Humans ; Otorhinolaryngologic Surgical Procedures ; methods ; Quinolones ; therapeutic use ; Respiratory System Agents ; therapeutic use

Objective To study the B lymphocytes counts and the expression of TLR9 mRNA on B lymphocytes in peripheral blood from Chinese HIV-infected patients.Methods The cells from peripheral blood were stained with antibodies labeled with fluorescence and B lymphocytes were counted with flow cytometry.Using the method of magnetic activated cell sorting and real-time PCR,the expression of TLR9 mRNA was measured.Results The B lymphocytes counts in HIV/AIDS patients was significantly lower than that of healthy controls(P ＜0.01).The B lymphocytes counts in HIV/AIDS patients positively correlated with the CD4 +T cells counts(r =0.534,P = 0.006).The expression of TLR9 mRNA on B lymphocytes in HIV/AIDS patients was significantly lower than that of healthy controls(P =0.023),and positively correlated with the CD4 + T cells counts(r = 0.390,P = 0.040).Conclusion The B lymphocytes counts and the expression of TLR9 mRNA on B lymphocytes in Chinese HIV/AIDS patients were decreased due to HIV infection,which may correlate with disease progression.

Objective To improve the diagnosis accuracy and treatment quality of juxtaglomerular cell tumor.Methods The clinical data of 2 female patients(20 and 36 years,respectively)with juxtaglo- merular cell tumor were presented and discussed in combination with review of the literature,including the onset characteristics,imaging features,treatment,pathology and prognosis.Case 1 presented with hyperten- sion of 180/110 mm Hg.The laboratory examinations showed that in decubitus and standing position,the plasma rennin activity(PRA)was 3.2?g - L~(-1)?h~(-1)and 36.5?g?L~(-1)?h~(-1);angiotensinⅡwas 54.3 pg/ml and 183.5 pg/ml;aldosterone was 193.5 prnol/L and 489.4 pmol/L,respectively;serum kalium was 2.6 mmol/L.Case 2 presented with hypertension of 210/120 mm Hg.The laboratory examination results were as follows:in decubitus and standing position,PRA was 4.3?g?L~(-1)?h~(-1)and 37.0?g?L~(-1)?h~(-1);angio- teusinⅡwas 55.6 pg/ml and 200.4 pg/ml;aldosterone was 162.4 pmol/L and 506.3 pmol/L,respectively; serum kalium was 3.0 mmol/L.On CT scan,both cases had renal tumor,with the diameter of 3.0 cm and 3. 5 cm,respectively.Results Case 1 underwent laparoscopic partial nephrectomy.Case 2 who had artery stricture and severe functional injure of the right kidney underwent laparoscopic right nephrectomy.The oper- ative time was 3.0 h and 2.0 h,and the blood loss was 175 ml and 112 ml,respectively.There was no mor- tality or postoperative complication.In 1 or 2 postoperative weeks,Case 1 had blood pressure(BP)of 120/70 mm Hg;in deeubitus and standing position,PRA was 1.5?g ~ L~(-1)?b~(-1)and 12.8?g?L~(-1)?h~(-1);angio- tensinⅡwas 30.6 pg/ml and 97.5 pg/ml;aldosterone was 78.5 pmol/L and 192.2 pmol/L,respectively ;se- rum kalium was 4.2 mmol/L.Case 2 had BP of 125/75 mm Hg;in decubitus and standing position,PRA was 1.6?g.L~(-1)?h~(-1)and 12.3?g.L~(-1)?h(-1);angiotensinⅡwas 34.3 pg/ml and 83.5 pg/ml;aldoste- rone was 62.6 pmol/L and 292.5 pmol/L,respectively;serum kalium was 4.8 mmol/L.Pathology showed that the juxtaglomerular cell tumor had intact envelop.Light microscopically,the tumor was very much like a hemangiopericytoma,showing active proliferation and nuclear atypia.The immunohistochemical staining showed positive Vimentin,CD_(34)expression,and negative MSA,EMA,Bcl-2,?-SmA,AG/AG3,34?En, CD_(117),CD_(31),Iv glue,Ki-G~-(＜2%)expression.Ultrastructural changes of the nuclei and some organelles in the cytoplasm were observed under electron microscope.The conspicuous ultrastructural feature was the pres- ence of secretion granules and rhomboid-shaped,crystal-like structures in the dilated cisternae of rough endo- plasmic reticulum and vesicles of Golgi complex.The follow-up was 14 and 6 months,respectively;the renal function was normal and no tumor recurrence was found.Conelusions Juxtaglomerular cell tumor is a rare tumor which can produce renin.It is characterized by severe hypertension and low serum potassium.La- boratory examination results are helpful for the diagnosis:PRA and angiotensinⅡincrease obviously ;aldoste- rone is 1-10 times more than normal;serum kalium is commonly between 2.1-3.5 mmol/L.The definite diagnosis depends on clinical presentations,immunohistochemistry,light and electron microscopic examina- tions.Laparoscopie operation is the first choice of surgical treatment.

