OBJECTIVETo investigate the impact of hyperglycemia on the hydrogen sulfide (H2S) signaling pathway in rat penile tissue and its relationship with erectile function.

METHODSTwenty healthy male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats aged 8 weeks were randomly divided into groups A (4-week healthy control), B (4-week diabetes mellitus model), C (6-week healthy control) and D (6-week diabetes mellitus model). The rats in groups B and D were injected intraperitoneally with streptozotocin at 50 mg/kg to induce diabetes mellitus, while those in groups A and C with the same volume of normal saline. The animals were killed at 4 (groups A and B) and 6 weeks (groups C and D) after treatment for measurement of the maximal intracavernous pressure/mean arterial blood pressure (ICP(max)/MAP) by electrostimulation, determination of the H2S concentration in the plasma and penile tissue, and detection of the expressions of cystathionine-beta-synthetase (CBS) and cystathionine-gamma-lyase (CSE) in the penile corpus cavernosum by immunohisto- chemistry and Western blot.

RESULTSWith electrostimulation of the pelvic ganglia at 5V and 7 V, ICP(max)/MAP was significantly reduced in groups B (0.19 +/- 0.03 and 0.29 +/- 0.04) and D (0.14 +/- 0.04 and 0.25 +/- 0.04) as compared with A (0.46 +/- 0.07 and 0.68 +/- 0.09) and C (0.43 +/- 0.07 and 0.65 +/- 0.16) (P < 0.05). No statistically significant differences were found in the level of serum testosterone either between groups A and B ([469.19 +/- 126.46] ng/dl vs [359.08 +/- 60.06] ng/dl, P > 0.05) or between C and D ([470.44 +/- 209.28] ng/dl vs [297.01 +/- 96.58] ng/dl, P > 0.05). Groups B and D showed remarkable reduction in the H2S concentration (P < 0.05) and the expressions of CBS and CSE (P < 0.05) in comparison with A and C, and the CBS and CSE expressions were even more significantly decreased in D than in B (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe reduced concentration of H2S and decreased expressions of CBS and CSE in the penile corpus cavernosum of the diabetic rats suggested that the H2S signaling pathway might be involved in hyperglycemia-induced erectile dysfunction.

Animals ; Blood Pressure ; physiology ; Cystathionine gamma-Lyase ; metabolism ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; chemically induced ; metabolism ; Electric Stimulation ; methods ; Erectile Dysfunction ; etiology ; Humans ; Hydrogen Sulfide ; metabolism ; Hyperglycemia ; metabolism ; Lyases ; metabolism ; Male ; Penis ; enzymology ; physiology ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Signal Transduction ; Testosterone ; metabolism

ObjectiveTo identify the framework for assessing health related quality of life(HRQOL) of Kaschin-Beck disease(KBD),in order to reflect the impact of KBD on quality of life in patients with the disease.MethodsQualitative descriptive research was adopted.Semi-open ended questions were developed by using the World Health Organization(WHO) definitions of health and quality of life.Group interview and face to face interviews were conducted on 48 patients with KBD and 29 health care experts on KBD in Linyou and Yongshou counties,Shaanxi province,which were higher prevalence areas of KBD.Content template analysis was conducted and the template was based on the WHOQOL-100's framework.ResultsThe framework of HRQOL for KBD included four domains:physical activity,familial/social support,economic and psychological state.There were also eleven facets which were:pain and discomfort,physical function and activity limitation,diet and sleeping,social relationship,concerns of family responsibilities,social support,economic,housing and the surrounding environment,appearance concerns,mental health,and general state of health.The total entries were 69.ConclusionsThe framework for assessing HRQOL of KBD is established.The framework highlights the impact of KBD on the patients' quality of life with higher specificity.

Background Pupillary light reflex has been widely used in the diagnosis and evaluation of visual system and nervous system diseases.However,in animal experiments,functional evaluation of the visual system and nervous system needs more advanced technology and are affected by many factors.Objective This study was to explore the use of the dynamic pupillometer in evaluating pupillary light reflex and to discuss the influence of brightness of stimulate on relevant curve parameters in C57BL/6 mouse.Methods Ten healthy SPF male C57BL/6 mice were collected in this experiment.White light of five luminance levels (2,8,32,128,256 cd/m2) was used to stimulate the mice following a 2-hour dark adaptation.The stimulation was given at the 60-second intervals,for a duration of 100 ms at every stimulation.An infrared camera and video capture card were used to capture digital images during the measuring process in a scotopic environment,at a speed of 60 frames per second.Measuring outcome was saved in the*.AVI format.A software that was developed by our group was used to determine pupil diameter and output pupillary light reflex curve offline.Pupil initial diameter (R1),constriction amplitude (CA),constriction velocity (CV),latency (T1),time for maximum velocity (T2),time for maximum constriction (T3),time for maximun con-striction to 10.1％ R1 re-dilation (RT)and re-dilation velocity (RV)were assessed,and the correlations between luminosity and measuring parameters were analyzed using the Spearman rank correlation.The use of animals followed the Regulations for thd Administration of Affairs Concerning Experimental Animals by State Science and Technology Commission.Results R1 values showed no statistically significant difference among the 5 different luminosity groups(F=1.117,P=0.361).A positive linear correlation was found between stimulating luminosity and CA(r=0.508,P＜ 0.01),but negative correlations were seen between stimulating luminosity and CV or RV (r=-0.625,-0.609,P＜0.01).T1 and T2 values in the 5 different luminosity groups were not statistically significant (F =0.202,P =0.936 ; F =1.584,P =0.195).The different levels of stimulating luminosity showed positive linear correlations with T3 and RT values (r =0.791,0.609,P＜ 0.01).Conclusions The dynamic pupillometer can quantitatively measure the pupillary light reflex of C57BL/6 mice.The pupillary light reflex dynamic curve parameters of mouse were affected by stimulus luminosity levels.These outcomes offer a basis for the application of the dynamic pupillometer system for measuring pupillary light reflex in animal models.

Objective: To investigate the survival and individualized therapy of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients who achieved a stable disease state after induction chemotherapy. Methods:Data were reviewed from 204 metastatic colorectal cancer pa-tients, who presented a stable disease state after first-line and second-line chemotherapy at Tianjin Medical University Cancer Insti-tute and Hospital. The clinical and pathological characteristics were analyzed. Moreover, we analyzed the significance of maintenance treatment in patients with certain mCRC characteristics. Results:Univariate analysis indicated that the line of chemotherapy, levels of CA724, CEA, and CA19-9, and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were considered prognostic factors of treatment after induction che-motherapy. According to the multivariate analysis, first-line chemotherapy, as well as low levels of CA19-9 and PLR, with maintenance treatment after the induction chemotherapy was significantly associated with better survival. Among the patients with high levels of PLR, those who underwent maintenance treatment achieved a progression-free survival of 13.43 months (versus 10.63 months in pa-tients from the observation group, P=0.003). Conclusion:The levels of CA19-9 and PLR, and treatment after chemotherapy were signif-icant prognostic factors for mCRC patients who achieved a stable disease state after induction chemotherapy. These patients, especial-ly those with high PLR, could benefit from the maintenance treatment.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the efficacy and safety of Yigan Fupi Decoction (YFD) in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea (IBS-D) patients.

METHODSA randomized controlled clinical trail was carried out in patients with IBS-D. All patients were randomly assigned to the treatment group (58 cases, treated with YFD) and the control group (58 cases, treated with Pinaverium Bromide Tablet). The treatment course was 4 weeks for all patients. The total effective rate, the stool property and state, the quality of life (QOL), and TCM syndrome efficacy were assessed by IBS bowel symptom severity scale (IBS-BSS), IBS defecation state questionnaire (IBS-DSQ), IBS quality of life questionnaire (IBS-QOL), and traditional Chinese medicine pattern curative effect scoring system (TCM-PES) before and after treatment.

