The utility of inflammation and platelet biomarkers in patients with acute coronary syndromes

Introduction

Thrombotic and inflammatory mechanisms are involved in the pathophysiology of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The aim of the study was the evaluation of inflammation (white blood cells count/WBC, C-reactive protein/CRP, interleukin-6/IL-6) and platelet (platelet count/PLT, mean platelet volume/MPV, large platelet/LPLT, beta-thromboglobulin/β-TG) biomarkers in the groups of ACS patients depending on the severity of signs and symptoms and compared to controls without coronary artery disease.

ICU中心发生胸腔感染的影响因素分析及预防对策

目的:探讨重症监护病房(ICU)中心发生胸腔感染的情况及其影响因素,并提出相应的预防对策。方法:选择2015年2月至2017年2月我院ICU中心收治的98例患者进行研究,均为全麻下行开胸术后住ICU者。收集所有患者临床资料,分析胸腔感染的发生情况,通过比较发生/未发生胸腔感染患者的临床资料,探讨ICU中心发生胸腔感染的危险因素,并提出相应的预防对策。结果:在98例患者中,有15例发生胸腔感染,发生率为15.31%,以铜绿假单胞菌所占比例最高,为40.00%。单因素分析结果显示:性别、术前抗菌药物的使用、胸管类型和ICU中心胸腔感染无相关性(P0.05),而年龄、手术时间、术前肺功能、引流管留置时间、手术创口污染、原发病灶蔓延均和ICU中心胸腔感染密切相关(P0.05);多因素logistic回归分析结果显示:年龄≥60岁、手术时间≥2h、术前肺功能、引流管留置时间≥3d、手术创口污染、原发病灶蔓延均是造成ICU中心胸腔感染的独立危险因素(OR=3.485、3.714、3.571、5.731、6.172、6.081,P0.05)。结论:ICU中心发生胸腔感染会对患者病情恢复造成较大影响,在今后临床工作中,需重视围术期管理,积极采取合理的预防措施,降低胸腔感染的发生率。     

Comparing three types of dietary samples for prey DNA decay in an insect generalist predator

The rapidly growing field of molecular diet analysis is becoming increasingly popular among ecologists, especially when investigating methodologically challenging groups, such as invertebrate generalist predators. Prey DNA detection success is known to be affected by multiple factors; however, the type of dietary sample has rarely been considered. Here, we address this knowledge gap by comparing prey DNA detection success from three types of dietary samples. In a controlled feeding experiment, using the carabid beetle Pterostichus melanarius as a model predator, we collected regurgitates, faeces and whole consumers (including their gut contents) at different time points postfeeding. All dietary samples were analysed using multiplex PCR, targeting three different length DNA fragments (128, 332 and 612 bp). Our results show that both the type of dietary sample and the size of the DNA fragment contribute to a significant part of the variation found in the detectability of prey DNA. Specifically, we observed that in both regurgitates and whole consumers, prey DNA was detectable significantly longer for all fragment sizes than for faeces. Based on these observations, we conclude that prey DNA detected from regurgitates and whole consumers DNA extracts are comparable, whereas prey DNA detected from faeces, though still sufficiently reliable for ecological studies, will not be directly comparable to the former. Therefore, regurgitates and faeces constitute a useful, nonlethal source for dietary information that could be applied to field studies in situations when invertebrate predators should not be killed.     

Persistence of social jetlag and sleep disruption in healthy young adults

Sleep disruption has been associated with increased risks for several major chronic diseases that develop over decades. Differences in sleep/wake timing between work and free days can result in the development of social jetlag (SJL), a chronic misalignment between a person’s preferred sleep/wake schedule and sleep/wake timing imposed by his/her work schedule. Only a few studies have examined the persistence of SJL or sleep disruption over time. This prospective investigation examined SJL and sleep characteristics over a 2-year period to evaluate whether SJL or poor sleep were chronic conditions during the study period. SJL and sleep measures (total sleep time [TST], sleep onset latency [SOL], wake after sleep onset [WASO]), and sleep efficiency [SE]), were derived from armband monitoring among 390 healthy men and women 21–35 years old. Participants wore the armband for periods of 4–10 days at 6-month intervals during the follow-up period (N = 1431 repeated observations).

The consistency of SJL or sleep disruption over time was analyzed using generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) for repeated measures. Repeated measures latent class analysis (RMLCA) was then used to identify subgroups among the study participants with different sleep trajectories over time. Individuals in each latent group were compared using GLMMs to identify personal characteristics that differed among the latent groups.

