Ultrasound-Assisted Mineralization of 2,4-Dinitrotoluene in Industrial Wastewater Using Persulfate Coupled with Semiconductors.

Oxidative degradation of 2,4-dinitrotoluenes in aqueous solution was executed using persulfate combined with semiconductors motivated by ultrasound (probe type, 20 kHz). Batch-mode experiments were performed to elucidate the effects of diverse operation variables on the sono-catalytic performance, including the ultrasonic power intensity, dosage of persulfate anions, and semiconductors. Owing to pronounced scavenging behaviors caused by benzene, ethanol, and methanol, the chief oxidants were presumed to be sulfate radicals which originated from persulfate anions, motivated via either the ultrasound or sono-catalysis of semiconductors. With regard to semiconductors, the increment of 2,4-dinitrotoluene removal efficiency was inversely proportional to the band gap energy of semiconductors. Based on the outcomes indicated in a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer, it was sensibly postulated that the preliminary step for 2,4-dinitrotoluene removal was denitrated into o-mononitrotoluene or p-mononitrotoluene, followed by decarboxylation to nitrobenzene. Subsequently, nitrobenzene was decomposed to hydroxycyclohexadienyl radicals and converted into 2-nitrophenol, 3-nitrophenol, and 4-nitrophenol individually. Nitrophenol compounds with the cleavage of nitro groups synthesized phenol, which was sequentially transformed into hydroquinone and p-benzoquinone.

Evaluation of the correlation between focal adhesion kinase phosphorylation and cell adhesion force using "DEP" technology.

Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is the phenomenon in which a particle, such as a living cell, is polarized and moved by electrical gravity in a non-uniform electric field. In the present study, the DEP force is utilized to act on the cells to induce spatial movement for investigating the correlation between the cell adhesion force and activation level of focal adhesion kinase (FAK). The DEP force produced by the non-uniform electric field was used to measure the cell adhesion force of ECV304 cells, on type 1 collagen (COL1)- and fibronectin (FN)-coated polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membranes. For COL1-coating, ECV304 cells revealed weak and variable adhesion force (0.343-0.760 nN) in the first eight hours of incubation. Interestingly, the cell adhesion force of ECV304 at two and five hours of cultivation was significantly high and matched their FAK activation level. In comparison, ECV304 on FN-coated membrane had higher and more stable cell adhesion force (0.577-2.053 nN). FN coating intensified the cell adhesion force of ECV304 with culture time and similar outcome was present on the activation level of FAK. Therefore, this study demonstrated a relationship between cell adhesion force and FAK activation level that was dependent on the choice of the extracellular matrix (ECM) component. Subsequently, two tyrosine kinase inhibitors (AG18 and genistein) and one PI3K inhibitor (LY294002) were applied to study the influence of protein phosphorylation on the cell adhesion force. FAK plays an important role on cell attachment and DEP force measurement is a useful technique for studying cell adhesion.

Chlamydia pneumoniae respiratory infections in Taiwan.

To understand the epidemiology of Chlamydia pneumoniae acute infections in Taiwan, we collected 116 paired and 244 single sera from patients suspected of C. pneumoniae infection and conducted microimmunofluorescence test. Eighty-three patients (83/360, 23%) met the diagnostic criteria of current C. pneumoniae infection. The C. pneumoniae infections were significantly higher in men than in women (P< or =0.0001) and were most frequent in the group of 40-49 year-olds, and the people older than 70 years old. C. pneumoniae infection often occurred in the late autumn lasting to the cold winter and in the transition period between the spring and summer.

Genotyping of Chlamydia trachomatis from clinical specimens in Taiwan.

This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and distribution of Chlamydia trachomatis genotypes in Taiwan. Urine and endocervical-swab samples were collected from two hospitals located in northern and southern Taiwan. The genotypes of a total of 145 samples positive for C. trachomatis were analysed by sequencing the omp1 gene and this was successful in 102 samples. Nine different C. trachomatis genotypes were identified. Genotype E was the most prevalent (22 %), followed by D and Da (19 %), F (16 %), J (15 %), K (11 %), G (11 %), H (6 %) and Ba (2 %). There was a geographical difference in the prevalence of genotype H (P < 0.018) between northern and southern Taiwan. Sequence mutation analysis by blast searching against GenBank reference sequences identified 12 genetic variants from a total of 102 omp1 gene sequences.

Frequent p16INK4a promoter hypermethylation in human papillomavirus-infected female lung cancer in Taiwan.

Inactivation of p16INK4a gene through promoter hypermethylation has been frequently observed in non small cell lung cancer; however, various studies have shown a controversial correlation between p16INK4a hypermethylation and cigarette smoking. Our recent report showed that human papillomarvirus (HPV) 16/18 infections were associated with the development of nonsmoking female lung cancer in Taiwan and we further speculated that HPV infection may be linked with p16INK4a hypermethylation. To verify the influence of environmental exposure, including cigarette smoking, environmental carcinogen exposure and HPV infections on p16INK4a hypermethylation, tumors from 162 lung patients, including 67 smoking males, 41 nonsmoking males and 58 nonsmoking females, were subjected to p16INK4a hypermethylation analysis by methylation-specific PCR. As the results showed, p16INK4a hypermethylation was detected in 40 (59.7%) of 67 smoking male, 15 (36.6%) of 41 nonsmoking male and 35 (60.3%) of 58 nonsmoking female lung tumors. This result seemed to reveal that gender and cigarette smoking both possess an equal influence on p16INK4a hypermethylation. This result also led to a speculation that HPV infection may promote p16INK4a hypermethylation in nonsmoking female lung cancer patients. From our data, p16INK4a hypermethylation frequency in nonsmoking female lung tumors with HPV infection was as high as 70% (30 of 43) compared to those without HPV infection (33%; 5 of 15). In fact, the correlation between HPV infection and p16INK4a hypermethylation was only observed in nonsmoking female lung tumors (p = 0.017), but not in smoking male or nonsmoking male lung tumors. Moreover, the reverse correlation between p16INK4a immunostaining and p16INK4a promoter hypermethylation was also only observed in nonsmoking female lung tumors. These results strongly suggested that the involvement of HPV infection in lung tumorigenesis of nonsmoking female cancer patients in Taiwan may be mediated at least in part through the increase of hypermethylation to cause p16INK4a inactivation.

Species identification of medically important fungi by use of real-time LightCycler PCR.

Invasive fungal infection has become a major cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. Rapid identification of pathogenic fungi to species level is critical for disease treatment. A real-time LightCycler assay aiming at rapid detection and species identification of pathogenic fungi from clinical isolates was developed. Template DNAs of different species were amplified and detected in real time by employing SYBR Green fluorescent dye. The target sequences for species-level detection were located between the 18S and 28S rDNA. Seven fungal species encountered frequently in the clinical setting, Candida albicans, Candida glabrata, Candida krusei, Candida parapsilosis, Candida tropicalis, Candida guilliermondii and Cryptococcus neoformans, could be discriminated by species-specific primers and confirmed by melting-curve analyses. The range of linearity was from 1 ng to 1 pg (microl(-1) water) and the sensitivity was 1 pg fungal DNA microl(-1). Identification by this real-time PCR method matched biochemical identification for all 58 clinical strains. Therefore, the method is simple, rapid and sensitive enough for detection and identification of several fungal species.