Objective To investigate the gender differences of glucose metabolic network in brains of healthy adults at resting state by 18F-FDG PET.Methods A total of 204 dextromanual,healthy individuals (104 males,average age:(53.45±11.51) years;100 females,average age:(54.11±12.09) years) were enrolled from June 2011 to June 2016 to construct brain metabolic networks.The nodal and global parameters,including clustering coefficient (Cp),characteristic path length (Lp) and betweenness centrality (Cb),were analyzed by graph theory.Permutation test with 1 000 repetitions was used.Results The brain metabolic networks derived from 18F-FDG PET data were with small-world properties in both male group and female group.Compared with Cb in females,Cb in males was significantly reduced in left postcentral gyrus,right angular gyrus and left temporal pole/middle temporal gyrus (permutation test,all P<0.05);and it was increased in left amygdala,left precuneus,right temporal pole/middle temporal gyrus and left inferior temporal gyrus (permutation test,all P<0.05).Comparing with the females,the male group had higher Cp and longer absolute Lp but without significant difference (permutation test,all P>0.05).Conclusions There are gender-related differences of topological structure in whole-brain metabolic networks.Gender should be considered as a covariate while designing experiments,accounting for cerebral metabolic data from normal control and experimental patients as well as making clinical decisions.

Objective To explore the value of fascial tail sign at MR images in the detection of nodular fasciitis (NF). Methods A retrospective analysis of MR images was performed in 19 patients with pathologically proven NF of the soft tissue and 53 patients with a variety of other fibrous-predominant tumors. MR manifestations of all cases were reviewed by two experienced musculoskeletal radiologists using a single blind method. The presence of fascial tail on MR images were evaluated. ROC was used to assess the value of fascial tail sign in the detection of NF. Sensitivity, specificity, Youden index and area under ROC curve were calculated. The association between the presence of fascial tail sign on MRI and pathological classification of NF was analyzed by Pearson chi-square test for independence . Results Fascial tail was present in 17 cases (89.5%) of the study group and in 6 cases (11.3%) of the control group, respectively, yielding a sensitivity of 89.5%, a specificity of 88.7%, a Youden index of 0.782 and an area under ROC curve of 0.891. The fascial tail sign was significantly associated with NF (c2=39.294,P<0.05,r=0.594). Conclusions Fascial tail sign at MRI is a moderately specific and sensitive for the diagnosis of NF relative to fibrous-predominant tumors. It can be used in differentiate between NF and aggressive soft tissue tumors.

ObjectiveTo analyze the characteristics of magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging(DTI)and diffusion tensor tractography (DTIT) in patients with cerebral infarction, and explore the diagnosis values and prognosis of diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in patients with cerebral infarction in different stages. Methods58 patients with cerebral infarction in different stages and 25 healthy volunteers were examined by magnetic resonance imaging(MRI), including conventional T1 and T2 weighted imaging, DWI and DTI. Fractional anisotropy (FA) images were reconstructed. The values of FA and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) were measured in the infarcted regions, corresponding contralateral normal regions and corresponding normal regions in normal control group. Results①DWI and DTI showed size of infarction focus was more accurate and clearer than that of conventional MRI; ②The FA and ADC values of the infarcted regions during superacute stage, acute stage, subacute stage and chronic stage were (0.24±0.02, 0.31 ±0.11), (0.20±0.02, 0.32±0.12), (0.18±0.02, 0.34±0.11) and (0.16±0.02, 0.37±0.13), respectively, lower than those in the contralateral corresponding regions which were (0.40±0.03, 0.70±0.21), (0.37±0.03, 0.71±0.21), (0.39±0.03, 0.72±0.22) and (0.40:±0.03, 0.72±0.23), respectively. The differences were statistically significant (P＜0.05). The FA and ADC values had no significant differences between the uninjured sides in patients with cerebral infarction and the corresponding regions in the normal control group (P＞0.05); ③The FA and ADC values in brain tissues changed regularly with the time of infarction after cerebral infarction. The FA values in the affected sides had no consistent changes as compared with the contralateral sides in the superacute stage. They increased or decreased slightly, then (during acute stage, subacute stage and chronic stage) decreased irreversibly. The ADC values in the affected sides changed with time regularly, they decreased significantly, gradually returned to normal, and then increased again. Conclusion DTI and DTT examination contribute to the diagnosis of cerebral infarction. The combination of the FA and ADC values may more accurately conduct clinical staging and evaluate the time of the occurrence of cerebral infarction.

Background and purpose:To date, it mainly depended on imaging examination for detection of residual lesions, recurrence and distant metastasis, evaluation the sensitivity of radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and prognosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Thus, searching for new tumor markers for NPC early diagnosis and individualized treatment is still merited. This study was aimed to investigate the expressions of serum macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-3α and cystatin A in patients with NPC before and after treatment, and to explore two markers’ value in NPC diagnosis, clinicopathological characteristics and clinical outcome assessment. Methods:The serum levels of MIP-3αand cystatin A in 140 primary NPC patients without distant metastasis before and after treatment were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and compared with those in 100 healthy controls. Results:The sensitivity of MIP-3αand cystatin A were 92.1%and 42.1%, respectively;and the specificity of MIP-3αand cystatin A were 86.0%and 85.0%, respectively. All 140 NPC patients had complete remission (CR) or partial remission (PR). Serum levels of MIP-3αand cystatin A in pre-treatment patients with NPC were higher than those in post-treatment patients and controls. Serum MIP-3αand cystatin A levels were associated with overall stage of NPC, and MIP-3αwas also associated with T classification of NPC. The serum MIP-3αlevel in NPC with CR after treatment reduced to the level in control group, and that was still significantly higher in NPC with PR than in control group. No significant difference was found in the serum cystatin A level between NPC with CR or PR after treatment and control group. During 1-year follow-up, the post-treatment serum levels of MIP-3αand cystatin A were significantly higher in patients with distant metastasis than in patients without distant metastasis and controls. There was found statistically significant correlation between MIP-3α and cystatin A.Conclusion:MIP-3α may be a potential marker of NPC serological diagnosis. The detection of serum MIP-3αand cystatin A may contribute to the NPC staging and prediction of short-term clinical outcomes.

Objective Identifying laccases, as one of the key synthetases in the lariciresinol biosynthetic pathway, by analyzing the transcriptome sequencing results in Isatis indigotica would provide a dependable foundation for later functional study of Isatis indigotica′s laccases. Methods Bioinformatical softwares and kinds of analytical methods online were used to find out the characteristics of the laccases from I. indigotica, including physical and chemical properties, homology, and the properties after induction of MeJA. Results The transcriptional results showed that Iilac3 and Iilac5 from I. indigotica were corresponded ith the accumulation of the effective metabolites, making them the potential functional genes participated in lariciresinol synthesis. Conclusion Through the detailed bioinformatical analysis of Iilacs,which laid a solid foundation for the further study of the physiological and biochemical mechanisms and structural characteristics of the functional proteins.

Objective To explore the optimal body size index for the calculation of iodine contrast agent dose required for multiphase liver enhanced CT scans based on the total body weight (TBW),lean body weight (LBW)and body surface area (BSA).Methods Two hundred and twenty enrolled patients were randomly divided into three groups,TBW-group (n＝75),LBW-group (n＝72)and BSA-group (n＝73),and administrated iodine doses were 600 mg I/TBW(kg),780 mg I/LBW(kg)and 22 g I/BSA(m2 ),respectively.All patients had taken upper abdominal plain scans and triple-phase enhanced CT scans.The enhanced values (ΔHU)of the aorta at hepatic arterial phase (HAP),the portal vein and liver parenchyma at portal venous phase (PVP)were compared.The correlation coefficients of adjusted maximal hepatic enhancement(aMHE)with TBW,LBW and BSA in three groups were evaluated,respectively.Results There were no statistical differences in the ΔHU values of the aorta at HAP and the portal vein and liver parenchyma at PVP in the three groups respectively.The smallest variances of the aorta at HAP,the portal vein and liver parenchyma at PVP were found in the LBW group. The aMHE showed mildly positive correlation with TBW (r＝0.230)with a P value of 0.047,but it was consistent with LBW (r＝0.158)and BSA (r＝－0.1 54)with corresponding P values of 0.1 85 and 0.1 9 2 ,respectively.Conclusion Compared with TBW and BSA,iodine contrast agent dose calculated based on the patient’s LBW can improve the patient-to-patient uniformities on aorta,portal vein and liver enhancement during the liver multiphase enhanced CT scans.The LBW is the best body index for the calculation of iodine dose on liver enhanced CT scans.

