Only limited species of animals with vomiting reflex are available for the vomiting animal models. From 1980s some new vomiting models have been developed, such as in ferret, which is convinced its vomiting behavior is closest to human being; Suncus murinus(house musk shrew)is the smallest mammal used in vomiting model and the most sensitive animal to motion sickness; rat, although without vomiting reflex, but consuming non-nutritive substance such as kaolin(pica) can be considered to be an index of nausea and vomiting; mink, from the same genus as ferret, can be a substitute of ferret in vomiting model. It should be noted that the sensitivity profile to different emetic stimuli is species-dependent.

AIM To establish radioligand binding assay of gastrin receptor in rat gastric parietal cell. METHODS Using 125 I labeled [Leu 15 ] gastrin 17 I as the radioligand, rat gastric parietal cells as the receptor preparations. RESULTS In the range of the study, a Scatchard plot of the binding was made by Ligand program with an equilibrium K d of approximately 1 249?10 -10 mol?L -1 and a maximum binding capacity of 4 4604?10 -12 mol?L -1 . The amount of gastrin binding was strongly associated with the cell concentration of rat gastric parietal cell preparations ranged from 0 25?10 9 to 2?10 9 cells?L -1 . The variant coefficent of the binding assay was 7 04% within the same sample. The competitive inhibiting analyses showed that 125 I gastrin was bound to gastric parietal cell preparations with a high specificity. CONCLUSION The radioligand binding assay of gastrin receptor in rat gastric parietal cell preparations meets the criteria for establishing receptor binding assay.

The method of PBL (problem based learning) teaching in China is widely recognized. However, the characteristics of Vocational Medical Education limit its wider application. The paper discusses the mode which is suitable for our country by analyzing the major issues,improving methods of teaching and doing experiments.

BACKGROUND: Osteoporosis is easily seen in postmenopausal women. The bone loss situation is different among populations of different age and body mass.OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effects of age, menopausal duration,menopause age, height, body mass and body mass index on bone mineral density (BMD) in postmenopausal women.DESIGN: Random sampling test was conducted to postmenopausal women.SETTING: A clinical trial center of a provincial Chinese traditional medicine research institute, an orthopaedic department of a university hospital and a bone wound department of a university.PARTICIPANTS: Totally 603 naturally postmenopausal women in Fuzhou area from September 2000 to August 2003.METHODS: Random sampling method was used. The age of participants,menopausal duration, menopause age, height, body mass and bone mineral index(BMI) were recorded. Dual energy X-ray bone mineral density machine was used to examine the bone mineral density of lumbar, neck of femur, great trochanter and Ward' s area while SPSS software was used to conduct regression analysis.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The correlation between age,menopausal years, menopause age, height, body mass, BMI and bone density as well as the regression equation.RESULTS: There was very significant correlation between age, menopausal duration, body mass, BMI of postmenopausal women and bone mineral density of lumbar, neck of femur, great trochanter and Ward' s area. The BMD in low body mass group is greatly lower than that of obesity group( P ＜ 0.01 ). The main factors impacting BMD of lumbar are in turn age, body mass and menopause age while the regression equation: y = 0. 927 - 0. 0093 X1+ 0. 0037X2 + 0. 004X3. The factors impacting BMD of neck of femur are in turn menopausal duration, body mass, menopause age and the regression equation was: y = 0. 687 - 0. 0081 X1 + 0. 0048 X2 - 0. 0034 X3. And the factors affecting BMD of greattrochanter are age, body mass and menopause age while the regression equation was y = 0. 591 - 0. 0038 X1 + 0. 0042 X2 - 0. 0024 X3. Age, body mass index and menopausal duration are main factors affecting BMD of Ward' s area and the regression equation was y =0. 686 -0. 0072 X1 +0. 0136 X2 -0. 0046 X3.CONCLUSION: The BMD of lumbar and hip gradually decreases with the increase of age in postmenopausal women. The risk of getting osteoporosis in people with low body mass is greater than women in normal body mass groupand obesity group.

