Objective To screen the differential proteins in the brain (neocortex and hippocampus) between the rats with cortical dysplasia (CD) and control ones,and investigate the role of their alteration in the development of epilepsy in CD.Methods Cortical dysplasia was induced in rat pups via in utero delivery of BCNU.A two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE)-based approach was used to construct the expression profiles of proteins in both the neocortex and hippocampus at different age groups (postnatal day 7 and 60) and to detect proteome changes between CD rats and control ones.Following gel image analysis,protein spots that differed in abundance between CD and control rats were identified by using Matrx-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry (MS) and MS/MS.Results A total of 57 kinds of protein were screened out (P ＜ 0.05),in which 35 were found up-regulated and 22 were down-regulated compared with the control,35 from neonatal stage (postnatal day 7) and others from adult stage.Finally,12 among them were identified,including tubulin,alpha-lB,Beta-actin,tubulin beta-2A,GAP-43,UbCKmit,GAPDH and TMBr-3,etc.Conclusions Changed expression of specific proteins which were found in our study are involved in construction of brain 's cytoskeleton,synaptic function,mitochondrial function and so forth.Thus,they may be related to the pathogenic mechanisms of epileptogenicity of CD.

Objective To summarize the clinical experience of ESWL under B ultrasound guidance in treatment of urinary stones.Methods The clinical data of 20 625 patients who underwent B ultrasound-guided ESWL between August 1995 and July 2011 were retrospectively analyzed.Of the stones,8659cases were in the kidney,11 712 cases were in the ureter,and 254 cases were in the bladder.And 1965stones were radioparent.Results The stone fragmentation rates of the kidney,ureter and bladder stones were 96.27％ ( 8336/8659),97.56％ ( 1 1 426/1 1 712) and 99.21％ ( 252/254),respectively.The total stone fragmentation rate was 97.04％ (20 014/20 625 ).The 3-month stone-free rates of the kidney,ureter and bladder stones were 86.63％ (7501/8659),95.32％ ( 11 164/11 712) and 97.24％ (247/254),respectively.The total 3-month stone-free rate was 91.69％ (18 912/20 625).The stone fragmentation rate of radioparent stones was 97.91％ ( 1924/1965 ),and the 3-month stone-free rate was 94.40％ ( 1855/1965).Conclusion B ultrasound-guided ESWL is safe and effective in the treatment of urinary stones.

AIM: To observe the activity and distribution of astrocytes and glial fibrillary acid protein(GFAP) after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). METHODS: The rat MCAO model was made by two-kidney, tow clip renovascular hypertensive rat stroke prone(RHRSP). Rats were killed and brain samples were collected at the end of 1,3,6 and 9 weeks after MCAO, respectively. The ultrastructure of astrocytes was determined at broder of infarct (A area); distant of infarct (B area) and opposite of hemisphere (C area) by electron microscope. The number and optical density of GFAP-positive cells were also observed. RESULTS: The astrocyte proliferation distributed in the whole brain after MCAO. The highest numbers of GFAP-positive cells were observed at A area, then B area. The lowest numbers of GFAP positive cells were found in C area. The time course of GFAP-positive cell change was that the highest number was observed at 1 week after MCAO, then decreased by time from 3, 6 weeks to 9 weeks. The optical density of GFAP-positive cells showed the same patterns. CONCLUSION: The correlation between astrocyte proliferation and tissue damage after MCAO can be estimated by GFAP expression. The astrocyte proliferation plays an important role in healing process after MCAO.

Objective:To investigate the genetic correlation of interleukin-12 (IL-12) pathway-related gene single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with psoriasis vulgaris and their interaction with HLA-Cw*0602 in populations of Mongolian and Han nationalities in Inner Mongolia.Methods:From December 2012 to March 2018, 1 409 inpatients with psoriasis vulgaris (1 030 of Han nationality and 379 of Mongo-lian nationality) and 1 483 healthy controls (965 of Han nationality and 518 of Mongolian nationality) were collected from the Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, and served as patient group and control group respectively. Five milliliters of peripheral venous blood samples were collected from these subjects, and DNA was extracted. Nine SNPs located in the coding regions of IL-12 pathway-related genes were selected, including IL-12B (rs2082412, rs2288831, rs3212227, rs3213094, rs7709212) , IL-23R (rs11209026, rs2201841, rs7530511) and IL-28RA (rs4649203) genes, and detected by next-generation sequencing. HLA-Cw*0602 was genotyped by polymerase chain reaction with sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP) . Statistical analysis was carried out with PLINK1.07 software, Chi-square test was used to compare allele frequencies between the 2 groups, relative risk estimates of alleles were calculated by using odds ratio ( OR) , and chi-square test for R × C contingency tables was used for haplotype analysis. Results:The allele frequencies of rs2082412, rs2288831, rs3212227, rs3213094 and rs7709212 in the IL-12B gene were significantly lower in the patients with psoriasis vulgaris of Han nationality than in the controls of Han nationality (all P < 0.005) ; the allele frequency of rs3213094 in the IL-12B gene was significantly lower in the patients of Mongolian nationality than in the controls of Mongolian nationality ( P < 0.005) . The prevalence of HLA-Cw*0602 was significantly lower in the patients with psoriasis vulgaris of Han and Mongolian nationalities than in the controls of corresponding nationalities (both P < 0.005) . As stratification analysis showed, the allele frequencies of rs2082412, rs2288831, rs3212227, rs3213094 and rs7709212 in the IL-12B gene were significantly lower in HLA-Cw*0602-positive patients of Han nationality than in HLA-Cw*0602-positive controls of Han nationality (all P < 0.005) , while there was no significant difference between HLA-Cw*0602-negative patients of Han nationality and HLA-Cw*0602-negative controls of Han nationality (all P > 0.05) . Among the HLA-Cw*0602-positive or negative populations of Mongolian nationality, no significant difference was observed in the allele frequencies between the patients and controls (all P > 0.005) . Haplotypes were constructed using 5 SNPs in the IL-12B gene, and there was no significant difference in the frequencies of 6 haplotypes between the patients and controls of Mongolian or Han nationality (all P > 0.005) ; stratification analysis showed that there was no significant difference in the frequencies of 7 haplotypes between HLA-Cw*0602-positive/negative patients and controls of Mongolian or Han nationality (all P > 0.005) . Conclusion:IL-12 pathway-related gene polymorphisms are associated with psoriasis vulgaris in the populations of Mongolian and Han nationalities in Inner Mongolia, and there may be interaction between IL-12B and HLA-Cw*0602 in the occurrence of psoriasis vulgaris.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between caspase recruitment domain protein 9 (CARD9) level and inflammatory response in cerebral tissue of ischemic brain injury mice.Methods:Totally 24 SPF BALB/c male mice were randomly(random number) divided into 4 groups: sham operated group, ischemia 3 h group, ischemia 6 h group, and ischemia 12 h group, 6 mice in each group. The permanant middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) model in the ischemia groups was established by using line embolism to block blood flow. Mice in each group were sacrificed at the predetermined time point after operation. CARD9 and p-p65NF-κB levels were detected by Western blot, and the inflammatory factors mRNA and protein including TNF-ɑ, IL-lβ and IL-6 were detected by RT-PCR and ELISA, respectively. The data were analyzed by SPSS 21.0 software, the comparison of measurement data between each two groups was analyzed by independent sample t test, and the correlations between CARD9 and inflammatory factors were analyzed by Pearson analysis. Results:Compared with the sham operated group, the CARD9 levels in the ischemia 3 h, 6 h and 12 h groups were increased significantly [(0.325±0.011) vs. (0.462±0.019), P=0.036; (0.735±0.036), P=0.003; (0.903±0.024), P=0.001], the p-p65NF-κB levels in the ischemia 3 h, 6 h and 12 h groups were increased significantly [(0.227±0.016) vs. (0.316±0.017), P=0.041; (0.445±0.021), P=0.016; (0.671±0.039), P=0.008], the TNF-ɑ levels in the ischemia 3 h, 6 h and 12 h groups were significantly increased [(0.53±0.06) vs. (1.06±0.10), P=0.009; (1.47±0.15), P=0.004; (2.78±0.18), P=0.001], the IL-lβ levels in the ischemia 3 h, 6 h and 12 h groups were significantly increased [(0.55±0.07) vs. (1.01±0.11), P=0.009; (2.13±0.16), P=0.003; (3.09±0.18), P=0.001], and the IL-6 levels in the ischemia 3 h, 6 h and 12 h groups were significantly increased [(1.99±0.18) vs. (4.10±0.41), P=0.006; (8.54±0.84), P=0.002; (11.56±0.96), P=0.001]. Pearson analysis showed that CARD9 was positively correlated with the p-p65NF-κB and TNF-ɑ, IL-lβ, IL-6 ( r=0.894, P=0.001; r=0.747, P=0.008; r=0.810, P=0.001; r=0.773, P=0.007). Conclusions:A positive correlation exists between CARD9 and inflammatory responses in the early stage of ischemic brain injury in mice

