To observe the expression of N - cadherin and fibronectin in retinal pigment epithelium ( RPE) cells in vitro under high glucose conditions, furthermore, to explore the effects of high glucose on epithelial -mesenchymal transition (EMT) in RPE cells.
●METHODS: Human RPE (hRPE) cells were cultured in vitro. Containing a final concentration of 60mmol/ L glucose was used for high glucose treatment. The cells were divided into normal glucose group (5. 5mmol/ L, NG) and high glucose group (24, 48 and 72h) respectively. The expression of N - cadherin and fibronectin in hRPE cells were evaluated by immunofluorescence and real -time PCR.
●RESULTS:RPE cells became disorganized and swollen over time under high glucose conditions, especially in 72h subgroup. lmmunohistochemical analysis revealed that the expression of N - cadherin in RPE cells under high glucose conditions was decreased compared with that in the control group, while the expression of fibronectin was increased. Real - time PCR results showed that the expression of N - cadherin mRNA in high glucose group was decreased at 24h compared with that in the control group, and declined markedly at 72h ( F = 12. 252, P =0. 000). There were no significant differences between the control group and the high glucose group at 24h, while the differences between the control group and the high glucose group (48 and 72h) were significant respectively (P < 0. 05 ). Meanwhile, the expression of fibronectin mRNA in RPE cells was increased in high glucose group at 24h, and reached the peak at 72h (F = 50. 543, P = 0. 000). There were no significant differences between the control group and the high glucose group at 24h. Compared with the control group, the expression of fibronectin mRNA in hRPE cells was increased significantly in high glucose group (48 and 72h) respectively (P= 0. 000, P= 0. 000).
●CONCLUSlON: The expression of epithelium marker N-cadherin is down - regulated under high glucose conditions in hRPE cells in vitro. Meanwhile, the expression of mesenchymal maker fibronectin is induced and appeared to EMT changes. Results of this study will enrich our growing understanding in proliferative diabetic retinopathy and hopefully lead to novel insights for the pathogenesis and therapeutic treatments.

Objective To observe the value of one-step spectral imaging and perfusion imaging in diagnosis of solitary pulmonary nodule(SPN).Methods Forty-seven patients with SPN proved by pathology underwent perfusion scan with gemstone spectral ima-ging mode,who were divided into malignant group in 28 patients and benign one in 1 9.The parameters of CT perfusion including blood volume (BV),blood flow (BF),mean transit time (MTT)and permeability surface (PS)were analyzed.Iodine concentration (IC),normalized iodine concentration (NIC)and slope rate of spectral curve in both arterial phase and venous phase were measured and calculated.The independent sample t test was performed to compare quantitative parameters between malignant and benign SPN.Results BF,BV and PS of malignant SPN were higher than those of benign ones (P <0.05).No statistically significantly differences between malignant and benign SPN were found (P >0.05).IC,NIC and slope rate of spectral curve in malignant SPN were higher than those in benign ones in both phases (P <0.05).Conclusion One-step spectral imaging and perfusion imaging can provide more parameters,which is helpful for the diagnosis of SPN.

The effect of phenol concentration on the structure and function of microbial communities,which were cultured in different conditions using coking wastewater biofilm as seeding,was investigated by Biolog and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis(DGGE)methods.The less number of bands of cultivated sam-ples on the denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis fingerprint of 16S rRNA gene indicated reduction of di-versity after enrichment and cultivation.Some bands on the DGGE gel were significantly influenced by the phenol concentration in medium.The results of Biolog showed that the original biofilm sample had the highest substrate utility capacity as measured by average well color development(AWCD).But low concen-tration of phenol enriched sample S7 showed more diverse activity on the utility of Carboxylic acids.The principal component analysis(PCA)of Biolog data revealed that the metabolic patterns were similar when using the same phenol concentration,although the sample S7 much less similar to other cultivated samples.These results suggested that the enrichment and cultivation with phenol supplemented decreased the diver-sity and also changed the metabolic function of the microbial community.Lower phenol concentration in-creased the microbial community metabolic activity.The phenol degrading capacity of isolates from each samples indicated that the enrichment and cultivation condition had changed the type and property of cul-truable bacteria.Based on these results,we concluded that the different microorganisms will be isolated un-der different cultivation condition.

Decoction is one of the most commonly used dosage forms of traditional Chinese medicine. The stability of chemical constituents in decoction is closely related to the clinical efficacy and safety. There were few reports about the influence of metal ions in the stability of chemical constituents in traditional Chinese medicine. However, there is no evidence that metal ions in decoction water need to be controlled. In this study, 2,3,5,4'-tetrahydroxy stilbene-2-O-β-D-glucoside (THSG), one of the main constituents in Polygoni Multiflori Radix was studied. Ordinary tap water, deionized water, and water containing different metal ions were used to investigate and compare the influence on THSG. The results showed that after storage in a dark place at the room temperature for 10 days, the degradation of THSG was 7% in deionized water, while undetectable in tap water. The content of THSG could be decreased by different kinds of metal ions, and the effect was concentration-dependent. Moreover, Fe3+ and Fe2+ showed the greatest influence at the same concentration; and our study has shown that THSG decreased more than 98% in Fe and Fe2+ solutions at 500 ppm concentration. In the same time we found out p-hydroxybenzaldehyde (molecular weight: 122.036 7) and 2,3,5-trihydroxybenzaldehyde-2-O-glycoside (molecular weight: 316.079 4) were the main degradation products of THSG in tap water and water containing Cu2+, Ca2+, Zn2+, Mg2+ and Al3+. The product of THSG dimer with a water molecule was found in water containing Fe3+ and Fe2+. The above results showed that the metal ions in water could significantly influence the stability of THSG in water, indicating that the clinical efficacy and safety of decoction would be affected if the metal ions in water were not under control. It's suggested that deionized water should be used in the preparation of decoction containing Polygoni Multiflori Radix in the clinic to avoid degradation of THSG. Meanwhile, decoction prepared by tap water should be taken by patients in a short time. Our investigation provides important information and reference about the influence of metal ions on the stability of decoctions in other traditional Chinese medicine that have unstable groups such as hydroxyls and unsaturated bonds, etc.
Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; Glucosides ; chemistry ; Ions ; chemistry ; Metals ; chemistry ; Plant Roots ; chemistry ; Polygonaceae ; chemistry ; Stilbenes ; chemistry

Based on Hospital Information System (HIS),mobile terminal devices are used to realize the application of medical Internet of Things (IoT) in clinical nursing in wards,including intelligent basic data collection and monitoring system of medical IoT,intelligent infusion management system and other aspects,to expand and extend nurse's work to sickbeds and enhance nursing efficiency.

The LEAFY (LFY) homologous gene of Dendrobium moniliforme (L.) Sw. was cloned by new primers which were designed based on the conservative region of known sequences of orchid LEAFY gene. Partial LFY homologous gene was cloned by common PCR, then we got the complete LFY homologous gene Den LFY by Tail-PCR. The complete sequence of DenLFY gene was 3 575 bp which contained three exons and two introns. Using BLAST method, comparison analysis among the exon of LFY homologous gene indicted that the DenLFY gene had high identity with orchids LFY homologous, including the related fragment of PhalLFY (84%) in Phalaenopsis hybrid cultivar, LFY homologous gene in Oncidium (90%) and in other orchid (over 80%). Using MP analysis, Dendrobium is found to be the sister to Oncidium and Phalaenopsis. Homologous analysis demonstrated that the C-terminal amino acids were highly conserved. When the exons and introns were separately considered, exons and the sequence of amino acid were good markers for the function research of DenLFY gene. The second intron can be used in authentication research of Dendrobium based on the length polymorphism between Dendrobium moniliforme and Dendrobium officinale.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Base Sequence ; DNA, Plant ; genetics ; Dendrobium ; genetics ; Exons ; Introns ; Orchidaceae ; genetics ; Phylogeny ; Plant Leaves ; genetics ; Plant Proteins ; genetics ; Plants, Medicinal ; genetics ; Sequence Alignment ; Sequence Homology, Amino Acid

OBJECTIVEThough myasthenia gravis (MG) is a typical autoimmune disorder, there was some controversy on the treatment of the childhood-onset MG. By observing the efficacy of different therapies, the authors analyzed the affecting factors of prognosis in childhood-onset MG.

