Objective To establish a new method for rapid detection of β-thalassemia by investigating six clinical common mutation types.Methods Fifty cases of clinical wild-type samples and 42 cases ofβ-thalassemia samples were collected, and β-globin gene was amplified by PCR.Uniform ligation probe ( ULP) specific probes were designed for hybridization reaction to increase the reaction specificity and real-time PCR was performed to increase the sensitivity.After that, PCR products were verified by agarose electrophoresis.After examining the specificity and sensitivity, Kappa test between LDR-ULP method and reverse dot blot( RDB) method was conducted.Results Hybridization efficiency was improved 2.53 times by LDR-ULP hybridization.Each mutant type showed a significant amplification curve, whereas the wild-type had no significant curve within 40 cycles.The limit of determination of this method was 5 pg.The results of 92 cases of peripheral blood samples detected by the method of LDR-ULP and RDB were completely consistent.Conclusion In this study, a simple, inexpensive, rapid new method to detect β-thalassemia were established.

Objective To establish a homothermal and fast detecting method on pathogenic bacteria by combining recombinase-aid amplification (RAA) with molecular beacon.Methods The establishment of the methodology.Staphylococcus aureus specific primers were designed from the relative region of the staphylococcal protein A (SPA).Asymmetry amplification was optimized by adjusting the primer concentration ratios.The results of amplification and hybridization were visualized and analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis and fluorescence detection.The sensitivity was identified by detecting dilute positive plasmids.And the specificity was determined using RAA method by detecting 72 pathogenic bacteria,including Staphylococcus aureus and other Staphylococcus spp.from the Department of Clinical Laboratory of Daping Hospital in December 2016.Besides,the Kappa analysis and the clinical diagnosis efficiency were investigated by analyzing 39 extra strains in the laboratory in December 2016.Results When the concentration ratio of restrictive and non-restrictive primer was 1:20,the yield efficiency of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) reached the peak.And as for the hybridization efficiency,the asymmetry amplification was higher than symmetry amplification.Twenty copies/μl was proposed as the limits of detection by testing dilute plasmids.And the RAA hybridization method could distinguish Staphylococcus aureus with other Staphylococcus spp.Comparing with traditional detection methods with a Kappa index of 0.860,this method shows a good consistency.By analyzing the 111 bacteria,the sensitivity of the method is 92.5％ (37/40),the specificity is 97.2％ (69/71),the positive predictive value is 94.9％ (37/39),the negative predictive value is 95.8％ (69/72),the positive likelihood radio is 33.04,the negative likelihood radio is 0.077,the Youden index is 0.897 and the Kappa index is 0.902.Conclusion Through the combination of asymmetry recombinase-aid amplification optimization and molecular beacon probe,a new method of detecting bacteria DNA with RAA hybridization technique is established,providing the foundation for its clinical application.

Asthma, a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airway, has features of both heritability as well as environmental influences which can be introduced in utero exposures and modified through aging, and the features may attribute to epigenetic regulation. Epigenetic regulation explains the association between early prenatal maternal smoking and later asthma-related outcomes. Epigenetic marks (DNA methylation, modifications of histone tails or noncoding RNAs) work with other components of the cellular regulatory machinery to control the levels of expressed genes, and several allergy- and asthma-related genes have been found to be susceptible to epigenetic regulation, including genes important to T-effector pathways (IFN-γ, interleukin [IL] 4, IL-13, IL-17) and T-regulatory pathways (FoxP3). Therefore, the mechanism by which epigenetic regulation contributes to allergic diseases is a critical issue. In the past most published experimental work, with few exceptions, has only comprised small observational studies and models in cell systems and animals. However, very recently exciting and elegant experimental studies and novel translational research works were published with new and advanced technologies investigating epigenetic mark on a genomic scale and comprehensive approaches to data analysis. Interestingly, a potential link between exposure to environmental pollutants and the occurrence of allergic diseases is revealed recently, particular in developed and industrialized countries, and endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) as environmental hormone may play a key role. This review addresses the important question of how EDCs (nonylphenol, 4 octylphenol, and phthalates) influences on asthma-related gene expression via epigenetic regulation in immune cells, and how anti-asthmatic agents prohibit expression of inflammatory genes via epigenetic modification. The discovery and validation of epigenetic biomarkers linking exposure to allergic diseases might lead to better epigenotyping of risk, prognosis, treatment prediction, and development of novel therapies.
Acetylation ; Aging ; Animals ; Anti-Asthmatic Agents ; Asthma ; Biomarkers ; Developed Countries ; Endocrine Disruptors ; Environmental Pollutants ; Epigenomics ; Gene Expression ; Histones ; Hypersensitivity ; Interleukin-13 ; Interleukins ; Methylation ; Prognosis ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Statistics as Topic ; Tail ; Translational Medical Research

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical outcomes of anterior corpectomy combined with anterior intervertebral decompression and fusion for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy.

