Objective To investigate the value of the imaging findings of soft tissue abnormality in the differential diagnosis between osteomyelitis and malignant bone tumor.Methods The CT and MRI findings of soft tissue changes in 57 cases of osteomyelitis and 70 cases of malignant bone tumor were retrospectively defined,observed,recorded and statistically analyzed.Results In 57 cases of osteomyelitis, 54 cases were examined with CT,and soft tissue swelling was presented in 52 cases (degree Ⅰin 19 cases, degreeⅡin 16 cases,degree Ⅲin 17 cases).Abscess-like cysts in soft tissue occurred in 6 cases,masses in 5,air in 1,fat-fluid level in 1 and sinus tract in 1.Among 14 cases examined with MR imaging,soft tissue swelling was presented in all cases (degreeⅠin 2 cases,degree Ⅱin 6 cases and degree Ⅲin 6 cases). Abscess-like cysts appeared in 3 cases and showed high signal in diffusion weighted imaging, mass in Ⅰand fat-fluid level in 1.Among 54 cases examined with CT in 70 cases of malignant bone tumor, soft tissue swelling was presented in 44 cases (degreeⅠin 29 cases,degreeⅡin 12 cases,degreeⅢin 3 cases).Soft tissue masses appeared in 49 cases,bone shell and shell-like calcification in 16 cases and neoplastic bone and neoplastic calcified cartilage within soft tissue mass in 25 cases.Among 49 cases examined with MR imaging,soft tissue swelling was presented in 46 cases (degree Ⅰin 21 cases,degreeⅡin 17 cases and degree Ⅲin 8 cases),and soft tissue masses appeared in 43 cases.The degree of soft tissue swelling and the occurrence of abscess-like cyst,mass,bone shell or shell-liked calcification in the rim of mass,neoplastic bone or neoplastic calcified cartilage in masses showed significant difference(P

OBJECTIVESTo investigate a new targeting mechanical arm for CT-based navigated percutaneous fixation of pelvic fractures, and to evaluate the safety and efficiency of the procedures.

METHODSUsing CT-based 3D navigation software combined with targeting mechanical arm, percutaneous insertion of pelvic models (3 dry human cadaver pelvic skeletons and 5 plastic Sybone pelvic models) were performed, 8 pelvic models allowed percutaneous cannulated screw insertion of both S-I joint (2 S-I screws placement for each side, total 32 screws in this experiment) and both superior ramus (1 ramus medullary screw placement for each side, total 16 screws in this experiment). Percutaneous insertion of pelvic models (4 dry human cadaver pelvic skeletons and 4 plastic Sybone pelvic models, 1 S-I screws and 1 ramus medullary scre placement for each side, 32 screws in this experiment) were performed using fluoro-navigation system (Stryker, USA). Time necessary for every screw insertion were recorded. Accuracy of screw placement was assessed using C-arm imaging and direct eyes inspecting. The time and accuracy of the two methods were compared.

RESULTSThe time required for the CT-based 3D navigation procedure (3.6 ± 1.2) min was significantly less than using the targeting mechanical arm compared to drilling freehand with navigation (9.1 ± 0.8) min (t = 2.50, P < 0.01). There was no significant difference in accuracy between the two methods.

CONCLUSIONCT-based 3D navigation software combined with targeting mechanical arm should be potential to apply percutaneous sacroiliac screwing for pelvic fractures with more accurate and more reliable.

Bone Screws ; Cadaver ; Fracture Fixation, Internal ; methods ; Humans ; Models, Anatomic ; Pelvic Bones ; surgery ; Software ; Surgery, Computer-Assisted ; methods

OBJECTIVETo investigate the association between hyperglycemia and outcome in elderly patients with acute ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

METHODSThis retrospective analysis was performed on 284 elderly patients (age > or = 60 years) with acute STEMI underwent primary PCI between January 2000 to April 2004 in our department. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to the level of blood glucose on admission: group A, < 7.8 mmol/L; group B, 7.8 - 10.9 mmol/L; group C, > or = 11.0 mmol/L.

