Objective To investigate the utilization of liver enhancement in hepatobiliary phase of gadolinium ethoxybenzyl diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (Gd-EOB-DTPA)-enhanced MRI for liver function evaluation.Methods Fifty-five patients who received enhanced MRI with Gd-EOB-DTPA were retrospectively analyzed.Images were obtained before injection and in hepatobiliary phase (5,10,and 20 minutes after Gd-EOB-DTPA injection).The patients were assigned into two subgroups according to individual liver function (n =35 in Group 1:normal liver and Child-Pugh class A; n =20 in Group 2:Child-Pugh class B and C).The relative liver enhancement (RE) was calculated at different time point.The general data (age,sex) and relevant laboratory results were recorded.Independent sample t-test was conducted to compare the RE between two groups at different time point.ROC curve was used to determine the best time point and RE threshold that can reflect the differences between two groups.Univariate analyses was performed to analyze the relationship between RE at the best time point and laboratory results.Multivariate analyses was performed to screen the independent influencing factor for RE at the best time point.Results The differences of RE between two groups were statistically significant at all time points (P ＜ 0.0001).10 minutes was the best time point for detecting the differences of liver function between two groups.When an RE cutoff value (＞ 1.52) was applied,normal or Child-Pugh class A could be predicted with sensitivity of 74.3％ and specificity of 90％.RE at the best time point was significantly related with total serum bilirubin level (TBil),serum albumin level (Alb) and prothrombin time (PT).And TBil was an independent influencing factor.Conclusion RE can be used to evaluate the liver function,and 10 minutes is the best time point that can be used to differentiate patients with normal or mild liver damage from those with moderate or severe liver damage.

Objective To evaluate the effect of liver function on liver enhancement in hepatobiliary phase of gadolinium ethoxybenzyl diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid(Gd-EOB-DTPA)-enhanced MRI.Methods Sixty-seven patients who suffered from cirrhosis and received enhanced MRI with Gd-EOB-DTPA were retrospectively analyzed,and divided into three subgroups according to ChildPugh score(45 patients in group A,20 in group B,5 in group C).All the individuals of both groups had MRI before injection,and hepatobiliary phase images were obtained at 5,10,and 20 minutes after bolus administration of Gd-EOB-DTPA.The relative enhancement(RE) was calculated by dividing the signal intensity of liver(SI) at t min after injection(SIt) by precontrast SI(SI0).The total serum bilirubin level(TB),serum albumin level(Alb) and prothrombin time(PT) were recorded.The one-way ANOVA was used to compare the RE among three groups at 5,10 and 20 minutes.SNK was used for further pairwise comparison.The effect of liver function on RE was assessed with the generalized linear model.Pearson correlation coefficients were measured between each biochemical test result(TB,Alb,PT) and RE at different time points.Results The RE at 5,10 and 20 minutes were 1.59±0.20,1.65±0.22,1.69±0.25 of group A; 1.47± 0.14,1.48±0.18,1.50±0.22 of group B,1.35±0.07,1.27±0.06,1.26±0.06 of group C.There were statistically significant differences of RE among groups at 5,10 and 20 minutes(F=5.854,11.207,9.666,P＜0.01).Statistically pairwise comparison differences of RE were found between group A and C at 5,10 and 20 minutes(P＜0.01),between B and C at 10 and 20 minutes(P＜0.05),between A and B at 10 minutes(P＜ 0.05).There were statistically significant differences of TB,Alb and PT among groups(P＜0.01).RE at 10 and 20 minutes had moderate negative correlation with TB(r=-0.483,-0.500; P＜0.01),low negative correlation with PT(r=-0.326,-0.351;P＜0.01) and weak positive correlation with Alb(r=0.290,0.292;P＜0.05).Conclusions There are differences of RE among patients with different liver function,and the RE is associated with TB,Alb and PT.Thus,it may allow us to estimate the liver function.