Minor changes in mean SJL, chronotype, or TST were observed over time, whereas no statistically significant changes in SOL, WASO, or SE were observed during the study period. The RMLCA identified two groups of SJL that remained consistent throughout the study (low SJL, mean ± SE: 0.4 ± 0.04 h, 42% of the study population; and high SJL, 1.4 ± 0.03 h, 58%). Those in the SJL group with higher values tended to be employed and have an evening chronotype.

Similarly, two distinct subgroups were observed for SOL, WASO, and SE; one group with a pattern suggesting disrupted sleep over time, and another with a consistently normal sleep pattern. Analyses of TST identified three latent groups with relatively short (5.6 ± 1.0 h, 21%), intermediate (6.5 ± 1.0 h, 44%), and long (7.3 ± 1.0 h, 36%) sleep durations, all with temporally stable, linear trajectories. The results from this study suggest that sleep disturbances among young adults can persist over a 2 year period. Latent groups with poor sleep tended to be male, African American, lower income, and have an evening chronotype relative to those with more normal sleep characteristics. Characterizing the persistence of sleep disruption over time and its contributing factors could be important for understanding the role of poor sleep as a chronic disease risk factor.     

Seasonal trends of light-saturated net photosynthesis and stomatal conductance of loblolly pine trees grown in contrasting environments of nutrition, water and carbon dioxide

Repeated measures analysis was used to evaluate the effect of long-term CO₂ enhancement on seasonal trends of light-saturated rates of net photosynthesis (A_sat) and stomatal conductance to water vapour (g_sat) of 9-year-old loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) trees grown in a 2 × 2 factorial experimental design of nutrition and water. A significant interaction effect of CO₂ and nutrition on mean A_sat was observed for juvenile foliage. Also, juvenile foliage exposed to +350 μmol mol^?1 CO₂ had a higher rate of increase of A_sat between late summer and early autumn. This would lead to a greater potential for recharging carbohydrate reserves for winter. Mature foliage was affected by CO_sat, water and nutrient treatments in two ways. First, A_sat was significantly increased as a result of elevated CO₂ in January, a period when stomatal conductance was only 47% of the maximum observed rate. Secondly, the rate of increase of A_sat from winter to early spring was accelerated as a result of both nutrient + water and + 350 μmol mol^?1 CO₂ treatments. This accelerated response resulted in a greater potential for photosynthate production during the period when growth initiation occurred. Nutrient, water or carbon dioxide treatments did not significantly alter trends in g_sat for mature or juvenile foliage. A significant nutrition × CO₂ interaction was observed for the mature foliage, suggesting that g_sat increased with increasing CO₂ and nutrition. These results may have important consequences for the determination of the water use efficiency of loblolly pine. In spite of low g_sat in the winter to early spring period, there was a substantial gain in A_sat attributable to elevated CO₂ concentrations.     

Urinary Thromboxane B2 in Cardiac Transplant Patients as a Screening Method of Rejection

Noninvasive methods for regular monitoring of cardiac transplant patients for acute rejection are preferable to the only currently accepted method involving frequent endomyocardial biopsies. Thromboxane A₂ (TXA₂) is synthesized in large amounts by monocytes/macrophages during organ graft rejection. It enhances T-lymphocyte clonal expansion and cytotoxic function as well as upregulating the major histocompatibility class II expression on antigen presenting cells. Experimentally increased urinary excretion of TXA₂ metabolites is associated with cardiac transplant rejection. We therefore compared urinary immunoreactive thromboxane B₂ (i-TXB₂) levels to the rejection score of the endomyocardial biopsies. In addition we graded the degree of activated lymphocytes in peripheral blood. Urinary i-TXB₂ was significantly higher in patients exhibiting medium to severe rejection than in patients without rejection (1236 ± 372 vs. 526 ± 57 pg/mL). The urine i-TXB₂ (704 ± 48 pg/mL) of all patients who participated in this study, whose endomyocardial biopsy indicated rejection, was also significantly higher than in the non-rejecting group. Increased levels of urine i-TXB₂ were associated with increased biopsy scores. Circulating activated lymphocytes was also significantly increased in patients with moderate/severe rejection compared to patients with no rejection (66 ± 11 vs. 39 ± 4 per mm (3)) (p < 0.01). Further, this study shows that urine i-TXB₂ is associated with increased endomyocardial biopsy scores (acute rejection scores) and blood lymphocyte activation. Thus we conclude that urine i-TXB₂ may be of potential value as a diagnostic screening test for helping identify cardiac transplant patients undergoing acute rejection.     

