Mechanism of NOTCH2 in promoting intrahepatic bile duct development.

Background: The Notch signaling pathway plays a crucial role in intrahepatic bile duct development. Here, we aimed to investigate the effect of the Notch receptor, NOTCH2, on intrahepatic bile duct development to better understand congenital intrahepatic bile duct dysplasia.

Results: Estradiol increased NOTCH2 and its downstream proteins expression, which promoted the differentiation of hepatoblasts into intrahepatic cholangiocytes and the development of intrahepatic bile ducts by upregulating the Notch signaling pathway.

Duodenal fluid analysis is an excellent differential diagnosis method of diseases with enterohepatic circulation disturbance.

Enterohepatic circulation is essential for maintaining a constant bile acid concentration. Diseases with enterohepatic circulation disturbances are usually difficult to diagnose definitively without the time-consuming and expensive genetic tests. This study analyzed and compared duodenal fluid in patients with biliary atresia (BA), familial intrahepatic cholestasis 2 (FIC2), and sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP) deficiency.

A Shift Pattern of Bacterial Communities Across the Life Stages of the Citrus Red Mite, .

As one of the most detrimental citrus pests worldwide, the citrus red mite, (McGregor), shows extraordinary fecundity, polyphagia, and acaricide resistance, which may be influenced by microbes as other arthropod pests. However, the community structure and physiological function of microbes in are still largely unknown. Here, the high-throughput sequencing of 16S rDNA amplicons was employed to identify and compare the profile of bacterial communities across the larva, protonymph, deutonymph, and adult stages of .

[Clinical analysis of 8 cases with acute invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in younger children].

Objectives: To analyze the clinical features of acute invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in younger children, in order to improve the levels of early recognition, diagnosis and management of this disease.

Method: Clinical data of 8 patients aged below 15 months who were diagnosed as acute invasive pulmonary aspergillosis from August 2010 to February 2011 in general pediatric wards in our hospital were retrospectively analyzed for the high-risk factors of the hosts, clinical manifestations, laboratory findings and lung CT imaging, the processes of diagnosis and treatment, and the outcomes.

Result: Five cases were tested for serum GM test absorbent index (GMI) ranged from 1.

The value of radionuclide hepatobiliary scintigraphy in combination with determination of bilirubin from duodenal drainage in differential diagnosis of infantile persistent jaundice.

The aim of this study was to investigate the value of technetium etifenin injection (99mTc-EHIDA) hepatobiliary scintigraphy in combination with determination of bilirubin from duodenal drainage in differential diagnosis between infantile hepatitis syndrome and biliary atresia. 99mTc-EHIDA hepatobiliary scintigraphy in combination with duodenal fluid examination was used for evaluation in 84 infants with persistent infantile jaundice. For diagnosing biliary atresia, the sensitivity and specificity of scintigraphy were 100% and 74.