Objective To investigate the effects of acupuncture at bilateral ST36 (Zusanli) on attention networks in healthy subjects.Methods The attention network test was used to compare the effects of after acupuncture at ST36 with the effects of before acupuncture on the efficiency of three anatomically defined attention networks:alerting,orienting,and executive control in 40 health university students.Results The alerting network effect was significantly higher (t=4.125,P＜0.001) after acupuncture ((45.60±3.49) ms) than before acupuncture ((33.20±2.88) ms).The executive control network efficiency was significantly higher (t=2.638,P＜0.05) after acupuncture ((87.97±4.21) ms) than before acupuncture ((97.67±4.66) ms).The orienting network efficiency was higher after acupuncture than before acupuncture,but there was no significant difference (P＞0.05).The average reaction time was significantly lower (t=4.848,P＜0.001) after acupuncture ((559.13 ± 10.66) ms) than before acupuncture ((590.57±12.80) ms).Conclusions These results suggest that there are selective enhancements of the alerting and executive control networks after acupuncture,while the orienting network is spared.

Objective To determine attention networks impairmnet in patients with localized brain injury and to examine the characteristics of the impairment.Methods The attention network test was used to compare patients(n=59)with controls(n=53)on the efficiency of 3 anatomically defined attention networks:alerting,orienting,and executive control.Results Firstly,patients with frontal lobe injury showed a significant deficit in the executive network(frontal lobe injury,controls:(143.7±46.6),(91.6±46.4)ms,Z=-4.714,P＜0.01)and also a significant deficit in the orienting network(frontal lobe injury,controls:(71.2±35.2),(55.1±21.8)ms,Z=-2.125,P＜0.05).There was no deficit in the alerting network(Z=-0.901,P＞0.05).Secondly,the orienting network effect was significantly lower in patients with parietal lobe injury((34.9±25.2)ms)than in normal controls((55.1±21.8)ms.Z=-2.418.P＜0.05).However,there were no significant difierences between the other two networks and between the patients and the controls(Z=-1.873,-0.186.P＞0.05).Thirdly,patients with temporal lobe injury showed no deficit in the three networks(Z=-0.037,-1.224,-0.718,all P＞0.05)as well as in overall RT and accuracy(Z=-1.385,-0.699,all P＞0.05).Conclusions These results suggest that there are selective impairments of the orienting and executive networks in patients with the frontal lobe and the parietal lobe injury,while the alerting network is spared.Furthermore,the frontallobe plays a key role in the executive control.meanwhile,the orienting network is closely related with the parietal lobe.

Objective To analyze the profile of dermcidin (DCD) changes in different stages of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) by quantifying the serum 4 183Da DCD peptide fragment deriving from different ACS patients treated with early antithrombotic therapy.Methods A total of 118 patients with confirmed diagnosis of ACS were enrolled. Immediately after visiting a doctor, the venous blood was collected and afterwards instantly the patient was given orally 300 mg of aspirin and 300 mg clopidogrel, and according to the patient's condition and the consent of his/her or acknowledgement of family members achieved, emergency percutaneous coronary interference (PCI) or thrombolysis or conservative treatment was adopted separately. After anti-thrombotic treatment, at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 20, 24, 32, 40, 48, 60 and 72 hours, venous blood was collected and serum isolated respectively. The concentration of 4 183Da DCD fragment in serum was determined by matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). Simultaneously, the myoglobin (Myo), cardiac troponin I (cTnI) and MB isoenzyme of creatine kinase (CK-MB) were also detected.Results The mean relative strength of nature logarithmic transformations of 4 183Da DCD fragment of 118 patients with ACS was 2.75±1.02 before treatment on admission, and after intervention therapy (mainly antithrombotic therapy) it was decreased to 1.84±1.19 (P = 0.005) and 1.74±1.12 (P = 0.000) at 2 hours and 4 hours, respectively, and then after 4 hours it was slightly elevated. 4 183Da polypeptide increased earlier than myocardial injury markers.Conclusion Aspirin and clopidogrel can significantly decrease the concentration of 4 183Da DCD peptide fragment in serum in patients with ACS, which indicates that the DCD fragment could be used as one of the indexes for observation on early efficacy of antithrombotic therapy.

