OBJECTIVE: To investigate the polymorphism of the TPH gene T3792A locus in Han ethnic group of north China and its application value in forensic science. METHODS: The polymorphism of T3792A locus of the TPH gene was analyzed by the ASPCR of blood samples from 173 unrelated individuals of north Chinese Han population. RESULTS: The distribution of the T3792A locus polymorphism of the TPH gene in Han ethnic group of north China followed the Hardy-Weinberg law, with the allele A and T gene frequency of 0.486 and 0.514, respectively. CONCLUSION The TPH gene T3792A locus shows a very good genetic polymorphism, and may be applied to individual identification and paternity testing.
Asian People/genetics* ; China/ethnology* ; Forensic Genetics ; Gene Frequency ; Humans ; Paternity ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Tryptophan Hydroxylase/genetics*

BACKGROUNDThe reproducibility of the Nottingham modification of the Scarff-Bloom-Richardson (NSBR) histological grading system for invasive breast cancer (IBC) adopted by the World Health Organization (WHO) has previously not been studied in Chinese hospitals. The proliferation marker, Ki-67, has been widely applied in detecting IBC. The objective of this study was to assess the reproducibility of the NSBR system among Chinese pathologists and the complementary value that Ki-67 brings to this system.

METHODSFour general pathologists graded 100 IBC cases independently, which had previously been graded by specialists in breast pathology. The interobserver reproducibility among four general pathologists and pairwise reproducibility between each of them and the specialists were assessed. The Ki-67 labeling index (Ki-67LI) was determined by immunohistochemistry, and its correlations with histological grade and survival were determined.

RESULTSWith respect to interobserver reproducibility, NSBR grading was fairly reproducible (kappa = 0.34); as for the components of NSBR grading, agreement was best for tubule formation (kappa = 0.46), intermediate for nuclear pleomorphism (kappa = 0.42), and poorest for mitotic count (kappa = 0.28). In terms of pairwise reproducibility, agreement was fair to substantial with NSBR grading (kappa = 0.30 - 0.69) and nuclear pleomorphism (kappa = 0.28 - 0.69), moderate to substantial for tubule formation (kappa = 0.51 - 0.78), and slight to substantial for mitotic count (kappa = 0.19 - 0.71). There were characteristic Ki-67LI ranges for grades 1, 2 and 3 tumors. Univariate analysis showed that Ki-67 was able to divide grade 2 patients into two different prognostic subgroups. Multivariate analysis of grade 2 patients with negative lymph node demonstrated that Ki-67 was an independent prognosticator for overall survival.

CONCLUSIONSThe reproducibility of grading by general pathologists could be enhanced. Specialization in breast pathology is essential for accurate grading and treatment for IBC. Ki-67, with proven prognostic significance, adds complementary value to the NSBR system.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Breast Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; mortality ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Severity of Illness Index ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo explore the reductive effect of ornidazole on sperm motility in rats and its mechanism of action.

METHODSTwenty rats were randomly divided into three groups, a low dosage group (LD group, n = 5), a high dosage group (HD group, n = 8) and a normal control group (n = 7). Ornidazole (200 mg/kg, 400 mg/kg) was given to the LD and HD groups, and 0.5% carboxymethylcellulose sodium (CMC) administered to the normal control, all for 20 consecutive days. Immediately after, sperm density, motility and the morphological changes of the testis and epidiclymis were measured, and the concentrations of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), alpha-glycosidase, malondialdehyde (MDA) and fructose in the testis and epididymis tissues were monitored.

RESULTSCompared with the normal control, there were no obvious changes in sperm density (P > 0.05), but a significant decrease in sperm motility in the LD and HD groups (P < 0.01), and the concentration of LDH obviously declined (P < 0.01) while that of MDA distinctly increased in the HD group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSpermatogenic cells could be damaged by the increase of inhibiting MDA, while sperm motility could be decreased by inhibiting energetic transferase or non-protein substance in the epididymis. This might be one of the mechanisms of ornidazole on weak sperm models in rats.

Animals ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Epididymis ; cytology ; Male ; Ornidazole ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Sperm Count ; Sperm Motility ; drug effects ; Spermatozoa ; drug effects ; Testis ; cytology

Objective To explore the feasibility and efficacy of an MRI-visible,targeted,nano-vector which is synthesized by attaching a targeting ligand,the GD2 single chain antibody (scAb GD2),to the distal ends of PEG-g-PEI-SPION as a carrier for gene delivery into human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) and in vitro cellular MR imaging.Methods scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION was synthesized as previously reported.Gel electrophoresis was performed to assess the pDNA condensation ability of scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION.The particle size and Zeta potential of scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION/pDNA nanocomplexes were observed by dynamic light scattering.Cytotoxicity of scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPI-ON was evaluated by CCK-8 assay using hBMSCs.Gene transfection efficiency of scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION in hBMSCs was quantified by flow cytometry,PEG-g-PEI-SPION,scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION,scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION+ free AbGD2 and scAbIgG2a-PEG-g-PEI-SPION group was established.The cellular internalization of scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION/pDNA nanocomplexes was observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy and Prussian blue staining.MRI of scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION was performed by cellular MRI scanning in vitro.Results scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION condensed pDNA to form stable nanocomplexes of 80-100 nm in diameter and showed low cytotoxicity to hBMSCs.At the same N/P ratio,the transfection efficiency of scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION group was significantly higher than those of other groups (P＜0.001).At the optimal N/P ratio of 20,scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION/pDNA obtained the highest transfection efficiency of (59.60 ± 4.50) ％ in hBMSCs.Furthermore,hBMSCs labeled with scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION showed sensitive low signal intensity on MRI T2/T2 *-weighted images in vitro.Conclusion scAbGD2-PEG-g-PEI-SPION is an efficient MRL visible targeted nano vector for gene delivery into hBMSCs.

