Molecular Characteristics and Pathogenicity of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV) 1 in Taiwan during 2019-2020

Two variants of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), PRRSV 1 and PRRSV 2, have caused abortion in pregnant sows and respiratory distress in nursery pigs worldwide. PRRSV 2 has been thoroughly researched in Taiwan since 1993; however, the first case of PRRSV 1 was not reported until late 2018. To decipher the genetic characteristics of PRRSV 1 in Taiwan, open reading frame 5 (ORF5) genes of PRRSV 1 strains collected from 11 individual pig farms in 2019-2020 were successfully sequenced. All Taiwanese ORF5 sequences were closely related to Spanish-like PRRSV strains, which are considered to share a common evolutionary origin with the strain used for the PRRSV 1 vaccine. Analyses of amino acid (aa) and non-synonymous substitutions showed that genetic variations resulted in numerously specific codon mutations scattered across the neutralizing epitopes within the ORF5 gene. The PRRSV 1 challenge experiment disclosed the pathogenetic capability of the NPUST2789 isolate in nursery pigs. These findings provide comprehensive knowledge of the molecular diversity of the PRRSV 1 variant in local Taiwanese fields and facilitate the development of suitable immunization programs against this disease.

Mechanical hemolysis in a hemodialysis patient with carotid-jugular arteriovenous fistula

Renal anemia is mainly caused by inadequate synthesis of erythropoietin from diseased kidneys. At the present time, recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) is used to correct anemia successfully in most patients with end-stage renal diseases. Nevertheless, poor response to rHuEPO still exists in some hemodialysis patients and its mechanism in some cases remains obscure. Herein, we describe a rare case of rHuEPO hyporesponsiveness due to mechanical hemolysis induced by a traumatic carotid-jugular arteriovenous fistula (AVF) in the presence of subclinical aluminum intoxication. Following surgical resection of the traumatic AVF and 8 months of desferrioxamine treatment, the responsiveness to rHuEPO was restored and the rHuEPO dose requirements reduced.

Analysis of Puerariae radix and its medicinal preparations by capillary electrophoresis

This study presents a high-performance capillary electrophoresis (CE) method to analyze five constituents of Puerariae radix, an important crude herb used in Chinese medicine. Puerarin, daidzin, daidzein, genistein and biochanin A are the bioactive constituents of Puerariae radix. Herein, those analytes were successfully separated within 6 min using a pH 10.1 borax-NaOH buffer. The effects of pH value and concentration of the running buffer on the separation of the five analytes were also examined. The relative standard deviations of the analytes' migration times were less than 0.38% under the optimized separation conditions. Notably, the correlation coefficients of the analytes' linear calibration graphs exceeded 0.998. Moreover, the amounts of the five constituents in three different Puerariae radix samples were determined by the CE method with a relatively simple extraction procedure.

Analysis of prostaglandins by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography

This paper presents a rapid and reliable micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography (MEKC) method to separate major prostaglandins and thromboxane B2. The running buffer was modified with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). The effects of the SDS concentration on the migration behavior of analytes was also examined. Moreover, the influences of electrolyte concentration and capillary temperature on the separation were investigated. In optimum conditions, seven major prostaglandins and thromboxane B2 could be separated within 8 min. The relative standard deviations of the migration times (reproducibility) of the analytes were less than 0.82%.