AIMTo investigate the intraspecific variation of Carthamus tinctorius L. (safflower) and establish foundation for further breeding of safflower germplasm resource and screening the quality correlation genes.

METHODSAmplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) was carried out to analyze genetic variation of 28 safflower populations collected in China. Unweighed pair-group method of with arithmetical averages (UPGMA) cluster analysis was used to construct a dendrogram and to estimate the genetic distances among the populations.

RESULTSAll populations could be uniquely distinguished using 12 selected primer combinations. Similarity coefficients ranged from 0.48 to 0.96 among the populations. Dendrogram revealed distinct segregation of all the cultivars into three main groups and one midst group.

CONCLUSIONLimited genetic diversity exists within the tested 28 collections at intra specific level and AFLP-based phyiogeny was not absolutely consistent with that based on morphological characters may be due to the interaction effect between genotype and environment.

Carthamus tinctorius ; genetics ; Cluster Analysis ; DNA, Plant ; analysis ; Genetic Variation ; Phylogeny ; Plants, Medicinal ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Genetic

OBJECTIVETo investigate the diagnostic value of thoracoscopy on idiopathic coalworker's pneumoconiosis with pleural effusion in general medicine.

METHODRoutine (general medicine) thoracoscopyof patients suffering from iIdiopathiccoalworker's pneumoconiosis with pleural effusion, pathological examination of lesions obtained (direct vision).

RESULTPathological examination revealed grayish-white miliary nodules with multiple protruding nodules, irregular focal pleura thickening, pulmonary congestion, edema, fibrous adhesion. Thorascopy produced a diagnostic rate of 93.3%. Confirmed cases includes 13 cases of tuberculous pleurisy, 11 cases of malignant pleural effusion, 4 cases of cardiac insufficiency with pleural effusion and 2 cases of idiopathic pleural effusion, with no serious complications.

CONCLUSIONThoracoscopy of idiopathic coalworker's pneumoconiosis with pleural effusion is a safe, accurate diagnostic methodin general medicine, and could benefit the establishment of a treatment method quickly, visual observation of the lesions of patients suffering from coalworker's pneumoconiosis with pleural effusion using thoracoscopy, and at the same time offer preliminary investigationof the correlation between the intensity and compactibilityof coal macule distribution and clinical stages of coalworker's Pneumoconiosis.

Anthracosis ; diagnosis ; Heart Failure ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Lung ; pathology ; Pleural Effusion ; diagnosis ; Pleural Effusion, Malignant ; diagnosis ; Pulmonary Edema ; diagnosis ; Thoracoscopy ; Tuberculosis, Pleural ; diagnosis

[Objective] To observe the effects of autophagy induced by different doses of ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiation on the apeptosis in human skin fibroblasts.[Methods] Skin fibroblasts were isolated from the circumcision specimen of a 23-year-old healthy male,and subjected to a primary culture.After 3 to 10 passages,the cells were collected and applied in the following experiment.Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay was performed to evaluate the proliferation of some fibroblasts treated with different concentrations (0,0.5,2.0,5.0and 10.0 mmol/L) of 3-methyladenine (3-MA).To qualitatively and quantitatively detect the autophagy in fibroblasts treated with different concentrations of 3-MA and in fibroblasts treated with 3-MA of 0.5 mmol/Lfollowing UVB irradiation,monodansylcadaverine (MDC) staining was carried out,and immunofluorescence was used to detect the expression of microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain (LC3).Some fibroblasts were classified into 8 groups to remain untreated,be irradiated with UVB of 30,50 and 100 mJ/cm2 alone,treated with 3-MA of 0.5 mmol/L alone,or treated with 0.5 mmol/L 3-MA following irradiation with UVB of 30,50 and 100 mJ/cm2,respectively,then,cell apoptosis was qualitatively detected by Hoechst and propidium iodide (PI)staining,and quantitatively detected by flow cytometry with annexin V and PI.[Results] The percentage of autophagic cells was (63.037 ± 5.876) ％ in fibroblasts treated with starvation condition,significantly decreased to (34.425 ± 5.183) ％ in fibroblasts treated with 3-MA of 0.5 mmol/L.The expression of LC3 showed a gradually increasing trend from untreated fibroblasts,to fibroblasts irradiated with UVB of 30,50 and 100 mJ/cm2,while the increase was attenuated by the 4-hour treatment with 3-MA immediately after the irradiation.Compared with the other concentrations,the 3-MA of 0.5 mmol/L showed the least influence on the viability of fibroblasts.The addition of 3-MA of 0.5 mmol/L increased the percentage of cells both positive for Hoechst and PI staining in fibroblasts irradiated with UVB of 50 mJ/cm2,but decreased that in fibroblasts irradiated with UVB of 100 mJ/cm2.Similarly,the percentage of middle and late apoptotic cells was significantly higher in fibroblasts irradiated with UVB of 50 mJ/cm2 followed by treatment with 3-MA of 0.5 mmol/L than in those irradiated with UVB of 50 mJ/cm2alone ((10.933 ± 0.839) ％ vs.(7.267 ± 0.473) ％,t =5.20,P＜ 0.05),but lower in fibroblasts irradiated with UVB of 100 mJ/cm2 followed by treatment with 3-MA of 0.5 mmol/L than in those irradiated with UVB of 100 mJ/cm2alone ( (7.100 ± 0.781 ) ％ vs.( 1 0.133 ± 0.681 ) ％,t =6.29,P ＜ 0.05 ).[Conclusion]s The irradiation with UVB of 50 mJ/cm2 may protect fibroblasts by inducing autophagy and suppressing apoptosis,while the high level of autophagy induced by UVB of 100 mJ/cm2 may lead to autophagic cell death in fibroblasts.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the dynamic changes of the epididymal size 1 year after vasectomy.