RESULTS(1) The proportion of female in group B and group C was greater than that of group A (33.3% vs. 26.5%, P < 0.01; 40.2% vs. 26.5%, P < 0.01). The hospital stay time of group B and group C was significantly longer than that of group A (16.0 days vs. 13.9 days, P < 0.05; 16.6 days vs. 13.9 days, P < 0.05). There were more patients with history of hypertension in group C than that in group A (72.1% vs. 54.9%, P < 0.01). (2) After PCI, the proportion of patients with TIMI myocardial perfusion grade (TMPG) 0-1 in group B and C was greater than that of group A (22.6% vs. 13.3%, P < 0.05; 34.1% vs. 13.3%, P < 0.05). The proportion of patients with TMPG 3 in group B and C was less than that in group A (74.3% vs. 84.4%, P < 0.05; 57.6% vs. 84.4%, P < 0.05). The complication rate of PCI was significantly higher in group C than in group A (42.5% vs. 20.6%, P < 0.01) and group B (42.5% vs. 26.6%, P < 0.01). IABP use was significantly more in group C than that in group A (19.5% vs. 4.9%, P < 0.01) and group B (19.5% vs. 6.4%, P < 0.01). (3) There were more patients with grade of Killip class > or = 2 in group C than that in group A (44.8% vs. 23.5%, P < 0.01) and group B (44.8% vs. 27.7%, P < 0.01). The in-hospital mortality rate (8.0% vs. 1.1%, P < 0.05) and one-year mortality rate (18.7% vs. 3.4%, P < 0.05) of group C were significantly higher than those in group A.

CONCLUSIONHyperglycemia at admission was associated with poor tissue perfusion, cardiac function and prognosis in elderly patients with acute STEMI underwent primary PCI.

Aged ; Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; Blood Glucose ; analysis ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperglycemia ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myocardial Infarction ; blood ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo investigate whether down-regulation of Twist1 could change sensitivity of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line HNE1 to taxol.

METHODSHNE1 cells were transfected with the small interfering RNA (siRNA) expression vector pSuppressor-Retro-Si-Twist, containing the short hairpin RNA (shRNA) sequence targeting the Twist gene-coding region by Fugene 6. Positive clones were then selected in Neomycin (400 microg/ml) for 21 days. The low expressions of Twist1 were examined by real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot. Drug sensitivity of si-Twist1 HNE1 to taxol was determined by Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate( FITC)/propidium lodide (PI) double-labeled flow cytometry and detection of DNA ladder. The Effect of Twist1 inactivation on HNE1 cell proliferation was observed by MTT assay and flow cytometry.

RESULTSAnnexin V- FITC-PI assay showed that apoptosis ratio was 40.2% in si-Twist HNE1 after treated with 10 ng/ml taxol, significantly higher than that in the control siRNA group 24.3%. The deference had statistic meaning. After the re-expression of HNE1, apoptosis ratio was 44.80% +/- 4.80% (x +/- s) in low Twist1 protein expression group and that was 27.00% +/- 2.91% in high expression group. The deference had statistic meaning (t = 4.374, P = 0.049). Real time PCR test revealed apoptosis protein bcl-2 expression in si-Twist HNE1 was 0.28 +/- 0.05, significantly lower than that in the control siRNA HNE1 (0.57 +/- 0.08, t = 6.710, P = 0.021), nevertheless, significant bax and bcl-XL changes were not observed (t = 2.000, P = 0.184 and t = 1.502, P = 0.272). MTT and FCM showed that down-regulation of Twist1 did not alter cell proliferation rate (P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONSDown-regulation of Twist1 could increase drug sensitivity of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line HNE1 to taxol by inducing apoptosis. These results suggested that Twist1 may be a promising treatment target for nasopharyngeal carcinoma therapy.

Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Down-Regulation ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Humans ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; Nuclear Proteins ; genetics ; Paclitaxel ; pharmacology ; RNA Interference ; RNA, Small Interfering ; Twist-Related Protein 1 ; genetics

OBJECTIVE: To develop a statistics analysis software that can be used in STR population genetics for the purpose of promoting and fastening the basic research of STR population genetics. METHODS: Selecting the Microsoft VBA for Excel, which is simple and easy to use, as the program language and using its macro function to develop a statistics analysis software used in STR population genetics. RESULTS: The software "Easy STR Genetics" based on VBA language, by which the population genetic analysis of STR data can be made, were developed. CONCLUSION The developed software "Easy STR Genetics" based on VBA language, can be spread in the domain of STR population genetics research domestically and internationally, due to its feature of full function, good compatibility for different formats of input data, distinct and easy to understand outputs for statistics and calculation results.
Algorithms ; Electronic Data Processing ; Genetics, Population/statistics & numerical data* ; Humans ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Quality Control ; Software ; Software Design

