Inorganic arsenite inhibits IgE receptor‐mediated degranulation of mast cells

Millions of people worldwide are exposed to arsenic (As), a toxicant which increases the risk of various cancers, cardiovascular disease and several other health problems. Arsenic is a potent endocrine disruptor, including of the estrogen receptor. It was recently shown that environmental estrogen‐receptor disruptors can affect the signaling of mast cells, which are important players in parasite defense, asthma and allergy. Antigen (Ag) or allergen crosslinking of IgE‐bound receptors on mast cells leads to signaling, culminating in degranulation, the release of histamine and other mediators. Because As is an endocrine disruptor and because endocrine disruptors have been found to affect degranulation, here we have tested whether sodium arsenite affects degranulation. Using the rat basophilic leukemia (RBL) mast cell model, we have measured degranulation in a fluorescence assay. Arsenic alone had no effect on basal levels of degranulation. However, As strongly inhibited Ag‐stimulated degranulation at environmentally relevant concentrations, in a manner that is very dependent on concentrations of both As and Ag. The concentrations of As effective at inhibiting degranulation were not cytotoxic. This inhibition may be a mechanism underlying the traditional Chinese medicinal use of As to treat asthma. These data indicate that As may inhibit the ability of humans to fight off parasitic disease. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Is there a connection between paediatric acute idiopathic scrotal oedema and intestinal worm infestation?

Aim: Based on our experience with acute idiopathic scrotal oedema (AISO) and observations of the incidence of intestinal worm infestation (IWI), we decided to test the hypothesis that IWI occurs more frequently among children with AISO than it does in the general population. Methods: A retrospective questionnaire‐based study was conducted comparing the frequency of IWI between children who had AISO and a matched control group who had inguinal hernia surgery in our Pediatric Surgery Department during 2003–2009. This second group was chosen to represent the incidence of IWI in the paediatric community in our region. Records of all patients admitted to the Department of Pediatric Surgery for AISO during 2003–2009 were reviewed. Results: Seventeen out of thirty‐eight (44.7%) AISO patients had a history of IWI compared with 5/38 (13.1%) in the control group (P= 0.0047). Conclusions: Our data clearly show that AISO in children is frequently associated with a history of IWI. Although well‐documented, prospective studies are needed to establish these findings, we feel that this report provides a reasonable clue to a possible aetiology of AISO.     

独活寄生汤加减治疗腰椎间盘突出症疗效分析

目的：对独活寄生汤加减治疗腰椎间盘突出症进行临床疗效分析.方法：将所选病例随机分成治疗组和对照组,对照组采用牵引加针刺治疗,治疗组在牵引加针刺治疗的基础上结合独活寄生汤加减治疗,观察比较两组的临床疗效.结果：两组比较,治疗组的治愈率和总有效率均显著高于对照组.结论：独活寄生汤加减治疗腰椎间盘突出症,有效提高了临床效果,值得在临床广泛推广.     

Drug efficacy of praziquantel and albendazole in school children in Mwea Division, Central Province, Kenya

The objective of this research was to assess drug efficacy in school children after mass chemotherapy with praziquantel and albendazole conducted in Mwea Division, Kirinyaga District, Central Kenya in 2004. In total 2300 children aged between 4 and 18 years in five primary schools were selected for the study. Before mass chemotherapy, prevalence of infection was 47.4% for Schistosoma mansoni, 16.7% for Necator americanus, 1.6% for Ascaris lumbricoides, and 0.8% for Trichuris trichiura. Post-treatment stool examination was carried out 8 weeks later, and a total of 1942 stool samples were collected. Prevalence decreased to 8.6% for S. mansoni, 0.2% for N. americunus, 0 for A. lumbricoides, and 0.6% for T. trichiura. Efficacy was good for S. mansoni and N. americanus (92.6% and 95.0%, respectively). Results of the first round of treatment of school-age children in Mwea indicate a good reduction in parasite burden.     

CCL2-independent role of CCR2 in immune responses against Leishmania major

The chemokine CCL2 (MCP-1) and its receptor CCR2 modulate leucocyte migration and T helper differentiation. CCL2 or CCR2 knockout (KO) mice have divergent phenotypes following infection with the intracellular parasite Leishmania major (L. major). Compared to wild-type (WT) mice, intradermally infected CCR2 KO mice in the L. major-resistant C57BL/6j background become susceptible and fail to generate protective Th1 responses. In contrast, subcutaneously infected CCL2 KO mice in the L. major-susceptible BALB/c background are resistant and exhibit reduced pathogenic Th2 responses. Here we explore two variables that may account for this contrasting outcome, namely background strain and route of infection. We found that the CCR2-null state, both in the BALB/c and the C57BL/6j background, was associated with increased susceptibility to intradermal or subcutaneous L. major infection. Notably, the CCL2-null state did not change the ability of C57BL/6j mice to mount protective responses following intradermal infection. Dual genetic inactivation of CCR2 and CCL2 in the L. major-resistant C57BL/6j background resulted in a shift to a susceptible phenotype analogous to that of CCR2 KO in the C57BL/6j background. We concluded that CCL2-independent effects of CCR2 are indispensable for the control of L. major infection and the generation of protective immune responses.     

