Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Asparaginase ; pharmacology ; HL-60 Cells ; Humans ; K562 Cells ; U937 Cells

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the efficacy and safety of testosterone undecanoate (TU) in the treatment of late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) by meta-analysis.

METHODSWe searched Pubmed (until April 1, 2014), Embase (until March 28, 2014), Cochrane Library (until April 17, 2014), CBM (from January 1, 2001 to February 2, 2014), CNKI (from January 1, 2001 to February 2, 2014), Wanfang Database (from January 1, 2000 to February 2, 2014), and VIP Database (from January 1, 2000 to Febru ary 2, 2014) for randomized controlled trials of TU for the treatment of LOH. We evaluated the quality of the identified literature and performed meta-analysis on the included studies using the Rveman5. 2 software.

RESULTSTotally, 14 studies were included after screening, which involved 1 686 cases. Compared with the placebo and blank control groups, TU treatment significantly increased the levels of serum total testosterone (SMD = 6.22, 95% CI 3.99 to 8.45, P < 0.05) and serum free testosterone (SMD = 4.35, 95% CI 1.86 to 6. 85, P < 0.05) but decreased the contents of luteinizing hormone (WMD = -2.23, 95% CI -4.03 to -0.42, P < 0.05), sex hormone binding globulin (WMD = 2.00, 95% CI 1.38 to 2.63, P < 0.05). TU also remarkably reduced the scores of Partial Androgen Deficiency of the Aging Males (WMD = -9.49, 95% CI -12.96 to -6.03, P < 0.05) and Aging Males Symptoms rating scale (WMD = -2.76, 95% CI -4.85 to -0.66, P <0.05) but increased the hemoglobin level (SMD = 2.35, 95% CI 0.29 to 4.41, P < 0.05) and packed-cell volume (SMD = 4.35, 95% CI 1.36 to 7.33, P < 0.05). However, no significant changes were shown in aspertate aminotransferase, alanine transaminase, prostate-specific antigen, or prostate volume after TU treatment (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONTU could significantly increase the serum testosterone level and improve the clinical symptoms of LOH patients without inducing serious adverse reactions. However, due to the limited number and relatively low quality of the included studies, the above conclusion could be cautiously applied to clinical practice.

Androgens ; therapeutic use ; Hemoglobin A ; metabolism ; Humans ; Hypogonadism ; blood ; drug therapy ; Luteinizing Hormone ; blood ; Male ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin ; metabolism ; Testosterone ; adverse effects ; analogs & derivatives ; blood ; pharmacology

Aged ; Coal Mining ; Electrocardiography ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pneumoconiosis ; complications ; physiopathology ; Tachycardia ; etiology

ObjectiveTo investigate the expression and distribution of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in renal tissue of HBV associated nephropathy (HBV-GN) and its role in the pathogenesis and clinical manifestations of HBV-GN.MethodsRenal tissues were sampled from 48 HBV-GN patients confirmed by renal biopsy and 154 non-HBV-GN patients.The distribution of TLR4 in renal tissue and the relationship between the distribution of TLR4 and HBsAg were detected by immunohistochemistry.Integrating case record,correlations between the expression of TLR4 with clinical parameters including pathology,glomeruli,kidney tubules lesions,renal interstitial inflammatory infiltration and blood serum HBV were analyzed.ResultsTLR4 mainly distributed in the renal tubular epithelial cells and interstitial areas as brownish red and granular,which was in consistent with HBsAg distribution.The TLR4 positive rate and score in HBV-GN group were higher than those in non-HBV-GN group (P ＜ 0.05 ).TLR4 positive score was slightly higher in mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis group and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis group,which had no significant difference (P ＞ 0.05).Kidney tubules lesions were strongly associated with TLR4 expression (r =0.748,P ＜ 0.001 ) which increased with aggravation of renal interstitial fibrosis ( r =0.569,P ＜0.001 ),tubular atrophy ( r =0.577,P ＜ 0.001 ) and inflammatory cell infiltration ( r =0.684,P ＜0.001 ).No obvious correlation with glomeruli lesions was observed ( r =0.293,P =0.053 ).Negative correlation could be seen between TLR4 and the renal function ( R2 =0.784),systolic blood pressure ( R2 =0.869),high sensitivity C-reactive protein (R2 =0.979) and urinary protein (R2 =0.615 ) by regression analysis.Other clinical parameters had no statistical significances.ConclusionsThe expression of TLR4 is abnormal in the renal tissue of HBV-GN patients,mainly in renal tubular epithelial cells and interstitial,which is consistent with the distribution of HBsAg.Its intensity is closely related with renal interstitial lesions,renal function changes and inflammatory cell infiltration.A speculation,that HBV can promote abnormal expression of TLR4 in renal tissues of HBV-GN which may be involved in the lesion progress of HBV-GN,is made upon our study.

