Objective Using Intelligence Scale of Mini Mental State Estimated (MMSE) as the gold standard to determine the relevance of International HIV-associated Dementia Scale (IHDS)in minority ethnic areas in Guangxi populations with different cultural values.Corresponding boundary value related to the authenticity and reliability on IHDS were also evaluated.Methods 200 patients with HIV infection were randomly selected from the minority ethnic groups in Guangxi.For each infected person,MMSE and IHDS blind scale were tested at the same period.Using the results from MMSE scale test as the gold standard,ROC curve and IHDS scale in Guangxi minority populations with different education levels which related to the diagnosis of dementia-HIV values were determined.The value of a specific sector under the IHDS sensitivity,specificity,and internal consistency coefficients was also evaluated.Results When considering the infected person did not differ on their educational level,the IHDS scale diagnostic cutoff appeared as 8.25,while 1HDS sensitivity as 0.925,specificity as 0.731 and Kappa as 0.477 (P＜0.001).When considering the extent of cultural differences did influence the prevalence of infection,the different education groups showed different IHDS diagnostic cutoff values.People with high school,secondary school or higher education levels,the IHDS diagnosis appeared to be 8.25,when sensitivity was 0.917,specificity was 0.895 and Kappa was 0.722 (P＜0.001).People with only primary education level,the IHDS appeared to be 7.25.When sensitivity was 0.875,specificity was 0.661 and Kappa was 0.372 (P＜0.001).Conclusion The IHDS diagnostic sector in Guangxi minority groups was lower than the internationally recommended level of diagnostic cutoff value (IHDS≤ 10 points).When using IHDS to perform the HIV related dementia screening program,in the minority areas of Guangxi,culture context,the degree and difference of HIV infection should be considered,especially in using IHDS diagnostic cutoff values.

With the advance of drug development and research techniques, the drug metabolic processes and mechanism can be more deeply achieved. As the drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics process are mediated by drug metabolizing enzymes and transporters, study of drug metabolizing enzymes and transporters has become an important part for drug development. The traditional immunoassays with low sensitivity and poor specificity can not reflect the accurate expression level of drug metabolizing enzymes and transporters. We now give a brief review on the quantitative study of drug metabolizing enzymes and transporters by mass spectrometry-based proteomic approach.
Enzymes ; chemistry ; Humans ; Inactivation, Metabolic ; Mass Spectrometry ; Membrane Transport Proteins ; chemistry ; Pharmacokinetics ; Proteomics

OBJECTIVETo investigate the antidepressant components of Polygala tenuifolia.

METHODThe chromatographic method was used to isolate and purify the chemical constituents, their structures were identified by spectral analysis, MTT method was applied to investigate their cytotoxic activities.

RESULTNine compounds were isolated from the roots of P. tenuifolia. Their structures were identified as sibiricose A, (1), sibiricose A5 (2), tenuifoliside A (3) and 3', 6-disinapoyl sucrose (4), sibiricose A6 (5), 3, 4, 5-trimethoxycinnamate (6), polygalaxanthone III (7), tenuifolioses A (8), tenuifolioses H (9) and some compounds' activities to PC12 were observed.

CONCLUSIONCompound 1 was isolated from this plant for the first time. Compounds 2,3 could protect PC12 cells damage induced by P. tenuifolia.

Animals ; Antidepressive Agents ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Esters ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Mice ; PC12 Cells ; Plant Roots ; chemistry ; Polygala ; chemistry ; Rats ; Sucrose ; chemistry

Adult ; Female ; Hepatic Artery ; Humans ; Liver Transplantation ; adverse effects ; Male ; Portal Vein ; Thrombosis ; diagnosis ; etiology ; therapy ; Vascular Diseases ; diagnosis ; etiology ; therapy ; Vena Cava, Inferior