Genetic markers for the identification of Aedes caspius (Pallas 1771) andAe. dorsalis (Meigen 1830) (Diptera:Culicidae)

Allozyme variability at nine loci of Palearctic populations of the mosquitoes Aedes caspius and Ae. dorsalis and a Nearctic population of Ae. dorsalis was determined. A zymogram indicated the presence of species-specific alleles at Idh-2, Had , and Odh , as well as the presence of species-specific genotypes of the Gpi locus. A key based on molecular markers allowed both identification and separation between Ae. caspius and Ae. dorsalis.     

A study on the possible utilization of immunodiffusion and immunofluorescence techniques as the diagnostic methods for American foulbrood of honeybees (Apis mellifera)

Four types of antisera were obtained from rabbits hyperimmunized with either spores or vegetative rods from two strains of the American foulbrood pathogen, Bacillus larvae. The specificity and sensitivity of these antisera were tested with immunofluorescence and immunodiffusion methods. No cross-reactions were observed between the antisera and other different species of Bacillus or different genera of bacteria. The specificity was not found between the antisera and two strains of B. larvae although stronger fluorescent intensity was observed between the antiserum and its corresponding strain of antigen in the immunofluorescence tests. Eight samples of 1- to 2-day-old larvae, 3- to 4-day-old larvae, decayed tissue, and dry remain, collected from eight infected colonies, were tested against antisera by the immunofluorescence and the immunodiffusion methods. The results indicated that both methods are sensitive and specific for making diagnosis of field samples of American foulbrood of honey bees.     

Spatial and temporal variations in species occurrence rate affect the accuracy of occurrence models

Aim Predictive models of species occurrence have potential for prioritizing areas for competing land uses. Before widespread application, however, it is necessary to evaluate performance using independent data and effective accuracy measures. The objectives of this study were to (1) compare the effects of species occurrence rate on model accuracy, (2) assess the effects of spatial and temporal variation in occurrence rate on model accuracy, and (3) determine if the number of predictor variables affected model accuracy. Location We predicted the distributions of breeding birds in three adjacent mountain ranges in the Great Basin (Nevada, USA). Methods For each of 18 species, we developed separate models using five different data sets — one set for each of 2 years (to address the effects of temporal variation), and one set for each of three possible pairs of mountain ranges (to address the effects of spatial variation). We evaluated each model with an independent data set using four accuracy measures: discrimination ability [area under a receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC)], correct classification rate (CCR), proportion of presences correctly classified (sensitivity), and proportion of absences correctly classified (specificity). Results Discrimination ability was not affected by occurrence rate, whereas the other three accuracy measures were significantly affected. CCR, sensitivity and specificity were affected by species occurrence rate in the evaluation data sets to a greater extent than in the model‐building data sets. Discrimination ability was the only accuracy measure affected by the number of variables in a model. Main conclusions Temporal variation in species occurrence appeared to have a greater impact than did spatial variation. When temporal variation in species distributions is great, the relative costs of omission and commission errors should be assessed and long‐term census data should be examined before using predictive models of occurrence in a management setting.     

Simulated beetle defoliation on willow genotypes in mixture and monotype plantations

The effect of simulated beetle damage (0%, 25%, 50% and 75% mechanical defoliation) on 12 willow genotypes, grown in short‐rotation coppice, was studied in a modified criss‐cross experimental design. The design enabled the above‐ground effects of monoculture and mixed planting to be assessed. Repeated measurements were modelled to produce derived variables in terms of time or, more appropriately, in terms of accumulated day length (i.e. ‘developmental time’) units. These derived variables were then analysed using the REsidual Maximum Likelihood (REML) method implemented in GenStat? (2001) . No significant competition effect between the genotypes due to planting regime was detected. Genotypes Salix viminalis × Salix schwerinii‘Beagle’ and S. viminalis × S. schwerinii‘Torhild’ were found to have the greatest rate of increase in leaves regardless of defoliation and also the greatest height prior to defoliation. Genotype Salix dasyclados‘Loden’ showed the highest rate of growth under the stress of defoliation. When assessing height at the end of the growing season, S. viminalis × S. schwerinii‘Olof’ was the highest genotype for 25% and 75% levels of defoliation, but genotypes Salix aurita × Salix cinerea‘Delamere’, Loden and S. viminalis × Salix burjatica‘Ashton Parfitt’ appeared to be most tolerant by having consecutively lower base day lengths (i.e. increasing the accumulation of developmental units and the length of the growing season) for increasing defoliation. Shorter genotypes tended to be more tolerant, but of the higher genotypes reaching a control height of greater than 3 m by the end of the growing season, S. viminalis × S. schwerinii‘Tora’ and Beagle performed best to 50% defoliation.