One new dicyclopeptide cyclo-(L-N-methyl Glu-L-N-methyl Glu) (1), together with one new natural dicyclopeptide cyclo-(L-methyl Glu ester-L-methyl Glu ester) (2), and two known dicyclopeptides cyclo-(L-methyl Glu ester-L-Glu) (3), and cyclo-(L-Glu-L-Glu) (4), were isolated from the aerial parts of Dianthus chinensis L. Their structures were determined by spectroscopic analyses and chemical methods.
Dianthus ; chemistry ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Molecular Structure ; Plant Components, Aerial ; chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry

Abstract?AlM:To investigate the choice of different treatments for malignant glaucoma.? METHODS: ln this retrospective case series, 21 malignant glaucoma patients ( 21 eyes ) admitted in Wuhan General Hospital of Guangzhou Military Command from May 2012 to May 2013 were analyzed. Sixteen eyes ( 76%) developed malignant glaucoma after filtration surgery, 3 eyes ( 14%) after EX - PRESS glaucoma filtration device, 2 eyes ( 10%) after glaucoma filtration Ahmed valve implantation. Main Outcome of corrected visual acuity, intraocular pressure ( lOP ) , anterior chamber depth and complications were detected.?RESULTS: lOP recovered by drug control in 13 eyes, anterior chamber depth. Four eyes were treated by vitreous water- bag aspiration combined with anterior chambers reconstructing. Two eyes were treated by cataract extraction and intraocular lens implantation. Two eyes were treated by posterior capsule excision combined with anterior vitrectomy. lOP before and after treatment was 29. 81±4. 98, 12. 71±3. 77mmHg, respectively (P=0. 00). Anterior chamber depth before and after treatment was 0.41± 0. 34, 2. 13 ± 0. 54mm, respectively (P = 0. 00). Corrected visual acuity before treatment was 0. 19 ± 0. 17, after treatment was 0. 20±0. 16 (P= 0. 36). Except for vitreous hemorrhage in 1 eye, there were no ocular or systemic adverse events observed in all patients.? CONCLUSlON: lt is good to diagnose malignant glaucoma in early period, and treated it step by step. For this can reduce lOP and restore anterior chamber.

Objective To study osteogenic courses and features of human osteoblasts cultured in vitro and seeded into alloplastic decalcified cancellous bone.Methods Human osteoblasts isolated from normal human perios- teum were cultured and amplified in vitro.Thy configuration and developing manners of osteoblasts were observed. Then osteoblasts were seeded into alloplastic decalcified cancellous bone.Thy composites were implanted and cultured in thy body of athymic mice.The specimens were obtained 8 weeks later.Osteogenic characteristics were observed by scanning electron microscope.Results Osteoblasts isolated from human periosteum developed well and proliferated rapidly in vitro.Island new bone formation could be observed histologically 8 weeks after the composites of os- teoblasts and alloplasric decalcified cancellous bone were implanted and cultured in the body of athymic mice.Conclu- sion Calcified bone can be formed by seeding osteoblasts into alloplastic decalcified cancellous bone,which may be a new kind of bone graft source to construct bone defects.

Objective To compare the efficacy of 18F-FDG PET/CT, 99Tcm-MDP bone scintigraphy (BS), and combination of the two techniques (PET/CT + BS) for detecting bone metastasis by ROC curve analysis. Methods All 296 patients with various cancers, who underwent both 99Tcm-MDP BS and 18F-FDG PET/CT within two months, were retrospectively analyzed. These images were interpreted according to 5-point scale (0: definitely negative, 1: probably negative, 2: equivocal, 3: probably positive, 4:definitely positive for bone metastasis), and the scale of PET/CT + BS was the sum of PET/CT and BS. In light of the confirmed diagnosis derived from pathology or follow-up, ROC curve analysis was performed.The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was compared by z-test. Results Of 296 cases, 61 (20.6%) were confirmed as bone metastases and 235 (79.4%) were negative. The AUC were 0. 919 (95% confidence interval (95% CI) :0. 867 - 0. 971) for BS, 0. 949 (95% CI: 0. 906 - 0. 991) for PET/CT, and 0. 994 (95% CI: 0.988-0.999) for PET/CT + BS, rctrospectively. The AUC of PET/CT + BS was statistically significantly larger than that of BS (z=2. 866, P=0.004) or PET/CT (z =2.027, P=0.043), while the AUC of PET/CT was larger than that of BS, but no statistically significance (z = 0. 881, P = 0. 378) was showed. The optimal sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value(NPV) were 90. 2% (55/61), 85. 1% (200/235), 86. 1% (255/296), 61. 1% (55/90), 97. 1%(200/206) for BS, 88.5% (54/61), 97.0% (228/235), 95.3% (282/296), 88.5% (54/61), 97.0% for PET/CT, and 98.4% (60/61), 95.7% (225/235), 96.3% (285/296), 85.7% (60/70) for PET/CT + BS,respectively. The specificity (χ2 = 19.862, P<0. 001), accuracy (χ2 = 23. 361, P<0.001) and PPV (χ2 =11. 791, P =0.001) of PET/CT + BS were significantly higher than those of BS, the sensitivity of PET/CT +BS was significantly higher than that of PET/CT (χ2 =4.167, P=0.031). Compared with BS, PET/CT had a higher specificity (χ2 = 19.600, P<0. 001), accuracy (χ2 = 13. 755, P <0. 001), PPV (χ2 = 13. 608, P <0. 001), but their sensitivity showed no statistically significant difference (χ2 = 0, P = 1. 000). Conclusions The efficacy of 18F-FDG PET/CT for detecting malignant bone metastasis was superior to that of 99Tcm-MDP BS alone. The detection ability can be obviously improved by combination of the two techniques.

