Summary
Bat species around the world have recently been recognized as major reservoirs of several zoonotic viruses, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS‐CoV), Middle East ...respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS‐CoV), Nipah virus and Hendra virus. In this study, consensus primer‐based reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reactions (RT‐PCRs) and high‐throughput sequencing were performed to investigate viruses in bat faecal samples collected at 11 natural bat habitat sites from July to December 2015 in Korea. Diverse coronaviruses were first detected in Korean bat faeces, including alphacoronaviruses, SARS‐CoV‐like and MERS‐CoV‐like betacoronaviruses. In addition, we identified a novel bat rotavirus belonging to group H rotavirus which has only been described in human and pigs until now. Therefore, our results suggest the need for continuing surveillance and additional virological studies in domestic bat.
The impact of thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) on outcome was studied in 148 patients with acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) (> or =grade II). The Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Trials ...Network's definition for TMA was used to diagnose definite TMA. Probable TMA was diagnosed when none of the features of nephropathy and neurologic abnormalities associated with definite TMA were present. Overall, TMA developed in 43 (29%) patients; 16 definite and 27 probable. The occurrence of TMA, the maximum grade of acute GVHD and initial treatment failure were associated with shorter overall and GVHD-specific survival. The development of probable as well as definite TMA affected the survival of patients with acute GVHD adversely. These results show the clinical impact of TMA on patients with acute GVHD, and suggest that the proposed definitions and grading of TMA may need to be modified.
Background and purpose
Disappointing outcomes from clinical trials involving amyloid‐modifying therapies for Alzheimer's disease (AD) have prompted more focus on the concept of early‐stage (E) ...amnestic mild cognitive impairment (E‐aMCI). However, limited evidence suggests that E‐aMCI may represent aMCI at a very early stage of AD. Furthermore, the nature of the progression of E‐aMCI to late‐stage aMCI (L‐aMCI) remains unclear. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to characterize patterns of cortical thinning in both E‐aMCI and L‐aMCI patients.
Methods
Cortical thicknesses were measured in 190 patients with aMCI and 147 subjects with normal cognition. In accordance with memory test scores involving delayed recall items, aMCI patients were divided into two subgroups, containing 73 E‐aMCI subjects with milder memory impairment scores between −1.5 standard deviation (SD) and −1.0 SD compared with age‐ and education‐matched norms and 117 L‐aMCI subjects with more severe memory impairment (scores lower than −1.5 SD).
Results
Compared with controls, the E‐aMCI group exhibited cortical thinning in the left medial temporal and insular regions, whereas the L‐aMCI group showed cortical thinning in widespread regions, including the bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal, anterior and medial temporal, and temporo‐parietal association cortices, and the precuneus. When the two aMCI groups were directly compared, the L‐aMCI group showed greater cortical thinning in the right superior prefrontal, medial temporal, posterior cingulate and lateral parietal cortices.
Conclusion
Our findings suggest that E‐aMCI might represent an early symptomatic stage of AD. Furthermore, L‐aMCI might resemble AD more closely than E‐aMCI, in terms of the topography of cortical thinning.
This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation with chitooligosaccharide (COS) on growth performance, blood characteristics, relative organ weight, and meat quality in ...broilers. A total of 480 broilers with an average initial BW of 45.04 g per chick were randomly allocated into 1 of the following 4 dietary treatments (20 broilers per pen with 6 pens per treatment): 1) CON (basal diet), 2) ANT (basal diet + 44 mg/kg of avilamycin), 3) COS0.2 (basal diet + 14 g/kg of COS), 4) COS0.4 (basal diet + 28 g/kg of COS). The experiment lasted for 5 wk and avilamycin was administered from d 0 to 21. Growth performance was measured on d 0, 21, and 35, and all other response criteria were measured on d 35. No change in feed conversion (G:F) was observed in response to any of the treatments throughout the experimental period (P > 0.05). However, BW gain and feed intake were greater (P < 0.05) in broilers provided with feed supplemented with COS than in those in the control group. In addition, broilers had significantly greater (P < 0.05) red blood cell and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations when they were provided with the COS0.4 diet, whereas the triglyceride concentration was lower (P < 0.05) in broilers in the COS0.2 treatment group. No other blood characteristics were affected by the treatments. Additionally, as the dietary COS concentration increased, the liver weight increased (P < 0.05). Conversely, as the concentrations of dietary COS increased, abdominal fat decreased (P < 0.05). Furthermore, meat yellowness decreased (P < 0.05) as the concentration of COS increased. Finally, the breast meat and abdominal fat of birds provided with feed supplemented with COS had a lower (P < 0.05) saturated fatty acid concentration but a greater concentration of total monounsaturated fatty acids (P < 0.05) than that of birds in the control. In conclusion, COS can improve the performance and breast meat quality of broilers while increasing the red blood cell and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations in blood. In addition, COS can induce a decrease in abdominal fat and improve meat quality.
Diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) before anti-tumour-necrosis factor (anti-TNF) treatment is important. However, the tuberculin skin test (TST) has limitations, and the role of ...interferon-gamma release assays has not yet been determined.
To evaluate the combined use of TST and the T-SPOT(®).TB (T-SPOT) assay prior to anti-TNF treatment.
