In this study, 101 strains of bacteria were isolated from arct ic water and sediment samples. The methanol extracts of the fermented broth prod uced by these strains were screened in vitro for anti-tumor activity on mou se tsFT210 cells using the method of flow cytometry, and screened for antibacter ial activity by the method of paper disk diffusion. The result showed that one strain exhibited anti-tumor activity and eight strains had antibacterial activ ity. The stability of the antibacterial components produced by strain AR084 an d its optimum medium were also studied. The research indicated that arctic bac teria had potential application in pharmaceutics.

Objective The cytotoxic microbial strains isolated from the deep ocean water and sediments were screened,and the secondary metabolites of bioactive fungus c2b were investi- gated.Methods Active bioactive microbial strains were screened using brine shrimp and chro- nic medulla leucocythemia leukocythemia(K562)cell line.The cytotoxic components of fun- gus c2b were isolated by bioassay-guided fractionation and solvent extraction,silica gel col- umn chromatography and preparative HPLC.Their structures were established by pbysico- chemical properties and spectral analyses.The cytotoxicities of compounds were evaluated by SRB method.Results and Conclusion Twenty-nine strains of fungi were isolated.Among them,seven strains showed cytotoxic activities.Six compounds(1～6)were isolated and i- dentified as N-acetyl histamine(1),chrysogine(2),ergosterol peroxide(3),5,8-epidioxy- 24-methylcholesta-6,22-dien-3?-ol(4)cerevisterol(5)and(4E,8E)-N-[(2'R,3'E)-2'-hy- droxy-3'-hexadecenoyl]-1-O-?-D-glycopyranosyl-9-methyl-4,8-sphingadiene(6),respective- ly.Compound 3 and 4 showed median cytotoxicity.

Objective To investigate the prevalence of herpes simplex virus(HSV) infection of central nervous system(CNS) in newborn infant,and analyze its clinical characteristics.Methods Cerebrospinal fluid(CSF) was collected from 40 acute viral infection of central nervous system who were hospitalized during June 2001 to June 2002.Polymerse chain reacton techniques(nested-PCR)was used to detect HSVspecific DNA in CSF,enzyme-linked immunosorbert assays(ELISA)was applied to detect HSV-specific IgM and IgG antibody in CSF and serum specimens.Results Two cases of neonatal patients were HSV-1 DNA PCR positive in CSF,both(mo)-ther were normal during pregnancy without a history of genital herpes.Clinical presentations of one case belonged to disseminated HSV infections and the other was limited to CNS infections.HSV-2 DNA PCR of 40 cases of neonatal patients were negative in CSF.Conclusions The rate of HSV neonatal CNS infection was 5% among viral neonatal CNS infections.HSV type 1 in the period,which showed that HSV type 1 may be the common type of HSV neonatal CNS infections.The result seems to be related to low prevalence for HSV-2(among) pregnancy women in China.

The secondary metabolites of plants are important sources of natural drugs. Betula plants have abundant pharmacological value, complex mechanism and wide applications, which are closely related to the triterpenoids of theirs. Triterpenoids in Betula species are mainly divided into dammarane-type, ocotillol-type, oleanane-type, lupane-type and cycloaltunane-type. The extracts of Betula species have varieties of activities such as anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-bacterial, etc. And the biosynthetic pathways of triterpenoids after 2,3-oxidosqualene are split into four branches of dammarenediol-II, lupeol, cycloartenol and amyrin according to the different oxidosqualene cyclases. This review summarizes the chemical constituents, pharmacological activities and biosynthetic pathways of triterpenoids in Betula plants. It provides a reference for the research and development of new drugs and the production of these triterpenoids in microbial cell factories by synthetic biology methods.

Natural products are important sources of drug discovery. However, the traditional methods of extraction and isolation, as well as chemical synthesis for obtaining natural products are associated with issues such as operational complexity, high costs, low efficiency, and environmental pollution. Constructing microbial cell factories through synthetic biology methods to produce medicinal natural products has the advantages of high efficiency, low cost, and environmental protection. Nevertheless, the scope and yield improvement of the products are limited by the limitations of enzymes in microbial cell factories. Protein engineering is considered one of the most effective approaches to overcome these limitations. This article introduces commonly used methods of protein engineering technology and summarizes its specific applications in improving enzyme performance, modifying the enzymatic environment, and promoting the development of synthetic biology tools in the field of pharmaceutical natural product synthesis. Furthermore, it analyzes the current bottlenecks and challenges in protein engineering and looks forward to its future application prospects, offering insights for the development and practical use of protein engineering technology.

