Objective To study on the effectiveness of endoscopic ultrasonography(EUS)in detec- ting insulinoma preoperatively.Methods Fifteen patients with clinical and biochemical signs of insulinoma were examined by EUS using a radial-scanning ultrasound endoscope and abdominal ultrasonography,CT, DSA prior to surgery.The outcome was evaluated on the basis of surgery and examination of the resected specimens.Results Fifteen patients with 16 lesions of insulinoma were identified by surgery and pathology. The aceuraey of diagnosis with EUS was 13/15(86.7%),and that with B-US,CT,DSA was 3/15(20%), 5/15(33.3%),9/14(64.3%)respectively.In the 14 lesions identified by EUS,10 lesions were depicted to be hypoechogenic,1 lesion was isoechogenic and 3 lesions were hyperechogenie.All 14 lesions were well demarcated and surrounded by normal pancreatic tissue.The minimum size of the lesion visualized by EUS was 0.5cm.Ten lesions were correctly detected by EUS with size of 0.5～2.0cm.EUS missed diagnosis in 2 lesions not for their small size.EUS falsely indicated a 10mm lesion from two lesions inside the head of pancreas.One lesion outside the pancreatic tail and one lesion in the pancreatic head were missed by EUS in another case.Conclusion EUS is superior in assessing the location of pancreatic insulinoma than other ima- ging methods such as B-US,CT,DSA.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effectiveness of educational interventions in children with chronic illness and their parents.

METHODSFifty children with chronic illness and 75 parents participated in the study. Children who were hospitalized between August 2007 and January 2008 and their parents received educational sessions and those who were hospitalized between February and July 2007 and who did not receive the sessions served as the control group. The content of the educational sessions included knowledge of chronic disease, drugs and self-care, and coping skills. The knowledge level, stressors, coping strategies, and psychological conditions of children with chronic illness and their parents were evaluated before discharge and three months after discharge.

RESULTSAfter educational interventions, the knowledge levels of children and their parents increased and the stressors decreased significantly in the intervention group compared with those in the control group. The children's parents in the intervention group used more active coping strategies (understanding the medical situations through communication with medical staff) than those in the control group. The differences in the medication compliance of children between the two groups were not found.

CONCLUSIONSThe educational interventions may result in an improved knowledge level and decrease stressors in children and their parents, and improve stress coping strategies in parents. There is no evidence that the educational intervention can improve the psychosocial conditions of children and their parents.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Chronic Disease ; psychology ; Female ; Humans ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; psychology ; Male ; Parents ; psychology ; Patient Education as Topic

Background and objective: Deep tendon reflexes are important physical signs in neurological examination. Despite being an established technique clinically, there is lack of normality data in the healthy population, especially among the elderly. This study aims to determine the range of normality in deep tendon reflexes among the adults. Methods: The study subjects consisted of 176 healthy volunteers. They were examined by trained assessors using standardized protocol. Results: Among the commonly elicited deep tendon reflexes, isolated absent reflexes were found in up to 34.4% (supinator) in the older group, and 12.5% (triceps) in the young adults, significantly higher in the older group. Symmetrical absent reflexes was seen in up to 26.3% of supinator in the older group. Absent reflexes of the entire limbs both sides were however, much less common particularly among young adults, with 6.3% of the older group having absent reflexes in the entire lower limbs, and 2.5% in the entire upper limbs. Isolated asymmetry in reflex was present in up to 17.0% (triceps). However, only 6.3% had asymmetrical reflexes in the contiguous anatomical region. Conclusion: Isolated absent or asymmetry deep tendon reflexes were common particularly in the elderly.

