Hospital and community surveys reveal the severe public health problem and socio-economic impact of human echinococcosis in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China

A comprehensive study of human echinococcosis (caused by Echinococcus granulosus or E. multilocularis), including assessment of hospital records, community surveys and patient follow-up, was conducted in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (NHAR), China. In contrast to hospital records that showed 96% of echinococcosis cases were caused by cystic echinococcosis (CE), 56% of cases detected in active community surveys were caused by alveolar echinococcosis (AE). The AE and CE cases co-existed frequently in the same village, even occurring in the same patient. A serious public health problem caused by echinococcosis was evident in southern NHAR, typified by: a long diagnostic history for both AE and CE (7.5 years) compared with a shorter treatment history (4.7 years); a significant mortality rate (39%) caused by AE in one surveyed village, where patients had no previous access to treatment; family aggregation of CE and AE cases; a high proportion of both AE (62.5%) and CE (58%) in females; a high rate of recurrent surgery (30%) for CE demonstrated by surgical records; and frequent symptomatic recurrences (51%) because of discontinuous or sporadic access to chemotherapy for AE. The disease burden for both human AE and CE is thus very severe among these rural communities in NHAR, and this study provides the first attempt to determine the costs of morbidity and surgical intervention of human CE and AE cases both at the hospital and community level in this setting. This information may be useful for assessing the cost effectiveness of designing effective public health programs to control echinococcosis in this and other endemic areas in China and elsewhere.

Looking for new targets for prostate cancer therapy: Nuclear factor kappa B and CXCR4 co-expression in prostate specimens from RTOG-8610

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Background: The transcription factor Nuclear Factor-kappa B (NFκB) promotes the production of angiogenic, anti-apoptotic and prometastatic factors that are involved in carcinogenesis. The chemokine receptor CXCR4, which is under the control of NFκB, has been implicated in regulating metastasis of breast, pancreatic, and prostate cancer. This retrospective cohort study evaluated the frequency and co-expression of NFκB and CXCR4 in human prostate cancer specimens. Methods: Paraffin embedded samples from a subset of patients in the RTOG 8610 trial underwent immunohistochemical staining for NFκB and CXCR4. This study compared radiotherapy plus hormonal therapy to radiation therapy alone. The amount of NFκB and CXCR4 was scored by a blinded pathologist for the percentage of cells stained (0 to 100%) and staining intensity (0 to 3+). Results: NFκB and CXCR4 status was determined for 55 and 63 patients, respectively. Both NFκB and CXCR4 status were available for 51 of these patients. Of these, 51% were 2/3+ for NFκB and 61% were 2/3+ for CXCR4. There was a trend towards correlation between CXCR4 and NFκB staining as 18 of the 36 patients who were 2/3+ positive for NFκB were 2/3+ for CXCR4. 10 of the 11 pts with 3+ NFκB had 2/3+ CXCR4. This was consistent with the understanding that CXCR4 is regulated by NFκB, but did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.1298). Neither NFκB or CXCR4 were statistically significantly prognostic factors in this small subset of patients. Conclusion: NFκB and CXCR4 are expressed in a significant number of patients with organ confined prostate cancer. Neither predicted outcomes in this analysis, which may be due to the small sample size. This data supports the notion that NFκB regulates CXCR4 expression in prostate cancer and that one or both may be potential new targets for therapeutic intervention. Studies in larger prospective studies to determine the utility of NFκB and CXCR4 as predictive biomarkers and/or therapeutic targets is warranted. [Table: see text]

No significant financial relationships to disclose.

Phase I clinical trial results of verteporfin enhanced feeder vessel therapy in subfoveal choroidal neovascularisation in age related macular degeneration

AIMS

To investigate the safety and effectiveness of extrafoveal photodynamic therapy (PDT) occlusion of feeder vessels (FVs) in patients with subfoveal choroidal neovascularisation (CNV) as a result of age related macular degeneration.

METHODS

FVs were identified using dynamic fluorescein and indocyanine green angiography with scanning laser ophthalmoscope. The standard doses of verteporfin and laser wavelength were used. The light dose was escalated by increasing the duration of the light dose so the light regimen was 50 J/cm2 for patients 1 and 2; 100 J/cm2 for patients 3, 4, 5; 125 J/cm2 for patients 6 and 7; and 150 J/cm2 for patients 8 and 9. Patients were examined at weeks 1, 4, and 12.