Objective To investigate the application of wall shear stress (WSS) in the carotid sinus of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients,and analyze the spatial distribution of WSS with contrast enhanced flow field (CEFF) quantita tive visualization analysis software.Methods Totally 47 T2DM patients and 25 healthy subjects were investigated.According to the intima-media thickness (IMT) of common carotid artery (CCA),the T2DM patients were divided into IMT normal group (n=21) and IMT thickening group (n=26).WSS in the carotid sinus was calculated by CEFF analysis soft ware,the corresponding spatial distribution maps of WSS were designed.WSS of the posterior wall of internal carotid artery (ICA) was recorded and statistical analysis.Results Both in the carotid sinus of healthy subjects and T2DM patients,there were two low WSS regions and one high WSS region.There were a large region of low WSS at the posterior wall of CCA and ICA,a small region of low WSS at the anterior wall of CCA,and a high WSS region at the anterior wall of ICA.The WSS at the posterior wall of ICA both in the IMT normal group [(3.39 ± 0.60)dynes/cm2] and IMT thickening group [(2.58±0.46)dynes/cm2] were significantly lower than that in control group ([3.74±0.53]dynes/cm2,both P＜0.05).WSS in IMT thickening group was lower than that in IMT normal group (P＜0.05).Conclusion CEFF quantitative visu alization analysis might constitute an approach to assess the presence of early-stage arteriosclerosis by measuring the WSS in the carotid sinus.

Liver transplantation is the only cure for end stage liver diseases. Although liver transplantation started lately in China, it has evolved rapidly during the last decade. The graft and patient survival have increased significantly, and the long-term curative effect has been promisingly improved. In some large transplantation centers in China, liver transplantation has been a routine operation. However, liver transplantation in China has not yet formed its own characteristics, and its basic research, cross-discipline development, long-term survival rate, and post-operational management still drop behind the international advanced levels. It is important to summarize our experience, standardize its rule, and innovate its technique, so as to improve the outcomes of liver transplantation in China in the future. This article briefly overviews the status quo, existing problems, and further development of liver transplantation in China.
China ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; surgery ; Liver Transplantation ; standards ; Tissue Donors ; supply & distribution ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo explore the effect and mechanism of dexamethasone (DEX) in the prevention of central pontine myelinolysis (CPM) in rats.

METHODSHyponatremia was induced in rat by subcutaneous injection of Vasopressin Tannate and intraperitoneal injection of 2.5% dextrose in water for 3 d, the rats of Group A received a bolus of 1 mol/L NaCl (2 ml/kg) and DEX (5 mg/kg) simultaneously at the 4th day; the rats of Group B were treated with DEX after 24 h of the injection of 1 mol/L NaCl; the rats in Group C received a bolus of 1 mol/L NaCl and saline simultaneously; Group D was the control group. The demyelinative lesions were evaluated by myelin staining. The Evans blue (EB) contents of brain were detected to evaluate the blood-brain-barrier permeability after rapid correction of hyponatremia. The expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in brains was evaluated by Western blotting.

RESULTCPM was induced successfully in rats. The EB contents of Group A, B and C had no significant difference at 0 h after injection of hypertonic saline compared with Group D. The EB contents of Group C began to increase significantly at 6 h after injection of hypertonic saline, peaked at 24 h; the expression of iNOS in brains began to increase after 3 h after the rapid correction of hyponatremia. The rate of morbidity in Group C was 66.7%. The demyelinative lesions were rarely seen in Group A, the EB contents of brain decreased significantly compared with Group C at the same time point (P<0.05), the iNOS expression was also inhibited. DEX could not prevent the attack of CPM at Group B, the rate of morbidity (75%) had no significant difference compared with Group C (P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONEarly treatment with DEX can protect blood-brain-barrier and inhibit the expression of iNOS to prevent the attack of CPM.

Animals ; Arginine Vasopressin ; Blood-Brain Barrier ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Dexamethasone ; therapeutic use ; Glucocorticoids ; therapeutic use ; Glucose ; Male ; Myelinolysis, Central Pontine ; chemically induced ; physiopathology ; prevention & control ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Time Factors ; Vasopressins

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of pH value and fluoride ions on the corrosion resistance of pure Ti and Ni-Cr-Ti alloy in the artificial saliva.

METHODSElectrochemical technique was used to measure the electric potential of corrosion (Ecorr), current density of corrosion (Icorr) and polarization resistance (Rp) of pure titanium and Ti-Ni-Cr alloy in the artificial saliva with different pH value and fluoride concentrations. After electrochemical analysis, microstructure and phase diffraction were examined by FSEM.

RESULTSWith the lower pH value, the Ecorr and Icorr of pure titanium and Ti-Ni-Cr alloy increased, the Rp decreased, there was a significant difference (P<0.05). The Ecorr and Icorr increased markedly, the Rp significantly reduced in the artificial saliva containing 0.2% NaF (P<0.01). FSEM showed that pure titanium and Ti-Ni-Cr alloy surface corrosion, pure titanium in the artificial saliva containing 0.2% NaF was most serious.

CONCLUSIONLower pH value decreases the corrosion resistance of pure titanium and Ti-Ni-Cr alloy and the artificial saliva containing fluoride ions decreases the corrosion resistance of pure titanium.

Chromium Alloys ; chemistry ; Corrosion ; Dental Alloys ; chemistry ; Electrochemistry ; Fluorides ; chemistry ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Materials Testing ; Metal Ceramic Alloys ; chemistry ; Nickel ; chemistry ; Saliva, Artificial ; chemistry ; Surface Properties ; Titanium ; chemistry

Objective To establish a noninvasive prenatal testing(NIPT) method based on the chromosome specific site sequencing instead of the conventional whole genome sequencing.Methods Blood plasma samples from 200 pregnant women with known fetus karyotypes were collected.First,the specific loci on chromosome 13,18 and 21 were selected by the database filter.Then,these specific loci were captured by probes,and were performed sequencing.Finally,chromosome aneuploidy was identified by the Z-score.ResultsSeven fetuses with 21-trisomy syndrome,3 with 18-trisomy syndrome and 1 with 13-trisomy syndrome were detected by the chromosome specific site sequencing,and the results were accordant with those of the whole genome sequencing method.Conclusion The NIPT method based on the chromosome specific site sequencing has the advantages of low cost and high throughput,which may replace the NIPT method based on the whole genome sequencing.

OBJECTIVETo identify the causes of respiratory complications following liver transplantation (LT) and to discuss the management of these complications.

METHODSOne hundred and twenty four cases with pulmonary complications in the first two weeks after LT were identified among 163 patients admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University from February, 1999 to March, 2003.

RESULTSThe incidence rate of complications was 76%(124/163) with the total cure rate of 92%(114/124). The cure rates of the various complications were as follows: pleural effusion 100%(113/113), pneumonia 92%(76/83), respiratory insufficiency 91%(59/65), pulmonary hypertension 98%(101/103), pulmonary edema 98(58/59), atelectasis 100%(4/4) and pneumothorax 100%(2/2).

CONCLUSIONTo drainage the pleural effusion with an unicameral venous catheter is safety and effective. To cure or prevent pneumonia and atelectasis, aseptic manipulating, aspiration of sputum and keeping respiratory channel open were the key measurements of treatment. Restrictive ventilatory functional disturbance (RVFD) and dysfunction of ventilation are two major types of respiratory insufficiency in early stage of post-transplantation. The causes of pulmonary hypertension and edema are associated with pulmonary angiotasis and blood flow volume, and the vasodilator and diuretic often introduced in the therapy.

Female ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; etiology ; therapy ; Liver Transplantation ; adverse effects ; Male ; Pleural Effusion ; etiology ; therapy ; Pneumonia ; etiology ; therapy ; Postoperative Complications ; etiology ; therapy ; Pulmonary Atelectasis ; etiology ; therapy ; Pulmonary Edema ; etiology ; therapy ; Respiratory Insufficiency ; etiology ; therapy ; Respiratory Tract Diseases ; etiology ; therapy