Objective To investigate the timing for delivery in twin pregnancies to improve the perinatal outcome. Methods A multicentered and retrospective study was conducted on 655 women with twin pregnancies in 6 hospitals of Shanghai from Jan 1993 to Oct 2003. The average birthweight(BW) for both twins in different gestation, the incidence of small for gestational age (SGA) and severe neonatal asphyxia were analyzed. Results For the smaller babies in all twins, the 50 percentile of the birth weight was far behind the singletons throughout the pregnancy. But for the larger babies, it was similar to the singletons if delivered before 33 weeks, lighter than the singletons if after 33 weeks and remarkable difference was shown beyond 39 weeks. The largest BW of the larger babies was 3073 g presented at 39 weeks, while 2670 g for the smaller babies at 40 weeks after which the average BW was decreased. It reached 2555 g and 2303 g at 41 weeks for the larger and smaller babies, respectively (P

Objective To investigate the effects of the zinc finger protein A20 on LPS-TLR4 signaling pathways in severe acute pancreatitis(SAP) rats.Methods 24 SD rats were randomly divided into 3 groups:group A(the sham operation group),group B (the SAP group),group C (the SAP group treated with LPS).SAP model was induced by retro-injection of intraductal 5％ sodium taurocholate into the biliary-pancreatic duct as previously described.The protein expression of A20,TLR4,NF-κBp65 and p38MAPK in pancreatic tissues was evaluated by immunohistochemistry.Results The positive area of A20 in pancreatic tissues was decreased in group B and group C compared with that in group A (t =17.234,19.698,all P ＜ 0.05).On the contrary,the expression of TLR4,NF-κBp65 and p38MAPK in pancreatic tissues were up-regulated(t =15.909,20.432,16.543,18.629,22.105,19.006,all P ＜ 0.05).A20 was decreased in group C than that in group B (t =14.894,P ＜ 0.05),while TLR4、NF-κBp65 and p38MAPK were increased in group C than those in group B (t =14.047,15.582,17.070,all P ＜0.05).Conclusion The expression of A20 reduced and TLR4,NF-κBp65 and p38MAPK enhanced in the pancreas of rats with SAP,which indicated that A20 inhibited LPS-TLR4 signaling pathways which play important roles in the pathogenesis of SAP.

The pathological changes of skeletal muscle dysfunction in chronic heart failure (CHF) have caused widespread concern, and evaluating the functional properties of medication to improve these pathological changes has become a common area of study for clinicians.

Objective The present study investigated the expression of the citrullinated proteins in the synovium and serum of rheumatoid arthritis(RA)patients.Methods The expression of the citrullinated proteins in the synovium and serum of RA patients was analyzed by two-dimensional western blotting analysis (2-D WB),mass spectrometry MALDI-TOF/TOF MS,western blotting,immunohistochemistry and ELISA.Then we analyzed the data with one-way ANOVA,LSD test,Kruskal-Walls test and Spearman correlation analysis.Results Alpha-1-antitrypsin(A1AT),fibrinogen beta chain(FIBB),keratin type Ⅱ cuticular Hb4(KRT84),tubulin beta chain(TBB)and vimentin(VIME)were detected in RA serum and anti-citrulline antibody could be detected using 2-D WB.A1AT,KRT84 and TBB were expressed significantly in the synovial membranes and synovial fluids of RA patients.Furthermore,high levels of autoantibodies against KRT84 were detected in the blood of RA patients when compared with samples from the healthy controls.Conclusion Current study has identified novel autoantigens in RA,including A1AT,FIBB,KRT84,TBB and VIME using 2-D WB with purified RA sera and anti-citrulline antibody.FIBB and VIME have been confirmed to be autoantigens in the literature,this demonstrates the feasibility of our protocol and the reliability of our study results.

