Bacteroides fragilis spondylitis after suspected oral ulcer: A Clinical Case and Comprehensive Literature Review.

This paper reports a case of Bacteroides fragilis induced spondylitis. Diagnosis was confirmed through blood culture and metagenomic sequencing of pus for pathogen detection. Due to persistent lumbar pain, surgical intervention became imperative, resulting in favorable postoperative outcomes. A detailed patient history revealed a severe episode of oral ulceration two weeks before symptom onset, although a direct link to the infection remained elusive. Leveraging insights from this case, we conducted a comprehensive literature review on B. fragilis spondylitis, elucidating clinical manifestations, diagnostic methodologies, and therapeutic strategies.

The clinical, myopathological, and molecular characteristics of 26 Chinese patients with dysferlinopathy: a high proportion of misdiagnosis and novel variants.

BACKGROUND: Dysferlinopathy is an autosomal recessive muscular dystrophy caused by pathogenic variants in the dysferlin (DYSF) gene. This disease shows heterogeneous clinical phenotypes and genetic characteristics. METHODS: We reviewed the clinical and pathological data as well as the molecular characteristics of 26 Chinese patients with dysferlinopathy screened by immunohistochemistry staining and pathogenic variants in DYSF genes. RESULTS: Among 26 patients with dysferlinopathy, 18 patients (69.2%) presented as Limb-girdle Muscular Dystrophy Type R2 (LGMD R2), 4 (15.4%) had a phenotype of Miyoshi myopathy (MM), and 4 (15.4%) presented as asymptomatic hyperCKemia. Fifteen patients (57.7%) were originally misdiagnosed as inflammatory myopathy or other diseases. Fifteen novel variants were identified among the 40 variant sites identified in this cohort. CONCLUSION: Dysferlinopathy is a clinically and genetically heterogeneous group of disorders with various phenotypes, a high proportion of novel variants, and a high rate of misdiagnosis before immunohistochemistry staining and genetic analysis.

In vivo antiviral effect of plant essential oils against avian infectious bronchitis virus.

BACKGROUND: Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) leads to huge economic losses in the poultry industry worldwide. The high levels of mutations of IBV render vaccines partially protective. Therefore, it is urgent to explore an effective antiviral drug or agent. The present study aimed to investigate the in vivo anti-IBV activity of a mixture of plant essential oils (PEO) of cinnamaldehyde (CA) and glycerol monolaurate (GML), designated as Jin-Jing-Zi. RESULTS: The antiviral effects were evaluated by clinical signs, viral loads, immune organ indices, antibody levels, and cytokine levels. The infection rates in the PEO-M (middle dose) and PEO-H (high dose) groups were significantly lower than those in the prevention, positive drug, and PEO-L (low dose) groups. The cure rates in the PEO-M and PEO-H groups were significantly higher than those in the prevention, positive drug, and PEO-L groups, and the PEO-M group had the highest cure rate of 92.31%. The symptom scores and IBV mRNA expression levels were significantly reduced in the PEO-M group. PEO significantly improved the immune organ indices and IBV-specific antibody titers of infected chickens. The anti-inflammatory factor levels of IL-4 and IFN-γ in the PEO-M group maintained high concentrations for a long time. The IL-6 levels in the PEO-M group were lower than those in prevention, positive drug, and PEO-L groups. CONCLUSION: The PEO had remarkable inhibition against IBV and the PEO acts by inhibiting virus multiplication and promoting immune function, suggesting that the PEO has great potential as a novel anti-IBV agent for inhibiting IBV infection.

Identification of a novel SGCA missense mutation in a case of limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2D with the absence of four sarcoglycan proteins.

Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2D (LGMD2D) is caused by mutations in the α-sarcoglycan gene (SGCA). Due to lack of specificity, it is impossible to identify LGMD2D only by clinical symptoms and conventional immunohistochemical staining. The loss of any protein (α-, ß-, γ-, δ-sarcoglycan) that represent sarcoglycanopathy may cause reduction or absence of the other three proteins. Here, we report a patient with a complete loss of all the four proteins. Next generation sequencing (NGS) results showed a missense mutation (C.218 C > T) and a partial heterozygous deletion containing exons 7 and 8 of SGCA, which led to the final diagnosis of the patient. The discovery of this new mutation could broaden the spectrum of SGCA mutations, which may be associated with putative LGMD2D, especially when all the four proteins are completely missing.

Semantic information processing for interoperability in the Industrial Internet of Things.

With the advent of the Internet of Everything (IoE), the concept of fully interconnected systems has become a reality, and the need for seamless communication and interoperability among different industrial systems has become more pressing than ever before. To address the challenges posed by massive data traffic, we demonstrate the potentials of semantic information processing in industrial manufacturing processes and then propose a brief framework of semantic processing and communication system for industrial network. In particular, the scheme is featured with task-orientation and collaborative processing. To illustrate its applicability, we provide examples of time series and images, as typical industrial data sources, for practical tasks, such as lifecycle estimation and surface defect detection. Simulation results show that semantic information processing achieves a more efficient way of information processing and exchanging, compared to conventional methods, which is crucial for handling the demands of future interconnected industrial networks.

Soil aggregate stability and its response to overland flow in successive Eucalyptus plantations in subtropical China.

Soil aggregates constitute the basic units of the soil structure, and soil aggregate stability is an important indicator of soil erodibility. Successive planting of fast-growing plantations can change the erosion resistance of the soil under rainfall conditions. Pure Eucalyptus plantations in this study (first- to fourth-generations, i.e., I, II, III, and IV, respectively) were investigated. The stability and abrasion characteristics of soil aggregates were analyzed by the wet sieving method, the Le Bissonnais (LB) method and a slope flow scouring experiment. With an increase in successive generations of Eucalyptus, the soil bulk density increased, and the saturated water content, porosity, organic matter and Iron, Aluminum and Manganese (Fe-Al-Mn) oxide contents decreased. Additionally, the wet sieving results showed that the first- and second-generations had higher macroaggregate content than the fourth generation. The mean weight diameter (MWD) values decreased with the number of planting significantly. Based on fast wetting (FW), slow wetting (SW) and mechanical breakdown by shaking after pre-wetting (WS), the aggregate stability was ranked in a decreasing order as MWDSW > MWDWS > MWDFW. The relative dissipation index (RSI) and mechanical crushing index (RMI) increased with increasing number of planting generations. Aggregate stability was significantly negatively correlated with the soil bulk density and was significantly positively correlated with the organic matter and Fe-Mn oxide contents. The extent of aggregate abrasion (Wr/Wi) values and MWD values decreased with increasing scouring distance and slope gradient during the transport process. The α and Wr/Wi values of the scoured aggregates were significantly correlated with aggregate stability. Hence, with successive planting of Eucalyptus, the soil aggregate stability decreased, and the soil was prone to erosion when subjected to slope flow.

[The effect of inhalable titanium dioxide on the oxidative stress among occupational population].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the inhalable titanium dioxide exposure level and make an assessment of its oxidative effect on occupational exposed population. METHODS: A total of 7 workers occupationally exposing to inhalable titanium dioxide were recruited into the study. The basic information and occupational history were collected by interview, while their blood sample (10 ml for each subject) were collected before and after the investigation, respectively. Pre- and post-work shift urine samples (60 ml for each subject) were collected for 29 days consecutively. The daily personal titanium dioxide exposure level, temperature and relative humidity were detected too. Urinary 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were detected by ELISA and latex immunoturbidimetric assay, respectively. RESULTS: The mean concentration of air inhalable titanium dioxide was (1.194 ± 1.015) mg/m(3). Serum hs-CRP level before and after the investigation was (1.13 ± 1.08), (1.33 ± 1.01) mg/L, respectively. No statistical significance was observed between hs-CRP level before and after the investigation (t = -0.848, P = 0.425). Pre- and post-work shift urinary 8-OHdG was (3.51 ± 1.39), (3.65 ± 1.06) µmol/mol Cr, respectively. A positive correlation was found between the concentration of inhalable titanium dioxide and the changes of 8-OHdG level (r = 0.192, t = 2.09, P = 0.039). Linear mixed-effect models, adjusted by work shift, years of employment, age, body mass index, smoking status, temperature and relative humidity, showed no significant exposure-respond trend between the inhalable titanium dioxide concentration and 8-OHdG level (ß = 0.288, t = 1.940, P = 0.055). CONCLUSION: Our findings do not support the potential link between occupationally exposure to inhalable titanium dioxide and high induction of DNA oxidative stress.

