Objective To evaluate the feasibility and value of quantitatively assessing left ventricular systolic function in rats with myocardial infarction (MI) by myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE) based on mathematical morphology algorithm.Methods SD rats model of MI were mede,then MCE were performed before MI and at 1,3 weeks after MI.In vitro study:based on the principle of binary morphology,segmentation of endocardium was acquired using dilation,erosion,closed operations and connected domain object tag-based.The automatic segmentation of endocardial contour was compared with the manual segmentation boundary.In vivo study:the left ventricular area was calculated using the software,and the area variation fraction (AVF),a new index of left ventricular systolic function,were acquired.The correlation between AVF and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was analyzed.The value of AVF for diagnosis for left ventricular dysfunction was evaluated by ROC curve.Results ① The cross-correlation coefficient (CCC) and percent error (PE) between automatic contours and manual boundary were more than 0.90 and less than 9％,respectively.② AVF correlated positively with LVEF (r =0.934,P ＜ 0.001).③ ROC analyses showed the area under curves for AVF diagnosing left ventricular dysfunction was 0.834.The best cutoff value was 27.5 ％ for diagnosing left ventricular dysfunction with the sensitivity of 85 ％ and specificity of 60 ％.Conclusions Left ventricular endocardium can be identificated automatically and rapidly by MCE based on mathematical morphology algorithm.AVF can assessed quantitatively left ventricular systolic function in rats with myocardial infarction.

Objective To evaluate the value of tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) in diagnosing pulmonary arterial hypertension(PAH) with common simple congenital heart disease(CHD).Methods 104 patients of CHD approved by operation or intervention were retrospectively analyzed.Both TDI and right cardiac catheterization were performed in all patients,whose were divided into PAH and non-PAH groups according to mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) on diagnostic right cardiac catheterization:60 PAH patients[mPAP ≥25 mmHg(1 mmHg =0.133 kPa) and pulmonary arterial capillary wedge pressure ≤15 mmHg],44 non-PAH patients (mPAP ＜25 mmHg).The PAH group was divided into mild (25 mmHg≤ mPAP≤35 mmHg),moderate (36 mmHg≤mPAP≤50 mmHg) and severe (mPAP＞50 mmHg) subgroups.The tricuspid annular systolic peak velocity (TS'),early diastolic peak velocity (TE'),late diastolic peak velocity (TA') were measured by TDI and TE'/TA' and Tei index were calculated.The correlation between TDI parameters and the cardiac catheterization findings (sPAP,mPAP and dPAP) were assessed.Results ①TS' and TE' in PAH group were significantly lower than those in non-PAH(P ＜ 0.05),but Tei in PAH group were significantly higher than that in non-PAH (P ＜0.001),however,there were no significant difference in TA' and TE'/TA' between two groups (P ＞ 0.05).②Tei correlated positively with pulmonary arterial pressure (P ＜0.001),TS' was found to be negatively correlated with pulmonary arterial pressure(P ＜0.05),but no correlation between TE',TA',TE'/TA' and pulmonary arterial pressure(P ＞0.05).③ROC analysis showed the area under curves for Tei index and TS' diagnosis for PAH was 0.893 and 0.699,respectively.At the cutoff of Tei＞0.49 and TS'＜16 cm/s for indicating PAH,the sensitivity were 86.67 ％ and 80.00％,respectively and the specificity were 79.55 ％ and 45.45 ％,respectively.④Tei in the moderate and severe PAH were significantly higher than that in mild PAH (P ＜ 0.05),TS' and TE' in severe PAH were significantly lower than those in mild and moderate PAH (P ＜ 0.05),At the cutoff of Tei＞0.55 for indicating moderate or severe PAH,the sensitivity and specificity were 95.24％ and 72.22％.Conclusions Tei index and TS' have high application value in assessing PAH and classification of PAH.Tei＞0.49 indicates PAH,while Tei＞0.55 suggests moderate or severe PAH.

BACKGROUND:The knee joint acts as the body’s largest and most complex joint, which is a commonly seen perplex in patients because of synovium and cartilage diseases. Moreover, clinical physicians are often confused on the ultrasonic diagnosis of synovium and cartilage diseases.
OBJECTIVE: To review the ultrasound misdiagnosed cases of knee cartilage and synovial lesions and to summarize the common misconceptions and discrimination methods.
METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed in the ultrasound misdiagnosed cases of knee cartilage and synovial lesions reported from 2002 to 2014, and then the common misconceptions and corresponding identification methods were summarized.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: High-frequency ultrasound is most likely to have six “mistaken ideas” addressing knee cartilage and synovial lesions: (1) cartilage degeneration; (2) synovial calcification; (3) echo intensity from synovial lesions; (4) blood flow in the synovium; (5) synovial effusion; (6) lesions involving intraarticular structures. High-frequency ultrasound runs through dynamical observation and contrast observation of bilateral knee joint lesions, which is a valuable imaging method for diagnosis of cartilage and synovial diseases based on vigilance at the “mistaken ideas” and mastery of the distinguishing ideas and methods.

