Adolescent ; Anti-Glomerular Basement Membrane Disease ; pathology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis ; pathology ; Humans ; Kidney ; pathology ; Lung ; pathology ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; pathology ; Male

OBJECTIVETo study the differences in a special region (SR) corresponding to five internal organs between the young and the elderly and to verify the effectiveness of a developed system for objectifying research in colour inspections of Chinese medicine (CICM).

METHODSAn image acquisition device imitating daylight to meet the requirement of CICM was designed. Image processing software based on CICM theory was developed. A total of 83 normal people were sampled and assigned to two groups. The first group (Group I) included 30 people with an average age of 24±2, and the second group (Group II) included 53 people with an average age of 74±4. After image processing, the chromaticity of 10 SRs corresponding to five internal organs was calculated. R, G, and B represent the chromaticity of color red, green, and blue, L indicates color brightness, whereas a and b denote red and yellow respectively. The difference between the young and the elderly was analyzed.

RESULTS(1) The chromaticity of each SR corresponding to five organs was obtained. The average R, G, B, L, a, and b of the sample were 194.4, 147.6, 119.3, 65.2, 15.5, and 22.3, respectively. (2) The R, G, B, and L of the young were greater than those of the elderly, but the a and b of the young were less than those of the elderly. (3) A statistically significant difference in each SR was found between the young and the elderly (P <0.05). The total differences for the Lung (Fei), Heart (Xin), Liver (Gan), Spleen (Pi), and Kidney (Shen) were 50% (3/6), 66.7% (4/6), 66.7% (4/6), 83.3% (5/6), and 91.7% (33/36), respectively. However, the Kidney SR had the greatest statistical discrepancy.

CONCLUSIONThe old Chinese saying that human Kidney deficiency worsens with age was verified by the results. The objectifying system used to examine CICM was effective. Thus, this system may be used as a basis for further research.

Aged ; Color ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Organ Specificity ; Probability ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo assess the value of fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) combined with chromosomal analysis for the detection of Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21 in amniotic fluid cells.

METHODSAmniotic fluid samples from pregnant women requesting prenatal diagnosis were cultivated. Metaphase cells were prepared for G-banding karyotype analysis. For the 5 Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21, interphase nuclei from amniotic fluid and parental peripheral blood cells were prepared for FISH analysis.

RESULTSIn 2 cases, analysis of parental peripheral blood cells showed normal karyotypes. FISH analysis of amniotic fluid cells indicated that one sample had two copies of chromosome 21, which has a 46, XY, rob(21;21)(q10;q10) karyotype, whilst another had trisomy 21 by FISH, which has a 46, XY, rob(14;21)(q10;q10) karyotype. For the remaining three samples, analysis of parental peripheral blood cells indicated that their karyotypes were 45, XX, rob(14;21)(q10;q10), 45, XX, rob(15;21)(q10;q10) and 45, XX, rob(21;22)(q10;q10), whilst the karyotypes of amniotic fluid cells were 46, XX, rob(14;21)(q10;q10), 46, XY, rob(15;21)(q10;q10) and 46, XX, rob(21;22)(q10;q10), respectively.

CONCLUSIONCombined FISH and chromosomal analysis is an efficient method for detecting non-homologous Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21. However, FISH has limited ability to detect homologous Robertsonian translocation type trisomy 21.

Adult ; Down Syndrome ; diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence ; methods ; Karyotyping ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis ; Translocation, Genetic

OBJECTIVEWe aimed to examine the current developments and challenges confronted by old age security in rural China.

DATA SOURCESThis study is based on the data from PubMed, Elsevier, Wiley, EBSCO, EMBASE, SCI Expanded, ProQuest, Google, and CNKI which is the most informative database in Chinese.

STUDY SELECTIONArticles were selected with the search terms "rural", "China", "old", "older", or "elder", "elderly", or "aged", "aging", "security", "culture", "value", "medical insurance" or "community based medical insurance" or "cooperative medical scheme". Related websites and yearbooks were searched as well.

