ObjectiveTo observe the effect of enema with Chinese medicine Changduqing combined with plasma exchange for treatment of endotoxemia in patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure.Methods A prospective randomized controlled trial was conducted, and 68 patients with acute-on-chronic hepatic failure who were hospitalized from January 2009 to June 2012 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine were randomly divided into treatment and control groups, 34 cases in each group. The patients in control group were treated with plasma exchange combined with western medicine comprehensive treatment such as protecting liver, reducing enzyme, removing jaundice, and in cases with hepatitis B, antiviral therapy was added. The treatment in patients of treatment group was the same as that in the control group, but additionally Changduqing enema of TCM decoction was given(ingredients: radix et rhizoma ginseng 10 g, flos magnolia officinalis 6 g, radix et rhizoma rhei 6 g, fructus aurantii immaturus 6 g, radix paeoniae rubra 10 g),twice a day combined with 3-4 times of plasma exchange treatment, once every 72 hours. The course of treatment of both groups was 4 weeks. The changes of total bilirubin (TBil), alanine aminotransferase(ALT), albumin(ALB), prothrombin activity(PTA), endotoxin, the improvement of clinical symptoms and signs such as lacking in strength, poor appetite, abdominal distension, oliguria, bleeding tendency, hepatic encephalopathy, infection and ascites were observed before and after treatment, and the survival rate in 24 weeks of follow-up was also investigated.Results Before treatment, the comparisons of TBil,ALT, ALB and PTA between the two groups were of no statistically significant differences(allP>0.05); compared with those before treatment, the levels of TBil and ALT were obviously decreased, and PTA was markedly increased after treatment in both groups, the degree of change being more prominent in treatment group〔TBil(μmol/L): 89.6±52.3 vs. 124.6±64.4, ALT(U/L):52.4±32.1 vs. 98.3±42.5, PTA:(53.8±11.5)% vs.(41.2±10.2)%, allP<0.05〕. The ALB levelsbefore and after treatment of both groups showed no significant difference(bothP>0.05). After treatment, the endotoxin(kU/L) in both groups were decreased in inchoate, developing and fully-developed stages and the descent being more significant in treatment group(inchoate stage: 0.094±0.015 vs. 0.109±0.032, developingstage: 0.102±0.019 vs. 0.146±0.062, fully-developed stage: 0.124±0.022 vs. 0.196±0.074, allP<0.05). The 24-week survival rates of developing and fully-developed stages in patients of both groups were lower than the rate in patients of inchoate stage, and the rates of treatment group in inchoate and developing stages were remarkably higher than the rate in control group〔inchoate stage: 94.1%(16/17) vs. 83.3%(15/18), developed stage: 85.7%(12/14) vs. 42.9%(6/14),bothP<0.01〕.ConclusionEnema with TCM Changduqing combined with plasma exchange for treatment of patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure can remove bilirubin, ameliorate endotoxemia, elevate PTA level and increase the survival rate of patients in 24 weeks of follow-up.

Adult ; Aneurysm ; surgery ; Heart Septal Defects, Atrial ; surgery ; Humans ; Male ; Pacemaker, Artificial

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinicopathological characteristics, diagnosis and treatment of primary testicular yolk sac tumor (YST).

METHODSWe studied 8 cases of primary testicular YST by microscopy and immunohistochemistry.

RESULTSThe 8 cases of primary testicular YST, including 2 consultation cases, were confirmed from 1998 to 2013, accounting for 10.7% (8/75) of all the testicular germ cell tumors diagnosed in our hospital. The patients ranged in age from 7 to 43 years, 23.9 years on average. The main clinical manifestation of the patients was painless unilateral testis swelling. Microscopically, reticular tissues, schiller-duvaI (S-D) bodies, and eosin-stain transparent bodies were seen in the tumors. One of the cases was confirmed to be simple YST, while the other 7 mixed YST. AFP was a characteristic immunophenotype marker of the tumors.

