Loss of α-Synuclein Does Not Affect Mitochondrial Bioenergetics in Rodent Neurons.

Increased α-synuclein (αsyn) and mitochondrial dysfunction play central roles in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD), and lowering αsyn is under intensive investigation as a therapeutic strategy for PD. Increased αsyn levels disrupt mitochondria and impair respiration, while reduced αsyn protects against mitochondrial toxins, suggesting that interactions between αsyn and mitochondria influences the pathologic and physiologic functions of αsyn. However, we do not know if αsyn affects normal mitochondrial function or if lowering αsyn levels impacts bioenergetic function, especially at the nerve terminal where αsyn is enriched.

The SIGLEC14 null allele is associated with Mycobacterium tuberculosis- and BCG-induced clinical and immunologic outcomes.

Humans exposed to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) have variable susceptibility to tuberculosis (TB) and its outcomes. Siglec-5 and Siglec-14 are members of the sialic-acid binding lectin family that regulate immune responses to pathogens through inhibitory (Siglec-5) and activating (Siglec-14) domains. The SIGLEC14 coding sequence is deleted in a high proportion of individuals, placing a SIGLEC5-like gene under the expression of the SIGLEC14 promoter (the SIGLEC14 null allele) and causing expression of a Siglec-5 like protein in monocytes and macrophages.

Progressive cutaneous Cryptococcosis complicated with meningitis in a myasthenia gravis patient on long-term immunosuppressive therapy - a case report.

Background: Cryptococcosis is an opportunistic infection caused by the encapsulated yeast Cryptococcus neoformans and most remarkably manifests in HIV-infected individuals, especially in the settings of very low CD4 count. Development of cryptococcosis in HIV-uninfected individuals is exceedingly rare and usually signifies a marked immunodeficiency. Cryptococcosis in association with myasthenia gravis or thymoma has been previously documented in only very few cases in the literature.

Leukotriene A4 Hydrolase Genotype and HIV Infection Influence Intracerebral Inflammation and Survival From Tuberculous Meningitis.

Background: Tuberculous meningitis (TBM) is the most devastating form of tuberculosis, yet very little is known about the pathophysiology. We hypothesized that the genotype of leukotriene A4 hydrolase (encoded by LTA4H), which determines inflammatory eicosanoid expression, influences intracerebral inflammation, and predicts survival from TBM.

Methods: We characterized the pretreatment clinical and intracerebral inflammatory phenotype and 9-month survival of 764 adults with TBM.

Effect of decomposition and organic residues on resistivity of copper films fabricated via low-temperature sintering of complex particle mixed dispersions.

Mixtures of a copper complex and copper fine particles as copper-based metal-organic decomposition (MOD) dispersions have been demonstrated to be effective for low-temperature sintering of conductive copper film. However, the copper particle size effect on decomposition process of the dispersion during heating and the effect of organic residues on the resistivity have not been studied. In this study, the decomposition process of dispersions containing mixtures of a copper complex and copper particles with various sizes was studied.

α-Glucosidase Inhibitory and Cytotoxic Taxane Diterpenoids from the Stem Bark of Taxus wallichiana.

From a CHCl extract of the bark of Taxus wallichiana, six new taxoids, wallitaxanes A-F (1-6), were isolated, together with 29 known compounds. The structures of the new compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic data interpretation. Wallitaxane D (4) was identified as an opened oxetane-type taxoid having the first naturally occurring C(H)-20 acetal group, while wallitaxanes E (5) and F (6) are representative of the rare abeo-taxoid class.

Infection Rates and Treatment of Low-Velocity Extremity Gunshot Injuries.

Objectives: To determine the rates of infection in low-energy gunshot wounds (GSWs) to the extremity.

Design: Retrospective review.

Setting: Level I trauma center.

Steroidal saponins from Datura metel.

Datura metel L. (Solanaceae) is an annual herb that has been widely used in the traditional medicine for the treatment of coughs, bronchial asthma, and rheumatism. Chemical investigation of an acidic methanol extract of the whole plants of D.

Infection and Complications After Low-velocity Intra-articular Gunshot Injuries.

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to characterize the demographics, interventions, infection rates, and other complications after intra-articular (IA) gunshot wounds.

Design: Retrospective review.

Setting: Level I trauma center.

Zoonotic Transmission of mcr-1 Colistin Resistance Gene from Small-Scale Poultry Farms, Vietnam.

We investigated the consequences of colistin use in backyard chicken farms in Vietnam by examining the prevalence of mcr-1 in fecal samples from chickens and humans. Detection of mcr-1-carrying bacteria in chicken samples was associated with colistin use and detection in human samples with exposure to mcr-1-positive chickens.

Standardized Methods for Enhanced Quality and Comparability of Tuberculous Meningitis Studies.

Tuberculous meningitis (TBM) remains a major cause of death and disability in tuberculosis-endemic areas, especially in young children and immunocompromised adults. Research aimed at improving outcomes is hampered by poor standardization, which limits study comparison and the generalizability of results. We propose standardized methods for the conduct of TBM clinical research that were drafted at an international tuberculous meningitis research meeting organized by the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit in Vietnam.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis Is an Important Cause of Eosinophilic Meningitis in Southern Vietnam.

We utilized polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to demonstrate that Angiostrongylus cantonensis was responsible for 67.3% of 55 cases of eosinophilic meningitis from a cohort of 1,690 adult patients with CNS infection at a tertiary hospital in southern Vietnam. Longer duration of illness, depressed consciousness, and peripheral blood eosinophilia were associated with PCR positivity.