The distribution of glycosylation sites in HA proteins was various among H5 subtype avian influenza viruses (AIVs), however, the role of glycosylation sites to the virus is still unclear. In this study, avian influenza H5N1 viruses with deletion of the glycosylation sites in HA were constructed and rescued by site direct mutation and reverse genetic method, and their biological characteristics and virulence were determined. The result showed that the mutants were confirmed to be corrected by HA gene sequencing and Western blot analysis. The EID50 and TCID50 tested in SPF chick embryo and MDCK cells of a mutant rSdelta158 with deletion of glycosylation site at position 158 were slight lower than that of wild type rescued virus rS, and the plaque diameter of rSdelta158 was significant smaller than that of rS. The EID50 and TCID50 of mutants rSdelta169 and rSdelta290 with deletion of glycosylation sites at position 169 and 290, respectively, were slight higher than that of wild type rescued virus rS, the plaque diameters of rSdelta169 and rSdelta290 were similar as that of rS, but the plaque numbers of rSdelta169 and rSdelta290 were 10-fold higher than that to rS. On the other hand, the rSdelta158, rSdelta169 and rSdelta290 showed similar growth rate in chicken embryo fibroblast as rS. All viruses remained high pathogenicity to SPF chickens. Therefore, the growth of AIV can be affected by changes of glycosylation sites in HA protein, by which the effect is variable in different cells.
Amino Acid Motifs ; Animals ; Cell Line ; Chick Embryo ; Chickens ; Glycosylation ; Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype ; chemistry ; genetics ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Influenza in Birds ; virology ; Poultry Diseases ; virology

BACKGROUNDHyperglycemia has been shown to be a powerful predictor of poor outcome after ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). This study aimed to evaluate the effect of admission glucose on microvascular flow after successful primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with STEMI.

METHODSSuccessful primary PCI was performed in 267 patients with STEMI. The maximum ST elevation of single electrocardiogram (ECG) lead before and 60 minutes after PCI was measured, and patients were then divided into 3 groups according to the degree of ST-segment resolution (STR): absent (<30%), partial (30% to 70%) or complete (> or =70%).

RESULTSOf the 267 patients, 48 (18.0%) had absent STR, 137 (51.3%) experienced partial STR, and 82 (30.7%) had complete STR. The degree of STR decreased with increasing admission glucose levels (P=0.032), and patients with hyperglycemia (serum glucose level > or =11 mmol/L) were more likely to have absent STR (P=0.001). Moreover,hyperglycemia was an independent predictor of incomplete STR (odds ratio, 1.870; 95% confidence interval, 1.038 to 3.371, P=0.037).

CONCLUSIONSHyperglycemia on admission is associated with abnormal coronary microvascular reperfusion in patients with STEMI after successful primary PCI, which may contribute, at least in part, to the poor outcomes in these patients.

Adult ; Aged ; Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; methods ; Electrocardiography ; Female ; Glucose ; metabolism ; Humans ; Hyperglycemia ; blood ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myocardial Infarction ; blood ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Odds Ratio

BACKGROUNDThe protective effects of magnesium sulfate against ischemia-reperfusion injury of the small intestine in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats have been confirmed in our previous research. However, its exact mechanism is unclear. This study was to evaluate the role of PI3K/Akt signal pathway in the protective effect of magnesium sulfate against ischemia-reperfusion injury of the small intestine in SD rats.

METHODSRat model of intestinal ischemia-reperfusion injury was used. The SD rats were divided into four groups randomly: sham operation group, ischemia-reperfusion group, magnesium sulfate group and magnesium sulfate plus LY294002 (an inhibitor of PI3K) group. The pathological changes of intestinal mucosa were examined; the activity of diamine oxidase (DAO) in plasma, the plasma contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), and apoptosis rate of the intestinal mucosal cells were determined and compared. The expression of p-Akt was detected by Western blotting.

