Objective To study CT features of thymoma,so that to improve the accuracy of CT diagnosis and differential diagnosis.Methods 31 cases of thymomas proved by surgery and pathology were examined with conventional CT scans.CT findings of thymoma were analyzed.Results The lesions in 27 cases(87.1%)were located in the anterior upper and middle mediastinum.There were benign lesion in 11,including mass-cardiovascular interface(MCI) with convex type(8 cases),flatness type(1 cases) and concave type(2 cases).20 cases were malignant lesion,including MCI with cast type(18 cases) and concave type(2 cases).Irregular invasion to adjacent organs was found in 11 cases,others included pericardiac effusion(n=6),pericardial and mediastinal invasion(n=2),pleural effusion(n=4),pneumonia(n=2),lung,bone,mediastinal lymphadens metastasis(n=2) and liver,pancreas metastasis(n=1).Conclusion CT scans is of significant value in diagnosis and differential diagnosis of thymoma.

Objective To discuss the effects of silencing of iASPP gene on human bladder cancer cells. Methods RNAi silencing of iASPP gene in bladder cancer cell 5637 and T24 cells were used by lentiviral mediated interfering short hairpin RNAs. Cell proliferation was tested by MTT assay, and rate of colony was tested by colony formation assay. Cell cycles were tested by using fluorescence-activated cell sorting. Results Down-regulation of iASPP could inhibit the growth and proliferation of human bladder cancer cells (P＜0.05). iASPP know-down could decrease the colony formation of 5637 and T24 cells (P＜0, 05). Knocking down of iASPP in 5637 and T24 cells showed cell arrested at G1. Conclusions Silencing of iASPP gene could inhibit proliferation and colony formation of bladder cancer, iASPP might be an important target for gene therapy of bladder cancer.

Objective: This study aimed to distinguish Serpentis Periostracum from its adulterants, which will provide the basis for its safe application. Methods: Here, COI sequences of 68 samples from 13 species were PCR amplified and sequenced. Furthermore, the DNA Barcoding Gap and phylogenetic cluster analysis were carried out. Results:The results exhibited that the COI sequences of all the three origin animals of Serpentis Periostracum have DNA Barcoding Gap. For phylogenetic cluster analysis, all the three origin animals showed monophyletic and every species can be discriminated clearly. Conclusion: COI is an effective DNA barcode for the identification of Serpen-tis Periostracum.

The COI gene as DNA barcode was used to identify the Manis pentadactyla and its adulterants in order to provide a scientific basis for the molecular identification of M. pentadactyla. Genomic DNA was extracted from experimental samples using the DNA extraction kit. The COI genes were amplified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequenced bi-directionally. Obtained sequences were assembled using the CodonCode Aligner. The neighbor-joining (NJ) tree was constructed by MEGA 6.0. The results indicated that COI sequences were successfully amplified and NJ trees results indicated that M. pentadactyla and its adulterants can be easily identification. Therefore, the COI gene is an efficient barcode for identification of M. pentadactyla and its adulterants,which will provide a new technique for the market supervision.
Animals ; Cattle ; DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic ; methods ; Drug Contamination ; prevention & control ; Electron Transport Complex IV ; genetics ; Mammals ; classification ; genetics ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phylogeny ; Quality Control ; Sheep ; Swine

In this study, the COI barcode was used to identify the Scolopendra medicinal materials and its adulterants in order to provide a new method for the identification of Scolopendra. Genomic DNA was extracted from the experimental samples. The COI sequences were amplified and sequenced bi-directionally. Sequence alignment and NJ tree construction was carried out by MEGA6.0 software. The results showed that the COI sequences can be obtained from all experimental samples. The average inter-specific K2P distance of Scolopendra was 0.222 and the minimum inter-specific distance was 0.190. All the Scolopendra subspinipes mutilans medicinal samples clustered into a clade in the NJ tree and can be distinguished from its adulterants. In a conclusion, COI can be used to correctly identify Scolopendra medicinal materials, and it will be a potential DNA barcode for identifying other animal medicinal materials.
Animals ; Arthropod Proteins ; genetics ; DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic ; methods ; Drug Contamination ; prevention & control ; Electron Transport Complex IV ; genetics ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phylogeny ; Quality Control ; Scorpions ; classification ; enzymology ; genetics