CONCLUSIONPrimary testicular YST is a rare malignancyr with poor prognosis. Its diagnosis depends on preoperative AFP test and postoperative pathology. Comprehensive treatment, including orchiectomy, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, can prolong the survival of the patients.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Endodermal Sinus Tumor ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Male ; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Orchiectomy ; Rare Diseases ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Testicular Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Young Adult

Immuno-fluorescence technique can qualitatively determine certain nuclear translocation, of which NF-κB/ p65 implicates the activation of NF-κB signal pathways. Immuno-fluorescence analysis software with independent property rights is able to quantitatively analyze dynamic location of NF-κB/p65 by computing relative fluorescence units in nuclei and cytoplasm. We verified the quantitative analysis by Western Blot. When we applied the software to analysis of nuclear translocation in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced (0. 5 h, 1 h, 2 h, 4 h) primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) , we found that nuclear translocation peak showed up at 2h as with calculated Western blot verification results, indicating that the inventive immuno-fluorescence analysis software can be applied to the quantitative analysis of immuno-fluorescence.
Active Transport, Cell Nucleus ; Cell Nucleus ; metabolism ; Cytoplasm ; metabolism ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells ; Humans ; NF-kappa B p50 Subunit ; metabolism ; Software

Since smart phones have been developed, significant advances in the function of mobile phone due to the development of software, hardware and accessories have been reached. Till now, smart phones have been engaged in daily life with an increasing impact. As a new medical model, mobile phone medicine is emerging and has found wide spread applications in medicine, especially in diagnosing, monitoring and screening various diseases. In addition, mo bile phone medical application shows great potential trend to improve healthcare in resource-limited regions due to its advantageous features of portability and information communication capability. Nowadays, the scientific and technological issues related to mobile phone medicine have attracted worldwide attention. In this review, we summarize state-of-the-art advances of mobile phone medicine with focus on its diagnostics applications in order to expand the fields of their applications and promote healthcare informatization.
Cell Phone ; Delivery of Health Care ; trends ; Humans ; Software

The purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) modified liposome as a vehicle for ophthalmic administration. Liposome loaded with 5-carboxyfluorescein (FAM) was prepared by lipid film hydration method. WGA was thiolated and then conjugated to the surface of the liposome via polyethylene glycol linker to constitute the WGA-modified and FAM-loaded liposome (WGA-LS/FAM). The amount of thiol groups on each WGA molecule was determined, and the bioactivity of WGA was estimated after it was modified to the surface of liposome. The physical and chemical features of the WGA-modified liposome were characterized and the ocular bioadhesive performance was evaluated in rats. The result showed that each thiolated WGA molecule was conjugated with 1.32 thiol groups. WGA-LS/FAM had a mean size of (97.40 +/- 1.39) nm, with a polydispersity index of 0.23 +/- 0.01. The entrapment efficacy of FAM was about (2.95 +/- 0.21)%, and only 4% of FAM leaked out of the liposome in 24 h. Erythrocyte agglutination test indicated that after modification WGA preserved the binding activity to glycoprotein. The in vivo ocular elimination of WGA-LS/FAM fitted first-order kinetics, and the elimination rate was significantly slower than that of the unmodified liposome, demonstrating WGA-modified liposome is bioadhesive and suitable for ophthalmic administration.
Absorption, Physicochemical ; Adhesiveness ; Administration, Ophthalmic ; Animals ; Drug Carriers ; Eye ; metabolism ; Fluoresceins ; chemistry ; Liposomes ; administration & dosage ; chemistry ; pharmacokinetics ; Male ; Particle Size ; Polyethylene Glycols ; chemistry ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Wheat Germ Agglutinins ; administration & dosage ; chemistry ; pharmacokinetics

OBJECTIVETo explore the expression change of stem cell-derived neural stem/progenitor cell supporting factor (SDNSF) gene in the injuried spinal cord tissues of rats, and the relation between the expressions of SDNSF and nestin.

METHODSThe spinal cord contusion model of rat was established according to Allen's falling strike method. The expression of SDNSF was studied by RT-PCR and in situ hybridization (ISH), and the expression of nestin was detected by immunochemistry.

RESULTSRT-PCR revealed that SDNSF mRNA was upregulated on day 4 after injury, peaked on day 8-12, and decreased to the sham operation level on day 16. ISH revealed that SDNSF mRNA was mainly expressed in the gray matter cells, probably neurons, of spinal cord. The immunohistochemistry showed that accompanied with SDNSF mRNA upregulation, the nestin-positive cells showed erupted roots, migrated peripherad and proliferation on the 8-day slice. However, the distribution pattern of these new cells was different from that of SDNSF-positive cells.

