OBJECTIVETo develop a method for determination of mandelic acid (MA) and phenylglyoxylic acid (PGA) in urine by reagent-free ion chromatography.

METHODSIon chromatography was performed on an AS19 column with a gradient elution solution containing 10-35 mmoL/L KOH at a flow rate of 1.00 ml/min, and MA and PGA were detected at ultraviolet wavelengths of 225 nm and 254 nm, respectively. The samples were diluted 10 times with purified water, then purified on a silver column to remove high concentrations of chloride ion, and injected after being filtered through a 0.2-µm m filter membrane.

RESULTSThe recoveries of standard addition of MA and PGA were 96.5% and 99.3%, respectively, with both relative standard deviations less than 5.0%. Good linear relationships were noted in the range of 1.0-100.0 mg/L for both MA and PGA (r >0.9995). The detection limits of MA and PGA were 0.02 mg/L and 0.05 mg/L, respectively; the minimum detectable concentrations of MA and PGA were 0.2 mg/L and 0.5 mg/L (when the sampling amount was 5.0 ml and diluted to 50.0 ml with water, and the injection volume was 300 µL).

CONCLUSIONSThis method is fast, convenient, and highly sensitive and selective. It can be used for the analysis of MA and PGA in the urine of styrene-exposed workers.

Animals ; Conditioning (Psychology) ; drug effects ; Extinction, Psychological ; drug effects ; physiology ; Fear ; drug effects ; physiology ; Male ; Mifepristone ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Objective To explore the effects of bilirubin on myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88)and interleukin-1 receptor associated kinase-4(IRAK-4).Methods Seven-day-old Sprague Daw-ley rats (clean grade),male or female,weighing 12.0 to 15.0 g,were randomly assigned to 6 groups.There were normal saline group(Ⅰ),lipopolysaccharide(LPS)control group (LPS,Ⅱ),15 mg /kg bilirubin con-trol (free-LPS)group (Ⅲ),15 mg /kg group (Ⅳa),30 mg /kg group (Ⅳb)and 50 mg /kg group (Ⅳc), and then subsequently divided into 2 h,5 h and 24 h subgroups in each groups.Some of the 200 newborn rats died amid the experiment.Finally a total of 144 were involved in the analysis of results,and 8 rats in each subgroups.Newborn Sprague Dawley rats were administered at various doses of bilirubin (15 mg /kg, 30 mg /kg and 50 mg /kg respectively)intravenously;1 h after injection,the rats were administered LPS intrap-eritoneally at a dose of 1 mg /kg;MyD88 and IRAK-4 were detected by immunohistochemistry at 2 h,5 h and 24 h after the injection of bilirubin.Results (1 )LPS could stimulate the expression of MyD88 and IRAK-4 in spleen cells (qMyD88 2 h =49.89,qMyD88 5 h =139.54,qIRAK-4 2 h =7.93,qIRAK-4 5 h =24.30,qIRAK-4 24 h =6.97 ,P <0.01 ).(2)Low concentration of bilirubin could promote the expression of MyD88 and inhibit the ex-pression of IRAK-4 (qMyD88 2 h =0.76,qMyD88 5 h =5.05,qIRAK-4 2 h =6.43,qIRAK-4 5 h =22.37,qIRAK-4 24 h =1.50, P <0.01 ).(3)LPS stimulation MyD88 affected by low concentration of bilirubin was not obvious (q2 h =1.48,q5 h =1.45,q24 h =0.10,P >0.05).Effects of medium and high concentration of bilirubin on LPS stim-ulation MyD88 were inhibitory(qⅣb 2 h =42.87,qⅣc 2 h =51.38,qⅣb 5 h =103.61 ,qⅣc 5 h =1 15.44,qⅣb 24 h =1.18,qⅣc 24 h =1 1.66,P <0.01 ).(4)Effects of low,medium and high concentration of bilirubin on LPS stimulation IRAK-4 were inhibitory(qⅣa 2 h =9.52,qⅣb 2 h =14.39,qⅣc 2 h =25.55,qⅣa 5 h =38.83,qⅣb 5 h =54.62,qⅣc 5 h =60.51 ,qⅣa 24 h =2.41 ,qⅣb 24 h =1.47,qⅣc 24 h =7.61 ,P <0.01 ).(5)The inhibition of biliru-bin to MyD88 and IRAK-4 was observed at 2 h,strengthened at 5 h,disappeared at 24 h in low-mid concen-trations of bilirubin(P <0.01 )while still visible at 24 h in high concentration of bilirubin.(6)There was neg-atively correlation between the expression level of MyD88,IRAK-4 and bilirubin concentration(rsMyD88 2 h =-0.86, rsMyD88 5 h =-0.92,rsMyD88 24 h =-0.53,rsIRAK-4 2 h =-0.82,rsIRAK-4 5 h =-0.86,rsIRAK-4 24 h =-0.57,P <0.01).(7) Under the effect of bilirubin and LPS,there were positively correlation between the expression levels of MyD88 and IRAK-4 of spleen cells(r2 h =0.77,r5 h =0.9,r24 h =0.67,P <0.01).Conclusion Bilirubin could inhibit the expression of MyD88 and IRAK-4.As the concentration of bilirubin increasing,its inhibition is more obvious and prolonged.The mechanism that bilirubin affects immune function of newborn rat may be related to regulation of expression of MyD88 and IRAK-4 at toll-like receptor 4 signal pathway.

Aim To investigate the protective effect of compound total flavonoids on atherosclerosis in ApoE -/- knockout mice.Methods Seven-week old C57BL/6 mice considered of the normal group (n =1 5 );seven-week old ApoE -/- mice were fed with high-fat diet and were assigned randomly into 5 groups:model group,simvastatin group,the low com-pound flavonoids group,the middle compound fla-vonoids group and the high compound flavonoids group.After 1 6 weeks,mice serum and aortas were harvested.The formation of atherosclerotic plaque was analyzed by HE staining,The serum level of lipids pro-files and superoxide dismutase (SOD )were deter-rnined.The levels of IL-1 βand NF-κB in serum were detected by ELISA assay.Results Area of atheroscle-rotic lesion was significantly less in the compound fla-vones group than in model.The level of TC,TG,LDL-C,IL-1 β,NF-κB in serum of the compound flavonoids group were decreased significantly,while SOD and HDL-C increased significantly compared with the mod-el group,and the difference was significant (P <0.05).Conclusion The compound flavonoids have a good protective effect on early atherosclerosis in mice, which may be due to its alleviating effects on hyperlipi-demia and inflammation and oxidation.

Objective To evaluate the characteristics of the CT perfusion for severe acute pancreatitis. Methods We performed CT perfusion scan on three groups of 9, 17and 41 cases with severe,mild and normal pancreatitis respectively, using 16 rows spiral CT, and got the perfusion data of the relevant groups including blood flow (BL), blood volume(BV), mean transit time( MTT), capillary permeability(PS)with perfusion package 3. We analize the data deviation between the groups mentioned above. Furthmore, we still adapt correlation test to compare the clinical biochemical indicators of MAP and SAP, with the variance BF. Results The mean values of BF, BV reduce significally in the groups of MAP, SAP compared to thenormal group(P＜0.01 ), only PS goes higher than that of the normal group(P＜0.05). At the same time,they are obviously higher in MAP group than in SAP group. In MAP group, the level of blood hemodiastase and BF are negatively correlated, on the contray, in SAP group, the level of the blood hemodiastase has no relation to BF. Conclusions CT perfusion techniques are of great significance in early diagnosis in SAP, and in guiding the clinical therapy.

Objective To upgrade the satisfactory degree of foreign patients by persistently improving medical treatment quality aboard hospital ship.Methods To choose 3 days and 30 foreign cases who accepted ultramarine medical treatment on hospital ship.All the cases were Pakistani or Bangladeshi.Cases were assigned into 3 kinds of queuing program and investigated the satisfactory degree using self-made questionnaire.The program of highest satisfactory degree was used in the next 3 countries.Results Analysis showed that waiting time for preliminary diagnosis,examination and total waiting time were significantly different between program C and A; waiting time for preliminary diagnosis,examination and total waiting time were significantly different between program B and A,but time for return visit increased in program B compared to that of program A.Degree of satisfaction:70.0％～76.7％ for program A,73.3％～80.0％ for program B,96.7％～100.0％ for program C.Conclusions Program C is the best method to shorten waiting time,improve order and upgrade the satisfactory degree.This research has a significant value in the enhancement of efficiency aboard hospital ship and improvement of foreign patients' satisfactory degree.

Objective To observe the therapeutic effects of balloon dilatation with ice water and room temperature water on cricopharyngeal achalasia after brainstem stroke.Methods Forty dysphagic patients with cricopharyngeal achalasia after brainstem stroke were recruited.Twenty patients assigned to experimental group were treated by balloon dilatation with ice water and low frequency elecrtrical stimulation.Twenty patients assigned to control group were treated by balloon dilatation with room temperature water and low frequency electrical stimulation.Results After treatment,36 out of the 40 patients of the two groups could eat pasty food independently without choking.Videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS) showed that the cricopharyngeal sphincter relaxed and the foods passed successfully when swallowing bolus,and no aspiration happened.In comparison,the level of cricopharyngeal opening,the number of patients with nasogastric tube remained and eating normally,and the scores of functional oral intake scale (FOIS) between the two groups showed no significant difference (P ＞ 0.05).The average treatment sessions,average hospitalization days and average treatment cost in treatment group were significantly less than those in the control group(P ＜0.05).Conclusion Cricopharyngeal achalasia can be treated effectively by balloon dilatation with ice water or with room temperature water combined with low frequency electrical stimulation,but treatment course of balloon dilatation with ice water were significantly shorter than that of balloon dilatation with room temperature water.

Objective To study the prevention and treatment of chylous leakage after Whipple operation.Methods Clinical data of 381 patients underwent Whipple operation from Jan 2010 to march 2013 were retrospectively analyzed.Results Among 381 patients,23 patients had chylous leakage,the incidence was 6.04％.While in 89 patients,in which intraoperative precautionary physical ligation or mattress suturing of the lymphatic vessels were undertaken,no chyle leakage occurred ; Most of chyle leakage occurred in malignant tumor after radical resection(21 patients),most chylous leakage was found 5-8 days after surgery,with daily volume of 260-450 ml.All patients of chylous leakage were cured by conservative treatment.Conclusions Chylous leakage are common in PD.Intraoperative preventive measures such as lymphatic duct ligation or safe suturing can effectively prevent chyle leakage.Conservative therapy heals most chylous leakage after Whipple operation.

Animals ; Extinction, Psychological ; physiology ; Fear ; physiology ; Male ; Mental Recall ; physiology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Sleep Deprivation ; complications ; physiopathology ; Sleep, REM ; physiology

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of near-infrared light combined with tacrolimus 0.1％ ointment in the treatment of facial glucocorticoid-dependent dermatitis.Methods A total of 68 patients with facial glucocorticoid-dependent dermatitis were enrolled from Department of Dermatology of Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital between December 2014 and December 2015,and randomly and equally divided into treatment group and combination group by a random number table.The treatment group was treated topically with tacrolimus ointment twice a day for 4 weeks.Besides the treatment with tacrolimus ointment,the combination group was irradiated with near-infrared light once a week for 4 sessions.After 4-week treatment,improvement in clinical manifestations such as itching and burning sensation was evaluated,so was the therapeutic effect.Results The combination group showed significantly higher response rate (85.3％ [29/34]) compared with the treatment group (61.8％ [21/34],x2 =4.84,P ＜ 0.05).Additionally,response rates for itching and burning sensation,erythema,scales and papules were all significantly higher in the combination group than in the treatment group (x2 =4.84,6.35,8.42 and 5.52,respectively,all P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion Near-infrared light combined with tacrolimus ointment is effective and safe for the treatment of facial glucocorticoid-dependent dermatitis.