[A case of neonatal Netherton syndrome]. / 新生儿Netherton综合征1例.

A male infant, aged 6 days, was admitted to the hospital due to respiratory distress and systemic desquamative rash after birth. The infant presented with erythema and desquamative rash, respiratory failure, recurrent infections, chronic diarrhea, hypernatremic dehydration, and growth retardation. Comprehensive treatment, including anti-infection therapy, intravenous immunoglobulin administration, and skin care, resulted in improvement of the rash, but recurrent infections persisted. Second-generation sequencing revealed a homozygous mutation in the SPINK5 gene, consistent with the pathogenic variation of Netherton syndrome. The family opted for palliative care, and the infant died at the age of 2 months after discharge. This report documents a case of Netherton syndrome caused by the SPINK5 gene mutation in the neonatal period, and highlights multidisciplinary diagnosis and therapy for this condition.

Toll-like receptor 4 polymorphisms in gram-negative bacterial infections of Han Chinese neonates.

BACKGROUND: Human toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) is an important receptor in innate immunity, particularly against gram-negative bacterial infection (GNBI). In our study, we evaluated associations of TLR4 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with GNBI in Han Chinese neonates. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Polymorphisms in TLR4 were genotyped in 201 neonates with GNBI and 279 gestational age and birth weight-matched controls without GNBI. Polymorphism analyses were applied to allele frequencies of the detected TLR4 SNPs and their associations with various clinical entities, including premature birth and GNBI were assessed. RESULTS: A total of six SNPs with more than 5% frequency were found in several promoter sequences, including rs10759931, rs2737190, rs10116253, rs10983755, rs1927914, and rs10759932. Mutation allele frequencies ranged from 23 to 41%. There were no SNPs with a frequency greater than 5% in exon analyses. Allele G rs2737190 mutations and GGCGGC haplotypes were more frequent among preterm GNBI neonates (odds ratio [OR], 1.32; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.02-1.71 and OR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.19-3.00, respectively). No specific alleles or haplotypes were associated with GNBI status among term neonates. CONCLUSION: In this study population of Han Chinese, there was a significant association between an ethnical unique SNP in the TLR4 promoter region and preterm neonatal GNBIs.

Phase difference in modulated signals of two orthogonally polarized outputs of a Nd:YAG microchip laser with anisotropic optical feedback.

We present an experimental observation of the output responses of a Nd:YAG microchip laser with an anisotropic external cavity under weak optical feedback. The feedback mirror is stationary during the experiments. A pair of acousto-optic modulators is used to produce a frequency shift in the feedback light with respect to the initial light. The laser output is a beat signal with 40 kHz modulation frequency and is separated into two orthogonal directions by a Wollaston prism. Phase differences between the two intensity curves are observed as the laser works in two orthogonal modes, and vary with the external birefringence element and the pump power. Theoretical analyses are given, and the simulated results are consistent with the experimental phenomena.

Effect of low-temperature stress on the survival of Meloidogyne incognita and its application in greenhouse of northern China.

We examined the effects of low temperature on egg hatching and killing rate of the 2nd instars of Meloi-dogyne incognita (J2) in the laboratory. We further evaluated the effects of two soil treatment methods on the survival rate of M. incognita in northern China in a field experiment. The results of laboratory experiment showed that survival rate of J2 was 0 after being subjected to -7 ℃ for 24 hours, and that egg hatching was completely inhibited 24 hours after being subjected to -9 ℃. The survival rate of J2 was 0 after being subjected to -1, -2, -3, and -4 ℃ for 8, 5, 3, and 1.5 d, respectively. Egg hatching was completely inhibited after being subjected to -2, -3, -4, and -5 ℃ for 9, 6, 4, and 1 d, respectively. Results of the fitting analysis showed that both the relationships between the temperature and the lethal time of J2 as well as the temperature and the non-hatching time of the eggs followed exponential functions. The results of field test showed that death rate of M. incognita in 0-50 cm soil layer after ridging treatment and 0-30 cm soil layer after leveling treatment could reach 100%, while the disease index of the former in 30-40 cm and 40-50 cm was 84.9% and 75.8%, respectively, which was lower than that in the greenhouse. Our results suggest that preventing and controlling M. incognita in greenhouses through low-tempe-rature in winter could achieve a better control effect in Yulin City and the northward region. The proposed technique is convenient and has high potential for popularization.

