加勒比海的明珠:哈瓦那

哈瓦那是群岛国家古巴的首都,位于古巴岛西北部哈瓦那湾的阿尔门达雷斯河畔,它扼佛罗里达海峡西南口,与美国佛罗里达半岛隔海相望。这里虽地处热带,但四季气候宜人,风景秀丽,素有＂加勒比海的明珠＂之称。哈瓦那是一座拥有400多年历史的城市,现有人口200多万,是古巴政治、经济、文化和交通中心。大哈瓦那由瓜纳瓦科阿、马里亚瑙、雷格拉、圣玛丽亚—德尔罗萨里奥等卫星城组成,现是西印度群岛最大城市。

长江水保局开展南水北调西线工程环评工作

南水北调西线工程是解决大西北地区干旱缺水和经济发展的“七五”超前期工作项目。继去年赴引水点附近的金沙江直门达、雅砻江石渠至甘孜、大渡河足木足等地现场察勘之后,今年又按照长办的要求,于5月至6月中旬组织力量对雅砻江的水质进行了取样分析。参加此项工作的同志,在雅砻江仙水河、甘孜县城、金河、棉沙湾等处共布设了9个断面10个采样点,取水样30个,

泰戈尔小说《弃绝》的结构特点

人们常把诗比作醇酒.这是指诗在提炼生活时具有浓缩、凝炼的特点。作为诗人的泰戈尔、在其短篇小说《弃绝》的结构上,充分显示了他善于把诗人的才能运用到短篇小说创作上的本领。所谓浓缩或凝炼,总是相对作品所包含的容量及其社会意义而言的。《弃绝》篇幅不长,却包含了颇大的容量。小说中,有对爱情之夜动人情景细致的描绘,有对历史故事的倒叙。

日本开发省能反渗透膜水处理成本降低一半

据《日本经济》报导,日本东意公司开发'低压型反渗透膜'获得成功.用该膜处理水具有省能的高效果.低压型反渗透膜用于半导体生产工艺中所需超纯水的制造,食品工厂和化工厂废水的处理等,其成本比用通常的反渗透膜减低一半.东意公司在不久前在巴门达岛召开的世界脱盐会议上宣布了这一成果,低压型反渗透膜已成为该公司高分子膜的主要产品.

“黄金水带”金沙江

金沙江是中国长江的上游、川藏界河,因江中沙土呈黄色得名。又名绳水、淹水、泸水。起于青海省、四川省交界处的玉树州直门达（称多县歇武镇直门达村）,止于四川省宜宾市东北翠屏区合江门（三江口、合江口）。金沙江的发源地（即长江的发源地）20世纪70年代定于青海省唐古拉山主峰各拉丹冬雪山。金沙江穿行于川、藏、滇三省区之间,其间有最大支流雅砻江汇入,至四川宜宾纳岷江始名长江。

Diversity of Helicobacter pylori isolates in expression of antigens and induction of antibodies

AIM: To obtain evidence for selection of antigens used in genetically engineered vaccine against Helicobacter pylori (H pylori). METHODS: Enzyme linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA) was established on the basis of recombinant protein antigens rUreB, rHpaA, rVacA, rCagA1, rNapA, rFlaA and rFlaB of H pylori to detect expression rates of the antigens in bacterial isolates as well as positive rates of the antibodies in sera from H pylori-infected patients. PCR was applied to the detection of carrying rates of the genes encoding antigens in the isolates. RESULTS: The outputs of rUreB, rHpaA, rVacA, rCagA1, rNapA, rFlaA and rFlaB were approximately 35%, 32%, 15%, 23%, 56%, 25% and 20% of the total bacterial proteins, respectively. One hundred and fifty-one strains of H pylori were isolated from 347 biopsy specimens of chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer or gastric adenocarcinoma, with a positive rate of 43.5%. All of the isolates expressed UreB, HpaA, FlaA and FlaB while 52.3%, 92.1% and 93.4% of the isolates expressed VacA, CagA and NapA, respectively. In the sera of 151 H pylori-infected patients, the positive ratesof IgG antibodies against UreB, HpaA, VacA, CagA, NapA, FlaA and FlaB were 100%, 87.4%, 43%, 71.5%, 89.4%, 84.8% and 79.5%, respectively. Furthermore, the expression frequencies of VacA and NapA were found to be relative to the severity of gastric diseases (P = 0.016 and P < 0.0001, respectively). CONCLUSION: UreB antigen is the top option of developing genetically engineered vaccine against H pylori followed by NapA or HpaA.

