Aged, 80 and over ; Antibodies, Monoclonal ; metabolism ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; metabolism ; pathology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Granuloma ; metabolism ; pathology ; Humans ; Keratins ; immunology ; Male ; Mucin-1 ; metabolism ; Skin Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology

OBJECTIVETo explore the effect of Changji'an Capsule (CA) on mRNA expressions of neuropeptide Y (NPY) in the hypothalamus and colon and serum levels of adreno-cortico-tropic hormone (ACTH) in rats of diarrhea predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) model rats.

METHODSTotally 48 SD rats were randomly divided into six groups, i.e., the normal control group, the model group, the Pinaverium Bromide group (PB, 0.018 g/kg), the high dose CA group (2.812 g/kg), the medium dose CA group (1.406 g/kg), and the low dose CA group (0.703 g/kg), 8 in each group. The IBS-D rat model was established by using separation of breast milk + stimulation of acetic acid + constraint of four limbs. Normal saline was given to rats in the normal control group and the model group. All medication lasted for 14 successive days by gastrogavage. The serum content of ACTH was detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The expressions of NPY mRNA in the colon and the hypothalamus were detected using real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR.

RESULTSCompared with the normal control group, the serum ACTH content significantly increased (P < 0.01), the NPY mRNA expression in the colon and the hypothalamus obviously decreased (P < 0.01) in the model control group. Compared with the model group, the serum ACTH obviously decreased in the high dose CA group, the medium dose CA group, and the PB group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). The NPY mRNA expression in the colon and the hypothalamus were obviously up-regulated in the high dose CA group, the medium dose CA group, the low dose CA group, and the PB group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSCA could modulate the abnormity of brain-gut axis of IBS-D rats possibly by up-regulating NPY mRNA expressions in the hypothalamus and the colon and down-regulating the ACTH content in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone ; blood ; Animals ; Colon ; metabolism ; Disease Models, Animal ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Female ; Hypothalamus ; metabolism ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome ; metabolism ; Male ; Neuropeptide Y ; metabolism ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the impact of radiofrequency catheter ablation on left atrial (LA) size and function in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) and whether there is any difference between segmental pulmonary vein ostial isolation (SPVI) and circumferential pulmonary vein ablation (CPVA).

METHODSSixty-six patients with highly symptomatic atrial fibrillation were assigned to undergo either SPVI or CPVA. Transthorax echocardiography was performed before, 1 day, 1 months and 3 months after the procedure. LA dimension, LA area, late diastolic peak velocity of mitral valve inflow (A) and peak atrial systolic mitral annulus velocity (A') were recorded.

RESULTSOf 66 consecutive patients with symptomatic PAF, 30 patients underwent SPVI and 36 underwent CPVA. After a mean follow-up of (315 +/- 153) days, 21 patients (70%) after SPVI and 28 patients (75%) after CPVA were free of atrial tachyarrhythmia. As compared with the baseline, LA area decreased at 1-month after ablation in SPVI group and at 3-month in CPVA group. LA dimension decreased also in SPVI group, but did not in CPVA group. A velocity and A' velocity declined remarkably 1 day after CPVA, and restored 3 months later. The former went back to the level of baseline, and the latter exceeded it apparently. In SPVI group, A velocity increased at 1-month, and maintained in 3-month after ablation. A' velocity increased at 3-month after ablation. No reduction of A velocity or A' velocity was found after SPVI.

CONCLUSIONSThis study demonstrated a decrease in LA area and an improvement in LA systolic function 3 months after ablation for PAF. The LA damage by CPVA was more than that by SPVI, which was characterized by the reduction of LA function 1 day after procedure and the delayed improvement of LA size and functional parameters.

