OBJECTIVETo observe the effects of taurine on hemorheology and oxidative stress of diabetic rats.

METHODS40 rats were divided into control group, diabetes group and treatment group at random. Diabetic model was reproduced by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin. After having been treated with taurine for 8 weeks, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and the serum contents of glucose, superoxide dismutase(SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA) were measured. The changes of hemorheology in different groups were detected respectively.

RESULTSCompared with control group, the content of glucose, MDA and HbA1c in diabetic rats was increased, the activity of SOD was decreased, the levels of whole blood viscosity and the aggregation index of red blood cells and hematocrit were increased and RBC deformability index was decreased in diabetic rats. Moreover, taurine was able to apparently reduce high blood glucose and HbA1c (P < 0.05), markedly elevated the activity of SOD, lowered the content of MDA (P < 0.01); and taurine also could significantly reduce the levels of whole blood viscosity and the aggregation index of red blood cells and hematocrit in the meanwhile, and increase RBC deformability index (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONTaurine could enhance the ability of oxidation resistance, improve blood rheology property in diabetic rats, at the same time it could be beneficial to prevent and cure the development of diabetic blood vessel complication.

Animals ; Blood Glucose ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; blood ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; blood ; Erythrocyte Deformability ; Glycated Hemoglobin A ; metabolism ; Hemorheology ; Male ; Malondialdehyde ; metabolism ; Oxidative Stress ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism ; Taurine ; pharmacology

Enterotoxins ; analysis ; Humans ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Staphylococcal Food Poisoning ; microbiology ; Staphylococcal Protein A ; analysis ; Staphylococcus aureus ; isolation & purification

Dental Pulp Cavity ; anatomy & histology ; Humans ; Male ; Maxilla ; Middle Aged ; Molar ; anatomy & histology ; Odontometry ; Tooth Root ; anatomy & histology

OBJECTIVETo examine vibrio cholera (V.C) in aquatic products of littoral area, Zhejiang Province and to provide scientific evidence for administration of aquatic products and cholera epidemic control.

METHODSAll 990 samples of aquatic products collected from local markets, eateries and aquafarms in three chosen areas. Samples were proliferated in alkaline liquid medium, and purified in NO: 4 medium, the isolations were identified biochemically, and phenotype of strains were defined by phagocyte and coagulation with V.C. diagnostic serum. Three virulence genes (ctx, ace, zct) of the isolated strains were detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

RESULTSThere were 1.41% samples caught by V.C., having a carrying rate highest in turtles of 8.9%. 14 strains were defined as three serogroups, and the numbers of Inaba, Ogawa, and Hikojima types were 2, 2, 10 respectively. Virulence genes had detected in 9 of 12 stains. All genes were detected in 5 strains, only ZOT genes in 3 strains, and both CTX and ACE genes in 1 strain.

CONCLUSIONSAquatic products from inshore in Zhejiang Province caught with V.C. strains might be divided into three serogroups. Most of them should be virulence genes. Cholera epidemic outbreak might be caused by those contaminated products.

China ; Food Microbiology ; Genes, Bacterial ; Seafood ; microbiology ; Vibrio cholerae ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Virulence Factors ; genetics

OBJECTIVEObstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) may cause serious morbidities, such as systemic hypertension, diabetes, and cor pulmonale. However, currently no many reports on study of OSAHS in children are available. This study aimed to explore the effects of OSAHS on children's multiple systems.

METHODA total of 89 cases of children who came to the Sleep Treatment Center in the authors' hospital from March 2009 to December 2010 with snoring were tested with overnight polysomnography (PSG). They were classified into mild OSAHS group (n = 59, mean age of 5.71, SD = 2.46) and moderate to severe group (n = 30, mean age of 5.30, SD = 2.73) based on the PSG results, and 100 healthy children were selected as the control group (n = 100, mean age of 6 years, SD = 2.98). Data including height, weight, body mass index and blood pressure, peripheral blood routine, blood lipids, glucose and insulin, electrocardiogram and echocardiography were collected. Patients' adenoid face and abnormal occlusion were also recorded. Comparisons of the data were made among those groups.