0.05). Dysphasia resolved significantly after stent placement in both groups.The improvement of dysphasia was more significant in Group A than in Group B after 2 months of stent placement(1.37?0.56 in group A, 1.82?0.50 in group B,P=0.004).The median survival period was longer in Group A than in Group B (7 months vs 4 months).The mean survival period was also longer in Group A than in Group B (8.3 months vs 3.5 months).There was a statistically significant difference in the survival period between the two groups(P

OBJECTIVETo observe the expressions of human beta-defensin 1 and 2 (hBD-1 and hBD-2) in nasal mucosa before and after the endoscopic sinus surgery and investigate the effects of hBD-1 and hBD-2 on the healing process after the surgery.

METHODSThe patients undergoing endoscopic sinus surgery for chronic sinusitis were divided into 3 groups according to the response to the surgery, namely cured group, response group and non-response group. With those from healthy control subjects as the control, nasal mucosa samples were collected from the patients at 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months and 6 months after the surgery for detection of hBD-1 and hBD-2 mRNA and protein expressions by RT-PCR and Western blotting.

RESULTShBD-1 and hBD-2 were expressed in both normal and chronic sinusitis mucosa, but the expression levels varied significantly between the individuals. The expression levels of hBD-2 was significantly correlated to the patients' response to the surgical treatment (P<0.05). hBD-1 showed slight differences between the individuals, but was not associated with the patients' prognosis.

CONCLUSIONThe expressions of hBD-2 mRNA and protein are significantly increased in patients with good response to endoscopic sinus surgery for chronic sinusitis, suggesting the value of hBD-2 as an indicator of the patients' prognosis.

Case-Control Studies ; Chronic Disease ; Endoscopy ; Humans ; Nasal Mucosa ; metabolism ; Postoperative Period ; Prognosis ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; Sinusitis ; metabolism ; surgery ; beta-Defensins ; metabolism

Icaritin, a prenylflavonoid derivative from Epimedium Genus, has been shown to exhibit many pharmacological and biological activities. However, the function and the underlying mechanisms of icaritin in human non-small cell lung cancer have not been fully elucidated. The purpose of this study was to investigate the anticancer effects of icaritin on A549 cells and explore the underlying molecular mechanism. The cell viability after icaritin treatment was tested by MTT assay. The cell cycle distribution, apoptosis and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were analyzed by flow cytometry. The mRNA and protein expression levels of the genes involved in proliferation and apoptosis were respectively detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting. The results demonstrated that icaritin induced cell cycle arrest at S phase, and down-regulated the expression levels of S regulatory proteins such as Cyclin A and CDK2. Icaritin also induced cell apoptosis characterized by positive Hoechst 33258 staining, accumulation of the Annexin V-positive cells, increased ROS level and alteration in Bcl-2 family proteins expression. Moreover, icaritin induced sustained phosphorylation of ERK and p38 MAPK. These findings suggested that icaritin might be a new potent inhibitor by inducing S phase arrest and apoptosis in human lung carcinoma A549 cells.

OBJECTIVETo analyze the clinical feature and prognosis of primary branchial carcinoma.

