[Clinical features of post-splenectomy pulmonary hypertension and effects of its target therapy]

Objective: To analyze the clinical features of post-splenectomy pulmonary hypertension and effects of its target therapy, and improve the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Methods: Clinical data of 18 patients with post-splenectomy pulmonary hypertension admitted to Fuwai Hospital from October 2006 to March 2017 were systematically reviewed and analyzed. Results: Among the 18 patients with a mean age of (41±11) years old, 11 were women and 7 were men. The interval between splenectomy and the diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension was (11±6) years. Shortness of breath (14/18) and chest distress (12/18) were the most common clinical manifestations. Nine patients were in World Health Organization functional class (WHO-FC) Ⅲ-Ⅳ, and two patients were combined with pulmonary embolism. According to the cause of splenectomy, the pulmonary hypertension patients were divided into hepatocirrhosis portal hypertension group (10/18) and non-hepatocirrhosis portal hypertension group (8/18). In hepatocirrhosis portal hypertension group, patients were combined with chronic liver abnormalities presentation, and no pulmonary embolism was found in these patients. Cardiac output and cardiac index were significantly higher (P=0.007 and 0.011, respectively) and pulmonary vascular resistance was significantly lower (P=0.013) in hepatocirrhosis portal hypertension group as compared with non-hepatocirrhosis portal hypertension group. There was no difference in WHO-FC and mean pulmonary arterial pressure between two groups (P=0.448 and 0.379, respectively). After 3 months of target treatment in 8 patients, WHO-FC of 3 patients improved, systolic pulmonary artery measured by ultrasonic cardiogram was significantly decreased[(84±10) vs (71±12) mmHg(1 mmHg=0.133 kPa), P=0.005]and right ventricular end diastolic diameter/left ventricular end diastolic diameter was significantly reduced[(0.78±0.17) vs (0.62±0.16), P=0.010]compared to the baseline. The level of NT-proBNP also tended to be decreased, although not to a significant extent. Conclusions: Post splenectomy pulmonary hypertension has various clinical features. Post splenectomy pulmonary hypertension resulted from hepatocirrhosis portal hypertension has better hemodynamics. Target treatment is effective for the patients with post splenectomy pulmonary hypertension.

Successful Treatment of Cytogenetically Normal Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Ten-Eleven Translocation 2-Isocitrate Dehydrogenase 2 and Additional Sex Comb-like 1-Nucleophosmin Co-mutations by HLA Haploidentical Stem Cell Transplantation: A Case Report and Literature Review

The presence of recurrent gene mutations is increasingly important in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and sheds new insights into the understanding of leukemogenesis, prognostic evaluation, and clinical therapeutic efficacy. Until now, ten-eleven translocation 2 (TET2) and isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 (IDH2) mutations were reported to be mutually exclusive in AML patients. Similarly, nucleophosmin (NPM1) and additional sex comb-like 1 (ASXL1) mutations were rarely coexisted in AML. A 47-year-old man diagnosed with high-risk AML presented simultaneous mutations of TET2-IDH2 and NPM1-ASXL1 revealed by next-generation sequencing. After successful treatment with chemotherapy followed by HLA haploidentical transplantation, he achieved a clinical complete remission without evidence of overt graft-versus-host disease. This case highlights that HLA haploidentical transplantation might be a safe and feasible therapy for AML patients who are characterized by TET2-IDH2 and NPM1-ASXL1 co-mutations.

Three-vessel-trachea view in the diagnosis of fetal cardiac great vessel malformation

