The incidence of posttransplantation diabetes mellitus during follow-up in kidney transplant recipients and relationship to Fok1 vitamin D receptor polymorphism

BACKGROUND

Posttransplantation diabetes mellitus (PTDM) is a common, serious complication of kidney transplantation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence of and risk factors for PTDM in relationship to Fok1 vitamin D receptor (VDR) polymorphisms.

METHODS

One hundred five kidney transplant recipients with normal glucose values before transplantation were recruited for this study. All patients underwent fasting plasma glucose (FPG) determinations followed by oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) among normal FPG recipients. Every recipient underwent Fok1 VDR polymorphism analysis using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP).

RESULTS

Among 105 recipients, 16 (15.24%) developed new-onset PTDM within 6 months after kidney transplantation. Compared with 89 non-PTDM recipients, the mean age was significantly higher among recipients with PTDM: 47.81 ± 15.54 vs 36.62 ± 11.43 years (P = .001). Patients treated with tacrolimus were more susceptible to PTDM (56.25% vs 28.09%; P = .027). The distribution frequencies of Fok1 genotypes in this cohort followed the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The frequencies of 3 genotypes (FF/Ff/ff; P = .040) and 2 alleles (F/f; P = .009) differed between the 2 groups. Multivariate analysis by logistic regression showed age older than 40 years (odds ratio, 7.774; P = .005), VDR Fok1 f allele (odds ratio, 11.765; P = .012), and tacrolimus therapy (odds ratio, 7.499; P = .007) to be related to the development of PTDM.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of newly diagnosed PTDM in this study was 15.24%. Fok1 VDR polymorphism was a genetic marker predicting PTDM risk. Age older than 40 years and tacrolimus were independent risk factors for PTDM.

Grain boundary character distribution of nanocrystalline Cu thin films using stereological analysis of transmission electron microscope orientation maps

Stereological analysis has been coupled with transmission electron microscope (TEM) orientation mapping to investigate the grain boundary character distribution in nanocrystalline copper thin films. The use of the nanosized (<5 nm) beam in the TEM for collecting spot diffraction patterns renders an order of magnitude improvement in spatial resolution compared to the analysis of electron backscatter diffraction patterns in the scanning electron microscope. Electron beam precession is used to reduce dynamical effects and increase the reliability of orientation solutions. The misorientation distribution function shows a strong misorientation texture with a peak at 60°/[111], corresponding to the Σ3 misorientation. The grain boundary plane distribution shows {111} as the most frequently occurring plane, indicating a significant population of coherent twin boundaries. This study demonstrates the use of nanoscale orientation mapping in the TEM to quantify the five-parameter grain boundary distribution in nanocrystalline materials.

Associations between testosterone, bone mineral density, vitamin D and semen quality in fertile and infertile Chinese men

Testosterone (T) and vitamin D (VD) interact in androgen deficient men, however, this interaction and subsequent semen quality and bone mineral density (BMD) status is not clear in infertile men. Our objective was to investigate T, VD, semen quality, BMD and their relationships in Chinese infertile men. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 559 men aged 20-40 years, including 195 fertile men, 9 infertile men with known risk factors for osteoporosis (WR) and 355 infertile men without known risk factors for osteoporosis (WOR). WOR infertile men constituted 314 oligo-, astheno-, teratospermic or normospermic infertile men (OATN men) and 41 non-obstructive azoospermic men (NOA men). Differences of parameters were assessed, and the relationships were adjusted by multiple linear regression. WOR infertile men had significantly lower T, lumbar spine and total hip BMD than fertile men (all p < 0.05). Bioavailable T (Bio-T) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] were independent determinants of BMD in WOR infertile men (all p < 0.01) but not in fertile men. After stratifying Bio-T, WOR infertile men had lower BMD than fertile men (all p < 0.05) in low Bio-T subgroups (Bio-T ≤ 11.6 nmol/L), but not high Bio-T subgroups (Bio-T > 11.6 nmol/L). 25(OH)D was an independent determinant of sperm motility and morphology in WOR OATN men (all p < 0.05), with only borderline significance in fertile men(motility: p = 0.047; morphology: p = 0.056). T determined sperm concentration (square root) and morphology in WOR OATN men (all p < 0.001). No correlations between T and 25(OH)D were found in all groups. We suggest that infertile men have lower T and BMD than fertile men. 25(OH)D and T were associated with low BMD and poor semen quality in infertile men.

