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This work demonstrates the image qualities between two popular JPEG2000 programs. Two medical image compression algorithms are both coded using JPEG2000, but they are different regarding the interface, convenience, speed of computation, and their characteristic options influenced by the encoder, quantization, tiling, etc. The differences in image quality and compression ratio are also affected by the modality and compression algorithm implementation. Do they provide the same quality? The qualities of compressed medical images from two image compression programs named Apollo and JJ2000 were evaluated extensively using objective metrics. These algorithms were applied to three medical image modalities at various compression ratios ranging from 10:1 to 100:1. Following that, the quality of the reconstructed images was evaluated using five objective metrics. The Spearman rank correlation coefficients were measured under every metric in the two programs. We found that JJ2000 and Apollo exhibited indistinguishable image quality for all images evaluated using the above five metrics ( r > 0.98, p < 0.001). It can be concluded that the image quality of the JJ2000 and Apollo algorithms is statistically equivalent for medical image compression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We established a novel gene expression analysis platform, Multiplex Competitive RT-PCR Using Fluorescent Universal Primers (MCF-PCR), to study multi-gene expression patterns simultaneously. This platform combines fluorescent universal primers, multiplex competitive RT-PCR, and capillary electrophoretic separation, which ensures MCF-PCR a reliable, medium-throughput, cost-effective technology for gene expression profiling. With cloned standard DNAs, the detection limits, precision, and sensitivity of MCF-PCR were evaluated and compared with that of the assay without adding competitive templates and real-time PCR, respectively. The results showed that detection limit was 3.125 × 10 to 3.2 × 10 copies, and 10 % copy differences between two samples can be detected by MCF-PCR. To validate MCF-PCR, we analyzed expression profile of five genes in interleukin (IL)-4/IL-13 pathway in peripheral blood of 20 healthy adults and 20 allergic dermatitis patients; three genes including IL-4, IL-13, and STAT6 were found differentially expressed in the two sample groups, which maybe key players in IL-4/IL-13 immunological signaling pathway and need further function analysis. [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The immunoglobulin E (IgE) high-affinity receptor FcεRI expressed on mast cells and basophils plays a critical role in triggering allergic disease. The co-aggregation of the FcεRI and FcγRIIb receptors is inhibitory to FcεRI signaling and holds great potential for the treatment of IgE-mediated allergies. In China, Dermatophagoides farinae is a common anaphylaxis trigger. Therefore, in this study, the FcγRIIb-mediated immunomodulating activity of recombinant Fcγ-Der f2 fusion protein was tested in a Der f2-allergic murine model. Following the treatment, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was collected to measure the expression of several Th1/Th2-type cytokines (IL-5, TNF-α, IL-12p70, IL-4, IL-10, IFN-γ and IL-18) and histamine, while blood was used to detect the specific IgE and IgG-types anti-Der f2 antibodies, for measurement. In contrast to the saline-treated allergic mice, the levels of Der f2-specific IgE, cytokines and histamine were lowered in the Fcγ-Der f2-treated allergic mice, in addition to the rare inflammatory cell infiltration in the airways and blood vessels revealed by histopathological examination. The recombinant Fcγ-Der f2 protein was demonstrated to function as an effective immunotherapeutic agent, suggesting that chimeric human Fcγ-allergen proteins could be used in the development of antigen-specific immunotherapy for human allergic diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]