Objective To screen primers used in polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for detecting Trichomonas vaginalis. Methods Three pairs of PCR primer reported in the literatures (TVA5-TVA6, TV1-TV2 and TVK3-TVK7) were screened. For each PCR, four components, including primers, Mg2+, dNTPs and Taq polymerase, were optimized using Taguchi methods to determine the optimal PCR conditions. With the optimal conditions, the sensitivities of three PCR were compared. Vaginal swabs were collected to detect Trichomonas vaginalis by culture and PCR, and the PCR with highest sensitivity was evaluated. Results All three PCR were of high specificity, and the PCR with primers of TVK3-TVK7 had the highest sensitivity. Of 25 clinical vaginal swabs, T. vaginalis was detected in 7 samples by the culture, however, it was detected in 8 samples by the PCR. All culture-positive samples were also positive by PCR. Conclusions The PCR with the primers of TVK3-TVK7 is highly sensitive and specific, which could be useful to detect T. vaginalis in vaginal swab samples.

Objective To develop a gene chip for the detection of pathogens causing genital ulcer diseases (GUDs). Methods Specific probes of 4 different pathogens were designed and synthesized. Gene chip was prepared by blotting the probes onto specially treated glass slides with the use of a robotics. Target genes of standard strains for the 4 different pathogens and the clinical specimens were amplified by PCR with Cy5 fluorescence labeled primers. The labeled amplicons were hybridized with gene chips, and then scanned and analyzed using computer software. Results The fluorescence signal for specific pathogen could be found in the gene chip, illustrating that one specific fluorescence signal denoted a single pathogen, and the combination of different signals denoted the corresponding co-existence of pathogens. Examination of 40 clinical specimens obtained from 40 patients with genital ulcers with gene chip was in good concordance with dark-field microscopy plus PCR or HSV culture plus PCR, showing Kappa values of 0.882 and 0.947, respectively. In addition, mixed infections were detected in 2 specimens. Conclusion Gene chip is a sensitive method with a reliable result and it can detect multiple infections simultaneously.

Objective To investigate the application effect of group therapy in improving the subjective well-being (SWB) of elderly patients with long-term hospitalization. Methods Totally 100 cases of elderly patients admitted in geriatric ward of Ningbo First Hospital for long-time were selected. Newfoundland scale of happiness (MUNSH) scale and the negative life events questionnaire were used to investigate elderly inpatients, and patients with MUNSH ≤12 points received group therapy. Patients were divided into several groups to receive the intervention according to the negative life events. One year after intervention,patients receiving group therapy were evaluated again by using MUNSH scale to evaluate the intervention effect. Results Among 100 elderly patients,there were 32 cases of high SWB,3 cases of low SWB,and 65 cases of medium SWB. 53 cases of patients had sleep disorders,and 62.26% of them had low SWB. After intervention,the scores of negative experience and emotion of elderly patients were lower than those before intervention (P<0.05);the scores of positive emotion and positive experience and the total MUNSH score were higher than those before intervention (P < 0.05). Conclusions According to the different influencing factors,group interventions can significantly improve the SWB level of elderly patients with long-term hospitalization,so as to improve their quality of life.

OBJECTIVETo assess the association of coagulation factor V gene polymorphisms with unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortion (URSA) among ethnic Han Chinese from Wenzhou area.

METHODSNinety-six patients with URSA and 103 females with a history of normal pregnancy were recruited. Genotypes of coagulation factor V gene were determined through target sequence capture and high-throughput sequencing. The results were confirmed with a MassARRAY system. Allelic and genotypic frequencies between the two groups were compared.

RESULTSNineteen single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs), except coagulation factor V Leiden, were identified in the two groups. The frequencies of rs9287090 allele A, rs1046712 allele T and rs1800594 allele G of the URSA group were lower than those of the control group (6.77% vs. 16.50%, 3.12% vs. 13.11%, 10.94% vs. 18.45%, respectively). After Bonferroni and false discovery rate correction, rs9287090 and rs1046712 were significantly associated with URSA (corrected P<0.05). Although genotypic distribution of rs9287090 and rs1046712 also differed between the two groups, the corrected P value showed no significance (corrected P>0.05). A complete linkage disequilibrium (r=1, D'=1) of rs6022 and rs6029 was observed for the haplotype block rs6022-rs6029-rs6028. The frequencies of rs6022 allele A and rs6029 allele T were higher in the URSA group with corrected insignificance (75.00% vs. 65.53%, corrected P>0.05). Furthermore, significantly more A-T-T haplotype was found in the URSA group (75.00% vs. 65.50%, OR=1.578, 95%CI:1.021-2.438, χ=4.248, P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe decreased rate of rs9287090 allele A, rs1046712 allele T, and rs1800594 allele G may contribute to the susceptibility to URSA among ethnic Han Chinese from Wenzhou area. The rs6022 allele A and rs6029 allele T may also predispose to URSA.