Fetal cardiac great vessel malformation is attracting increasing attention in the prenatal ultrasonic diagnosis of fetal congenital heart disease. To investigate the clinical diagnostic values of three-vessel-trachea view (3VT view) in the ultrasonic diagnosis of this malformation, the present study analyzed the echocardiographic examination results of 77 fetuses with great vessel malformation, retrospectively analyzed the echocardiographic characteristics in the three-vessel-trachea view, and followed up the enrolled cases. The results suggest that great vessel malformation had characteristic manifestations, such as abnormal arrangement order, inner diameter, blood flow direction and branch. Color Doppler flow imaging found V, O, C, U, Ioo and oVo structures. There were 20 cases of blood vessel position abnormality, 38 cases of abnormal blood vessel diameter, and 19 cases of abnormal number of blood vessels. The detection rate of abnormal blood vessel diameter was 95%, which was the highest; the detection rate of abnormal blood vessel position was 97.4%, and that of abnormal number of blood vessels was 84.2%. It is concluded that the 3VT view can indicate fetal cardiac great vessel malformation. The 3VT view is beneficial to timely prenatal diagnosis, relief of body pain and improvement of quality of birth.

A High-Speed Vision System with Multithread Automatic Exposure Control for High-Dynamic-Range Imaging

In this study, we develop a real-time high-frame-rate vision system with frame-by-frame automatic exposure (AE) control that can simultaneously synthesize multiple images with different exposure times into a high-dynamic-range (HDR) image for scenarios with dynamic change in illumination. By accelerating the video capture and processing for time-division multithread AE control at the millisecond level, the proposed system can virtually function as multiple AE cameras with different exposure times. This system can capture color HDR images of 512 × 512 pixels in real time at 500 fps by synthesizing four 8-bit color images with different exposure times at consecutive frames, captured at an interval of 2 ms, with pixel-level parallel processing accelerated by a GPU (Graphic Processing Unit) board. Several experimental results for scenarios with a large change in illumination are demonstrated to confirm the performance of the proposed system for real-time HDR imaging.

Motion-Blur-Free High-Speed Video Shooting Using a Resonant Mirror

This study proposes a novel concept of actuator-driven frame-by-frame intermittent tracking for motion-blur-free video shooting of fast-moving objects. The camera frame and shutter timings are controlled for motion blur reduction in synchronization with a free-vibration-type actuator vibrating with a large amplitude at hundreds of hertz so that motion blur can be significantly reduced in free-viewpoint high-frame-rate video shooting for fast-moving objects by deriving the maximum performance of the actuator. We develop a prototype of a motion-blur-free video shooting system by implementing our frame-by-frame intermittent tracking algorithm on a high-speed video camera system with a resonant mirror vibrating at 750 Hz. It can capture 1024 × 1024 images of fast-moving objects at 750 fps with an exposure time of 0.33 ms without motion blur. Several experimental results for fast-moving objects verify that our proposed method can reduce image degradation from motion blur without decreasing the camera exposure time.

Molecular conformations of DNA targets captured by model nanoarrays

An open question in single molecule nanoarrays is how the chemical and morphological heterogeneities of the solid support affect the properties of biomacromolecules. We generated arrays that allowed individually-resolvable DNA molecules to interact with tailored surface heterogeneities and revealed how molecular conformations are impacted by surface interactions.

Vision-Based Real-Time Microflow-Rate Control System for Cell Analysis

[abstFig src='/00280006/09.jpg' width='300' text='Snapshots of particle sorting experiment using our system' ] On-chip cell analysis is an important issue for microtechnology research, and microfluidic devices are frequently used in on-chip cell analysis systems. One approach to controlling the fluid flow in microfluidic devices for cell analysis is to use a suitable pumps. However, it is difficult to control the actual flow-rate in a microfluidic device because of the difficulty in placing flow-rate sensors in the device. In this study, we developed a real-time flow-rate control system that uses syringe pumps and high-speed vision to measure the actual fluid flow in microfluidic devices. The developed flow-rate control system was verified through experiments on microparticle velocity control and microparticle sorting.

