The aim of this study was to determine the accuracy of two-dimensional and three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) in the detection of pannus and thrombus in left mechanical valve ...obstruction (LMVO) compared with surgical and histopathology findings.
Patients with suspected LMVO on transthoracic echocardiography were enrolled consecutively. All patients underwent two-dimensional and three-dimensional TEE, and open-heart surgery to replace obstructed valves. Macroscopic and microscopic analysis of the excised masses was used as the gold standard for the diagnosis of thrombus and/or pannus.
Forty-eight patients 34 women (70.8%), age 49±13 years, New York Heart Association II: 68.8%, New York Heart Association III: 31.2% were enrolled. In the diagnostic of thrombus, the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of three-dimensional TEE were 89.2, 72.7, 85.4, 91.7, and 66.7%, respectively, compared with those of two-dimensional TEE (42.2, 66.7, 43.8, 95, and 7.1%, respectively). In the diagnosis of pannus, the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of three-dimensional TEE were 53.3, 100, 85.4, 100, and 82.5%, respectively; compared with those of two-dimensional TEE (7.4, 90.5, 43.8, 50, and 43.2%, respectively). Receiver operating characteristic curves depict that the area under the curves of three-dimensional TEE was higher than the area under the curves of two-dimensional TEE in both diagnoses of thrombus and pannus (0.8560 vs. 0.7330,
=0.0427 and 0.8077 vs. 0.5484,
=0.005, respectively).
This study indicated that three-dimensional TEE had a higher diagnostic value than two-dimensional TEE in the detection of thrombus and pannus in patients with LMVO, and can be a reliable imaging modality to identify the causes of LMVO.
As the adverse impacts of hydrological extremes increase in many regions of
the world, a better understanding of the drivers of changes in risk and
impacts is essential for effective flood and ...drought risk management and
climate adaptation. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive,
empirical data about the processes, interactions, and feedbacks in complex
human–water systems leading to flood and drought impacts. Here we present a
benchmark dataset containing socio-hydrological data of paired events, i.e. two floods or two droughts that occurred in the same area. The 45 paired events occurred in 42 different study areas and cover a wide range of socio-economic and hydro-climatic conditions. The dataset is unique in
covering both floods and droughts, in the number of cases assessed and in
the quantity of socio-hydrological data. The benchmark dataset comprises (1) detailed review-style reports about the events and key processes between the two events of a pair; (2) the key data table containing variables that assess the indicators which characterize management shortcomings, hazard, exposure, vulnerability, and impacts of all events; and (3) a table of the indicators of change that indicate the differences between the first and second event of a pair. The advantages of the dataset are that it enables comparative analyses across all the paired events based on the indicators of change and allows for detailed context- and location-specific assessments based on the extensive data and reports of the individual study areas. The dataset can be used by the scientific community for exploratory data analyses, e.g. focused on causal links between risk management; changes in hazard, exposure and vulnerability; and flood or drought impacts. The data can also be used for the development, calibration, and validation of socio-hydrological models. The dataset is available to the public through the GFZ Data Services (Kreibich et al., 2023, https://doi.org/10.5880/GFZ.4.4.2023.001).
The
family of viruses encompasses a group of pathogens with a zoonotic potential as observed from previous outbreaks of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus and Middle East respiratory ...syndrome coronavirus. Accordingly, it seems important to identify and document the coronaviruses in animal reservoirs, many of which are uncharacterized and potentially missed by more standard diagnostic assays. A combination of sensitive deep sequencing technology and computational algorithms is essential for virus surveillance, especially for characterizing novel- or distantly related virus strains. Here, we explore the use of profile Hidden Markov Model-defined Pfam protein domains (Pfam domains) encoded by new sequences as a
sequence classification tool. The encoded domains are used first in a triage to identify potential
sequences and then processed using a Random Forest method to classify the sequences to the
genus level. The application of this algorithm on
genomes assembled from agnostic deep sequencing data from surveillance of bats and rats in Dong Thap province (Vietnam) identified thirty-four
and eleven
genomes. This collection of bat and rat coronaviruses genomes provided essential information on the local diversity of coronaviruses and substantially expanded the number of coronavirus full genomes available from bat and rats and may facilitate further molecular studies on this group of viruses.
Despite recent advances in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, metastasis remains the main cause of death. Since migration of tumor cells is considered a prerequisite for tumor cell ...invasion and metastasis, a pressing goal in tumor biology has been to elucidate factors regulating their migratory activity. Protein kinase C alpha (PKCalpha) is a serine-threonine protein kinase implicated in cancer metastasis and associated with poor prognosis in breast cancer patients. In this study, we set out to define the signaling axis mediated by PKCalpha to promote breast cancer cell migration. OncomineTM overexpression analysis was used to probe for PRKCA (PKCalpha) and FOXC2 expression in mRNA datasets. The heat map of PRKCA, FOXC2, and CTNND1 were obtained from the UC Santa Cruz platform. Survival data were obtained by PROGgene and available at http://www.compbio.iupui.edu/proggene. Markers for EMT and adherens junction were assessed by Western blotting and quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Effects of PKCalpha and FOXC2 on migration and invasion were assessed in vitro by transwell migration and invasion assays respectively. Cellular localization of E-cadherin and p120-catenin was determined by immunofluorescent staining. Promoter activity of p120-catenin was determined by dual luciferase assay using a previously validated p120-catenin reporter construct. Interaction between FOXC2 and p120-catenin promoter was verified by chromatin immunoprecipitation assay. We determined that PKCalpha expression is necessary to maintain the migratory and invasive phenotype of both endocrine resistant and triple negative breast cancer cell lines. FOXC2 acts as a transcriptional repressor downstream of PKCalpha, and represses p120-catenin expression. Consequently, loss of p120-catenin leads to destabilization of E-cadherin at the adherens junction. Inhibition of either PKCalpha or FOXC2 is sufficient to rescue p120-catenin expression and trigger relocalization of p120-catenin and E-cadherin to the cell membrane, resulting in reduced tumor cell migration and invasion. Taken together, these results suggest that breast cancer metastasis may partially be controlled through PKCalpha/FOXC2-dependent repression of p120-catenin and highlight the potential for PKCalpha signal transduction networks to be targeted for the treatment of endocrine resistant and triple negative breast cancer.
The bacterial genus Shigella is the leading cause of dysentery. There have been significant increases in the proportion of Shigella isolated that demonstrate resistance to nalidixic acid. While ...nalidixic acid is no longer considered as a therapeutic agent for shigellosis, the fluoroquinolone ciprofloxacin is the current recommendation of the World Health Organization. Resistance to nalidixic acid is a marker of reduced susceptibility to older generation fluoroquinolones, such as ciprofloxacin. We aimed to assess the efficacy of gatifloxacin versus ciprofloxacin in the treatment of uncomplicated shigellosis in children.
We conducted a randomized, open-label, controlled trial with two parallel arms at two hospitals in southern Vietnam. The study was designed as a superiority trial and children with dysentery meeting the inclusion criteria were invited to participate. Participants received either gatifloxacin (10 mg/kg/day) in a single daily dose for 3 days or ciprofloxacin (30 mg/kg/day) in two divided doses for 3 days. The primary outcome measure was treatment failure; secondary outcome measures were time to the cessation of individual symptoms. Four hundred and ninety four patients were randomized to receive either gatifloxacin (n=249) or ciprofloxacin (n=245), of which 107 had a positive Shigella stool culture. We could not demonstrate superiority of gatifloxacin and observed similar clinical failure rate in both groups (gatifloxacin; 12.0% and ciprofloxacin; 11.0%, p=0.72). The median (inter-quartile range) time from illness onset to cessation of all symptoms was 95 (66-126) hours for gatifloxacin recipients and 93 (68-120) hours for the ciprofloxacin recipients (Hazard Ratio 95%CI=0.98 0.82-1.17, p=0.83).
We conclude that in Vietnam, where nalidixic acid resistant Shigellae are highly prevalent, ciprofloxacin and gatifloxacin are similarly effective for the treatment of acute shigellosis.
Rodents and bats are now widely recognised as important sources of zoonotic virus infections in other mammals, including humans. Numerous surveys have expanded our knowledge of diverse viruses in a ...range of rodent and bat species, including their origins, evolution, and range of hosts. In this study of pegivirus and human hepatitis-related viruses, liver and serum samples from Vietnamese rodents and bats were examined by PCR and sequencing. Nucleic acids homologous to human hepatitis B, C, E viruses were detected in liver samples of 2 (1.3%) of 157 bats, 38 (8.1%), and 14 (3%) of 470 rodents, respectively. Hepacivirus-like viruses were frequently detected (42.7%) in the bamboo rat,
, while pegivirus RNA was only evident in 2 (0.3%) of 638 rodent serum samples. Complete or near-complete genome sequences of HBV, HEV and pegivirus homologues closely resembled those previously reported from rodents and bats. However, complete coding region sequences of the rodent hepacivirus-like viruses substantially diverged from all of the currently classified variants and potentially represent a new species in the
genus. Of the viruses identified, their routes of transmission and potential to establish zoonoses remain to be determined.
Objective
We assess the clinical and structural impact at two years of progressively spacing tocilizumab (TCZ) or abatacept (ABA) injections versus maintenance at full dose in patients with ...rheumatoid arthritis in sustained remission.
Methods
This multicenter open‐label noninferiority (NI) randomized clinical trial included patients with established rheumatoid arthritis in sustained remission receiving ABA or TCZ at a stable dose. Patients were randomized to treatment maintenance (M) at full dose (M‐arm) or progressive injection spacing (S) driven by the Disease Activity Score in 28 joints every 3 months up to biologics discontinuation (S‐arm). The primary end point was the evolution of disease activity according to the Disease Activity Score in 44 joints during the 2‐year follow‐up analyzed per protocol with a linear mixed‐effects model, evaluated by an NI test based on the one‐sided 95% confidence interval (95% CI) of the slope difference (NI margin 0.25). Other end points were flare incidence and structural damage progression.
Results
Overall, 202 of the 233 patients included were considered for per protocol analysis (90 in S‐arm and 112 in M‐arm). At the end of follow‐up, 16.2% of the patients in the S‐arm could discontinue their biologic disease‐modifying antirheumatic drug, 46.9% tapered the dose and 36.9% returned to a full dose. NI was not demonstrated for the primary outcome, with a slope difference of 0.10 (95% CI 0.10–0.31) between the two arms. NI was not demonstrated for flare incidence (difference 42.6%, 95% CI 30.0–55.1) or rate of structural damage progression at two years (difference 13.9%, 95% CI −6.7 to 34.4).
Conclusion
The Towards the Lowest Efficacious Dose trial failed to demonstrate NI for the proposed ABA or TCZ tapering strategy.
The highest burden of disease from hepatitis C virus (HCV) is found in Southeast Asia, but our understanding of the epidemiology of infection in many heavily burdened countries is still limited. In ...particular, there is relatively little data on acute HCV infection, the outcome of which can be influenced by both viral and host genetics which differ within the region. We studied HCV genotype and IL28B gene polymorphism in a cohort of acute HCV-infected patients in Southern Vietnam alongside two other cohorts of chronic HCV-infected patients to better understand the epidemiology of HCV infection locally and inform the development of programs for therapy with the increasing availability of directly acting antiviral therapy (DAAs).
We analysed plasma samples from patients with acute and chronic HCV infection, including chronic HCV mono-infection and chronic Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-HCV coinfection, who enrolled in four epidemiological or clinical research studies. HCV infection was confirmed with RNA testing. The 5' UTR, core and NSB5 regions of HCV RNA positive samples were sequenced, and the genotype and subtype of the viral strains were determined. Host DNA from all HCV positive patients and age- and sex-matched non-HCV-infected control individuals were analysed for IL28B single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) (rs12979860 and rs8099917). Geolocation of the patients were mapped using QGIS.
355 HCV antibody positive patients were analysed; 54.6% (194/355) and 46.4% (161/355) were acute and chronic infections, respectively. 50.4% (81/161) and 49.6.4% (80/161) of chronic infections had HCV mono-infection and HIV-HCV coinfection, respectively. 88.7% (315/355) and 10.1% (36/355) of the patients were from southern and central regions of Vietnam, respectively. 92.4% (328/355) of patients were HCV RNA positive, including 86.1% (167/194) acute and 100% (161/161) chronic infections. Genotype could be determined in 98.4% (322/328) patients. Genotypes 1 (56.5%; 182/322) and 6 (33.9%; 109/322) predominated. Genotype 1 including genotype 1a was significantly higher in HIV-HCV coinfected patients compared to acute HCV patients 43.8% (35/80) versus 20.5% (33/167), (p = <0.001), while genotype 6 was significantly higher in chronic HCV mono-infected patients (44.4% (36/81) versus 20.0% (16/80) (p = < 0.004) compared to HIV-HCV coinfected patients. The prevalence of IL28B SNP (rs12979860) homozygous CC was 86.46% (83/96) in control individuals and was significantly higher in acutely-infected compared to chronically-infected patients 93.2 (82/88) versus 76.1% (35/46) (p = < 0.005).
HCV genotype 6 is highly prevalent in Vietnam and the high prevalence in treatment naïve chronic HCV patients may results from poor spontaneous clearance of acute HCV infection with genotype 6.
The purpose of this study is to point out the factors that promote and hinder the intention to apply TQM in petroleum and liquefied petroleum gas enterprises in Vietnam. The study was conducted based ...on survey data of 486 petroleum and liquefied petroleum gas enterprises in Vietnam with the respondents being members of the business leadership or the person in charge of quality management and collected during the period from October 2020 to February 2021.The results show that the factors (1) Perception of the effectiveness of TQM; (2) Perceived ease of use of TQM; (3) Perceived effectiveness of TQM compared to the old system; (4) The size of charter capital has a positive effect (5) The size of the labor force has a negative effect on the intention to apply TQM in petroleum and liquefied petroleum gas enterprises in Vietnam. The study also shows that the more modern the leaders in petroleum and liquefied gas enterprises in Vietnam are, the easier it is to make decisions to apply TQM. And vice versa, if they are traditional people, they will hinder intention to apply TQM in business.
The original article to which this Erratum refers was published in International Journal of Quantum Chemistry (2004)
The above affiliations were printed incorrectly. The correct affiliations are as ...follows.
1 Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine, California 92697‐2025
2 A. E. Favorsky Irkutsk Institute of Chemistry, Siberian Division of Russian Academy of Science, 1 Favorsky Street, Irkutsk 664033, Russian Federation
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![Protein kinase C [alpha] en...](http://api.summon.serialssolutions.com/2.0.0/image/issn/XR4PS5YY4K/1471-2407/small "Protein kinase C [alpha] enhances migration of breast cancer cells through FOXC2-mediated repression of p120-catenin")
