OBJECTIVETo explore the effect of dexmedetomidine combined electrical stimulation on cognitive function of neurosurgical diseases patients treated by extracerebral intervention.

METHODSTotally 122 patients with neurosurgical diseases who underwent selective intervention were randomly assigned to the observation group and the control group, 61 cases in each group. Patients in the control group recieved anesthesia by dexmedetomidine. Those in the observation group received electrical stimulation at Baihui (DU20), Yintang ( EX-HN3), and Neiguan (PC6) before dexmedetomidine anesthesia. The cognitive function of patients at preoperative day 1 and postoperative day 1 was respectively evaluated by Mini-Mental State Examinations (MMSE). Serum NSE, S-100β, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α levels were detected in the two groups before intervention and immediately after intervention using ELISA.

RESULTSMMSE scores of two groups were significantly reduced at post-intervention day 1, as compared with one day before intervention. MMSE score of the observation group at post-intervention day 1 was (23.15 ± 1.87) points, significantly higher than that of the control group [ (19.34 ± 1.64) points , (P < 0.05)]. The postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) incidence rate of the observation group was 16.4% (10/61), significantly lower than that of the control group [39.3% (24/61); P < 0.05]. Compared with before intervention, NSE and S-100β protein levels, IL-1β, IL-6 and α-TNF levels of the two groups increased (P < 0.05). Post-intervention NSE and S-100β protein levels, IL-1β, IL-6 and α-TNF levels were significantly lower in the observation group than in the control group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONDexmedetomidine combied electrical stimulation could effectively prevent the occurrence of postoperative cognition, and reduce levels of NSA, S-100β, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α.

Acupuncture Points ; Anesthesia ; methods ; Cognition ; Cognition Disorders ; prevention & control ; Dexmedetomidine ; therapeutic use ; Electric Stimulation Therapy ; Humans ; Interleukin-1beta ; blood ; Interleukin-6 ; blood ; Neuropsychological Tests ; Neurosurgical Procedures ; Phosphopyruvate Hydratase ; blood ; Postoperative Complications ; Postoperative Period ; S100 Calcium Binding Protein beta Subunit ; blood ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; blood

OBJECTIVESTo investigate the effect of interlukin-10 (IL-10) on expression and secretion of collagen I, IV in rat's hepatic stellate cells (HSC) of livers injured by CCl4.

METHODThe adenovirus vector encoded IL-10 gene was used to transfect rats with liver injury via the caudal veins. HSC were isolated and purified from the rat livers by collagenase IV perfusion and density gradient centrifugation with Nycodenz. The expression of collagen I, IV mRNA in HSC was detected by semi-quantitative RT-PCR method and the secretion of collagen I, IV in culture serum of HSC by ELISA method. The quantity of collagen was measured in the van Gieson stained histological liver preparations.

RESULTSThe expression and secretion of collagen I, IV in the adenovirus vector encoding IL-10 gene group were significantly lower than those in the adenovirus vector without IL-10 gene group and the control group (P < 0.05). The quantity of collagen in the treatment group was lower than that in the control group.

CONCLUSIONIL-10 can inhibit collagen I, IV expression and secretion in rat HSC.

Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Collagen Type I ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Collagen Type IV ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Hepatocytes ; metabolism ; pathology ; Interleukin-10 ; pharmacology ; Liver Cirrhosis, Experimental ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Adult ; Aged ; Bile Duct Neoplasms ; blood ; virology ; Biomarkers ; blood ; DNA, Viral ; blood ; Female ; Hepatitis B Antibodies ; blood ; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens ; blood ; metabolism ; Hepatitis B virus ; genetics ; immunology ; Hepatitis, Viral, Human ; blood ; virology ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; In Situ Hybridization ; Liver ; metabolism ; pathology ; virology ; Male ; Middle Aged

