Comparison of galE gene of Campylobacter jejuni strains associated Guillain-Barré syndrome

目的 测定3株格林.巴利综合征(Guillain-Barre syndrome,GBS)相关宅肠弯曲菌的gale基因序列,并同GenBank中的空肠弯曲菌菌株相应序列进行比较,了解致GBS的序列特征并分析其遗传进化关系.方法 选取分离自GBS患者粪便并经动物模型证实为致GBS的3株AMAN型空肠弯曲菌菌株进行培养并提取基因组DNA测序.将基因测序结果通过与NCTC11168菌株进行对照比较寻找galE基因突变位点并对gaZE基因片段进行遗传距离计算.结果 3株致GBS空肠弯曲菌菌株的galE基因均由987个碱基构成.与NCTC11168的galE基因序列相比,此3株空肠弯曲菌菌株gale基因核苷酸序列有4个相同碱基突变并导致了4个对应的相同氨基酸突变.遗传距离计算,zhanxing株与qiaoyuntao株距离为1.5%,zhanxing株与lulei株距离为1.6%,qiaoyuntao株与lulei株距离为0.5%.结论 GBS相关空肠弯曲菌中galE基因核苷酸序列的确存在相同变异且发生变异概率较非GBS相关空肠弯曲菌明显增大,遗传距离反映了此3株致GBS的空肠弯曲菌具有一定的区域特征.     

空间ICA在fMRI数据上的应用与分析

独立成分分析(ICA)技术试图将多维数据分解成若干个相互统计独立的分量。时间ICA和空间ICA都可以用于分析功能核磁共振成像(fMRI)数据。但由于fMRI数据空间维数远远大于时间维数，为计算方便，在分析fMRI数据时。则更多的使用空间ICA方法。本文在单任务激励实验中，利用ICA方法从fMRI数据中分离出若干个与任务相关的独立分量，其中包括与任务相关的恒定分量(CTR)和与任务相关的暂态分量(TTR)；通过将这些独立分量进行空间映射，得到了与任务相关的脑部激活区域。将此结果与SPM的分析比较，得到了一致的结果。在对结果的分析中，我们进一步指出了ICA方法的特点和局限性。     

广州市白云区1991—2007年艾滋病疫情监测

目的总结广州市白云区艾滋病流行特征，评估监测效能，为下一步防治工作的深入开展提供依据。方法运用SAS统计软件对广州市艾滋病疫情数据库中白云区属的病例进行相关描述性统计分析。结果截至2007年底，白云区共发现病例1136例，男女比为3．5：1；年龄以15-49岁为主（94．01％）。传播途径以静脉吸毒为主（61．10％），流动人口占疫情的大部分（71．48％）。性传播（x^2=12．009，P=0．001）和职业人群（x^2=44．935，P=0．001）随年份比例增加；常规监测发现病例日趋增加（x^2=5．533，P=0．019）。结论白云区已进入疫情的快速增长期，疫情主要侵袭青壮年男性，吸毒人群和无业人士所占比例较大。由于白云区在经济和生活上的一些特点，流动人口的疫情负担较重，且传播途径向多元化发展。加大监测力度包括高危人群干预专项和监测效能，将有助于迅速准确的掌握疫情。     

Unrestricted principal components analysis of brain electrical activity: Issues of data dimensionality,artifact, and utility

Summary Principal components analysis (PCA) was performed on the 1536 spectral and 2944 evoked potential (EP) variables generated by neurophysiologic paradigms including flash VER, click AER, and eyes open and closed spectral EEG from 202 healthy subjects aged 30 to 80. In each case data dimensionality of 1500 to 3000 was substantially reduced using PCA by magnitudes of 20 to over 200. Just 20 PCA factors accounted for 70% to 85% of the variance. Visual inspection of the topographic distribution of factor loading scores revealed complex loadings across multiple data dimensions (time-space and frequency-space). Forty-two non-artifactual factors were successful in classifying age, gender, and a separate group of 60 demented patients by linear discriminant analysis. Discrimination of age and gender primarily involved EP derived factors, whereas dementia primarily involved EEG derived factors. Thirty-eight artifactual factors were identified which, alone, could not discriminate age but were relatively successful in discriminating gender and dementia. The need to parsimoniously develop real neurophysiologic measures and to objectively exclude artifact are discussed. Unrestricted PCA is suggested as a step in this direction.Acknowledgements: This work was supported in part by NIA program project PO1AG049853 to M. Albert and the Mental Retardation Program Project P30HD18655 to J.J. Volpe. We thank our qEEG technologists Adele Mirabella, Susan Katz, Ellen Belles, and Marianne McGaffigan as well as our research secretaries for their unflagging support.     