BACKGROUND: It has reported that nicotinamide is capable of protecting intervertebral disc (IVD) against interleukin-1β (IL-1β) or tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) induced degeneration. However, the protective mechanism of nicotinamide on IVD cells apoptosis and proliferation remains unclear.OBJECTIVE: To investigate regulatory effects of nicotinamide on rabbit nucleus pulposus cell apoptosis and proliferation in vitro.DESIGN, TIME AND SETTING: Randomized control grouping design, which was carried out in the Laboratory of Orthopaedics and Stem Cell Center, Union Hospital Affiliated to Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology from April to October 2007.MATERIALS: Ten Japanese white rabbits (aged 2-3 months weighing 1.5-2.0 kg) were used in this study. Furthermore, nucleus pulposus cells obtained from L1-6 lumbar spine were harvested and cultured for further experiments.METHODS: The NP cells were divided into 6 groups, including control group (without any drug as control), nicotinamide group (0.5 g/L nicotinamide), IL-1β group (10 μg/L IL-1β), IL-1β + caspase group (10 μg/L IL-1β and non-specific caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK), IL-1β + small-dose nicotinamide group (10 μg/L IL-1β and 0.05 g/L nicotinamide), and IL-1β + large-dose nicotinamide group (10 μg/L IL-1β and 0.5 g/L nicotinamide). After 3 days of culture, the cells were examined with Annexin V-PI staining, caspase-3, 8 and 9 activity staining and MTT assay.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The apoptotic rates, the positive rates of caspase-3, 8 and 9 activity staining and the absorbance of MTT assay of each group.RESULTS: ① As compared to IL-1β group, the apoptotic rates were decreased in the IL-1β + caspase group and IL-1β + large-dose nicotinamide group (P < 0.01). ②As compared to IL-1β group, the positive rates of caspase-3, 8 and 9 activity staining were decreased in the IL-1β + caspase group, IL-1β + large-dose and small-dose nicotinamide groups (P < 0.01 or P < 0.01). ③As compared to IL-1β group, the absorbance was increased in the IL-1β + caspase group and IL-1β + large-dose nicotinamide group (P < 0.01).CONCLUSION: Nicotinamide is capable of promoting cell proliferation and inhibiting IL-1β induced apoptosis of nucleus pulposus cells in vitro. The inhibition of apoptosis mainly acts via inhibition of the mitochondrial pathway.

Objective To investigate the effects of artesunate( Art) on renal function and the expression of monocyte chemotactic protein-1(MCP-1)and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)in rats with type 2 diabetic nephropathy(DN). Methods Thirty six male SD rats were randomly divided into six groups, six rats in each, as the normal control, model control, low-dose Art, middle-dose Art, high-dose Art groups which were intragastrically administrated with Art at the dose of 10, 20 and 30 mg·kg-1 ·d-1 for consecutive 8 weeks, enalapril group, which were intragastrically administrated with enalapril 10 mg·kg-1 ·d-1 for consecutive 8 weeks. Rats were injected with low dosage streptozotocin and fed with high fat and high sugar diets to establish type 2 diabetic nephropathy rat model. After 8 weeks’ treatment, the plasma glucose, 24-hour urine protein, serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen were measured to evaluate renal function. The pathological morphology of rats was performed. Immunohistochemistry and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay ( ELISA ) were performed to examine the expression levels of MCP-1 and TNF-α,respectively. Results Compared with the model control group, 24-hour urine protein, serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen and blood glucose were significantly decreased in the treatment groups (P<0. 01). Art significantly decreased the serum expressions of MCP-1 and TNF-α in low-, middle-, high-dose Art group ( 157. 47 ± 38. 53, 138.65±18.03,105.09±12. 64 and 3. 14±0. 38,2. 58±0. 11,2. 25±0. 16) pg·mL-1, compared with model control group (181.71±23.06 and 3. 98±0. 24) pg·mL-1(P<0. 05). Conclusion Art has beneficial effects on type 2 diabetic nephropathy. The mechanism of which may be related to the inhibition of inflammatory factor MCP-1 and TNF-α,further relive the pathological injury of kidney and delay the progress of diabetic nephropathy to some extent.

Objective To investigate the efficacy of the clinical pathway in geriatric orthope-dics clinical teaching. Methods From March 2010 to December 2011, 80 clinical undergraduates, who practiced in the Department of Orthopedics in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medi-cal University, were equally randomized divided into two groups. One group was taught by the con-ventional methods and the other group was taught by the clinical pathway teaching. After the teaching, the theoretical exam and operational skill test were performed among students in both groups. SPSS 17.0 software was employed and the scores before and after the teaching and scores between two groups was analyzed by paired t-test(inspection level α=0.05). Results There was no significant difference in average scores between two groups before teaching(theoretical exam: P=0.81, operating skill test:P=0.65) while significant increases were observed in scores of theoretical exam and operational skill test after teaching (theoretical exam and operating skill test: P<0.05) and clinical pathway teaching group had higher scores than conventional teaching group (theoretical exam and operating skill test:P=0.02 and P=0.01). Conclusions Better effects can be achieved by clinical pathway approach re-garding geriatric orthopedics teaching.

This study investigated the expression of hemeoxygenase-1 (HO-1) in rats with acute lung rejection and its implication. A valid rat orthotopic left lung transplantation model (SD rat-->Wistar rat) was established by using an improved three-cuff anastomosis technique. The rats were divided into control group, CoPP (HO-1 inducer)-treated group and ZnPP (HO-1 inhibitor)- treated group. The severity of acute rejection was graded on the basis of the morphologic changes of the lung samples stained with HE. The expression of HO-1 protein in lung tissue was detected by using immunohistochemistry and Western blot, and HO-1 mRNA activity was assayed by RT-PCR. The results showed that the expression of HO-1 protein was significantly increased with the acute rejection grading in rats (P<0.01). As compared with control and ZnPP-treated groups, the severity of acute rejection was not alleviated and the grade not reduced significantly in CoPP-treated group (P>0.05). It was concluded that HO-1 protein might be involved in the pathological process of post-graft acute rejection. The expression of HO-1 protein was increased gradually with aggravation of acute rejection, and HO-1 protein might be used as an index to monitor acute rejection after lung transplantation.
Graft Rejection/*enzymology ; Heme Oxygenase (Decyclizing)/genetics ; Heme Oxygenase (Decyclizing)/*metabolism ; Lung Transplantation ; RNA, Messenger/genetics ; RNA, Messenger/metabolism ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Rats, Wistar

