OBJECTIVETo detect the redistribution of platelet surface glycoprotein (GP)Ib alpha and cytoskeleton reorganization in the course of thrombin receptor activation, and investigate the mechanism of GPIb alpha re-translocation and the role of thrombin receptors in platelet signal transduction.

METHODSThe thrombin receptor activating peptide (PAR1-AP, TRAP) was used for stimulating platelet at different time points (0 - 60 min), then the platelet surface GPIb alpha and P-selectin were examined with flow cytometry, and the alterations of GPIb alpha, actin and myosin were analyzed in cytoskeleton by Western blot and GPIb alpha immunoprecipitation. Cytochalasin D and/or Apyrase VII were used for investigating their inhibitory effect on platelet activation.

RESULTSAn increase of P-selectin and reversible internalization of GPIb alpha were observed within platelets upon TRAP activation, and transient changes of actin, myosin and GPIb alpha/myosin, GPIb alpha/actin association were also found in this course. These changes were apparently blocked by cytochalasin D, which inhibited the incorporation of GPIb alpha, actin and myosin into cytoskeleton. Apyrase VII had a weak effect on GPIb alpha internalization, although it accelerated the return of GPIb alpha to platelet surface. In addition, Apyrase VII also quickened the GPIb alpha disappearance in cytoskeleton and the dissociation of GPIb/myosin or GPIb/actin during activation.

CONCLUSIONThrombin receptor activation takes part in platelet signal transduction, inducing a reversible redistribution of GPIb alpha. This process is related to cytoskeleton reorganisation and ADP.

Actins ; metabolism ; Blood Platelets ; cytology ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Blotting, Western ; Cells, Cultured ; Cytoskeleton ; metabolism ; Humans ; Myosins ; metabolism ; P-Selectin ; metabolism ; Peptide Fragments ; pharmacology ; Platelet Activation ; drug effects ; physiology ; Platelet Glycoprotein GPIb-IX Complex ; metabolism ; Receptors, Thrombin ; metabolism ; physiology

STUDY DESIGN: Comparison of prospectively collected data of patients undergoing minimally invasive surgery transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF) with and without recombinant human bone morphogenic protein 2 (BMP). PURPOSE: To compare the clinical, radiological outcome and complications of patients undergoing MIS-TLIF with and without BMP. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: BMP is an effective fusion enhancer with potential complications. Direct comparison of MIS-TLIF with and without BMP is limited to retrospective studies with short follow-up. METHODS: From June 2005 to February 2011, consecutive cases of MIS-TLIF performed by a single surgeon were included. North American Spine Society (NASS) score, Oswestry disability index (ODI), Short Form-36 (SF-36), and visual analogue score (VAS) were assessed preoperatively and at 6 and 24 months postoperatively. Fusion rates and complications were noted. RESULTS: The 252 cases comprised 104 non-BMP and 148 BMP cases. The BMP group was significantly older (mean age, 60.2 vs. 53.9; p<0.01). Preoperative scores were similar. Immediate postoperative morphine usage was significantly lower in the BMP group (12.4 mg vs. 20.1 mg, p<0.01). At 6 months, the BMP group had lower VAS back and leg pain scores (p<0.01). At 2 years, the BMP group had better leg pain scores (p<0.01), ODI (15.4 vs. 20.3, p=0.04) and NASS scores (8.8 vs. 15.8, p<0.01). Both groups showed significant clinical improvement compared to their preoperative levels. The BMP group attained a significantly higher rate of fusion at 6 months follow-up (88.4% vs. 76.8%, p=0.016) with no difference at 2 years. The non-BMP and BMP group had 12 (11.5%) and 9 (6.1%) complications and 5 (4.8%) and 2 (1.4%) reoperations, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The use of BMP to augment fusion in MIS-TLIF is an acceptable alternative that has potential benefits of less pain in early and intermediate postoperative follow-up.
Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Leg ; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures ; Morphine ; Prospective Studies ; Retrospective Studies ; Spine

