Osteoimmunology in orthodontic tooth movement

The skeletal and immune systems share a multitude of regulatory molecules, including cytokines, receptors, signaling molecules, and signaling transducers, thereby mutually influencing each other. In recent years, several novel insights have been attained that have enhanced our current understanding of the detailed mechanisms of osteoimmunology. In orthodontic tooth movement, immune responses mediated by periodontal tissue under mechanical force induce the generation of inflammatory responses with consequent alveolar bone resorption, and many regulators are involved in this process. In this review, we take a closer look at the cellular/molecular mechanisms and signaling involved in osteoimmunology and at relevant research progress in the context of the field of orthodontic tooth movement.

Pathological analysis of extracapsular extension of metastatic lymph node and its potential impact on nodal clinical target volume in the radiotherapy of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

There is no consensus regarding the clinical target volume (CTV) margins which surround the gross tumor volume of metastatic lymph nodes (LN) in radiotherapy of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). This study retrospectively assessed the distance of extracapsular extension (ECE) of metastatic LN in thoracic ESCC and defined nodal CTV margins. Histological sections of metastatic LNs from 217 patients with thoracic ESCC were re-examined. The incidence and maximal distance of ECE of metastatic LNs were assessed. The relationships between ECE and clinicopathologic features were also investigated. The ECE was found in 37.3% of patients (81/217) and 23.1% of metastatic LN (159/689), and the incidences had a significant relationship with N stage and LN size. The median distance of ECE was 1.0 mm (range, 0.2-9.7 mm). The distance of ECE showed a positive correlation with LN size (Spearman's correlation coefficient = 0.419; p<0.001). The ECE distances of LN with <10 mm diameter were significantly smaller than LN with 10-30 mm diameter (p<0.001). The 95th percentiles of ECE distances for these two groups were 3 mm and 5 mm, respectively. For pathologic LN <10 mm in diameter, a 3-mm CTV margin appears to be adequate to encompass 95% of the microscopic ECE, and for LN 10-30 mm, a 5-mm CTV margin is recommended.

Multiplex hydrolysis probe real-time PCR for simultaneous detection of hepatitis A virus and hepatitis E virus

Detection of hepatitis viral infections has traditionally relied on the circulating antibody test using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. However, multiplex real-time PCR has been increasingly used for a variety of viral nucleic acid detections and has proven to be superior to traditional methods. Hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis E virus (HEV) are the major causes of acute hepatitis worldwide; both HAV and HEV infection are a main public health problem. In the present study, a one-step multiplex reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction assay using hydrolysis probes was developed for simultaneously detecting HAV and HEV. This novel detection system proved specific to the target viruses, to be highly sensitive and to be applicable to clinical sera samples, making it useful for rapid, accurate and feasible identification of HAV and HEV.

The Processing Behavior of Liquid Sn/Molten Polyethylene during Internal Mixing

In our study, liquid tin (Sn) was mixed with molten polyethylene using an internal mixer; the interfacial tension between the liquid Sn and molten polyethylene was measured using the deformed drop retraction method. The results showed that liquid Sn separated when the Sn content was higher than approximately 2 % by volume because of the interfacial tension of up to 167 mN/m and the 106-fold viscosity difference between the liquid Sn and the molten polyethylene. When Sn separation did not occur, the effects of the mixing time and rotary speed on the degree of mixing and the Sn particle size were analyzed using thermogravimetric analysis and scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that the effects of mixing time and rotary speed on the degree of mixing and Sn particle size can be combined as the impact of specific energy input. With increasing specific energy input, the degree of mixing initially increased and subsequently remained constant, while the Sn particle size initially decreased and subsequently remained constant. The refinement of the dispersed phase was completed with a low specific energy input, but the homogenization of the dispersed phase required a higher specific energy input to achieve completion, revealing the relationship between distributive mixing and dispersive mixing.

