OBJECTIVE: To develop an effective HIV vaccine strategy that can induce cross-reactive neutralizing antibody. METHODS: Codon-optimized gp140 and gp145 env genes derived from HIV-1(cn54), a CRF07 B'/C recombinant strain, were constructed as DNA and recombinant Tiantan vaccinia (rTV) vaccines. The effect of heterologous immunization with gp140 and gp145 was tested in mice and guinea pigs. T cell responses were detected using the IFN-γ ELISPOT assay. A panel of primary isolates of clade B' and B'/C HIV-1 and TZM-bl cells was used to determine the neutralizing activity of immunized sera. RESULTS: The neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) induced by the heterologous immunogen immunization neutralized all HIV-1 B' and B'/C primary isolates in the guinea pig model. Gp145 and gp140 heterologous prime-boost induced the best neutralizing antibody response with a broad neutralizing spectrum and the highest titer of 1:270 at 6 weeks after the last inoculation. However, the T cell response to HIV-1 peptides was significantly weaker than the gp145+gp145 homologous prime-boost. CONCLUSIONS: This heterologous prime-boost immunization strategy could be used to design immunogen-generating broad neutralizing antibodies against genetic variance pathogens.

In this paper, we study two surface wave control scenarios at microwave frequencies. The first is a surface wave traveling along an uneven interface with a triangular obstruction present on a grounded dielectric slab. The other is a surface wave that circumvents a metallic rhombus-shaped obstacle, which is partially buried in a flat grounded dielectric slab. With a consideration of the eigenmode properties of the surface wave, our proposed technique - based on transformation optics - offers an efficient and accurate way to perform the filed manipulation. On the one hand, we see that the surface wave is guided along the uneven interface with no scattering into the air, as the grounded dielectric slab is flat. On the other hand, we observe that the surface wave is capable of traversing the rhombus obstacle with no shadow left behind, as the obstacle is cloaked. This technique for surface wave control is also valid at higher frequency ranges, and can easily be extended to encompass other propagating modes.

Study design:A retrospective epidemiological study.Objective:To describe the recent epidemiological characteristics of traumatic cervical spinal cord injury (TCSCI) in adults in Tianjin.Setting:Tianjin Medical University General Hospital.Methods:This study included all TCSCI patients aged 15 years who were admitted to a general hospital from December 2008 to November 2011. Epidemiological characteristics including gender, age, marital status, occupation, etiology, level of injury, severity and America Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) impairment scale were recorded.Results:A total of 143 patients with TCSCI were included in the study. Mean age was 54.6±14.6 years (men 53.5±14.9 years, women 54.2±12.1 years), with a range of 18-87 years, and the male/female ratio was 5:1. The leading cause was falls (49.7%), followed by motor vehicle accidents (36.4%). The most common injury site was C5, accounting for 42%. In all, 74 (51.7%) patients had complications; the most common complication was hyponatremia (30.1%), followed by urinary infection (23.1%), respiratory infection (18.2%), bedsore (9.8%) and deep venous thrombosis (4.9%). As for the severity, ASIA grade D was encountered most frequently. Six patients died, five of whom died from respiratory failure.Conclusion:The epidemiology of TCSCI has its own characteristics. Falls were the leading causes, and TCSCI occurred most frequently in the middle-aged and elders. Therefore, establishing public policies aimed at preventing injuries should focus on falls and more attention should be paid to the aged regarding their vulnerability to low fall. Additionally, complications should be prevented in TCSCI patients.Spinal Cord advance online publication, 24 April 2012; doi:10.1038/sc.2012.42.

