AIM: To explore the effects of axial stress regulation on healing of lengthened ca llus. METHODS: Tibiofibulars of 30 rabbits were lengthened 2 cm with t wice plane sreminobicular crib external fixator. Experimental group continues to lengthen 3 mm, and then were drawn and shortened 0.5mm once every 24 h separate ly for 10 days. Ten days later, tibiofibulars were axial short-stressed 1 mm wee kly with three times. Animals were killed 58 days after operation and X-ray, bon e density and histology tests were performed with lengthened bone. RESULTS: X-ray examination had no significant difference between two group animal when le ngthen ended, but X-ray showed lengthened callus was different on day 58. In con trol group, lengthened center had a serial callus and cortex had no formed, in experimental group, lengthened center had serial cortex and transfixial medullar y cavity expect serial callus. Bone density tests with two-energetic X-ray bone density measuring device showed bone density was higher in experimental group th an control group (P

BACKGROUND:No particularly effective medicine could treat human immunodeficiency virus 1(HIV 1) associated dementia(HAD) at present,which mainly because the mechanism of HIV 1 infection induced neural damage and necrosis is still not completely clarified. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effects of human immunodeficiency virus I type(HIV 1) enveloped protein(EP) gp120 on the synaptic transmission and plasticity in hippocampal CA1 area of rat to clarify the mechanism of HAD generation. DESIGN:A paired design. SETTING:Department of Pathophysiology of Medical College of Jinan University. MATERIALS:The study was conducted in the Department of Pathophysiology(a tertiary national key laboratory of National Administration for Traditional Chinese Medicine,registration number: TCM 03 131) of the Medical College of Jinan University from January to October of 2003.Male SD rats aged between 2 and 5 weeks were used in the study. INTERVENTIONS:Brain slice perfusion and recording technique was employed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:To record the excitatory postsynaptic potential(EPSP) in hippocampal CA1 area in rat;to investigate the effects of gp120 on long term potentiation(LTP) induced by high frequency electric stimulation in Schaffer lateral branch. RESULTS:gp120 had inhibitive effect on LTP in hippocampal CA1 area in rat [the average amplitude of LTP decreased from normal (216.1± 14.0) % to(90.8± 6.0) % ,n=12,P< 0.01],but had no effect on basic EPSP.PKA/PKC protein kinase(PK) inhibitor H7 could reverse this inhibitive effect [the average amplitude of LTP was(198.8± 16.2) % ,n=8,P< 0.01]. CONCLUSION:gp120 might participate the generation of HAD through inhibiting LTP in hippocampal CA1 area.

OBJECTIVETo explore activity laws of mitochondrial complex II in patients of deficiency-cold syndrome (DCS) and deficiency-heat syndrome (DHS) under various ambient temperatures.

METHODSSubjects were recruited by questionnaire and expert diagnosis from grade 1 - 3 undergraduates at Henan College of Traditional Chinese Medicine in November 2012, and assigned to a normal control group, the DCS group, and the DHS group, 20 in each group. Their venous blood samples were collected at two different temperature conditions. Activities of mitochondrial complex II were measured by spectrophotometry.

RESULTS(1) Comparison of mitochondrial complex It under various ambient temperatures: Compared with room temperature in the same group, activity values were all increased in the normal control group at cold temperature with significant difference (P <0.05), but there was no significant difference in the DCS group and the DHS group (P >0. 05). Compared with the normal control group, activity values of complex H were reduced in the DCS group at cold and room temperatures with significant difference (P <0.05). Compared with the DCS group, activity values of complex It were increased in the DHS group with significant difference (P <0. 05). (2) Changes of adjustment rates: Compared with room temperature, the adjustment rate all rose at cold temperature in the normal control group and the DHS group with significant difference (P <0.05), but with no significant difference found in the DCS group (P >0. 05). Compared with the normal control group at the same temperature, the adjustment rate in the DHS group and the DCS group was all reduced at cold and room temperatures with significant difference (P <0. 05). There were no significant difference in the adjustment rate between the DHS group and the DCS group (P > 0. 05).

CONCLUSIONSEnvironment temperature can affect the activity of mitochondrial complex II with different influence degrees on different syndrome types of people, but its change trend are basically identical.

