The present situation of environment polluted by phthalate esters,the main kinds of phthalate esters in the air samples and water samples and the pretreatment and analysis technology of phthalate esters in different environment were reviewed in the present article. In the air samples ,di(2-ethylhexy) phthalate(DEHP),di-n-butyl phthalate(DBP) and dioctyl phthalate(DOP) were included,while diethyl phthalate(DEP),di(2-ethylhexy) phthalate(DEHP),dipropyl phthalate(DPrP),butyl benzyl phthalate(BBP),dioctyl phthalate(DOP) and dimethyl phthalate(DMP) could be mainly detected in the water samples.

Objective To assess the association between NOD2 gene single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and leprosy in Chinese Yi population.Methods Whole blood samples were obtained from 300 patients with leprosy and 300 healthy human controls of Yi nationality in Sichuan province.Genomic DNA was extracted,and a SNaPshot assay was performed to determine the genotypes of four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the NOD2 gene,including rs9302752,rs7194886,rs8057341 and rs3135499.Chi-square test was conducted to compare allele frequency,and Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was tested.Results The genotype distribution of all the four SNPs was consistent with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (all P ＞ 0.05).Significant differences were observed between the patients with leprosy and healthy controls in both genotype distribution and allele frequency of the SNP rs3135499 (both P ＜ 0.01),but not in those of the other three SNPs (all P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion The SNP rs3135499 of the NOD2 gene may be associated with the development of leprosy in Chinese Yi population.

Objective To investigate the risk factors for acute radiation esophagitis andpneumonitis after radiation therapy in esophageal cancer (EC) patients with diabetes or hypertension.Methods A total of 373 EC patients receiving three dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) or intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) were included in this study.Among these patients,42 showed concurrent with diabetes and 99 with hypertension.Radiation esophagitis or pneumonitis in patients with or without diabetes,and with or without hypertension were monitored in the 1-year follow up,respectively.Results The prevalence of grade 1,2,3 and 4 radiation esophagitis in diabetes and non-diabetes patients was 40.5％,38.1％,14.3％,4.8％ and 66.2％,27.8％,2.7％,1.8％,respectively,while that of the grade 1,2 and 3 radiation pneumonitis in diabetes and non-diabetes patients was 31.0％,16.7％,9.5％ and 30.8％,15.7％,1.2％,respectively.The prevalence of grade 3 or above radiation esophagitis and pneumonitis in patients with diabetes and was significantly higher than those with non-diabetes (x2 =13.573,12.279,P ＜ 0.05).The prevalence of grade 1,2,3 and 4 radiation esophagitis in hypertension and non-hypertension patients was 49.5％,38.4％,8.1％,3.0％ and 68.2％,25.5％,2.6％,1.8％,respectively,while that of the grade 1,2 and 3 radiation pneumonitis in hypertension and non-hypertension patients were 30.3％,18.2％,5.1％ and 31.0％,15.0％,1.1％,respectively.The prevalence of grade 3 or above radiation esophagitis and pneumonitis in patients with hypertension was significantly higher than those with non-hypertension (x2 =5.695、5.422,P ＜ 0.05).Diabetes is an independent risk factor for grade 3 or above acute radiation esophagitis and pneumonitis.Conclusions Diabetes or hypertension might be risk factors for severe radiation esophagitis and pneumonitis in EC patients receiving radiation therapy.

Directed evolution strategy (error-prone PCR) was conducted to improve the activity of lipase from Rhizopus chinensis CCTCC M201021. Through two rounds of ep-PCR and pNPP top agar screening, two optimum mutant strains 1-11 and 2-28 were obtained with 2 and 4 fold of enzyme activity higher than that of parent strain, respectively. DNA sequencing of mutant lipase 2-28 revealed four amino acid substitutions: A129S, K161R, A230T, K322R. According to the simulated protein structure of Rhizopus chinensis lipase, A129S, K161R, A230T were located on the surface of the protein. A230T substitution improved the stability of the alpha-helix loop. K322R, near the catalytic center of lipase, located at a loop, formed a salt-bridge with a nearby aspartic acid (negative charged). Electrostatic force pulled the loop to the opposite direction of the substrate channel and made it easier for substrate to enter the lipase catalytic domain. Purified lipase was characterized and the result showed that Km of 2-28 lipase decreased by 10% compared with Km of the parent lipase, and Kcat was 2.75 fold improved than that of the original lipase.
Directed Molecular Evolution ; Lipase ; chemistry ; genetics ; Point Mutation ; Protein Engineering ; Rhizopus ; enzymology ; genetics

Medulla oblongata is precise in structure and the blood supply is complicated. After its infarction, it is easy to be misdiagnosed or missed because of its various clinical manifestations and lack of specificity. This article reviews the pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, and prognosis of medullary infarction in different sites.

Cerebral small vessel disease is a group of heterogeneous diseases with stroke and cognitive impairment as the main clinical features.It can be divided into sporadic type and hereditary type.Cerebral autosomal recessive arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CARASIL) belongs to hereditary cerebral small vessel disease.It has been reported in China,Japan,Spain,Greece,and other countries.The diagnosis mainly depends on characteristic clinical symptoms,imaging features,and genetic testing.CARASIL manifests as diffuse white matter abnormal signal and subcortical multiple infarcts on MRI,and it caused by HTRA1 gene mutation.

AIM:To determine the biological feature of circulating endothelial cells (CECs) in acute promye-locytic leukemia ( APL) patients before and after treatment , and to analyze the relationship between CECs and the clinical characteristics .METHODS: The CECs were sorted from peripheral blood by magnetic-activated cell sorting and then counted by 3-color flow cytometry.The cells were identified by immunofluorescence staining for the expression of CD 146, CD31, CD144, VEGFR-2, CD45 and CD133.The CECs were cultured in vitro, and the tube formation and colony-forming rate were determined .RESULTS:Increased quantity of CECs was observed in CD 34 positive group and group with WBC >10 ×109/L (P<0.05).The quantity of CECs had a significant difference among low risk , medium risk and high risk groups (P<0.05).The positive rate of CD133 and quantity of CECs significantly reduced in 32 APL patients when they gain complete remission after treatment (P<0.05).The amount of tube formation and colony-forming rate were significant-ly reduced after treatment (P<0.05).The ratio of CECs quantity from APL patients after treatment to that before treatment had a negative correlation with arsenic concentration in urine on day 7 during As2O3 treatment (P<0.05).CONCLU-SION:Accurately counting CECs may be helpful for evaluating prognosis and designing treatment strategy .