Animals ; Antioxidants ; metabolism ; Fatigue ; blood ; Female ; Hypericum ; chemistry ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred ICR ; Physical Conditioning, Animal ; Plant Extracts ; pharmacology

Objective To explore the accuracy and radiation dose of the right ventricular analysis with DSCT(dual-source computed tomography)using dual-step prospective ECG trigger.Methods Fortyeight consecutive patients who were suspected or diagnosed with coronary artery disease were examined with DSCT coronary angiography and MRI ventricular analysis.Sequential acquisition and dual-step prospective ECG-trigger were used with 30％-90％ width R-R interval.Full tube current output was adopted at 70％ (HR ≤70 bpm)or 40％ (HR ＞ 70 bpm) R-R interval according to heart rates,while 20％ current output was adopted in other R-R interval.Coronary artery was divided into 16 segments according to the American Heart Association.Image quality of coronary arteries were graded with 4-points scale.The DSCT date was reconstructed with 5％ R-R interval.RVESV,RVEDV and RVEF were evaluated in DSCT and MRI.Results Forty-two cases accomplished DSCT and MRI examination.In 558 evaluated coronary segments,96.42％ could be diagnosed.The average radiation dose was(2.82 ± 0.55)mSy.Paired t-test indicated that the RVESV,RVEDV and RVEF of DSCT and MRI had no statistically significant differences (t =-0.28,0.44 and 1.49,P＞0.05),and the correlation was high (r =0.89,0.89,0.87).Conclusions The two generation DSCT with dual-step prospective ECG-triggered sequential acquisition can be used in coronary angiography and right ventricular function analysis simultaneously,which is high in imaging quality of coronary artery,reliable in right ventricular function analysis,as well as lower in radiation dose.

OBJECTIVETo study the analgesic mechanism of pricking blood therapy at Ashi points in the acute gouty arthritis rat.

METHODSForty rats were randomly divided into a blank group, a model group, an indomethacin group and a pricking blood group. Except the blank group, other groups were injected with sodium urate liquor into the ankle cavity to develop the acute gouty arthritis rat model, and the indomethacin group received gastric perfusion of indomethacin, and the pricking blood group were treated with pricking blood therapy at Ashi points. The peripheral pain mediums K+, NE, DA, (5-HT contents were determined.

RESULTSThe K+, DA, 5-HT contents in the pricking blood group decreased significantly as compared with the model group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05); there was no significant difference in the content of NE between the pricking blood group and the model group.

CONCLUSIONPricking blood at Ashi points can effectively inhibit release of the peripheral pain mediums K+, DA and 5-HT.

Animals ; Arthritis, Gouty ; therapy ; Pain ; Rats ; Stomach

Humans ; Arthritis, Psoriatic/drug therapy* ; Interleukin-17 ; Interleukin Inhibitors ; Antirheumatic Agents/therapeutic use* ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/therapeutic use* ; Interleukin-23/therapeutic use*

Objective To explore the value of Multi-detector CT in spinal cord angiography. Methods Ten patients with initial MR and clinical findings suggestive of spinal cord vessel disease were performed CT spinal cord angiography.Among these,7 patients were performed DSA later within 1 week, and 4 patients were therapy by operation.CT protocol:Toshiba Aquilion 64 slice CT scanner,0.5 mm thickness,0.5/r,120 kV,350 mA,choose aortic arch level as inspection position,and use"surestart" technique with CT threshold 180 HU.Contrast medium was Iohexol(370 mg I/ml),with injection velocity of 6 ml/s.The total volume was 80 ml.The CT spinal cord angiography images were analyzed according to disease model,disease range,feeding artery,fistula,draining veins,and were compared with DSA and operation results.Results All CT spinal cord angiography images displayed spinal vessel malformation. Among these,3 patients were inner-medullary arteriovenous malformation;2 patients were peri-medullary arteriovenous fistula;5 patients were spinal dural arteriovenous fistula.All cases showed disease range,and draining veins clearly,one patient had two vessels that were false positive,and all the other cases showed feeding arteries clearly,which were confirmed by DSA.Conclusion There are great values for CT spinal angiography in diagnosing spinal vessel disease,it can be a screening exam before DSA.

