Objective To explore the clinical characteristics ,diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of phaeohyphomycosis. Methods Clinical data were collected, including history, physical examination, cranial and spinal imaging. Brain biopsy was performed. Data of the pathology and incubation of brain tissue were analyzed. Responsiveness to treatment was followed up. Results A previously healthy three and half years old boy was presented to our unit, with a three- month history of recurrent headache, vomiting, progressive paraplegia accompanied by urinary continence and constipation. A computed tomogram scan and magnetic resonance imaging of the brain revealed multiple lesions located in the region of the parietal - occipital lobes, periventricular area and frontal lobe, with prominent surrounding edema and irregular peripheral enhancement of the mass after the administration of contrast materials. A cerebral biopsy was performed and the pathological report was cerebral phaeohyphomycosis. The culture of the tissue and cerebrospinal fluid grew a same fungus identified as exo-phiala dermatitidis. The patient's response to therapy was poor, the parents of the boy gave up therapy, and the boy died 1 month later. Conclusions Cerebral Phaeohyphomycosis caused by Exophiala dermatitidis is rare, but the most serious form of fungus infection. Pathology and incubation of the tissue are essential for diagnosis. There is no curative therapy and the prognosis is poor.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the knowledge and the attitude toward prostate cancer (PCa) among Chinese city men and raise some suggestions for the improvement of the present state.

METHODSIn October 2007, a questionnaire investigation was conducted among males in 17 Chinese cities on the knowledge of PCa in the following 6 aspects: general state of PCa susceptible city men, basic knowledge, risk factors, symptoms, management and outcome, and attitude toward the treatment of PCa. The influences of education on their scores were analyzed and compared.

RESULTSWe distributed 1,700 copies of the questionnaire and collected 376 (22.1%) valid ones. The subjects averaged 67.1 +/- 10.1 years of age, 80.1% with junior high school education and above. As for the basic knowledge of PCa, 92.6% of them admitted hearing of it, but only 45.5% knew what it was, with statistically significant differences among men of different educations. The most common accesses to PCa knowledge were media (43.3%), hospital consultation (25.2%) and health booklets (10.1%). Of the total number of subjects, 32.7% regarded "Father has prostate cancer" as a risk factor, 82.2% knew that PCa could be treated by surgery, but only 8.9% knew that " hormonotherapy has an important role in PCa treatment". More positive attitudes toward PCa treatment and its consequence were found among those with higher education.

CONCLUSIONPCa susceptible men in Chinese cities have insufficient knowledge on the disease. Strengthened education in this aspect can improve the present state and promote early diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer.

Aged ; China ; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ; Humans ; Male ; Men ; psychology ; Middle Aged ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; prevention & control ; psychology ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Urban Population

OBJECTIVETo investigate the application of the multiple locus variable numbers of tandem repeats (MLVA) in genotype Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains isolated from Tibet, and to understand the characteristics of genotype and distribution.

METHODS217 M. tuberculosis strains were collected from six regions of Tibet. Twenty tandem repeats loci in the total genome of M. tuberculosis (MTB) were analyzed by PCR and agarose gel electrophoresis method. The characteristics on polymorphism of DNA fingerprinting of 217 MTB strains were analyzed with BioNumerics 3.0 software.

RESULTS217 M. tuberculosis strains detected with 20 MLVA loci were classified to 19 genotypes with 87.6% of the stains belonging to Beijing genotype and the other 18 genotypes were scattered,accounted for 1.38% and 0.92% strains, respectively. Beijing genotype was not significantly associated with the resistance to all of the four drugs and BCG vaccination.

CONCLUSIONIt is concluded that the strains of MTB isolated in Tibet present definite polymorphism and most of the epidemic strains belonged to Beijing family genotype and MTB genotyping. The Beijing genotype was not recognized as the one transferred from some of the drug resistance strains or from BCG vaccination. Being a fast and simple technique, MLVA method, seemed a better molecular typing method and could be used for genotyping in M. tuberculosis and monitoring pathogen.

BCG Vaccine ; DNA Fingerprinting ; Electrophoresis, Agar Gel ; Genotype ; Minisatellite Repeats ; genetics ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; classification ; genetics ; Phylogeny ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Tibet

