A community-based strategy to eliminate hepatitis C among people who inject drugs in Vietnam.

Background: Towards hepatitis C elimination among people who inject drugs (PWID), we assessed the effectiveness of a strategy consisting of a community-based respondent-driven sampling (RDS) as wide screening, a simplified and integrated hospital-based care, and prevention of reinfection supported by community-based organisations (CBO), in Hai Phong, Vietnam.

Methods: Adults who injected heroin were enrolled in a RDS survey implemented in two CBO premises. Rapid HIV and HCV tests were done on site, and blood was taken for HCV RNA testing.

Rational construction of S-doped FeOOH onto FeO nanorods for enhanced water oxidation.

Hematite-based photoanode (α-FeO) is considered the promising candidate for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting due to its relatively small optical bandgap. However, severe charge recombination in the bulk and poor surface water oxidation kinetics have limited the PEC performance of FeO photoelectrodes, which is far below the theoretical value. Herein, a new catalyst, S-doped FeOOH (S-FeOOH), has been immobilized onto the surface of the FeO nanorod (NR) array by a facile chemical bath deposition incorporated thermal sulfuration process.

How has the COVID-19 epidemic affected the risk behaviors of people who inject drugs in a city with high harm reduction service coverage in Vietnam? A qualitative investigation.

Introduction: The COVID-19 outbreak disproportionally affects vulnerable populations including people who inject drugs (PWID). Social distancing and stay-at-home orders might result in a lack of access to medical and social services, poorer mental health, and financial precariousness, and thus, increases in HIV and HCV risk behaviors. This article explores how the HIV/HCV risk behaviors of PWID in Haiphong, a city with high harm reduction service coverage in Vietnam, changed during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, and what shaped such changes, using the risk environment framework.

Multicenter study on the genetics of glomerular diseases among southeast and south Asians: Deciphering Diversities - Renal Asian Genetics Network (DRAGoN).

Multinational studies have reported monogenic etiologies in 25%-30% of children with steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome. Such large studies are lacking in Asia. We established Deciphering Diversities: Renal Asian Genetics Network (DRAGoN) and aimed to describe the genetic and clinical spectrums in Asians.

Deposition of zinc cobaltite nanoparticles onto bismuth vanadate for enhanced photoelectrochemical water splitting.

During the past few decades, photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting has attracted significant attention because of the reduced production cost of hydrogen obtained by utilizing solar energy. Significant efforts have been invested by the scientific community to produce stable ternary metal oxide semiconductors, which can enhance the stability and increase the overall production of oxygen. Herein, we present the ternary metal oxide deposition of ZnCoO as a route to obtain a novel photocatalyst layer on BiVO to form BiVO/ZnCoO a novel composite photoanode for PEC water splitting.

Anion exchange and successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction-assisted coating of BiVO with BiS to produce nanostructured photoanode for enhanced photoelectrochemical water splitting.

Photoelectrochemical water splitting is an environmentally benign way to store solar energy. Properties such as fast charge recombination and poor charge transport rate severely restrict the use of BiVO as a photoanode for photoelectrochemical water splitting and many attempts were made to improve the current performance limit of the photoanode. To address these disadvantages, a highly efficient BiVO/BiS heterojunction was fabricated applying facial anion-exchange (AE) and successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR).

pn-Heterojunction of the SWCNT/ZnO nanocomposite for temperature dependent reaction with hydrogen.

A hydrogen breath test is a non-invasive and safe diagnostic tool to explore the functional gastrointestinal disorders. For the diagnosis of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth syndrome as well as carbohydrate malabsorption such as fructose, lactose, and sorbitol malabsorption, a hydrogen breath test is considered one of the gold criterions. Since the more sensitive hydrogen sensor enables the more accurate prediction about the disease, many efforts have been to the development of the high performance H sensor.

Systemic hypertension associated retinal microvascular changes can be detected with optical coherence tomography angiography.

A major complication of hypertension is microvascular damage and capillary rarefaction is a known complication of hypertensive end-organ damage which confers a higher risk of systemic disease such as stroke and cardiovascular events. Our aim was to study the effect of hypertension on the retinal microvasculature using non-invasive optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA). We performed a case-control study of 94 eyes of 94 participants with systemic hypertension and 46 normal control eyes from the Singapore Chinese Eye Study using a standardized protocol to collect data on past medical history of hypertension, including the number and type of hypertensive medications and assessed mean arterial pressure.

Determinants of lamina cribrosa depth in healthy Asian eyes: the Singapore Epidemiology Eye Study.

Aim: To investigate the determinants of lamina cribrosa depth (LCD) in healthy eyes of Chinese and Indian Singaporean adults.

Methods: The optic nerve head (ONH) of the right eye of 1396 subjects (628 Chinese and 768 Indian subjects) was imaged with optical coherence tomography (OCT, Spectralis, Heidelberg, Germany). LCD was defined as the distance from the Bruch's membrane opening (LCD-BMO) or the peripapillary sclera (LCD-PPS) reference plane to the laminar surface.

Hypertension, blood pressure control and diabetic retinopathy in a large population-based study.

Background: Clinical trials have shown beneficial effects of blood pressure (BP) control in reducing the risk of diabetic retinopathy (DR). However, association between BP control and DR in population-based studies is not clear. We aimed to examine the association of hypertension and BP control with DR.

One year structural and functional glaucoma progression after trabeculectomy.

We evaluated the changes in visual field mean deviation (VF MD) and retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness in glaucoma patients undergoing trabeculectomy. One hundred patients were examined with VF and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) before trabeculectomy and 4 follow-up visits over one year. Linear mixed models were used to investigate factors associated with VF and RNFL.

Intra-session repeatability of quantitative metrics using widefield optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) in elderly subjects.

Purpose: To assess the repeatability of retinal vascular metrics using different postprocessing methods as obtained from the swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography (SS-OCTA).

Methods: Thirty-two participants (63% males; mean [SD] age, 70 [7] years) underwent SS-OCTA imaging (PLEX Elite 9000, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., Dublin, USA).

A Separated Receptor/Transducer Scheme as Strategy to Enhance the Gas Sensing Performance Using Hematite-Carbon Nanotube Composite.

Nanocomposite structures, where the Fe, FeO, or NiO nanoparticles with thin carbon layers are distributed among a single-wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT) network, are architectured using the co-arc discharge method. A synergistic effect between the nanoparticles and SWCNT is achieved with the composite structures, leading to the enhanced sensing response in ammonia detection. Thorough studies about the correlation between the electric properties and sensing performance confirm the independent operation of the receptor and transducer in the sensor structure by nanoparticles and SWCNT, respectively.

Compensation of retinal nerve fibre layer thickness as assessed using optical coherence tomography based on anatomical confounders.

Background/aims: To compensate the retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness assessed by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) for anatomical confounders.

Methods: The Singapore Epidemiology of Eye Diseases is a population-based study, where 2698 eyes (1076 Chinese, 704 Malays and 918 Indians) with high-quality SD-OCT images from individuals without eye diseases were identified. Optic disc and macular cube scans were registered to determine the distance between fovea and optic disc centres (fovea distance) and their respective angle (fovea angle).

Six-year incidence and progression of diabetic retinopathy in Indian adults: the Singapore Indian Eye study.

Aims: Diabetes is a major public health problem in migrants and ethnic minorities worldwide. We determined the incidence and risk factors of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in migrant Indians living in Singapore.

Methods: We included data from 759 Indian adults with diabetes, who participated in the baseline (aged 40-80 years, 2007-2009) and 6-year follow-up 2012-2015 of the Singapore Indian Eye Study.

Racial differences and determinants of macular thickness profiles in multiethnic Asian population: the Singapore Epidemiology of Eye Diseases Study.

Aim: To evaluate racial differences, and ocular and systemic determinants of macular thickness (MT), measured by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) in a normal multiethnic Asian population.

Method: MT was measured from a 6×6 mm central macular area using the Cirrus high-definition OCT (HD-OCT) (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Dublin, CA). The associations between ocular and systemic factors with MT were evaluated using linear regression analyses with generalised estimating equation models to account for intereye correlation.

