Objective To evaluate the image quality of 64-multi detector computed tomography (MDCT)and the clinical accuracy in detecting coronary artery lesions.Methods One hundred and five patients were studied by MDCT.The results were compared with invasive coronary angiography(ICA). Patients were excluded for atrial fibrillation,but not for high heart rate,coronary calcification,or obesity. MDCT was analyzed with regard to image quality and presence of coronary artery lesions.Results The data evaluation of the image quality was based on a total of 1365 segments(13 coronary segments for each patient),of which 1144 segments were considered to have diagnostic image quality,but 221 segments (16.2%)could not be sufficiently evaluated because of severe calcifications(153 segments)and motion artifacts(68 segments).The median calcium score[Agatston score equivalent(ASE)]was 154(range 0—1983).87 of the 105 patients had an ASE of less than 1,000[median 105(range 0—994)],and 18 patients had an ASE greater than 1000[median 1477(range 1115—1983)].For detecting lesions with 50% or greater narrowing(without any exclusion criteria),the overall sensitivity,specificity,positive predictive value,and negative predictive value were 85.7%,97.9%,93.0%,and 95.5%,respectively. When limiting the number of patients to those with a calcium score of less than 1000 ASE,the threshold- corrected sensitivity for lesions with 50% or greater narrowing was 96.0%;specificity,98.9%;positive predictive value,95.3%;and negative predictive value,99.0%.Conclusion Our results indicate high quantitative and qualitative diagnostic accuracy of 64-slice MSCT in comparison to QCA in a broad spectrum of patients.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of modified Stoppa approach in treatment of bilateral pubic fractures of pelvic.

METHODSThe therapeutic effects of 16 patients with bilateral pubic fractures treated through the modified Stoppa approach from January 2010 to January 2014 were summarized and analyzed, involved 11 males and 5 females with an average age of 40.5 years old ranging from 17 to 59 years. According to Tile classification, there were 8 patients with type A, 6 with type B and 2 with type C. For 16 pelvic fractures, the modified Stoppa approach was used exclusively 11 cases, in combination with the iliac fossa approach in 4 cases, and in combination with the posterior approach in 1 case. The operation incision length, operation time , intra-operative blood loss and postoperative complications were observed. The fracture reduction and post-operative function were assessed by Matta criteria and Majeed system respectively.

RESULTSThe incision length of the modified Stoppa approach ranged from 8 to 10 cm (averaged in 9 cm). The operation time ranged from 75 to 135 minutes (averaged in 95 minutes). The intra-operative blood loss ranged from 400 to 900 ml (averaged in 600 ml). Sixteen patients were followed up from 7 to 18 months (averaged in 12.5 months). The fractures were all healed, the fracture healing time was 2.7 to 5 months (means 3.1 months). There were no infections, ectopic ossification, screw loosening, plate breakage and lateral ventral syndrome. According to Matta criteria for pubic fracture reduction, the result was excellent in 9 cases, good in 6, fair in 1. The Majeed function scores at 6 months after operation was 85.32±8.50; the result was excellent in 8 cases, good in 6 cases, fair in 2 cases.

CONCLUSIONThe modified Stoppa approach has characteristics of convenience and directness of incisions, clear operation field, easy reduction, few complications and fast recovery , it is an ideal choice in surgical treatment of bilateral pubic fractures.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Bone Plates ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fracture Fixation, Internal ; Fractures, Bone ; surgery ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Operative Time ; Orthopedics ; methods ; Pubic Bone ; injuries ; surgery ; Young Adult

Objective To observe whether the expression of interferon-regulatory factor genes are re- lated to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).Methods The clinical data of 45 SLE patients and 37 normal controls were collected.Total RNA of peripheral blood was extracted and transcripted into cDNA.Sybr green dye based real-time quantitative PCR method was used to compare the expression (indicated as-??Ct value) of IRFI,IRF4,IRF8 in patients with SLE and those in the controls.Results The levels of IRF1,IRF4 and IRF8 mRNA were-3.90?0.19,-8.04?0.25 and 3.60?0.15 respectively in normal controls.In SLE patients, IRF4 mRNA expression was -8.82?0.18,higher than that in normal (P=0.011).But IRF8 mRNA expression was 3.09?0.13,lower than that in normal (P=0.012).Conclusion Abnormal IRF mRNA expression is found in the peripheral blood of SLE patients.IRFs may play roles in the pathogenesis of SLE by affecting the differen- tiation of Th cells.

OBJECTIVETo promote a new kind of alternative needle of filiform-fire needle with fire needle.

METHODSThe common three-headed fire needle, thick fire needle, less-thick fire needle, fine fire needle, single-filiform needle and three-filiform-needle were used by 20 medical staffs, and the time of heating needles was recorded. The advantages of using filiform needles compared with common fire needles were evaluated.