[Association between parental exposure to environmental risk factors and the risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia]

Objective: To investigate the association between parental environmental risk factors exposure and the risk for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Methods: A total of 179 ALL children cases were selected in Tianjin Blood Disease Hospital and 136 healthy children matched by age, gender and living place were selected in 2015 for a case control study. The data were analyzed with univariate and multivariate non conditional logistic regression models. Results: The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that sex, history of abortion, exposure in a smoking environment during pregnancy, catching a cold, taking antipyretic analgesics, maternal exposure to air purifying agent, father' s occupational exposure to petroleum products and home decoration during pregnancy were associated with the risk of childhood ALL (P<0.05) and the results of multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that sex, history of abortion, catching a cold, father's occupational exposure to petroleum products and home decoration during pregnancy were associated with the risk of childhood ALL (P<0.05). Conclusion: The five factors including sex, history of abortion, catching a cold, father' s occupational exposure to petroleum products and home decoration during pregnancy were risk factors for childhood ALL.

Bioinformatics tools for analysing viral genomic data

The field of viral genomics and bioinformatics is experiencing a strong resurgence due to high-throughput sequencing (HTS) technology, which enables the rapid and cost-effective sequencing and subsequent assembly of large numbers of viral genomes. In addition, the unprecedented power of HTS technologies has enabled the analysis of intra-host viral diversity and quasispecies dynamics in relation to important biological questions on viral transmission, vaccine resistance and host jumping. HTS also enables the rapid identification of both known and potentially new viruses from field and clinical samples, thus adding new tools to the fields of viral discovery and metagenomics. Bioinformatics has been central to the rise of HTS applications because new algorithms and software tools are continually needed to process and analyse the large, complex datasets generated in this rapidly evolving area. In this paper, the authors give a brief overview of the main bioinformatics tools available for viral genomic research, with a particular emphasis on HTS technologies and their main applications. They summarise the major steps in various HTS analyses, starting with quality control of raw reads and encompassing activities ranging from consensus and de novo genome assembly to variant calling and metagenomics, as well as RNA sequencing.

Anthropometric Reference Data for Children and Adults: United States, 2011-2014

Anthropometry or human body measurements provide important indicators of nutritional status in children and adults (1). In children, measurements reflect general health status, dietary adequacy, and growth and development over time. In adults, body measurements are used to evaluate health and dietary status, disease risk, and body composition. This report presents anthropometric reference data for 2011-2014 for U.S. children and adults.

[Clinical features of Takayasu arteritis patients with pulmonary hypertension due to pulmonary artery involvement]

OBJECTIVE

To summarize the clinical features of Takayasu arteritis (TA) patients with pulmonary hypertension due to pulmonary artery involvement.

METHODS

Ninety-four TA patients with pulmonary artery involvement treated in Fuwai Hospital from Jun 1988 to Jun 2014 were retrospectively summarized. Patients were divided into two groups according to whether aorta and its main branches affected (APTA, n=48) or not (PTA, n=46). Clinical features and angiographic data were further analyzed.

RESULTS

Of all the patients, male to female rate was 1∶3.3, age ranged from 8 to 60 years with median age of 33.5 years when symptom onset. Main symptoms included dyspnea on exertion. Heart murmur and mid-systolic murmur in pulmonic area were commonly found by physical examination. All patients had pulmonary hypertension by echocardiographic examination. Angiographic data showed that multi-lobular and multi-segmental pulmonary branches were predominantly affected, followed by sub-segmental and peripheral branches. Both sides of pulmonary artery involvement were more common than one side involvement, while the right pulmonary arteries were more often affected than the left. Most of the clinical symptoms and signs between APTA group and PTA group were comparable. However, erythrocyte sedimentation rate and N-terminal pro-natriuretic peptide were significant higher in APTA group than that in PTA group when admission [14.0(5.0, 28.0) vs 8.5(3.0, 19.3) mm/1 h and (1 936±1 769) vs (1 627±1 153) ng/L, both P<0.05].

CONCLUSIONS

Dyspnea on exertion may be the main manifestation of TA with pulmonary artery involvement. All patients present with pulmonary hypertension and moderate to severe heart failure when symptom onset.

