Atherosclerosis ; immunology ; Dendritic Cells ; immunology ; Humans

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are recently discovered major regulators of gene expression, which play a pivotal role in a wide spectrum of biological processes including antiviral defence. There is growing evidence that some viruses either encode their own viral miRNAs or subvert cellular miRNAs. The host-and virus-encoded miRNAs and their targets together thus form a novel regulatory layer of interactions between the host and the virus. A better understanding of host-virus interaction mediated by miRNAs would not only enable us to unravel the molecular basis of viral pathogenesis, but also enable us to develop better therapeutic strategies.

AIM: To investigate the quality of life in adults with strabismus and evaluate the improvement in quality of life after treatment.
METHODS: In this prospective study, forty-five adults with a diagnosis of strabismus conform to the inclusion and exclusion standard were selected in our hospital from October 2013 to May 2014, as experimental group and 45 normal adults were enrolled as control group. A Chinese Adult Strabismus-20 questionnaire was used to evaluate the differences of quality of life between patients with strabismus and normal adults, and to evaluate the differences of quality of life in patients with strabismus preoperative and 6mo postoperative.
RESULTS:The scores of quality of life in adult patients with strabismus preoperative and 6mo postoperative were statistically significant lower than those of normal adults (P< 0. 01). In 6mo postoperative, the scores of quality of life statistically significant increased than preoperative ( P<0. 01).
CONCLUSION: Strabismus can decrease the quality of life in psychosocial and visual functional for adults and the surgical treatment can improve quality of life in patients with strabismus.

Humans ; Fractures, Bone/etiology* ; Bone and Bones/diagnostic imaging* ; Disability Evaluation

Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures ; standards ; Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Reference Standards

Objective To investigate the change and significance of T follicular helper cells(Tfh) in the peripheral blood of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).Methods The percentage of CD4+ CXCR5+ICOS+ Tfh cells and the expression of activation marker CD69 on the Tfh cells of peripheral blood from 60 SLE patients (30 in active and 30 in inactive) and 30 healthy subjects (control group) were determined by flow cytometry.The correlations between the percentage of Tfh cells of SLE patients and SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI),anti-nuclear antibody (ANA) titers and the levels of complement 3 (C3),complement 4 (C4) were analyzed.ANOVA and Pearson's correlation analysis were used for statistical analysis.Results The percentage of the Tfh cells in the peripheral blood of active SLE patients was higher than inactive patients and healthy controls [(0.80±0.17)％ vs (0.63±0.13)％ vs (0.57±0.08)％; P＜0.01],there was also statistical significance between inactive patients and healthy controls (P＜0.05).The expression of CD69 on the Tfh cells in the peripheral blood of active SLE patients was higher than that in inactive and healthy controls [(7.3±1.6)％ vs (5.9±1.3)％ vs (5.2±0.9)％; P＜0.01].There was no statistical significant difference between inactive patients and healthy controls (P＞0.05).The percentage of Tfh cells of SLE patients was significantly related with SLEDAI (r=0.680,P＜0.01) and C3 levels (r=-0.416,P＜0.05),butthere was no correlation between that and the ANA titer,C4 levels (r=-0.042,-0.204,P＞0.05).Conclusion Increased percentage and activity of the Tfh cells in the peripheral blood of patients might contribute to the pathogenesis and development of SLE.

The effect of glucose on acylcoenzyme A: cholesterol acyltransferase-1 (ACAT-1) expression in THP-1-derived macrophages was investigated.The results showed that high concentrations of glucose up-regulated ACAT-1 expression in THP-1-derived macrophages.