RESULTMild OSAHS and moderate to severe group had significantly higher prevalence of adenoid face (23.7%, 26.7%), and abnormal occlusion (74.6%, 60.0%) than that in control group (0, 40%) (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in terms of BMI between the OSAHS group and the control group, but the weight (kg) and height (cm) in the mild OSAHS group (23.3 ± 10.1, 114.9 ± 16.2) and moderate to severe group (21.9 ± 8.4, 110.8 ± 13.3) were lower than those of the control group (31.8 ± 10.1, 136.1 ± 15.1) (all P < 0.05). Compared with the control group, the level of HDL-C (mmol/L)and insulin (mU/L) in moderate and severe group decreased [(1.20 ± 0.30) vs. (1.40 ± 0.27), 2.79 (0.84 - 16.16) vs. 4.92 (0.76 - 16.80), P < 0.05], while the LDL-C (mmol/L) increased [(2.61 ± 0.75) vs. (2.32 ± 0.62), P < 0.05]. The red blood cell counts (× 10(12)/L) and the blood platelet counts (× 10(9)/L) in the mild OSAHS (4.93 ± 0.37, 292.92 ± 75.64) and moderate and severe OSAHS group (5.23 ± 0.22, 292.50 ± 63.05) were significantly higher in contrast to the control group (4.70 ± 0.31, 255.60 ± 69.12) (all P < 0.05), systolic blood pressure (mmHg) in mild group (98.54 ± 10.44) and moderate to severe group (99.13 ± 19.13) was significantly higher compared to control group (87.88 ± 11.37), and the heart rate (beats/min) in moderate to severe group (94.43 ± 10.64) was higher than those in control group (87.12 ± 16.20) (all P < 0.05). The mild OSAHS and moderate and severe OSAHS group had decreased right ventricular internal diameter [(14.24 ± 1.64) mm, (13.17 ± 2.07) mm ], increased main pulmonary artery diameter [(17.05 ± 3.33) mm, (16.33 ± 3.14) mm] and the thickness of right ventricular wall [(3.43 ± 0.26) mm, (3.57 ± 0.20) mm] compared to control group [ (16.10 ± 2.96) mm, (14.11 ± 2.52) mm, (3.32 ± 0.25) mm] (all P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONOSAHS in children may be associated with craniofacial malformations, and may contribute to slow growth and development, elevated blood viscosity and blood pressure, metabolic abnormalities, and change cardiac structure.

Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Case-Control Studies ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Echocardiography ; Female ; Humans ; Insulin ; Male ; Maxillofacial Abnormalities ; Polysomnography ; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive ; complications

OBJECTIVETo compare the impact of unilateral acute testicular ischemia on the hemodynamics and histology of the contralateral testis of the rabbits under consistent anesthesia with that of the rabbits in the conscious state.

METHODSForty-two healthy male white rabbits were randomly divided into an anesthetic group (Group A) to receive injection of sodium pentobarbital (PS) and a non-anesthetic group (Group B), each including a control group of 5 animals (A0 and B0), an incomplete testicular ischemia group of 8 (A1 and B1), and a complete testicular ischemia group of 8 (A2 and B2). Testicular ischemia models were constructed by color Doppler ultrasonography. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) was used to observe the perfusion of the contralateral testes before and after ligating and loosening the unilateral spermatic cord in each experimental group. The control animals also underwent CEUS and measurement of the heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP) at the corresponding time. Histological structure changes in the contralateral testes of the rabbits were observed in both anesthetic and conscious states.

RESULTSPS anesthesia markedly suppressed the HR and BP of the rabbits. The parameters in Groups of A0, A1 and A2 showed no statistically significant changes after unilateral ligation of the spermatic cord, while Groups B1 and B2 displayed significantly decreased peak-base difference (PBD) and prolonged arrival time (AT) and half time of descending peak intensity (HT). Groups A1, B1 and B2 showed significantly increased PBD and prolonged HT shortly after loosening the spermatic cord. Focal pathological and ultrastructural changes were observed in the contralateral testes of the ischemic rabbits, but no significant difference was found in Johnson's score in comparison with the controls. The apoptotic cells were remarkably increased in Groups A1, B1 and B2.

CONCLUSIONAcute testicular ischemia may induce injury to the contralateral testis to some degree, and a reflexive sympathetic response may cause hemodynamic changes in the non-anesthetic state. And the neural and vascular inhibitory effects of anesthesia could make insignificant changes of blood perfusion in the contralateral testis.

Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Ischemia ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Male ; Rabbits ; Reperfusion Injury ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Testicular Diseases ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Testis ; blood supply ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Ultrasonography

OBJECTIVETo study the characteristics of occupational exposure of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in coke oven workers.

METHODSSamples were collected individually and PAHs concentration in the ambient air were assayed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and toxic equivalency factors (TEFs) were introduced to assess the carcinogenic potency.

RESULTSThe levels of PAHs occupational exposure in oven workers at topside was higher than at side oven and bottom oven (P < 0.05). Non-carcinogenic PAHs were more than 70% of total PAHs and benzo[a]pyrene accounted for 65.5% approximately 72.4% of total benzo[a]pyrene equivalents. Total occupational exposure level of PAHs in coke oven workers was positively related to the content of benzo[a]pyrene and pyrene, respectively (r(2) = 0.84, r(2) = 0.94, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONCoke oven workers were exposed to a high level of PAHs which possessed some extent of carcinogenic potency, and benzo[a]pyrene is the chief carcinogenic substance.

Benzo(a)pyrene ; analysis ; toxicity ; Carcinogens ; analysis ; toxicity ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Coke ; Humans ; Occupational Exposure ; Polycyclic Compounds ; analysis ; toxicity

OBJECTIVETo explore the effects of traffic exhausts on children's neurobehavioral functions.