Objective To investigate the expression of Notch 1 receptor in renal tissues of patients with hepatitis B virus associated-glomerulonephritis (HBV-GN) and its role in the pathogenesis of HBV-GN.Methods A total of 48 patients with HBV-GN confirmed by renal biopsy during 2008-2010 were enrolled in the study.Distribution of Notch1 receptor in renal tissue of HBV-GN was detected by immunohistochemistry and the association between the distribution of Notch1 receptor and HBsAg was examined by double-label immunofluorescence assays.Correlations of Notch1 receptor expression with renal pathology and clinical parameters of HBV-GN were analyzed.Results Notch1 receptor distributed mainly in renal tubular epithelial cells and interstitial area as brownish red granules,and a few expression in glomerulus was also found.The positive score of Notch1 receptor expression in HBV-GN patients was significantly higher as compared to primary glomerulonephritis patients with serum HBsAg positive or negative and normal renal tissue controls.Notch1 receptor expression was more obvious in membrano-proliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN) and mesangial proliferative nephritis (MsPGN) patients,but there was no significant difference among the different pathology groups.Distribution of Notch1 receptor was consistent with the distribution of HBsAg and its intensity was positively correlated with renal interstitial fibrosis (r=0.473,P=0.001),tubular atrophy (r=0.690,P=0.000),inflammatory cell infiltration (r=0.616,P=0.000).Negative correlation was found between renal function and the intensity of Notch1 receptor (r=-0.393,P=0.006).Conclusions Notch1 receptor expression increases in the renal tissues of HBV-GN patients and distributes mainly in renal tubular epithelial cells and interstitium,which is consistent with the distribution of HBsAg.Its intensity is closely correlated with renal interstitial lesions and renal function.Abnormal expression of Notchl receptor in renal tissue of HBV-GN may be involved in the progress of HBV-GN.

Objective To investigate the role of vitamin D3 in anti-pancreatic cancer.Methods After treatment of different concentrations of vitamin D3 on PANC1 cells (25,50,75,100μmol/L),MTT assay was used to detect the growth inhibition rates of PANC1 cells,the early apoptotic rates of the cell were detected by flow cytometry,PTCH and Gli-1 mRNA expression were detected by RT-PCR method,and cells without treatment were used as control.Results The vitamin D3 inhibited the proliferation of PANC1 cells in a dose-dependent manner,the highest inhibition rate was at 48 hours.After 48 hours,the control group,25,50,75,100 μmol/L vitamin D3 groups' inhibition rates were 0,16.1％,18.8％,31.8％ and 39.4％,the differences among these groups were statistically significance (P ＜ 0.05).After 24 hours,the control group,25,50,75,100μmol/L vitamin D3 groups' early apoptotic rates were (5.89 ±0.57)％,(6.06 ±0.44)％,(16.21 ± 1.62)％,(16.94± 0.91)％ and (20.96 ± 0.98)％,early apoptotic rates were inhibited in a dose-dependent manner,and the differences was statistically significance (P ＜ 0.05).After 24 hours,the control group,25,50,75,100μmol/L vitamin D3 groups' PTCH mRNA expression were 0.117 ± 0.009,0.104 ± 0.011,0.069 ± 0.011,0.052 ± 0.009 and 0.056 ± 0.007,meanwhile the Gli-1 mRNA expressions were 0.323 ± 0.007,0.312 ± 0.015,0.299 ± 0.015,0.233 ± 0.007 and 0.175 ± 0.014,all in a declining trend with the increase of concentration,and the difference was statistically significant (P ＜ 0.05).After 75 μmol/L vitamin D3's intervention in 0,12,24,36 and 48 hours,the expression of PTCH mRNA were 0.142±0.008,0.127± 0.009,0.111± 0.010,0.115± 0.003 and 0.102± 0.007,meanwhile the expression of Gli-1 mRNA were 0.341 ± 0.011,0.317 ± 0.017,0.320 ± 0.018,0.226 ± 0.011 and 0.191 ±0.010,all in a declining trend with time,and the difference was statistically significance (p＜0.05).Conclusions Vitamin D3 can effectively inhibit the proliferation of PANC1 cells and promote its apoptosis,and these effects may be related to blocking of hedgehog signaling pathway.

