Dioxins were a family of chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons mainly coming from combustion process with the presence of a chlorine donor and the chlorine-treatment process in chemical industries. Dioxins had been proved to be one of the most toxic materials in environment in recent studies ,and to present carcinogenesis ,teratogenesis ,immunotoxicity,reproductive toxicity and endocrine toxicity ect. With the development of the industrialization ,the dioxins pollution tended to become more and more serious ,which had severely threatened human health. This paper presented a review on the molecular structure,physicochemical characteristics ,pollution sources and degradation ways in environment and impacts of dioxins on human health.

Objective To assess the therapeutic effect and safety of radiofrequency catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation.Methods We analyzed the clinical data of 47 patients with atrial fibrillation who underwent radiofrequency catheter ablation between March 2013 and January 2008,in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University.In the average 32 months’follow-up,Holter monitering and echocardiography were reviewed for the left atrial diameter.Results The immediate success rate of catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation was 82.6%.The long-term success rate was 65%,the rate of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation was 69.7%,and the rate of longstanding persistent atrial fibrillation was 42.9%.After ablation,the left atrial diameter were markedly reduced compared with that before treatment [(36.3 ± 4.3 )mm vs .(38.1 ± 5.9 )mm)(P < 0.001 ).The patients with recurrent atrial fibrillation were older than those without recurrence,their left atrial diameter was bigger,and the prevalence rate of hypertension was higher (P <0.05).The average atrial fibrillation load was 14.9% after ablation compared with 46.1% before (P <0.05).Conclusion Radiofrequency catheter ablation is an effective and safe treatment of atrial fibrillation,especially for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.The left atrial diameter was significantly decreased after radiofrequency catheter ablation compared with that before the ablation.

Objective To reveal the role of serum ACE2/Ang (1-7)in the occurrence of atrial fibrillation (AF)and find new targets for the prevention and treatment of AF by analyzing the correlation between the serum concentration of ACE2/Ang (1-7 )in patients with rheumatic valvular heart disease and the occurrence of AF. Methods We collected the basic clinical information and peripheral venous blood of patients with rheumatic heart valve disease (totally 46 patients,including 24 with AF and 22 with SR).ELISA method was used to detect the serum concentration of ACE2,Ang (1-7)and AngⅡ in the serum samples.Then the differences and correlation between the two groups were analyzed.Results In the AF group ① the diameter of the left atrium was significantly greater than that in the SR group [(60.70±3.08 vs.48.15±2.16)mm,P<0.05];② the serum concentration of AngⅡ was significantly higher than that in the SR group [(45.88±2.87 vs.35.78±1.08)pg/mL, P<0.05],AngⅡ and left atrium diameter were positively correlated (Pearson test,P<0.05);③ the serum concentrations of ACE2 [(7.87±0.74 vs.11.65±0.57)U/L,P<0.05]and Ang (1-7)[(146.05±17.61 vs. 321.71±36.50)pg/mL,P<0.05]were significantly lower than those in the SR group,and negatively correlated with left atrium diameter (Pearson test,P<0.05);④ the serum concentration of Ang (1-7)was negatively correlated with AngⅡ concentration (Pearson test,P<0.05).Conclusion For patients with rheumatic valvular heart disease,ACE2/Ang (1-7 )may play a protective role in the occurrence of AF via antagonizing AngⅡ and inhibiting atrial remodeling.

Animal medicine is an important part of traditional Chinese medicine with a long application history in China. Systematically understanding the history of the development of animal medicine is of great significance to scientific protection and rational use of animal medicine resources. It has certain guiding significance to protection of wild resources, exploitation of new substitutes, standardization and summary of artificial breeding, and artificial reproduction technology. Taking the development of bezoar as an example, this article expounded the following four aspects:the development history of animal medicine, national animal protection, technical development, and prospect forecast by summarizing the Chinese ancient medical books and consulting the relevant laws and regulations. The entire above are about to offer new ideas for the sustainable development, the development of new medicine resources, and the development of animal medicine related preparation product.