Cold Temperature ; Electron Transport Complex II ; metabolism ; Hot Temperature ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Syndrome ; Temperature

ObjectiveTo evaluate the feasibility and safety of endoscopic intraductal radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for unresectable malignant biliary strictures.MethodsA total of 12 patients with malignant biliary obstructions,who were unsuitable for surgical resection,were prospectively selected for this study.During ERCP,when successful biliary cannulation achieved,a bipolar radiofrequency probe was introduced into bile duct over a guidewire.RFA was given to the tumor lesion under fluoroscopy,followed by stent placement.The patients were closely observed and followed up after the procedure.ResultsSuccessful RFA was achieved in all patients before stents insertion ( plastic and metal stents in 6 respectively,additional pancreatic stents were given to 3).Mild complications of cholangitis and pancreatitis occurred in 1 patient respectively,which were cured with short-term management.Jaundice was promptly controlled in 7 patients (58.3％ ).During the mean follow-up duration of 3.4 (range 0.5-5.5) months,one patient died of cardiocerebral accident and others survived without obvious disconffort.The 1- month and 3- month stent patency was 100％ (12/12) and 80％ (8/10),respectively.ConclusionIt is technically feasible and safe to perform endoscopic intraductal RFA for the palliation of biliary malignancies.The short-term outcome is satisfying,however,long-term result and the better therapeutic schedule need further evaluation.

Objective To evaluate the effect of hyperhomocysteinemia on ischemic diease in rats. Methods Thirty-two SD rats were randomized into two groups,control group(n=16,administered with tap water) and hyperhomocysteinemia group(HH group,n=16,administered with water containing L-methionine at 1 g/kg/d).At the 14thday of dietary modification,the left femoral artery and vein were excised,and the interventions continued for another 14 days.At the 15th day after operation,serum biochemical parameters as well as NOx and cGMP in ischemic tissues were tested,capillary vessel density of both hindlimbs were measured by histological analysis,and angiogenesis of ischemic hindlimb was observed by angiography. Results At the 15th day after operation,the level of high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol(HDL-C),blood urea nitrogen,uric acid and ratio of blood urea nitrogen to serum creatinine were significantly higher in HH group than those in control group,while the level of serum folic acid,VitB12,HDL-C and endogenous creatinine clearance rate were significantly lower in HH group than those in control group(P

To understand Lophatherum gracile plant community's structural characteristics, a survey of community structure and species diversity was conducted through quadrat sampling in Yongchuan district of Chongqing. The results showed that there were 386 species vascular plants, belonging to 117 families and 229 genera. Based on habitat, community structure and species composition, L. gracile were found in three community types: Pinus massoniana community, banboo community, shurb community. Vertical structure was composed of three layers, including tree layer, shrub layer and herb layer. Species in shrub layer was the richness. P. massoniana is the only dominant species of the community, it can not regenerate naturally, the shrub layer has a greater effect on the community of L. gracile in the future. In addition, the banboo community and shurb community is not stable because of human's activity. Therefore, the community characters of L. gracile should be taken care of conservation when the resources are utilized.
China ; Ecosystem ; Pinus ; physiology ; Plants ; Poaceae ; physiology

Objective To explore the feasibility of "immersion program" in French-taught surgical lessons,as to provide multiple educational methods and practical experiences for the application of bilingual education in clinical medicine.Methods Twenty-nine senior students of French-taught class were randomly divided into group A(n=15) and group B(n=14)."Immersion program" and "transitional bilingual education" were employed for group A and group B,respectively for the first half of teaching session,and "transitional bilingual education" and "immersion program" for the second half,respectively.The differences between the two bilingual education models were compared through quiz.Results In the prior 2 of the 4 quiz,the scores of French quiz and the total scores were much higher in "immersion program" group,and there were significant differences between the two groups(P0.05). Conclusion "Immersion program" helps to improve the ability of presentation,comprehension and application of French in the precondition of equal educational content,and it will be more beneficial when accessing the "immersion program" on the basis of "transitional bilingual education".

BACKGROUNDIncreasing evidence suggests that many neurons may die through apoptosis in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Mitochondrial dysfunction has been implicated in this process of neuronal cell death. One promising approach for preventing AD is based upon anti-apoptosis to decrease death of nerve cells. In this study, we observed the memory improving properties of curcumin in mice and investigated the neuroprotective effect of curcumin in vitro and in vivo.

