For the purpose of identifying the effect of body mass index on bone mineral density, an investigation was made in regard to the relationship between body mass index (BMI), bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) of lumbar vertebrals of men without osteoporosis. 838 male patients were diagnosed and treated in West China Hospital of Sichuan University because of ostealgia and arthralgia from Aug. 2003 to Dec. 2005. They were examined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, their L2-L4 bone mineral density being < -2.5SD. Then they were graded by body mass index (Kg/m2) [1st group BMI > or =23, 454 cases (Group A BMI > or = 29, 46 cases; Group B 25 < or = BMI < 28.9, 201 cases; Group C 23 < or = BMI < 24, 9193 cases); 2nd group 18.5 < BMI < 22.9, 311 cases; 3rd group BMI < or = 18.5, 68 cases]. The relationships between BMI and BMD of lumbar spine were analyzed using SPSS 13.0. The results revealed their positions in series: (1) Among Groups 1-3, BMD, average BMD and aBMC of L2-L4 being 3rd group > 2nd group > 1st group, the differencs are statistically significant (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); BMC, aBMC of L3 and L4 and aBMC of L2 being 3rd group > 2nd group > 2nd group, the differences are significant (P < 0.01); besides BMC of L2 and T-score,the differencs among three groups are not statistically significant (P > 0.05); (2) Among the 1st group, BMD and average BMD of L2-L4 being Group C > Group B > Group A,the differencs are significant (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); BMC, aBMC of L and I being Group C > Group B > Group A,the differences among the three groups are significant (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); BMC, aBMC of L3 and L4 and aBMC of L2 being Group C > Group B > Group A, the differences are significant, besides BMC of L2 and T-score,the differences among three groups are not significant (P > 0.05), (3) BMI correlated negatively (P < 0.01, r = -0.189) to the average BMD of lumbar spine. The average BMD of lumbar spine decreases when BMI increases in males without osteoporosis. When obesity is more obvious, the decrease in average BMD of lumbar spine bone is more evidently decreased. The decrease of BMD, BMC and total BMC in L3 and L may be greater than that in L2.
Absorptiometry, Photon ; Aged ; Arthralgia ; diagnostic imaging ; metabolism ; Body Composition ; physiology ; Body Mass Index ; Bone Density ; Humans ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; diagnostic imaging ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Osteoporosis

OBJECTIVES: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation and joint destruction. Both inflammatory response and oxidative stress contribute to the pathogenesis of RA. Oxidative damage can induce and aggravate the imbalance of immune inflammation and promote cell and tissue damage. In this study, the expression of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) LINC00638 in peripheral blood of patients with RA damp-heat arthralgia syndrome was observed, and the correlation between LINC00638 and disease activity, immune inflammation and oxidative stress indicator was investigated. Subsequently, the mechanisms for LINC00638 in regulating the inflammatory response and oxidative stress in RA fibroblast-like synoviocyte (FLS) under the condition of overexpression and interference were further explored. METHODS: In this study, 48 RA patients with damp-heat arthralgia syndrome and 27 normal healthy subjects, who came from Department of Rheumatology, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, were included; and they were divided into a RA group and a control group. The expression of LINC00638 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from the subjects was detected by real-time PCR. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect serum interleukin (IL)-10, IL-17, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), malondialdehyde (MDA), heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) and superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) expression. Spearman method was used to study the relationship between LINC00638 and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), rheumatoid factor (RF), anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody (anti-CCP), and to observe the relation between LINC00638 and the Disease Activity Score of 28 Joint (DAS28), Quantitative Score of Damp Heat Syndrome, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS). RA-FLS was induced by RA-PBMC, and the RA in vitro cell experimental model was established. LINC00638 overexpression plasmid and small interfering RNA (siRNA) were constructed and transfected into RA-FLS. The cell experiments were divided into 4 groups: a pcDNA3. 1- control group, a pcDNA3.1-LINC00638 group, a siRNA-control group, and a siRNA-LINC00638 group. The transfection efficiency of overexpression plasmid and siRNA was detected by real-time PCR, the expression of TNF-α and IL-10 was detected by ELISA, and the expression of antioxidant proteins HO-1 and SOD2 was detected by immunofluorescence. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the expression of LINC00638 in the RA group was lower (P<0.01). The area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of LINC00638 was 0.9271. The DAS28 in RA group was 5.70 (5.40-6.50), the Quantitative Score of Damp-heat Syndrome was 20.0 (17.0-23.0), and the VAS score was 7.0 (6.3-8.0). Compared with the control group, the ESR, CRP, RF, anti-CCP, SAS and SDS scores in the RA group were significantly increased (all P<0.01). Spearman correlation analysis showed that: LINC00638 was negatively correlated with ESR (r=-0.532, P<0.01), CRP (r=-0.367, P<0.05), TNF-α (r=-0.375, P<0.01), MDA (r= -0.295, P<0.05), DAS28 (r=-0.450, P<0.01), and which was positively correlated with SOD2 (r=0.370, P<0.05). After the induction of RA-FLS, the expression level of LINC00638 was significantly decreased (P<0.01), indicating that the stimulation of PBMC could effectively reduce the expression of LINC00638 in RA-FLS, so the experimental model of RA-FLS-induced by PBMC was utilized. Compared with the pcDNA3.1-control group, the expressions of LINC00638, IL-10, SOD2, and HO-1 in the pcDNA3.1-LINC00638 group were significantly increased (all P<0.01), and the expression of TNF-α was decreased (P<0.01). Compared with siRNA-control group, LINC00638, IL-10, SOD2 and HO-1 in the siRNA-LINC00638 group were significantly decreased (all P<0.01), and TNF-α was significantly increased (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS LINC00638 is down-regulated in the peripheral blood of RA patients with damp-heat arthralgia syndrome, which is correlated with disease activity, immune inflammation and oxidative stress. Overexpression of LINC00638 can down-regulate pro-inflammatory factors, up-regulate anti-inflammatory factors, and increase antioxidant enzyme activity, thereby improving inflammation and oxidative stress in RA. LINC00638 is the differential lncRNA obtained by the research group's previous high-throughput sequencing of the whole transcriptome of peripheral blood PBMCs in RA patients and validation of clinical samples. In order to deepen the molecular biology research of this gene, the microRNA and mRNA targeted by LINC00638 can be further studied from the perspective of competing endogenous RNAs.
Anti-Citrullinated Protein Antibodies/metabolism* ; Antioxidants ; Arthralgia/metabolism* ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; C-Reactive Protein ; Hot Temperature ; Humans ; Inflammation/genetics* ; Interleukin-10/metabolism* ; Leukocytes, Mononuclear ; Oxidative Stress ; RNA, Long Noncoding/metabolism* ; RNA, Small Interfering ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/metabolism*

Primary gout is a metabolic disease that has its basis in an inborn error in the intermediary metabolism of purines and related compounds. It is characterized by hyperuricemia, recurrent attacks of acute arthritis, deposition of monosodium urate crystals in and around the joints of the extremities, urolithiasis, renal and cardiovascular disease. Thirty-eight patients with gout managed at the department of orthopaedic surgery, Dong-A University Hospital, from April, 1990 to November 1993, had been reviewed retrospectively and the following results were obtained. 1. Most of cases were male(95%) and the mean age was 55.4 years old. 2. The case of first attack was 8 cases(21%), the most common age of first attack was fifth decade and mean duration of disease was 7.4 years. 3. The most common precipitating factor was overindulgence in food and alcohol. 4. The avarage uric acid level of serum and that 24-hour urine collection in acute attacks were 11.2 mg/dl and 24.5mg/D. Respectively all of the cases except four revealed increased ESR (average 43 mm/hr). 5. When the acute attack was developed, the most common involved joint was the first M-P joint (83%) of the foot, but as the acute gout was progressed to the chronic form, multiple joints were affected. 6, The punched out lesion in the radiograph was found in 7 cases(25 joints), among them 6 cases had suffered from the disease for longer than 3 years. 7. The most common complication was nephropathy(18 cases). 8. In case of acute gouty attack, we administered colchicine in the 22 cases. The therapeutic method of colchicine usually consisted of oral administration of 2 tablets(1.3mg) initially, followed by 1 tablet(0.65mg) every hour untill the relief of joint pain or the development of gastointestinal symptoms. We rocomended 6-8 tablets of colchicine for the management of acute gouty attack with safety. 9. Colchicine in small daily dose(0.65mg qd or bid) could be effective to prevent the recurrent attacks of high risk gouty arthritis.
Administration, Oral ; Arthralgia ; Arthritis ; Arthritis, Gouty ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Clinical Study ; Colchicine ; Extremities ; Foot ; Gout ; Humans ; Hyperuricemia ; Joints ; Metabolic Diseases ; Metabolism ; Methods ; Precipitating Factors ; Purines ; Retrospective Studies ; Tablets ; Uric Acid ; Urine Specimen Collection ; Urolithiasis

OBJECTIVEBased on relevent theory of prescription and syndrome, to compare the gene expression differences of TLR2, TRAF6, and Faslg with adjuvant arthritis in rat spleen among Wutou decoction, Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu decoction and Baihu Guizhi decoction.

METHODThe experiment animal model of adjuvant arthritis in rats was established. Relative expression amount of TLR2, TRAF6, and Faslg in rats spleen was detected by SYBR Green I dye methods and implementation of fluorescence quantitative PCR technology with 18sRNA as an internal gene. 2(delta delta CT) method was used for computing and data analysis.

RESULTTLR2, TRAF6, and Faslg gene in adjuvant arthritis rat spleen was significantly higher than those in the blank group. The various doses of Wutou decoction, Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu decoction and Baihu Guizhi decoction can significantly inhibit or reduce the abnormally high expression of TLR2, TRAF6, and Faslg genes. The gene expression level caused by three decoctions mentioned above was followed by strong to weak as Wutou decoction Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu decoction and Baihu Guizhi decoction with the clinical equivalent dose, but the strength of the trend to reduce the role of TRAF6 is just the opposite with the TLR2 and Faslg genes.

CONCLUSIONWutou decoction, Guizhi Shaoyao Zhimu decoction and Baihu Guizhi decoction can reduce the abnormally high expression of TLR2, TRAF6 and Faslg in rat spleen with adjuvant arthritis, but the differences of intensity exist and remain relatively consistent with that of pharmacodynamics and regulation trends of T cell subsets. Results suggest that the suppression of TLR2/TRAF6 signal pathway and apoptosis Faslg receptor gene may be the reasons that the pharmacodynamics of three decoctions on peripheral T cell subsets in regulating intensity was different.

Animals ; Arthralgia ; drug therapy ; genetics ; metabolism ; pathology ; Calibration ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Fas Ligand Protein ; genetics ; metabolism ; Gene Expression Regulation ; drug effects ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects ; TNF Receptor-Associated Factor 6 ; genetics ; metabolism ; Toll-Like Receptor 2 ; genetics ; metabolism

Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is an autosomal recessive disease characterized by recurrent episodes of fever accompanied by peritonitis, pleuritis, arthritis, or erysipelas-like erythema. It is known to occur mainly among Mediterranean and Middle Eastern populations such as non-Ashkenazi Jews, Arabs, Turks, and Armenians. FMF is not familiar to clinicians beyond this area and diagnosing FMF can be challenging. We report a 22-yr old boy who presented with fever, arthalgia and abdominal pain. He had a history of recurrent episodes of fever associated with arthalgia which would subside spontaneously or by antipyretics. Autosomal recessive periodic fever syndromes were suspected. Immunoglobulin D (IgD) level in the serum was elevated and DNA analysis showed complex mutations (p.Glu148Gln, p.Pro369Ser, p.Arg408Gln) in the MEFV gene. 3D angio computed tomography showed total thrombosis of splenic vein with partial thrombosis of proximal superior mesenteric vein, main portal vein and intrahepatic both portal vein. This is a case of FMF associated with multiple venous thrombosis and elevated IgD level. When thrombosis is associated with elevated IgD, FMF should be suspected. This is the first adult case reported in Korea.
Abdominal Pain/etiology ; Arthralgia/etiology ; Cytoskeletal Proteins/genetics/metabolism ; Familial Mediterranean Fever/complications/*diagnosis ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin D/*blood ; Male ; Mesenteric Veins ; Mevalonate Kinase Deficiency/complications/*diagnosis ; Mutation ; Portal Vein ; Republic of Korea ; Splenic Vein ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Venous Thrombosis/complications/*diagnosis ; Young Adult