Objective To evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of combination chemotherapy with etoposide and cisplatin(EP)regimen on the patients with high-risk,chemorefractory and recurrent gestational trophoblastic neoplasia(GTN).Methods Thirty-nine patients with gestational trophoblastic tumors were analyzed retrospectively,25 of 39 patients were of high-risk,9 patients were chemorefractory and 5 patients were recurrent.All 39 patients were administrated with EP regimen,and 10 patients were assisted with surgery.All the patients were followed up.Clinical response,toxicity,the occurrence of secondary tumors of all patients,and the fertility of 30 patients whose fertility function was preserved were investigated. Results Thirty-nine GTN patients underwent a total of 221 cycles of the EP regimen.The average number of courses for each patient was 5.7.The total complete remission rate of the regimen was 74%(29/39). Twenty-five patients with high-risk GTN received a total of 139 cycles and the average number of courses was 5.6.Nineteen patients achieved complete remission and 6 patients showed drug-resistant.The complete remission rate of the high-risk group was 76%(19/25).Nine patients with chemorefractory GTN obtained a total of 55 cycles and the average number of courses was 6.1.Six patients achieved complete remission and 3 patients showed drug-resistant again.The complete remission rate of the chemorefractory group was 6/9. Five patients with recurrent GTN received 27 cycles and the average number of courses was 5.4.Four patients achieved complete remission,1 patient showed drug-resistance and died.Bone marrow toxicity, gastrointestinal reaction and alopecia were the main side effects of the EP regimen,but the bone marrow toxicity was slight and no grade Ⅳ side effect occurred.No fatal effect was found.Eight of 30 patients whose fertility faction was preserved had become pregnant after recovery,with a total of 8 pregnancies.Among them,2 were terminated by induced abortion,and 6 underwent normal term delivery and gained 6 infants who had no congenital malformation.All the 6 children had normal growth and development after childbirth. None of the women developed secondary tumors.Conclusion The EP regimen is effective and safe for the treatment of high-risk,chemorefractory and recurrent GTN.

OBJECTIVETo determine the anthropometric parameters and the isometric muscle strength in a working population sample in China, and to investigate the relationship between muscle strength and individual attributes, such as age, gender, height and weight.

METHODSThe study population consisted of 146 male and 47 female people including workers, administrators and college students. Four types of muscle strength, i.e., handgrip, arm lift, shoulder lift, and torso pull, were measured.

RESULTSLeft handgrip, right handgrip, arm lift, shoulder lift and torso pull of male workers were (42.07 +/- 7.20), (43.92 +/- 7.14), (26.79 +/- 4.64), (33.79 +/- 6.88), (88.56 +/- 17.98) kg, respectively while those of female workers were (21.29 +/- 5.09), (23.26 +/- 5.47), (13.29 +/- 3.37), (18.52 +/- 4.01), (41.06 +/- 12.04) kg, respectively. The female's strength was about 50% lower than the male's. The strength in the 40 approximately years old group was higher than that in other age groups. There were significant positive correlation between the gender and the isometric strength as well as between the body weight and the isometric strength. If the body weight served as the corrected parameter, there was no significant difference in the handgrip among the groups (P < 0.05), but the torso pull of male workers > college students > administrators. All relative muscle strengths except the torso pull were similar for all age groups.

CONCLUSIONThe body weight as the independent variable can be used for establishing the predictive equation of the muscle strength. Calculation of the relative muscle strength can relieve the interference of the body weight for the muscle strength.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Anthropometry ; Female ; Hand Strength ; physiology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Muscle Contraction ; physiology ; Muscle Strength ; physiology ; Muscle Strength Dynamometer ; Pilot Projects ; Transactional Analysis ; Work Capacity Evaluation

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of liquorice in functional modulation of intestinal P-glycoprotein (P-gp) in rats.

METHODSAn in vitro diffusion chamber system (Ussing chamber) was used to examine the direct effect of liquorice decoction on rhodamine 123 (a subtrate of P-gp) transport and evaluate the permeability of rhodamine 123 or fluorescein sodium through rat jejunum membranes after oral administration of liquorice decoction.

RESULTSDirect application of liquorice decoction did not obviously affect rhodamine 123 transport across the intestinal mucosa. Oral administration of liquorice decoction (10 g/kg, twice daily for a week) significantly increased the absorption of rhodamine 123 and also enhanced rhodamine 123 secretion across the jejunum mucosa. Liquorice had no obvious effect on the transport of CF across the jejunum mucosa.

CONCLUSIONLiquorice may slightly inhibit P-gp function in the intestinal mucosa to increase the intestinal absorption of rhodamine 123.

ATP-Binding Cassette, Sub-Family B, Member 1 ; antagonists & inhibitors ; metabolism ; Animals ; Glycyrrhiza ; Intestinal Absorption ; drug effects ; Intestinal Mucosa ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Intestines ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Male ; Plant Extracts ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Rhodamine 123 ; metabolism