Objective To investigate the association between APOBEC3G mRNA levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMCs)of HIV/AIDS patients and disease progression in Henan province.Methods Real-time PCR was used to detect the mRNA levels of APOBEC3G in PBMCs of HIV/AIDS patients at difierent disease progression stage.Flow cytometry and automated viral load analyzer were used to count CD4+ T cells and plasma HIV viral loads.Results The mRNA levels of APOBEC3G in HIV/AIDS patients were lower than in HIV-negative controls(t=4.887,P＜0.01),and APOBEC3G levels were significantly higher in slow development group than those in HIV and AIDS groups(P＜0.05).The levels of APOBEC3G mRNA correlated positively with CD4+ T cell counts(R2=0.190,P=0.002)and negatively with HIV-1 viral loads(R2=0.094.P=0.038).Conclusions The APOBEC3G mRNA levels in PBMC of HIV infected individuals are associated with HIV disease pmgression. Higher mRNA expression levels of APOBEC3G may be one of the protective factors which can play important role in delaying disease progression.

OBJECTIVEThe purpose of this article is to examine the effect of curcumin on the proliferation and metastasis of human tongue squamous cell carcinoma and analyze its mechanism.

METHODSSCC-4 were treated with curcumin of 0, 5, 10, 20, 30, 60, 100 micromol x L(-1) in 24 h. MTT assay, Matrigel invasion assay, flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy were used to examine the effect of curcumin on the growth and metastasis of SCC-4. cDNA microarray and RT-PCR were employed to analyze the expression of genes treated by curcumin.

RESULTSThe results showed that curcumin could concentration-dependently inhibit SCC-4 cell proliferation at the concentration range from 20 to 100 micromol x L(-1). Furthermore, Matrigel invasion assay indicated that curcumin can reduce SCC-4 cell invasion under the dosage of 20, 30, 60 micromol x L(-1). Flow cytometry also showed that curcumin can influence the distribution of cell cycle of SCC-4 cell with the dosage of 20, 30, 60 micromol x L(-1). And the dosage of 30 micromol x L(-1) curcumin could lead to the recruitment of alpha-tubulin. cDNA microarray showed that 87 genes were activated and 198 genes were inhibited with the effect of curcumin. These results were validated by the real time quantitative RT-PCR.

CONCLUSIONAccording to the results, it suggests that curcumin has the potential as the leading compound for anti-cancer proliferation and invasion in oral cancer treatment, and cdc27, EGFR substrate 15, PPAR-alpha and H2A histone may play an important role among this multiple anticancer-targeting ability.

Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Curcumin ; Humans ; Mouth Neoplasms

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the clinical significance of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening in early detection of prostate cancer in Chinese men.

METHODSPSA screening was performed in 8562 asymptomatic men who had been enrolled for health checkup and all were > or = 50 years old. Prostate biopsy was recommended for those with a serum PSA level > or = 4.0 ng/ml. The pathological and clinical features of the patients with prostate cancer detected by the PSA screening were compared with that of 82 clinically diagnosed prostate cancer patients during the same period.

