Objective:To explore the relationship between Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and periodontitis. Methods: 498 subjects were recruited in this study and were divided into three groups: mild periodontitis group (77, 15.5%), moderate periodontitis group (143, 28.7%), and severe periodontitis group (278, 55.8%). Clinical examination indexes included probing depth (PD), attachment loss (AL), sulcus bleeding index (SBI), plaque index (PLI) and the level of the alveolar resorption. Lung function of each subjects were also examined. Results: The levels of AL, PLI and alveolar resorption in COPD group were higher than non-COPD group. Significant differences of "FEV1% pre"(F=3.59,P=0.028) and "FEV1/FVC"(F=4.84,P=0.008) were found among different degrees of periodontitis. Negative relationship was found between the level of "FEV1% pre" and the periodontal index (AL, PLI, alveolar resorption), and the same relationship was found for "FEV1/FVC". Conclusion: Correlation is found between COPD and the periodontitis index (AL, PLI, alveolar resorption).

Squamous cell carcinoma(SCC) is a significant cause of cancer morbidity and mortality worldwide, with an incidence of up to 166 cases per 100 000 population. It arises in the skin, upper aerodigestive tract, lung, and cervix and affects more than 200 000 Americans each year. We report here that a microarray experiment comparing 41 SCC and 13 normal tissue specimens showed that Id2, a gene that controls the cell cycle, was significantly up-regulated in SCC. Enforced expression of Id2 in vitro stimulated the proliferation of SCC cells and up-regulated the transcription of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and cyclin D1. Enhancement of the NF-κB activity with p65 significantly increased the cell proliferation and the transcription of cyclin D1, whereas inhibition of the NF-κB activity with I kappa B alpha mutant (IκBαM) and pyrroline dithiocarbamate (PDTC) abrogated cell proliferation and transcription of cyclin D1. Furthermore, a mutated NF-κB binding site in the cyclin D1 promoter fully abrogated the Id2-induced transcription of cyclin D1. Taken together, these data indicate that Id2 induces SCC tumor growth and proliferation through the NF-κB/cyclin D1 pathway.
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; metabolism ; pathology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Cyclin D1 ; metabolism ; Head and Neck Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Humans ; I-kappa B Proteins ; metabolism ; Inhibitor of Differentiation Protein 2 ; genetics ; metabolism ; NF-KappaB Inhibitor alpha ; NF-kappa B ; metabolism ; RNA, Messenger ; metabolism ; Signal Transduction ; Transcription Factor RelA ; metabolism ; Transcription, Genetic ; Up-Regulation

OBJECTIVESTo determine whether a large-scale physical activity intervention could affect body composition in primary school students in Beijing, China.

METHODSThe study design was one-year cluster randomized controlled trial of physical activity intervention (20 min of daily exercise in the classroom) with an additional year of follow-up among 4 700 students aged 8-11 years at baseline.

RESULTSAfter the one-year intervention, BMI increased by 0.56 kg/m(2) (SD 1.15) in the intervention group and by 0.72 kg/m(2) (SD 1.20) in the control group, with a mean difference of -0.15 kg/m(2) (95% CI: -0.28 to -0.02). BMI z score decreased by -0.05 (SD 0.44) in the intervention group, but increased by 0.01 (SD 0.46) in the control group, with a mean difference of -0.07 (-0.13 to -0.01). After another year of follow up, compared to the control group, children in the intervention group had significantly lower BMI (-0.13, -0.25 to -0.01), BMI z score (-0.05, -0.10 to -0.01), fat mass (-0.27 kg, -0.53 to -0.02) and percent body fat (-0.53, -1.00 to -0.05). The intervention had a more pronounced effect on weight, height, BMI, BMI z score, and body composition among obese children than among normal weight or overweight children. Compared to the control group, the intervention group had a significantly higher percentage of children who maintained or reduced their BMI z score at year 1 (P=0.008) and year 2 (P=0.04).

CONCLUSIONSThese findings suggest that 20 min of daily moderate to vigorous physical activity during the school year is a feasible and effective way to prevent excessive gain of body weight, BMI, and body fatness in primary school students.

Body Composition ; Child ; China ; epidemiology ; Exercise ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Obesity ; epidemiology ; prevention & control

Astrocytes are the most abundant cell type in the central nervous system (CNS). They provide trophic support for neurons, modulate synaptic transmission and plasticity, and contribute to neuronal dysfunction. Many transgenic mouse lines have been generated to obtain astrocyte-specific expression of inducible Cre recombinase for functional studies; however, the expression patterns of inducible Cre recombinase in these lines have not been systematically characterized. We generated a new astrocyte-specific Aldh1l1-CreER knock-in mouse line and compared the expression pattern of Cre recombinase between this and five widely-used transgenic lines (hGfap-CreER from The Jackson Laboratory and The Mutant Mouse Resource and Research Center, Glast-CreER, Cx30-CreER, and Fgfr3-iCreER) by crossing with Ai14 mice, which express tdTomato fluorescence following Cre-mediated recombination. In adult Aldh1l1-CreER:Ai14 transgenic mice, tdTomato was detected throughout the CNS, and five novel morphologically-defined types of astrocyte were described. Among the six evaluated lines, the specificity of Cre-mediated recombination was highest when driven by Aldh1l1 and lowest when driven by hGfap; in the latter mice, co-staining between tdTomato and NeuN was observed in the hippocampus and cortex. Notably, evident leakage was noted in Fgfr3-iCreER mice, and the expression level of tdTomato was low in the thalamus when Cre recombinase expression was driven by Glast and in the capsular part of the central amygdaloid nucleus when driven by Cx30. Furthermore, tdTomato was clearly expressed in peripheral organs in four of the lines. Our results emphasize that the astrocyte-specific CreER transgenic lines used in functional studies should be carefully selected.