Objective To analyze the characteristics of toxin, the PCR-ribotyping(RT) and the multilocus sequence typing(MLST) of Clostridium difficile strains isolated from China-Japan Friendship Hospital in order to provide a basis for monitoring the outbreak of nosocomial Clostridium difficile infection.Methods A total of 321 samples were collected from the patients with suspected Clostridium difficile infection(CDI) in China-Japan Friendship Hospital(CJFH) during 2012 to 2013.All Clostridium difficile strains were isolated and identified by the standard phenotypic culture method.Cytotoxicity test was performed to detect toxin B.Toxin genes (tcdA and tcdB) and binary toxin genes (cdtA and cdtB) harbored by those strains were analyzed.RT and MLST were used for homologous analysis.Clinical data of the patients were collected to analyze the isolation rate of Clostridium difficile in different populations.Results Forty-eight strains of Clostridium difficile were isolated from 46 patients with diarrhea and three of them were isolated from the same patient.The incidence of CDI among all patients, outpatients and inpatients were 14.3%(46/321), 12.8%(5/39) and 14.5%(41/282), respectively.Toxin B was detected in all of the strains as indicated by the cytotoxicity test.Strains of sequence type 1(ST1) showed the strongest cytotoxicity of all the isolated Clostridium difficile strains.Ten out of the 48 strains (20.8%) were tcdA(-)/tcdB(+) strains, which belonged to either ST37 or ST81.The results of RT and MLST were consistent in assigning the strains into nine types, in which the predominant type was ST1/RT027 accounting for 27.1% (13/48).All of the ST1/RT027 strains presented a toxin gene profile of tcdA(+)/tcdB(+) and cdtA(+)/cdtB(+).Most of the ST1/RT027 strains were isolated from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Department of Respiratory, where smallnosocomial outbreaks of ST1/RT027 strain infection might happen.Conclusion CDI diagnosed in CJFH mainly belongs to nosocomial infection.Most of the isolated strains harbor tcdA(+)/tcdB(+) genes.Surveillance for the outbreaks of CDI caused by ST1/RT027 strains over producing toxins A and B should be strengthened in hospitals.

Abstract?AlM: To evaluate the visual impairment in cerebral palsy children with series objective indicators, and conclude their clinical features of visual function.? METHODS: Objective tests including following pursuing test, optokinetic nystagmus(OKN) drum test, refractive error examination, fundus examination, ocular deviation examination, pattern visual evoked potential ( P-VEP ) tests and brain magnetic resonance imaging ( MRl) were carried out in 43 cerebral palsy children ( 86 eyes ) with ocular visual dysfunction; The visual impairment data of the cerebral palsy children were collected, and the clinical features and possible mechanism were analyzed.?RESULTS: 1. Of the 43 cerebral palsy children ( 86 eyes) with the visual impairment presented diversified, 25 ( 50 eyes, 58. 1%) of refractive error, 24 ( 48 eyes, 55. 8%) of strabismus, 12 ( 24 eyes, 27. 9%) with nystagmus, 19 ( 38 eyes, 44. 2 %) of optical nerve atrophy or hyperplasia, 35 ( 70 eyes, 81. 4%) of VEP abnormality. Among children with spastic cerebral palsy, the incidence of visual impairment was statistically significant difference compared with other groups (P<0. 01). 2. There were 16 cases (32 eyes,37. 2%) with esotropia, 6 cases ( 12 eyes, 14. 0%) with exotropia and 2 cases ( 4 eyes, 4. 7%) with vertical deviation. Strabismus was most common in spastic cerebral palsy children, totally 13 (26 eyes, 30. 2%) with esotropia, and exotropia was common in hypotonia and other types cerebral palsy children; 3. 23 ( 46 eyes, 53. 5%) with hyperopia, 8 ( 16 eyes, 18. 6%) with myopia, 16 ( 32 eyes, 37. 2%) with astigmutism and 14 cases (28 eyes, 32. 6%) with anisometropia;4. Cerebral palsy children were usually with decreased VEP amplitude and prolong latency, and poor wave formation, mostly in spastic cerebral palsy children; 5. Visual abnormality was most common in occipital cortex damage and periventricular leukomalacia ( PVL ) . The incidence in PVL and occipital cortex had no statistically significant difference ( P > 0. 05 ), no nystagmus in patients with severe occipital cortex damage.?CONCLUSlON: Cerebral palsy children were usually with visual impairment, and presented with special clinical features; Comprehensive objective visual tests are accurate and reliable for evaluation of the visual function in cerebral palsy children.

