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Abstract Background Despite the existence of different screening methods, the response to cancer screening is poor among Malaysians. The current study aims to examine cancer patients’ perceptions of cancer screening and early diagnosis. Methods A qualitative methodology was used to collect in-depth information from cancer patients. After obtaining institutional ethical approval, patients with different types and stages of cancer from the three major ethnic groups (Malay, Chinese and Indian) were approached. Twenty semi-structured interviews were conducted. All interviews were audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, and translated into English for thematic content analysis. Results Thematic content analysis yielded four major themes: awareness of cancer screening, perceived benefits of cancer screening, perceived barriers to cancer screening, and cues to action. The majority of respondents had never heard of cancer screening before their diagnosis. Some participants reported hearing about mammogram and Pap smear tests but did not undergo screening due to a lack of belief in personal susceptibility. Those who had negative results from screening prior to diagnosis perceived such tests as untrustworthy. Lack of knowledge and financial constraints were reported as barriers to cancer screening. Finally, numerous suggestions were given to improve screening behaviour among healthy individuals, including the role of mass media in disseminating the message ‘prevention is better than cure’. Conclusions Patients’ narratives revealed some significant issues that were in line with the Health Belief Model which could explain negative health behaviour. The description of the personal experiences of people with cancer could provide many cues to action for those who have never encountered this potentially deadly disease, if incorporated into health promotion activities.

Extrusion is the most common manufacturing process used to produce heat-treated dry dog and cat food (pet food) for domestic use and international trade. Due to reoccurring outbreaks of notifiable terrestrial animal diseases and their impact on international trade, experiments were undertaken to demonstrate the effectiveness of heat-treated extruded pet food on virus inactivation. The impact of extrusion processing in a pet food matrix on virus inactivation has not been previously reported and very few inactivation studies have examined the thermal inactivation of viruses in complex food matrices. The feline calicivirus vaccine strain FCV F-9 was used as a surrogate model RNA virus pathogen. Small-scale heat inactivation experiments using animal-derived pet food raw materials showed that a > 4 log10 reduction (log10 R) in infectivity occurred at 70 °C prior to reaching the minimum extrusion manufacturing operating temperature of 100 °C. As anticipated, small-scale pressure studies at extrusion pressure (1.6 MPa) showed no apparent effect on FCV F-9 inactivation. Additionally, FCV F-9 was shown not to survive the acidic conditions used to produce pet food palatants of animal origin that are typically used as a coating after the extrusion process.

The relationship between the infectivity of the feline calicivirus (FCV) vaccine strain F-9 and capsid destruction (virolysis) in response to available chlorine was investigated under standardized light soil disinfection conditions. Virolysis was measured using RNase pretreatment (in order to destroy exposed RNA following chlorine treatment) and quantitative reverse transcription PCR. A comparison between the results of plaque assays and virolysis following exposure of FCV F-9 grown in tissue culture to different concentrations of available chlorine showed a similar log-linear relationship, with >4-log reductions occurring at 48 and 66 ppm, respectively. Three non-epidemiologically linked human GII.4 noroviruses (NoVs) present in dilute clinical samples showed behavior similar to each other and were 10 times more resistant to virolysis than cultured FCV F-9. FCV F-9 when present in dilute human GII.4 samples acquired increased resistance to virolysis approaching that of human NoVs. This study represents a direct comparison between the virolysis of a surrogate virus (FCV F-9) and that of human GII.4 NoVs within the same matrix in response to available chlorine. The results support the view that matrix effects have a significant effect on virus survival.

