Effect of climate change-induced water-deficit stress on long-term rice yield.

The water requirements of crops should be investigated to improve the efficiency of water use in irrigated agriculture. The main objective of the study was to assess the effects of water deficit stress on rice yields throughout the major cropping seasons. We analyzed rice yield data from field experiments in Taiwan over the period 1925-2019 to evaluate the effects of water-deficit stress on the yield of 12 rice cultivars.

Elucidating the Implications of Norovirus - and -Glycosylation, -GlcNAcylation, and Phosphorylation.

Norovirus is the most common cause of foodborne gastroenteritis, affecting millions of people worldwide annually. Among the ten genotypes (GI-GX) of norovirus, only GI, GII, GIV, GVIII, and GIX infect humans. Some genotypes reportedly exhibit post-translational modifications (PTMs), including - and -glycosylation, -GlcNAcylation, and phosphorylation, in their viral antigens.

Preliminary Study on Assessing Delaminated Cracks in Cement Asphalt Mortar Layer of High-Speed Rail Track Using Traditional and Normalized Impact-Echo Methods.

The severe deterioration of a cement asphalt (CA) mortar layer may lead to the movement of the upper concrete slab and impair the safety of the speedy train. In this study, a test specimen simulating the structure of high-speed rail track slabs was embedded with delaminated cracks in various lateral sizes inside the CA mortar layer. Impact-echo tests (IE) were performed above the flawed and flawless locations.

Inhibition of LPS-Induced Oxidative Damages and Potential Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Extract via Down-Regulating NF-κB, COX-2, and iNOS in RAW 264.7 Cells.

is an edible nutraceutical and functional food in the Asia area with medicinal and nutritive importance. The fruit extract of is currently considered to be one of the effective functional foods for flesh maintenance and disease treatments because of its antioxidative and immunomodulatory properties. We examined the antioxidant abilities of the fruit extract powder by carrying out 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging, iron reducing power, and metal chelating activity analysis and showed excellent antioxidative results.

Dexmedetomidine to Help Nerve Regeneration in a Rat Sciatic Nerve Injury Model.

Background: Several studies have shown that dexmedetomidine (DXM), a selective 2-adrenoceptor agonist, also has neuroprotective effects. However, its effect on impaired peripheral nerve regeneration has not been studied.

Materials And Methods: Forty-five Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to three groups: group 1 (control SHAM), group 2 (sciatic nerve injury + normal saline), and group 3 (sciatic nerve injury + DXM).

In-Hospital and 4-Year Clinical Outcomes Following Transcatheter Versus Surgical Closure for Secundum Atrial Septal Defect in Adults: A National Cohort Propensity Score Analysis.

Atrial septal defect (ASD) closure is major therapy for patients with secundum ASD. Although surgical closure (SC) and transcatheter closure (TC) are usually performed in such patients, data on the long-term outcomes comparing TC and SC in adults are limited. Data on the participants of this cohort study were retrieved from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database from 2004 to 2011.

Geographic difference in safety and efficacy of systemicchemotherapy for advanced gastric or gastroesophagealcarcinoma: a meta-analysis and meta-regression.

Background: The standard of chemotherapy regimens for advanced or metastatic gastric cancer and the clinical outcome were heterogeneous in Asian versus non-Asian countries. This study aimed to explore predictors of safety and efficacy of chemotherapy for patients with advanced or metastatic gastric cancer.

Methods: Treatment group-based meta-analysis and met a regression were performed to analyze results of randomized trials published since 2005 for advanced or metastatic gastric cancer patients who received systemic chemotherapy as first-line treatment.

A critical evaluation of the preventive effect of antiviral therapy on the development of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatitis C or B: a novel approach by using meta-regression.

Background: The extent of the effect of antiviral therapy and its predictors in preventing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) or B (CHB) remain unclear.

Methods: We conducted a systemic review and meta-analysis of published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and cohort studies (CSs) up to December 2010. Preventive efficacy was measured as absolute reduction in 3- and 5-year cumulative incidence of HCC with antiviral therapy.

Role of flexible transnasal esophagoscopy and patient education in the management of globus pharyngeus.

Background/purpose: Globus pharyngeus and dysphagia are common complaints of patients referred to ear, nose, and throat (ENT) clinics. We aimed to establish an efficient method to rule out the presence of malignancy in patients with globus pharyngeus and dysphagia.

Methods: The use of flexible transnasal esophagoscopy (TNE) was evaluated in 30 patients with globus pharyngeus and 6 patients with dysphagia.

Post-tonsillectomy pulmonary complication in a patient with tonsillar myeloid sarcoma.

