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Pseudohyperkalemia occurs occasionally in leukemic patients with excessively elevated white blood cells. Early diagnosis of pseudohyperkalemia is crucial for proper treatment. Increased white blood cell fragility coupled with mechanical trauma may be the causal mechanism. We describe two cases of pseudohyperkalemia caused by mechanical disruption of white blood cells due to pneumatic tube transport of the specimens. In case when the white blood cell is extraordinarily elevated, specimen should be delivered in person instead of using pneumatic tube transport and specimen should be analyzed as soon as possible. Whole blood potassium analysis by blood gas analyzer is more reliable to confirm or rule out pseudohyperkalemia.

Abstract. Thuy CTT, Ha CD, Long TD, Hai TV, Long ST, Chi TT, Quyen TTH, Yen VH, Khanh NTM, Trung NQ, Trung NT. 2023. Genetic variation within the coat color gene of Melanocortin 1Receptor (MC1R) in Mong Cai pigs of Vietnam. Biodiversitas 24: 1735-1741. Pig (Sus scrofa) is considered one of the major domesticated animals in Vietnam. Various indigenous pig varieties have been successfully developed as the Vietnamese's main daily meat source. However, little information has been reported about the conservation of these indigenous pig varieties. In this study,the Mong Cai, a prized domestic pig breed in Vietnam, is well-characterized by a black saddle on the hips extending to the lower abdomen. As a result of the introduction of exotic breeds and crossbreeding, Mong Cai pigs exhibited various phenotypic characteristics and coat colors. We constructed a database of Melanocortin 1Receptor(MC1R) coding sequences, including the MC1Rsequences of 26 Mong Cai and 20 other pig breeds from Europe and Asia. Subsequently, 12 haplotypes were determined using 18 mutations in 46 individuals. The phylogenetic tree result indicated that the Mong Cai population was distributed into two distinct haplotypes. Moreover, Mong Cai pigs could belong to the Asian clade; however, six Mong Cai individuals formed a distinct cluster. These six individuals carried the nt729G gene, which is prevalent in European pigs. In addition, our study could provide a solid foundation for further investigation of the evolution of indigenous pig varieties in Vietnam.

Sàng lọc thiếu G6PD ở trẻ sơ sinh cho phép bác sĩ nhi khoa chẩn đoán và có biện pháp phòng ngừa, điều trị thích hợp từ rất sớm, nhờ vậy giảm thiểu các tình trạng vàng da nặng liên quan đến thiếu G6PD ở trẻ sơ sinh. Nghiên cứu này được tiến hành nhằm đánh giá giá trị của phương pháp đo hoạt độ enzym trên mẫu máu thấm khô để sàng lọc thiếu G6PD. Phân tích đường cong ROC cho thấy xét nghiệm có diện tích dưới đường cong bằng 1. Tại điểm cắt tối ưu 2,565 IU/g Hb, độ nhạy và độ đặc hiệu trong chẩn đoán thiếu G6PD đều là 100%. Xét nghiệm đo hoạt độ enzym trên mẫu máu thấm khô sử dụng kit của Perkin Elmer có giá trị tốt trong sàng lọc thiếu G6PD.

Objective: To identify hemolysis, icterus, lipemia (HIL) indices measurement on four clinical chemistry analyzers: Abbott Architect C8000 (AA), Roche Cobas C501 (RC), Beckman Coulter AU5800 (BC), Siemens Advia 1800 (SA). Subject and method: Plasma of patients were examined at 108 Military Central Hospital (108 MCH) from 12/2020 to 04/2021, comprising of 240ml normal plasma sample, 30ml artificial hemolyzed plasma for H index, 30ml icteric plasma with 360μmol/L total bilirubin, 30ml plasma with 1g/L of Intralipid 20% for lipemia. A cross-sectional study was conducted to compare results of HIL indices on 4 analyzers Abbott Architect C8000 (AA), Roche Cobas c501 (RC), Beckman Coulter AU5800 (BC), Siemens Advia 1800 (SA). Result: The agreement of H index among 4 instruments was good, and values of I index on the AA, SA, RC were absolutely suitable (kappa 0.75 - 1.0). Nevertheless, the comparability between results of I index on the BC and 3 others platforms was mediate (kappa 0.53 - 0.55) while I index on the RC, SA, AA was extremely suitable (kappa 1.0). Even though, the agreement of L index between BC and SA was not acceptable (kappa < 0.2), it was comparable on the remaining analyzers (kappa 0.55 - 0.933). Conclusion: There was comparability of HIL indices among 4 analyzers except L index between the BC and SA. Specifically, the results of all HIL indices on the SA, RC, AA analyzers were high agreement.