Effects of atmospheric parameters on radon measurements using alpha-track detectors

The calibration factors of alpha-track radon detectors (ATDs) are essential for accurate determination of indoor radon concentrations. In this paper, the effects of atmospheric parameters on the calibration factors were theoretically studied and partially testified. Based on the atmospheric thermodynamics theory and detection characteristics of the allyl diglycol carbonate (CR-39), the calibration factors for 5 types of ATDs were calculated through Monte Carlo simulations under different atmospheric conditions. Simulation results showed that the calibration factor increased by up to 31% for the ATDs with a decrease of air pressure by 35.5 kPa (equivalent to an altitude increase of 3500 m), and it also increased by up to 12% with a temperature increase from 5 °C to 35 °C, but it was hardly affected by the relative humidity unless the water-vapor condensation occurs inside the detectors. Furthermore, it was also found that the effects on calibration factors also depended on the dimensions of ATDs. It indicated that variations of the calibration factor with air pressure and temperature should be considered for an accurate radon measurement with a large dimensional ATD, and water-vapor condensation inside the detector should be avoided in field measurements.

Clinical effectiveness of multimodality treatment on advanced pediatric hepatoblastoma

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the effect of multimodality treatment of advanced paediatric hepatoblastoma and the factors affecting the prognosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

35 childhood patients were treated with multimodality treatments consisting of chemotherapy, surgery, interventional therapy, and autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. Patients were followed up every month.

RESULTS

33 patients completed the follow-up, of which 17 were in complete remission, 5 were in partial remission, 1 case got worse, and 10 died. The remission rate was 66.7% (22/33), and the overall survival rate was 69.7% (23/33). 1 patient with advanced hepatoblastoma got high-dose chemotherapy combined with autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (APBSCT) treatment, and a primary lesion by 18 x 15 x 9 cm reduced to 10 x 8 x 4 cm. Remote metastases significantly alleviated, and partial remission reached six months. The overall survival was 9 months after transplantation. Patients with the mixed phenotype of hepatoblastoma had a worse prognosis than with the epithelial phenotype (p < 0.001), and patients in stage IV had a lower survival rate than in stage III (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Multimodality treatment can effectively improve remission rate and prolong the survival of children with the advanced hepatoblastoma. In addition, alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), hepatoblastoma pathological classification and staging are of great use in prediction of prognosis.

[Antigenic analysis of two chimeric hepatitis B core particles presenting the preS1 neutralizing epitopes]

OBJECTIVE

To construct full-length hepatitis B core particles presenting preS1 aa 21-47 epitope and truncated core particles presenting preS1 aa 37-45 epitope on their surface and compare their antigenicity.

METHODS

PreS1 aa21-47 epitope and aa 37-45 epitope were inserted respectively into full-length hepatitis B core (aa 1-183) and truncated HBcAg (aa 1-144), between the 78th (Asp) and 79th (Pro). The genes synthesized after the codon optimization were ligated to the pET43. 1a vector with the same cohesive terminal (NdeI and XhoI) and expressed in the E. coli expression system. The morphology of the proteins of interest were observed by electron microscope and characterized by ELISA and Western Blotting.

RESULTS

The morphology of the virus-like particles were confirmed by electron microscope. H2 were solid particles with a diameter of (31.61 +/- 1.27) nm, while H3 were hollow particles with a diameter of (28.46 +/- 1.16) nm. Statistical analysis showed that H2 is larger than H3 in the diameter (P < 0.01). The antigenicity of the inserted epitopes and carrier protein were identified by ELISA and Western Blotting.

CONCLUSION

Chimeric hepatitis B core particles presenting the preS1 neutralizing epitopes on their surface have been expressed, purified and identified, which lays the foundation for its application in vaccine research.

Somatometric measurements, and clinical chemistry and hematology parameters in Tibetan macaque (Macaca thibetana)

BACKGROUND

Limited physiological data for Tibetan macaques are available at present. This study will provide more rationale for evaluating this species.

METHODS

Thirty-seven Tibetan macaques (15 males and 22 females) were used in this study. Somatometric measurements, clinical chemistry and hematology parameters, insulin, and C-peptide were analyzed.

RESULTS

Females had higher values of waist and waist hip ratio (WHR) than males in somatometric measurements. There were no significant differences between the two genders in hematology. Significant differences between males and females were only found for aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in biochemistry testing. In addition, females had higher fasting insulin and C-peptide than males. There was a strongly positive correlation between age and some somatometric parameters.

CONCLUSIONS

These physiological data will provide veterinarians and researchers with baseline values to evaluate experimental results using Tibetan macaques.

