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Dysbiosis is a common status of intestinal microbiota in modern society and is associated with many diseases. Diarrhea is a kind of dysbiosis and is frequently caused by imbalanced gut microbiota due to misuse of antibiotics. A lot of evidence has shown that probiotics can exhibit potential to alleviate the effects of antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). In this study, Lincomycin was utilized to induce AAD in rats and then the effects of the multi-strain probiotic preparation BaciMix on this model were evaluated. The rat groups, including healthy control rats, AAD-induced rats, AAD rats with no treatment (self-healing rats), and AAD rats treated by BaciMix preparation, were analyzed regarding general health status, some immune indices, and intestinal microbiota changes. The results disclosed that the BaciMix preparation remarkably reduced the effects of the antibiotic regarding the diarrhea score and cecum thickness in the rats treated by BaciMix preparation. Additionally, the BaciMix preparation reduced pre-inflammatory cytokines, including TNF-α, and IL-6, while increasing the IgA in sera and intestinal mucosae. Moreover, the BaciMix preparation amended the compositions and differential abundance of intestinal bacteria of the rats to increase some beneficial bacteria like Lactobacillus, Bacillus, Hungatella, and Romboutsia, and to decrease some potentially harmful genera such as Bacteroides, Escherichia-Shigella, and Proteus. Generally, BaciMix preparation displayed helpful effects on the AAD rat model. [ J Adv Biotechnol Exp Ther 2024; 7(1.000): 53-64]

BackgroundDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, health care professionals experienced high levels of depression. However, extant research has not highlighted effective internet-based psychological interventions to improve the mental health in this population during the pandemic. It remains unclear whether self-guided, internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) programs are effective in improving the mental health of health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a smartphone-based iCBT stress management program for reducing the depression experienced by nurses in Vietnam and Thailand. MethodsFrom March to April 2022, a 2-arm, parallel-group randomized controlled trial was implemented. One arm offered a 7-week self-guided iCBT program, and the other offered treatment as usual as a control arm. Full-time nurses were recruited from 6 hospitals: 2 hospitals in Vietnam and 4 hospitals in Thailand. The primary outcome of this program was the severity of depression measured by the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 items. Follow-up surveys were conducted to measure the change in depression severity at 3 months (July-August 2022) and at 6 months (October-November 2022) after baseline. Mixed modeling for repeated measures was used to test the effects of the intervention compared with the control for the follow-up. ResultsA total of 1203 nurses were included in this study: 602 in the intervention group and 601 in the control group. The follow-up rate at 3 and 6 months ranged from 85.7% (515/601) to 87.5% (527/602). The completion rate for the program was 68.1% (410/602). The group difference in depression was significant at the 3-month follow-up (coefficient=–0.92, 95% CI –1.66 to –0.18; P=.02) and nonsignificant at the 6-month follow-up (coefficient=–0.33, 95% CI –1.11 to 0.45; P=.41). The estimated effect sizes were –0.15 and –0.06 at the 3- and 6-month follow-ups, respectively. ConclusionsOur study shows that the smartphone-based iCBT program was effective in reducing depression at the 3-month follow-up among hospital nurses in Vietnam and Thailand during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the effect size was small, and therefore, these results may not be clinically meaningful. Trial RegistrationUMIN Clinical Trials Registry UMIN000044145; https://center6.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/ctr/ctr_view.cgi?recptno=R000050128 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)RR2-10.20944/preprints202303.0450.v1

Abstract On May 27, 2022, the Asia Pacific Heart Rhythm Society and the Heart Rhythm Society convened a meeting of leaders from different professional societies of healthcare providers committed to arrhythmia care from the Asia Pacific region. The overriding goals of the meeting were to discuss clinical and health policy issues that face each country for providing care for patients with electrophysiologic issues, share experiences and best practices, and discuss potential future solutions. Participants were asked to address a series of questions in preparation for the meeting. The format of the meeting was a series of individual country reports presented by the leaders from each of the professional societies followed by open discussion. The recorded presentations from the Asia Summit can be accessed at https://www.heartrhythm365.org/URL/asiasummit‐22. Three major themes arose from the discussion. First, the major clinical problems faced by different countries vary. Although atrial fibrillation is common throughout the region, the most important issues also include more general issues such as hypertension, rheumatic heart disease, tobacco abuse, and management of potentially life‐threatening problems such as sudden cardiac arrest or profound bradycardia. Second, there is significant variability in the access to advanced arrhythmia care throughout the region because of differences in workforce availability, resources, drug availability, and national health policies. Third, collaboration in the area already occurs between individual countries, but no systematic regional method for working together is present.

In this paper, we investigate the impact of two pulse shapes on the performance of a real-time free-space optical communication link. The two candidate pulse shapes are the square-root raised cosine and Xia pulse, respectively which are tested as the basis function for multi-band carrier-less amplitude and phase modulation. We first develop a real-time system based on a Xilinx Zynq ZCU102 system-on-chip platform utilising a high-resolution analogue-to-digital-converter. We then generate multi-band carrier-less amplitude and phase modulation formats using it and test the error vector magnitude whilst varying parameters. We emulate the fog environment utilising neutral density filters and evaluate the error performance of the link under increasingly poor visibility conditions. We show that contrary to previous reports, the SRRC pulse shape offers superior performance over the first-order Xia pulse in the FSO environment operating at data rates exceeding 1 Gb/s.

Human beings are frequently exposed to a mixture of chemical pollutants through the ingestion of contaminated drinking water. The present study aimed to assess the ecological and human health risks associated with the contamination of cyanotoxins and heavy metals in a drinking water supply reservoir, the Tri An Reservoir (TAR), in Vietnam. Results demonstrated that the concentrations of individual heavy metals varied in the following order: iron (Fe) > lead (Pb) > arsenic (As) > zinc (Zn). Although the ecological potential risk of heavy metals was low during the study period, the concentration of Fe sometimes exceeded the Vietnamese standard for drinking water. Toxic cyanobacteria and microcystins (MCs) frequently occurred in the TAR with the highest density of 198.7 × 103 cells/mL and 7.8 μg/L, respectively, indicating a high risk of health impacts to humans. The results of the study indicate that exposure to heavy metals does not pose any non-carcinogenic health risks for both adults and children. However, the contamination of MCs in the surface water posed a serious disease enhancement to both adults and children through direct ingestion and dermal absorption. HIGHLIGHTS The ecological and human health risks associated with the contamination of cyanotoxins and heavy metals were investigated.; Water was contaminated with cyanotoxins and iron.; The potential risks of heavy metals were low, but the concentration of cyanotoxins indicated a high risk to human health.; This study highlights the ecological and human risks from exposure to mixtures of pollutants.;

This study aimed to assess the effects of hexavalent chromium on zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryo development. The zebrafish embryos were treated with solutions containing chromium at different concentrations (0.1, 1, 3.125, 6.25, 12.5, 50, and 100 µg/mL). The development of zebrafish embryos was estimated by the determination of survival rate, heart rate, and the measurement of larvae body length. Real time RT-PCR and Western blot were performed to assess the expression of apoptosis- and antioxidant-related genes. The results showed that the reduced survival rate of zebrafish embryos and larvae was associated with an increase in chromium concentration. The exposure of higher concentrations resulted in a decrease in body length of zebrafish larvae. In addition, a marked increase in heart rate was observed in the zebrafish larvae under chromium treatment, especially at high concentrations. The real-time RT-PCR analysis showed that the transcript expressions for cell-cycle-related genes (cdk4 and cdk6) and antioxidant-related genes (sod1 and sod2) were downregulated in the zebrafish embryos treated with chromium. Western blot analysis revealed the upregulation of Caspase 3 and Bax, while a downregulation was observed in Bcl2. These results indicated that hexavalent chromium induced changes in zebrafish embryo development by altering apoptosis- and antioxidant-related genes.