Deletion of cagA gene of Helicobacter pylori by PCR products

AIM: Cytotoxin-associated protein (antigen) A (CagA) plays an important role in Helicobacter pylori(H pylori) pathogenesis.Our aim was to obtain cagA mutant strains by a new mutation method so as to better understand the mechanism of CagA in epithelial cells. METHODS: In contrast with the traditional method using suicide plasmid,we constructed cagA- mutant strains directly with PCR products. The constructed mutant clones grew on selective media and allelic exchange was confirmed by Southern blot. Furthermore, two different transformation methods, electroporation, and natural transformation, were compared with regard to the efficiency of recombination. RESULTS:The mutation by PCR products could be completed within 3-5 d, and the recombination rate by electroporation and natural transformation was 4.02×10-8 and 1.03×10-9 respectively. Mutation rate by electroporation (4.02×10-8) was far higher than by natural transformation (1.03×10-9) (P= 0.000<0.005). CONCLUSION: cagA- mutant strains have been constructed, which is important for further study on the function of CagA in epithelial cells.A mutation method by directly using PCR products has been proved successful with a much higher mutation rate, and is easier,especially when in combination with electroporation.This method could be widely used in gene deletion of H pylori.

Effect of Helicobacter pylori infection on p53 expression of gastric mucosa and adenocarcinoma with microsatellite instability

AIM： To investigate the relationship between Helicobacter pyiori（H pylori） infection, microsatellite instability and the expressions of the p53 in gastritis, intestinal metaplasia and gastric adenocarcinoma and to elucidate the mechanism of gastric carcinogenesis relating to Hpyloriinfection. METHODS： One hundred and eight endoscopic biopsies and gastric adenocarcinoma were available for the study including 33 cases of normal, 45 cases of gastritis, 30 cases of intestinal metaplasia, and 46 cases of gastric adenocardnoma. Peripheral blood samples of these patients were also collected. Hpyloriinfection and p53 expressions were detected by means of streptavidin-peroxidase （SP）immunohistochemical method. Microsatellite loci were studied by PCR-SSCP-CE using the markers BAT-26,D17S261, D3S1283, D2S123, and D3S1611. NSI was defined as the peak shift in the DNA of the gastric tissue compared with that of the peripheral blood samples. Based on the number of mutated MSI markers, specimens were charac-terized as high MSI （MSI-H） if they manifested instability at two or more markers, low MSI （MSI-L） if unstable at only one marker, and microsatellite stable （MSS） if they showed no instability at any marker.RESULTS： H pylori infection was detected in the samples of gastritis, intestinal metaptasia, and gastric adenocarcinoma and the infection frequencies were 84.4%, 76.7%, and 65.2%, respectively, whereas no Hpyloriinfection was detected in the samples of normal control. There was as ignificant difference in the infection rates between gastritis and carcinoma samples （P = 0.035）. No MSI was detected in gasbitis samples, one MSI-H and two MSI-L were detected among the 30 intestinal metaplasia samples, and 12 MSI-H and 3 MSI-L were detected in the 46 gastric carcinomas. In those gastric cardnomas, the MSI-H frequency in Hpylori-positive group was significantly higher than that in Hpylori-negative group. No p53 expression was detected in the normal and gastritis samples from dyspeptic patients. P53-positive immunohistochemical staining was detected in 13.3% of intestinal metaplasia samples and in 43.5% of gastric carcinoma samples. The levels of p53 in Hpylori-positive samples were higher than those in the negative group when the carcinoma samples were subdivided into H pylori-positive and -negative groups （P = 0.013）. Eight samples were detected with positive p53 expression out of the 11 MSI-H carcinomas with Hpyloriinfection and no p53 expression could be seen in the Hpylori-negativesamples.CONCLUSION： H py/ori affect the p53 pattern in gastric mucosa when MMR system fails to work. Mutations of the p53 gene seem to be an early event in gastric carcinogenesis.