Growth and characterization of self-Q-switched Nd:Cr:YVO4 crystal

A Nd:Cr:YVO4 crystal was grown by the Czochralski method for the first time to our knowledge. Its structure and cell parameter have been studied by X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) analysis. Polarized absorption spectra were measured at room temperature, which showed that the absorption bands display polarization character and an absorption band of Cr5+ ions at 1110 nm enables the crystal to be a self-Q-switched laser material. We also found that the absorption of Cr5+ ions became much larger and its self-Q-switched laser performance became much better when the Nd:Cr:YVO4 crystal was annealed because the annealing induces more Cr ions to become those with + 5 valence. In the self-Q-switched laser, the maximum output power, shortest pulse width, and largest pulse energy were obtained to be 120 mW, 85.8 ns, and 0.79 μJ, respectively.

Influence of canthaxanthin on broiler breeder reproduction, chick quality, and performance

To investigate the effect of canthaxanthin supplied via a maternal route on the production of both breeder hens and chickens, 270 Chinese Three-Yellow breeder hens were randomly divided into 2 groups consisting of 135 birds each (5 replicates of 27) for study. The breeder hens were fed either a basal diet or the basal diet supplemented with 6 mg of canthaxanthin/kg for 24 wk. At the end of the 24-wk breeder experiment, all hatching eggs laid in 5 consecutive days of each group were collected and incubated. For each breeder group, 100 newly hatched chicks (5 replicates of 20) were reared under environmentally controlled conditions for 21 d. Canthaxanthin supplementation resulted in the following outcomes: an enhancement of the serum total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of breeder hens (P = 0.029), a significant increase in the yolk colorimetric score of Roche Yolk Color Fan (RYCF; P < 0.001), and a significant improvement of the antioxidant status of the egg yolk (P < 0.05). The chicks that hatched from eggs laid by breeder hens fed the canthaxanthin supplementation diet demonstrated a higher pigmentation colorimetric score of RYCF for their shank skin (P < 0.05), and the antioxidant capacity of the newly hatched chicks was significantly increased (P < 0.05). Both of these positive effects on shank skin pigmentation colorimetric score of RYCF and antioxidant capacity were observed for at least 7 d posthatching, and the chicks that hatched from canthaxanthin-enriched eggs showed a lower mortality (0 vs. 4%) during the first 21 d posthatching. These findings support the hypothesis that canthaxanthin supplementation of the maternal diet enhances the protective capacity of tissues against oxidative stress in vivo, which might be beneficial for poultry producers.

An international, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase III study (MONET1) of motesanib plus carboplatin/paclitaxel (C/P) in patients with advanced nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)

LBA7512

Background: This study evaluated whether motesanib (a selective oral inhibitor of VEGFR 1, 2 and 3; PDGFR and Kit) plus C/P improved overall survival (OS) compared with placebo + C/P in patients (pts) with nonsquamous NSCLC and in a subset of pts with adenocarcinoma. Methods: Pts had stage IIIB/IV or recurrent nonsquamous NSCLC and no prior systemic therapy for advanced NSCLC. The study initially enrolled all histologies but was amended to exclude pts with squamous NSCLC owing to a high rate of hemoptysis. Pts were randomized 1:1 to receive up to six 3-wk cycles of C (AUC 6 mg/mL·min) and P (200 mg/m2) with either motesanib 125 mg QD (Arm A) or placebo QD (Arm B) orally continuously. The primary endpoint was OS; secondary endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS), adverse events (AEs), objective response rate (ORR) and association between placental growth factor (PLGF) change and OS. OS was evaluated using a stratified Cox model and 2-sided log-rank test (α=0.03 for nonsquamous pts and α=0.02 for adenocarcinoma pts). Results: 1090 pts with nonsquamous NSCLC were randomized (Arm A/B, n=541/549); 890 had adenocarcinoma (n=448/442). 61% were men; median age was 60 years (range 21–87); 83% had stage IV disease. At the time of analysis, 753 pts had died (608 pts with adenocarcinoma). Median follow-up was 10.6 mo. OS was not significantly improved in Arm A compared with Arm B (Table). In Arm A, PLGF analysis did not show an association with OS. The incidence of grade ≥3 AEs in Arms A/B was 73/59%. Grade ≥3 AEs occurring more frequently in Arm A than B included neutropenia (22/15%), diarrhea (9/1%), hypertension (7/1%) and cholecystitis (3/0%). The incidence of grade 5 AEs was 14/9% in Arms A/B. Conclusions: In pts with advanced nonsquamous NSCLC, treatment with motesanib + C/P did not significantly improve OS compared with C/P alone.

[Table: see text]

Optical properties of ZnMgO nanowalls grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy

ZnMgO nanowalls were prepared by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy without a catalyst on c-Al2O3 substrate. The obtained nanowalls have preferred orientation along c axis. The nanowalls are about 10 to 20 nm in thickness and about 50 nm in height. Only Zn, Mg, O and Al signals are detected in the nanowalls from the energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The Mg content is about 3% in ZnMgO nanowalls. The room temperature photoluminescence (PL) spectra shows the emission peak of the ZnMgO nanowalls at 3.346 eV. The origin of the ultraviolet emission is discussed with the help of temperature-dependent PL spectra. The ultraviolet emission band is free exiton recombination observed in the low temperature PL spectra (at 81 K). We also observe the free-to-acceptor (FA) emission of the ZnMgO nanowalls. The acceptor binding energy obtained from photoluminescence studies is about 123 meV. The results show that Mg doping leads to an increase of the acceptor binding energy. The possible growth mechanism of the ZnMgO nanowall networks was discussed.

Photoluminescence of ZnO nanocrystals embedded in BaF2 matrices by magnetron sputtering

This paper describes ZnO nanocrystals embedded in BaF2 matrices by the magnetron sputtering method in an attempt to use fluoride as a shell layer to embed ZnO nanocrystals core. BaF2 is a wide-band gap material, and can confine carriers in the ZnO films. As a result, the exciton emission intensity should be enhanced. The sample was annealed at 773 K, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed that ZnO nanocrystals with wurtzite structure were embedded in BaF2 matrices. Raman-scattering spectra also confirmed the formation of ZnO nanoparticles. Abnormal longitudinal-optical (LO) phonon-dominant multiphonon Raman scattering was observed in the sample. Room-temperature photoluminescence (PL) spectra showed an ultraviolet emission peak at 374 nm. The origin of the ultraviolet emission is discussed here with the help of temperature-dependent PL spectra. The ultraviolet emission band was a mixture of free exciton and bound exciton recombination observed in the low temperature PL spectra (at 77 K). Abnormal temperature dependence of ultraviolet near-band-edge emission-integrated intensity of the sample was observed. The band tail state was observed in the absorption spectra, illustrating that the impurity-related defects were caused by the shell of the BaF2 grain layer. For comparison, ZnO films on BaF2 substrates were also fabricated by the magnetron sputtering method, and the same measurement methods were used.

The host species affects the microbial community in the goat rumen

AIMS

This study was carried out to determine whether bacterial and ciliate populations in goat rumen vary significantly between different goat species living in the same environment.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Bacterial and ciliate communities in the rumen of three goat species were analysed at the molecular level using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis. The microbial community varied considerably among goats living in the same environment. Interspecies variation in the bacterial population was noticeably greater than intraspecies variation. In contrast, there was considerable variation in the ciliate population among goats within the same species, and intraspecies similarities were no greater than those observed across species.

CONCLUSIONS

Because environmental factors and diets were identical for all goats, differences in bacterial populations reflect species-specific differences in rumen microbes.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

Factors related to the host species have an important effect on determining the bacterial composition in the goat rumen.

Identification and characterization of a MBP isoform specific to hypothalamus in orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides)

Myelin basic protein (MBP), as a major component of the myelin sheath, has been revealed to play an important role in forming and maintaining myelin structure in vertebrate nervous system. In teleost, hypothalamus is an instinctive brain center and plays significant roles in many physiological functions, such as energy metabolism, growth, reproduction, and stress response. In comparison with other MBP identified in vertebrates, a smallest MBP is cloned and identified from the orange-spotted grouper hypothalamic cDNA plasmid library in this study. RT-PCR analysis and Western blot detection indicate that the EcMBP is specific to hypothalamus, and expresses mainly in the tuberal hypothalamus in adult grouper. Immunofluorescence localization suggests that EcMBP should be expressed by oligodendrocytes, and the expressing cells should be concentrated in hypothalamus and the area surrounding hypothalamus, such as NPOpc, VC, DP, NLTm, and NDLI. The studies on EcMBP expression pattern and developmental behaviour in the brains of grouper embryos and larvae reveal that the EcMBP-expressing cells are only limited in a defined set of cells on the border of hypothalamus, and suggest that the EcMBP-expressing cells might be a subpopulation of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells. This study not only identifies a smallest MBP isoform specific to hypothalamus that can be used as a molecular marker of oligodendrocytes in fish, but also provides new insights for MBP evolution and cellular distribution.