Changes in depressive symptoms and correlates in HIV+ people at An Hoa Clinic in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Background: Understanding of depression among Vietnamese people living with HIV (PLWH) is limited. This longitudinal study examines changes in depressive symptoms and identifies its correlates among people living with HIV under antiretroviral therapy at An Hoa Clinic.

Methods: People living with HIV ≥18 years and undergoing antiretroviral therapy for ≥3 months were eligible.

Constituents of the Rhizomes of Boesenbergia pandurata and Their Antiausterity Activities against the PANC-1 Human Pancreatic Cancer Line.

Human pancreatic cancer cell lines have a remarkable tolerance to nutrition starvation, which enables them to survive under a tumor microenvironment. The search for agents that preferentially inhibit the survival of cancer cells under low nutrient conditions represents a novel antiausterity strategy in anticancer drug discovery. In this investigation, a methanol extract of the rhizomes of Boesenbergia pandurata showed potent preferential cytotoxicity against PANC-1 human pancreatic cancer cells under nutrient-deprived conditions, with a PC value of 6.

Biological Characterization of a Stable Effector Functionless (SEFL) Monoclonal Antibody Scaffold in Vitro.

The stable effector functionLess (SEFL) antibody was designed as an IgG1 antibody with a constant region that lacks the ability to interact with Fcγ receptors. The engineering and stability and pharmacokinetic assessments of the SEFL scaffold is described in the accompanying article (Jacobsen, F. W.

Fate of Arsenic during Red River Water Infiltration into Aquifers beneath Hanoi, Vietnam.

Recharge of Red River water into arsenic-contaminated aquifers below Hanoi was investigated. The groundwater age at 40 m depth in the aquifer underlying the river was 1.3 ± 0.

Modification of PMMA vertebroplasty cement for reduced stiffness by addition of normal saline: a material properties evaluation.

Purpose: Vertebral augmentation is an established treatment for patients with pathological vertebral compression fractures. These procedures typically employ a PMMA-based bone cement, which possesses a high compressive stiffness. Because of the increased risk of subsequent fractures after vertebral augmentations, there is a desire for reducing this stiffness.

Contribution of health workforce to health outcomes: empirical evidence from Vietnam.

Background: In Vietnam, a lower-middle income country, while the overall skill- and knowledge-based quality of health workforce is improving, health workers are disproportionately distributed across different economic regions. A similar trend appears to be in relation to health outcomes between those regions. It is unclear, however, whether there is any relationship between the distribution of health workers and the achievement of health outcomes in the context of Vietnam.

Infection control and tuberculosis among health care workers in Viet Nam, 2009-2013: a cross-sectional survey.

Background: Data on tuberculosis (TB) among health care workers (HCW) and TB infection control (TBIC) indicators are rarely available at national level. We assessed multi-year trends in notification data of TB among HCW and explored possible associations with TBIC indicators.

Methods: Notified TB incidence among HCW and 3 other TBIC indicators were collected annually from all 64 provincial and 3 national TB facilities in Vietnam.

Supratherapeutic dose evaluation and effect of lesinurad on cardiac repolarization: a thorough QT/QTc study.

Introduction: Lesinurad is a selective uric acid reabsorption inhibitor approved in the United States and Europe for treatment of gout in combination with a xanthine oxidase inhibitor. A maximum tolerated dose study was conducted to determine the lesinurad supratherapeutic dose, followed by a thorough QTc study to characterize the effect of lesinurad on cardiac repolarization.

Methods: The maximum tolerated dose study was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-ascending dose study that enrolled 35 healthy men and women.

IMI - Oral biopharmaceutics tools project - Evaluation of bottom-up PBPK prediction success part 2: An introduction to the simulation exercise and overview of results.

Orally administered drugs are subject to a number of barriers impacting bioavailability (F), causing challenges during drug and formulation development. Physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modelling can help during drug and formulation development by providing quantitative predictions through a systems approach. The performance of three available PBPK software packages (GI-Sim, Simcyp®, and GastroPlus™) were evaluated by comparing simulated and observed pharmacokinetic (PK) parameters.

Recent advances in the diagnosis and management of tuberculous meningitis.

Purpose Of Review: Tuberculous meningitis is a devastating infection that is hard to diagnose and treat. We have reviewed tuberculous meningitis original research published within the past 18 months, selecting studies which we consider have most advanced knowledge.

Recent Findings: We review advances in diagnostic methods, anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy, and the common complications of tuberculous meningitis.

Matrix Sputtering into Liquid Mercaptan: From Blue-Emitting Copper Nanoclusters to Red-Emitting Copper Sulfide Nanoclusters.

A modified magnetron sputtering technique using pentaerythritol tetrakis(3-mercaptopropionate) (PEMP) as a stabilizing agent and liquid dispersion medium was developed to generate photoluminescent copper nanoclusters. The results reveal that, over time, the as-prepared blue-emitting copper nanoclusters were converted to red-emitting copper sulfide nanoclusters. The formation of copper oxide as an intermediate during the conversion of copper to copper sulfide nanoclusters was demonstrated.

Design and synthesis of chalcone derivatives as potential non-purine xanthine oxidase inhibitors.

Background: Based on some previous research, the chalcone derivatives exhibited potent xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity, e.g. sappanchalcone (), with IC value of 3.

AXL modulates extracellular matrix protein expression and is essential for invasion and metastasis in endometrial cancer.

The receptor tyrosine kinase AXL promotes migration, invasion, and metastasis. Here, we evaluated the role of AXL in endometrial cancer. High immunohistochemical expression of AXL was found in 76% (63/83) of advanced-stage, and 77% (82/107) of high-grade specimens and correlated with worse survival in uterine serous cancer patients.