[Evaluation of risk factors for retinopathy of prematurity].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the incidence and risk factors of ROP (retinopathy of prematurity) through a prospective multicenter study. METHODS: Eleven children's or maternal & child hospitals participated in a collective network. All infants of birth weight < 2000 g, born in or transferred to one of the participating centers from January 1st 2005 to February 28th 2006 were recruited. Timely ophthalmologic examinations were performed. The relevant data at baseline and endpoints were collected at each unit. RESULTS: A total of 882 preterm infants fulfilled the screening criteria and 752 finished a followup. And 123 infants (16.4%) had some degree of ROP. Infants with ROP had a lower gestational age, birth weight and a longer duration of oxygen versus those without ROP [(30.82 +/- 0.20) weeks vs (32.56 +/- 0.09) weeks, (1430 +/- 25) g vs (1636 +/-10) g, (11.6 +/- 1.4) d vs (4.4 +/- 0.3) d]. Through a univariate analysis, birth weight, gestational age, asphyxia, oxygen duration > 5 days, apnea, surfactant usage, pneumonia, anemia, blood transfusion, acidosis and neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (NRDS) were associated with ROP (P < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that birth weight (OR = 0.998), apnea (OR = 1.653) and blood transfusion (OR = 1.763) were independent risk factors for ROP. CONCLUSION: Asphyxia, oxygen duration > 5 days, surfactant usage, anemia, acidosis and NRDS, lower birth weight, apnea and blood transfusion may improve the risks of ROP.

The complete mitochondrial genome of Scythropus yasumatsui (Coleoptera: Curculionidae).

The complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Scythropus yasumatsui (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) was determined by using an Illumina platform. The circular genome was 16,472 bp in length and contained 22 transfer RNA genes (tRNAs), two ribosomal RNA genes (rRNAs), 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), and one control region. The nucleotide composition was significantly biased (A, G, C, and T was 39.74%, 10.11%, 15.41%, and 34.74%, respectively) with A + T contents of 74.49%. All PCGs were initiated with standard ATN (ATG/ATT) codons. While 10 PCGs were terminated with TAA, two PCGs were terminated with TAG (cytb and nad1), and nad5 was terminated with an incomplete stop codon TA. All tRNAs were predicted to contain typical cloverleaf secondary structures except trnS1. The phylogenetic analysis of the concatenated nucleotide sequences of 13 PCGs from 12 Curculionidae species was performed by using MrBayes 3.1.2. The results indicated that S. yasumatsui was more closely related to Naupactus xanthographus than to other species.

[Species-area and species-abundance relationships of arthropod community in various vegetation restoration areas in Zhifanggou watershed, Shaanxi province of Northwest China].

Taking the Zhifanggou watershed in Ansai, Shaanxi Province of Northwest China as a study unit, an investigation on the arthropods in 8 forest stands was conducted from 2006 to 2008, with the species-area and species-abundance relationships of the arthropods in these stands analyzed by various mathematical models. In these forest stands, the species-area relationship of the arthropods accorded with the formula S= CAm With the increase of investigation area, the species number approached to a constant, and the corresponding smallest investigation area was in the order of natural bush > natural forest > Populus davidiana+Robinia pseudoacacia forest > Hippaphae rhamnoides +Caragana mocrophylla forest> Periploca sepium forest > Hippaphae rhamnoides forest > Robinia pseudoacacia forest > Caragana mocrophylla forest, indicating that the more complex the stands, the larger the minimum area needed to be investigated. Based on sampling investigation, the species-abundance models of the arthropods in various stands were established. Lognormal distribution model (LN) was most suitable to fit the arthropod community in natural recovery stands, suggesting that in the arthropod community, there were more species with medial individual amount and fewer abundant species and rare species, and no obvious dominant species. LogCauchy distribution model (LC) was most suitable to fit the arthropod community in mixed and pure stands. As compared with natural recovery stand, mixed and pure stands had more abundant and rare species, and more dominant species.