METHODSThe mice were given AlCl(3) orally and injections of D-galactose intraperitoneally for 90 days to establish the AD animal model. From day 45, the curcumin group was treated with curcumin for 45 days. Subsequently, the step-through test, neuropathological changes in the hippocampus and the expression of Bax and Bcl-2 were carried out to evaluate the effect of curcumin on the AD model mice. In cultured PC12 cells, AlCl(3) exposure induced apoptosis. The MTT assay was used to measure cell viabilities; flow cytometric analysis to survey the rate of cell apoptosis; DNA-binding fluorochrome Hoechst 33258 to observe nuclei changes in apoptotic cells and Western blot analysis of Bax, Bcl-2 to investigate the mechanisms by which curcumin protects cells from toxicity.

RESULTSCurcumin significantly improved the memory ability of AD mice in the step-through test, as indicated by the reduced number of step-through errors (P < 0.05) and prolonged step-through latency (P < 0.05). Curcumin also attenuated the neuropathological changes in the hippocampus and inhibited apoptosis accompanied by an increase in Bcl-2 level (P < 0.05), but the activity of Bax did not change (P > 0.05). AlCl(3) significantly reduced the viability of PC12 cells (P < 0.01). Curcumin increased cell viability in the presence of AlCl(3) (P < 0.01). The rate of apoptosis decreased significantly in the curcumin group (P < 0.05) when measured by flow cytometric analysis. Curcumin protected cells by increasing Bcl-2 level (P < 0.05), but the level of Bax did not change (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSThis study demonstrates that curcumin improves the memory ability of AD mice and inhibits apoptosis in cultured PC12 cells induced by AlCl(3). Its mechanism may involve enhancing the level of Bcl-2.

Aluminum Compounds ; toxicity ; Alzheimer Disease ; drug therapy ; psychology ; Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Chlorides ; toxicity ; Curcumin ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Disease Models, Animal ; Female ; Learning ; drug effects ; Memory ; drug effects ; Mice ; Neuroprotective Agents ; pharmacology ; PC12 Cells ; Rats

To investigate the risk factors of hepatic encephalopathy in patients with liver failure. Nine-hundred-and-seventy-six hepatitis B virus (HBV) patients with liver failure were retrospectively analyzed. Clinical data (sex, age, family history, liver cirrhosis, diabetes, celiac infection, pulmonary infection, liver kidney syndrome, upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage) and laboratory findings (albumin, globulin, total bilirubin, direct bilirubin, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), gamma-glutamyl transferase, alkaline phosphatase, cholesterol, cholinesterase, K+, Na+, creatinine, international normalized ratio (INR), alpha-fetoprotein, HBV DNA, white blood cell, hemoglobin, platelet) were collected and used to screen the risk factors for hepatic encephalopathy by univariate and multiple regress analyses. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage [risk (R) = 0.993, relative hazard (RH) = 2.699, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.567-4.651], pulmonary infection [R = 1.043, RH = 2.839, 95% CI: 1.680-4.797], INR [R = 0.257, RH = 1.293, 95% CI: 1.220-1.370], AST level [R = 0.001, RH = 1.001, 95% CI: 1.000-1.001], and cirrhosis [R = 0.569, RH = 1.815, 95% CI: 1.112-2.965] were closely correlated with hepatic encephalopathy. HBV-infected patients presenting with upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage, pulmonary infection, prolonged INR, elevated AST, or liver cirrhosis should be carefully monitored for indications of hepatic encephalopathy to initiate timely therapeutic interventions.
Adult ; Female ; Hepatic Encephalopathy ; etiology ; Hepatitis B ; complications ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis ; complications ; virology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prognosis ; Risk Factors

The shortage of donor lung remains one of the major problem for lung transplantation?With the development of modern lung preservation and repair technique, increasing marginal lung donors have been re?assessed and finally utilized for transplantation? The ex vivo lung perfusion technique ( EVLP ) was designed and has been developed for evaluation and repair of the lung? Nowadays, the indication of EVLP and the standard of qualified donor lung have reached a consensus according to the foreign publications? The EVLP system could be classified into three categories: the Toronto technique, the Lund technique and Hannover?Madrid technique? The major differences between the Toronto technique and the other two technique are the open left atrium status, the use of Steen solution mixed with erythrocyte and the perfusion at flows correspondent to 100% of the donor predicted cardiac output? With the accumulating experience, researchers have tried to imply some drugs in the circulation, modify the ventilation gas and delivery of adenoviral vector gene in order to improve the lung quality? But these are still in the research phase? Recently, the portable EVLP device has been developed and the lung preservation, assessment and repair could be conducted during transportation? So it could prolong the preservation time and expand the transportation distance of donor lung.