METHODSThe clinical data of 28 patients with multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy who underwent surgery from October 2012 to June 2014 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 18 males and 10 females, aged from 45 to 77 years old with an average of (60.11±9.37) years. Three levels were involved in 27 cases, while four levels were involved in 1 case. The preoperative JOA score was 8.89±1.87; the fusion segments angles was (4.87±4.56)°; and the cervical curvature was (11.68±1.25)°. Anterior hybrid decompression and fusion were performed in 28 patients. The fusion segments angles and the cervical curvature were assessed by X-rays at 1, 12 months after operation, respectively. JOA score was used to evaluate the clinical effect.

RESULTSThe operative time was 163 min on average (ranged from 120 to 205 min), and intraoperative bleeding was 198 ml on average(ranged from 100 to 300 ml). Hoarseness occurred in 1 case and got recovery at 3 weeks after operation and choke cough occurred in 1 case, and got improvement at 1 week after operation. All the patients were regularly followed for 12-24 months with an average of(18.46±3.20) months. Graft bone obtained fusion at 12 months after operation and the position of internal fixation was good. The fusion segments angles, the cervical curvature and JOA scores were significantly improved at 1, 12 months after operation(<0.05). The improvement rate of JOA score was(46.46±20.26)% at 12 months after operation, 12 cases got excellent results, 14 good and 2 fair.

CONCLUSIONSAnterior corpectomy combined with anterior intervertebral decompression and fusion is safe and effective and can get satisfactory effects for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy.

A LC-MS method was established for the determination of the protein binding rates of oleanolic acid in human plasma and serum albumin. The equilibrium dialysis combined with LC-MS to determine the total concentration in plasma and free drug concentration of oleanolic acid was carried out. The human plasma protein binding rates of oleanolic acid at three concentrations were 79.6%, 81.9% and 63.3%, respectively. The human serum albumin protein binding rates of oleanolic acid at three concentrations were 53.5%, 56.6% and 47.7%, respectively. The method is shown to be simple, accurate, sensitive and specific for the determination of biological samples. The protein binding rates in human plasma and serum albumin were of high strength.
Chromatography, Liquid ; methods ; Dialysis ; Humans ; Mass Spectrometry ; methods ; Oleanolic Acid ; blood ; Protein Binding ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Serum Albumin ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo investigate the normal range of (CAG)n in spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1) gene and spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3/MJD) gene in 110 normal subjects of Han population in Northeastern China, to assess the genotypes for clinically diagnosed spinocerebellar ataxia(SCA) individuals including 25 patients from 8 families and 6 sporadic patients, and to make presymptomatic and prenatal diagnosis.

METHODSDNA fragments from the normal subjects and the patients were detected by fluorescence-PCR. Homozygosities were selected for DNA sequencing.

RESULTSThe normal ranges of (CAG)n of SCA1 and SCA3/MJD were 20-39 and 14-38 repeats respectively, SCA1 was found mostly to be 26 and 27 repeats, allele frequency 34.09% and 20.91%; heterozygosity was 84.55%, SCA3/MJD was found mostly to be 14 repeats, allele frequency 39.55%, heterozygosity was 78.18%.(CAG)(68) of SCA3/MJD gene of one affected individual had been found in a family but no CAG mutative expansion in related members was observed.

CONCLUSIONThe normal ranges of CAG repeats vary with areas and races. SCAs genotyping is the first choice in presymptomatic and prenatal diagnosis.

Ataxin-1 ; Ataxin-3 ; Ataxins ; China ; DNA ; chemistry ; genetics ; Family Health ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Genotype ; Humans ; Machado-Joseph Disease ; diagnosis ; genetics ; Male ; Nerve Tissue Proteins ; genetics ; Nuclear Proteins ; genetics ; Pedigree ; Repressor Proteins ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Spinocerebellar Ataxias ; diagnosis ; genetics ; Trinucleotide Repeat Expansion ; genetics ; Trinucleotide Repeats ; genetics

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVEEarly diagnosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is difficult due to the insufficient specificity of the conventional examination method. This study was to investigate potential and consistent biomarkers for NPC, particularly for early detection of NPC.

METHODSA proteomic pattern was identified in a training set (134 NPC patients and 73 control individuals) using the surface-enhanced laser desorption and ionization-mass spectrometry (SELDI-MS), and used to screen the test set (44 NPC patients and 25 control individuals) to determine the screening accuracy. To confirm the accuracy, it was used to test another group of 52 NPC patients and 32 healthy individuals at 6 months later.

RESULTSEight proteomic biomarkers with top-scored peak mass/charge ratios (m/z) of 8605 Da, 5320 Da, 5355 Da, 5380 Da, 5336 Da, 2791 Da, 7154 Da, and 9366 Da were selected as the potential biomarkers of NPC with a sensitivity of 90.9% (40/44) and a specificity of 92.0% (23/25). The performance was better than the current diagnostic method by using the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) capsid antigen IgA antibodies (VCA/IgA). Similar sensitivity (88.5%) and specificity (90.6%) were achieved in another group of 84 samples.

