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Editorial: Sustainable and intelligent plant health management in Asia (2022)

Yeh KH, Travlos I, Nawaz A, Chang SC, Chao HC

Front Plant Sci, 2023;14:1244869.
PMID: 37645468 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1244869
Fulltext Therapeutic effects of conditioned - DPBS from amniotic stem cells on lactating cow mastitis

Ting WJ, Shaw SW, Hii LY, Lin TY, Chang SC, Liu KY, et al.

Taiwan J Obstet Gynecol, 2020 Jul;59(4):520-526.
PMID: 32653123 DOI: 10.1016/j.tjog.2020.05.009

OBJECTIVE: Bovine mastitis results in economic loss due to decrease in milk production. Antibiotic ointments are commonly used for treating. However, residue and anti-microbial resistance warranted attention progressively. Fortunately, stem cell anti-inflammatory properties and paracrine expression of cytokines accelerates wound healing and suppresses inflammatory reactions in mastitis. The objective of this study is to use the conditioned-Dulbecco's pluripotent stem cells (DPBS) from amniotic membrane stem cells (AMSCs) in treating bovine mastitis.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The cows with mastitis were divided into two groups. In antibiotic control group, the cows were given tetraneomycin ointment. In conditioned-DPBS of AMSCs treatment group, amniotic membrane was collected for AMSCs after delivery. With expression of surface antigen and potential of tri-linage differentiation, AMSCs were injected into mammary glands. Then, milk was sampled every three days to monitor the effect of both treatments. The quality of milk was measured with pH, titratable acidity, free calcium ions and somatic cell count.
RESULTS: Our results demonstrated the Bovine AMSCs expressed CD44, low levels of CD4 and no CD105. Bovine AMSCs demonstrated the differentiation capability in the tri-cell lineages. Mastitis treatment with conditioned-DPBS from AMSCs (experimental group) and conventional antibiotics (control group) showed insignificant difference in pH value and titratable acidity. The level of ionic calcium concentration in the conditioned-DPBS group decreased from 3rd day to 12th day, while the level in the antibiotic group decreased from 0 day to 12th day. The somatic cell number was similar in both groups, which meet the standard of Taiwan milk collection.
CONCLUSION: In conclusion, conditioned-DPBS from bovine AMSCs has the therapeutic potential to treat bovine mastitis and may replace antibiotics therapy in the future.
Fulltext Long-term xeno-free culture of human pluripotent stem cells on hydrogels with optimal elasticity

Higuchi A, Kao SH, Ling QD, Chen YM, Li HF, Alarfaj AA, et al.

Sci Rep, 2015 Dec 14;5:18136.
PMID: 26656754 DOI: 10.1038/srep18136

The tentative clinical application of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), such as human embryonic stem cells and human induced pluripotent stem cells, is restricted by the possibility of xenogenic contamination resulting from the use of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) as a feeder layer. Therefore, we investigated hPSC cultures on biomaterials with different elasticities that were grafted with different nanosegments. We prepared dishes coated with polyvinylalcohol-co-itaconic acid hydrogels grafted with an oligopeptide derived from vitronectin (KGGPQVTRGDVFTMP) with elasticities ranging from 10.3 to 30.4 kPa storage moduli by controlling the crosslinking time. The hPSCs cultured on the stiffest substrates (30.4 kPa) tended to differentiate after five days of culture, whereas the hPSCs cultured on the optimal elastic substrates (25 kPa) maintained their pluripotency for over 20 passages under xeno-free conditions. These results indicate that cell culture matrices with optimal elasticity can maintain the pluripotency of hPSCs in culture.
Fulltext Admission policies and methods at crossroads: a review of medical school admission policies and methods in seven Asian countries

Soemantri D, Karunathilake I, Yang JH, Chang SC, Lin CH, Nadarajah VD, et al.