Objective To explore the regulating effects of Egr-1 promoter activated by ionizing radiation (IR) and doxorubicin (ADM) on the expression of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) genes. Methods The human GM-CSF cDNA and enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) cDNA were linked together with IRES(internal ribosome entry site) and then inserted into the expression vector pCIneo under control of the Egr-1 promoter(Egr-EG). The vector was transferred into human bone marrow stromal cell line HFCL by liposome transfection. And the cells were exposure to ADM and IR. The activity of EGFP in HFCL/EG cells were detected by FACS. The effect of N-acetylcysteine on the expression of EGFP following exposure to ADM and IR was examined. The amounts of GM-CSF in HFCL/EG after chemotherapy or radiation were measured with ELISA. The effects of GM-CSF in HFCL/EG cultural supernatants on expansion of CFU-GM derived from cord blood were also studied. RT-PCR analysis for the expression of GM-CSF mRNA in HFCL/EG after exposure to ADM or IR. Results The percentage of EGFP+ HFCL/EG cells exposed to ADM and IR was increased compared with non-treatment group (1.2 % and 15.2 % vs 18.2 %, t = 5.11, P < 0.01). The levels of secreted GM-CSF in HFCL/EG cells exposed to ADM and IR was increased (P < 0.01), but no difference between ADM group and IR group (P 0.05). The expression of EGFP by HFCL/EG treated with ADM and IR was significantly decreased by N-acetylcysteine. The effects of GM-CSF in HFCL/EG cultural supernatants on expansion of CFU-GM in ADM group and IR group were significantly higher than that in HFCL group and non-treatment group. However, The CFU-GM count of IR group was higher than that of ADM group. The expression of GM-CSF mRNA in HFCL/EG cells exposed to ADM and IR was significantly increased(t = 4.37, P < 0.01). Conclusions GM-CSF gene expression regulated by Egr-1 promoter induced by ADM and IR could help the recovery from hematopoietic injury.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the epidemiological features in patients with allergic rhinitis (AR) in Yichang city, and put forward effective prevention and control measures. METHOD: Collecting the data of allergic rhinitis in city proper from 2010 to 2013, input the data into the database and used statistical analysis. RESULT: In recent years, the AR patients in this area increased year by year. The spring and the winter were the peak season of onset. The patients was constituted by young men. There was statistically significant difference between the age, the area,and the gender (P < 0.01). The history of allergy and the diseases related to the gender composition had statistical significance difference (P < 0.05). The allergens and the positive degree in gender, age structure had statistically significant difference (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION Need to conduct the healthy propaganda and education, optimizing the environment, change the bad habits, timely medical treatment, standard treatment.
Allergens ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Rhinitis, Allergic ; epidemiology ; Seasons

Objective To explore the application of Duff in treatment for patients with early stage threat ened abortion.Method 1000 patients with early stage threatened abortion admitted from Jan.2015 to Jun.2016 were selected,and were divided into two groups.All patients were treated by conventional therapy and Duff therapy.Treatment effects of the two groups were observed and compared.Results The differences of clinical characteristics between the two groups had no statistical significance (all P＞0.05).No serious adverse reactions oc curred to either group.There was no significant difference in remission and disappearance time of clinical symptoms between the two groups (t=0.334,0.367,all P＞0.05).The total treatment efficiency was higher in the observation group than in the control group,but the differences had no statistical significance (x2=0.058,/P＞0.05).Conclusion There is a certain application value of Duff treatment for early stage threatened abortion,which is safe,efficient,and convenient,worthy of promotion.

Objective To investigate the correlation between family cohesion and adaptability and quality of life in patients with enterostomy. Methods Using Chinese version of Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale (FACESⅡ-CV) and Chinese version of Stoma-Quality of Life (STOMA-QOL-C) to investigate the status of family cohesion and adaptability, family type and their impact on quality of life of 110 patients with enterostomy. Results Scores of family cohesion and adaptability averaged 59.15 ± 11.94, 47.32 ± 9.40,were significantly lower than 63.90 ± 8.00 and 50.90 ± 6.20 in the norm,and the difference was statistically significant (t=-4.171,-3.990, P<0.01).The family cohesion was positively correlated with the score of quality of life, social interaction and psychological burden(r=0.274, 0.284, 0.263, P<0.05), and the family adaptability was positively correlated with the score of quality of life,social interaction and psychological burden(r=0.316, 0.338, 0.228, P<0.05 or 0.01). The balance type family was 30 cases;scores of quality of life averaged 45.10±7.26, the intermediate type family was 50 cases;scores of quality of life averaged 43.48±9.98, the extreme type family was 28 cases;scores of quality of life averaged 43.37 ± 16.68, and difference between the three was no statistically significant(F=0.442, P=0.665). Conclusions In the nursing process of patients with enterostomy, health care workers should pay attention to improve family cohesion and adaptability, as to achieve the purpose of improving the quality of life of the patients.

Tumor necrosis factor(TNF-alpha) plays an improtant role in the process of anti-infection and anti-cancer. It can both protect and make damage to the host. In order to find new way of inhibiting its host-damaging activity, An E. coli flagella displayed random peptide library was constructed and TNF-alpha antagonist peptides were screened using the peptide library. After 5 rounds of panning and DNA sequencing, six peptide sequences were obtained. Two of them(TBP2, TBP3) have the same sequence frame of V--N-WG. After primary comparation of TNF-alpha binding ability, four peptides were synthesised and purified with RP-HPLC. The activity of inhibiting TNF-alpha was detected with L929 cell and MTT method. The data show that TBP2 and TBP3 can inhibit 90% of TNF-alpha activity when TNF-alpha gives about 30% cell toxicity on L929. The two sequences have not been reported.
Escherichia coli ; genetics ; Peptide Library ; Peptides ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; antagonists & inhibitors

BACKGROUNDOxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of epidermal diseases. This study aimed to investigate the effects of quercetin on the anti-oxidative response and on mitochondrial protection in cultured normal human keratinocytes.

METHODSCultured HaCaT cells were treated with different concentrations of H2O2 (0, 50, 100, 250, 500 micromol/L) for different periods of time (0.5, 1, 2, 4 hours) to establish an oxidative stress model. The cultured HaCaT cells were randomly assigned to control, H2O2, and quercetin + H2O2 groups. For the quercetin groups, the cells were treated with different concentrations of quercetin (0, 10, 25, 50 micromol/L) before exposure to H2O2. Morphological changes of the cells were observed under an inverted microscope and an electron microscope. The cell viability was detected by the MTT method. The cell apoptosis (AnnexinV/propidium iodide double stain) and mitochondrial membrane potential (DeltaPsim) changes were detected by flow cytometry.

RESULTSAn oxidative stress model of HaCaT cells was established under a suitable concentration (250 micromol/L) and treated time of H2O2 (2 hours). The cell viability and DeltaPsim decreased in a concentration-dependent and time-dependent manner while the percentage of apoptotic cells significantly increased in the H2O2 groups compared with the control group (P < 0.05). The cell viability and DeltaPsim of the quercetin treated group increased (P < 0.05) and the percentage of apoptotic cells decreased at concentrations of 1-50 micromol/L quercetin (P < 0.01) compared with H2O2 treated group.

CONCLUSIONQuercetin can relieve the cell damage and apoptosis from H2O2 induced injury to HaCaT cells by anti-oxidation and mitochondrial protection.

Antioxidants ; pharmacology ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Cell Survival ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Humans ; Hydrogen Peroxide ; toxicity ; Keratinocytes ; drug effects ; pathology ; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial ; drug effects ; Mitochondria ; drug effects ; Quercetin ; pharmacology

In the last several years, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has made much progress in the treatment of neurological diseases. The living space of TCM in neurological diseases lies in refractory diseases, aging and chronic diseases caused by multiple factors as well as sub-health state and chronic fatigue state. The effect model of TCM mainly consists of whole effect, self-organization, self-stable model, holographic effect and butterfly effect. The effective point of TCM in neurological diseases lies mainly in end-points and health-related events. Moreover, TCM has advantages in the evaluation of symptoms, syndrome and quality of life (QOL). Some key indexes should be included when evaluating the efficacy of TCM in neurological diseases. Meanwhile, the advantages of TCM such as end-points, health-related events and QOL should be highlighted. Multi-subject researching methods could be adopted to make a comprehensive evaluation of subjective and objective indexes. The clinical evidence on the TCM efficacy evaluation may come from RCTs, and other types of designs can also be considered.
Aging ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Nervous System Diseases ; drug therapy ; psychology ; Quality of Life