RESULTS

The mean improvement on EDTRS chart 3 months after treatment was an increase of 2.1 lines (p = 0.07). Closure of the FV was achieved angiographically in three eyes at various light doses, in three eyes the FV was hypoperfused, and in three eyes the vessels were were neither closed nor hypoperfused. At the last follow up all FVs were reperfused. There was no evidence of retinal damage.

CONCLUSION

Verteporfin enhanced FV therapy does not cause subfoveal retinal damage and may have potential to improve central vision in subfoveal CNV caused by exudative macular degeneration. It is not recommended as a monotherapy for CNV.

Toxicity of subretinal ribozyme to the proliferating cell nuclear antigen and 5-fluorouracil in rat eyes

PURPOSE

To investigate the subretinal toxicity profile of the ribozyme to the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA-Rz) and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), as well as the highest nontoxic subretinal dose of the mixture of the two agents in rat eyes.

METHODS

Brown-Norway rats received subretinal injections of 1 microg, 10 microg, and 100 microg/microl PCNA-Rz and 0.06 microg/microl, 0.3 microg/microl, and 1.5 microg/microl 5-FU in the right eyes, and the left eyes were injected with H-BSS as control. Each dose was tested on 5 eyes in a 5 microl volume. In a second study, a combination of 5-FU (1.5 microg/microL) with varying 10-30-50 microg/microl doses of PCNA-Rz was tested in a regimen of four sequential subretinal injections. Toxicity was monitored by biomicroscopy, indirect ophthalmoscopy, electroretinography (ERG), and histology.

RESULTS

The highest nontoxic dose for subretinal PCNA-Rz was 10 microg/microl, whereas 100 microg/microl showed disturbance of pigmentation with corresponding histological changes of retinal photoreceptor loss and retinal pigment epithelium proliferation or irregularities. Subretinal injection of all three doses of 5-FU did not show any toxicity. Serial injections of a mixture of 1.5 microg/microl 5-FU with 10 microg/microl of PCNA-Rz was found to be safe in rat eyes.

CONCLUSIONS

Subretinal injections of the combination of PCNA-Rz (10 microg/microl) and 5-FU (1.5 microg/microl) demonstrated to be safe in rat eyes during the course of this study, even with a multiple administration of four injections.

A new recombinant mosquito salivary allergen, rAed a 2: allergenicity, clinical relevance, and cross-reactivity

BACKGROUND

Mosquito salivary proteins cause allergic reactions in humans. The allergenicity, clinical relevance, and species cross-reactivity of a new 37-kDa recombinant mosquito (Aedes aegypti) salivary allergen, rAed a 2, were evaluated.

METHODS

rAed a 2 was expressed using a baculovirus/insect cell system and purified. Its allergenicity was examined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), ELISA inhibition tests, immunoblots, and skin tests. Epicutaneous tests with the allergen, mosquito whole body extracts, and mosquito bite tests were performed on 48 volunteers. Serum rAed a 2-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) was measured in individuals with positive mosquito saliva-specific IgE and negative controls.

RESULTS

Both immunoblots and ELISAs demonstrated that rAed a 2 bound to the IgE of mosquito-allergic individuals. The binding could be inhibited by the addition of a natural mosquito preparation. Furthermore, rAed a 2 induced immediate and delayed skin reactions. Ten per cent of 31 participants with a positive mosquito bite test had positive skin reactions to rAed a 2, compared with 32% for mosquito whole body extract. None of the participants with a negative bite test showed positive reactions to either of the two extracts. Forty-three per cent of individuals with positive saliva-IgE had positive rAed a 2-IgE. rAed a 2 was a species-shared allergen, being present in the saliva of the 11 species studied.

CONCLUSIONS

rAed a 2 has identical antigenicity and biologic activity to its native form. It can be used in the diagnosis of mosquito allergy, and is an important species-shared antigen.

Photographic estimation of the duration of high dose intravitreal triamcinolone in the vitrectomised eye

AIM

To determine the duration of residence of triamcinolone in the vitrectomised eye.

METHODS

23 eyes of 23 patients underwent intravitreal injection of high dose (20 mg) decanted triamcinolone acetonide (Kenalog) at the conclusion of vitrectomy surgery or in previously vitrectomised eyes with macular oedema from diabetes, uveitis, cataract surgery, or other surgery.