Characterization of flgK gene and FlgK protein required for H pylori Colonization-from cloning to clinical relevance

AIM： To characterize the role of flgK and its protein product in Hpylori colonization. METHODS： The PCR cloning method identified the flgK gene. An isogenic flgK mutant was constructed by gene replacement and confirmed by Southern blot analysis and PCR analysis. The recombinant FlgK protein （r-FlgK） was purified. Electron microscopy （EM） was applied to demonstrate the flagella of H pylori. An in vitro motility test was assessed in semisolid medium. The densities of H pylori colonization with either the wild-type strain or its flgK mutant were compared among BALB/c mice with or without pre-immunization with r-FlgK. The serological responses to r-FlgK were analyzed for 70 clinical patients with different densities of H pylori colonization. RESULTS： From a duodenal ulcer strain, the flgK gene was cloned and it contained 1821 bp, with a 95.7% identity to the published sequences. No flagella were observed under EM for the mutant strain, which had a loss of motility. Hpylori density was lower in the BALB/c mice inoculated by the mutant or with pre-immunization with r-FlgK compared to unimmunized mice or mice inoculated by the wild-type strain （P 〈 0.05）. In the H pylori-infected patients, the serological responses to r-FlgK were uniformly low in titer.CONCLUSION： FlgK encoded by flgK is important for flagella formation and H pylori motility. Deficiency in FlgK or an enhanced serological response to r-FlgK can interfere with Hpylori colonization. FlgK of Hpylori could be a novel target for vaccination.

Effect of NaCI and Helicobacter pylori vacuolating cytotoxin on cytokine expression and viability

AIM; To determine whether Helicobacter pylori （H pylon） vacuolating cytotoxin （VacA） regulates release of proinflammatory cytokines （IL-1β, IL-8, TNF-α, and IL-6） or alters gastric epithelial cell viability and to determine whether NaCl affects these VacA-induced changes. METHODS： Vacuolating activity was determined by measuring the uptake of neutral red into vacuoles of VacA-treated human gastric epithelial （AGS） cells. AGS cell viability was assessed by direct cell counting. Specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays （ELISA） and reverse transcdptase-polymerase chain reaction（RT-PCR） were performed to examine the effects of H pylori VacA and NaCl on cell pro-inflammatory cytokine production in AGS cells. Immunohistochemical staining of gastric tissue from Mongolian gerbils was used to confirm VacAinduced pro-inflammatory cytokine production and the effects of NaCl on this VacA-induced response. RESULTS： Addition of VacA alone reduced AGS cell viability （P〈 0.05）, and this reduction was enhanced by high doses of NaCl （P〈0.05）. VacA alone induced expression of TNF-α, IL-8 and IL-1β, while NaCl alone induced expression of TNF-α and IL-1β. Changes in mRNA levels in the presence of both VacA and NaCl were more complicated. For the case of TNF-α, expression was dosedependent on NaCl. IL-6 mRNA was not detected. However, low levels of IL-6 were detected by EUSA. Positive immunohistochemical staining of IL-1, IL-6, and TNF-α was found in gastric tissue of H pylori-infected gerbils fed with either a normal diet or a high salt diet. However, the staining of these three cytoldnes was sb＇onger in H pylori-infected animals fed with a 5g/kg NaCl diet. CONCLUSION： VacA decreases the viability of AGS cells, and this effect can be enhanced by NaCl. NaCl also affects the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines in- duced by VacA, suggesting that NaCl plays an important role in Hpylori-induced gastric epithelial cell cytotoxicity.

