典型生境巨菌草根内生固氮菌的群落多样性

【目的】探究不同生境巨菌草内生固氮菌群落组成多样性及其分异规律。【方法】采用高通量测序固氮酶nif H标靶基因方法,研究了我国6个典型地区的巨菌草内生固氮菌群,包括福建闽侯县、新疆墨玉县、内蒙古阿拉善左旗、青海贵德县、甘肃安定区、海南那大镇,结合地理气候因子统计,分析了固氮菌多样性的环境驱动机制。【结果】共获得64122条nif H基因的有效序列,640个OTUs,归属于6个门、10个纲、17个目、24个科、33个属和39个种。不同地区巨菌草中优势内生固氮菌群的种类和丰度存在较大的差异。在门水平上,福州闽侯县、甘肃安定区、新疆墨玉县、内蒙古阿拉善左旗和青海贵德县5个地区的优势菌门均为变形菌门,海南那大镇的优势菌门为变形菌门和蓝藻菌门;属水平上,不同地区巨菌草最优势内生固氮菌类群分别为:福州闽侯县(变形菌门中未定属,80.56%);新疆墨玉县(变形菌门中未定属,33.14%);内蒙古阿拉善左旗(变形菌门中未定属,76.23%);甘肃安定区(α-变形菌纲中的未定属,53.78%);海南那大镇(变形菌门中未定属,38.37%);青海贵德县(变形菌门中未定属,46.12%)。Alpha多样性和Beta多样性分析表明,不同地区巨菌草内生固氮菌群落的多样性存在较大的差异,海南那大镇样本中巨菌草各类内生固氮菌群的多样性及丰富度最高,福建闽侯县样本中巨菌草各类内生固氮菌群的多样性及丰富度最低。典范对应分析(CCA)结果表明,年均降雨量和年均气温是影响巨菌草内生固氮菌群变化的主要因素,其次是土壤有机质、土壤全氮和土壤p H。【结论】不同地区巨菌草内生固氮菌群落的组成及丰度存在着较大的差异,海南那大镇巨菌草内生固氮菌群的种类及相对丰度较高,本研究可为巨菌草内生固氮菌群的资源开发及其固氮微生物肥料的菌种选育和生产应用提供理论支持。     

Comparison of three transgenic Bt rice lines for insecticidal protein expression and resistance against a target pest,Chilo suppressalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)

Two transgenic rice lines (T2A‐1 and T1C‐19b) expressing cry2A and cry1C genes, respectively, were developed in China, targeting lepidopteran pests including Chilo suppressalis (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae). The seasonal expression of Cry proteins in different tissues of the rice lines and their resistance to C. suppressalis were assessed in comparison to a Bt rice line expressing a cry1Ab/Ac fusion gene, Huahui 1, which has been granted a biosafety certificate. In general, levels of Cry proteins were T2A‐1 > Huahui 1 > T1C‐19b among rice lines, and leaf > stem > root among rice tissues. The expression patterns of Cry protein in the rice line plants were similar: higher level at early stages than at later stages with an exception that high Cry1C level in T1C‐19b stems at the maturing stage. The bioassay results revealed that the three transgenic rice lines exhibited significantly high resistance against C. suppressalis larvae throughout the rice growing season. According to Cry protein levels in rice tissues, the raw and corrected mortalities of C. suppressalis caused by each Bt rice line were the highest in the seedling and declined through the jointing stage with an exception for T1C‐19b providing an excellent performance at the maturing stage. By comparison, T1C‐19b exhibited more stable and greater resistance to C. suppressalis larvae than T2A‐1, being close to Huahui 1. The results suggest cry1C is an ideal Bt gene for plant transformation for lepidopteran pest control, and T1C‐19b is a promising Bt rice line for commercial use for tolerating lepidopteran rice pests.     

Selection of Treatment Strategies among Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Malaysia: A Grounded Theory Approach

Background

Diabetes Mellitus is a multifaceted chronic illness and its life-long treatment process requires patients to continuously engage with the healthcare system. The understanding of how patients manoeuvre through the healthcare system for treatment is crucial in assisting them to optimise their disease management. This study aims to explore issues determining patients’ treatment strategies and the process of patients manoeuvring through the current healthcare system in selecting their choice of treatment for T2DM.

Methods

The Grounded Theory methodology was used. Twelve patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, nine family members and five healthcare providers from the primary care clinics were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide. Three focus group discussions were conducted among thirteen healthcare providers from public primary care clinics. Both purposive and theoretical samplings were used for data collection. The interviews were audio-taped and transcribed verbatim, followed by line-by-line coding and constant comparison to identify the categories and core category.