RESULTS

The median time to disappearance of triamcinolone in the vitrectomised eye was 113 days (95% confidence interval (CI) 85 to 191). In the phakic eyes the median time to disappearance was 191 days (95% CI 148 to 191). In the pseudophakic eyes the median time to disappearance was 102 days (95% CI 85 to 113). This difference was not significant (p = 0.12). There were no cases of endophthalmitis or severe inflammatory reaction. Five eyes (22%) experienced intraocular pressure rise >/=10 mm Hg.

CONCLUSIONS

High dose decanted intravitreal triamcinolone has a median residence time of 113 days in the vitrectomised eye. Although this appears to be shorter than in the non-vitrectomised eye, this study suggests that a sufficient duration of action will be present to be clinically useful.

Overexpression of Pim-1 during progression of prostatic adenocarcinoma

AIMS

Pim-1 is a serine/threonine kinase that has been shown to play an integral role in the development of a number of human cancers, such as haematolymphoid malignancies. Recently, evidence has shown Pim-1 to be important in prostatic carcinogenesis. In order to further our understanding of its role in prostate cancer, we investigated Pim-1 expression in normal, premalignant, and malignant prostate tissue.

METHODS

Using immunohistochemistry, Pim-1 expression was analysed in prostate tissue from 120 radical prostatectomy specimens. In each case, Pim-1 staining was evaluated in benign prostatic epithelium, high grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN), and prostatic adenocarcinoma. The number of positively staining cells was estimated, and the intensity of staining was scored on a scale of 0 to 3+.

RESULTS

Pim-1 immunoreactivity was identified in 120 cases (100%) of adenocarcinoma, 120 cases (100%) of high grade PIN, and 62 cases (52%) of benign glands. The number of cells staining in benign epithelium (mean 34%) was much lower than that in high grade PIN (mean 80%; p<0.0001) or adenocarcinoma (mean, 84%; p<0.0001). There was no significant difference between high grade PIN and adenocarcinoma in the percentage of cells staining positively for Pim-1 (p = 0.34). The staining intensity for Pim-1 was significantly lower in benign prostatic epithelium than in PIN and adenocarcinoma (p<0.001). There was no statistically significant correlation between the level of Pim-1 expression and Gleason score, patient age, tumour stage, lymph node metastasis, perineural invasion, vascular invasion, surgical margin status, extraprostatic extension, or seminal vesicle invasion.

CONCLUSIONS

Pim-1 expression is elevated in PIN and prostatic adenocarcinoma compared with benign prostatic epithelium. This finding suggests that upregulation of Pim-1 may play a role in prostatic neoplasia.

Zn2+ and Sr2+ adsorption at the TiO2 (110)–electrolyte interface: Influence of ionic strength, coverage, and anions

The X-ray standing wave technique was used to probe the sensitivity of Zn2+ and Sr2+ ion adsorption to changes in both the adsorbed ion coverage and the background electrolyte species and concentrations at the rutile (alpha-TiO2) (110)-aqueous interface. Measurements were made with various background electrolytes (NaCl, NaTr, RbCl, NaBr) at concentrations as high as 1 m. The results demonstrate that Zn2+ and Sr2+ reside primarily in the condensed layer and that the ion heights above the Ti-O surface plane are insensitive to ionic strength and the choice of background electrolyte (with <0.1 A changes over the full compositional range). The lack of any specific anion coadsorption upon probing with Br-, coupled with the insensitivity of Zn2+ and Sr2+ cation heights to changes in the background electrolyte, implies that anions do not play a significant role in the adsorption of these divalent metal ions to the rutile (110) surface. Absolute ion coverage measurements for Zn2+ and Sr2+ show a maximum Stern-layer coverage of approximately 0.5 monolayer, with no significant variation in height as a function of Stern-layer coverage. These observations are discussed in the context of Gouy-Chapman-Stern models of the electrical double layer developed from macroscopic sorption and pH-titration studies of rutile powder suspensions. Direct comparison between these experimental observations and the MUltiSIte Complexation (MUSIC) model predictions of cation surface coverage as a function of ionic strength revealed good agreement between measured and predicted surface coverages with no adjustable parameters.

