Streptococcus pneumoniae Serotype 15A in Psychiatric Unit,Rhode Island,USA, 2010–2011

During a pneumococcal disease outbreak in a pediatric psychiatric unit in a hospital in Rhode Island, USA, 6 (30%) of 20 patients and staff were colonized with Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 15A, which is not included in pneumococcal vaccines. The outbreak subsided after implementation of antimicrobial drug prophylaxis and enhanced infection control measures.     

Serum interleukin-10 in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: a prognostic factor

Serum interleukin-10 (IL-10) was measured retrospectively in 153 patients with a fully documented history of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) detecting both human IL-10 and the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) molecule BCRF1/viral IL- 10. IL-10 was detectable in 47 (46%) of the 101 patients with active NHL, 3 of 52 (6%) patients in first partial or complete response, and none of the 60 healthy blood donors. Serum IL-10 was detectable with a similar frequency in all subtypes of NHL and in all clinical stages, as well as in EBV-seropositive and EBV-negative patients. In patients with intermediate or high-grade NHL, the presence of detectable serum IL-10 at diagnosis was correlated to a significantly shorter overall (P = .025) and progression-free (P = .030) survival. Patients with stage IV disease and detectable serum IL-10 had a particularly poor prognosis (4 years of survival: 0%). Multivariate analysis showed that IL-10 was an independent prognosis factor. These results indicate that IL-10 is detectable in a subgroup of patients with active NHL and correlates to a poor survival in patients with intermediate or high-grade NHL.     

Urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin levels predict cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury better than albuminuria or urinary cystatin C levels

Cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) is a major concern among clinicians in prescribing cisplatin-based chemotherapy. This study evaluated and compared the ability of urinary biomarkers, including urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), cystatin C, and the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (ACR) to predict cisplatin-induced AKI. Thirty-three cancer patients receiving cisplatin-based chemotherapy were prospectively studied, including 10 (30%) who developed AKI (the study group). Changes of urinary biomarkers were compared at 4 hours, 8 hours, and 12 hours, and 1 day, 2 days, 3 days, and 4 days after cisplatin intravenous infusions (75 mg/m²) versus the baseline. There was a significant increase in urinary NGAL levels from 12 hours to 4 days (p < 0.05) compared to baseline after cisplatin infusion in the AKI group. The magnitude of these changes over time differed significantly by group (p < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating curve describing the relationship between urinary NGAL levels and AKI within 12 hours was 0.865 (95% confidence interval = 0.691–1.000). Urinary NGAL levels independently predicted AKI 12 hours after cisplatin (p = 0.045) after adjustments for age, gender, body mass index, baseline serum creatinine, and urinary total protein. Urinary NGAL levels may be an early biomarker of AKI in patients receiving cisplatin-based treatment.     

假细锥香茶菜新二萜成分——假细锥甲素的结构

从假细锥香茶菜(Rabdosia coetsoides C.Y.Wu)叶分离得到新二萜成分,根据紫外光谱、红外光谱、质谱、核磁共振氢谱及碳谱等分析,推定了化学结构,并经X-射线衍射确证,命名为假细锥甲素。     

阿魏酸钠对花生四烯酸代谢的影响

利用放射薄层方法测定兔血小板花生四烯酸代谢产物TXB₂,PGE₂和PGF_2α。用放射免疫法测定兔血小板TXB₂及主动脉6-keto-PGF_1α。阿魏酸钠(SF,0.1～3.2 mmol/L),抑制¹⁴C-花生四烯酸转化为TXB₂,呈剂量效应关系,IC₅₀为0.762 mmol/L。SF在较高浓度(0.8～3.2mmol/L)时亦抑制PGE₂,PGF_2α的生成。用放免法观察到,SF对血小板TXB₂和动脉壁6-keto-PGF_1α的生成均有抑制作用,对TXB₂的作用较强。结果提示,SF可抑制兔血小板和动脉壁环氧酶活性。     

Induction of Fas clustering and apoptosis by coral prostanoid in human hormone-resistant prostate cancer cells

Cyclopentenone prostaglandins (PGs) such as PGA1, PGA2 and delta12-PGJ2 have been shown to suppress tumor cell growth and to induce apoptosis in prostate cancer cells. Bromovulone III, which is isolated from the soft coral Clavularia viridis, is a cyclopentenone prostanoid. In this study, the anti-tumor activity as well as action mechanism of bromovulone III was identified in prostate cancer cells. Bromovulone III displayed anti-tumor activity of 30 to 100 times more effective than PGA1, PGA2 and delta12-PGJ2 in PC-3 cells. Several targets of caspases and Bcl-2 family of proteins were detected and the data demonstrated that bromovulone III induced the activation of caspase-8, -9 and -3, and Bid cleavage in which the caspase-8 activation occurred the first. Bromovulone III did not modify the protein levels of death receptors and ligands. Of note, the Fas clustering in PC-3 cells responsive to bromovulone III was observed by confocal immunofluorescence microscopy suggesting the involvement of Fas-mediated pathway. Bromovulone III also induced the cleavage of Mcl-1 in this study. The cleavage fragments (24, 19 and 17 kDa) may partly share the apoptotic insult. Although it has been suggested that Fas-mediated signaling may contribute to the caspase-8 activation induced by DNA-damaging agents; however, bromovulone III did not induce any DNA breakage, suggesting that bromovulone III-induced Fas/caspase-8-dependent signaling is not through the direct target on DNA damage. In summary, the data suggest that bromovulone III causes a rapid redistribution and clustering of Fas in PC-3 cells. Subsequently, the Fas event causes the activation and interaction of caspase-8/Bid/caspase-9 signaling cascades, and the activation of executor caspase-3.