Hepatitis C virus ( HCV) infection is one of the main reasons causing liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The quasispecies composition and the evolution of HCV are very complicated. An in-depth analysis of the quasispecies composition of HCV is critical for elucidating the mechanisms of HCV transmission. The regions encoding the envelope glycoproteins (E1 and E2) and the nonstructural protein 2 (NS2) are hyper variable regions (HVR). Analyzing the quasispecies of HCV HVR with advanced sequen-cing and bio-information technologies would be beneficial for understanding the sources of HCV infection, the routes of transmission and the evolution of HCV. Currently, three generations of sequencing methods and some bio-information soft-wares are available for analyzing HCV HVR quasispecies. When an outbreak of HCV infection happens, using the new generation of sequencing and bio-information methods to seek the first case and the routes of transmission would provide scientific basis for the prevention and treatment of HCV in-fection.

AIM: To determine the interactions with response-surface modeling methodologies when sevoflurane (Sevo) and remifentanil (Remi) were administered simultaneously. METHODS: (1) Patients, Study design and drug delivery: Based on parallel slices design, sixty-five patients were randomly assigned to inhale a specific end-tidal concentration of sevoflurane (0.3% to 3.4%), with different level of remifentanil (0-10 ng/mL). The responses to laryngoscopy were observed for each given concentration pair. (2) Pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic analysis with response surface mode: The probability of no response (P) was assessed in the modeling process as below. P=(Us+Ur)r/[U50/I(Q)]r+(Us+Ur)r RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: NONMEM estimated average values (RSE%) of the model parameters for laryngoscopy of C50,Sevo, C50,remi, U50, r, Imax and Qmax are 1.71% (12.9), 12.4 ng/mL (19.0), 6.62 (10.6), 1.53 (8.76), 2.31 (8.23), 0.706 (2.46), respectively. The inter-individual variability (CV%) in parameter Imax and inter-occasion variability (S.D.) in this model are 12.7 and 0.0316, respectively. It is concluded that the response-surface modeling approach provided a novel method to study drug-drug interactions.

Objective To explore the value of serum ischemia modified albumin (IMA) level in assessment of disease severity for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).Methods A total of 81 cases of patients with COPD treated in our hospital from September 2015 to March 2016 were selected (COPD group),including 51 cases of patients with acute exacerbation of COPD and 30 cases of patients with stable of COPD.Meanwhile,30 volunteers without COPD were collected as control group.Serum levels of IMA were detected and compared among different groups.Correlations between serum level of IMA and serum level of myoglobin (MYO),troponin T (TNT) and C reactive protein (CRP),and white blood cell (WBC) count were analyzed respectively.A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was also plotted to investigate the diagnostic value of serum IMA level for diagnosing COPD.Results Serum level of IMA in the COPD group was higher than that in the control group [84.1 (79.1,88.5) U/L vs.73.1 (70.2,75.1)U/L],serum level of IMA in patients with acute exacerbation of COPD was higher than that of patients with stable of COPD [85.5 (82.3,89.4)U/L vs.78.1 (75.9,83.0)U/L],serum levels of IMA in patients with acute exacerbation and stable of COPD both were higher than that in the control group,there were statistically significant differences (P＜0.05).The serum level of IMA was positively related with serum level of MYO in patients with COPD (r=0.554,P =0.00).ROC curve indicated when the cutoff value was set as 76.55 U/L,the sensitivity and specificity of serum level of IMA for diagnosing COPD was 88.5％ and 80.0％ respectively,and area under the ROC curve was 0.88.Conclusion Serum level of IMA could be a valuable indicator for clinically assessing disease severity of patients with COPD,which deserves further study through expanding samples size.

Objective To evaluate the effeciency and safety of the implantation of phakic iris-fixated intraocular lens for high myopia.Methods 12 cases(18 eyes)with the mean spherieal equivalent refraction was(-15.12?5.23)diopters of myopia,following up 3~6 months after surgery(averaging 5.1 months)were enrolled.Visual acuity,intraocular pressure,contrast sensitivity,glare sensitivity,corneal endothelium and the stable of intraocular lens and the turbid level of lens were observed.Results A postoperation uncorrected visual acuity of(0.73?0.21)was observed in 18 eyes at 6 months.There was significant difference as compared with preoperation corrected visual acuity of(0.52?0.17)(P