Objective To explore the relationships among post traumatic stress disorder(PTSD),gratitude and posttraumatic growth (PTG) for terminal cancer patients.Methods Totally 119 advanced cancer patients were investigated with the self-demographic questionnaire,posttraumatic growth inventory (PTGI),the PTSD cheeklist-civilian version (PCL-C) and the Gratitude Questionnaire-6 (GQ-6).Results For terminal cancer patients,the total score of PCL-C was 34.02±12.49.The scores on re-experience,avoidance/numbness,hypervigilance were 9.79±3.78,13.85±5.68,10.36±3.80.The total score of gratitude was 29.37±7.48.The total score of PTG was 51.34± 13.57.The scores of life appreciation,personal relationship and self-strength were 8.00± 2.99,21.18± 5.84,22.16± 6.10.The total scores of PTG were significantly statistical significance among different PTSD groups(F=16.267,P＜0.01)and gratitude groups(F=43.674,P＜0.0 1).The total scores of PCL-C (r=-0.694,P＜0.01),re-experience (r=-0.664,P＜0.01),avoidance/numbness (r=-0.671,P＜0.01),hypervigilance (r=0.753,P＜0.01) and gratitude(r=-0.611,P＜0.01) were all correlated with PTG.The total score of PCL-C and gratitude could explain 66.6％ variation of PTG.For the relationship between PTSD and PTG,the moderation effect of gratitude was not significant (P ＞0.05).Conclusion The gratitude and PTSD were important influence factors for terminal cancer patients' PTG,while the moderation effect of gratitude was not significant,so in clinical intervention we should pay more attentions to the actual effects of gratitude,and we should not pursuit gratitude education blindly.

Objective To investigate the applied value of 3.0T blood oxygen level dependent(BOLD) MRI in the diagnosis of hepatic warm ischemia-reperfusion injury (WIRI) in rabbits.Method Twenty healthy adult New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into two groups by using the stochastic indicator method.In 10 rabbits enrolled in the treatment group,the model of hepatic WIRI after ischemia for 30 min followed by 6-h reperfusion was established,and the remaining 10 rabbits were chosen as the normal control group and were not subjected to any surgery.All the experimental rabbits were scanned by 3.0T MRI and BOLD MRI.T2* values were separatelymeasured by 2 considered radiologists and the R2* values were calculated (R2* =1/T2*).Thereafter,the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to check the consistency.All rabbits were killed after MR examination and routine assays were performed for testing the levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT),aspartate aminotransferase (AST),and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in the ear vein blood serum.The contents of total superoxide dismutase (SOD),malondialdehyde (MDA) and myeloperoxidase (MPO) in liver tissues were determined,and histopathological changes were examined.The correlation between R2 * value and clinical test index was evaluated by Spearman correlation analysis.The R2* value was evaluated by ROC curve.Result ICC =0.87 ＞ 0.75,suggesting that the repeatability of the outcome is good.Compared to the normal control group,R2*value of the warm ischemia-reperfusion injury group was increased (P =0.000).The differences in ALT,AST,LDH,total SOD,MDA and MPO between the two groups were statistically significant (P＜0.01).R2* values were significantly positively correlated with ALT,AST,LDH,MDA and MPO (r＞0.6,P＜0.05),and there was a significantly negative correlation between R2* and total SOD (r=-0.663,P=0.001).The R2* value could efficiently diagnose rabbit hepatic WIRI (AUC =0.99) with the best diagnostic threshold being 116.40 Hz.Conclusion 3.0T BOLD MRI can accurately and non-invasively assess the pathophysiologic changes caused by WIRI.It is of great importance for 3.0T BOLD MRI in dynamically monitoring and evaluating hepatic WIRI.

Objective To prepare the water soluble chrysin-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrins inclusion compound and widen the administration path of chrysin .Methods The cogrinding method had been used to prepare chrysin-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrins in-clusion compound .The PXRD, DSC and IR techniques had been used to characterize the inclusion compound .Results Chrysin and hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrins had formed the inclusion compound , and the formation of the inclusion compound could increase solubili-ty by 120.7 times.Conclusion The inclusion compound preparation method was simple and available , which was suitable to improve the bioavailability .