METHODThe retrospective data of 155 patients with childhood-onset MG (age of MG onset was less than 15 years) were collected from Department of Neurology, Beijing Tongren Hospital (January 2000 - February 2010). The patients were non-randomly divided according to their treatment into 3 groups (glucocorticoid, thymectomy and glucocorticoid combined with thymectomy groups). Postintervention status meeting the criteria of Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America (MGFA) "complete stable remission, CSR", "pharmacologic remission, PR", "minimal manifestations, MM", or "Improved, I" was regarded as desirable response, which was used as primary indicator of observation. The authors assessed the efficacy of three therapies and analyzed the influencing factors of prognosis by using Chi-square test and Logistic regression.

RESULTAt 3 months of treatment, glucocorticoid group showed the highest effective rate. At the end of 1 year or 2 years of treatment, glucocorticoid combined with thymectomy group showed the highest effective rate respectively. The generalization rate of MG at 2 years, 10 years and 20 years in childhood-onset ocular MG patients were 4.3%, 10.7%, and 41.5%, respectively. Of patients with generalization of MG, 48.1% occurred within 2 years, 92.6% within 20 years. Univariate analysis showed that in childhood-onset ocular MG patients, variables such as age at onset (> 10 years), LG-MG and with chronic fatigue were significantly associated with general MG conversion. Whereas multivariate analysis showed that patients with age at onset (> 10 years) and chronic muscle fatigue were apt to convert to generalized MG.

CONCLUSIONGlucocorticoid appeared to have an effect that leads to early remission of symptoms in childhood-onset MG patients and glucocorticoid combined with thymectomy appeared to have better long-term effect. For those childhood-onset ocular MG patients with longer course of disease, older age of onset, chronic fatigue, or LG-MG, physicians should try to prevent the generalization of MG by immunosuppressive therapies.

Adolescent ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Glucocorticoids ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Male ; Myasthenia Gravis ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Thymectomy ; Young Adult

Objective:To investigate the self-care contribution and binary coping level of spouse caregivers for middle-aged and young stroke patients and explore the relationship between the two, in order to improve the quality of self-care contribution of spouse caregivers to middle-aged and young stroke patients.Methods:A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 200 middle-aged and young stroke patients ′ spouse caregivers in the People ′s Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from January to June 2023 by the general data questionnaire, the Caregiver Contribution to Self-care of Stroke Patient Scale, the Dyadic Coping Inventory. The correlation between self-care contributions and binary coping strategies of spousal caregivers was analyzed, and the factors that affect their self-care contributions were screened. Results:Finally, 192 middle-aged and young stroke patients ′ spouse caregivers were included, including 70 males and 122 females, aged 18-59 years old. The total score of self-care contribution of spousal caregivers of middle-aged and young stroke patients was (75.43 ± 6.80) points, and the total score of binary coping was (117.12 ± 9.59) points, both of which were positively correlated ( r=0.691, P<0.05). Hierarchical regression analysis showed that after controlling for the influence of general data, binary coping could explain 28.4% variation in the self-care contribution of spouse caregivers of middle-aged and young stroke patients ( P<0.05). Conclusions:The duality coping level positively predicts the quality of spouse caregivers ′ self-care contribution to middle-aged and young stroke patients. Medical staff should assess the dual coping level of middle-aged and young stroke patients and their spouses, and carry out targeted dual intervention measures to improve the quality of caregivers' contribution to stroke patients ′ self-care.

Objective To investigate the effect of oral alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) supplement on brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV),supine systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in overweight/obese individuals.An 8-week double-blind,randomized,placebo-controlled and cross-over trial with a 4-week washout between cross-over periods.Methods Sixty-three males and 40 females aged 22-57 years old who met the inclusion criteria as (1) Han ethnicity;(2) 20-60 years old;(3) BMI≥25 kg/m2 and having at least one of the following risk factors:borderline hypertension (130 mm Hg≤SBP＜140 mm Hg and/or 85 mm Hg≤supine DBP＜90 mm Hg),dyslipidemia(fasting total cholesterol≥5.2 mmol/L or HDL-C＜1.04 mmol/L),or impaired fasting glucose (6.1 mmol/L≤fasting glucose＜7.0 mmol/L);(4)Not on any antioxidant gender.Group 1 received 8 weeks ALA (1200 mg/day) followed by 4-week washout period and followed by another 8 weeks placebo;while Group 2 received 8 weeks placebo (1200 mg/day)followed by 4-week washout period,and followed by ALA treatment for 8 weeks.BaPWV and supine blood pressure were measured at the beginning of 1st phase and 2nd phase and at the endpoint of the whole trial.Mixed effect linear regression model was performed to compare the change of baPWV and supine blood pressure between ALA group and placebo group.Results BaPWV decreased -33.03 cm/s ± 130.70 cm/s for ALA group and increased 5.66 cm/s ± 139.89 cm/s for placebo group,supine systolic blood pressure decreased -4.09 mm Hg±9.18 mm Hg for ALA group and -2.32 mm Hg±8.16 mm Hg for placebo group.Supine diastolic blood pressure decreased -1.29 mm Hg ± 6.55 mm Hg for ALA group and -0.48 mm Hg±6.63 mm Hg for placebo group.These three mix-effect models did not show significant effect of ALA treatment after adjustment on baseline values,sex,age,treatment sequence or period.Conclusion The current trial did not provide evidence that oral intake of ALA for 8 weeks had significant effects on lowering baPWV,supine systolic blood pressure or supine diastolic blood pressure.

BACKGROUNDIn bone marrow transplant patients, the microenvironment in bone marrow is damaged after chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Subsequent to allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in patients with clinically successful engraftments, the source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) remains controversial. To further verify the stimulatory effect of the simultaneous transplantation of cells from second donors on engraftment success for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in support of donor MSCs engraftments, the aim of this study is to monitor the dynamics of the engraftment of bone marrow-derived MSCs in patients after transplantation with mismatched-sex hematopoietic stem and third-party cells.

METHODSIn this study, the hematopoietic stem cells from 32 clinical donors of different sexes that resulted in successful engraftments were selected for transplantation and were classified into three groups for research purposes: group A consisted of 14 cases of transplantation with bone marrow and recruited peripheral hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, group B contained 8 cases of simultaneous re-transfusion of MSCs from the second donor, and group C contained 10 cases of simultaneous re-transfusion of umbilical blood from the second donor. The bone marrow from 32 patients with successful engraftments of hematopoietic transplantation were selected and sub-cultured with MSCs. Flow cytometry (FCM) was used to measure the expression of surface antigens on MSCs. Denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC) in combination with polymerase chain reaction amplification of short tandem repeats (STRPCR) was used to measure the engraftment status of fifth-generation MSCs in patients. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) revealed the sex origin of the fifth-generation MSCs in 32 patients. Dynamic examinations were performed on patients receiving donor transplantations.

RESULTSThe progenies of fifth-generation MSCs were successfully cultured in 32 cases. The results of FCM demonstrated that the expression levels of CD14+ and CD45+ cells were lower than 0.04% in the fifth-generation MSCs. The analysis using DHPLC and FISH showed similar results. One patient from group B also received a temporary transplantation of MSCs from the donor. The MSCs in the remaining 31 patients all originated from the patients themselves.

CONCLUSIONSAfter transplantation, the MSCs present in patients originated from the host. In patients transplanted with MSCs from a second donor, the phenomenon of temporary chimerization of MSCs was observed.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Cells, Cultured ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Female ; Flow Cytometry ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Humans ; Leukocyte Common Antigens ; metabolism ; Lipopolysaccharide Receptors ; metabolism ; Male ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; Middle Aged ; Young Adult