Objective To investigate the value of the bedside index for severity in acute pancreatitis (BISAP),Ranson's,APACHE Ⅱ and computed tomography severity index (CTSI) scoring system in evaluating the severity of acute pancreatitis.Methods The clinical data of 385 patients with acute pancreatitis who were admitted to the Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University from 2005 to 2011 were retrospectively analyzed.The values of 4 scoring systems including BISAP,Ranson's,APACHE Ⅱ and CTSI in predicting the incidences of severe acute pancreatitis,local complications and death were investigated by Chi-square test and receiver operating characteristic curv e.Odds ratio (OR) was calculated.The differences of areas under the curves (AUC) were analyzed using the Z test.Results The incidences of severe acute pancreatitis,local complications and mortality of patients with BISAP score ≥ 3 were 64.4％ (56/87),16.1％ (14/87) and 8.0％ (7/87),which were significantly higher than 13.4％ (40/298),6.4％ (19/298) and 0.3 ％ (1/298) of patients with BISAP score ≤ 2 (x2 =93.4,8.1,19.7,P ＜ 0.05).The incidences of severe acute pancreatitis,local complications and mortality of patients with Ranson's score≥3 were 52.7％ (48/91),22.0％ (20/91) and 7.7％ (7/91),which were significantly higher than 16.3％ (48/294),4.4％ (13/294) and 0.3％ (1/294) of patients with Ranson's score ≤2 (x2 =49.2,27.3,18.5,P ＜0.05).The incidences of severe acute pancreatitis,local complications and mortality of patients with APACHE Ⅱ score ≥ 8 were 46.6％ (27/58),20.7％ (12/58) and 8.6％ (5/58),which were significantly higher than 21.1％ (69/327),6.4％ (21/327) and 0.9％ (3/327) of patients with APACHE Ⅱ score≤7 (x2 =17.0,12.8,14.4,P ＜0.05).The incidences of severe acute pancreatitis,local complications and mortality of patients with CTSI score ≥4 were 51.4％ (19/37),51.4％ (19/37),16.2％ (6/37),which were significantly higher than 22.2％ (77/347),4.0％ (14/347),0.6％ (2/347) of patients with CTSI score≤3 (x2 =15.1,95.3,40.1,P ＜ 0.05).The sensitivity,specificity,positive and negative predictive values of BISAP were 58％,89％,64％,86％,respectively,and the AUC was 0.848,which were significantly higher than the other 3 systems (Z =2.02,4.22,4.78,P ＜ 0.05).The sensitivity,specificity,positive and negative predictive values of CTSI were 58％,95％,51％ and 96％,respectively,and the AUC was 0.926,which was significantly higher than the other 3 systems (Z =3.99,3.24,4.06,P ＜ 0.05).The sensitivity,specificity,positive and negative predictive values of BISAP were 88％,79％,8％ and 100％,respectively,and the AUC was 0.855,with no significant difference compared with the other 3 systems (Z =0.81,0.03,0.14,P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions The accurate rate of BISAP in predicting the severe acute pancreatitis is higher than Ranson's,APACHE Ⅱ and CTSI.The accurate rate of CTSI in predicting the incidence of local complications is higher than the other 3 systems.There is no significant difference of the 4 systems in predicting the mortality.The BISAP scoring system is helpful in early diagnosis of severe acute pancreatitis,and making the individualized treatment plan,thus improving the prognosis of patients.

