OBJECTIVETo investigate the expressions of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (Her-2) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in primary and recurrent metastatic breast cancers and explore their relationship.

METHODSThe expressions of Her-2 and VEGF in 60 primary and recurrent metastatic breast cancers were detected using immunohistochemical methods. Their relationship was analyzed.

RESULTSThe positive rates of Her-2 and VEGF in the recurrent metastatic breast cancer were 40.00% and 53.33%, respectively, which were significantly higher than that in the primary breast cancer (18.33% and 31.67%) (P < 0.05). The total diversify rates of Her-2 and VEGF were 28.33% and 35.00%, respectively. Her-2 and VEGF expressions were significantly correlated between the primary and the recurrent metastatic breast cancers( P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSHer-2 and VEGF may play synergic roles in the occurrence and development of breast cancer. Over-expressions of Her-2 and VEGF predict poor prognosis.

Adult ; Aged ; Breast Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; metabolism ; Prognosis ; Receptor, ErbB-2 ; metabolism ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo explore the diagnostic value of combined modified Alvarado scores (MAS) and computed tomography imaging in the pathological types of acute appendicitis in adults.

METHODSClinical data of a total of 396 adult patients with acute appendicitis confirmed by surgery and pathology were analyzed retrospectively from June 2007 to July 2010. Case-control study was used to investigate the MAS. CT signs were studied in 115 patients who underwent preoperative CT scan. Univariable analysis was performed using each indicator among different pathological types. Discriminant classification was formed by applying significant variables identified from univariable analysis and a Fisher discriminant function was created.

RESULTSTwenty three variables were statistically significant among different pathological types after univariable analysis(P<0.05) and were selected for discriminant analysis. Six variables including temperature(X1), leucocyte count(X2), the proportion of neutrophil(X3), MAS points(X4), periappendiceal fat stranding(X5), and extraluminal air(X6) were enrolled. The discriminant function equation was Y1=0.012X1+0.041X2+0.069X3-0.039X4+2.653X5+1.418X6, Y2=0.327X1+0.041X2-0.034X3-0.140X4-1.114X5+2.982X6. The accuracy was 76.5%(88/115) in retrospective assessment and 77.8%(21/27) in prospective assessment.

CONCLUSIONThe combined use of MAS and CT imaging signs is useful in identifying the pathological types of acute appendicitis in adults, so it is helpful in choosing reasonable therapeutic option for surgeons.

Acute Disease ; Appendicitis ; diagnosis ; Case-Control Studies ; Humans ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

OBJECTIVETo observe the role of green fluorescent protein (GFP) in tracing rhesus bone marrow stromal cells (rBMSCs) during tissue-engineered bone formation in vivo.

METHODSAd5.CMV-GFP was amplified by infecting QBI-293A cells, and the bone marrow was harvested from the ilium of adult male rhesus to obtain rBMSCs, which were cultured and passaged in vitro. GFP was transfected into the third-passage rBMSCs via adenovirus vector and the labeled cells were inoculated into absorbable HA scaffold and cultured for 3 days, with untransfected rBMSCs as control, before the cell-matrix compounds were implanted into the latissimus dorsi muscles of rhesus. Samples were harvested at 6 week and embedded in paraform, and ground sections of the bone tissue were prepared to observe green fluorescence under laser scanning confocal microscope. Propidium iodide staining of the sections was also performed for observation.

RESULTSThe rBMSCs grew well after GFP transfection, and green fluorescence could be seen 24 h after the transfection and became stronger till 48 h, with a positive transfection rate beyond 80%. Six weeks after cell implantation, the rBMSCs labeled by GFP-emitted green fluorescence were detected in the bone tissue under laser scanning confocal microscope.

CONCLUSIONGFP can effectively trace BMSCs during bone tissue engineering, and the transplanted BMSCs constitute the main source of bone-forming cells in bone tissue engineering.

Animals ; Bone Substitutes ; Cell Differentiation ; Cells, Cultured ; Green Fluorescent Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Macaca mulatta ; Male ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; Microscopy, Confocal ; Tissue Engineering ; methods ; Transfection

OBJECTIVETo explore the influence of obesity on surgical procedure and short-term surgical outcome in patients with gastric carcinoma.

METHODSA total of 426 patients with gastric carcinoma underwent laparotomy in our hospital during January 2006 and June 2008. All the patients were divided into obesity group and non-obesity group according to body mass index (BMI). The thickness of subcutaneous fat (SCF), abdominal anterior-posterior diameter (APD) and transverse diameter (TD) at the umbilicus level were measured by abdominal CT. Furthermore, the surgical data and postoperative conditions including short-term outcome were reviewed and compared between two groups.

RESULTSThe incidence of obesity was 29.8% in gastric carcinoma patients. Mean values of SCF thickness, APD and TD in obesity group and non-obesity group were (21.8+/-7.1) mm vs (14.4+/-7.5) mm, (223.2+/-24.6) mm vs (181.8+/-23.5) mm and (323.6+/-23.8) mm vs (285.8+/-24.4) mm (P=0.000). Longer operative time (P=0.007) and less amount of dissected lymph nodes were found in obesity group as compared to non-obesity group (P=0.000). Also, obesity group lasted a longer postoperative period of fever (P=0.000) and experienced more post-operative complications (P=0.005) than non-obesity group did.

CONCLUSIONSAbdominal CT scan may display the abdominal shape of gastric carcinoma patients, hence, it is useful to evaluate the difficulty of surgical procedure. These patients may involve in complicated surgical procedure and worse short-term outcome due to obese abdominal shape. Therefore, perioperative management should be emphasized for these patients.

Abdomen ; surgery ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Body Mass Index ; Female ; Gastroplasty ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Obesity ; Stomach Neoplasms ; diagnostic imaging ; surgery ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo investigate the protective effect of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) on protein synthesis in rat cardiomyocytes exposed to gamma-ray irradiation.

METHODSPrimary cultured cardiomyocytes were irradiated with single-dose (20 Gy) gamma ray in the absence or presence of HGF (40 ng/ml) added in the cell culture 3 h before the exposure. Forty-eight hours after irradiation, the total cellular protein was measured and cell cycle analyzed by flow cytometry. The cardiomyoctes were also infected with AdGFP 48 h after irradiation and the fluorescence intensity of the green fluorescence protein (GFP) in the cells determined by flow cytometry 48 h after infection.

RESULTSThe protein synthesis was decreased significantly in the irradiated cardiomyocytes as compared with the control group (P<0.01), but was remedied significantly by incubation of the cells with HGF before the exposure (P<0.05). Flow cytometry revealed much lower mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) of GFP in irradiated cardiomycytes than in cells without the exposure (P<0.01); The MFI was higher in HGF-treated cardiomyocytes than in cells without HGF treatment following the exposure (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONGamma ray irradiation inhibits protein synthesis in cardiomyocytes, and HGF may attenuate this effect of gamma ray exposure for cardiomyocyte protection.

Animals ; Animals, Newborn ; Cell Cycle ; drug effects ; radiation effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Flow Cytometry ; Gamma Rays ; Green Fluorescent Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Hepatocyte Growth Factor ; pharmacology ; Microscopy, Fluorescence ; Myocytes, Cardiac ; cytology ; metabolism ; Protein Biosynthesis ; drug effects ; radiation effects ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

OBJECTIVETo investigate the main risk factors associated with intra-abdominal infection(IAI) following gastrectomy in gastric cancer patients.

METHODSCase-control study was used to investigate the clinical data of 1728 gastric carcinoma cases retrospectively by Logistic regressive analysis.

RESULTSUnivariate Logistic regressive analysis showed 16 factors, including age, malnutrition, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD), diabetes mellitus(DM), heart diseases, prothrombin time, lymphocyte count, tumor size, ascites, invasion to the adjacent organ, neoplasm TNM staging (UICC, 1997), methods of gastrectomy, blood loss, operative time, blood transfusion and extent of lymph nodal dissection,were associated with postoperative intra-abdominal infection. Binary Logistic regression analysis found that extent of lymph nodal dissection(N(2)(+) approximately N(3) and N(2)), invasion to the adjacent organ, DM, operative time, age and lymphocyte count were the independent risk factors associated with mortality.

CONCLUSIONNecessary interventions should be carried out to prevent IAI referring to above risk factors.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Case-Control Studies ; Female ; Gastrectomy ; adverse effects ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Postoperative Complications ; etiology ; Risk Factors ; Stomach Neoplasms ; microbiology ; pathology ; surgery ; Surgical Wound Infection ; etiology ; Young Adult

Objective To assess the value of Montreal Cognitive Assessment(MoCA)in screening mild cognitive impairment(MCI)in elderly patients.Methods Thirty-two elderly patients with MCI and 50 healthy elderly subjects were examined with neuropsychological tests using Mini-mental State Examination(MMSE)and the MoCA. Results With a cut-off score of 26,the MoCA had a sensitivity of 96.87%and specificity of 76%for detecting MCI,and the sensitivity and specificity of MMSE were 56.25%and 96%,respectively.For the MoCA sub-items,the elderly patients with MCI had significantly lower scores than the healthy elderly in all the cognitive function measures (P＜0.05)except for abstraction and fixed orientation.In MMSE sub-items,significant differgnces were found between the two groups in only calculation/attention and delayed recall(P＜0.05).Conclusions The MoCA is a highiy sensitive scale for screening MCI in elderly patients,which allows comprehensive assessment of the cognitive function of MCI patients and is applicable in detecting MCI in patients with normal MMSE results.

OBJECTIVETo establish an ideal CCl4 drug-induced liver injury model in vitro.

METHODTraditional method and improved method were adopted for preparing CCl4 injury liquid and drug-induced human liver HepG2 cell injury. Cell morphological change was observed under a bright-field microscope. The level of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in supernatant was detected by biochemical method. 4-Methyl-tetrazolium (MTT) chromatometry was adopted for determining cell activity.