Clinical study of modified Ganmai Dazao decoction in the treatment of yang deficiency climacteric depression and observe the effects of modified Ganmai Dazao decoction on neuroendocrine system in patients with yang deficiency climacteric depression. 86 cases were randomly divided into treatment group treated with modified Ganmai Dazao decoction and control group treated with Deanxit. The curative effect was evaluated with Hamilton's depressive scale (HAMD) and pittsburgh sleep quality scale (PSQI) before and at the end of the two and four weeks of the treatment, the serum levels of serotonin (5-HT), norepinephrine (NE), estradiol (E2), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteotropic hormone (LH) were detected before and after the four weeks of the treatment The results showed that the total effective power of treatment group was 88.4% and the total effective power of control group was 81.4% after four weeks interference, with insignificant difference between the two groups. After two and four weeks of the treatment, the score of HAMD decreased remarkably in both groups (P < 0.01), with insignificant difference between the two groups in same phase. After two and four weeks of the treatment, the total score of PSQI decreased remarkably in both groups (P < 0.05), with significant difference between the two groups after four weeks (P < 0.01). After four weeks of treatment, the serum levels of 5-HT and NE increased (P < 0.01), with insignificant difference between the groups. After four weeks of treatment, the serum levels of E2 increased obviously (P < 0.05), the levels of FSH decreased obviously (P < 0.05), the levels of LH decreased insignificant, with insignificant difference between two groups. This study indicates that modified Ganmai Dazao decoction has obvious therapeutic effects in the treatment of climacteric depression, and showed equivalent efficacy with Deanxit, and modified Ganmai Dazao decoction has better effect on improving the sleep quality in patients than Deanxit, the effect of improved clinical symptoms may be through adjusted levels of 5-HT, NE, E2, FSH and LH of climacteric depression.
Adult ; Depression ; blood ; drug therapy ; etiology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; Female ; Follicle Stimulating Hormone ; blood ; Humans ; Menopause ; drug effects ; psychology ; Middle Aged ; Neurosecretory Systems ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Norepinephrine ; blood ; Phytotherapy ; Serotonin ; blood

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of extended-field intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in the treatment of patients with early-stage NK/T cell lymphoma (NKTCL),and to examine the clinical characteristics and the effect of treatment factors on the prognosis of these patients.Methods The clinical data of 165 patients with early-stage NKTCL who underwent extended-field IMRT with (n=158,95.8%) or without chemotherapy (n=7,4.2%) were reviewed.Of these 165 patients,140(84.8%) received a radiation dose of ≥50 Gy to the primary lesion,and 25 patients (15.2%) received a radiation dose of<50 Gy.Most patients (n=147,89.1%) were treated with L-asparaginase-based chemotherapy regimens,whereas only 11 patients (6.7%) were treated with doxorubicin-based CHOP/CHOP-like regimens.In addition,109 patients (66.1%) received ≥4 cycles of chemotherapy.Locoregional control (LRC),overall survival (OS),and progression-free survival (PFS) rates were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method,and the log-rank test was used for survival comparison and univariate prognostic analysis.A multivariate prognostic analysis was performed using the Cox model.Results The 5-year sample size 55.The 5-year OS,PFS,and LRC rates of all patients were 74.2%,72.5%,84.4%,respectively.The patients who received a dose of ≥50 Gy had a significantly higher 5-year LRC rate than those with<50 Gy (91.8% vs.39.7%,P=0.000).The 5-year OS was significantly higher in the low-risk early-stage group than in the high-risk early-stage group (P=0.002).For the high-risk early-stage NKTCL group,patients who received ≥4 cycles of chemotherapy had significantly higher 5-year OS and PFS than those who received<4 cycles of chemotherapy (5-year OS:71.3% vs.59.5%,P=0.032;5-year PFS:70.4% vs.54.4%,P=0.009).In addition,multivariate analysis showed that ECOG≥2,primary tumor invasion (PTI),and Ann Arbor stage Ⅱ were associated with poor OS (P=0.006,0.002,0.014),and ECOG≥2 and PTI were associated with reduced LRC (P=0.004,0.016).Furthermore,ECOG≥2,PTI,Ann Arbor stage Ⅱ,and extranasal primary site were associated with lower PFS (P=0.045,0.003,0.030,0.032).Conclusions Extended-field IMRT at a dose of ≥50 Gy can lead to favorable LRC,OS,and PFS in patients with early-stage NKTCL.However,it is less effective against distant early-stage NKTCL in patients with poor prognosis.Nevertheless,≥4 cycles of chemotherapy can significantly improve the OS and PFS of patients with early-stage NKTCL.

BACKGROUNDSelective attention is considered one of the main components of cognitive functioning. A number of studies have demonstrated gender differences in cognition. This study aimed to investigate the gender differences in selective attention in healthy subjects.

METHODSThe present experiment examined the gender differences associated with the efficiency of three attentional networks: alerting, orienting, and executive control attention in 73 healthy subjects (38 males). All participants performed a modified version of the Attention Network Test (ANT).

RESULTSFemales had higher orienting scores than males (t = 2.172, P < 0.05). Specifically, females were faster at covert orienting of attention to a spatially cued location. There were no gender differences between males and females in alerting (t = 0.813, P > 0.05) and executive control (t = 0.945, P > 0.05) attention networks.