Objective:To investigate the relationship of polymorphisms in metabolic syndrome-related genes with psoriasis vulgaris (PsV) and their interaction with HLA-C*06:02 in populations of Mongolian nationality.Methods:Totally, 379 PsV inpatients of Mongolian nationality and 518 healthy controls of Mongolian nationality were collected from the Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University from December 2012 to March 2018. Sixteen previously reported single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and HLA-C*06:02, which were related to metabolic syndrome and its components, were selected. Next-generation sequencing and polymerase chain reaction-sequence specific primer (PCR-SSP) typing were performed to determine the genotypes of these subjects. Minor allele frequencies of the 16 mutation sites and HLA-C*06:02 were calculated in the PsV group and control group, and chi-square test was used to analyze the differences in the minor allele frequencies of SNPs between the 2 groups.Results:There was no significant difference in the minor allele frequencies of the 16 SNPs susceptible to metabolic syndrome between the Mongolian PsV patients and healthy controls (all P > 0.05), while the minor allele frequency of HLA-C*06:02 significantly differed between the 2 groups ( P = 4.09 × 10 -35, OR = 3.41). Among the HLA-C*06:02-positive subjects, the minor allele frequencies of rs7593730_T and rs6931514_G significantly differed between the 252 PsV patients and 191 healthy controls ( P = 0.016, OR = 0.64; P = 0.041, OR = 1.33, respectively) ; no significant difference was observed in the minor allele frequencies of the 16 SNPs between the PsV patients and healthy controls among the HLA-C*06:02-negative subjects ( P > 0.05) . Conclusion:The SNPs of rs7593730 and rs6931514 may be related to PsV in populations of Mongolian nationality in Inner Mongolia, and may interact with HLA-C*06:02.

Objective:To summarize the clinical characteristics of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infected with Delta variant, so as to provide further references for clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods:A real-world study was conducted to analyze the characteristics of 166 COVID-19 patients infected with Delta variant at Guangzhou Eighth People’s Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University.Results:The study enrolled 5 asymptomatic cases, 123 non-severe cases (mild and moderate type), and 38 severe cases (severe and critical type). Among these patients, 69 (41.6%) were male and 97 (58.4%) were female, with a mean age of 47.0±23.5 years. Thirty-nine cases (23.5%) had received 1 or 2 doses of inactivated vaccine. The incidence of severe COVID-19 cases was 7.7% in 2-doses vaccinated patients, which was lower than that of 11.5% in 1-dose and 26.8% in unvaccinated patients. The proportion of severe cases in 2 dose-vaccinated patients was 7.7%, which was lower than that of 11.5% in 1-dose vaccinated patients and 26.8% in unvaccinated patients, but the difference was not significant ( P>0.05). The most common clinical symptom was fever (134 cases, 83.2%), and 39.1% of cases presented with high-grade fever (≥39 °C); other symptoms were cough, sputum, fatigue, and xerostomia. The proportion of fever in severe cases was significantly higher than that of non-severe cases (97.4% vs. 76.4%, P<0.01). Similarly, the proportion of severe cases with high peak temperature (≥39 ℃) () was also higher than that of non-severe cases (65.8% vs. 30.9%, P<0.01). The median minimal Cycle threshold (Ct) values of viral nucleic acid N gene and ORFlab gene were 20.3 and 21.5, respectively, and the minimum Ct values were 11.9 and 13.5, respectively. Within 48 h of admission, 9.0% of cases presented with decreased white blood cell counts, and 52.4% with decreased lymphocyte counts. The proportions of increased C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A, interleukin 6, and interleukin 10 were 32.5%, 57.4%, 65.3%, and 35.7%, respectively. The proportions of elevated C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A and interleukin-6 in severe cases were significantly higher than those in non-severe cases ( P<0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that older age and higher peak temperature were associated with a higher likelihood of severe cases ( OR>3, 95% CI: 2-7, P<0.01). In terms of treatment, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was used in 97.6% of non-severe cases and 100% in severe cases. Other treatments included respiratory and nutritional support, immunotherapy (such as neutralizing antibodies and plasma of recovered patients). The median times from admission to progression to severe cases, of fever clearance, and of nucleic acid conversion were 5 days, 6 days and 19 days, respectively. No deaths were reported within 28 days. Conclusions:The symptoms of Delta variant infection in Guangzhou are characterized by a high proportion of fever, high peak temperature, long duration of fever, high viral load, a long time to nucleic acid conversion, and a high incidence of severe cases. The severe cases exhibit a higher percentage of elderly patients, a longer duration of fever and have a higher fever rate and a higher hyperthermia rate than non-severe cases. Age and hyperthermia are independent risk factors for progression to severe disease. The combination of TCM and Western medicine can control the progression of the disease effectively.