Hepatic gene expression profiles associated with fibrosis progression and hepatocarcinogenesis in hepatitis C patients

AIM: To determine fibrosis progression and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), using simultaneous gene expression analysis. METHODS: Total RNA samples were extracted from liver biopsies from 19 patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and 3 patients without HCV infection. Among the 19 HCV-infected patients, 7 and 12 patients had grade Fl-2 and F3-4 fibrosis, respectively. Of the 12 patients with F3-4 fibrosis, 8 had HCC. Gene expression in the liver samples was determined using an oligonucleotide microarray. The following comparisons were performed: normal livers vs HCV-infected livers; F1-2 vs F3-4; and F3-4 with HCC vs F3-4 without HCC. Genes that were differentially expressed between these groups were identified based on signal-to-noise ratios. RESULTS: In the HCV-infected livers, genes involved in immune responses were highly expressed. Expression levels of genes for plasma proteins and drug-metabolizing enzymes were decreased and those of genes involved in the cell cycle and oncogenesis were increased in the F3-4 cases as compared to the F1-2 cases. Among the F3-4 cases, genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism tended to be more highly expressed in patients with HCC than in patients without HCC. CONCLUSION: We identified genes that are associated with fibrosis progression and hepatocarcinogenesis. This information may be used to detect increased carcinogenic potential in the livers of patients with HCV infection.

α-catenin expression is decreased in patients with gastric carcinoma

AIM: To assess the expression of α-catenin in gastric carcinoma and to determine the role of α-catenin expression in gastric carcinogenesis.METHODS: α-catenin expression was assessed by semi quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemical staining in 49 gastric carcinomas,26 adjacent non-cancerous mucosae, and gastric biopsy specimens from 11 healthy controls.RESULTS: mRNA levels of α-catenin were reduced or absent in 34 of 49 (69%) gastric carcinoma tissues and in 5 of 26 (19%) tumor-free gastric mucosae of carcinomapatients, respectively. Of the carcinoma samples with altered α-catenin mRNA levels, α-catenin expression was negative in 20 and decreased in 14 cases. Up to 69% of tumors were stained abnormally for α-catenin. Of the 34 cases whose mRNA expression of α-catenin was reduced, 32 (94%) showed abnormal immunostaining patterns, while only 2 showed a normal α-catenin expression. The frequency of reduced expression of α-catenin mRNA was 14% in well-differentiated carcinomas, higher than that in poorlydifferentiated carcinomas (86%). A significant correlation was not shown between α-catenin expression and bothdepth of invasion and lymph node metastasis. Moreover, there was no statistical difference between loss or down-regulation of α-catenin mRNA and Helicobacter pylori ( H pylori) infection.CONCLUSION: Downregulation of α-catenin expressionis common in gastric carcinoma, and α-catenin expression may be used as a differentiation marker. Downregulation of α-catenin expression may be an early event in tumorigenesis. Reduced α-catenin expression is not correlated with H pylori infection.

Helicobacter pylori upregulates prion protein expression in gastric mucosa: A possible link to prion disease