RESULTSThere were more evident pathological changes of the intestinal mucosa (higher Chiu's score, P < 0.05), enhanced DAO activity (P < 0.05), elevated contents of MDA (P < 0.05), higher apoptosis rate (P < 0.05), and lower level of p-Akt (P < 0.05) in the ischemia-reperfusion group compared with the sham operation group. There were less evident pathological changes of the intestinal mucosa (lower Chiu's score, P < 0.05), lower DAO activity (P < 0.05), lower contents of MDA (P < 0.05), and lower apoptosis rate (P < 0.05), but higher level of p-Akt (P < 0.05) in the magnesium sulfate group compared with the ischemia-reperfusion group. There were more evident pathological changes of the intestinal mucosa (higher Chiu's score, P < 0.05), higher contents of MDA (P < 0.05), higher DAO activity (P < 0.05) and higher apoptosis rate (P < 0.05), and lower level of p-Akt (P < 0.05) in the magnesium sulfate plus LY294002 group compared with the magnesium sulfate group.

CONCLUSIONSActivation of PI3K/Akt signal pathway results in the reduction of cell apoptosis, which likely accounts for the protective effect of magnesium sulfate against intestinal ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Amine Oxidase (Copper-Containing) ; metabolism ; Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Blotting, Western ; Disease Models, Animal ; Intestinal Mucosa ; cytology ; drug effects ; Intestine, Small ; drug effects ; Magnesium Sulfate ; therapeutic use ; Malondialdehyde ; metabolism ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion Injury ; prevention & control ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects

The hemagglutinin (HA) gene from H5N1 avian influenza virus and the chicken interleukin 2 (chiIL-2) gene were inserted into a expressing vector p12LS to construct a recombinant transferring vector p12LSH5AIL2, in which HA gene under the control of the promoter Ps was in inverse tandem connection with the chiIL-2 gene under the control of the promoter PE/L. The p12LSH5AIL2 was then used to transfect the chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEF) pre-infected with a wild-type fowlpox virus 282E4 strain, to generate a recombinant fowlpox virus coexpressing the inserted HA and chiIL2 genes (rFPV-H5AIL2). The rFPV-H5AIL2 was obtained and purified by blue plaque screening on the CEF. The in vitro expression of HA gene by rFPV-H5AIL2 was detected in the recombinant fowlpox virus-infected CEFs with an indirect immunofluorescence assay, and the expression of the chiIL2 gene by rFPV-H5AIL2 was confirmed by detection of the chiIL2 mRNA by RT-PCR and by detection of chiIL2 by the indirect immunofluorescence assay. Experiments on SPF and commercial chickens demonstrated that the titer for HI antibodies induced by the rFPV-H5AIL2 was significantly higher than that by the rFPV-HA. The group immunized with the rFPV-H5AIL2 exhibited the similar ratios of protective efficacy and virus shedding as the group immunized with the rFPV-HA in SPF chicken. However, in commercial chicken, the group immunized with the rFPV-H5AIL2 generated significantly higher protection against H5N1 avian influenza virus challenge and lower virus shedding than the group immunized with the rFPV-HA. This study paved the way for further development of a new AIV recombinant vaccine.
Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Chick Embryo ; Chickens ; Fowlpox virus ; genetics ; metabolism ; Gene Expression ; Genetic Engineering ; Genetic Vectors ; genetics ; metabolism ; Hemagglutinins ; genetics ; immunology ; Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype ; genetics ; immunology ; Influenza in Birds ; immunology ; virology ; Interleukin-2 ; genetics ; immunology ; Random Allocation

Samples of chicken, duck, quail, and pigeon were collected from Jiangsu, Anhui, and Hebei in 2009-2011, and sixteen H9N2 subtype isolates of avian influenza virus (AIV) were identified. The eight full-length genes of 16 AIV isolates were amplified by RT-PCR and sequenced. Genome sequence analysis showed that the amino acid motif of cleavage sites in the HA gene was P-S-R/K-S-S-R, which was consistent with the characterization of the LPAIV, and the Leucine (L) at the amino acid position 226 in the HA genes of all isolates indicated the potential of binding with SAalpha, 2-6 receptor. All isolates had a S to N substitution at residue 31 in the M2 gene, which is related to the resistance phenotype of adamantanes. The key molecular features of 16 AIV isolates from different hosts were same. Genome phylogenetic analysis revealed that all 16 H9N2 subtype AIVs originated from F98-like virus as backbone and formed two new genotypes through reassortment with HA gene of Y280-like virus and PB2 and M genes of G1-like virus. Our findings suggest that more attention should be paid to the surveillance of H9N2 influenza virus and its direction of reassortment.
Genome, Viral ; Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus ; genetics ; Influenza A Virus, H9N2 Subtype ; classification ; genetics ; Neuraminidase ; genetics ; Phylogeny ; Sequence Analysis, DNA