Objective To observe the value of tissue motion mitral annular displacement(TMAD)technique to assess left ventricular function in patients with cardiac amyloidosis.Methods A total of 34 adult patients with cardiac amyloidosis diagnosed by pathology were retrospectively included as the observation group,and 32 healthy adults were collected as the control group for the same period.Basic data of the subjects were collected,and data of routine ultrasonic parameters of left ventricular function and TMAD parameters were obtained,and then compared between groups.The correlation of TMAD parameters with left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF)or mitral annular plane systolic excursion(MAPSE)were assessed.Results Compared with the control group,the observation group had higher levels of body surface area(BSA),systolic blood pressure,N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide(NT-proBNP),creatinine and urea(all P＜0.05).The observation group had increased values of ascending aorta(AO),left atrium(LA),interventricular septum(IVS),left ventricular posterior wall thickness in diastole(LVPWD),pulmonary artery(PA),and early diastolic peark velocity of mitral inflow(peak E),while smaller values of left ventricular end-diastolic dimension(LVEDD),LVEF,fractional shortening(FS),early diastolic tissue Doppler velocity E'septal(IVS E')and lateral(LW E')and MAPSE(all P＜0.05),and the LVEF in observation group was(58.18±7.09)％.For TMAD patameters,the observation group had smaller values of the following parameters on apical four chamber(A4C)view as medial displacement of mitral valve annulus(A4C MV1),displacement of lateral mitral valve annulus(A4C MV2),displacement of the midpoint of the mitral valve annulus(A4C Midpt)and the corresponding percentage(A4C Midpt％),as well as smaller values of the following paramets on apical two chamber(A2C)view as A2C MV1,A2C MV2,A2C Midpt and A2C Midpt％(all P＜0.05).In the observation group,A4C Midpt％showed a moderate positive correlation with LVEF(r=0.488,P＜0.05),and A2C Midpt showed a high positive correlation with M APSE(r=0.712,P＜0.05),and A4C MV2,A4C Midpt,A4C Midpt％,A2C MV1,A2C MV2,A2C Midpt％all showed a moderate positive correlation with MAPSE(r=0.420 to 0.691,all P＜0.05).Conclusion Compared with LVEF,the TMAD parameters might reflect the changes in left ventricular systolic function more sensitively in patients with cardiac amyloidosis.

With the main pathological features of glomerulosclerosis and interstitial fibrosis， renal fibrosis is a key pathological process causing chronic kidney disease to progress to end-stage disease. As a cellular autophagic process， mitochondrial autophagy plays a crucial role in maintaining mitochondrial mass and functional stability. Mitochondrial dysfunction is considered to be one of the key factors driving the progression of fibrosis. Phosphatase and tension protein homologue （PTEN） induce various signalling pathways such as putative kinase 1/parkin， Nip3-like protein X/Bcl-2 interacting protein 3， and FUN14 structural domain-containing protein 1 to activate mitochondrial autophagy to participate in the regulation of fibrogenic factors， amelioration of oxidative stress， and inhibition of inflammatory response and apoptosis， which in turn effectively slows down the progression of renal fibrosis. Studies have shown that traditional Chinese medicine monomers and compound preparations， including phenolics， terpenoids， ketones， and alkaloids， can regulate mitochondrial autophagy-related signalling pathways and achieve significant clinical efficacy in intervening in the progression of renal fibrosis for the treatment of chronic kidney disease. This paper summarized the mechanism of mitochondrial autophagy and the research progress of traditional Chinese medicine intervention in renal fibrosis to provide new ideas for the study of the mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine in treating renal fibrosis.

With the main pathological features of glomerulosclerosis and interstitial fibrosis， renal fibrosis is a key pathological process causing chronic kidney disease to progress to end-stage disease. As a cellular autophagic process， mitochondrial autophagy plays a crucial role in maintaining mitochondrial mass and functional stability. Mitochondrial dysfunction is considered to be one of the key factors driving the progression of fibrosis. Phosphatase and tension protein homologue （PTEN） induce various signalling pathways such as putative kinase 1/parkin， Nip3-like protein X/Bcl-2 interacting protein 3， and FUN14 structural domain-containing protein 1 to activate mitochondrial autophagy to participate in the regulation of fibrogenic factors， amelioration of oxidative stress， and inhibition of inflammatory response and apoptosis， which in turn effectively slows down the progression of renal fibrosis. Studies have shown that traditional Chinese medicine monomers and compound preparations， including phenolics， terpenoids， ketones， and alkaloids， can regulate mitochondrial autophagy-related signalling pathways and achieve significant clinical efficacy in intervening in the progression of renal fibrosis for the treatment of chronic kidney disease. This paper summarized the mechanism of mitochondrial autophagy and the research progress of traditional Chinese medicine intervention in renal fibrosis to provide new ideas for the study of the mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine in treating renal fibrosis.