[Cost-benefit analysis on the intervention of application iron-fortified soy sauce for anemia in Deqing 15-54 years women, Zhejiang].

OBJECTIVE: To make a cost-benefit analysis on anemia intervention with iron-fortified soy sauce in 15-54 years old women. METHODS: The study was conducted in Deqing county, Zhejiang province in 2012-2013. A total 585 women as sampling size were estimated with statistical model and randomly selected by probability proportionate to size sampling. Hemoglobin were measured before intervention and after 15 months. The cost of the intervention project were collected with manpower, communication and other invest. The benefit was estimated with profiling model. RESULTS: After the intervention, the anemia prevalence of sampled women decreased from 31.1% to 21.9%(P<0.01). The major cost of the project was 156 400 RMB, and total benefits result ing from projects were 1 448 485 RMB. The cost-benefit ratio of the project is 1∶9.49. If investing one yuan can produce economic benefits of nearly 9.49 yuan, therefore, the intervention projectis worth to be scaling up. Sensitivity analysis showed the result of this study was stable. CONCLUSION: The intervention can significantly reduce the prevalence of anemia in women, and reduce the economic burden of the diseases. .

Underweight rather than adiposity is an important predictor of death in rural Chinese adults: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: To assess the associations of body mass index (BMI) with all-cause and cause-specific mortalities among rural Chinese. METHODS: A prospective study of 28 895 individuals was conducted from 2006 to 2014 in rural Deqing, China. Height and weight were measured. The association of BMI with mortality was assessed by using Cox proportional hazards model and restricted cubic spline regression. RESULTS: There were a total of 2062 deaths during an average follow-up of 7 years. As compared with those with BMI of 22.0-24.9 kg/m2, an increased risk of all-cause mortality was found for both underweight men (BMI <18.5 kg/m2) (adjusted HR (aHR): 1.45, 95% CI: 1.18 to 1.79) and low normal weight men (BMI of 18.5-21.9 kg/m2) (aHR: 1.20, 95% CI: 1.03 to 1.38). A J-shaped association was observed between BMI and all-cause mortality in men. Underweight also had an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer mortalities in men. The association of underweight with all-cause mortality was more pronounced in ever smokers and older men (60+ years). The results remained after excluding participants who were followed up less than 1 year. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests that underweight is an important predictor of mortality, especially for elderly men in the rural community of China.

Enriched taxa were found among the gut microbiota of centenarians in East China.

BACKGROUND: Gut microbiota is closely related to age. Studies from Europe and the U.S. identified featured microbiota in different age groups for the elderly. Asian studies mainly focused on people living in longevity areas. Featured microbiota for the elderly people of different age groups, especially in the centenarian in the general population, has not been well investigated in China. METHOD: We conducted a comparative study by including 198 subjects of three age groups (65-70, 90-99, and 100+ years) in East China. Information regarding age, sex, height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, food preference, smoking status and alcohol consumption were collected by using a structured questionnaire. Fecal samples for each participant were collected as well. 16S rRNA gene sequencing were employed to analyze the gut microbiota composition. Logistic regression with LASSO feature selection was used to identify featured taxa in different age groups and to assess their potential interactions with other factors such as lifestyle. RESULT: The gut microbiota of the 90-99 year and 100+ year age groups showed more diversity, robustness, and richness compared with the 65-70 year age group. PCoA analysis showed a clear separation between the 65-70 and 100+ year age groups. At the species level, Bacteroides fragilis, Parabacteroides merdae, Ruminococcus gnavus, Coprococcus and Clostridium perfringens increased, but Bacteroides vulgatus, Ruminococcus sp.5139BFAA and Clostridium sp.AT5 decreased in the 90-99 year age group. The age differences in gut microbiota were similar across the strata of smoking, alcohol consumption status and food preference. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated age differences in many aspects of gut microbiota, such as overall diversity, microbiota structure, and relative abundance of key taxa. Moreover, the gut microbiota of centenarian was significantly different from those of younger age groups of the elderly.

Poor sleep quality and influencing factors among rural adults in Deqing, China.