Construction and immunological evaluation of truncated hepatitis B core particles carrying HBsAg amino acids 119-152 in the major immunodominant region (MIR)

Hepatitis B capsid protein expressed in Escherichia coli can reassemble into icosahedral particles, which could strongly enhance the immunogenicity of foreign epitopes, especially those inserted into its major immunodominant region. Herein, we inserted the entire 'α' antigenic determinant amino acids (aa) 119-152 of HBsAg into the truncated HBc (aa 1-144), between Asp(78) and Pro(79). Prokaryotic expression showed that the mosaic HBc was mainly in the form of inclusion bodies. After denaturation with urea, it was dialyzed progressively for protein renaturation. We observed that before and after renaturation, mosaic HBc was antigenic as determined by HBsAg ELISA and a lot of viruslike particles were observed after renaturation. Thus, we further purified the mosaic viruslike particles by (NH4)2SO4 precipitation, DEAE chromatography, and Sepharose 4FF chromatography. Negative staining electron microscopy demonstrated the morphology of the viruslike particles. Immunization of Balb/c mice with mosaic particles induced the production of anti-HBs antibody and Th1 cell immune response supported by ELISPOT and CD4/CD8 proportions assay. In conclusion, we constructed mosaic hepatitis core particles displaying the entire 'α' antigenic determinant on the surface and laid a foundation for researching therapeutic hepatits B vaccines.

[Construction of recombinant CHO cell strain for high expression of HBsAg]

OBJECTIVE

To overexpress hepatitis B virus S gene in CHO cells cultured in serum-free media.

METHOD

Plasmid was constructed by cloning of HBV S gene and then it was transfected into CHO cells. After cell screen, the positive clones were identified and isolated into a serum-free media followed by the serological and morphological characterization of the expression product.

RESULT

CHO cell strains which can express HBsAg efficiently and stably were obtained. Spherical and filamentous HBsAg could be detected under electronic microscope. The titer of the expression product was up to 1:5000.

CONCLUSION

Serum-free media cultured CHO cell strain for overexpression of HBsAg was successfully constructed and the expression product was high antigenic.

Comparison of measured and calculated dose rates near nuclear medicine patients

Widely used release criteria for patients receiving radiopharmaceuticals (NUREG-1556, Vol. 9, Rev.1, Appendix U) are known to be overly conservative. The authors measured external exposure rates near patients treated with I, Tc, and F and compared the measurements to calculated values using point and line source models. The external exposure dose rates for 231, 11, and 52 patients scanned or treated with I, Tc, and F, respectively, were measured at 0.3 m and 1.0 m shortly after radiopharmaceutical administration. Calculated values were always higher than measured values and suggested the application of "self-shielding factors," as suggested by Siegel et al. in 2002. The self-shielding factors of point and line source models for I at 1 m were 0.60 ± 0.16 and 0.73 ± 0.20, respectively. For Tc patients, the self-shielding factors for point and line source models were 0.44 ± 0.19 and 0.55 ± 0.23, and the values were 0.50 ± 0.09 and 0.60 ± 0.12, respectively, for F (all FDG) patients. Treating patients as unshielded point sources of radiation is clearly inappropriate. In reality, they are volume sources, but treatment of their exposures using a line source model with appropriate self-shielding factors produces a more realistic, but still conservative, approach for managing patient release.

Optical fingerprint recognition based on local minutiae structure coding

A parallel volume holographic optical fingerprint recognition system robust to fingerprint translation, rotation and nonlinear distortion is proposed. The optical fingerprint recognition measures the similarity by using the optical filters of multiplexed holograms recorded in the holographic media. A fingerprint is encoded into multiple template data pages based on the local minutiae structure coding method after it is adapted for the optical data channel. An improved filter recording time schedule and a post-filtering calibration technology are combined to suppress the calculating error from the large variations in data page filling ratio. Experimental results tested on FVC2002 DB1 and a forensic database comprising 270,216 fingerprints demonstrate the robustness and feasibility of the system.

