Objective To investigate the correlation between reproductive hormone concentration and the amplitude and latency of speech-evoked auditory brainstem response (speech-ABR) in young adults, and to explore the effects of reproductive hormone on the speech processing ability of young people.Methods Speech-ABR of thirty five normal hearing young adults, including seventeen females (27.29±1.83 years old) and eighteen males (28.17±2.50 years old) were recorded.The speech syllable /da/ was transmitted as a stimulus sound to the right ears through insert earphones in speech-ABR test.All participants had air conduction hearing thresholds of 20 dB HL or better across the standard audiometric frequencies (250~8 000 Hz) in both ears, and click-ABRs were also within normal limits.At the same time, the concentrations of estradiol and testosterone in the serum were examined.Results ① Females had a shorter latency than males in transient responses (waves V, A and O) and sustained responses (waves D, E and F) of speech-ABR (P<0.05, respectively).The amplitude of transient response (waves V and A) and sustained response (waves D, E and F) in females was also significantly larger than that in males (P<0.05, respectively), except for amplitude of peak O (P>0.05).The V/A slope in females was significantly steeper than that in males (P<0.05).② Estradiol levels in females (118.77±102.66 pg/ml) were significantly higher than that in males (52.91±14.77 pg/ml) (P<0.05), and the total testosterone concentration in females (457.65±140.82 pg/ml) was significantly lower than that in males (3 677.37±1 155.80 pg/ml) (P<0.05).③ A correlation analysis between speech-ABR and estradiol or total testosterone showed that all peak latencies of speech-ABR in transient responses (waves V, A and O) and sustained responses (waves D, E and F) were negatively correlated with the estradiol concentration (P<0.05 respectively), in which the correlation coefficient was between 0.2~0.4.All peak latencies of speech-ABR were positively correlated with the total testosterone concentration (P<0.05 respectively), in which the correlation coefficient was between 0.4~0.7.④ The amplitudes of speech-ABR increased with estradiol concentration growing, the wave V and estradiol concentrations were positively correlated (P<0.05).The estradiol concentrations showed a significant negative correlation with wave A, D, E, F and O wave (P<0.05 respectively), with a correlation coefficient between 0.2~0.7.On the contrary, the amplitudes of speech-ABR decreased with the increasing of total testosterone concentration, and the wave V, wave A, V/A slope and total testosterone concentration were moderately correlated (P<0.05),with a correlation coefficient between 0.4-0.6.The correlation between the amplitudes of D wave and total testosterone concentration was not statistically significant (P>0.05), and the correlation between wave E and wave F and total testosterone concentration was weakly correlated (P<0.05).In addition, the amplitudes of the wave O were also independent with testosterone levels (r=0.133, P>0.05).Conclusion There are correlations between the level of reproductive hormone and the amplitude and latency of speech-ABR.It is one of the reasons for the gender difference in the brainstem speech coding ability of normal young adult.

AIM:To investigate the effect of oleuropein on interleukin-1β( IL-1β)-induced SD rat articular chondrocytes .METHODS:The SD rat articular chondrocytes were isolated by 2 step enzyme digestions .The chondrocytes were cultured in vitro.Inverted microscopic observation was performed during the culture .Alcian blue staining and type II collagen immunohistochemical staining were used to identify the chondrocytes .The effects of oleuropein on the viability of chondrocytes were determined by CCK-8 assay.The cells in 3rd passage were pretreated with oleuropein at 10, 50 or 100 μmol/L and subsequently stimulated with IL-1βat 10 μg/L for 24 h.Production of prostaglandin E 2 ( PGE2 ) and ni-tric oxide (NO) were evaluated by the Griess reaction and an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).The mRNA expression of matrix metalloproteinase ( MMP)-1 and MMP-13 was measured by real-time PCR.The protein levels of in-ducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) were detected by Western blotting .RESULTS:The cell viability of chondrocytes was not significantly impaired by treating with oleuropein at concentration of 10, 50 or 100μmol/L for 24 h compared with control group .Pretreatment with oleuropein significantly in-hibited the production of PGE 2 and NO induced by IL-1β.Oleuropein also significantly decreased the IL-1β-stimulated MMP-1 and MMP-13 mRNA expression in articular chondrocytes .Pretreatment with oleuropein inhibited the IL-1β-media-ted activation of NF-κB by suppressing the degradation of its inhibitory protein IκBαin the cytoplasm .CONCLUSION:Oleuropein inhibits IL-1β-induced inflammatory gene expression by suppressing NF-κB activation at the transcriptional le-vel, suggesting a new mechanism for the anti-inflammatory effects of oleuropein as a novel agent on treating with osteoarthri-tis.

Objective To study the relationship between the cognitive function and speech recognition ability in young patients with OSAHS.Methods We selected 60 young male patients,according to the apnea-hypopnea index(AHI)and the severity of hypoxemia.They were divided into three subgroups on the basis of their syndrome severities:mild group (n= 19;AHI 5~15/h,85%≤minimum SaO2≤90%),moderate group (n= 20;AHI>15~30/h,80%≤minimum SaO2<85%),and severe group (n= 21;AHI>30/h,minimum SaO2<80%).First,we used the MoCA scale for cognitive function tests and recorded the scores.Then 15 lists of sentence Mandarin Speech Test Materials(MSTMs)were utilized to test each group.A data analysis was performed using SPSS 17.0 software. Results The total MoCA scores(mild group:27.32±1.16;moderate group:25.85±1.23;severe group:24.52± 1.69;control group:28.52 ±1.16)decreased progressively as the disease severity increased,showing significant differences between the control group and the mild,moderate and severe groups of OSAHS patients (allP<0.05). When sound stimuli were presented at 22,24,and 26 dB SPL,the speech recognition rates in the patients with se-vere(35.4±22.6,56.3±23.9,75.2±16.5)lower than the other groups (mild group:38.4±23.5,58.3±25.5,79.2 ±18.5;moderate group:38.8±21.6,58.7±22.7,78.5±16.7;control group:39.4±23.5,60.3±24.3,80.2±16.4, respectively,allP<0.05).The differences in intensity of 50% recognition rate between the severe group(4.15± 0.80)and the control(3.62±0.41),mild (3.66±0.50)and moderate groups(3.72±0.55)of OSAHS patients were statistically significant(allP<0.05).Conclusion With hypoxia and disease severity increased,speech recogni-tion abilities in OSAHS patients decreased.This may be an important factor associated with cognitive assessment scale score.

Objective To investigate the effect of ultrasound-guided oblique subcostal trans versus abdominis plane (OSTAP) block with different concentration of ropivacaine in combined anesthesia for upper abdominal surgery.Methods One hundred forty-seven patients underwent upper abdominal surgery,85 males and 62 females,aged 18-80 years,ASA physical status Ⅰ or Ⅱ,were recruited and randomly divided into four groups.Bilateral ultrasound-guided OSTAP block were performed in each group.Ropivacaine hydrochloride injection of 2.5 mg/kg were performed in each of group A (n =41),B (n =55),C (n =37) while concentration was 0.375％,0.5％,0.75％,respectively.Group D (n =14) was received 20 ml of saline solution for each side.Intravenous-inhalation combined anesthesia was conducted during the surgery,with sevoflurane 0.8-1.0 MAC,dexmedetomidine 0.5 μg/kg iv,remifentanil 0.1μg·kg-1 ·min-1 iv.Each group was received patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) after surgery which contained butorphanol tartrate and flurbiprofen axetil.The consumption of opioids and vasoactive drugs,hemodynamic parameters in operation were recorded.The visual analogue scale (VAS) scores were evaluated at 12 and 24 h after operation,the location and degree of abdominal pain,fentanyl used for acute pain during the first 12 h after operation,the postoperative intestinal exhaust time and hospitalization time were also recorded.Results There was no difference in basic states,duration of operation or blood loss in each group.The consumption of sufentanil in operation in groups A,B and C was (30.5±9.4)μg,(27.4±7.4) μg,(30.9±8.8) μg,respectively,which were significantly lower than that in group D [(47.1±9.3) μg] (P＜0.05).There was no difference in vasoactive drugs between the four groups.There was no difference in hemodynamic indexes in the TAP block groups.There was no significant difference in intraoperative blood loss between the four groups the VAS scores.There was no difference in the location and degree of abdominal pain,fentanyl used for acute pain,the postoperative intestinal exhaust time and hospitalization time.Conclusion Intraoperative opioids consumption in combined general anesthesia was reduced by ultrasound-guided OSTAP block.There is no difference between the effect of OSTAP block with different concentration of ropivacaine in combined anesthesia for upper abdominal surgery.

Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated(HCN)channels are widely expressed in the central and peripheral nervous systems.They can generate hyperpolarization-activated current(Ih)that regulates the resting membrane potential and excitability of neurons.Furthermore,it can affect the precise processing and con-duction of hearing,which plays a crucial role in the accurate analysis of temporal information.Therefore,through the review of HCN channel structure and distribution,as well as electrophysiological effects,the role and mecha-nism of HCN channels in the auditory pathways of the normal and unilateral or bilateral deafness patients will be fur-ther investigated.

In patients with single-sided deafness (SSD), the interaural time difference and the interaural level difference signals are insufficient or missing, which result in the lack of sound localization ability and the decrease of speech comprehension in the noise environments. SSD can also cause the morphological and functional changes of the central auditory system, resulting in auditory deprivation. In early stage of the development, the auditory center is more susceptible to ambient environment and auditory inputs. It is a critical period of auditory function and morphological refinement. It is also sensitive period of central adaptability after auditory deprivation. SSD in the sensitive period of development can cause significant laterality activities of bilateral sound localization pathway. Unilateral auditory deprivation can distort tonotopic maps, disrupt the binaural integration, reorganize the neural network and change the synaptic transmission in the primary auditory cortex or sub cortex. In order to compensate for the deficiency of the interaural time difference and interaural level difference cues, the auditory pathway is used to improve the ability of sound source localization by using the spectral-shape cues remaining unchanged. In order to improve the effectiveness of the functional areas of the cortex, auditory center is also reorganized by cross-modal. However, central compensation after SSD is a double-edged sword. If SSD onset in the sensitive period, the laterality of auditory pathway will be continued and difficult to reverse by even long term bilateral hearing in the post-sensitive period. Therefore, in order to improve the understanding of the characteristics of unilateral auditory deprivation, this paper reviewed the evidence for adaptive changes in spatial hearing following a developmental hearing loss in one ear.

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of modified test system for sound localization (SL) in children. Methods: Modified system (6 male, 9 female) and traditional method ( 5 male, 5 female) were used for evaluation of minimum audible angle(MAA) and root-mean-square error(RMS) error of 4 to 6 years old children, and the results were compared to verify the accuracy and effectiveness of the modified test system for children sound localization.SPSS 17.0 software was used to analyze the data(t test). Results: (1) Comparison of veracity of modified system and traditional test: when tested at the positive front position using modified system, MAA and RMS error were(3.23±1.00)° and (13.68±5.18)° respectively.When using traditional method, MAA and RMS error were(3.17±0.59)°and (13.96±4.56)° respectively. No statistical differences were found between two groups(t value was 0.16, -0.14, both P>0.05). (2) Comparison of time used were as followed: when using modified system, it was (14.67±1.95) min for MAA, and (6.67±1.35) min for RMS error. When using traditional method, it was (36.30±6.81) min for MAA, and (21.00±3.50) min for RMS error. Time used were significant shorter in modified system than in traditional method (t value was-9.78, -12.37, both P<0.05). Conclusion Modified test system for children sound localization is useful and reliable in children′s horizontal SL test.The time used of modified test system is shorter than that of traditional test system.