Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; surgery ; China ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; surgery ; Liver Transplantation ; methods

A series of poly(ethylene terephthalate-Co-ethylene 2,5-furandicarboxylate) (PEFT) copolyesters were synthesized with different terephthalic acid (PTA) /2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) molar ratios by direct esterification method. In order to investigate their chain structures, 1 H-NMR and 13 C-NMR spectra of these copolyesters were recorded. The average length ( L) , the degree of randomness ( B) and composition of copolyesters were calculated from the intensities of four kinds of signals, which corresponding to the chemical shifts of hydrogen and carbon atoms in ethylene glycol unit in PEFT copolyesters chains. It was shown that the degree of randomness B of all purified copolyesters reached to 1 by the formula of Yamadera and Murano, which indicated that they were random copolymers. Comparatively, the PEF-block-PET of B value was 0. 577, and the PEF-blend-PET of B value was 0 . It was also consistent with the previous results of differential scanning calorimeter ( DSC) that each of the PEFT copolyesters had only one glass transition temperature and the copolyesters were random copolymers. The randomness B of PEFT-50 was the greatest of all, the value was 1. 012 based on the result of 1 H-NMR, and the value was 1. 028 based on the result of 13 C-NMR. Furthermore, the results above displayed that the activity of 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid and terephthalic acid was similar in this nucleophilic substation reaction with ethylene glycol.

Objective:To assess the discrepancy between preoperative needle biopsy (NB)Gleason score and pathological specimen Gleason score (GS)after radical prostatectomy,and to explore the risk factors of postoperative upgrading of GS.Methods:We retrospectively evaluated 160 patients who suf-fered from biopsy proved prostatic carcinoma and performed radical prostatectomy.Age of the patients was 57 -82 years,with the average age of 71.6;prebiopsy prostate specific antigen (PSA)was 0.31 -40.32 μg/L,with the average PSA of 11.29 μg/L;body mass index (BMI)was 16.41 -32.04 kg/m2 , with the average BMI of 23.63 kg/m2;prostate volume (PV)was 9.52 -148.46 mL,with the average PV of 40.19 mL.All the patients included in the study had complete information for clinical variables, including age,BMI,prebiopsy PSA level,PV,number of biopsy cores obtained,percentage,clinical stage,and biopsy GS.Grading of NB Gleason score was compared with their corresponding radical pros-tatectomy specimens,and the discrepancy between the NB and prostatectomy specimens GS assessed. Upgrading was defined as any increase in the pathological GS over that of the biopsy GS as a total sum of primary and secondary grades or a change in the order of primary and secondary grades towards higher ones.Univariable and multivariable Logistic regression analyses were used to identify predictors of patho-logical grading changes.Results:Of the 160 patients,the specimen GS was upgraded in 49 (30.6%) patients and remained with no change in 82 (51.3%)patients.Univariate and multivariate regression analysis showed that prostate volume and biopsy GS were independent predictors with postoperative upgra-ding of GS.Age,BMI,PSA before needle biopsy,clinical stage and needle number showed no statistical significance (P >0.05).Conclusion:Lower biopsy GS and smaller prostate volume are increased risks for clinically upgrading of GS after radical prostatectomy.This fact should be kept in mind when deciding on therapy decisions for patients with prostate cancer.

Objective To study the effect of tranilast on cyclosporine A (CsA)-induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in human renal tubular epithelial cells, and investigate the mechanism of its antifibrotic effect. Methods Cultured HK-2 cells were divided into four groups: (1)In the control group, cells were treated without any medicine; (2) The cell were treated with CsA (4. 2μmol/L) for 72 h; (3) The cells were treated with a combination of CsA (4. 2 μmol/L) and tranilast (100μmol/L); (4) The cells were treated with tranilast (100 μmol/L) alone for 72 h.Morphological changes of the cells were assessed by phase-contrast microscopy. The immunofluorescence and Western blotting were adopted to detect the expression of E-cadherin, α-SMA and OPN mRNA and proteins respectively. Results Tranilast could markedly ameliorate the morphological changes of HK-2 cells stimulated by CsA. The irmmunofluorescence staining revealed the expression of E-cadherin was markedly decreased in HK-2 cells stimulated with CsA for 72 as compared with the control group, while the expression of α-SMA and OPN was significantly higher in CsA group than the control group. The expression of E-cadherin in the CsA + Tranilast group was higher than the CsA group, while the expression of α-SMA and OPN in the CsA + Tranilast group was lower than the CsA group. Western blotting showed that protein expression level of E-cadherin in CsA group was dramatically lower than that in the control group (P＜0. 05), while that of α-SMA and OPN in CsA group was significantly higher than in the control group (P＜0.05). The protein expression level of E-cadherin in HK-2 cells in the CsA + Tranilast group was markedly higher than in the CsA group (P＜0.05), and that of α-SMA and OPN in CsA + Tranilast group was significantly lower than in the CsA group (P＜0. 05). Conclusion Tranilast can block the CsA-induced epithelialto-mesenchymal transition in HK-2 cells probably by suppressing the expression of OPN.