RESULTSThere was no statistical difference in the total effective rate between the two groups (82.76% vs. 77.59%, P > 0.05). The treatment group was superior in the total IBS-BSS integral to the control group (P < 0.05). The total effective rate of improving the stool property was better in the treatment group than in the control group (81.03% vs. 72.41%, P < 0.05). Besides, the number of days for emergent defecation among 10 days was less in the treatment group than in the control group (P < 0.05). The improvement of the total IBS-QOL integral and the total integral of TCM syndrome were better in the treatment group than in the control group (P < 0.01). The total effective rate of TCM-PES was better in the treatment group than in the control group (84.48% vs. 70.69%, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONYFD was effective in the treatment of IBS-D patients of Gan-qi invading Pi syndrome, and could effectively relieve bowel symptoms, improve the stool property and the defecation frequency, elevate their QOL, and attenuate Gan-qi invading Pi syndrome with favorable safety and compliance.

Adult ; Diarrhea ; drug therapy ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome ; drug therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Morpholines ; therapeutic use ; Quality of Life ; Treatment Outcome

AIM To investigate the effect of fenofibrate and simvastatin on the serum free fatty acids of alcoholic fatty liver in rats. METHODS The rat model of alcoholic fatty liver was reproduced by chronic ethanol ingestion plus olive oil diet. The model rats were divided into three groups as follows: finofibrate treatment group(finofibrate 80 mg?kg -1 po, once a day),simvastatin treatment group (simvastatin 4 mg?kg -1 po, once a day)and control group without either above-mentioned treatment. Experimental rats were treated for four weeks and then sacrificed for blood sampling. Serum free fatty acids were analyzed by gas chromatography. RESULTS Fenofibrate significantly ameliorated the decrease in polyunsaturated fatty acids induced by ethanol [oleic acid:(38.212?7.788) ?g?L -1 vs (31.620?6.142) ?g?L -1,linoleic acid:(37.269?8.065) ?g?L -1 vs (30.254?9.063) ?g?L -1,arachidonic acid:(11.646?2.601) ?g?L -1 vs (9.012?1.236) ?g?L -1] accompanied by the improvement of the fat infiltration of the liver, but demonstrated no effect on the increase in serum saturated fatty acids by ethanol. In the contrast, simvastatin can aggravate the decrease in polyunsatrurated fatty acids and significantly increase the levels of satrurated fatty acids in serum induced by ethanol along with the pathological aggravation of alcoholic fatty liver. CONCLUSION The results of present study revealed that fenofibrate and simvastatin exerted different effect on the serum free fatty acids of alcoholic fatty liver. Polyunsatrurated fatty acids in the serum play an important role in the pathogenesis and treatment response of alcoholic fatty liver.

OBJECTIVETo investigate and analyze the significance of a course of glucocorticosteroids and other drugs for the treatment of patients with sudden deafness present for at least three weeks.

METHODSA retrospective review was done on 48 patients (58 ears) with sudden deafness present for at least three weeks or more, who were admitted to the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Peking University People's Hospital from November 2002 to July 2010. The patients were divided into three groups by the type of hearing threshold. The different treatments were used in the three groups. The SPSS 17.0 software was used to analyze the data.

RESULTSIn patients with a low tone hearing loss (6 ears), 83.3% improved. For patients with a high tone loss (22 ears) 31.8% improved. For a flat tone hearing loss (30 ears) 36.7% improved. For patients with a hearing loss more than one year (12 ears) there was improvement in 58.3% (7 ears) of the patients. In 9 ears which had a flat tone hearing loss of 90 dB or greater before treatment, 77.8% (7 ears) improved with 33.3% (3 ears) having a significant improvement. In 21 ears which had a hearing threshold was under 90 dB, 14.3% (3 ears) improved.

CONCLUSIONSIn the treatment of patients with sudden deafness which was longer than 21 days the treatment was significant, especially for those who had a 90 dB or greater flat-tone type hearing threshold before treatment. Even though the hearing loss was more than a year in some patients there was still a benefit from treatment.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Audiometry, Pure-Tone ; Auditory Threshold ; Child ; Female ; Glucocorticoids ; therapeutic use ; Hearing Loss, Sudden ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo analyze the nystagmus during particle repositioning maneuver for posterior semicircular canal benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (PC-BPPV), and verify different pathogenesis of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).

METHODSThe chief complains, nystagmus during positioning test and particle repositioning maneuver (PRM) were recorded in detail from 66 PC-BPPV cases during Dec.2007 and Apr.2008, and verifying possible pathogenesis of BPPV was based on nystagmus.

RESULTSOf all 66 PC-BPPV cases, the four positions of PRM were found in 24 cases presented upward torsional nystagmus at the second or third position, 21 cases presented negative nystagmus except the first position, 7 cases presented intensity horizontal nystagmus during PRM and 14 cases presented downward nystagmus at the second or third position during PRM. Of all 66 cases, 78.8% of them were accord with canalithiasis and cupulolithiasis while the other may be related with otolith organ or nerve disease.

CONCLUSIONSBesides canalithiasis and cupulolithiasis, part of BPPV may be related with otolith organ or nerve disease.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nystagmus, Pathologic ; etiology ; Semicircular Canals ; Vertigo ; etiology ; pathology ; therapy ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo investigate whether the cholesteatoma from different positions have different biological characteristics.

METHODSThe expression of the Ki-67 and collagen IV in 19 specimens of cholesteatoma were stained immunohistochemically using the SP method, according to the origin of the specimens, include 7 cases from the epitympanum, 8 cases from tympanic sinus and 4 cases from the out acoustic canal. According to the severity of the inflammation in the perimatrix, the inflammation group included 7 cases, the non-inflammation group included 8 cases.

RESULTSThe average count was the same between the cholesteatoma from epitympanum and tympanic sinus. And the count of the cholesteatoma in the middle ear was also the same to the cholesteatoma from the out acoustic canal. But even from the same sample, the cholesteatoma from the positions with severe inflammation in the perimatrix count much higher, and the difference was statistically significant. Collagen IV had been found to localized in the basic membrane. In some specimens the staining of the collagen IV was not continuous.

CONCLUSIONSThe results suggested that it was the severity of inflammation in the perimatrix influenced the differences, but not the origins of the cholesteatoma.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Cholesteatoma ; classification ; metabolism ; pathology ; Cholesteatoma, Middle Ear ; metabolism ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Ki-67 Antigen ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the treatment and prognosis of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL) with total and severe all frequency hearing loss.

METHODSSixty-two patients diagnosed as SSHL (0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4 kHz pure tone average > or = 56 dB) were studied from January 2003 to October 2006, in which 18 of them were treated with Xueshuantong (Panax notoginseng saponins) while 19 of them treated with steroid and Xueshuantong, and 25 of them treated with steroid, DF-521 and Xueshuantong.

RESULTSThe hearing improvement rate of the patients treated with Xueshuantong was 22.2% (4/18) while the patients treated with steroid and Xueshuantong was 57.9% (11/19) and the patients treated with steroid, DF-521 and Xueshuantong was 68.0% (17/25). The good improvement rate of the patients treated with Xueshuantong was 5.6% (1/18) while the patients treated with steroid and Xueshuantong was 36.8% (7/19) and the patients treated with steroid, DF-521 and Xueshuantong was 60.0% (15/25). Over hearing improvement was significantly better in patients treated with steroid, defibrinogenation and Xueshuantong than in those treated with Xueshuantong only (P < 0.05). The patients of total hearing loss had a significantly higher vertigo rate and worse therapy effect.

CONCLUSIONSThe combined therapy include high-dose corticosteroids and defibrinogenation therapy is effective for the patients with total deafness and severe all frequency hearing loss. The prognosis of patients with total hearing loss was poor.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Deafness ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; Female ; Hearing Loss, Sudden ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Panax notoginseng ; chemistry ; Phytotherapy ; Prognosis ; Saponins ; therapeutic use ; Steroids ; therapeutic use ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult