Echinococcosis: Advances in the 21st Century Wen, Hao; Vuitton, Lucine; Tuxun, Tuerhongjiang ...
Clinical microbiology reviews,
03/2019, Letnik:
32, Številka:
2
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Echinococcosis is a zoonosis caused by cestodes of the genus
(family Taeniidae). This serious and near-cosmopolitan disease continues to be a significant public health issue, with western China being ...the area of highest endemicity for both the cystic (CE) and alveolar (AE) forms of echinococcosis. Considerable advances have been made in the 21st century on the genetics, genomics, and molecular epidemiology of the causative parasites, on diagnostic tools, and on treatment techniques and control strategies, including the development and deployment of vaccines. In terms of surgery, new procedures have superseded traditional techniques, and total cystectomy in CE,
resection with autotransplantation in AE, and percutaneous and perendoscopic procedures in both diseases have improved treatment efficacy and the quality of life of patients. In this review, we summarize recent progress on the biology, epidemiology, diagnosis, management, control, and prevention of CE and AE. Currently there is no alternative drug to albendazole to treat echinococcosis, and new compounds are required urgently. Recently acquired genomic and proteomic information can provide a platform for improving diagnosis and for finding new drug and vaccine targets, with direct impact in the future on the control of echinococcosis, which continues to be a global challenge.
To solve the separation of multi-source signals and detect their features from a single channel, a signal separation method using multi-constraint non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) is proposed. ...In view of the existing NMF algorithm not performing well in the underdetermined blind source separation, the β-divergence constraints and determinant constraints are introduced in the NMF algorithm, which can enhance local feature information and reduce redundant components by constraining the objective function. In addition, the Sine-bell window function is selected as the processing method for short-time Fourier transform (STFT), and it can preserve the overall feature distribution of the original signal. The original vibration signal is first transformed into time–frequency domain with the STFT, which describes the local characteristic of the signal from the time–frequency distribution. Then, the multi-constraint NMF is applied to reduce the dimensionality of the data and separate feature components in the low dimensional space. Meanwhile, the parameter WK is constructed to filter the reconstructed signal that recombined with the feature component in the time domain. Ultimately, the separated signals will be subjected to envelope spectrum analysis to detect fault features. The simulated and experimental results indicate the effectiveness of the proposed approach, which can realize the separation of multi-source signals and their fault diagnosis of bearings. In addition, it is also confirmed that the proposed method, juxtaposed with the NMF algorithm of the traditional objective function, is more applicable for compound fault diagnosis of the rotating machinery.
With the increasing demand for heat dissipation of engineering vehicles, a dual-cycle cooling system is introduced in this paper to prevent the adverse effects of engineering vehicles’ equipment when ...operating at the overheating temperature. The performance of the new system is analyzed through tests, and the results show that the dual-cycle cooling system can meet the thermal balance requirements of the engineering vehicle during the shovel operation. Compared with the traditional cooling system, the new cooling system improved performance in terms of volume, engine energy consumption and working oil efficiency. The oil consumption of a wheel loader using the dual-cycle cooling system is reduced by 1% per hour, and the temperature of its transmission oil and hydraulic oil is reduced by more than 10 °C. The new cooling system has bright future in energy saving and emission reduction of engineering vehicles.
Pathogenesis of chronically developing alveolar echinococcosis (AE) is characterized by a continuous, granulomatous, periparasitic infiltration of immune cells surrounding the metacestode of ...Echinococcus multilocularis (E.multilocularis) in the affected liver. A detailed cytokine and chemokine profile analysis of the periparasitic infiltrate in the liver has, however, not yet been carried out in a comprehensive way all along the whole course of infection in E. multilocularis intermediate hosts. We thus assessed the hepatic gene expression profiles of 18 selected cytokine and chemokine genes using qRT-PCR in the periparasitic immune reaction and the subsequent adjacent, not directly affected, liver tissue of mice from day 2 to day 360 post intra-hepatic injection of metacestode. DNA microarray analysis was also used to get a more complete picture of the transcriptional changes occurring in the liver surrounding the parasitic lesions. Profiles of mRNA expression levels in the hepatic parasitic lesions showed that a mixed Th1/Th2 immune response, characterized by the concomitant presence of IL-12α, IFN-γ and IL-4, was established very early in the development of E. multilocularis. Subsequently, the profile extended to a combined tolerogenic profile associating IL-5, IL-10 and TGF-β. IL-17 was permanently expressed in the liver, mostly in the periparasitic infiltrate; this was confirmed by the increased mRNA expression of both IL-17A and IL-17F from a very early stage, with a subsequent decrease of IL-17A after this first initial rise. All measured chemokines were significantly expressed at a given stage of infection; their expression paralleled that of the corresponding Th1, Th2 or Th17 cytokines. In addition to giving a comprehensive insight in the time course of cytokines and chemokines in E. multilocularis lesion, this study contributes to identify new targets for possible immune therapy to minimize E. multilocularis-related pathology and to complement the only parasitostatic effect of benzimidazoles in AE.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
This study aims to analyze the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of 590 patients with brucellosis in Xinjiang, China.
