The usefulness of measuring n-butyric acid concentration as a new indicator of blood decomposition in forensic autopsy

In forensic medicine, although various alcohols have been reported as indicators of decomposition in collected blood, no studies have examined short-chain fatty acids as indicators. In this study, the blood n-butyric acid concentration was quantified, and the association between n-butyric acid and decomposition was investigated to determine whether the detection of n-butyric acid could be a new indicator of decomposition. Among the forensic autopsies performed from 2016 to 2018 in our laboratory, the cases were divided into decomposed (n = 20) and non-decomposed (n = 20) groups based on macroscopic findings. Blood samples collected at the time of autopsy were derivatized with 3-nitrophenylhydrazine hydrochloride after solid-phase extraction. The n-butyric acid concentration was measured using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. In addition, ethanol and n-propanol were measured using a gas chromatography-flame ionization detector. There was a significant difference (p < 0.01) in the concentrations of n-butyric acid between the decomposed and non-decomposed groups (0.343 ± 0.259 [0.030–0.973] and 0.003 ± 0.002 [0.001–0.007] mg/mL, respectively). In the decomposed group, n-butyric acid was detected at high concentrations, even in cases where n-propanol was low. These results suggest that n-butyric acid is more likely to be an indicator of blood decomposition than n-propanol.     

Zhang Weishen: A Pioneer in the Development and Industrial Production of Penicillin in New China

The research and development of penicillin started with difficulty before 1949 and achieved certain results. In 1951, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zhang Weishen, as the only Chinese scientist who had been trained and worked in a penicillin research and development center in the United States for many years, overcame many difficulties and returned to China. In 1953, with the efforts of Zhang Weishen and his colleagues, China realized the industrialized production of penicillin, alleviating the urgent needs of the masses. Antibiotics has also become the first discipline to achieve major scientific and technological achievements after the founding of the New China. In the mid-1950s, the technical breakthrough in the localization of lactose substitutes marked the localization of the raw materials of the penicillin-producing culture medium, which paved the way for the industrialized production of penicillin with Chinese characteristics. Antibiotics have become one of the most widely used and affordable drugs for hundreds of millions of patients in China, and China has since ended the humiliating history of the “Sick Man of East Asia".     

Plasmacytic cutaneous pathology: A review

We review the spectrum of cutaneous disorders associated with inflammatory and neoplastic plasmacytic pathology. Because plasma cells are derived from B‐lymphocytes our overview includes discussion of certain lymphoplasmacytic proliferations. It is structured along histopathological lines, addressing conditions characterized by (a) cutaneous plasma cell infiltrates, (b) deposits of plasma cell products or their derivatives in the skin and (c) miscellaneous, poorly understood cutaneous complications of plasmacytic disorders. Lesions arising primarily in the skin and those due to cutaneous involvement by multisystem disorders are addressed. The range includes a spectrum of tumefactive and circulatory manifestations. We highlight key clinical and pathological features of the different conditions and outline recent advances in our understanding of these entities. By emphasizing the dermatopathological characteristics of this spectrum of disorders we hope to hone the diagnostic accuracy of practitioners in the field.     

Angiopathie amyloïde cérébrale ou atteinte des microvaisseaux cérébraux en rapport avec l’HTA : un challenge clinique

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) is a entity characterized by degenerative Amyloïd deposits in the walls of the meningeal and cortical vessels. It is considered as the second cause of primitives cerebral hemorrhage in elderly. The differential diagnosis between AAC and hypertension-related cerebral small vessel diseases is difficult and represent a true challenge for the clinician. We report two cases of cerebral small vessel diseases revealed by malignant hypertension.     