Objective To investigate the protective effect of carnosine on radiation-induced lung injury in mice.Methods A total of 108 C57/BL female mice were randomly divided into 4 groups:control group without treatment,irradiation alone group,irradiation + carnosine group (15 mg·kg-1·d-1),and carnosine alone group (15 mg· kg-1· d-1).There were 18 mice in control group and 30 mice in every other group.Whole lung anterior chest was irradiated with a single dose of 13 Gy 10 MV X-rays.The mice were administered with carnosine (15 mg· kg-1· d-1) at 30 minutes before irradiation and then garaged once a day until the end of the experiment.The control group was given with saline.At 7,28,and 56 d after irradiation,6 mice of control group and 10 mice of each other group were killed.A portion of lung tissues were stained with HE and other part of lung tissues were used to detect the levels of SOD.Meanwhile,TGF-β1 and TNF-α in the serum were detected with ELISA.Results Different levels of inflammation factors were expressed in the lung tissues of irradiation group and irradiation + carnosine group at 56 d after irradiation,but the inflammation in the irradiation + carnosine group was significantly lighter than that in the irradiation group.Among (7,28 and 56 d) after radiation,TGF-β1,TNF-α,and SOD levels in different groups had significant differences.At the same time point after irradiation,the level of SOD in lung tissue of irradiation + carnosine group was significantly higher than that of irradiation group (F =4.33,4.19,3.34,P ＜0.05),but the levels of TGF-β1 and TNF-α in serum were reduced.Conclusions Carnosine can prevent and inhibit radiation-induced lung injury in mice by increasing SOD and reducing TGF-β1 and TNF-α.

Objective To evaluate the usefulness of mycolic acid for identification of Mycobacterium species using SMIS. Methods One hundred and eighteen clinical Mycobacterium isolates collected from Beijing Tuberculosis and Thoracic Tumor Research Institute through whole year of 2007 were analyzed. The 118 isolates contain 25 isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and 93 non tuberculosis Mycobacterium identified by PNB method. Mycolic acid analysis using SMIS is evaluated for identification of a broad range of Mycobacteria in comparison with 16S rDNA , 16-23S rDNA ITS sequencing to measure the concordance rate and agreement, and verify the concordance rate and agreement among results of mycolic acid, sequencing and PNB in identifying Mycobacterium tuberculosis and non tuberculosis Mycobacterium. Results The concordance rate between mycolic acid method analysis and DNA sequencing is 92% ( 108/118), of which concordance rate in Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex and non tuberculosis Mycobacterium are 95% (35/37) and 90% (73/81) respectively, agreement of both is great( agreement Kappa value is 0. 96). Through retrospective analysis, the concordance of results between SMIS and PNB method analysis is 90% (106/118)and agreement is well( agreement Kappa value is 0. 73 ), the concordance of results between sequencing and PNB method analysis is also 90% ( 106/118 ) and agreement is well (agreement Kappa value is 0. 74 ),despite the identification results of 11 isolates by PNB method are discordant. Conclusion Mycolic acid analysis by SMIS enables rapid identification of a broad range of clinical Mycobacterium species, which could play an important role in polyphasic identification of Mycobacterium species.

BACKGROUND:Studies have reported that taurine has a certain therapeutic effect on the disease of various systems, such as nervous system, cardiovascular system, immune system and digestive system. The liver is the main place, also the important target organ, of taurine metabolism. Therefore, the relationship between taurine and hepatopathy has become a hot topic in recent years. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the influence of taurine on superoxide dismutase and malondialdehyde expression in the liver tissue of rat models of liver fibrosis induced by carbon tetrachloride. METHODS:Thirty male C57B/L rats of SPF grade were randomly and evenly divided into blank control, model and taurine groups. Rats in the blank control group were intraperitonealy injected with 100% peanut oil of 1 mL/kg, twice a week, in total 10 weeks. Rats in the model group were intraperitonealy injected with peanut oil of 1 mL/kg containing 20% carbon tetrachloride, twice a week, in total 10 weeks. Rats in the taurine group were intraperitonealy injected with peanut oil of 1mL/kg containing 20% carbon tetrachloride, twice a week, in total 10 weeks, and were intragastricaly administered taurine of 500 mg/kg per day starting from the 3rd week til the 10th week. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the blank control group, the serum levels of hyaluronic acid, laminin, typeⅢ procolagen, typeⅣ colagen, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase were significantly increased (P < 0.05), the level of superoxide dismutase in the liver tissue was lowered (P < 0.05), the level of malondialdehyde in liver tissue was significantly increased (P < 0.05), and liver index was increased (P < 0.05) in the model group. Pathological examination showed that there were necrosis of liver cels, fat vacuoles, fibrous tissue hyperplasia and inflammatory cel infiltration in the rats of the model group. Compared with the model group, the serum levels of hyaluronic acid, laminin, typeⅢ procolagen, typeⅣ colagen, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase were significantly lowered (P < 0.05), the level of superoxide dismutase in the liver tissue was significantly increased (P < 0.05), the level of malondialdehyde in the liver tissue was significantly lowered (P < 0.05), and liver index was significantly decreased (P < 0.05) in the taurine group. Pathological examination showed that there were no inflammatory cel infiltration, fat vacuoles, and fibrous tissue deposition in the liver tissue. The results indicate that taurine can decrease the contents of superoxide dismutase and malondialdehyde, and relieve the degree of liver fibrosis induced by carbon tetrachloridevia exerting its antioxidative effects.