The Effect of Testing Reliability on Visual Field Sensitivity in Normal Eyes: The Singapore Chinese Eye Study.

Purpose: To quantitatively determine how the reliability indices in standard automated perimetry (SAP) affect the global indices of visual field (VF) results in nonglaucomatous eyes.

Design: Observational, cross-sectional study.

Participants: A total of 830 adults aged 40 to 80 years, without visual impairment, glaucoma, significant cataract, and major eye diseases, were selected from the population-based Singapore Chinese Eye Study (SCES).

NO gas sensing kinetics at room temperature under UV light irradiation of InO nanostructures.

InO nanostructure sensors were fabricated by arc-discharging a source composed of a graphite tube containing indium. The NO gas sensing properties, as well as the morphology, structure, and electrical properties, were examined at room temperature under UV light illumination. In particular, the response and recovery kinetics of the sensor at room temperature under various UV light intensities were studied.

Biological control of Xanthomonas Oryzae pv. Oryzae causing rice bacterial blight disease by Streptomyces toxytricini VN08-A-12, isolated from soil and leaf-litter samples in Vietnam.

A total of 2690 actinomycete strains were screened as potential biological control agents in controlling rice bacterial blight (BB) in Vietnam. From these microorganisms, seventeen actinomycete strains were found to be capable of inhibiting all 10 major Xoo races isolated from Xoo-infected rice leaves. One strain, namely VN08-A-12, contained effective characteristics in selectively inhibiting all 10 races in vitro, but did not inhibit most of the other tested microorganisms.

Forging links between human mental retardation-associated CNVs and mouse gene knockout models.

Rare copy number variants (CNVs) are frequently associated with common neurological disorders such as mental retardation (MR; learning disability), autism, and schizophrenia. CNV screening in clinical practice is limited because pathological CNVs cannot be distinguished routinely from benign CNVs, and because genes underlying patients' phenotypes remain largely unknown. Here, we present a novel, statistically robust approach that forges links between 148 MR-associated CNVs and phenotypes from approximately 5,000 mouse gene knockout experiments.

Polymorphism at the apical membrane antigen 1 gene (AMA1) of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum in a Vietnamese population.

The patterns of molecular evolution of the most diverse region of the apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA1) gene in Plasmodium falciparum from a Vietnamese subpopulation (Bao Loc) were investigated. Within the Bao Loc population, the sequenced gene region showed relatively high allelic and nucleotide diversity (0.985 and 0.

Persistence of white spot syndrome virus in shrimp ponds and surrounding areas after an outbreak.

White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) is the major and most serious pathogen in shrimp aquaculture industries. By using a sensitive PCR-based detection technique followed by sequencing multiple PCR products for confirmation, we address to the question of whether WSSV can persist in shrimp ponds and surrounding areas after an outbreak. The seawater samples were taken from two shrimp ponds and surrounding canals in a coastal area in northern Vietnam, Quang Ninh Province where the shrimps cultured in the two ponds had been killed due to a WSSV outbreak in April 2001 and the ponds were thereafter abandoned.

Reduced purifying selection prevails over positive selection in human copy number variant evolution.

Copy number variation is a dominant contributor to genomic variation and may frequently underlie an individual's variable susceptibilities to disease. Here we question our previous proposition that copy number variants (CNVs) are often retained in the human population because of their adaptive benefit. We show that genic biases of CNVs are best explained, not by positive selection, but by reduced efficiency of selection in eliminating deleterious changes from the human population.

Phylogeographic structure and late Quaternary population history of the Japanese oak Quercus mongolica var. crispula and related species revealed by chloroplast DNA variation.

Generally, oaks dominate the broadleaf deciduous forests in Japan. The genetic variation in 6 cpDNA regions (trnT-trnL, trnL-trnF, atpB-rbcL, and trnH-psbA speacers, trnL intron, and matK gene) with regard to the Japanese oak (Quercus mongolica var. crispula) and 3 related species in the section Prinus (Q.