Concomitant increases in spectrum and level of drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates

OBJECTIVE

To determine the drug resistance spectrum and resistance levels of extensively drug-resistant (XDR-) and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) and TB resistant to either rifampicin (RMP, R) or isoniazid (INH, H; R/H-DR).

DESIGN

Of 142 drug-resistant clinical isolates examined, 13 were XDR-TB, 66 were MDR-TB and 63 were R/H-DR. The drug resistance spectrum was tested by the absolute two-concentration method. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were determined for the strains by agar dilution method on Löwenstein-Jensen slants.

RESULTS

The drug resistance spectrum of XDR-TB, MDR-TB and R/H-DR TB isolates ranged from 4 to 9, 2 to 6 and 1 to 5 drugs, respectively. Over half of all XDR-TB (53.8%), MDR-TB (66.7%) and R/H-DR (54.0%) isolates were resistant to two other anti-tuberculosis drugs; 38.5% of XDR-TB, 24.2% of MDR-TB and 28.6% of R/H-DR TB isolates were resistant to ≥ 3 additional anti-tuberculosis drugs in addition to those originally defined, demonstrating that the MIC values and the proportions of strains with higher MICs followed a trend of XDR-TB > MDR-TB > R/H-DR for INH, RMP, ofloxacin and ethambutol.

CONCLUSION

XDR-TB, MDR-TB and R/H-DR TB isolates exhibited both increasingly broader resistance spectra and a higher percentage of strains with high MICs to more frequently resistant drugs, which might be related to patterns of TB chemotherapy.

Effects of the thyroid hormone responsive spot 14alpha gene on chicken growth and fat traits

The thyroid hormone responsive spot 14alpha (THRSPalpha) gene plays important roles in chicken growth and fat deposition. The aim of this study was to identify new variations in the gene to determine their effects on growth and fat traits in chicken and to observe the effects of the THRSPalpha gene on chicken lipid profile and lipoprotein and glucose and triiodothyronine effects on the THRSPalpha expression in liver and fat cells. Two new variations, namely A197835978G and G197836086A, and a reported 9-bp insertion-deletion (indel) of the THRSPalpha gene were genotyped by single-stranded conformational polymorphism in a Xinghua x White Recessive Rock F(2) full-sib resource population. The results showed that the A197835978G was significantly associated with hatch weight and BW at 28 d of age and breast muscle weight at 90 d of age in chickens (P < 0.05). The G197836086A was significantly associated with cingular fat width (P = 0.0349) and breast muscle crude fat content (P = 0.0349). The indel was significantly associated with abdominal fat weight (P = 0.0445). The above new THRSPalpha polymorphisms were also significantly associated with the total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein, in which the THRSPalpha GA/AG genotype was associated with lipid and lipoprotein and the THRSPalpha BB indel genotype was significantly associated with liver weight in chicken breeds. The mRNA expression analysis in vivo and in vitro culture studies suggested that the THRSPalpha gene is more responsive to glucose than triiodothyronine. In conclusion, the 3 variations of the chicken THRSPalpha gene were associated with both growth and fat traits in this study. Such effects of the THRSPalpha gene were further supported from the data of observations in association analysis of the gene with phenotypic records and plasma lipid profiles, in the THRSPalpha gene expression in chicken development, and in vivo and in vitro cell culture observation of liver and abdominal fat tissues.

Role of asymmetric environment on the dark mode excitation in metamaterial analogue of electromagnetically-induced transparency

An otherwise dark magnetic dipole resonance in a split-ring resonator can be excited electrically with a Fano-type profile once the symmetric environment for this resonator is broken with respect to the polarized electric-field direction of incident waves. When this asymmetrically induced narrow resonance coincides with a broad dipolar resonance at an identical frequency regime, the metamaterial analogue of electromagnetically-induced transparency (EIT) window can be formed. We demonstrate that this environmental-asymmetry condition can be introduced dielectrically as well as plasmonically, either resonantly or nonresonantly, which indicates the plasmon coupling between different resonant modes is not responsible for the dark mode excitation. Thus, this result should contribute to the physical understanding on dark-mode excitation pathway for EIT-like phenomenon in plasmonic metamaterials.

