The degQ gene, amplified from Bacillus subtilis by PCR, was cloned to pUBS (sucrose induced secretion vector). After transformed into DB403, recombination named DB403(pUBSD) was formed. The results of the fermentation showed that degQ gene enhanced the expression of B. subtilis fibrin enzyme. The activity of the enzyme was increased to 2.2 times as the original one. In this article, the effects of different conditions, such as different kinds of sugar, different concentration of sucrose and different induced time were also be investigated and compared.

OBJECTIVETo assess the osseointegration capability of hydroxyapatite-coated porous titanium with bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) and hyaluronic acid to repair defects in the distal femur metaphysis in rabbits.

METHODSPorous titanium implants were made by sintering titanium powder at high temperature, which were coated with hydroxyapatite by alkali and heat treatment and with BMP-2 combined with bone regeneration materials. And hyaluronic acid was further used as delivery system to prolong the effect of BMP-2. The implants were inserted into the metaphysis of the distal femur of rabbits. The animals were killed at 6, 12 and 24 weeks to accomplish histological and biomechanical analyses.

RESULTSAccording to the result of histological analysis, the osseointegration in BMP-2 group was better than that of the HA-coated porous titanium group. In push-out test, all the samples had bigger shear stress as time passed by. There was statistical difference between the two groups in 6 and 12 weeks but not in 24 weeks.

CONCLUSIONHydroxyapatite-coated porous titanium with BMP-2 and hyaluronic acid has a good effect in repairing defects of distal femur in rabbits, which is a fine biotechnology for future clinical application.

Animals ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2 ; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins ; pharmacology ; Coated Materials, Biocompatible ; Durapatite ; Femur ; surgery ; Hyaluronic Acid ; pharmacology ; Osseointegration ; physiology ; Porosity ; Prostheses and Implants ; Rabbits ; Titanium ; Transforming Growth Factor beta ; pharmacology

Objective: To explore a single center large cohort of patients with Takayasu’s arteritis for their clinical manifestation and long-term outcome in China. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 566 patients with Takayasu’s arteritis admitted in our hospital from 2002-01 to 2013-11 for their clinical characteristics, laboratory ifndings, angiographic features, treatment and long-term outcomes. Results: The patient’s ratio for female to male gender was 1 to 3.8 and the average onset age was (28.9 ± 12.0) years. The most common non-speciifc symptom, initial symptom and complication were fever (52/566 patients, 9.2%), dizziness (214 patients, 37.8%) and hypertension (392 patients, 69.3%) respectively. The patients with pulmonary artery and coronary artery involvement were 83 (14.7%) and 66 (11.7%) respectively, and 131 (23.1%) patients had faster erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The major vascular damage was steno-occlusive lesion and the most common involvement was left sub-clavian artery, which was observed in 278 (49.1%) patients. The treatments were mainly included in medication, interventional therapy, autologous blood vessel transplantation, artiifcial blood vessel transplantation and aortic valve replacement. There were 32 patients died during the mean follow-up period of (5.0 ± 0.2) years. Hypertension, complication and the progressive stage of disease were the major factors affecting prognosis in relevant patients (regression coefifcients: 4.664, 1.959 and 1.870 respectively, allP<0.05). Conclusion: Hypertension was the leading reason for patients’ hospital visit. Takayasu’s arteritis was closely related to cardiovascular disease, the early diagnosis and treatment were really important in clinical practice.

Objective To explore a kind of simple and high efficient approach to differentiate human embryonic stem cells(hESCs)into neural stem cells(NSCs).Methods hESCs were cultured in bacterial culture dish filled with serum free medium to gain embryoid bodies.Then the mature embryoid bodies grew in the special medium including B27 and noggin by adherent culture to differentiate into NSCs. Results The hESCs kept floating in the bacterial culture dish and growing all the time and then formed mature embryoid bodies 7 to 10 days later.The embryoid bodies could be differentiated into highly pure (96.4%)nestin positive cells.And these cells were differentiated into all kinds of neural cells if cultured further.Conclusions This kind of method is less time-consuming,cheaper,and more efficient than those of the results in literatures reported.It affords very good source of seed cells for cell transplantation therapy in the future.

