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First Report of False Rust caused by Synchytrium psophocarpi on Winged Bean (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus) in Taiwan

Chang HX, Huang CC, Lu PK

Plant Dis, 2023 Nov 21.
PMID: 37990523 DOI: 10.1094/PDIS-10-23-2127-PDN

From September 2020 to January 2021, an unknown disease of winged bean (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus) was reported by local growers in the Toucheng Town, Yilan County (N24.91, E121.85). The disease occurs in all age of winged bean, and the occurrence tended to be higher in humid environment, such as branches in lower canopy or branches in high density. The disease symptoms, which also appeared to be the sign of the pathogen, were spherical pustules in yellow to orange color on the stems, leaves, and pods of winged bean. Severely infected plants also exhibited growth reduction, malformation, and curling of the leaves and pods. According to the disease literature of winged bean, this unknown disease was likely to be the false rust caused by a chytrid pathogen, Synchytrium psophocarpi (UK, CAB International. 1993); and the uredinia-liked pustules could be the sori, which contain numerous ovoid to globose sporangia inside. In order to characterize the pathogen identity, the sori were manually ruptured to assess the size of individual sporangium, which had an average of 26.71 ± 4.25 μm x 26.61 ± 4.60 μm (n=42), similar to the size reported in literature (Drinkall and Price. 1979). To confirm the molecular identity, the full genomic sequences from the small subunit (SSU) to the internal transcribed spacer-1 (ITS-1), 5.8S unit, and ITS-2 were amplified using the primer sets NS3 and ITS4. The 2,263 bp amplicon was cloned and sequenced to reveal the identity (Smith et al. 2014). The BLASTN results matched the SSU of our isolate (MW649126.1) to the Synchytrium minutum (HQ324138.1) with 96% similarity (1,075 out of 1,121 bp in length), Synchytrium decipiens isolate DAOM_87618 (KF160868.1) with 92% similarity (1,215 out of 1,326 bp in length) and S. decipiens isolate AFTOL-ID 634 (DQ536475.1) with 92% similarity (1210 out of 1316 bp in length). Phylogenetic analysis using the SSU sequence revealed this unknown pathogen was the grouped within the clade of Synchytrium genus with 100% bootstrapping confidence (Smith et al. 2014). Accordingly, the pathogen was confirmed to be a Synchytrium chytrid fungus. To complete the Koch's postulates, the sori were collected from infected tissue. After vortexing washing in 1% bleach for surface sterilization, the sori were gently crashed by a plastic tube pestle to harvest sporangia. The sporangia were sprayed onto healthy winged beans cultivated in pots, and the inoculated plants were kept in a moisture bag in 25 °C. While leaf curling and malformation could be observed about 14 days post inoculation, the yellow to orange sori could be observed around 30 to 40 days post inoculation on the whole plants cultivated in pots. The sori were collected to confirm the sporangia and the sequences were identical to the original pathogen. Collectively, this study not only presents the first report for the false rust of winged bean in Taiwan, but also documents the first reference sequence of S. psophocarpi that will be useful for future molecular diagnosis. Since S. psophocarpi has been only reported in tropic regions including Indonesia, Malay Peninsula, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, and Philippines, this report provides the first observation of S. psophocarpi moving in the subtropic region.
First report of dragon fruit (Hylocereus undatus) stem rot caused by Diaporthe ueckerae in Taiwan