RESULTSThe time of heating single and three-filiform needles was shorter than the other four common fire needles (all P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONFiliform needle is better than the common fire needle in terms of production process,materials, and heating time, etc. Therefore, filiform needles can replace common fire needles for pricking.

Acupuncture Therapy ; instrumentation ; Adult ; Equipment Design ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Needles ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo examine the activation and cytotoxicity of human peripheral blood T lymphocyte induced in vitro by human 4-1-BB ligand (4-1-BBL) gene transfected into tumor Tca8113 cells.

METHODSThe eukaryotic expression vector pEGFP-h4-1-BBL was transfected into human oral carcinoma cell line Tca8113 by Lipofectamine 2000. The transfected cells were then selected in medium containing G-418, cloned by limited dilution and named as Tca8113-4-1-BBL. Human 4-1-BBL mRNA and protein expression of transfected cells was detected by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and western blotting respectively. The tumor cell vaccines (TCV) were obtained by treatment with mitomycin (MMC). Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were prepared from lymphoprep, and then stimulated with anti-CD-3 mAb and incubated with non-transfected or transfected TCV-Tca8113 cells, respectively. The proliferation of T cells was evaluated by trypan blue exclusion; the CCK-8 was used to detect the cytotoxic effect of T lymphocytes. Meanwhile, the secretion of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and interleukin (IL)-2 in culture supernatant was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

RESULTSThe Tca8113 cells transfected by pEGFP-h4-1-BBL could express human 4-1-BBL efficiently. As compared with wild type Tca8113 cells, the transfected Tca8113 cells could markedly promote proliferation, IL-2 and IFN-gamma production and cytotoxic activity of lymphocytes.

CONCLUSIONSThe transfection of human 4-1-BBL gene in Tca8113 cells is effective in enhancing its immunogenicity and inducing antitumor immune response in vitro.

4-1BB Ligand ; genetics ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; genetics ; immunology ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Genetic Vectors ; Humans ; Interferon-gamma ; immunology ; Interleukin-2 ; immunology ; Lymphocyte Activation ; Mouth Neoplasms ; genetics ; immunology ; T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic ; immunology ; Transfection

Osteoclasts and osteoblasts are not exist alone,while communicating with each other through direct contact, diffusible paracrine factors and cell-bone matrix interaction. Co-culture system of osteoblast with osteoclast,including direct co-culture and indirect co-culture. It should be according to the ratio of osteoclasts and osteoblasts under the pathology, choosing the same species. Compared with lonely culture of osteoblasts or osteoclasts,co-culture system is much closer to the microenvironment in vivo. It benefits to explain the interactions between osteoblasts and osteoclasts, exploring molecular communication in bone diseases. It was mainly used to investigate the pharmacological mechanism of herbal and western medicine in bone remodeling. Some osteoporosis drugs (such as epimedium,sanchi, fructus psoraleae, ranelate strontium) not only promoted osteoblastic bone formation, but also inhibited osteoclastic bone resorption in the system,so as to balance bone homeostasis. At the same time,it has been used to study medical physics and assess biomedical materials in recent years. Considerably,the co-cultrue system will be used to study the subchondral bone remodeling and its pharmacological mechanism of herbal and western medicine in osteoarthritis.
Animals ; Bone Remodeling ; Cell Communication ; Coculture Techniques ; Humans ; Osteoblasts ; cytology ; Osteoclasts ; cytology

OBJECTIVETo explore the mitochondrial toxicities induced by zidovudine (AZT) and adefovir dipivoxil (ADV) antiviral drugs using a rat model system.

METHODSTwelve healthy Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three equal groups and treated by oral gavage with zidovudine (125 mg/kg/day), adefovir (40 mg/kg/day), or saline (equal volume) for 28 days. The rats' body weights were measured once a week, and blood was collected every two weeks for blood and biochemical tests. All animals were sacrificed at the end of treatment, and liver, kidney, skeletal muscle, and cardiac muscle were collected by necropsy. Mitochondria were isolated from the respective tissue samples, and the activities of respiratory chain complexes were measured. DNA was purified from each sample and the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content was monitored by quantitative real time PCR. Mitochondrial morphology was analyzed under electron microscope.

RESULTSNo significant adverse effects, including body weight loss, abnormal blood or biochemistry, were observed in rats treated with AZT or ADV. The activities of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase in liver and cardiac muscle were slightly decreased in rats treated with AZT (liver: 9.44+/-3.09 vs. 17.8+/-12.38, P?=?0.21; cardiac muscle: 32.74+/-5.52 vs. 24.74+/-20.59, P?=?0.28; kidney: 4.42+/-1.53 vs. 14.45+/-13.75, P?=?0.18; skeletal muscle: 33.75+/-8.74 vs. 40.04+/-2.49, P?=?0.45). The mtDNA content was significantly decreased in cardiac muscle of AZT-treated rats (cardiac muscle: 0.15+/-0.13 vs. 0.32+/-0.42, P?=?0.85). The morphology of mitochondria in liver, kidney, skeletal muscle, and cardiac muscle was significantly altered in the AZT-treated rats and included disappearance of the outer membrane, severely damaged structure, and swollen or completely absent cristae. No obvious effects were noted in the ADV- or saline-treated rats.