METHODSThe main method of this study was reviewing the clinical feature, diagnosis, treatment methods and prognosis of 5 patients suffered from primary branchial carcinoma.

RESULTSAll of the tumors were excised extensively. All of the patients received radical neck dissection and post-operative radiotherapy. 3 patients had pathologic evident of metastasis in lymph nodes of cervical region. 2 patients died of local recurrence of tumor and metastasis to lung. 1 patient died after post-operative 2 years. 2 patients were still alive after 5 years' follow-up.

CONCLUSIONPrimary branchial carcinoma has the very similar clinical feature with branchial cyst. The diagnosis should be considered if painless mass and swollen lymph nodes were found in upper neck region of patients. Rapid frozen pathologic section should be made regularly to make the diagnosis clear. The treatment should include extensive excision of tumor and radical neck dissection to improve the cure rate and survival rate.

Adult ; Branchioma ; diagnosis ; secondary ; surgery ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; diagnosis ; secondary ; surgery ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Head and Neck Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; pathology ; surgery ; Humans ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neck Dissection ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate

OBJECTIVETo observe the clinical effect and safety of circumcision stapler in the treatment of phimosis and redundant prepuce.

METHODSWe treated 120 patients with redundant prepuce or phimosis using circumcision stapler and another 60 by conventional dorsal-incision circumcision. We observed intraoperative blood loss, operation time, postoperative pain, wound healing time, cosmetic appearance of the penis, and postoperative complications and compared them between the two groups of patients.

RESULTSStapler circumcision showed obvious advantages over the conventional method in intraoperative blood loss ([2. 3 ± 1. 3] vs [15.6 ± 2.9] ml), operation time ([7.1 ± 1.4] vs [22.6 ± 4.6] min), wound healing time ([12.0 ± 2.9] as [16.3 ± 3. 1] d), postoperative pain score (1. 9 ± 1. 3 vs 5. 2 ± 1. 7), incision edema, and cosmetic appearance of the penis (all P <0. 05). Besides, stapler circumcision exempted the patients from stitch-removal pain. However, the incidence rate of postoperative local ecchymosis was significantly higher in the circumcision stapler group than in the conventional circumcision group (20. 8% vs 8. 3% , P <0. 05).

CONCLUSIONCircumcision stapler, with its advantages of easier manipulation, shorter operation time, better cosmetic penile appearance, less pain, and fewer complications, is superior to conventional circumcision in the treatment of phimosis and redundant prepuce.

Blood Loss, Surgical ; Circumcision, Male ; instrumentation ; methods ; Ecchymosis ; etiology ; Humans ; Male ; Pain, Postoperative ; Penis ; abnormalities ; Phimosis ; therapy ; Postoperative Complications ; Postoperative Period ; Surgical Staplers ; adverse effects ; Wound Healing

OBJECTIVETo measure the volumetric changes of gray and white matters in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy(TLE)using voxel-based morphometric study(VBM)and correlate the changes with clinical parameters.

METHODSA total of 71 TLE patients were enrolled in the study,and 22 healthy subjects served as normal controls. Routine brain MRI and 3D fast spoiled gradient echo(FSPGR)T1-weighted images of all the subjects were acquired. The 3D structural images were co-registered,segmented and smoothed,and then the images were analyzed using the optimized VBM with preprocessed using Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration using Exponentiated Lie algebra(DARTEL)algorithm. The global and local gray matter and white matter volume of each subject were calculated and compared between the TLE patients and normal controls. The potential correlations between the changes of the global and local gray and white matters in the TLE patients and the clinical parameters including the age at onset and the duration of epilepsy were explored.

RESULTSCompared to the normal controls,the TLE patients had diffuse volumetric reduction of gray and white matters in cerebrum both ipsilateral and contralateral to the seizure focus(P<0.05). Local gray matter reduction was found extensively in bilateral cerebral lobes,especially in the temporal and frontal lobes. Local white matter reduction was found in bilateral temporal,parietal and frontal lobes,in addition to the cingulate gyrus. The global gray matter volume(Global GMV)and the global white matter volume(Global WMV)were negatively correlated to the duration of epilepsy with the most significant change occurring in the first year of epilepsy. Global WMV dropped more quickly than Global GMV during the prolonged disease course.

CONCLUSIONSTLE patients have diffuse gray matter and white matter reduction,particularly in the early stage of epilepsy. The reduction of the white matter is more obvious than the gray matter.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Brain ; pathology ; Case-Control Studies ; Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; methods ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Temporal Lobe ; pathology ; Young Adult