Wang YC, Liu JH, Huang CC, Hong CF

Plant Dis, 2021 Nov 09.
PMID: 34752123 DOI: 10.1094/PDIS-09-21-1902-PDN

Dragon fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus & H. undatus) is a rapidly growing commodity in Taiwan. The production acreage has been tripled since 2011, with an estimation of over 2,800 ha in 2019. From disease survey conducted in July 2020, reddish orange to blackish brown lesions similar to stem canker caused by Neoscytalidium dimidiatum on dragon fruit cladodes (Supplementary Fig. S1, Q) were observed from two orchards in Central Taiwan. Diseased cladodes were brought back to the lab, surface disinfested with 70% ethanol for 15 to 30 sec, and then blotted dried with a paper towel. Small pieces (about 3x3 mm) of necrotic spots were excised, placed on 2% water agar (WA) plates, and incubated with 12 h photoperiod at 28 ± 2 ℃ for 3 days. Among the necrotic spots that were used for fungal isolation, some were detected to have N. dimidiatum accounting for 21 isolates, while three isolates detected in other spots were unknown. Single hyphal tips of the three unknown fungal colonies with similar morphology were transferred on potato dextrose agar (PDA). Brownish- to grayish-white colonies with fluffy aerial mycelium were observed on PDA (Supplementary Fig. S1, A, B, E, F, I and J) after 8 days of incubation. To induce the sporulation, all the fungal isolates were cultivated on autoclaved cowpea pods on 2% WA plates with 12 h photoperiod at 25 ± 2 ℃ for 3 weeks. Black pycnidia embedded in cowpea tissues and creamy yellowish exudates with pycnidiospores extruding from the ostiole were observed (Supplementary Fig. S1, C, G and K). Alpha-conidia were characterized as aseptate, hyaline, smooth, ellipsoidal or fusiform, often bi-guttulate and measured about 6.0 to 6.5 μm × 2.0 to 2.3 μm (n = 50 for each isolate) (Supplementary Fig. S1, D, H and L). Beta-conidia were not observed. Morphological characteristics of these isolates were similar to Diaporthe spp. described by Udayanga et al. (2015). To further identify the fungal isolates, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS), β-tubulin (TUB) and translation elongation factor 1-α (EF1-α) regions were amplified using primer pairs ITS1/ITS4 (White et al. 1990), Bt2a/Bt2b (Glass & Donaldson 1995) and EF1-728F/EF1-986R (Carbone & Kohn 1999), respectively. BLAST analysis of isolates CH0720-010 (ITS: OK067377; TUB: OK149767; EF1-α: OK149764), CH0720-013 (ITS: OK067378; TUB: OK149768; EF1-α: OK149765) and TC0720-016 (ITS: OK067379; TUB: OK149769; EF1-α: OK149766) showed 99.78 to 100% of ITS identity, 98.8 to 99.2% of TUB identity, and 100% of EF1-α identity with Diaporthe ueckerae (ITS: KY565426; TUB: KY569384; EF1-α: KY569388). Phylogenetic trees were constructed using concatenated ITS, TUB, and EF1-α sequences based on maximum likelihood with HKY+G model, maximum parsimony, and Bayesian inference method in MEGA X and Geneious Prime 2020.2.4. All isolates were clustered in D. ueckerae with similar topology based on aforementioned methods, hence the phylogram of maximum likelihood was presented (Supplementary Fig. S2). To confirm the pathogenicity, detached dragon fruit (H. polyrhizus and H. undatus) cladodes (20 to 30 cm in length) were surface disinfested, wounded with sterilized syringe (about 2 mm in depth), and inoculated with mycelial plugs (6 mm in diam.) from 5-day-old colonies on PDA. Each isolate had three mycelial plugs and the PDA plugs without mycelium were inoculated as negative control. Inoculated cladodes were placed in a moisture chamber and incubated at 30 ± 2 ℃ with 12 h photoperiod. Two days after inoculation (DAI), the agar plugs were removed and symptom development on the cladodes was photo recorded every other day. The inoculation experiment was repeated twice. At 6 DAI, round to irregular, dark-brown, and water-soaking lesions were observed on the cladodes of both species inoculated with the three D. ueckerae isolates whereas all negative controls remained asymptomatic (Supplementary Fig. S1, M-P). Morphologically identical fungi were re-isolated from inoculated cladodes, fulfilling Koch's postulates. Several Diaporthe species have been reported infecting dragon fruit in the southeastern Asian countries such as Thailand, Bangladesh and Malaysia (Udayanga et al. 2012; Karim et al. 2019; Huda-Shakirah et al. 2021). To our knowledge, this is the first report of stem rot caused by D. ueckerae in Taiwan. Since the field symptoms may be easily confused with those caused by N. dimidiatum, the potential threat of Diaporthe species complex on dragon fruit should be aware and may warrant further study.
Fulltext Frequencies of hepatitis B and C infections among haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis patients in Asia-Pacific countries: analysis of registry data

Johnson DW, Dent H, Yao Q, Tranaeus A, Huang CC, Han DS, et al.

Nephrol Dial Transplant, 2009 May;24(5):1598-603.
PMID: 19096083 DOI: 10.1093/ndt/gfn684

The impact of dialysis modality on the rates and types of infectious complications has not been well studied. The aim of the present investigation was to evaluate the rates of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections in peritoneal dialysis (PD) and haemodialysis (HD) patients in the Asia-Pacific region.
Fulltext Doubly Spliced RNA of Hepatitis B Virus Suppresses Viral Transcription via TATA-Binding Protein and Induces Stress Granule Assembly

Tsai KN, Chong CL, Chou YC, Huang CC, Wang YL, Wang SW, et al.