METHODSA field study was conducted in Quanzhou, Fujian province where two primary schools were chosen based on the numbers of automobiles passing by,and the data of ambient air pollutants from the monitoring system. School B and School A located at the high traffic exhausts pollution area and the clear area, respectively. Neurobehavioral functions of pupils in grade 2 and 3 were scored.

RESULTSSchool B had very similar score of Ruiwen Test with School A, while the score of Digit Eras Test was lower than that in School A with marginal significance. The scores of Digit Symbol,Aim Tracing, Sign Register and Cormect Number test were 38.5 +/- 9.96, 84.3 +/- 27.83, 37.4 +/- 11.62 and 17.1 +/- 5.88 in School B,respectively, which were significantly lower than those in School A (41.6 +/- 12.97, 95.5 +/- 35.80, 42.3 +/- 15.58 and 18.7 +/- 5.78) respectively. Scores in Digit Symbol,Aim Tracing,Sign Register and Cormect Number of pupils in School B were 2.9, 11.5, 5.6 and 1.6 lower than those in School A after adjusting on other confounding factors.

CONCLUSIONIt was suggested that traffic exhausts might cause damage to children's neurobehavioral functions.

Air Pollutants ; adverse effects ; Air Pollution ; analysis ; Child ; China ; Environmental Exposure ; adverse effects ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Psychomotor Performance ; Vehicle Emissions ; analysis

The purpose of this study was to investigate the vasorelaxing effect of vasonatrin peptide (VNP) on human intramammary artery (HIMA).The vasorelaxing effect of VNP on HIMA was measured by means of perfusion in vitro. The effects of HS-142-1, TEA, 8-Br-cGMP and methylene blue (MB) were also observed. It was found that VNP caused a concentration-dependent relaxation in HIMA which was independent of the endothelium. 8-Br-cGMP (0.1-1000 micromol/L) also caused a concentration-dependent relaxation in HIMA. The vasorelaxing effect of VNP disappeared in the presence of HS-142-1 (20 micromol/L), an antagonist of the natriuretic peptide guanylate cyclase (GC) receptor. MB (10 micromol/L), an inhibitor of GC, not only blocked completely the relaxation of HIMA, but also enhanced the vascular contraction induced by norepinephrine. TEA (1 mmol/L), an antagonist of calcium activated potassium channels (K(Ca)), reduced but not completely blocked the vasorelaxing effect of VNP. These findings suggest that VNP can relax HIMA, which is independent of the endothelium. This effect is possibly achieved by the binding of VNP with the natriuretic peptide GC receptors in the smooth muscle cells (SMCs), leading to an increase in intracellular cGMP level. Moreover, the vasorelaxing effect of VNP is associated with K(Ca).
Aged ; Atrial Natriuretic Factor ; pharmacology ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Humans ; In Vitro Techniques ; Mammary Arteries ; drug effects ; physiology ; Middle Aged ; Potassium Channels, Calcium-Activated ; metabolism ; Receptors, Guanylate Cyclase-Coupled ; metabolism ; Vasodilation ; drug effects ; physiology

OBJECTIVEThis study aims to investigate the correlation between polymorphism of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) Asp327Asn (rs6259) locus and occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

METHODS621 cases with HCC and 621 cancer-free controls from two hospitals of Guangxi were recruited from January, 2007 to June, 2010. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of SHBG Asp327Asn were detected by ABI7500 Fast Real-Time fluorescence quantitative PCR. Multivariate unconditional logistic regression was applied to analyze risk of HCC among different genotypes carriers and their interaction with the exposure factors. The Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to detect the relationship between onset age of HCC and genotypes.

RESULTSThe frequencies of Asp/Asp, Asp/Asn and Asn/Asn genotype in case group were 86.31% (536/621), 12.40% (77/621) and 1.29% (8/621), respectively; while those in control group were 81.00% (503/621), 17.39% (108/621) and 1.61% (10/621), respectively. Significant difference in the genotype frequencies distribution was found between case and control groups (χ2=6.465, P<0.05). Compared with those harboring Asp/Asp genotype, multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the HCC risk of Asn/Asn+Asp/Asn genotype carriers was significantly decreased (adjusted OR=0.63, 95%CI: 0.40-0.98). Interaction analysis showed that there was interaction between the polymorphisms and two exposure factors, drinking (adjusted OR=3.45, 95%CI: 1.74-6.83) and HBV infection (adjusted OR=40.77, 95%CI: 21.60-76.97). Among those male patients with history of drinking, survival analysis indicated that the mean age of onset of individuals harboring Asp/Asp genotypes ((47.99±0.75) years-old) was 6 years earlier than those with Asn/Asn or Asp/Asn genotypes ((53.68±2.07) years-old) (χ2=6.91, P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONPolymorphism of SHBG (Asp327Asn) may be associated with both the risk of HCC occurrence and onset age of HCC.

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; epidemiology ; genetics ; Case-Control Studies ; Female ; Genotype ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; genetics ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Risk Factors ; Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin ; genetics