Search

Background & Aims: The potential interaction between family history of liver cancer and HBV infection on liver cancer has not been fully examined. Methods: We conducted a population‐based case‐control study composed of 2011 liver cancer cases and 7933 controls in Jiangsu province, China from 2003 to 2010. Data on major risk or protective factors were collected and HBV/HCV sero‐markers were assayed using blood samples. Semi‐Bayes (SB) adjustments were applied to provide posterior estimates. Results: Both family history of liver cancer (adjusted odds ratios [OR]: 4.32, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 3.25‐5.73) and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positivity (adjusted OR: 9.94, 95% CI: 8.33‐11.87) were strongly associated with liver cancer development. For individuals with different combinations of serological markers, the adjusted ORs were 8.45 (95% CI: 5.16‐13.82) for HBsAg‐ and HBcAb‐positive; 7.57 (95% CI: 4.87‐11.77) for HBsAg‐, HBeAg‐ and HBcAb‐positive; and 3.62 (95% CI: 2.47‐5.31) for HBsAg‐, HBeAb‐ and HBcAb‐positive, compared to all negatives in HBV serological markers. One log increase in HBV DNA level was associated with 17% increased risk (adjusted OR: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.03‐1.32). The SB‐adjusted OR of HBV‐positive individuals with family history of liver cancer was 41.34 (95% posterior interval [PI]: 23.69‐72.12) compared with those HBV‐negative without family history. Relative excess risk due to additive interaction, the attributable proportion and synergy index were 73.13, 0.87 and 8.04 respectively. Adjusted ratio of OR for multiplicative interaction was 2.84 (95% CI: 1.41‐5.75). Conclusions: Super‐additive and super‐multiplicative interactions may exist between family history of liver cancer and HBV infection on the development of liver cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary objective: To study the effect of flavonoids isolated from aerial parts ofScutellaria baicalensisGeorgi (SSF) on cerebral damage induced by okadaic acid (OA) in rats. Methods and procedures: OA was microinjected into the right lateral ventricle of male rats at a dose of 200 ng kg−1twice with a 3-day interval between injections to establish a model of Alzheimer’s-disease-like cerebral damage. Neuronal morphology was observed with thionin staining and the expressions of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) andβ-amyloid peptide 1–40 (Aβ1–40) were monitored via immunohistochemistry. The level of malondialdehyde (MDA) and the activities of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were measured using spectrophotometry. Main outcomes and results: The results showed that OA-treated rats exhibited marked neuronal damage accompanied by increased levels of Aβ1–40 peptide and MDA accumulation, decreased GFAP protein expression and reduced GSH-Px and LDH activity in the brain. SSF at three doses (25, 50 and 100 mg kg−1) dramatically reversed the OA-induced changes in the brains of rats. Conclusion: SSF-mediated amelioration of OA-induced neuronal damage in rats provides a rationale for assessing SSF as a means of to reducing tau hyperphosphorylation and Aβexpression in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of the particle Ba in the imperative sentence is to express the communicative intention of consultation. The use of the particle Ba is decided by the speaker's social status and more importantly by communicative intention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnolia omeiensis is an evergreen tree with 25 meters heights. It is distributed in tropical 1200–1300 m. Mount Emei. And it has been ranked as a CR (Critically Endangered) species in China. Here, we report and characterize the complete plastome of M. omeiensis in an effort to provide genomic resources useful for promoting its systematics research. The plastome of M. omeiensis is found to possess a total length 160,021 bp with the typical quadripartite structure of angiosperms, contains two Inverted Repeats (IRs) of 26,336 bp, a Large Single-Copy (LSC) region of 88,061 bp and a Small Single-Copy (SSC) region of 19,288 bp. The plastome contains 114 genes, consisting of 80 unique protein-coding genes, 30 unique tRNA genes and 4 unique rRNA genes. The overall A/T content in the plastome of M. omeiensis is 60.70%. The phylogenetic analysis indicated that M. omeiensis is close to Magnolia yunnanensis within Magnoliaceae in this study. The complete plastome sequence of M. omeiensis will provide a useful resource for the conservation genetics of this species as well as for the phylogenetic studies of Magnoliaceae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hedyotis ovata is a plant of the family Rubiaceae. So far, there is no study on the genome of H. ovata. Here, we report and characterize the complete plastid genome sequence of H. ovata in an effort to provide genomic resources useful for promoting its conservation. The complete plastome is 154,560 bp in length and contains the typical structure and gene content of angiosperm plastome, including two inverted repeat (IR) regions of 26,058 bp, a large single-copy (LSC) region of 84,579 bp and a small single-copy (SSC) region of 17,865 bp. The plastome contains 114 genes, consisting of 80 unique protein-coding genes, 30 unique tRNA genes, and 4 unique rRNA genes. The overall A/T content in the plastome of H. ovata is 61.90%. The complete plastome sequence of H. ovata will