BACKGROUND:Ventricular arrhythmia (VA) is one of the most common complications of myocardial infarction (MI), and ventricular tachycardia and fibrillation are the main causes for sudden cardiac death. This study aimed to explore the effect of ramipril on the occurrence of VA and its mechanism after MI in rabbits. METHODS:Twenty-four New Zealand rabbits purchased from the Wuhan Laboratory Animal Research Center were divided into three groups:sham-operated (SHAM) group (n=8), MI group (n=8) and MI with ramipril (RAM) group (n=8). Rabbits in the SHAM group received a median sternotomy without ligation of the left ventricular coronary artery. Rabbits in the MI and RAM groups received a median sternotomy followed by ligation of the left coronary artery. The successful anterior MI was confirmed by elevation of the ST segment with more than 0.2 mV in lead II and III. After MI, rabbits in the RAM group were fed with intragastric ramipril (1 mg/kg per day ) for 12 weeks. Before and 12 weeks after MI in the three groups, ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation (VT/VF) episodes and MAP in cadiocytes of the epicardium, mid-myocardium and endocardium were recorded by a multichannel physiograph. Student'st test and ANOVA were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS:VT/VF episodes were decreased more markedly in the RAM group than in the MI group after 12 weeks (2.6±0.8 vs. 12.4±2.9,P<0.05). Twelve weeks after MI, the duration of repolarization for 90％ (APD90) of three-tier ventricular myocytes in the MI group was longer than that before MI (258.2±21.1 vs. 230.1±23.2, 278.0±23.8 vs. 245.8±25.4, 242.6±22.7 vs. 227.0±21.7,P<0.05). However, the APD90 was not significantly different at 12 weeks before and after MI in the RAM group (P>0.05). Moreover, the transmural dispersion of repolarization (TDR) was increased more markedly 12 weeks after MI in the MI group than in the SHAM and RAM groups (36.2±10.2 vs. 18.7±6.2, 24.9±8.7,P<0.05). But the TDR was not significantly different between the RAM and SHAM groups (18.7±6.2 vs. 24.9±8.7,P>0.05). CONCLUSION:Ramipril may reduce the incidence of malignant ventricular arrhythmia via improvement of transmembrance repolarization heterogeneity after MI.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) constitute a novel, extensive class of small RNAs (approximately 21 nucleotides), and play important gene-regulation roles during growth and development in various organisms. Here we conducted a homology search to identify homologs of previously validated miRNAs from silkworm genome. We identified 24 potential miRNA genes, and gave each of them a name according to the common criteria. Interestingly, we found that a great number of newly identified miRNAs were conserved in silkworm and Drosophila, and family alignment revealed that miRNA families might possess single nucleotide polymorphisms. miRNA gene clusters and possible functions of complement miRNA pairs are discussed.
Animals ; Base Sequence ; Bombyx ; Cluster Analysis ; Computational Biology ; methods ; Drosophila melanogaster ; Genetic Complementation Test ; Genome ; MicroRNAs ; metabolism ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Multigene Family ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid ; Software ; Thermodynamics

Objective To evaluate the safety and efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy combined with PA-MSHA injection for the treatment of locally advanced breast cancer. Methods An open, randomized, controlled clinical trial was conducted in this study. 42 locally advanced breast cancer patients were randomly assigned to two groups, namely the experimental group (20 cases) and control group (22 cases). All the patients received chemotherapy of TEC regimen, while, in addition, the patients in experiment group received PA-MSHA injection. After the treatment, the efficacy of treatment was evaluated. The safety and tolerance of patients were also measured during the treatment. Results The overall response rate (CR+PR) [75.0 %(15/20)]in the experiment group was significant higher than that [54.6 %(12/22)]in control group (P < 0.01). Adverse reactions were found for 9 cases in experiment group, four of whom received medical care while the others recovered automatically. Conclusion PA-MSHA injection can significantly enhance the efficaey of neoadjuvant chemotherapy on the patients with locally advanced breast cancer. The PA-MSHA injection which has been proved safety in treatment is an ideal supplementary therapy for breast cancer.

OBJECTIVEThe objective of this study is to investigate the influence of mechanical properties and sintering performance by adding 5% weight percentage aids to nano-compound zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) ceramics.

METHODSMicrometer Al2O3 and nanometer ZrO2 (quality ratio 4:1) were used to get 55% volume percentage slurry. Magnesium oxide and titanium oxide were taken as aids which were 5% weight percentage of the Al2O3 and ZrO2 powder. Five groups (number 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 group) were divided according to different proportion of aids. After gel-casting, the porcelain pieces were sintered at 1150, 1200, 1300, 1400, 1450, 1500, 1600 degrees C for 2 hours. Static three-point flexure strength, line shrinkage, relative density were measured and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to observe section.

RESULTSNumber 1 (MgO 1%, TiO2 4%) group had the highest bending strength. It was (401.78+/-19.50) MPa after sintering at 1600 degrees C for 2 hours and was higher than 0 group (380.64+/-44.50) MPa. Bending strength became lower than 0 group when MgO was more than 2% or more than that weight percentage of ZTA powder. When MgO content was higher than 2% or more than that weight percentage, there was no difference in relative density raising rate between each sintering assistants groups. When the sintering temperature was higher than 1200 degrees C, all groups showed obvious line-shrinkage and the groups which contained sintering assistants were all was higher than 0 group.

CONCLUSIONAdding MgO and TiO2 aids from 1% to 4% weight percentage of ZTA will promote fritting and increase ZTA nano-compound ceramics mechanical properties. Adding 2% MgO aids or more than that weight percent will has no obvious help to increase the relative density raising rate of ZTA nano-compound ceramics and will degrade the mechanical properties of ZTA nano-compound ceramics.

Aluminum Oxide ; Dental Porcelain ; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning ; Temperature ; Titanium ; Zirconium

OBJECTIVETo analyse retrospectively 3-tunnels core decompression with implantation of bone marrow stromal cells(bMSCs) and decalcified bone matrix (DBM) for treatment of femoral head necrosis in early stages, and to study its therapeutic results and indications.

METHODSAccording to the University of Pennsyvania system of classification and staging,to treat the patients with 3-tunnels core decompression with implantation of bone marrow stromal cells (bMSCs) and decalcified bone matrix (DBM) for treatment of early femoral head necrosis. Among the total 87 patients (103 hips), the male was 71 (86 hips) and the female 16 (17 hips) with the average age of 47 years old. The average course of disease was 1.3 year. The effect was evaluated by the clinical symptoms, the Harris' scores and the manifestations of radiology before and after operation.

RESULTSAll the patients were followed up more than 2 years (average 26 months). The average Harris' scores increased from preoperation 47.3 to postoperation 74.0. The average rate of excellent and good results was 75.7%. The rate of excellent and good was 88% (22/25) in type I, 78.7% (37/47) in type II and 61.3% (19/31) in type III. No severe complications were observed.

CONCLUSIONThree-tunnels core decompression with implantation of bMSCs and DBM not only removal the focus of disease, but also use DBM the induction of bone and autologous hone marrow stem cells to differentiate the functions of the femoral head can be resumed loading structure, eliminate pain,improve joint function. It is an effective method for early femoral head necrosis.

Adult ; Aged ; Bone Marrow Transplantation ; Bone Matrix ; transplantation ; Decompression, Surgical ; Female ; Femur Head Necrosis ; surgery ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Transplantation, Autologous

Objective To study clinical data of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) induced by left main (LM) artery occlusion,and to find out the clinical characteristics.Method From Janurany 1995 to May 2006,there were 15 patients with AMI related with LM obstruction from 1793 AMI patients,in whom primary PCls were performed.All patients were male with a mean age of (60.6?10.4) years old (ranging from 43 to 85 years old).The clinical and interventional data were retrospectively analyzed.Results Cardiogenic shock occurred in 10 patients at admission.Primary PCls were performed with intraaortic balloon pump (IABP) in all patients.Nine patients died during short follow-up,and the mortality was 60%.Three-month follow-up was made in the all survival patients,and one patient died after 4 years.Analysis showed good collateral circulation flow from right coronary artery to left coronary artery before operation affected the short-term prognosis.Conclusions AMI related with left main artery obstruction was critically fatal with high occurrence of cardiogenic shock and high mortality.Prognosis differs at,cording to different degree of collateral circulation.Primary PCI with IABP provides a promising strategy to improve clinical outcomes.

Objective: To analyze risk factors, cardiovascular complications, time of death, gestational age of delivery and offspring outcomes in the maternal deaths with cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Methods: Totally 4 112 cases of pregnant women with CVD in Shanghai obstetric heart disease intensive care unit within 26 years (from January 1993 to December 2018) were collected, and 20 maternal deaths within these cases were analyzed retrospectively. Results: (1) Among the 20 deaths, structural heart diseases accounted for 90% (18/20), pregnancy induced heart diseases was 10% (2/20) while there was no dysfunctional heart disease. The mortality of pregnant women with CVD was 0.486% (20/4 112). (2) The following risk factors were common in these women, getting pregnant without counselling (95%, 19/20) , New York Heart Association classⅢ or Ⅳcardiac function (70%, 14/20), complicated with pulmonary hypertension (75%, 15/20) and prior heart events (60%, 12/20). And 85% (17/20) deaths occurred in puerperium, 15% (3/20) occurred before labor,while no death occurred during labor. And 65% (13/20) deaths died due to heart failure, 20% (4/20) deaths were due to pulmonary hypertension crisis, 5% (1/20) died on sudden cardiac arrest, rupture of aortic dissection and sudden death, respectively. Conclusions Women with CVD should get pregnant after strict evaluation. Pulmonary hypertension is one of the most severe contraindications to pregnancy, especially in patients with moderate to severe pulmonary hypertension. The puerperium period is a critical period that threatens the safety of these patients. Since heart failure is the most common cause of death, it is necessary to prevent and treat heart failure and to monitor heart function dynamically, especially in those with structural abnormal heart diseases. Moreover, it is also of importance to standardize antenatal care and to identify the severity of heart diseases in time.

BACKGROUNDChronic heart failure (CHF) and diabetes mellitus portend high morbidity and mortality because of an interrelated pathophysiologic process. This large cohort study aimed to analyze the prevalence, clinical characteristics and long-term outcome of patients with CHF and diabetes.

METHODSA total of 1119 patients with NYHA functional class II - IV and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) < 45% between January 1995 and May 2009 were recruited. Clinical variables, biochemical and echocardiographic measurements were retrospectively reviewed, and composite major cardiac events (MCE) including death, heart transplantation, and refractory heart failure requiring multiple hospitalizations were recorded.

RESULTSThe prevalence of CHF with diabetes was progressively increased with time (16.9% in 1995 - 1999; 20.4% in 2000 - 2004, and 29.1% in 2005 - 2009) and age (18.5% in < 60 years, 26.6% in 60 - 80 years, and 26.6% in > 80 years). Compared with CHF patients without diabetes, those with diabetes had worse cardiac function, more abnormal biochemical changes, and higher mortality. Treatment with glucose-lowering agents significantly improved LVEF and decreased MCE. An elevated serum HbA1c level was associated with large left ventricular end-systolic diameter (P < 0.05), decreased LVEF (P < 0.01) and reduced survival (P < 0.05). Multivariable Logistic regression analysis revealed that after adjustment for confounding factors, NYHA functional class (OR 2.65, 95%CI 1.14 - 6.16, P = 0.024) and HbA1c level >or= 7% (OR 2.78, 95%CI 1.00 - 7.68, P = 0.049) were independent risk factors for adverse outcomes in CHF patients with diabetes.

CONCLUSIONSPrevalence of CHF with diabetes was increasing during past decades, and patients with CHF and diabetes had worse clinical profiles and prognosis. Aggressive anti-CHF and diabetes therapies are needed to improve overall outcomes for these patients.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Diabetes Complications ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Diabetes Mellitus ; drug therapy ; epidemiology ; Female ; Glycated Hemoglobin A ; analysis ; Heart Failure ; drug therapy ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prevalence ; Ventricular Function, Left

OBJECTIVETo construct Epithelia Membrane Protein 1 gene-deficient in human fetal nucleus pulposus model by lentivirus-mediated RNA interference for building a platform for illustrating the biomechanisms role of EMP-1 during human intervertebral disc degeneration.

METHODSThe lentivirus vector with shRNA targeting EMP-1 mRNA was transected into 293FT cells by liposome. Then the lentivirus supernatant was obtained and used for infecting human fetal nucleus pulposus. The expression of GFP was observed under fluorescence microscope after 48 h. The viral particles were collected at 72 h after transfection. The efficacy of gene interference was tested by Western blot and Real-time RT-PCR. Analysis the results of the fluorescent microscope scenes and get the average values of EMP-1/GAPDH by detected the interference efficiency of various interference DNA sequences with western blot and semi quantitative RT-PCR methods.

RESULTSThe lentivirns with high titer were obtained and the EMP-1 gene deficient cell strains were obtained. Semi quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot proved the average values of EMP-1/GAPDH decreased from 0.46 to 0.32 and 0.5 to 0.25 (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONLentivirus packaging technology can be mastered skillfully. EMP-1 gene-deficient cell models are successfully established.

Fetus ; HEK293 Cells ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc ; metabolism ; Lentivirus ; genetics ; Neoplasm Proteins ; genetics ; RNA Interference ; Receptors, Cell Surface ; genetics ; Transfection

BACKGROUNDThe role of nasal obstruction in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) has been debated for decades. In this prospective study, we compared the pharyngeal aerodynamic characteristics of OSAHS patients and normal people, and investigated the contribution of total nasal airway resistance to the pathophysiology of OSAHS.

METHODSComputational fluid dynamics (CFD) was used to extract the average pressure and average airflow velocity in three transverse cross-sectional planes of the pharynx for statistical analysis, and the correlation between nasal resistance and the average pressure in the pharyngeal cavity was investigated.

RESULTSThe negative pressure within the pharyngeal cavity was significantly higher in OSAHS patients than in normal subjects, and total nasal airway resistance correlated well with the average pressure in three consecutive transverse cross-sections of the pharyngeal cavity.

CONCLUSIONSGreater negative pressure within the pharyngeal cavity contributed to the increased collapsibility of the pharynx in OSAHS patients, and the strong correlation between nasal resistance and pharyngeal pressure suggests that the nose plays a role in the pathogenesis of OSAHS.

Adult ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Pharynx ; physiopathology ; Prospective Studies ; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive ; etiology ; physiopathology