To explore the prevention effect of the joint combination of Yindanxinnaotong soft capsule (YDXNT) and exercise (swimming) on atherosclerotic rats. The method of 3 x 3 factorial design, including two factors (YDXNT and swimming) and three levels (0, 1, 2 g x kg(-1) YDXNT; 0, 0.5, 1 h swimming), was mainly adopted. The atherosclerotic rat model was established by ligating their left common carotid arteries and feeding high-fat diet. After 8 weeks, blood samples were collected from their thoracic aorta to determine blood viscosity, plasma viscosity, fibrinogen (FIB), nitric oxide (NO), 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) endothelin (ET) and thromboxane B2 (TXB2). The tissues of left common carotid arteries of the rats were collected to detect the positive expression of SM22alpha and determine the semi-quantitation through the immunohistochemical staining. The result showed that the combination of YDXNT and swimming can significantly decrease the plasma viscosity (F = 3.241, P = 0.017), the high and low shear blood viscosity (F = 6.444, P = 0.001; F = 3.002, P = 0.024) and FIB (F = 4.046, P = 0.005). The increased NO and 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) and the decreased ET and TXB2 indicated a significant interaction (P < 0.05). The swimming showed an obvious main effect in the expression of up-regulated protein SM22alpha (F = 8.088, P = 0.001). The study suggested that the combined administration of YDXNT and swimming could improve the hemorheological parameters of atherosclerotic rats, protect the vascular endothelium, inhibit the vascular remodeling in atherosclerosis and positively prevent the atherosclerosis.
Animals ; Atherosclerosis ; drug therapy ; genetics ; metabolism ; prevention & control ; Blood Viscosity ; drug effects ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; Exercise Therapy ; Humans ; Male ; Microfilament Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Muscle Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Swimming

OBJECTIVETo study whether alisol B could inhibit complement 3a (C3a) induced renal tubular epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT).

METHODSThe in vitro cultured human renal tubular epithelial HK-2 cells were intervened with 5 ng/mL transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), 0.1 micromol C3a, and 0.1 micromol C3a + 10 micromol alisol B, respectively. The mRNA and protein expressions of alpha-SMA, E-cadherin, and C3 were detected using RT-PCR, Western blot, and immunofluorescence, respectively.

RESULTSThe mRNA and protein expressions of C3 in HK-2 cells were up-regulated after intervention of C3a (P < 0.01), the mRNA and protein expressions of alpha-SMA in HK-2 cells were obviously enhanced (P < 0.01), the mRNA and protein expressions of E-cadherin obviously decreased (P < 0.01). When compared with the group intervened by exogenous C3a, after intervention of alisol B, the mRNA and protein expressions of alpha-SMA in HK-2 cells were obviously reduced (P < 0.01), the mRNA and protein expressions of E-cadherin obviously increased (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSExogenous C3a could induce renal tubular EMT. Alisol B was capable of suppressing C3a induced EMT.

Actins ; metabolism ; Cadherins ; metabolism ; Cell Differentiation ; drug effects ; Cell Line ; Cholestenones ; pharmacology ; Complement C3a ; metabolism ; Epithelial Cells ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition ; drug effects ; Humans ; Kidney Tubules ; cytology ; metabolism

Objective：This study was designed to evaluate the genetic stability on chromosome 16q22 24 in primary nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Methods: Tissue samples from fifty patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) tumors were examined by loss of heterozygosity (LOH) and microsatellite instability (MSI) analysis with a panel of 8 microsatellite polymorphic markers distributed along the chromosome 16q22 24. Results: LOH was observed at one or more loci in 24 cases (48％ ) and the prevalence of MSI was detected in 9 cases (18％ ). But the genomic alterations scattered along the region, neither common deletion or instability region was found. Conclusions: The status of genetic stability in chromosome 16q22 24 suggests that the genomic alterations on chromosome 16q22 24 may be involved in the development of NPC.

Objective To investigate the expression of matrix metalloproteinase 7(MMP-7) mRNA in LOVO cells of colon cancer induced by TF/F Ⅶ a and its signal pathway.Methods We transfected LOVO cells stably with RNAi plasmid targeting to tissue factor to get TFRNAi LOVO cells and detected efficiency of interference in TFRNAi LOVO cells based on Western blot analysis;Expression of MMP-7 was evaluated in LOVO cells treated with 100 nmol/L FⅦa in 0 h、4 h、8 h、12 h、24 h based on RT-PCR and Northern blot.Expression of MMP-7mRNA was determined in quiescent LOVO cells treated with different doses of FⅦa(0 nmol/L、10nmol/L、50 nmol/L、100 nmol/L、200 nmol/L)for 8 h based on Northern blot.Quiescent LOVO cells were treated for 0 h、4 h、8 h、12 h、16 h、24 h with 100 nmol/L FⅦa to evaluate the expression of p-P38;The expression level of MMP-7mRNA induced by 100 nmol/L FⅦa for 8 h in LOVO cells blocked by 10retool SB203580 0.5 h previously and in TFRNAi LOVO cells were measured by Northern blot.Results Northern blot analysis revealed that FⅦa markedly increased the expression of MMP-7mRNA in a time-and dose-dependent manner.Western blot analysis confirmed that FⅦa stimulates p-P38 in a time-dependent manner.SB203580 block 59.2% expression of MMP-7mRNA in LOVO cells induced by TF/FⅦa.In TFRNAi LOVO cells,the expression of MMP-7mRNA induced by TF/FⅦa was 48% less than that in normal LOVO cells.Conclusions TF/FⅦa Complex induces the expression of MMP-7mRNA in LOVO cells in vitro,possibly through P38 pathway.

Objectives To construct the cancellous bone explant model and a method of culturing these bone tissues in vitro, and to investigate the effect of mechanical load on growth of cancellous bone tissue in vitro.
Methods Cancellous bone were extracted from rabbit femoral head and cut into 1-mm-thick and 8-mm-diameter slices under sterile conditions. HE staining and scanning electron microscopy were employed to identify the histomorphology of the model after being cultured with a new dynamic load and circulating perfusion bioreactor system for 0, 3, 5, and 7 days, respectively. We built a three-dimensional model using microCT and analyzed the loading effects using finite element analysis. The model was subjected to mechanical load of 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000μεrespectively for 30 minutes per day. After 5 days of continuous stimuli, the activities of alkaline phosphatase (AKP) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) were detected. Apoptosis was analyzed by DNA ladder detection and caspase-3/8/9 activity detection.
Results After being cultured for 3, 5, and 7 days, the bone explant model grew well. HE staining showed the apparent nucleus in cells at the each indicated time, and electron microscope revealed the living cells in the bone tissue. The activities of AKP and TRAP in the bone explant model under mechanical load of 3000 and 4000μεwere significantly lower than those in the unstressed bone tissues (all P<0.05). DNA ladders were seen in the bone tissue under 3000 and 4000μεmechanical load. Moreover, there was significant enhancement in the activities of caspase-3/8/9 in the mechanical stress group of 3000 and 4000με(all P<0.05).
Conclusions The cancellous bone explant model extracted from the rabbit femoral head could be alive at least for 7 days in the dynamic load and circulating perfusion bioreactor system, however, pathological mechanical load could affect the bone tissue growth by apoptosis in vitro. The differentiation of osteoblasts and osteoclasts might be inhibited after the model is stimulated by mechanical load of 3000 and 4000με.

Objective:To preliminarily verify the cross talk between tissue factor/active coagulation factor Ⅶ (TF/FⅦa) and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) pathways in human colon cancer cells in culture.Methods:FⅦa was treated to HT-29 (KRAS-wild type) and LoVo (KRAS-mutant) colon cancer cells to activate TF/F Ⅶa pathway,qRT-PCR and Western blot were used to detect the expressions of amphiregulin (AREG) and epiregulin (EREG),ligands of EGFR on mRNA and protein levels,respectively.After knocking down expression of TF by TF-targeted siRNA transfection,FⅦa was treated and mRNA expressions of AREG and EREG were detected to see whether the FⅦa-induced effects were dependent on TF.Expressions of mRNA of TF and FⅦwere detected by qRT-PCR following the activation of EGFR pathway by treatment with epidermal growth factor (EGF) to HT-29 and LoVo cells.Results:After TF/FⅦa pathway was activated,for HT-29 cells,expressions of AREG (on mRNA level) and EREG (both on mRNA and protein level) were significantly down-regulated versus those of control group,gene expressions of AREG and EREG were 0.55 ± 0.09 vs.0.99 ± 0.09,0.67 ± 0.10 vs.1.02 ± 0.02,protein expressions of EREG were 0.54 ± 0.09 vs.1.04 ± 0.13,all P ＜ 0.05.For LoVo cells,expressions of AREG (both on mRNA and protein level) and EREG (on protein level) were significantly up-regulated versus those of control group,gene expression of AREG were 1.87 ± 0.39 vs.0.93 ± 0.23,protein expressions of AREG and EREG were 3.09 ±0.73 vs.1.11 ±0.21,1.53 ±0.19 vs.0.97 ± 0.23,all P ＜0.05.The regulating effect of AREG and EREG mRNA expression by FⅦa in HT-29 and LoVo cells could both be partly blocked by knocking down TF expression.For HT-29 cells,activation of EGFR pathway induced no significant TF mRNA expression,F Ⅶ mRNA expression was not detected.However,for LoVo cells,activation of EGFR pathway induced significantly higher mRNA expressions of both TF and FⅦ,expressions were 1.53 ± 0.23 vs.1.00 ± 0.23,53.20 ± 6.08 vs.1.00 ± 0.15,all P ＜0.05.Conclusion:In colon cancer cell LoVo,when activated,TF/FⅦa pathway and EGFR pathway could interact through upregulating the other pathway's effectors,and mutant KRAS might play a critical role in the two pathways'cross talk.

Objective To design a VDT operation related upper extremities fatigue detection system using keying duration (KD)as an indicator of fatigue and to execute experimental verification.Methods The system included the software part able to calculate,compare and analyze KD and hardware part able to support normal VDT operations.Subjects finished typing task under controlled condition while the system was running. The flexor digitorum superficialis (FDS), extensor digitorum communis(EDC),extensor carpi radialis(ECR),extensor carpi ulnaris(ECU)muscle fatigue were retrieved by sEMG method and standardized questionnaire. Results As the number of keystrokes increased, KD shortened by 1.3%, FDS MVC% dropped by 22.9%,and EDC MVC% decreased by 47.9%.The perceived level of typing fatigue also increased.Conclusion Results revealed KD's change with fatigue,showing the possibility of using KD as an indicator of fatigue and validating the feasibility and effectiveness of the system design.