Objective:To investigate the imaging features of colloid carcinoma arising from intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) of pancreas and the differentiation features from ductal adenocarcinoma arising from IPMN, using the pathological findings as the reference.Methods:Twenty-four patients with pathologically confirmed colloid carcinoma from November 2013 to January 2020 in Changhai Hospital, Navy Medical University were included in this study. The clinical manifestations, imaging features and pathological data were retrospective reviewed. Thirty patients of ductal adenocarcinoma arising from IPMN confirmed by pathology were selected as the control group. CT and MRI features of two groups were blindly analyzed by two radiologists, including the lesions location, type of IPMN, size, components, density or signal, calcification, dilation and size of the main pancreatic duct (MPD), pancreatic parenchymal atrophy, fistula formation. The χ 2 test or Fisher exact probability was used to compare the imaging features between the two groups. Results:As for IPMN with colloid carcinoma, 16 cases were located in the head of the pancreas, 7 cases in the body and tail of the pancreas, and 1 case showed diffused changes of the pancreas. Mass was found in twenty-two cases, with the size of 54.5 (29) mm. Nineteen cases were solid-cystic, 4 were cystic and 1 was solid. Thick wall and internal separation with mild enhancement were displayed. Five cases were found with high signal on T 1WI. Thirteen cases had calcification and 2 cases had gas in the tumor. The size of MPD was (13±5) mm. Pancreatic parenchymal atrophy was found in 21 cases and fistula formation was found in 8 cases. The mass size of IPMN with colloid carcinoma was significantly greater than that of IPMN with ductal adenocarcinoma [31 (16) mm, Z=-3.758, P<0.001]. Solid-cystic mass was more found in IPMN with colloid carcinoma and solid mass was more found in IPMN with ductal adenocarcinoma ( P<0.001). Calcification ( P=0.001), fistula formation ( P=0.031), and high signal on T 1WI ( P=0.034) were more found in IPMN with colloid carcinoma than IPMN with ductal adenocarcinoma. Conclusion:Compared with IPMN with ductal adenocarcinoma, the solid-cystic mass, calcification, fistula formation and high signal on T 1WI were more commonly found in IPMN with colloid carcinoma.

Objective:To verify the predictive value of fully-automated 3D volume segmentation of CT images for the overall survival prognosis of resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).Methods:From July 2018 to March 2019, the clinical data of 198 cases of resectable PDAC were continuously collected in the First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University. According to the level of carbohydrate antigen(CA)19-9 and carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA), the patient were divided into low CA19-9 group(≤210 U/ml ), high CA19-9 group (>210 U/ml ), normal CEA group (<5 ng/ml ) and high CEA group (≥5 ng/ml). Using our fully-automated segmentation tool developed in the early stage, images at the plain phase and portal phase were matched to those at the late artery phase by taking the artery phase as the matching target to establish UNet model; and the PDAC tumor and pancreatic glands were three-dimensionally segmented to estimate the tumor 3D volume. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were performed to compare the tumor 3D volume with the common preoperative risk factors (tumor 2D long diameter, CA19-9 level, CEA level, etc.) in predicting the patients′ survival. C-index was used to estimate the accuracy for predicting the survival. Receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) was drawn and AUC was calculated to evaluate the accuracy for predicting the 1-year and 2-year overall survival and the influence of CA19-9 and CEA level on the patients′ overall survival.Results:Univariate logistic analysis showed that age, tumor 3D volume, tumor location, CA19-9 and CEA level were correlated with the patients′ overall survival. Multivariate logistic analysis showed that tumor 3D volume, CA199 and CEA were correlated with the overall survival. Among them, tumor 3D volume was most strongly correlated with the overall survival ( HR=2.25, 95% CI1.49-3.39, P<0.0001). The prognostic C-index of automatic 3D tumor volume, tumor long diameter, serum CEA and CA19-9 was 0.667(95% CI0.617-0.717), 0.637(0.583-0.691), 0.593(0.527-0.659) and 0.585(0.526-0.644), respectively. The AUCs of 3D tumor volume, tumor location, tumor long diameter, serum CEA and CA19-9 for predicting 1-year and 2-year survival were 0.726 and 0.698, 0.562 and 0.562, 0.703 and 0.660, 0.583 and 0.624, 0.602 and 0.609 respectively. C-index and AUC of tumor 3D volume was significantly better than those of the other common preoperative risk factors, and the difference was statistically significant (all P value <0.05). The survival of patients with large tumor 3D volume was greatly poorer than that of patients with small tumor 3D volume in low CA19-9 group, high CA19-9 group, normal CEA group and high CEA group, and the differences were all statistically significant ( HR=2.27, 95% CI 1.39-3.72; HR=2.42, 95% CI1.23-4.74; HR=2.08, 95% CI1.07-4.06; HR=2.67, 95% CI1.63-4.38, all P value <0.01). And the automatic 3D volume was the strongest predictor for the survival in high CA19-9 group. Conclusions:The tumor 3D volume obtained by automatic CT segmentation was an objective and reliable prognostic biomarker, which can supplement the established preoperativel risk factors and was expected to guide the personalized choice of neoadjuvant therapy.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic ; genetics ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mutation ; Troponin T ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo study the effects of very late antigen(VLA) antagonist BIO-1211 on eosinophil chemotaxis, recruitment and mediator release.