METHODSFifty male volunteers received vasoligation. Before and at 1, 2, 3, 6, and 12 months after operation, we measured the size and detected the internal echoes of the epididymis using color Doppler ultrasonography.

RESULTSThe bilateral epididymides were both thickened post-operatively in all the 50 cases, with statistically significant differences between the baseline and the 1st month, the 1st and the 2nd month, the 2nd and the 3rd month, or the 3rd and the 6th month after surgery (all P < 0.01), but not between the 6th and the 12th month (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONWithin 6 months after vasectomy, the bilateral epididymides manifested a progressive thickening, but basically restored their balance of secretion-absorption after 6 months.

Epididymis ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; physiology ; Humans ; Male ; Organ Size ; Postoperative Period ; Time Factors ; Ultrasonography, Doppler, Color ; Vasectomy

The genome of CK/CH/SD09/005, an isolate of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), was characterized to enable the further understanding of the epidemiology and evolution of IBV in China. Twenty-five pairs of primers were designed to amplify the full-length genome of CK/CH/SD09/005. The nucleotide sequence of CK/CH/SD09/005 was compared with reference IBV strains retrieved from GenBank. The phylogenic relationship between CK/CH/SD09/005 and the reference strains was analyzed based on S1 gene sequences. The complete genome of CK/CH/SD09/005 consisted of 27691 nucleotides (nt), excluding the 5' cap and 3' poly A tail. The whole-genome of CK/CH/SD09/005 shared 97 - 99% nucleotide sequence homology with the GX-NN09032 strain, which was the only complete genome that was closely related to CK/CH/SD09/005. When compared with all reference strains except GX-NN09032, CK/CH/SD09/005 showed the highest similarity to ck/CH/LDL/091022 and SDIB821/2012 (QX-like) in the replicase gene (Gene 1) and 3'UTR, with a sequence identity rate of 97% and 98%, respectively. However, CK/CH/SD09/005 exhibited lower levels of similarity with ck/CH/LDL/091022 and SDIB821/2012 in S-3a-3b-3c/ E-M-5a-5b-N with a sequence identity of 72% - 90%. CK/CH/SD09/005 showed the highest level of nucleotide identity with Korean strain 1011, and Chinese strains CK/CH/LXJ/02I, DK/CH/HN/ZZ2004 and YX10, in ORF 3c/E (97%), 5a (96%), 5b (99%) and N (96%), respectively. ORFs 3a, 3b and M of CK/CH/SD09/005 exhibited no more than 90% homology with the reference strains, excluding GX-NN09032. The phylogenic analysis based on the S1 gene revealed that CK/CH/SD09/005 and 39 published strains were classified into seven clades (genotypes). CK/CH/SD09/005 was distributed in clade IV with several isolates collected between 2007 and 2012. CK/CH/SD09/005 showed 66% - 69% and 72% - 81% nucleotide identities with the IBV strains of other six clades in the S1 and S2 subunits, respectively. More over, multiple substitutions were found throughout the entire S gene of CK/CH/SD09/005, while insertions and deletions were located within the S1 gene. These results indicated that CK/CH/SD09/005 is a novel variant that may be derived from the QX-like strains that are prevalent in China. Multiple genetic mechanisms, including recombinations, mutations, insertions and deletions, are likely to have contributed to the emergence of this IBV strain.
Animals ; Chickens ; China ; Coronavirus Infections ; veterinary ; virology ; Genome, Viral ; Genomics ; Infectious bronchitis virus ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phylogeny ; Poultry Diseases ; virology ; Sequence Homology, Amino Acid ; Viral Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics

Taking the Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University as an example,the paper gives detailed examples in clinical and scientific research fields to indicate that the effective utilization of medical data through function reconstruction of the Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system not only brings conveniences to clinical and scientific researchers,but also strengthens medical protection for patients.

OBJECTIVEThe impact of human bocavirus (HBoV), a newly identified human parvovirus, on childhood persistent wheezing has not been identified. In this study, the clinical features of infantile persistent wheezing induced by HBoV was analyzed.

METHODSTracheal aspirates were collected by bronchofibroscope or nasopharyngeal (NP) aspirates from April, 2006 to January, 2007. HBoV DNA in the tracheal aspirates of 33 children with persistent wheezing and in NP aspirates of 6 children with persistent wheezing, who had at least or more than four weeks wheezing. RSV was identified by virus isolation in Hep-2 cells and antigen detetion by direct immunofluorescence assay (DIFA) which was also used for diagnosis of adenovirus, influenza A and B, parainfluenza 1, 2, 3 infection.

RESULTSOf the 39 children with persistent wheezing, 12 cases (31%) were positive for HBoV DNA. Age of HBoV-positive patients ranged from 2 month to 1 year. The results of sequencing of PCR products proved that sequences of HBoV DNA from these 12 samples were exactly identical to the those of HBoV stored in GeneBank (accession numbers DQ000495 and DQ000496). Two cases with HBoV infection were found to be co-infected with RSV. Ten of the 12 HBoV-positive samples were collected during the period from winter to spring (1 in November, 4 in December, 2 in January and 3 in April), the other two HBoV-positive samples were collected during the period from summer to autumn (1 in May and the other in July). Seven of the 12 HBoV DNA-positive patients had fever, 5 of them had high fever. Significantly more patients with HBoV infection had fever as compared to patients with RSV infection. All the HBoV positive patients showed abnormal findings on chest X ray such as interstitial infiltrates, lung infiltration and hyperinflation. Abnormal findings on chest X ray were found in higher proportion of HBoV positive patients as compared with RSV positive patients. And other manifestations such as wheezing, cough and respiratory distress had no significant difference between HBoV and RSV infected patients.

CONCLUSIONSThis study further demonstrated that HBoV probably is a common pathogen of lower respiratory infection in children and might particularly be associated with persistent wheezing.

Child, Preschool ; Cough ; etiology ; Female ; Fever ; etiology ; Human bocavirus ; pathogenicity ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Nasopharynx ; pathology ; Paramyxoviridae Infections ; physiopathology ; Parvoviridae Infections ; physiopathology ; Respiratory Sounds ; etiology ; Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections ; classification ; physiopathology ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; diagnosis ; physiopathology ; virology

OBJECTIVETo study the self-consciousness of children with learning disabilities (LD) and to identify related factors.

METHODSFive hundred and sixty pupils graded from 1 to 6 in an elementary school were investigated. According to the pupil rating scale revised screening for learning disabilities (PRS), combined Raven's test (CRT) and achievement of main courses, 35 of 560 pupils were diagnosed as LD children. Thirty-five children were selected from the average children and 35 from advanced children in academic achievement equally matched in class, gender, and age with LD children as control groups. The three groups were tested by Piers-Harris children's self-concept scale. Basic information of each subject was collected by self-made questionnaire.

RESULTSCompared with the average and advanced children, LD children got significantly lower scores in self-concept scale. Based on logistic regression analysis, 3 factors were identified, including family income per month, single child and delivery model.

CONCLUSIONThe results suggest that self-consciousness of children with LD is lower than that of normal children.

Child ; Extraction, Obstetrical ; Humans ; Income ; Learning Disorders ; diagnosis ; Obstetrical Forceps ; Only Child ; Risk Factors ; Self Concept

OBJECTIVETo explore the effect of epidermal growth factor (EGF) on apoptosis induced by TNF-alpha and the expression of PPARbeta in HaCaT keratinocytes.

METHODSHaCaT keratinocytes were cultured and randomly divided into A (normal control), B (with treatment of 10 ng/ml TNF-alpha for 24 hours), C (with treatment of 20 ng/ml TNF-alpha for 24 hours), D (with treatment of 10 ng/ml TNF-alpha after 20 ng/ml EGF treatment for 4 hours), E (with treatment of 20 ng/ml TNF-alpha after 20 ng/ml EGF treatment for 4 hours) groups. The apoptosis of HaCaT keratinocytes was observed by flow cytometry. The proliferative activity of HaCaT keratinocytes was evaluated by MTT method. The activity of caspase-3 was analyzed with caspase colorimetric assay Kit. The changes in the mRNA and protein expression of PPARbeta in HaCaT keratinocytes were observed by RT-PCR and western-blotting after treatment with different concentrations (5, 10, 20, 40 ng/ml) of EGF for 4 or 24 hrs.

RESULTSCompared with A and B groups [(32 +/- 6)%, (57 +/- 6)%], the apoptosis of HaCaT keratinocytes in D and E groups were significantly increased [(20 +/- 3)%, (28 +/- 4)%, respectively, P < 0.01], while the survival rate of HaCaT keratinocytes in D and E groups increased, and the caspase-3 activity were decreased (P < 0.01). The expression of PPARbeta mRNA and protein in HaCaT keratinocytes reached the peak with the treatment of 20 ng/ml EGF.

CONCLUSIONEGF can inhibit the apoptosis of HaCaT keratinocytes induced by TNF-alpha, and it can also increase the expression of PPARbeta.

Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Caspase 3 ; metabolism ; Cell Line ; Epidermal Growth Factor ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Keratinocytes ; cytology ; drug effects ; metabolism ; PPAR-beta ; metabolism ; RNA, Messenger ; metabolism ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; pharmacology