A new species of the genus Tylototriton is described from Ngoc Linh Mountain, Kon Tum Province, in the Central Highlands of Vietnam based on integrative taxonomy, namely by combining molecular and morphological evidence. Tylototriton ngoclinhensis sp. nov. differs from all other congeners based on morphological data, allopatric distribution, and molecular divergence. In terms of genetic divergence, Tylototriton ngoclinhensis sp. nov. distinctly differs from the sister species T. panhai (6.77%) and from T. ngarsuensis (12.36%) based on the mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 (ND2) gene. Tylototriton ngoclinhensis sp. nov. is a moderate sized and robust salamander species with large cephalic edges, parotoids, and vertebral ridge orange in coloration. The new taxon differs from its congeners by a combination of the following morphological characteristics: size medium (SVL 60.8–66.5 mm, TL 57.6–61.8 mm in males, and SVL 72.5–75.6 mm, TL 62.9–67.9 mm in females); head longer than wide; parotoids very prominent and enlarged, projecting backwards; tail length shorter than snout-vent length; vertebral ridge large, high and glandular in appearance; 14 large and distinct dorsolateral glandular warts; gular fold present; tips of fore and hind limbs overlapping when adpressed along the body; tips of fingers reaching between eye and nostril when foreleg is laid forward; dorsal surface and lateral sides of the head, upper and lower lips, dorsolateral glandular warts, vertebral ridge, the peripheral area of the cloaca and the ventral edge of the tail orange in coloration; the presence of a distinct black line extending from the posterior end of the eye towards the shoulder. Tylototriton ngoclinhensis sp. nov. is restricted to evergreen montane forests near water bodies on Ngoc Linh Mountain. We suggest that the new species should be classified as Endangered (EN) in the IUCN Red List. This new important discovery represents the eighth Tylototriton taxon described from Vietnam, and at the same time constitutes the southernmost distributional record for the whole genus in Asia.

ABSTRACTMost speech processing models begin with feature extraction and then pass the feature vector to the primary processing model. The solution's performance mainly depends on the quality of the feature representation and the model architecture. Much research focuses on designing robust deep network architecture and ignoring feature representation's important role during the deep neural network era. This work aims to exploit a new approach to design a speech signal representation in the time-frequency domain via Linear Chirplet Transform (LCT). The proposed method provides a feature vector sensitive to the frequency change inside human speech with a solid mathematical foundation. This is a potential direction for many applications. The experimental results show the improvement of the feature based on LCT compared to MFCC or Fourier Transform. In both speaker gender recognition, dialect recognition, and speech recognition, LCT significantly improved compared with MFCC and other features. This result also implies that the feature based on LCT is independent of language, so it can be used in various applications.

Objective: This retrospective study aims to describe the disease patterns among patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) in a public provincial hospital in North Central Vietnam in 2020. Design: We conducted a retrospective descriptive study. Setting: The study was conducted in the Thanh Hoa General Hospital, Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. The study included all emergency and critical care admissions hospitalized from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020. Main outcome measures: Data on age, gender, hospital admission, and discharge dates, length of hospital stays, illness chapters (based on ICD-10 codes), and treatment results determined at the hospital discharge of 27,152 episodes of ICU admission were collected. Results: The three illness chapters of ICD-10 with the most patients were Chapter IX-Diseases of the Circulatory System, Chapter XI-Diseases of the Digestive System, and Chapter XIX-Injury, Poisoning, and Some Other Consequences of External Causes, with 21.6%, 21%, and 20.3% of patients, respectively. Most episodes (n = 21,999, 81.0%) showed improved health at the time of hospital discharge, with up to 87% of patients finding a cure. Conclusions: The insights gained from this study can inform healthcare strategies, resource planning, and policy decisions to enhance the delivery of critical care services in the region. Further research and ongoing surveillance will be essential to adapt healthcare systems to the evolving landscape of diseases and to ensure the continued improvement of patient outcomes in intensive care settings.

The working conditions for teachers in Vietnam were characterized by increased workload and pressure, burdening teachers' well-being. The study aims to investigate anxiety prevalence and identify some related factors among primary and secondary school teachers in Hanoi after the first COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. This paper analyzed data of 481 teachers working at ten primary and secondary schools in Hanoi city. Anxiety was measured using the anxiety component of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress scale 42 items. Multivariable logistics regression was performed to examine anxiety-related factors using SPSS 20.0 at a significant level p less than 0.05. The prevalence of anxiety symptoms was 42.4% and similar between primary and secondary school teachers. More secondary teachers reported moderate to severe anxiety symptoms than primary teachers did (31.6% and 27.7%). Primary school teachers who felt discomfort with their supervisor's assessment, high responsibility for student safety, and ever thinking of leaving their current job were more likely to report anxiety symptoms (OR (95%CI) = 2.8 (1.2-6.5), 3.6 (1.0-12.8), and 2.6 (1.3-5.4), respectively). Meanwhile, the discomfort of caring for many students or problematic students, repetitive work, and disagreement with coworkers were risk factors of anxiety among secondary school teachers (OR (95%CI) = 2.6 (1.2-5.8), 3.2 (1.1-9.2), 3.4 (1.3-8.8), and 3.7 (1.1-12.6), respectively). In conclusion, the prevalence of teachers with anxiety symptoms is on the rise, caused by the characteristics of the job and professional relationships. Tailored support for teachers in different grades is necessary to improve and prevent teachers' anxiety.

In this study, we describe the operation of piezoelectric energy converters and electromechanical modeling of piezoelectric energy harvesting (PEH) devices based on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) for low-power sensors. Consideration is given to a piezoelectric energy harvester based on standard MEMS. The parameters are determined and optimized using a simple MEMS cantilever model. On top of a Brass substrate, the model uses a single layer of piezoelectric material. We utilized the finite element method (FEM) models created with software tools NanoHUB and COMSOL to analyze the electromechanical behavior of MEMS-based piezoelectric energy harvesting (PEH) devices. The electromechanical modeling was applied to predict the modal and harmonic response of the PEH devices. By using a modal analysis, the resonant frequencies are 182 Hz for the FEM models of the PZT-5H PEH device through NanoHUB and COMSOL. The simulated MEMS can provide a voltage between 1.7 and 1.9 mV, 0.074 µW of output power. The produced voltage and output power may be increased by connecting the piezoelectric layers in parallel and series. And the Internet of Things (IoT) sensors might be driven by this array of devices.

In this work, two novel hyperbranched conjugated polymers poly(tris(4-(10-(2-ethylhexyl)-10H-phenoxazin-3-yl)phenyl)amine) (P1) and poly (tris(4-(7-(benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazol-4-yl)-10-(2-ethylhexyl)-10H-phenoxazin-3-yl)phenyl)amine) (P2) have been successfully synthesized via Direct polycondensation in the presence of Pd(OAc)2 as a catalyst. The chemical structures of novel conjugated polymers then were determined via Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR). Subsequently, the optical properties of conjugated polymers in different solvents were investigated via UV–Vis absorption and fluorescence emission (PL) spectroscopies, and were analyzed for optoelectronic applications.

This study evaluates the bond performance of reinforced fly ash-based geopolymer concrete by using experiments and numerical analysis. Three types of mixture proportions along with two types of reinforcement diameter, (d12, ribbed bar) and (d14, smooth bar) mm, were selected for experimental work. The bond behaviour of reinforced geopolymer concrete is determined using the pullout test, and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). The test data indicated that the bond strength of reinforced fly ash-based geopolymer concrete increases with the increase in compressive strength. The concrete cover to diameter ratio (c/db) increases from 4.86 to 5.75 and the bond strength of all three groups of samples also increases. Besides, the bond stress-slip curves obtained by the ABAQUS software closely match the results from experimental works. Furthermore, the parametric analyses show that when the compressive strength of geopolymer concreteincreases, the bond strength of reinforced fly ash-based geopolymer concrete increases. These results are consistent with the test data.

IntroductionIn the past decades, extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing and carbapenem-resistant (CR) Escherichia coli isolates have been detected in Vietnamese hospitals. The transfer of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes carried on plasmids is mainly responsible for the emergence of multidrug-resistant E. coli strains and the spread of AMR genes through horizontal gene transfer. Therefore, it is important to thoroughly study the characteristics of AMR gene-harboring plasmids in clinical multidrug-resistant bacterial isolates.MethodsThe profiles of plasmid assemblies were determined by analyzing previously published whole-genome sequencing data of 751 multidrug-resistant E. coli isolates from Vietnamese hospitals in order to identify the risk of AMR gene horizontal transfer and dissemination.ResultsThe number of putative plasmids in isolates was independent of the sequencing coverage. These putative plasmids originated from various bacterial species, but mostly from the Escherichia genus, particularly E. coli species. Many different AMR genes were detected in plasmid contigs of the studied isolates, and their number was higher in CR isolates than in ESBL-producing isolates. Similarly, the blaKPC-2, blaNDM-5, blaOXA-1, blaOXA-48, and blaOXA-181 β-lactamase genes, associated with resistance to carbapenems, were more frequent in CR strains. Sequence similarity network and genome annotation analyses revealed high conservation of the β-lactamase gene clusters in plasmid contigs that carried the same AMR genes.DiscussionOur study provides evidence of horizontal gene transfer in multidrug-resistant E. coli isolates via conjugative plasmids, thus rapidly accelerating the emergence of resistant bacteria. Besides reducing antibiotic misuse, prevention of plasmid transmission also is essential to limit antibiotic resistance.

The volume and complexity of publicly available real estate data have been snowballing. As a result, information extraction and processing have become increasingly challenging and essential for many PropTech (Property Technology) companies worldwide. The challenges are even more pronounced with languages other than English, such as Vietnamese, where few studies in this field have taken place. This paper presents an end-to-end framework for automatically collecting real estate advertisement posts from different data sources, extracting useful information, and storing computed data into proper data warehouses and data marts for the Vietnamese advertisement posts in real estate. After that, one can serve aggregated data for other descriptive and predictive analytics. We combine two models for constructing the most appropriate extraction step: Noise Filtering and Named Entity Recognition (NER). These models can help process initial input data and extract all helpful information. The experiment results show that using $\text{PhoBERT}_{large}$ can achieve the best performance compared to other approaches. Furthermore, we can obtain the corresponding F1 scores of the Noise filtering module and the NER module as 0.8697 and 0.8996, respectively. Finally, we utilize Superset for implementing analytic dashboards to visualize the predicted results and serve for further analysis and management processes.

Vaccines are strongly recommended globally as an effective measure to prevent serious illness from and spread of COVID-19. Concerns about safety following vaccination continue to be the most common reason that people do not accept the vaccine. This retrospective study was carried out on 4341 people who received the first dose of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, BBIBP-CorV, or mRNA-1273 vaccine at Jio Health Clinic in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Post-injection side effects were either reported by participants or actively collected by health care staff by means of telemedicine. Local side effects were reported by 35.5% of all individuals, with pain being the most common symptom (33.3%). Systemic side effects were reported by 44.2% of individuals, with fever (25.3%) and fatigue (21.4%) being the most common. Age ≤60 years, female gender, and ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 were significant independent risk factors for both local and systemic side effects, while a history of allergy was significant as a risk factor for local side effects. A total of 43 individuals (1.0%) reported concerning symptoms of rare severe complications, which were addressed and treated by physicians via Jio Health app.

BackgroundJapanese encephalitis (JE) is a leading cause of acute encephalitis syndrome and resulting neurological disability in Asia and the Western Pacific. This study aims to estimate the cost of acute care, initial rehabilitation and sequelae care, in Vietnam and Laos.MethodologyWe conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study using a micro-costing approach from the health system and household perspectives. Out-of-pocket direct medical and non-medical costs, indirect costs, and family impact were reported by patients and/or caregivers. Hospitalization costs were extracted from hospital charts. Acute costs covered expenditures from pre-hospital to follow-up visits while sequelae care costs were estimated from expenditures in the last 90 days. All costs are in 2021 US dollars.Principal findings242 patients in two major sentinel sites in the North and South of Vietnam and 65 patients in a central hospital in Vientiane, Laos, with laboratory-confirmed JE were recruited regardless of age, sex, and ethnicity. In Vietnam, the mean total cost was $3,371 per acute JE episode (median $2,071, standard error [SE] $464) while annual costs were $404 for initial sequelae care (median $0, SE $220) and $320 for long-term sequelae care (median $0, SE $108). In Laos, the mean hospitalization costs in acute stage were $2,005 (median $1,698, SE $279) and the mean annual costs were $2,317 (median $0, SE $2,233) for initial sequelae care and $89 (median $0, SE $57) for long-term sequelae care. In both countries, most patients did not seek care for their sequelae. Families perceived extreme impact from JE and 20% to 30% of households still had sustained debts years after acute JE.ConclusionsJE patients and families in Vietnam and Laos suffer extreme medical, economic, and social hardship. This has policy implications for improving JE prevention in these two JE-endemic countries.

High‐speed modulators with low driving voltage, low loss, and compact size are essential for future optical communication systems. Thin‐film lithium niobate modulators have met each of these criteria separately, but simultaneous achievement of all of them has been challenging on this platform. Low driving voltage electro‐optic modulators necessitate either a narrow gap between the electrodes or an elongated Mach–Zehnder arms, both of which adversely affect the microwave loss, hence the bandwidth. Herein, this trade‐off is alleviated by placing the optical waveguides nonsymmetrically with respect to the electrodes and by including a dielectric buffer layer beneath the electrodes. Exploiting this novel design yields a modulator with a measured roll‐off of only 2 dB from low frequencies up to 100 GHz, and with an extrapolated 3 dB bandwidth of 170 GHz. The measured voltage–length product of this subterahertz device is 3.3 V cm. Another device, optimized for a lower voltage–length product of 2.2 V cm, exhibits a 3 dB electro‐optic bandwidth of 84 GHz. The devices are also tested for eight‐level pulse‐amplitude modulation (PAM‐8) and demonstrate data rates of up to 240 Gb s−1 at 80 Gbaud, validating that the modulators are a propitious candidate for next‐generation optical communication systems.