provide a useful resource for the conservation genetics of this species as well as for the phylogenetic studies for Rubiaceae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Syzygium forrestii Merr. et Perry is an evergreen broad-leaved tree, 8–15 metres tall. It is mainly distributed in the Southwest of China (Nu river valley to Xishuangbanna area), growing from 800 to 2400 metres above sea level. It grows in the evergreen broad-leaved forest and the hillside shrubbery. It is an endemic plant species in China. At present, it has not been artificially introduced and cultivated. However, its complete plastome information and systematic position is still unknown. Here we report and characterize the complete plastid genome sequence of S. forrestii in an effort to provide genomic resources useful for promoting its conservation and systematic research. The complete plastome is 159,996 bp in length and contains the typical structure and gene content of angiosperm plastome, including two inverted repeat (IR) regions of 26,414 bp, a large single-copy (LSC) region of 88,560 bp and a small single-copy (SSC) region of 18,608 bp. The plastome contains 115 genes, consisting of 81 unique protein-coding genes, 30 unique tRNA gene and 4 unique rRNA genes (5S rRNA, 4.5S rRNA, 23S rRNA and 16S rRNA). The overall A/T content in the plastome of S. forrestii is 63.10%. The complete plastome sequence of S. forrestii will provide a useful resource for the conservation genetics of this species as well as for the phylogenetic studies of Myrtaceae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Research and development (R&D) on fusion nuclear technologies in China are reviewed in this paper. Our objective is to present the main achievements and key issues regarding plasma facing materials (PFMs) and plasma facing components (PFCs) in China in the past 2years, which include the properties of doped-tungsten powders obtained via wet chemical method, mechanical alloying (MA), and sintered pure and doped-tungsten by spark plasma sintering (SPS), resistance sintering under ultra high pressure (RSUHP). Results show that the superfine powders of W-La2O3 and W-TiC prepared by wet chemical method have more uniform size and good dispersion than MA. And the fabricated W-TiC powders had particle sizes ranging from 50 to 1000nm. In addition, two sintering methods of SPS and RSUHP are investigated to fabricate tungsten blocks with high densities. We also discuss the effect of rolling and swaging on the crystal size and mechanical properties of tungsten. For PFCs, joining of tungsten to copper was conducted by low pressure plasma spray (LPPS), air plasma spray (APS), cold spray, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), and electro-deposition from molten salt, in which the maximum thickness of tungsten coatings by electro-deposition was 1255μm with no voids and cracks. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A population-based case-control study was conducted in a high-risk area (Dafeng) and a low-risk area (Ganyu) of Jiangsu province, China. In this analysis, the population attributable fraction (PAF) was calculated to quantify the etiology of risk factors; the relative attributable risk (RAR) was applied to explore how much of the incidence difference could be explained by variations in the distribution of risk factors. Results showed that unhealthy lifestyles accounted for a high fraction of esophageal cancer in China. Dissimilar distribution of several lifestyle factors, together with hereditary variations may be largely responsible for the incidence difference between areas. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Purpose: To assess the impacts of area-level socioeconomic and environmental measures on reduced visual acuity (VA)., Methods: This ecological study used the nationally representative cross-sectional data from the Chinese National Survey on Students' Constitution and Health in 2014 (CNSSCH 2014), which included 261,833 participants aged 7 to 22 years randomly selected from 30 mainland provinces in China. Area-level socioeconomic measures assessed included gross domestic product (GDP), population density, density of hospital beds, and nighttime light data measured as the mean digital number (DN) of each region; environmental factors assessed included latitude, annual sunlight duration, and park green space density. The main outcome measure was the prevalence of reduced VA in each province of Mainland China., Results: GDP (coefficient: 0.221; P < 0.001), mean DN (coefficient: 0.461; P < 0.001), latitude (coefficient: 0.093; P < 0.001), and annual sunlight duration (coefficient: 0.112; P < 0.001) were positively associated with the prevalence of reduced VA, while population density (coefficient: -0.256; P < 0.001), park green space per 10,000 people (coefficient: -0.145; P < 0.001), and number of hospital beds per 10,000 people (coefficient: -0.146; P < 0.001) were negatively associated with reduced VA prevalence. Factor analysis indicated a marginally nonsignificant positive correlation between socioeconomic factors and the prevalence of reduced VA (coefficient: 0.034; P = 0.07)., Conclusions: Increased GDP and mean DN, which reflect economic development, were associated with a higher prevalence of reduced VA, while larger park green space and number of hospital beds per 10,000 people seemed to play a protective role, which could be targeted to design preventive strategies for myopia.