AIM： Pathological prion protein （PrP^sc） is responsible for the development of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies （TSE）. While PrPc enters the organism via the oral route, less data is available to know about its uptake and the role of gastrointestinal inflammation on the expression of priori precursor PrPc, which is constitutively expressed in the gastric mucosa.METHODS： We studied PrPc expression in the gastric mucosa of 10 Helicobacter pylori-positive patients before and after successful H pylori eradication compared to non-infected controls using RT-PCR and Western blotting. The effect of central mediators of gastric inflammation, i.e., gastrin, prostaglandin E2 （PGE2）, tumor necrosis factor alpha （TNF-α） and interleukin 1 beta （IL-1β） on PrPc expression was analyzed in gastric cell lines.RESULTS： PrPc expression was increased in H pyloriinfection compared with non-infected controls and decreased to normal after successful eradication. Gastrin, PGE2, and IL-1β dose-dependently upregulated PrPc in gastric cells, while TNF-α had no effect.CONCLUSION： H pylori infection leads to the upregulation of gastric PrPc expression. This can be linked to H pylori induced hypergastrinemia and increased mucosal PGE2 and IL-1β synthesis. H pylori creates a milieu for enhanced propagation of prions in the gastrointestinal tract.

Expression of CD86 and increased infiltration of NK cells are associated with Helicobacter pylori-dependent state of early stage high-grade gastric MALT lymphoma

AIM： A high percentage of early-stage high-grade gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue （MALT） lymphomas remain Helicobacter pylori （ H pylori）-dependent. However,unlike their low-grade counterparts, high-grade gastric MALT lymphomas may progress rapidly if unresponsive to H pylori eradication. It is mandatory to identify markers that may predict the H pylori-dependent status of these tumors. Proliferation of MALT lymphoma cells depends on cognate help and cell-to-cell contact of H pylori- spedfic intratumoral T-cells. To examine whether the expression of co-stimulatory marker CD86 （B7.2） and the infiltration of CD56 （＋） natural killer （NK） cells can be useful markers to predict Hpylori-dependent status of high-grade gastric MALT iymphoma.METHODS： Lymphoma biopsies from 26 patients who had participated in a prospective study of Hpylori-eradication for stage IE high-grade gastric MALT lymphomas were evaluated. Tumors that resolved to Wotherspoon grade Ⅱ or less alter H pylori eradication were dassified as H pylori-dependent; others were dassified as H pylori-dependent.The infiltration of NK cells and the expression of CD86 in pre-treatment paraffin-embedded lymphoma tissues were determined by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS： There were 16 H pylori-dependent and 10 H pylori-independent cases. CD86 expression was detected in 11 （68.8%） of 16 H pylori-dependent cases but in none of 10 H pylori-independent cases （P = 0.001）.H pylori-dependent high-grade gastric MALT lymphomas contained significantly higher numbers of CD56 （＋） NK cells than H pylori-independent cases （2.8±1.4% vs 1.1±0.8%, P = 0.003）. CD86 positive MALT lymphomas also showed significantly increased infiltration of CD56 （＋） NK cells compared to CD86-negative cases （2.9±1.1% vs 1.4±1.3%; P= 0.005）.CONCLUSION： These results suggest that the expression of co-stimulatory marker CD86 and the increased infiltration of NK cells are associated with Hpylori-dependent state of early-stage high-grade gastric MALT lymphomas.

Analysis on the Characteristics of the Coseismic Response of Water Levels Recorded in Three Wells in Hainan,China to the Two Sumatra-Andaman Strong Earthquakes

The characteristics of seismic water level fluctuations of the two Sumatra-Andaman strong earthquakes with magnitude 8.7 and 8.5 on December 26,2004 and March 29,2005 recorded at Jiaji well,Qionghai,Hainan were analyzed,the features of the infrequent "step" changes of well water level after the two earthquakes were also analyzed and the mechanism of the "step change" of well water level was discussed.Then the high-sample-rate digital observation data of seismically-induced water level fluctuations of the Sumatra-Andaman strong earthquakes with magnitude 8.7 and 8.5 recorded at Nanbin well,Sanya and Tanniu well,Wenchang were analyzed.The results suggest that the dominant period of the seismic well water level fluctuation in all three wells was comparatively accordant,the amplitudes of seismic water level fluctuation of the same earthquake in different wells were clearly different,the time duration of seismic water level fluctuations of different earthquakes at the same well was also clearly different.

