BACKGROUND:The patients with porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns who do examination of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can cause artifacts. In recent years, researching for MRI artifacts of different porcelain-fused-to-metal materials has been some progress, but there are less quantitatively reports on the MRI artifacts of different porcelain-fused-to-metal materials.
OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the artifact sizes shown on fast spin-echo T 2-weighted sequence caused by different kinds of porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns.
METHODS:Forty-eight lower right first molar crown patients who had MRI examination in MRI room were enrol ed. The patients were divided into nickel-chromium al oy group, cobalt-chromium al oy group and titanium crown group. Al patients were examined with fast spin-echo T 2-weighted sequences by means of 1.5 T MRI apparatus. MRI artifacts areas of same sequence on the MRI images of different porcelain-fused-to-metal materials were analyzed with variance test.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Forty-five cases appearing to have high signal samples with clearly curved boundary zone that can be measured were selected, 15 cases for each material. Different artifact sizes were produced on the same sequence of different porcelain-fused-to-metal materials, which were (321.67±33.29) mm in the nickel-chromium al oy group, (263.53±34.95) mm2 in the cobalt-chromium al oy group, and (143.67±31.13) mm2 in the titanium crown group. There were significant differences between groups (P<0.05). The artifact size is smal est for the titanium crown and largest for the nickel-chromium al oy crown.

Objective To investigate the role of SCF on neuronal apoptosis induced by diabetes and its possible mechanism.Methods Twenty-seven male C57 mice were randomly divided into control group,diabetes group,and diabe-tes plus stem cell factor(SCF)group.The diabetic mice were induced by streptozotocin.TUNEL staining was used to assess neuronal apoptosis and western blot were used to detect the protein level of BCL-2,BAX,CASPASE 3 and P-ERK/ERK.Results Compared with the controls,the number of apoptotic neuron death and the protein levels of active CASPASE 3 were significantly increased in the cortex of diabetic mice.Treatment with SCF significantly reduced apoptotic neuron death and attenuated the increased in protein levels of active CASPASE 3 in the cortex of diabetic mice.The levels of BCL-2 and BAX were significantly increased in the diabetic animals compared to the controls.Treatment with SCF could significantly attenuated the increase in the expression of BAX but could not affect the level of BCL-2 in the cortex of diabetic mice.P-ERK was significantly decreased in the diabete group but not in dibete plus SCF group.Conclusions SCF can protect a-gainst diabete-induced apoptotic neuron death through increasing the phosphorylation of ERK and influencing the expression of BCL-2/BAX.

Objective To observe curative effect of Ningdong granules on tourette syndrome (TS) concomitant with sleep disorder in children.Methods Eighty-three cases were diagnosed by diagnosis and statistics of mental-disorder (DSMIV) TS criterion and diagnostic standard of traditional Chinese medicine,and then were divided into 3 groups:tiapride hydrochloride group (n =25),Ningdong granules group (n =30) and tiapride hydrochloride plus Ningdong granules group (n =28).Yale global tic severity scale (YGTSS) and Athens insomnia scale (Athens) were used for rating the clinical efficacy before and after treatment.The enrolled children were treated for a period of three months.Results The therapeutic effective rate of TS in tiapride hydrochloride group,Ningdong granules group and tiapride hydrochloride plus Ningdong granules group was 92.0％,90.0％ and 96.4％,respectively.The therapeutic effective rate of sleep disorder was 84.0％,93.3％ and 96.4％,respectively.Mter treatment,YGTSS and Athens scores were significantly changed in all three groups (P ＜ 0.05).Athens score was significantly different between tiapride hydrochloride plus Ningdong granules group and tiapride hydrochloride group (P ＜ 0.05).The total number of adverse reactions was 16,1 and 8,with significant difference (P ＜ 0.01).Conclusion Curative effect of Ningdong granules is similar to that of tiapride hydrochloride on treating TS,but Ningdong granules is more effective than tiapride hydrochloride on treating sleep disorder with less adverse reactions.Combination therapy of Ningdong granules with tiapride hydrochloride is the better choice for treating TS with sleep disorder,and it can also reduce the incidence of adverse reactions of tiapride hydrochloride.

Objective To evaluate the effect of maternal separation stress on the behavior of neonatal rd mice.Methods Neonatal rd mice were divided into maternal separation (MS) group (n=9) and control group (n=9).MS-stress was induced in the MS group by 4-hour-separation per day for 28 days.Open field test,elevated plus maze test,forced swim test and tail suspension test were used to evaluate the anxiety-like and depression-like behavior of the neonatal rd mice.Results The stay time and distance travelled of MS group in the central zone were 0.88％ and 28.17±5.65 cm,respectively,significantly shorter than that of the control group (2.61％,109.9±9.79 cm.P =0.04,P =0.001).Compared with the control group,the stay time in open arms of the MS group was significantly decreased (P<0.01),while the immobility time in forced swim test and tail suspension test of the MS group were 126.5±10.22 s and 21.56±6.83 s,significantly longer than that of the control group (77.75±16.83 s,P =0.02,7.37±3.22 s,P =0.03).Conclutions The 28-day maternal separation stress can significantly increase the anxiety-like and depression-like behavior in neonatal rd mice.

