AIM: To study the effect of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) infusion on hematopoietic recovery after peripheral blood stem cell transplantation in mice. METHODS: BALB/c mice conditioned by high dose chemotherapy/radiotherapy were infused with 10 6 peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) mobilized by granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (PBSCT group), 10 4 MSCs culture-expanded in vitro and 10 6 PBMC(experimental group 1), 10 6 MSCs and 10 6 PBMC(experimental gruop 2). Survival rate within 4 weeks, white blood cell count, bone marrow nucleated cells (BMNC), granulocyte-macrophage colony forming unit(GM-CFU) and fibroblast colony forming unit (F-CFU) were examined. RESULTS: Survival rate, BMNC, GM-CFU, F-CFU were significantly higher in experimental group 2 than that in PBSCT group ( P

OBJECTIVETo investigate the factors influencing the quality of life (QOL) of children with phenylketonuria (PKU) in Anhui Province, China.

METHODSA total of 104 PKU children who were diagnosed and treated in three major maternal and child health hospitals in Anhui Province were enrolled as study subjects. The PedsQL™ 4.0 Generic Core Scales were used to evaluate the quality of life of these children. The multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the factors influencing the QOL.

RESULTSThe 104 PKU children had significantly lower overall QOL score and scores on the subscales of physiological functioning, emotional functioning, and social functioning than the general school-age children (P<0.01). They also had a significantly lower score on the physiological domain consisting of emotional functioning, social functioning, and role functioning than the general school-age children (P<0.01). The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that an older age (≥4 years) of PKU children was the risk factor for poor QOL (OR=8.569, P<0.01), and guardians' engagement at enterprises or institutions was the protective factor for QOL (OR=0.206, P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSPKU children have a low level of QOL, and age and guardians' occupation are factors influencing the QOL.

Adolescent ; Age Factors ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Phenylketonurias ; psychology ; Quality of Life

Objective : To establish the liver conditional knockout mouse model ofNod2gene infected byKlebsiella pneumoniae(K.pneumoniae),and to explore the role and mechanism ofNod2gene in the process of liver abscess caused byK.pneumoniaeinfections. Methods : Nod2flox/floxmice were obtained by self-crossing ofNod2flox/+mice, andAlb-Cre+mice were hybridized withNod2flox/+to obtainNod2flox/+;Alb-Cre+mice, then the above two genotypes mice were crossed to obtain liver conditional knockout mice ofNod2gene(Nod2flox/flox;Alb-Cre+) and negative control mice in the same litter(Nod2flox/flox).The genomic DNA of mice toe was extracted and amplified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR).The genotypes of offspring were identified by agar-gel electrophoresis and the livers of mice were extracted.Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR(RT-qPCR) and Western blot were used to verify the knockout efficiency ofNod2gene in the liver.Both experimental group and control group mice were infected withK.pneumoniae,and the survival rate and pathological changes of livers were observed at different time points, and mRNA expression levels of Tumor necrosis factor α(TNF-α),interleukin 1β(IL-1β) and C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 1(CXCL1) in the livers of experimental group and control group were detected by RT-qPCR 24 h postK.pneumoniaeinfections. Results : The expression of NOD2 mRNA in the liver ofNod2flox/flox;Alb-Cre+mice decreased, and the Western blot results showed that the expression of NOD2 protein decreased.Compared with the control group, the survival rate of mice infected withK.pneumoniaein the experimental group decreased(median survival time=60.5 h,P=0.046 9) and the liver tissue showed more serious pathological damage, furthermore the mRNA expression levels of TNF-α,IL-1β and CXCL1 in the livers of experimental group were lower than those of the control group, and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05). Conclusion NOD2 plays a protective role in the process of liver abscess induced byK.pneumoniaeinfections.