Maternal and neonatal factors appeared to affect CB cell yields. These findings might be useful for efficiently collecting more qualified CB units.

Diarrhea remains one of the main sources of morbidity and mortality in the world, and a large proportion is caused by diarrheagenic Escherichia coli. In Mongolia, the epidemiology of diarrheagenic E. coli has not been well studied. A total of 238 E. coli strains from children with sporadic diarrhea and 278 E. coli strains from healthy children were examined by PCR for 10 virulence genes: enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) eae, tir, and bfpA; enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) lt and st; enteroinvasive E. coli (EIEC) ipaH; enterohemorragic E. coli stx1 and stx2; and enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC) aggR and astA. EAEC strains without AggR were identified by the HEp-2 cell adherence test. The detection of EAEC, ETEC, EPEC, and EIEC was significantly associated with diarrhea. The incidence of EAEC (15.1%), defined by either a molecular or a phenotypic assay, was higher in the diarrheal group than any other category (0 to 6.0%). The incidence of AggR-positive EAEC in the diarrheal group was significantly higher than in the control group (8.0 versus 1.4%; P ‫؍‬ 0.0004), while that of AggR-negative EAEC was not (7.1 versus 4.3%). Nineteen AggR-positive EAEC strains harbored other EAEC virulence genes-aggA, 2 (5.5%); aafA, 4 (11.1%); agg-3a, 5 (13.8%); aap, 8 (22.2%); aatA, 11 (30.5%); capU, 9 (25.0%); pet, 6 (16.6%); and set, 3 (8.3%)-and showed 15 genotypes. EAEC may be an important pathogen of sporadic diarrhea in Mongolian children. Genetic analysis showed the heterogeneity of EAEC but illustrated the importance of the AggR regulon (denoting typical EAEC) as a marker for virulent EAEC strains.Diarrhea continues to be one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality among infants and children in developing countries (5, 18). Five distinct classes of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli (DEC) are recognized as being associated with diarrheal disease. They are enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), enteroinvasive E. coli (EIEC), enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), and enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC); diffuse adhering E. coli (DAEC) may represent a sixth category, but this has not been clearly established (18). Each class of DEC is defined on the basis of distinct virulence characteristics, and tests for these characteristics have been developed to distinguish DEC classes from each other and from nonpathogenic E. coli strains of the normal flora (15, 34). The epidemiological significance of each E. coli category in childhood diarrhea varies with the geographical area. It has become clear that there are important regional differences in the prevalences of the different categories of DEC. The incidences of diarrheal illnesses caused by the different categories of DEC were examined mainly in Latin America, Africa, southern and Southeast Asia, and the Middle East (1,3,25,32,35,36,45). Study of the prevalences of DEC categories and their importance in childhood diarrhea has not been carried out in Mongolia. Therefore, to define the association of various categories of E. coli with diarrhea in Mongolia, w...

In this small preliminary study, we found that donor age is the most important factor in predicting G-CSF-induced PBSC yields. Old age and low platelet counts before mobilization might be useful indicators for identifying poor mobilizers. Further validation of these findings in a larger number of donors are needed to establish whether these findings apply to other populations.

The gold standard for identification of Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) remains the HEp-2 cell adherence test, which is time-consuming and requires specialized facilities. We evaluated the usefulness of a quantitative biofilm assay to screen for EAEC from a total of 1,042 E. coli strains from children with diarrhea. Bacteria were incubated overnight in high-glucose Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium using a polystyrene microtiter plate. The plate was stained with crystal violet after washing, and the biofilm was quantified using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay plate reader. The aggR gene was evaluated by a polymerase chain reaction. Forty-eight (77.4%) of 62 strains with an optical density at 570 nm (OD(570)) > 0.2 were identified as EAEC by the HEp-2 adherence test, while no EAEC was found in strains with an OD(570) < or = 0.2. Twenty-one aggR+ and 27 aggR - EAEC strains could be screened by an OD(570) > 0.2 using this assay. Although confirmation by a HEp-2 cell adherence test is needed, this biofilm assay is convenient and useful in screening for EAEC.

Population-based screening for heart disease in this age range is limited by various factors. To analyze the mechanisms of sudden death in adolescents, we, therefore, are in need of a nationwide registry that includes autopsies for all deadly events.