Myeloid sarcoma in a patient with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) manifesting as a non-healing tonsillar ulcer is an extremely rare occurrence. We report the case of a 57-year-old male smoker with a non-healing tonsillar ulcer who underwent tonsillectomy to rule out tonsillar carcinoma after failed antibiotic therapy. On postoperative day 2, he presented with a temperature of 40°C and white blood cell count of 34700/μL.

Role of p53 and β-catenin mutations in conjunction with CK19 expression on early tumor recurrence and prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: Cytokeratin 19 (CK19), a molecular marker of hepatic progenitor cells and cholangiocytes, is expressed in hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC), but not in normal hepatocytes. However, role of CK19 in HCC progression, especially when interacted with p53 and β-catenin mutations, remained largely unknown.

Materials And Methods: From January 1983 to December 1997, 210 surgically resected, unifocal, primary HCCs were studied retrospectively.

Adjuvant interferon therapy after curative therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC): a meta-regression approach.

Background & Aims: Adjuvant anti-viral therapy after curative therapy for HCC has been studied extensively but the true clinical benefit and the predictors of efficacy remain unclear.

Methods: MEDLINE, PubMed, and the Cochrane library were searched until December 2008, plus the meeting abstracts of the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease 2005-2008. Randomized trials and cohort studies were included if the studies (1) enrolled HCC patients who had underlying chronic viral hepatitis B or C and had undergone curative surgery or ablation therapy; (2) consisted of one or more treatment arms with interferon-based therapy and a control arm of no anti-viral therapy; and (3) included recurrence-free survival of HCC as an endpoint.

Geographic difference in survival outcome for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: implications on future clinical trial design.

In clinical trials of systemic therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), Asian trials almost always reported poorer survival than non-Asian trials. This study sought to identify contributory factors for this geographic difference. A systematic review was done on randomized trials for unresectable HCC that used systemic therapy as an experimental arm and placebo or supportive care as control.

Molecular and clinical characteristics of adenoviral infections in Taiwanese children in 2004-2005.

This study clinically and molecularly characterizes an adenovirus epidemic that broke out in Taiwan in April 2004. Clinical data on 325 children diagnosed with acute illness were collected between April 2004 and April 2005, and a diagnosis of adenovirus was confirmed by viral isolation. Polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism were used to identify the adenovirus genotypes in 267 patients.

Clinical manifestations and quantitative analysis of virus load in Taiwanese children with Epstein-Barr virus-associated infectious mononucleosis.

Background And Purpose: To delineate the clinical manifestations in different age groups and to define the viral load in patients with Epstein-Barr virus-associated infectious mononucleosis (EBV-associated IM).

Methods: We reviewed data on 69 children with EBV-associated IM from November 2001 to October 2005. Clinical features were evaluated among four age groups: <3 years, 3 to 5 years, 6 to 9 years and 10 to 18 years.

Lactobacillus casei rhamnosus Lcr35 in children with chronic constipation.

Background: The purpose of the present paper was to evaluate the efficacy of probiotics (Lactobacillus casei rhamnosus, Lcr35) for treating children with chronic constipation and to compare its effect with magnesium oxide (MgO) and placebo.

Methods: This double-blind placebo-controlled, randomized study enrolled 45 children under 10 years old with chronic constipation. They were randomly assigned to receive Lcr35 (8 x 10(8) c.

Association between polymorphisms of ACE, B2AR, ANP and ENOS and cardiovascular diseases: a community-based study in the Matsu area.

Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death in most countries of the world. In this study, associations between CVDs and polymorphisms of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), beta(2)-adrenal receptor (B2AR) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (ENOS) genes were explored in a community-based setting.

Methods: Between March and May 2001, 1740 subjects > or =35 years from the Matsu area in Taiwan were recruited to this study, representing 71.

Difference in the incidence trend of nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal carcinomas in Taiwan: implication from age-period-cohort analysis.

Lifestyle factors are considered important for the pathogenesis of both nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal carcinomas. In Taiwan, the incidence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma gradually decreased over the past 20 years, whereas that of oropharyngeal carcinoma increased rapidly. To compare the incidence trends of nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal carcinomas in Taiwan, the age-period-cohort model was used to analyze epidemiologic data from 1981 to 2000 obtained from the Taiwan Cancer Registry.

Significant difference in the trends of female breast cancer incidence between Taiwanese and Caucasian Americans: implications from age-period-cohort analysis.

Female invasive breast cancer (FIBC) in Taiwan is characterized by a striking recent increase of incidence and a relatively young median age (45-49 years) at diagnosis. The Westernization of lifestyle that is increasingly affecting younger generations of Taiwanese may have an important impact on this change. We compared epidemiologic data on FIBC in Taiwanese obtained from the Taiwan Cancer Registry with data for Caucasian Americans obtained from the database of the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program for the period from 1980 to 1999.