Objective To research the distribution and molecular epidemiology of insertion sequence IS1301 in Neisseria (N.) meningitidis strains in China, so as to provide scientific and available evidence for a new method of genotyping in N.meningitidis strains with IS1301. Methods Examined the IS1301 by PCR in 219 N.meningitidis strains from 16 provinces and 3 cities during 2007 and 2008 in China, productions of amplification were sent for sequencing. The positive N.meningitidis strains were analyzed by pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and nucleic acid blotting hybridization(Southern blot) by electrophoresis. Results The positive rates with IS1301 were 15.53%, 11.11%, 20.75%, 6.17% and 28.57% for four serotypes (A, B, C, N) respectively. The sequence comparability between the amplification productions and No.Z49092.1 N.meningitidis which registered in GenBank was 94%-100%. There were two types of clusters devided by cladogram analysis. There appeared large IS1301 sequence difference between the serotype C and others. The number of IS1301 replica ranged from 6-17 per strain at least. The number of IS1301 replica changed in the same type of PFGE N.meningitidis respectively. Conclusion Typing by IS1301 combined with PFGE could comprehend the homology and genetic polymorphism of N.meningitidis epidemic strains at the molecular level.

Objective:To study the expression of IL-21/BCL-6/Blimp-1 in CE patients and discusse the mechanism of the pathogenesis of the echinococcosis.Methods:27 patients and 30 health persons were collected from the first affiliated hospital of Xinjiang medical university in the same period.IL-21 was detected by ELISA and the expression of IL-21/BCL-6 /Blimp-1 mRNA was detected by Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) in CE patients.At the same time,17 patients were followed up in the group of patients,and the expression of IL-21/BCL-6/Blimp-1 was detected before and after treatment.Results:(1) The results of PCR showed that the levels of IL-21/BCL-6 mRNA were significantly increased in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of the CE patients compared with the healthy control group (P<0.05).The expression of IL-21/BCL-6 /Blimp-1 mRNA in patients before the treatment was higher than that of patients after treatment(P<0.05).(2)The level of IL-21 in peripheral blood of CE patients was sig-nificantly higher than that in the healthy control group and basically returned to normal after the cure (P<0.05).IL-21 was positively correlated with BCL-6(r=0.733, P<0.01).Conclusion:BCL-6 and Blimp-1 May promote the human immune system to resist parasitic infection in the course of the development of the disease.IL-21, BCL-6 and Blimp-1 are significantly reduced after effective treatment,indicating that these factors are involved in the immune mechanism of the development of the disease.

Autopsy ; Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; Coronavirus Infections ; Humans ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral ; SARS-CoV-2

BACKGROUND: Absorption of the alveolar bone subsequent to tooth extraction is a long-term process, especially in the anterior tooth region where the buccal part of the ridge undergoes a prominent remodeling process after tooth extraction. Socket shield technique (SST) recently reported may be a new choice for peri-implant tissue preservation. OBJECTIVE: To give an overview on the principle, interface basis and application of SST in implant dentistry. METHODS: The first author searched the PubMed, Ovid, CNKI, VIP and WanFang databases for relevant articles published from January 1990 to October 2017. The keywords were "socket shield technique;root-membrane technique; root-implant; implant proximity to teeth; dental-contected implants; dentointegration;cementum formation on implant surface" in Chinese and English, respectively. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: SST aims to maintain alveolar bone and gingival tissues by preserving partial tooth root with its periodontium-bundle bone intact, which is an alternative strategy for tissue preservation in esthetics zone.

OBJECTIVETo study the potential risk factors of human infecting with Streptococcus suis.

METHODS1: M matched case-control study was conducted. 29 human cases of Streptococcus suis infection in the early phase were included in the case group, Patients' family members, neighbors and peoples who had worked together with patients to handle deceased or sick pigs in the last week were recruited as matched controls. There were 147 controls in total. Both cases and controls received questionnaire investigation including the ways to contact sick/dead pigs. Conditional logistic regression was employed to analyze matching data.

RESULTSAccording to the results of multivariate analysis, slaughtering (OR = 11.978, 95% CI: 3.355-42.756), carcasses cutting and processing (OR = 3.008, 95% CI: 1.022-8.849) sick/dead pigs were associated with cases related to human Streptococcus suis infection. The attributable risk proportion were 91.65% and 66.76% respectively. The other types of exposures to sick/ dead pigs, including feeding, selling, burying and eating, were not associated with the human Streptococcus suis infection in our study population.

CONCLUSIONSlaughtering, carcasses cutting and processing sick/dead pigs were important risky behavior for humans to be infected by Streptococcus suis.

Adult ; Aged ; Case-Control Studies ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Occupational Exposure ; adverse effects ; statistics & numerical data ; Risk Factors ; Streptococcal Infections ; epidemiology ; etiology ; microbiology ; Streptococcus suis ; physiology

Betacoronavirus ; COVID-19 ; Coronavirus Infections/epidemiology* ; Humans ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia, Viral/epidemiology* ; SARS-CoV-2