Aims: The objective of the study was to isolate bacteriophages and conduct a comprehensive analysis of their potential against Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) strains in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Methodology and results: Twelve Xoo strains were isolated from rice fields located in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Among these strains, three strains Xoo L019, L020 and L024, showed the highest disease index of bacterial blight. Four phages specific to Xoo were isolated from soil, water and leaf samples, and their morphologies were determined. In a test against 12 Xoo strains, phage L541, MLA23 or W41 could infect 10 of the 12 Xoo strains, while phage LBH01 could infect 8 of the 12 Xoo strains. The stability of the phages to pH, organic solvents, UV-A and UV-B was also evaluated. Conclusion, significance and impact of study The initial characterization of the phages indicates their potential as biocontrol agents against bacterial blight in rice. The study is one of the very first studies about Xoo phages in rice in Vietnam.

Background: Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) mutations have been identified as a prominent cause of some familial and sporadic neuroblastoma (NB). ALK expression in NB and its relationship with clinical and histopathological features remains controversial. This study investigated ALK expression and its potential relations with these features in NB. Methods: Ninety cases of NB at the Department of Pathology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam from 01/01/2018 to 12/31/2021, were immunohistochemically stained with ALK (D5F3) antibody. The ALK expression and its relations with some clinical and histopathological features were investigated. Results: The rate of ALK expression in NB was 91.1%. High ALK expression (over 50% of tumor cells were positive with moderate-strong intensity) accounted for 65.6%, and low ALK expression accounted for 34.4%. All the MYCN-amplified NB patients had ALK immunohistochemistry positivity, most cases had high ALK protein expression. The undifferentiated subtype of NB had a lower ALK-positive rate than the poorly differentiated and differentiated subtype. The percentages of ALK positivity were significantly higher in more differentiated histological types of NB (p = .024). There was no relation between ALK expression and: age group, sex, primary tumor location, tumor stage, MYCN status, clinical risk, Mitotic-Karyorrhectic Index, prognostic group, necrosis, and calcification. Conclusions ALK was highly expressed in NB. ALK expression was not related to several clinical and histopathological features. More studies are needed to elucidate the association between ALK expression and ALK gene status and to investigate disease progression, especially the oncogenesis of ALK-positive NB.

Background: The identification of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) requires a comprehensive analysis involving clinical manifestations and histological findings. This study aims to provide insights into the histopathological and immunohistochemical aspects of IIMs. Methods: This retrospective case series involved 56 patients diagnosed with IIMs at the Department of Pathology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, from 2019 to 2023. The histology and immunohistochemical expression of HLA-ABC, HLA-DR, C5b-9, Mx1/2/3, and p62 were detected. Results: We examined six categories of inflammatory myopathy, including immunemediated necrotizing myopathy (58.9%), dermatomyositis (DM; 23.2%), overlap myositis (8.9%), antisynthetase syndrome (5.4%), inclusion body myositis (IBM; 1.8%), and polymyositis (1.8%). The average age of the patients was 49.7 ± 16.1 years, with a female-to-male ratio of 3:1. Inflammatory cell infiltration in the endomysium was present in 62.5% of cases, perifascicular atrophy was found in 17.8%, and fiber necrosis was observed in 42 cases (75.0%). Rimmed vacuoles were present in 100% of cases in the IBM group. Immunohistochemistry showed the following positivity rates: HLA-ABC (89.2%), HLA-DR (19.6%), C5b-9 (57.1%), and Mx1/2/3 (10.7%). Mx1/2/3 expression was high in DM cases. p62 vacuole deposits were noted in the IBM case. The combination of membrane attack complex and major histocompatibility complex I helped detect IIMs in 96% of cases. Conclusions The diagnosis of IIMs and their subtypes should be based on clinical features and histopathological characteristics. Immunohistochemistry plays a crucial role in the diagnosis and differentiation of these subgroups.

Background: One of the most important elements for improving the primary care quality is to meet the growing needs of patients and to increase patient satisfaction. In-depth studies on patients’ expectation is vital for healthcare facilities to achieve a more reliable and valid healthcare outcome. This study aims: to explore people’s expectations towards primary care services and related factors at Family Medicine Clinic, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy. Methods: A mixed method study on 308 patients visiting the Family Physician Clinic, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy. Results: The most important aspects were: “Doctor provides correct diagnoses and cure it.”, “Doctor provides careful examination”, “Doctor takes full history taking”, “Doctor clearly explains diagnosis and treatment plan”, “List of medication covered by health insurance is enough and qualified”, “Doctor/healthcare worker ensures patient confidentiality” and “Healthcare workers are friendly”. There were differences in the expectations of prioritizing primary care services in different target groups. Younger patients groups placed more expectations on facility factors than older patient groups; Patients in different occupational groups differed in their expectations of healthcare workers and the quality of medical care.Conclusion: Factors related to health care workers and quality of medical care were the most prioritizing expectations at the Family Medicine Clinic. It is necessarry to improve primary care services to meet the expectations of different target groups. 

Objective: Female sex workers (FSWs) are at high risk of human papillomavirus (HPV) infections and cervical cancer due to their high number of sexual partners. The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of HPV and identify risk factors for high-risk HPV infection among FSWs in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Viet Nam. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Hanoi and HCMC between December 2017 and May 2018. We surveyed and screened 699 FSWs aged ≥18 years for HPV infection and abnormal cytology. A multivariable modified Cox regression model was used to determine risk factors for high-risk HPV infection. Results The overall prevalence of any HPV, high-risk HPV and HPV-16/18 infection in the 699 FSWs was 26.3%, 17.6% and 4.0%, respectively, and were similar in both cities. Multiple infections were identified in 127 participants (69.0%).HPV-52 was the most prevalent (7%), followed by HPV-58 (6%). Abnormal cytology was detected in 91 participants (13.0%). FSWs who are divorced (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR]: 1.96, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01–3.81), widowed (aPR: 3.26, 95% CI: 1.49–7.12) or living alone (aPR: 1.85, 95% CI: 1.01–3.39) were associated with a higher prevalence of high-risk HPV infection.

