Objective To evaluate the application value of virtual touch tissue quantification (VTQ)for evaluating small focal liver lesions.Methods Seventy-seven patients with 89 small focal liver lesions,whose largest diameter were less than or equal to 3 cm were evaluated with VTQ.The shcar wave velocity (SWV) of the tumor and background liver parenchyma were calculated,and their results were compared with those of 40 healthy subjects.Statistical analysis was performed on the SWV for the differentiation of normal liver,background liver parenchyma and lesions.The cut-off point for SWV was obtained by using ROC curve analysis which was used to predict malignancy lesions.Results The SWV of malignant lesions was significantly higher than that of benign ones [(2.56-± 0.67) m/s vs (1.70 ± 0.55) m/s,P =0.000].The SWV of metastatic liver carcinoma which came from lung cancer and breast cancer were higher than that of gastrointestinal tract cancer transfers (P =0.000).Based on 1.93 m/s as the cut-off point of SWV value,the sensitivity,specificity,accuracy,positive predictive value and negative predictive value for diagnosing malignancies were 82.0 ％,84.6％,83.15 ％,87.23 ％ and 78.57 ％ respectively.Conclusions VTQ technique can help the differential diagnosis of small focal liver lesions.

Objective To study the prevalence, clinical characteristics and risk factors of HIV-related lipodystrophy syndrome (HIV-LD) in our cohort of HIV-1 infected Chinese adults. Methods In a cross-sectional study, 55 HIV-infected patients were recruited from the HIV clinic of Peking Union Medical College Hospital; most of them were undergoing the first-class highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) of today in China. Lipoatrophy or lipohypertrophy was defined if there was concordance between the report of fat change and clinical examination of the participants. Whole body dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scanning was performed. Results Prevalence of clinical body fat redistribution in the present study was 47.3%. Comparing with non-LD patients, HIV-LD patients had elder age and longer exposure to HAART(P<0.05). HAART exposure and stavudine(d4T) usage were two independent risk factors for HIV-LD. Conclusions HIV-related fat redistribution does exist in Chinese HIV population. Peripheral lipoatrophy occurs commonly in HIV-infected adults but is not associated with increased trunk fat. HAART exposure and especially d4T usage are independent risk factors for HIV-LD.

The epidemic characteristics and genotype of Bacillus anthracis strains in Liaoning Province ,China was analyze in this study .Six Bacillus anthracis strains from 2001 to 2011 were studied with multiple‐locus variable‐number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) .BioNumerics4 .0 software was used to analyze the DNA fingerprint of statistics ,and cluster analysis results were obtained .Clustering analysis found that the 6 strains could be divided into two genotypes .For anthrax outbreaks ,the ge‐netic markers of multiple‐locus variable‐number tandem repeat were highly similar .It's suggested that MLVA is quite useful for investigation of strain relatedness in regions of outbreaks .

Background: Insomnia often responds to the orexin receptor antagonist suvorexant. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and adverse events of suvorexant for Chinese patients with primary insomnia over 6 months. Methods: A total of 120 patients with primary insomnia were assigned randomly to two groups that received placebo or suvorexant (40 mg) for 6 months. The primary outcomes were the total sleep time (sTST), time to sleep onset (sTSO), and sleep quality (sQUAL). The secondary outcomes were the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) score and adverse events. Results: A total of 111 patients completed the study and all of them were included in the final analysis. Suvorexant showed greater efficacy than the placebo in enhancing sTST, sTSO, sQUAL and ISI score at months 1 and 6. Serious adverse events were documented in 2 patients (3.3%) in the suvorexant group and 1 patients (1.7%) in the placebo group. The most common adverse event was somnolence, which occurred in 7 patients (11.7%) in the suvorexant group and 2 patients (3.3%) in the placebo group. No death related to suvorexant treatment was recorded. Conclusions: Suvorexant was efficacious and well-tolerated in a group of Chinese patients with primary insomnia over 6 months.
Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders

OBJECTIVE:To establish a method for full-length cDNA library of Xinjiang Artemisia rupestris. METHODS:Mod-ified Trizol method was adopted to extract total RNA in young leaves of A. rupestris,it was transcribed into single-strand cDNA, and then synthesized into double-strand cDNA by long-distance polymerase chain reaction(LD-PCR)method. PCR product was di-gested by proteinase K and sfiⅠ,and then fractionated by CHROMA SPIN-400 columns. The cDNA longer than 0.4 kb were col-lected and ligated to phage λTriplE × 2,and then protein packaging was performed. Full-length cDNA library was established by SMART technology. 20 monoclonal were randomly selected from the library,and electrophoresis was used to determine the primary library titer,library capacity,recombinant positive rate and length of insert cDNA. RESULTS:The primary library titer was 1.94× 107 pfu/mL,library capacity was 0.97×107 pfu;recombinant positive rate of insert cDNA was 96% and length was 0.5-2.0 kb with an average of 0.9 kb. CONCLUSIONS:The established library is high in capacity and quality,which can provide basis for estab-lishing cDNA library of Xinjiang A. rupestris.

In order to ascertain prevalence rate of premarital sexual intercourse, unintended pregnancy and abortion, and evaluate associated factors of unintended pregnancy among undergraduates from all over China, the representative sample of unmarried undergraduates was obtained by using a multi-stage, stratified, probability cluster design, and data were collected by using a survey questionnaire. 62 326 available responders were gained. 11.6% of them acknowledged having experiences of premarital sexual intercourse (standardized prevalence rate of sexual intercourse was 13.8%). 31.5% of students active in premarital sex acknowledged undergoing unintended pregnancy. 76.2% of pregnant students selected abortion to end it. Of students active in premarital sex, 46.2% used contraception at the first sexual intercourse, 28.2% replied "always" using contraception in sexual intercourse. The rate of using condoms, oral contraceptives (OCs), and withdrawal among students who had used contraception was 52.0%, 31.0%, and 27.2% respectively. "No preparation for sex" (40.3%), "pleasure decrement" (32.1%), "won't-be-pregnancy in occasional sexual intercourse" (30.2%) were their common excuses for using no contraception. The identified risk factors for unintended pregnancy among students active in premarital sex by multivariate analysis were as follows: having no steady lover [having no steady lover vs having a steady lover: odds ratio (OR), 1.875; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.629-2.158], unaware of the course of conception (unaware vs aware: OR, 2.023; 95% CI, 1.811-2.260), considering abortion not endanger women's physical and mental health (no endangerment vs endangerment: OR, 2.659; 95% CI, 2.265-3.121), nonuse of contraception (never use vs always use: OR, 1.682; 95% CI, 1.295-2.185). Medical students were not less likely to experience an unintended pregnancy than nonmedical students (OR, 1.111; 95% CI, 0.906-1.287). The substantial proportion of unintended pregnancy among undergraduates indicates a need for convenient and targeted contraceptive education and services.

Objective To explore the mechanism of action of curcumin in the treatment of silicosis by network pharmacology combined with molecular docking technology. Methods The targets prediction network of curcumin in treating silicosis was established based on the collection of targets of curcumin and silicosis in multiple databases, cross-targets were submitted to the STRING database, and their connectivity was analyzed by Cytoscape software. Gene ontology (GO) function analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis were performed on the top 20 genes. The molecular docking was performed on the key targets to study the mechanism of action of curcumin in treating silicosis. Results A total of 311 targets related to curcumin, 270 targets related to silicosis, and 74 cross-targets were obtained from the databases. GO function analysis revealed 2 665 related pathways, and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed 188 related pathways. Molecular docking results showed that curcumin had good binding ability with the targets of mitogen-activated protein kinase 3 (MAPK3), interleukin (IL) 6, serine/threonine kinase 1 (AKT1), vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), signal transducer and activator of transcription 3, albumin, Jun proto-oncogene, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), IL1B, tumor protein p53, C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 and fibronectin 1. Conclusion The therapeutical effects of curcumin on silicosis were implemented through multi-targets and multi-pathways. Curcumin may play a role in the treatment of silicosis by binding to the core targets MAPK3, IL6, AKT1, VEGFA and TNF and regulating the MAPK, IL6, TNF, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B and VEGF signaling pathways.

Calcium-binding protein is an indispensable protein which performs extensive and important functions in the growth of Schistosoma japonicum. Based on our primary study on tegument surface proteins of S. japonicun, a cDNA encoding a 66 kDa calcium-binding protein of S. japonicum (Chinese strain) was cloned, sequence analysis revealed that it was identical with that of SjIrV1 of Philippines strains S. japonicum. The expression of SjIrV1 were detected by Real-time PCR, using cDNA templates isolated from 7, 14, 21, 28, 35 and 42 days worms and the results revealed that the gene was expressed in all investigated stages, and the mRNA level of SjIrV1 is much higher in 42 d female worms than that in 42 d male worms. The cDNA containing the open reading frame of IrV1 was subcloned into a pET28a (+) vector and transformed into competent Escherichia coli BL21 for expression. The recombinant protein was purified using a Ni-NTA purification system, and confirmed by high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). Western blotting analysis showed that recombinant SjIrV1 (rSjIrV1) could be recognized by the S. japonicum infected mouse serum and the mouse serum specific to rSjIrV1, respectively. Immunofluorescence observation exhibited that SjIrV1 was mainly distributed on the tegument of the 35-day adult worms. ELISA test revealed that IgG, IgG1 and IgG2a antibodies are significantly increased in the serum of rSjIrV1 vaccinated mice. The study suggested that rSjIrV1 might play an important role in the development of S. japonicum.
Animals ; Antibodies, Helminth ; blood ; Calcium-Binding Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Cloning, Molecular ; Escherichia coli ; metabolism ; Female ; Genetic Vectors ; Helminth Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Male ; Mice ; Recombinant Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Schistosoma japonicum ; genetics ; metabolism

Objective:To observe the therapeutic effects of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (HUC-MSCs) on insulin resistance, and to investigate the molecular mechanisms in T2DM rats.Methods:The T2DM rats were induced by a high fat and high glucose diet for 10 weeks combined with low-dose streptozocin. Four weeks after infusion of HUC-MSCs via tail vein of the rats, fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, cholesterol were measured. Intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test, intraperitoneal insulin tolerance test and hyperinsulinemic-euglycaemic clamp test were performed to evaluate the islet function and insulin resistance level of rats. The protein expression levels of lipid metabolism signal pathway adenine monophosphate activated protein kinase (AMPK) and acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC) in liver tissue were detected by western blot.Results:Compared with the T2DM group, HUC-MSCs treatment can significantly reduce fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, total cholesterol levels ( P<0.01), and the values of area under the curve of glucose tolerance and insulin tolerance ( P<0.05) in the T2DM+ HUC-MSCs group. Hyperinsulinemic-euglycaemic clamp test found that compared with the T2DM group, after HUC-MSCs treatment, the glucose infusion rate level was significantly higher in the T2DM+ HUC-MSCs group( P<0.01); Western blot showed that compared with the T2DM group, the ratio of p-AMPK to AMPK and p-ACC to ACC in liver tissues of T2DM+ HUC-MSCs group were significantly increased( P<0.01). Conclusion:Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells treatment may improve lipid metabolism and insulin resistance by activating AMPK/ACC signaling pathways in type 2 diabetic rats.

Objective To investigate the current status and influencing factors of compassion fatigue in clinical nurses,and to provide theoretical references for prevention of nurse burnout and promotion of nurse retention.Methods Totally 992 clinical nurses from ten tertiary hospitals were enrolled through random cluster sampling to complete general information questionnaire,the Professional Quality of Life Scale (Pro-QOL-V),the Resilience Scale for Adults(RSA) and the Jefferson Scale of Empathy·Health Professionals(JSE-HP).Results The prevalence of moderate and high risk of secondary stress and burnout were 71.1％,73.2％,respectively;clinical nurses with work experience of 6 to 10 years presented the highest level of burnout(P＜0.01);lower empathy and resilience,as well as adverse work environment were risk factors of compassion fatigue.Multiple regression analysis showed that the influencing factors of nurse burnout were compassion satisfaction,secondary stress,resilience,workload,recognition,empathy,and payment,which explained 70.5％ of the total variance.Conclusion Secondary stress,burnout and compassion satisfaction in clinical nurses are influenced by nurses' empathy,resilience and work environment,and nursing administrators should pay attention to receiving recognition as positive predictors of burnout,except for workload and payment.