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Kiwifruit (Actinidia spp.) is an economically important fruit crop in the world. China is the largest producer of kiwifruit in terms of both acreage and yield. In this study, a novel virus, tentatively named Actinidia virus C (AcVC), was discovered in Actinidia deliciosa 'Xuxiang' grown in commercial kiwifruit fields in the Shaanxi province, a major kiwifruit‐growing region in China. Sequencing of the complete genome showed that AcVC has 7,668 nucleotides (not including the poly‐(A) sequence). Complete genome comparison and phylogenetic analysis showed that AcVC is most closely related to AcVA and then to AcVB. AcVC shares 69.2% nucleotide identity with AcVA (GenBank accession number JN427014). Based on these data, Actinidia virus C is assigned as a new tentative member of the genus Vitivirus in the family Betaflexiviridae. AcVC was found to infect A. deliciosa and A. chinesis, the two major cultivated kiwifruits. Infection frequency of AcVC varied with the kiwifruit‐growing regions and cultivars in the Shaanxi province of China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incidence of B-cell chronic lymphoproliferative disorders (B-CLPDs) is significantly lower in China than that in western countries. There have been studies involving small cohorts with conflicting results regarding the spectrum of B-CLPDs in China, and the types and immunophenotyping of B-CLPDs in China remain largely unexplored. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 653 cases of B-CLPDs seen in our centre from 2011 to 2015. Four-colour flow cytometry was used to determine the expression of each immunological marker, and the diagnostic values of the immunological markers were also investigated. Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) was the most common type of B-CLPD, which was consistent with that in west countries. However, the proportions of CLL (55.9%), follicular lymphoma (2.6%), and hairy cell leukaemia (0.2%) were lower, while the proportion of lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma/WaldenstrÖm macroglobulinaemia (5.4%) was higher in China, as compared with western countries. With respect to immunophenotypic characteristics, CD23 (31.7%) was more frequently expressed in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) in our cohort than that in western countries. Immunophenotyping was useful in differentiating MCL from CLL or B-cell prolymphocytic leukaemia and lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma/WaldenstrÖm macroglobulinaemia from splenic marginal zone lymphoma. CD200 was of better diagnostic performance (accuracy: 94.6%) in differentiating CLL from MCL compared with CD23 (accuracy: 93.3%). Some cases of B-CPLDs, however, had no definite diagnoses, which were diagnosed as CD5+ B-CPLDs unclassified (7.7%) and CD5- B-CPLDs unclassified (15.8%). This is the largest study that systematically explores the spectrum and immunophenotyping of B-CLPDs in Asia, confirming that spectrum of B-CLPDs in China was different from that in western countries. The immunophenotypic features of B-CLPDs were similar between China and western countries, although a few disparities exist. Cases with no definite diagnoses warrant further studies in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common type of adult leukemia in the Western countries, however, it is infrequent in the Eastern countries. The direct antiglobulin test (DAT) may be positive at some time during the disease course of CLL. The aim of this study was to explore the prognostic impact of positive DAT at diagnosis in Chinese patients with CLL. In 123 Chinese patients with CLL, 34 (27.6%) patients presented with a positive DAT at diagnosis. However only 12 patients (9.8%) with a positive DAT developed autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AHA). According to the correlation analysis, advanced Binet stage (p < 0.001), high level of serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) (p = 0.003) and β2-microglobulin (β2-M) (p = 0.011), unmutated immunoglobulin heavy chain variable gene status (p < 0.001), positive ZAP-70 (p = 0.012), and trisomy 12 cytogenetic aberration (p = 0.004) emerged as factors significantly related to the occurrence of DAT-positive. Patients with positive DAT had significantly shorter survival times than patients with negative DAT (p = 0.009). Five-year OS percentages of DAT-positivity and DAT-negative patients were 72.8% and 97.5%, respectively. It was showed that DAT status might be applied for the assessment of prognosis in patients with CLL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Eleven major isoflavonoids and three major astragalosides in the xylem and bark of cultivated Radix Astragali (RA) from different cultivated regions of China were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. The results showed that the contents of astragalosides in the bark are up to 74-fold higher than in the xylem, and that thin roots contained more astragalosides than thick roots. Although the contents of isoflavonoids varied between samples, no significant difference was observed between the isoflavonoids content of xylem and bark, or between that of thin and thick roots. It was also found that the chemical profile of isoflavonoids in the xylem and bark are related to their cultivated regions. Constituents in either xylem or bark were divided into five groups according to their chemical structures: (1) Group 1 (G1), contained calycosin and related constituents; (2) Group 2 (G2), contained ononin and related constituents; (3) Group 3 (G3), contained (6aR,11aR)-3-hydroxy-9,10-dimethoxypterocarpan and related constituents; (4) Group 4 (G4), contained (3R)-7,2′-dihydroxy-3′,4′-dimethoxyisoflavan and related constituents; and (5) Group 5 (G5), contained astragalosides, compounds AG I, AG II, and AG IV. Based on the integrated contents of constituents in each group, the cultivated region of RA was successfully distinguished by principal components analysis (PCA). Chemical constituents in RA cultivated from different regions of China were compared and it was concluded that the quality of thin RA roots is better than thick RA roots. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The genetic diversity in 22 populations of 5 wild Rhododendron species in Qinling Mountain in China was evaluated using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP). Four AFLP selective primer combinations generated a total of 135 bands with their sizes ranging from 67 kb to 501 kb, among which 123 bands were found to be polymorphic, accounting for 92.04% variations. POPGENE analysis indicated that all the five species had high levels of genetic diversity, with percentage of polymorphic loci (PPL) ranging from 87.2 to 99.8% and effective number of alleles (ne) varying from 1.4205 to 1.9957. Shannon’s Information Index (I) differed from 0.4286 to 0.6921, while Nei’s gene diversity (H) varied from 0.2711 to 0.4989. The 5 species showed similar levels of genetic variations, with Hs and Ht ranging from 0.2253 to 0.4041 and from 0.2400 to 0.4994, respectively. The coefficient of gene differentiation among 22 populations (Gst) was 0.0923, accounting for 90.8% genetic diversity and only 9.2% genetic variations among the populations tested. The differences among populations were low in comparison with the previous studies on other species using the same technique. Low level of the genetic differences among Rhododendron populations investigated in the present study might be due to their outcrossing reproductive system. The analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) also showed that variations among the species and populations were low, mainly due to a high variation within the populations. Based on unbiased genetic distances determined by an unweighted pair group method using arithmetic mean (UPGMA) phenogram, all populations could be grouped into Rhododendron species. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: To investigate the clinical characteristics, laboratorial and bone marrow pathological features of primary thrombocytopenia (ET) patients with different mutations of CALR, JAK2 and MPL genes., Methods: The chinical data of 120 cases of ET in Jiangsu provincial people's hospital/ The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from January 2015 to December 2017 were collected and analyzed, including 76 cases with JAK2 gene mutation, 40 cases with CALR gene mutation, 2 cases with MPL gene mutations, 2 cases without gene mutation., Results: Among the ET patients, compared with the JAK2 gene mutation, CALR gene mutation showed statistically significant deareament of white blood cells and hemoglobin (P=0.001, P=0.01) and the male platelets in CALR group showed significant increament (P=0.04). Fourthermore, the average number of megakaryocytes and its cluster numbers in each hight power field of vision showed statistically significant decreament in CALR group as compared with JAK2 group (P=0.001, P=0.001), and thrombotic events in CALR group were signicantly lower than those in JAK2 group (7.5% vs 18.4%) (P=0.03)., Conclusion: Mutations of CALR, JAK2 have different clinical characteristics and blood pathological changes of Chinese ET patients, and their clinical significance is worth to explore.

