Objective To investigate the protective effect of sevoflurane on the brain against focal ischemia-reperfusion(I/R)injury and its mechanism.Methods Twenty-four male SD rats weighing 250-300 g were randomly allocated into 3 groups(n=8 each):group Ⅰ sham operation;grouop Ⅱ I/R and group Ⅲ I/R + sevoflurane.The rats were anesthetized with intraperitoneal chloral hydrate 300 mg?kg~(-1).Middle cerebral artery occlusion(MCAO)was produced by insertion of a 4-0 mono-filament nylon thread with rounded tip at bifurcation of right common carotid artery into internal carotid artery.The nylon thread was advanced cranially until resistance was felt.The depth of insertion was 18-20 mm.After 3 h MCAO the thread was withdrawn to allow reperfusion.In group Ⅲ the animals inhaled 1.0 MAC sevoflurane for 30 min at 30 min before reperfusion.The rectal temperature of the animals was kept at 36.5-37.5℃.At the end of 24 h reperfusion the animals were weighed again.The animals'neurological deficit was evaluated using Zea Longa score(0=no defcit,4=unable to walk and unconscious).The animals were then killed.The neuronal apoptosis in striatum was assessed(TUNEL)and the PKC protein expression in striatum was determined by immunocyto-chemistry.Results The body weight of the animals in I/R group was significantly reduced after 24h reperfusion as compared to the body weight before ischemia (P＜0.01),while in control group and sevoflurane group there was no significant difference in the body weight before and after sham operation or I/R.The neurological deficit scores were significantly higher in I/R group than in sevoflurane group.The number of apoptotic neurons in striatum was significantly higher in I/R group than in sevoflurane group.The PKC expression in striatum was significantly higher in sevoflurane group than in I/R group (P＜0.01).Conclusion 1.0 MAC sevoflurane inhalation has protective effect on the brain against I/R injury. Upregulation of PKC expression in striatum decreased by I/R is involved in the mechanism.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of the combination of percutaneous transhepatic embolization of gastroesophageal varices (PEGV) and partial splenic embolization(PSE) for the treatment of variceal bleeding. Methods Fifty patients with cirrhosis who fit in with the requirements of the study were randomly divided into dual-interventional group and surgical group. The patients in dual-interventional group were treated with PEGV together with PSE, and the patients in surgery group were treated with Hassab's operation. After the procedure all the patients in two groups were followed up periodically. The endoscopy, B ultrasonography, liver function tests and hematologic examinations were performed 24 months after the therapy, and the results were statistically analyzed. Results Fifty patients were enrolled in this study. The procedures of embolization and surgery were successful in all patients. In dual-interventional group, the whit eblood cell and platelet counts were (2.33±0.65) 10~9/L and (3.63±1.05) ×10~9/L respectively before the treatment and were (7.98±3.0) ×10~9/L and (163±91)× 10~9/L respectively 24 months after the treatment (P<0.05). The diameter of theportal vein was (1.47±0.25) cm before the treatment and was(1.31±0.23) cm 24 months after the treatment (P<0.05). The severity of esophageal varices decreased from grade Ⅲ to lower grade Ⅱ in 11 patients, and from grade Ⅱ to lower grade Ⅰ in 6 patients 24 months after procedure. Portal thrombosis occurred in 1 case. The recurrent bleeding rate was 16% (4/25) 24 months after treatment. Three patients died of the recurrent bleeding, one patient died of hepatic failure. In surgical group, the white blood cell and platelet counts were (2.2±0.60) ×10~9/L and (41±12.5) ×109/L before treatment, and were (9.3±2.56)×10~9/L and (321±12.5)×10~9/L 24 months after treatment (P<0.05). The diameter of the portal vein was (1.43±0.22) cm before the treatment and was (1.28±0.18) cm after the treatment (P<0.05). The severity of esophageal varices decreased from grade Ⅲ to lower grade Ⅱ in 13 patients, and from grade Ⅱ to lower grade Ⅰ in 7 patients. Four patients developed portal thrombosis after the procedure. The recurrent bleeding rate was 20%(5/25), 2 patients died of hepatic failure after the surgery, 2 died of recurrent bleeding. Conclusion In treating patients with cirrhosis, the combination of PGEV and PSE, regarded as dual-interventional therapy, is very effective, especially in controlling recurrent bleeding and in improving white blood cell and platelet counts.

Objective To explore acute toxicity of succimer on mice.Methods Twenty Kunming mice(10 males and 10 females) weighting approximately (21.2?2.3)g were acclimatized for 3 days prior to dosing,then were divided into control group and experiment group with 10 mice in each group according to body weight.Fasted for 12 hours,the mice in experiment group received intragastric administration of 160mg DMSA in deionized water in 24 hours,and the control group received the same volume of deionized water,and then they were observed for 7 days.Blood was collected into heparinized-tubes by removal of eyeball.All mice were sacrificed and brain,heart,liver and kidney were removed and washed with normal saline.The activity or amount of BUN,Scr,AST,ALT,SOD, GSH-PX and MDA were analyzed.Results (1)Given 160rag DMSA in 24 hours,gastrointestinal symptoms were main side effects.During the observation,experiment group lost weight due to the decrease of food-intake ,and some mice had slight hydroabdomen.(2)High dose of DMSA caused a significant inhibition of GSH-PX(P0.05).The hepatic cell was damaged accord- ing to the significant raise of MDA in liver(P0.05),which was related to acute toxicity on liver.Conclusion Succimer could inhibit the antioxidarrt systems and could do damage to liver and kidney.

OBJECTIVETo optimize the therapeutic programs for periarthritis of shoulder treated with acupuncture, moxibustion and kinetohterapy with orthogonal design method adopted.

METHODSThe orthogonal design table of L8 (2(7)) hierarchical principle was used to randomly divide 192 patients of periarthritis of shoulder into 8 groups, 24 cases in each one. Separately, 4 factors and each different 2 levels were adopted in treatment, named acupuncture timing (factor A: A, acute stage, A2 adhesion stage), acupoint combination (factor B: B, local acupoints, B2 local acupoints and distal acupoints along meridians), filiform needling and warm needling therapy (factor C: C1 acupuncture with filiform needle, CZ acupuncture with filiform needle and warm needling therapy) and positive functional exercise (factor D: D1 without positive functional exercise, D2 with positive functional exercise). The treatment was given once a day, 10 treatments made one session and 2 sessions were required totally. The time points of observation were the point after 1 session of treatment and after 2 sessions of treatment. The short-form McGill pain questionnaire (MPQ) and shoulder joint motor disturbance score were adopted for evaluation.

RESULTSIn the orthogonal design analysis, taking the hierarchical factors into consideration, the age was considered as the main factor in the evaluation of shoulder pain and shoulder motor disturbance (P<0.01), and the shoulder function grade apparently impacted pain evaluation and the efficacy on shoulder motor disturbance (P<0.01). The best combination of 4 factors and 2 levels were A1B1CzD2 and A2BC2D2. SAS statistical analysis showed that at acute stage and adhesion stage, CZ Dz , meaning acupuncture with fifiform needling and warm needling therapy combined with positive functional exercise, is the main factor of the improvements of shoulder motor function (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONFor periarthritis of shoulder at acute stage, the combined therapy of acupuncture at local acupoints, warm needling and positive functional exercise is adopted. At chronic stage, the combined therapy of acupuncture at local acupoints and distal acupoints, acupuncture with filiform needle and warm needling and positive functional exercise is the best program. Additionally, in clinical treatment, the patients' age, sex, shoulder joint function and duration of treatment should be considered comprehensively for the impacts on the efficacy.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Adult ; Aged ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Exercise Therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Moxibustion ; Periarthritis ; therapy ; Shoulder Pain ; therapy

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effect of chemical compounds extracted from Galla chinensis on enamel surface rehardening in vitro.

METHODSSixty bovine enamel blocks with early carious lesions were randomly divided into six groups: group1 treated NaF (positive control); group2 with GCE; group3 with GCE-B; group4 with GCE-B1; group5 with GCE-B2 and group6 with deionized water (negative control). The lesions were subjected to a pH-cycling regime for 12 days. Surface enamel microhardness was measured on the enamel blocks before and after demineralization. After pH-cycling, and the percentage of surface microhardness recovery (SMHR) was calculated.

RESULTSObvious increase of the surface hardness of the enamel was observed in all the treatments except GCE-B2 and deionized water (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSThe present study demonstrates the potential of the three GCEs (GCE, GCE-B and GCE-B1) to effect net rehardening of artificial carious lesions under dynamic pH-cyclic conditions.

Animals ; Cattle ; Dental Caries ; drug therapy ; Dental Enamel ; drug effects ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Gallic Acid ; pharmacology ; In Vitro Techniques ; Tooth Remineralization

OBJECTIVETo observe the different mRNA levels of Candida albicans ALS gene family between planktonic and biofilm-grown cells.

METHODSATCC 90038 and a wild strain of Candida albicans, biofilm models in vitro were formed on glass slides. After 48 hours' incubation, the biofilm-grown cells were harvested. Half-quantification of ALS1 and ALS4 mRNA was based on the amplification by one-step RT-PCR.

RESULTSThe amounts of ALS1 and ALS4 mRNA of the wild strain in biofilm increased comparing with planktonic cells, while ATCC 90038 didn't.

CONCLUSIONThe members of ALS gene family may play important roles in the course of Candida albicans biofilm formation.

Biofilms ; Candida albicans ; Fungal Proteins ; Humans ; Mouth ; microbiology ; RNA, Messenger

OBJECTIVETo investigate the neuroprotective effects of Chinese herb medicine Huanglian-Jiedu-Tang (HJDT) on chronic brain injury after focal cerebral ischemia in mice.

METHODSFocal cerebral ischemia was induced by occlusion of right middle cerebral artery (MCA) for 15 min. HJDT (at dosage of 2 g/kg or 4 g/kg, qd, orally) was administered for 21 d from d 7 before ischemia until d 14 after ischemia. The sham and ischemic controls were administered with normal saline orally. The neurological deficit scoring and the inclined board testing were performed within 35 d after ischemia. The survival rate, the infarct volume and the neuron density were assessed 35 d after ischemia.

RESULTHJDT increased the survival rate at dose of 4 g/kg; significantly reduced the neurological deficits, infarct volume and cerebral atrophy at doses of 2 and 4 g/kg after ischemia; and significantly increased the neuron density in the ischemic hippocampal CA1 region, striatum and cortex at dose of 4 g/kg but only increase the density in hippocampal CA1 region at dose of 2 g/kg.

CONCLUSIONChinese herb medicine HJDT has neuroprotective effects on chronic brain injury after focal cerebral ischemia in mice.

Animals ; Behavior, Animal ; physiology ; Brain ; pathology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; drug therapy ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Male ; Mice ; Neurons ; pathology ; Neuroprotective Agents ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Phytotherapy

BACKGROUND: The present study aimed to determine the short-term and long-term outcomes of critically ill patients with acute respiratory insufficiency who had received sedation or no sedation. METHODS: The data of 91 patients who had received mechanical ventilation in the first 24 hours between November 2008 and October 2009 were retrospectively analyzed. These patients were divided into two groups: a sedation group (n=28) and a non-sedation group (n=63). The patients were also grouped in two groups: deep sedation group and daily interruption and /or light sedation group. RESULTS: Overall, the 91 patients who had received ventilation ≥48 hours were analyzed. Multivariate analysis demonstrated two independent risk factors for in-hospital death: sequential organ failure assessment score (P=0.019, RR 1.355, 95％CI 1.051–1.747, B=0.304, SE=0.130, Wald=50483) and sedation (P=0.041, RR 5.015, 95％CI 1.072–23.459, B=1.612, SE=0.787, Wald=4.195). Compared with the patients who had received no sedation, those who had received sedation had a longer duration of ventilation, a longer stay in intensive care unit and hospital, and an increased in-hospital mortality rate. The Kaplan-Meier method showed that patients who had received sedation had a lower 60-month survival rate than those who had received no sedation (76.7％ vs. 88.9％, Log-rank test=3.630, P=0.057). Compared with the patients who had received deep sedation, those who had received daily interruption or light sedation showed a decreased in-hospital mortality rate (57.1％ vs. 9.5％, P=0.008). The 60-month survival of the patients who had received deep sedation was significantly lower than that of those who had daily interruption or light sedation (38.1％vs. 90.5％, Log-rank test=6.783, P=0.009). CONCLUSIONS: Sedation was associated with in-hospital death. The patients who had received sedation had a longer duration of ventilation, a longer stay in intensive care unit and in hospital, and an increased in-hospital mortality rate compared with the patients who did not receive sedation. Compared with daily interruption or light sedation, deep sedation increased the in-hospital mortality and decreased the 60-month survival for patients who had received sedation.

OBJECTIVETo study the epidemiology of human metapneumovirus (hMPV) infection in children and its relations with meteorological conditions in Suzhou.

METHODSamples obtained from 6655 children hospitalized with acute respiratory tract infections (ARIs) during the period from 2006 to 2009, were tested for virus pathogens. Nasopharyngeal aspirates were obtained from the children according to a standard protocol and were tested for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza viruses (IFV) A and B, parainfluenza virus (PIV) types 1, 2, and 3 and adenovirus (ADV) with direct immunofluorescence assay. Samples were tested for hMPV with reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Meteorological conditions including mean temperature, relative humidity, rainfall amount, sum of sunshine and mean wind velocity were collected monthly. The relationship between activity of the virus and meteorological conditions was analyzed by linear regression and stepwise regression analysis.

RESULTViral pathogens were identified in 32.2% of 6655 specimens. The positive rate of hMPV was 8.9%, RSV was 15.7%, IFV, PIV and ADV detection rates were less than that of hMPV. The annual positive rate of hMPV from 2006 to 2009 was 8.2%, 8.1%, 12.7%, 7.4% respectively (χ(2) = 33.23, P < 0.05). The hMPV positive rate of the four seasons was 11.6%, 7.6%, 4.7% and 11.7%, respectively, detection rate in winter and spring was significantly higher than those in summer and autumn (χ(2) = 74.67, P < 0.001). The positive rate of hMPV and the monthly mean temperature was moderately correlated (r = -0.43), and the monthly average rainfall (r = -0.29), monthly mean relative humidity (r = -0.27), monthly average sunshine duration (r = -0.11), the monthly average wind speed (r = -0.13) had low correlations.

CONCLUSIONhMPV was the second most common viral pathogen of acute respiratory tract infection in children in Suzhou, which prevailed predominantly in the winter and spring. Climatic factors, especially temperature and rainfall may affect the prevalence of hMPV.

Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; epidemiology ; Climate ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Metapneumovirus ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; epidemiology ; virology ; Seasons

Human parathyroid hormone (hPTH) was highly expressed in Escherichia coli by inserted the synthesized whole hPTH cDNA into the vectors pBV220 and pET22b. After expression and disruption, the purified product was acquired through cation exchange chromatography and reverse phase chromatography. From the results of N-terminal sequencing and MALDI-TOF-MS analysis the recombiant prtein was indentified as intact hPTH. In in vitro Bioassays the recombinant hPTH stimulated adenylate cyclase as the standard did. In ovariectomized rats the recombinant hPTH markedly increased the femoral bone mass and bone mineral density.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Animals ; Base Sequence ; Bone Density ; drug effects ; Chromatography, Ion Exchange ; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel ; Escherichia coli ; genetics ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Ovariectomy ; Parathyroid Hormone ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Sequence Alignment ; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization