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This study is the first survey about the cross-species transmission of Formosan ferret-badger rabies worldwide. Only the Chinese mainland and Taiwan are the epidemic areas for this disease. In Taiwan, this disease first surfaced in 2013. There were 12 cases of cross-species transmission from 2013 to the end of 2021. These cases involved four species including one Asian house shrew (Suncus murinus), one 6-week-old puppy, nine masked palm civets (Paguma larvata), and one yellow-throated marten (Martes flavigula). Among the 12 cases of cross-species transmission, only the puppy, yellow-throated marten, and two masked palm civets had health feature records. Ticks and maggots parasitized the yellow-throated marten, and no other animals were found to be ectoparasites infested. To sum up, the animals with health features manifested emaciated and/or immature features. Additionally, the 12 cases of cross-species transmission occurred in the mountainous area or the rural area rather than the urban area. The risks of cross-species infection of Formosan ferret-badger rabies were discussed by quoting related research reports in recent years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Glaesserella (Haemophilus) parasuis (G. parasuis) causes severe economic losses in the swine industry. Multiple G. parasuis strains can exist in single animals. Typing techniques are required for identifying G. parasuis isolates. Different strains within a serovar display varying virulence. Enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus polymerase chain reaction (ERIC-PCR) can assess the heterogeneity. The group 1 virulence-associated trimeric autotransporters (vtaA) gene is an indicator of virulence. The aim of this study was to characterize Taiwanese G. parasuis isolates via molecular serotyping, vtaA PCR and ERIC-PCR. Methods: One hundred and forty-five strains were collected between November 2013 and March 2017 in Taiwan and further examined by molecular serotyping, vtaA PCR and ERIC-PCR. Results: The dendrogram revealed heterogeneous genetic diversity within many clusters. Partial correlation between the ERIC-PCR clusters of different strains, serovars and lesion patterns was observed. Twelve herds (8.3%) infected with more than one strain. Group 1 vtaA positive rate reached 98.6%. Discussion: This study showed the high genetic diversity of G. parasuis in Taiwan by a high discriminatory capability of ERIC-PCR. Group 1 vtaA commonly exists in G. parasuis isolates and may play important roles in the pathogenesis of Taiwanese G. parasuis isolates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Haemophilus parasuis is the etiological agent of Glässer's disease, and causes severe economic losses in the swine industry. Serovar classification is intended as an indicator of virulence and pathotype and is also crucial for vaccination programs and vaccine development. According to a polysaccharide biosynthesis locus analysis, H. parasuis isolates could be classified by a molecular serotyping assay except serovars 5 and 12 detected by the same primer pair. The aim of this study was to identify H. parasuis isolates from diseased pigs in Taiwan by using a molecular serotyping assay and to analyze the relationship between serovars and pathological patterns. Methods: From August 2013 to February 2017, a total of 133 isolates from 277 lesions on 155 diseased animals from 124 infected herds serotyped by multiplex PCR and analyzed with pathological data. Results: The dominant serovars of H. parasuis in Taiwan were serovars 5/12 (37.6%), 4 (27.8%) and 13 (15%) followed by molecular serotyping non-typable (MSNT) isolates (13.5%). Nevertheless, the serovar-specific amplicons were not precisely the same sizes as previously indicated in the original publication, and MSNT isolates appeared with unexpected amplicons or lacked serovar-specific amplicons. Most H. parasuis isolates were isolated from nursery pigs infected with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus. The percentage of lung lesions (30.4%) showing H. parasuis infection was significantly higher than that of serosal lesions. Discussion: Collectively, the distribution of serovars in Taiwan is similar to that found in other countries, but MSNT isolates remain due to genetic variations. Furthermore, pulmonary lesions may be optimum sites for H. parasuis isolation, the diagnosis of Glässer's disease, and may also serve as points of origin for systemic H. parasuis infections in hosts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landslides identified from aerial photos and satellite images between 1988 and 2009 in Chenyulan (CYL) and Tsengwen Reservoir (TWR) watersheds in Taiwan were investigated. These watersheds have similar area, but different percentage of landslide area due to their own watershed characteristics and extreme triggers (earthquakes and typhoons). The Chi--Chi earthquake in 1999 increased about 3 % of landslide area in CYL, had