Objective To explore the application value of multiphase dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (MDCE-MRI) in the early chemoradiation efficacy in cervical cancer.Methods Twenty-one patients with cervical cancer received chemoradiation.Routine MR scan and MDCE-MRI scan were examined at different stages, including pre-treatment, 15 days,1 month and 2 months after treatment.According to volume change of the tumor after treatment, the cases were mainly divided into complete remission(CR), partial remission (PR).The correlation between volume change of cancer after treatment and the time-signal intensity curve (TIC),mean time to enhancement(MTE),time to peak(TTP),maximum slope of increase(MSI),maximum slope of decrease(MSD), negative enhancement integral (NEI) were analysed.Results After system chemoradiation for 2 months,4 of enrolled patients got complete remission and 17 partial remission.The reduction rate of the tumor diameter was negatively correlated to MSI values(r=-0.877,P<0.05) and positively related with NEI (r=0.819,P<0.05) before the treatment.15 days after the treatment, the diminished rate of the tumor diameter had active relation with change of TTP(r=0.765,P<0.05) and NEI(r=0.775,P<0.05).It indicated that MSI and NEI values before cervical cancer chemoradiation and the variation of TTP and NEI after treatment for 15 days could help predict the variation tendency of cancer diameter.Chemoradiation and therapy 1 month later,for all the parameters'' AUC values,the change rate of NEI were the largest one.When the critical value was not less than 96.46%, the sensitivity was 82.4%, specificity was 75%.TIC curve of type Ⅰ increased, type Ⅲ decreased to disappear gradually.Conclusion MDCE-MRI can be used to predict the efficacy of chemoradiation in cervical cancer patients, of which the MSI, TTP and NEI are more sensitive.

Objective To design a multiplex PCR for simultaneous identification and toxigenic type characterization of Clostridium difficile isolates. MethodsThree pairs of primers were designed for the amplification of a species-specific internal fragment of the tpi( triose phosphate isomerase) gene, an internal fragment of the tcdB ( toxin B) gene, and an internal fragment of the tcdA ( toxin A) gene. Twenty-one standard strains including Clostridium difficile ATCC 9689 and 47 isolates of Clostridium difficile were applied for the assessment of detection limit, specificity and detections of the multiplex PCR, respectively. Toxin A and Toxin B of 47 isolates were analyzed by ELISA. ResultsThe detection limit for DNA concentration of the multiplex PCR was 0.5 pg/μl. The specificity was determined to be 100％. Among the results of 47 isolates detected by multiplex PC R, 37 strains were tpi ( + )/tcdA (+)/tcdB ( + ), 10 strains were tpi ( + )/tcdA (-)/tcdB ( - ). Tpi ( + )/tcdA ( - )/tcdB ( + ) was not found. The toxin detection of 47 isolates by ELISA showed that 20 isolates were positive and 27 isolates were negative. Twenty isolates of toxin (+) by ELISA were all tpi( +)/tcdA( +)/tcdB(+) by multiplex PCR. ConclusionThe multiplex PCR method combined diagnosis and toxigenic type characterization contributes to the diagnosis for Clostridium difficile infection.

DNA barcoding technology is widely opplied for species identification and discovery by using short and standard fragments of DNA sequences. In this study, the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) sequence as a DNA barcode was used to identify the Gekkogecko Linnaeus medicinal materials and adulterants in order to provide a new identification method of G. gecko Linnaeus. Genomic DNA was extracted from the experimental samples. The COI regions of nrDNA were amplified using polymerase chain reaction and sequenced bidirectionally. The alignment and NJ tree construction were performed in MEGA6.0. COI sequences can be obtained from all samples. The average intra-specific K2P distance of G. gecko Linnaeus was 0.005 and the maximum intra-specific distance was 0.013. All the G. gecko Linnaeus medicinal samples clustered into a clade in the NJ tree and can be distinguished from the adulterants. In a conclusion, COI can be used to correctly identify G. gecko Linnaeus, and it will be a potential DNA barcode for identification of other animal medicinal materials.