RESULTThe improved method showed better CCl4-induced injury effect than the traditional method. With the increase in the concentration of CCl4 injury liquid, the ALT level significantly increased, whereas the cell activity notably decreased. Particularly, 70% CCl4 injury liquid use for 4 hours could achieve the best injury effect.

CONCLUSIONThe improved method could be used to establish an ideal CCl4 drug-induced liver injury model in vitro, which can lay foundation for further in vitro studies.

Alanine Transaminase ; metabolism ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; metabolism ; Carbon Tetrachloride ; adverse effects ; Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury ; enzymology ; etiology ; Hep G2 Cells ; Humans ; Liver ; drug effects ; enzymology ; injuries ; Models, Biological ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo assess the value of perfusion-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging (PWMRI) in monitoring vascularization in tissue-engineered bone graft.

METHODSTibial diaphyseal defect of 20 mm was induced in 25 lower limbs of 13 rhesuses and fixed with an AO reconstruction plate with 7 holes. The monkeys were randomized into 5 groups according to the materials used for defect filling: group A, with beta-tricalcium phosphate (beta-TCP), bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) and blood vessel bundles; group B, with beta-TCP and blood vessel bundles; group C, with beta-TCP and BMSCs; group D, with beta-TCP, and group E without filling. PWMRI, X-ray, and radionuclide imaging were carried out at weeks 4, 8, 12 postoperatively. The maximum slope rates of the single intensity-time curve (SS(max)) and the baseline values (SI(baseline)) on the same time points were calculated. Transmittances on the X-ray films and isotope counts in the region of interest (ROI) were assessed and calculated.

RESULTSCompared with other groups, group A showed the highest SS(max) at weeks 4, 8, and 12 postoperatively, and its SS(max) at week 8 was significantly higher than that at week 4 (P=0.003). The SS(max) was positively related to isotope counts in ROI at week 8 after operation (r(s)=0.899, P=0.038), and inversely related to transmittance on X-ray films at week 12 (r(s)=-0.892, P=0.042).

CONCLUSIONThe SS(max) of the single intensity-time curve can accurately reflect the vascularization of the tissue-engineered bone graft, and PWMRI allows sensitive, quantitative, noninvasive and radiation-free vascularization monitoring.

Animals ; Bone Marrow Transplantation ; methods ; Bone Substitutes ; chemistry ; therapeutic use ; Calcium Phosphates ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Macaca mulatta ; Magnetic Resonance Angiography ; Male ; Neovascularization, Physiologic ; drug effects ; physiology ; Random Allocation ; Tibia ; blood supply ; injuries ; surgery ; Tissue Engineering ; methods

OBJECTIVETo study whether tissue engineered bone can repair the large segment bone defect of large animal or not. To observe what character the fascia flap played during the osteanagenesis and revascularization process of tissue engineered bone.

METHODS9 Chinese goats were made 2 cm left tibia diaphyseal defect. The repairing effect of the defects was evaluated by ECT, X-ray and histology. 27 goats were divided into three groups: group of CHAP, the defect was filled with coral hydroxyapatite (CHAP); group of tissue engineered bone, the defect was filled with CHAP + bone marrow stroma cells (BMSc); group of fascia flap, the defect was filled with CHAP + BMSc + fascia flap. After finished culturing and inducing the BMSc, CHAP of group of tissue engineered bone and of fascia flap was combined with it. Making fascia flap, different materials as described above were then implanted separately into the defects. Radionuclide bone imaging was used to monitor the revascularization of the implants at 2, 4, 8 weeks after operation. X-ray examination, optical density index of X-ray film, V-G staining of tissue slice of the implants were used at 4, 8, 12 weeks after operation, and the biomechanical character of the specimens were tested at 12 weeks post operation.

RESULTSIn the first study, the defect showed no bone regeneration phenomenon. 2 cm tibia defect was an ideal animal model. In the second study, group of CHAP manifested a little trace of bone regeneration, as to group of tissue engineered bone, the defect was almost repaired totally. In group of fascia flap, with the assistance of fascia flap which gave more chance to making implants to get more nutrient, the repair was quite complete.

CONCLUSIONSThe model of 2 cm caprine tibia diaphyseal defect cannot be repaired by goat itself and can satisfy the tissue engineering's demands. Tissue engineered bone had good ability to repair large segment tibia defect of goat. Fascia flap can accelerate the revascularization process of tissue engineered bone. And by this way, it augment the ability of tissue engineered bone to repair the large bone defect of goat.

Animals ; Bone Marrow Cells ; cytology ; Bone Marrow Transplantation ; Bone Regeneration ; physiology ; Bone Substitutes ; Cells, Cultured ; Durapatite ; Fascia ; transplantation ; Goats ; Implants, Experimental ; Neovascularization, Physiologic ; Osteogenesis ; Random Allocation ; Stromal Cells ; cytology ; Tibia ; blood supply ; injuries ; surgery ; Tibial Fractures ; surgery ; Tissue Engineering