Molecular evidence supporting the neoplastic nature of odontogenic keratocyst: a laser capture microdissection study of 15 cases

AIMS

The bland histology of odontogenic keratocyst (OKC) belies its capacity for aggressive behaviour. Genetic alterations of OKC have not been well studied. We examined the frequency and pattern of allelic imbalance on five different chromosome regions from 15 patients with OKC.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Laser-assisted microdissection was performed on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue. Polymerase chain reaction analysis of extracted DNA targeted five polymorphic DNA markers (D3S1285, D9S161, D11S1316, D13S290, and TP53) representing chromosome regions 3p14, 9p21, 11q23, 13q12.1 and 17p13, respectively. All 15 cases of OKC were informative at a minimum of three of five loci, with 11 informative on all five loci. Twelve of 15 cases (80%) demonstrated loss of heterozygosity (LOH). Seven cases (47%) showed LOH at more than two DNA loci. The frequency of LOH was 5/11 (45%) at D3S1285, 3/15 (20%) at D9S161, 4/14 (29%) at D11S1316, 8/14 (57%) at D13S290 and 3/15 (20%) at TP53.

CONCLUSIONS

The majority of OKCs harbour chromosomal abnormalities. This finding supports the supposition that OKCs are neoplastic. Furthermore, OKCs harbour allelic loss at some of the same loci identified in squamous cell carcinoma. This may aid in explaining the rare occurrence of squamous cell carcinoma arising in OKC.

Kondo resonances and anomalous gate dependence in the electrical conductivity of single-molecule transistors

We report Kondo resonances in the conduction of single-molecule transistors based on transition metal coordination complexes. We find Kondo temperatures in excess of 50 K, comparable to those in purely metallic systems. The observed gate dependence of the Kondo temperature is inconsistent with observations in semiconductor quantum dots and a simple single-dot-level model. We discuss possible explanations of this effect, in light of electronic structure calculations.

Polymorphisms of CD14 gene and TLR4 gene are not associated with ulcerative colitis in Chinese patients

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Toll-like receptor 4 and CD14 are the components of the lipopolysaccharide receptor complex. The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between polymorphisms TLR4 Asp299Gly and CD14 C-260T and Chinese patients with ulcerative colitis (UC).

METHODS

Using a polymerase chain reaction based restriction fragment length polymorphism, the study genotyped polymorphisms TLR4 Asp299Gly and CD14 C-260T in 114 patients with UC and 160 healthy controls in the Chinese Han population. Moreover a comparison was made with 170 healthy Dutch white subjects.

RESULTS

No TLR4 Asp299Gly mutation was detected in any patients or healthy controls in the Chinese Han population, which was similar to Japanese subjects, but the mutation occurred in 10% of the Dutch white subjects. There were no significant differences of CD14 genotypes between healthy controls and the patients with UC.

The influence of extent of surgical margin positivity on prostate specific antigen recurrence

BACKGROUND

Positive surgical margins are an adverse prognostic factor in patients undergoing prostatectomy for prostate cancer. The extent of margin positivity varies and its influence on clinical outcome is uncertain.

AIMS

To evaluate the linear extent of margin positivity and the number and location of positive sites as prognostic indicators in a series of prostatectomy specimens evaluated with the whole mount technique.

METHODS

Eighty six consecutive margin positive prostatectomy specimens were evaluated, and all pathology data were collected prospectively. The linear extent of margin positivity was measured with an ocular micrometer and the total extent of all positive sites was summed. The total number of sites with positive margins and anatomical sites of the positive margins were analysed.

RESULTS

The linear extent of margin positivity ranged from 0.01 to 68 mm (mean, 6.8; median, 3.0) and was associated with prostate specific antigen (PSA) recurrence in univariate logistic regression (p = 0.031). In addition, the extent of margin positivity weakly correlated with preoperative PSA (p = 0.017) and tumour volume (p = 0.013), but not with age, prostate weight, Gleason score, pathological stage, or perineural invasion. The total number of positive sites was significantly higher in patients with PSA recurrence (p = 0.037). The location of the positive margin site was not associated with PSA recurrence. The extent of margin positivity correlated with PSA recurrence in univariate analysis, although it had only marginal predictive value when adjusted for Gleason score (p = 0.076).

CONCLUSIONS

The extent of margin positivity correlates with PSA recurrence in univariate analysis, although it has no predictive value independent of Gleason score.

The presence of benign prostatic glandular tissue at surgical margins does not predict PSA recurrence

BACKGROUND

Serum prostate specific antigen (PSA) increases after radical prostatectomy are thought to indicate recurrent disease, although some suggest they result from benign prostatic epithelial tissue left at surgical margins.

