Anti-tyrosinase assay guided isolation of marine-derived fungus Botrytis sp.led to separation of three ?-pyrone compounds.The structures of these compounds were elucidated by various physicochemical analytical methods.The bioactivities of these ?-pyrone derivatives were evaluated in terms of anti-tyrosinase activity.By correlating the bioactivities of these compounds with their structures,it concluded that the ?-pyrone with pentyl group gives highest anti-tyrosinase activity.

Objective To study the comprehensive quality of pre-hospital care of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in our country,and the factors affecting the efficiency of medical intervention of pre-hospital care.Methods An epidemiological investigation with target population-based cross-sectional study was carried out,and specifically designed questionnaire for determining the efficiency of pre-hospital care of patients with ACS was used to collect information of 272 patients from 13 emergency pre-hospital care centers.Results After analysis of the data from 13 majormedical centers,it could be classified into 4 patterns of pre-hospital care,namely directive pattern,pre-hospital pattern,dependent pattern and independent pattern.The results of analysis showed that the distance for ambulance driving in directive pattern was shorter than that in dependent pattern,but the call-response in directive pattern was quicker than that in pre-hospital pattern and dependent pattern,while the call-arrival time in directive pattern was longer than that in independent pattern and dependent pattern.The analysis of the on-site preliminary treatment in four patterns of pre-hospital care showed that there were differences in the establishment of intravenous access,aspirin,nitrate and ECG ( P ＜ 0.05 ).The total effective rate of pre-hospital care for ACS was 48％,while effective rate of independent pattern reached 70％.Factors affecting therapeutic effect on ACS resulting in better outcomes included pre-hospital pattern ( OR =4.097 ),directive pattern ( OR =5.158 ),and use of nitrate ( OR =3.045 ) and oral administration of medicine ( OR =8.215 ). Conclusions Independent pre-hospital pattern had the best therapeutic effect in the pre-hospital care of patients with ACS,and pre-hospital pattern had the best on-site preliminary disposal.Use of nitrate and oral administration of medicine showed the best benefit to the therapeutic effect.

Objective: To study the relation between hyperglycemia and mechanical ventilatory time, the days in the intensive care unit,infection rate,mortality . Methods: 572 patients' blood glucose levels in the morning were measured,and divided into two groups by the level of 7.78 mmol/L.The mechanical ventilatory time, days in the intensive care unit,infection rate and mortality were compared between two groups. Results: The mechanical time,stay in ICU and infection rate in the group with blood glucose level below 7.78 mmol/L were significantly less than in the group with blood glucose level above 7.78 mmol/L(P

Human papillomavirus-related diseases are worldwide,what more,they may progress into benign or malignant tumors.On the other hand,through antinomy analytical method,scientists have modified E6 and E7 dialectically and make them the core of the HPV therapeutic vaccine, which can speedup the clean out of the virus.

No abstract available.
Epidermal Cyst*

Objective Adopting serology assay-fluorescent antibody to membrane antigen (FAMA) as "gold standard" , sero-prevalence status of varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection was investigated, in Guangzhou. Methods FAMA test was established with VZV infected human embryo fibroblasts as antigens and fluorescein isothiocyanate(FITC) labeled goat anti-human IgG as the secondary antibody. Sensitivity and specificity of the assay were evaluated. The sero-prevalence of anti-VZV IgG in 592 serum specimens randomly collected from a clinical laboratory, was analyzed with FAMA. Results Data from FAMA test showed no cross-reaction with other Herpesviruses when it was used to detect VZV antibodies. The overall prevalence of VZV antibody was 76.52%. Age-specific prevalence rates of VZV antibody in different age groups as: 1-3, 4-6, 7-13, 14-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, ≥50, were found to be 14.67%, 51.56%, 73.91%, 91.26%, 92.78%, 95.65%, 98.11% and 100%, respectively.The sero-prevalence of 1-3 age group appeared the lowest but rose sharply with the increase of age but showing no association with gender. Conclusion Our data indicated that VZV infection occurred in early childhood, in Guangzhou, suggesting that the primary recipients of VZV vaccine should be under the 1-3 age group. Additional subjects for vaccination would be children above 3 years old with no history of VZV infection, and serology test negative for VZV. The assay was validated by its excellent specificity and could be used as the first choice in the detection of protective antibodies against VZV infection.

