Aim To investigate estradiol inhibition of neointimal proliferation after rat carotid artery balloon injury. Methods Eight to ten-week-old SD rats (male,n=21,female,n=21) were divided into intact control(n=7),gonadectomy control(n=7) and estradiol (n=7, gonadectomy)groups in each sex. Left carotid artery was not injured with 2.0 F PTCA balloon until estradiol was injected for three days. Rats were killed 2 wk after injury. Neointimal areas and media area, ratios of intimal areas/media areas were measured with computer. Results Male neointimal areas and ratios of intimal areas /media areas in estradiol group were less than those in intact control group significantly(all P0.05). Conclusions Estrdiol inhibits neointimal proliferation after the gonadectomy in rats undergoing carotid artery balloon injury.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the relationship between the second to the fourth digit ratio (2D:4D) and body mass index (BMI) in infertile men of the Han ethnic group in Ningxia.

METHODSUsing anthropometry, we calculated the mean ratio of 2D:4D and BMI of 197 infertile men and 148 normal healthy male controls, followed by analysis of their relationship.

RESULTSThe BMI was correlated positively with the 2D:4D ratio of the left hand in the infertile men (P < 0.05) and in the patients with a higher 2D:4D ratio of the left hand (P < 0.05), but negatively with the 2D:4D ratio of the righ/left (Dr-1) (left: P < 0.01; Dr-l: P < 0.05). The mean 2D: 4D ratio and BMI were both lower in the normal control than in the infertile men, with statistically significant differences in BMI (P < 0.05) and the 2D:4D ratio of the left hand (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThere is a correlation between the 2D:4D ratio and BMI in infertile men.

Body Mass Index ; Case-Control Studies ; Fingers ; anatomy & histology ; Humans ; Infertility, Male ; diagnosis ; Male

OBJECTIVETo research the constituents in needles of Pinus sylvestris.

METHODRepeated column chromatography and preparation HPLC are used for compound isolation, and their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectral data analysis.

RESULTSix compounds, pinifolic acid (1), 15-oxo-8 (17) -labden-18-oic acid (2) , 15-acetoxy-labd-8 ( 17)-en-18-oic acid (3), dehydroabietic acid (4), 7alpha-hydroxydehydroabietic acid (5), 7beta-hydroxydehydroabietic acid (6) were isolated from the needles of P. sylvestris.

CONCLUSIONCompound 3-6 were isolated from the needles of P. sylvestris for the first time, and compound 3 is a new natural product. The petroleum ether and EtOAc extracts showed significant cytotoxic effects to Hela and A549. Compounds 2, 4-6 revealed a positive distinction compared to the control group.

Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Survival ; drug effects ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Diterpenes ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Diterpenes, Abietane ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; HeLa Cells ; Humans ; Molecular Structure ; Pinus sylvestris ; chemistry ; Plant Leaves ; chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Structure-Activity Relationship

Objective To analyze the clinical characteristics of patients with acute myocardial infarction(AMI) complicated by free wall rupture (FWR) and to define the independent risk factors for FWR. Methods Clinical and angiographic data of 6192 AMI patients admitted to our department between January 1995 and January 2010 were retrospectively reviewed, FWR was confirmed in 43 patients by postmortem examination. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify risk factors for FWR Results Rupture occurred at a median of 3. 58 days after symptom onset. Risk factors associated with FWR were older age, female gender, delayed hospital admission, hypertension at admission and increased serum creatine level。 Although patients with FWR had more single-vessel disease, their in-hospital mortality was very high (97.7％) .Undue physical efforts were documented in 41.9％ patients with FWR. Conclusion Old age, female gender and prolonged time from the onset of symptoms to hospital,hypertension and high level of serum creatine at admission are independent factors of FWR.

Objective To analyze the clinical characteristics of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and coronary artery disease (CAD).Methods Clinical data of 3911 SLE patients were retrospectively analyzed and CAD was diagnosed by coronary angiography in 26 (0.7％ ) SLE patients (10 stable angina pectoris,5 unstable angina pectoris,8 STEMI and 3 non-STEMI).The tradition risk factors,first onset of cardiac events,blood biochemistry index,treatment and activity of SLE,coronary angiographic features were compared with 552 CAD patients without SLE.Results Compared with CAD patients without SLE,CAD patients with SLE were younger [ (50.4 ± 15.2) years vs.(60.6 ± 11.6 ) years,P＜0.01 ],the mean number per patient of Framingham tradition risk factors was less ( 1.11 ± 1.18 vs.2.50 ± 1.28,P ＜0.05 ).CAD patients with SLE were prone to premature coronary artery disease [ 76.9％ (20/26) ],and ACS was the most common manifestation in SLE patients with premature coronary artery disease [ 65.0％ ( 13/20 ) ],the duration of steroid use was significantly longer [ 24.00 ( 3.75,57.00 )months vs.1.00 (0.00,2.00 ) months,P ＜ 0.05 ] and 24 hours total urine protein [ ( 1.93 ± 1.97 ) g vs.(0.76 ±0.75 )g,P ＜0.05] was significantly higher in the ACS patients with SLE than non-ACS patients with SLE.Coronary stenosis was evidenced in most of the SLE patients with CAD [ 76.9％ ( 20/26 ) ] and incidence of coronary thrombotic occlusion was significantly higher in SLE patients with CAD than CAD patients without SLE [ 30.8％ ( 8/26 ) vs.11.8％ ( 65/552 ),P ＜ 0.05 ].Conclusion The incidence of CAD in SLE patients is low and the major form of CAD in SLE patients is premature coronary artery disease and mostly induced by coronary thrombotic occlusion.

