From January 2005 to January 2008, 23 cases of fractures and dislocations of cervical spine treated with anterior decompression, reconstruction of bone graft with titanium mesh, and titanium locking plates fixation in Department of Orthopaedics, the 309 Hospital of Chinese PLA were retrospectively analyzed, including 16 males and 7 females, aged 41.9 years (ranging 25 ?65 years). The clinical effect and application value of this treatment was evaluated; the conditions at preoperative, immediate postoperative and follow-up were evaluated by JOA grade, and these radiographs were taken. Lordosis (kyphosis) of the fusion segment with Cobb's angle, and lordosis (kyphosis) of cervical spine with D value were measured to evaluate effect of reconstruction and cervical spine physiological curve. All cases were followed-up for 20.5 months (ranging 1-3 years). Clinical stability was reached in all cases during the follow-up. There were significant differences between preoperative and immediate postoperative, between preoperative and follow-up groups in terms of JOA grade, Cobb's angle and D value (P < 0.05). The JOA grade of immediate postoperative was improved compared with that during follow-up (P < 0.05). The mean improvement rate was 63% at 1 year of follow up. A good curative effect was obtained by using anterior locking plate with titanium mesh systems in treatment of cervical fractures and dislocations and a good effect of restoring and maintaining the lordosis of cervical spine can be also obtained.

1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine ; analogs & derivatives ; pharmacology ; Animals ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; drug therapy ; Hypoxia ; pathology ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors ; pharmacology ; Rats ; rho-Associated Kinases ; antagonists & inhibitors

Objective To investigate the correlation between ~(18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake and hypoxia inducible factor1α (HIF-1α) level,microvessel density (MVD) in human gliomas.Methods ~(18)F-FDG PET scan was performed preoperatively in 41 patients with gliomas (including 23 highgrade and 18 low-grade tumors).The ratios of maximum standardized uptake value(SUV_(max))between tumor (T)and contralateral white matter (WM) were calculated (T/WM).Immunohistochemical stain methods were used to evaluate the level of HIF-1α and measure the MVD in tumors.Correlation analysis between SUV_(max) of T/WM and HIF-1α level,MVD wag performed.The t-test,one-way ANOVA test,Spearman rank correlation and Wilcoxon signed-rank test were calculated using SPSS 11.5 software.Results (1)The SUV_(max) of T/WM,HIF-1α level and MVD in high-grade and low-grade tumors groups were 3.39±1.43,95.7% and 44.13±16.1 vs 1.46±0.55.55.6% and 18.83±7.07,respectively.The difierences of SUV_(max) of T/WM,HIF-1α level and MVD between two groups were statistically significant (t=-5.921,z=-3.938,t=-6.745,all P＜0.05).(2)Among 41 gliomas,the strong positive expression of HIF-1α was observed in 8,mederate in 9,weak in 15 and negative expression was found in 9,SUV_(max) of T/WM and MVD increased with increasing HIF-1α level.The differences of SUV_(max) of T/WM and MVD among 4 different groups were statistically significant (F=7.41,P＜0.05).(3) The MVD of all gliomas was ranged from 9.76 to 94.52,which correlated with SUV_(max) of T/WM(r=0.759,P＜0.05).Conclusions The SUV_(max) of T/WM correlates with HIF-1α level and MVD in gliomas.Therefore,~(18)F-FDG PET provides preoperatively a noninvasive assessment of hypoxia or angiogenesis in human glionma.

The metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors for cardiovascular disease, is closely related to environmental and lifestyle risk factors. Increasing evidence suggests that environmental risk factors may involve an increase in xenobiotic exposure, for example due to environmental toxins, medications, high meat intake, food additives and supplements; while lifestyle risk factors, such as sedentary lifestyles, may involve a decrease in the detoxification and elimination of xenobiotics. The skin, the body's largest organ, plays a distinct role in the detoxification and elimination of xenobiotics and the body lipid homeostasis, which is affected by sedentary lifestyle and physical activity, as well as by ambient temperature. Thus, it seems that decreased skin biotransformation and excretion, for example due to low ambient temperature and sedentary lifestyle, may be an important risk factor for metabolic syndrome. This review aims to provide insight into the role of the skin in the development of metabolic syndrome.
Humans ; Metabolic Syndrome ; physiopathology ; Risk Factors ; Skin ; physiopathology ; Skin Physiological Phenomena

