BACKGROUND: The association of genetic variation in the IRAK-1 gene with sepsis outcome has been proved. However, few studies have addressed the impact of the IRAK-4 gene variants on sepsis risk. This study aimed to determine whether the polymorphisms in the IRAK-4 gene are associated with susceptibility to and prognosis of severe sepsis in the Chinese Han ethnic population.METHODS: In this case-control study, 192 patients with severe sepsis hospitalized in the emergency department of Zhongshan Hospital from February 2006 to December 2009 and 192 healthy volunteers were enrolled. Exclusion criteria included metastatic tumors, autoimmune diseases, AIDS or treatment with immunosuppressive drugs. This study was approved by the ethical committee of Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University. Sepsis patients were divided into a survival group (n=124) and a non-survival group (n=68) according to the 30-day mortality. Primer 3 software was used to design PCR and sequencing primers. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Seven tagSNPs in IRAK-4 were selected according to the data of the Chinese Han population in Beijing from the Hapmap project and genotyped by direct sequencing. The chi-square test was used to evaluate the differences in genotype and allele frequencies between the two groups.RESULTS: The distributions of all tagSNPs were consistent with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The allele and genotype frequencies of rs4251545 (G/A) were significantly different between the severe sepsis and healthy control groups (P=0.015, P=0.035, respectively). Carriers of the rs4251545A had a higher risk for severe sepsis compared with carriers of the rs4251545G (OR=1.69, 95％ CI: 1.10-2.58). The allele and genotype frequencies of all SNPs were not significantly different between the survival group and non-survival group.CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that the variants in IRAK-4 are significantly associated with susceptibility to severe sepsis in the Chinese Han ethnic population.

Objective To analyze the risk factors for postoperative infection of patients with colorectal cancer,and to investigate the distribution of pathogenic bacteria and drug resistance.Methods A total of 300 patients with colorectal cancer who underwent operation were selected from June 2013 to June 2017 in the Central Hospital of Tongchuan Mining Bureau,and the patients were divided into the infection group and the non-infection group according to the postoperative infection.The clinical data were compared between the two groups,and the risk factors for postoperative infection in colorectal cancer patients were analyzed by logistic regression.The total automatic bacterial culture apparatus was used for bacterial culture,and the drug sensitivity test was carried out by Kirby-Bauer.Results Among the 300 colorectal cancer patients,there were 61 cases of incision infection (infection group) and 239 cases without incision infection (non-infection group) after operation,the postoperative infection rate was 20.33％ (61/300).There were significant differences in the operation method,red blood cell counts,the levels of albumin,prealbumin and hemoglobin between the two groups (P ＜ 0.05);but there was no significant difference in sex,age,body mass index,diabetes mellitus history,abdominal surgery history,smoking history,drinking history,operation time,intraoperative bleeding volume,hospitalization time,indwelling time of urethral catheter,white blood cells and C-reactive protein levels between the two groups(P ＞ 0.05).Multiple factor logistic regression analysis showed that the decrease of albumin and prealbumin level was the independent risk factor for postoperative infection in patients with colorectal cancer (P ＜0.05).A total of 52 strains of pathogenic bacteria were detected in 61 cases of colorectal cancer combined with postoperative infection,including 38 strains of gram negative bacteria (73.08％),10 strains of gram positive bacteria (19.23％) and 4 strains of fungi (7.69％).Escherichia coli,Klebsiella pneumoniae,Enterobacter cloacae,Pseudomonas aeruginosa had high drug resistance to ampicillin,cefaclor,ceftriaxone,ceftizoxime,cefepime,cefoperazone,ceftazidime and ofloxacin;but they had low drug resistance to piperacillin,imipenem and amikacin.Conclusion The incidence of postoperative infection in patients with colorectal cancer is higher,the decrease of albumin and prealbumin is the independent risk factor for postoperative infection in patients with colorectal cancer.Gram-negative bacteria are the main pathogens of postoperative infection in patients with colorectal cancer and have high resistance to common antibiotics.

OBJECTIVETo explore the effects of long-term exposure to particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) from automobile exhaust on the reproductive function of Sprague Dawley (SD) rats.

METHODSForty-five male SD rats, weighing 80 - 94 g and aged 28 days, were randomly assigned to receive intra-tracheal administration of 0.9% normal saline (control group, n = 15), PM2. 5 at 2 μg per 100 g body weight per day (low-dose PM2.5 group, n = 15), and PM2.5 at 16 μg per 100 g body weight per day (high-dose PM2.5 group, n = 15), qd, for 60 successive days. After the last 24-hour exposure, 10 rats were taken from each group for copulation with normal female ones, while the others were sacrificed, their testes removed for sperm count and deformity, pathological examination, and determination of the Connexin43 expression.

RESULTSThe conception rate was significantly decreased in the low- and high-dose PM2.5 groups as compared with that of the control (70% and 50% vs 100%), and so were the sperm count and quality. The rats in the PM2.5-exposed groups showed significantly disordered histological structure of the seminiferous tubules, reduced sperm count in the testicular lumen, some exfoliated secondary spermatocytes, downregulated Connexin43 expression in the testis, and damaged blood-testis barrier.

CONCLUSIONLong-term exposure to PM2.5 from automobile exhaust damages the reproductive function of male SD rats.

Animals ; Blood-Testis Barrier ; Body Weight ; Connexin 43 ; metabolism ; Down-Regulation ; Fertilization ; Male ; Particulate Matter ; toxicity ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reproduction ; Seminiferous Tubules ; Sperm Count ; Spermatocytes ; Testis ; metabolism ; pathology ; Vehicle Emissions ; toxicity