Objective To evaluate the performance of ligase chain reaction(LCR) in the detection of Chlamydia trachomatis(Ct) from urethral or cervical samples in STD patients. Methods Ct was detected by LCR in urethral or cervical swabs from 276 cases with urethritis or cervicitis attending our STD clinic. All 276 urethral or cervical swab specimens were pooled by 4 into 69 pools for detection. Chlamydial cell culture was performed in 56 cases with nongonococal urethritis or cervicitis. Discrepant results were analyzed by PCR with primers targeting Ct major outer membrane protein gene. Results The sensitivity and specificity of LCR assay were 96.7% and 100% respectively. Two LCR approaches, pooling or individual testing, yielded 100% of consistency in the detection of Ct in urethral or cervical specimens. Conclusions LCR provides a highly sensitive and specific assay for detection of Ct from urethral and cervical samples, and could be recommended for the diagnosis of genital chlamydial infection. Pooling LCR is suitable for screening of urethral or cervical Ct infection in population study.

Topical photodynamic therapy (PDT),a highly effective,safe and non-invasive therapeutic method,exerts good therapeutic effects on various diseases in dermatology,such as actinic keratosis,condyloma acuminatum,acne,and so on.The major drawback of PDT is pain during the treatment.Some patients have to interrupt or terminate the treatment because of pain intolerance.Some progress has been made in the management of PDT-related pain.It has been revealed that multiple factors are associated with PDT-related pain,including individual factors,lesion characteristics,therapeutic parameters (such as light sources,photosensitizers).Many methods can be used to manage PDT-related pain,including local cooling,oral analgesics,two-step irradiance protocol,topical anesthesia,injection anesthesia,inhalation anesthesia,transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation,hypnosis.

The present study evaluated the effect of non-thermal plasma on skin wound healing in BalB/c mice. Two 6-mm wounds along the both sides of the spine were created on the back of each mouse (n=80) by using a punch biopsy. The mice were assigned randomly into two groups, with 40 animals in each group: a non-thermal plasma group in which the mice were treated with the non-thermal plasma; a control group in which the mice were left to heal naturally. Wound healing was evaluated on postoperative days (POD) 4, 7, 10 and 14 (n=5 per group in each POD) by percentage of wound closure. The mice was euthanized on POD 1, 4, 7, 10, 14, 21, 28 and 35 (n=1 in each POD). The wounds were removed, routinely fixed, paraffin-embedded, sectioned and HE-stained. A modified scoring system was used to evaluate the wounds. The results showed that acute inflammation peaked on POD 4 in non-thermal plasma group, earlier than in control group in which acute inflammation reached a peak on POD 7, and the acute inflammation scores were much lower in non-thermal group than in control group on POD 7 (P<0.05). The amount of granular tissue was greater on POD 4 and 7 in non-thermal group than in control group (P<0.05). The re-epithelialization score and the neovasularization score were increased significantly in non-thermal group when compared with control group on POD 7 and 10 (P<0.05 for all). The count of bacterial colonies was 10(3) CFU/mL on POD 4 and <20 CFU/mL on POD 7, significantly lower than that in control group (10(9) CFU/mL on POD 4 and >10(12) CFU/mL on the POD 7) (P<0.05). It was suggested that the non-thermal plasma facilitates the wound healing by suppressing bacterial colonization.

The present study evaluated the effect of non-thermal plasma on skin wound healing in BalB/c mice.Two 6-mm wounds along the both sides of the spine were created on the back of each mouse (n=80) by using a punch biopsy.The mice were assigned randomly into two groups,with 40animals in each group:a non-thermal plasma group in which the mice were treated with the non-thermal plasma; a control group in which the mice were left to heal naturally.Wound healing was evaluated on postoperative days (POD) 4,7,10 and 14 (n=5 per group in each POD) by percentage of wound closure.The mice was euthanized on POD 1,4,7,10,14,21,28 and 35 (n=1 in each POD).The wounds were removed,routinely fixed,paraffin-embedded,sectioned and HE-stained.A modified scoring system was used to evaluate the wounds.The results showed that acute inflammation peaked on POD 4 in non-thermal plasma group,earlier than in control group in which acute inflammation reached a peak on POD 7,and the acute inflammation scores were much lower in non-thermal group than in control group on POD7 (P＜0.05).The amount of granular tissue was greater on POD 4 and 7 in non-thermal group than in control group (P＜0.05).The re-epithelialization score and the neovasularization score were increased significantly in non-thermal group when compared with control group on POD 7 and 10 (P＜0.05 for all).The count of bacterial colonies was 103 CFU/mL on POD 4 and ＜20 CFU/mL on POD 7,significantly lower than that in control group (109 CFU/mL on POD 4 and ＞1012 CFU/mL on the POD 7) (P＜0.05).It was suggested that the non-thermal plasma facilitates the wound healing by suppressing bacterial colonization.