RESULTSThe socio-economic development has made the burden of traditional care for the rural elderly heavier than ever, and new challenges are emerging in rural communities, such as poor economic, deteriorating natural environment and health crisis.

CONCLUSIONSThe governments should improve the scale and caliber of rural old age security and strengthen regulations with great efforts in developing the rural economy and protecting the natural environment of rural communities.

Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; China ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Old Age Assistance ; legislation & jurisprudence ; statistics & numerical data ; trends ; Rural Population ; statistics & numerical data

OBJECTIVEThe aim of this study was to explore the possibility of creating a toxin, C-CPE-ETA', by fusing C-terminal high affinity binding domain of CPE (C-CPE) with a truncated form of Pseudomonas aeruginosa exotoxin A (ETA') and to examine whether C-CPE-ETA' could specifically target CLDN-3, 4 molecule and the targeted toxin was cytotoxic against CLDN-3,4-overexpressing ovarian cancer.

METHODSCLDN-3 and CLDN-4 expressions were analyzed at the mRNA level in three ovarian cancer cell lines and epithelial ovarian cancer tissues from 20 patients. After transforming an expression plasmid of C-CPE-ETA' into E. coli BL21 (DE3) plysS strain, the recombinant protein was purified using His-Bind resin chromatography column and analyzed by Western blot and Coomassie blue staining. The specific binding, proapoptotic and cytolytic activities were evaluated by flow cytometry, fluorescence microscopy with the JC-1 probe and MTT assay in CLDN-3,4-overexpressing ovarian cancer cells.

RESULTSQuantitive RT-PCR results showed there existed high levels of CLDN-3 and CLDN-4 in ovarian cancer cells, CAOV3, OVCAR3 and SKOV3. Moreover, high expressions of CLDN-3 and CLDN-4 were observed in 90.0% (18/20) and 60.0% (12/20) of ovarian cancer tissues, with an expression level 10-fold higher than that in the normal ovarian tissue. A 58 000 recombinant protein C-CPE-ETA' was demonstrated by Western blot and Coomassie blue staining. Purified and recombinant C-CPE-ETA' was bound with high affinity to CLDN-3,4-overexpressing ovarian cancer cells, CAOV3, OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells. C-CPE-ETA' was strongly proapoptotic and cytotoxic towards the CLDN-3,4-overexpressing ovarian cancer cells. The concentration of IC(50) was 7.364 ng/ml for CAOV3 cells, 8.110 ng/ml for OVCAR3 cells and 22.340 ng/ml for SKOV3 cells, respectively. However, control CLDN-3,4-deficient cell line HUVEC was not susceptible to the recombinant C-CPE-ETA' at a concentration up to 10 µg/ml.

CONCLUSIONSThe C-CPE-ETA' protein exhibits remarkably specific cytotoxicity for CLDN-3,4-overexpressing ovarian cancer cells. Its therapeutic potential warrants further development for ovarian cancer molecular targeted therapy.

ADP Ribose Transferases ; metabolism ; physiology ; Apoptosis ; Bacterial Toxins ; metabolism ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Claudin-3 ; Claudin-4 ; Claudins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Enterotoxins ; metabolism ; physiology ; Exotoxins ; metabolism ; physiology ; Female ; Humans ; Immunotoxins ; metabolism ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; RNA, Messenger ; metabolism ; Recombinant Fusion Proteins ; metabolism ; physiology ; Virulence Factors ; metabolism ; physiology

Adult ; Aged ; Bacterial Infections ; diagnosis ; immunology ; Female ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; diagnosis ; immunology ; microbiology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; T-Lymphocyte Subsets ; immunology ; Young Adult

In order to study the influence of trichosanthin (TCS) on apoptosis and growth inhibition of human NB4 cells in vitro, the expression of annexin V and the change of DeltaPsim of NB4 cells induced by TCS was analyzed by FACS, and MTT assay was adopted to measure the growth inhibition ratio of NB4 cells treated with TCS. Apoptosis was assayed by agarose gel electrophoresis. The results showed the higher concentration of TCS and the longer the acting time, the stronger growth inhibition of NB4 cells. The expression of annexin V was positive, and the positive ratio was greatly enhanced with prolongation of acting time. DeltaPsim reduced gradually while the apoptosis cells increasing. DNA agarose gel electrophoresis showed a gradient, which confirmed that TCS could induce NB4 cells apoptosis. In conclusion, taken together, data show that TCS can inhibit NB4 growth in vitro, and induce apoptosis. Experiment provides an important evidence for application of TCS in clinical treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia.
Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic ; pharmacology ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; DNA Fragmentation ; drug effects ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Trichosanthin ; pharmacology

OBJECTIVEBased on the registered female breast cancer data from 1998 to 2007, to analyze the incidence of female breast cancer during the period and then to predict its trend from 2008 to 2015.

METHODSThe incidence data of breast cancer from 1998 to 2007 were sorted from National Cancer Registry Database, including 74 936 cases from urban areas and 8230 cases from rural areas, separately covering 164 830 893 and 55 395 229 person years. The crude incidence rates in urban and rural areas were calculated, and the age-standardized rate (ASR) was adjusted by World Segi's population composition. JoinPoint software was applied to analyze the 10 years' incidence trend and calculated the annual percentage of changing (APC), while Age-Period-Cohort Bayesian Model was used to fit the data and predict the incidence of breast cancer between 2008 and 2015.

RESULTSFrom 1998 to 2007, the incidence of breast cancer in the urban cancer registration areas was 45.46/100 000 (74 936/164 830 893), whose ASR was 31.28/100 000. While in rural registration areas, the incidence and ASR was 14.86/100 000 (8230/55 395 229) and 12.13/100 000. The breast cancer incidence in urban and rural areas separately rose from 36.17/100 000 (3920/10 838 355) and 10.39/100 000 (436/4 197 806) in 1998 to 51.24/100 000 (11 302/22 057 787) and 19.61/100 000 (1475/7 522 690) in 2007. During the 10 years, the breast cancer incidence increased both in urban and rural areas, but the increase rate in rural incidence (6.3%) was more significant than it in urban areas (3.9%). Age-Period-Cohort Bayesian Model predicted that the breast cancer incidence would increase to 53.87/100 000 (185 585 new cases) in urban areas and 40.14/100 000 (132 432 new cases) in rural areas, respectively.

CONCLUSIONThe breast cancer incidence has been increasing annually both in urban and rural areas in China; and an annually increase number of new cases have been predicted.

Breast Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Registries ; Rural Population ; Urban Population

OBJECTIVEBased on the data from National Cancer Registry between 1998 and 2007, to analyze the colorectal cancer incidence trend in China, and further to predict its incidence between 2008 and 2015.

METHODSWe picked up the incidence data of 111 281 cases of colorectal cancer in total from National Central Cancer Registry Database between 1998 and 2007, covering 446 734 668 person-year. The annual incidence rate of colorectal cancer both by area and gender were calculated; while the age standardized rate (ASR) was standardized by world's population age structure. The incidence trend was analyzed and the annual percentage change (APC) was calculated by JoinPoint software. Age-Period-Cohort Bayesian Model was applied to fit the colorectal cancer incidence trend in China between 1998 and 2007; and further to predict its incidence between 2008 and 2015.

