Abstract Background Inflammation may play a role in the pathological processes of stroke and post‐stroke dementia. However, there has not been compared and discussed upon the alterations among the plasma inflammatory factors from stroke to post‐stroke dementia. Method In this study, an age‐ and gender‐matched normal controls and ischemic stroke patients with (PSD) or without (PSNoD) dementia had been recruited. The ischemic stroke patients had further examined the 30‐day Modified Rankin scale (MRS), stroke infarction subtypes, anti‐cholinergic treatment status and Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR). Levels of plasma inflammatory factors epidermal growth factor (EGF), growth‐regulated oncogene (GRO), soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L), Interleukin 7 (IL‐7) and Interleukin 4 (IL‐4) were measured by Milliplex map human cytokine/chemokine magnetic bead panel assay. The butylcholinesterase (BChE) activity and plasma D‐amino acid oxidase (DAO) were also included in these analyses due to our previous published report [1, 2]. Result The ischemic stroke patients showed significantly higher percentage of hypertension (HTN), Diabetes mellitus (DM) and self‐report smoking than normal controls ( p <0.01). Normal controls had significant higher plasma EGF, GRO, sCD40L, IL‐7, but lower plasma DAO levels than the ischemic stroke patients ( p <0.003). In comparisons between the PSD and PSNoD patients, the PSD showed significantly higher 30‐day MRS, CDR, percentage of anti‐cholinergic treatment than the PSNoD ( p <0.014) after adjust with age. The plasma BChE activity showed lower levels in PSD than PSNoD ( p =0.0002) after adjust with age. Conclusion The inflammatory factors of EGF, GRO, sCD40L, IL‐7 and plasma DAO levels were mainly associated with ischemic stroke. The BChE activity may be a better indicator for the post‐stroke dementia. References: (1) Chen, Y.‐C., et al., Serum level and activity of butylcholinesterase: A biomarker for post‐stroke dementia . Journal of clinical medicine, 2019. 8(11): p. 1778. (2) Chen, Y.‐C., et al., A Post‐hoc Study of D‐amino Acid Oxidase in Blood as an Indicator of Post‐stroke Dementia . Frontiers in neurology, 2019. 10: p. 402.
Abstract The escalating number of dengue virus (DENV) outbreaks and their worldwide spread pose a major threat to global public health. DENV transmission dynamics significantly influence outbreak duration and magnitude. Conventional DENV transmission requires an incubation period between mosquitoes biting infected humans and the mosquitoes becoming infectious. However, the possibility of immediate, mechanical transmission of DENV without viral replication in the mosquito has received little attention despite its potential importance. Here, we show that Aedes aegypti mosquitoes can mechanically transmit DENV to susceptible mice immediately after biting infected mice without the need for an incubation period. By incorporating parameters from our experiments into a newly developed mathematical model, we found a significant impact on DENV outbreak characteristics. Mechanical transmission may amplify existing disease transmission routes and influence outbreak dynamics. Our findings have implications for vector control strategies that target mosquito lifespan and suggest the possibility of similar mechanical transmission routes in other disease-carrying mosquitoes.
Stroke is an important risk factor for dementia. Epidemiological studies have indicated a high incidence of dementia in stroke patients. There is currently no effective biomarker for the diagnosis of post-stroke dementia (PSD). D-amino acid oxidase (DAO) is a flavin-dependent enzyme widely distributed in the central nervous system. DAO oxidizes D-amino acids, a process which generates neurotoxic hydrogen peroxide and leads to neurodegeneration. This study aimed to examine post-stroke plasma DAO levels as a biomarker for PSD. In total, 53 patients with PSD, 20 post-stroke patients without dementia (PSNoD), and 71 age- and gender-matched normal controls were recruited. Cognitive function was evaluated at more than 30 days post-stroke. Plasma DAO was measured using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. White matter hyperintensity (WMH), a neuroimaging biomarker of cerebral small vessel diseases, was determined by magnetic resonance imaging. We found that plasma DAO levels were independently higher in PSD subjects than in PSNoD subjects or the controls and were correlated with the WMH load in stroke patients. Using an area under the curve (AUC)/receiver operating characteristic analysis, plasma DAO levels were significantly reliable for the diagnosis of PSD. The sensitivity and specificity of the optimal cut-off value of 321 ng/ml of plasma DAO for the diagnosis of PSD were 75 and 88.7%, respectively. In conclusion, our data support that plasma DAO levels were increased in PSD patients and correlated with brain WMH, independent of age, gender, hypertension, and renal function. Plasma DAO levels may therefore aid in PSD diagnosis.
