DEDD is a member of the death-effector domain protein family. DEDD inhibits the Smad3 mediated transcriptional activity and participates in the regulation of apoptosis. In this study, how the death-effector domain of DEDD participates in the regulation of Smad3 activity and apoptosis has been further investigated. Immunoblotting, immunofluorescence and immunoprecipitation had been used to detect the effects of the full length DEDD and its two truncated mutants, N-DEDD and C-DEDD on Smad3 subcellular distribution, phosphorylation, and interaction between Smad4. The effects of the full length DEDD and its two truncated mutants on cell apoptosis and proliferation had also been explored by flow cytometry and MTT assay. It showed that DEDD and N-DEDD inhibit TGF-beta1 induced Smad3 nuclear translocation and the formation of Smad3-Samd4 complex. DEDD and its two mutants can induce cell apoptosis and inhibit cell proliferation. These results suggested that DEDD inhibits the activity of Smad3 through its death-effector domain. Both the two truncated mutants of DEDD participate in the regulation of apoptosis and cell proliferation.

Objective To analyze the CT manifestations of mesenteric panniculitis,so that to improve CT diagnosis of mesenteric panniculitis.Methods Seven patients with mesenteric panniculitis,which were diagnosed according to the CT criteria,were analyzed.Results The fatty masses with defined margins and around the root of the jejunum were found in all patients at CT scan,and there were no enhancement after administration of contrast medium.The masses were sharply defined with abdominal and retroperitoneal fat.There were pseudo-capsule in 7, "arcus adiposus sign" in 5. Enlargement of lymph nodes in the masses and retroperitoneum in 2 cases were seen,respectively.4 patients had abdominal operations,one patient was in combination with carcinoma of head of pancrease.Conclusion Certain features of the CT manifestations of mesenteric panniculitis can be found,CT is effective for the diagnosis of mesenteric panniculitis.

Objective To identify etiological factors for non-ulcer dyspepsia (NUD) in elderly patients presenting to the emergency department.Methods A total of 97 elderly patients with NUD presenting to the emergency department from January 2011 to December 2013 were enrolled in the NUD group and 116 elderly people undergoing annual physical examinations served as the control group.Clinical data,including Helicobacter pylori (HP) infection,unhealthy living habits,anxiety,depression and regular intake,were collected and compared between the two groups.Results Compared with the control group,the NUP group showed a higher HP infection rate [70.1％ (68/97)vs.54.3％ (63/116),x2 =5.565,P＜0.05],a higher incidence of unhealthy living habits (unhealthy dietary habits,smoking,drinking,and lack of regular exercise) (P＜0.05),a higher incidence of suspect anxiety/anxiety and a higher incidence of regular intake [30.9％ (30/97) vs 10.3％ (12/116),x2=14.138,P＜0.05].SerumpepsinogenⅠ(PGⅠ) [(178.7±13.6) μg/L vs.(125.2±10.5)μg/L,t=1.971,P＜0.01] and serum pepsinogen Ⅱ(PG Ⅱ) [(28.8±5.3) μg/L vs.(14.7±3.8)μg/L,t=1.960,P＜0.01] levels were also higher in the elderly NUD patients than in the control group.Conclusions HP infection,unhealthy living habits,anxiety and/or depression,and regular intake are closely associated with NUD in the elderly.Serum PGⅠ and PGⅡ could be used as markers in screening for malignant lesions in elderly patients with dyspepsia.

Background To investigate the expression of the early growth response gene-1 ( Egr-1 ) mRNA after focal cerebral ischemia / reperfusion in rats.Methods Ten healthy male SD rats weighing 200 ～ 250 g were used to create model of focal cerebral ischemia. The expression of Egr-1 after focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion in rats was determined using in situ hybridization and RT-PCR.Results (1) The result of the in situ hybridization: A trace amount of Egr-1 mRNA expressed in the neurons and the glial cells in the sham operated group. The expression of Egr-1 mRNA at the ischemic side increased dramatically following ischemia and reached peaks after 4 hours' reperfusion. Egr-1 expression started to subside following 22 hours' reperfusion and further decreased following 166 hours' reperfusion, which was still significantly higher than that in the sham operated group. (2) The result of RT-PCR: The expression of Egr-1 mRNA at the ischemic side was significantly higher than that in the sham operated group at all time points after ischemia/reperfusion in the rats(P ＜0. 01). Expression of Egr-1 increased 2 h after ischemia and reached the peak 4 h following reperfusion, and then decreased dramatically at 46 h after reperfusion which was still higher than that in the sham operated group (P ＜ 0. 01). As the ischemia/reperfusion period prolonged, the expression of Egr-1 mRNA increased gradually, but still detectable even 166 h following reperfusion. The expression of Egr-1 was significantly higher than that in the sham operated group at all time points (P ＜0. 01).Conclusions The expression of Egr-1 mRNA increase in the neurons and the glial cells after ischemia/reperfusion, which may have protective effects on ischemic brain tissues.

