BACKGROUNDGinsenosides are main components extracted from ginseng, and ginsenoside Rg3 is one of the most important parts. Ginsenoside Rg3 has been found to inhibit several kinds of tumor growth and metastasis. The present study was undertaken to investigate the effect of ginsenoside Rg3 on human ovarian cancer metastasis and the possible mechanism.

METHODSThe experimental lung metastasis models of ovarian cancer SKOV-3 and the assay of tumor-induced angiogenesis were used to observe the inhibitory effects of Rg3 on tumor metastasis and angiogenesis. The effect of Rg3 on invasive ability of SKOV-3 cells in vitro was detected by Boyden chamber, and immunofluorescence staining was used to recognize the expression of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) in SKOV-3 cells.

RESULTSIn the experimental lung metastasis models of ovarian cancer, the number of tumor colonies in the lung and vessels oriented toward the tumor mass in each ginsenoside Rg3 group, was lower than that of control group. The invasive ability and MMP-9 expression of SKOV-3 cells decreased significantly after treatment with ginsenoside Rg3.

CONCLUSIONSGinsenoside Rg3 can significantly inhibit the metastasis of ovarian cancer. The inhibitory effect is partially due to inhibition of tumor-induced angiogenesis and decrease of invasive ability and MMP-9 expression of SKOV-3 cells.

Animals ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Female ; Ginsenosides ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; prevention & control ; secondary ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 ; metabolism ; Mice ; Neoplasm Invasiveness ; Neovascularization, Pathologic ; prevention & control ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; pathology

BACKGROUNDGinsenoside Rg3, the main component isolated from ginseng, inhibits some kinds of tumour growth and angiogenesis. The combination of low dose chemotherapy and antiangiogenesis inhibitors suppresses growth of experimental tumours more effectively than conventional therapy. The effect of this combination on ovarian cancer remains to be evaluated. Therefore, we investigated the synergism of ginsenoside Rg3 and cyclophosphamide (CTX) on growth and angiogenesis of human ovarian cancer.

METHODSTwenty-eight female athymic mice were divided randomly into 4 groups of 7: ginsenoside Rg3, CTX, ginsenoside Rg3 and CTX combination and control, after being transplanted with ovarian cancer cells (SKOV-3). The mice were given intraperitoneal injection of ginsenoside Rg3 and CTX for the 10 days following inoculation of SKOV-3 cells. The life quality and number of living days of mice were recorded. The size of tumour, tumour inhibitive rate, life elongation rate, proliferating cell nuclear antigen labelling index (PCNALI), expression of vascular endothelial cell growth factor (VEGF) and microvessel density (MVD) of the tumour tissues were estimated.

RESULTSLife quality of mice in ginsenoside Rg3 and combined treatment groups were better and number of living days longer than control. Average tumour weights of each treated group were less than control and there was no significant difference among the treated groups. PCNALI of treated groups was lower than control. The MVD value and VEGF expression in treated groups were significantly lower than control and the MVD values of ginsenoside Rg3 and combined treatment groups were lower than that of CTX group.

CONCLUSIONSGinsenoside Rg3 significantly inhibited growth and angiogenesis of ovarian cancer when used alone or combined with CTX. Ginsenoside Rg3 and CTX combination reinforced the antitumour effect each other and improved the living quality and survival time of mice with tumour.

Animals ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; pharmacology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cyclophosphamide ; administration & dosage ; Female ; Ginsenosides ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Mice ; Neovascularization, Pathologic ; drug therapy ; pathology ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; blood supply ; drug therapy ; pathology ; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen ; analysis ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A ; analysis

Adult ; Aged ; Alcohol Drinking ; China ; ethnology ; Fatty Liver, Alcoholic ; etiology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVETo explore the fact that the east border of Heilongjiang had been a lyme disease natural focus,we investigated the species and distribution of ticks and isolated bacteria from ticks and identified genomic species of Borrelia burdorferi sensu lato. This study provided evidence for prevention and control of lyme disease.

METHODSTicks were caught by flagging method and Direct immunofluorescence method was used to detect the rate of bacteria borne by the tick. BSK UI culture medium was used to isolate the agent and Specific McAbs were used to identify the bacteria. SDS-PAGE protein profile and PCR-RFLP method were also used to identify the species of Spirochetes.

RESULTSTicks, collected from China-Russia border of east Heilongiiang province were classified including Ixodes persulcatus Schulze, Dermacentor sivarum Olener, Haemaphysalis concinna Kock,and Haemaphysalis japonica Kock. We found that the distributon of ticks was different under different circumstances and the predominant species were also different in different ports. The rate of bacteria borne by Iodes persulaatus Schulze was 31.4% ,by Dermacentor sivarum Olener and Haemaphysalis concinna Kock were 2.2% and 3.8%, respectively. However,it was negative for Haenaphysalis japonica Kock. Spirochetes isolated from Ixodes persulcatus Schulze were collected from Dongning and Tongjiang while Genomic species of Spirochetes, isolated from ticks of the border belonged to B. garinii.

CONCLUSIONAll the results showed that the east border of Heilongjiang province was the natural focus of lyme disease.

Animals ; Arachnid Vectors ; classification ; microbiology ; Borrelia burgdorferi ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; China ; Humans ; Lyme Disease ; microbiology ; Russia ; Ticks ; classification ; microbiology

BACKGROUNDRadiofrequency (RF) ablation has become a widely accepted treatment for atrial fibrillation (AF). This study aimed to identify the efficacy and safety of pulmonary vein (PV) ablation with ethanol and to explore an alternative energy source for catheter ablation of AF.

METHODSTwelve open-chest mongrel dogs were randomized into ethanol ablation group and control group. Both the injections and electrophysiological mapping procedures were performed epicardialy. In ethanol ablation group (n = 6), injections were performed to circumferentially ablate the root of each PV (0.2 ml each site, 3 mm apart) with 95% ethanol using an 1 ml injector. In control group (n = 6), saline was injected other than ethanol. PV isolation was confirmed with a circular catheter immediately after the procedure and at follow up of 30 days. PV isolation was defined as the absence of PV potentials at each electrode of the circular catheter positioned at the PV side of the lesions, as well as complete conduction block into left atrium (LA) during PV pacing.

RESULTSPV electrical isolation with complete bidirectional conduction block was achieved with ethanol immediately and at 30 days in 95% of PVs, while saline injection caused only transient conduction changes between LA and PVs. In ethanol group, histologic analysis showed transmural lesions at 30 days. And there was no evidence of PV stenosis or thrombus formation. Mean LA diameter was not significantly different between baseline and 30 days.

CONCLUSIONEthanol is a safe energy source to effectively isolate PV in canine model and may be promising in endocardial ablation procedure of AF patients in the future.

Animals ; Catheter Ablation ; methods ; Dogs ; Electrophysiology ; Ethanol ; Pulmonary Veins ; physiology ; surgery ; Random Allocation

OBJECTIVETo identify the prevalence and risk factors of diabetes and prediabetes in the community residents above 18 years old in the suburbs of Guangzhou.

METHODSBetween April and May in 2008, the residents above 18 years living in 6 communities of Guangzhou for 5 or more years were sampled with multistage clustering sampling. The sampled residents were surveyed by questionnaires, and physical examination and glucose determination were carried out.

RESULTSA total of 1532 residents were sampled. The incidence of diabetes mellitus in these community residents was 8.46%, and that of impaired glucose regulation was 6.59%. Age, body mass index, family history of diabetes mellitus, case history of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, hypertension and smoking were all the independent risk factors for impaired glucose regulation and diabetes mellitus.

CONCLUSIONDiabetes and prediabetes are prevalent in the community residents in Guangzhou. Controlling the risk factors such as obesity, hypertension, lipid metabolism disorder among the residents above 40 years with a family history of diabetes mellitus and hypertension is key to prevention of impaired glucose regulation and diabetes mellitus.

Adult ; Aged ; Blood Glucose ; metabolism ; China ; epidemiology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; blood ; epidemiology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prediabetic State ; blood ; epidemiology ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Suburban Health ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVETo analyze the geographical distribution and risk factors of HIV-1 subtypes in Yunnan province.

METHODSBlood samples from 1319 HIV positives were collected in Yunnan Province from 2001 to 2006. The nested polymerase chain reaction was used to amplify the gag (p24)-protease fragments from RNA extracted from plasma or sera. The sequences were used for subtype determination by phylogenetic tree analysis.

RESULTSAmong 1319 samples studied, the subtypes has been successfully obtained from 644 samples that were constituted of seven subtypes: CRF08_BC, CRF07_BC, CRF07/08_BC, CRF01_AE, C, B' and URFB/C. C/CRF07_BC/CRF08_BC were distributed in the whole province, but CRF01_AE were mainly distributed in the boarding areas with Myanmar such as Dehong, Baoshan, Xishuangbanna and Puer. Moreover, injecting drugs users accounted for 61.6% (270/438) among C/CRF07_BC/CRF08_BC infections, while only 8.5% (15/177) among CRF01_AE infections.

CONCLUSIONOur data indicated that at least seven subtypes were identified in Yunnan province, the relationship between subtypes and transmission routes were analyzed, and the geographic difference of subtypes was also observed.

China ; DNA, Viral ; Genotype ; HIV Infections ; transmission ; virology ; HIV-1 ; classification ; isolation & purification ; Humans ; Sequence Analysis, DNA

Background:The Food and Drug Administration recently announced that the use of morcellation may cause fibroids or pelvic dissemination and metastasis of uterine sarcoma;therefore,the use of morcellation is limited in the USA.A large sample study is necessary to assess the proportion of uterine malignant tumors found in patients with laparoscopic myomectomy.Methods:A national multicenter study was performed in China.From 2002 to 2014,33,723 cases were retrospectively selected.We calculated the prevalence and recorded the clinical characteristics of the patients with malignancy after morcellation application.A total of 62 cases were finally pathologically confirmed as malignant postoperatively.Additionally,the medical records of the 62 patients were analyzed in details.Results:The proportion of postoperative malignancy after morcellation application was 0.18％ (62/33,723) for patients who underwent laparoscopic myomectomy.Nearly 62.9％ (39/62) of patients had demonstrated blood flow signals in the uterine fibroids before surgery.And,23 (37.1％) patients showed rapid growth at the final preoperative ultrasound.With respect to the pathological types,38 (61.3％) patients had detectable endometrial stromal sarcoma,13 (21.0％) had detectable uterine leiomyosarcoma,only 3 (3.2％) had detectable carcinosarcoma,and 5 (8.1％) patients with leiomyoma had an undetermined malignant potential.Conclusions:The proportion of malignancy is low after using morcellation in patients who undergo laparoscopic myomectomy.Patients with fast-growing uterine fibroids and abnormal ultrasonic tumor blood flow should be considered for malignant potential,and morcellation should be avoided.

Systemic lupus erythematosus combined with chorea is relatively rare in China,and there are no unified diagnostic criteria or specific ancillary tests.Therefore,it is confirmed by exclusionary clinical diagnosis.To improve the understanding of this disease among rheumatologists,we report the clinical data of a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus combined with chorea admitted to the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology in the First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University in January 2022.Furthermore,we review the relevant literature in the past 10 years and summarize the clinical features of these cases.
Humans ; Chorea/diagnosis* ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic/complications* ; China ; Hospitalization ; Hospitals

Objective: To analyze the status of statins use and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) management in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and very high/high risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) from Chinese Atrial Fibrillation Registry (CAFR). Methods: A total of 9 119 patients with AF were recruited in CAFR between January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018, patients at very high and high risk of ASCVD were included in this study. Demographics, medical history, cardiovascular risk factors, and laboratory test results were collected. In patients with very high-risk, a threshold of 1.8 mmol/L was used as LDL-C management target and in patients with high risk, a threshold of 2.6 mmol/L was used as LDL-C management target. Statins use and LDL-C compliance rate were analyzed, multiple regression analysis was performed to explore the influencing factors of statins use. Results: 3 833 patients were selected (1 912 (21.0%) in very high risk of ASCVD group and 1 921 (21.1%) in high risk of ASCVD group). The proportion of patients with very high and high risk of ASCVD taking statins was 60.2% (1 151/1 912) and 38.6% (741/1 921), respectively. Attainment rate of LDL-C management target in patients with very high and high risk were 26.7% (511/1 912) and 36.4% (700/1 921), respectively. Conclusion: The proportion of statins use and attainment rate of LDL-C management target are low in AF patients with very high and high risk of ASCVD in this cohort. The comprehensive management in AF patients should be further strengthened, especially the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease in AF patients with very high and high risk of ASCVD.
Humans ; Atrial Fibrillation/drug therapy* ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cholesterol, LDL ; Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors/therapeutic use* ; Atherosclerosis ; Dyslipidemias/drug therapy*