Objective: To explore the role of functional connectivity (FC) within the fronto-limbic network in predicting the onset of psychosis in the subjects with clinical high-risk for psychosis (CHR). Methods: A total of 164 CHR subjects and 89 healthy controls (HC) who underwent resting-state functional MRI were recruited. FCs between frontal [medial prefrontal cortex and bilateral or-bitofrontal cortex (OFC)] and limbic (bilateral hippocampus and bilateral amygdala) brain regions at baseline were calculated. CHR subjects were further divided into 3 subgroups, i.e., CHR converters (CHR-C) group, symptomatic CHR (CHR-S) group and remitted CHR (CHR-R) group according to clinical outcome after one-year follow-up. The FCs of fronto-limbic network were compared between the groups and among the subgroups, and their interaction with brain regions, as well as their correlations with positive and negative symptoms were analyzed. Results: There was no significant main effect of group (P=0.110), but a significant interaction of subgroups and brain regions (P=0.049). CHR-C group had lower FC between bilateral OFC and bilateral amygdala than HC group and CHR-R group (all P<0.05). The FCs between left OFC and left hippocampus in the three CHR subgroups were all lower than that in HC group (all P<0.05). In addition, the FC between left OFC and right amygdala was positively correlated with the severity of negative symptoms in CHR-C group, while the FCs between left OFC and bilateral hippocampus and between right OFC and left hippocampus were negatively correlated with the severity of positive symptoms in CHR-C group. Conclusion: The decrease of OFC-hippocampus connectivity may be common in the subjects with CHR, while the decrease of OFC-amygdala connectivity may predict CHR subjects will convert to schizophrenia in the later stage.

Vitreous hemorrhage in children is caused by trauma or non-traumatic factors.Long-term vitreous hemorrhage not only affects children's vision,but also can lead secondary glaucoma,traumatic retinal detachment and other serious complications.Ocular trauma,some ocular and systemic diseases are the common etiology leading to vitreous hemorrhage in children.A small amount of vitreous hemorrhage can be treated by observation and conservative treatment.However,if the vitreous hemorrhage has no obvious absorption or serious complications appeared,it needs to be treated by surgery.The choice of treatment time and methods need to be further studied.

Adult ; Aortopulmonary Septal Defect ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Echocardiography ; methods ; Female ; Heart Septal Defects, Ventricular ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis ; methods

OBJECTIVETo investigate the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) rs22833188 and rs2833195 in TIAM1 gene with the susceptibility to Kawasaki disease (KD) and its clinical characteristic in children.

METHODSA case-control study was performed in this study. One hundred and eighty-eight children with KD and 197 normal children served as controls were enrolled. The genotypes of two SNPs rs22833188 and rs2833195 in TIAM1 gene were detected using PCR-RFLP.

RESULTSThere were no significant differences in the genotype (AA, AG and GG) and allele frequencies of SNP rs2833188 between the KD and control groups. Significant differences in the genotype (CC, GC and GG) frequency of SNP rs2833195 were noted between the KD and control groups (P=0.017). The frequency of C allele in the KD group was higher than in the control group (P=0.015). The polymorphism of SNP rs2833188 was associated with the occurrence of rash (P=0.011), and the polymorphism of SNP rs2833195 was associated with the occurrence of conjunctival hyperemia (P=0.021).

CONCLUSIONSThe polymorphism of rs2833195 in TIAM1 gene is associated with the susceptibility to KD. The polymorphisms rs2833188 and rs2833195 in TIAM1 gene may be associated with some clinical characteristics in children with KD.

Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genotype ; Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factors ; genetics ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; T-Lymphoma Invasion and Metastasis-inducing Protein 1

OBJECTIVETo improve the quality of medical instrument clinical trial in China.

METHODSA systematic analysis on current situation of medical instrument clinical trial in China is conducted to find a way out of problems.

RESULTS & CONCLUSIONSThere is a low level of medical instrument clinical trial now in China. There are still many shortcomings in law and regulations of medical instrument clinical trial. The sponsors and s do not know medical instrument clinical trial well, the measures of quality related to medical instrument clinical trial must be improved.

China ; Clinical Trials as Topic ; standards ; Equipment and Supplies ; Humans