CONCLUSIONSELDI-MS profiling might be a potential tool to identify patients with NPC, particularly at early clinical stages.

Adult ; Aged ; Algorithms ; Antibodies, Viral ; blood ; Antigens, Viral ; blood ; Biomarkers, Tumor ; blood ; Capsid Proteins ; blood ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms ; blood ; diagnosis ; Neoplasm Proteins ; blood ; Proteomics ; methods ; Reproducibility of Results ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization ; methods

Background: and Purpose This study aimed to investigate early changes in interstitial fluid (ISF) flow in patients with severe carotid stenosis after carotid angioplasty and stenting (CAS). Methods: We prospectively recruited participants with carotid stenosis ≥80% undergoing CAS at our institute between October 2019 and March 2023. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), including diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) were performed 3 days before CAS. MRI with DTI and MMSE were conducted within 24 hours and 2 months after CAS, respectively. The diffusion tensor image analysis along the perivascular space (DTI-ALPS) index was calculated from the DTI data to determine the ISF status. Increments were defined as the ratio of the difference between post- and preprocedural values to preprocedural values. Results: In total, 102 participants (age: 67.1±8.9 years; stenosis: 89.5%±5.7%) with longitudinal data were evaluated. The DTI-ALPS index increased after CAS (0.85±0.15; 0.85 [0.22] vs. 0.86±0.14; 0.86 [0.21]; P=0.022), as did the MMSE score (25.9±3.7; 24.0 [4.0] vs. 26.9±3.4; 26.0 [3.0]; P<0.001). Positive correlations between increments in the DTI-ALPS index and MMSE score were found in all patients (rs=0.468; P<0.001). Conclusion An increased 24-hour post-CAS DTI-ALPS index suggests early improvement in ISF flow efficiency. The positive correlation between the 24-hour DTI-ALPS index and 2-month MMSE score increments suggests that early ISF flow improvement may contribute to long-term cognitive improvement after CAS.

Background: and Purpose This study aimed to investigate early changes in interstitial fluid (ISF) flow in patients with severe carotid stenosis after carotid angioplasty and stenting (CAS). Methods: We prospectively recruited participants with carotid stenosis ≥80% undergoing CAS at our institute between October 2019 and March 2023. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), including diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) were performed 3 days before CAS. MRI with DTI and MMSE were conducted within 24 hours and 2 months after CAS, respectively. The diffusion tensor image analysis along the perivascular space (DTI-ALPS) index was calculated from the DTI data to determine the ISF status. Increments were defined as the ratio of the difference between post- and preprocedural values to preprocedural values. Results: In total, 102 participants (age: 67.1±8.9 years; stenosis: 89.5%±5.7%) with longitudinal data were evaluated. The DTI-ALPS index increased after CAS (0.85±0.15; 0.85 [0.22] vs. 0.86±0.14; 0.86 [0.21]; P=0.022), as did the MMSE score (25.9±3.7; 24.0 [4.0] vs. 26.9±3.4; 26.0 [3.0]; P<0.001). Positive correlations between increments in the DTI-ALPS index and MMSE score were found in all patients (rs=0.468; P<0.001). Conclusion An increased 24-hour post-CAS DTI-ALPS index suggests early improvement in ISF flow efficiency. The positive correlation between the 24-hour DTI-ALPS index and 2-month MMSE score increments suggests that early ISF flow improvement may contribute to long-term cognitive improvement after CAS.

Background: and Purpose This study aimed to investigate early changes in interstitial fluid (ISF) flow in patients with severe carotid stenosis after carotid angioplasty and stenting (CAS). Methods: We prospectively recruited participants with carotid stenosis ≥80% undergoing CAS at our institute between October 2019 and March 2023. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), including diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) were performed 3 days before CAS. MRI with DTI and MMSE were conducted within 24 hours and 2 months after CAS, respectively. The diffusion tensor image analysis along the perivascular space (DTI-ALPS) index was calculated from the DTI data to determine the ISF status. Increments were defined as the ratio of the difference between post- and preprocedural values to preprocedural values. Results: In total, 102 participants (age: 67.1±8.9 years; stenosis: 89.5%±5.7%) with longitudinal data were evaluated. The DTI-ALPS index increased after CAS (0.85±0.15; 0.85 [0.22] vs. 0.86±0.14; 0.86 [0.21]; P=0.022), as did the MMSE score (25.9±3.7; 24.0 [4.0] vs. 26.9±3.4; 26.0 [3.0]; P<0.001). Positive correlations between increments in the DTI-ALPS index and MMSE score were found in all patients (rs=0.468; P<0.001). Conclusion An increased 24-hour post-CAS DTI-ALPS index suggests early improvement in ISF flow efficiency. The positive correlation between the 24-hour DTI-ALPS index and 2-month MMSE score increments suggests that early ISF flow improvement may contribute to long-term cognitive improvement after CAS.