The efficiency and safety of gene delivery vectors were important factors for gene therapy. To enhance gene transfection efficiency and to incorporate biocompatible components to the polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimer mediated gene delivery systems, human serum albumin (HSA) was introduced to dendriplexes of PAMAM dendrimer and DNA via electrostatic interactions to form self-assembled PAMAM/DNA/HSA complexes (HSA-dendriplexes). The self-assembled complexes were characterized by gel retardation assay and particle size and zeta potential analysis. Meanwhile, the toxicity of HSA-dendriplexes was evaluated by the MTT assay and haemolysis test, which indicated that the complexes exhibited decreased cytotoxicity with the incorporation of HSA. As compared to dendriplexes, the ternary HSA-dendriplexes increased the enhanced green fluorescent protein gene (EGFP) expression in vitro by 1.7-fold. In addition, HSA-dendriplexes showed a significantly higher luciferase gene expression than dendriplexes or naked DNA in the liver, kidney, lungs and spleen of mice. Our results demonstrated that HSA-dendriplexes increases PAMAM mediated gene transfection efficiency and decreases the cytotoxicity and haemolysis, which made the ternary complexes a promising targeting gene delivery system.

The desert is an excellent model for studying evolution under extreme environments. We present here the complete genome and ultraviolet (UV) radiation-induced transcriptome of Deinococcus gobiensis I-0, which was isolated from the cold Gobi desert and shows higher tolerance to gamma radiation and UV light than all other known microorganisms. Nearly half of the genes in the genome encode proteins of unknown function, suggesting that the extreme resistance phenotype may be attributed to unknown genes and pathways. D. gobiensis also contains a surprisingly large number of horizontally acquired genes and predicted mobile elements of different classes, which is indicative of adaptation to extreme environments through genomic plasticity. High-resolution RNA-Seq transcriptome analyses indicated that 30 regulatory proteins, including several well-known regulators and uncharacterized protein kinases, and 13 noncoding RNAs were induced immediately after UV irradiation. Particularly interesting is the UV irradiation induction of the phrB and recB genes involved in photoreactivation and recombinational repair, respectively. These proteins likely include key players in the immediate global transcriptional response to UV irradiation. Our results help to explain the exceptional ability of D. gobiensis to withstand environmental extremes of the Gobi desert, and highlight the metabolic features of this organism that have biotechnological potential.

Multiple-soliton dynamic patterns have been observed experimentally in an erbium-doped fiber ring laser with graphene as a saturable absorber. Under relatively low pumping power we have obtained disordered multiple-solitons, bunched solitons and high order harmonic mode locking by adjusting the orientation of the polarization controllers. With increased pumping power, we have also observed flow of solitons. We have experimentally investigated in detail the conditions under which these patterns form.

Many Pb(2+) biosensors based on Pb(2+)-specific RNA-cleaving DNAzyme have been developed in the past years. However, many of them have limited practical use because of high cost (e.g., enzymes), complicated processing and the use of unstable molecules (e.g., RNA). In this study, a novel label-free fluorescent biosensor for Pb(2+) was proposed based on Pb(2+)-induced allosteric G-quadruplex (PS2.M). In the presence of K(+), N-methyl mesoporphyrin IX (NMM) could bind to K(+)-stabilized G-quadruplexes, giving rise to high fluorescence. On addition of Pb(2+), Pb(2+) competitively binded to K(+)-stabilized G-quadruplexes to form more compact DNA folds. The Pb(2+)-stabilized G-quadruplexes did not bind to NMM, which resulted in fluorescence decrease. This allowed us to utilize PS2.M for quantitative analysis of Pb(2+) using the NMM-G-quadruplex system by convenient "mix-and-detect" protocol. The fluorescence emission ratio (F(0)/F) showed a good linear response toward Pb(2+) over the range from 5.0nM to 1.0μM with a limit of detection of 1.0nM. This proposed biosensor was simple and cost efficiency in design and in operation with high sensitivity and selectivity. We validated the practicality of this biosensor for the determination of Pb(2+) in lake water samples.

