Dust ; prevention & control ; Humans ; Occupational Exposure ; prevention & control ; United States ; Workplace

Atomic force microscopy (AFM), as a sophisticated imaging tool with nanoscale resolution, is widely used in virus research and the application of functional viral particles. To investigate single viruses by AFM in a physiologically relevant environment (liquid), an appropriate surface treatment to properly adhere the viruses to the substrate is essential. Here we discuss hydrophobic treated glass coverslips as a suitable substrate for the adhesion of single adenovirus particle (Adenovirus type 5 F35, Ad5F35) when studied with AFM in liquid. From the high resolution AFM images, the orientation of the adhered virus particles can be distinguished. Furthermore, the particles exhibit the expected height of -90 nm. This illustrates that the viruses adhere to the substrate firmly without large deformations. Hence, the described method works well on (fragile) viruses. The described experimental approach can be widely used for AFM studies in liquid of virus structure and mechanics as well as for investigating the interaction of viruses with cellular receptors.
Adenoviridae ; chemistry ; Imaging, Three-Dimensional ; Microscopy, Atomic Force ; methods ; Virion ; chemistry

Attitude ; Humans ; Islam ; Ophthalmic Solutions ; Singapore

OBJECTIVE：To investigate the efficacy and safety of l ow-dose(80～160mg/d) sotalol on atrial fibrillation in the elderly patients of C hina.METHODS：Total 60 patients,65～89 years old with atrial fib rillation entered the randomized study,30 patients received sotalol and 30 recei ved amiodarone.There were no significant differences in baseline clinical charac teristics between groups.Patients randomized to sotalol began with 80mg/d.After first and second week,the dosage was added 40mg/d for those who had not reached the responsible criteria,patients randomized to amiodarone began with 200mg/d,me anwhile 100mg/d would be added for those who had not reached the responsible cri teria until the dose reached the maximum(400mg/d).Holter monitoring was used to assess the arrhythmias.RESULTS：①The total efficacy rate of sot alol was 63.3% and that of amiodarone was 62.1%(P＞0.05).②After the first week of treatment, the efficacy rate of sotalol reached 26.8% and that of Amiodrone was 10.3%(P＜0.05).③There was signifcant relativi ty between efficacy rate of sotolol and average heart rate decreasing(r =-0.85,P＜0.001),and there was also signifcant relativity betw een efficacy rate of sotalol and lengthened QTc interval(r=0.74,P＜0.001).④The accident rate of side effect of sotalol was 6.7%,no patients di scontinued sotalol therapy.CONCLUSION：Low-dose sotalol(80～160m g/d)was efficient and safe in the Chinese patients with atrial fibrillation.

To investigate the gene mutation in a pedigree with X-linked ichthyosis (XLI) and to explore the relationship between the mutation and its clinical manifestations, genomic DNA of affected members, the normal member of the pedigree and 50 unrelated normal members was extracted with a whole blood genomic DNA extraction kit and the DNA was used as a template for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-mediated amplification of exon 1 and exon 10 of the STS gene. hHb6 (human hair basic keratin) gene was used as the internal control. Our results showed that the STS gene was deleted in affected members in the pedigree with X-linked ichthyosis. The normal member of the pedigree and 50 unrelated normal members had no such deletion. The proband and his mother had products in the internal control after PCR amplification. The blank control had no product. It is concluded that deletion of the STS gene existed in this pedigree with X-linked ichthyosis, and it is responsible for the unique skin lesions of X-linked ichthyosis.

No abstract available.
Animals ; Babesiosis* ; Diagnosis* ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive* ; Young Adult*

Background: and Purpose The benefit regarding co-treatment with intravenous (IV) thrombolysis before mechanical thrombectomy in acute ischemic stroke with large vessel occlusion remains unclear. To test the hypothesis that clinical outcome of ischemic stroke patients with intracranial internal carotid artery, middle cerebral artery or basilar artery occlusion treated with direct endovascular thrombectomy within 4.5 hours will be non-inferior compared with that of standard bridging IV thrombolysis followed by endovascular thrombectomy. Methods: To randomize 780 patients 1:1 to direct thrombectomy or bridging IV thrombolysis with thrombectomy. An international-multicenter prospective randomized open label blinded endpoint trial (PROBE) (ClincalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03494920). Results: Primary endpoint is functional independence defined as modified Rankin Scale (mRS) 0–2 or return to baseline at 90 days. Secondary end points include ordinal mRS analysis, good angiographic reperfusion (modified Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction score [mTICI] 2b–3), safety endpoints include symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage and death. Conclusions DIRECT-SAFE will provide unique information regarding the impact of direct thrombectomy in patients with large vessel occlusion, including patients with basilar artery occlusion, with comparison across different ethnic groups.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the CT and MRI features of hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (HSOS) caused by herbal medicine Gynura segetum. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The CT and MRI features of 16 consecutive Gynura segetum induced HSOS cases (12 men, 4 women) were analyzed. Eight patients had CT; three patients had MRI, and the remaining five patients had both CT and MRI examinations. Based on their clinical presentations and outcomes, the patients were classified into three categories: mild, moderate, and severe. The severity of the disease was also evaluated radiologically based on the abnormal hepatic patchy enhancement in post-contrast CT or MRI images. RESULTS: Ascites, patchy liver enhancement, and main right hepatic vein narrowing or occlusion were present in all 16 cases. Hepatomegaly and gallbladder wall thickening were present in 14 cases (87.5%, 14/16). Periportal high intensity on T2-weighted images was present in 6 cases (75%, 6/8). Normal liver parenchymal enhancement surrounding the main hepatic vein forming a clover-like sign was observed in 4 cases (25%, 4/16). The extent of patchy liver enhancement was statistically associated with clinical severity classification (kappa = 0.565). CONCLUSION: Ascites, patchy liver enhancement, and the main hepatic veins narrowing were the most frequent signs of herbal medicine induced HSOS. The grade of abnormal patchy liver enhancement was associated with the clinical severity.
Adult ; Aged ; Ascites/diagnosis ; Asteraceae/chemistry ; Cholecystography ; Female ; Gallbladder/pathology ; Hepatic Veins/pathology/radiography ; Hepatic Veno-Occlusive Disease/chemically induced/*diagnosis ; Hepatomegaly/diagnosis ; Humans ; *Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Phytotherapy/*adverse effects ; Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids/adverse effects ; Severity of Illness Index ; *Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo assess the magnitude of overweight and obesity and its associated sociodemographic factors in adolescents attending junior high schools in Xi'an, Shanxi province.

METHODSA total of 1 804 adolescents attending junior high schools in Xi'an (age: 11-17 years) were enrolled randomly from 30 schools in 6 districts in Xi'an. Overweight and obesity was categorized with body mass index (BMI) cutoffs from Working Group of Obesity in China (WGOC). Underweight was defined by BMI-Z < or = -2 s. Sociodemographic information was collected from the parents of the survey participants using self-administered, structured and precoded questionnaires.

RESULTSOverall 17.4% of adolescents were overweight or obese (overweight 11.2%; obesity 6.2%), but there was a marked gender difference in the prevalence with 20.2% of boys versus 14.4% of the girls being overweight or obese. The prevalence of underweight was 2.7%. In a multivariate model, age, residence, household wealth, and parents' BMI were significantly associated with overweight and obesity (P < 0.05). After having been adjusted for age and gender, the odds ratio of an adolescent being overweight and obese was 2.7 (95% CI: 1.8-4.0) folds higher in urban areas than in rural areas, and was 1.6 (95% CI: 1.04-2.5) folds higher for adolescents from rich families than those from poor families. An adolescent with one or both parents overweight was 1.8 (95% CI: 1.3-2.5) more likely to be overweight themselves compared to those with normal weight parents.

CONCLUSIONSOverweight and obesity is a major public health problem in adolescents in Xi'an. Overweight and obesity is more prevalent in younger boys from richer families living in urban districts and those whose parents were either overweight or obese.

Adolescent ; Age Factors ; Child ; China ; epidemiology ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Income ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Nutritional Status ; Obesity ; epidemiology ; Overweight ; Parents ; Risk Factors ; Sex Factors

BACKGROUNDThe release of Weibel-Palade Bodies (WPB) is a form of endothelial cell activation. But the signal transduction pathway leading to WPB release is not yet defined. We hypothesized that small G-protein rac1 and reactive oxygen species (ROS) mediate the ligand induced release of Weibel-Palade Bodies.

METHODSWe tested this hypothesis by using wild-type and mutant adenoviral rac1 expression vectors, and by manipulating the production and destruction of superoxide and hydrogen peroxide in human aortic endothelial cells (HAEC).

RESULTSThrombin (1.0 Unit, 30 min) induced the increase of WPB release by 3.7-fold in HAEC, and that H2O2 (0.1 mmol/L, 30 min) induced by 4.5-fold. These results correlated with thrombin-stimulated activation of rac-GTP binding activity by 3.5-fold, and increase of ROS production by 3.4-fold. The dominant negative adenoviral rac-N17 gene transfer dramatically inhibited the release of WPB by 64.2% (control) and 77.3% (thrombin-stimulation), and decreased ROS production by 65.5% (control) and 83.6% (thrombin-stimulation) compared with non-infected cells, respectively. Anti-oxidants, catalase and N-acetyl-cysteine significantly decreased the release of WPB by 34% and 79% in control cells, and further decreased by 63.6% and 46.7% in rac-N17 transferred cells compared with non-infected cells. We also confirmed that rac1 was located upstream of ROS in the WPB release pathway.

CONCLUSIONSSmall G-protein rac1 medicates ligand-induced release of Weibel-Palade Bodies in human aortic endothelial cells, and the signal pathway of WPB release is a rac1-dependent ROS regulating mechanism.

Aorta ; ultrastructure ; Endothelial Cells ; ultrastructure ; Humans ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; Signal Transduction ; Thrombin ; pharmacology ; Weibel-Palade Bodies ; physiology ; rac1 GTP-Binding Protein ; physiology