OBJECTIVETo investigate the association of heptitis B virus (HBV) genotypes and precore(PreC)/basal core promoter(BCP) mutation with interruption failure of HBV vaccination in mother-to-infant transmission.

METHODSA total number of 208 serum samples were collected from infants and mothers,including 16 infants who had become HBsAg-positive despite a complete and timely course of immunization and another 88 infants successfully protected from mother-to infant HBV transmission. HBV genotypes were determined by type-specific primers PCR method. PreC/BCP mutations were detected by direct sequencing of PCR products, and Clustal W 1.8 software was applied to analyzing the sequences.

RESULTSOf 16 mothers who were having vaccine failure infants, 15 (93.8%) were HBeAg positive and infected with genotype C (15/15, 100%). Among 88 mothers of having children being protected by vaccine, 51 (58.0%) were HBeAg positive, with 45.1% (23/51) of genotype C. The proportion of genotype C in HBeAg mothers of infants with vaccine failure, was significantly higher than that of mothers with vaccine protected infants (chi2 = 14.3, P = 0.003). However, the frequencies of T1762/A1764 mutations had no significant differences between genotype C HBeAg positive mothers with vaccine failure or protected infants (33.3% and 13.3%, respectively, P = 0.4). No A1896 mutation was found in these two groups.

CONCLUSIONHBV genotype C might contribute to the immune failure of HBV vaccination in mother-to-infant transmission, while PreC/BCP mutation might not have correlation with it.

Adult ; Female ; Genes, Viral ; Genotype ; Hepatitis B ; immunology ; prevention & control ; transmission ; Hepatitis B Vaccines ; immunology ; Hepatitis B virus ; genetics ; immunology ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical ; prevention & control ; Mutation ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious ; immunology ; virology ; Promoter Regions, Genetic

OBJECTIVETo investigate the phosphorylation of KCNE2 protein in heart of old SHR rats.

METHODSThe membrane proteins from ventricular myocardium of old SHR were extracted, treated with or without alkaline phosphatase and tested binding with Ab2 (an anti-KCNE2 polyclonal antibody) by Western blot. A KCNE2 fusion protein with c-myc was obtained from in vitro translation system and treated with or without alkaline phosphatase. A series of mono- and double-point mutated fusion KCNE2 proteins with c-myc were obtained from an in vitro translation system, and Western blots with Ab2 or anti-myc antibody were performed.

RESULTSAfter alkaline phosphatase treatment, Ab2 significantly attenuated its binding with KCNE2. In vitro translation system confirmed that after alkaline phosphatase treatment, Ab2 weakened binding ability to KCNE2 while binding to c-myc was not changed. Point mutation experiments showed that serine residue in position 98 of KCNE2 proteins might be phosphorylated.

CONCLUSIONKCNE2 protein in heart of old SHR rats is phosphorylated and this phosphorylation takes place in serine residue of position 98.

Aging ; Animals ; Blotting, Western ; Hypertension ; genetics ; metabolism ; Myocardium ; metabolism ; Phosphorylation ; Point Mutation ; Potassium Channels, Voltage-Gated ; genetics ; metabolism ; Protein Binding ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc ; genetics ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred SHR ; Recombinant Fusion Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo explore the relationship between body mass index, waist circumference and blood pressure among residents in Chongqing area.

METHODSA total of 5246 residents aged 15 and over in Chongqing area were enrolled in this study by use of stratified sampling and cluster sampling methods. Data on blood pressure (SBP, DBP), pulse, height, body weight, waist and hip circumferences as well as questionnaire survey were analyzed.

RESULTSThe level of SBP and DBP and hypertension prevalence rate were significantly positively correlated with BMI (all P < 0.01). SBP, DBP levels and hypertension prevalence rate were significantly higher in people with abdomen obesity than people with normal waist circumference (all P < 0.01). BMI, waist circumference in hypertensive residents were significantly higher than non-hypertensive residents (all P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONBlood pressure level and hypertension prevalence rate were closely related with BMI and waist circumference among residents in Chongqing area.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Hypertension ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Rural Population ; Urban Population ; Waist Circumference ; Waist-Hip Ratio ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the kinesis of cellular immunity in adults who were vaccinated with yeast recombinant hepatitis B(rHB) vaccine and the correlation between cellular and humoral immune responses induced by the vaccine.

METHODSEight adults were vaccinated with rHB vaccine according to 0, 1,2 month schedule. The peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMCs) were collected at the 3, 8, 21, 34 and 65 days after the first dose. The high purity of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells obtained by sorting from PBMCs were restimulated with recombinant hepatitis B surface antigens (rHBsAg) or peptides. The spot forming cell (SFC) of IFN-gamma, IL-2 and IL-4 of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells were detected by enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT).