BACKGROUND: The rapid spread of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) has attracted global concerns. This study aimed to identify factors contributing to the high prevalence of MDR-TB in China's Heilongjiang province. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey following the WHO/International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease guidelines was conducted with consecutive recruitment of patients with TB in 30 counties selected at random in Heilongjiang in 2004. A total of 1995 patients were tested for MDR-TB. Factors associated with MDR-TB were identified through multilevel models and traditional logistic regression analysis, along with in-depth interviews with nine patients, five healthcare managers and four doctors. RESULTS: 241 patients (12%) were identified with MDR-TB. The retreatment patients were 5.48 times (95% CI 4.04 to 7.44) more likely to have MDR-TB than newly diagnosed patients. The patients who were treated with isoniazid and rifampin for >180 days were 4.82 times (95% CI 2.97 to 7.81) more likely to develop MDR-TB than those treated <180 days. Age and delay in initiating TB treatment were associated with MDR-TB. Financial burden, poor knowledge and side effects of TB treatment were perceived by the interviewees as influencing factors. Lack of coordination of services, unsatisfactory supervision of treatment and infection control jeopardised the control of MDR-TB. CONCLUSIONS: Inappropriate treatment is the most important influencing factor of MDR-TB. Increasing people's awareness of TB, early detection and appropriate treatment of patients with TB should become a priority, which requires strong commitment and collaboration among health organisations and greater compliance with TB treatment guidelines by service providers and patients.

Oxidative stress injury is one important factor in intestinal mucosal barrier damage. Expression of heat shock protein (HSP)70 is an endogenous mechanism by which living cells adapt to stress. This study was undertaken to investigate the protective effects of HSP70 on intestinal oxidative stress. Two hundred and forty broilers were injected intraperitoneally with HSP70 inducer l-(1)-glutamine or with the inhibitor quercetin. Twenty-four hours later, they were heat stressed for 0, 2, 3, 5, and 10 h, respectively, at 36 ± 1°C. The l-(1)-glutamine significantly increased HSP70 expression (P < 0.001). At 2 h or 3 h of heat stress, the HSP70 expression obviously elevated (P < 0.001). Levels of corticosterone and the heterophil:lymphocyte ratio significantly increased when HSP70 expression was inhibited (P < 0.0001). Serum corticosterone was negatively correlated with the HSP70 expression at 3 h of heat stress (P = 0.0015; R =-0.6537). Heat shock protein 70 significantly protected the integrity of the intestinal mucosa from heat stress, with significantly decreased lactic dehydrogenase when HSP70 expression was enhanced (P < 0.001). In addition, heat-stress time significantly affected the lactic dehydrogenase release (P < 0.001). Furthermore, HSP70 significantly elevated antioxidant enzyme activities (such as superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and total antioxidant capacity) and inhibited lipid peroxidation to relieve intestinal mucosal oxidative injury (P < 0.001). These results suggest that HSP70 is capable of protecting the intestinal mucosa from heat-stress injury by improving antioxidant capacity of broilers and inhibiting the lipid peroxidation production.

The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) overexpression and intestinal structure and digestive function in heat-stressed broilers. In total, 240 male broilers were injected intraperitoneally with l-(1)-glutamine (0.75 mg/kg of BW) or quercetin (5 mg/kg of BW). Twenty-four hours later, they were heat-stressed for 0, 2, 3, 5, and 10 h, respectively, under 36 ± 1°C. The HSP70 protein and mRNA expression were obviously elevated at 3 h of heat stress, and glutamine induced the overexpression of HSP70 in the jejunal mucosa at different heat-stress times (P < 0.01). No significant change of jejunal villus height, crypt, and villus height:crypt ratio were observed after heat stress, and there were no effects of HSP70 overexpression on intestinal morphology under heat stress. The overexpression of HSP70 significantly increased alkaline phosphatase activity at 3 h of heat stress (P < 0.01). There was a strong correlation between HSP70 expression and the digestive enzyme activity (P ≤ 0.001). The overexpression of HSP70 significantly increased the amylase, lipase, and trypsin activity under heat stress (P < 0.001). These results demonstrated that glutamine was a good HSP70 enhancer to establish an HSP70 overexpression model. Although the overexpression of HSP70 did not change intestinal morphology conditions, it significantly increased broiler digestive enzyme activity under heat stress.