Objective To investigate the relationship between impaired fasting glucose(IFG) and the distribution of body fat in adolescents.Methods Stratified cluster sampling was used to select 3874 adolescents aged 13-18 years for this cress-sectional study.Measurements included height,weight,waist circumference,hip circumference and fasting plasma glucose (FPG).Family history of diabetes was determined by using a serf-administered questionnaire.Participants were divided into normal fasting glucose group(FPG＜5.6 mmol/L,n=3738) and impaired fasting glucose group (5.6 mmol/L≤FPG ＜ 7.0 mmoL/L,n=136) according to their FPG levels. Results (1) After adjusting for age and sex using covariance analysis,the impaired fasting glucose group showed increased levels of body mass index,weight circumference,waist/hip ratio,waist/height ratio,as compared to the normal fasting glucose group (P＜ 0.05).(2) After the age and gender were adjusted,body mass index,weight circumference,waist/hip ratio and waist/height ratio were positively correlated with FPG level (P＜0.05).Among the partial relation coefficients, that between waist/height ratio and FPG(r'=0.0925) was the highest (3) In multiple regression analyses,age (β=-0.102,P＜0.05),family history of diabetes (β=0.186,P＜0.05) and waist/height ratio (β=0.842,P＜0.05) were consistently associated with FPG.Conclusion Central obesity was an important predictor of IFG in adolescents.Waist/height ratio may be an useful index of central obesity and an important predictor of IFG in adolescents.

On the basis of the Uncaria transcriptome, specific primers were designed for UrSTR. The full-length cDNA of UrSTR (GeneBank: OL310251) was 1 541 bp, encoding 345 amino acid residues, and the promoter region sequence of UrSTR (GeneBank: OL310252) was 1 179 bp. Phylogenetic tree is revealed that UrSTR had a closest relationship with STR from Ophiorrhiza pumila and Ophiorrhiza japonica. Localization of UrSTR protein is revealed located in the vacuole membrane. Plant-care analysis indicated that the promoter region sequence of UrSTR, covering multiple light, stress and hormone-response cis-regulatory elements, and verified transcriptional activity. The results of SDS-PAGE show that pET-28a-UrSTR recombinant protein was successfully expressed, and the size was anticipated. The UrSTR prokaryotic expression system needs to be optimized in the later stage. The research lays the foundation for further purification to study its structure and functional characterization of the UrSTR protein.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; administration & dosage ; Adrenergic beta-Agonists ; therapeutic use ; Bronchodilator Agents ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive ; drug therapy

BACKGROUND: The immature dendritic cell (imDC) can induce immunological tolerance and has widely application in the field of organ transplant. At present, the methods of inducing imDC are insufficient, so the new induction method is demanding.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of sodium butyrate (SB) on the maturation and immunological function of human peripheral blood-derived imDC.DESIGN: Controlled observation and in vitro cytological trial.SETTING: Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University.MATERIALS: Five samples of human peripheral blood were obtained from the healthy volunteers (aged 20-23 years) of Sun Yat-sen University, totally 500 mL. Then peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and lymphocytes were isolated within 2 hours.METHODS: The experiment was carried out in the Medical Research Center of the Second Hospital Affiliated to Sun (1 mmol/L) was added for induction, while those supplemented with maturation promoting factor lipopolysaccharide (LPS)the beginning of induction, while LPS was added on the sixth day for second stimulation.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Cell morphological change, flow cytometry was used to detect DC phenotype,FITC-labeled Dextran was used to detect the endocytosis of DC, the production of IL-12 was determined by means of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and the proliferation of lymphocyte induced by DC was assayed with mixed lymphocyte reaction.expressions of CD80, CD83 and HLA-DR were significantly lower in the imDC of routine induction group following SB maturity promoting, compared with LPS group (P＜0.01). On the sixth day, LPS was added into the SB-induced imDC,Endocytosis of DC: The imDC of routine induction group possessed a significantly lower endocytic activity after induced by LPS, and there were extremely significant differences compared with blank control group and SB maturation Production of IL-12: The production of IL-12 in the mDC induced by LPS was significantly higher than that in control group, SB maturation promoting group and SB induction group, the mDC induced by LPS in routine induction group stimulated significantly stronger proliferation of lymphocyte (P＜0.01).

AIM: To investigate the immunological function of sodium butyrate-induced immature dendritic cells in vitro.METHODS: The human monocyte-derived dendritic cells were induced in the presence of human granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor(GM-CSF) and interleukin-4 (IL-4), combined with sodium butyrate. The immunological function of sodium butyrate-induced dendritic cells was detected by the FCM, endocytic activity, T cells stimulatory proliferation capacity, and interleukin-12 (IL-12) production.RESULTS: Sodium butyrate could down-regulate the major histocompatibility complex(MHC) class II and costimulatory molecules of dendritic cells, increase the endocytic activity, induce a stage of T-cell anergey, and inhibit the T helper cell type 1-skewing factor IL-12 production. CONCLUSION: Sodium butyrate inhibits the maturation of dendritic cells and induces production of immature dendritic cells, which may help to explore the machenism of its epigenitic modification.

Objective To evaluate the association between LDL-C and ischemic stroke in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF).Method A total of 2 470 patients with nonvalvular AF were included in the present study.The clinical data and laboratory examination results of the patients in the hospital were collected.The subjects were either divided into the ischemic stroke history (n =560),and non-ischemic stroke history groups (n =1 910),or divided into the low-middle risk (n =566) and high risk groups (n =1 904) based on CHA2 DS2-VASc score.Results There were significant differences in the proportion of Han,the ratio of gender,age,hemoglobin,hematocrit,ALT,serum uric acid,HDL-C and LDL-C between the patients with ischemic stroke history and without (all P ＜ 0.05).Similarly,there were significant differences in the proportion of Han,the ratio of gender,age,white blood cell count,hemoglobin,hematocrit,platelet count,ALT,albumin,TG and LDL-C between subjects in the low-middle risk group and those in the high risk group (all P ＜ 0.05).A logistical regression analysis showed that LDL-C was an independent risk factor for both the ischemic stroke history (OR 2.089,95％ CI 1.860-2.347,P ＜0.05),and future ischemic stroke risk (OR 1.270,95％ CI 1.079-1.494,P ＜ 0.05) in patients with nonvalvular AF.Conclusion LDL-C is associated with ischemic stroke in patients with nonvalvular AF,and it is also an independent risk factor for future ischemic stroke in these patients.