BACKGROUNDMany studies have shown that positive surgical margin and biochemical recurrence could impact the life of patients with prostate cancer treated with radical prostatectomy. With more and more patients with prostate cancer appeared in recent 20 years in China, it is necessary to investigate the risk of positive surgical margin and biochemical recurrence, and their possible impact on the prognosis of patients treated with radical prostatectomy. In this study, we analyzed the characteristics of patients with prostate cancer who had undergone radical prostatectomy in Macau area and tried to find any risk factor of positive surgical margin and biochemical recurrence and their relationship with the prognosis of these patients.

METHODSFrom 2000 to 2009, 149 patients with prostate cancer received radical prostatectomy and were followed up. Among these patients, 111 received retropubic radical prostatectomies, 38 received laparoscopic radical prostatectomies. All patients were followed-up on in the 3rd month, 6th month and from that point on every 6 months after operation. At each follow-up a detailed record of any complaint, serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA), full biochemical test and uroflowmetry was acquired.

RESULTSThe average age was (69.0 ± 6.1) years, preoperative average serum PSA was (10.1 ± 12.1) ng/ml and average Gleason score was 6.4 ± 1.3. The incidence of total complications was about 47.7%, the incidence of the most common complication, bladder outlet obstruction, was about 26.8%, and that of the second most common complication, urinary stress incontinence, was about 16.1% (mild 9.4% and severe 6.7%). The incidence of positive surgical margin was about 38.3%. The preoperative serum PSA ((13.4 ± 17.6) ng/ml), average Gleason score (7.1 ± 1.3) and pathological T stage score (7.0 ± 1.4) were higher in patients with positive surgical margins than those with negative margins ((8.0 ± 5.8) ng/ml, 6.0 ± 1.2 and 5.4 ± 1.4, respectively) (P = 0.004, P = 0.001 and P = 0.001, respectively). A univariate analysis showed that positive surgical margin had a positive statistical association with serum PSA (P = 0.007), Gleason score (P < 0.001), pathological T stage score (P < 0.001) and biochemical recurrence (BCR) (P = 0.035). The most common location of a positive surgical margin was in the apex of the prostate, which was about 63% (36/57). Sixty-four percent (23/36) of patients with positive surgical margin in apex were also involved in prostate lobe; other locations were prostate lobe (23%, 13/57), seminal vesicle (9%, 5/57). The multivariate analysis showed that positive surgical margin had a positive statistical association with Gleason score (P = 0.03) and pathological T stage score (P = 0.02). Neither univariate analysis or multivariate analysis showed any statistical relationship between BCR and any other risk factors covered in this study.

CONCLUSIONSPositive surgical margin is associated with pre-operative PSA, Gleason score, pathological T stage and biochemical recurrence. Earlier diagnosis and improved techniques of dissection of prostate apex could decrease the incidence of positive surgical margins.

Aged ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; blood ; Prostatectomy ; methods ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; blood ; pathology ; surgery ; Risk Factors

BACKGROUNDIncidence of prostate cancer has been increasing in recent decades. In the year 2005, prostate cancer became the second most common cancer in males in Macau. The purpose of this report was to review and summarize the clinical features and prognosis of the 54 patients undergoing radical prostatectomy in Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR), China.

METHODSFrom November 2000 to November 2006, retropubic radical prostatectomy were performed in 54 cases for the treatment of prostate cancer. The mean age of patients was 69.8 years (range from 54 to 79). The preoperative prostate specific antigen (PSA) level, postoperative pathologic stage and Gleason's score, operation duration, intraoperative bleeding and intraoperative and postoperative complications were reported. The follow-up duration was 3 months to 6.25 years with a mean of 2.1 years. Postoperative parameters including PSA alteration, biochemical recurrence, local recurrence, distant metastasis and mortality were observed.