Effect of AAV9-hIGF-1 on inflammatory reaction in mdx mice and its mechanism.

This study aimed to the role of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), the inflammatory response and the potential mechanism of the effect hIGF1 exerted in muscle inflammation were also been explored. In this study, AAV9, a carrier of the human IGF-1 gene, was injected into mdx mice to observe the role of IGF-1 in DMD. Routine histopathological staining, immunofluorescence and western blot were used to detect the inflammatory response. In addition, we also explored the potential mechanism of the role of hIGF1 in muscle inflammation. The expression of AAV9 in myocardium and muscle tissue of AAV9-GFP group was detected by GFP method. GFP was expressed in different tissues of mdx mice, especially in anterior tibial muscle, triceps muscle and other tissues. The percentage of anterior tibial muscle inflammation area in CD68 and AAV9-hIGF-1 group was lower than that in AAV-GFP group, and the percentage of anterior tibial muscle inflammation area in AAV9-hIGF-1 group (1.78 ± 0.47%) was significantly lower than that in AAV GFP group (3.4 ± 1.22%) (P < 0.05). Western-blot showed that AAV-hIGF-1 group (0.45 + 0.07%) was lower than that of AAV-GFP group (0.76 + 0.13%), higher than the normal group (0.38 + 0.06%). The difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). In conclusion, this study confirmed that hIGF-1 can reduce the inflammatory response and macrophage infiltration in mdx mice, and further proved that hIGF-1 can down regulate the expression of NF-κB signal pathway, which has anti-inflammatory effect.

Analyses of prevalence and molecular typing of Salmonella in the goose production chain.

This study investigated the prevalence of Salmonella and the molecular typing of all isolates in a goose production chain including hatchery, farm, slaughterhouse, and market. A total of 350 Salmonella isolates was detected from 1,030 samples, and 13 serotypes were recovered. The highest Salmonella contamination frequency was observed at the hatchery, which 51.8% (188/363) of samples were Salmonella positive. S. Potsdam and S. Typhimurium were the 2 most common serotypes. S. Potsdam was most frequently found in the hatchery, while S. Typhimurium was widely distributed in the goose production chain. In general, the antibiotic resistance of Salmonella isolates is low, which isolates from the market is comparatively higher than from other production links indicating a possibility of Salmonella cross-contamination in the market. By the multilocus sequence typing (MLST) analysis, 7 different ST types were identified. ST2039 was the most common ST type, which was mostly found from S. Potsdam isolates in hatchery indicating that S. Potsdam might have been long existed in hatchery. The pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) analysis of S. Potsdam indicated that S. Potsdam could be transmitted along the production chain. The PFGE analysis of S. Typhimurium showed that PFGE pattern 29 (PF29) was distributed in hatchery, and also in farm and from humans indicating the risk of S. Typhimurium transmitting to humans by the food supply chain. Our study provided the evidence of Salmonella cross-contamination in the slaughterhouse and the retail market of goose production chain, and specific serotypes existed for a long time at a particular production link. The spread of Salmonella along the production chain, might cause harm to humans through cross-contamination. Further studies would be needed to control the Salmonella contamination in hatchery and prevent the transmission of the pathogen during the goose production.