Serum biomarkers analyzed by LC-MS/MS as predictors for short outcome of non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with chemoradiotherapy

PURPOSE

To find potential serum biomakers that can predict clinical outcome upon treatment in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by analyzing differential proteins in serum with different sensitivity of chemoradiotherapy (CRT).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Sera were collected from 37 NSCLC patients before they were treated with concurrent cisplatin-based CRT. According to the outcome of CRT, the patients were divided into sensitive group and resistant one. The proteins in sera were separated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis after the high abundance proteins were removed from sera. The significantly differentially expressed proteins between two groups were analyzed by liquid chromatography and tendem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Then, an additional 50 serum samples were used for ELISA analysis to validate the identified proteins that we got in the experiment.

RESULTS

Proteins in sera of each group were successfully separated on 2D gels. There were significant discrepancies in serum protein expression between NSCLC patients with different CRT sensitivity. Among eight differently expressed proteins, six proteins were successfully identified with five of which higher expressed and one lower expressed in resistant group. The increased Alpha-1-antitrypsin (α1-AT) level in resistant group comparing to sensitive one were validated by ELISA analysis (p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Proteomic approach may serve as a useful method in detecting the potential biomarkers for predicting the outcome of treatment in NSCLC patients. NSCLC patients with high α1-AT level in serum before CRT may have a worse treatment outcome.

Coexpression of interleukin-6 and -2 from giant panda in Escherichia coli and the biological activity of the fusion protein

To construct a fusion cytokine protein with more and stronger bioactivities to enhance the immunity of the cytokine alone, we expressed interleukin (IL)-6/(IL)-2 from giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) in Escherichia coli as a 59.4-kDa fusion protein. Subsequently, the inclusion bodies were solubilized with 8 M urea and applied onto a Ni-nitrilotriacetic acid column. The final production of IL-6/IL-2 reached 6 mg/L in soluble form, and the purified final product was >96% pure. In Western blot assays, the recombinant IL-6/IL-2 was recognized by polyclonal antibodies against IL-6 and IL-2 of giant panda. The results demonstrated that the protein mixture contained correctly folded IL-2 and IL-6 proteins. A 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl) 2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay demonstrated that IL-6/IL-2 can promote lymphocyte proliferation and differentiation. These data suggest that the fusion protein could be used to develop a novel immunoadjuvant to enhance the immunity of animals against infectious diseases.

[Prokaryotic soluble expression of protein D of Haemophilus influenzae type b]

OBJECTIVE

To express the recombinant D protein in prokaryotic expression system solubly and make preparation for producing D-carrier conjugate vaccine next step.

METHODS

The hpd gene fragment removed of signal peptide from genomic DNA of Hib CMCC was inserted into pET43. 1a. The recombinant plasmid was transformed to competent E. coli BL21 (DE3) for expression under induction of IPTG. The expressed recombination protein was precipitated with ammonium sulfate, purified by DEAE anion exchange column chromatography and identified for reactogenicity by Western Blot.

RESULTS

The expressed recombination protein, in a soluble form, constained about 50% of total somatic protein and showed specific reaction with the HIB antisera after preliminary purification.

CONCLUSION

The D protein recombined expression plasmid was constructed successfully and expressed D protein in prokaryotic cells in a solube form.

Comparative evaluation of a novel TaqMan real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction assay for hepatitis A virus detection

OBJECTIVE

To develop and evaluate a novel system for detecting and quantifying hepatitis A virus (HAV) nucleic acid.

METHODS

Real-time TaqMan® reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) procedures were established, based on amplification of the highly conserved 5'-non-coding region. Synthetic single-stranded RNA transcripts synthesized in vitro were used as the quantification standard. Ten-fold dilutions were prepared from HAV strain stock suspension to determine precision, accuracy, sensitivity and specificity. In addition, serum specimens from patients with acute HAV underwent clinical evaluation.

RESULTS

The novel assay had a detection limit for HAV RNA of 10 TCID50/ml (where TCID50 is median tissue culture infective dose). It was more sensitive and specific than the commercial quantitative PCR kit manufactured by Shanghai Zhijiang Bio-Tech. However, the Artus HAV RT-PCR kit (Qiagen) had the best performance of the three assays and had a detection limit of 5 TCID50/ml. The new HAV real-time PCR detection system was also successfully applied in 90 serum specimens from patients with confirmed acute HAV infection.

