Ionic Peltier effect in Li-ion electrolytes.

The coupled transport of charge and heat provide fundamental insights into the microscopic thermodynamics and kinetics of materials. We describe a sensitive ac differential resistance bridge that enables measurements of the temperature difference on two sides of a coin cell with a resolution of better than 10 µK. We use this temperature difference metrology to determine the ionic Peltier coefficients of symmetric Li-ion electrochemical cells as a function of Li salt concentration, solvent composition, electrode material, and temperature. The Peltier coefficients Π are negative, i.e., heat flows in the direction opposite to the drift of Li ions in the applied electric field, large, -Π > 30 kJ mol-1, and increase with increasing temperature at T > 300 K. The Peltier coefficient is approximately constant on time scales that span the characteristic time for mass diffusion across the thickness of the electrolyte, suggesting that heat of transport plays a minor role in comparison to the changes in partial molar entropy of Li at the interface between the electrode and electrolyte. Our work demonstrates a new platform for studying the non-equilibrium thermodynamics of electrochemical cells and provides a window into the transport properties of electrochemical materials through measurements of temperature differences and heat currents that complement traditional measurements of voltages and charge currents.

Timing of Sexuality Education: Hong Kong Preteens' Perception of Sexual Health.

Although young people want to know more about sexuality, they do not feel they have received what they need to learn. In Chinese societies, scant research has solicited direct input from the youth to obtain their views on sexuality education (SE) deliverables. We found research gaps in the lack of Chinese preteens' input regarding SE timing, knowledge perception, learning readiness, and preteens' reasons for obtaining information about sexual health. In Hong Kong, a not-for-profit agency collected data from Chinese preadolescents who expressed opinions through a general survey. This agency surveyed students from 24 primary schools and provided anonymous secondary data for this team to analyze further. Among 4569 fifth- and sixth-grade students (average 11 years old), girls were more likely than boys to seek sex-related information from teachers, library books, and mothers. In contrast, boys were more likely than girls to obtain information from friends, pornographic comics, and the internet. Logistic regression analysis indicated that gender, age, instructional sources, openness to sexual health knowledge, and perceived and actual levels of knowledge predicted preteens' desire to receive SE earlier in grade school. Girls and older students were significantly more likely to report their preference to receive SE in an earlier grade. We recommend that preteens and their parents be encouraged to collaborate with teachers to participate in school-based SE programming.

Improved Mass-Transfer Enhances Photo-Driven Dye Degradation and H2 Evolution over a Few-Layer WS2/ZnO Heterostructure.

In this study, we observed the enhanced photocatalytic activity of a few-layer WS2/ZnO (WZ) heterostructure toward dye degradation and H2 production. The few-layer WS2 acted as a co-catalyst that separated photogenerated electron/hole pairs and provided active sites for reactions, leading to the rate of photocatalytic H2 production of WZ being 35% greater than that over the bare ZnO nanoparticles. Moreover, vortex-stirring accelerated the mass-transfer of the reactants, leading to the efficiency of dye photodegradation being 3 times higher than that obtained without high-speed stirring. We observed a similar effect for H2 production, with greater photocatalytic performance arising from the increased mass-transfer of H2 from the catalyst surface to the atmosphere.

Absentee Parents in Disney Feature-length Animated Movies: What are Children Watching?

Globally, Disney animated films integrate education into entertainment for families with children. This study uses the Social Capital Theory as the framework to support its focus on parental attention to children's developmental learning needs. This exploratory study examines how Disney animated movies over the last eight decades portraited parents in the life of the leading child characters. With three inclusion criteria (figure-length, animated, and at least one child being the protagonist), we found 155 films for the general audience released between 1937 and 2020. We read relevant website-posted plots and themes of each selected movie from three major informational websites. Data included the leading child, parents or parental figures, and the central theme of the movie. Most of these 155 stories (n = 97, 61.3%) did not mention the child's biological parents. Half of the 48 parental-presence films projected life in a single-headed family and the main characters' heroic image. The movies released during 2000-2020 showed a higher parental presence than the previous seven vicennial periods. Findings show that families could use Disney animated movies illustrating fantasy and reality. Parents can engage children in discussions about friendship and family relationships after watching a movie. If children continue consuming Disney movies, parental involvement is needed to facilitate discussions of real-life learning to help children develop communication skills.

Family communication and coping among racial-ethnic minority cancer patients: A systematic review.

The ability to actively cope with cancer has been extensively associated with better patient-reported outcomes (PROs). This systematic review aims to synthesise the available literature assessing the experience of cancer patients from racial-ethnic minoritised groups. Given the role of sociocontextual factors, greater emphasis was placed on the relationship between family communication and cancer patients' coping within the three largest racial-ethnic minority groups in the United States. Five databases (CINAHL, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Science) were used to search for peer-reviewed empirical studies published between 2008 and 2021, investigating family communication patterns, coping, and well-being among Black/African American, Asian, and Hispanic/Latinx cancer survivors. Short reports, chapters, abstracts/summaries, systematic reviews, and conference proceedings were excluded. This review was guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Statement (PRISMA). The Criteria for Critically Appraising Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses were used to assess the quality and risk of bias in the included studies. The synthesis process focused on study aims, methods, measures of interests, sample characteristics, data analysis, and study findings. A total of 117 articles were identified, of which 9 met the inclusion criteria. The selected articles were cross-sectional, implementing both quantitative and qualitative designs. Studies included breast, prostate, and mixed cancer types. Sample sizes of quantitative studies ranged from 64 to 338 respondents, while qualitative studies' samples ranged between 9 and 43 participants. Family communication and coping styles varied across minoritised groups, with open family communication contributing to effective individual and family coping. However, empirical evidence about the nature and contribution of family communication to the coping process is sparse. Future research is needed to increase knowledge and psychosocial assessment techniques and interventions targeting family communication and coping among minority communities.

A 50 Year-Old Woman with A Delayed Diagnosis of Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder: The Clinical Course and Serial Neuroimaging Findings.

PURPOSE: Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) spectrum disorder and multiple sclerosis (MS) have similar clinical presentations which may make a diagnostic difficulty, especially when the data of aquaporin-4 (AQP4) antibody is not available. We reported the diagnostic and therapeutic dilemma of a woman with a delayed diagnosis of NMO spectrum disorder for more than 20 years. CASE REPORT: The patient was a 51 years old woman who suffered from several episodes of relapsing and remission of limbs weakness, visual impairment and gait disturbance since 29 years old. She was diagnosed as a case of MS and received treatment accordingly. Treatment with the use of Rebif was started since 2008-2012, and was then shifted to Fingolimod due to several minor attacks were still noted during this period. Serum AQP4-IgG was checked before the use of Fingolimod by using Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and the result showed sero-negative for this Ab. However, occasional minor attacks were still noted. In May 2018, severe relapsing developed and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed marked progression of the brain lesion. Initially, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy was suspected, but both cerebrospinal fluid and serologic study for John Cunningham virus (JCV) were negative. AQP4-IgG was rechecked by using cell-based assay (CBA), and the result showed positive finding. Thereafter, her therapy was changed to NMO spectrum disorder regimen. CONCLUSION: It is worthwhile to recheck the serum AQP4-IgG if the initial study showed negative result by using ELISA since CBA has higher sensitivity than previous study method.

The Clinical Features and Therapeutic Outcomes of Young Adults with Cryptococcal Meningitis.

OBJECTIVE: No previous study has reported on the clinical characteristics of cryptococcal meningitis (CM) focusing solely on young adults. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Ninety-nine adult patients with CM (64 men and 35 women) were enrolled, of whom 26 were classified into the young adult group (≤ 40 years) and 73 into the non-young adult group (> 40 years). The modified Rankin scale (mRS) was used to evaluate the outcomes of the survivors at the time of discharge and at 1 year of follow-up. The clinical characteristics and laboratory data between 1) the young adult CM patients with and without acquired immunecompromised syndrome and 2) the male and female young adult CM patients were compared. The prognostic factors of the young adult CM patients were also analyzed. RESULTS: The young adult group had a higher incidence of headache as the clinical presentation which may have been due to the higher intracranial pressure in this group. The overall mortality rate of the young adults with CM was high (38.5%, 10/26), but no significant prognostic factors were found. In followup studies of the neurologic deficits, the young adult survivors had better outcomes (mRS scores = 0-2) than the non-young adult group at discharge and 1 year after discharge. CONCLUSION: The young adult CM patients had a higher incidence of headache as the clinical presentation. Although the mortality rate in the young adult CM patients was high, the survivors had better neurologic outcomes.

A CD33 frameshift variant is associated with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders.

BACKGROUND: Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) is a rare neuroimmunology disorder predominantly affecting the East Asia population, the reason for this preference remains unknown. Genetic factors such as polymorphisms in human leukocyte antigen (HLA) and interleukins (IL) genes have been reported. Although the familial occurrence of NMOSD is rare, it supports that genetic factors may play a role. METHODS: Whole exome sequencing (WES) study was performed on the affected mother and daughter, as well as the unaffected father in a Taiwanese family with NMOSD. A cohort of 19 sporadic patients with aquaporin 4 antibody (AQP4-Ab) positive NMOSD was also recruited; all fulfilled the 2015 International NMOSD Diagnosis Criteria. Sanger sequencing was performed on exon 4 of the CD33 gene on the sporadic NMOSD cohort. RESULTS: WES study revealed a 19 base pair deletion in exon 4 of the CD33 gene, resulting in frameshift premature truncating protein, which segregated with the affected status. CD33 was the most likely candidate gene due to its known function in immune regulation. A total of 19 sporadic NMOSD patients were tested using Sanger sequencing, including 3 patients with other concomitant autoimmune disorders. Two additional NMOSD patients were found to have the same CD33 frameshift variant, which accounts for 19.04% of all NMOSD patients, and 15% following correction for the familial cases; compared to 2% in Taiwanese population controls. CONCLUSION: In this study, we identified a 19 base pair deletion in the CD33 gene may be a potential risk locus for NMOSD, which is predicted to cause loss of function of CD33. The loss of CD33 inhibitory function may affect the regulation of the immune system in NMOSD patients. This finding requires further larger cohorts of NMOSD patients and functional study to corroborate.

Intra-family phenotype variations in familial neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the current study was to examine intra-family phenotype variations in familial neuromyelitis optica (NMO) spectrum disorder. METHODS: The clinical presentation and neuroimaging features of two family members (mother and daughter) from a NMO spectrum disorder family (index family) were analyzed. Multiplex polymerase chain reaction was performed based on targeted re-sequencing on the AQP4 gene and the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) loci. The clinical and neuroimaging features of the members of six other previously reported NMO spectrum disorder families were also included for analysis. RESULTS: In the core family, the mother was aged 39 at disease onset and the initial presentation was spinal cord involvement, whereas the daughter was 22 years old at disease onset and the initial presentation was brainstem involvement. No coding pathogenic variants or single nucleotide polymorphisms of the AQP4 gene were identified in the mother, daughter or father. As for HLA genotyping, the HLA-DRB1*03 and HLA-DPB1*04 alleles were shared by the mother and daughter. The HLA-DPB1*05 was present in the affected daughter and was inherited from the unaffected father. As for the other six reported families with familial NMO spectrum disorder, four mother-daughter pairs had a different age at disease onset and/or a different initial presentation. The other two affected family groups were sister-sister pairs; they had a similar age of onset and similar initial presentations. CONCLUSION: The present study offers a preliminary view of the clinical and neuroimaging features of patients with familial NMO spectrum disorder. Clinical heterogeneities were found among the family members, especially the mother and daughter pairs. The presence of risk allele HLA-DR*03:01 may be an important genetic finding for familial NMO spectrum disorder patients. To the best of our knowledge, this clinical heterogeneity has not been previously examined or reported in the literature. For better delineation of the intra-familial phenotype variations in familial NMO spectrum disorder, further large-scale studies are needed.

A combination of anti-PD-L1 mAb plus Lm-LLO-E6 vaccine efficiently suppresses tumor growth and metastasis in HPV-infected cancers.

PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy is viewed as having clinical benefits in advanced cancers but is effective in only a few patients, suggesting that an efficient combination approach is needed to improve efficacy. Immunohistochemistry analysis indicated that PD-L1 expression was correlated with the E6 expression in tumors from 122 lung cancer patients. The poorest survival occurred in PD-L1-positive/E6-positive tumor. PD-L1 expression was increased by the expression of E6, but not the E7, oncoprotein in lung and cervical cancer cells. PD-L1 expression was responsible for E6-mediated colony formation and soft agar growth. Therefore, PD-L1 secreted from tumor cells may directly promote tumor progression, particularly in E6-positive tumors. Immune deficiency nude mice were used to test the possibility that combining anti-PD-L1 mAb with Lm-LLO-E6 vaccine could have a higher antitumor activity compared with anti-PD-L1 mAb or Lm-LLO-E6 vaccine alone. A greater antitumor activity was obtained with anti-PD-L1 mAb + Lm-LLO-E6 vaccine than with anti-PD-L1 mAb or Lm-LLO-E6 alone in subcutaneous and metastatic tumors induced by TL-1 and SiHa cells. The longest survival time for nude mice was observed in the anti-PD-L1 mAb + Lm-LLO-E6 vaccine group. In conclusion, an anti-PD-L1 mAb + Lm-LLO-E6 vaccine may be an efficient treatment for suppression of tumor growth and metastasis induced by HPV-infected cells.

Examining the effects of an interprofessional crew resource management training intervention on perceptions of patient safety.

This article reports the results from a study that employed an interprofessional crew resource management (CRM) education programme in the emergency and critical care departments. The study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of this intervention of participants' satisfaction and safety attitude changes using a satisfaction questionnaire and the Human Factors Attitude Survey (HFAS). Overall, participants responded positively to the CRM training-93.4% were satisfied, 93.1% agreed that it enhanced patient safety and care quality, 85.7% agreed that it increased their confidence, 86.4% agreed that it reduced practice errors, and 90.8% agreed that it would change their behaviours. Overall, the participants reported positive changes in their attitudes regarding 22 of the 23 HFAS questions.

Bioavailability of andrographolide and protection against carbon tetrachloride-induced oxidative damage in rats.

Andrographolide, a bioactive diterpenoid, is identified in Andrographis paniculata. In this study, we investigated the pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of andrographolide in rats and studied whether andrographolide enhances antioxidant defense in a variety of tissues and protects against carbon tetrachloride-induced oxidative damage. After a single 50-mg/kg administration, the maximum plasma concentration of andrographolide was 1µM which peaked at 30min. The bioavailability of andrographolide was 1.19%. In a hepatoprotection study, rats were intragastrically dosed with 30 or 50mg/kg andrographolide for 5 consecutive days. The results showed that andrographolide up-regulated glutamate cysteine ligase (GCL) catalytic and modifier subunits, superoxide dismutase (SOD)-1, heme oxygenase (HO)-1, and glutathione (GSH) S-transferase (GST) Ya/Yb protein and mRNA expression in the liver, heart, and kidneys. The activity of SOD, GST, and GSH reductase was also increased in rats dosed with andrographolide (p<0.05). Immunoblot analysis and EMSA revealed that andrographolide increased nuclear Nrf2 contents and Nrf2 binding to DNA, respectively. After the 5-day andrographolide treatment, one group of animals was intraperitoneally injected with carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) at day 6. Andrographolide pretreatment suppressed CCl4-induced plasma aminotransferase activity and hepatic lipid peroxidation (p<0.05). These results suggest that andrographolide is quickly absorbed in the intestinal tract in rats with a bioavailability of 1.19%. Andrographolide protects against chemical-induced oxidative damage by up-regulating the gene transcription and activity of antioxidant enzymes in various tissues.

Disparity of physician specialties in the management of chronic heart failure: trend analysis in Taiwan, 2000 - 2010.

OBJECTIVE: Chronic heart failure (CHF) is a condition that is daily confronted by clinicians in a variety of medical specialties, where physicians routinely seek optimum pharmacotherapy for their outpatients with CHF. We conducted a population- based study on pharmacotherapy for outpatients with CHF in Taiwan from 2000 to 2010, which focused on drug prescription patterns of different physician specialties. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrieved records from the National Health Insurance Research Database of patient ambulatory visits with diagnosed chronic heart failure, when cardiovascular drugs were prescribed. For purposes of this study, anti-chronic heart failure drugs were separated into categories: mortality reducing agents (angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers, ß-blockers, spironolactone, hydralazine plus nitrates) and symptom-relieving agents (digoxin, diuretics). Thereafter, the trends of prescription patterns related to different physician specialties were analyzed. RESULTS: From 2000 to 2010, the prescription rate of any mortality-reducing agent for CHF outpatients rose from 61.5% to 76.3% while the concomitant rate for digoxin decreased from 47.3% to 45.4%. Compared to internists and family physicians, cardiologists not only prescribed far more mortality-reducing agents from 2000 to 2010 (53.9 - 72.7%, 54.1 - 64.3%, 74.7 - 84.4%, respectively), but also prescribed two or three mortality-reducing drugs. CONCLUSION: There was a significant improvement of optimal pharmacotherapy for chronic heart failure in Taiwan. We observed that cardiologists were more aggressive than non-cardiologists when deciding whether to prescribe mortality-reducing drugs for heart failure management. However, those factors which influence the prescription patterns of internists and family physicians for their patients with CHF still require additional research.

Induction of Nrf2-dependent Antioxidation and Protection Against Carbon Tetrachloride-induced Liver Damage by Andrographis Herba (chuan xin lián) Ethanolic Extract.

Andrographis paniculata is a traditional Chinese herb and displays diverse biological activities including antioxidation, anti-tumorigenesis, anti-virus, and anti-atherogenesis. In this study, we investigated the up-regulation of ethanolic extract of A. paniculata (APE) on the antioxidant defense in rat livers and whether this enhancement protected against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced liver damage. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were orally administered (i.g.) 0, 0.75, or 2 g/kg/d APE for 5 d. At d 6, rats were sacrificed and liver tissues were removed. Some animals (n=8) were intraperitoneally injected CCl4 (1 mL/kg, 50% in olive oil) and blood was drawn 24 h after CCl4 treatment. The results showed that APE increased hepatic glutathione (GSH) content and superoxide dismutase, GSH peroxidase, and GSH S-transferase activities in a dose-dependent manner (p < 0.05). Results of immunoblotting and RT-PCR revealed that rats treated with APE had higher glutamate cysteine ligase catalytic and modifier subunits, heme oxygenase 1, superoxide dismutase 1, and GSH S-transferase Ya and Yb protein and mRNA expression than those of control rats. Moreover, APE increased Nrf2 nuclear translocation and Nrf2 binding to DNA in rat liver. In the presence of CCl4, APE decreased hepatic thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances production and plasma aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase activities. These results suggest that APE protection against CCl4 insult is attributed, at least in part, to its up-regulation of antioxidant defense in rat liver.

Bacterial community diversity in undisturbed perhumid montane forest soils in Taiwan.

The diversity and composition of soil bacterial communities in three topographic sites (summit, foot slope, and lakeshore) from subtropical montane forest ecosystem in Taiwan were examined by using 16S rRNA gene clone library analysis. This locality is temperate, perhumid, and has low soil acidity (pH < 4), which is an uncommon ecosystem in a monsoonal part of Southeast Asia. A total of 481 clones were sequenced and placed into ten phylogenetic groups according to their similarities to type strains of described organisms. Toposequence of the transect was investigated from summit to foot slope and at the lakeshore. More than 86% of the clones were affiliated with members of the Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, and Actinobacteria. Within the Proteobacteria, the beta-Proteobacteria was the most abundant, then alpha-Proteobacteria and gamma-Proteobacteria. Based on the Shannon diversity index (H) analysis, the bacterial community in the foot slope was the most diverse (H = 0.86) and that in summit was the least diverse (H = 0.68). The composition and diversity of soil bacterial communities in the three sites suggested no trend with topographic change. Less than 20% of the sequences were Acidobacteria-affiliated clones. The low proportion of Acidobacteria observed may be related to the high soil moisture and anaerobic microhabitats. Moreover, Shannon diversity indices revealed these bacterial communities to have lower diversity than that of other temperate (H = 0.90) and tropical forest (H = 0.82) ecosystems. The extreme acidity of soil pH and high soil moisture of this forest may explain composition and reduced the diversity of these soil bacterial communities.

Effect of carbendazim and pencycuron on soil bacterial community.

Soil bacterial composition is used as one of the important indicators of negative effects of the use of pesticides in agriculture. Very little is known on the effects of fungicides, particularly carbendazim and pencycuron on soil bacterial community. In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted to examine the effects of various concentrations of carbendazim and pencycuron on diversity of bacterial community in soils collected from strawberry field and incubated at different temperature conditions. The degradation rate of fungicides both in sterile and non-sterile soils were also investigated. Residues of fungicides were measured using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and the change in bacterial community was examined by comparing the 16S rDNA bands on patterns by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). The dissipation of carbendazim was affected by concentration applied, whereas that of pencycuron was affected by both concentration applied and incubation temperature. The microbial community could recover to its previous composition after 126 days of cultivation with the application of 10 mg/kg of carbendazim but not with the application of a high concentration, 100 mg/kg, of pencycuron. From cluster analysis, the bacterial community structure showed approximately 50% similarity throughout the experimental period, which indicated that the soil microbiota composition was not stable throughout the 120 cultivation days.

Physiological response and protein expression under acid stress of Escherichia coli O157:H7 TWC01 isolated from Taiwan.

Escherichia coli O157:H7 has an unusually high resistance to acidic environments. Some research has revealed that acid-adapted cells, by exposure to moderately acidic conditions, are more resistant to a subsequent strong acidic challenge or other stress. This study was conducted to understand the protein expression regulation of acid tolerance response (ATR) of a local isolated E. coli O157:H7 TWC01 (TWC01) induced by an acidic environment. TWC01 cells were acid adapted by using hydrochloric acid (HCl) or lactic acid as acidifier to induce ATR. The total proteins of adapted cells were extracted for proteomic analysis and protein identification by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI-Q-TOF MS/MS). Furthermore, the effects of acid adaptation on shiga-like toxin (stx) secretion were examined. Results revealed that acid adaptation depressed stx production of E. coli O157:H7 TWC01 during adaptation and did not improve post-stress toxin production. Image analysis of the gel indicated that numerous proteins were up-regulated and that lactic acid had a greater effect than HCl did (percentages of up-regulated proteins were 57.64 and 35.47%, respectively). Analysis of proteins by mass spectrometry revealed that most of the up-regulated proteins were metabolism-related, including phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK), glutamate decarboxylases alpha and beta (GadA, GadB), adenine phosphoribosyltransferase (APRT), and dihydrodipicolinate synthase (DHDPS). Others were related to translation (e.g., elongation factor Tu, elongation factor G), protein folding (e.g., alkyl hydroperoxide reductase), and membrane proteins (e.g., ompA precursor and ompR). The variation of protein expression showed that acid resistance was induced in TWC01 and was primarily manifested via expression of up-regulated proteins that contribute to increased energy conservation and polypeptide synthesis.

Detection of viable enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157 using the combination of immunomagnetic separation with the reverse transcription multiplex TaqMan PCR system in food and stool samples.

Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 is an infectious pathogen and outbreaks have been reported all over the world, specifically in Australia, Canada, Japan, the United States, and in various countries in Europe and South Africa. Therefore, it is necessary to develop rapid methods to determine the target pathogens for food sanitation and disease. Three combinations of primers and probes were designed to detect and identify E. coli O157 using the TaqMan detection system which focuses on the specific genes eae, rfb(O157, and stxII. Reverse transcription (RT) multiplex TaqMan PCR was carried out to accurately detect viable target cells correctly. Furthermore, the acidic pretreatment and immunomagnetic separation (IMS) of food and stool samples also improved the specificity and accuracy of the RT multiplex TaqMan PCR. The developed multiplex TaqMan PCR was effective in differentiating E. coli O157, enterovirulent E. coli, and non-E. coli pathogens from 100 strains which were isolated from clinical patients and the environment. Viable and nonviable cells were also distinguished by this assay. The pretreatment protocol, which included IMS to concentrate and purify the E. coli O157, was developed and the sensitivity of the assay was improved to 10(0) CFU/ml in pure culture, food, and stool samples. The TaqMan PCR assay is a rapid test for the detection of E. coli O157 in food and stool matrices. It shortens the process time and increases the specificity of the pathogens detected. This is critical for improving the safety and sanitation of our food supply.