RESULTSOf the 8562 asymptomatic men, 719 had PSA levels > or = 4.0 ng/ml and biopsy was performed in 295 of them. Fifty-eight prostate cancers were detected. The biopsy rate was 41.0% and positive detection rate was 19.7%. The overall age distribution in the screening group and the clinical groups was not significantly different (P = 0.176). However, 41.4% (24/58) of the patients in screening group were > 75 years old, and significantly more than that in the clinical group (25.6%, P = 0.0491). The proportion of the patients with PSA levels > or = 20 ng/ml in the screening group was significantly less than that in the patients of the clinical group (44.8% vs. 75.6%, P = 0.0002). Whether in the patients whose age was > 75 years old (P < 0.05) or < or = 75 years old (P = 0.0002), the patients in the screening group had significantly lower Gleason scores < 7 (60.3% vs. 34.1%, P = 0.002), more T1 or T2 tumor (87.9% vs. 26.8%, P < 0.0001) and more chance to receive radical prostatectomy (50.0% vs. 18.3%, P < 0.0001) than the patients in the clinical group did. However, the distributions of PSA levels at diagnosis and biopsy Gleason scores were not significantly different between the above mentioned two groups (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONProstate-specific antigen (PSA) screening is useful for early detection of prostate cancer in Chinese men aged > or = 50 years. The patients detected by PSA screening usually show a lower PSA level, Gleason scores and early clinical stage disease, and have more chance for radical prostatectomy than the clinically diagnosed patients.

Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Biopsy ; Early Detection of Cancer ; methods ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; blood ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; blood ; diagnosis ; pathology

Antigens, Surface ; analysis ; Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active ; CD28 Antigens ; analysis ; CD56 Antigen ; analysis ; HIV Infections ; drug therapy ; immunology ; Humans ; Killer Cells, Natural ; immunology ; Lectins, C-Type ; analysis ; NK Cell Lectin-Like Receptor Subfamily B ; NK Cell Lectin-Like Receptor Subfamily D ; analysis ; Receptors, Immunologic ; analysis ; Receptors, KIR

BACKGROUNDAt the end of 2005, 650,000 people lived with human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) in China, of whom 75 000 were AIDS patients. Many AIDS patients received highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) supported by the "China CARES" program but the immune responses of HAART were seldom reported. This study investigated the effect of HAART on the activation and coreceptor expression of T lymphocytes in Chinese HIV/AIDS patients and evaluated its effect on immune reconstitution.

METHODSSeventeen HIV/AIDS patients were enrolled and three-color-flow cytometry was used to detect the activation of HLA-DR CD38 and the coreceptor CCR5, CXCR4 expression on T lymphocytes in whole blood samples taken from the patients before and after 3- or 6-month HAART.

RESULTSThe activation percents of CD4(+), CD8(+) T lymphocytes were significantly higher before therapy than the normal controls (HLA-DR/CD4: 40.47 +/- 18.85 vs 11.54 +/- 4.10; CD38/CD4: 81.34 +/- 10.86 vs 53.34 +/- 11.44; HLA-DR/CD8: 63.94 +/- 12.71 vs 25.67 +/- 9.18; CD38/CD8: 86.56 +/- 11.41 vs 58.84 +/- 6.16, all P < 0.01). After 6-month combined antiretroviral treatment, the activation of T lymphocytes in HIV/AIDS patients was significantly decreased (HLA-DR/CD4: 28.31 +/- 13.48; CD38/CD4: 69.88 +/- 12.64; HLA-DR/CD8: 46.56 +/- 18.64; CD38/CD8: 70.17 +/- 14.54, all P < 0.01 compared with the pre-treatment values). Before the treatment, CCR5 expression on CD8(+) T lymphocytes was up-regulated while CXCR4 expression on CD8(+) T lymphocytes downregulated in HIV/AIDS patients compared with the normal controls (CD8/CCR5: 70.91 +/- 10.03 vs 52.70 +/- 7.68; CD8/CXCR4: 24.14 +/- 11.08 vs 50.05 +/- 11.68, all P < 0.01). After 6-month HAART, CCR5 expression on CD8(+) T lymphocytes significantly decreased (56.35 +/- 12.96, P < 0.01), while CXCR4 expression on CD8(+) T lymphocytes increased (36.95 +/- 9.96, P < 0.05) compared with the pre-treatment and the normal controls. A significant statistical relationship was observed between the expression of activation markers, CCR5 and the CD4(+) T lymphocyte counts after HAART (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSReduced activation of T lymphocytes and a normalization of coreceptor expression were observed in Chinese HIV/AIDS patients after HAART. Immunity can be restored in HIV/AIDS patients receiving HAART.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ; drug therapy ; immunology ; Adult ; Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active ; China ; Female ; HIV Infections ; drug therapy ; immunology ; Humans ; Lymphocyte Activation ; drug effects ; physiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Receptors, Chemokine ; analysis ; drug effects ; T-Lymphocytes ; immunology