Dengue fever is a viral disease transmitted by mosquitoes. In recent decades, dengue fever has spread throughout the world. In 2014 and 2015, southern Taiwan experienced its most serious dengue outbreak in recent years. Some statistical models have been established in the past, however, these models may not be suitable for predicting huge outbreaks in 2014 and 2015. The control of dengue fever has become the primary task of local health agencies. This study attempts to predict the occurrence of dengue fever in order to achieve the purpose of timely warning. We applied a newly developed autoregressive model (AR model) to assess the association between daily weather variability and daily dengue case number in 2014 and 2015 in Kaohsiung, the largest city in southern Taiwan. This model also contained additional lagged weather predictors, and developed 5-day-ahead and 15-day-ahead predictive models. Our results indicate that numbers of dengue cases in Kaohsiung are associated with humidity and the biting rate (BR). Our model is simple, intuitive and easy to use. The developed model can be embedded in a "real-time" schedule, and the data (at present) can be updated daily or weekly based on the needs of public health workers. In this study, a simple model using only meteorological factors performed well. The proposed real-time forecast model can help health agencies take public health actions to mitigate the influences of the epidemic.
The liver CYP1A2 enzyme may metabolize antidepressant escitalopram (S-CIT) to S-desmethylcitalopram (S-DCIT) and S-didesmethylcitalopram (S-DDCIT). This study tested whether genetic polymorphisms in the CYP1A2 gene are associated with the treatment responses to S-CIT.Ten SNPs in CYP1A2 were selected and genotyped in 158 patients under S-CIT treatment. The serum levels of S-CIT and its metabolites were measured by HPLC.CYP1A2 SNPs rs2069521, rs2069526, rs4646425 and rs4646427 are significantly associated with the metabolic ratios of S-DDCIT/S-DCIT (p = 0.002, 0.018, 0.008 and 0.004, respectively) at week 2 of treatment. Carriers of the allele types associated with higher S-DDCIT/S-DCIT ratios had more severe side effects.These results suggest that genetic variants in CYP1A2 may be indicators for S-CIT metabolism and that the fast metabolizers may experience more severe adverse reactions in the early stages of S-CIT treatment. Original submitted 27 December 2012; Revision submitted 15 May 2013.
Abstract Background We investigated treatment results, the effects of different treatment modality, and pretreatment Epstein‐Barr virus (EBV) viral load for stage III nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients. Methods The initial definitive treatment for 356 stage III NPC patients consisted of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) or induction chemotherapy plus radiotherapy (IndCT‐RT). The pretreatment EBV DNA level separated patients into a high (n = 106) or low (n = 250) viral load (≥ or < 1000 copies/mL) subgroup. Outcome measures include relapse rates and various survivals. Results The 5‐year rates of overall survival (OS), progression‐free survival (PFS), distant metastasis failure‐free survival (DMFFS), and locoregional failure‐free survival (LRFFS) were 88.6%, 83.0%, 90.5%, and 90.5%, respectively. Patient characteristics and pretreatment viral load between IndCT‐RT and CCRT were no significant differences except for a higher percentage of N2 disease in the IndCT‐RT subgroup. Both treatment modality resulted in similar relapse rates ( P = .56), OS ( P = .20), PFS ( P = .53), DMFFS ( P = .89), and LRFFS ( P = .35). However, patients with a high viral load experienced a higher relapse rate (33.0% vs 12.4%, P < .001) and worse OS (5‐year rate, 79.0% vs 92.8%, P < .001), PFS (73.7% vs 88.4%, P < .001), DMFFS (80.2% vs 95.0%, P < .001), and LRFFS (85.6% vs 92.6%, P = .005) than those with a low viral load. Conclusion Long‐term treatment results for stage III NPC patients are rather good. IndCT‐RT can achieve the same treatment outcome as CCRT. Risk grouping by pretreatment viral load identified a subgroup (30%) of patients associated with a significantly higher relapse rates and worse survivals. These high‐risk patients need to strengthen treatment intensity in future trials.
'/%3e%3cuse xlink:href='%23a' transform='rotate(60)'/%3e%3ccircle r='17' fill='%23000095'/%3e%3ccircle r='15' fill='%23fff'/%3e%3c/svg%3e)