Constructing the 3D objects based on geometric modelling and graphical techniques is a well-known research activity applied in computer graphics. Techniques to process graphical models are widely used in the field of digital heritage and 3D game. Virtual reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) are technical trends nowadays that can be studied and used in digital high-tech fields like medical training, digital heritage, entertainment industry, digital tourism and museum, etc. In this research, we present a new proposed method for reconstructing the 3D objects of tangible cultural heritages in the virtual environment based on the combination of geometric modelling, computer graphics, VR and AR technologies. The method consists of the following steps: we first collect data of a real object by using a 3D scanner. After processing obtained data, the output is a 3D point cloud. In the next step, we remove noisy data and triangulate the object surface. The novelty point focuses on reconstructing the 3D object by filling the holes. At the end, we build VR and AR applications for visualizing a virtual museum. The contribution of this research leads to open the door for applying in other fields such as 3D Game industry or digital tourism.

ABSTRACT: Objectives: Mobile colistin resistance (mcr) genes are widely distributed around the world. To date, ten major variants of mcr genes are known (mcr-1 to mcr-10). However, only a few instances of Enterobacterales isolates harbouring mcr genes other than mcr-1 have been reported in Vietnam. The aim of this study was to investigate mcr-harbouring antimicrobial-resistant Enterobacterales isolates in Vietnam. Methods: Two mcr-9-harbouring Enterobacter hormaechei clinical isolates (NIHE14-1904 and MH17-539M) were obtained from medical institutions in Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2014 and 2017, respectively. Their genomes and plasmid sequences were analysed by short-read and long-read sequencing. Subsequently, comparative sequence analysis of their mcr-9-carrying plasmids was performed. Results: Strains NIHE14-1904 and MH17-539M belonged to sequence types ST916 and ST66, respectively, according to the Enterobacter cloacae multilocus sequence typing (MLST) scheme. NIHE14-1904 and MH17-539M harboured the mcr-9 gene on similar IncHI2 plasmids, namely pNIHE14-1904-mcr9 (373.1 kb) and pMH17-539M-mcr9 (289.3 kb), respectively. These plasmids were also highly identical to widespread IncHI2 plasmids that are often associated with mcr genes. Conclusion: For the first time, mcr-9-harbouring Enterobacterales isolates were detected in Vietnam, which carried mcr-9 on IncHI2 plasmids. The prevalence of such plasmids needs to be monitored in the future owing to their high dissemination.

Speech source separation is essential for speech-related applications because this process enhances the input speech signal for the main processing model. Most of the current approaches for this task focus on separating the speech of commonly high-frequency noises or a particular background sound. They cannot clear the signals which intersect with the human speech in its frequency range. To deal with this problem, we propose a hybrid approach combining a variational autoencoder (VAE) and a bandpass filter (BPF). This method can extract and enhance the speech signal in the mixture of many elements such as speech signal, the high-frequency noises, and many kinds of different background sounds which interfere with the speech sound. Experimental results showed that our model can extract effectively the speech signal with 15.02 dB in Signal to Interference Ratio (SIR) and 12.99 dB in Signal to Distortion Ratio (SDR). On the other hand, we can adjust the passband to identify the range of frequency at the output signal to apply for a particular application like gender classification.

Non-typhoidal salmonella (TS) remains a significant health burden worldwide. In Vietnam, pork accounts for 70% of the total meat consumed, and contamination with Salmonella is high. High levels of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) have emerged among porcine NTS and of particular concern is the emergence of colistin resistance, a “last defense” antibioic against multi-drug resistant (MDR) Gram-negative pathogens. This study aimed to investigate the antibiotic susceptibility of 69 NTS isolates collected from the pork retail outlets and slaughterhouses in Vietnam during 2014 a nd 2018/19. Phenotypic testing and whole genome sequencing was used to assess the serotype and AMR gene profiles of the 69 NTS isolates. Seventeen different serotypes were identified, of which S. enterica subsp enterica serotype Typhimurium was the most common followed by S. ser. Rissen, S. ser. London, S. ser. Anatum, and S. ser. Derby. Phenotype AMR was common with 41 (59.4%) isolates deemed MDR. MDR strains were most common in slaughterhouses (83%) and supermarkets (75%) and lowest in traditional markets (38%) and convenience stores (40%). Colistin resistance was identified in 18 strains (15 resistant, three intermediate) with mcr-1 identified in seven isolates (S. ser. Meleagridis, S. Rissen, S. Derby) and mcr-3 in two isolates (S. Typhimurium). This includes the first mcr positive S. Meleagridis to our knowledge. Surprisingly, boutique stores had high levels (60%) of MDR isolates including 5/20 isolates with mcr-1. This study demonstrates that pork from modern retail stores classed as supermarkets or boutique (with pork claiming to be high quality, traceable, environmentally friendly marketed toward higher income consumers) still contained NTS with high levels of AMR.

(1) Background: Many human diseases are associated with oxidative stress, which is caused by reactive oxygen species and free radicals generated in living cells. Some biomass extracts derived from various types of plants can act as efficient drugs against pathological disorders related to oxidative stress. Numerous herbal blends have thus been shown to improve health. Cleistocalyx operculatus (Roxb.) Merr. and L.M.Perry teas have been considered in that way. Problem: Because of amertume, the taste of C. operculatus avoids or limits a large use of such alleged healthy leaf infusions. (2) Methods: The phytochemistry, oxygen, free radical scavenging activity, and antilipid peroxidation of C. operculatus teas were here studied in vitro. Then different mixes of C. operculatus and Mentha arvensis were infused together and tasted in a hedonic test. The chemical and biological properties of the best mix were then analyzed. (3) Results: The herbal blend of C. operculatus revealed significant scavenging effects on 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) with IC50 values of 35.6 µg/mL. Induced by hydroxyl radicals, this beverage could significantly inhibit the lipid peroxidation of mouse brain homogenates. Our results demonstrate that the lipid peroxidation inhibition of dried leaves of C. operculatus might be related to its scavenging effects on oxygen free radicals. This C. operculatus bitter blend was then combined with various amounts of M. arvensis Linn. The taste was evaluated, and further biochemical analyses were conducted on the best 7/3 ratio. They showed that the healthy properties were maintained. (4) Conclusion: The optimized 7/3 ratio of the Cleistocalyx/Mentha mix led to the best results in terms of taste (sensory tests). It is demonstrated that the potential health benefits against oxidative stress remained high as compared with pure C. operculatus infusion.

Emerging from early of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has become one of the most serious health crisis globally. In response to such threat, a wide range of digital health applications has been deployed in Vietnam to strengthen surveillance, risk communication, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID-19. Digital health has brought enormous benefits to the fight against COVID-19, however, numerous constrains in digital health application remain. Lack of strong governance of digital health development and deployment; insufficient infrastructure and staff capacity for digital health application are among the main drawbacks. Despite several outstanding problems, digital health is expected to contribute to reducing the spread, improving the effectiveness of pandemic control, and adding to the dramatic transformation of the health system the post-COVID era.

The production networks in East Asia and European Union are characterized by large shares of trade in intermediate goods or network trade between countries within each region. However the pattern of network trade in the two regions could be very different due to regional variations in sociocultural, political, historical and institutional factors. This paper investigates and compares the pattern of network trade in East Asia and European Union. It confirms that, while network trade shows a “hub-and-spoke pattern” in European Union, it is more like a “network pattern” in East Asia.