Blink-Spot Projection Method for Fast Three-Dimensional Shape Measurement

<div class=""abs_img""> <img src=""[disp_template_path]/JRM/abst-image/00270004/13.jpg"" width=""300"" /> Blink-spot projection method</div> We present a blink-spot projection method for observing moving three-dimensional (3D) scenes. The proposed method can reduce the synchronization errors of the sequential structured light illumination, which are caused by multiple light patterns projected with different timings when fast-moving objects are observed. In our method, a series of spot array patterns, whose spot sizes change at different timings corresponding to their identification (ID) number, is projected onto scenes to be measured by a high-speed projector. Based on simultaneous and robust frame-to-frame tracking of the projected spots using their ID numbers, the 3D shape of the measuring scene can be obtained without misalignments, even when there are fast movements in the camera view. We implemented our method with a high-frame-rate projector-camera system that can process 512 × 512 pixel images in real-time at 500 fps to track and recognize 16 × 16 spots in the images. Its effectiveness was demonstrated through several 3D shape measurements when the 3D module was mounted on a fast-moving six-degrees-of-freedom manipulator. </span>

Mining drug-disease relationships as a complement to medical genetics-based drug repositioning: Where a recommendation system meets genome-wide association studies

A novel recommendation-based drug repositioning strategy is presented to simultaneously determine novel drug indications and side effects in one integrated framework. This strategy provides a complementary method to medical genetics-based drug repositioning, which reduces the occurrence of false positives in medical genetics-based drug repositioning, resulting in a ranked list of new candidate indications and/or side effects with different confidence levels. Several new drug indications and side effects are reported with high prediction confidences.

Real-Time Image Mosaicing System Using a High-Frame-Rate Video Sequence

<div class=""abs_img""><img src=""[disp_template_path]/JRM/abst-image/00270001/02.jpg"" width=""300"" />Synthesized panoramic images</div> In this paper, we propose a real-time image mosaicing system that uses a high-frame-rate video sequence. Our proposed system can mosaic 512 × 512 color images captured at 500 fps as a single synthesized panoramic image in real time by stitching the images based on their estimated frame-to-frame changes in displacement and orientation. In the system, feature point extraction is accelerated by implementing a parallel processing circuit module for Harris corner detection, and hundreds of selected feature points in the current frame can be simultaneously corresponded with those in their neighbor ranges in the previous frame, assuming that frame-to-frame image displacement becomes smaller in high-speed vision. The efficacy of our system for improved feature-based real-time image mosaicing at 500 fps was verified by implementing it on a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based high-speed vision platform and conducting several experiments: (1) capturing an indoor scene using a camera mounted on a fast-moving two-degrees-of-freedom active vision, (2) capturing an outdoor scene using a hand-held camera that was rapidly moved in a periodic fashion by hand. </span>

Common variants in PCSK1 influence blood pressure and body mass index

Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin-type 1 (PCSK1) activates precursors pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), proinsulin and prorenin. We investigated if common variants in the PCSK1 gene influence blood pressure and risk of hypertension. Additionally, we investigated the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D). In the Rotterdam Study (RS1), a prospective, population-based cohort (n=5974), four single-nucleotide polymorphisms (rs10515237, rs6232, rs436321 and rs3792747) in PCSK1 were studied. Linear and Cox regression models served to analyze associations between variants and end points. Replication was performed in the Rotterdam Study Plus1 (RSPlus1, n=1895). Rs436321 was significantly associated with systolic and diastolic blood pressure and risk of hypertension (odds ratio (OR): 1.1-1.3; P<0.05 in both populations). Rs6232 was associated with body mass index (BMI) (P=0.007 and P=0.04 in RS1 and RSPlus1, respectively). In RSPlus1, heterozygotes for rs6232 had 1.5 times higher risk of obesity (OR: 1.46; 95% confidence interval: 1.04-2.03; P=0.03). We did not find significant associations of PCSK1 with fasting insulin levels and T2D. We found an association of genetic variation in the PCSK1 gene with blood pressure and hypertension. Furthermore, we replicated the association of PCSK1 with BMI and obesity. No relationship was found between PCSK1 variants and fasting insulin levels and T2D. Our findings suggest that genetic variation in PCSK1 may contribute to, at least, some of these interrelated disorders.

Is the anisotropy of the upper critical field of Sr2RuO4 consistent with a helical p-wave state?