Screening of premalignant and malignant cervical lesions in underdeveloped countries by using Pap smear as routine investigation in outpatient department

Objective: Papanicolou (Pap) smear screening has dramatically reduced the incidence of invasive cervical cancer worldwide. Pap smear screening is still not widely available in developing countries and therefore cannot be used as mass screening tool. This study was designed to establish the role of Pap smear as a routine investigation for females presented to gynecological department. Methods: It was a hospital based study. Patients attending with complaints including irregular vaginal bleeding, vagina discharge, dyspareunia, low backache or lower abdominal pain and primary or secondary infertility were included in the study. All these patients underwent pap smear. Results: Age of females was 25 to 60 years. Ninety females had dysplasia. Mild to moderate dysplasia was positive in 84 females. Six patients had severe dysplasia suspicious for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) which was confirmed as invasive SCC on biopsy. All patients with mild to moderate dysplasia were regularly followed at 4 to 6 months. Thirty patients were lost during follow up. Forty had negative smear at 6 months, while fourteen having persistent dysplasia on repeated pap smears were referred for biopsies. Histopathology confirmed invasive SCC in five patients while chronic cervicitis was reported in nine patients. Only two of screened patients with high suspicion for cancer showed false negative results. Directed biopsies done in these confirmed invasive SCC. Conclusion: Pap smear is a useful, simple, non-invasive and reliable screening tool for cervical cancer. It may be practiced as a routine investigation in outpatients in developing countries, where mass screening is not available.

Screening Helicobacter pylori genes induced during infection of mouse stomachs

AIM:To investigate the effect of in vivo environment on gene expression in Helicobacter pylori(H.pylori) as it relates to its survival in the host.METHODS:In vivo expression technology(IVET) systems are used to identify microbial virulence genes.We modified the IVET-transcriptional fusion vector,pIVET8,which uses antibiotic resistance as the basis for selection of candidate genes in host tissues to develop two unique IVET-promoter-screening vectors,pIVET11 and pIVET12.Our novel IVET systems were developed by the fusion of random Sau3A DNA fragments of H.pylori and a tandem-reporter system of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase and beta-galactosidase.Additionally,each vector contains a kanamycin resistance gene.We used a mouse macrophage cell line,RAW 264.7 and mice,as selective media to identify specific genes that H.pylori expresses in vivo.Gene expression studies were conducted by infecting RAW 264.7 cells with H.pylori.This was followed by real time polymerase chain reaction(PCR) analysis to determine the relative expression levels of in vivo induced genes.RESULTS:In this study,we have identified 31 in vivo induced(ivi) genes in the initial screens.These 31 genes belong to several functional gene families,including several well-known virulence factors that are expressed by the bacterium in infected mouse stomachs.Virulence factors,vacA and cagA,were found in this screen and are known to play important roles in H.pylori infection,colonization and pathogenesis.Their detection validates the efficacy of these screening systems.Some of the identified ivi genes have already been implicated to play an important role in the pathogenesis of H.pylori and other bacterial pathogens such as Escherichia coli and Vibrio cholerae.Transcription profiles of allivi genes were confirmed by real time PCR analysis of H.pylori RNA isolated from H.pylori infected RAW 264.7 macrophages.We compared the expression profile of H.pylori and RAW 264.7 coculture with that of H.pylori only.Some genes such as cag A,vac A,lpx C,mur I,tlp C,trx B,sod B,tnp B,pgi,rbf A and inf B showed a 2-20 fold upregulation.Statistically significant upregulation was obtained for all the above mentioned genes(P < 0.05).tlp C,cag A,vac A,sod B,rbf A,inf B,tnp B,lpx C and mur I were also significantly upregulated(P < 0.01).These data suggest a strong correlation between results obtained in vitro in the macrophage cell line and in the intact animal.CONCLUSION:The positive identification of these genes demonstrates that our IVET systems are powerful tools for studying H.pylori gene expression in the host environment.

Analysis of expressed sequence tags from the Ulva prolifera (Chlorophyta)

In 2008, a green tide broke out before the sailing competition of the 29th Olympic Games in Qingdao. The causative species was determined to be Enteromorpha prolifera （Ulva prolifera O. F. Miiller）, a familiar green macroalga along the coastline of China. Rapid accumulation of a large biomass of floating U. prolifera prompted research on different aspects of this species. In this study, we constructed a nonnormalized cDNA library from the thalli of U. prolifera and acquired 10072 high-quality expressed sequence tags （ESTs）. These ESTs were assembled into 3 519 nonredundant gene groups, including 1 446 clusters and 2 073 singletons. After annotation with the nr database, a large number of genes were found to be related with chloroplast and ribosomal protein, GO functional classification showed 1 418 ESTs participated in photosynthesis and 1 359 ESTs were responsible for the generation of precursor metabolites and energy. In addition, rather comprehensive carbon fixation pathways were found in U. prolifera using KEGG. Some stress-related and signal transduction-related genes were also found in this study. All the evidences displayed that U. prolifera had substance and energy foundation for the intense photosynthesis and the rapid proliferation. Phylogenetic analysis of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I revealed that this green-tide causative species is most closely affiliated to Pseudendoclonium akinetum （Ulvophyceae）.

Quantitative Assessment of Hepatic Fibrosis by Contrast-enhanced Ultrasonography

Objective To explore the contrast-enhanced ultrasonographic features for quantitative assessment of hepatic fibrosis. Methods 86 patients with chronic viral hepatitis B were enrolled in this study from March 2007 to August 2009. The patients were classified into 5 groups (S0-S4) according to fibrosis stage evaluated with ultrasound guided liver biopsy. New contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) features including area under the time-intensity curve (TIC) of portal venous phase/hepatic arterial phase (Qp/Qa) and intensity of portal venous phase/hepatic arterial phase (Ip/Ia) were used to detect the blood supply ratio (portal vein/hepatic artery) in each group. Arrival time of portal vein trunk (Tp) and decreasing rate of TIC (β ) were also analyzed. Results Qp/Qa and Ip/Ia decreased from S0 to S4, while Tp and β increased. These 4 features were significantly correlated with the degree of fibrosis (P<0.001) and were significantly different among the five groups (P<0.001). Sensitivity and specificity of Ip/Ia were 80% and 86% for groups ≥S1, 75% and 86% for groups ≥ S2, 71% and 84% for groups ≥ S3, and 76% and 80% for group S4, respectively. Sensitivity and specificity of Qp/Qa were 70% and 88% for groups ≥ S1, 80% and 76% for groups ≥ S2, 74% and 70% for groups ≥ S3, and 81% and 95% for group S4, respectively. Conclusion Ip/Ia and Qp/Qa could be adopted as reliable, non-invasive features for quantitative assessment of hepatic fibrosis.

Use of SAR interferometry for monitoring illegal mining activities: A case study at Xishimen Iron Ore Mine

The development and application of the ''digital mine'' concept in China depends heavily upon the use of remote sensing data as well as domestic expertise and awareness. Illegal mining of mineral resources has been a serious long term problem frustrating the Xishimen Iron Ore Mine management. This mine is located in Wu'an county in Hebei province, China. Illegal activities have led to enormous economic losses by interfering with the normal operation of the Xishimen mine and have ruined the surrounding environ- ment and the stability of the Mahe riverbed the crosses the mined area. This paper is based on field recon- naissance taken over many years around the mine area. The ground survey data are integrated with Differential Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry (D-InSAR) results from ALOS/PALSAR data to pin- point mining locations. By investigating the relationship between the resulting interferometric deforma- tion pattern and the mining schedule, which is known a priori, areas affected by illegal mining activities are identified. To some extent these areas indicate the location of the illegal site. The results clearly dem- onstrate D-InSAR's ability to cost-effectively monitor illegal mining activities.