Kiwifruit ( Actinidia spp.) is an economically substantial fruit crop with China the main producer. China is the primary source of wild kiwifruit and the largest producer of kiwifruit in terms of both production and planting area, and Shaanxi province is the largest kiwifruit producer in China. Previous studies reported presence of kiwifruit viruses in Actinidia chinensis . In this study, six viruses were identified in kiwifruit 'Xuxiang' ( A. deliciosa ) in Shaanxi, China. The incidence, distribution, and genetic diversity of these viruses were studied. The results showed that Actinidia virus A (AcVA), Actinidia virus B (AcVB), Actinidia chlorotic ringspot-associated virus (AcCRaV), cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), apple stem grooving virus (ASGV), and potato virus X (PVX) were the main viruses infecting Xuxiang kiwifruit in Shaanxi, China. Incidence of the various viruses with both single and multiple infection varied with different kiwifruit-growing counties. For single virus infection, the highest and the lowest numbers of samples infected were about 22 for AcCRaV and 0 for AcVB in Meixian out of 170 samples, 12 for AcVA and 0 for CMV in Zhouzhi out of 120 samples, 10 for AcVA and 0 for AcVB, AcCRaV, ASGV, PVX, and CMV in Yangling out of 70 samples, and 8 for AcCRaV and CMV and 0 for AcVA, AcVB, ASGV, and PVX in Hanzhong out of 80 samples, respectively. Samples which were multiply infected with two or more viruses were also detected. Analysis of the phylogenetic tree of these viruses showed some genetic variability in the AcVA, AcVB, and AcCRaV isolates of Shaanxi kiwifruit. There was no obvious molecular variation in the coat protein genes of ASGV, CMV, and PVX virus isolates from Shaanxi kiwifruit. The present study is the first large-scale survey of kiwifruit viruses in Shaanxi, China. To our knowledge, this is the first report of PVX infecting kiwifruit and the first report of molecular variability of AcVA, AcVB, and AcCRaV. These results provide important data for studying the genetic evolution of AcVA, AcVB, AcCRaV, ASGV, CMV, and PVX.

The proto-oncogene NOTCH1 is frequently mutated in around 10% of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). This study analyzed NOTCH1 mutation status of 317 Chinese patients with CLL by Sanger sequencing. The frequencies of NOTCH1 mutation in the PEST (proline (P), glutamic acid (E), serine (S), threonine (T)-rich protein sequence) domain and the 3' untranslated regions (UTR) were 8.2% and 0.9%, with the most frequent mutation being c.7541&#95;7542delCT and c.*371A>G, respectively. Clinical and biological associations were determined including NOTCH1 mutations with advanced stage (Binet stage, P = 0.010), unmutated immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable region (IGHV) gene (P < 0.001) and trisomy 12 (+12) (P = 0.014). NOTCH1-mutated patients had lower CD20 expression intensity than NOTCH1-unmutated patients (P = 0.029). In addition, NOTCH1-mutated patients had shorter overall survival (OS) (P = 0.002) and treatment-free survival (TFS) (P = 0.002) than NOTCH1-unmutated patients, especially for patients with NOTCH1 c.7541&#95;7542delCT and/or c.*371A>G mutations. Patients with both mutated NOTCH1 and unmutated IGHV had shorter OS (P < 0.001) and TFS (P < 0.001) than those with unmutated NOTCH1 or mutated IGHV. These data provide a comprehensive view of the clinical relevance and prognostic impact of NOTCH1 mutations on Chinese patients with CLL., (© 2018 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objective: To investigate the comparability of bcr-abl (P210) transcript levels detected in different hospitals., Methods: Ten hospitals in China took part in the four times of sample exchange and comparisons from April, 2010 to August, 2011. The exchange samples were prepared by Peking University People's Hospital. Firstly, the BCR-ABL (P210)(+) cells from a newly diagnosed chronic myeloid leukemia patient were 10-fold serially diluted by BCR-ABL (P210)(-) cells and they covered 4 magnitudes. Then, TRIzol reagents were thoroughly mixed with cells in each tube. Every 12 samples (three samples per magnitude) were sent to the other 9 hospitals. The cell number of each sample was 8×10(6). The detection of bcr-abl transcript levels by real-time quantitative PCR were performed in every hospital according to their own protocols. Conversion factors (CF) were calculated using regression equation., Results: Differences in bcr-abl transcript levels did exist among results of 10 hospitals in each comparison. In general, the results of the most of hospitals were in line with the dilutions of cells. CF of every hospital fluctuated. Three hospitals had relatively stable CF, and their ranges were 2.8 - 5.2, 1.2 - 2.8 and 2.2 - 6.8, respectively; two hospitals had unstable CF with ranges 0.76 - 7.0 and 2.1 - 18.7; three hospitals couldn't be calculated CF one or two times because of the significant deviation of the results from the actually bcr-abl transcript levels, and their ranges of CF which could be calculated were 1.9 - 19.2, 3.6 - 7.6 and 0.18 - 14.7; One hospital only had two CF (3.3 and 5.0) because of the replacement of an important reagent during the period of comparisons., Conclusions: Comparability of bcr-abl (P210) transcript levels between different hospitals could be achieved through CF which acquired by sample exchange and comparison. The stable and reliable detection system is the premise to acquire correct CF.