The zinc-regulated transporters (ZRT), iron-regulated transporter (IRT)-like protein (ZIP) plays an important role in the growth and development of plant. In this study, a full length cDNA of ZIP encoding gene, designed as DoZIP1 (GenBank accession KJ946203), was identified from Dendrobium officinale using RT-PCR and RACE. Bioinformatics analysis showed that DoZIP1 consisted of a 1,056 bp open reading frame (ORF) encoded a 351-aa protein with a molecular weight of 37.57 kDa and an isoelectric point (pI) of 6.09. The deduced DoZIP1 protein contained the conserved ZIP domain, and its secondary structure was composed of 50.71% alpha helix, 11.11% extended strand, 36.18% random coil, and beta turn 1.99%. DoZIP1 protein exhibited a signal peptide and eight transmembrane domains, presumably locating in cell membrane. The amino acid sequence had high homology with ZIP proteins from Arabidopsis, alfalfa and rice. A phylogenetic tree analysis demonstrated that DoZIP1 was closely related to AtZIP10 and OsZIP3, and they were clustered into one clade. Real time quantitative PCR analysis demonstrated that the transcription level of DoZIP1 in D. officinale roots was the highest (4.19 fold higher than that of stems), followed by that of leaves (1.12 fold). Molecular characters of DoZIP1 will be useful for further functional determination of the gene involving in the growth and development of D. officinale.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Cloning, Molecular ; Dendrobium ; chemistry ; classification ; genetics ; metabolism ; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant ; Iron ; metabolism ; Membrane Transport Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phylogeny ; Plant Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; Plants ; chemistry ; classification ; genetics ; Sequence Alignment ; Zinc ; metabolism

A strain ph 16 , that could effectively degrade phenol,was isolated from sewer sludge of printing and dyeing plant. The preliminary identification sugg ested that the strain belongs to Micrococcus sp. The strain could resist to phenol up to 1.5 g/L. The efficient biodegradation of phenol occurred when th e strain was cultured in the medium (pH 7.0) containing 1.0 g/L phenol under 35℃, wh er e the highest degradation rate reach 99.6% after 36 hours. This strain, when t re ated with some heavy metal ions such as Hg +、Co 2+ and Ag 2+ , showe d the significant inhibition of phenol degradation by 74.2%～100%. The kinetic s of phenol degradation during culture of the strain was also explored.

Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) are important signaling transduction components well conserved in eukaryotes and play essential roles in various physiological, developmental and hormonal responses in plant. In the present study, a MAPK gene, designated as DoMPK4 (GenBank accession No. JX297597), is identified from a rare endangered medicinal orchid species D. officinale using the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) methods. The full length cDNA of DoMPK4 is 1 518 bp in length and encoded a 369 aa protein with a molecular weight of 42.42 kD and an isoelectric point of 5.55. DoMPK4 protein contained a serine/threonine protein kinase active site (158-170), a MAP kinase site (71-174), and eight conserved motifs. DoMPK4 had a transmembrane (214-232) but no signal peptide. Multiple sequence alignment showed that DoMPK4 shared high identities (74.9%-80.6%) with MAPK proteins from various plants. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that DoMPK4 belonged to group A of the MAPK evolutionary tree, and is closely related to monocots. Real time quantitative PCR (qPCR) analysis revealed that DoMPK4 is differentially expressed among the five organs including leaf, stem, root, seed, and protocorm-like body (PLB). The transcription level of DoMPK4 is the highest in the PLBs with 17.65 fold, followed by seeds, roots, and stems with 5.84, 2.28, and 1.64 fold, respectively. The progressive enhancement of DoMPK4 transcripts in the developing PLBs compared to that in the germinating seeds, suggests a role of DoMPK4 during the development of embryogenic PLBs formation in D. officinale.
Amino Acid Sequence ; DNA, Complementary ; genetics ; DNA, Plant ; genetics ; Dendrobium ; enzymology ; genetics ; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant ; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases ; genetics ; metabolism ; Phylogeny ; Plant Leaves ; metabolism ; Plant Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Plant Roots ; metabolism ; Plant Stems ; metabolism ; Seeds ; metabolism ; Sequence Alignment

Simvastatin is a hypolipidemic drug that inhibits hydroxymethylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMGCoA) reductase to control elevated cholesterol,or hypercholesterolemia.Previous studies have shown that simvastatin may attenuate inflammation in ischemia-reperfusion injury and sepsis.Herein,we hypothesized that simvastatin may prevent rats from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced septic shock.In our study,rats were divided into a saline group,an LPS group and an LPS plus simvastatin group.Male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were pretreated with simvastatin (1 mg/kg) for 30 min before the addition of LPS (8 mg/kg),with variations in left ventricular pressure recorded throughout.Ninety min after LPS injection,whole blood was collected from the inferior vena cava,and neutrophils were separated from the whole blood using separating medium.The neutrophils were then lysed for Western blotting to detect the levels of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1).In addition,mesentery microcirculations of inlet diameter,outlet diameter and blood flow rate were measured in all three groups.The results indicated that simvastatin significantly promoted heart systolic function and increased the level ofuPA while simultaneously inhibited the expression of PAI-1 as compared with LPS group.Moreover,simvastatin reversed the LPS-induced inhibition of mesentery microcirculation.Taken together,it was suggested that simvastatin can effectively protect the rats from LPS-induced septic shock.

Objective To observe the dynamic serological test results of 28 patients with acute brucellosis,and to investigate the relationship between serological test results and diagnosis,curative effect and prognosis of brucellosis.Methods Twenty eight patients(infected with sheep brucellosis) with acute brucellosis in the Department of Brucellosis in Heilongjiang Provincial Land Reclamation Headquarters General Hospital were selected as research subjects,and their serological changes were tested by means of tube agglutination test (SAT)and clinical outcomes were compared before and after each stage of treatment.In addition,symptoms of fever,weakness,sweating,joint pain,swollen lymph nodes and biochemical parameters [alanine aminotransferase (ALT),lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)] were also tested 3,6 and 9 weeks after the treatment.Results Antibody titer reached the peak at the third week,1 ∶ 400(++),which accounted for 39.29％ (11/28); 2857％(8/28) of the patients became negative at the sixth week; 50.00％ (14/28) became negative at the ninth week.Before the treatment,20(71.43％) patients had the symptom of fever,8 (28.57％) patients had the symptom of hyperhidrosis,28 (100.00％) patients had the symptom of joint pain,7(25.00％) patients had the symptom of lymph node enlargement,28 (100.00％) patients' ALT was elevated,and 26(92.86％) patients' LDH was elevated.After three weeks of treatment,except the three patients (10.71％) who occasionally had fever,the rest of the patient's temperature was returned to normal.Also the numbers of patients with the symptoms of fatigue,sweating and joint pain were significantly reduced,and specifically,the conesponding number was 13(46.43％),2(7.14％),and 21 (75.00％)patients,respectively.ALT and LDH returned to normal(only one patient's ALT was out of the range).At the sixth week,all the patients' symptoms of fever and hyperhidrosis disappeared.The number of patients with the symptoms of joint pain and lymph node enlargement reduced to 12(42.86％) and 3(10.71％),respectively.The results of biochemical tests(ALT and LDT) returned to normal.At the ninth week,most patients' clinical symptoms disappeared.A few patients still had the symptoms of weakness[2(7.14％)] and joint piin[6(21.43％)].Conclusions After effective treatment,antibody titer of patients decreases rapidly,at the same time,the clinical symptoms improve quickly.There is a parallel relationship between the change of antibody titer and clinical symptoms.It is demonstrated that the appearing time of brucellosis specific antibodies,the ampfitude and speed of change of antibody titers can be used in diagnosis,therapeutic evaluation and prognosis of the disease.

Objective To observe the clinical features of brucellosis spondylitis and analyse the reasons for its misdiagnosis,and improve the level of diagnosis and differential diagnosis.Methods Forty-two clinically diagnosed patients with brucellosis spondylitis were studied retrospectively,and these patients were diagnosed and hospitalized in the General Hospital of Heilongjiang Land Reclamation Bureau.Their medical records were analyzed,which included the general information,medical history,clinical symptoms,results of magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) and serum tube agglutination test(SAT) and so on.Results Main clinical symptoms and signs were severe persistent neck,back and leg pain.They also had plate shape low back but without kyphosis.In addition,patients had to keep in one posture because their spinal activity was limited.Also,scoliosis or pelvic tilt and lameness may occur when standing,which were typical symptoms of nerve root compression.Thirteen cases were diagnosed as tuberculosis,accounting for 30.95％(13/42); 6 cases were diagnosed as lumbar disc herniation,accounting for 14.28％ (6/42); 2 cases were diagnosed as ankylosing spondylitis,accounting for 4.76％ (2/42).Therefore,the total rate of misdiagnosis was 50％ (21/42).Abnormal MRI signal intensity can be seen in the pathological vertebrae.Specifically,T1-weighted images (T1WI) showed low signal,T2-weighted images (T2WI) showed high signal,or mixed high and low signal intensity was observed.Vertebral showed wedge deformation without collapse and sequestrum; strip and sheet abnormal signal can also be found within the intervertebral disc.Normal structure disappeared and disc space became narrow.Accordingly,the plane dural sac was compressed to form visible abscess near the spine,but psoas abscess was not found.Patients with positive SAT result accounted for 92.85％ (39/42).Conclusion Reasons for misdiagnosis include lack of detailed medical records,atypical clinical symptoms and similar imaging changes and so on.