Background The light damage model of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells is a research direction of retinal degeneration diseases,and RPE cell apoptosis induced by light damage and inflammation is an important pathologic basis of light-induced RPE cell damage.However,whether endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) paticipates in light-induced RPE cell damage is rarely reported.Objective This study was to explore the effects of ERS on light-induced RPE cell damage.Methods Human RPE cell line (ARPE-19) was cuhured,and light damage models were created by irradiating the cells for 3-,6-,12-and 24-hours with white fluorescent lamp with the intensity of (2 000±500)lx for the selection of optimal irradiating time,and the cells in the normal control group were cultured in the dark environment.The cells were divided into normal control group,light exposure group and 4-phenylb utyric acid (4-PBA) pretreated +light exposure group.The cells from 4-PBA pretreated +light exposure group were cultued firstly with 4-PBA for 30 minutes and followed by light exposure for 12 hours.The apoptisis rate of the cells and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) content were detected by flow cytometry;the concentrations of interleukin 1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in the cell supernatant were assyed by ELISA.The relative expressing levels of activating transcription factor 6 (ATF-6),C/enhancer binding protein homologous protein (CHOP) and caspase-12 mRNA and protein in the cells were detected by real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot,respectively.Results The cultured cells showed a long spindle shape,the border was not clear,the cytoplasm was degranulation,and the cell fragments increased.Flow cytometry showed that compared with the normal control group,the ROS content in the cells and the apoptosis rate were evidently increased with the lapse of light exposure time (F=763.00,119.30,both at P＜0.01).ELISA results showed that the concentrations of IL-1β and TNF-α in the cell supernatant were significantly higher in the light exposure 6-hour group than those in the normal control group with the peak value in the light exposure 12-hour group.Compared with the normal control group,the relative expression levels of ATF-6,CHOP and caspase-12 mRNA and protein in the cells were elevated in the light exposure group and peaked in the light exposure 12-hour group.In addition,the relative expression levels of ATF-6 mRNA,CHOP mRNA and caspase-12 mRNA in the cells were significantly reduced in 4-PBA pretreated+light exposure group compared with the light exposure group (F=281.69,473.88,308.45,all at P＜0.01),and their proteins were also significantly reduced (F =47.86,57.93,106.59,all at P ＜ 0.01).The apoptosis rate,concentrations of IL-1β and TNF-α in the cell supernatant were significantly reduced in 4-PBA pretreated+light exposure group compared with the light exposure group (F =88.64,245.47,101.01,all at P＜0.01).Conclusions The light exposure at (2 000 ± 500)lx induces intracellular ROS accumulation and activates the ERS response,which results in apoptosis and inflammatory process of human RPE cells.4-PBA,a inhibitor of ERS,can suppress light-induced ERS response and therefore reduces the apoptosis rate and inhibits inflammatory process.

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the economics of azithromycin vs. amocillin clavulante in the treatment of lower respirato-ry tract infections. METHODS:System evaluation was adopted to retrieve the randomized controlled trials(RCT)about azithromy-cin(test group)vs. amoxicillin clavulanate(control group)in the treatment of lower respiratory tract infections. Information was col-lected and Meta-analyses were performed. On this basis and short-term decision tree model,cost factors were added to conduct the pharmacoeconomics by the principle of PICO of Treeage Pro 2011 edition software. RESULTS:Totally 18 RCT were enrolled,in-volving 3 365 patients. Results of Meta-analysis showed that there were no significant differences in the effective rate [RR=0.93, 95%CI(0.55,1.55),P=0.77] and incidence of adverse reactions [RR=0.79,95%CI(0.62,1.0),P=0.05] between 2 groups. The av-erage treatment cost in test group and control group was respectively 790.4 yuan and 884.4 yuan,and cost-effectiveness ratio was respectively 216.0 and 245.7,and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio(ICER)was -1 392.59. CONCLUSIONS:Azithromycin has similar efficacy and safety to amoxicillin clavulanate in the treatment of lower respiratory tract infection,however,azithromy-cin has better cost-effectiveness.

Objective To optimize the extraction process of anti-hepatic fibrosis water-soluble component from Carthamus tinctorius L. via the orthogonal method. Methods The influences of type and content of solvent,extraction time,and extraction frequency on processing were investigated by assessing the content of hydroxysafflor yellow A,yield of extraction and anti-hepatic fibrosis potency via the high performance liquid chromatography and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay by L9(3)4 orthogonal test. Results The optimum extracting condition for the anti-hepatic fibrosis water-soluble component from carthamus tinctorius L. was as follows: extracting with 10 times the volume of 10% ethanol for twice, 0. 5 h in each. Conclusion The process is scientific and feasible, which serves as a guideline for the production of the anti-hepatic fibrosis water-soluble components.