obvious influence on rainfall-induced landslides in subsequent 5 years, while the Typhoon Morakot in 2009 increased 2.53 % of landslide area in TWR. The incremental landslide area by rainfalls, especially brought by typhoons indicates that the rainfall-induced shallow landslide depends not only on the rainfall amount but also on intensity. Two quadratic equations of the percentage of incremental landslide areas in terms of the rainfall erosivity factor that is composed of rainfall amount and intensity were developed. The number and size of landslides caused Typhoon Morakot in CYL and TWR were different, but they followed a similar power-law frequency--area distribution. Extreme triggers play the most important roles in the evolution of landslides in these watersheds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In tuberculosis (TB) endemic areas, Mycobacterium tuberculosis is an important but easily misdiagnosed pathogen in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). However, the occurrence of concomitant pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in hospitalized healthcare-associated pneumonia (HCAP) has never been investigated. Methods and Findings: Seven hundred and one hospitalized HCAP and 934 hospitalized CAP patients from six medical centers in Taiwan were included in this nationwide retrospective study. Concomitant PTB was defined as active PTB diagnosed within 60 days of admission due to HCAP or CAP. The predictors for concomitant PTB and the impact of PTB on the outcomes of pneumonia were investigated. Among the enrolled subjects, 21/701 (3%) of the HCAP patients and 25/934 (2.7%) of the CAP patients were documented to have concomitant PTB. In multivariate analysis, a history of previous anti-TB treatment (OR = 5.84, 95% CI: 2.29-20.37 in HCAP; OR = 3.33, 95% CI: 1.09-10.22 in CAP) and escalated pneumonia severity index (PSI) scores (OR = 1.014, 95% CI: 1.002-1.026, in HCAP; OR = 1.013, 95% CI: 1.001-1.026, in CAP) were independent predictors for concomitant PTB in both CAP and HCAP patients. Regarding treatment outcomes, HCAP patients with concomitant PTB were associated with more acute respiratory failure within 48 hours of admission (47.6% vs. 22.6%, p = 0.008), higher intensive care unit admission rate (61.9% vs. 35.7%, p = 0.014), longer hospitalization (39.6±34.1 vs. 23.7±27 days, p = 0.009), and higher in-hospital mortality (47.6% vs. 26.3%, p = 0.03) than those without concomitant PTB. Exposure to certain groups of antibiotics for the treatment of pneumonia was not associated with the occurrence of concomitant PTB. Conclusions: In HCAP patients, the occurrence of concomitant PTB is comparable with that in CAP patients and associated with higher PSI scores, more acute respiratory failure, and higher in-hospital mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study on the serological profile and shedding pattern of porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) infection in farm-raised, colostrum-deprived and cesarean-derived pigs in Taiwan. The researchers collected semen, serum, whole blood, feces and nasal and oropharyngeal swabs from PCV2-challenged pigs and boars that have tested positive for PCV2. They also isolated the PCV2 strain from the bronchial lymph nodes of a pig with postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS). They presumed that removing nursery pigs from PCV2 shedding growth pigs in farrow-to-finished herds may control the spread of PCV2 in commercial herds effectively and limit the horizontal viral transmission among pigs.

Lai I-R, Yang C-Y, Yeh C-C, Tsai M-K, Lee P-H. Hand-assisted versus total laparoscopic live donor nephrectomy: comparison and technique evolution at a single center in Taiwan. Clin Transplant 2009 DOI: 10.1111/j.1399-0012.2009.01173.x. © 2009 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Purpose: To compare the outcome of hand-assisted laparoscopic live donor nephrectomy (HLDN) and total laparoscopic live donor nephrectomy (TLDN) in a single center. Methods: The demographics, complications, and outcomes were compared between successfully performed 51 HLDN and 42 TLDN. Results: The patients' demographics including body mass index were all similar. Four conversions were excluded for the outcome analysis. The operation time of HLDN group (188 ± 62 min) was shorter, although not significantly, than that of TLDN group's (207 ± 30 min) (p = 0.065). However, the operation time of the first 24 cases (237 ± 66 min) was significantly longer than that of the later 69 performed (180 ± 35 min). The warm ischemia time was shorter in HLDN (2.5 ± 1.3 min) compared to that of TLDN (4.1 ± 1.7 min) (p < 0.01), but the serum creatinine values (mg/dL) of recipients were equivalent (HLDN/TLDN = 1.18 ± 0.3:1.14 ± 0.3, p = 0.587). There was no difference in the length of hospital stay (6.7 vs. 6.4 d, p = 0.475). There was no graft loss, but one ureter stricture (HLDN group) and one urinary leakage (TLDN group) were recorded. Conclusions: Both HLDN