Background: Inflammation and postinflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) are two adverse side effects of ablative fractional CO 2 laser (ablative Fr CO 2 ) treatment for both rejuvenation and acne scars., Aims: To evaluate the efficacy of fusidic acid cream versus erythromycin ointment as postoperative therapy in patients who underwent ablative Fr CO 2 treatment for atrophic acne scars., Methods: Sixty Chinese patients who fulfilled the study criteria were recruited and randomly assigned to an experimental group treated with fusidic acid cream or a control group treated with erythromycin ointment. Postoperative treatment lasted for 7 days in each group. Each patient had two follow-up visits at 8 and 12 weeks. In total, three patients dropped out of the study, one in the experimental group at week 8 and two in the control group at weeks 8 and 12. Baseline and postoperative inflammation and PIH were assessed by facial examination, photographs, and questionnaires. Besides, PIH was evaluated by the Hyperpigmentation Activity and Severity Index (HASI) and a five-point grading system., Results: Moderate-to-severe PIH was observed in both groups. However, the mean HASI score and severity of PIH in the experimental group were lower than those of the control group at weeks 8 and 12 (P < 0.05). In the control group, one patient developed postoperative abscesses and one had papules, whereas no inflammation was observed in the experimental group participants., Conclusion: Fusidic acid cream shows promise as a common treatment after ablative Fr CO 2 therapy to reduce postoperative inflammation and PIH., (© 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