CONCLUSION(1) SDNSF is expressed in the gray matter of spinal cord. The expression of SDNSF mRNA in the spinal cord varies with injured time. (2) The nestin-positive cells proliferate accompanied with spinal cord injury repair, but do not secrete SDNSF.

Analysis of Variance ; Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Female ; Gene Expression Regulation ; physiology ; In Situ Hybridization ; methods ; Intermediate Filament Proteins ; metabolism ; Nerve Tissue Proteins ; metabolism ; Nestin ; RNA, Messenger ; biosynthesis ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; methods ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; metabolism ; Time Factors ; Vesicular Transport Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism

Objective:To evaluate the effects of Sander Ⅱ appliance in the orthodontic treatment of adolescent ClassⅡmalocclusion. Methods:15 cases (6 male and 9 female)of adolescent ClassⅡ malocclusion with mandibular retrution were treated with Sander Ⅱappliance.Pre-treatment and post-treatment Lateral cephalogram measurements were traced and analyzed in terms of 28 indicators. SPSS 19.0 software package was used for paired t test.Results:After treatment,15 patients achieved remarkable improvement in the maxillofacial profile and normal overjet of teeth.The cephalometric analysis showed that ANB,OJ,H°and U1-E decreased(P <0. 05),SNB,B-OLP,Pg-OLP(mm),Ii-OLP,Ms-OLP(mm),Mi-OLP(mm),N-Me,ANS-Me,S-Go,Go-Gn,N'-Pg'/FH,Cm-Sn-Ls and Pg-Pg'increased(P <0.05).There was no significant change in SN-MP,SN-OL and Y-axis before and after treatment. Conclusion:Sander Ⅱ appliance is effective in the treatment of adolescent early Class Ⅱmalocclusion.

[Summary] Thyroid cancer is the complicated result of both environmental and genetic factors. Recently with the emergence of genome-wide association study ( GWAS) , the researches on genetic predisposition of thyroid cancer have entered a new phase and revealed a lot of new susceptibility genes or regions. Up to now, there are 11 regions with 16 single nucleotidepolymorphisms in total have been found with GWAS, which provide new ideas for the cause of thyroid cancer and its prevention.

[ ABSTRACT] AIM:To explore the effects of eplerenone on the expression and activity of aortic endothelial nitric oxide synthase ( eNOS) in high salt-induced hypertensive rats .METHODS: Male Wistar rats (4 week old, weighting 50~60 g) were randomly divided into control group , high-salt diet group and eplerenone group .The rats in control group were fed with ordinary rodent animal diet , the rats in high-salt group and eplerenone group were exposed to 5%salt diet for 16 weeks and administrated with the same dosage of saline or eplerenone (40 mg? kg-1? d-1 ) by gavage for 4 weeks, re-spectively.Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was measured by tail-cuff every 2 weeks.The rats were sacrificed after 16 weeks and the thoracic aorta was collected .The aldosterone content in the aorta was measured by ELISA .The protein levels of mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) and eNOS were determined by Western blot.The activitie of constitutive NOS (cNOS) was measured by chemocolorimetry .The protein localization of eNOS , neuronal nitric oxide synthase ( nNOS) and MR was observed by immunohistochemistry .RESULTS: A process of 8-week high-salt diet increased SBP gradually .SBP in the rats exposure to high salt for 16 weeks was significantly higher than that in control group ( P<0.05 ) .After 4 weeks of eplerenone treatment, SBP in the rats was significantly lower than that before treatment (P<0.05).Compared with control group, the aldosterone content in the aorta were significantly increased in high-salt diet group and eplerenone group ( P<0.05), the expression level of MR also increased significantly (P<0.05).Compared with control group, both eNOS pro-tein expression (P<0.05) and cNOS activity in high-salt diet group were significantly decreased (P<0.05).The protein expression of eNOS as well as cNOS activity in aorta increased significantly in eplerenone group compared with high -salt diet group (P<0.05).CONCLUSION:Aldosterone content in aorta of high-salt-induced hypertensive rats increases signifi-cantly .Aldosterone attenuates the protein expression of eNOS and reduces the enzyme activity through the activation of min -eralocorticoid receptor .The selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist eplerenone enhances the protein expression of eNOS and its activity , thereby improves eNOS function .