AIMS

To investigate whether presence, location, and extent of benign prostatic tissue at radical prostatectomy surgical margins influence patient outcome.

METHODS

One hundred and ninety nine patients with prostate cancer and negative surgical margins were studied. The prostectomy specimens were totally embedded using the whole mount technique. The apex and bladder neck, dissected as a cone from the specimen, were serially sectioned. The total length of benign prostatic tissue at the margins, measured for each location using an ocular micrometer, was obtained by summing the length of all positive sites. The presence, anatomical location, and extent of benign prostatic tissue at the margin were correlated with clinicopathological characteristics and postoperative PSA increases.

RESULTS

Fifty five cases had benign prostatic glandular tissue at the surgical margin. The mean length was 2.19 mm (0.1-14.7). The most frequent location of benign prostatic tissue was the apex (40 patients). Presence, anatomical location, and length of benign prostatic tissue at the margin were not significantly associated with age, preoperative PSA, prostate weight, pathological stage, tumour volume, largest tumour dimension, Gleason score, extraprostatic extension, seminal vesical invasion, tumour multifocality, perineural invasion, or PSA recurrence.

CONCLUSIONS

Benign prostatic tissue was frequently found in margins of apex and bladder base, but uncommon in the anterior or posterior prostate. The presence of benign prostatic tissue at surgical margins had no prognostic relevance.

Enhanced fusion of myoblasts with myofibers for efficient gene delivery induced by a partially purified protein fraction from rat muscle extract

The biggest challenge to gene therapy is how to efficiently deliver the desired therapeutic gene into a sufficient number of recipient cells to achieve significant clinical efficacy. Here, we identified a partially purified extract from rat muscle probably containing myoblast specific fusion factor(s) (MSF), which significantly enhanced fusion of donor myoblast with host muscle fibers. Once incorporated, the introduced genetic construct could instruct the machinery of the hybrid cells to express the desired protein(s). Rat satellite cells containing a plasmid carrying a marker bone morphogenetic protein-4 (BMP-4) coding sequence were used as foreign gene delivery vehicle. BrdU labeling of the MSF-pretreated satellite cells allowed tracing the fate of the genetically modified satellite cells in the host muscles. Immunohistochemistry using anti-BMP-4 antibody demonstrated the translation of the introduced gene construct. It was demonstrated that in the presence of MSF, numerous BrdU positive nuclei and the expression of BMP-4 polypeptides could be observed in host hybrid fibers, while in the control group using rat serum to replace MSF containing fraction, only a few BrdU positive signals were detected. The expression of osteocalcin and the elevated alkaline phosphatase activity detected in the hybrid fibers indicated the proper folding, secretion and, post-translational modification of the expressed foreign protein. This strategy of enhanced myoblast-mediated gene transfer would break the major barrier in current practice of normal or engineered myoblast transplantation in the management of genetic muscle diseases or systemic genetic disorders.

Transport of microsporidium Encephalitozoon intestinales spores in sandy porous media

The retention and transport of microsporidium Encephalitozoon intestinales spores in two water-saturated sandy porous media was investigated in this study. The initial breakthrough of the spores in the column effluent occurred essentially simultaneously with that of a non-reactive tracer, indicating no significant velocity enhancement. A large fraction (45-73%) of the spores injected into the columns was not recovered in the effluent, indicating removal from solution through colloid retention processes of attachment and/or straining. The relative significance of attachment and straining to total retention was evaluated in additional experiments. An experiment was conducted with a sieved coarse fraction of porous media for which straining is unlikely to be of significance based on the relative diameters of the spores and porous-medium pores. The spore recovery for this experiment was similar to the recoveries obtained for microsporidia transport in the un-sieved parent porous medium. An additional experiment was conducted with a subsample of the coarse fraction that was acid-washed to reduce potential surface attachment sites. Spore recovery was complete for this experiment. These results suggest surface deposition was the primary removal mechanism in our system. This conclusion is supported by the results of an experiment wherein deionized water was flushed through a column that was previously flushed with electrolyte solution. The effluent spore concentrations were observed to increase upon injection of deionized water, indicating re-mobilization of spores upon a change in water chemistry. The measured data were successfully simulated using a mathematical model incorporating colloid filtration. The results of this study suggest that the transport of microspordia in sandy porous media is governed by established colloid-transport processes.

