Objective To investigate the health effects on practitioners occupationally exposed to acrylonitrile and to provide scientific bases for the study of toxicological effects of acrylonitrile on human bodies. Methods 465 medical practitioners exposed to acrylonitrile and ( a control group of ) 488 medical practitioners unexposed to acrylonitrile were selected .Age, smoking habits , alcoholic habits and other relevant factors are well-considered in selecting these two groups and all of them had lived in Ningbo for at least three years .Blood samples were collected to measure the level of Alanine aminotransferase ( ALT) , aspartate aminotransferase ( AST ) , alkaline phosphatase ( ALP ) , pancreatic acyl transferase (GGT), total bilirubin (STB), blood urea (UREA), blood uric acid (UA), serum creatinine (SCr), total protein ( TP ) , albumin ( Alb ) , globulin ( Glb ) , ratio of Alb to Glb ( A/G ) , white blood cell ( WBC ) , red blood cell ( RBC ) , platelet ( PLT ) and hemoglobin ( Hb ) .These serum biochemical indices of the two groups were compared to find the differences thereof and to examine the effect of work years on various above-mentioned indices for medical practitioners exposed to acrylonitrile . Results The levels of ALT(t=-2.77,P=0.006), AST(t=-5.74,P<0.001), UREA(t=3.51,P<0.001), UA (t=-3.51,P<0.001)and SCr(t=-7.62,P<0.001)for medical practitioners exposed to acrylonitrile were all significantly higher than those for the control group; however, the levels of ALP(t=18.87,P<0.001), Alb(t=6.92,P<0.001), Glb(t=7.99,P<0.001), A/G(t=11.93,P<0.001), and WBC (t=4.48,P<0.001) were all lower than those for the control group , with the exposure time exhibiting positive correlations with ALT(r=0.564,P<0.001)and AST(r=0.493,P<0.001). Conclusion Acrylonitrile has certain health effects on the hepatorenal function as well as the routine blood test results of medical practitioners occupationally exposed to acrylonitrile .

Fourteen compounds were isolated from Dalbergia odoriferae and purified by repeated column chromatography on silica and sephadex LH-20 gel and structurally identified by spectral analysis. These compounds were identified as 4, 9-dimethoxy-3-hydroxypterocarpan (1), medicarpin (2), 2', 4', 5-trihydroxy-7-methoxyisoflavone (3), 2', 3', 7-trihydroxy-4'-methoxyisoflavan (4), formononetin (5), 3, 8-dihydroxy-9-methoxypterocarpan (6), koparin (7), 3-hydroxy-9-methoxypterocarp-6a-ene (8), 2'-hydroxyformononetin (9), stevenin (10), 2', 7-dihydroxy-4', 5'-dimethoxyisoflavone (11), lyoniresinol (12), 2, 4-dihydroxy-5-methoxy-benzophenone (13) and neokhriol A (14). Compounds 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12 and 14 were isolated from this plant for the first time. Antibacterial activity assay showed that compound 4 had inhibitory effect on Ralstonia solanacearum.
Anisoles ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Benzophenones ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Chromatography ; methods ; Dalbergia ; chemistry ; Dextrans ; Gels ; Isoflavones ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Naphthalenes ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Plant Extracts ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Pterocarpans ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Ralstonia solanacearum ; drug effects ; growth & development ; Silica Gel

OBJECTIVETo study the role of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in the pathogenesis of sarcoidosis.

METHODSArchival material of 22 patients with a histologic diagnosis of sarcoidosis were retrieved. Real-time fluorescent polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect DNA fragments of the complex-specific insertion sequence IS6110 of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded biopsy samples.

RESULTSAmong the 22 samples studied, Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA was detected in 11 cases. The sequence of PCR amplified IS6110 DNA fragments completely matched with the related sequence in Mycobacterium tuberculosis gene.

CONCLUSIONSMycobacterium tuberculosis DNA is identified in a certain proportion of patients with a clinicopathologic diagnosis of sarcoidosis. Mycobacterium tuberculosis may be an important etiologic agent, at least in some of these patients.

Adult ; DNA, Bacterial ; analysis ; Female ; Fluorescence ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Lymph Nodes ; microbiology ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Paraffin Embedding ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; methods ; Sarcoidosis ; microbiology ; pathology

Animals ; Electroencephalography ; Heart ; physiopathology ; Immersion ; physiopathology ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Seawater

OBJECTIVETo observe the therapeutic effect of acupuncture and moxibustion combined with Chinese herbs on ovarian cysts.