BACKGROUND: Poor sleep quality is prevalent and is associated with cognitive decline, impaired health, and reduced quality of life. There is a lack of studies about sleep quality and its potential risk factors among rural adults aged 45 years or above under rapid urbanization in China. METHODS: In a cross-sectional survey conducted in Deqing County, China in 2015, we included 1584 adults 45+ years of age. Sleep quality was measured by using the Chinese version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (CPSQI). Poor sleep quality was defined by a CPSQI global score > 5. Other data collected included sociodemographic and lifestyle factors as well as physical health. Logistic regression model was applied to assess factors influencing sleep quality by calculating crude odds ratio (cOR), adjusted OR (aOR), and their 95% confident intervals (CI). RESULTS: Of 1584 subjects, more than half were female with an average age of 58.9 ± 8.1 years. Their night sleep duration was 7.7 ± 1.2 h, sleep latency was 31.9 ± 32.0 min, and 17% of them could not fall asleep within half hour, averagely. The mean score of CPSQI was 4.4 ± 2.7. The prevalence of poor sleep quality was 27.7% (95% CI = 25.4-29.7%) overall, and there existed a significant sex difference-30.6% (95% CI = 27.7-33.7%) for women and 24.0% (95% CI = 20.9-27.2%) for men. Five domains of the CPSQI except for sleep efficiency and use of sleeping medication also showed a sex difference (p < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis indicated that unmarried status (aOR = 1.51, 95% CI = 1.03-2.22), lower monthly individual income (aOR = 2.09, 95% CI = 1.49-2.94), and chronic diseases (aOR = 1.95, 95% CI = 1.51-2.51) were significantly related to poor sleep quality. CONCLUSIONS: Sleep problems were prevalent among the rural Chinese adults aged 45+ years. People who were unmarried or had low personal income or any chronic diseases were more likely to have poor sleep quality.

[Prevalence and change of type 2 diabetes mellitus among rural adults in Deqing County, Zhejiang Province in China during 2006-2014].

OBJECTIVE: To describe the prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus( T2 DM) in rural Deqing County, Zhejiang Province, and explore its risk factors. METHODS: Random cluster sampling was used to select 8 rural communities in Deqing County, Zhejiang Province, and a cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2006-2008, 2011-2012 and 2013-2014, respectively. Totally, 6562 eligible subjects were investigated in 2006-2008, 11 763 eligible subjects in 2011-2012, and 10 904 eligible subjects in 2013-2014. Data on demography, life style and disease history, and physical examination such as height, weight and blood pressure were collected. Also, fasting plasma glucose was tested. T2 DM was defined as who having fasting plasma glucose ≥7. 0 mmol/L or was diagnosed by doctors or receiving diabetic treatment. RESULTS: In 2006-2008, 2011-2012 and 2013-2014, the standardized prevalences of T2 DM were 1. 2%, 1. 6% and 2. 1% and those of impaired fasting glucose( IFG) were 7. 2%, 18. 7% and22. 8%, respectively. There were increasing trends over years for both. After adjustment for other covariates in logistic regression, age( compared with age between 18 to 39. 9 years old: aOR_(40-59. 9)= 5. 20, 95% CI 2. 74-9. 89; aOR_(60-)= 8. 02, 95% CI 4. 19-15. 35), female( aOR = 1. 23, 95% CI 1. 02-1. 49), family history of T2 DM( aOR =4. 86, 95% CI 3. 49-6. 77), overweight/obesity( overweight: aOR = 1. 88, 95% CI1. 61-2. 20; obesity: aOR = 5. 10, 95% CI 4. 06-6. 41), hypertension( aOR = 2. 84, 95% CI 2. 44-3. 31), having meat mainly( aOR = 2. 25, 95% CI 1. 89-2. 69) and tea drinking( aOR = 0. 81, 95% CI 0. 68-0. 95) were significantly correlated with T2 DM. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of T2 DM increased over time in rural Deqing County, China. Age, gender, family history of T2 DM, overweight or obesity, hypertension, diet and drinking tea were significantly related to T2 DM.

