Adolescent ; Adult ; Anemia, Iron-Deficiency ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Child ; Female ; Hemoglobinuria, Paroxysmal ; complications ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Young Adult

BackgroundObstruction of aqueous humor out flow pathway or abnormality of the extracellular matrix( ECM ) of trabecular meshwork cells causes high intraocular pressure. The balance of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitors of matrix metalloproteinases(TIMPs) is critical for the metabolism of ECM. Interleukin1α(IL-1α) can influence outflow of aqueous humor by regulating MMPs level. Objective This study was to investigate the effect of interleukin-1α on the expression of MMP-2,MMP-3 and TIMP-I in cultured swine trabecular meshwork cells.Methods Swine sclera with trabecular meshwork tissue was isolated from 20 swine eyes and cultured with explant cultured method. Cultured cells were passaged and third generation cells were identified by fibronectin ( FN ) and laminin ( LN ) staining. After 24 hours of serum starvation, trabecular meshwork cells treated with IL-1α at the concentration of 10 mg/L were regarded as the IL group,and serum-free culture medium used to treat trabecular meshwork cells was regarded as the control group. The expression of MMP-2, MMP-3 and TIMP-1 proteins in trabecular meshwork cells were detected by immunohistochemistry,and the expression of MMP-2 mRNA, MMP-3 mRNA and TIMP-1 mRNA were detected by RT-PCR. The examination results were compared between the two groups. ResultsThe third generation of cells were positive for FN and LM. Compared with the control group, the expression levels of MMP-3 and TIMP-1 proteins(A value) in trabecular meshwork cells were significantly higher in the IL group than the control group(t=-7. 694,t =-5. 199,P＜0. 05) ,but no obvious difference was found in the expression of MMP-2 between the two groups( t=-2. 365, P＞0.05 ). The higher expression levels in MMP-3 mRNA and TIMP-1 mRNA (A value) in trabecular meshwork cells were seen in comparison with the control group (t =-3. 025,t=-1. 921 ,P＜0. 05). However,similar results were found in the expression of MMP-2 mRNA between the two groups(t =- 1. 173, P＞0.05 ). ConclusionsThe overexpression of MMP-3 and TIMP-1 proteins and their mRNA leads to the imbalance of MMP-3/TIMP-1 and promotes the decomposition of ECM in the trabecular meshwork, and therefore increases aqueous outflow.

Bone Diseases ; therapy ; Bone and Bones ; physiology ; Humans ; Martial Arts ; education ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Religious Philosophies

Objective To raise the awareness of adrenal Castleman′s disease by analyzing the clinical features and management of a patient with adrenal Castleman′s disease. Methods A case of adrenal Castleman′s disease of our hospital was retrospectively analyzed, including clinical feature, laboratory findings, pathology, treatment, and follow-up. All the data and pertinent literatures were reviewed and analyzed. Results An incidentaloma measuring 4. 8 cm × 6. 3 cm in the right adrenal gland was observed in a 30-year-old men in a ultrasonography examination performed due to a medical check-up. Laboratory analysis showed that the lesion was not hyperfunctioning. The patient subsequently underwent an exploratory laparotomy. Pathological examination revealed retroperitoneally localized Castleman′s disease of the hyaline vascular type. Conclusion Adrenal Castleman′s disease is a rare cause of lymph node hypertrophy, and it is necessary to keep in mind the possibility of its occurrence and take it into consideration in the differential diagnosis of any solitary, heterogeneous, and hypervascular retroperitoneal mass. The proper cooperation between the clinician and pathologist allows early diagnosis and suitable therapy.

Objective To investigate the relationship between the clinical character and pathological variants as well as response to treatment of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis(FSGS) in children.Methods The clinical feature, laboratory data and histological variants of 48 children with idiopathic FSGS proven by renal biopsy were studied retrospectively. Among them,34 were boys;14 cases were girls. The age ranged from 1.75 to 16.0 years.Results Of 48 children with FSGS,nephrotic syndrome in 32(66.7%)was the predominant clinical manifestation. The pathological classification included FSGS not otherwise specified(NOS) in 29 cases(60.42%), perihilar variant in 14 cases(29.17%), tip variant 3 cases(6.25%), cellualr variant 2 cases(4.17%)and no collapsing variant. The different pathological variants had similar rate of segmental sclerosis glomeruli; perihilar variant had a higher global sclerosis glomeruli than FSGS NOS and other variants and there was a statistical significance(P 0.05).Vascular lesions were rarely seen in all kinds of histological variants of children.Conclusions Hypertension and renal insufficiency are less frequently seen in children FSGS, isolated hematuria as unique clinic presentation is common in FSGS. All pathological variants have tubular-interstitial lesions, but vascular lesions are rarely seen. Most FSGS children with nephrotic syndrome are sensitive to steroid at initial stage, and easy to develop frequent relapse gradually, immunosuppressive agent may be helpful to elevate remission rate.

OBJECTIVE: To realize the automated assessment of the levels of epiphysis of distal radius and ulna by support vector machine (SVM). METHODS: The X-ray films of the left wrist joints were taken from 140 teenagers aged from 11 to 19 years old as training samples. The levels of epiphysis of distal radius and ulna were divided into five developmental levels. Each level contained 28 samples. Another 35 cases were selected as independent verifying samples. SVM classification models of the five developmental levels of epiphysis of distal radius and ulna were established. The internal cross validation was made by leave one out cross validation (LOOCV), while the external validation was made by histogram of oriented gradient (HOG), and then the accuracy (PA) of testing results was calculated, respectively. RESULTS: The PA of SVM, LOOCV and HOG of distal radius epiphyseal level were 100%, 78.6%, and 82.8%, respectively; whereas the PA of SVM, LOOCV and HOG of distal ulna epiphyseal level were 100.0%, 80.0% and 88.6%, respectively. CONCLUSION The SVM-based automatic models of the growth stage of distal ra- dius and ulna appear to have certain feasibility, and may provide a foundation for software development of bone age assessment by forensic medicine.
Adolescent ; Bone Development/physiology* ; Child ; Epiphyses/growth & development* ; Female ; Humans ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted/methods* ; Male ; Radius/growth & development* ; Support Vector Machine ; Ulna/growth & development* ; Wrist/growth & development* ; Wrist Joint/growth & development* ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo explore the effectiveness of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) in treating patients with unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion (URSA) and the effect of IVIG on the level of soluble human leucocyte antigen G (sHLA-G).

METHODSThis prospective trial conducted at PUMC Hospital between 2004 and 2008 included 60 women with URSA. The patients were allocated into IVIG group (30 cases) and control group (30 cases). IVIG was intravenously used before conception at a dose of 0.2g/kg; once pregnancy was confirmed,IVIG was continued every 4 weeks till the 20th gestational week. Traditional Chinese medicine or/and progesterone were used in control group. The outcome of pregnancy was evaluated by live birth rate and effective rate(defined as the embryo living 4 week longer than previous pregnancy). Serum samples were collected randomly before pregnancy and in the 6th-8th gestational week from IVIG group (15 samples),control group (15 samples),and healthy women (20 samples). The levels of sHLA-G,interferon γ (IFN-γ), interleukin-2 (IL-2), and interleukin-10 (IL-10) were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA).

RESULTSThe pregnancy rate was 93.3% in IVIG group. The live birth rate and effective rate were 85.7% (24/28) and 92.9% (26/28) in IVIG group,which were significantly higher than those in control group [56.7% (17/30) (P=0.021) and 63.3% (19/30) (P=0.011)]. Emesis occurred in one woman (3.3%) in IVIG group had during IVIG infusion but was relieved by lowering the speed of infusion. The mean sHLA-G level was (61.37∓35.57) U/ml in control group and (62.70∓37.24) U/ml in IVIG group (P>0.05); both of them were significantly lower than that of healthy women (88.49∓25.37) U/ml (Pü0.05). After pregnancy was achieved, the levels of sHLA-G and IL-10 were (34.19∓14.21) U/ml and (11.71∓2.75) pg/ml, respectively in the IVIG group, which were significantly higher than those in control group [(23.71∓12.83) U/ml and (8.71∓3.01) pg/ml, respectively] (P=0.008).

CONCLUSIONSLow-dose IVIG before and after pregnancy is a safe and effective in treating URSA. IVIG improves the development of fetus by up-regulating sHLA-G and IL-10 levels.

Abortion, Habitual ; blood ; drug therapy ; immunology ; Adult ; Female ; HLA-G Antigens ; blood ; Humans ; Immunoglobulins, Intravenous ; therapeutic use ; Pregnancy ; Prospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of the calmodulin inhibitor W-7 on the expression of the key marker of ERS GRP78 and neuronal apoptosis in the immature rat hippocampus after status convulsion (SC).

METHODSOne hundred and seventeen male Sprague-Dawley rats aged 19-21 days were randomly divided into three groups: normal saline control (control), SC with and without W-7 pretreatment. Each of the 3 groups was further subdivided into subgroups sacrificed at 4, 24 and 48 hrs. SC model was prepared using lithium-pilocarpine. GRP78 mRNA expression in the hippocampus was detected by semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). GRP78 protein was ascertained by immunohistochemistry. Neuronal apoptosis was observed with TdT-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL).

RESULTSThe expression of GRP78 mRNA was significantly increased in the non-pretreated SC group compared with the control group 24 hrs after injection of saline or lithium-pilocarpine (P<0.01), and the expression of GRP78 protein also increased markedly in the seizure group compared with the control group 24 and 48 hrs after the injection (P<0.01). The expression of GRP78 mRNA and protein in the W-7 pretreatment group was significantly higher than both the control and the non-pretreated seizure groups 24 and 48 hrs after injection. The TUNEL positive cells in the hippocampus CA1 in the non-pretreated SC group 24 and 48 hrs after injection (21.0 ± 2.5 and 29.4 ± 2.8, respectively) were increased compared to the control group (7.1 ± 1.4 and 7.3 ± 1.6, respectively; P<0.01). W-7 pretreatment decreased TUNEL positive cells to 15.0 ± 2.5 and 20.0 ± 2.9 at 24 and 48 hrs after injection compared to the non-pretreated seizure group (P<0.01), but the number of TUNEL positive cells in the W-7 pretreatment group remained significantly greater than in the control group (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONSW-7 may up-regulate the expression of GRP78 and reduce the number of apoptotic neurons, thus provides a neuroprotective effect against brain damage following SC.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Kinase ; antagonists & inhibitors ; Heat-Shock Proteins ; genetics ; Hippocampus ; metabolism ; In Situ Nick-End Labeling ; Male ; Neurons ; drug effects ; RNA, Messenger ; analysis ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Status Epilepticus ; metabolism ; Sulfonamides ; pharmacology

3 mg/L was significantly worse than in those with hs-CRP≤3 mg/L (18.18%,5.45%;P=0.044,log-rank test). Higher hs-CRP concentration was an independent predictor of death or new vascular event(OR 3.609;95% CI 0.869—14.992;P=0.047).Conclusion Higher hs-CRP concentration in acute phase after ischemic stroke is an independent predictor of death or new vascular event in a year.