Recently, gut microbiota is found to be associated with human health and diseases. Environmental and genetic factors both play pivotal roles in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes, in which the gut microbiota is regarded as an important environmental factor. In addition, gut microbiota may become a novel therapeutic approach for type 2 diabetes. Present review focused on the association between the alterations of gut microbiome and type 2 diabetes, hyperglycemia, and insulin resistance;also summarized the molecular mechanisms underlying microbe-host interactions in the context of diabetes, potential contribution of the gut microbiota to the pharmacological or surgical treatment of type 2 diabetes, and the interaction of human genetics with gut microbiome. Based on the understanding of gut microbiota-host interactions, probiotic and fecal microbiota transplantation will be potential novel therapeutic approaches for type 2 diabetes.

Objective To study the risk factors and prognosis of very/extremely low birth weight preterm (VLBW/ELBW) infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) during the first three years of life.Method From January 1st to December 31st,2012,a retrospective study was conducted on the VLBW/ELBW preterm infants with ＞ 28 days of hospitalization in the NICU of our hospital.The infants were assigned into BPD group (FiO2 ＞ 21％) and non-BPD group depending on the oxygen requirement on the 28th day after birth.The incidences of bronchitis,pneumonia,wheezing and re-hospitalization during the first three years of life were analyzed.The pulmonary function tests were performed at one-year-age.Independent-sapmles t test,Kruskal-wallis test and x2 test were used to compare the results between the two groups.Result A total of 72 patients were enrolled into this study.34 patients in the BPD group and 38 in the non-BPD group.The gestational age,birth weight and the use of INSURE technique of BPD group were significantly lower than non-BPD group,while the duration of hospital stays were longer than non-BPD group (P ＜0.05).The ratio of male,neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS),patent ductus arteriosus (PDA),intrauterine infection,mechanical ventilation,nosocomial infection and the inhalation of high concentrations of oxygen were significantly higher in BPD group than non-BPD group (P ＜ 0.05).Incidences of bronchitis and wheezing during 0 ～ 1,1 ～ 2 and 2 ～ 3 years of age in the BPD were significantly higher than non-BPD group,separately.No significant differences existed in the incidences of pneumonia and re-hospitalization between the two groups.Pulmonary function test showed that the respiratory rate (RR) and peak tidal expiratory flow in the BPD group were significantly higher than non-BPD group,while the tidal volume,peak expiratory time and peak expiratory volume were significantly lower in BPD group than non-BPD group (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion BPD often occurs in preterm infants with gestational age less than 32 weeks.It may cause impaired pulmonary function,characterized by obstruction in small airway,and increases the risk of bronchitis and wheezing during the first three year of life.

We wished to undertake molecular genetic typing and evaluate recombinants of the hepatitis-B virus (HBV) in Tibet (China). Multistage random sampling was used to collect HBsAg-positive samples. Nested polymerase chain reactions were used to amplify the whole sequence of the HBV. DNAstar, MEGA6 and SimPlot were used to assemble sequences, create phylogenetic trees, and undertake recombination analyses. Twelve whole sequences of the HBV of a Tibetan population were collected using these methods. Results showed that all 12 strains were C/D recombinants. Nine of the recombinations were at nt750, and the other three at nt1526. Therefore, the 12 strains could be divided into two types of recombinants: C/Da and C/Db. Analyses of the sequence of the whole genome revealed that the 12 strains belonged to genotype C, and that the nucleotide distance was > 4% between the 12 strains and sub-genotypes C1 to C15 in Genbank. The most likely sub-genotype was C1. Individuals with C/Da were from central and northern Tibet (e.g., Lasa, Linzhi, Ali) and those with C/Db recombinants were from Shannan in southern Tibet. These data suggest that the two types of recombinants had a good distribution in Tibet. Also, they can provide important information for studies on HBV recombination, gene features, virus evolution, as well as the control and prevention of HBV infection in Tibet.
Adult ; Female ; Genotype ; Hepatitis B ; virology ; Hepatitis B virus ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Humans ; Male ; Phylogeny ; Recombination, Genetic ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Tibet ; Young Adult