Adult ; Atrial Fibrillation ; diagnostic imaging ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Atrial Function, Left ; Catheter Ablation ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pulmonary Veins ; Ultrasonography

Objective To investigate the clinical value of pentraxins 3 ( PTX3) in children's com-munity-acquired pneumonia ( CAP ). Methods We collected 122 inpatients diagnosed with CAP from Department of Respiratory Medicine and Intensive Care Unit ( ICU) of Hunan Children's Hospital from March 2016 to January 2017,whose ages were between 28 days and 18 years old. We collected 20 healthy subjects as control group. According to the severity of illness,122 inpatients were divided into mild group and severe group. According to respiratory failure or not,122 inpatients were divided into the respiratory failure group and the non-respiratory failure group. According to the optimal thresholds of PTX3 in the study on respir-atory failure,122 inpatients were divided into group A (≤165. 30 ng/ml) and group B (>165. 30 ng/ml). Results (1) There was significant difference in the PTX3 level within 24 h after admission of patients among mild group, severe group and control group [72. 56 (96. 02) ng/ml,211. 00 ( 110. 72 ) ng/ml,9. 45 (3. 29) ng/ml,H＝87. 99,P<0. 001]. The PTX3 level of patients with respiratory failure was higher than non-respiratory failure group and the difference was statistically significant[225. 60(189. 56)ng/ml,138. 49 (144. 40) ng/ml,U ＝494. 00,P <0. 001]. (2) Receiver Operating Characteristic analysis with TNF-α, CRP,PCT and PTX3 showed that the area under the curve of PTX3 was largest in diagnosis of respiratory failure. The top three of accuracy were PTX3,PCT and TNF-α respectively to diagnose the severe pneumonia with respiratory failure. The sensitivity and specificity were 0. 826 and 0. 657,0. 783 and 0. 566,0. 730 and 0. 586,respectively. ( 3 ) The correlation analysis between PTX3 and other inflammatory biomarkers and clinic opathological features of patients with CAP showed that TNF-α,PCT were positively correlated with PTX3 level,the correlation coefficients were 0. 59,0. 18 respectively. PTX3 level was positively correlated with respiratory frequency (r＝0. 388),and negatively correlated with pulse oximetry ( r ＝ －0. 251) and PaO2(r＝ －0. 316). The D-dimer level of PTX3 severe group (group B) was higher than that of the mild group (P＝0. 022). There was a positive correlation between the PTX3 level and the D-dimer line ( r ＝0. 228,P＝0. 012). (4) Dynamic observation of PTX3 level in children with CAP:PTX3 level [M(IQR), ng/ml] was highest at 24 h after hospital admission,equaling to 152. 55(152. 22); PTX3 equaled to 89. 12 (111. 44) after 3 days'treatment; and decreased to 47. 26(68. 51) after 7 days'treatment,and the difference among these time points were statistically significant(P<0. 01). The difference of PTX3 level between mild group and severe group in distinct time points(less 24 h,3 days and 7 days after hospital admission) was also statistically significant(P<0. 001). Conclusion The level of serum PTX3 in children with CAP was posi-tively correlated with TNF-α,PCT and D-dimer. Serum PTX3 is a potential new biomarker to revel the sever-ity of community-acquired pneumonia of children.

BACKGROUNDThis study researched the electric impedance properties of breast tissue and demonstrated the different characteristic of electrical impedance scanning (EIS) images.

METHODSThe impedance character of 40 malignant tumors, 34 benign tumors and some normal breast tissue from 69 patients undergoing breast surgery was examined by EIS in vivo measurement and mammography screening, with a series of frequencies set between 100 Hz - 100 kHz in the ex vivo spectroscopy measurement.

RESULTSOf the 39 patients with 40 malignant tumors, 24 showed bright spots, 11 showed dark areas in EIS and 5 showed no specific image. Of the 30 patients with 34 benign tumors there were almost no specific abnormality shown in the EIS results. Primary ex vivo spectroscopy experiments showed that the resistivity of various breast tissue take the following pattern: adipose tissue > cancerous tissue > mammary gland and benign tumor tissue.

CONCLUSIONSThere are significant differences in the electrical impedance properties between cancerous tissue and healthy tissue. The impedivity of benign tumor is lower, and is at the same level with that of the mammary glandular tissue. The distinct growth pattern of breast lesions determined the different electrical impedance characteristics in the EIS results.

Breast Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Electric Impedance ; Female ; Humans ; Mammography

BACKGROUNDPulse wave velocity and flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) are widely used as noninvasive modalities for evaluating atherosclerosis. However, it is not known whether pulse wave velocity is related to FMD in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). Therefore, the present study was designed to investigate the alteration in brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and endothelial function in CAD patients.