Longan witches’ broom (LgWB) syndrome was observed in all longan-growing provinces of Vietnam. Key symptoms include: small, stunted shoots with curved, rolled up margins, deformed leaves with blisters and hairy patches on the underside; abnormal development of flower structures, flower abortion, failure to produce fruits or developing small fruits. During 2012–2015, field surveys and study of the relationship between LgWB symptoms and Eriophyes dimocarpi mites presence were carried out. Moreover, molecular analysis, electron microscopy observations, E. dimocarpi inoculations, pruning of affected spikelets and miticide experiments were performed. An average of 36.58% of longan seedlings inoculated with E. dimocarpi mites showed typical symptoms of LgWB at about 27.5 days after inoculation. The use of several pesticides in different combinations showed high efficacy on E. dimocarpi mites elimination and of symptomatology incidence reduction. These results suggest a significant association of E. dimocarpi with LgWB syndrome in Vietnam.

Longan witches’ broom syndrome is one of the most devastating epidemic in the majority of longan-growing areas of Vietnam. Main symptoms are small and roll upwards leaves, shortened internodes, and witches’ broom. Diverse etiology is reported for this syndrome enclosing viruses and eriophyoid mites. In this work, using a DNA approach based on 16S rDNA gene, phytoplasmas belonging to 16SrII and 16SrI groups were associated with longan witches’ broom syndrome, corroborating previous findings in Vietnam and in other longan-growing countries of other phytoplasmas associated with the same syndrome.

Objective The prevalence of coeliac disease (CD) in Vietnam is unknown. To fill this void, we assessed the prevalence of serological markers of CD autoimmunity in a population of children in Hanoi. Setting The outpatient blood drawing laboratory of the largest paediatric hospital in North Vietnam was used for the study, which was part of an international project of collaboration between Italy and Vietnam. Participants Children having blood drawn for any reason were included. Exclusion criteria were age younger than 2 years, acquired or congenital immune deficiency and inadequate sample. A total of 1961 children (96%) were enrolled (838 females, 1123 males, median age 5.3 years). Outcomes Primary outcome was the prevalence of positive autoimmunity to both IgA antitransglutaminase antibodies (anti-tTG) assessed with an ELISA test and antiendomysial antibodies (EMA). Secondary outcome was the prevalence of CD predisposing human leucocyte antigens (HLA) (HLA DQ2/8) in the positive children and in a random group of samples negative for IgA anti-tTG. Results The IgA anti-tTG test was positive in 21/1961 (1%; 95% CI 0.61% to 1.53%); however, EMA antibodies were negative in all. HLA DQ2/8 was present in 7/21 (33%; 95% CI 14.5% to 56.9%) of the anti-tTG-positive children and in 72/275 (26%; 95% CI 21% to 32%) of those who were negative. Conclusions Coeliac autoimmunity is rare in Vietnam, although prevalence of HLA DQ2/8 is similar to that of other countries. We hypothesise that the scarce exposure to gluten could be responsible for these findings.

Reporting a measurement procedure and its analytical performance following method evaluation in a peer-reviewed journal is an important means for clinical laboratory practitioners to share their findings. It also represents an important source of evidence base to help others make informed decisions about their practice. At present, there are significant variations in the information reported in laboratory medicine journal publications describing the analytical performance of measurement procedures. These variations also challenge authors, readers, reviewers, and editors in deciding the quality of a submitted manuscript. The International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine Working Group on Method Evaluation Protocols (IFCC WG-MEP) developed a checklist and recommends its adoption to enable a consistent approach to reporting method evaluation and analytical performance characteristics of measurement procedures in laboratory medicine journals. It is envisioned that the Laboratory Evaluation and Analytical Performance Characteristics (LEAP) checklist will improve the standardisation of journal publications describing method evaluation and analytical performance characteristics, improving the quality of the evidence base that is relied upon by practitioners.