Objective To assess the effectiveness and safety of radiofrequency catheter ablation for idiopathic ventricular arrhythmia in patients with idiopathic ventricular arrhythmia after radiofrequency catheter ablation treated in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University based on the follow-up and retrospective analysis.Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 63 patients with idiopathic ventricular arrhythmia who underwent radiofrequency catheter ablation during January 2008 and March 2014 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University.In the follow-up,Holter moniterings were reviewed to evaluate ventricular arrhythmia and echocardiography to assess the ejection fractions and left ventricular end-diastolic diameters.Results The immediate success rate of catheter ablation for the treatment of idiopathic ventricular arrhythmia was 89.29% and the long-term success was 82.14%.The ejection fractions and left ventricular end-diastolic diameters were not obviously improved after radiofrequency ablation (P > 0.05 ). The ventricular premature contractions were significantly reduced after radiofrequency ablation (P <0.05).In postoperative care, one case was found with ruptured sinus valsalva tumor and another patient was found with the complication of hematoma in femoral artery puncture.Conclusion Radiofrequency ablation for idiopathic ventricular arrhythmia is safe and effective.

This experiment was carried out to analyze the time-frequency feature of rabbit cortical somatosensory evoked potential (SEP). Rabbit was narcotized and subjected to craniotomy. SEP was from sensory and motor cortex. Stimulation was continuing many times and signal was sampled at 3 800 Hz. The peak latency of each waveform was measured. Power spectrum of SEP was analyzed. The time-frequency feature of single-trial was compared with that of average SEP. It was found that the variability of single-trial SEP latency enlarges with time in a stimulation period. The spectrum of SEP includes three main frequency spectrum packages. The technique of summation makes a lot of signal aberration such as waveform confluence, new waveform emerging and after-discharging components dismissing.
Animals ; Cerebral Cortex ; physiology ; Electric Stimulation ; Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory ; physiology ; Female ; Fourier Analysis ; Male ; Rabbits ; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted

Background/Aims: Roxadustat, an oral medication for treating renal anemia, is a hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor used for regulating iron metabolism and promoting erythropoiesis. To investigate the efficacy and safety of roxadustat in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis (PD) with erythropoietin hyporesponsiveness. Methods: Single-center, retrospective study, 81 PD patients (with erythropoietin hyporesponsiveness) were divided into the roxadustat group (n = 61) and erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) group (n = 20). Hemoglobin (Hb), total cholesterol, intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH), brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), related indicators of cardiac function and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were collected. Additionally, adverse events were also recorded. The follow-up period was 16 weeks. Results: The two groups exhibited similar baseline demographic and clinical characteristics. At baseline, the roxadustat group had a mean Hb level of 89.8 ± 18.9 g/L, while the ESAs group had a mean Hb level of 95.2 ± 16.0 g/L. By week 16, the Hb levels had increased to 118 ± 19.8 g/L (p < 0.05) in the roxadustat group and 101 ± 19.3 g/L (p > 0.05) in the ESAs group. The efficacy of roxadustat in improving anemia was not influenced by baseline levels of hs-CRP and iPTH. Cholesterol was decreased in the roxadustat group without statin use. An increase in left ventricular ejection fraction and stabilization of BNP were observed in the roxadustat group. Conclusions For PD patients with erythropoietin hyporesponsiveness, roxadustat can significantly improve renal anemia. The efficacy of roxadustat in improving renal anemia was not affected by baseline levels of hs-CRP0 and iPTH.

Objective: To determine whether T1 mapping could monitor the dynamic changes of injury in myocardial infarction (MI) and be histologically validated. Materials and Methods: In 22 pigs, MI was induced by ligating the left anterior descending artery and they underwent serial cardiovascular magnetic resonance examinations with modified Look-Locker inversion T1 mapping and extracellular volume (ECV) computation in acute (within 24 hours, n = 22), subacute (7 days, n = 13), and chronic (3 months, n = 7) phases of MI. Masson’s trichrome staining was performed for histological ECV calculation. Myocardial native T1 and ECV were obtained by region of interest measurement in infarcted, peri-infarct, and remote myocardium. Results: Native T1 and ECV in peri-infarct myocardium differed from remote myocardium in acute (1181 ± 62 ms vs. 1113 ± 64 ms, p = 0.002; 24 ± 4% vs. 19 ± 4%, p = 0.031) and subacute phases (1264 ± 41 ms vs. 1171 ± 56 ms, p < 0.001; 27 ± 4% vs. 22 ± 2%, p = 0.009) but not in chronic phase (1157 ± 57 ms vs. 1120 ± 54 ms, p = 0.934; 23 ± 2% vs. 20 ± 1%, p = 0.109). From acute to chronic MI, infarcted native T1 peaked in subacute phase (1275 ± 63 ms vs. 1637 ± 123 ms vs. 1471 ± 98 ms, p < 0.001), while ECV progressively increased with time (35 ± 7% vs. 46 ± 6% vs. 52 ± 4%,p < 0.001). Native T1 correlated well with histological findings (R2 = 0.65 to 0.89, all p < 0.001) so did ECV (R2 = 0.73 to 0.94, all p < 0.001). Conclusion T1 mapping allows the quantitative assessment of injury in MI and the noninvasive monitoring of tissue injury evolution, which correlates well with histological findings.

Objective: To determine whether T1 mapping could monitor the dynamic changes of injury in myocardial infarction (MI) and be histologically validated. Materials and Methods: In 22 pigs, MI was induced by ligating the left anterior descending artery and they underwent serial cardiovascular magnetic resonance examinations with modified Look-Locker inversion T1 mapping and extracellular volume (ECV) computation in acute (within 24 hours, n = 22), subacute (7 days, n = 13), and chronic (3 months, n = 7) phases of MI. Masson’s trichrome staining was performed for histological ECV calculation. Myocardial native T1 and ECV were obtained by region of interest measurement in infarcted, peri-infarct, and remote myocardium. Results: Native T1 and ECV in peri-infarct myocardium differed from remote myocardium in acute (1181 ± 62 ms vs. 1113 ± 64 ms, p = 0.002; 24 ± 4% vs. 19 ± 4%, p = 0.031) and subacute phases (1264 ± 41 ms vs. 1171 ± 56 ms, p < 0.001; 27 ± 4% vs. 22 ± 2%, p = 0.009) but not in chronic phase (1157 ± 57 ms vs. 1120 ± 54 ms, p = 0.934; 23 ± 2% vs. 20 ± 1%, p = 0.109). From acute to chronic MI, infarcted native T1 peaked in subacute phase (1275 ± 63 ms vs. 1637 ± 123 ms vs. 1471 ± 98 ms, p < 0.001), while ECV progressively increased with time (35 ± 7% vs. 46 ± 6% vs. 52 ± 4%,p < 0.001). Native T1 correlated well with histological findings (R2 = 0.65 to 0.89, all p < 0.001) so did ECV (R2 = 0.73 to 0.94, all p < 0.001). Conclusion T1 mapping allows the quantitative assessment of injury in MI and the noninvasive monitoring of tissue injury evolution, which correlates well with histological findings.

Chemotherapy-related cardiotoxicity is common and has become one of the factors that affect the prognosis of patients. Early identification and intervention of chemotherapy-related cardiotoxicity is very important. Currently, the commonly used clinical, imaging and laboratory examination methods have their own shortcomings, while PET/CT imaging has not been widely used for chemotherapy-related cardiotoxicity. This article reviews the current application and deficiencies of PET/CT imaging in animal experiments and human trials of chemotherapy-related cardiotoxicity.