Adult ; Cardiac Imaging Techniques ; Cardiomyopathies ; diagnostic imaging ; Clinical Protocols ; Diet, Carbohydrate-Restricted ; Diet, High-Fat ; Female ; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Multimodal Imaging ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Radiopharmaceuticals ; Sarcoidosis ; diagnostic imaging ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Excessive forces may cause root resorption and insufficient forces would introduce no effect in orthodontics. The objective of this study was to investigate the optimal orthodontic forces on a maxillary canine, using hydrostatic stress and logarithmic strain of the periodontal ligament (PDL) as indicators. Finite element models of a maxillary canine and surrounding tissues were developed. Distal translation/tipping forces, labial translation/tipping forces, and extrusion forces ranging from 0 to 300 g (100 g=0.98 N) were applied to the canine, as well as the force moment around the canine long axis ranging from 0 to 300 g·mm. The stress/strain of the PDL was quantified by nonlinear finite element analysis, and an absolute stress range between 0.47 kPa (capillary pressure) and 12.8 kPa (80% of human systolic blood pressure) was considered to be optimal, whereas an absolute strain exceeding 0.24% (80% of peak strain during canine maximal moving velocity) was considered optimal strain. The stress/strain distributions within the PDL were acquired for various canine movements, and the optimal orthodontic forces were calculated. As a result the optimal tipping forces (40-44 g for distal-direction and 28-32 g for labial-direction) were smaller than the translation forces (130-137 g for distal-direction and 110-124 g for labial-direction). In addition, the optimal forces for labial-direction motion (110-124 g for translation and 28-32 g for tipping) were smaller than those for distal-direction motion (130-137 g for translation and 40-44 g for tipping). Compared with previous results, the force interval was smaller than before and was therefore more conducive to the guidance of clinical treatment. The finite element analysis results provide new insights into orthodontic biomechanics and could help to optimize orthodontic treatment plans.
Biomechanical Phenomena ; Computer Simulation ; Cuspid ; anatomy & histology ; physiology ; Dental Models ; Finite Element Analysis ; Humans ; Imaging, Three-Dimensional ; Maxilla ; Orthodontic Friction ; physiology ; Periodontal Ligament ; physiology ; Rotation ; Stress, Mechanical ; Tooth Movement Techniques ; statistics & numerical data

Objective: This study estimated nationally representative medical expenditures of gynecologic cancers, described treatment patterns and assessed key risk factors associated with the economic burden in the United States. Methods: A retrospective repeated measures design was used to estimate the effect of gynecologic cancers on medical expenditures and utilization among women. Data were extracted from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (weighted sample of 609,787 US adults) from 2007 to 2014. Using the behavioral model of health services utilization, characteristics of cancer patients were examined and compared among uterine, cervical, and ovarian cancer patients. Multivariable linear regression models were conducted on medical expenditure with a prior logarithmic transformation. Results: The estimated annual medical expenditure attributed to gynecologic cancers was $3.8 billion, with an average cost of $6,293 per patient. The highest annual cost per person was ovarian cancer ($13,566), followed by uterine cancer ($6,852), and cervical cancer ($2,312). The major components of medical costs were hospital inpatient stays (53%, $2.03 billion), followed by office-based visits (15%, $559 million), and outpatient visits (13%, $487 million). Two key prescription expenditures were antineoplastic hormones (10.3%) and analgesics (9.2%). High expenditures were significantly associated with being a married woman (p<0.001), having private health insurance (p<0.001), being from a low- and middleincome family (p<0.001), or living in the Midwest or the South (p<0.001). Conclusion The key risk factors and components were well described for the economic burden of gynecologic cancers. With a growing population of cancer patients, efforts to reduce the burden of gynecologic cancers are warranted.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of intermittent fasting on metabolize and gut microbiota in obese presenium rats fed with high-fat-sugar-diet.

METHODSWe fed the Wistar rats with high-fat and high-sugar diet to induce adiposity, and the rats for intermittent fasting were selected base on their body weight. The rats were subjected to fasting for 72 h every 2 weeks for 18 weeks. OGTT test was performed and fasting blood samples and fecal samples were collected for measurement of TC, TG, HDL-C and LDL-C and sequence analysis of fecal 16S rRNA V4 tags using Illumina. Gut microbial community structure was analyzed with QIIME and LEfSe.

RESULTSAfter the intervention, the body weight of the fasting rats was significantly lower than that in high-fat diet group (P<0.01). OGTT results suggested impairment of sugar tolerance in the fasting group, which showed a significantly larger AUC than compared with the high-fat diet group (P<0.05). Intermittent fasting significantly reduced blood HDL-C and LDL-C levels (P<0.05) and partially restored liver steatosis, and improved the gut microbiota by increasing the abundance of YS2, RF32 and Helicobacteraceae and reducing Lactobacillus, Roseburia, Erysipelotrichaceae and Ralstonia. Bradyrhizobiaceae was found to be positively correlated with CHOL and HDL-C, and RF39 was inversely correlated with the weight of the rats.

CONCLUSIONIntermittent fasting can decrease the body weight and blood lipid levels and restore normal gut microbiota but can cause impairment of glucose metabolism in obese presenium rats.

Animals ; Body Weight ; Diet, High-Fat ; Fasting ; Fatty Liver ; microbiology ; physiopathology ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome ; Lipids ; blood ; Obesity ; microbiology ; physiopathology ; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