The characteristics of core binding factor (CBF) leukemia appear to differ between Chinese and Caucasian patients. In this study, we analyzed the biological and clinical characteristics of 76 Chinese CBF leukemia patients out of 425 newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. The frequency of CBF AML was 17.9%. Patients harboring t(8;21) were predominant in CBF AML. The incidence of c-kit mutation in CBF AML was 28.9%. The N822K mutation appeared to be more prevalent in Chinese CBF AML patients. Multivariate analysis showed that c-kit mutation and high white blood cell count could negatively impact overall survival (OS) (HR=2.74 and 6.24, P=0.007 and 0.022, respectively) but did not affect relapse-free survival (RFS). Kaplan-Meier analysis showed a significant difference in both OS and RFS between wild-type and mutated c-kit patients. Although we had included recently reported prognostic indicators in our analysis, our results demonstrated that only c-kit mutation and high white blood cell count had prognostic impact on Chinese CBF AML patients., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The human multidrug resistance (MDR1, ABCB1) gene encodes P-glycoprotein (P-gp), which affects the pharmacokinetics of many drugs. Here, we investigated whether common MDR1 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (C1236T, C3435T, and G2677T/A) affect predisposition to chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Genotyping was performed in 150 patients with CLL and 117 controls using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based assays. Haplotypes were inferred using the PHASE algorithm. We found comparable allele and genotype frequencies among patients with CLL and controls. Moreover, patient and control groups did not differ regarding MDR1 haplotype distribution (p = 0.97). Furthermore, no correlation was shown between the MDR1 1236, 3435, or 2677 genotypes and Binet stage, unmutated immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable region (IGHV) status, CD38 expression, ZAP-70 expression, and p53 deletion. In conclusion, our results do not support a major influence of MDR1 variants on the risk of CLL, and these genomic polymorphisms are not associated with clinical prognostic factors in Chinese patients with CLL.

B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common type of adult leukemias in the Western countries, however, infrequent in the Eastern. A diagnosis of CLL requires a count of B-lymphocytes >/=5.0x10(9)/L. Asymptomatic person with <5.0x10(9)/L B-lymphocytes is defined as monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis (MBL). To compare the clinical characteristics, prognostic factors, and outcome of Chinese patients with MBL and CLL, we present a study from our single centre of 20 patients with MBL and 136 patients with CLL. The factors included: age at diagnosis, gender, direct antiglobulin test (DAT), immunoglobulin heavy chain variable gene (IgHV) mutational status, ZAP-70 protein, CD38 expression level, and molecular cytogenetic aberrations were analyzed in MBL and CLL subgroups. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to construct survival curves, and results were compared using the log-rank test. Patients in the MBL category were slightly older than in the CLL category. There was no significant difference of these clinical and biological characteristics between patients in MBL subgroup and early stage CLL (Binet A). The incidence of positive DAT was significantly increased in CLL patients at Binet B and C, compared with MBL (P=0.036). IgHV gene mutation in MBL is skewed, with more than 92.3% of subjects harbored mutated IgVH genes (P=0.025). The proportion of MBL patients with a 13q14 deletion or trisomy 12 was similar to that of CLL patients. Moreover, markers associated with poor prognosis (deletion of 11q22 or 17p13) in these MBL populations were less than those in Binet B and C CLL patients (P=0.025). No statistically significant differences in ZAP-70 and CD38 status were observed between the MBL and CLL subgroups. During a median follow-up period of 45.5 months, MBL patients had a low probability of progression, with no patients transformed to aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma or dying of CLL-related causes. The overall survival of MBL was very similar to Binet A CLL, but longer than that of CLL patients at advanced stages (Binet B and C) (P=0.024). Our study demonstrated that a more indolent clinical course and superior clinical outcome for patients with MBL compared to CLL.