We calculate the angular and temperature T dependencies of the upper critical field Hc2(θ, ϕ, T) for the C4v point group helical p-wave states, assuming a single uniaxial ellipsoidal Fermi surface, Pauli limiting and strong spin-orbit coupling that locks the spin-triplet d-vectors onto the layers. Good fits to the Sr2RuO4 Hc2,a(θ, T) data of Kittaka et al (2009 Phys. Rev. B 80 174514) are obtained. Helical states with d(k) =kˆxxˆ −kˆyy and kˆyxˆ +kˆxy (or kˆxxˆ +kˆyyˆ and kˆyxˆ -kˆxyˆ ) produce Hc2(90°, ϕ, T) that greatly exceed (or do not exhibit) the fourfold azimuthal anisotropy magnitudes observed in Sr2RuO4 by Kittaka et al and by Mao et al (2000 Phys. Rev. Lett. 84 991), respectively.

First-order chiral to non-chiral transition in the angular dependence of the upper critical induction of the Scharnberg-Klemm p-wave pair state

We calculate the temperature T and angular (θ, ϕ) dependencies of the upper critical induction Bc2(θ, ϕ, T) for parallel-spin superconductors with an axially symmetric p-wave pairing interaction pinned to the lattice and a dominant ellipsoidal Fermi surface (FS). For all FS anisotropies, the chiral Scharnberg-Klemm (SK) state Bc2(θ, ϕ, T) exceeds that of the chiral Anderson-Brinkman-Morel (ABM) state and exhibits a kink at θ = θ*(T, ϕ), indicative of a first-order transition from its chiral, nodal-direction behavior to its non-chiral, antinodal-direction behavior. Applicabilities to Sr2RuO4, UCoGe and the candidate topological superconductor CuxBi2Se3 are discussed.

High-Frame-Rate Structured Light 3-D Vision for Fast Moving Objects

<div class=""abs_img""><img src=""[disp_template_path]/JRM/abst-image/00260003/04.jpg"" width=""300"" />

HFR 3D vision system</span></div> This paper presents a fast motion-compensated structured-light vision system that realizes 3-D shape measurement at 500 fps using a high-frame-rate camera-projector system. Multiple light patterns with an 8-bit gray code, are projected on the measured scene at 1000 fps, and are processed in real time for generating 512 × 512 depth images at 500 fps by using the parallel processing of a motion-compensated structured-light method on a GPU board. Several experiments were performed on fast-moving 3-D objects using the proposed method. </span>

Mutational analysis of positively charged residues in the N-terminal region of the class IIa bacteriocin pediocin PA-1

The significance of positively charged residues for the target cell binding of pediocin PA-1 bacteriocins was studied by site-directed mutagenesis. Most of the charged residues are located in the N-terminal half of the peptide, which is thought to mediate the initial binding of these bacteriocins to their target cells through electrostatic interactions. Mutated peptides in which the positively charged residues were substituted or increased in number were constructed, and some of these peptides exhibited a twofold increase in the bacteriostatic activity. The greatest enhancement was achieved by introduced the positive charges at position 13, their results show the benefits of introducing an additional cationic residue within this patch in the middle of the N-terminal half of pediocin PA-1 bacteriocins. Thus, the presence of additional cationic residues in the N-terminal half influenced the electrostatic binding of this bacteriocin to its target cells and increased the potency of the peptide on the potency of Micrococcus luteus and Staphylococcus aureus.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

No previous work has systematically examined the N-terminal cationic residues of the pediocin PA-1 for their functional importance or redundancy. In this study, we examined the structure-function relationships of pediocin PA-1 by site-directed mutagenesis. Mutated peptides in which the positively charged residues were substituted and increased in number exhibited a twofold increase in the bacteriostatic activity. This study demonstrated the importance of the cationic patch in the N-terminal half of pediocin PA-1. The cationic residues influenced the electrostatic binding of the bacteriocin to the target cells and had a greater effect on the potency of the peptide towards Micrococcus luteus and Staphylococcus aureus.