METHODSForty-six cases were randomly divided into a treatment group of 26 cases and a control group of 20 cases. The treatment group were treated with warming acupuncture and moxibustion at Zigong (EX CA 1), Qihai (CV 6), Sanyinjiao (SP 6), etc. and oral administration of Chinese herbs Quyu Decoction, and the control group were treated with Quyu Decoction only. One month later, their therapeutic effects were observed.

RESULTSThe cured rate and the effective rate were 53.8% and 88.4% in the treatment group, and 15.0% and 85.0% in the control group, respectively, the cured rate in the treatment group being significantly better than that in the control group (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONWarming acupuncture plus moxibustion combined with oral administration of Quyu Decoction can significantly increase the cured rate for ovarian cysts.

Acupuncture Therapy ; Administration, Oral ; Female ; Humans ; Medicine, East Asian Traditional ; Moxibustion ; Ovarian Cysts

Objective - （ ） To evaluate the effect of job rotation on pain in wrist work related musculoskeletal disorders WMSDs （ ）Methods of physical therapists PTs . A total of 100 PTs from nine medical institutions were selected as the research subjects ， using judgment sampling method and they were divided into control group and intervention group by stratified random sampling ， method with 50 person in each group. The individuals in control group perform routine works. People in the intervention group were rotated between posts or added mobile shift replacements in daily work for 30 minutes. The duration of intervention was ， ， （ ） once a day five days a week for ten weeks. Visual Analogue Scale VAS score and pain duration were used as the evaluation ， indexes of intervention effect. The changes of indexes before intervention five weeks and ten weeks after intervention were Results ， compared between the two groups. Before intervention there was no significant difference in the VAS score and pain （ P ） duration between the control group and the intervention group all >0.05 . There was no significant difference in VAS score （ P ） and pain duration among the control group at three time points after intervention all >0.05 . The VAS score of PTs in the （P ）， intervention group at ten weeks was lower than that in the control group at the same time point <0.05 and it was lower than （ P ） that before intervention and at five weeks of intervention in the same group all <0.05 . The pain duration of PTs in the （ P ）， intervention group was lower than that in the control group at five and ten weeks after intervention all <0.05 and was lower （ P ） Conclusion ， than that before intervention at the same group all <0.05 . Rotating schedule can relieve WMSDs of PTs and the effect of intervention for ten weeks is more effective than that of intervention for five weeks.

OBJECTIVETo assess lipid peroxidation and ultrastructural modifications in rat brains following perinatal exposure to lead (Pb) and/or cadmium (Cd).

METHODSFemale rats were divided into four groups: control group, Pb (300 mg/L) group, Cd group (10 mg/L) and Pb+Cd (300 mg/L, 10 mg/L) group. The compounds were delivered in the drinking water throughout pregnancy and lactation.

RESULTSThe levels of compounds in blood and brain of the Pb+Cd group were similar to those of other groups, but the effects of Pb+Cd on pups' body and brain weights were higher than on other compounds. Electron microscopy revealed that Pb and Cd had effects on mitochondrial swelling, disruption and cristae loss, Nissl body dissolution, degenerated organelles and vacuoles, cytomembrane disappearance, and nuclear chromoplasm concentration. The activity of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), acetylcholinesterase (AChE) was decreased, whereas the activity of maleic dialdehyde (MDA) was increased.

CONCLUSIONPerinatal exposure to low doses of Pb and Cd can produce alterations in lipid peroxidation and ultrastructural modifications in rat brains, and exposure to both metals can result in greater damages.

Animals ; Antioxidants ; metabolism ; Brain ; drug effects ; metabolism ; ultrastructure ; Cadmium ; toxicity ; Environmental Pollutants ; toxicity ; Female ; Lead ; toxicity ; Lipid Peroxidation ; drug effects ; Malondialdehyde ; metabolism ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects ; Rats ; Water

OBJECTIVETo study the antibiotic- and disinfectant-resistance features of and disinfectant-resistant gene distribution in Staphylococcus aureus (Sa) isolated from the urogenital tract of male patients with urogenital tract infection (UTI). total of 152 Sa isolates were collected from the urethral discharge specimens from male UTI patients. The minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) of antimicrobial agents and disinfectants commonly used against Sa were tested by standard ager dilution; the methicillin-resistant Sa (MRSA) isolates detected by cefoxitin disk diffusion and mecA gene amplification; Staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) genotyping performed by multiplex PCR; the disinfectants gene qac (quaternary ammonium compound) amplified by PCR; and the clonal relatedness of qacA/B-positive MRSA isolates investigated by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE).