METHODSEosinophil chemotaxis was induced by platelet activating factor(PAF) in vitro and eosinophil recruitment and release were determined in vivo.

RESULTVLA antagonist BIO-1211 inhibited eosinophil chemotaxis induced by PAF. The inhibitory rates at 4x10(-11), 4x10(-10), 4x10(-9) mol x L(-1) were 24.9%, 29.9%, and 31.3%, respectively. Pretreatment by BIO-1211 1, 3 and 10 mg x kg(-1) intraperitoneally inhibited the recruitment of eosinophils in PAF in the rat induced by Sephadex in a dose dependent manner. Inhibitory rates were 60.3%, 68.9%, and 72.9%(P<0.05), respectively. BIO-1211 did not inhibit eosinophil peroxidase(EPO) release from eosinophils.

CONCLUSIONBIO-1211 inhibits eosinophil chemotaxis and recruitment, alleviates local inflammation, and may represent a new type of drug for allergic diseases.

Animals ; Cell Movement ; drug effects ; Chemotaxis, Leukocyte ; drug effects ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Eosinophil Peroxidase ; Eosinophils ; drug effects ; physiology ; Integrin alpha4beta1 ; antagonists & inhibitors ; physiology ; Male ; Oligopeptides ; pharmacology ; Peroxidases ; secretion ; Platelet Activating Factor ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

OBJECTIVEHeart failure is responsible for a huge burden in hospital care. Our goal was to evaluate the value of N-terminal-pro-brain natriuretic peptide (Nt-proBNP) on predicting death or hospital readmission after hospital discharge in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).

METHODSFrom March 2003 to April 2005, 135 consecutive patients (97 male and 38 female, mean age 60.7 years +/- 13.1 years) with chronic heart failure [dilated cardiomyopathy (44%) and coronary heart disease (35%)] were included in this study. Plasma concentrations of the Nt-proBNP were measured by ELISA on admission. All patients received conventional therapy and were followed up for 24 months. The primary end point was death or readmission.

RESULTS(1) During the follow up period (640 days +/- 100 days), 11 patients died and 39 patients rehospitalized, the median Nt-proBNP level on admission was significantly higher in patients died during the follow up period (5908 ng/L) than that of rehospitalized patients (2768 ng/L, P = 0.038). Plasma Nt-proBNP level on admission were significantly higher in primary end point group (n = 50, 2947 ng/L) than that in non-primary end point group (n = 85, 917 ng/L, P < 0.01). (2) Variables associated with an increased hazard of death and/or rehospitalization were Nt-proBNP and NYHA degree when analyzed by logistic regression models. Increased Log Nt-proBNP was the strongest independent predictor of an adverse outcome of CHF (odds ratio 13.8, 95% confidence interval 2.29 to 2.78, P < 0.01). (3) Area under the curve for Nt-proBNP in evaluating prognosis of CHF patients was 0.885 (positive predictive value 88.5%, negative predictive value 11.5%).

CONCLUSIONNt-proBNP level on admission is a strong predictor of rehospitalization and death within 24 months after hospital discharge in patients with chronic heart failure.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Cardiac Output, Low ; Chronic Disease ; Female ; Heart Failure ; blood ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain ; blood ; Peptide Fragments ; blood ; Prognosis ; Ventricular Function ; Young Adult

The particularity of pancreatic anatomical location, the complexity of secretory function, and the diversity of pathology lead to complex imaging findings of pancreatic tumors. The common pancreatic tumors include pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, solid pseudopaillary neo-plasm, neuroendocrine neoplasm, intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm, serous cystadenoma and mucinous cystic neoplasm. Atypical imaging findings are important reasons for misdiagnosis. Based on relevant clinical experiences, the authors analyze and summarize the atypical imaging findings of six kinds of common pancreatic tumors, aiming to improve radiologists and clinicians comprehensive understanding of pancreatic tumors.