ABSTRACT This study aims to compare the effect of fTCP-contained toothpaste in combination with 950 ppm fluoride on primary dentin caries surface to ordinary 1100 ppm fluoride toothpaste by using estimation statistics. Dental caries with deep lesion and dentin exposure from nine primary teeth were cut into two equal parts and randomly divided into two groups in a before-after study. Each group was brushed with one type of toothpaste two times per day for 28 days and rested in artificial saliva. SEM images of cavity bottom surfaces and energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDX) were used to determine the percentage of calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), fluoride (F) and oxygen (O) at six continuous measured areas from the surface of the cavity bottom into 45 µm depth before and after brushing. About 95% confidence interval of the mean difference was calculated by performing bootstrap resampling with 5000 resamples followed by comparison analysis. The percentage of Ca, P, F, O was shifted after treatment. There was no difference between the two groups. The SEM images reflected a similar illustration of EDX data. The combination of fTCP and 950 ppm fluoride in toothpaste showed equivalent effectiveness to the 1100 ppm fluoride toothpaste in primary dentin caries.
Fluorosis, Dental ; Dental Caries

OBJECTIVETo investigate the inhibited effect of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) on the expression of NPM1 in IMS-M2 cells harboring the NPM1 mutations.

METHODSCell proliferation assay was performed to test the effects of EGCG on cell growth of IMS-M2 cells harboring the NPM1 mutations. Western blot analysis were performed to test the protein expression of NPM1, AKT, those associated with apoptosis.

RESULTSEGCG can down-regulate the expression of NPM1 in IMS-M2 cells harboring the NPM1 mutations. Moreover, EGCG also suppressed the cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in IMS-M2 cells.

CONCLUSIONSThe results suggested that EGCG could be considered as a reagent for treatment of AML patients with NPM1 mutations.

Objective: To investigate the inhibited effect of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) on the expression of NPM1 in IMS-M2 cells harboring the NPM1 mutations. Methods: Cell proliferation assay was performed to test the effects of EGCG on cell growth of IMS-M2 cells harboring the NPM1 mutations. Western blot analysis were performed to test the protein expression of NPM1, AKT, those associated with apoptosis. Results: EGCG can down-regulate the expression of NPM1 in IMS-M2 cells harboring the NPM1 mutations. Moreover, EGCG also suppressed the cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in IMS-M2 cells. Conclusions: The results suggested that EGCG could be considered as a reagent for treatment of AML patients with NPM1 mutations.

Background: Recently, microplate almar blue assay has been used commonly in detecting gen related to tuberculosis drug resistance, which provides results after 5-7 days with lower cost compared to traditional methods. Objective: To evaluate the application of microplate almar blue assay for rapid detection of drug resistance of M. tuberculosis strains. Subject and Method: A microplate-based assay which uses Alamar blue reagent - an oxidation reduction dye (MABA), was used for the determination of the anti-tuberculosis drug (isoniazid-INH, rifampicine-RIF, streptomycine-STR and ethabuton=EMB) resistance of 96 M. tuberculosis strains isolated from Vietnamese patients in comparison to those obtained by conversional method. Result: MABA showed to have high sensitivity and specificity in testing the sensitivity to individual anti-tuberculosis drugs (from 82.4% for STR to 93.3% for - INH and from 82.5% for EMB to 98.4% for STR; respectively), as well as for the multi-drug resistant M.tuberculosis (86.4% of sensitivity), highly correlated with the result determined by proportion method. Conclusion: MABA reveals the advantage in shortening test time, in simple performance and lower cost compared with the conversional culture based methods.
Microplate almar blue assay ; M. tuberculosis ; drug resistance

Although Vietnam has a high risk of fishborne zoonotic trematode (FZT) infections for humans, little information exists on the epidemiology of these infections in the country's fish. Because of the importance of cultured catfish and snakehead production in An Giang province, a major production area in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam, a survey for FZTs was carried out in randomly selected fish farms between June 2005 and March 2006. For comparison, wild fish from the same area were also surveyed. A total of 852 cultured fish from 4 districts were collected and examined by pepsin digestion to determine their FZT infection status. In Tra catfish, the prevalence of all types of metacercariae was 2.6%, of which the prevalence of Haplorchis pumilio was 0.7%. The overall prevalence of metacercariae in wild fish was 30.6%, of which 10.3% harbored zoonotic species: H. pumilio (2.8%) and Procerovum sp. (5.6%). The prevalence of Opisthorchis metacercariae, which were diagnosed as O. viverrini, was 1.9%. No metacercariae were found in cultured snakehead fish, although wild-caught snakehead fish had a FZT prevalence of 10.3%: 5.1% were O. viverrini; 2.6% H. pumilio; and 2.6% were Procerovum sp. These are the first reports of H. pumilio, Procerovum sp., and O. viverrini metacercariae in Vietnamese fish. These results indicate that consumption of improperly prepared fish represents a significant risk of acquiring FZTs in this south Vietnam region.
Animals ; Aquaculture ; Fish Diseases/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Fishes ; Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Liver Diseases, Parasitic/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Prevalence ; Trematoda/growth & development/*isolation & purification ; Trematode Infections/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Vietnam/epidemiology ; Zoonoses/*epidemiology/parasitology