Melting temperature shift (T(m)-shift) is a new detection method that analyze the melting curve on real-time PCR thermocycler using SYBR Green I fluorescent dye. To establish a T(m)-shift method for the detection of Ancylostoma ceylanicum and A. tubaeforme in cats, specific primers, with GC tail of unequal length attached to their 5′ end, were designed based on 2 SNP loci (ITS101 and ITS296) of the internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) sequences. The standard curve of T(m)-shift was established using the standard plasmids of A. ceylanicum (AceP) and A. tubaeforme (AtuP). The T(m)-shift method stability, sensitivity, and accuracy were tested with reference to the standard curve, and clinical fecal samples were also examined. The results demonstrated that the 2 sets of primers based on the 2 SNPs could accurately distinguish between A. ceylanicum and A. tubaeforme. The coefficient of variation (CV) of T(m)-values of AceP and AtuP was 0.07% and 0.06% in ITS101 and was 0.06% and 0.08% in ITS296, respectively. The minimum detectable DNA concentration was 5.22×10⁻⁶ and 5.28×10⁻⁶ ng/μl samples of AceP and AtuP, respectively. The accuracy of T(m)-shift method reached 100% based on examination of 10 hookworm DNA samples with known species. In the clinical detection of hookworm in 69 stray cat fecal sample, the T(m)-shift detection results were consistent with the microscopic examination and successfully differentiated between the 2-hookworm species. In conclusion, the developed method is a rapid, sensitive and accurate technique and can provide a promising tool for clinical detection and epidemiological investigation of cat-derived hookworms.
Ancylostoma ; Ancylostomatoidea ; Animals ; Cats ; DNA ; Freezing ; Methods ; Plasmids ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Tail

INTRODUCTION: As the traditional overnight call system was shown to contribute to fatigue, Singapore implemented a shift system in 2014. We aimed to compare activity levels, sleep (using a wrist actigraph), fatigue and professional quality of life between residents working on night float and those on overnight calls. METHODS: All Postgraduate Year 1 (PGY1) residents at our institution were invited to participate. Participants were required to wear a wrist actigraph for four months and complete two validated surveys (Epworth Sleepiness Scale [ESS] and Professional Quality of Life [ProQOL] scale) once each at the start and end of the study. RESULTS: 49 residents were recruited. Night float and on-call residents showed a comparable median (range) number of steps (10,061 [1,195-15,923] vs. 10,649 [308-21,910]; p = 0.429), amount of sleep logged (361 [149-630] minutes vs. 380 [175-484] minutes; p = 0.369) and time taken to fall asleep (6 [0-14] minutes vs. 6 [range 0-45] minutes; p = 0.726), respectively. Night float residents had less efficient sleep, with 90.5% having sleep efficiency of over 85% compared to 100% of on-call residents (p = 0.127). More night float residents reported ESS scores > 10 (73.1% vs. 38.5%) and higher burnout scores on ProQOL scale (41.4% vs. 21.4%) at the start of the study. However, this was similar to the end of the study and not statistically significant. CONCLUSION Physical activity and amount of sleep were not significantly different between night float and on-call residents. Residents on night float reported comparatively more fatigue and burnout.
Adult ; Burnout, Professional ; Exercise ; Fatigue ; Female ; Humans ; Internship and Residency ; Male ; Physicians ; Prospective Studies ; Quality of Life ; Singapore ; Sleep ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Work Schedule Tolerance ; Workload

Echinostoma revolutum is a zoonotic food-borne intestinal trematode that can cause intestinal bleeding, enteritis, and diarrhea in human and birds. To identify a suspected E. revolutum trematode from a red-crowned crane (Grus japonensis) and to reveal the genetic characteristics of its mitochondrial (mt) genome, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and complete mt genome sequence of this trematode were amplified. The results identified the trematode as E. revolutum. Its entire mt genome sequence was 15,714 bp in length, including 12 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes and one non-coding region (NCR), with 61.73% A+T base content and a significant AT preference. The length of the 22 tRNA genes ranged from 59 bp to 70 bp, and their secondary structure showed the typical cloverleaf and D-loop structure. The length of the large subunit of rRNA (rrnL) and the small subunit of rRNA (rrnS) gene was 1,011 bp and 742 bp, respectively. Phylogenetic trees showed that E. revolutum and E. miyagawai clustered together, belonging to Echinostomatidae with Hypoderaeum conoideum. This study may enrich the mitochondrial gene database of Echinostoma trematodes and provide valuable data for studying the molecular identification and phylogeny of some digenean trematodes.

OBJECTIVES: To study the molecular epidemiological characteristics of norovirus in children with acute gastroenteritis from 2017 to 2019. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical data of children with acute gastroenteritis who were admitted to Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 2017 to December 2019. A total of 1 458 stool samples were collected from the children, and viral RNA was extracted. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction was used for gene amplification, sequencing, and genotype identification of the VP1 region of capsid protein in norovirus. RESULTS: Among the 1 458 stool samples, 158 (10.8%) were positive for norovirus. There was no significant difference in the positive detection rate of norovirus between different years ( CONCLUSIONS Norovirus GII.4 Sydney 2012 was the major epidemic strain in the children with norovirus gastroenteritis from 2017 to 2019. Although norovirus infection can exist throughout the year, August to October is the peak period. During this period, norovirus surveillance and key population protection are strengthened to help prevent and control norovirus diarrhea.
Child ; Feces ; Female ; Gastroenteritis/epidemiology* ; Humans ; Male ; Norovirus/genetics* ; Phylogeny ; Retrospective Studies