Objective To investigate the rate of termination of pregnancy (TOP) in gravidas with prenatally diagnosed fetal malformation and to analyze the influences of medical and non-medical factors on decision making.Methods This was a prospective cohort study. Gravidas who took part in a multidisciplinary consultation due to fetal malformation and finished a questionnaire after consulting from September 12, 2012 to May 2, 2013 were recruited. Exclusion criteria were chromosomal disorders and isolated abnormal ultrasound soft markers. The questionnaire survey was conducted to understand the patient's backgrounds and to collect their feedbacks on the consultation. Decisions of the gravidas on TOP were followed up by phone in 2014 and 2016. If a gravida chose to continue her pregnancy, her baby's outcome was also recorded.T test,Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test, or rank-sum tests (Mann-Whitney or Wilcoxon) or Logistic regression was used for statistical analysis.Results (1) Altogether 229 gravidas were recruited and 10 of them were lost to follow-up, so 219 cases were finally analyzed. Among the 219 cases, 35.6% (78/219) chose to terminate their pregnancies. (2) Neonatal prognosis was predicted based on the type and severity of the disease and was divided into four levels including good prognosis (122 cases, 55.7%), medium prognosis (20 cases, 9.1%), poor prognosis (17 cases, 7.8%) and unsure prognosis (60 cases, 27.4%). (3) Gravidas who chose to terminate their pregnancies were younger than their counterparts choosing to continue to term (average age: 27.8±4.1 vs 29.0±3.9,t=2.257,P<0.05). Gravidas who went to the consultation before the 24th gestational week carried double risk of TOP than those after the 24th gestational week [termination rate: 52.5% (31/59) vs 29.4% (47/160),χ2=10.089,P<0.01). (4) Gravidas with fetal growth restriction (FGR) were at triple risk of TOP than those without (OR=2.850, 95%CI: 1.323-6.140) after adjusting for maternal age, gestational age at consultation and prognostic evaluation. Comparing with the good prognosis group, in which the rate of TOP was 19%, the unsure (OR=2.354, 95%CI: 1.108-5.004), medium (OR=16.188, 95%CI: 4.732-55.372) and poor (OR=14.515, 95%CI: 3.61-58.359) prognosis groups had higher risk of TOP. (5) There were 63 women informed us their reasons for TOP (multiple choices), among which 57 (90.5%) were due to unsure neonatal outcomes, and 10 (15.9%) were due to emotional factors. (6) Maternal satisfaction with neonatal prognosis was 2 to 5 points (medium score, ten-point system) lower in gravidas choosing to TOP than in those choosing to continue pregnancy regardless of good, unsure, or medium neonatal prognosis. No significant difference in maternal satisfaction was found among gravidas with poor neonatal prognosis.Conclusions The rate of TOP in gravidas with prenatally diagnosed fetal malformation remains high in China. Factors that can negatively influence the rate of TOP are consultation after the 24th gestational week, better perceived neonatal prognosis and higher maternal satisfaction with neonatal prognosis. Uncertainty of the neonatal prognosis is the leading cause of maternal dissatisfaction.

Objective To investigate the expression of ADAM8 in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and its clinical significance.Methods The protein expression of ADAM8 in HCC tissues was analyzed using immunohistochemical analysis.Serum levels of ADAM8 were measured by ELISA in 126 patients with HCC,50 patients with liver cirrhosis (LC) and 50 healthy individuals.The relationship between patients' pathological features and serum ADAM8 level was analyzed.Results Immunohistochemical analysis showed that ADAM8 expression was associated closely with serum AFP elevation,tumor size,histological differentiation,and tumor stage.The ELISA assay showed that the serum levels of ADAM8 in the HCC were significantly higher than those in LC and healthy groups.Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that high expression of serum ADAM8 exhibited a significant correlation with poor prognosis for HCC patients.Multivariate analysis revealed that serum ADAM8 expression is an independent prognostic parameter for the overall survival rate of HCC patients.Conclusion ADAM8 expression was closely associated with tumor size,serum AFP elevation,tumor differentiation,tumor stage and prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma.Therefore,ADAM8 expression may serve as a biomarker for predicting the prognosis of patients in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Objective To investigate prospectively the nutritional risks,undernutrition,and nutritional support in hospitalized patients with later but non-end-stage malignancies in a second grade hospital in Beijing.Methods All patients who were admitted in the department of oncology in this hospital from October 2011 to April 2013 were consecutively recorded.Nutritional Risk Screening (NRS 2002) was used for screening nutrition risks,the undernutrition assessment was performed on the first morning for patients meet the inclusion criteria,and nutritional support was evaluated until the discharge.For patients with no nutritional risk,NRS 2002 was repeated weekly during the hospitalization.Results A total of 305 cases of inpatients admitted,and 224cases meeting the inclusion criteria were screened by NRS 2002,among whom only 171 patients with non-endstage later stage cancer entered the final analysis.Among these 171 patients,116 (67.8％) were at nutritional risks.Furthermore,for different types of tumor,the nutritional risk was 45.7％ for lung cancer,89.4％ for digestive-tract cancers,81.3％ for liver-biliary and pancreatic cancers,and 83.3％ for head-and-neck cancers.The undernutrition rate was 12.3％ (21/171) if based on body mass index ＜ 18.5 kg/m2 and 19.9％ (34/171) if evaluated from the score of nutritional defect part of NRS 2002.Only 71 patients (61.2％) at nutritional risk received nutritional support,while 5 of 55 patients (9.1％) without nutritional risk received nutritional support.The average ratio of parenteral nutrition to enteral nutrition was 23∶ 1.Intravenous calories intake was 56.78 ± 8.20 k J/ (kg · d) ; the intake of nitrogen was 0.06 ± 0.01 g/ (kg · d),and the ratio of calories to nitrogen was 204∶ 1.Conclusions A large proportion of inpatients with non-end-stage later cancer were at nutritional risk,which is associated with tumor types.The application of nutritional support should be further standardized,particularly for patients at nutritional risk but with low nutritional support.Furthermore,whether the clinical outcome of inpatients at nutritional risk may be improved by nutritional support still requires further investigation.

