Objective To quantitatively study the posterior fossa effective space and its relationship with hemifacial spasm (HFS).Methods We conducted a case-control study of patients diagnosed with HFS and sex-and age-matched healthy controls.All subjects underwent high-resolution three-dimensional MRI.The software of 3D-Slicer was used to measure the posterior fossa space and hindbrain tissue volume between the two groups.Results Sixty patients and 60 controls were enrolled in this study.Compared to controls,patients with HFS had a higher posterior fossa crowdedness index (PFCI;83.7％ ± 0.6％ vs 79.2％ ± 0.4％;t =2.58, P =0.01).The multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that a higher PFCI was associated with younger age (r =-0.61, P =0.02), female gender (r =0.76, P =0.003) and HFS (r =-0.43, P =0.01).Conclusions Patients with HFS have a more crowded posterior fossa space than healthy controls, potentially leading to cranial nerve and vascular structure crowding, thus increasing HFS risk.Women have a higher PFCI, which may explain the strong female preponderance in epidemiologic studies.

Aims To study the role of NGF/Trk A sig-naling pathway in Memantine ( MEM) improving APP/PS1 transgenic mice cognitive deficits and to explore its possible mechanisms. Methods Cognitive perform-ance was assessed by Morris water maze( MWM) , pas-sive avoidance test( PAT) and locomotivity test. Aβ1-42 protein levels were determined by immunohistochemis-try. The activities of AChE and ChAT were also exam-ined by ELISA and colorimetry. Western blot was used to detect the expression levels of NGF and its receptor TrkA and the downstream ERK pathway. Results MEM treatment significantly ameliorated the cognitive deficits, dramatically reduced the Aβ1-42 overexpres-sion. MEM increased the activity of choline acetyl-transferase( ChAT) , while decreased that of acetylcho-line esterase( AChE) . Moreover, MEM activiated NGF signaling by increasing the phosphorylation of TrkA fol-lowing the increased phosphorylation of c-Raf, ERK1/2 and downstream effector CREB after MEM treatment. Conclusion MEM treatment may activate the NGF/TrkA signaling in APP/PS1 mice to reduce amyloidosis and cognitive deficits.

Objective To investigate the curative effect of acute severe brain injury complicated ARDS, Methods 31 patients who had acute severe brain injury complicated ARDS were divided into two groups:A group was early discovery of ARDS and given treatment.B group was late discovery of ARDS and treated late.Then the curative effects were compared.Results A group was significantly higher than B group in blood gas analysis(P

OBJECTIVETo investigate the feasibility of minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF) using hybrid internal fixation of pedicle screws and a translaminar facet screw for recurrent lumbar disc herniation.

METHODSFrom January 2010 to December 2011, 16 recurrent lumbar disc herniation patients, 10 male and 6 female patients with an average age of 45 years (35-68 years) were treated with unilateral incision MIS-TLIF through working channel. After decompression, interbody fusion and fixation using unilateral pedicle screws, a translaminar facet screw was inserted from the same incision through spinous process and laminar to the other side facet joint. The results of perioperative parameters, radiographic images and clinical outcomes were assessed. The repeated measure analysis of variance was applied in the scores of visual analogue scale (VAS) and Oswestry disablity index (ODI).

RESULTSAll patients MIS-TLIF were accomplished under working channel including decompression, interbody fusion and hybrid fixation without any neural complication. The average operative time was (148 ± 75) minutes, the average operative blood loss was (186 ± 226) ml, the average postoperative ambulation time was (32 ± 15) hours, and the average hospitalization time was (6 ± 4) days. The average length of incision was (29 ± 4) mm, and the average length of translaminar facets screw was (52 ± 6) mm. The mean follow-up was 16.5 months with a range of 12-24 months. The postoperative X-ray and CT images showed good position of the hybrid internal fixation, and all facets screws penetrate through facets joint. The significant improvement could be found in back pain VAS, leg pain VAS and ODI scores between preoperative 1 day and postoperative follow-up at all time-points (back pain VAS:F = 52.845, P = 0.000;leg pain VAS:F = 113.480, P = 0.000;ODI:F = 36.665, P = 0.000).

CONCLUSIONRecurrent lumbar disc herniation could be treated with MIS-TLIF using hybrid fixation through unilateral incision, and the advantage including less invasion and quickly recovery.

Adult ; Aged ; Bone Screws ; Feasibility Studies ; Female ; Fracture Fixation, Internal ; methods ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement ; surgery ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures ; Spinal Fusion

OBJECTIVETo investigate the feasibility and safety of unilateral incision hybrid fixation using pedicle screws and a translaminar screw in minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF).

METHODSFrom January to June 2010, 18 patients with single-level lumbar disc disease were treated with MIS-TLIF under METRx(TM) X-tube. After decompression and fixation using unilateral pedicle screws, a translaminar screw was inserted from the same incision to the other side. The results of perioperative parameters, radiographic images and clinical outcomes were assessed.

RESULTSAll patients underwent MIS-TLIF were accomplished unilateral hybrid fixation without any neural complication. The average operative time was (107 ± 19) min, the average operative blood loss was (62 ± 21) ml, and the average postoperative ambulation time was (21 ± 5) h. The average length of translaminar facets screw was (52 ± 2) mm, and the postoperative images showed all screws penetrate through facets joint. During the follow-up the visual analogue scale and Oswestry disability index scores were significant improved compared with preoperative (F = 42.221 - 259.833, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSBilateral hybrid fixation could be completed through unilateral incision by pedicle screws and a translaminar screw in MIS-TLIF, and the advantage including less invasion, quickly recovery, short operative time, and saving fixation cost.

Adult ; Bone Screws ; Feasibility Studies ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures ; Spinal Fusion ; methods ; Treatment Outcome ; Visual Analog Scale ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDRheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic autoimmune inflammatory disorder. Many methods have been used to observe the progress of RA. The purpose of this study was to observe the progress of RA in rats with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT), magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and arthritis score, and analyze the relationships among different methods in evaluation of RA.

METHODSSixteen healthy Sprague Dawley (SD) rats about 8-week old were randomly assigned to a RA group and a control group. Bovine type II emulsified incomplete Freud's adjuvant was used to induce arthritis in the RA group. Arthritis score of the rats in two groups were recorded, and (18)F-FDG PET/CT, MR imaging were performed both on the corresponding rats every 3 days. All the rats were sacrificed at week 5, and histopathological examination was performed on rat knees stained with haematoxylin and eosin.

RESULTSThe arthritis score and the standard uptake value (SUV) of knee joints in RA rats increased with the progression of arthritis gradually. Both peaks of arthritis score and SUV appeared at 21 days after the first immune injection, then the arthritis score and SUV of knee joints decreased slowly. The arthritis scores of knee joints in RA rats were positively correlated with their SUV changes. The MR images were confirmed by the histopathological studies.

CONCLUSIONPET/CT can detect the earliest molecular metabolism changes of RA, and MR imaging can follow up the dynamical anatomical changes of RA, all of which indicated that PET/CT and MR imaging may be applied as useful tools to monitor the progress of RA.

Animals ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Radiopharmaceuticals ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

AIM:To investigate the angiogenic effect and mechanisms of astragaloside IV(AS-IV)in rats with myocardial infarction via protein kinase D 1(PKD1)-histone deacetylase 5(HDAC5)-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)signaling pathway.METHODS:The classic model of myocardial infarction by ligation of the left anterior de-scending coronary artery was replicated,and the rats were randomly divided into model group,AS-IV group,and AS-IV+CID755673(PKD1 inhibitor)group.The sham operation control group and DMSO control group were also set up.All the rats were given intravenous injection via caudal vein.The rats were sacrificed 4 weeks later,and segmental heart samples were used for HE staining and Masson staining.The expression of PKD1,HDAC5 and VEGF was analyzed by immunohis-tochemistry,RT-PCR and and Western blot.RESULTS:Compared with sham operation group and DMSO group,the myo-cardium in model group showed disordered arrangement, accompanied with necrotic myocardial cells and obvious fibrosis tissue.After treatment with AS-IV,the morphological changes of myocardium were obviously improved,and the number of new blood vessels increased significantly.However,after treatment with AS-IV+CID755673,the myocardial tissues of the rats became disordered again,with increased necrotic cells and some closed vessels.The mRNA and protein expression of PKD1,HDAC5 and VEGF in myocardial tissue in model group was significantly lower than that in sham operation and DMSO groups(P<0.05).The expression in AS-IV group was significantly higher than that in model group(P<0.01), while that in AS-IV+CID755673 group was significantly lower than that in AS-IV group(P<0.05).CONCLUSION:AS-IV promotes the angiogenesis of myocardial tissues in the rats after myocardial infarction partly by regulating the PKD 1-HDAC5-VEGF signaling pathway.

The paper is to report the establishment of a method for the determination of multi-residue organochlorine and pyrethroid pesticides in traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs). Fifty-six pesticides were extracted by high-speed homogenization, and then purified through gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and solid phase extraction (SPE) cartridges. The residues were simultaneously identified and quantified by GC-ECD equipped with dual tower, dual column and two micro-ECD detectors. The analytical performance was demonstrated by the analysis of 3 TCMs samples' extracts, spiked at three concentration levels for each pesticide. In general, the recoveries ranging from 70% to 110%, with relative standard deviations (RSDs) better than 15%, were obtained. The limit of detection (LOD) for most of the targeted pesticides tested was below 0.01 mg kg(-1). The method had good extraction efficiency, purification effect and good reproducibility, which could be applied to the determination of organochlorine and pyrethroid pesticide residues in the routine analysis of TCMs.
Chromatography, Gas ; methods ; Chromatography, Gel ; Drug Contamination ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated ; analysis ; Limit of Detection ; Pesticide Residues ; analysis ; Pyrethrins ; analysis ; Reproducibility of Results ; Solid Phase Extraction

Aflatoxin B1 ; toxicity ; Animals ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; chemically induced ; metabolism ; Cell Transformation, Neoplastic ; Liver ; pathology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; beta Catenin ; metabolism

Objective To understand the level and clinical significance of soluble CD40 in patients with chronic hepatitis B. Methods Detecting the concentration of sCD40 from 176 eases with chronic hepatitis B by ELISA and analyzing its relationship with different grades of inflammation and necrosis in liver tissue. Results sCD40 from patients with chronic hepatitis B was significantly higher than those from healthy. And that the concentration of sCD40 was positive correlation with severe clinical disease and liver inflammation and necrosis. In patients whose ALT lower than 80 IU/L and sCD40 higher than 80 pg/ml, it showed that 65.85% cases have high grade of liver inflammation and necrosis, which was significantly higher than patients with sCD40 lower than 80 pg/ ml. Conclusion The concentration of sCD40 is positively related with the grade of liver inflammation and necrosis. This information could help us to evaluate the status of chronic hepatitis B as an immunological index.