Objective To investigate the possible correlation of the clinical parameters, such as age, obesity, Epworth sleepiness score (ESS), with the severity of snoring and obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS). Methods One hundred and forty-eight patients with snoring during sleep admitted from May to Jul. 2008 were asked to answer the questions from a questionnaire concerning snoring, daytime sleepiness, and habits such as smoking and drinking, etc. All patients underwent at least a polysomnography (PSG) and the physical examination included height, weight, and body mass index (BMI). Age, BMI, the lowest SaO_2(%), ESS score, the biggest reduction of oxygen (%), a total suspension of time, the average correlation between respiratory disorder index (RDI) applied computing Pearson correlation test. Simple snoring and OSAHS group of mild, moderate and severe inter-group comparison analysis using generalized linear models. Results The prevalence of OSAHS was increased with age, higher in males than in females. A statistically significant correlation between ESS, BMI, the lowest SaO_2 with the RDI was detected. The difference of ESS, the lowest SaO_2 and the BMI was significant between the different serious patients (P<0.05). Conclusions OSAHS has a high morbidity rate in outpatients with snoring. Age and obesity are liability factors of OSAHS. BMI, the lowest SaO_2, ESS and RDI have well correlationship, which can be used to assess the pathogenetic condition, even make a primary diagnosis.

Objective To improve the understanding of the characteristics of obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) in the elderly patients, and to improve the diagnosis and treatment level. Methods Monitoring results of polysomnography (PSG) from 110 elderly OSAHS patients were analyzed retrospectively. The general conditions, sleep architecture, apnea and hypopnea events, oxygen reduction as well as possible correlations between various indicators were analyzed using SPSS18.0 statistical software. Results The median rapid eye movement (REM) and non-REM (NREM) sleep time of elderly patients with OSAHS accounted for 2. 17% and 76.73%,respectively. The median arousal index was 45.6 times/h. The longest time of sleep apnea was (51.94±22.06) s, the median of average sleep apnea time was 22.50 s, the longest time of hypopnea was (47.06±12.52) s and the average hypopnca time was (21.50±4.63) s. The median respiratory disturbance index (RDI) of all patients was 21.50, the patients with RDI between 5 and 20 accounted for 46.40%, with RDI between 20 and 40 accounted for 31.80% and with RDI over 40 accounted for 21.8%. The average oxygen saturation accounted for (93.45% ± 2.81%), the lowest oxygen saturation accounted for (76.3%± 10. 5%) and the median oxygen desaturation index was 31.6;times/h. BMI was negatively correlated with lowest oxygen saturation (r=-0. 378, P＜0.01) and average oxygen saturation ( r = - 0. 355, P ＜ 0. 01 ), while was positively correlated with oxygen desaturation index (r=0. 338, P＜0. 01 ). The lowest oxygen saturation was negatively correlated with the longest time of obstructive apnea (r= -0. 47, P＜0. 01 ), the average time of obstructive apnea (r=-0.316, P＜0.01), the longest time of hypopnea (r=-0.293, P＜0.01) and the average time of hypopnea (r=-0. 277, P＜0.01). The median time intervals of oxygen desaturation during supine, left side and right side position were 2.36 min, 11.54 min and 12.45 min,respectively. The median time intervals of oxygen desaturation during left side and right side position were both longer than that of supine position (Z= -6.12 and -7. 10 respectively, both P＜0.01).Conclusions Elderly patients with OSAHS manifest obvious disorder of sleep structural and sleep fragmentation. According to RDI, the majority of the patients are classified as mild to moderate in severity. However, elderly patients with OSAHS are severe regarding to hypoxia relatively. The severity of hypoxia is related with BMI and the lasting time of sleep-disordered breathing events, and hypoxia are less severe when sleeping on left side or on right side.

Objective To study on the possible mechanism of butylphthalide delaying renal fibrosis of mice with obstructive nephropathy. Methods Totally 72 male CD-1 mice of clean grade were selected and randomly assigned into 4 groups: sham operation group (Sham), model group (UUO), control group (ACEI) and treatment group (NBP). The mice in the control group (ACEI) and the treatment group (NBP) were given benazepril and butylphthalide by gavage, and the mice in sham operation group (Sham) and model group (UUO) were given normal saline by gavage. Six mice were sacrificed at the third, 7th, 14th day, respectively. The obstructive renal tissue was selected for immunohistochemical staining and western blot. Results (1)With the longer time of ureteral obstruction, the expression of Nrf-2 was gradually strengthened in time-dependent manner;(2)Compared with the model group, the levels of Nrf-2 and γ-GCS in butylphthalide group were significantly increased, and the expression of type Ⅰ collagen was decreased significantly (P < 0.05). The expression of Nrf-2 and γ-GCS in each time points was stronger than that in the benazepril group (P < 0.05). Correlation analysis showed that: there was a positive correlation between Nrf-2 and γ-GCS (r = 0.930) and a negative correlation between Nrf-2 and the expression level of type Ⅰ collagen(r = -0.859). Conclusion Butylphthalide can relieve renal interstitial injury caused by oxidative stress and delay the progress of renal interstitial fibrosis by activation of Nrf-2 pathway and up-regulated expression ofγ-GCS.