RESULTSFrom 1998 to 2007, the colorectal cancer registered incidence was 24.91/100 000 (111 281/446 734 668), with the ASR at 17.67/100 000. The incidence in male population was 26.50/100 000 (60 015/226 508 545), with ASR at 19.90/100 000; and the incidence in female was 23.28/100 000 (51 266/220 226 123), with ASR at 15.73/100 000. In urban area, the male incidence rose from 23.29/100 000 (2617/11 237 967) in 1998 to 37.84/100 000 (8534/22 551 353) in 2007; while the female incidence increased from 21.75/100 000 (2357/10 838 355) to 31.34/100 000 (6913/22 057 787). And in rural areas, the male and female incidences rose from 10.36/100 000 (448/4 323 628) and 8.86/100 000 (372/4 197 806) in 1998 to 16.80/100 000 (1290/7 677 484) and 13.00/100 000 (978/7 522 690) in 2007 respectively. In this decade, the colorectal cancer incidence has increased both in urban and rural areas. In urban area, the male APC value was 5.5% and the female APC value was 4.0%; while in rural area, the male and female APC values were 6.0% and 4.3% respectively. After adjusted by age structure, the uptrend became gently; with the urban male and urban female APC values separately increased by 3.7%, 2.5% and 2.3%. The rural male APC value rocketed up by 8.4% after its inflection point in 2004. The Bayesian model predicted that the male and female colorectal cancer incidences would separately reach 33.92/100 000 (125 thousand cases) and 27.13/100 000 (93 thousand cases) in urban areas; and 13.61/100 000 (48 thousand cases) and 13.68/100 000 (45 thousand cases) in rural areas by year 2015.

CONCLUSIONThe colorectal cancer incidence in China has been increasing annually; and it will continue to rise in the next years.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bayes Theorem ; China ; epidemiology ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Registries ; Rural Population ; Urban Population

OBJECTIVEBased on the registered esophageal cancer data from 1998 to 2007, to analyze the incidence of esophageal cancer during the period and then to predict its trend between year 2008 and 2015.

METHODSThe incidence data of esophageal cancer between 1998 and 2007 were sorted from National Cancer Registry Database. Data from forty selected registries were qualified and recruited in the study, including 86 427 cases in total, covering 446 734 668 person years. Crude incidence rates were calculated by area and gender. The standardized incidence rate was adjusted by World Segi's population composition. JoinPoint software was applied to analyze the 10 years' incidence trend and calculated the annual percentage change, while Age-Period-Cohort Bayesian Model was used to fit the data and predict the incidence between 2008 and 2015.

RESULTSBetween 1998 and 2007, the crude incidence rates among males and females in urban areas were separately 16.58/100 000 (28 207/170 131 309) and 7.14/100 000 (11 761/164 830 893), with standardized rates at 12.06/100 000 and 4.55/100 000, respectively. In rural areas, the crude incidence rates and the standardized rates were separately 51.98/100 000 (29 303/56 377 236) and 47.18/100 000 among males, and 30.97/100 000 (17 156/55 395 230) and 25.30/100 000 among females. During the ten years, the crude incidence trend of esophageal cancer among urban females decreased from 10.29/100 000 (1115/10 838 355) in 1998 to 6.29/100 000 (1387/22 057 787) in 2007. However, the crude incidence rate among rural males increased from 47.69/100 000 (2062/4 323 628) to 54.80/100 000 (4207/7 677 484) in the same period. And the rate among rural females and urban males did not change obviously. After adjusting population structure, in urban areas, the male incidence rate decreased by 2.1% annually and female incidence rate dropped by 7.5% annually. In rural areas, the female incidence rate fell by 1.3% annually, while the male incidence rate remained the same without significant changes. The prediction model estimated that there would be 134 474 new esophageal cancer cases diagnosed in year 2015, including 104 400 males and 30 074 females, while 52 506 cases came from urban areas and the other 81 968 cases were from rural areas.

CONCLUSIONThe esophageal cancer incidence showed a downtrend, especially among urban females. By year 2015, the threat of esophageal cancer will be alleviated.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bayes Theorem ; China ; epidemiology ; Esophageal Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Registries ; Rural Population ; Urban Population