No abstract available.
Foot* ; Hand*

No abstract available.
Appendicitis* ; Pregnancy*

OBJECTIVE To study clinical characteristics of liver failure with fungal infections in the elderly patients and risk factors associated with treatment failure.METHODS Eighty four elderly patients with liver failure followed by fungal infections since 1986 were divided into two groups: effective group and ineffective group.RESULTS The common pathogens were Candida albicans(58.33%),Aspergillus fumigatus(9.52%) and Candida tropicalis(8.33%).The lungs(43.88%),mouth(32.65%),intestinal tract(9.18%) and blood(5.10%) were the main sites of fungal infection.Among them after treatment,35 cases(41.67%) were effective compared with 49 cases(58.33%) ineffective.The risk factors for treatment failure included age,complication with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome(MODS) and aspergillosis.In multivariate analysis,we found MODS in patients was an independent factor in predicting the prognosis.CONCLUSIONS To improve the treatment outcome,important measures include preventing infection,enhancing the treatment of liver failure,monitoring and supporting multiple organs: heart,brain,lungs and kidneys,and promptly rational administration of antifungal agents in elderly patient with liver failure.

OBJECTIVE To study the feature of liver disease and liver failure complicated with fungous infection. METHODS The patients with liver disease complicated with fungous infection were collected form 1986 to 2005. The time was divided into four stages:from 1986 to 1990,from 1991 to 1995,from 1996 to 2000 and from 2001 to 2005. All patients with liver failure complicated with fungous infection in different stages were investigated for the incidence,the use of antibiotics and corticosteroids,the category and site of fungous infection and prognosis. RESULTS End-stage liver disease accounted for 82.6% and HBV infection was the main etiology in 475 cases of fungous infection. Fungous infection occurred mainly in hospital. Hospital acquired infection and community acquired infection were similar in different stages. The use of antibiotics and corticosteroids accounted for 88.8% and 48% in all patients before fungous infection,respectively. The use of antibiotics had no difference and the use of corticosteroids decreased in different stages. Candida were the main infection strains and the lungs and pharynx oralis were the main infection sites. The rate of healing and improvement of fungous infection and underlying diseases increased year by year. Healing and improvement rate of underlaying disease positively correlated with that of fungous infection. CONCLUSIONS End-stage liver disease patients are susceptible to fungous infection and Candida are the common infection strains. Lungs and pharynx oralis are the common infection sites. Anti-fungous therapy is important in the treatment of liver failure complicated with fungous infection.

PURPOSE: Although advancement in treatment and diagnostic tools related to hepatocelluar carcinoma has been much improved, long term survival rates of hepatocellular carcinoma are still low because of delayed clinical manifestations and underlying diseases causing the cancer. Various kinds of modalities to treat hepatocellular carcinoma have developed but surgical resection is still recognized as the best method. Therefore, we studied the associated factors of long-term survival after liver resection. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 184 patients who were pathologically diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma from May 1990 to December 2002. Associated factors of long-term survival classified as preoperative, operative, pathological and recurrence factors. Univariate and multivariate analyses were done using cross tabulation analysis and logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The cumulative 1-, 3- and 5- year survival rates were 66%, 50% and 30%, respectively. Preoperative factors, significantly associated with long-term survival, were age of 60 years and under, tumor size, HBe Ag status and preoperative tumor marker level. As pathological factors, the vascular invasion and lymphatic invasion status were significantly associated. But cirrhosis of the liver was not associated with long-term survival. And in cases of recurrence, patients who had undergone repeat resection survived significantly longer. CONCLUSION: The most significant factors of multivariate analyses were lymphatic invasion status. Tumor size, ICG-R15 and HBe Ag status followed second. We should correct the preoperative factors through screening and early diagnosis. And when recurrence occurs, if the recurring cancer has resectability, repeat hepatectomy will increase the patient's lifespan.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Early Diagnosis ; Fibrosis ; Hepatectomy ; Humans ; Liver ; Logistic Models ; Mass Screening ; Multivariate Analysis ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate

OBJECTIVETo review the research progress on Type IV secretion system (T4SS) in Helicobacter pylori.

DATA SOURCESThe data used in this review were identified by searching of PUBMED (1995 - 2007) online resources using the key terms 'Type IV secretion system' and 'Helicobacter pylori'.

STUDY SELECTIONMainly original articles and critical reviews written by major pioneer investigators of this field were selected.

RESULTSThe research progress on T4SS in Helicobacter pylori was summarized. The structure and function was discussed.

CONCLUSIONST4SS is not only involved in toxin secretion and injection of virulence factors into eukaryotic host target cells, but also involved in horizontal DNA transfer to other bacteria and eukaryotic cells, through DNA uptake from or release into the extracellular milieu. It provides a new insight into the pathogenicity of Helicobacter pylori and a novel target for antimicrobials development. However, many challenges remain for us in understanding the biological role of T4SS in Helicobacter pylori.

Bacterial Proteins ; metabolism ; DNA-Binding Proteins ; Gene Transfer, Horizontal ; Helicobacter pylori ; genetics ; metabolism ; pathogenicity ; Multigene Family

Tilianin was separated and authenticated from the seeds of Dracocephalum moldavia, a Uygur medicine, by chromatographic technique and spectroscopic method. The purity of tilianin is more than 98% determined by HPLC area normalization method. Thin layer chromatography (TLC) method was used to separate tilianin from D. moldavia by mixture of chloroform-methanol (5: 1) as a developing solvent on high performance silicagel precoated plate (SGF254) and using aluminium trichloride as a chromogenic agent for qualitative identification of D. moldavia. To establish a HPLC method for quantitative analysis of D. moldavia, tilianin was used as a Quantitative marker and separated on a C18 (4.6 mm x 250 mm, 5 μm) column with acetonitrile-01% formic acid (25: 75) as the mobile phase and detected at 330 nm. The calibration curve of tilianin displayed ideal linearity over the range of 0.617 2-123.44 μg x mL(-1) with a regression equation of Y = 33.773X - 0.824 8 (r = 1). The average recovery of tilianin was 101.0% with RSD of 3.7%. The RSD values of intra-day and inter-day precision were less than 2%. The content of tilianin in 4 batches of the authenticated semen of D. Moldavia was between 0.016 and 0.187 mg x g(-1). The qualitative and quantitative method established is suitable for the quality evaluation and assessment of semen of D. Moldavia.
Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Chromatography, Thin Layer ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; standards ; Flavonoids ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; standards ; Glycosides ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; standards ; Lamiaceae ; chemistry ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Quality Control

Objective This study aims to investigate the moral disgust cognitive processing of patients with obses?sive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and its relationship with OCD symptoms. Methods Twenty-eight OCD and 30 healthy controls matched for gender, age and education completed lexical decision task, recording reaction time and accuracy of words and assessing the degree of disgust. Yale-Brown obsessive-compulsive scale (Y-BOCS) and Padua Invento?ry-Washington State University Revision (PI-WUSR) were used to assess the symptoms. Results OCD group showed significantly longer reaction time to core disgust-related words [(762.69 ± 128.25) ms vs. (648.69 ± 162.66) ms] and moral disgust-related words [(798.73 ± 115.26) ms vs. (727.00 ± 106.06) ms] than the healthy controls (P<0.05). OCD group showed significantly higher aversion degree to core disgust-related words [(6.38 ± 1.78) vs. (5.03 ± 1.64)] and moral dis?gust-related words [(7.08 ± 1.23) vs. (5.77 ± 1.44)] than control group (P<0.05). Y-BOCS total score, Y-BOCS obsessive thoughts score, Y-BOCS compulsive behavior score, total score of PI-WUSR, cleaning/pollution force factor score, hurt?ing themselves and others force factor were positively correlated with two types of disgust-related words in patients group (P<0.05). Multiple stepwise regression analysis between disgust words and Y-BOCS/PI-WUSR scores pointed that only CWCF influenced disgust degree of core disgust-related words (β=0.61, P<0.01) and moral disgust-related words (β=0.54, P<0.01), respectively. Conclusion The core disgust and moral disgust of OCD are stronger compared to controls.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of atorvastatin on parathyroid hormone 1-34 (PTH1-34) induced neonatal rat cardiomyocytes hypertrophy and on the expression changes of small GTP-binding protein (K-Ras) and extracellular signal regulated protein kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2).

METHODSNeonatal rat cardiomyocytes hypertrophy was established with 10(-7) mol/L rPTH1-34 in the presence or absence of 10(-5) mol/L atorvastatin or 10(-4) mol/L mevalonic acid (MVA). Cardiomyocyte diameter was measured by Motic Images Advanced 3.0 software, the synthetic rate of protein in cardiomyocytes was determined by (3)H-leucine incorporation and single-cell protein content was measured by BCA. The concentration of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) were determined by ELISA. Protein expression of ERK1/2, p-ERK1/2 and K-Ras was detected by Western blot.

RESULTSCompared to PTH1-34 group, cellular diameter was decreased 12.07 µm, (3)H-leucine incorporation decreased 1622 cpm/well and single-cell protein content decreased 84.34 pg, ANP or BNP concentration reduced 7.13 µg/L or 20.04 µg/L, protein expression of K-Ras, ERK1/2 or p-ERK1/2 downregulated 0.81, 0.19 and 1.44 fold, respectively, in PTH1-34 plus atrovastatin co-treated cardiomyocytes (all P < 0.05). Compared to PTH1-34 plus atrovastatin co-treated group, cardiomyocyte diameter increased 4.95 µm, (3)H-leucine incorporation increased 750 cpm/well and single-cell protein content increased 49.08 pg, ANP or BNP increased 3.12 µg/L or 9.35 µg/L and protein expression of K-Ras, ERK1/2 or p-ERK1/2 upregulated 0.52, 0.06 and 1.19 fold (all P < 0.05) in MVA, PTH1-34 and atrovastatin co-treated cardiomyocytes.

CONCLUSIONSAtrovastatin attenuates PTH1-34 induced neonatal rat cardiomyocytes hypertrophy through downregulating K-Ras and ERK1/2 pathway.

Animals ; Animals, Newborn ; Atorvastatin Calcium ; Cardiomegaly ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Cells, Cultured ; Heptanoic Acids ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; MAP Kinase Signaling System ; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 3 ; metabolism ; Myocytes, Cardiac ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Parathyroid Hormone ; metabolism ; Pyrroles ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

A Pancoast tumor is a rare form of lung cancer that occurs mainly in the apex of the lung as the main symptom of upper extremity pain. Oropharyngeal dysphagia is not a common symptom. This case report describes a 57-year-old male patient with a Pancoast tumor who presented with oropharyngeal dysphagia. The patient's symptoms included left shoulder and arm pain. The chest computed tomography revealed a mass in the apex of the left lung, invading the mediastinum and compressing the left brachial vein and brachial plexus. He was discharged after receiving palliative chemotherapy. The patient returned to the hospital with dyspnea and was diagnosed with aspiration pneumonia. The cranial nerve exam confirmed hoarseness and an absent gag reflex. In addition, the laryngeal elevation decreased, and the bedside water test was positive. A video fluoroscopic swallow study confirmed the presence of oropharyngeal dysphagia, which was attributed to left glossopharyngeal and vagus nerve damage associated with the Pancoast tumor. This case highlights the need to be aware that a Pancoast tumor can cause oropharyngeal dysphagia. If oropharyngeal dysphagia is suspected, VFSS should be performed to prevent complications leading to mortality from lung cancer.