The aim of this study was to set up a new method for 5, 10-Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) genotyping, and to investigate the hereditary susceptibility of hematological malignancy. Prepared an aimed gene microarray based on cDNA microarray theory, dual-color fluorescence hybridization was used to detect SNP loci, and DNA sequencing was performed to confirm the results. The MTHFR C677T SNP loci of 157 controls and 127 patients with hematological malignancies (30 multiple myeloma, 28 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, 22 acute lymphoblastic leukemia, 40 acute myeloid leukemia, 7 chronic myeloid leukemia) from Jiangsu province were detected. The results showed that after overlapping, homozygous wild type, heterozygote type and homozygous mutant type yielded green, yellow and red fluorescence, respectively. DNA sequencing validated these results. The allele frequency of 677C and 677T in patients and controls were 58.7% and 66.9%, 41.3% and 33.1% respectively, showing statistically significant difference (chi2 = 4.077, P = 0.043). 677TT genotype showed a significantly higher risk of MM (OR = 4.21; 95% CI = 1.50 - 11.83; P = 0.006). It is concluded that this microarray-based method is accurate, high-throughput and inexpensive, suitable for SNP genotyping in a large number of individuals. C677T polymorphisms influence the risk of hematological malignancies. 677TT genotype is susceptive to MM.
Adult ; Aged ; Base Sequence ; Female ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; genetics ; Genotype ; Hematologic Neoplasms ; enzymology ; genetics ; Humans ; Male ; Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2) ; genetics ; Middle Aged ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide

OBJECTIVETo analyze the gene expression profile of degenerated cervical intervertebral disc of Sprague Dawley rats on a large scale.

METHODSDegenerated models of Sprague Dawley rats of 9 months old (degeneration group, n=9) and normal Sprague Dawley rats of 3 months old (control group, n=9) were prepared, respectively. mRNA was obtained from the cervical intervertebral disc of rats in both groups, respectively, and then labelled by Cy5 and Cy3 fluorescence respectively after reverse transcription to obtain intervertebral disc cDNA probes. cDNA probes were hybridized with BiostarR-40s gene expression profile chips and scanned by laser scanner. The results were treated with portrait analysis, standardization management, and ratio analysis with softwares.

RESULTSCompared with the rats in the control group, 9.6% (381 pieces in total) gene expression changed obviously in the rats in the degeneration group, among which, the gene expression quantities of 171 pieces increased significantly (r=the ratio of the degeneration group to the control group>2.0), 52 pieces of which had certain function. While the gene expression quantities of 211 pieces decreased significantly (r<0.5), 41 pieces of which had certain function.

CONCLUSIONSGene chip technology can be used to analyze the gene expression profile of degenerated intervertebral disc of rats in parallel, in quantity and on a large scale, which helps to testify the representative genes and protein expression, and plays an important role in clarifying the pathogenesis of degenerated intervertebral disc.

Animals ; Cervical Vertebrae ; pathology ; Disease Models, Animal ; Gene Expression Profiling ; In Situ Hybridization ; Intervertebral Disc ; pathology ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement ; genetics ; Male ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Our earlier research has shown that mono-substituted N-phenyl-2, 2-dichloroacetamide exhibited much higher anti-cancer activity than the lead compound sodium dichloroacetate (DCA). In this paper, a variety of multi-substituted N-phenyl-2, 2-dichloroacetamides were synthesized and biologically evaluated. The results showed that 3, 5-disubstituted N-phenyl-2, 2-dichloroacetamide analogues had satisfactory potency. Among them, N-(3, 5-diiodophenyl)-2, 2-dichloroacetamide had an IC50 of 2.84 micromol x L(-1) against non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549 and could induce cancer cell apoptosis.
Acetamides ; chemical synthesis ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Antineoplastic Agents ; chemical synthesis ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; pathology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Drug Design ; Humans ; Inhibitory Concentration 50 ; Molecular Structure ; Structure-Activity Relationship

OBJECTIVETo study the association of polymorphisms in the potassium voltage-gated channel, KQT-like subfamily,member 1(KCNQ1) gene with type 2 diabetes in Chinese population from Jiangsu province.

METHODSSubjects consisting of 2925 cases and 3281 controls were enrolled from a community based cohort study of type 2 diabetes in Wuxi in 2007 and a community based cross-sectional survey on chronic non-communicable disease in Nantong in 2009. Epidemiological questionnaire survey and physical examinations were conducted and 10 h overnight fasting blood samples of 5 ml were drawn for all subjects.Genotypes were determined by TaqMan OpenArray Genotyping System and i-PLEX Sequenom MassARRAY platform. The relationship between KCNQ1 gene polymorphism and risk of type 2 diabetes after adjustment for age,sex and body mass index (BMI) was analyzed.

RESULTSThe C allele of rs2237897, rs2237892 and rs2237895 at KCNQ1 increased the risk of type 2 diabetes with adjusted OR (95%CI) value being 1.41(1.30-1.54), 1.35(1.24-1.47), 1.22(1.12-1.33) respectively (all P value < 0.05) under the additive genetic model after adjusted by age,sex and BMI. Stratification analyses in additive genetic model showed that the C allele of rs2237897 increased the risk of type 2 diabetes in subgroups stratified by age ( ≤ 56 years and > 56 years), sex (females and males), BMI (< 24 kg/m(2) and ≥ 24 kg/m(2)) with OR (95%CI) value being 1.39(1.22-1.59), 1.43(1.28-1.60), 1.40(1.26-1.55), 1.44(1.26-1.66), 1.48(1.33-1.66), 1.34(1.17-1.53) respectively (all P value< 0.05).

CONCLUSIONPolymorphisms of rs2237897, rs2237892 and rs2237895 in the KCNQ1 gene were associated with occurrence of type 2 diabetes among Jiangsu province population.

Aged ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; genetics ; China ; epidemiology ; Cohort Studies ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; epidemiology ; genetics ; Female ; Genotype ; Humans ; KCNQ1 Potassium Channel ; genetics ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide

OBJECTIVETo explore the exposure level and risk factors of heavy metal among Shanghai infants in their prenatal period.

METHODSA total of 1652 pregnant or puerperal women were recruited from 10 midwifery-qualified hospitals in Shanghai since October 2008 to October 2009, by the stratified cluster sampling method. They answered the questionnaire and their umbilical cord blood and serum were collected to detect the content of Pb, Hg, Mn, Cd, As and Tl. The risk factors were analyzed by single and multiple regression methods respectively.

RESULTSThe median value of the content of Pb, Hg, Mn, Cd, As and Tl were 41.00, 1.88, 4.10, 0.03, 0.86 and 0.02 µg/L respectively. The Hg concentration of pregnant women who ate fish for 4 - 7 times per week (9.7% (160/1652)) was 2.76 µg/L, which was higher than that of pregnant women who only ate fish for 1-3 times per week (49.3% (814/1652)) and those who seldom ate fish (40.0% (661/1652)); the Hg concentration in the two groups above were 2.41 and 2.03 µg/L separately. The difference had statistical significance (χ(2) = 36.40, P < 0.001). Meanwhile, the concentrations of Pb and Tl in the group of pregnant women whose houses were remodeled by PVC pipe (85.0% (1404/1652)) was higher than the concentrations in group of pregnant women whose houses were remodeled by galvanized pipe (15.0% (248/1652)); the Pb concentration in the two groups above were 45.54 and 40.00 µg/L (Z = 2.54, P < 0.05) and the Tl concentration in the two groups above were 0.021 and 0.018 µg/L (Z = 2.97, P < 0.05). However, the As concentration in the group of PVC pipe remodeled was 4.33 µg/L, which was lower than that in the group of galvanized pipe (9.37 µg/L). The difference had statistical significance (Z = 3.99, P < 0.01). The concentrations of Mn, Cd and Tl in the groups of pregnant women whose house had been remodeled in the last 3 years (38.0% (628/1652)) were 14.78, 0.51 and 0.022 µg/L separately, which were all significantly higher than those in the groups of women whose houses' were not remodeled (62.0% (1024/1652)), whose concentrations were 11.01, 0.29 and 0.02 µg/L respectively. The differences had statistical significance (Mn: Z = 2.46, P < 0.05; Cd: Z = 2.38, P < 0.05; Tl: Z = 2.81, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONThe infants in Shanghai were exposed to heavy metals in their prenatal period. The main sources of the exposure were daily diet and remodeled pollution.

Adult ; China ; Environmental Pollution ; Female ; Fetal Blood ; chemistry ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Maternal Exposure ; adverse effects ; Metals, Heavy ; adverse effects ; Pregnancy ; Risk Factors ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVETo investigate the molecular characteristics of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates from Chinese children in seven cities.

