Objective To evaluate the value of the Heidelberg retina tomograph - Ⅱ in detection of primary chronic angle-closure glaucoma(CACG) in a Chinese population, and to investigate the difference of parameters detected by HRT-Ⅱ between normal subjects and CACG patients. To evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of optic disk detection using Moorfields regression analysis (MRA) and linear discriminant function(LDF) of the HRT-Ⅱ in differentiating normal from CACG eyes. Design Prospective, comparative case series. Participants 64 eyes of 32 normal subjects and 77 eyes of 51 patients with CACG were studied. The normal subjects were ageand refraction-matched with the glaucoma patients. Methods The interventions consisted of optic disk imaged by means of HRT-Ⅱ and visual field (VF) detected with Oculus Twinfield perimetry. The CACG patients then were divided into two groups according to the VF discriminant standard and mean defect (MD) of Oculus Twinfield perimetry, the group with the glaucomatous VF defect and the group without VF defect. The optic disk was described with 14 optic disk parameters. The optic disc parameters between the normal and the patients were compared. The optic disks were also classified as "normal/borderline/outside normal limits" on the basis of MRA. The results from MRA and from LDF provided in the HRT-Ⅱ were compared. Main Outcome Measures Optic disk parameters, MD of the VF, the VF discriminant standard, the sensitivity and specificity of HRT-Ⅱ examination. Results Between the normal and CACG patients, differences of the most of optic disk parameters were significant statistically (P

Engineered probiotics can serve as therapeutics based on their ability of produce recombinant immune-stimulating properties. In this study, we built the recombinant Bacillus subtilis WB800 expressing antimicrobial peptide KR32 (WB800-KR32) using genetic engineering methods and investigated its protective effects of nuclear factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)‍-Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1) pathway activation in intestinal oxidative disturbance induced by enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) K88 in weaned piglets. Twenty-eight weaned piglets were randomly distributed into four treatment groups with seven replicates fed with a basal diet. The feed of the control group (CON) was infused with normal sterilized saline; meanwhile, the ETEC, ETEC+WB800, and ETEC+WB800-KR32 groups were orally administered normal sterilized saline, 5×10¹⁰ CFU (CFU: colony forming units) WB800, and 5×10¹⁰ CFU WB800-KR32, respectively, on Days 1‍‒‍14 and all infused with ETEC K88 1×10¹⁰ CFU on Days 15‍‒‍17. The results showed that pretreatment with WB800-KR32 attenuated ETEC-induced intestinal disturbance, improved the mucosal activity of antioxidant enzyme (catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx)) and decreased the content of malondialdehyde (MDA). More importantly, WB800-KR32 downregulated genes involved in antioxidant defense (GPx and SOD1). Interestingly, WB800-KR32 upregulated the protein expression of Nrf2 and downregulated the protein expression of Keap1 in the ileum. WB800-KR32 markedly changed the richness estimators (Ace and Chao) of gut microbiota and increased the abundance of Eubacterium_rectale_ATCC_33656 in the feces. The results suggested that WB800-KR32 may alleviate ETEC-induced intestinal oxidative injury through the Nrf2-Keap1 pathway, providing a new perspective for WB800-KR32 as potential therapeutics to regulate intestinal oxidative disturbance in ETEC K88 infection.
Animals ; Swine ; Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli ; Kelch-Like ECH-Associated Protein 1 ; Bacillus subtilis ; NF-E2-Related Factor 2 ; Antioxidants ; Oxidative Stress