OBJECTIVETo study the polymorphisms and secondary structure of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) tat exon 1 among subtype B' and B'/C HIV-1 infected people in China and to explore the relationship between the polymorphism of tat exon 1 and the disease progression.

METHODS8 subtype B' and 5 B'/C HIV-1 infected patients with slow disease progression were selected from Liaoning, Jilin and Yunnan province. 26 subtype B' and 9 B'/C HIV-1 infected patients with similar sex, age but with typical disease progression were selected. Provirus was extracted from the whole blood. The gene sequences of the Tat exon 1 were amplified by nest-polymerase chain reaction (nest-PCR). Products were purified and sequenced directly. The sequences were aligned, translated, amino acid substitution were analyzed and secondary structures were predicted.

RESULTSMany amino acid substitution could be found in the exon 1 of Tat in HIV-1 subtype B' and B'/C recombinant strain infected persons with different disease progression except A58T,none of them showed definitely relationship with HIV viral load and disease progression. 23N, 31S, 32Y and 46F were subtype-specific substitutions. No characteristic secondary structure of exon 1 of Tat was found.

CONCLUSIONSome of the mutations of tat exon 1 might be related to HIV viral load and disease progression. However, there was no relationship found between the secondary structure of Tat protein and the disease progression.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ; genetics ; pathology ; Amino Acid Substitution ; Disease Progression ; Exons ; genetics ; Genes, tat ; genetics ; HIV Infections ; genetics ; pathology ; Human Immunodeficiency Virus Proteins ; genetics ; Humans ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Viral Load

OBJECTIVETo analyze the allele frequencies of 6 STR loci (D12S358, D12S1675, D12S1663, D12S1697, D12S16725 and D12S1613) on chromosome 12 among KBD patients and residents in the KBD and non-KBD areas.

METHODSEDTA-blood samples were collected from 146 unrelated Chinese Han individuals in Shaanxi Province including 57 KBD patients, 48 control subjects living in the Kashing-Beck disease(KBD) area and 48 in the non-KBD area. The DNA samples were extracted and amplified by PCR, and the PCR products were analyzed by ABI 3100 Genetic Analyzer.

RESULTSIn KBD patients, the allele number for the 6 STR loci (D12S358, D12S1675, D12S1663, D12S1697, D12S16725 and D12S1613) was 7, 7, 7, 10, 12 and 8, and the genotype number were 13, 12, 9, 17, 19 and 10, respectively; in the residents in KBD area, the allele number was 7, 5, 7, 9, 13 and 9, and the genotype number 12, 10, 12, 19, 16 and 8; in residents in non-KBD area, the allele number was 7, 5, 5, 12, 8 and 9, and the genotype number 17, 16, 8, 22, 14 and 8. There were significant differences in the allele frequencies in the D12S1725 loci between KBD patients and residents living in KBD area (P=0.0119) and the non-KBD area (P=0.0050), but no significant difference in other 5 loci among the 3 groups.

CONCLUSIONKBD patients have significantly different allele distribution patterns in the D12S1725 loci from the control subjects.

Adult ; China ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 12 ; genetics ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Humans ; Male ; Microsatellite Repeats ; genetics ; Middle Aged ; Osteoarthritis ; genetics