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is one of the common male diseases, which affects 15,200 men in the world. Recent discovery has shown the important role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in ED. This paper updates the researches on the role of ROS in ED, expounds the relationship of ROS with various risk factors of ED, and outlines the advances in the anti-oxidation treatment of the problem.
Erectile Dysfunction ; etiology ; Humans ; Male ; Reactive Oxygen Species

The purpose of this research is to construct a kind of 3D-Scaffold with galactose-carrying polysaccharide for improving the function of hepatocytes in vitro. Galactose moieties were covalently coupled with hyaluronic acid through ethylenediamine. Galactosylated hyaluronic acid/chitosan scaffolds were prepared by lyophilization. The characteristics of the scaffolds such as morphology, hydrophilicity, and mechanical properties were investigated. The results indicated that the porosity and the pore size of the scaffolds made in -20 degrees C were useful used for culturing hepatocytes. And, the incorporating of hyaluronic acid in chitosan network improved the hydrophilicity and mechanical properties of the scaffolds. Rat primary hepatocytes growing in the scaffolds observed by phase-contrast microscope showed the multicellular spheroid morphologies. Therefore, galactosylated hyaluronic acid/chitosan scaffolds could be used as a promising scaffold for liver tissue engineering.
Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Chitosan ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Galactose ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Hepatocytes ; physiology ; ultrastructure ; Hyaluronic Acid ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Liver ; physiology ; ultrastructure ; Porosity ; Rats ; Tissue Engineering ; Tissue Scaffolds ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo investigate the therapeutic efficacy of standard antiviral therapy applied after interferon (IFN) treatment failure in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC).

METHODSCHC patients who completed a 48-week course of IFN therapy (pegylated (Peg)-IFNa-2a at 180 mug, qw, ih with or without ribavirin (RBV) at 15 mg/kg/w) in our hospital between January 2009 and June 2012 but who showed no response (at week 48) or who relapsed (at week 72) were enrolled in the study. Prior to initiating the 48-week course of retreatment therapy (Peg-IFNa-2a plus RBV as above), the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype was detected and the viral load measured (baseline) by PCR of HCV RNA. Each patient's response to therapy was classified as follows: baseline vs. week 4 (rapid virological response, RVR), vs. weeks 12 and 24 (early virological response, EVR), vs. week 48 (end of treatment virological response, ETVR) and vs. week 72 (sustained virological response, SVR).

RESULTSOf the total 235 cases administered retreatment therapy, 60.0% (n = 140) achieved RVR, 77.4% (n = 182) achieved EVR, 83.8% (n = 197) achieved ETVR, 68.0% (n = 68%) achieved SVR, and 15.7% (n = 37) relapsed. Stratification analysis of recurrence (n = 158) and non-responsive (n = 77) sub-groups showed that the recurrence group experienced significantly higher rates of RVR, EVR, ETVR and SVR, but a significantly lower rate of relapse. Stratification analysis of genotype 1b carrier (n = 206) and non-1b carrier (n = 29) sub-groups showed that the 1b carriers had significantly lower rates of RVR, EVR, ETVR and SVR, but a significantly higher rate of relapse. Finally, the patients who achieved RVR (vs. non RVR, n = 95) and EVR (vs. non-EVR, n = 53) showed higher rates of SVR and ETVR.

CONCLUSIONCHC patients who fail to respond to the initial course of standard IFN-based therapy may achieve SVR upon retreatment, especially those infected with the HCV genotype 1b.

Adult ; Antiviral Agents ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Genotype ; Hepacivirus ; genetics ; Hepatitis C, Chronic ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Interferon-alpha ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Interferons ; therapeutic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polyethylene Glycols ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Recombinant Proteins ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Retreatment ; Ribavirin ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Treatment Failure