Objective To investigate the effect of electroacupuncture on diaphragm function of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) rats with muscular dystrophy, and to explore the regulatory mechanism. Methods Forty male rats were randomly divided into blank group, model group, electroacupuncture group, exercise group, electroacupuncture plus exercise group, 8 rats in each group. After successful establishment of COPD rat model with muscular dystrophy, the modeled rats in various intervention groups were given electroacupuncture and/or exercise treatment. After the last treatment, the changes of rat body mass were observed, the rat lung function was detected, and the mRNA expression levels of myosin heavy chains (MHC) of MHC-1, MHC-2 and diaphragmatic related signal proteins of Atrogin-1, muscle ring-finger protein-1(MuRF-1), MyoD were detected by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Results (1) Compared with the blank group, inspiratory resistance (IR) and functional residual mass (FRC) in the model group were increased (P < 0.05) , and the dynamic lung compliance(Cydn) was decreased(P<0.05). Compared with the model group, IR and FRC in the intervention groups were decreased (P < 0.05), but the differences among the three intervention groups were insignificant(P>0.05). (2) Compared with the blank group, the mRNA expression levels of MHC-1, Atrogin-1, MuRF-1, MyoD in the model group were increased (P<0.05), and the mRNA expression level of MHC-2 was decreased (P < 0.05). Compared with the model group, the mRNA expression levels of MHC-1, Atrogin-1, MuRF-1, MyoD in the intervention groups were decreased (P < 0.05) , and the mRNA expression level of MHC-2 was increased(P<0.05). Compared with the exercise group, the mRNA expression levels of Atrogin-1, MuRF-1, MyoD in the electroacupuncture group were decreased (P<0.05), and the mRNA expression level of MHC-2 was increased (P<0.05) , but the above indexes in electroacupuncture plus exercise group showed no obvious changes(P>0.05). Conclusion Electroacupuncture can improve respiratory function of COPD rats with muscular dystrophy, and the possible mechanism is related with the increase of MHC-2 mRNA expression and with the decrease of Atrogin-1, MuRF-1, MyoD mRNA expression, which result into the regulation of ubiquitin proteasome pathway(UPP), reduction of myosin loss, and the relief of diaphragmatic atrophy.

OBJECTIVETo study the anatomy of the cutaneous branch (CB) of supratrochlear artery and its relevance to the design of frontal flap in nasal reconstruction.

METHODS10 fresh cadavers were dissected to study the position and course of the CB of supratrochlear artery (supraorbital rim and facial midline as landmark). The communication between the CB and supraorbital artery was also studied. 5 cases of ultra-thin frontal flaps and 11 cases of bi-flap( cutaneous flap and muscular flap) were designed on anatomic basis. The survival rate of flap, the stability and aesthetic appearance of the reconstructed nose were followed up.

RESULTSThe supratrochlear artery gave off constant CB (1.18 +/- 0.36) cm from upper orbital rim and (1.35 +/- 0.34) cm from the midline of face. The CB passed in a subcutaneous plane and communicated with the bilateral muscular branch, CB of the opposite side and bilateral supraorbital artery. The supratrochlear artery only had CB with no muscular branch in 3 cases. All the flaps survived completely except one with blister on the nose tip which healed spontaneously. The postoperative aesthetic appearance was very satisfactory.

CONCLUSIONSThe supratrochlear artery has constant CB. The frontal ultra-thin flap pedicled with the CB can improve the therapeutic effect of nasal reconstruction.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Arteries ; anatomy & histology ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nose ; surgery ; Rhinoplasty ; methods ; Skin Transplantation ; Surgical Flaps ; Trochlear Nerve ; blood supply ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo study clinical effects of minimally invasive, effective and economic operational method for the treatment of medial malleolus fractures.

METHODSFrom March 2008 to August 2010, 19 patients (12 males and 7 females, ranging in age from 17 to 42 years, averaged 31.7 years) with medial malleolus fractures were reviewed. Closed reduction and percutaneous internal fixation were applied, with a hollow compression screw inserted at the centre and perpendicularly to the fracture surface. A Kirschner wire was inserted through the cortical bone of opposite side and in accordance with the axis of inner malleolus. Postoperative therapeutic effect was evaluated by Kaikkonen sprained ankle scoring system and imageology examination.

RESULTSAll the patients got primary healing of incisions and were followed up, the duration ranged from 6 to 30 months, with an average of 18.7 months. All the patients obtained bone union. Clinical healing time ranged from 2.6 to 3.8 months, averaged 3.2 months. According to Kaikkonen scoring system, the results were rated as excellent in 5 cases, good in 10 cases, moderate in 3 cases, and poor in 1 case.

CONCLUSIONIt is a minimally invasive, effective and economic method to treat medial malleolus fractures by closed reduction and percutaneous internal fixation with hollow compression screw and Kirschner wire.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Ankle Joint ; surgery ; Female ; Fracture Fixation, Internal ; methods ; Fractures, Bone ; surgery ; Humans ; Male ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo investigate the therapeutic effects of upper airway stenosis after Le Fort III osteotomy and midfacial distraction osteogenesis (DO).

METHODSEleven cases (age, 5-16 yrs) with severe midface dysostosis complicated with exophthalmos, anterior crossbite and upper airway stenosis were treated by using Le Fort III osteotomy and midfacial DO from August 2000 to February 2007. The 3D reconstruction of the upper-airway from CT data was used to evaluate the upper airway volume before and after the operation. And meanwhile polysomnography was carried out to demonstrate the upper airway functional changes.

RESULTSThere was a 64.3% mean increase [mean, (9.13 +/- 6.94) ml, P < 0.05] in upper airway volume in the 11 cases after the operations. It showed that there was significant improvements in the indexes of polysomnography after the operations, such as apnea and hypopnea index, average SaO2, minimum oxygen saturation and snore index.

CONCLUSIONSThe Le Fort III osteotomy and midfacial distraction osteogenesis can efficiently relieve the symptoms of upper-airway stenosis in severe midfacial dysostosis.

Acrocephalosyndactylia ; complications ; Adolescent ; Airway Obstruction ; etiology ; surgery ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Craniofacial Dysostosis ; complications ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Osteogenesis, Distraction ; methods ; Osteotomy, Le Fort ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of interleukin-10 (IL-10) on the expression of transforming growth factor-beta(1) (TGFbeta(1)) and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) in hepatic stellate cells (HSC) during liver injury.

METHODSThe adenovirus vector (the titer was 1 x 10(7) efu/ml) encoded IL-10 gene was used to transfect the rat via the vein of caudal. At the same time, CCl(4) was injected into rat by a hypodermic injection. These processes went on twice a week. After eight weeks, the liver were perfused with collagenase IV and purified by density gradient centrifugation with Nycodenz for separate HSC. The level of IL-10 was measured by ELISA method; The expression of PDGF and TGFbeta(1) in HSC was detected by semi-quantitative RT-PCR and Western-blot methods.

RESULTSThe level of IL-10 in therapy group (adenovirus vector encoding IL-10 gene group) was higher than that in non-therapy group (adenovirus vector without IL-10 gene and PBS group); The expression of TGFbeta(1) mRNA, TGFbeta(1) protein and PDGF mRNA, PDGF protein in therapy group were significantly lower than that in non-therapy group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONDownregulating the TGFbeta(1) and PDGF expression could be the passageway by which IL-10 alleviate the degree of proliferation and activation in hepatic stellate cells.

Animals ; Down-Regulation ; drug effects ; Genetic Therapy ; Hepatocytes ; drug effects ; physiology ; Interleukin-10 ; pharmacology ; Liver Cirrhosis, Experimental ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Male ; Platelet-Derived Growth Factor ; biosynthesis ; RNA, Messenger ; biosynthesis ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Stromal Cells ; drug effects ; physiology ; Transfection ; Transforming Growth Factor beta ; biosynthesis ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1

BACKGROUNDAsthma is a complex disease involving genetic and environment interactions. Atopy is a strong risk factor for asthma. The airway epithelium not only forms a physical barrier but also provides immune defense against harmful materials. To explore the effects of airway epithelium on asthma, we hypothesized that environmental injuries could act on bronchial epithelial cells and damage the physical barrier, which might facilitate allergens to stimulate immunoreactions and play an important role in the pathogenesis of asthma.

METHODSThirty eight-week-old male Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups with six rats in each group: control group, asthma group, ovalbumin (OVA) + OVA group, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) group and LPS + OVA group. In the control group, 0.9% saline was injected intraperitoneally on day 1. Fourteen days later, the rats were exposed to aerosolized 0.9% saline. In the asthma group, the rats were sensitized with an injection of 10 mg of OVA, followed by an aerosolized 2% OVA challenge 14 days later. The OVA + OVA group was sensitized by an inhalation 2% OVA, 20 minutes a day, from day 1 to day 7, and then OVA challenged in the same way as the asthma group. In the LPS group, LPS (200 µl, 1 µg/µl) was given by airway on day 1 and day 3, with a simultaneous aerosol inhalation of 2% OVA for 20 minutes a day from day 1 to day 7. Fourteen days later, the rats were challenged with saline as in the control group. While in the LPS + OVA group, LPS (200 µl, 1 µg/µl) was given by airway on day 1 and day 3, with a simultaneous aerosol inhalation of 2% OVA for 20 minutes a day from day 1 to day 7. Fourteen days later, the rats were challenged with OVA as in the asthma group. The expression of interleukin (IL)-4, interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) in the lungs was detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the pulmonary pathological changes were also observed. The level of IL-4, IFN-γ and IgE in plasma was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was collected to conduct differential cell counts. Flow cytometry analysis was also used to count Th1 and Th2 cells.

RESULTSThe pathological changes in the LPS + OVA group were similar to the asthma group, while in other groups, the pathological changes were not obvious. The ratio of lymphocytes in BALF, IL-4/IFN-γ in plasma and the expression of the TSLP and IL-4 in the asthma and LPS + OVA groups were higher than in the control group and the OVA + OVA group (P < 0.05). The level of IgE was higher in the asthma, LPS and LPS + OVA groups than in the control group and the OVA + OVA group (P < 0.05). By flow cytometry analysis, the Th1/Th2 ratio was lower in the LPS + OVA and asthma groups than in other groups (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSThe experiment results show that the injury to the bronchial epithelial layer may be the initial event of allergic responses. This finding implies that a rational approach to therapeutics would be to increase the resistance of the airways to environmental injuries rather than concentrating on suppressing inflammation.

Animals ; Bronchi ; pathology ; Cell Count ; Cytokines ; physiology ; Disease Models, Animal ; Epithelial Cells ; pathology ; Hypersensitivity ; etiology ; Immunoglobulin E ; blood ; Interferon-gamma ; blood ; Interleukin-4 ; blood ; Lipopolysaccharides ; toxicity ; Male ; Ovalbumin ; immunology ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

Our previous study demonstrates that hypoxia promotes human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) proliferation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the gene profile involved in this process by using cDNA microarray. Cultured hMSCs were treated with hypoxia (3% O(2)) for 4 h, 12 h, 24 h, 36 h, 48 h and 72 h, respectively. Then these cells were collected to prepare total RNA. Hypoxia-induced gene expression profile was examined and analyzed by GenePix Pro 4.0 software. Some of cDNA microarray results were confirmed by RT-PCR. Microarray analysis identified that 282 genes expressed differentially, of which most were involved in metabolism. The number of differentially expressed genes at different hypoxia time points was different, and most genes were regulated after 24-hour hypoxia. Among the 282 differentially expressed genes, 4 hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) targeted genes and 10 genes that changed at 3 continuous time points were found. The results obtained indicated that 4 HIF-1 targeted genes, i.e., transforming growth factor beta3 (TGFbeta3), phospho-glycerate kinase 1 (PGK1), insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 (IGFBP3) and BCL2/adenovirus E1B 19 kDa interacting protein 3 (BNIP3), displayed up-regulated pattern at 36 h under hypoxia. BNIP3 displayed a dynamically up-regulated pattern at 12, 36 and 72 h under hypoxia. However, TGFbeta3 and PGK1 were down-regulated at 72 h. In addition, the gene expressions of adenylate kinase 3-like 1 (HAC), neurofilament light polypeptide 68 kDa (NEFL), N-myc downstream regultated gene 1 (NDRG1), discoidin domain receptor family member 1 (DDR1), tribbles homolog 3 (TRIB3), nucleoprotein (AHNAK) and eukaryotic elongation factor selenocyteine-tRNA-specific (EESTS) were up-regulated. Moreover, the gene expressions of EESTS, NEFL were up-regulated at 5 different time points under hypoxia. Furthermore, it was found that the gene expressions of histone cluster 1 (HIS1) and transferring receptor (TFRC) were down-regulated. These results suggest that the proliferation of hMSCs induced by hypoxia is a complex process in which a number of genes may be involved.
Bone Marrow Cells ; cytology ; Cell Hypoxia ; Cell Proliferation ; Cells, Cultured ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Gene Expression Regulation ; Humans ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Oxygen ; metabolism ; Transcriptome