RESULTSOut of the 152 Sa isolates, 91 (59.9%) were found to be MRSA. SCCmec genotyping showed SCCmec V to be the main type, accounting for 63.7% (58/91), with 8 (8.8%) isolates of SCCmec I, 2 (2.2%) isolates of SCCmec II, 19 (20.9%) isolates of SCCmec III, and 4 (4. 4%) isolates of SCCmec IV. The Sa isolates exhibited high rates of non-susceptibility to penicillin (95.4%) , erythromycin (72.4% ) , ciprofloxacin (42. 8%), and levofloxacin (44.7%), and a fairly high sensitivity to nitrofurantoin, teicoplanin, linezolid, and vancomycin. The MIC in the Sa isolates was 0. 25 -16 microg/ml for chlorhexidine; MIC50 and MIC90 were 2.0 and 4.0 microg/ml respectively for MRSA strains and both 1.0 microg/ml for MSSA strains. Out of the 152 Sa isolates, 72 (47.4%) harbored the qacA/B gene, 6 (3.9%) the smar (qacC + qacD) gene, 9 (5.9%) the qacE delta 1 gene, and 2 (1.3%) the qacH gene, but no qacG and qacJ genes were detected. PFGE analysis showed that the qacA/B-positive MRSA isolates were distributed

CONCLUSIONClinical Sa isolates exhibited varied degrees of resistance to commonly used antibiotics, and in a polyclonal manner. some showed a robust tolerance to chlorhexidine. The main disinfectant-resistant gene is qacA/B. Antimicrobial agents and disinfectants should be used rationally according to clinicians.

Disinfectants ; pharmacology ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; genetics ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Staphylococcus aureus ; drug effects ; genetics ; Urinary Tract Infections ; microbiology

Multi-stage membranes processes, including ultrafiltration and nanofiltration are used in concentration of Biyankang extracts at room temperature, and the concentrations of main active ingredient in retentions after membrane processes were determined by HPLC. The results showed that the removal rate of water is about 45%, and the cost is only one fourth of the vacuum heating method. The retention rates of buddleoside and ephedrine hydrochloride are above 80% and 90% respectively, which meet the efficient concentration and energy-saving needs. The concentration method of Biyankang with multi-stage membranes processes provides some instructive theories and experimental foundations.
Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; economics ; isolation & purification ; Filtration ; economics ; methods ; Membranes, Artificial ; Ultrafiltration ; methods

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the application of traditional cytomorphology, telomerase activity analysis and immunocytochemistry in cytopathologic diagnosis of pleural effusion and bronchoalveolar lavage samples.

METHODSA total of 123 agar-paraffin double-embedded pleural effusion and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid samples were enrolled into study. The cytomorphologic features were reviewed and correlated with immunocytochemical findings and telomerase activity.

RESULTSTelomerase activity was detected in 53 specimens using the real-time telomeric repeat amplification protocol. Amongst the cases studied, 39 samples (31.7%) contained overtly malignant cells while 20 cases (16.0%) were equivocal by conventional cytology. After verification by immunocytochemistry and clinical follow-up data, the diagnostic accuracy of telomerase activity and cytology was 87.0% and 82.1%, respectively. The sensitivity (97.6%) and specificity (100.0%) of cytology examination, when combined with telomerase activity analysis, were greater than those of cytology examination or telomerase activity analysis alone.

CONCLUSIONSTelomerase activity analysis can be used as an adjunctive investigative tool in cytology assessment of pleural effusion and bronchoalveolar lavage samples. The diagnostic accuracy can be further improved with the application of immunocytochemistry on agar-paraffin double-embedded cell block tissues.

Breast Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; enzymology ; pathology ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid ; chemistry ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Lung Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; enzymology ; pathology ; Pleural Effusion ; diagnosis ; enzymology ; pathology ; Pleural Effusion, Malignant ; diagnosis ; enzymology ; pathology ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Telomerase ; metabolism