METHODA total of 134 MRSA isolates were collected from nine hospitals. Multilocus sequence typing and spa typing were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and staphylococcal chromosomal cassette mec (SCCmec) type was analyzed by multiplex PCR. The Panton-Valentine leukocidin (pvl) gene was also detected.

RESULTMost MRSA strains were isolated from pneumonia and skin and soft tissue infection (SSTIs) patients, accounting for 82.1%. Overall, 16 sequence types (STs) were obtained, and CC59 (51.7%) was found to be the most prevalent, which included ST 59 and ST 338, followed by ST239 (16.4%). SCCmec types II, III, IV, and V were also identified in the current study. SCCmec type IV was the most predominant type at 50.0%, followed by SCCmec type V at 23.9% and III at 23.9%. SCCmec subtypes IVa, IVc, and IVg were found among SCCmec type IV strains, whereas IVa was the main subtype at 77.6%. Twenty-six spa types were also identified, among which the predominant type was t437 (47.8%). The prevalence of pvl genes and the SCCmec type of strain was relevant, and the pvl gene positive rate was higher in SCCmec type IV and V-type strains than in SCCmec type II and III strains (58.6% vs. 14.3%, P < 0.05); there was a significant difference between them. In the strains isolated from pneumonia and SSTIs, ST59-MRSA-IVa(t437) was the predominant clone. There were five clones detected from the strains isolated from septicemia, with ST59-MRSA-IVa(t437) and ST59-MRSA-V(t437) as the main clones (57.1%). Various predominant clones existed in different regions. ST59-MRSA-IVa(t437) was the prevalent clone in the Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, and Shenzhen areas, whereas ST239-MRSA-III(t037) was the prevalent clone in the Shanghai area. Fifty percent of the isolates from the Wenzhou area belonged to ST910-MRSA-V(t318), whereas three clinical strains isolated from the Shenyang region belonged to three different types.

CONCLUSIONThe results indicate that MRSA isolates from Chinese children are largely associated with the ST59-MRSA-IV(t437) and ST239-MRSA-III(t037) clones. These two may belong to community-acquired MRSA and hospital-acquired ones, respectively. Different prevalent clones were detected in different diseases and different regions. Therefore, there is a need to conduct further research on clinical isolates, which can guide the choice of antibiotic treatment and the examination of MRSA prevalence.

Adolescent ; Bacterial Typing Techniques ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; epidemiology ; DNA, Bacterial ; genetics ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Prevalence ; Staphylococcal Infections ; epidemiology ; microbiology

BACKGROUNDChronic stress contributes to increased risks of atherosclerotic diseases including heart disease, stroke, and transient ischemic attack. However, its underline mechanisms are poorly understood. This study aimed to elucidate the mechanism via which chronic stress exerts its effect on atherosclerosis (AS).

METHODSFifty male New Zealand white rabbits were used. Aortic balloon-injury model was applied. Both social stress and physical stress methods were adopted to establish chronic stress models. The lumen stenotic degree, intimal and medial areas, maximum fibrous cap thickness, and plaque contents were measured with histological sections. Proteomic methods were applied to detect protein changes in abdominal aortas to identify the specialized mediators. Real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction was used for further verification and investigation.

RESULTSThe stress rabbits exhibited lower body weight, worse fur state, more inactivity behavior, and higher serum cortisol level. Chronic stress was significantly associated with the decreased medial area and increased plaque instability, which was manifested by thinner fibrous caps, larger lipid cores, more macrophages, and new vessels but fewer smooth muscle cells and elastic fibers. After chronic stress, the apoptosis-related genes UBE2K, BAX, FAS, Caspase 3, Caspase 9, and P53 were upregulated, and BCL-2/BAX was down-regulated; the angiogenesis-related genes ANG and VEGF-A were also highly expressed in atherosclerotic arteries.

CONCLUSIONSRabbit models of chronic stress were successfully established by applying both social stress and physical stress for 8 weeks. Chronic stress can reduce AS tunica media and accelerate plaque instability by promoting apoptosis and neovascularization.