Genus-Wide Comparative Genomics Analysis of Neisseria to Identify New Genes Associated with Pathogenicity and Niche Adaptation of Neisseria Pathogens.

N. gonorrhoeae and N. meningitidis, the only two human pathogens of Neisseria, are closely related species. But the niches they survived in and their pathogenic characteristics are distinctly different. However, the genetic basis of these differences has not yet been fully elucidated. In this study, comparative genomics analysis was performed based on 15 N. gonorrhoeae, 75 N. meningitidis, and 7 nonpathogenic Neisseria genomes. Core-pangenome analysis found 1111 conserved gene families among them, and each of these species groups had opening pangenome. We found that 452, 78, and 319 gene families were unique in N. gonorrhoeae, N. meningitidis, and both of them, respectively. Those unique gene families were regarded as candidates that related to their pathogenicity and niche adaptation. The relationships among them have been partly verified by functional annotation analysis. But at least one-third genes for each gene set have not found the certain functional information. Simple sequence repeat (SSR), the basis of gene phase variation, was found abundant in the membrane or related genes of each unique gene set, which may facilitate their adaptation to variable host environments. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis found at least five distinct PPI clusters in N. gonorrhoeae and four in N. meningitides, and 167 and 52 proteins with unknown function were contained within them, respectively.

Incidence, risk factors and treatment outcomes of drug extravasation in pediatric patients in China.

Yan YM, Gong M, Chen JL, Li D, Xu TT, Zou H, Li AQ, Fan QL, Lu QF. Incidence, risk factors and treatment outcomes of drug extravasation in pediatric patients in China. Turk J Pediatr 2017; 59: 162-168. Extravasation injury is a common phenomenon in hospitals. Failure to detect and treat extravasation injury can lead to irreversible local injuries, tissue necrosis and malfunction of the affected tissue. Until now, it is largely unknown about incidence, risk factors and treatment outcomes of extravasation in Chinese pediatric patients. The aim of this study is to explore the incidence, risk factors and summarize the characteristics and treatment outcomes of extravasation injuries resulting in drug extravasation among Chinese children in our hospital. The children undergoing infusion therapy (0-18 years) were enrolled in this study between December 2014 and June 2015 in Shanghai Children`s Hospital. The patients` information including age, gender, injection site, estimated volume of solution extravasated, patient symptoms, severity of extravasation injury, treatment methods, and outcomes was collected. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify the independent risk factors for the development of extravasation. The incidence of extravasations in pediatric patients was 1.79% (18/1,004). The severity of extravasation was labeled with grade range from Grade 1 through Grade 4: 4 cases with Grade 1, 8 cases with Grade 2, 5 cases with Grade 3, and 1 case with Grade 4. The risk factors of extravasation include infused high volume/day (≥1000 ml), received operation, infused agents with high osmolarity and poor vein condition. The severity of extravasation was related to the large volumes of drug or special drugs (high-osmolarity, high-risk, low pH, etc). All extravasations were treated with physical, pharmacological and surgical intervention according to our standard operation protocols. Systematic implementation of intervention can alleviate the extravasation injuries and improve the patients` outcome.

Comparative Genomics of H. pylori and Non-Pylori Helicobacter Species to Identify New Regions Associated with Its Pathogenicity and Adaptability.

The genus Helicobacter is a group of Gram-negative, helical-shaped pathogens consisting of at least 36 bacterial species. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), infecting more than 50% of the human population, is considered as the major cause of gastritis, peptic ulcer, and gastric cancer. However, the genetic underpinnings of H. pylori that are responsible for its large scale epidemic and gastrointestinal environment adaption within human beings remain unclear. Core-pan genome analysis was performed among 75 representative H. pylori and 24 non-pylori Helicobacter genomes. There were 1173 conserved protein families of H. pylori and 673 of all 99 Helicobacter genus strains. We found 79 genome unique regions, a total of 202,359bp, shared by at least 80% of the H. pylori but lacked in non-pylori Helicobacter species. The operons, genes, and sRNAs within the H. pylori unique regions were considered as potential ones associated with its pathogenicity and adaptability, and the relativity among them has been partially confirmed by functional annotation analysis. However, functions of at least 54 genes and 10 sRNAs were still unclear. Our analysis of protein-protein interaction showed that 30 genes within them may have the cooperation relationship.