Opioid peptides and their receptors play an important r ole in the pathophysiologic process of stroke. The concentration of endogenous o pioid peptides elevates, while the density of opioid receptors decreases in CNS during cerebral ischemia; on the other hand, opioids influence the development o f stroke through regulating the contraction of cerebral vessel, immuno-endocrin e system and neuroprotection against injury. Thus, drugs that regulate the opioi d system may be a new therapeutic approach for prevention and treatment of cereb ral ischemia.

Objective To investigate the protective effect of Ambroxol against experimental lung ischemia reperfusion (I/R) injury in a situ hilar clamp model.Method Left lung of rat was rendered and ischemic for 90 minutes,and reperfused for up to 2 hours,as the model.Twenty-four SD rats were randomly divided into 3 groups with 8 rats each group:control group,I/R group,I/R and Ambroxol treatment group (AMB group).Rats of AMB group received Ambroxol (25 mg/kg) Intraabdominally 30 minutes before ischemia and intravenously 5 minutes before reperfusion.After 2 hours of reperfusion,blood-gas analysis,the serum level of IL-1?,IL-8 and TNF-?from carotid artery were delected.The wet/dry ratio of lung,the activity of erythrocuprein (SOD),the content of malonaldehyde (MDA) and the activity of myeloperoxidase (MPO) were determined and pathematology changes were observed in the left lung tissue.Differences within the groups were analysed using two-sample t-test. Results After 2 hours of repeffusion,there were no significant changes of artery partial pressure of oxygen (PO_2) and partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO_2) among three groups.The wet/dry ratio of lung,the activity of MPO (U/g) and the content of MDA (nmol/mgprot) of I/R group were (5.3?0.5),(1.30?0.26) and (0.66?0.16),significantly higher than those of the control group (P

Background Investigating the association of blue light-induced damage of retinal pigmenepithelial (RPE) cellwith intracellulaCa2+ conteniimportanfounderstanding the mechanism of retinal disorders.Objective Thistudy wato establish blue light-induced damage model of human RPE celland explore the relationship between the damage of RPE cell and intracellulaCa2+ content.MethodHuman RPE cellwere cultured and passaged.Cell vitality waassayed by trypan blue staining.Fourth-generation cellwere used in these experiments.The cellwere exposed to blue lighwith an intensity of (2000±500)lx fo3,6,9 o12 hours,and the rate of apoptosiwaassayed by TUNEL to assesthe optimal irradiation time focellcultured.The cellwere then randomized into the withouirradiation group,irradiation only group,nifedipine group,ligh+ nifedipine group,(-) BayK8644 group and ligh+ (-) BayK8644 group.The laseconfocal microscope waused to determine the fluorescence intensity of intracellulafree Ca2+ aan excitation wavelength of 488 nm and an emission wavelength of 505 nm.The cell imagewere analyzed using computesoftware.The differenceof fluorescence intensity among the differengroupwere compared by one-way analysiof variance.ResultTrypan blue staining showed thathe viability of RPE cellwamore than 90％ afteculturing and passaging.No apoptoticell waseen aftelighexposure fo3 hours.However,differennumberof apoptoticellappeared aftelighexposure fo6,9 and 12 hours.The fluorescence intensity of intracellulafree Ca2+ in the nifedipine group wasignificantly lowethan thaof the withouirradiation group othe ligh+ nifedipine group(both aP=0.000).Lasescanning confocal microscopy showed thathe fluorescence intensitieof intracellulafree Ca2+ in the irradiation only group,(-) BayK8644 group,ligh+ (-)BayK8644 group were highethan thaof the withouirradiation group,with statistical significancebetween them(all P=0.000).No significandifferencewere found in the fluorescence intensity of intracellulafree Ca2+ between the ligh+ nifedipine group and withouirradiation group awell abetween the (-)BayK8644 group and the ligh+(-) BayK8644 group(P =0.339,P =0.410).ConclusionThe optical conditionfoblue light-induced RPE cell damage were exposure of blue-ligha(2000± 500) lx fo6 hourand culturing the cellfo24 hours.Blue lighexposure can induce damage of human RPE cellprobably by triggering the increase of intracellulafree Ca2+ concentration.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the protective effect of amrinone against experimental lung ischemia /reperfusion (I/R) injury.

METHODSTwenty-four Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into 3 groups (n=8 each): sham- operated group, I/R group, and amrinone-treated I/R group (AMR group). The left lung of rats was subjected to ischemia for 90 minutes, followed by reperfusion for 2 hrs, to induce an I/R lung injury model. The rats of the AMR group received amrinone (10 mg/kg) intravenously 30 minutes before ischemia and 5 minutes before reperfusion. After 2 hrs of reperfusion, carotid artery blood was collected for blood-gas analysis and detection of serum levels of IL-1beta, IL-8 and TNF-alpha. The left lung was removed for detection of the lung wet/dry ratio, the erythrocuprein (SOD) activity and the malonaldehyde (MDA) content as well as the pathological changes.

RESULTSAfter 2 hrs of reperfusion, there were no significant differences in artery partial pressure of oxygen (PO2) and partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO2) among the three groups. The lung wet/dry ratio (5.3 +/- 0.5 vs 4.8 +/- 0.1) and the MDA content (0.66 +/- 0.16 nmol/mg prot vs 0.47 +/- 0.06 nmol/mg prot) in the I/R group were significantly higher than those of the sham-operated group (P <0.05). The administration of amrinone markedly reduced the lung wet/dry ratio (4.8 +/- 0.2) and the MDA content (0.51 +/- 0.09 nmol/mg prot) and increased the SOD activity (54.7 +/- 6.8 vs 39.3 +/- 3.0 U/mg prot) when comparing the I/R group (P < 0.05). The serum levels of IL-1beta, IL-8 and TNF-alpha in the I/R group were 22.08 +/- 3.85, 21.92 +/- 5.56 and 30.50 +/- 3.77 pg/mL respectively, which were significantly higher than those of the sham-operated group. The AMR group showed lower serum levels of IL-1beta, IL-8 and TNF-alpha (16.66 +/- 3.02,14.73 +/- 2.75 and 22.48 +/- 3.82 pg/mL, respectively) compared with the I/R group (P < 0.01). The pathologic examination displayed that the lung tissue structure was normal and there was no hyperemia in the sham-operated and the AMR groups. The lung tissue structure of the I/R group was nearly normal but there were hyperemia and more inflammatory cells than the sham-operated and the AMR groups.

CONCLUSIONSAmrinone has protections against lung I/R injury, possibly through its anti-oxidation effects and an inhibition of inflammation factors releasing.

Amrinone ; therapeutic use ; Animals ; Interleukin-1beta ; blood ; Interleukin-8 ; blood ; Lung ; blood supply ; drug effects ; Male ; Malondialdehyde ; analysis ; Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors ; therapeutic use ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion Injury ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; pathology ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; blood

Background Studies determined that blue light exposure causes apoptosis of human retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells,but its mechanism is still below understood.Objective The aim of this study was to investigate whether or how mitochondrial apoptotic pathway is involved in blue-light induced apoptosis of human RPE cells in vitro.Methods Human RPE cells were isolated from fresh donor eyes and primarily cultured and passaged.The cells were identified with keratin antibody by immunochemistry.Then the cells were the non-light exposed group,simple light-exposed group,light-exposed+nifedipine group,light-exposed+calphostin C group and the light-exposed+phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) group.Human RPE cells in light-exposed group were consequently cultured for 24 hours following the exposure of (2 000±500)lx blue-light for 6 hours,and then the expression levels of bax,bcl-2,bcl-xl in the cells were detected by Western blot to evaluate the effect of blue light on the apoptosis.The cells in the light-exposed+nifedipine group,light-exposed+calphostin C group and the light-exposed+PMA group were treated with the corresponding drugs 1 hour prior to light irradiation and sequently received 6-hour light irradiation and 48-hour culture.The expression of caspase-9 protein in the cells were assayed with Western blot to assess the influence of Ca2+ channel and protein kinase C (PKC) pathway on mitochondria of RPE cells.Results Cultured cells grew well with visible pigment in cytoplasm.The cells showed the positive response for keratin and presented a cobblestone-like appearance.The expression bands of bax,bcl-2 and bcl-xl proteins were clearly visible at the molecular weight of 23 000,26 000 and 30 000 in both non-light exposed group and the simple light-exposed group,and the absorbance values of the cells to bax were elevated,while the absorbance values to bcl-2 and bcl-xl were declined in the simple light-exposed group compared with the non-light exposed group (t =-4.409,P =0.012 ;t =7.575,P =0.002 ; t =6.068,P =0.004).Compared with the non-light exposed group,the absorbance values of caspase-9 were significantly raised in the simple light-exposed group,light-exposed+calphostin C group and the lightexposed+PMA group (P=0.005,0.002,0.000),but no significant difference between the non-light exposed group and light-exposed+nifedipine group (P=0.191).Compared with the simple light-exposed group,the expression level was considerably higher in the light-exposed + PMA group (P =0.005) ; while that in the light-exposed + nifedipine group or light-exposed+calphostin C group was not significantly different (P=0.057,0.643).Conclusions Blue light exposure induces apoptosis of RPE cells by up-regulating the expressions of bax and caspase-9 proteins and down-regulating the expressions of bcl-2 and bcl-xl.The mitochondrial apoptosis pathway and PKC pathway participate in blue-light induced apoptosis of human RPE cells in vitro.

OBJECTIVE The present study was aimed to investigate the role of Wnt/β-catenin sig-naling in spinal VGLUT2 regulation and neuropathic pain. METHODS To elucidate the association be-tween VGLUT2 and neuropathic pain,we determined the expression and distribution characteristics of VGLUT2 in mice subjected to spared nerve injury(SNI),and then observed the effects of two VGLUT2 targeting shRNAs on mechanical allodynia and glutamate release.The effects of Wnt/β-catenin signal-ing on VGLUT2 expression and pain behavior were investigated by using Wnt agonist,Wnt1,and Wnt/β-catenin pathway inhibitor XAV939 in SNI mice.RESULTS SNI surgery induced significant up-regula-tion of VGLUT2 on postoperative days 7,14,and 21.Double immunofluorescence labeling of VGLUT2 with NeuN,MAP2,Iba-1,or GFAP showed that VGLUT2 was mainly expressed in neurons in the dor-sal horn of the spinal cord after SNI(NeuN,MAP2).Intrathecal administration of VGLUT2 shRNAs be-fore or after SNI surgery significantly decreased mechanical allodynia and glutamate release. Mean-while,Wnt1/β-catenin signaling increased significantly after SNI surgery.Over-expression of β-catenin in PC12 cells increased VGLUT2 protein level,intrathecal administration of Wnt agonist or Wnt1 signifi-cantly increased VGLUT2 protein expression in spinal cord, while Wnt/β-catenin pathway inhibitor XAV939 decreased VGLUT2 expression in PC12 cells and spinal cord.Additionally,intrathecal admin-istration of XAV939 7 days after SNI significantly attenuated mechanical allodynia in mice, which was in accordance with down-regulation of VGLUT2 protein levels.VGLUT2 shRNAs significantly attenuat-ed Wnt agonist or Wnt1 induced mechanical allodynia. CONCLUSION Wnt1/β-catenin signaling path-way up-regu-lates the spinal VGLUT2 expression,and this regulation is involved in neuropathic pain behavior.

Objective To compare the effect of right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) and right ventricular apex (RVA) pacing on ventricular systolic synchrony using gated blood pool SPECT (GBPS).Methods A total of 50 patients implanted with pacemaker due to high degree or complete atria-ventricular block were enrolled in the study. Twenty-three patients were RVOT paced ( Group A, n = 23) and 27 were RVA paced (Group B, n=27). Twenty-four patients with malignancy, normal echocardiographic findings and no history of cardiac diseases were scheduled for pre-chemotherapy evaluation of cardiac structure and function and were enrolled as control group ( Group C, n = 24). All patients underwent GBPS imaging and the values of phase angle (PS), mean phase of each wall, standard deviation (SD) of mean phase of each wall, lateral-septal motion delay of left ventricle ( LV Sep-Lat Delay), septal-right ventricular (RV) delay of LV ( LV Sep-RV Delay) and LV-RV Delay were acquired. The parameters of ventricular systolic synchrony among the three groups were compared using one-way ANOVA. Results The mean phase of LV lateral wall in Groups A and B were significantly higher than that in Group C: Group A (120.50 ±40.58) ms; Group B (103.23±28.34) ms; Group C (84.63 ±22.38) ms (F=7.72, P ＜0.05). There was no significant difference between Groups A and B ( t = 1.30, P ＞ 0.05 ). The mean phase of RV in Group A was significantly larger than those in Groups B and C: Group A ( 137.05 ± 39.27) ms, Group B ( 100.85 ± 23.79) ms,Group C (59. 13 ±30.52) ms (F=35.55, P＜0.05). PS, SD and LV Sep-Lat Delay in Groups A and B were significantly higher than those in Group C: (85.73 ± 12.00)°vs (89.85 ± 15.61 )°vs (58.95 ±9.87)°, (27.68±10.66) ms vs (26.15 ±13.02) ms vs (15.63 ±8.35) ms, (25.06±34.23) ms vs (2. 62 ± 60. 31 ) ms vs ( - 23.66 ± 31.39) ms, F = 41.54,8.55,6.81, all P ＜ 0.01 ), however, there was no significant difference between Groups A and B ( t = 0. 68, 0.68, 1.30, all P ＞ 0.05 ). LV Sep-RV Delay and LV-RV Delay were significantly different among the three groups ( LV Sep-RV Delay: Group A (57.60 ±56.77) ms, Group B (6.36 ±61.88) ms, Group C ( -41.89 ±35.78) ms; LV-RV Delay:Group A (47.36 ±42.59) ms, Group B ( 3.08 ± 38.81 ) ms Group C ( - 26.50 ± 20.99 ) ms, F = 20. 32,25.38, both P ＜ 0.01 ). Conclusion Both RVA and RVOT pacing increase the segmental phases detected by GBPS, causing inter- and intra- ventricular asynchrony compared with patients without pacemakers.

Objective To monitor the prevalence of Keshan disease in Huangling County, Shaanxi Previnee in 2007. Methods All local residents in surveinance area of Keshan disease in Diantou and Yaoping Township of Huangling County, were surveyed and given overall examinations by electrocardiography. The patients of latent and chronic Keshan disease were examined by X-ray. The selenium contents in blood and hair were monitored by fluorospectrophotometry in surveillance and non-surveillance areas. Results No new ease of acute or sub-acute patient was found. Latent and chronic patients detected accounted for 3.92% (35/893). Only 1 ease of new latent Keshan disease was newly found. Major feature of electrocardiographic abnormality was ST-T change. By X-ray, there were 27 eases with a normal heart, 20 eases with mild enlargement, 20 eases with medium enlargement, and 16 eases with marked enlargement. Serological selenium eoncentrations were (38.67±19.58), (48.55±22.36), (67.29±17.32)μg/L, respectively in patients, internal and external eontrols(F=16.291 ,P<0.01). Selenium contents of children's hair were (0.376±0.101), (0.372±0.085), (0.436±0.085)μg/L, respectively(F= 17.032, P<0.01). Conclusions Cases of diagnosed Keshan disease were decreased compared with the previous years. There were new eases of latent Keshan disease in Huangling County, Shaanxi Province.

OBJECTIVETo observe the relationship between skewed X-chromosomal inactivation (SXCI) and development of lung cancer in females.

METHODSDNA was isolated from peripheral blood cells from patients with primary lung cancer (n = 148) and control subjects (n =289). Exon 1 of androgen receptor ( AR) gene was amplified, with its products from different alleles resolved on denaturing polyacrylamide gels and visualized by silver staining. The corrected ratio (CR) between products from different AR alleles before and after Hpa II pretreatment was calculated. All statistical tests were two-sided.

RESULTSWith CR> or = 10 adopted as the criterion, SXCI was found more frequently in the younger patients ( C50 years; 7. 9%) than in the controls of the same age group (1. 2% ; P = 0. 046). The SXCI frequency, however, were not significantly different between the old patients ( > 50 years; 4. 5% ) and the controls of the same age group (5. 4% ; P =0. 488). Whether taking CR> or =3 or CR> or =10 as the criteria, the average ages of the patients with SXCI were more than 10 years younger than those without SXCI (P < 0. 05).

CONCLUSIONSXCI in blood cells is associated with early development of lung cancer in females.

Adult ; Age Factors ; Aged ; Alleles ; Chromosomes, Human, X ; genetics ; DNA ; genetics ; metabolism ; Deoxyribonuclease HpaII ; metabolism ; Exons ; Female ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; blood ; genetics ; pathology ; Middle Aged ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Receptors, Androgen ; genetics ; X Chromosome Inactivation

OBJECTIVETo develop a traction reductor for the reduction of lower limb fractures during the minimally invasive surgery and explore its safety and efficacy.

METHODSFrom February 2007 to March 2009, closed or limited open reduction plus percutaneous plate and screw internal-fixation were conducted in 34 patients with fracture of distal femur and tibia metaphysic, among which there were 3 distal femoral fractures (2 33-B, 1 33-C), 14 proximal tibial fractures (9 41-A, 3 41-B, 2 41-C) and 17 distal tibial fractures (9 43-A, 5 43-B, 3 43-C, 2 Gustilo I a), according to the Association for Osteosynthesis-Orthopaedic Trauma Association (AO-OTA) classification. Besides, closed reduction plus interlocking intramedullary nailing on tibial shaft fracture were applied in 36 patients (7 42-A, 21 42-B, 8 42-C, 2 Gustilo I a). All the 70 patients, with an average age of 37.6 years (range: 17 to 63 years) and average time before surgery of 4.7 d (range: 0.7 to 12.0 d), underwent reduction by self-designed traction reductor for lower limb fracture in the surgery. The reduction duration and C-arm fluoroscopy time were recorded. Recovery of the force line of affected limbs after surgery was determined by whether the line from anterior superior iliac spine to the interdigit between the first and second toe-web passed the patella center. And the distance from bilateral anterior superior iliac spine to medial malleolus tip as well as the difference between lower limbs were recorded to determine the recovery of length after surgery. Meanwhile, the varus-valgus and anteroposterior angulations after reduction were measured by AP and lateral X-ray.

RESULTSThe reduction duration was 12.7 min (range: 7 to 31 min); X-ray fluoroscopy time, 1.3 min (range: 0.4 to 3.0 min); length difference between both lower limbs (6.5 ± 1.1) mm; and axial alignment difference (7.0 ± 1.8) mm. The X-ray result showed that varus-valgus angle was (2.75 ± 0.16)°; and anteroposterior angulation (5.13 ± 0.51)°.

CONCLUSIONThe traction reductor for lower limb fracture could achieve satisfying fracture reduction in the minimally invasive surgery of distal femur, tibia metaphysic and tibial shaft fracture.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Equipment Design ; Female ; Fractures, Bone ; surgery ; Humans ; Leg Injuries ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Traction ; instrumentation ; Young Adult