α-HgS is the main component of traditional Chinese medicine cinnabar, while β-HgS is the main component of Tibetan medicine Zuotai. However, there was no comparative study on the dissolution and absorption in gastrointestinal tract and bioaccumulation in organs of mercury in Cinnabar, Zuotai, α-HgS and β-HgS. In this study, the dissolution process of the four compounds in the human gastrointestinal tract was simulated to determine the mercury dissolutions and compare the mercury dissolution of different medicines and the dissolution-promoting capacity of different solutions. To explore the absorption and bioaccumulation of cinnabar and Zuotai in organisms, mice were orally administered with clinical equivalent doses cinnabar and Zuotai. Meanwhile, a group of mice was given α-HgS and β-HgS with the equivalent mercury with cinnabar, while another group was given β-HgS and HgCl2 with the equivalent mercury with Zuotai. The mercury absorption and bioaccumulation capacities of different medicines in mice and their mercury bioaccumulation in different tissues and organs were compared. The experimental results showed a high mercury dissolutions of Zuotai in artificial gastrointestinal fluid, which was followed by β-HgS, cinnabar and α-HgS. As for the mercury absorption and bioaccumulation in mice, HgCl2 was the highest, β-HgS was the next, and a-HgS was slightly higher than cinnabar. The organs with the mercury bioaccumulation from high to low were kidney, liver and brain. This study is close to clinical practices and can provide reference for the clinical safe medication as well as a study model for the safety evaluation on heavy metal-containing medicines by observing the mercury dissolution, absorption, distribution and accumulation of mercury-containing medicines cinnabar and zuotai.
Animals ; Brain ; metabolism ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; pharmacokinetics ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; metabolism ; Kidney ; metabolism ; Liver ; metabolism ; Male ; Mercury ; chemistry ; pharmacokinetics ; Mercury Compounds ; chemistry ; pharmacokinetics ; Mice ; Solubility

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the safety and efficacy between endoscopic papillary balloon dilatation (EPBD) and endoscopic sphincteropapillotomy ( EST) for common bile duct stones using meta-analysis method.

METHODSRandomizd controlled trials comparing EPBD with EST for common bile duct stones and published from January 1990 to July 2012 were recruited. This meta-analysis was conducted to estimate short-term and long-term complications. Fixed random effect model or random effect model was established to analyze the data.

RESULTSTwelve randomizd controlled trials were included in this analysis. These studies included 1865 patients, 925 of them were treated with EPBD and 940 were treated with EST. The analysis of basic characteristics of these included studies showed that: compared to EST, patients in the EPBD group were younger (OR = -1.16, 95% CI: -1.49 to -0.84, P = 0.00), while in two groups, there were no significant difference (P > 0.05) in gender proportion, average size of stones, number of gallstones, previous cholecystectomy, the number of merged duodenal diverticulum, common bile duct diameter, the total follow-up time. Also, compared to EST, the overall stone clearance in the EPBD group was lower (OR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.42 to 0.96, P = 0.03), pancreatitis incidence was higher (OR = 2.67, 95% CI: 1.61 to 4.43, P = 0.00), incidence of bleeding (OR = 0.12, 95% CI: 0.04 to 0.34, P = 0.00), acute cholecystitis (OR= 0.39, 95% CI: 0.18 to 0.84, P = 0.02), total long-term complication rate (OR = 0.53, 95% CI: 0.36 to 0.77, P = 0.01), stone recurrence rate more than a year were lower (OR= 0.48, 95% CI: 0.26 to 0.90, P = 0.02). While in two groups, there were no significant difference (P > 0.05) in the stone removal on 1 '' attempt, the total near-term complications and acute cholangitis.

CONCLUSIONSOn the basis of lower rates of bleeding, EPBD seems to be preferred strategy over EST for endoscopic remove of common bile duct stones in patients who have coagulopathy. Although stone recurrence rate more than a year of EPBD is lower, but the overall stone clearance rate is lower and the risk of pancreatitis is higher than that of EST.

Dilatation ; Gallstones ; surgery ; Humans ; Postoperative Complications ; epidemiology ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Sphincterotomy, Endoscopic ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo explore the association of pathologic factors with the staging of metastatic lymph node ratio (rN) and metastatic lymph node number (pN), and to provide evidence for reasonable tumor staging in advanced gastric carcinoma (AGC).

METHODSThe clinicopathological data of 555 patients, who received radical resection for primary tumor of AGC between November 2003 and December 2011 in The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, were reviewed retrospectively. The clinicopathological factors influencing rN and pN were analyzed.

RESULTSUnivariate analysis showed that differentiation degree, vascular invasion, tumor diameter, gross type and invasion depth were significantly associated with rN or pN (all P<0.05). Histological type was significantly associated with rN (P<0.05), but not with pN. Logistic regression analysis revealed that vascular invasion, tumor diameter≥4 cm and invasion depth were independent risk factors for lymph node distant metastasis in AGC (all P<0.05). ROC curves showed that rN was consistent with pN in evaluating the diagnostic value of lymph node distant metastasis for tumor staging in AGC (P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONSVascular invasion tumor diameter≥4 cm and invasion depth are independent risk factors for lymph node metastasis in AGC based on either metastatic lymph node ratio (rN) or metastatic lymph node number (pN). The rN staging is consistent with the pN staging in evaluating the diagnostic value of metastatic lymph node for tumor staging in AGC.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Humans ; Lymph Nodes ; pathology ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Retrospective Studies ; Stomach Neoplasms ; pathology

BACKGROUNDWe have recently reported that RhoA may regulate the invasion and metastasis of breast cancer cells as an upstream signal of ezrin in vitro. In this study, we examined the relationship of RhoA signaling activity with ezrin expression in breast cancer and its prognostic significance in patients with breast cancer.

METHODSParaffin tumor sections of breast cancer were collected retrospectively from 487 patients diagnosed between 2001 and 2004. Immunohistochemical methods were used to detect the expression of RhoA, phosphorylated (activated) RhoA, and ezrin.

RESULTSEzrin overexpression was detectable in 15.2% of 487 invasive breast cancers. The majority (85.1%) of ezrin-overexpressing tumors coexpressed phosphorylated RhoA; 78.8% of tumors with phosphorylated RhoA cooverexpressed ezrin. Patients whose cancers showed overexpression of ezrin or expression of phosphorylated RhoA had shorter survival rates.

CONCLUSIONSRhoA activation is important in human breast cancer due to its upregulation of ezrin; thus, agents that target phosphorylated RhoA may be useful in the treatment of tumors with ezrin overexpression.

Adult ; Aged ; Breast Neoplasms ; chemistry ; mortality ; Cytoskeletal Proteins ; analysis ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Phosphorylation ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Retrospective Studies ; Signal Transduction ; physiology ; Survival Rate ; rhoA GTP-Binding Protein ; analysis ; physiology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of long-term administration of fluvastatin on improvement of ventricular remodeling of rats after myocardial infarction and its mechanism.

METHODSSprague-Dawley rats were subjected to ligation in anterior descending branch of coronary artery and treated with fluvastatin (20 mg.kg(-1) d(-1)) or distilled water for 8 weeks. Doppler echocardiography, hemodynamic study and cardiac histomorphometry were used to estimate the ventricular remodeling and cardiac function. Laser scanning confocal microscope was used to definite the distribution of superoxide anion (O(2)(*-)) and nitrogen monoxide. RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression of NOS2 and p22phox in mRNA and protein level. The level of lipid peroxidation, glutathione peroxidase, nitrogen monoxide and total cholesterol were detected too.

RESULTSAdministration of fluvastatin ameliorated left ventricular remodeling without affecting the infarct size [(40 +/- 6 vs 42 +/-5)%, P>0.05]. The level of left ventricular end-diastolic pressure [(18.24 +/-6.58 vs 10.74 +/-4.71) mmHg, P<0.05], right ventricular ameliorated relative weight [(0.92 +/-0.19 vs 0.71 +/-0.13) g/kg, P<0.05], the thickness of left ventricular posterior wall [(3.04 +/-0.28 vs 2.60 +/-0.36) mm, P<0.05] decreased after fluvastatin treatment. The left ventricular ejection fraction was not influenced, the relative lung weight and the left atrium diameter reduced [(5.79 +/-2.92 vs 3.69 +/-0.68) g/kg, (0.55 +/-0.12 vs 0.45 +/-0.04) mm, P<0.05]; the expressions of LPO in the plasma and myocardium [(8.64 +/-0.59 vs 7.71 +/-0.66) U/dl, P<0.05; (3.12 +/-0.38 vs 1.93 +/-0.40) ng/microg.pro, P<0.01] were reduced, and the overexpressed NO was inhibited [(436.87 +/-47.22 vs 313.78 +/-34.35) mg/dl, P<0.01], but the expression of GPx increased [(66.13 +/-8.31 vs 79.78 +/-2.38) mg/dl, P<0.01]. The expression of O(2)(*-) and the activity of NADPH oxidase subunit p22phox increased; NOS2 and its products NO were over-expressed too.

CONCLUSIONVentricular remodeling and hemodynamics are improved profoundly in MI rats treated with fluvastatin. The effect of antioxidative stress of fluvastatin might be involved in the mechanism.

Animals ; Antioxidants ; pharmacology ; Fatty Acids ; pharmacology ; Fatty Acids, Monounsaturated ; pharmacology ; Indoles ; pharmacology ; Male ; Myocardial Infarction ; metabolism ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Rats ; Ventricular Remodeling ; drug effects