Airway Remodeling ; physiology ; Animals ; Asthma ; metabolism ; Disease Models, Animal ; PPAR gamma ; biosynthesis ; Rats

Objective To determine the mutant status of BRAF gene in Chinese colorectal cancer (CRC) patients and analyze the association with clinicopathological parameters.Methods 676 CRC samples were collected in Cancer Institute/ Hospital,Chinese Academy of Medical Science from December 2009 to December 2011.The direct sequencing was conducted to detect mutations in the BRAF (exon 15 and exon 11).The correlation between mutant status with clinicopathological parameters were analyzed.Results Beside 10 colorectal cancer samples,among the 666 colorectal cancer patients 4.35％ (29/666) of the tumors harbored a BRAF mutation,of which 1.94％ (13/669) in exon 15 (V600E),2.39％ (16/670) in exon 11.Statistical analysis revealed that BRAF15 mutations appeared to occur more frequently in poor-differentiation tumors than high or moderate-differentiation tumors (5.81％ vs 1.46％,r =0.105,P=0.040).But BRAF15 mutations were not correlated with age,gender,smoking and drinking history,tumor site,tumor type,tumor(T/N) staging,histological type,or distant metastasis [r equals to 0.007,-0.018,-0.049,-0.023,-0.098,-0.038,0.040(0.034/0.059),0.065,0.042,respectively,P ＞ 0.05] ; BRAF11 mutations appeared to occur more frequently in patients with drinking history (6.02％vs 1.81％,r =0.093,P =0.035).However,age,gender,smoking history,tumor site,tumor type,tumor differentiation,tumor(N) staging,histological type,or distant metastasis showed no significant correlation with this mutation [r equals to-0.004,0.047,0.020,0.042,0.029,0.040,0.006 (-0.008),0.008,0.030,respectively,P ＞ 0.05].Conclusion A higher proportion of BRAF15 (V600E) mutations occurred in poor-differentiation tumors among the Chinese patients with CRC; BRAF11 mutations appeared more frequently in patients with drinking history.

Objective : To investigate the status of occupational stress and analyze its influencing factors among frontline employees working in a chemical fiber manufacturing enterprise, so as to provide insights into the development of occupational stress interventions. Methods : The frontline employees working in a chemical fiber manufacturing enterprise were selected as the study subjects using a cluster sampling method in October 2018. The status of occupational stress was investigated using the Chinese version of the effort-reward imbalance ( ERI ) questionnaire. The influencing factors for occupational stress were identified using a multivariable logistic regression model. Results : A total of 1 780 questionnaires were sent out, and 1 115 valid ones ( 62.64% ) were recovered. Among the 1 115 respondents, there were 427 men ( 38.30% ) and 688 women ( 61.70% ), and 71.22% were at ages of 21 to 39 years. There were 561 respondents with < 1 year of service ( 50.31% ), and the longest length of service was 11 years. In addition, there were 1 069 respondents ( 95.87% ) exposed to high noise, and 346 respondents ( 31.03% ) were diagnosed at a high occupational-stress state and 769 ( 68.97% ) at a low state. Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified 5 years or longer of service ( OR=1.540, 95%CI: 1.057-2.245 ) and exposure to high noise ( OR=1.917, 95%CI: 1.004-3.659 ) as risk factors for occupational stress among frontline employees in the chemical fiber manufacturing enterprise. Conclusions There are 31.03% of frontline employees at a high occupational-stress state in the chemical fiber manufacturing enterprise, and a high occupational-stress state is associated with exposure to high noise and 5 years or longer of service.

Objective To evaluate the values of bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling ( BIPSS),high dosage dexamethasone suppression test (HDDST) and pituitary image in the differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome. Methods Totally 87 patients with confirmed pathological diagnosis were recruited in the study.All received the procedure of BLPSS,HDDST,and pituitary MRI with dynamic enhancement.The diagnostic performances of three differential diagnosis methods in ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome were evaluated.Results Seventy-eight patients were diagnosed as cases of pituitary ACTH adenoma,and the remaining 9 were confirmed cases of ectopic ACTH syndrome due to the thymic carcinoid.The sensitivity and specificity of HDDST,pituitary MRI,and BIPSS for the diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome were 82.1％ and 100％,79.5％ and 44.4％,92.3％ and 100％,respectively.In Cushing's disease,the diagnostic accuracy was 83.9％ with HDDST,77.0％with pituitary MRI,and93.1％ with BIPSS.In those patients with Cushing's disease,the coincidence of lateralization was 83.9％ with BIPSS and 64.5％ with MRII.Conclusion BIPSS was better than the other two methods in differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome.Compared with the pituitary MRI,the concordant rate of BIPSS in lateralization of the tumor is higher,and it is more reliable.

Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of type 2 vesicular monoamine transporter molecular probe,18 F-FP-(+)-DTBZ, in the monitoring of total islet β cell mass in animal models. Methods Two groups of Wistar rats were included in this study. In the type 1 diabetes group ( n = 6 ) , the streptozotocin ( STZ) was intraperitoneally injected at a dose of 65 mg/kg, and the control group ( n= 6 ) was likewisely injected with an equal volume of saline, Micro- positron emission tomography ( PET )/ computed tomography ( CT) imaging was performed at these rats post injection of18 F-FP-(+)-DTBZ at 0. 5, 1, 4, 6, and 12 months after STZ or saline injection, bodyweight and glucose level were also measured. Results The average standardized uptake values ( SUV) in the pancreas in the type 1 diabetes rats were decreased significantly than that of the control group at 0.5, 1, and, 4 months ( P<0.05) , and there was no significant difference at 6th and 12th months ( P>0.05) post injection of STZ and saline. Fasting blood glucose positively correlated with pancreatic SUV in the two groups at 0.5, 1, and 4 months (P<0.05) post injection of STZ and saline. Conclusion 18F-FP-(+)-DTBZ PET imaging is a promising method for dynamic monitoringβcell mass in type 1 diabetic rats.