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Background: Vulvovaginal candidiasis and urinary tract infections caused by Candida are common diseases. While the most common causative agent is C. albicans , other species, such as non- C. albicans , can also be responsible. Susceptibility to antifungal drugs varies among Candida species, but there is very limited information available from Vietnam., Objectives: To determine the species distribution and antifungal susceptibility patterns of Candida isolated from urine and vaginal samples of patients tested at the Medlatec healthcare system in 2023., Design: Cross-sectional study., Methods: The study describes a cross-sectional analysis of over 102 Candida isolates obtained from urine and vaginal samples of patients using the testing services at Vietnam Medlatec healthcare system from January to December 2023. Species identification of Candida isolates was performed using germ tube test and Vitek ® 2 systems. Antifungal susceptibility testing was carried out using the VITEK ® 2 card for yeast fungi. Minimum inhibitory concentrations for these isolates were classified according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines (M27-A3 and M27M44S-ED3)., Results: In this investigation, five different Candida species were identified. Among these isolates, C. albicans (78.43%) was the most frequent, followed by C. tropicalis (11.76%), C. glabrata (4.91%), C. parapsilosis (1.96%), and C. krusei (0.98%). The resistance rates to fluconazole, voriconazole, caspofungin, micafungin, and amphotericin B were 7.7%, 4.2%, 4.0%, 1.0% and 1.0%, respectively., Conclusion: The most common species found in this population was C. albicans . Our findings also showed a high frequency of non- albicans Candida species causing fungal urinary tract infections. The resistance rates of isolated Candida strains to echinocandins and amphotericin B were low, while some strains were found to be resistant to fluconazole and voriconazole., (© The Author(s), 2025.)

A new 3-methoxybenzensulfonic acid 4-0-0-D-glucopyranoside (1), and ten known compounds (2-11) were isolated from the methanolic extract of the stems of Mallotus microcarpus. The cytotoxicity of the isolated compounds was evaluated by the MTT method. 3-Methoxybenzensulfonic acid 4-Ο-β-D- glucopyranoside (1) and methyl salicylate 2-rutinoside (5) showed strong cytotoxicity against EGFR-TKI-resistant human lung cancer A549 cells in comparison with camptothecin. Compound 1, leonuriside A (2), 3,4'-dihydroxypropiophenone 3-Ο-glucoside (6) and (lR,2S)-hovetrichoside A (10) inhibited the growth of human breast cancer MCF-7 cell line with IC₅₀ values in the range of 0.48-1.78 μM. This is the first report on the chemical composition and cytotoxic activity of M microcarpus.

Background: There is an ongoing debate regarding the type of respiratory protection that should be recommended for use for healthcare workers., Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in three countries: China, Pakistan and Vietnam., Results: In China and Pakistan, the infection control guidelines were developed to be in line with the recommendations from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, while in the Vietnamese guidelines the recommendations correspond with the WHO suggestions only. The guidelines from all three countries document the need for training and fit testing; however there is no system to monitor the training and fit testing programs. Across the three countries, there was some inconsistency with regard to the types of products (i.e. masks vs. respirators) recommended for influenza, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and tuberculosis., Conclusions: Available evidence should be examined and a comprehensive policy should be developed on the use of masks and respirators. The policy should address critical areas such as regulation, training, fit testing and reuse., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interests: Professor C. Raina MacIntyre: Raina MacIntyre has held an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant with 3M as the industry partner, for investigator driven research. 3M have also contributed supplies of masks and respirators for investigator-driven clinical trials. She has received research grants and laboratory testing as in-kind support from Pfizer, GSK and Bio-CSL for investigator-driven research. Dr Holly Seale had a NHMRC Australian based Public Health Training Fellowship at the time of the study (1012631). She has also received funding from vaccine manufacturers GSK, bio-CSL and Saniofi Pasteur for investigator-driven research and presentations. The remaining authors declare that they have no competing interests and have no non-financial interests that may be relevant to the submitted work.

A new ent-kaurane glycoside, annoglabasin H (1), and three known ent-kauranes, annoglabasin E (2), annoglabasin B (3), and 19-nor-ent-kaurent-4-ol-17-oic acid (4) were isolated from the fruits of Annona glabra. Their structures were determined by the combination of spectroscopic and chemical methods, including 1D- and 2D-NMR spectroscopy, as well as by comparison with the NMR data reported in the literature. The cytotoxic activities of these compounds were evaluated on four human cancer cell lines, LU-1, MCF-7, SK-Mel2, and KB. Compound 1 exhibited significant cytotoxic activity on all tested human cancer cell lines with IC50 values ranging from 3.7 to 4.6 μM.

The chemical composition of Vietnamese oil samples of the aerial parts of Clausena indica (Dalz.) Oliver and C. anisum-olens (Blanco) Merryll have been investigated using a combination of chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques. C. indica essential oil contained mainly terpinolene (53.9 and 56.1%), and myristicin (17.9 and 7.3%), whereas the major components of C. anisun-olens essential were citronellal (22.8%), geranial (21.4%) and neral (16.8%). The compositions of the investigated samples have been compared with those of essential oils from various origins.