Abstract Chryseobacterium meningosepticum usually causes infections in neonates and the immunocompromised. Treatment is handicapped by the organism's inherent multidrug resistance. In this study, the ...clinical characteristics of patients with C. meningosepticum bloodstream infection (BSI) were retrospectively reviewed. Antimicrobial susceptibilities of the clinical isolates were analysed and their ability to form biofilm was assayed by crystal violet staining and electron microscopy. During 2003–2007, 40 patients with BSI caused by C. meningosepticum were included. Mean patient age was 61.6 ± 22.1 years. Co-morbidities were observed in 38 cases (95.0%) and a high 14-day mortality (52.5%) was observed in these patients. Susceptibility of the isolates was relatively high (>50%) only to piperacillin, piperacillin/tazobactam, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole and ciprofloxacin. Multivariate analysis revealed that mortality was associated with the use of central venous catheters, initial inappropriate antimicrobial therapy and higher biofilm production by the organism. Electron microscopy confirmed the formation of biofilm microcolonies on the solid phase of the fibre of nitrocellulose paper in vitro. Time–kill studies showed that biofilm formation helps bacteria to tolerate killing by ciprofloxacin. In conclusion, C. meningosepticum is a biofilm-forming organism. The outcome of patients with biofilm-forming C. meningosepticum infection was adversely affected by the choice of inappropriate antimicrobial therapy and the use of long-term indwelling intravascular catheters.
Prevalence and risk factors of androgenetic alopecia (AGA) in policemen are not known. This study aimed to compare the prevalence and risk factors of AGA between policemen and the general population. ...A cross-sectional survey was conducted by recruiting a total of 758 (78%) of 972 policemen and 740 (80%) of 924 participants in a community-based integrated screening served as a comparison group. The Norwood classification system was used to assess the degree of hair loss. Information on age, family history of androgenetic alopecia, and other possible risk factors was collected with questionnaire interviews. The association analysis between policemen and the general population was limited to participants aged 40–59 years. After controlling for other significant factors, policemen aged 40–59 years had an increased risk of developing AGA compared with the general population (OR = 2.23, 95% CI 1.14, 4.36,
p
= 0.02). Obesity measured by waist circumference and body mass index made contribution to higher risk for AGA in younger policemen (20–39 years). A statistically significant association was noted between AGA and sunlight exposure in policemen aged 40–59 years. We concluded the prevalence of AGA in policemen was twofold higher than that in the general population. Obesity at young age and sunlight exposure may be responsible for higher risk of AGA in policemen. However, further studies are warranted to confirm the current findings.
Objective: The objective of this experiment was to investigate the effects of different colors produced by light emitting diode (LED) on Brown Tsaiya ducks. Methods: A total of 144 female Brown ...Tsaiya ducks were randomly allocated into three individual cage rearing chambers with different LED illumination colors as treatments. Three different treatments were: i) white color, ii) blue color, and iii) red color. The experiment periods were from ducks 21 to 49 weeks of age, determined traits included i) egg laying performance, ii) feed intake, iii) egg shell breaking strength, iv) egg shell thickness, v) egg Haugh unit, vi) egg weight, vii) serum Estradiol and Progesterone concentration, and viii) behavior pattern. Results: The results indicated that when compared with white and blue color, red color could stimulate ducks sexual maturation and raised the egg laying performance. The red light group was also observed to have the highest feed intake among three treatments. The blue treatment had the lowest egg shell breaking strength and the highest egg weight among three treatments, nevertheless, no significant difference was observed among three treatments on egg shell thickness and egg Haugh unit. The red light group had higher serum estradiol concentration than the white and blue groups, but no significant difference among treatments on the serum Progesterone concentration was found. The results of behavior pattern indicated that red light group showed more feeding and less resting behavior compared to the blue light group. Conclusion: We found a potential of applying red light illumination in the indoor laying duck raising system with positive results on egg laying performance and acceptable egg weight, equivalent egg qualities compared to white and blue light.
N
-Methyladenosine (m
A) modifications of RNA are diverse and ubiquitous amongst eukaryotes. They occur in mRNA, rRNA, tRNA, and microRNA. Recent studies have revealed that these reversible RNA ...modifications affect RNA splicing, translation, degradation, and localization. Multiple physiological processes, like circadian rhythms, stem cell pluripotency, fibrosis, triglyceride metabolism, and obesity are also controlled by m
A modifications. Immunoprecipitation/sequencing, mass spectrometry, and modified northern blotting are some of the methods commonly employed to measure m
A modifications. Herein, we present a northeastern blotting technique for measuring m
A modifications. The current protocol provides good size separation of RNA, better accommodation and standardization for various experimental designs, and clear delineation of m
A modifications in various sources of RNA. While m
A modifications are known to have a crucial impact on human physiology relating to circadian rhythms and obesity, their roles in other (patho)physiological states are unclear. Therefore, investigations on m
A modifications have immense possibility to provide key insights into molecular physiology.
A protocol in the preparation of functionalized N-allyl-N-aryl sulfonamides via palladium-catalyzed intramolecular decarboxylative N-allylation reaction is presented. The alkylated ...2,5-cyclohexadienyl ketoesters reacted with arylsulfonamides in the presence of titanium tetrachloride and pyridine, which allows the formation of alkylated 2,5-cyclohexadienyl sulfonyl iminoesters which then undergo a palladium-catalyzed intramolecular allylic amidation through decarboxylative aromatization to provide functionalized N-allyl-N-aryl sulfonamides. This allylation protocol proceeds with good regioselectivity. Moreover, we have also shown that N-allyl-N-aryl sulfonamide can be transformed into 4-aryl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoline and nitrogen-containing β-hydroxysulfide bioactives.
Abstract Background Enterovirus outbreaks caused by Coxsackievirus B4 (CB4) in Taiwan in 2004 and 2008. Objective To retrospectively analyze the molecular epidemiology and pathogenicity of CB4 in ...Taiwan. Study design This study analyzed twenty-three CB4 strains isolated in Taiwan during 1993–2004. Sequence variations data were obtained using 420 bp of VP4/VP2 region and 331 bp of 3′ VP1 region. Phylogenetic dendrograms were constructed with other CB4 sequences in Genebank. The clinical manifestations of CB4 infection were examined by retrospectively reviewing medical records of infected patients. Results Three CB4 genotypes were identified: genotypes II, IVb and VIII. Genotype VIII, a new and geographically distinct cluster, has been isolated in South Korea, China and Taiwan. This genotype was isolated in twelve of twenty-three CB4 patients treated in Taiwan during 1997–2004. Eight of twenty-three strains belonging to genotype II, now the major genotype worldwide, were first identified in Taiwan in 2000. Three isolates (identified 1993–1994) analyzed in this study belonged to genotype IVb. In this retrospective follow-up study of sixteen patients with CB4 infection, the median patient age at the time of infection diagnosis was 4-year-old (range, 18 days to 10-year-old), and male–female ratio was 1:1. None of the sixteen patients suffered IDDM or myocarditis after their B4 infection episodes; four had Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and/or tic disorders (TDs) at follow-up. Conclusions Genotypes II and VIII of CB4 have co-circulated in Taiwan since 2000. Controlled studies are needed to evaluate a possible association between ADHD and TDs with CB4 infection.
We studied temporal variation in affiliative behavior among adults in 2 multimale groups of wild Taiwanese macaques from 2 different populations: one in Southern Taiwan, and one in Northern Taiwan. ...Although the study areas differed dramatically in their elevation, average temperatures, and rainfall patterns, both populations displayed marked similarities. Analyses of grooming and proximity showed that only male-female affiliative patterns had significant temporal variation. The males and females of both populations had the highest frequencies of grooming and proximity in a mating context. Outside of the mating season, male-female affiliation rates dropped dramatically. In contrast, female-female and male-male affiliation patterns showed no significant temporal variation.PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
The poultry industry suffers substantial economic losses under heat stress conditions, which detrimentally impact the productivity, physiology, and immune status of the birds. This study focused on ...the investigation of Bacillus licheniformis-fermented product supplementation on the growth and productivity of laying ducks experiencing heat stress. The results showed that B. licheniformis-fermented products could be a valuable dietary supplement for enhancing the growth performance and resilience of ducks under heat-stress conditions, possibly offering a safer and more sustainable alternative to antibiotics in poultry production. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of various concentrations of Bacillus licheniformis-fermented products (BLFP) on the growth and productivity of laying ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) subjected to heat stress during eight weeks of a feeding trial. A total of 150 one-day-old Brown Tsaiya ducks of both sexes were divided into five groups, with each group having three replicates and 10 ducks each for evaluation of growth performance. The treatment groups received dietary supplements of BLFP at levels of 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3%, along with a group receiving flavomycin (F) at 5 ppm, all over a 24-week period. The fermentation process in this study utilized a B. licheniformis strain (ATCC 12713) for the production of the spores through solid-state fermentation. The control group was given a basal diet consisting of yellow corn and soybean meal. The results showed that as compared to the flavomycin group, ducks in the 0.3% BLFP group had significantly higher body weights and better feed conversion rates. In addition, during the three weeks, the BLFP group showed higher feed consumption as compared to the control group. The jejunum villi length was significantly increased in the 0.2% BLPF group as compared to the control and flavomycin groups. This study also found that the flavomycin group had a significantly higher egg conversion rate, while the 0.1–0.3% BLFP groups had improved feed intake and the 0.3% group had significantly enhanced egg yolk color. Additionally, the 0.2% BLFP group showed substantial decreases in IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-10 levels in the liver as well as an uptick in the tight junction protein Occludin gene expression in the colon when compared to the control group. Furthermore, the expression of the heat shock protein 70 in the gut upregulated in the 0.1% and 0.2% BLFP groups. In conclusion, these observations demonstrate that dietary supplementation of 0.2% BLFP is an ideal concentration to increase gut morphology, alleviate inflammatory response, and promote gut integrity in heat-stressed laying ducks.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
We studied the food habits of the Formosan rock macaques (Macaca cyclopis) in Jentse via fecal analysis and direct field observation from October 1991 to September 1992, and recorded macaques eating ...51 plant species and insects of ≥5 orders. Macaques in Jentse spent more time feeding on fruits than on other plant parts or insects. However, there was seasonal variation in their food habits, i.e., they spent a higher proportion of time feeding on fruits and insects in summer, and on leaves and stems in winter. The major plant species consumed and the patterns of seasonal variation in the macaque diets identified by fecal analysis and field observation are similar. However, there are discrepancies between results from the two methods in some of the finer details of estimated dietary composition.PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
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