In this study we report efficient method for the syntheses of mono- and diarylated diphenyldithienylethene (DPDTE) via a palladium-catalyzed C–H arylation reaction. These new derivatives showed amplified luminescent properties thanks to a change in polarity, particularly in the presence of an electron-withdrawing groups (EWG). Moreover, the arylated DPDTEs showed dual-emissive phenomena, including fluorescence in organic solvents and aggregation-induced emission.

Animals are considered important sources of ESBL/AmpC-producing bacteria in humans. We analyzed indications of transfer of ESBL/AmpC genes between pigs and pig farmers in Vietnam by analyzing whole genome sequences of 114 ESBL/AmpC-producing E. coli isolated from the two hosts, and performed conjugation experiments and plasmid profiling to confirm that such transfer could have happened. ESBL-encoding genes detected in pigs and pig farmers included blaCTX–M-55, blaCTX-M-27, blaCTX-M-65, blaCTX-M-15, blaCTX-M-14, blaCTX-M-3, blaCTX-M-24, and blaCARB-2, and AmpC β-lactamases included blaCMY-2, blaDHA-1, and blaCMY-42. The most frequent ESBL gene, blaCTX-M-55, was carried on plasmid with replicons types IncF, IncX, IncH, IncN, IncR, and IncP. The insertion transposases downstream of the blaCTX-M-55 gene were different in plasmids carried by different strains. The second most detected gene, blaCTX-M-27, is found in a stable genetic arrangement with the same flanking transposons seen across strains, and the gene was located on similar conjugal IncF plasmid types, suggesting a horizontal spread of these plasmids. In three strains, we observed a novel blaCTX-M-27 harboring IncF type of plasmid which had not been reported before. Its closest reference in NCBI was the non-ESBL Salmonella Typhimurium plasmid pB71 that might have experienced an insertion of blaCTX-M-27. Our data also point to an emergence of plasmids co-carrying ESBL genes, mcr genes, quinolones and other antimicrobials resistance determinants, and such plasmids require special attention. Plasmids phylogeny confirmed that the blaCTX-M-55 encoding plasmids varied considerably, while those encoding blaCTX-M-27 were closely related. Plasmids harboring both ESBL genes were confirmed to be conjugative and not to differ in transfer efficacy. The isolates carrying the plasmids, even those with plasmids of similar types, showed wide genetic variation with high number of SNPs, suggesting horizontal spread of plasmids into different clonal lines. Their virulence profiles did not confirm to known pathotypes, suggesting that unrelated commensals are a main reservoir for ESBL and AmpC β-lactamases in both humans and pigs. Overall, despite evidence of transferability of plasmids in the analyzed strains, our findings do not support that ESBL-producing E. coli from pigs or their ESBL/AmpC encoding plasmids are commonly spread to workers in close contact with the animals.

This article discussed Vietnam’s ongoing efforts to decentralize the health system and its fitness to respond to global health crises as presented through the Covid-19 pandemic. We used a general review and expert’s perspective to explore the topic. We found that the healthcare system in Vietnam continued to decentralize from a pyramid to a wheel model. This system shifts away from a stratified technical hierarchy of higher- and lower-level health units (pyramid model) to a system in which quality healthcare is equally expected among all health units (wheel model). This decentralization has delivered more quality healthcare facilities, greater freedom for patients to choose services at any level, a more competitive environment among hospitals to improve quality, and reductions in excess capacity burden at higher levels. It has also enabled the transformation from a patient-based traditional healthcare model into a patient-centered care system. However, this decentralization takes time and requires long-term political, financial commitment, and a working partnership among key stakeholders. This perspective provides Vietnam’s experience of the decentralization of the healthcare system that may be considered as a useful example for other countries to strategically think of and to shape their future system within their own socio-political context.

The interzeolite conversion of faujasite (FAU-type) zeolites to chabazite (CHA-type) zeolite in the presence of N,N,N-trimethyladamantammonium and N,N,N-dimethylethylcyclohexylammonium cations was investigated over a large compositional range by carefully controlling the reaction mixture compositions. Highly crystalline CHA zeolites were also obtained by the transformation of several zeolite types including EMT, LTL, LEV, RTH, and MFI frameworks. The formation of CHA zeolite from FAU zeolite precursors was substantially faster than that from zeolite L with a similar composition. High-silica CHA zeolites were also produced successfully using a mixture of TMAda with a number of less expensive organic structure-directing agents. The CHA zeolite materials have been synthesized with high crystallinity and with a Si/Al ratio ranging from 5 to 140. Our data support the importance of structural similarity between the zeolite precursors, nucleation/crystallization processes, and the zeolite product in the interzeolite conversion compared to conventional amorphous aluminosilicate gels. Our synthetic methods could be used to prepare other 8-membered ring zeolites such as AEI and AFX frameworks, potential candidates for selective catalytic reduction of NOx, light olefin production, and CO2 abatement.

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) represent a serious threat to public health due to the lack of treatment and high mortality. The rate of antimicrobial resistance of Enterobacterales isolates to major antimicrobials, including carbapenems, is much higher in Vietnam than in Western countries, but the reasons remain unknown due to the lack of genomic epidemiology research. A previous study suggested that carbapenem resistance genes, such as the carbapenemase gene blaNDM, spread via plasmids among Enterobacterales in Vietnam. In this study, we characterized blaNDM-carrying plasmids in Enterobacterales isolated in Vietnam, and identified several possible cases of horizontal transfer of plasmids both within and among species of bacteria. Twenty-five carbapenem-nonsusceptible isolates from a medical institution in Hanoi were sequenced on Illumina short-read sequencers, and 13 blaNDM-positive isolates, including isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Citrobacter freundii, Morganella morganii, and Proteus mirabilis, were further sequenced on an Oxford Nanopore Technologies long-read sequencer to obtain complete plasmid sequences. Almost identical 73 kb IncFII(pSE11)::IncN hybrid plasmids carrying blaNDM-1 were found in a P. mirabilis isolate and an M. morganii isolate. A 112 kb IncFII(pRSB107)::IncN hybrid plasmid carrying blaNDM-1 in an E. coli isolate had partially identical sequences with a 39 kb IncR plasmid carrying blaNDM-1 and an 88 kb IncFII(pHN7A8)::IncN hybrid plasmid in a C. freundii isolate. 148-149 kb IncFIA(Hl1)::IncA/C2 plasmids and 75-76 kb IncFII(Yp) plasmids, both carrying blaNDM-1 were shared among three sequence type 11 (ST11) isolates and three ST395 isolates of K. pneumoniae, respectively. Most of the plasmids co-carried genes conferring resistance to clinically relevant antimicrobials, including third-generation cephalosporins, aminoglycosides, and fluoroquinolones, in addition to blaNDM-1. These results provide insight into the genetic basis of CRE in Vietnam, and could help control nosocomial infections.

IntroductionIn low and middle-income countries, the manually operated municipal waste collection system prominently depended on the performance of waste collectors (WC). Most of the literature has focused on the impact of waste collection tasks on WCs' physical health, while little was known about the psychological effects of work-related stress. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of psychological stress and related factors among waste collectors in Hanoi, Vietnam.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted among 802 WCs in 2017. The questionnaire included the 7-item Stress component of the 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, and questions on demographics and work conditions. Descriptive and multivariate logistics regression analyses were conducted to examine the factors related to psychological stress among WCs.ResultsResults showed that 13.4% of WCs reported stress symptoms; among them, 3.3% of WCs experienced severe stress. Factors related to lower odds of self-reported psychological stress included self-perceived frequent exposure to high and low temperatures in the working environment (OR = 0.51 and 0.52, respectively). Factors associated with the increased likelihood of symptoms included frequent exposure to hot/flammable objects (OR = 2.41), working a night shift in the last three months (OR = 1.82), education lever lower than high school (OR = 1.82), and having an insufficient monthly income (OR = 1.99).ConclusionThe high percentage of workers with severe stress implies the need for mental health prevention and treatment for WCs who participated in this study.

BackgroundThe mid-life emergence of higher levels of total cholesterol (TC) for women than for men has been observed in different Western and Asian populations. The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is evidence of this in Vietnam and, if so, whether it can be explained by ageing, by body size and fatness, or by socio-demographic characteristics and behavioural factors.MethodsParticipants (n = 14706, 50.9% females) aged 25-64 years were selected by multi-stage stratified cluster sampling from eight provinces each representing one of the eight geographical regions of Vietnam. Measurements were made using the World Health Organization STEPS protocols. Linear regression was used to assess the independent contributions of potential explanatory factors to mean levels of TC. Data were analysed using complex survey methods.ResultsMen and women had similar mean levels of body mass index (BMI), and men had modestly higher mean levels of waist circumference (WC), in each 5-year age category. The mean TC of women increased more or less continuously across the age range but with a step-up at age 50 years to reach higher concentrations on average than those of their male counterparts. The estimated step-up was not eliminated by adjustment for anthropometric indices including BMI or WC, or by adjustment for socio-demographic characteristics or behavioural factors. The estimated step-up was least for women with the greatest weight.ConclusionThere is a marked step-up in TC at age 50 years for Vietnamese women that cannot be explained by their age, or by their body fatness or its distribution, or by their socio-demographic characteristics or behavioural factors, and which results in greater mean levels of TC for middle-aged women than for their male counterparts in Vietnam.

Pleuromutilin is a fungal diterpene natural product with antimicrobial properties, semisynthetic derivatives of which are used in veterinary and human medicine. The development of bacterial resistance to pleuromutilins is known to be very slow, which makes the tricyclic diterpene skeleton of pleuromutilin a very attractive starting structure for the development of new antibiotic derivatives that are unlikely to induce resistance. Here, we report the very first synthetic modifications of pleuromutilin and lefamulin at alkene position C19–C20, by two different photoinduced addition reactions, the radical thiol-ene coupling reaction, and the atom transfer radical additions (ATRAs) of perfluoroalkyl iodides. Pleuromutilin were modified with the addition of several alkyl- and aryl-thiols, thiol-containing amino acids and nucleoside and carbohydrate thiols, as well as perfluoroalkylated side chains. The antibacterial properties of the novel semisynthetic pleuromutilin derivatives were investigated on a panel of bacterial strains, including susceptible and multiresistant pathogens and normal flora members. We have identified some novel semisynthetic pleuromutilin and lefamulin derivatives with promising antimicrobial properties.

We analyzed and compared genomes of Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli from pigs and pig farm workers at 116 farms in Vietnam. Analyses revealed the presence of blaCTX-M-55, blaCTX-M-27, blaCTX-M-15, blaCTX-M-14, blaCTX-M-3, blaCTX-M-65, blaCTX-M-24, blaDHA-1, and blaCMY2 in both hosts. Most strains from pigs contained quinolones (qnr) and colistin resistance genes (mcr-1 and mcr-3). Isolates predominantly harbored more than one plasmid replicon and some harbored plasmid replicons on the same contigs as the ESBL genes. Five strains from farm workers of ST38 (2), ST69 (1), and ST1722 (2) were classified as either uropathogenic E. coli (UPECHM)/extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPECJJ) or UPECHM, and the remaining were genetically distinct commensals. A high heterogeneity was found among the ESBL-producing E. coli from pigs and workers, with most isolates belonging to unrelated phylogroups, serogroups, and sequence types with >4046 Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms-(SNPs). In comparing the genomes of pig isolates to those from humans, it appeared that ESBL-producing E. coli in workers did not predominantly originate from pigs but were rather host-specific. Nevertheless, the occurrence of ESBL-producing E. coli carrying plasmid-mediated colistin and quinolone resistance genes in pigs could represent a potential source for horizontal transmission to humans through food rather than direct contact.

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to build the sets of clauses in definite clause grammar, which can express the phrasal and sentential semantics. We build these sets based on the semantic models of computational and inferential methods for analyzing the phrasal and sentential semantics in Vietnamese Question-Answering System Model (VietQASM), and implementation techniques for computing the semantics in Pham and Nguyen (Int J Simul Syst Sci Technol 17, 2016; A computational and inferential method for analyzing the semantics of phrase and sentence in Vietnamese Question-Answering System Model (VietQASM), 2015). We also present the technical novel, which expresses the process of creating the semantic expressions according to these models. Those semantic expressions will be used to make an event of data-knowledge base in the Vietnamese Question-Answering System (VietQAS). We built three sets of clauses: (1) the first set is used to define the semantic forms of lexicons, (2) the second set is used to compute and infer the semantics for phrases, (3) the third set is used to compute and infer the semantics for sentences. We only use all these sets for building a reading-comprehension mechanism for all statement sentences in the VietQAS.

Abstract Background To estimate the prevalence of non-communicable disease (NCD) risk factors at a provincial level in Vietnam, and to assess whether the summary estimates allow reliable inferences to be drawn regarding regional differences in risk factors and associations between them. Methods Participants (n = 14706, 53.5 % females) aged 25–64 years were selected by multi-stage stratified cluster sampling from eight provinces each representing one of the eight geographical regions of Vietnam. Measurements were made using the World Health Organization STEPS protocols. Data were analysed using complex survey methods. Results Differences by sex in mean years of schooling (males 8.26 ± 0.20, females 7.00 ± 0.18), proportions of current smokers (males 57.70 %, females 1.73 %), and binge-drinkers (males 25.11 %, females 0.63 %), and regional differences in diet, reflected the geographical and socio-cultural characteristics of the country. Provinces with a higher proportion of urban population had greater mean levels of BMI (r = 0.82), and lesser proportions of active people (r = −0.89). The associations between the summary estimates were generally plausible (e.g. physical activity and BMI, r = −0.80) but overstated, and with some anomalous findings due to characterisation of smoking and hypertension by STEPS protocols. Conclusions This report provides an extensive description of the sex-specific and regional distribution of NCD risk factors in Vietnam and an account of some health-related consequences of industrialisation in its early stages. The STEPS protocols can be utilized to provide aggregate data for valid between-population comparisons, but with important caveats identified.

We investigated Nucleos(t)ide-analogue (NA)-resistance mutations (mt) in 142 treatment-naive children with Chronic Hepatitis B (CHB), using a sensitive co-amplification at lower denaturation temperature (COLD)-PCR with Sanger DNA sequencing. An NA resistance-associated mt in the hepatitis B virus (HBV) reverse transcriptase (RT) was found in 66.2% of the patients, with nonclassical mt contributing the most (64.8%). Significantly higher frequencies of Lamivudine (LMV) and Adefovir dipivoxil (ADF) resistance-associated mt were found in genotypes B and C, respectively (ORLMV/ADF: 1495.000; 95% CI: 89.800–24,889.032; p < 0.001). Single-point mt associated to LMV and ADF resistance were detected in 59.9% of the tested children with rtV207M (38.0%) and rtN238T (9.9%) being the most frequent. Multiple-point mt were found only in 8 cases (5.6%): 6 children carried double mt (rtV207M + rtL229V; rtV207M + rtI233V; rtV207I + rtV207M × 2 cases; rtV207M + rtS213T; rtN238A + rtS256G) relating to LMV or/and ADF resistance and 3 children carried triple mt (rtL180M + rtM204I + rtN238T; rtV207M + rtS213T + rtS256G) or quadruple mt (rtL180M + rtM204V + rtV207I/M) for LMV-ADF resistance and Entecavir-reduced susceptibility. Our data indicate that significantly higher frequencies of LMV and ADF-associated mutations were found in treatment-naïve children infected with HBV genotypes B and C, respectively. The developed COLD-PCR method and obtained data may contribute to the development of suitable treatments for children with CHB.

A more holistic understanding of the benefits of sight-restoring cataract surgery requires a focus that goes beyond income and employment, to include a wider array of well-being measures. The objective of this study is to examine the monetary and non-monetary benefits of cataract surgery on both patients as well as their caregivers in Vietnam. Participants were randomly recruited from a Ho-Chi-Minh City Hospital. A total of 82 cataract patients and 83 caregivers participated in the survey conducted for this study. Paired t-tests, Wilcoxon Signed Rank tests, and regression analysis are used to detect any statistically significant differences in various measures of well-being for patients and caregivers before and after surgery. There are statistically significant improvements in monetary and non-monetary measures of well-being for both patients and caregivers approximately three months after undergoing cataract surgery, compared with baseline assessments collected prior to surgery. Non-monetary measures of well-being include self-assessments of overall health, mental health, hope, self-efficacy, happiness and life satisfaction. For patients, the benefits included statistically significant improvements in earnings, mobility, self-care, the ability to undertake daily activities, self-assessed health and mental health, life satisfaction, hope, and self-efficacy (p

BACKGROUND:Waist circumference (WC) is an indicator of intra-abdominal adipose tissue, high levels of which confer an increased risk of cardiometabolic disease. Population data on WC should be more informative than data on body mass index (BMI), which is a general indicator of body size. This study aimed to evaluate the importance of WC relative to BMI in cross-sectional relationships with blood pressure (BP), glucose, and total cholesterol (TC) in the adult population of Vietnam. METHODS:The data were collected in a population-based survey conducted during 2009-10 using the "WHO STEPwise approach to surveillance of risk factors for non-communicable disease" (STEPS) methodology. The survey participants (n = 14 706 aged 25 to 64 years) were selected by multi-stage stratified cluster sampling from eight provinces representative of the eight geographical regions of Vietnam. All measurements were performed in accordance with the STEPS protocols. All analyses were performed using complex survey methods. RESULTS:The measurements of WC and BMI were highly correlated (men r = 0.80, women r = 0.77). For men, the strongest and predominant associations with BP, glucose, and TC were for WC or an index based on WC. For women, this was true for glucose but BMI was more important for BP and TC. WC or an index based on WC provided better discrimination than BMI of hypertension and elevated glucose, and of raised TC for men. Information on four new anthropometric indices did not improve model fit or subject discrimination. CONCLUSION:For BP/hypertension, glucose/elevated glucose, and TC/raised TC, WC was more informative than BMI for Vietnamese men, but both WC and BMI were important for Vietnamese women. Both WC and BMI need to be assessed for estimation of CVD risk in Vietnam.

OBJECTIVES:This study aimed to examine the potential of combining routine tuberculosis (TB) surveillance and demographic and socioeconomic variables into the Geographic Information System (GIS) to describe the geographical distribution of TB notified incidence in relation to distances to health services as well as local demographic and socioeconomic factors, including population density, urban/rural status, and household poverty rates in Nam Dinh, Vietnam. It also aimed to compare the conventional Generalized Linear Models (GLM) Poisson regression model and Geographically Weighted Poisson Regression (GWPR) models in order to determine the best fitting model that can be used to investigate the relationship between TB notified incidence and distances and the social risk factors. METHODS:The data of new and relapse patients with all forms of TB aged ≥15 years residing in Nam Dinh (Vietnam) from 2012 to 2015 were collected from the Administration of Medical Services' (Ministry of Health of Vietnam) TB surveillance database. Data on the population and household poverty rates from 2012 to 2015 were gathered from the Nam Dinh Statistical Office. Distances between communes and the nearest TB diagnostic facilities in districts were computed. The TB notified incidence per 100,000 population was denoted by indirect age and sex standardized incidence ratio. GLM Poisson regression and GWPR were performed to assess the relationship between distance and TB incidence. RESULTS:The average notified TB incidence level measured from 2012 to 2015 is 82 per 100,000 population (range: 79-84/100,000). The distance to the nearest TB diagnosis presents a negative effect on TB notified incidence. By capturing spatial heterogeneity, the GWPR may be better at fitting data (corrected Aikake information criterion [AICc] = 245.71, residual deviance = 221.12) than the traditional GLM (AICc = 251.53, residual deviance = 241.21). CONCLUSIONS:GIS technologies benefit TB surveillance system. Distances should be considered when planning methods of improving access for those who live far from TB diagnostic services, thereby improving TB detection. Additional studies must confirm the association between geographic distance and TB case detection and must explore other factors that may affect TB notified incidence.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic human pathogen associated with cystic fibrosis. This bacterium produces, among other virulence factors, a soluble d-galactose-specific lectin PA-IL (LecA). PA-IL plays an important role in the adhesion to the host cells and is also cytotoxic. Therefore, this protein is an interesting therapeutic target, suitable for inhibition by carbohydrate-based compounds. In the current study, β-d-galactopyranoside-containing tri- and tetravalent glycoclusters were synthesized. Methyl gallate and pentaerythritol equipped with propargyl groups were chosen as multivalent scaffolds and the galactoclusters were built from the above-mentioned cores by coupling ethylene or tetraethylene glycol-bridges and peracetylated propargyl β-d-galactosides using 1,3-dipolar azide-alkyne cycloaddition. The interaction between galactoside derivatives and PA-IL was investigated by several biophysical methods, including hemagglutination inhibition assay, isothermal titration calorimetry, analytical ultracentrifugation, and surface plasmon resonance. Their ability to inhibit the adhesion of P. aeruginosa to bronchial cells was determined by ex vivo assay. The newly synthesized multivalent galactoclusters proved to be significantly better ligands than simple d-galactose for lectin PA-IL and as a result, two representatives of the dendrimers were able to decrease adhesion of P. aeruginosa to bronchial cells to approximately 32% and 42%, respectively. The results may provide an opportunity to develop anti-adhesion therapy for the treatment of P. aeruginosa infection.