J Virol, 2015 Nov;89(22):11406-19.
PMID: 26339052 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.00949-15

The risk of liver cancer in patients infected with the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and their clinical response to interferon alpha therapy vary based on the HBV genotype. The mechanisms underlying these differences in HBV pathogenesis remain unclear. In HepG2 cells transfected with a mutant HBV(G2335A) expression plasmid that does not transcribe the 2.2-kb doubly spliced RNA (2.2DS-RNA) expressed by wild-type HBV genotype A, the level of HBV pregenomic RNA (pgRNA) was higher than that in cells transfected with an HBV genotype A expression plasmid. By using cotransfection with HBV genotype D and 2.2DS-RNA expression plasmids, we found that a reduction of pgRNA was observed in the cells even in the presence of small amounts of the 2.2DS-RNA plasmid. Moreover, ectopic expression of 2.2DS-RNA in the HBV-producing cell line 1.3ES2 reduced the expression of pgRNA. Further analysis showed that exogenously transcribed 2.2DS-RNA inhibited a reconstituted transcription in vitro. In Huh7 cells ectopically expressing 2.2DS-RNA, RNA immunoprecipitation revealed that 2.2DS-RNA interacted with the TATA-binding protein (TBP) and that nucleotides 432 to 832 of 2.2DS-RNA were required for efficient TBP binding. Immunofluorescence experiments showed that 2.2DS-RNA colocalized with cytoplasmic TBP and the stress granule components, G3BP and poly(A)-binding protein 1 (PABP1), in Huh7 cells. In conclusion, our study reveals that 2.2DS-RNA acts as a repressor of HBV transcription through an interaction with TBP that induces stress granule formation. The expression of 2.2DS-RNA may be one of the viral factors involved in viral replication, which may underlie differences in clinical outcomes of liver disease and responses to interferon alpha therapy between patients infected with different HBV genotypes.
Improving protein production of indigenous microalga Chlorella vulgaris FSP-E by photobioreactor design and cultivation strategies

Chen CY, Lee PJ, Tan CH, Lo YC, Huang CC, Show PL, et al.

Biotechnol J, 2015 Jun;10(6):905-14.
PMID: 25865941 DOI: 10.1002/biot.201400594

Fish meal is currently the major protein source for commercial aquaculture feed. Due to its unstable supply and increasing price, fish meal is becoming more expensive and its availability is expected to face significant challenges in the near future. Therefore, feasible alternatives to fish meal are urgently required. Microalgae have been recognized as the most promising candidates to replace fish meal because the protein composition of microalgae is similar to fish meal and the supply of microalgae-based proteins is sustainable. In this study, an indigenous microalga (Chlorella vulgaris FSP-E) with high protein content was selected, and its feasibility as an aquaculture protein source was explored. An innovative photobioreactor (PBR) utilizing cold cathode fluorescent lamps as an internal light source was designed to cultivate the FSP-E strain for protein production. This PBR could achieve a maximum biomass and protein productivity of 699 and 365 mg/L/day, respectively, under an optimum urea and iron concentration of 12.4 mM and 90 μM, respectively. In addition, amino acid analysis of the microalgal protein showed that up to 70% of the proteins in this microalgal strain consist of indispensable amino acids. Thus, C. vulgaris FSP-E appears to be a viable alternative protein source for the aquaculture industry.
Fulltext Predictors for Successful Endovascular Intervention in Chronic Carotid Artery Total Occlusion

Chen YH, Leong WS, Lin MS, Huang CC, Hung CS, Li HY, et al.

JACC Cardiovasc Interv, 2016 09 12;9(17):1825-32.
PMID: 27609258 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcin.2016.06.015