OBJECTIVE： To analyze the regularity and characteristics of ADE induced by Tanreqing injection， and to lay the foundation for ADE mechanism study. METHODS： Using “Tanreqing injection” and “ADE” as keywords， the literatures about ADE induced by Tanreqing injection were retrieved from CJFD， VIP， CBM and Wanfang database during Jan. 1st， 2014 to Oct. 30th， 2018. Patient’s gender， age， drug allergy history， primary diseases， drug dosage， solvent， organs or systems involved， main clinical manifestation of ADE， occurrence time， drug combination were all analyzed statistically. RESULTS： A total of 126 literatures were included， involving 1 577 patients. There were 906 male （57.45％） and 671 female （42.55％）； the age ranged from 6 months to 98 years old， of which 625 cases （39.63％） were aged from 0 to 10 years. Among 1 577 patients， primary diseases of 537 patients were recorded and mainly were bronchitis and pneumonia （323 cases， 60.15％）. Drug dosages of 687 patients were recorded， among which there were 612 cases of normal dose （89.08％）， 75 cases of off-label dose （10.92％）. 779 cases of solvent （mainly containing 5％ Glucose injection or 0.9％ Sodium chloride injection， 715 cases， 91.78％）. 1 960 case times of ADE were recorded， mainly including lesion of skin and its appendents （930 case times， 47.45％）， followed by systemic response （231 case times， 11.79％）， digestive system （221 case times， 11.28％） and cardiovascular system （220 case times， 11.22％）. Occurrence time of ADE was recorded in 1 172 cases， mainly 10-30 min after medication （434 cases）. Detailed drug use was recorded in 1 356 patients， among which there were 521 cases of drug combination， mainly containing antibiotics， followed by TCM injection for clearing away heat and toxic material and antiviral drugs， etc. CONCLUSIONS： Attention should be paid to ADE induced by Tanreqing injection. On the one hand， ADE monitoring should be strengthened to summarize， analyze and evaluate ADE； on the other hand， attention should be paied when patients have above situations， so as to promote rational and effective clinical measures and to ensure drug safety of patients.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of height (HT), total body weight (TBW), body mass index (BMI), lean body weight (LBW), body surface area (BSA) and blood volume (BV) on aortic and liver contrast enhancement during upper abdominal contrast-enhanced CT scans. Methods: One hundred and thirteen enrolled patients underwent upper abdominal multiphase contrast-enhanced CT scans. The enhancement (ΔHU) of aorta in hepatic arterial phase and liver parenchyma in portal venous phase were measured and calculated. The ΔHU values difference of aorta and liver parenchyma in subgroups between males and females, TBW<60 kg and TBW≥60 kg, BMI<25 kg/m² and BMI≥25 kg/m² were compared. To evaluate the effect of the patient′s body parameters on aortic and hepatic enhancement, we performed simple linear regression analyses between the change in CT numbers per gram of iodine (ΔHU/gI) at aorta and liver and each of the following: HT, TBW, BMI, LBW, BSA, and BV. Pearson and t test were used. Results: The mean ΔHU values of aorta and liver were significantly lower at males than that of at females (P<0.05). They were higher at TBW<60 kg patients than at TBW≥60 kg patients(P<0.05), and the mean ΔHU values of the liver at BMI<25 kg/m² patients were significantly higher than at BMI≥25 kg/m² patients(P<0.05). The proportion of the ΔHU values at liver less than 50 HU was higher at males (18.3%, 11/60) than at females (7.5%, 4/53). The most obvious negative correlation coefficients were found between the ΔHU/gI of aorta and LBW at hepatic arterial phase (r=-0.559, P<0.01), and between the ΔHU/gI of liver and BSA at portal venous phase (r=-0.680, P<0.01). Conclusion LBW or BSA could be the alternative body index to TBW for the calculation of personalized iodine dose protocol at aortic and liver enhanced CT scans.

Lignans are a powerful weapon for plants to resist stresses and have diverse bioactive functions to protect human health. Elucidating the mechanisms of stereoselective biosynthesis and response to stresses of lignans is important for the guidance of plant improvement. Here, we identified the complete pathway to stereoselectively synthesize antiviral (-)-lariciresinol glucosides in Isatis indigotica roots, which consists of three-step sequential stereoselective enzymes DIR1/2, PLR, and UGT71B2. DIR1 was further identified as the key gene in respoJanuary 2024nse to stresses and was able to trigger stress defenses by mediating the elevation in lignan content. Mechanistically, the phytohormone-responsive ERF transcription factor LTF1 colocalized with DIR1 in the cell periphery of the vascular regions in mature roots and helped resist biotic and abiotic stresses by directly regulating the expression of DIR1. These systematic results suggest that DIR1 as the first common step of the lignan pathway cooperates with PLR and UGT71B2 to stereoselectively synthesize (-)-lariciresinol derived antiviral lignans in I. indigotica roots and is also a part of the LTF1-mediated regulatory network to resist stresses. In conclusion, the LTF1-DIR1 module is an ideal engineering target to improve plant Defenses while increasing the content of valuable lignans in plants.