Energy transmission in a mechanically-linked double-wall structure coupled to an acoustic enclosure

The energy transmission in a mechanically linked double-wall structure into an acoustic enclosure is studied in this paper. Based on a fully coupled vibro-acoustic formulation, focus is put on investigating the effect of the air gap and mechanical links between the two panels on the energy transmission and noise insulation properties of such structures. An approximate formula reflecting the gap effect on the lower-order coupled frequencies of the system is proposed. A criterion, based on the ratio between the aerostatic stiffness of the gap cavity and the stiffness of the link, is proposed to predict the dominant transmitting path, with a view to provide guidelines for the design of appropriate control strategies. Numerical results reveal the existence of three distinct zones, within which energy transmission takes place following different mechanisms and transmitting paths. Corresponding effects on noise insulation properties of the double-wall structure are also investigated.

DNA microarray: a high throughput approach for methylation detection

We described a DNA microarray-based method combined with bisulphite treatment of DNA and regular PCR to examine hyper-methylation in promoter 1A of APC gene. A set of oligonucleotide probes were designed and immobilized on the aldehyde-coated glass slides for detecting the methylation pattern of 15 selected CpG sites in the region. The methylation status of 30 colorectal tumor samples have been examined by both of methylation-specific PCR (MS-PCR) and the present microarray method. The methylation pattern of the 15 CpG sites for the samples have been obtained with the microarray. A total of 19 samples out of 30 were methylated by microarray, in which five samples cannot be detected by MS-PCR due to the methylated CpG patterns not accordant to the MS-PCR primers. The detecting ratio for methylation of APC gene of colorectal tumor samples increased from 46.7% with MS-PCR to 63.3% with the microarray, which successfully demonstrated that DNA microarray-based method not only can obtained the methylation patterns for the related genes, but also decrease the false-negative results of methylation status by the conventional MS-PCR for the investigated genes.

A study of active tonal noise control for a small axial flow fan

Sound radiated by a computer cooling fan consists of tones which are phase locked with the rotation, and other less deterministic tones and broadband random noise. This paper demonstrates the feasibility of globally eliminating the rotation-locked tones by applying a very simple destructive interference to a modified cooling fan with the number of struts equal to the number of rotor blades. The rig consists of a miniature electret microphone used as a rotation sensor, an ordinary loudspeaker, and a bandpass filter with adjustable amplitude and phase delay. The microphone is located at the inlet bellmouth of the fan to pick up the fluctuating aerodynamic pressure caused by the passing rotor blades. The pressure spectrum is rich in the blade passing frequency (BPF) and its low-order harmonics. It provides much better performance than a pulse-generating tachometer. Analysis of the original fan noise shows that about 90% of the radiated tonal sound is phase locked with rotation, and this portion is almost completely eliminated in all directions. The reductions of the radiated sound power in the first two BPFs are 18.5 and 13.0 dB, respectively, and the overall sound power reduction is 11.0 dB.

Effect of cordycepin on Hantaan virus 76-118 infection of primary human embryonic pulmonary fibroblasts--characterization of apoptotic effects

The cDNA microarray technique was used to study gene epression in human embryonic pulmonary fibroblasts (HEPF) infected with Hantaan virus (HTNV) under the influence of cordycepin (Cor), an inhibitor of post-transcriptional pre-mRNA polyadenylation. Four apoptotic genes, the insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1, NFkB inhibitor alpha, caspase-3 and NFkB1 were up-regulated in both infected and uninfected Cor-treated cells and two cell cycle-associated genes, CDC-like kinase and beta-induced transforming growth factor were up-regulated in Cor-untreated cells but down-regulated in Cor-treated cells. Cell morphology examination, quantitative RT-PCR, and immunofluorescence (IF) test suggested that following the Cor treatment the HTNV infection took place, but late viral gene expression was slightly reduced. Three parameters, namely caspase-3 activity, annexin V binding, and cell cycle were used to detect apoptosis. The results suggested that the induction of apoptosis in HEPF by HTNV started at 6 hrs post infection (p.i.). Following the Cor treatment, however, the caspase-3 activity began to increase at 24 hrs p.i. Thus it is suggested that inhibition of de novo late viral protein synthesis by Cor changes the apoptosis pathway and cell cycle by delaying caspase-3 gene expression and by up/down-regulating of expression of other apoptotic and cell cycle-associated genes. This implicates that HTNV can induce apoptosis in HEPF even without de novo viral protein synthesis and with a reduced and slowed viral maturation.