Aberrant human leucocyte antigen-G expression and its clinical relevance in hepatocellular carcinoma

The clinical relevance of human leucocyte antigen-G (HLA-G) has been postulated in malignancies. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major contributor to cancer incidence and mortality worldwide; however, potential roles of HLA-G in HCC remain unknown. In the current study, HLA-G expression in 219 primary HCC lesions and their adjacent non-tumourous samples was analysed with immunohistochemistry. Correlations among HLA-G expression and various clinical parameters were evaluated. Meanwhile, functional analysis of transfected cell surface HLA-G expression on NK cell cytolysis was performed in vitro. HLA-G expression was observed in 50.2% (110/219) of primary HCC lesions, and undetectable in corresponding adjacent normal liver tissues. HLA-G expression was found in 37.8%, 41.9% and 71.4% of stage I, II and III HCC lesions, respectively. Data revealed that HLA-G expression in HCC was strongly correlated to advanced disease stage (I versus II, P= 0.882; I versus III, P= 0.020; II versus III, P= 0.037). HLA-G expression was also more frequently observed in elder patients (≥median 52 years, 57.5%versus 43.4%, P= 0.004). Meanwhile, plasma soluble HLA-G in HCC patients was significantly higher than that in normal controls (median, 92.49U/ml versus 9.29U/ml, P= 0.000). Functional assay showed that HLA-G expression in transfected cells could dramatically decrease the NK cell cytolysis (P= 0.036), which could be markedly restored by the blockade of HLA-G (P= 0.004) and its receptor ILT2 (P= 0.019). Our finding indicated that HLA-G expression was strongly correlated to advanced disease stage, and more frequently observed in elder patients. Its relevance to HCC progression might be result from the inhibition of NK cell cytolysis.

Chitosan/double-stranded RNA nanoparticle-mediated RNA interference to silence chitin synthase genes through larval feeding in the African malaria mosquito (Anopheles gambiae)

The purpose of this study was to examine whether the expression of two chitin synthase genes, AgCHS1 and AgCHS2, can be repressed by chitosan/AgCHS dsRNA-based nanoparticles through larval feeding in Anopheles gambiae. The AgCHS1 transcript level and chitin content were reduced by 62.8 and 33.8%, respectively, in the larvae fed on chitosan/AgCHS1 dsRNA nanoparticles compared with those of the control larvae fed on chitosan/GFP dsRNA nanoparticles. Our study suggested for the first time that RNA interference (RNAi) in mosquito larvae is systemic, and demonstrated that the larvae fed on the nanoparticles assembled from AgCHS1 and AgCHS2 dsRNA increased larval susceptibilities to diflubenzuron, and calcofluor white (CF) or dithiothreitol, respectively. These results suggest great potential for using such a nanoparticle-based RNAi technology for high-throughput screening of gene functions and for developing novel strategies for pest management.

Metabolic syndrome: prevalence and risk factors in southern China

This was a cross-sectional study to investigate the epidemiology of metabolic syndrome and the distribution of inter-related metabolic abnormalities in different population groups in Guangdong, southern China. Individuals were recruited according to the percentage of different occupational populations in southern China. The study cohort included 1206 subjects, and the prevalence and distribution of the components of metabolic syndrome were assessed using the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III 2005 criteria. The unadjusted rate of metabolic syndrome was 26.7%, and the prevalences of hypertension and diabetes were 38.0% and 4.3% respectively. Hypertension, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, abdominal obesity, elevated blood glucose and elevated blood pressure decreased significantly with increasing levels of life stress and anxiety. The prevalence of hypertension and metabolic syndrome in southern China is very high, and early identification and treatment of at-risk individuals may help target intervention to improve future cardiovascular health.

Search for new physics with a dijet plus missing E(T) signature in pp collisions at √s=1.96 TeV

We present results of a signature-based search for new physics using a dijet plus missing transverse energy (E(T)) data sample collected in 2  fb⁻¹ of pp collisions at √s=1.96  TeV with the CDF II detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. We observe no significant event excess with respect to the standard model prediction and extract a 95% C.L. upper limit on the cross section times acceptance for a potential contribution from a nonstandard model process. The search is made by using novel, data-driven techniques for estimating backgrounds that are applicable to first searches at the LHC.