Genetic analysis of the relationships between behavioral and neuroendocrine traits in roman high and low avoidance rat lines

In order to determine whether the coselection observed between the selection trait (active avoidance behavior) of the Roman High Avoidance (RHA) and Roman Low Avoidance (RLA) rat lines and their neuroendocrine characteristics were genetically determined, we analyzed, in nonsegregating (RHA, RLA, and F₁) and segregating (F₂ and the two backcrosses) crosses, the inheritance pattern and the phenotypic correlations among behavioral (shuttle-box behavior), physiological (body, adrenal, and thymus weights), and neuroendocrine (corticosterone and prolactin reactivity, catecholamine enzyme activities) variables. Physiological characteristics and enzyme activities have acrucial role in sex dissociation. Avoidance behavior and prolactin reactivity to novel environment remained associated in segregating crosses despite gene rearrangement. They represented the most important variables to differentiate the Roman lines, perhaps sharing a common regulatory mechanism under genetic control.     

Quantitation of antigen-specific immune responses in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals by limiting dilution analysis

The lymphocyte proliferative response to recall antigens is lost following HIV infection. We sought to devise a means by which the functional immune status of persons in the early stages of HIV infection could be monitored quantitatively. The response to tetanus toxoid was examined in 45 HIV-infected individuals and 11 controls using conventional lymphocyte proliferative assays concurrently with limiting dilution analysis utilizing the secretion of interleukin-2 as the measure of a response. Our data show that the limiting dilution analysis detects tetanus toxoid-reactive T cells in 80% of those tested, as compared to only 44% by proliferation. However, the frequency of tetanus-reactive T cells in HIV-infected individuals (median frequency = 1/59,156) is decrease five-fold as compared to seronegative controls (median frequency = 1/11,599). Longitudinal studies demonstrated a time-dependent decrease in the frequency of tetanus-specific T cell responses in the HIV-infected individuals. Thus, the limiting dilution analysis is a quantitative approach for detecting antigen-specific T cells in HIV-infected individuals, and may be used to monitor changes in T cell function in HIV infection.     

有限元分析法研究脊柱生物力学的新进展

近20年来,有限元分析法在脊柱生物力学研究领域中已得到日益广泛的应用.本文就近10年来国外学者用有限元法研究脊柱生物力学的新进展作以综述.详细介绍了椎体、后部结构、间盘、韧带、肌肉组织在生理及病理情况下的生物力学特性,及不同术式、内固定器械对脊柱生物力学的影响;介绍了用有限元法研究某些疾病发病的力学机制的新成果;展望了有限元法应用于脊柱生物力学研究的前景.     

Rapid detection of beta-globin gene (HBB) mutations coupling heteroduplex and primer-extension analysis by DHPLC

Beta-thalassemia is a common inherited disease, resulting from one or more of a total of more than 200 different mutations in the beta-globin gene (HBB). Efficient and reliable mutation-screening methods are essential in order to establish appropriate prevention programs for at-risk populations based upon a molecular diagnosis. We have developed a rapid and highly-specific mutation screening test for the diagnosis of beta-thalassemia by coupling heteroduplex and primer-extension analysis based on the denaturing high performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC) system. A total of 161 healthy heterozygous Taiwanese carriers featuring 10 different HBB mutations and 30 patients exhibiting 12 different compound heterozygous or homozygous HBB mutations were subjected to DHPLC. The elution profile for the heteroduplex analysis of DHPLC could be successfully used to identify the common disease-causing mutations of HBB. To further confirm the sequence variants, we developed a technique combining multiplex primer-extension analysis coupled with DHPLC for the genotyping of eight common disease-causing mutations in the HBB gene. Overall, by coupling heteroduplex and primer-extension analysis based upon DHPLC, we were able to unambiguously identify the most-common beta-thalassemia mutations corresponding to more than 99% of HBB alleles among the Taiwanese population. In conclusion, compared to classic approaches to mutation screening for this malady, we suggest that DHPLC is an excellent technique to be applied to the genetic screening of prenatal and postnatal individuals as a part of a diagnosis program for beta-thalassemia and provides a more-efficient, economic, and sensitive means to undertake such a screening program.     

皮肤穿支血管的解剖学研究

目的：对全身皮肤血管区域进行定性和定量分析，确定全身皮肤穿支血管的位置、数量、口径、穿支蒂的长度、类型、来源血管以及穿支所供应皮肤的面积，为穿支皮瓣提供血管解剖基础。方法：选用10具新鲜尸体，采用改良氧化铅一明胶灌注技术进行动脉灌注。将每个口径大于0．5mm的穿支血管进行解剖并记录。拍摄X线片以显示皮肤内血管的形态和分布。定量数据分析包括全身各部位的穿支血管的数量、口径、类型及其供应区域的面积。结果：发现全身128支起源血管发出440支穿支供应皮肤。其中肌皮穿支与肌间隔穿支之比为3：2。穿支平均直径为0．7mm。穿支血管的分布规律如下：①躯干皮肤的血供主要来自肌皮穿支，这些穿支在皮肤内的走行距离和分布范围大于肢体皮肤的穿支。②肢体皮肤的血供主要来自肌间隙穿支血管，主要分布在深筋膜表面，皮神经和浅静脉周围穿支之间形成链式血管吻合。③单位面积的穿支数量与皮肤的移动程度成反比，穿支的口径大小和穿支在皮肤内走行距离与皮肤移动度成正比，与穿支的供应面积成正比。结论：本研究提供详细的皮肤穿支血管解剖数据，为临床设计应用穿支皮瓣提供解剖学依据。