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to determine predictors for successful endovascular treatment in patients with chronic carotid artery occlusion (CAO).
BACKGROUND: Endovascular recanalization in patients with chronic CAO has been reported to be feasible, but technically challenging.
METHODS: Endovascular attempts in 138 consecutive chronic CAO patients with impaired ipsilateral hemisphere perfusion were reviewed. We analyzed potential variables including epidemiology, symptomatology, angiographic morphology, and interventional techniques in relation to the technical success.
RESULTS: The technical success rate was 61.6%. Multivariate analysis showed absence of prior neurologic event (odds ratio [OR]: 0.27; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.10 to 0.76), nontapered stump (OR: 0.18; 95% CI: 0.05 to 0.67), distal internal carotid artery (ICA) reconstitution via contralateral injection (OR: 0.19; 95% CI: 0.05 to 0.75), and distal ICA reconstitution at communicating or ophthalmic segments (OR:0.12; 95% CI: 0.04 to 0.36) to be independent factors associated with lower technical success. Point scores were assigned proportional to model coefficients, and technical success rates were >80% and <40% in patients with scores of ≤1 and ≥4, respectively. The c-indexes for this score system in predicting technical success was 0.820 (95% CI: 0.748 to 0.892; p < 0.001) with a sensitivity of 84.7% and a specificity of 67.9%.
CONCLUSIONS: Absence of prior neurologic event, nontapered stump, distal ICA reconstitution via contralateral injection, and distal ICA reconstitution at communicating or ophthalmic segments were identified as independent negative predictors for technical success in endovascular recanalization for CAO.
Increased utilization of peritoneal dialysis to cope with mounting demand for renal replacement therapy--perspectives from Asian countries

Li PK, Lui SL, Leung CB, Yu AW, Lee E, Just PM, et al.

Perit Dial Int, 2007 Jun;27 Suppl 2:S59-61.
PMID: 17556331

With the number of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients growing, one of the crucial questions facing health care professionals and funding agencies in Asia is whether funding for dialysis will be sufficient to keep up with demand. During the ISPD's 2006 Congress, academic nephrologists and government officials from China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Macau, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam participated in a roundtable discussion on dialysis economics in Asia. The focus was policy and health care financing. The roundtable addressed ESRD growth in Asia and how to obtain enough funding to keep up with the growth in patient numbers. Various models were presented: the "peritoneal dialysis (PD) first" policy model, incentive programs, nongovernmental organizations providing PD, and PD reimbursement in a developing economy. This article summarizes the views of the participant nephrologists on how to increase the utilization of PD to improve on clinical and financial management of patients with ESRD.
Review of clinical studies of perampanel in adolescent patients

Kim HD, Chi CS, Desudchit T, Nikanorova M, Visudtibhan A, Nabangchang C, et al.

Brain Behav, 2016 Sep;6(9):e00505.
PMID: 27688936

AIM: To assess the clinical trial and real-world data for adjunctive perampanel in adolescents and develop consensus recommendations to guide the use of perampanel in this population in clinical practice.
METHODS: In May 2015, 15 epilepsy experts attended a Consensus Development Meeting to assess the clinical trial data for perampanel, specific to the adolescent age group (12-17 years) and develop consensus treatment recommendations.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Analysis of the adolescent subgroup data of three pivotal placebo-controlled, double-blind, phase 3 trials investigating perampanel in patients with ongoing focal epileptic seizures despite receiving one to three antiepileptic drugs found that perampanel 4-12 mg was superior to placebo. The tolerability profile of perampanel was generally acceptable. Adolescent patients receiving long-term treatment with perampanel in an open-label extension study maintained improvements in seizure control compared with baseline, with a favorable risk-benefit profile. A phase 2 study showed that perampanel had no clinically important effects on cognitive function, growth, and development.
CONCLUSION: Perampanel is a welcome addition to the armamentarium of existing antiepileptic drugs as it represents a new approach in the management of epilepsy, with a novel mechanism of action, and the potential to have a considerable impact on the treatment of adolescents with epilepsy.
2018 Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) Hepatitis C in Chronic Kidney Disease Guideline Implementation: Asia Summit Conference Report

Li PK, Bavanandan S, Mohamed R, Szeto CC, Wong VW, Chow KM, et al.

Kidney Int Rep, 2020 Aug;5(8):1129-1138.
PMID: 32775812 DOI: 10.1016/j.ekir.2020.05.001

In 2018, Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) published a clinical practice guideline on the prevention, diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in chronic kidney disease (CKD). The guideline synthesized recent advances, especially in HCV therapeutics and diagnostics, and provided clinical recommendations and suggestions to aid healthcare providers and improve care for CKD patients with HCV. To gain insight into the extent that the 2018 guideline has been adopted in Asia, KDIGO convened an HCV Implementation Summit in Hong Kong. Participants included nephrologists, hepatologists, and nurse consultants from 8 Southeast Asian countries or regions with comparable high-to-middle economic ranking by the World Bank: mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Through presentations and discussions, meeting participants described regional practice patterns related to the KDIGO HCV in CKD guideline, identified barriers to implementing the guideline, and developed strategies for overcoming the barriers in Asia and around the world.