CONCLUSIONSThere was a significant gender difference between males and females associated with the orienting network. Enhanced orienting attention in females may function to motivate females to direct their attention to a spatially cued location.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Attention ; Executive Function ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Orientation ; Reaction Time ; Sex Characteristics

BACKGROUNDOver past two decades, vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) has been widely used and reported to alleviate seizure frequency worldwide, however, so far, only hundreds of patients with pharmaco-resistant epilepsy (PRE) have been treated with VNS in mainland China. The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of VNS for Chinese patients with PRE and compare its relationship with age cohort and gender.

METHODSWe retrospectively assessed the clinical outcome of 94 patients with PRE, who were treated with VNS at Beijing Fengtai Hospital and Beijing Tiantan Hospital between November 2008 and April 2014 from our database of 106 consecutive patients. The clinical data analysis was retrospectively examined.

RESULTSSeizure frequency significantly decreased with VNS therapy after intermittent stimulation of the vagus nerve. At last follow-up, we found McHugh classifications of Class I in 33 patients (35.1%), Class II in 27 patients (28.7%), Class III in 20 patients (21.3%), Class IV in 3 patients (3.2%), and Class V in 11 patients (11.7%). Notably, 8 (8.5%) patients were seizure-free while ≥50% seizure frequency reduction occurred in as many as 60 patients (63.8%). Furthermore, with regard to the modified Engel classification, 12 patients (12.8%) were classified as Class I, 11 patients (11.7%) were classified as Class II, 37 patients (39.4%) were classified as Class III, 34 patients (36.2%) were classified as Class IV. We also found that the factors of gender or age are not associated with clinical outcome.

CONCLUSIONSThis comparative study confirmed that VNS is a safe, well-tolerated, and effective treatment for Chinese PRE patients. VNS reduced the seizure frequency regardless of age or gender of studied patients.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Drug Resistance ; Epilepsy ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome ; Vagus Nerve Stimulation ; methods ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo analyze the relationship between the expression of FasL, Perforin and Granzyme B and the development of acute graft versus host disease (aGVHD) after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT).

METHODSThe peripheral blood mRNA expression of granzyme B, perforin, fasL from 17 patients after allo-HSCT was detected by competitive quantitative RT-PCR and the relationship between FasL, Granzyme B and Perforin expressions and clinical symptom of aGVHD was analyzed.

RESULTSThe expression level of Granzyme B, Perforin and FasL was 4.6 +/- 0.2, 4.5 +/- 0.1, 1.4 +/- 0.1 before aGVHD occurrence respectively, and was 98.7 +/- 2.5, 91.8 +/- 3.4, 61.5 +/- 2.2, after the occurrence in 14 patients (P < or = 0.05). Over expressions of Granzyme B, Perforin, and FasL during acute GVHD were detected in 13 of 14, 12 of 14, and 12 of 14 patients respectively. The upregulated expressions occurred prior to clinical symptom of aGVHD.

CONCLUSIONThe expressions of Granzyme B, Perforin, and FasL were significantly high in patients with acute aGVHD. Monitoring of the expressions, might predict the occurrence of clinical aGVHD and it severity and prognosis.

Acute Disease ; Adult ; Fas Ligand Protein ; genetics ; Female ; Gene Expression ; Graft vs Host Disease ; blood ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Granzymes ; genetics ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; adverse effects ; methods ; Humans ; Male ; Perforin ; genetics ; Postoperative Complications ; blood ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Prognosis ; RNA, Messenger ; blood ; genetics ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Transplantation, Homologous

OBJECTIVETo study the effect of buffer on separate capacity of macroporous resin. To evaluate the quality of ferulic acid liposome and determine its entrapment efficiency.

METHODDifferent type of macroporous resin counterpoised by buffer system of Na2 HPO3-NaH2, PO3 was used to separate the free ferulic acid from the preparation and HPLC was used to determine the concentration of the ferulic acid to calculate the entrapment efficiency.

RESULTThis method had good linearity in the range of 0.56 - 2.8 g x mL(-1) (r = 0.999 6). The precision RSD was less than 1.1%. The adsorption effect of macroporous resin on liposome was reduced while it had no effect on the absorption ability of macroporous resin on the ferulic acid by the usage of buffer. The recovery of HPD450 resin on blank liposome was between 97.2% - 100.8%, while the average recovery is 98.1%.

CONCLUSIONBuffer system can enhance the separate ability of macroporous resin on liposome and free drug.

Adsorption ; Buffers ; Coumaric Acids ; administration & dosage ; analysis ; Drug Carriers ; Liposomes ; Quality Control ; Resins, Synthetic

Deep Brain Stimulation ; methods ; Essential Tremor ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged