Improved sensitivity of sputum smear microscopy after processing specimens with C18-carboxypropylbetaine to detect acid-fast bacilli: a study of United States-bound immigrants from Vietnam.

The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of the specimen-processing method that uses the detergent C18-carboxypropylbetaine (CB-18) on the sensitivity of acid-fast bacillus (AFB) staining. Vietnamese immigrants with abnormal chest radiographs provided up to three sputum specimens, which were examined for acid-fast bacilli by use of direct auramine and Ziehl-Neelsen staining. The remaining sputum was split; half was cultured, and the other half was incubated with CB-18 for 24 h, centrifuged, and examined for AFB by both staining methods.

Effect of antituberculosis drug resistance on response to treatment and outcome in adults with tuberculous meningitis.

Background: Tuberculous meningitis (TBM) caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis resistant to 1 or more antituberculosis drugs is an increasingly common clinical problem, although the impact on outcome is uncertain.

Methods: We performed a prospective study of 180 Vietnamese adults admitted consecutively for TBM. M.

The growth profiles of three types of canine distemper virus on Vero cells expressing canine signaling lymphocyte activation molecule.

To know growth profiles of canine distemper virus (CDV) on Vero cells stably expressing canine signaling lymphocyte activation molecule (Vero-DogSLAMtag; Vero-DST cells), the propagation of three strains of CDV was tested in Vero-DST cells in comparison with parental Vero cells. Strain MD77 could grow well in both cell lines, but demonstrated no syncytium formation or indistinguishable rounding cytopathic effects (CPE) in Vero cells. Strains Onderstepoort and KDK-1 also grew well in Vero-DST cells with apparent syncytium CPE, while they grew less or no efficiently, respectively, in Vero cells.

Growth profiles of recent canine distemper isolates on Vero cells expressing canine signalling lymphocyte activation molecule (SLAM).

Fresh samples of lymph node, lung and cerebrum taken post mortem from dogs no. 1, 2 and 3 yielded canine distemper virus (CDV) strains 007 Lm, 009 L and 011 C, respectively. These were titrated on Vero cells stably expressing canine signalling lymphocyte activation molecule (SLAM; Vero-DST cells).

Reflex regulation of antagonist muscles for control of joint equilibrium position.

A systems model of spinal neuro-musculo-skeletal system (alpha - gamma model) is developed to investigate the plausible roles of spinal proprioceptive feedback in movement control. The model is composed of a joint, a pair of antagonist muscles, length and velocity feedback from muscle spindle, as well as spinal stretch reflex, reciprocal inhibition and recurrent inhibition of Renshaw cells. A descending command modulates the background activation of alpha motoneuron pools in combination with these reflex activities.

Distribution of molar mass and branching index of natural rubber from Hevea brasiliensis trees of different age by size exclusion chromatography coupled with online viscometry.

Natural rubber from hevea brasiliensis trees (Thailand, RRIM 600 clone) of different age (8, 20, and 35 years) were characterized by size exclusion chromatography coupled with online viscometry according to their distribution of molar mass and branching index at a temperature of 70 degrees C using cyclohexane as solvent. Washing with an aqueous solution of sodium dodecylsulfate and subsequent saponification purified the natural rubber samples. With this procedure physical branching points caused by phospholipids, proteins and hydrophobic terminal units, mainly fatty acids, of the natural rubber (cis-1,4-polyisoprene) molecule, could be removed leading to completely soluble polymer samples.

Public-private mix for DOTS implementation: what makes it work?

Objective: To compare processes and outcomes of four public-private mix (PPM) projects on DOTS implementation for tuberculosis (TB) control in New Delhi, India; Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam; Nairobi, Kenya; and Pune, India.

Methods: Cross-project analysis of secondary data from separate project evaluations was used. Differences among PPM project sites in impact on TB control (change in case detection, treatment outcomes and equity in access) were correlated with differences in chosen intervention strategies and structural conditions.

A novel speech-processing strategy incorporating tonal information for cochlear implants.

Good performance in cochlear implant users depends in large part on the ability of a speech processor to effectively decompose speech signals into multiple channels of narrow-band electrical pulses for stimulation of the auditory nerve. Speech processors that extract only envelopes of the narrow-band signals (e.g.

Rearrangement of 2-quinolyl- and 1-isoquinolylcarbenes to naphthylnitrenes.

2-quinolylcarbene 23 and 1-isoquinolylcarbene 33 are generated by flash vacuum thermolysis (FVT) of the corresponding triazolo[1,5-a]quinoline and triazolo[5,1-a]isoquinoline 19 and 29, as well as 2-(5-tetrazolyl)quinoline and 1-(5-tetrazolyl)isoquinoline 20 and 30, respectively. These carbenes rearrange to 1- and 2-naphthylnitrene 21 and 31, respectively, and the nitrenes are also generated by FVT of 1- and 2-naphthyl azides 18 and 28. The products of FVT of both the nitrene and carbene precursors are the 2- and 3-cyanoindenes 26 and 27 together with the nitrene dimers, viz.

Mining the structural genomics pipeline: identification of protein properties that affect high-throughput experimental analysis.

Structural genomics projects represent major undertakings that will change our understanding of proteins. They generate unique datasets that, for the first time, present a standardized view of proteins in terms of their physical and chemical properties. By analyzing these datasets here, we are able to discover correlations between a protein's characteristics and its progress through each stage of the structural genomics pipeline, from cloning, expression, purification, and ultimately to structural determination.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis Beijing genotype and risk for treatment failure and relapse, Vietnam.

Among 2,901 new smear-positive tuberculosis cases in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 40 cases of treatment failure and 39 relapsing cases were diagnosed. All initial and follow-up Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates of these case-patients had (nearly) identical restriction fragment length polymorphism patterns, and the Beijing genotype was a significant risk factor for treatment failure and relapse (odds ratio 2.8, 95% confidence interval 1.

Referring TB suspects from private pharmacies to the National Tuberculosis Programme: experiences from two districts in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Setting: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Objective: To describe pharmacists' attitudes towards referring TB suspects to the National Tuberculosis Programme (NTP) and to evaluate the feasibility of a new referral system.

Methods: 1) Questionnaire survey of 150 private pharmacies; 2) qualitative interviews with 16 pharmacists; 3) monitoring the use of new referral forms for 21 months.

Treatment results among tuberculosis patients treated by private lung specialists involved in a public-private mix project in Vietnam.

Setting: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Objectives: To determine treatment outcome among patients treated by private lung specialists in a public-private mix (PPM) project for improved TB control.

Methods: Cohorts of patients treated by private lung specialists within the PPM project and in National Tuberculosis Programme (NTP) facilities were followed for up to 12 months.

HIV type 1 isolates from 200 untreated individuals in Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam): ANRS 1257 Study. Large predominance of CRF01_AE and presence of major resistance mutations to antiretroviral drugs.

HIV-1 isolates from 200 untreated patients recruited in 2001 and 2002 in the south part of Vietnam and particularly in Ho Chi Minh City were sequenced in the RT, protease, and env genes. Out of 200 isolates 198 belonged to CRF01_AE while only one subtype B and one intersubtype (B-CRF01_AE) recombinant could be observed. Of the isolates 6.

Efficient and specific repair of sickle beta-globin RNA by trans-splicing ribozymes.

Previously we demonstrated that a group I ribozyme can perform trans-splicing to repair sickle beta-globin transcripts upon transfection of in vitro transcribed ribozyme into mammalian cells. Here, we sought to develop expression cassettes that would yield high levels of active ribozyme after gene transfer. Our initial expression constructs were designed to generate trans-slicing ribozymes identical to those used in our previous RNA transfection studies with ribozymes containing 6-nucleotide long internal guide sequences.

Drug resistance among failure and relapse cases of tuberculosis: is the standard re-treatment regimen adequate?

Objective: To determine acquired drug resistance among failure and relapse cases after treatment of new smear-positive tuberculosis.

Methods: A cohort of 2901 patients with new smear-positive tuberculosis was enrolled in Vietnam. Sputum samples were stored at enrolment.

Integration of genomic datasets to predict protein complexes in yeast.

The ultimate goal of functional genomics is to define the function of all the genes in the genome of an organism. A large body of information of the biological roles of genes has been accumulated and aggregated in the past decades of research, both from traditional experiments detailing the role of individual genes and proteins, and from newer experimental strategies that aim to characterize gene function on a genomic scale. It is clear that the goal of functional genomics can only be achieved by integrating information and data sources from the variety of these different experiments.

SPINE 2: a system for collaborative structural proteomics within a federated database framework.

We present version 2 of the SPINE system for structural proteomics. SPINE is available over the web at http://nesg.org.

Public-private mix for improved TB control in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam: an assessment of its impact on case detection.

Setting: Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam.

Objective: To assess the impact on case detection of a public-private mix (PPM) project linking private providers (PPs) to the National Tuberculosis Programme (NTP).

Method: Nine-month monitoring of referral and diagnostic data recorded in new referral forms and treatment cards for PPs and upgraded NTP registers.

Stability analysis for postural control in a two-joint limb system.

The stability behavior of a multi-joint limb with electrically activated muscles provides important clues for postural control of motor tasks. The stability property of the musculoskeletal system can be characterized with its eigenvalues evaluated at operating postures in the workspace. A planar arm model with shoulder and elbow joints and three pairs of antagonistic muscles was constructed in ADAMS.

Strategies for structural proteomics of prokaryotes: Quantifying the advantages of studying orthologous proteins and of using both NMR and X-ray crystallography approaches.

Only about half of non-membrane-bound proteins encoded by either bacterial or archaeal genomes are soluble when expressed in Escherichia coli (Yee et al., Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2002;99:1825-1830; Christendat et al., Prog Biophys Mol Biol 200;73:339-345).

[Advances of research on speech signal processing strategy in cochlear implant].

Cochlear implant is a new technology to restore hearing ability to totally deaf people. First of all, this paper presents its principle and system design. Then, the advances of research on its speech signal processing strategy is reviewed in detail.

Ontologies for proteomics: towards a systematic definition of structure and function that scales to the genome level.

A principal aim of post-genomic biology is elucidating the structures, functions and biochemical properties of all gene products in a genome. However, to adequately comprehend such a large amount of information we need new descriptions of proteins that scale to the genomic level. In short, we need a unified ontology for proteomics.

Dengue hemorrhagic fever in infants: research opportunities ignored.

The age distribution of cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome (DHF/DSS) in infants under the age of 1 year are reported from Bangkok, Thailand, and for the first time for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Yangon, Myanmar; and Surabaya, Indonesia. The four dengue viruses were isolated from Thai infants, all of whom were having a primary dengue infection. Progress studying the immunologically distinct infant DHF/DSS has been limited; most contemporary research has centered on DHF/DSS accompanying secondary dengue infections.