Korean J Med Educ, 2020 Sep;32(3):243-256.
PMID: 32723988 DOI: 10.3946/kjme.2020.169

Selecting the right applicants is an important part of medical student admission. While one universally accepted selection criterion is academic capacity, there are other criteria such as communication skills and local criteria (e.g., socio-cultural values) that are no less important. This article reviews the policies and methods of selection to medical schools in seven countries with varying socio-economic conditions and healthcare systems. Senior academics involved in medical education in Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Taiwan completed a pre-agreed pro-forma per each country to describe the country's admission policies and methods. The details were then compared and contrasted. This review identifies tension between many of the policies and methods used in medical school admissions, such as between the need to assess non-cognitive abilities and widen access, and between the need for more medical professionals and the requirement to set high entry standards. Finding the right balance requires careful consideration of all variables, including the country's human resource needs; socio-economic status; graduates' expected competencies; and the school's vision, mission, and availability of resources.
Fulltext A novel goose-origin Tembusu virus exhibits pathogenicity in day-old chicks with evidence of direct contact transmission

Liu M, Chen YY, Twu NC, Wu MC, Fang ZS, Dubruel A, et al.

Poult Sci, 2024 Feb;103(2):103332.
PMID: 38128459 DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2023.103332

In late 2020, an outbreak of Tembusu virus (TMUV)-associated disease occurred in a 45-day-old white Roman geese flock in Taiwan. Here, we present the identification and isolation of a novel goose-origin TMUV strain designated as NTU/C225/2020. The virus was successfully isolated using minimal-pathogen-free duck embryos. Phylogenetic analysis of the polyprotein gene showed that NTU/C225/2020 clustered together with the earliest isolates from Malaysia and was most closely related to the first Taiwanese TMUV strain, TP1906. Genomic analysis revealed significant amino acid variations among TMUV isolates in NS1 and NS2A protein regions. In the present study, we characterized the NTU/C225/2020 culture in duck embryos, chicken embryos, primary duck embryonated fibroblasts, and DF-1 cells. All host systems were susceptible to NTU/C225/2020 infection, with observable lesions. In addition, animal experiments showed that the intramuscular inoculation of NTU/C225/2020 resulted in growth retardation and hyperthermia in day-old chicks. Gross lesions in the infected chicks included hepatomegaly, hyperemic thymus, and splenomegaly. Viral loads and histopathological damage were displayed in various tissues of both inoculated and naïve co-housed chicks, confirming the direct chick-to-chick contact transmission of TMUV. This is the first in vivo study of a local TMUV strain in Taiwan. Our findings provide essential information for TMUV propagation and suggest a potential risk of disease outbreak in chicken populations.
A multicentre surveillance study on the characteristics, bacterial aetiologies and in vitro antibiotic susceptibilities in patients with acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis

Hui DS, Ip M, Ling T, Chang SC, Liao CH, Yoo CG, et al.

Respirology, 2011 Apr;16(3):532-9.
PMID: 21299688 DOI: 10.1111/j.1440-1843.2011.01943.x

Antimicrobial resistance is a global problem and the prevalence is high in many Asian countries.
Fulltext A ring-like accretion structure in M87 connecting its black hole and jet

Lu RS, Asada K, Krichbaum TP, Park J, Tazaki F, Pu HY, et al.

Nature, 2023 Apr;616(7958):686-690.
PMID: 37100940 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05843-w

The nearby radio galaxy M87 is a prime target for studying black hole accretion and jet formation1,2. Event Horizon Telescope observations of M87 in 2017, at a wavelength of 1.3 mm, revealed a ring-like structure, which was interpreted as gravitationally lensed emission around a central black hole3. Here we report images of M87 obtained in 2018, at a wavelength of 3.5 mm, showing that the compact radio core is spatially resolved. High-resolution imaging shows a ring-like structure of [Formula: see text] Schwarzschild radii in diameter, approximately 50% larger than that seen at 1.3 mm. The outer edge at 3.5 mm is also larger than that at 1.3 mm. This larger and thicker ring indicates a substantial contribution from the accretion flow with absorption effects, in addition to the gravitationally lensed ring-like emission. The images show that the edge-brightened jet connects to the accretion flow of the black hole. Close to the black hole, the emission profile of the jet-launching region is wider than the expected profile of a black-hole-driven jet, suggesting the possible presence of a wind associated with the accretion flow.