with neonatal encephalopathy severity measured by encephalopathy grade, seizures, brain injury by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and neurodevelopmental outcomes at 15-30 months. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study of plasma (N = 155, day of life 0-1) and CSF (n = 30, day of life 0-7) from neonates with neonatal encephalopathy and healthy neonates born at term (N = 30, ≥36 weeks of gestation) was conducted. We measured central nervous system necrosis (glial fibrillary acidic protein [GFAP], neurogranin [NRGN], tau), inflammatory (interleukin [IL]-6, IL-8, IL-10), and trophic (brain-derived neurotrophic factor [BDNF], vascular endothelial growth factor) proteins. Clinical outcomes were Sarnat scores of encephalopathy, seizures, MRI scores, and Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development III at 15-30 months. RESULTS: Plasma NRGN, tau, IL-6, IL-8, and IL-10 were greater, whereas BDNF and vascular endothelial growth factor were lower in patients with neonatal encephalopathy vs controls. In plasma, tau, GFAP, and NRGN were directly and BDNF inversely associated with encephalopathy grade. IL-6 was inversely related to seizures. Tau was directly related to MRI abnormalities. Tau was inversely associated with Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development III cognitive and motor outcomes. In CSF, NRGN was inversely associated with cognitive, motor, and language measures. GFAP, IL-6, and IL-10 were inversely related to cognitive and motor outcomes. IL-8 was inversely related to motor outcomes. CSF candidate biomarkers showed no significant relationships with encephalopathy grade, seizures, or MRI abnormalities. CONCLUSIONS: Plasma candidate biomarkers predicted encephalopathy severity, seizures, MRI abnormalities, and neurodevelopmental outcomes at 15-30 months.

Repellent activity of essential oils extracted from five Artemisia species against Tribolium castaneum (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) / Actividad repelente de aceites esenciales extraídos de cinco especies de Artemisia contra Tribolium castaneum (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

Artemisia genus (family Asteraceae) has been widely used as medicines and cosmetic. The chemical compositions of essential oils extracted from five Artemisia species (A. anethoides, A. giraldii, A. roxburghiana, A. rubripes and A. sacrorum) were analyzed and the repellent activities of five essential oils were investigated by testing percent repellency (PR) in petri dish against Tribolium castaneum. By GC-MS analysis, the common components of the five essential oils were eucalyptol (11.09%-50.05%), camphor (6.28%-33.10%), terpinen- 4-ol (2.46%-12.41%), ß-caryophyllene (0.63%-10.68%) and germacrene D (2.28%-10.01%). 3,3,6-trimethyl-1,4-heptadien-6-ol (11.72%), 2-isopropyl-5-methyl-3-cyclohexen-1-one (24.80%) and ß-farnesene (12.23%) were the characteristic compounds in essential oils of A. sacrorum, A. anethoides and A. rubripes respectively. The essential oils of five plants showed repellent activity against T. castaneum. The PR of others four essential oils were comparable with DEET expect for A. sacrorum. The results indicated that the essential oils of A. anethoides, A. giraldii, A. roxburghiana and A. rubripes had the potential to be developed as repellent for control of T. castaneum.

El género Artemisia (familia Asteraceae) ha sido ampliamente utilizado como medicamentos y cosméticos. Se analizaron las composiciones químicas de los aceites esenciales extraídos de cinco especies de Artemisia (A. anethoides, A. giraldii, A. roxburghiana, A. rubripes y A. sacrorum) y se investigaron las actividades repelentes de cinco aceites esenciales mediante la prueba de repelencia porcentual (PR) en placa de petri contra Tribolium castaneum. Por análisis GC-MS, los componentes comunes de los cinco aceites esenciales fueron eucaliptol (11,09% -50,05%), alcanfor (6,28% -33,10%), terpinen-4-ol (2,46% -12,41%), ß-cariofileno 0,63% -10,68%) y germacrén D (2,28% -10,01%). 3,3,6-trimetil-1,4-heptadien-6-ol (11,72%), 2-isopropil-5-metil-3-ciclohexen-1-ona (24,80%) y ß-farneseno (12,23%). Los compuestos característicos en los aceites esenciales de A. sacrorum, A. anethoides y A. rubripes respectivamente. Los aceites esenciales de cinco plantas mostraron actividad repelente contra T. castaneum. El PR de otros cuatro aceites esenciales eran comparables con DEET esperado para A. sacrorum. Los resultados indicaron que los aceites esenciales de A. anethoides, A. giraldii, A. roxburghiana y A. rubripes tienen el potencial de ser desarrollados como repelentes para el control de T. castaneum.

Association Between Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) in miR-146a, miR-196a2, and miR-499 and Risk of Ischemic Stroke: A Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND The association between 3 well known SNPs - miR-146a C/G (rs2910164), miR-196a2 T/C (rs11614913), and miR-499 A/G (rs3746444) - in pre-miRNA sequences and ischemic stroke (IS) are still conflicting and inconclusive. This meta-analysis aimed to pool previous studies get a more precise assessment of the association between these 3 SNPs and the risk of IS. MATERIAL AND METHODS Relevant studies were searched in online databases. The strength of the association between the SNPs and IS were estimated by pooling odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) using Review Manager (version 5.3). RESULTS Rs2910164 C allele was associated with lower IS risk. But this trend was only observed in Koreans under the allele model (OR=0.81, 95% CI=0.68-0.95, p=0.009), dominant model (OR=0.68, 95% CI=0.50-0.93, p=0.02), recessive model (OR=0.79, 95% CI=0.63-1.00, p=0.05), and homozygous model (OR=0.63, 95%CI=0.45-0.88, p=0.007). Rs11614913 T allele might be associated with higher IS risk under the dominant model (OR=1.45, 95% CI=1.19-1.78, p=0.0003), while rs3746444 A allele might be associated with decreased IS risk under the homozygous model (OR=0.48, 95% CI=0.23-0.98, p=0.04) only in Chinese, but not in Koreans. CONCLUSIONS Although the 3 SNPs might be associated with IS, the association varied significantly in different countries.