RESULTSThe characteristics of IFN-gamma, IL-2 and IL-4 of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells appeared different after immunization with rHB vaccine. IFN-gamma of CD8+ and CD4+ T cells could be detected early with stable SFC, while the IL-2 and IL-4 of CD4+ T cells appeared late but increased after the second and third dose of vaccination. The positive rate of IL-4 of CD4+ T cells were significantly correlated with the positive rate of anti-HBs, while the SFCs of IL-4 and IL-2 of CD4+ T cells were also significantly related to the titers of anti-FIBs.

CONCLUSIONIFN-gamma could be detected early after rHB vaccination in adults, and the positive rates of IL-4 and IL-2 were correlated with that of anti-HBs.

Adult ; CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes ; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes ; Hepatitis B Vaccines ; administration & dosage ; immunology ; Humans ; Immunization Schedule ; Interferon-gamma ; blood ; Interleukin-2 ; blood ; Interleukin-4 ; blood ; Vaccines, Synthetic ; immunology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical outcome and effect of interferon treatment on patients with chronic hepatitis C.

METHODS136 cases of patients with chronic hepatitis C were followed up by methods of retrospective survey combined with prospective study. SPSS16. 0 was used to perform chi-square test and multiple logistic regression.

RESULTS136 cases of patients were infected with HCV virus mainly through blood and blood products transfusion. They were diagnosed mainly between 2000 and 2005. 98 cases of them had anti-viral treatment with interferon and ribavirin, while the rest did not; 12 new cases developed HCV-related cirrhosis or liver carcinoma in five years, which accounted for 8.8% of the total. Among 76 cases once treated with interferon, 46 cases (60.5%) relapsed in five years. For patients with age < 40, the rates of cirrhosis and liver cancer were 0, and patients with age ≥ 40 but < 60 years, the rates of cirrhosis and liver cancer were 12.5% (7/56 cases), while for those ≥ 60 years old the rates were 35.7% (10/28 cases). The difference was significant ( B = 0.111, Wald = 4.324, P = 0.038) as analysed by logistic regression. The rates of cirrhosis and liver cancer were zero for those with normal or within twice the upper normal AST limit in five years, 43.5% (10/23 cases) for those with AST ranging from 2 to 4 fold the upper normal limit, and 58.3% (7/12 cases) for those with AST higher than four times the upper normal limit. The difference was also significant ( B = 2.184, Wald = 5.443, P = 0.02) by logistic regression analysis. The rate of relapse was 29.7% (11/37 cases) for those using pegylated interferon and 89.7% (35/39 cases) for those using interferon. The difference was significant ( Result of logistic regression showed-B = -2.077, Wald = 4.352, P = 0.037). The rate of relapse was 100% (15/15 cases) for those with treatment less than 24 weeks, 76.2% (16/21 cases) for those with treatment more than 24 weeks but less than 48 weeks, and 37.5% (14/40 cases) for those with treatment more than 48 weeks. The difference was significant (Result of logistic regression showed-B = -1.632, Wald = 6.651, P = 0.01). 42 cases of the relapsed (91.3%) were administrated with interferon once again with ideal effect.

CONCLUSIONHepatitis C virus infection increases the risk of liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. Interferon combined with ribavirin therapy could effectively control the virus and improve outcomes. We can reduce the incidence of relapse by choosing the treatment of pegylated interferon instead of interferon and by completing the full treatment.

Adult ; Antiviral Agents ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hepatitis C ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Interferon-alpha ; therapeutic use ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVETo study how hepatitis B virus(HBV) 'a' determinant hotpoint mutations were influecing the hepatitis B vaccine efficacy.

METHODSPrimers were designed in HBV conservative region, and the degenerate probes for detecting 16 'a' determinant hotpoint mutations were developed for gene chips. Sensitivity and specificity of the gene chips were evaluated by clone sequencing. Sera of 47 pairs of mothers and infants with immune failure and 323 mothers of children with immune protection of HB vaccine were detected by the gene chips.

RESULTSResult from clone sequencing demonstrated that the gene chips were specific for the detection of 'a' determinant hotpoint mutations. The wild type of HBV was still dominant, with the prevalence of 78.66%, and the mutation frequencies of 126A, 145R, 126S-1, 126S-2, 129H, 144A, and 129R were 11.27%, 5.76%, 5.28%, 4.56%, 1.20%, 0.72% and 0.24%, respectively. The prevalence of 126A mutation was significantly higher than that of other mutations(P < 0.01). No significant differences were found in mother-infant transmission rates of 126A, 126S-1, 126S-2 and 145R variants.

CONCLUSIONThe currently available hepatitis B vaccine could block mother-infant transmission of 126A, 126S and 145R variants. It appears that there is no need to develop a new hepatitis B vaccine against 126 and 145 variants at present, but the consistent epidemiological surveillance on HBV mutants should be carried out.