and TLDN are effective and safe as reflected in graft functions and limited complications. There was a learning curve in establishing the technique of laparoscopic donor nephrectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on several indexes, this article investigates technological upgrading in China's exports. It demonstrates that the whole technological contents of China's exports have been improved dramatically since the early 1980s. In the meantime, the domestic technological contents are likely experiencing a V-curve, i.e. decreasing first and then increasing later. Native enterprises grow faster than their foreign direct investment (FDI) counterparts through 'learning-by-doing', and the gap between them is narrowing. It is shown that China's exports have adopted a limited catch-up strategy rather than solely following its comparative advantage. Under the limited catch-up strategy, China exports products with technological contents higher than what was predicted by its comparative advantage. In addition, the experience of South Korea and Taiwan as well as cross-country comparison demonstrates that adopting a limited catch-up strategy is conducive to economic development. We argue that this is what is taking place in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives To describe the incidence of hypersensitivity to abacavir and frequency of human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-B*5701 in HIV-infected Taiwanese persons. Methods Medical records of 337 HIV-infected Taiwanese in whom abacavir-containing combination antiretroviral therapy (CART) was prescribed from 1 May 2001 to 31 December 2006 were reviewed, and HLA typing of the patients was performed in 320 patients (232 receiving abacavir and 88 not receiving abacavir) with available blood samples. HLA class I and II polymorphisms were determined by PCR with specific primers. HLA-B*5701 was further confirmed by sequence-based typing. Results Of the 337 patients, median CD4 count was 166.5 cells/mm3 (range, 1.0–1914.0) and 83 patients (24.6%) had AIDS-defining opportunistic infections. Thirty-eight patients (11.3%) discontinued abacavir within 6 weeks of starting abacavir-containing CART. Among them, 10 patients had successful abacavir re-challenge and another 11 patients had other specific reasons for abacavir discontinuation. Therefore, 14 patients (4.2%) were classified as cases in whom abacavir hypersensitivity could not be excluded, and 3 patients (0.9%) met the criteria of abacavir hypersensitivity. Of the 320 patients undergoing HLA typing, HLA-A02 was the most common allele and only one individual (0.3%) expressed HLA-B*5701. Along with some differences in allele distributions, there was a significant difference in the genetic frequency of HLA-B57 in our patients compared with those of previous studies in other Chinese populations. Conclusions Abacavir hypersensitivity was less frequently encountered in HIV-infected Taiwanese initiating abacavir-containing CART than in Caucasians, which might be explained by the low frequency of the HLA-B*5701 allele. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acinetobacter baumannii has emerged recently as a major cause of health care-associated infections due to the extent of its antimicrobial resistance and its propensity to cause large nosocomial outbreaks. Here we report the genome sequence of Acinetobacter baumannii TYTH-1 isolated in Taiwan during 2008. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Associations between Asian lung cancer (LC) and breast cancer (BC) are unknown. This study evaluates associations between LC and BC in the Taiwan population., Methods: This study was based on the Taiwan National Health Insurance data and Taiwan Cancer Registry. The cohorts included women with newly diagnosed LC or BC between 2000 and 2011 and an age- and sex-stratified random sample as a noncancer comparison cohort during the same period. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to determine the risks. The National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) cohort, which comprised patients with confirmed pathology diagnoses of double BC/LC, was reviewed., Results: In 32,824 women with LC, there were increased risks for synchronous BC in patients younger than age 50 years (hazard ratio, 5.80; 95% CI, 1.83 to 18.73), age 50 to 59 years (HR, 2.37; 95% CI, 1.02 to 5.54), and age 60 to 69 years (HR, 4.42; 95% CI, 1.91 to 10.2). In the 88,446 women with BC, there were increased risks for synchronous LC in patients age 40 to 59 years (HR, 5.86; 95% CI, 3.05 to 11.3) and older than 60 years (HR, 1.98; 95% CI, 1.04 to 3.77). In the 128-patient NTUH double LC/BC cohort, 77 (60%) had both cancers diagnosed within 5 years of each other., Conclusion: LC is associated with an increased risk for synchronous BC in Taiwan and vice versa. Radiotherapy might not be a major risk factor for LC in BC survivors. Etiology for double LC/BC deserves additional exploration and cross-racial genomic studies.