Objective To investigate effect of artesunate on expressions of Toll-like receotor-4 (TLR4) and interleu?kin-8 (IL-8) in renal tissue of diabetic nephropathy rats. Methods Male SD rats of over 200 g in body weight (n=45) were injected with low dosage streptozotocin and fed with high fat and sucrose diets to establish diabetes nephropathy (DN) model. Among all rats of successful model, thirty-two were randomly selected and divided into four groups (n=8 in each group), Mod?el group (Group B), Artesunate at high dose treatment group [30 mg/(kg · d)] (Group C), Artesunate at low dose treatment group [10 mg/(kg·d)] (Group D), Enalapril treatment group [10 mg/(kg·d)] (Group E). Another eight rats without STZ injec?tion whose body weight is under 200 g were assigned as Normal group (Group A). Then, rats in Group A and B were given the same volume of normal saline [10 mg/(kg·d)] while rats in Group C, D and E were given 30 mg/(kg·d) Artesunate, 10 mg/(kg·d) Artesunate and 10 mg/(kg · d) Enalapril respectively intragastrically for consecutive 12 weeks. Fasting blood glucose, body weight, kidney index, 24-hours proteinuria, serum creatinine (Cr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) were measured. Expression level of TLR4 in renal tissue of rats were examined by Western blot;ELISA was used to quantify the concentration of IL-8 in serum and renal tissue of rats. Results Compared with rats in Group A, the levels of Fasting blood glucose, kidney index , 24-hours proteinuria, Cr and BUN as well as the level of TLR4 in kidney, levels of IL-8 in serum and kidney all significant?ly increased in rats in Group B, C, D and E(P<0.05). On the other hand, body weight were decreased in rats of Group B, C, D and E compared to rats in Group A(P<0.05). The level of TLR4 in kidney, levels of IL-8 in serum and kidney, 24-hours proteinuria, Cr and BUN in rats of Group C, D and E were significantly lower than those in rats of Group B(P<0.05). Furthermore, compared with rats in Group D, the levels of TLR4 in kidney, IL-8 in serum and kidney, 24-hours proteinuria, Cr and BUN were decreased in rats in Group C and E(P<0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that the expression lev?el of TLR4 positively correlated with IL-8 level in serum (r=0.969, P<0.05), IL-8 level in kidney (r=0.972, P<0.05), 24-hours proteinuria(r=0.965, P<0.05), Cr(r=0.944, P<0.05)and BUN(r=0.903, P<0.05). IL-8 level in kidney positively correlated with 24-hours proteinuria(r=0.962, P<0.05), Cr(r=0.929, P<0.05)and BUN(r=0.940, P<0.05). Conclu?sion Artesunate decreases expression of TLR4 and IL-8, reduce 24-hours proteinuria, inhibits the inflammation of the DN,relives the pathological lesions of nephron rats with diabetic nephropathy.

Objective To study the effect of mechanical ventilation guided by esophageal pressure on hemodynamics and oxygen metabolism of severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) swine model with intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) Methods By self-controlled study,SAP model was made by infusing sodium taurocholate (5％) into the pancreatic duct in 6 domestic swine.Mechanical ventilator mode was volumeassist control with tidal volume 10 ml/kg ; FiO2 40％ and PEEP 5 cm H2O (routine ventilation) given to SAP model swine.After 3 h ventilation,pneumo-peritoneum was made with N2 gas to increase the intraabdominal pressure (IAP) to 25 mm Hg in SAP swine.Three more hours later,PEEP was adjusted as the measurement of esophageal pressure (Pes guided ventilation) to such a level that trans-pulmonary pressure stayed above 0 cm H2O during end-expiratory occlusion.During the investigation period,heart rate (HR),cardiac output index (CI),central venous pressure (CVP),mean arterial pressure (MAP) and pulmonary arterial wedge pressure (PAWP) were continuously recorded with the aid of Swan-Ganz catheter and ECG monitor,and oxygen partial pressure of artery (PaO2) and carbon dioxide partial pressure of artery (PaCO2) were measured by blood-gas analysis.In addition,systemic oxygen delivery (DO2) and systemic oxygen consumption (VO2) were calculated by using the data of blood-gas analysis of arterial and central venous blood.Results No swine model was subjected to barotrauma.After routine mechanical ventilation,there were significant differences in HR,CI,MAP,CVP,PAWP,Ppeak,Pplat,Pes,pulmonary compliance (Cstat),PaO2,and DO2 between SAP and IAH in swine (all P ＜ 0.05).Compared with routine ventilation,however,PaO2 and Cstat improved significantly with lower CI and increased Pplat after PEEP adjusted according to measurements of esophageal pressure (all P ＜ 0.05).The lactate decreased significantly after esophageal pressure guided ventilation (all P ＜ 0.05).There were no significant changes in PaCO2,HR,MAP,CVP and PAWP in IAH swine after mechanical ventilation with routine parameters (all P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions There were remarkable effects on oxygen metabolism in response to mechanical ventilation guided by esophageal pressure.In case of clinical application of mechanical ventilation,the results of this study are in favor of setting transpulmonary pressure according to measurements of esophageal pressure in SAP patients with IAH in an early stage.