RESULTSMost of the patients in our study were diagnosed as localized prostate cancer. The patients' preoperative serum PSA was 0-4.0 ng/ml (16.7%), 4.0-10.0 ng/ml (51.8%), 10.1-20.0 ng/ml (24.1%) and above 20.0 ng/ml (7.4%). The TNM stage T1a+T1b comprised 7.6% of patients, stage T2a+T2b comprised 20.3%, stage T2c 38.9%, stage T3a 20.3% and over T3a only 12.9%. There were 9.5% cases with Gleason scores of 2-4, 41.5% with scores of 5-6, 30.2% with scores of 7 and 18.8% with scores of 8 - 10. The average operative duration was 216 minutes and the average intraoperative bleeding was 760 ml. Intraoperative complications included one massive hemorrhage (1.9%), one rectal injury (1.9%) and one obturator nerve injury (1.9%). Early postoperative complications consisted of urinary incontinence (14 cases, 25.9%), bladder neck stricture (5 cases, 9.3%), acute urinary retention (4 cases, 7.4%), pelvic effusion (2 cases, 3.8%), lymphocele (1 case, 1.9%) and vesicorectal fistula (only 1 case, 1.9%). For late postoperative complications, total incontinence or severe incontinence occurred in 6 cases (11.1%), urge incontinence in 2 cases (3.8%) and bladder neck contracture in 8 cases (14.8%). The total postoperative recurrence rate was 14.8%. Only 5 cases of biochemical recurrence were noted (9.3%). One case (1.9%) of local recurrence associated with elevated PSA was found. There were 2 cases of distant metastasis with elevated PSA (3.8%).

CONCLUSIONRadical prostatectomy is a safe and effective method for the treatment of localized prostate cancer in Macau.

Aged ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Postoperative Complications ; epidemiology ; Prostatectomy ; adverse effects ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; surgery

Numerous studies have shown that adenosine or adenosine agonists can stimulate angiogenesis. However, the effect of caffeine (a known adenosine receptor antagonist) on angiogenesis has not been previously studied. Accordingly, this study was undertaken to examine the effect of caffeine on angiogenesis and to clarify the mechanism involved. Chick chorioallantoic membrane assays were used to investigate the effect of caffeine on angiogenesis and proliferation assays using human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), were used to study its effects on specific aspects of angiogenesis. The expressions of caspase-3 and Bcl-2 were examined by western blotting, immunofluorescence staining was used to identify HUVEC morphological changes, and fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) and DAPI staining were used to detect HUVEC apoptosis. Caffeine was found to inhibit blood vessel formation dose-dependently and to inhibit the proliferation of HUVECs time- and dose-dependently. FACS analysis and DAPI staining showed that inhibitory effect of caffeine on HUVEC proliferation was the result of apoptosis and the up-regulation of thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1). Furthermore, TSP-1 levels were down-regulated by NECA but were unaffected by CGS21680, indicating that caffeine regulated TSP-1 expression via adenosine A2B receptor. In addition, caffeine up-regulated caspase-3 and down-regulated Bcl-2 at the protein level. These results suggest that the inhibitory effect of caffeine on angiogenesis is associated, at least in part, with its induction of endothelial cell apoptosis, probably mediated by a caspase-3 dependent mechanism.
Adenosine ; Adenosine-5'-(N-ethylcarboxamide) ; Apoptosis ; Blood Vessels ; Blotting, Western ; Caffeine ; Caspase 3 ; Chorioallantoic Membrane ; Endothelial Cells ; Flow Cytometry ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Glycosaminoglycans ; Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells ; Indoles ; Phenethylamines ; Receptor, Adenosine A2B ; Receptors, Purinergic P1 ; Thrombospondin 1 ; Up-Regulation

Curcumin is naturally occurring polyphenolic compound found in turmeric and has many pharmacological activities. The present study was undertaken to evaluate anti-allergic inflammatory activity of curcumin, and to investigate its inhibitory mechanisms in immunoglobulin E (IgE)/Ag-induced mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs) and in a mouse model of IgE/Ag-mediated passive systemic anaphylaxis (PSA). Curcumin inhibited cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) dependent prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) dependent leukotriene C4 (LTC4) generation dose-dependently in BMMCs. To probe the mechanism involved, we assessed the effects of curcumin on the phosphorylation of Syk and its downstream signal molecules. Curcumin inhibited intracellular Ca2+ influx via phospholipase Cgamma1 (PLCgamma1) activation and the phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and the nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) pathway. Furthermore, the oral administration of curcumin significantly attenuated IgE/Ag-induced PSA, as determined by serum LTC4, PGD2, and histamine levels. Taken together, this study shows that curcumin offers a basis for drug development for the treatment of allergic inflammatory diseases.
Administration, Oral ; Anaphylaxis* ; Animals ; Arachidonate 5-Lipoxygenase ; Curcuma ; Curcumin* ; Cyclooxygenase 2 ; Histamine* ; Immunoglobulin E ; Immunoglobulins* ; Leukotriene C4 ; Mast Cells* ; Mice* ; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases ; Phospholipases ; Phosphorylation ; Prostaglandin D2