OBJECTIVETo characterize the clinical, laboratory, imaging and pathological features of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and investigate the impact of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) therapy on patient prognosis.

METHODSThe medical records of 22 patients diagnosed with PSC between 2002 and 2011 were retrospectively reviewed. The PSC diagnosis had been made in patients with suspect biochemical abnormalities following evaluation by magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) and/or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography (PTC). Fibrosis and inflammation were assessed by immunohistochemical analyses of tissue biopsies. Outcome of patients treated with UDCA (13-15 mg/kg/day, oral) were compared to that of patients without UDCA treatment by the X2 or corrected X2 tests.

RESULTSAmong the 22 PSC patients, the majority was male (n=15) and presented with fatigue, dark urine, and body weight loss (n=15). Four cases had ulcerative colitis. At admission, all 22 cases showed elevated levels of alkaline phosphatase[ALP: (348+/-184) U/L], 19 cases showed elevated alanine aminotransferase [ALT: (94.0+/-67.0) U/L] and aspartate aminotransferase [AST: (98.0+/-67.0) U/L], and 15 cases showed elevated levels of total bilirubin (99.0+/-115.0) mumol/L and direct bilirubin (74.4+/-92.4 mumol/L. ERCP examination showed segmental intrahepatic bile duct stenosis with expansion, and stiff and enlarged gallbladder bile ducts, but unclear findings for the common bile ducts and pancreatic ducts. MRCP showed beading of the intrahepatic bile duct, stiffness of the bile duct wall, and dilation of the common bile duct. Fibrosis and inflammation were observed in the bile ducts, along with hyperplasia and the typical features of "onion skin" fibrosis and fibrous obliterative cholangitis. Five of the 10 patients treated with UDCA improved, and seven of the 12 patients in the non-UDCA treatment group improved. There was no statistically significant difference in outcome between the groups (paired X2=0.333, corrected X2=0.083, P more than 0.05).

CONCLUSIONPSC patients were predominantly male and the common clinical manifestations were fatigue, dark urine, and body weight loss. At admission, serum biochemical indicators of cholangitis were increased significantly and subsequent imaging studies confirmed the suspected diagnosis by showing obvious characteristic changes. UDCA treatment did not significantly improve patient prognosis.

Adult ; Cholangiography ; methods ; Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde ; Cholangitis, Sclerosing ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

This study was designed to investigate the different involvements of prostatic stromal cells from the normal transitional zone (TZ) or peripheral zone (PZ) in the carcinogenesis of prostate cancer (PCa) epithelial cells (PC-3) in vitro and in vivo co-culture models. Ultra-structures and gene expression profiles of primary cultures of human prostatic stromal cells from the normal TZ or PZ were analyzed by electron microscopy and microarray analysis. In vitro and in vivo co-culture models composed of normal TZ or PZ stromal cells and human PCa PC-3 cells were established. We assessed tumor growth and weight in the in vivo nude mice model. There are morphological and ultra-structural differences in stromal cells from TZ and PZ of the normal prostate. In all, 514 differentially expressed genes were selected by microarray analysis; 483 genes were more highly expressed in stromal cells from TZ and 31 were more highly expressed in those from PZ. Co-culture with PZ stromal cells and transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) increased the tumor growth of PC-3 cells in vitro and in vivo, as well as Bcl-2 expression. On the other hand, stromal cells of TZ suppressed PC-3 cell tumor growth in the mouse model. We conclude that ultra-structures and gene expression differ between the stromal cells from TZ or PZ of the normal prostate, and stroma-epithelium interactions from TZ or PZ might be responsible for the distinct zonal localization of prostate tumor formation.
Adenocarcinoma ; drug therapy ; genetics ; pathology ; Adult ; Animals ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Coculture Techniques ; Gene Expression ; drug effects ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Humans ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Nude ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Prostate ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; genetics ; pathology ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 ; genetics ; metabolism ; RNA, Messenger ; metabolism ; Stromal Cells ; metabolism ; pathology ; Transforming Growth Factor beta ; pharmacology ; Young Adult