Increased prevalence and incidence of anemia among adults in transforming rural China: two cross-sectional surveys.

BACKGROUND: Anemia remains one of the serious nutrition-related diseases in China, but data on incidence of anemia were less available, especially in rural area which are experiencing rapid urbanization. Out study aimed to estimate both the prevalence and incidence of anemia in transforming rural China. METHODS: We conducted a combined study of rural adults 18-64 years of age with a repeated cross-sectional component (4456 in 2006 and 2184 in 2008) and a cohort component (1424) in rural Deqing, China. Anemia was diagnosed based on blood hemoglobin levels using the hemiglobincyanide (HiCN) method according to both the World Health Organization (WHO) and Chinese criteria. The prevalence and incidence of anemia and their 95% confidential intervals (95% CI) were calculated. RESULTS: The prevalence of anemia based on the WHO criteria was 51.5% in 2006 and 53.7% in 2008, and the 2-year cumulative incidence was 42.1%. Of the cases, over 95% had mild anemia. The prevalence was much lower when the Chinese criteria was used. Both the prevalence and incidence were higher in women than in men and significantly increased with age in men. In both sexes, the incidence sharply increased after 45 years of age. CONCLUSION: Our study showed a high prevalence and incidence of anemia among adults in rural Deqing, China. Monitoring and intervention were needed urgently, especially among individuals over 45 years of age.

Common variants in TGFBR2 and miR-518 genes are associated with hypertension in the Chinese population.

BACKGROUND: An animal study reported that TGF-ß1 maturation was linked to the homeostasis of blood pressure and elastogenesis of essential hypertension (EH). Recent advances require further research of TGF-ß1 receptor in EH. METHODS: A case-control study comprised of 2,012 adult hypertension case patients and 2,210 adult control subjects was conducted, and the association with blood pressure was further tested in children. Logistic regression and calculated genetic risk score were used to evaluate the effects of one single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and multiple SNPs on EH, respectively. RESULTS: The genetic risk score of 10 SNPs showed a significant association with hypertension; the odds ratio of the upper quartile vs. the lower quartile was 1.282 (P = 4.67 × 10(-3)). rs7256241 in miR-518 was significantly associated with diastolic blood pressure (DBP) change in control subjects (P = 0.002), and this association was also observed in children (P = 0.04). The systolic blood pressure (SBP) and DBP of female patients taking reserpine were higher with the C and G alleles of rs3773661 (P = 0.004) and rs7256241 (P = 0.002), respectively. In patients taking Zhen Ju Jiang Ya tablets, SBP and DBP decreased linearly with rs749794 (P = 0.004 and P = 0.048, respectively). SBP decreased linearly with rs1155705 (P = 0.007) and rs11709624 (P = 0.04), but increased with rs1036096 (P = 0.03) in male patients. In male patients taking Jiang Ya tablets, SBP increased linearly with rs11709624 (P = 0.007), DBP increased linearly with rs1155705 (P = 0.03) whereas decreased with rs7256241 (P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that TGFBR2 and miR-518 harbor variants that increase the risk of EH and affect blood pressure homeostasis as well as efficacy of antihypertensive agents.

Association study of common variations of FBN1 gene and essential hypertension in Han Chinese population.