Adult ; Female ; Genotype ; Hepatitis B ; prevention & control ; transmission ; Hepatitis B Vaccines ; immunology ; Hepatitis B virus ; genetics ; immunology ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical ; prevention & control ; Mutation ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious ; prevention & control ; virology

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the efficacy of hepatitis B viruse (HBV) vaccination and its influencing factors among children in rural area of Jiangsu province.

METHODSTwenty-five hundred and twenty-two children born after 1998 in rural area were selected as the study population using multistage cluster sampling method. HBsAg and anti-HBs were detected by enzyme linked immunoassay (ELISA) and radio-immunoassay (RIA), respectively. Anti-HBs negative children were boosted using different hepatitis B vaccines and the efficacy was compared. Factors causing HBV infection in HBsAg positive children were also investigated.

RESULTSHBsAg positive rates in 1-7 year olds were 0.28%-1.28%, and the anti-HBs positive rates decreased from 76.7% to 45.5%. The HBsAg positive rate in children not timely vaccinated was significantly higher than those with HBV vaccine injection within 24 hours after birth (1.4% vs. 0.5%, P = 0.031). More than 90% of the anti-HBs negative children had protective level of anti-HBs after boosted with HBV vaccine.

CONCLUSIONHBsAg positive rate in children born after 1998 in rural area of Jiangsu province decreased significantly, with an average of 0.8%. The reason for HBsAg carriage in children might be attributed to mother-to-infant transmission or not timely HBV vaccination.

Adult ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Hepatitis B ; epidemiology ; immunology ; prevention & control ; transmission ; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens ; blood ; Hepatitis B Vaccines ; administration & dosage ; immunology ; Humans ; Infant ; Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical ; Pregnancy ; Rural Population

OBJECTIVETo identify differentially expressed genes related to asthma by using a rat model.

METHODSTotal RNA extracted from the asthmatic rats was taken as the tester and the total RNA from the control rats as the driver. Suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) was used to isolate the cDNA fragments of differentially expressed genes. The products of SSH were inserted into pGEM-T Easy vector to establish the subtractive library. The library was amplified through E.coli transformation and positive clones of the transformants were screened. The white clones in selective medium from cDNA library were isolated and digested by EcoR I restriction endonuclease. Thirty-six positive clones were chosen randomly and sequenced. Nucleic acid similarity was subsequently analyzed by comparing with the data from GenBank (NCBI).

RESULTSThere were more than 300 white clones in the cDNA library. The clones were sequenced and similarity search (http://www.ncbi.hlm.nih.gov/BLAST) revealed 4 known genes, 2 ESTs without homologous genes and 3 potential new gene fragments.

CONCLUSIONThe forward-subtracted cDNA library for differentially expressed in the lung of asthmatic rats has been successfully constructed and the interesting candidate genes related to asthma have been identified.

Animals ; Asthma ; genetics ; DNA, Complementary ; genetics ; Female ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Gene Expression Regulation ; Gene Library ; Male ; Nucleic Acid Hybridization ; methods ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred Strains

Adenoviridae ; genetics ; Animals ; Hepatocytes ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Lipopolysaccharides ; pharmacology ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; RNA, Small Interfering ; fas Receptor ; biosynthesis

OBJECTIVEThis study was designed to compare clinical efficacy of segmental pulmonary vein ablation (SPVI), amiodarone or amiodarone plus losartan on sinus rhythm maintenance in patients with lone paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF).

METHODSPatients with lone PAF were treated with amiodarone alone (A, n = 52), segmental pulmonary vein isolation (SPVI, n = 51), or amiodarone plus losartan (AL, n = 51). The primary endpoint of this study was the incidence of symptomatic atrial tachyarrhythmia (> 30 s) documented by 12 lead ECG or Holter during 12 months follow-up period.

RESULTSDuring follow-up, AF was documented in 24 patients (46.2%) in A group, 11 patients (21.6%) in SPVI group and 12 (23.5%) in AL group (P < 0.05 vs. A group). The Kaplan-Meier survival analysis demonstrated a significant equally reduction in AF recurrence in SPVI and AL groups (P = 0.009, log-rank test and P = 0.018, log-rank test, respectively) compared with A group. The hazard ratio for AF recurrence in patients treated with SPVI and amiodarone plus losartan was 0.41 (95% CI 0.200 to 0.848, P = 0.016) and 0.46 (95% CI 0.225 to 0.953, P = 0.036), respectively. Incidences of major adverse cardiac events were similar among the groups (9.6% in A, 3.9% in SPVI and 7.8% in AL group, P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe results of this study suggest that the segmental pulmonary vein isolation and amiodarone plus losartan are superior to amiodarone alone for preventing AF recurrence in patients with lone PAF.

Aged ; Amiodarone ; therapeutic use ; Anti-Arrhythmia Agents ; therapeutic use ; Atrial Fibrillation ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Catheter Ablation ; methods ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Losartan ; therapeutic use ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome