OBJECTIVETo observe the neurological protection effects of "paraplegia-triple-needling method" on rats with incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI), so as to make a preliminary exploration on its mechanism.

METHODSA total of 45 SD rats were randomly divided into a paraplegia-triple-needling method group (group A), a regular acupuncture group (group B) and a model group (group C), 15 rats in each one. The rats model of incomplete spinal cord injury was established by modified Allen's method. The acupoints of governor vessel and back-shu points next to the vertebras of upper end and lower end of injured segment as well as motor points in key muscle of lower extremities were treated with acupuncture in the group A; the acupoints of governor vessel and back-shu points next to the vertebras of upper end and lower end of injured segment as well as "Huantiao" (GB 30), "Housanli" (ST 36), "Yanglingquan" (GB 34) and "Genduan"(Extra) were treated with acupuncture in the group B; rats in the group C received no treatment after model establishment but grabbing and immobilization. The needles were retained for 15 min in the group A and group B, once a day for 14 times. 1 d, 7 d and 14 d after model establishment, Basso Beattie Bresnahan (BBB) scores were observed in each group; the morphologic change of injured spinal cord and expression of positive cells of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) were observed. Results (1) One day after SCI, there was no significant difference of BBB scores among three groups (P> 0. 05); 7 days and 14 days after SCI, BBB scores in the group A and group B were significantly superior to those in the group C (all P<0. 05), and the BBB scores in the group A were superior to those in the group B ( both P<0. 05). (2) There was expression of CGRP positive cells in all three groups, and that in the group A and group B was significantly higher than that in group C (both P<0. 05); 14 days after treatment, the expression in the group A was higher than that in the group B (P<0. 05).

CONCLUSIONThe "paraplegia-triple-needling method" could obviously! improve the motor function of rats with SCI, especially the expression of neuroprotective factor CGRP, which is likely to be one of the mechanisms of neurological protection effect.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; instrumentation ; methods ; Animals ; Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide ; genetics ; metabolism ; Disease Models, Animal ; Humans ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; genetics ; metabolism ; therapy

Objective To investigate the diagnostic value of prenatal ultrasonography and magnatic resonance imaging in the fetal intracranial hemorrhage. Methods The 20 antenatal diagnosed ICH cases was collected from 31 200 prenatal diagnosis units in Guangzhou Women and Children′s Medical Center from July 2012 to June 2014. Maternal characteristics, ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging findings, clinical course, and postnatal outcome were reviewed. Results Twenty consecutive cases of fetal ICH were evaluated. All cases were diagnosed at mid or third trimester. Transabdominal ultrasound showed 9 cases of hyper echoic lesions in the lateral ventricle, 2 cases of hypoechonic lesions, 2 cases of irregular mixed echo in the parenchyma, 1 case of hyperechoic cerebellar hemisphere with infarction, and 1 case of abnormal choroid plexus. Seventeen cases were associated with ventriculomegaly, brain compression or brain midline displacement. MRI showed the nodular, patchy or linear low signal on T2WI and high signal on T1WI. Some cases were combined with cortex lesions or abnormal parenchyma. ICH was complicated with other structural abnormalities:1 case of cleft palate, 2 cases of spinal deformity and 3 cases of other cerebral cortical malformations. Prenatal diagnosis results were:2 cases diagnosed as positive cytomegalovirus infection and no chromosome abnormalities found in all cases. The follow up results were:1 case was lost, 16 cases were terminated after prenatal diagnosis. Among the 3 survival cases, 1 case has the neurological complication and the other two were normal till now. Conclusions Fetal intracranial hemorrhage has some image features on ultrasound and magnetic resonance. Ultrasound showed hyper echoic lesions with ventriculomegaly. MRI showed the nodular, patchy or linear low signal on T2WI and high signal on T1WI. MRI may contribute to the accuracy of diagnosis, particularly in bleeding site. The regular ultrasonic monitoring is helpful to improve the detection rate.

Objective:To investigate the value of conventional MRI and high resolution diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) for preoperative discrimination between nasopharyngeal-skull base osteomyelitis (NP-SBO) and locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC).Methods:From January 2017 to October 2021, 27 patients of NP-SBO and 32 patients of LA-NPC were retrospectively analyzed at the Eye & ENT Hospital of Fudan University. The clinical characteristics and conventional MRI features were collected, and the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values of polygonal (ADC polygonal) and small circle were measured from readout segmentation of long variable echo-trains (RESOLVE) DWI. MRI features included laterality, margin, signal intensity of T 1WI and T 2WI, enhancement degree, component, abscess, deep mucosal white line, bone invasion, lymph nodes involvement and other accompany symphtoms. The independent sample t test, χ 2 test or Fisher exact test were used to compare the features and ADC values of the NP-SBO and LA-NPC groups. The logistic regression was applied to select independent predictors in the distinguishing LA-NPC from NP-SBO. Then, the conventional MRI model, ADC model and conventional MRI in combination with ADC model were built. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of models were compared using DeLong test. Results:The age, diabetic status, cranial nerve deficits, inner component, abscess, deep mucosal white line, lymph nodes involvement and ADC polygonal were significantly different between NP-SBO and LA-NPC groups ( P<0.05). The logistic regression analysis showed that ADC polygonal (OR=0.972, 95%CI 0.951-0.993, P=0.011) and abscess (OR=0.101, 95%CI 0.013-0.774, P=0.027) were the independent predictors in the discrimination of NP-SBO and LA-NPC. The AUC (95%CI) of conventional MRI model (abscess), ADC model (ADC polygonal) and combination model were 0.634 (0.499-0.756), 0.870 (0.757-0.943), and 0.925(0.829-0.979), respectively. The AUC of combination model was higher than that of conventional MRI model ( Z=4.77, P<0.001), while there was no difference between combination model and ADC model ( Z=1.87, P=0.062). The AUC of conventional MRI model was lower than that of ADC model ( Z=2.84, P=0.005). Conclusion:Conventional MRI in combination with RESOLVE DWI shows good performance in differentiating between NP-SBO and LA-NPC, especially for abscess in combination with ADC polygonal value.

Objective To investigate the value of routine MRI in determining placental grading and the relationship between placental apparent diffusion coefficient(ADC)value and the gestational age(GA)in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. Methods 52 women with singleton pregnancies were referred for MRI examination for underlying maternal or fetal lesions or malformations identified by ultrasound(US).Subjects were divided into three groups according to the GA:group Ⅰ at 18 -26 weeks(n=29);groupⅡat 27-33 weeks(n=14);group Ⅲ at 34-40 weeks(n=9).DWI protocol included 2 sets of b-values:0 s/mm2,200 s/mm2,800 s/mm2 and 50 s/mm2,200 s/mm2,800 s/mm2,and ADC values of the two groups were calculated and correlated with GA by simple linear regression.Results Half-fourier acquisition single-shot turbo spin-echo(HASTE)sequence could clearly define the 3 layers of placenta and determine the grading of placental aging.ADC values with b values of 0 s/mm2,200 s/mm2and 800 s/mm2were correlated negatively with GA (r= -0.900,P<0.001).However,ADC values with b values of 50 s/mm2,200 s/mm2and 800 s/mm2did not show any statistical correlation with GA(r= -0.037,P=0.795).Conclusion MRI can visualize the morphological changes of the placenta during the pregnancy.With a set of b-values at 0 s/mm2,200 s/mm2and 800 s/mm2,placental ADC values are found to have decreasing tendency as the pregnancies progress in the second and third trimesters.

Objective:To build and validate a radiomics and clinical nomogram for preoperative discrimination between low- and high-grade sinonasal squamous cell carcinoma (SNSCC).Methods:From January 2017 to May 2021, 167 SNSCC patients including 78 low-grade (grade Ⅰ or Ⅱ) and 89 high-grade (grade Ⅲ) were retrospectively analyzed at the Eye & ENT Hospital of Fudan University. All patients were randomly divided into a training cohort ( n=117, 64 high-grade and 53 low-grade SNSCC) and a validation cohort ( n=50, 25 high-grade and 25 low-grade SNSCC) in a ratio of 7∶3 using a stratified sampling method. The radiomics features were extracted in contrast enhanced T 1WI with manual segmentation of lesions. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression was used to reduce the dimension of the radiomics features and then the radiomics model was built to predict SNSCC histological grade in training cohort. Independent clinical predicting factors were screened using logistic regression and the clinical model was built. The clinical-radiomics model was built by the radiomics features and clinical factors in the training cohort based on logistic regression and the nomogram was drawn. The receiver operator characteristic curves were drawn to evaluate the performance of clinical model, radiomics model and nomogram. The calibration curve was used to evaluate the consistency between the nomogram prediction and the actual observation risk, and the decision curve analysis (DCA) was used to evaluate the clinical applicability of the nomogram. Results:Using logistic regression analysis, the clinical model was built by the tumor primary site (OR value 7.376, 95%CI 2.517-21.618, P<0.001) and TNM stage (OR value 10.020, 95%CI 3.654-27.472, P<0.001) and the area under the curve (AUC) in the training cohort and validation cohort were 0.798 and 0.784, sensitivity were 84.4% and 84.0%, specificity were 58.5% and 68.0%, respectively. Based on the contrast enhanced T 1WI, a total of 9 radiomics features were screened for establishing the radiomics model. The AUC of radiomics model were 0.833 (sensitivity 82.8%, specificity 73.6%) and 0.851 (sensitivity 92.0%, specificity 68.0%) in the training and validation cohorts. The nomogram based on the clinical-radiomics model predicted histological grade with the highest AUC in the training cohort (AUC 0.920, sensitivity 89.1%, specificity 83.0%) and validation cohort (AUC 0.912, sensitivity 92.0%, specificity 84.0%). The calibration curve of the nomogram was close to the ideal line in both training and validation cohorts. DCA showed that the use of nomogram with a threshold in the range of <85% in training cohort, in the range of 20%-65%, 72%-90% in validation cohort, had a greater clinical application value in predicting the SNSCC histological grade. Nomogram model had a better clinical net benefit than the clinical and radiomics models. Conclusion:Nomogram combining clinical factors (tumor primary site and TNM stage) with radiomics features obtained from contrast enhanced T 1WI has a better ability for predicting histological grade of SNSCC than clinical and radiomics models.

Background::Data on the glycemic profile of pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) during the perinatal period are sparse. This study described the intrapartum and early postpartum glucose profiles among pregnant women with GDM, and analyzed factors potentially affecting glycemic parameters during the period.Methods::This was a prospective observational study conducted from March 2020 to November 2021. Pregnant women with GDM receiving lifestyle interventions alone during pregnancy and matched women with non-diabetic pregnancies (NDPs) were enrolled from among patients admitted to the obstetrics department for childbirth. Glucose monitoring was performed via a flash glucose monitoring (FGM) system on admission, and glucose readings during labor and early postpartum were analyzed. The clinical characteristics and FGM-based parameters of participants in the two groups were compared.Results::A total of 124 participants (mean age: 29.5 ± 3.5 years, 92 [74.2%] primipara) were included in the final analysis. A total of 17,571 glucose readings were retrieved. There were no significant differences in clinical characteristics between the GDM ( n = 60) and NDP ( n = 64) groups. The average glucose level was 92.2 mg/dL, and the level was higher in the GDM group (95.5 ± 12.1 mg/dL vs. 89.1 ± 13.4 mg/dL, P = 0.008) during the intrapartum and early postpartum periods. The data were split into the intrapartum period (from the start of labor to delivery of the placenta) and the early postpartum period (within 24 h after placental delivery) for analysis. During intrapartum, women with GDM exhibited glycemic profiles and fluctuations similar to those in the NDP group. However, women with GDM had higher postpartum glucose levels (97.7 ± 13.4 mg/dL vs. 90.8 ± 15.3 mg/dL, P = 0.009), a longer time spent >140 mg/dL (8.7 ± 9.3% vs. 5.9 ± 10.3%, P = 0.011), and greater glycemic fluctuations than those with NDP. Postpartum hyperglycemia in GDM might be associated with high parity and postprandial glucose abnormalities in GDM screening tests. Conclusion::Compared to those with normoglycemia, pregnant women with GDM receiving lifestyle interventions alone had similar intrapartum glucose profiles but higher early postpartum glucose levels and greater glucose variability, providing evidence for modification of the current perinatal glucose monitoring strategy for GDM.Trial Registration::ChiCTR.org.cn, ChiCTR2000030972

Human challenge trial (HCT) is a test in which human volunteers are intentionally infected with pathogens in order to evaluate the efficacy of candidate preventive or therapeutic drugs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the HCT of vaccines has aroused people's attention due to its significant advantages over clinical trial. This paper introduces the concept, development and application of HCT, the advantages and limitations of HCT for vaccine evaluation, and the consideration of future HCT of COVID-19 vaccine in China.

Objective To explore the effects of different acupoints,different target organs,and different interventions on acupoint efficacy based on ACU&MOX-DATA platform;To illustrate and visualize whether the above factors have the characteristics of"specific effect"or"common effect"of acupoint efficacy.Methods The multi-source heterogeneous data were integrated from the original omics data and public omics data.After standardization,differential gene analysis,disease pathology network analysis,and enrichment analysis were performed using Batch Search and Stimulation Mode modules in ACU&MOX-DATA platform under the conditions of different acupoints,different target organs,and different interventions.Results Under the same disease state and the same intervention,there were differences in effects among different acupoints;under the same disease state,the same acupoint and intervention,the responses produced by different target organs were not completely consistent;under the same disease state and acupoint,there were differences in effects among different intervention measures.Conclusion Based on the analysis of ACU&MOX-DATA platform,it is preliminary clear that acupoints,target organs,and interventions are the key factors affecting acupoint efficacy.Meanwhile,the above results have indicated that there are specific or common regulatory characteristics of acupoint efficacy.Applying ACU&MOX-DATA platform to analyze and visualize the critical scientific problems in the field of acupuncture and moxibustion can provide references for deepening acupoint cognition,guiding clinical acupoint selection,and improving clinical efficacy.