From July 2004 to March 2008, 281 patients were treated with anti-TNF agents. TST and T-SPOT were performed simultaneously at baseline. LTBI was defined as a positive TST of ≥10 mm induration or as a positive T-SPOT if TST was ≥5 mm but <10 mm. LTBI treatment was initiated, and patients were followed until August 2010.
Positivity rates for TST and T-SPOT were respectively 33.6% (94/280) and 69.1% (186/269). LTBI treatment was initiated in 35.9% (101/281) of the patients, and active TB developed in 2.1% (6/281). Among the six TB patients, three were TST-negative at baseline and received no LTBI treatment, whereas all four who underwent T-SPOT showed positive results at baseline.
In a TB-prevalent country, TST-defined LTBI diagnosis and treatment seem to be limited in preventing the development of TB before anti-TNF treatment. Further studies for T-SPOT alone or the combined use of TST and T-SPOT (either test positive strategy) for detecting LTBI are necessary.
Background and Objective
Epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate (EGCG) is known for its beneficial properties, including anti‐inflammatory and anti‐oxidative activities. Recently, reports have suggested that ...EGCG plays a pivotal role in regulating cytokine expression and osteoclastic activity. In the present study, we investigated whether orally administered EGCG has a therapeutic effect on ligature‐induced periodontitis.
Materials and Methods
Forty‐eight Sprague–Dawley rats were treated with EGCG or phosphate‐buffered saline. Periodontitis was induced by tying a ligature for 7 d. After removing ligation, EGCG (200 mg/kg) or phosphate‐buffered saline was administered via oral gavage on a daily basis. Rats were killed after 1, 2 and 4 wk of administration. Histologic and histomorphometric analyses, tartrate resistant acid phosphatase staining and immunohistochemistry were carried out.
Results
In the control group, bone loss did not recover even after the causative factor of periodontitis was eliminated. On the other hand, distance from cemento‐enamel junction to alveolar bone crest, long junctional epithelium and collagen destruction were reduced in the EGCG group. Decreased interleukin (IL)‐6 expression was shown from the early stage of EGCG administration, followed by reduced tumor necrosis factor (TNF) expression at week 4 EGCG group. The CT area showed a higher decrease of IL‐6 expression between the control and EGCG group than alveolar bone area. Downregulation of TNF and IL‐6 expression led to a decrease in osteoclast number and activity, which resulted in reduced bone loss.
Conclusions
Systemic administration of EGCG could have a therapeutic effect on damaged periodontal tissue. Inhibited cytokine expression, including TNF and IL‐6 is responsible for the reduction in osteoclast formation, osteoclastic activity and collagen destruction.
Purpose
The goal of this work was to analyze the outcome of adjuvant chemoradiotherapy for patients with gallbladder cancer who underwent surgical resection and to identify the prognostic factors for ...these patients.
Patients and methods
Between August 1989 and November 2006, 47 patients with gallbladder cancer underwent surgical resection followed by adjuvant radiotherapy. There were 21 males and 26 females, and median age was 60 years (range 44–75 years). Postoperative radiotherapy was delivered to the tumor bed and regional lymph nodes up to 40–50 Gy at 2 Gy/fraction; 41 patients also received intravenous 5-fluorouracil as a radiosensitizer. Median follow-up duration was 48 months for survivors.
Results
There were 2 isolated locoregional recurrences, 14 isolated distant metastases, and 7 combined locoregional and distant relapses. The 5-year overall survival rate was 43.7%. According to the extent of resection, the 5-year overall survival rates were 52.8%, 20.0%, and 0% in R0-, R1-, and R2-resected patients, respectively (p = 0.0038). On multivariate analysis incorporating extent of resection, T stage, N stage, performance of lymph node dissection, and histologic differentiation, extent of resection was the only prognostic factor associated with overall survival (p = 0.0075). Among the 37 patients with R0 resection, there was no difference of 5-year overall survival rates in patients with N0, N1, and Nx diseases (46.2%, 60.0%, and 44.4%, respectively, p = 0.6246). As for significant treatment-related morbidity, there was only 1 patient with grade 4 gastric ulcer.
Conclusion
Adjuvant chemoradiotherapy after R0 resection can achieve a good long-term survival rate in gallbladder cancer patients, even in those with lymph node metastases, and may play a role for patients who underwent R0 resection of primary tumor without lymph node dissection.
To investigate the concordance of results of blood and tissue cultures in patients with pyogenic spondylitis.
We searched for patients with pyogenic spondylitis in whom microorganisms were isolated ...from both blood and tissue cultures by retrospective review of medical records in three tertiary university-affiliated hospitals between January 2005 and December 2015. The species and antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of isolates from blood and tissue cultures were compared.
Among 141 patients with pyogenic spondylitis in whom microorganisms were isolated from both blood and tissue cultures, the species of blood and tissue isolates were identical in 135 patients (95.7%, 135/141). Excluding the four anaerobic isolates, we investigated antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of 131 isolates of the same species from blood and tissue cultures. Antibiotic susceptibility patterns were identical in 128 patients (97.7%, 128/131). The most common isolates were Staphylococcus aureus (86 patients; 85 concordant and one discordant), followed by streptococcus (24 patients; 22 concordant and two discordant), and Escherichia coli (eight patients; all concordant).
We suggest that a positive blood culture from patients with pyogenic spondylitis could preclude the need for additional tissue cultures, especially when S. aureus and streptococcus grew in blood cultures.
PDF