The clinical characteristics, laboratory findings, complications ...and prognosis of 590 patients infected with brucellosis were retrospectively analyzed. These patients had a mean age of 44.24 ± 15.83 years with 60.5% having a history of close contacting with cattle and sheep. Of them, 53.6% (316 /590) were in acute phase and 21.5% were in chronic phase. Agglutination test showed 98.5% positive with 34% blood culture positive of Brucella. The major symptoms were fatigue (91%), hyperhidrosis(88.1%), fever(86.9%), and joint pain(81%) with 29.8% having enlarged liver, 26.1% having enlarged spleen and 23.2% having osteoarticular complications. Combination of doxycycline plus rifampicin for 12 weeks was an effective regimen for patients without complications. The 3-drug regimen (doxycycline+rifampicin+levofloxacin) for 12 weeks was recommended for these with complications. There were 6 patients died (1.02%) with overall relapse rate of 5.98%.
Brucellosis is mostly associated with contacting with domestic animal production in Xinjiang, China. Clinical symptoms include fever, fatigue, hyperhidrosis, and joint pain with common complication of osteoarticular involvement. Three-drug-regimen of doxycycline+rifampicin+levofloxacin for 12 weeks was effective for these patients with complications.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
With the incremental power of construction machinery diesel engines, the power performance of diesel engines and the pollutant emissions from the exhaust gas have imposed increasingly stringent ...requirements on the intake cooling system of diesel engines. This paper compared the j/f evaluation factors for fin unit bodies of water-cooled intercooler (including straight fins and rectangular misaligned fins) by means of CFD simulation, and found that the rectangular misaligned fins had an 8% advantage in comprehensive performance. With the rectangular staggered fin intercooler, it was found that under the same conditions, the cooling efficiency of the dual-pass water-cooled intercooler is higher than that of the single-pass water-cooled intercooler, and the uniformity factor of the temperature difference field of the dual-pass water-cooled intercooler is 1.5% higher than that of the latter. The accuracy of the overall simulation of the intercooler is verified by the field test. The dual-pass and single-pass water-cooled intercooler both can maintain heat balance under working conditions, and its average air inlet temperature is 10 °C lower than that of the original air-cooled intercooler, which provides support for further reducing the engine air inlet temperature. The results provide a theoretical basis for the performance improvement of water-cooled intercoolers.
Echinococcosis McManus, Donald P; Zhang, Wenbao; Li, Jun ...
The Lancet (British edition),
10/2003, Letnik:
362, Številka:
9392
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Echinococcosis is a near-cosmopolitan zoonosis caused by adult or larval stages of cestodes belonging to the genus Echinococcus (family Taenlldae). The two major species of medical and public health ...importance are Echinococcus granulosus and Echinococcus multilocularis, which cause cystic echinococcosis and alveolar echinococcosls, respectively. Both are serious and severe diseases, the latter especially so, with high fatality rates and poor prognosis if managed incorrectly. Several reports have shown that both diseases are of increasing public health concern and that both can be regarded as emerging or re-emerging diseases. In this review we discuss aspects of the biology, life cycle, aetiology, distribution, and transmission of the Echinococcus organisms, and the epidemiology, clinical features, treatment, and diagnosis of the diseases they cause. We also discuss the countermeasures available for the control and prevention of these diseases. E granulosus still has a wide geographical distribution, although effective control against cystic echinococcosis has been achieved in some regions. E multilocularis and alveolar echinococcosis are more problematic, since the primary transmission cycle is almost always sylvatic so that efficient and cost-effective methods for control are unavailable.
Abstract Background Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a zoonotic disease caused by the larval stage of the dog tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato ( E. granulosus ), with a worldwide ...distribution. The current treatment strategy for CE is insufficient. Limited drug screening models severely hamper the discovery of effective anti-echinococcosis drugs. Methods In the present study, using high-content screening technology, we developed a novel high-throughput screening (HTS) assay by counting the ratio of propidium iodide-stained dead protoscoleces (PSCs) to the total number of PSCs. In vitro and ex vivo cyst viability assays were utilized to determine the effect of drugs on cyst viability. Results Using the newly established HTS assay, we screened approximately 12,000 clinical-stage or The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved small molecules from the Repurposing, Focused Rescue, and Accelerated Medchem (ReFRAME) library, as well as the LOPAC1280 and SelleckChem libraries, as a strategic approach to facilitate the drug discovery process. Initial screening yielded 173 compounds with anti-echinococcal properties, 52 of which demonstrated dose–response efficacy against E. granulosus PSCs in vitro. Notably, two agents, omaveloxolone and niclosamide, showed complete inhibition upon further validation in cyst and microcyst viability assays in vitro after incubation for 3 days, and in an ex vivo cyst viability assay using cysts isolated from the livers of mice infected with E. granulosus , as determined by morphological assessment. Conclusions Through the development of a novel HTS assay and by repurposing libraries, we identified omaveloxolone and niclosamide as potent inhibitors against E. granulosus . These compounds show promise as potential anti-echinococcal drugs, and our strategic approach has the potential to promote drug discovery for parasitic infections. Graphical Abstract
Louvered fins heat exchanger is widely applied to chemical, energy, and refrigeration industries. The manuscript proposes a way for accurately and efficiently optimizing louvered fins heat ...exchangers. The louvered fin pitch, louvered fin height and louvered fin length are selected as main independent variable. The optimal structural parameters were extracted by CFD simulation, RBF and MOGA. The Colborn coefficient j and resistance coefficient f need to be optimized to be optimal. Using radical basis function (RBF) to find out approximation model, and the structure size is optimized by multi-objective genetic algorithm (MOGA). It shows that Colborn coefficient j reduces by 4 %, and resistance coefficient f reduces by 43 %. And the convection heat transfer is basically unchanged, when the flow resistent index is obviously reduced. Secondly, the effect of the optimized structure is analyzed in terms of pressure, velocity and temperature, and the optimization effect is further emphasized. Finally, the good performance of the optimization structure is further verified by the field synergy theory.
Tuberculosis (TB) had been the leading lethal infectious disease worldwide for a long time (2014-2019) until the COVID-19 global pandemic, and it is still one of the top 10 death causes worldwide. ...One important reason why there are so many TB patients and death cases in the world is because of the difficulties in precise diagnosis of TB using common detection methods, especially for some smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis (SNPT) cases. The rapid development of metabolome and machine learning offers a great opportunity for precision diagnosis of TB. However, the metabolite biomarkers for the precision diagnosis of smear-positive and smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis (SPPT/SNPT) remain to be uncovered. In this study, we combined metabolomics and clinical indicators with machine learning to screen out newly diagnostic biomarkers for the precise identification of SPPT and SNPT patients. Untargeted plasma metabolomic profiling was performed for 27 SPPT patients, 37 SNPT patients and controls. The orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) was then conducted to screen differential metabolites among the three groups. Metabolite enriched pathways, random forest (RF), support vector machines (SVM) and multilayer perceptron neural network (MLP) were performed using Metaboanalyst 5.0, "caret" R package, "e1071" R package and "Tensorflow" Python package, respectively. Metabolomic analysis revealed significant enrichment of fatty acid and amino acid metabolites in the plasma of SPPT and SNPT patients, where SPPT samples showed a more serious dysfunction in fatty acid and amino acid metabolisms. Further RF analysis revealed four optimized diagnostic biomarker combinations including ten features (two lipid/lipid-like molecules and seven organic acids/derivatives, and one clinical indicator) for the identification of SPPT, SNPT patients and controls with high accuracy (83-93%), which were further verified by SVM and MLP. Among them, MLP displayed the best classification performance on simultaneously precise identification of the three groups (94.74%), suggesting the advantage of MLP over RF/SVM to some extent. Our findings reveal plasma metabolomic characteristics of SPPT and SNPT patients, provide some novel promising diagnostic markers for precision diagnosis of various types of TB, and show the potential of machine learning in screening out biomarkers from big data.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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