Objective To observe the dynamic changes of NO,NOS in serum and CSF in patients with CNS infection and lay an experimental basis for discrimination of CNS infection due to different agents.Methods The method of nitrate redutase and the method of chromometry were employed to measure NO,NOS in serum and CSF at different time.The dynamic changes of NO,NOS in serum were observed on admission,on 3,5,9,14 day after admission.The dynamic changes of NO,NOS in CSF before treatment and two weeks after treatment were ob- served,too.Results There were no difference between the the concentration of NO and the vigor of total NOS in serum and in CSF of viral meningitis,bacterial meningitis and tubercular meningitis patients due to different agents. Conclusion The changes of the concentration of NO in serum and CSF,the vigor of total NOS in serum and CSF could not he seen as laboratory basis for discrimination of CNS infection due to different agents.

OBJECTIVETo summarize lessons learned from an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in China during the spring of 2004.

METHODSData of SARS cases were officially reported by Beijing Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (BCDC) and Anhui Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention (APCDC) and results of epidemiological investigations were collected and analyzed.

RESULTSThree generations of 11 cases of SARS were identified during the outbreak. Initial two cases were most likely to be infected in Diarrhea Virus Laboratory of National Institute of Virology, China Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and main mode of transmission was direct contact with SARS patients. Delay in detecting initial case resulted in spread of the illness at hospitals and communities with two generations of secondary cases.

CONCLUSIONSSARS outbreak in 2004 has yielded following lessons for public health globally. (1) Lab bio-safety programs should be made and should be strictly abided by. Studies in highly pathogenic viruses such as SARS coronavirus should be utmost cautious. (2) Management systems of occupational exposure to virus and disease surveillance need to be strengthened to take all risk factors into account so as to detect potential patients with infectious disease as early as possible.

China ; epidemiology ; Disease Outbreaks ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Occupational Exposure ; prevention & control ; Occupational Health ; Retrospective Studies ; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; transmission

BACKGROUNDThe RhoA/Rho kinase pathway may participate in the pathogenesis of hypoxia and monocrotaline induced pulmonary hypertension. This study tested whether RhoA/Rho kinase pathway is involved in the pathogenesis of high flow induced pulmonary hypertension in rats.

METHODSMale Wistar rats (4 weeks) were randomly divided into 4 shunt groups, 4 treated groups and 4 control groups. Shunt and treated groups underwent left common carotid artery/external jugular vein shunt operation. Control groups underwent sham operation. Treated groups received fasudil treatment and the others received same dose of saline. At weeks 1, 2, 4 and 8 of the study, right ventricular systolic pressure was measured and blood gases were analysed to calculate Qp/Qs. The weight ratio of right ventricle to left ventricle plus septum and the mean percentage of medial wall thickness in moderate sized pulmonary arteries were obtained. RhoA activity in pulmonary arteries was detected using Rho activity assay reagent. Rho kinase activity was quantified by the extent of MYPT1 phosphorylation with Western blot. Proliferating cells were evaluated using proliferating cell nuclear antigen immunohistological staining.

RESULTSCarotid artery/jugular vein shunt resulted in high pulmonary blood flow, both an acute and a chronic elevation of right ventricular systolic pressure, significant medial wall thickening characterized by smooth muscle cells proliferation, right ventricular hypertrophy and increased activation of RhoA and Rho kinase. Fasudil treatment lowered pulmonary artery systolic pressure, suppressed pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells proliferation, attenuated pulmonary artery medial wall thickening and inhibited right ventricular hypertrophy together with significant suppression of Rho kinase activity but not Rho activity.

CONCLUSIONSActivated RhoA/Rho kinase pathway is associated with both the acute pulmonary vasoconstriction and the chronic pulmonary artery remodelling of high flow induced pulmonary hypertension. Fasudil treatment could improve pulmonary hypertension by inhibiting Rho kinase activity.

1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine ; analogs & derivatives ; therapeutic use ; Animals ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Enzyme Activation ; drug effects ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; drug therapy ; etiology ; Hypertrophy, Right Ventricular ; prevention & control ; Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins ; antagonists & inhibitors ; physiology ; Male ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; drug effects ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors ; therapeutic use ; Protein-Serine-Threonine Kinases ; antagonists & inhibitors ; physiology ; Pulmonary Artery ; pathology ; Pulmonary Circulation ; drug effects ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Systole ; drug effects ; Vasoconstriction ; drug effects ; rho-Associated Kinases ; rhoA GTP-Binding Protein ; physiology

OBJECTIVETo study the prevalence of different types of neural tube defects (NTDs) in Luliang Prefecture, Shanxi province, where the prevalence of NTDs is unusually high and the correlation between NTDs prevalence and patterns.

METHODSA surveillance population-based birth defects was performed in Luliang Prefecture, Shanxi province.

RESULTSThe results of our study showed that the prevalence of NTDs was 2-fold higher in Luliang Prefecture than in other areas of Shanxi province. Unusual patterns of NTDs were found, however, multiple NTDs were relatively common in Luliang Prefecture, accounting for over 13% of all NTDs cases in China.

CONCLUSIONThe prevalence of NTDs is associated with its patterns.

Child, Preschool ; China ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Neural Tube Defects ; classification ; epidemiology ; Risk Factors