ObjectiveTo investigate the prevalence of nutritional risk and perioperative nutritional support status in the gastrointestinal cancer surgical patients.Methods Adult inpatients from the gastrointestinal cancer surgery department of our hospital were consecutively enrolled from May to September 2010.Nutritional Risk Screening 2002 ( NRS 2002) was performed at admission,and data of the nutritional support and complications during hospitalization were collected.The relationship between nutritional risk and postoperative complications was analyzed.ResultsA total of 195 patients were eligible.At admission,43.6％ (85/195) patients were at riskOf the patients at risk,totally 11.7％ (10/85) patients received preoperative nutritional support,and 100％ (85/85) patients received postoperative nutritional support; of the patients not at risk,no patients received preoperative nutritional support,and 84.5％ (93/110) patients received postoperative nutritional support.The overall rates of postoperative complications were 19.1％ ( 13/68 ) in the patients at risk while 7.1％ (9/127 )in the patients not at risk ( P =0.02).ConclusionsNutritional risk in gastrointestinal cancer surgical patients was high.The application of nutritional support was inappropriate in these patients.The nutritional risk is associated with higher postoperative complications.Dissemination of evidence-based guidelines should be enhanced.

The fundamental principle of the “Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Genome Project” is to carry out genomic studies from the molecular level to discover effective functional genes in medicinal plants which may be cloned and expressed in factories or to transfer into plants for field cultivation Another approach is to carry out research studies to obtain enzymic genes capable of synthesizing bioactive compounds to be replicated in laboratory metabolic engineering processes The subject matter of “TCM Genome Project” and its significance for the modernization of TCM were expounded

Objective To improve the awareness of fetal cardiac rhabdomyomas (CRs) and investigate a better model for prenatal diagnosis and treatment through analyzing imaging findings and prognosis.Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 23 cases of CRs which were diagnosed by ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University from January 2008 to November 2015.General conditions,imaging features,prognosis and follow-up data of the 23 cases were described.Results The average gestational age of the 23 fetuses at diagnosis was (29.8±4.1) (22.4-35.7) weeks.Seventeen out of the 23 gravidas received prenatal multidisciplinary consultation.Among all 23 gravidas,three (13％) were lost to follow-up,12 (52％) decided to terminate the pregnancy,and the other eight (35％) continued to term pregnancy and their babies were followed up for three years.Of these eight cases,two cases received prenatal brain MRI and no tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) was detected,no CRs was identified during the follow-up,and their physical and mental developments were both normal.One case was diagnosed with suspected subependymal nodules by prenatal brain MRI in our hospital,but the MRI images was normal when scanned in the other hospital,and follow-up data revealed neither CRs nor abnormal physical and mental developments.Four cases did not received prenatal brain MRI,but the MRI images of neonatal brains indicated TSC,besides,follow-up data showed that seizures were observed,physical developments were all normal,but three of the four cases had mental retardation;CRs disappeared in only two of the four cases.One case had neither prenatal nor neonatal MRI,but follow-up data showed that CRs had disappeared and physical and mental developments were both normal.Conclusions Prenatal diagnosis of fetal tuberous sclerosis is crucial to the prognosis of CRs.Prenatal ultrasonography in combination with cranial MRI improves the accuracy of prenatal diagnosis of CRs complicated with TSC and assists in clinical decision-making and prognosis analysis.