Objective: To investigate the effect of cobalt chloride (CoCl2) on transgene expression and viral particle titers in tumor cells infected by conditionally replicating adenovirus expression vector with hypoxia response elements(HRE)-regulated E1AE1B expression (Ad-5HRE-E1AE1B-RFP) and non-HRE regulated replication-deficient adenovirus expression vector (Ad-EGFP, Ad-Luc) in vitro and in vivo. Methods: Ad-5HRE-E1AE1B-RFP had five duplicated HRE and mini CMV acted as a promoter to drive E1AE1B expression and constitutive expression of RFP as reporter. The hypoxia model was optimized by exposing tumor cells to different concentrations of CoCl2. The hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1α) protein expression was determined by Western blotting. Under the optimized hypoxia model, the positive expression of exogenous gene and virus replication of Ad-5HRE-E1AE1B-RFP or Ad-EGFP-infected tumor cells were examined by conversed microscopic observation, FACS analysis and plaques formation test. Furthermore, transgene expression induced by combined application of hypoxia-inducible replicative adenovirus and replication deficient adenovirus (Ad-Luc) was also evaluated by examining the lucifererse activity in xenografted tumor models in nude mice by micro PET. Results: Western blotting results showed that CoCl2 at 0.4 and 0.08 μg/mL could stabilize and acumulate HIF-1α protein in gastric cancer SGC7901 cells, which could better mimic hypoxia condition. The microscopic observation and FACS analysis showed that CoCl2 at 0.4 μg/mL could remarkably increase the transduction efficacy of Ad-5HRE-E1AE1B-RFP, which was verified by significant increase in the percentage of positive expression of exogenous gene RFP and fluorescence intensity. But plaques formation test showed that Ad-5HRE-E1AE1B-RFP had no replication. CoCl2 0.4 μg/mL augmented the tranduction efficacy and expression levels of non-HRE regulated replication deficient adenovirus Ad-EGFP and Ad-Luc. Combined intratumoral injection of Ad-5HRE-E1AE1B-RFP and Ad-Luc significantly increased the expression of Ad-Luc in nude mice.Conclusion: CoCl2 markedly enhances transgene expression of recombinant adenovirus. However, the underlying mechanism is not only related to the CoCl2-induced hypoxia, but also probably related to regulation of gene transcription.

OBJECTIVETo retrospectively summarize the effect of non-medical therapies for pediatric patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM).

METHODSFrom Nov. 2008 to Jun. 2010, 4 children with drug-refractory HOCM were admitted to our hospital. Their ages were 14, 7, 9 and 6 years old, respectively. Their body weights were 38, 17, 21.5 and 17 kg, respectively. Before operation, the pressure gradients over left ventricular outflow tract (LVOTG) were 60, 147, 58 and 114 mm Hg (1 mm Hg = 0.133 kPa), respectively. And mitral regurgitation (MR) areas were 2.2, 7.3 cm(2) and 2.9 cm(2), respectively, except that it was trivial in one case. Percutaneous transluminal septal myocardial ablation (PTSMA) was performed in case 1 and 2. Septal myectomy (SM) was performed in case 3 and 4. Follow-up was first performed right after operation or before discharge, then 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months after operation, and then once a year. The follow-up period was 1 - 18 (9.3 ± 8.1) months.

RESULTSAll patients experienced relieved symptoms. Three of them had their NYHA functional class improved except case 2. Echocardiography revealed that LVOTGs right after operations were 38, 79, 20 and 0 mm Hg, respectively, suggesting significant improvement of left ventricular outflow tract obstruction (LVOTO) in all patients. During follow-up, case 2 suffered from recurrence of LVOTO, while the other 3 cases showed sustained relief. In the last follow-up, the LVOTGs of the four patients were 19, 168, 16 and 0 mm Hg, respectively. Echocardiography also revealed that MRs of all patients were significantly reduced, even in case 2 whose LVOTG rebounded, with no recurrence during follow-up. Severe complications were absent, such as ventricular septum perforation, cardiac tamponade, ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation. No one suffered from complete heart block. Transient complete right bundle branch block (CRBBB) was observed in case 1 after PTSMA and converted to intraventricular block after 1 month. Complete left bundle branch block (CLBBB) was present in both case 3 and 4, who received SM. In case 4, it converted to intraventricular block after 1 month while in case 3 CLBBB persisted.

CONCLUSIONSThe initial experience showed that PTSMA and SM were safe and effective for drug-refractory symptomatic HOCM children, with satisfactory short-term results. Further studies are needed to evaluate the long-term results and complications.