小鼠BPI N端功能片段(muBPI_(25)蛋白)体外杀菌和中和内毒素作用研究

目的:建立胞内杀菌和体外中和内毒素实验模型,检测muBPI25目的蛋白对胞内寄生菌的抑杀作用和对内毒素的中和作用。方法:将pcDNA3.1(+)-muBPI36-259质粒导入RAW264.7细胞,用胞内寄生G+/G-菌感染上述细胞建立muBPI25目的蛋白胞内杀菌实验模型;将pSecTag2B-muBPI36-259与双荧光素酶报告基因质粒共转染RAW264.7细胞,建立体外检测muBPI25蛋白中和内毒素实验模型。结果:胞内杀菌实验模型证实muBPI25目的蛋白对G-伤寒杆菌具有抑杀作用;中和内毒素实验模型证实muBPI25目的蛋白对内毒素具有中和作用。结论:首次证实小鼠BPI N端功能片段,即muBPI25目的蛋白对G-菌具有抑杀作用,对其裂解产物内毒素具有中和作用。     

Severe imported Plasmodium falciparum malaria, France, 1996-2003

Little is known about severe imported Plasmodium falciparum malaria in industrialized countries where the disease is not endemic because most studies have been case reports or have included <200 patients. To identify factors independently associated with the severity of P. falciparum, we conducted a retrospective study using surveillance data obtained from 21,888 P. falciparum patients in France during 1996-2003; 832 were classified as having severe malaria. The global case-fatality rate was 0.4% and the rate of severe malaria was ≈3.8%. Factors independently associated with severe imported P. falciparum malaria were older age, European origin, travel to eastern Africa, absence of chemoprophylaxis, initial visit to a general practitioner, time to diagnosis of 4 to 12 days, and diagnosis during the fall-winter season. Pretravel advice should take into account these factors and promote the use of antimalarial chemoprophylaxis for every traveler, with a particular focus on nonimmune travelers and elderly persons.     

Prevalence of Intestinal Parasites in Bakery Workers in Khorramabad,Lorestan Iran

Background

Food contamination may occur through production, processing, distribution and preparation. In Iran especially in Khorramabad, 33° 29'' 16" North, 48° 21'' 21" East, due to kind of nutrition, culture and economic status of people, bread is a part of the main meal and the consumption of bread is high. In this study, the bakery workers were studied for determining of intestinal parasites prevalence.

Methods

The study was carried out during September to November 2010 in Khorramabad. All the 278 bakeries and the bakery workers including 816 people were studied in a census method and their feces were examined for the presence of parasites by direct wet-mount, Lugol''s iodine solution, and formaldehyde-ether sedimentation, trichrome staining, and single round PCR (For discrimination of Entamoeba spp).

Results

Ninety-six (11.9%) stool specimens were positive for different intestinal parasites. Intestinal parasites included Giardia lamblia 3.7%, Entamoeba coli 5.5%, Blastocystis sp. 2.1%, Entamoeba dispar 0.4%, Hymenolepis nana 0.1%, and Blastocystis sp. 0.1%.

Conclusion

In order to reduce the contamination in these persons, some cases such as stool exam every three months with concentration methods, supervision and application of accurate health rules by health experts, training in transmission of parasites are recommended.     

中国寄生虫种质资源平台在形态学教学中的应用

形态学教学为人体寄生虫学教学的重要基础?目前,医学院校形态学教学中存在标本短缺?形态不典型,青年教师寄生虫虫种虫期形态上鉴别能力不足等问题?寄生虫教学资源平台建设由于寄生虫病的流行特点而存在不足,缺乏科学规范的整合标准和现代信息与网络技术支撑,不能形成具有综合集成?优化配置?最大限度发挥资源的效益?中国寄生虫种质资源平台的建立可以实现共享的信息量大?规范的教学资源,为寄生虫学形态学教学?青年教师培养?开放性学习提供了基础?     

Therapeutic live vaccines as a potential anticancer strategy

The design of efficient cancer treatments is one of the major challenges of medical science. Therapeutic vaccines of cancer have been emerged as an attractive approach for their capacity of breaking the immune tolerance and invoking long-term immune response targeting cancer cells without autoimmunity. An efficient antigen delivery system is the key issue of developing an effective cancer vaccine. In this regard, live vaccination strategies including various live bacterial and viral vectors have attracted a great attention. Several bacterial strains such as Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes and Lactococcus lactis effectively colonize solid tumors and act as antitumor therapeutics. On the other hand, the use of viruses as vaccine vectors such as Vaccinia, Adenovirus, Herpes simplex virus, Paramyxovirus and Retroviruses utilizes mechanisms that evolved in these microbes for entering cells and capturing the cellular machinery to express viral proteins. Viral/bacterial-vectored vaccines induce systemic T-cell responses including polyfunctional cytokine-secreting CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells. However, there is an urgent need for the development of new safe live vaccine vectors that are capable of enhancing antigen presentation and eliciting potent immune responses without the risk of development of disease in humans. Recently, nonpathogenic parasites including Leishmania tarentolae, Toxoplasma gondii and Trypanosoma cruzi have emerged to be a novel candidate for gene delivery and heterologous genes expression. In this review, recent researches on cancer therapy using genetically modified bacteria and virus are summarized. In addition, live parasite-based vectors will be discussed as a novel anticancer therapeutic approach.