Background: No population-based assessment of the prevalence and incidence of pediatric glaucoma in China are available. Here we describe the spectrum of hospitalized pediatric glaucoma patients in Beijing Tongren Hospital in China., Methods: We reviewed the charts of pediatric patients, from birth to 18 years old, with a discharge diagnosis of glaucoma in Beijing Tongren Hospital, from 2002 to 2008. All children were admitted for anti-glaucoma surgery, treating the sequelae of the glaucoma, or managing postoperative complications. We evaluated the demographic characteristics and the proportion of different glaucoma subtypes., Results: Pediatric patients (n = 1452) accounted for 12.91% of the total glaucoma in-patients from 2002 to 2008, and at last data of pediatric glaucoma were presented for 1055 children who came from 28 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in China. Boys were more common in all subtypes and at all ages, with a total ratio of boys to girls of 2.32:1. Congenital glaucoma was the most common subtype, accounting for 46.07% in all patients and accounting for 69.95% in children under 3 years of age. The median presenting age of congenital glaucoma patients was 2 years. Patients with traumatic glaucoma were the second most common group (n = 128, 12.13%), and presented at older age (the median presenting age was 11 years). The majority of traumatic glaucoma occurred in children between 10 and 15 years of age (n = 72, 56.25%). Aphakic glaucoma was the third most common (9.19%) subtype., Conclusions: Congenital glaucoma is the most prevalent glaucoma subtype in hospitalized pediatric patients in Beijing Tongren Hospital. The prevention and treatment of traumatic glaucoma can reduce the incidence of visual damage in developing countries. Close follow-up for glaucoma is important after pediatric cataract surgery.

In order to investigate the frequency of MPLW515L and JAK2V617F point mutations of the patients with myeloproliferative disease (MPD) in Nanjing area, MPLW515L and JAK2V617F point mutations were simultaneously detected by alleles specific polymerase chain reaction (AS-PCR) and sequencing in 190 MPD patients. The results showed that MPLW515L point mutation was detected in 1 out of 102 essential thrombocythemia (ET) patients (1.0%) and was not detected in 32 polycythemia vera (PV) patients, 13 idiopathic myelofibrosis (IMF) patients, 43 chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients. JAK2V617F point mutation was detected in 20 out of 32 PV patients (62.5%), 43 out of 102 ET patients (42.2%), 5 out of 13 IMF patients (38.5%), and was not detected in 43 CML patients. It is concluded that MPLW515L point mutation exists in ET patient, but is not found in PV, IMF and CML. JAK2V617F point mutation exists in PV, ET and IMF, but not in CML.

Background and Objectives: The incidence of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in Asian countries is lower than that in the Western ones, where CLL is the most common leukemia. It is a clinically heterogeneous disease, with survival ranging from a few months to decades. The mutation status of the immunoglobulin variable heavy chain (IgVH) gene has significantly improved prediction of the risk for disease progression. We investigated the frequency and mutation status of IgVH gene expression in Chinese patients with CLL., Methods: IgVH gene segments usage and mutation status were investigated by multiplex RT-PCR, and the relationship between IgVH somatic mutation status and the expression of CD38 and ZAP-70 was analyzed in 65 CLL patients., Results: Forty-five (69.2%) patients had mutated IgVH, and 20 (30.8%) had unmutated IgVH. The most frequently expressed VH gene family was found to be VH3 (47.7%) followed by VH4 (40%), VH1 (6.2%), VH2 (4.6%) and VH7 (1.5%), with no expression of VH5 or VH6 gene families. VH1-69 and VH3-21 which commonly overused in Western CLL were very low in our cohort. IgVH gene mutation status was significantly associated with the expression of CD38., Conclusions: The frequency of IgVH gene families indicates significant difference in Chinese CLL patients compared with Western patients, suggesting involvement of ethnic and/or environmental factors in CLL disease initiation. The expression of them may be simple and reliable surrogates for the identification of IgVH mutations.