CONCLUSION

Considering its high reproducibility, sensitivity, specificity and simplicity, this novel amplification system may be suitable for wide clinical application as a diagnostic tool, and for the surveillance and investigation of infectious diseases in developing countries where HAV is endemic.

[Prokaryotic expression and characterization of two recombinant receptor-binding domain(RBD) proteins of human coronavirus NL63(HcoV-NL63)]

The receptor-binding domain(RBD) protein of HCoV-NL63 is a major target in the development of diagnostic assay and vaccine, it has a pivotal role in receptor attachment, viral entry and membrane fusion. In this study, we prepared 2 purified recombinant HCoV-NL63 RBD proteins using in E. coli system and identified the proteins by Western blotting. We first optimized codon and synthesized the RL (232-684aa)coding gene, then amplified the RL or RS(476-616aa) coding gene via PCR using different primers . The RL or RS coding gene was cloned into the pM48 expression vector fused with TrxA tag. The RBD (RL and RS) of HCoV-NL63 were expressed majorly as inclusion body when expressed in E. coli BL21pLys S under different conditions. The expressed products were purified by affinity chromatography then analyzed by SDS-PAGE and Western blotting. Our results showed that the recombinant RBD proteins were maximally expressed at 37 degrees C with 0. 8mM IPTG induction for 4h. RL or RS protein with 95 % purity was obtained and reacted positively with anti-sera from mice immunized with the recombinant vaccinia virus (Tiantan strain) in which HCoV-NL63 RL or RS protein was expressed. In conclusion, the purified recombinant RBD proteins(RL and RS)derived from E. coli were first prepared in China and they might provide a basis for further exploring biological role and vaccine development of HCoV-NL63.

[Detection of hepatitis A virus RNA with an improved loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay]

OBJECTIVE

To establish a novel improved loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technique to detect hepatitis A virus (HAV).

METHODS

A novel improved LAMP assay based on the addition of an acceleration primer was developed for hepatitis A virus nucleotide acid detection.

RESULTS

Precision and reproducibility analysis proved its high stability and reliability. Comparison between the improved and conventional LAMP assays revealed that the former was more sensitive with a detection limit of 5 TCID50/ml. The novel detection method displayed 100% consistency with the TaqMan real-time PCR assay when applied to clinical specimens collected from patients with confirmed acute HAV infection.

CONCLUSION

This novel technique is widely applicable as a simple diagnostic tool in the clinical field as well as for the surveillance and investigation of the infectious disease in developing countries where HAV is endemic.

[The investigation of hepatitis D virus infection situation in the human with HBsAg in Foshan of Guangdong province]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the seroprevalence of hepatitis D virus in Foshan of Guangdong province, to provide the data for the study about it in China.

METHODS

ELISA kits from two different companies were used for detecting anti-HDV IgG of all the serum samples, and then RT-PCR was carried out about the selected serum to ensure the results. All the serum samples were collected in 2011 in The First People's Hospital of Foshan.

RESULTS

The results from two ELISA kits and RT-PCR were identical. Eight samples were positive.

CONCLUSIONS

The seroprevalence rate of HDV in Foshan is higher than that in China. It has no statistically significant difference between female and male. Morever, the older with HBsAg are susceptible to HDV.

[Effect of gene optimization on the expression and purification of HDV small antigen produced by genetic engineering]

OBJECTIVE

To study the effect of gene optimization on the expression and purification of HDV small antigen produced by genetic engineering.

METHODS

Based on the colon preference of E. coli, the HDV small antigen original gene from GenBank was optimized. Both the original gene and the optimized gene expressed in prokaryotic cells, SDS-PAGE was made to analyze the protein expression yield and to decide which protein expression style was more proportion than the other. Furthermore, two antigens were purified by chromatography in order to compare the purity by SDS-PAGE and Image Lab software.

RESULTS

SDS-PAGE indicated that the molecular weight of target proteins from two groups were the same as we expected. Gene optimization resulted in the higher yield and it could make the product more soluble. After chromatography, the purity of target protein from optimized gene was up to 96.3%, obviously purer than that from original gene.

CONCLUSION

Gene optimization could increase the protein expression yield and solubility of genetic engineering HDV small antigen. In addition, the product from the optimized gene group was easier to be purified for diagnosis usage.