Objective:To establish an in vitro root canal model infected by Enterococcus faecalis and to observe the morphology, distribution and relative position of Enterococcus faecalis in infected root canals.Methods: Ten human healthy premolars extracted for orthodontic reasons were collected. Following sterilization , a total of 5 specimens were aseptically transferred to separate Eppendorf tubes containing 1. 5 mL brain-heart infusion broth (BHI) inoculated with 0.1 mL Enterococcus faecalis suspension that had been adjusted to Mcfarland 5, and were incubated at 37℃ for 21 days. The other 5 specimens were as controls. The roots of all specimens were then split into two halves along the mesiodistal axis. One half was processed with light microscopic ( Brown & Brenn stain) to check the bacteria in dentinal tubules, and the other was observed with SEM to investigate the bacterial status in infected root canals. Results: Enterococcus faecalis could penetrate into the dentinal tubules about 330-1 000μm. A dense bacterial aggregation composed of Enterococcus faecalis and amorphous matrix was observed in the apical third of the root canals, whereas Enterococcus faecalis were seen free-floating or planktonic in the crown and middle third of the root canals . No microorganisms were found in the root canals of the controls. Conclusion:Enterococcus faecalis could form bacterial biofilm on the root canal walls and penetrate into the dentinal tubules. The in vitro model designed was simple, and had good practicability to make a further comparative evaluation of various antimicrobial methods in the reduction of intracanal bacteria.

Objective:To establish an in vitro root canal model infected by Enterococcus faecalis and to observe the morphology,distribution and relative position of Enterococcus faecalis in infected root canals.Methods: Ten human healthy premolars extracted for orthodontic reasons were collected.Following sterilization,a total of 5 specimens were aseptically transferred to separate Eppendorf tubes containing 1.5 mL brain-heart infusion broth(BHI) inoculated with 0.1 mL Enterococcus faecalis suspension that had been adjusted to Mcfarland 5,and were incubated at 37 ℃ for 21 days.The other 5 specimens were as controls.The roots of all specimens were then split into two halves along the mesiodistal axis.One half was processed with light microscopic(Brown & Brenn stain) to check the bacteria in dentinal tubules,and the other was observed with SEM to investigate the bacterial status in infected root canals.Results: Enterococcus faecalis could penetrate into the dentinal tubules about 330-1 000 ?m.A dense bacterial aggregation composed of Enterococcus faecalis and amorphous matrix was observed in the apical third of the root canals,whereas Enterococcus faecalis were seen free-floating or planktonic in the crown and middle third of the root canals.No microorganisms were found in the root canals of the controls.Conclusion: Enterococcus faecalis could form bacterial biofilm on the root canal walls and penetrate into the dentinal tubules.The in vitro model designed was simple,and had good practicability to make a further comparative evaluation of various antimicrobial methods in the reduction of intracanal bacteria.

Administration, Cutaneous ; Bronchopneumonia ; drug therapy ; Cefoperazone ; therapeutic use ; Child, Preschool ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infusions, Intravenous ; Male

Objective To observe the effect of different ways of balloon catheter dilation techniques on cricopharyngeal achalasia and its mechanisms.Methods Thirty patients with deglutition disorder after brain stem infarction,whose cricopharyngeal achalasias were proven by videofluoroscopic swallowing study(VFSS),were randomly divided into three groups: No.14 conventional catheter group A,No.14 modified bicavitary silica-gel catheter group B and No.22 conventional catheter group C with 10 cases in each group,respectively.All the patients of 3 groups received multiple times corresponding balloon catheter dilatation per nasal or per os(No.22 conventional catheter group C only per os).Results After an average of 30 d of balloon catheter dilatation,the level of dysphagia and VFSS evaluation of all patients improved significantly(P ＜ 0.05).However,the No.14 conventional catheter group A and No.22 conventional catheter group C improved to a greater extent than No.14 modified bicavitary silica-gel catheter group B(P ＜ 0.05).The saccule perimeter,saccule diameter and saccule intracapsular pressure of No.14 conventional catheter group A and No.22 conventional catheter group C increased significantly(P ＜ 0.05)when compared to those of No.14 modified bicavitary silica-gel catheter group B,but there was no significant diffference beween No.14 conventional catheter group A and No.22 conventional catheter group C(P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions The balloon catheter dilation technique can significantly improve swallowing function of deglutition disorders patients with cricopharyngeal achalasia after brain stem infarction,which is related positively to saccule diameter and saccule intracapsular pressure.

Objective To explore the change of the pre-swallow peak pressure of upper esophageal sphincter (UES) in patients with post-stroke cricopharyngeal achalasia,and investigate the effect of pre-swallowing peak UES pressure on swallowing function by quantitative analysis.Methods Fifty-seven stroke patients with cricopharyngeal achalasia were recruited and divided into balloon dilation group,combined training group and routine swallowing training group with 19 patients in eachp.All the three groups accepted routine swallowing training.In addtion,the routine swallowing training group and balloon dilation group accepted larynx elevation training and balloon dilation training,respectively,while the combined training group accepted larynx elevation training and balloon dilation training simultaneously.The pre-swallow peak UES pressure was measured by using PC polygraph high rate gastrointestinal dynamical detection system (PC Polygraf HR,CTD-synectics,Sweden) before and after 8 weeks of treatment.The swallowing function was assessed using swallowing function classification and water swallowing test.Results Before treatment,there was no significant difference among the 3 groups in terms of the pre-swallow peak UES pressure,swallowing function classification,water swallowing test and VFSS (P ＞ 0.05).After treatment,pre-swallow peak UES pressure,swallowing function classification,water swallowing test and VFSS of the balloon dilation group and combined training group improved significantly compared with those before treatment (P ＜ 0.05),and the improvement in the combined training group was to a significantly better extent than in the balloon dilation group(P ＜O.05).Conclusion Balloon dilation and larynx elevation training plus routine swallowing training can increase pre-swallow peak UES pressure,decrease the UES resting pressure of stroke patients with cricopharyngeal achalasia,which is of great importance for their recovery.

Objective To observe the influence of transplanting neural stem cells (NSCs) on angiogenesis in rats with spinal cord injury (SCI).Methods The Allen's method was used to create SCI models in sixty adult Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats.They were then randomly classified into a control group which received injections of phosphate buffered solution (PBS) and an NSC group which received injections of NSCs via the tail vein,with 30 rats in each group.Another group of 30 similar rats without SCI received injections of NSCs via the tail vein as the normal group.Each rat was evaluated before transplantation and at days 7 and 14 post-transplantation using the Basso,Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) scale for testing hindlimb function.After sacrifice,the distribution of yon Willebrand factor (vWF) in both groups was determined by immunofluorescence,and Western blotting was used to detect vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) protein.Results The average BBB score of the normal group was 21 at every time point.Before transplantation,the BBB scoresof the control and NSC groups were both 0,however they increased over time.At day 7 post-transplantation,the BBB scores showed no significant difference between the control group and the NSC group.At day 14 post-transplantation,the average BBB score of the NSC group was significantly higher than that in the control group.At days 7 and 14,the counts of vWF-positive cells in the normal group were significantly higher than in the control and NSC groups.VEGF protein expression in the normal group was significantly lower than in the NSC and control groups.Conclusions NSC transplantation may promote angiogenesis after spinal cord injury and improve motor function by inducing the expression of VEGF.

Objective To observe the surface electromyographic characteristics of the bilateral submen-tal muscles in dysphagia secondary to unilateral brainstem stroke. Methods A total of 25 subjects were recrui-ted. There were 8 stroke patients with dysphagia secondary to a left brainstem stroke and 7 stroke patients with dysphagia secondary to a right brainstem stroke. There were also 10 healthy controls matched in age and gender. The duration and peak amplitude of the submental muscle when swallowing 5 ml of warm water were recorded u-sing a surface electromyograph. Results The average amplitude of the left submental muscle in patients with a left brainstem stroke was significantly longer than that of those with a right brainstem stroke, but no significant differences in average duration were observed. Conversely, the amplitude of the right submental muscle in pa-tients with a right brainstem stroke was significantly longer than that of those with left brainstem stroke, but again there were no significant differences in duration. No significant differences were observed among the healthy con-trols. The amplitude and duration of both the affected and healthy sides of the patients were of course significantly longer or stronger than those of the healthy controls. Conclusion The swallowing function of the bilateral sub-mental muscles may be impaired among unilateral stroke survivors with dysphagia. The damage on the affected side is more severe than on the opposite side.

In order to optimize the testing methods for Paeonia suffruticosa seed quality, and provide basis for establishing seed testing rules and seed quality standard of P. suffruticosa. The seed quality of P. suffruticosa from different producing areas was measured based on the related seed testing regulations. The seed testing methods for quality items of P. suffruticosa was established preliminarily. The samples weight of P. suffruticosa was at least 7 000 g for purity analysis and was at least 700 g for test. The phenotypic observation and size measurement were used for authenticity testing. The 1 000-seed weight was determined by 100-seed method, and the water content was carried out by low temperature drying method (10 hours). After soaking in distilled water for 24 h, the seeds was treated with different temperature stratifications of day and night (25 degrees C/20 degrees C, day/night) in the dark for 60 d. After soaking in the liquor of GA3 300 mg x L(-1) for 24 h, the P. suffruticos seeds were cultured in wet sand at 15 degrees C for 12-60 days for germination testing. Seed viability was tested by TlC method.
Germination ; Light ; Paeonia ; growth & development ; Quality Control ; Seeds ; physiology ; Temperature

Dengue virus (DENV) envelope [E] protein is the major surface protein of the virions that indued neutralizing antibodies. The domain III of envelope protein (EDIII) is an immunogenic region that holds potential for the development of vaccines; however, the epitopes of DENV EDIII, especially neutralizing B-cell linear epitopes, have not been comprehensively mapped. We mapped neutralizing B-cell linear epitopes on DENV-1 EDIII using 27 monoclonal antibodies against DENV-1 EDIII proteins from mice immunized with the DENV-1 EDIII. Epitope recognition analysis was performed using two set of sequential overlapping peptides (16m and 12m) that spanned the entire EDIII protein from DENV-1, respectively. This strategy identified a DENV-1 type- specific and a group-specific neutralizing epitope, which were highly conserved among isolates of DENV-1 and the four DENV serotypes and located at two regions from DENV-1 E, namely amino acid residues 309-320 and 381-392(aa 309-320 and 381-392), respectively. aa310 -319(310KEVAETQHGT319)was similar among the four DENV serotypes and contact residues on aa 309 -320 from E protein were defined and found that substitution of residues E309 , V312, A313 and V320 in DENV-2, -3, -4 isolates were antigenically silent. We also identified a DENV-1 type-specific strain-restricted neutralizing epitope, which was located at the region from DENV-1 E, namely amino acid residues 329-348 . These novel type- and group-specific B-cell epitopes of DENV EDIII may aid help us elucidate the dengue pathogenesis and accelerate vaccine design.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Animals ; Antibodies, Neutralizing ; immunology ; Dengue ; virology ; Dengue Virus ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Epitope Mapping ; Epitopes, B-Lymphocyte ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; Humans ; Mice ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Viral Envelope Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology

To explore the correlation between the ecological factors and the contents of podophyllotoxin and total lignans in root and rhizome of Sinopodophyllum hexandrum, podophyllotoxin in 87 samples (from 5 provinces) was determined by HPLC and total lignans by UV. A correlation and regression analysis was made by software SPSS 16.0 in combination with ecological factors (terrain, soil and climate). The content determination results showed a great difference between podophyllotoxin and total lignans, attaining 1.001%-6.230% and 5.350%-16.34%, respective. The correlation and regression analysis by SPSS showed a positive linear correlation between their contents, strong positive correlation between their contents, latitude and annual average rainfall within the sampling area, weak negative correlation with pH value and organic material in soil, weaker and stronger positive correlations with soil potassium, weak negative correlation with slope and annual average temperature and weaker positive correlation between the podophyllotoxin content and soil potassium.
Berberidaceae ; chemistry ; China ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Climate ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Ecosystem ; Lignans ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Podophyllotoxin ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Soil ; chemistry ; Temperature