METHODSThirty-three patients with CAD and thirty control subjects were recruited for this study. baPWV was measured non-invasively using a VP 1000 automated PWV/ABI analyzer (PWV/ABI, Colin Co. Ltd., Komaki, Japan). Endothelial function as reflected by FMD in the brachial artery was assessed with a high-resolution ultrasound device.

RESULTSbaPWV was increased in CAD patients compared with control subjects [(1756.1 +/- 253.1) cm/s vs (1495.3 +/- 202.3) cm/s, P < 0.01]. FMD was significantly reduced in CAD patients compared with control subjects [(5.2 +/- 2.1)% vs (11.1 +/- 4.4)%, P < 0.01]. baPWV correlated with FMD (r = -0.68, P < 0.001). The endothelium-independent vasodilation induced by sublingual nitroglycerin in the brachial artery was similar in the CAD group compared with the control group.

CONCLUSIONSCAD is associated with increased baPWV and endothelial dysfunction. Increased baPWV parallels diminished endothelial function. Our data therefore suggest that baPWV can be used as a noninvasive surrogate index in clinical evaluation of endothelial function.

Aged ; Ankle ; blood supply ; Blood Flow Velocity ; physiology ; Brachial Artery ; physiopathology ; Coronary Artery Disease ; physiopathology ; Endothelium, Vascular ; physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Vasodilation

OBJECTIVEThis study was to investigate the condom use and its factors on sex workers in Shandong province, and to provide effective suggestions for AIDS prevention strategies and interventions.

METHODSFrom April to July in 2009, 4732 female sex workers were investigated through anonymous questionnaires from 11 cities which were selected based on the AIDS epidemic, geographic location, economic conditions in Shandong province. Serum samples were collected and antibodies were tested by ELISA and TPPA from 4641 people.

RESULTS4732 female sex workers who were 15 - 58 years old were investigated and the majority belonged to the low age group (≤ 24 years old) which accounted for 61.5% (2912/4732). Among the 4732 female sex workers, the unmarried, the divorced, or the widowed females accounted for 72.8% (3441/4725) and 72.0% (3403/4726) of them were poorly educated.42.3% (1994/4719) of them were found from other provinces. The right answers for knowledge of AIDS accounted for 45.7% (2164/4732). 80.6% (3416/4236) of these females were found to used condoms in the most recent commercial sex activity. The rate of consistently using condoms in sex activity during the last month was 58.4% (2467/4221). In this survey, 7.3% (337/4637) of investigated females had been diagnosed with sexually transmitted diseases, 30.7% (1449/4726) of them had received HIV antibody test, 70.4% (3323/4732) of these people had received the AIDS intervention services, and 3.6% (167/4668) of them had ever used drug. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that high education level (junior high school or lower vs senior high school or higher, adjusted OR = 0.77, 95%CI: 0.67 - 0.90), having received the HIV intervention (received vs unreceived, adjusted OR = 1.36, 95%CI: 1.17 - 1.58), antibody detection (done vs not done, adjusted OR = 1.33, 95%CI: 1.15 - 1.55), and good knowledge about AIDS (low score group vs high score group, adjusted OR = 0.37, 95%CI: 0.32 - 0.44) were independent factors that increased safe sex behavior; while using drug (drug vs not drug, adjusted OR = 0.22, 95%CI: 0.15 - 0.31) was a negative factor.

CONCLUSIONThe prevalence rate of HIV infection among female sex workers was low in Shandong province. However, the low rate of condom use and the high prevalence of self-reported STD-related symptoms suggested that more attentions should be paid to the factors of risk behaviors, and more targeted interventions are critically needed.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ; prevention & control ; Adolescent ; Adult ; China ; Condoms ; utilization ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Population Surveillance ; Prevalence ; Safe Sex ; statistics & numerical data ; Sex Workers ; statistics & numerical data ; Sexually Transmitted Diseases ; prevention & control ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: To deduce the region that the geographical species of Lucilia sericata come from and determine the scene of crime (SOC) based on the gene analysis of mtDNA CO II. METHODS: A 635 bp region for CO II of 4 Lucilia sericata (belong to 2 geographical species) were collected and sequenced, compared with the data of GenBank. A neighbour-joining tree with the Tamura and Nei model was constructed by MEGA2.1 package. The number of inherit intervals of inner-species were analyzes by Kimura's two-parameter model and used for construction the relationships between hereditary and latitude interval by SPSS10.5 soft. RESULTS: It showed that they had the relationships between inherit and latitude interval for the 8 geographical species of Lucilia sericata for CO II. CONCLUSION This method can be the evidence deducing the region that the geographical species of Lucilia sericata come from and further to determine the scene of crime (SOC).
Animals ; DNA, Mitochondrial/genetics* ; Electron Transport Complex IV/genetics* ; Forensic Medicine/methods* ; Genetics, Population ; Geography ; Muscidae/genetics* ; Phylogeny ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/methods* ; Species Specificity ; Weather

OBJECTIVETo investigate the role of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS)-induced trophoblast apoptosis in the development of intrahepatic cholestasis during pregnancy (ICP).

METHODSTwenty pregnant women with ICP and 20 normal pregnant women undergoing cesarean section were enrolled in this study. The number of placenta syncytial knots in these women was determined using HE staining. The mRNA expressions of GRP78, CHOP, caspase-3, and caspase-7 were detected using RT-PCR in the placental tissues of the women and also in HTR-8/SVneo cells treated with different doses of deoxycholic acid (DCA). Caspase-3 and caspase-7 activities were also detected in DCA-treated HTR-8/SVneo cells using commercial assay kits, and the presence of apoptotic bodies in the cells were detected with electron microscopy.

RESULTSCompared with normal placental tissues, the placenta from women with ICP showed significantly increased syncytial knots (P<0.01) and obviously enhanced mRNA expressions of GRP78, CHOP, caspase-3, and caspase-7 (P<0.05). In HTR-8/SVneo cells treated with different doses of DCA (0, 10, 50, and 100 µmol/L), the mRNA expressions of GRP78, CHOP, caspase-3 and caspase-7 were significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner (P<0.05) and the protein levels of GRP78 and CHOP were also increased dose-dependently. Treatment with DCA at 50 µmol/L for 24 h significantly upregulated caspase-3 and caspase-7 activity in the cells (P<0.05), and the cells treated with 50 µmol/L DCA for 12 h showed the presence of apoptotic bodies.

CONCLUSIONThe activation of ERS and enhanced apoptosis of the trophoblasts occur in the placenta of women with ICP. DCA can significantly increase the expressions of ERS markers and thus lead to trophoblast apoptosis, suggesting that ERS-induced trophoblasts apoptosis may play a key role in the development of ICP.

Objective To indentify differentially expressed genes in recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma(rNPC) by DNA microarrays,and analyze chromosomal lecalizations and molecular function by bioinformatics. Methods The primary nasopharyngeal carcinoma (pNPC) tissue samples and rNPC tissue samples were selected, and Affymetrix Gene1.0 ST gene chips were used to indentify differential expressed genes in rNPC, and the bioinformatics was used to analyze their chromosomal localizations as well as molecular functions. Results A total of 44 genes were identified to be differential expressed in rNPC.Thirty-six genes were down regulated, 8 genes were up regulated. Functional classification of down-regulation genes showed that most genes (10 genes,27.8%) belonged to the enzyme activity genes, followed by calcium ion binding genes (7 genes, 19.4% ), protein binding genes (5 genes, 13.9% ), receptor activity genes (4 genes, 11.1% ), ATP binding genes (2 genes, 5.6%), transcription factor genes(2 genes,5.6%), extracellular matrix binding and growth factor binding have 1 gene respectively (each accounted for 2.8%). In addition, the functions of 4 genes (11.1%) were unknown.Functional classification of up-regulation genes showed most genes (3 genes, 37.5%) were unknown, followed enzyme activity genes (2 genes, 25.0%) ,receptor activity, calcium ion binding and voltage-gated ion channel activity genes have 1 genes respectively (each accounted for 12.5% ). These genes were localized randomly on the most the chromosomes, with a majority of them localized on chromosomes 1,17. Chromosome 1 contained the most differentially expressed genes (10, 22.7% ), followed by chromosomes 17(5,11.3%). Conclusions The differential expressed genes in rNPC were supposed to be randomly distributed on most chromosomes, but the majorities were found on chromosomes 1, 17. Abnormality in three groups of genes, including in enzyme activity, calcium ion binding and protein binding associate genes, might play important roles in rNPC. Those genes need to be further studied.