CONCLUSIONSignificant adverse effects related to mitochondrial toxicity were observed in rats treated with AZT. The slightly decreased mtDNA content in ADV-treated rats may suggest that this antiviral drug can also cause mitochondrial toxic effects.

Adenine ; adverse effects ; analogs & derivatives ; Animals ; DNA, Mitochondrial ; drug effects ; Electron Transport Complex IV ; metabolism ; Female ; Kidney ; enzymology ; Liver ; enzymology ; Mitochondria ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Mitochondria, Heart ; drug effects ; Mitochondria, Liver ; drug effects ; Mitochondria, Muscle ; drug effects ; Muscle, Skeletal ; enzymology ; Myocardium ; enzymology ; Organophosphonates ; adverse effects ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Zidovudine ; adverse effects

OBJECTIVEA hepatitis B immunogenic complex therapeutic vaccine, yeast-derived recombinant HBsAg combined with human anti-HBs immunoglobulin (YIC), was evaluated for safety and immune response in phase I clinical trial.

METHODSThe subtypes IgG1, IgG2, IgG3 and IgG4 of serum anti-HBs collected from 20 immunized subjects were analyzed by ELISA. The lymphocyte proliferation assay was carried out in five subjects and was analyzed by 3H-thymidine incorporation. The assays for IFNgamma, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10 and TNFalpha were measured using Human Cytometric Bead Array Kit with FACSCalibur.

RESULTSThe results showed that the subtypes of anti-HBs antibodies induced by 30, 60 and 90 microg YIC-immunized groups among all of the adult volunteers (20/20) were IgG1 and IgG3. The level of IgG1 was higher than that of IgG3 in each volunteer but the strength was different from each other. The rHBsAg-stimulated lymphocyte proliferation induced by three injections of 90 microg of YIC showed that the stimulation index was more than 2.0 in four out of the five individuals (4/5), ranging from 2.70 to 4.75. PHA-stimulated lymphocyte proliferation was not related to rHBsAg-stimulated lymphocyte proliferation. In the 60 microg YIC-immunized group there was no significant difference between the levels of IFNgamma, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-10 at day 0 and day 42. At day 71, in comparison to day 0, the level of IFNgamma was higher in all eight subjects studied (P = 0.015) and the level of IL-2 was also increased in seven out of eight subjects (P = 0.002). In contrast, the levels of IL-4, IL-6, IL-10 and TNFalpha showed no significant difference in all the subjects (P-values: 0.298, 0.976, 0.202 and 0.996).

CONCLUSIONOur results indicate that this hepatitis B immunogenic complex therapeutic vaccine (YIC) can induce a potent anti-HBs response.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Female ; Hepatitis B ; immunology ; therapy ; Hepatitis B Antibodies ; biosynthesis ; immunology ; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens ; immunology ; Hepatitis B Vaccines ; immunology ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; immunology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Recombinant Proteins ; biosynthesis ; immunology ; therapeutic use ; Vaccination ; Vaccines, Synthetic ; immunology ; therapeutic use

BACKGROUNDLittle is known about the prognosis of coronary artery disease (CAD) in Chinese patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictors of in-hospital all-cause mortality of severe CAD in Chinese patients who were hospitalized for AAAs.

METHODSFrom January 2003 to August 2009, 368 patients were operated on for AAAs. The clinical characteristics were retrospectively collected. The primary outcome was the in-hospital all-cause mortality. The clinical risk factors were subjected to a multivariate analysis to determine the predictors of in-hospital all-cause mortality.

RESULTSDuring their hospitalization, 23% (85/368) of the patients underwent coronary angiography, which revealed significant lesions in 93% (79/85) of the patients. In 25 cases, coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) was performed before the AAA repair and in 16 cases of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) was performed. Ten patients with AAA alone died before discharge, and eight patients diagnosed with AAA combined with CAD died. There was no statistical difference in the postoperative death between the two groups. The logistic analysis showed that age > 70 years and CAD (vessels ≥ 2) were the significant factors in predicting the adverse clinical outcome.

CONCLUSIONSThe prevalence of severe CAD in Chinese patients with AAAs seemed lower than those that were reported. Myocardial evaluation and subsequent revascularization before AAA surgery could improve the clinical outcome for these patients who have severe CAD.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal ; complications ; mortality ; surgery ; China ; epidemiology ; Coronary Artery Disease ; epidemiology ; mortality ; surgery ; Female ; Hospital Mortality ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prevalence ; Retrospective Studies