AIM :To investigate the association of primary open-glaucoma (POAG), intraocular pressure (IOP) and systemic blood pressure in a rural population aged 50 years old or above in Shaanxi Province, China.METHODS: In the population-based, cross-sectional study, 1 775 (83.53%) residents, aged 50 years old or above, from 3 counties of Shaanxi Province, China, undertook an interview with a standard questionnaire and a detailed eye examination, including logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution visual acuity, slit-lamp biomicroscopy, applanation tonometry and dilated fundus examination. Two blood pressure reading in the sitting position were taken. Gonioscopy was performed if a narrower peripheral anterior chamber (less than one fourth of the corneal thickness) was indicated. Automated visual field testing was performed by participants assessed to have suspicion of glaucomatous disc damage or if IOP was 22mmHg or higher.RESULTS: IOP significantly correlated with systemic blood pressure, and both IOP and systolic blood pressure increased significantly with increasing age. No association between POAG and hypertension was found. The frequency of POAG increased significantly with lower diastolic perfusion pressure.CONCLUSION: Data in our study are accordance with those reported in other population-based studies, and confirm that lower diastolic perfusion pressure is a significant risk factor for primary open angle glaucoma.

AIM: To assess the prevalence and risk factors for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in a rural population in Shaanxi Province of China.METHODS: A total of 2 835 (81.00%) people aged 40 years old or more, from Fuping county, Jingbian county and Yang county of Shaanxi Province, China, underwent a comprehensive interview and a relative eye examination. The present of AMD was classified into neovascular AMD (NV) and pure geographic atrophy (GA) by using direct ophthalmoscopy for fundus examination according to International Classification System.RESULTS: The prevalence (95% CI) of AMD was 3.00% (2.42, 3.71) in this population, of which NV accounted for 1.45% (1.05, 1.98) and 1.55% (1.14, 2.10)for GA. The prevalence of AMD increased significantly with increasing age (P ＜0.001). AMD was present in 0.47% of participants aged 40 to 49 years, rising to 11.90% of participants older than 80 years, of which the corresponding data increased from 0.28% to 4.76% for NV and from 0.19% to 7.14% for GA. No significant difference was found in the prevalence of NA and GA between genders in this population. With multiple logistic analyses, apart from advancing age, only smoking was found to have a strong association with any type of AMD.CONCLUSION: The prevalence of AMD in the rural population of Shaanxi Province of China is lower than that reported from other population-based studies in different provinces of China, less than that reported in whites, more than that reported in blacks. Except increasing age, smoking is also a significant well-known risk factor for AMD.

· AIM: To assess the prevalence and related risk factors for primary angle-closure glaucoma in a rural population for 40 years of age or older in Shaanxi Province.· METHODS: By using a stratified, cluster-based, random sampling technique, 8 500 persons of all ages were selected randomly, including 3 500 those aged 40 years or more, from the North, the South and the Middle of Shaanxi Province in Western China from July to December in 2003. All participants had an interview with a standard questionnaire and those questions related to glaucoma of previous diagnosis and treatment, family history and outbreak history. Then a detailed and relative eye examination was performed, including logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution visual acuity, external eye examination with slit-lamp biomicroscopy and fundus examination. The intraocular pressure was measured with Perkins applanation tonometry to those persons aged 50 years old or more and those with suspected increased IOP. A further examination was performed to those persons with suspicious glaucoma, including repeated tonometric examination, gonioscopy, dark room test, automated visual field testing, et al.·RESULTS: 6 815 of the eligible 8 500 persons of all ages were interviewed and examined from July to December in 2003, a response rate of 80.18%, including 2835 of the eligible 3 500 persons of 40 years old or more with a response rate of 81.00%. According to Van Herick method, the percentage of shallow peripheral anterior chamber was 13.6%, of which 10.4% was in grade 2, 3.0% in grade 1, and 0.2% in grade 0. In this rural population for 40 years of age or older 31 participants were found to have primary angle-closure glaucoma, with the prevalence of 1.09%. With multiple logistic analyses, the prevalence increased significantly with age (P=0.008), whereas no significant difference (Pgender=0.180, Peducation=0.199) was found in the rate with gender and education, although women and illiteracy seemed to be at increased risk of the disease (OR: 1.77, 95%CI,0.77-4.10; OR: 1.71, 95%CT, 0.76-3.87). Of 31 participants, 21 persons (67.74%) had not been previously diagnosed and treated. Of 10 participants previously diagnosed, 6 (60%) had been received peripheral iridectomy; nevertheless, no any other treatments were performed. 48.39% participants suffered from visual impairment in various degrees, of which the percentage of blindness in either eye accounted for 29.03%. Of those with primary angle-closure glaucoma, 22 persons (70.97%) were classified as having chronic from of the disease.· CONCLUSION: In this rural population in Shaanxi Province of China, the rate of occludable angles is 13.6%, more common than that reported previously in other Chinese populations. The prevalence of primary angle-closure glaucoma is close to that from other Asian populations, increasing with age. A majority of glaucoma was undiagnosed and untreated previously.

· AIM: To assess the prevalence and related risk factors of primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) in a rural population in Shaanxi Province.· METHODS: By using a stratified, duster-based, random sampling technique, 8 500 persons of all ages were selected randomly, from the North, the South and the Middle of Shaanxi Province from July to December in 2003. All participants had an interview with a standard questionnaire and those questions related to glaucoma of previous diagnosis and treatment, family history and outbreak history. Then a detailed and relative eye examination was performed, including logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution visual acuity, external eye examination with slit-lamp biomicroscopy and fundus examination. The intraocular pressure was measured with Perkins applanation tonometry to those persons aged 50years old or more and those with suspected increased IOP. A further examination was performed to those persons with suspicious glaucoma, including repeated tonometric examination, gonioscopy, dark room test, automated visual field testing, et al.· RESULTS: 6 815 of the eligible 8 500 persons of all ages were interviewed and examined from July to December in 2003, a response rate of 80.18%. 9 participants were found to have POAG, with the prevalence of 0.13%, age ranging from 38 to 80 years (mean year:62.0). In those aged 30 years old or more, the prevalence of the disease was 0.23%, 0.28% and 0.39% for those more than 40 and 50 years old, respectively. The rate of suspicious POAG was 0.18% (12 cases) with age ranging from 35 to 77 years (mean year: 54.7). With multiple logistic analyses, the prevalence increased significantly with age (P=0.023). Other than increasing age, myopia was also a strong risk factor for POAG. Of 9participants with POAG, only 2 cases (22.22%) had been previously diagnosed. No one with POAG was received any treatment previously. 66.67% (6 cases) participants with POAG suffered from visual impairment in various degrees secondary to POAG. The percentage of blindness in either eye was 33.33%.· CONCLUSION: The prevalence of POAG is close to that from other Chinese populations, increasing with age. A majority of glaucoma was undiagnosed and untreated previously.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the protective effect of melatonin on residual hair follicle cells of scald rats at early stage.

METHODSEighteen male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into scald group, treatment group, sham group , with 6 rats in each group. The rats in scald group and treatment group were subjected to 30% TBSA partial thickness scald on the back, and were resuscitated with balanced solution after 1 hour, while those in sham group were immersed in water at 37 degrees C for 25 s to simulate scald, and did not receive fluid replacement. Rats in treatment group were intraperitoneally injected with 10 mg/kg melatonin solution at 1 minute, 8 hours and 12 hours after scald, while those in sham group and scald group were given equal volume of 1% alcohol sodium-isotonic saline instead. Tissue samples were harvested at 6, 12 and 24 post scald hours (PSH) for determination of MDA and GSH levels. Apoptosis of residul hair follicle was detected by TUNEL method and immunohistochemistry of caspase-3.

RESULTSThe level of MDA in scald group at each time point was much higher than that in sham group (P < 0.01) and treatment group (P < 0.05), and it peaked at 12 PSH. The changes in GSH were just opposite to that of MDA. Under fluorescence microscope, the residual hair follicle cells were blue, and the apoptotic cells appeared green. The apoptosis rate in scald group at 6, 12, 24 PSH was obviously higher than that in sham (P < 0.01) and treatment groups (P < 0.05), which was (20.2 +/- 3.4)% vs (4.3 +/- 2.3)% vs (10.9 +/- 3.2)%, (31.2 +/- 3.6)% vs (5.1 +/- 2.5)% vs (19.1 +/- 3.7)%, (22.4 +/- 2.7)% vs (4.1 +/- 2.4)% vs (13.1 +/- 3.4)%, respectively. The score of caspase-3 positive cell in scald group was higher than those in sham group (P < 0.01) and treatment group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSThere is obvious correlation between oxidative stress and apoptosis rate of hair follicle cells in rats with partial thickness scald. Early administration of melatonin may have anti-apoptosis ability for residual hair follicle cells by attenuation of oxidative stress.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; Burns ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Hair Follicle ; cytology ; metabolism ; Male ; Melatonin ; therapeutic use ; Oxidative Stress ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Refractory gelastic seizure is one of the most common clinical manifestations in patients with hypothalamic hamartoma (HH) and HH is usually regarded as the epileptogenic focus. A young female patient with a small HH and refractory seizures is reported here. However, both the seizure semiology and results of electroencephalogram monitoring indicated the right temporal region was the epileptogenic focus. Thus a standard right anterior temporal lobectomy was performed while the hamartoma preserved. There was a marked improvement in both seizure frequency and quality of life during a 13-month follow-up. The outcome supported the concept that independent epileptogenic focus outside of the hypothalamus might occur in patients with HH.
Adult ; Electroencephalography ; Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe ; diagnosis ; surgery ; Female ; Hamartoma ; diagnosis ; surgery ; Humans ; Hypothalamic Diseases ; diagnosis ; surgery

OBJECTIVETo study the anatomy of the small intestine,and investigate the optimal selection of donors,recipients,and their small intestine vessels in piglet small intestine transplantation.

METHODSThe weight and length of 30 piglets were measured. Angiography and pigments perfusion were used to observe the main vessels of the small intestine,and the length of the small intestine,and the external diameter of the main vessels of the small intestine were measured in vivo and ex vivo.

RESULTSThe length of the small intestine was 11.5 times as long as the body length, and its weight accounted for 2.3% of the body weight. The outer diameters of abdominal aorta (AT), mesenteric anterior artery (MAA) and its 5(th)-6(th) branches in vivo and ex vitro were 4.3/4.6mm, 2.5/2.7mm and 1.9/2.2mm respectively. The total number of MAA's branches was 6-8 in general and its 5(th)-6(th) branches were the longest [(20.0 +/- 7.0) mm, (22.0 +/- 8.2) mm]. The outer diameter of mesenterial anterior vein (MAV) was 1-2 mm wider than that of MAA.

CONCLUSIONSAT, MAA and its 5(th)-6(th) branches are the preferable vessels for small intestine transplantation. In segmental small intestine transplantation, the length of the small intestine and body weight can be used to primarily select the suitable animals.

Animals ; Blood Vessels ; anatomy & histology ; Female ; Intestine, Small ; blood supply ; transplantation ; Male ; Organ Transplantation ; Swine ; Swine, Miniature

The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that a medium-term simulated microgravity can induce region-specific remodeling in large elastic arteries with their innermost smooth muscle (SM) layers being most profoundly affected. The second purpose was to examine whether these changes can be prevented by a simulated intermittent artificial gravity (IAG). The third purpose was to elucidate whether vascular local renin-angiotensin system (L-RAS) plays an important role in the regional vascular remodeling and its prevention by the gravity-based countermeasure. This study consisted of two interconnected series of in-vivo and ex-vivo experiments. In the in-vivo experiments, the tail-suspended, hindlimb unloaded rat model was used to simulate microgravity-induced cardiovascular deconditioning for 28 days (SUS group); and during the simulation period, another group was subjected to daily 1-hour dorso-ventral (-G(x)) gravitation provided by restoring to normal standing posture (S + D group). The activity of vascular L-RAS was evaluated by examining the gene and protein expression of angiotensinogen (Ao) and angiotensin II receptor type 1 (AT1R) in the arterial wall tissue. The results showed that SUS induced an increase in the media thickness of the common carotid artery due to hypertrophy of the four SM layers and a decrease in the total cross-sectional area of the nine SM layers of the abdominal aorta without significant change in its media thickness. And for both arteries, the most prominent changes were in the innermost SM layers. Immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization revealed that SUS induced an up- and down-regulation of Ao and AT1R expression in the vessel wall of common carotid artery and abdominal aorta, respectively, which was further confirmed by Western blot analysis and real time PCR analysis. Daily 1-hour restoring to normal standing posture over 28 days fully prevented these remodeling and L-RAS changes in the large elastic arteries that might occur due to SUS alone. In the ex-vivo experiments, to elucidate the important role of transmural pressure in vascular regional remodeling and differential regulation of L-RAS activity, we established an organ culture system in which rat common carotid artery, held at in-vivo length, can be perfused and pressurized at varied flow and pressure for 7 days. In arteries perfused at a flow rate of 7.9 mL/min and pressurized at 150 mmHg, but not at 0 or 80 mmHg, for 3 days led to an augmentation of c-fibronectin (c-FN) expression, which was also more markedly expressed in the innermost SM layers, and an increase in Ang II production detected in the perfusion fluid. However, the enhanced c-FN expression and increased Ang II production that might occur due to a sustained high perfusion pressure alone were fully prevented by daily restoration to 0 or 80 mmHg for a short duration. These findings from in-vivo and ex-vivo experiments have provided evidence supporting our hypothesis that redistribution of transmural pressures might be the primary factor that initiates region-specific remodeling of arteries during microgravity and the mechanism of IAG is associated with an intermittent restoration of the transmural pressures to their normal distribution. And they also provide support to the hypothesis that L-RAS plays an important role in vascular adaptation to microgravity and its prevention by the IAG countermeasure.
Angiotensinogen ; genetics ; metabolism ; Animals ; Aorta, Abdominal ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Carotid Artery, Common ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Hindlimb Suspension ; Male ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; metabolism ; pathology ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptor, Angiotensin, Type 1 ; genetics ; metabolism ; Renin-Angiotensin System ; physiology ; Weightlessness Simulation

BACKGROUNDThere is a significant association between obesity and breast cancer, which is possibly due to the expression of leptin. Therefore, it is important to clarify the role of leptin/ObR (leptin receptor) signaling during the progression of human breast cancer.

METHODSNude mice with xenografts of MCF-7 human breast cancer cells were administered recombinant human leptin subcutaneous via injection around the tumor site. Mice in the experimental group were intratumorally injected with ObR-RNAi-lentivirus, while negative control group mice were injected with the same dose of negative-lentivirus. Tumor size was blindly measured every other day, and mRNA and protein expression levels of ObR, estrogen receptor a (ERa), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) for each group were determined.

RESULTSKnockdown of ObR-treated xenografted nude mice with a high leptin microenvironment was successfully established. Local injection of ObR-RNAi-lentivirus significantly suppressed the established tumor growth in nude mice. ObR level was significantly lower in the experimental group than in the negative control group, while the amounts of ERa and VEGF expression were significantly lower in the leptin group than in the control group (P < 0.01 for all).

CONCLUSIONSInhibition of leptin/ObR signaling is essential to breast cancer proliferation and possible crosstalk between ObR and ERa, and VEGF, and may lead to novel therapeutic treatments aiming at targeting ObR in breast cancers.

Animals ; Breast Neoplasms ; genetics ; metabolism ; therapy ; Estrogen Receptor alpha ; genetics ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; Lentivirus ; genetics ; MCF-7 Cells ; Mice ; Mice, Nude ; RNA Interference ; physiology ; Receptors, Leptin ; genetics ; metabolism ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A ; genetics ; metabolism ; Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays

Objective To summarize the clinical characteristics of foreign bodies in the upper gastrointestinal tract and analyze its risk factors for complications. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the medical data of the patients who were diagnosed of foreign body impaction in the upper gastrointestinal tract, then analyzed its risk factors of complications. Results The date pits were the most common type of foreign bodies and upper esophagus were the most common locations in upper gastrointestinal tract; In Logistic regression analysis, risk factors for complications were the duration of impaction that longer than 12 hours (OR^ = 9.04, 95%CI: 2.91 ~ 28.04; P = 0.000) and the sharpness of foreign bodies' edge (OR^ = 7.95, 95% CI: 2.09 ~ 30.21; P = 0.002). Conclusion The duration of impaction that longer than 12h and sharpness of foreign bodies' edge are the risk factors for complications.