Results

The concept of “experimentation” was observed in patients’ help-seeking behaviour. The “experimentation” process required triggers, followed by information seeking related to treatment characteristics from trusted family members, friends and healthcare providers to enable decisions to be made on the choice of treatment modalities. The whole process was dynamic and iterative through interaction with the healthcare system. The decision-making process in choosing the types of treatment was complex with an element of trial-and-error. The anchor of this process was the desire to fulfil the patient’s expected outcome.

Conclusion

Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus continuously used “experimentation” in their treatment strategies and help-seeking process. The “experimentation” process was experiential, with continuous evaluation, information seeking and decision-making tinged with the element of trial-and-error. The theoretical model generated from this study is abstract, is believed to have a broad applicability to other diseases, may be applied at varying stages of disease development and is non-context specific.     

In-depth structural characterization of Kadcyla® (ado-trastuzumab emtansine) and its biosimilar candidate

The biopharmaceutical industry has become increasingly focused on developing biosimilars as less expensive therapeutic products. As a consequence, the regulatory approval of 2 antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), Kadcyla® and Adcetris® has led to the development of biosimilar versions by companies located worldwide. Because of the increased complexity of ADC samples that results from the heterogeneity of conjugation, it is imperative that close attention be paid to the critical quality attributes (CQAs) that stem from the conjugation process during ADC biosimilar development process. A combination of physicochemical, immunological, and biological methods are warranted in order to demonstrate the identity, purity, concentration, and activity (potency or strength) of ADC samples. As described here, we performed extensive characterization of a lysine conjugated ADC, ado-trastuzumab emtansine, and compared its CQAs between the reference product (Kadcyla®) and a candidate biosimilar. Primary amino acid sequences, drug-to-antibody ratios (DARs), conjugation sites and site occupancy data were acquired and compared by LC/MS methods. Furthermore, thermal stability, free drug content, and impurities were analyzed to further determine the comparability of the 2 ADCs. Finally, biological activities were compared between Kadcyla® and biosimilar ADCs using a cytotoxic activity assay and a HER2 binding assay. The in-depth characterization helps to establish product CQAs, and is vital for ADC biosimilars development to ensure their comparability with the reference product, as well as product safety.     

Supply- and Demand-Side Factors Influencing Utilization of Infant and Young Child Feeding Counselling Services in Viet Nam

Adequate utilization of services is critical to maximize the impact of counselling on infant and young child feeding (IYCF), but little is known about factors affecting utilization. Our study examined supply- and demand-side factors associated with the utilization of IYCF counselling services in Viet Nam. We used survey data from mothers with children <2y (n = 1,008) and health staff (n = 60) from the evaluation of a program that embedded IYCF counseling into the existing government health system. The frequency of never users, one-time users, repeat users, and achievers of the recommended minimum number of visits at health facilities were 45.1%, 13.0%, 28.4% and 13.5%, respectively. Poisson regression showed that demand-generation strategies, especially invitation cards, were the key factors determining one-time use (Prevalence ratio, PR 3.0, 95% CI: 2.2–4.2), repeated use (PR 3.2, 95% CI: 2.4–4.2), and achievement of minimum visits (PR 5.5, 95% CI: 3.6–8.4). Higher maternal education was associated with higher utilization both for one-time and repeated use. Being a farmer, belonging to an ethnic minority, and having a wasted child were associated with greater likelihood of achieving the minimum recommended number of visits, whereas child stunting or illness were not. Distance to health center was a barrier to repeated visits. Among supply-side factors, good counselling skills (PR: 1.3–1.8) was the most important factor associated with any service use, whereas longer employment duration and greater work pressure of health center staff were associated with lower utilization. Population attributable risk estimations showed that an additional 25% of the population would have achieved the minimum number of visits if exposed to three demand-generation strategies, and further increased to 49% if the health staff had good counseling skills and low work pressure. Our study provides evidence that demand-generation strategies are essential to increase utilization of facility-based IYCF counselling services in Viet Nam, and may be relevant for increasing and sustaining use of nutrition services in similar contexts.     

Length–weight relationships of two fish species from the Yangtze River,China

Fish samples for the study were collected from the Yangtze River in China. Length–weight relationships were determined for two endemic fish species (Leiocassis longirostris Günther, 1864 and Schistura fasciolata Nichols & Pope, 1927) for the first time.