Adolescent ; Cardiac Surgical Procedures ; Cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic ; surgery ; therapy ; Catheter Ablation ; Child ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male

Objective To investigate the common initial clinical presentations of primary Sj(o)gren's syndrome (pSS) with pulmonary complications,and to explore the differences between patients with extraglandular manifestations at disease onset (EGM) and those with glandular manifestations at disease onset (GM).Methods A total of 1 341 hospitalized SS patients from 2003 to 2012 were retrospectively reviewed.Of them,102 hospitalized patients with pSS'associated lung disease were analyzed and included.Case control study was performed to explore the differences between the EGM group and the GM group.Results Fifty-one percent of patients were presented with EGM at onset,with significantly shorter disease duration [36 (12,156) m vs 102 (48,159) m,x2=-2.41,P=0.016].Although the mean diagnose time was similiar,only 4％ of the EGM group could be confirmed the pSS diagnose at onset,which was significantly less frequently than that of the GM group (34％,22=15.29,P＜0.01).Case control study revealed that hyperglobulinemia,elevated RF titers and anti-SSA and/or anti-SSB test positive were less predominant in the EGM group [IgG 16(12,21) g/L vs 21 (15,28) g/L,x2=-2.15,P=0.032;22 (20,171) U/ml vs 104 (20,238) U/ml,x2=-l.98,P=0.048;33％ vs 72％,x2=15.78,P＜0.01].The predicted value of TLC and FVC were lower [(87±23)％ vs (97±20)％,x2=-1.96,P=0.050;(8±28)％ vs (100±27)％,x2=-1.70,P=0.089] and HRCT score was higher in EMG group [12(88,15) vs 8(5,13),x2=-1.82,P=0.070].Conclusion EMG at onset is the common initial manifestation of pSS'associated lung involvement.Pulmonary complication is more progressively and severe than those with MG at onset.Anti'SSA positive,elevated RF titer and hyperglobulinemia are not predominant for patients with EMG at onset.

OBJECTIVEThe purples of this study was to investigate the role of different components of Galla Chinensis extract on the growth of 6 kinds of cariogenic bacteria, and to find out the most effective components of Galla Chinensis extract.

METHODSFour different components (GCE1, GCE2, GCE3 and GCE4) were separated from Galla Chinensis and there antibacterial activities to Streptococcus mutans ATCC 25175, Streptococcus sanguis ATCC 10556, Streptococcus salivarius SS 196, Actinomyces naeslundii WVU 627, Actinomyces viscosus ATCC 19246 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus AC 413 were checked. There effects on the growth curve of Streptococcus mutans ATCC 25175 were also investigated.

RESULTSThe most effective part of Galla Chinensis was found to be GCE2 and GCE4, which were found to be a mixture of polyphenol-rich fractions. All of the different components had an inhibitory effect to the growth of Streptococcus mutans ATCC 25175.

CONCLUSIONAll of the 4 different components of Galla Chinensis extract could inhibit the growth of the tested bacteria. These results suggest that the antibacterial activity of Galla Chinensis extract is caused by a synergistic effect of monomeric polyphenols, which can easily bind to proteins.

Actinomyces viscosus ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Bacteria ; Dental Caries ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; In Vitro Techniques ; Streptococcus mutans ; Streptococcus sanguis

The loquat is widely cultivated in China, its succulent fruits, leaves and flower are used as a traditional medicine for the treatment of many diseases. The study is aimed to analyse the content of the four triterpene compounds ( ursolic acid, corosolic acid, maslinic acid, oleanolic acid) in different organs, and investigate the dynamic changes in different phenological period. The triterpenic acids content in the samples was measured by HPLC based on the plant phenological observations. The results showed that order of four triterpenic acids content in different organs from high to low was defoliation (23.2 mg x g(-1)) > mature leaves (21.7 mg x g(-1)) > young leaves (17.5 mg x g(-1)) > fruits (7.36 mg x g(-1)) > flowers (6.40 mg x g(-1)). The triterpenic acids were not detected in the seeds. The total amount of the four triterpenic acids in the loquat leaves collected in the different phenological stages of sprout, flower bud, blossom and fruit varied between 17.8 and 26.2 mg x g(-1) (defoliation), 16.5 and 23.5 mg x g(-1) (mature leaves), 14.7 and 21.5 mg x g(-1) (young leaves), respectively. The content increased progressively with the leaf development, maturation and aging. There was a higher level of the dry material and triterpenic acids accumulation in the mature leaves during fruit enlargement. This paper attempts to present the case for medicinal plants of a broad geographical distribution to study on the secondary metabolites and harvesting time.
China ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Eriobotrya ; chemistry ; growth & development ; Flowers ; chemistry ; growth & development ; Fruit ; chemistry ; growth & development ; Plant Extracts ; analysis ; Plant Leaves ; chemistry ; growth & development ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Seeds ; chemistry ; growth & development ; Triterpenes ; analysis