Fibrillin-1 (FBN1) was reported to have impact on the physiological arterial stiffness and vascular remodeling with hypertension of recent years. In the previous study we reported the association of four functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of FBN1 gene and hypertension. Here, we further investigate the association of four tagging SNPs (tagSNPs) which covered remain genetic variation blocks of FBN1 gene with hypertension, blood pressure and efficacy of antihypertensive in a South Han Chinese population. A case-control study including 2,012 hypertension cases and 2,116 controls age- and sex-matched controls was conducted from a community-based population and four candidate tagSNPs of the FBN1 gene were genotyped. Association analysis by multiple logistic regression was conducted for allele, genotype and haplotype and hypertension, blood pressure trait and control status with antihypertensive. General linear model was applied to compare blood pressure levels between genotypes. The association of rs17361868 and hypertension was statistically significant and that was further observed in female, ≥55 years, non-smoking and non-drinking populations (P < 0.05). Significant association of rs668842, rs11635140 and hypertension were observed in <55 years population as well as the later in female and non-smoking populations respectively. Haplotype G-T constructed of rs668842 and rs11635140 was significantly associated with hypertension comparing to reference haplotype A-C (P = 0.022). Normally distributed square root of TGF-ß1 (pg/ml) of hypertension cases (148.56 ± 66.46) was significantly higher than that of control (128.52 ± 65.11), P = 0.008. Furthermore, TGF-ß1 was significantly correlated with SBP (r = 0.135, P = 0.018) and DBP (r = 0.154, P = 0.007) respectively whereas no statistical difference of blood pressure or TGF-ß1 was observed between genotypes. Remarkably, rs17361868 were significantly associated with the status of blood pressure in the patients taking three of the antihypertensive drugs, Zhen Ju Jiang Ya tablets, Jiang Ya tablet and compound reserpine (P < 0.05). The present study provides further association evidence of FBN1 gene polymorphisms and hypertension, antihypertensive efficacy. Further replication of these results via association or prospective studies conducted in other populations is warranted.

[Prevalence of occult hepatitis B virus infection and its phylogenetic features among mother-teenager pairs].

OBJECTIVE: Prevalence of occult hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection (OBI) was investigated in a paired mother-teenager population and HBV S gene variation including overt and occult HBV, was determined. METHODS: A follow-up study based on an initial survey of 135 mother-teenager pairs was carried out through collection of questionnaires and blood samples HBsAg were detected by ELISA method, viral load by PCR amplification and HBV S gene by phylogenetic analysis. RESULTS: 102 pairs of subjects were followed-up. Blood samples from 94 mothers and 101 children were collected. OBI prevalence in mothers was 10.0% (6/60), significantly higher than 2.0% (2/101) in teenagers. Medians of viral load were 399.9 IU/ml and 247.6 IU/ml in overt and occult HBV strains, but without significant difference. 1 occult HBV strain belonged to genotype B with serotype adw while the other 7 were genotype C with serotype adr. 15 of the overt HBV strains belonged to genotype B with serotype adw and the other 8 were genotype C with serotype adr. Proportions of genotype-C strains were significantly higher in occult HBV strains than in overt HBV strains. CONCLUSION: OBI was seen in teenage-mother population.

Hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive and HBsAg-negative hepatitis B virus infection among mother-teenager pairs 13 years after neonatal hepatitis B virus vaccination.

It is unclear whether a mother who is negative for hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) but positive for hepatitis B virus (HBV) is at potential risk for mother-to-child transmission of HBV. This study, using a paired mother-teenager population, aimed to assess whether maternal HBsAg-negative HBV infection ((hn)HBI) is a significant source of child HBV infection (HBI). A follow-up study with blood collection has been conducted on the 93 mother-teenager pairs from the initial 135 pregnant woman-newborn pairs 13 years after neonatal HBV vaccination. Serological and viral markers of HBV have been tested, and phylogenetic analysis of HBV isolates has been done. The HBI prevalence was 1.9% (1 (hn)HBI/53) for teenage children of non-HBI mothers, compared with 16.7% (1 (hn)HBI/6) for those of (hn)HBI mothers and 2.9% (1 HBsAg-positive HBV infection [(hp)HBI]/34) for those of (hp)HBI mothers. Similar viral sequences have been found in one pair of whom both the mother and teenager have had (hn)HBI. In comparison with the (hp)HBI cases, those with (hn)HBI had a lower level of HBV load and a higher proportion of genotype-C strains, which were accompanied by differentiated mutations (Q129R, K141E, and Y161N) of the "a" determinant of the HBV surface gene. Our findings suggest that mother-to-teenager transmission of (hn)HBI can occur among those in the neonatal HBV vaccination program.

Association study of AGER gene polymorphism and hypertension in Han Chinese population.

BACKGROUND: Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are produced by non-enzymatic glycation or glycoxidation of proteins, lipids and nucleic acids. The bond of AGEs and the receptor of AGE (AGER) in a pro-oxidant environment could induce immune and inflammation reaction involved in progress of microvascular disease. Accumulated evidence warrant further study on AGE-AGER pathway and genetic susceptibility to hypertension (HT). METHODS: We designed a two-stage association study to evaluate the association of AGER polymorphism and HT. In stage 1, seven tagSNPs were tested in 524 cases and 531 controls and the significant SNPs (P<0.05) would enter into stage 2 including 807 cases and 869 controls. Furthermore, joint analysis was performed for all 2731 subjects including 1331 cases and 1400 controls, and meta-analysis was applied to evaluate combined estimations from the subgroups of stage 1 and stage 2. RESULTS: In stage 1, rs204994 had significant association with HT (P<0.05) and enter stage 2. Neither joint analysis nor meta-analysis found statistical association of rs204994 with HT after adjusted for the covariates in the whole population. However, further stratification analysis found that rs204994 was significantly associated with HT in <50years and ≥50years groups, ORs (95%CI) of dominant model were 1.623 (1.054-2.500) and 0.721 (0.546-0.952) respectively. No significant correlation was found between blood pressure and the polymorphisms of rs204994. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggests that age might modulate the genetic effects of variation of rs204994 in AGER on HT and further replications in other populations and functional studies should be warranted.

High prevalence of hyperglycaemia and the impact of high household income in transforming rural China.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of hyperglycaemia and its association with socioeconomic factors have been well studied in developed countries, however, little is known about them in transforming rural China. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out in 4 rural communities of Deqing County located in East China in 2006-07, including 4,506 subjects aged 18 to 64 years. Fasting plasma glucose (FPG) was measured. Subjects were considered to have impaired fasting glucose (IFG) if FPG was in the range from 5.6 to 6.9 mmol/L and to have diabetes mellitus (DM) if FG was 7.0 mmol/L or above. RESULTS: The crude prevalences of IFG and DM were 5.4% and 2.2%, respectively. The average ratio of IFG/DM was 2.5, and tended to be higher for those under the age of 35 years than older subjects. After adjustment for covariates including age (continuous), sex, BMI (continuous), smoking, alcohol drinking, and regular leisure physical activity, subjects in the high household income group had a significantly higher risk of IFG compared with the medium household income group (OR: 1.74, 95% CI: 1.11-2.72) and no significant difference in IFG was observed between the low and medium household income groups. Education and farmer occupation were not significantly associated with IFG. CONCLUSIONS: High household income was significantly associated with an increased risk of IFG. A high ratio of IFG/DM suggests a high risk of diabetes in foreseeable future in the Chinese transforming rural communities.

[Relationship between HBeAg seroconversion with genotypes and HBV specific CTL in patients with chronic hepatitis B treated with Adefovir dipivoxil].

OBJECTIVE: To explore relationship between HBeAg seroconversion with HBV genotypes and HBV specific CTL in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) treated with Adefovir dipivoxil. METHODS: Seventy CHB patients had positive HBV DNA (HBV DNA > or = 1 x 10(4) copy/ml), 45 cases had positive HBeAg, of whom 23 cases (51. 11%) had genotype B, 22 cases (48.89%) had genotype C. ALT > 2 x upper limit of normal value (ULN), human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A(n) positive, patients were treated with Adefovir dipivoxil (commercial name is Mingzheng, Zhengda Tianjing Pharmaceutical Company), 10 mg, orally, once a day. After treatment for 12 months, observe relationship between HBeAg seroconversion with HBV genotypes and HBV specific CTL. RESULTS: After treatment with Adefovir dipivoxil for 12 months, HBV specific CTL (0.68% +/- 0.11%) was higher than that before treatment (0.33% +/- 0.11%), t = 8.36 P < 0.001, HBV DNA (3.01 +/- 0.2) log10 copy/ml was lower than that before treatment (6.27 +/- 0.70) log10 copy/ml, t = 12.63 P < 0.001, HBV DNA turned negative (< 500 copy/ml) 43 cases (61.43%), in 45 cases with positive HBeAg, HBeAg turned negative in 13 cases (28.89%), 8 cases had HBeAg seroconversion (17.78%), HBV specific CTL (0.86% +/- 0.05%) of patients with HBeAg seroconversion is higher than (0.61% +/- 0.07%) of patients without HBeAg seroconversion (37 cases, 82.22%) t = 7.88, P < 0.001. In 8 cases with HBeAg seroconversion, 7 cases had genotype B (30.43% of genotype B), 1 cases had genotype C (4.55% of genotype C), chi2 = 5.15, P < 0.05. CONCLUSION: Adefovir dipivoxil can enhance HBV specific cellular immunity of CHB patients. After treatment, occurrence of HBeAg seroconversion is related to increase of HBV specific CTL level and may be related to genotypes.