Series of multivalent α-l-fucoside containing glycoclusters and variously decorated l-fucosides were synthesized to find potential inhibitors of fucose-specific lectins and study the structure-binding affinity relationships. Tri- and tetravalent fucoclusters were built using copper-mediated azide-alkyne click chemistry. Series of fucoside monomers and dimers were synthesized using various methods, namely glycosylation, an azide-alkyne click reaction, photoinduced thiol-en addition, and sulfation. The interactions between compounds with six fucolectins of bacterial or fungal origin were tested using a hemagglutination inhibition assay. As a result, a tetravalent, α-l-fucose presenting glycocluster showed to be a ligand that was orders of magnitude better than a simple monosaccharide for tested lectins in most cases, which can nominate it as a universal ligand for studied lectins. This compound was also able to inhibit the adhesion of Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells to human epithelial bronchial cells. A trivalent fucocluster with a protected amine functional group also seems to be a promising candidate for designing glycoconjugates and chimeras.

Our aims were to provide the first national estimates of physical activity (PA) for Vietnam, and to investigate issues affecting their accuracy.Measurements were made using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) on a nationally-representative sample of 14706 participants (46.5% males, response 64.1%) aged 25-64 years selected by multi-stage stratified cluster sampling.Approximately 20% of Vietnamese people had no measureable PA during a typical week, but 72.9% (men) and 69.1% (women) met WHO recommendations for PA by adults for their age. On average, 52.0 (men) and 28.0 (women) Metabolic Equivalent Task (MET)-hours/week (largely from work activities) were reported. Work and total PA were higher in rural areas and varied by season. Less than 2% of respondents provided incomplete information, but an additional one-in-six provided unrealistically high values of PA. Those responsible for reporting errors included persons from rural areas and all those with unstable work patterns. Box-Cox transformation (with an appropriate constant added) was the most successful method of reducing the influence of large values, but energy-scaled values were most strongly associated with pathophysiological outcomes.Around seven-in-ten Vietnamese people aged 25-64 years met WHO recommendations for total PA, which was mainly from work activities and higher in rural areas. Nearly all respondents were able to report their activity using the GPAQ, but with some exaggerated values and seasonal variation in reporting. Data transformation provided plausible summary values, but energy-scaling fared best in association analyses.

The 16q12.2 locus in the first intron of FTO has been robustly associated with body mass index (BMI) and type 2 diabetes in genome-wide association studies (GWAS). To improve the resolution of fine-scale mapping at FTO, we performed a systematic approach consisting of two parts.The first part is to partition the associated variants into linkage disequilibrium (LD) clusters, followed by conditional and haplotype analyses. The second part is to filter the list of potential causal variants through trans-ethnic comparison.We first examined the LD relationship between FTO SNPs showing significant association with type 2 diabetes in Japanese GWAS and between those previously reported in European GWAS. We could partition all the assayed or imputed SNPs showing significant association in the target FTO region into 7 LD clusters. Assaying 9 selected SNPs in 4 Asian-descent populations--Japanese, Vietnamese, Sri Lankan and Chinese (n≤26,109 for BMI association and n≤24,079 for type 2 diabetes association), we identified a responsible haplotype tagged by a cluster of SNPs and successfully narrowed the list of potential causal variants to 25 SNPs, which are the smallest in number among the studies conducted to date for FTO.Our data support that the power to resolve the causal variants from those in strong LD increases consistently when three distant populations--Europeans, Asians and Africans--are included in the follow-up study. It has to be noted that this fine-mapping approach has the advantage of applicability to the existing GWAS data set in combination with direct genotyping of selected variants.

Background. Data on cardiovascular disease risk factors (CVDRFs) in Vietnam are limited. This study explores the prevalence of each CVDRF and how they cluster to evaluate CVDRF burdens and potential prevention strategies. Methods. A cross-sectional survey in 2009 (2,130 adults) was done to collect data on behavioural CVDRF, anthropometry and blood pressure, lipidaemia profiles, and oral glucose tolerance tests. Four metabolic CVDRFs (hypertension, dyslipidaemia, diabetes, and obesity) and five behavioural CVDRFs (smoking, excessive alcohol intake, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and stress) were analysed to identify their prevalence, cluster patterns, and social predictors. Framingham scores were applied to estimate the global 10-year CVD risks and potential benefits of CVD prevention strategies. Results. The age-standardised prevalence of having at least 2/4 metabolic, 2/5 behavioural, or 4/9 major CVDRF was 28%, 27%, 13% in women and 32%, 62%, 34% in men. Within-individual clustering of metabolic factors was more common among older women and in urban areas. High overall CVD risk (≥20% over 10 years) identified 20% of men and 5% of women—especially at higher ages—who had coexisting CVDRF. Conclusion. Multiple CVDRFs were common in Vietnamese adults with different clustering patterns across sex/age groups. Tackling any single risk factor would not be efficient.

INTRODUCTION: Data for trends in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors are needed to set priorities and evaluate intervention programmes in the community. We estimated time trends in blood pressure (BP), anthropometric variables and smoking in the Vietnamese population and highlighted the differences between men and women or between rural and urban areas. METHODS: A dataset of 23,563 adults aged 25-74 from 5 cross-sectional surveys undertaken within Vietnam from 2001 to 2009 by the Vietnam National Heart Institute was used to estimate mean BP, weight, waist circumference (WC), body mass index (BMI), the prevalence of hypertension, adiposity or smoking, which were standardised to the national age structure of 2009. Multilevel mixed linear models were used to estimate annual changes in the variables of interest, adjusted by age, sex, residential area, with random variations for age and surveyed provinces. FINDINGS: Among the adult population, the age-standardised mean systolic and diastolic BP increased by 0.8 and 0.3 mmHg in women, 1.1 and 0.4 mmHg in men, while the mean BMI increased by 0.1 kgm(-2) in women, 0.2 kgm(-2) in men per year. Consequently, the prevalence of hypertension and adiposity increased by 0.9 and 0.3% in women, 1.1 and 0.9% in men with similar time trends in both rural and urban areas, while smoking prevalence only increased in women by 0.3% per year. A U-shaped association was found between age-adjusted BP and BMI in both sexes and in both areas. CONCLUSIONS: From 2001 to 2009, mean BP, weight and WC significantly increased in the Vietnamese population, leading to an increased prevalence of hypertension and adiposity, suggesting the need for the development of multi-sectoral cost-effective population-based interventions to improve CVD management and prevention. The U-shaped relationship between BP and BMI highlighted the hypertension burden in the underweight population, which is usually neglected in CVD interventions.

Piglet lethality is one of the major concerns in pig breeding programs. Deletion of a 212-kb region within the Bardet-Biedl syndrome 9 ( BBS9 ) gene has been linked to a reduction in the number of piglets born alive per litter. The BBS9 mutant gene carrier-by-carrier mating scheme could result in mummification of piglets carrying 2 copies of the BBS9 mutant allele, which ultimately affects the reproductive performance of the sow. Our aim was to develop a simple, rapid, and cost-efficient method that could be applied in a BBS9 mutant gene carrier screening program in low- and middle-income countries within basic laboratory settings. Here, we report an optimized multiplex PCR assay that we have established successfully for detection of a 212-kb deletion within the BBS9 genomic sequence. We genotyped 420 animals from Yorkshire, Duroc, and Landrace purebred populations in Vietnam. We found that while the BBS9 mutant allele was not identified in Duroc pigs, the frequency of BBS9 carriers was 10% in both Yorkshire and Landrace populations. We subsequently validated our results using Sanger sequencing. Our multiplex PCR method could be utilized as a BBS9 screening test in pig breeding programs., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.