The extreme climate events such as El Nino seriously threaten crop production and agro-ecological sustainability because of the aggravated environmental stresses worldwide, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. To address this issue, we investigated the effects of dual plastic film and straw mulching in ridge-furrow (RF) system on wheat productivity, soil carbon and nitrogen stocks in a semiarid area in Kenya from 2015 to 2017. The experimental site represents a typical semiarid continental monsoon climate, and soil type is chromic vertisols. Field experiment with randomized block design consisted of six RF treatments as follows: 1) dual black plastic film and straw mulching (RFbS), 2) dual transparent plastic film and straw mulching (RFtS), 3) sole black plastic film mulching (RFb), 4) sole transparent plastic mulching RF (RFt), 5) sole straw mulching (RFS) and 6) no mulching (CK). The results indicated that seasonal dynamics of rainfall and air temperature fit in with the weather type of El Nino over four growing seasons. RFbS, RFtS, RFb and RFt significantly increased soil water storage (SWS), topsoil temperature, aboveground biomass, grain yield and water use efficiency across four growing seasons (p < 0.05) as compared with CK. Among all the treatments, RFbS and RFtS achieved the greatest SWS, AgB, grain yield and WUE, owing to improved soil hydro-thermal status in both treatments. Critically, RFbS and RFtS significantly improved soil organic carbon and total nitrogen, soil bulk density and the C:N ratio following four growing seasons, comparing with other treatments (p < 0.05). Besides, RFbS and RFtS gave the highest economic returns among all treatments. For the first time, we found that dual plastic film and straw mulching could serve as a sustainable land management to boost wheat productivity and improve soil quality under El Nino in semiarid areas of SSA., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Although the major risk factors for liver cancer have been established, preventive factors for liver cancer have not been fully explored. We evaluated the association between raw garlic consumption and liver cancer in a large population-based case-control study in Eastern China. The study was conducted in Jiangsu, China, from 2003 to 2010. A total of 2011 incident liver cancer cases and 7933 randomly selected population-controls were interviewed. Epidemiological data including raw garlic intake and other exposures were collected, and serum markers of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection were assayed. Overall, eating raw garlic twice or more per week was inversely associated with liver cancer, with an adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of 0.77 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.62-0.96) compared to those ingesting no raw garlic or less than twice per week. In stratified analyses, high intake of raw garlic was inversely associated with liver cancer among Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) negative individuals, frequent alcohol drinkers, those having history of eating mold-contaminated food or drinking raw water, and those without family history of liver cancer. Marginal interactions on an additive scale were observed between low raw garlic intake and HBsAg positivity (attributable proportion due to interaction (AP) = 0.31, 95% CI: -0.01-0.62) and heavy alcohol drinking (AP = 0.28, 95% CI: 0.00-0.57). Raw garlic consumption is inversely associated with liver cancer. Such an association shed some light on the potential etiologic role of garlic intake on liver cancer, which in turn might provide a possible dietary intervention to reduce liver cancer in Chinese population.

To investigate the associations between dietary fatty acids and cholesterol consumption and stomach cancer (SC), we analyzed data from a population-based case-control study with a total of 1900 SC cases and 6532 controls. Dietary data and other risk or protective factors were collected by face-to-face interviews in Jiangsu Province, China, from 2003 to 2010. Adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using multiple unconditional logistic regression models and an energy-adjusted method. The joint associations between dietary factors and known risk factors on SC were examined. We observed positive associations between dietary saturated fatty acids (SFAs), monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), and total cholesterol and the development of SC, comparing the highest versus lowest quarters. Increased intakes of dietary SFAs ( p -trend = 0.005; aOR, 1.11; 95% CI, 1.01-1.22 with a 7 g/day increase as a continuous variable) and total cholesterol ( p -trend < 0.001; aOR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.06-1.22 with a 250 mg/day increase as a continuous variable) were monotonically associated with elevated odds of developing SC. Our results indicate that dietary SFAs, MUFAs, and total cholesterol are associated with stomach cancer, which might provide a potential dietary intervention for stomach cancer prevention.

Garlic consumption has been associated inversely with esophageal cancer (EC); however, its interactions with tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption have never been evaluated in an epidemiological study. We evaluated the potential interactions between garlic intake and tobacco smoking as well as alcohol consumption in a population-based case-control study with 2969 incident EC cases and 8019 healthy controls. Epidemiologic data were collected by face-to-face interviews using a questionnaire. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were estimated and additive and multiplicative interactions were evaluated using unconditional logistic regression models, adjusting for potential confounding factors. Semi-Bayes (SB) adjustments were used to reduce potential false-positive findings. EC was associated inversely with raw garlic intake [SB-adjusted OR for more than once a week=0.68, 95% CI: 0.57-0.80], with a strong dose-response pattern in the overall analysis and in the stratified analyses by smoking and drinking. EC was associated positively with smoking and alcohol drinking, with SB-adjusted OR of 1.73 (95% CI: 1.62-1.85) and 1.37 (95% CI: 1.28-1.46) in dose-response effects of increased intensity and longer duration of smoking/drinking. Moreover, garlic intake interacts with smoking [synergy index (S)=0.83, 95% CI: 0.67-1.02; ratio of OR=0.88, 95% CI: 0.80-0.98] and alcohol drinking (S=0.73, 95% CI: 0.57-0.93; ratio of OR=0.86, 95% CI: 0.77-0.95) both multiplicatively and additively. Our findings suggested that high intake of raw garlic may reduce EC risk and may interact with tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption, which might shed a light on the development of EC as well as a potential dietary intervention among high-risk smokers and drinkers for EC prevention in the Chinese population.

Aim: To evaluate the efficacy of centralized culture and possible influencing factors., Methods: From January 2010 to July 2012, 66452 patients with suspected Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection from 26 hospitals in Zhejiang and Jiangsu Provinces in China underwent gastrointestinal endoscopy. Gastric mucosal biopsies were taken from the antrum for culture. These biopsies were transported under natural environmental temperature to the central laboratory in Hangzhou city and divided into three groups based on their transport time: 5, 24 and 48 h. The culture results were reported after 72 h and the positive culture rates were analyzed by a χ (2) test. An additional 5736 biopsies from H. pylori-positive patients (5646 rapid urease test-positive and 90 (14)C-urease breath test-positive) were also cultured for quality control in the central laboratory setting., Results: The positive culture rate was 31.66% (21036/66452) for the patient samples and 71.72% (4114/5736) for the H. pylori-positive quality control specimens. In the 5 h transport group, the positive culture rate was 30.99% (3865/12471), and 32.84% (14960/45553) in the 24 h transport group. In contrast, the positive culture rate declined significantly in the 48 h transport group (26.25%; P < 0.001). During transportation, the average natural temperature increased from 4.67 to 29.14 °C, while the positive culture rate declined from 36.67% (1462/3987) to 24.12% (1799/7459). When the temperature exceeded 24 °C, the positive culture rate decreased significantly, especially in the 48 h transport group (23.17%)., Conclusion: Transportation of specimens within 24 h and below 24 °C is reasonable and acceptable for centralized culture of multicenter H. pylori samples.

Background: Although the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified various indoor air pollutants as carcinogenic to humans, few studies evaluated the role of household ventilation in reducing the impact of indoor air pollutants on lung cancer risk., Objectives: To explore the association between household ventilation and lung cancer., Methods: A population-based case-control study was conducted in a Chinese population from 2003 to 2010. Epidemiologic and household ventilation data were collected using a standardized questionnaire. Unconditional logistic regression was employed to estimate adjusted odds ratios (ORadj) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI)., Results: Among 1,424 lung cancer cases and 4,543 healthy controls, inverse associations were observed for good ventilation in the kitchen (ORadj = 0.86, 95% CI: 0.75, 0.98), bedroom (ORadj = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.79, 1.03), and both kitchen and bedroom (ORadj = 0.87, 95% CI: 0.75, 1.00). Stratified analyses showed lung cancer inversely associated with good ventilation among active smokers (ORadj = 0.85, 95% CI: 0.72, 1.00), secondhand smokers at home (ORadj = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.63, 0.94), and those exposed to high-temperature cooking oil fumes (ORadj = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.68, 0.99). Additive interactions were found between household ventilation and secondhand smoke at home as well as number of household pollutant sources., Conclusions: A protective association was observed between good ventilation of households and lung cancer, most likely through the reduction of exposure to indoor air pollutants, indicating ventilation may serve as one of the preventive measures for lung cancer, in addition to tobacco cessation.

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of distal pancreatectomy with en bloc celiac axis resection (DP-CAR) for pancreatic body-tail cancer., Material and Methods: The medical records of 12 patients who underwent DP-CAR for pancreatic body-tail cancer were retrospectively studied, together with a literature review of studies including at least 3 cases of DP-CAR., Results: There were no deaths among our 12 cases. Postoperative morbidity developed in 9 cases and was successfully managed by non-surgical treatment. No patients developed ischemic complications. Median overall survival was 10 months. A total of 19 studies involving 203 patients who underwent DP-CAR were included in the literature review. The overall morbidity and mortality rates were 50.2% and 3.0%, respectively. The overall median survival after surgery ranged from 9.3 to 26 months., Conclusions: DP-CAR is a safe and effective treatment for patients with locally advanced pancreatic body-tail cancer.

Protective effect of garlic on the development of cancer has been reported in the in vitro and in vivo experimental studies; however, few human epidemiologic studies have evaluated the relationship. A population-based case-control study has been conducted in a Chinese population from 2003 to 2010, with the aim to explore the association between raw garlic consumption and lung cancer. Epidemiologic data were collected by face-to-face interviews using a standard questionnaire among 1,424 lung cancer cases and 4,543 healthy controls. Unconditional logistic regression was used to estimate adjusted ORs and their 95% confidence intervals (CI), and to evaluate ratio of ORs (ROR) for multiplicative interactions between raw garlic consumption and other risk factors. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, raw garlic consumption of 2 times or more per week is inversely associated with lung cancer (OR = 0.56; 95% CI, 0.44-0.72) with a monotonic dose-response relationship (Ptrend < 0.001). Furthermore, strong interactions at either additive and/or multiplicative scales were observed between raw garlic consumption and tobacco smoking [synergy index (SI) = 0.70; 95% CI, 0.57-0.85; and ROR = 0.78; 95% CI, 0.67-0.90], as well as high-temperature cooking oil fume (ROR = 0.77; 95% CI, 0.59-1.00). In conclusion, protective association between intake of raw garlic and lung cancer has been observed with a dose-response pattern, suggesting that garlic may potentially serve as a chemopreventive agent for lung cancer. Effective components in garlic in lung cancer chemoprevention warrant further in-depth investigation., (©2013 AACR.)

A population-based case-control study on esophageal cancer has been conducted since 2003 in Jiangsu Province, China. The aim of this analysis is to provide further evidence on the relationship between family history of cancer in first-degree relatives (FH-FDRs) and the risk of esophageal cancer, and to explore the joint effects for FH-FDR with major lifestyle risk factors. A total of 1,520 cases and 3,879 controls were recruited. Unconditional logistic regression was applied for evaluating independent association as well as potential interactions between FH-FDR and lifestyle risk factors on the risk of esophageal cancer. Population attributable fraction (PAF) was calculated to quantify the proportion of cases attributable to risk factors. Results showed that with a FH-FDR of any malignant tumor or esophageal cancer, there is a 1.64- and 2.22-fold risk of esophageal cancer, respectively. Association was increased when there was more than one affected FDR (OR = 3.14) and younger age at diagnosis of relatives. Exposure of both FH-FDR and lifestyle risk factors strongly associated with esophageal cancer. Significant superadditivity interaction was found for FH-FDR with fast eating speed and diets low in fruits and vegetables. The estimation of PAF indicated that the majority of cases were attributed to lifestyle risk factors. In conclusion, it was found that FH-FDR significantly increases the risk of esophageal cancer and could modify the effect of certain lifestyle risk factors. If comprehensive lifestyle interventions are carried out within high-risk populations, there is a high probability of curbing occurrences of esophageal cancer., (Copyright © 2010 UICC.)

Although the association for esophageal cancer with tobacco smoking and alcohol drinking has been well established, the risk appears to be less strong in China. To provide more evidence on the effect of smoking and alcohol consumption with esophageal cancer in China, particularly among Chinese women, a population-based case-control study has been conducted in Jiangsu, China, from 2003 to 2007. A total of 1,520 cases and 3,879 controls were recruited. Unconditional multivariate logistic regression analysis was applied. Results showed that the odds ratio (OR) and confidence interval (CI) for ever smoking and alcohol drinking were 1.57 (95% CI: 1.34-1.83) and 1.50 (95% CI: 1.29-1.74). Dose-response relationships were observed with increased intensity and longer duration of smoking/drinking. Risk of smoking and alcohol drinking at the highest joint level was 7.32 (95% CI: 4.58-11.7), when compared to those never smoked and never drank alcohol. Stratifying by genders, smoking and alcohol drinking increased the risk among men with an OR of 1.74 (95% CI: 1.44-2.09) and 1.76 (95% CI: 1.48-2.09); however, neither smoking nor alcohol consumption showed a significant association among women. In conclusion, smoking and alcohol drinking were associated with esophageal cancer risk among Chinese men, but not among Chinese women.

In this paper, an estimation method of gross beta activity from radionuclide concentrations in river water based on decay data was presented by introducing a concept of gross beta conversion factor. With the factors, the gross beta activities of some downstream water intakes and the locations downstream 1 km away from a planning nuclear power plant in inland China were estimated. The results indicated that the gross beta activities in the receiving river water due to the liquid effluent discharge of the nuclear power plant with 4 CPR 1,000 units during normal operation are lower than the recommended guideline level of 1 Bq L from the legal standard on these sites.

Objective: To investigate the natural infection and genotype of Japanese encephalitis virus in mosquitoes and swine in some areas of Zhejiang province., Methods: Samples of mosquitoes and sera of swine were collected in three counties (Xianju, Longquan and Cixi) of Zhejiang province from May to October in 2007. 10 662 mosquitoes were collected during 2007, of which, C.pipiens pallens and C.quinquefasciatus were the most dominant species and 204 pig serum samples were detected. Japanese encephalitis virus in mosquitoes were detected by virus isolation and real time RT-PCR. The antibody against Japanese encephalitis virus in swine was detected by ELISA. The isolated strain were identified by real time RT-PCR. The PrM gene of the isolated strain was amplified by RT-PCR. Three strains were typed by the gene of PrM., Results: Seven positive mosquitoe samples were identified by real time RT-PCR. Three strains were isolated and identified by real time RT-PCR. The PrM gene was cloned and sequenced. The phylogenetic analysis showed that three isolates belong to genotype I of Japanese encephalitis virus. Of 204 swine serum samples, 121 positive samples were identified positives. Above 50% sera samples from swine were positive in June., Conclusion: The vector of Japanese encephalitis virus existed and carried the Japanese encephalitis virus in these areas of Zhejiang province. Three strains of Japanese encephalitis virus were isolated from mosquito pools collected in Zhejiang province. It should be the first isolation of genotype I Japanese encephalitis virus in Zhejiang province in recent years.

Objective: To determine the genetic diversity of short tandem repeats (STRs) loci (D8S1179, D21S11, D7S820, CSF1PO, D3S1358, TH01, D13S317, D16S539, D2S1338, D19S433, upsilonWA, TPOX, D18S51, D5S818, and FGA), and to evaluate the genetic structure of Tibetan nationality and its affinity with other Tibetans (Changdu Tibetan, Luoba ethnic group, Deng population) and other Asian populations., Methods: Fifteen STRs loci were amplified simultaneously using a multiplex PCR typing system. Amplified STR fragments were analyzed with an ABI PRISM 3100 Avant DNA Analyzer. Arlequin software version 3.1 was used to obtain allele frequencies and polymorphism parameters. The genetic distance (D(A)), coefficient of gene differentiation (Gst) values, and heterozygosity (Ht) were estimated using DISPAN. A phylogenetic tree from the allele frequency data at 8 STRs loci and 15 STRs loci obtained from the literature reported previously by using the D(A) and Neighbor-Joining (N-J) method was constructed using MEGA Version 4.0. Multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis was performed using the SPSS 14.0 software package., Results: We got 132 alleles in the population studied, with the frequency of 0.0050-0.5990. Ht, the power of discrimination (DP) and the polymorphism information content (PIC) were consistent with the forensic application. Cluster analysis and phylogenic trees revealed that Tibetan nationality had estrangement genetic affinity with other Chinese nationalities and Asian population., Conclusion: The genetic information demonstrates that the 15 chosen gene makers are highly informative loci and are suitable for population genetic research and forensic application.