[Prevalence of overweight and its relationship with hyperglycaemia in adults of rural communities in Deqing County, China].

OBJECTIVE: To understand the prevalence of overweight and its relationship with hyperglycaemia in adults in rural Deqing county, China. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was carried out in four rural communities randomly sampled from Deqing county, Zhejiang province, China. A total of 5840 subjects aged 18 to 64 years participated in this study. General demographics and items related to health were collected and the length, weight, fast glucose etc of subjects were measured. EpiData 3.1 (Chinese version) was used to manage the data and SPSS 16.0 was used for statistical analysis. RESULT: The average BMI was 22.7 +/- 11.6 kg/m2, the crude prevalence of overweight was 25.1% (of obesity was 3.8%) and the age-gender-standardized prevalence of overweight was 21.8%. There was a significantly higher trend of overweight with age regardless of gender, especially after 35 years old (chi2(Trend) = 5.61, P = 0.018 for men; chi2(Trend) = 50.96, P < 0.001 for women; chi2(Trend) = 14.05, P < 0.001). The risk of impaired fasting glucose (IFG) and diabetes mellitus (DM) (adjusted OR = 1.8, 95% CI 1.34 - 2.37 and 3.7, 95% CI 2.42 -5.65, respectively) in subjects with overweight was significantly higher than that in subjects without overweight/obesity in the multinomial Logistic model; and the risk of IFG and DM was increased 14% and 24% respectively with the increase of one BMI unit (adjusted OR = 1.14, 95% CI: 1.10 - 1.20 and adjusted OR = 1.24, 95% CI 1.16 - 1.32, respectively). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of overweight in adults aged 18 to 64 years old was high in rural Deqing, which was significantly associated with IFG and DM.

[Influence of adefovir dipivoxil on HBV specific CTL in patients with chronic hepatitis B].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the influence of adefovir dipivoxil on HBV specific CTL in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). METHODS: 10 mg adefovir dipivoxil (Zhengda Tianjing Pharmaceutical Company) was used for CHB patients with positive HBV DNA (HBV DNA > or = 1 x 10(4) copies/ml), ALT > 2 x upper limit of normal value (ULN) and positive human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-A2, orally, once a day for 3 months. Real time fluorescent quantitative PCR was used to determine HBV DNA and flowcytometer was used to determine HBV specific CTL. RESULTS: After treatment with adefovir dipivoxil for 3 months, HBV specific CTL (0.52 +/- 0.11)% was higher than that before treatment (0.34 +/- 0.14)%, t = 6.78 P < 0.01, HBV DNA of 28 cases turned to negative (<1 x 10(3) copies/ml) (62.22%). HBV DNA of 17 cases failed to turn negative 3 months after treatment, but their HBV DNA level was lower [(4. 18 +/- 0.4) log 10 copies/ml] than that before treatment [(6.23 +/- 0.73) log 10 copies/ml], t = 9.99, P < 0.01. CONCLUSION: Adefovir dipivoxil can improve HBV specific cellular immunity in patients CHB.

[Seasonal pattern and phylogenetic analysis with human isolates of genotype-IV hepatitis E virus in swine herds, eastern China].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the seasonal prevalence of genotype-IV hepatitis E virus (HEV) in swine herds in Eastern China and explore the phylogenetic relationship between swine HEV and human HEV in the situation that zoonotic features of HEV had been confirmed. METHODS: From September 2007 to June 2008, a total of 1200 swine bile specimens were collected from three slaughter houses located in Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangsu, the Eastern China, and detected for HEV RNA by using nested RT-PCR. The positive PCR products were sequenced. Then the swine HEV were phylogenetically determined with human HEV isolated in Eastern China. RESULTS: The positive rate for HEV RNA in swine herds was 4.5% totally. Significant differences of HEV detection were not observed among seasonal pattern (Sep - Oct: 6%, Dec - Jan: 4.33%, Mar - Apr: 4.33%, May - Jun: 3.33%) but in geographic distribution (Jiangsu: 6%, Anhui: 5%, Zhejiang: 2.5%). Regardless of isolation from different areas,swine and human genotype-IV HEV shared a high similarity. Phylogenetically, there were 80% - 100% and 96% - 100% identities within swine genotype-lV HEV at the nucleotide and amino acid levels respectively. Between swine HEV and human HEV, there were also similarities of 76% -99% and 95% - 100%. It was noted that some human and swine isolates were clustered with bootstrap values of > 90%. CONCLUSION: Genotype-IV HEV is widely prevalent in swine herds in Eastern China and original common ancestor of evolution and transmission was implied. The sustaining prevalence within swine herds should have a probable influence on the epidemic situation of hepatitis E in human beings.

[Relationship between tea-drinking and anaemia of rural reproductive married women in a community-based cross-sectional study in China].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of anaemia and the relationship between tea-drinking and anaemia in reproductive married women in rural China. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was carried out in four rural communities in Deqing County, Zhejiang Province, China. A total of 1425 reproductive married women at the ages of 20 to 49 years participated in this study and had a satisfactory measure of hemoglobin. Their general information, health status and lifestyle behaviors were collected. Hemoglobin was tested by Drabkin Method. Chi-square test, and binary and multinomial Logistic regression models were used for statistical analysis in SPSS 11.0. RESULT: Among 1425 subjects, the average concentration of hemoglobin were 114.7 +/- 17.0 g/L, the prevalences of anaemia were 63.3%, and most were mild and moderate anaemia (Such prevalence were 63.5%, 63.2% and 63.4% respectively at the ages of 20-30 years, 31-40 years, and 41-49 years.). Subjects with tea-drinking were higher in average concentration of hemoglobin than those of no tea-drinking (t = 3.33, P = 0.001). There were significant associations between tea-drinking and anaemia OR was 0.56 (95% CI: 0.45, 0.73). Further, such protective effects of tea-drinking were observed among subjects with different anaemia [ORs were 0.57 (95% CI: 0.43, 0.75), 0.57 (95% CI: 0.43, 0.75), and 0.28 (95% CI: 0.11, 0.70)] in mild, moderate and severe anaemia, respectively. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of anaemia in reproductive married women in rural of China could be higher and tea-drinking could be a possible protective factor.

[Phylogenetic analysis of sporadic hepatitis E virus in Eastern China].

OBJECTIVE: To understand phylogenetic characteristics of sporadic hepatitis E virus (HEV) in eastern China. METHODS: Four hundred and thirteen sera were collected from sporadic hepatitis E cases in 14 second- or first-class hospitals in Eastern China from 2005 to 2008 and detected with a nested RT-PCR assay. Partial nucleotide sequences of the HEV isolates were determined for phylogenetic analysis with prototype sequences in the GenBank. RESULTS: The male-to-female sex ratio of the patients was 1.75:1 with 61.5% of them aged 40 - 69 years old. HEV RNA was detected in 140 out of 413(34%)serum samples. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all the 140 HEV isolates belonged to genotype IV, sharing 77.9% - 88.3%, 80.8% - 90.6%, 73.4% - 85.2% and 91.0% - 95.4% nucleotide sequence identities with prototype I, II, III and IV HEV isolates respectively. CONCLUSION: It was evident that genotype IV HEV served as the main causative agent of sporadic HEV infection in Eastern China. However the viral origin and evolution needs further clarification.