The androgen receptor (AR) plays an important role in the development and progression of prostate cancer (PCa). Androgen deprivation therapy is initially effective in blocking tumor growth, but it eventually leads to the hormone-refractory state. The detailed mechanisms of the conversion from androgen dependence to androgen independence remain unclear. Several PCa cell lines were established to study the role of AR in PCa, but the results were often inconsistent or contrasting in different cell lines, or in the same cell line grown under different conditions. The cellular and molecular alteration of epithelial cells and their microenvironments are complicated, and it is difficult to use a single cell line to address this important issue and also to study the pathophysiological effects of AR. In this paper, we summarize the different effects of AR on multiple cell lines and show the disadvantages of using a single human PCa cell line to study AR effects on PCa. We also discuss the advantages of widely used epithelium-stroma co-culture systems, xenograft mouse models, and genetically engineered PCa mouse models. The combination of in vitro cell line studies and in vivo mouse models might lead to more credible results and better strategies for the study of AR roles in PCa.
Animals ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Disease Models, Animal ; Epithelial Cells ; pathology ; Humans ; Male ; Mice ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Receptors, Androgen ; physiology ; Stromal Cells ; pathology

BACKGROUNDAdhesion molecules play an important role in the development and progression of coronary atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to compare concentrations of soluble forms of adhesion molecules in patients with different clinical presentations of coronary artery disease (CAD).

METHODSOne hundred and twenty-eight patients with CAD were divided into three groups; the first group was acute myocardial infarction group (AMI group, n = 45), the second group was unstable angina pectoris group (UAP group, n = 48), the third group was stable angina pectoris group (SAP group, n = 35). We compared them with patients with normal coronary arteries (control group, n = 31). The serum levels of vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), E-selectin and P-selectin were measured in all subjects.

RESULTSThe serum level of VCAM-1 in the AMI group was significantly higher than in the UAP, SAP and control groups (P < 0.01). The level in the UAP group was significantly higher than the SAP group and control group (P < 0.01) and the level in the SAP group was significantly higher than in the control group (P < 0.01). The serum ICAM-1 level was significantly elevated in the AMI, UAP and SAP groups as compared to the control group (P < 0.01). The levels of serum E-selectin and P-selectin in the AMI and UAP groups were significantly higher than in the SAP and control groups (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSIncreased levels of VCAM-1 and ICAM-1, E-selectin and P-selectin, as markers of inflammation, showed the importance of inflammatory processes in the development of atherosclerosis and clinical expression of CAD. Soluble ICAM-1, VCAM-1, E-selectin and P-selectin concentrations are useful indicators of the presence of atherosclerosis and the severity of CAD clinical presentation.

Coronary Artery Disease ; blood ; pathology ; E-Selectin ; blood ; Female ; Humans ; Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 ; blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; P-Selectin ; blood ; Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 ; blood

OBJECTIVETo study clinical effects of plaster combined with splint for the treatment of Gartland type 1I humeral fractures.

METHODSFrom March 2002 to May 2006, 24 children with humeral supracondylar fractures of Gartland type ill were reviewed. Among the patients, 14 patients were male and 10 patients were female, ranging in age from 4 to 12 years, averaged 6.6 years. Ten patients had injuries in the left and other 14 patients had injuries in the right limb. Firstly, the patients were treated with manipulative reduction to maintain the length of humerus without emphasis on anatomic reduction. Then, the patients were treated with external fixation using plaster for 5 to 7 days, and secondary manipulative reduction after swelling disappeared. Lastly, the patients were treated with external fixation using splint for 4 to 5 weeks until fracture union.

RESULTSAll the patients were followed up, and the duration ranged from 5 months to 2 years, with an average of 1.2 years. All the patients had no complications such as neurovascular injury, myositis ossificans, forearm compartment syndrome and Volkmann contracture. According to ZHU Xiao-ting evaluation criteria for humeral supracondylar fractures in children, 12 patients got an excellent result, 8 good, 3 poor and 1 bad.

CONCLUSIONTreatment of child humeral supracondylar fractures with plaster and splint has several advantages such as avoiding serious soft tissue injuries around fractures due to many times reduction, fracture dynamic correction to obtain satisfactory reduction, reducing complications, obtaining good reduction, and restoring elbow function in a relatively short period of time.

Casts, Surgical ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Humeral Fractures ; diagnostic imaging ; surgery ; Male ; Radiography ; Splints