The aim of this study was to develop a method for investigating the stability of the human NoV capsid in response to disinfectants and sanitisers (virucides) as an indirect method for determining virus infectivity. Capsid destruction or "virolysis" was measured using the reverse transcribed quantitative PCR (RT-QPCR) reaction in conjunction with RNase treatment (in order to destroy any exposed RNA). Two commercially available alcohol based handwashes, alcohols (75% (v/v) ethanol or isopropanol), quaternary ammonium compounds (0.14% BAC or 0.07% DIDAC), and chlorine dioxide (200 ppm) were all ineffective at promoting virolysis of human norovirus present in dilute clinical samples at the concentrations tested. GII.4 NoVs were sensitive to a combination of heat and alkali. These data show that NoVs present in dilute stool samples are resistant to virolysis using virucides that are used commonly., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A one-step reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-QPCR) method in combination with RNase treatment and low copy number samples was developed in order to examine the effect of temperature on the ability of virus capsids to protect their RNA content. The method was applied to a non-cultivable virus (GII.4 norovirus) and Feline calicivirus vaccine strain F-9 (FCV) which is often used as a norovirus surrogate. Results demonstrated that FCV RNA is exposed maximally after 2min at 63.3 degrees C and this correlated with a greater than 4.5log reduction in infectivity as assessed by plaque assay. In contrast human GII.4 norovirus RNA present in diluted clinical specimens was not exposed maximally until 76.6 degrees C, at least 13.3 degrees C greater than that for FCV. These data suggest that norovirus possesses greater thermostability than this commonly used surrogate. Further, these studies indicate that current food processing regimes for pasteurisation are insufficient to achieve inactivation of GII.4 NoVs. The method provides a novel molecular method for predicting virus infectivity.

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based heteroduplex assay was evaluated for the detection of mandarin juice in processed orange juice. PCR amplification of a fragment of the chloroplast trnT-trnL intergenic spacer derived from mixtures of DNA extracted from orange and mandarin juice resulted in heteroduplex formation. The heteroduplex resulted from the co-amplification of a fragment containing an 8 base-pair indel that distinguished mixtures of orange and mandarin juice from orange juice and mandarin juice alone. The heteroduplex assay was evaluated against authentic juices obtained from different citrus species and confirmed that the marker was homogeneous within Citrus. The data obtained demonstrated maternal inheritance of chloroplast type in Citrus sp. and allowed the identification and confirmation of the maternal parentage of unknown and known citrus hybrids. Analysis of the quantitative potential of the PCR and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) analysis demonstrated good repeatability with a coefficient of variation of 7.5%. Greatest sources of variance in experimental results were attributable to species and varietal differences in the levels of the PCR target. Mandarin juice contained approximately 18% (w/v) less PCR target sequence than did orange juice. The assay was tested in a blind trial using processed juices and correctly identified 20/22 samples with no false-positive results.

Objective: To establish a robust procedure for the isolation and characterization of full-length expression-competent HIV-1 env genes directly from patient samples., Design: HIV exists as a quasispecies which can be disturbed by in vitro culture, in which numerous members of the population are likely to be defective due to the high error rate of the viral reverse transcriptase. Defective viruses are unlikely to play a dominant role in disease progression. Since env gene translation products play major roles in the initiation and spread of infection we need to study genes with open reading frames., Methods: A nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) approach has been used to rescue intact (2.6 kb) env genes, which are cloned into a T7-promoter-containing vector. Expression of gp160 in CV-1 cells is detected by Western blot. Expression-competent clones are sequenced and resulting sequences used for phylogenetic studies. Translation products are analysed in relation to the known immunogenic structure of gp160., Results: From random patient samples collected in London clinics, only HIV-1 subtype B was found. Two of the samples contained viruses with an additional pair of cysteine residues in their V1 regions. For samples collected in Uganda, HIV-1 subtypes A, D and an A/D recombinant were recovered., Conclusion: An effective procedure is described for the isolation of HIV-1 env genes directly from patient samples, which has worked for A, B and D subtypes to date. The PCR primers can be utilized with other subtypes with the possible exception of subtype O viruses. Phylogenetic analyses revealed the potential importance of a G/C-rich region near the tat/rev splice site as a site of recombination. The sequences and translation products generated may be more relevant to disease progression in vivo and vaccine formulations than those obtained from viruses selected in long-term culture.

Background: Until rubella is eradicated there will be a continuing need for rubella antibody surveillance. Antigen production using recombinant DNA technology may be a viable alternative to traditional techniques of producing antigens for enzyme immunoassays (EIAs)., Objectives: To investigate the potential of bacterial fusion proteins containing rubella E1 protein sequences for use in EIAs to detect rubella antibodies., Study Design: Purified bacterial fusion proteins containing rubella E1 sequences to be used as antigens in EIAs and compared to 'traditional' assays using virus derived antigens for rubella antibody screening., Results: cDNA clones coding for the complete rubella E1 protein sequence and subfragments of E1 were modified for expression as carboxy terminal fusions with either beta-galactosidase or glutathione-S-transferase. beta-galactosidase fusions with the complete E1 coding sequence or amino acids 201 to 307, which contain known epitopes, resulted in the production of predominantly insoluble fusion proteins unsuitable for use in EIA. Nine glutathione-S-transferase-E1 fusion proteins were produced with individual fusion proteins exhibiting varying properties with regard to the levels of protein produced, apparent stability, solubility and the potential for affinity purification using glutathione agarose. Reduction of the E1 component to only 44 amino acids containing three B-cell epitopes (Terry et al., 1988) produced an abundant soluble GST-E1 fusion protein (3.5 mug/ml), which could be affinity purified using glutathione agarose. This fusion protein has been successfully used in EIA to detect rubella antibodies., Conclusions: We have shown that GST-E1 fusions have potential as antigens in tests for rubella antibodies.

Meningococcal disease is normally suspected on clinical grounds but confirmed by isolation of Neisseria meningitidis from blood or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), or by detection of gram-negative diplococci in CSF. After parenteral antibiotics are started the isolation rate of meningococci from blood cultures drops from 50% to less than 5% and the chances of CSF being positive by culture or microscopy are also reduced. We used the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in a blinded study to detect meningococcal DNA in 54 CSF samples from patients with meningococcal disease or from controls. The PCR primers were specific for the meningococcal insertion sequence IS1106. The sensitivity and specificity of this PCR for diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis were both 91%. Sensitivity was not affected by prior antibiotic treatment. The IS1106 PCR is a rapid and sensitive test for confirmation of the diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis.

The genetic relationships between various serotypes and serogroups of meningococcal strains were investigated by restriction fragment-length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis using a number of random DNA probes and a probe containing a truncated copy of the meningococcal insertion sequence IS1106. The data were used to estimate genetic distance between all pairs of strains and to construct phylogenetic trees for meningococcal strains. B15:P1.16R strains isolated from cases of systemic meningococcal disease in two health districts with a high incidence of disease were clonal in contrast to similar strains from cases occurring in other parts of the UK. Strains from these areas, which contain a similar genomic deletion, were found to be derived from two distinct lineages within the B15:P1.16R phylogenetic group. RFLP data demonstrated that present serological typing systems for the meningococcus do not necessarily reflect true genetic relationships.

Examination of Neisseria meningitidis strains associated with endemic meningococcal disease demonstrated differences in the number of copies of a repetitive sequence. Characterization of a copy of this repetitive sequence present in B15 strains has revealed the presence of a novel insertion sequence (IS1106) located within a complex repetitive region downstream of the gene for the major surface antigen (porA). IS1106 has a length of 1137 bp and is flanked by 36bp inverted repeats. Two open reading frames (ORF1 and ORF2) are present in opposite strands in codon-codon register with ORF2 entirely located within ORF1. The predicted protein from ORF1 demonstrates homology with the 5A protein of IS5 (Kroger and Hobom, 1982). Strains from two independent outbreaks of B15 meningococcal disease in the UK were found to contain the same genomic deletion removing a copy of IS1106 downstream of the porA gene.

To investigate the epidemiology of meningococcal disease, a specific DNA probe pUS210 (carrying insert DNA which is repeated in the meningococcal genome) was isolated. The ability of this probe to hydridise with multiple polymorphic fragments in Southern blots was exploited to examine genetic relations within strains. Two geographically distinct foci of prolonged meningococcal disease (Gloucester and Plymouth, UK) are due to a clonal population of virulent strains that are distinct from those found elsewhere in the UK.

A number of mineral dusts were tested for their ability to catalyze the transformation of benzo(a)pyrene from the microcrystalline state into lipid solution. The findings of Lakowicz and his co-workers, that fibrous dusts were more active than nonfibrous dusts, were confirmed. Macromolecular binding metabolites of BaP were formed in A549 cells to a similar extent whether the BaP was added in solution or adsorbed to fibers; however, the level of water-soluble metabolites was lower in cultures treated with adsorbed hydrocarbon. It was found that asbestos can also inhibit the accumulation of 1-naphthyl glucuronide in cultures treated with 1-naphthol. The significance of this in asbestos pathogenesis is briefly discussed.