Adaptation of Vero cells to suspension growth for rabies virus production in different serum free media

Vero cells are nowadays widely used in the production of human vaccines. They are considered as one of the most productive and flexible continuous cell lines available for vaccine manufacturing. However, these cells are anchorage dependent, which greatly complicates upstream processing and process scale-up. Moreover, there is a recognized need to reduce the costs of vaccine manufacturing to develop vaccines that are affordable worldwide. The use of cell lines adapted to suspension growth contributes to reach this objective.The current work describes the adaptation of Vero cells to suspension culture in different serum free media according to multiple protocols based on subsequent passages. The best one that relies on cell adaption to IPT-AFM an in-house developed animal component free medium was then chosen for further studies. Besides, as aggregates have been observed, the improvement of IPT-AFM composition and mechanical dissociation were also investigated.In addition to IPT-AFM, three chemically defined media (CD293, Hycell CHO and CD-U5) and two serum free media (293SFMII and SFM4CHO) were tested to set up a serum free culture of the suspension-adapted Vero cells (VeroS) in shake flasks. Cell density levels higher than 2 × 10⁶ cells/mL were obtained in the assessed conditions. The results were comparable to those obtained in spinner culture of adherent Vero cells grown on Cytodex 1 microcarriers.Cell infection with LP-2061 rabies virus strain at an MOI (Multiplicity of Infection) of 0.1 and a cell density of 8 ± 0.5 × 10⁵ cells/mL resulted in a virus titer higher than 10⁷ FFU/mL in all media tested. Nevertheless, the highest titer equal to 5.2 ± 0.5 × 10⁷ FFU/mL, was achieved in IPT-AFM containing a reduced amount of Ca⁺⁺ and Mg⁺⁺. Our results demonstrate the suitability of the obtained VeroS cells to produce rabies virus at a high titer, and pave the way to develop VeroS cells bioreactor process for rabies vaccine production.     

Evolución e impacto bibliométrico de las becas de la Sociedad Española de Cardiología/Fundación Española del Corazón en el periodo 2007-2012

Introduction and objectivesThe Spanish Society of Cardiology/Spanish Heart Foundation (SEC/FEC) annually awards grants for cardiovascular research projects. Our objective was to analyze the trend in these investments and their resulting scientific production from 2007 to 2012.MethodsA search of the publications funded by the SEC/FEC was carried out, according to the following inclusion criteria: publication in a journal indexed in MEDLINE or EMBASE, publication date after the grant, authorship by the principal investigator of the grant, and acknowledgment of SEC/FEC funding. The impact factor and subsequent citations of the articles were analyzed (Web of Science).ResultsA total of 235 grants were awarded (39/y) with an allocation of €3 854 300 (€642 383/y), 37% of them to women. In all, 122 publications resulted from 88 research projects (37%) funded by the SEC/FEC. Up to October 2017, these publications had received 2258 citations in subsequent studies in the Web of Science, with a mean of 18.5 and a median of 8 citations/study.ConclusionsDespite the economic crisis, the mean number and size of the grants awarded by the SEC/FEC increased in the period analyzed. Grants were awarded on an equal opportunity basis to men and women. The bibliometric impact of the funded projects is acceptable, although efforts should be made to improve it.     

A presenilin 1 mutation (L420R) in a family with early onset Alzheimer disease,seizures and cotton wool plaques,but not spastic paraparesis

Over 100 mutations in the presenilin‐1 gene (PSEN1) have been shown to result in familial early onset Alzheimer disease (EOAD), but only a relatively few give rise to plaques with an appearance like cotton wool (CWP) and/or spastic paraparesis (SP). A family with EOAD, seizures and CWP was investigated by neuropathological study and DNA sequencing of the PSEN1 gene. Aβ was identified in leptomeningeal vessels and in cerebral plaques. A single point mutation, p.L420R (g.1508T > G) that gives rise to a missense mutation in the eighth transmembrane (TM8) domain of PS1 was identified in two affected members of the family. p.L420R (g.1508T > G) is the mutation responsible for EOAD, seizures and CWP without SP in this family.     

药用胶带纸层厚度检测系统

设计并试制了一种药用胶带纸层厚度在线检测系统．该系统将高精度电容传感器与计算机结合起来，同时配有丰富的外围器件，实现了多种实际生产中所需要的功能．它的出现，彻底解决了药用胶带纸胶层厚度在线检测这个难题，经过两年多的实际应用的检验，该系统实现了在线非接触测量，精度高，动态性能好，实现功能全面，价格合理，是药用胶带纸生产的必备检测仪器．由于该系统还可以很方便在纸张、塑料薄膜等其它生产线上进行推广，因而，其应用前景十分看好．