In this study ,we intended to prepare anti‐Toxoplasma gondii aquaporin (TgAQP) peptide antibody which was used to the application in the detection of the aquaporin expression and its subcellular localization of Toxop lasma gondii (T .gondii) ME49 strain .The B cell peptide antigen was designed based on the TgAQP amino acids sequence .After the pep‐tide antigen was conjugated to the KLH ,the fusion antigen was injected into New Zealand rabbits to prepare polyclonal anti‐body ,followed by identification of ELISA ,Western‐blotting and immunofluorescence assays .The ELISA showed that the titer of anti‐TgAQP antibody was about 1∶40 000 .Western blotting revealed the specific affinity of the antigen to polyclonal anti‐body at 29 .9 kDa protein T .gondii .The protein detected by the indirect immunofluorescence assays was distributed in the cy‐toplasm of the parasite .Thus far ,the anti‐TgAQP polyclonal antibody was successfully prepared ,providing a useful tool for further study of biological function and metabolic characteristics of TgAQP .

Brain Diseases ; diagnosis ; Child, Preschool ; Epilepsy ; diagnosis ; Female ; Fever ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Skin ; pathology ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Tuberous Sclerosis ; diagnosis

OBJECTIVETo compare results of the growth and development of the upper dental arch and the velopharyngeal closure of the cleft patients treated by two methods.

METHODSThe dental cast of patient and X-ray films were measured and the statistical medical records were analyzed.

RESULTSThe transverse distance of upper dental arch was found to be wider in group A than in group B. The anterior-posterior distance of the dental arch in bilateral cleft group was shorter in group A than in group B. The difference of the two groups were gradually lessened as age increases. Bony bridge in alveolar gap was 63% and 83.3% in unilateral and bilateral cleft group respectively. 15% of cases in group A and 35.2% in group B needed pharyngeal flap.

CONCLUSIONSThe stable upper dental arch in group A can opposes the pressure from the lip muscles, this maintains the width of the arch. But A-P distance of upper dental arch in BCLP in group A should be followed up after the age of 9 years. Pharyngeal flap is needed less in group A than in group B.

Alveolar Process ; growth & development ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Cleft Lip ; surgery ; Cleft Palate ; surgery ; Humans ; Infant ; Orthodontics, Corrective ; Palate, Soft ; surgery

Objective To evaluate the value of diffusion tensor imaging(DTI)in cognitive impairment of patients with acute cerebral infarction.Methods Diffusion tensor images were obtained from 30 volunteers who underwent clinical MR imaging and were found to have no abnormalities on conventional MR images and 30 patients who were clinically diagnosed cerebral infarction and were found to have infarction lesions on conventional MR images.Color-coded FA images and three-dimensional color-coded tensor images were reconstructed.For volunteers,average apparent diffusion coefficient(ADC)and fractional anisotropy(FA)were measured in some main white matter structures of peripheral white matter, basal ganglia,and cerebral peduncle,etc.For infarction patients,ADC and FA were measured and compared between infarction lesions and corresponding contralateral normal regions.Pearson correlation analysis was used to determine correlation with cognitive impairment.Results In infarction patients group, FA and ADC of lesions unrecovered declined.Change in ADC and FA had positive correlation with cognitive impairment of patients with acute cerebral infarction.Conclusion DTI has positive correlation with cognitive impairment of patients with acute cerebral infarction.

Objective To investigate iodine deficiency disorders(IDD) in Chongqing and Linzhi, and to provide scientific basis for IDD control and prevention. Methods According to the national program developed in 2007, investigation was conducted in Chengkou and Wuxi county in Chongqing municipality, and Linzhi, Bomi,Milin and Langxian county in Linzhi prefecture. Five towns were sampled in Linzhi county, and 3 in other counties.In each town, one township primary school and two village primary schools were selected to inspect thyroid by B ultrasound and palpation, and urinary iodine of children aged 8 to 10 years was tested in these schools. Meanwhile,2 villages were selected in each town for test of salt iodine level and urinary iodine of childbearing age women and search cretin cases. Results Three hundred and forty families in Chongqing and 915 families in Linzhi were investigated. The coverage of iodized salt in Chongqing was 98.82%(336/340), which was significantly higher than that in Linzhi[66.34%(607/905), x2 = 139.56, P ＜ 0.01]. Goiter rate of children in Chongqing was 9.27%(89/960) by palpation and 8.34% (61/731) by B ultrasound, while goiter rate of children in Linzhi was 7.80%(102/1308) by palpation and 5.53% (69/1248) by B ultrasound. The difference of goiter rate by palpation between Chongqing and Linzhi was not statistically significant (x2 = 1.37, P ＞ 0.05 ). But goiter rate of children by B ultrasound in Chongqing was higher than that in Linzhi (x2= 5.51, P ＜ 0.05). In Chongqing, the median urinary iodine was 319.15 μg/L, and 345.75 μg/L in Chengkou county and 281.39 μg/L in Wuxi county. In Linzhi prefecture, the median urinary iodine was 189.81 μg/L, and 207.81 μg/L in Linzhi county, 161.12 μg/L in Bomi county, 131.83 μg/L in Milin county and 334.60 μg/L in Langxian county. The median urinary iodine in childbearing women were 248.42 μg/L in Chongqing and 121.25 μg/L in Linzhi. The median urinary iodine in Chongqing both in children and women were higher than those in Linzhi. No new cretin case was found in these two areas. Conclusions Goiter rate in high risk areas of IDD in Chongqing and Linzhi has decreased to less than 10%.No new cretin case is found in these areas. It can be concluded that the work of control and prevention is effective.There is excess iodine in Chongqing. In Linzhi county and Langxian county, iodine is excess in children and deficient in women. Further investigation should be conducted to find out the reason. Population iodine is excess in Bomi and Milin counties. The concentration of salt iodine should be decreased in Chongqing. In Linzhi prefecture,adding iodine measures should be adjusted based on further investigation.

BACKGROUNDThe feasibility and safety of endoscopic thyroidectomy were evaluated by an approach of systematic review of published studies in the past decade.

METHODSA database searching was performed on MEDLINE, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, American College of Physicians Journal Club, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Both comparative and non-comparative studies about endoscopic thyroidectomy were selected and analyzed. For the comparative studies, RevMan 4.2 was used for statistical analysis; and for the non-comparative studies, data analysis was performed by SPSS 13.0.

RESULTSSeven comparative studies involving 367 patients (video-assisted thyroidectomy (VAT), 174 patients; conventional thyroidectomy (CT), 193 patients) were included in VAT-CT group. Age, gender, operative types, and pathological diagnosis were similar. Compared with CT, the mean operative time for VAT was significantly longer (VAT, 80.0 minutes; CT, 61.9 minutes, P < 0.01), but the postoperative hospital stay was shorter (VAT, 1.7 days; CT, 2.5 days, P < 0.01). The complication rate for VAT was 6.9%, while that for CT was 9.3% (P = 0.35). Three studies analyzed the postoperative pain and cosmetic evaluation, and indicated that the VAT group was superior to the CT group, but there was no significant difference after a meta-analysis. Three comparative studies involving 273 patients (totally endoscopic thyroidectomy (TET), 145 patients; CT, 128 patients) were included in TET-CT group and the results generally resembled that of VAT-CT group. There were 18 and 14 non-comparative studies reporting the results of VAT and TET, respectively. The mean operative time for VAT was 76.8 minutes compared with 135.8 minutes for TET. The postoperative hospital stay was 1.8 and 3.8 days for VAT and TET respectively. The rates of conversion to open surgery for VAT and TET were similar (VAT, 2.8%; TET, 3.9%, P = 0.105). The complication rate for VAT was 8.6%, while that for TET was 3.5% (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSThe feasibility and safety of endoscopic thyroidectomy were initially verified and accepted, and it should be considered as a valid option, offering some advantages to patients in terms of cosmetic results and postoperative distress.

Adult ; Endoscopy ; methods ; Humans ; Pain, Postoperative ; drug therapy ; Thyroidectomy ; adverse effects ; methods ; Video-Assisted Surgery

Objective:To observe the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on the expressions of acetylcholine (ACh) and mucin 5AC (MUC5AC) in the lungs of rats with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD),and explore the mechanism of EA in treating COPD.Methods:Thirty Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into a control group,a COPD group,and an EA group,with 10 rats in each group.The control group was a group of normal rats.The COPD rat model was induced by cigarette smoke combined with lipopolysaccharide (LPS).The COPD rats were treated with EA at bilateral Feishu (BL 13) and Zusanli (ST 36) in the EA group,30 min each time,once a day,successively for 14 d.The lung function was tested.The contents of ACh and MUC5AC in lungs and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).Pearson method was used to analyze the correlation between pulmonary function and the content of MUC5AC in lungs.The mRNA and protein expressions of MUC5AC in lung tissues were detected by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot (WB),respectively.The immune response of MUC5AC was observed by immunohistochemistry.Results:Eight rats were left in each group,and the other two died.Compared with the control group,the total airway resistance (Raw) increased significantly and dynamic compliance (Cdyn) decreased significantly in the COPD group (P＜0.01);compared with the COPD group,the Raw level declined significantly and Cdyn increased significantly in the EA group (P＜0.01).The contents of ACh and MUC5AC in the lungs and BALF were remarkably higher in the COPD group compared with those in the control group (P＜0.01,P＜0.001);compared with the COPD group,the contents of ACh and MUC5AC were significantly lower in the EA group (P＜0.05,P＜0.001).There was a negative correlation between MUC5AC content and lung function (P＜0.001).The mRNA and protein expressions of MUC5AC in the lungs were significantly higher in the COPD group than in the control group (P＜0.001);compared with the COPD group,the expressions were significantly lower in the EA group (P＜0.01).Compared with the control group,the immune response of MUC5AC in the airway epithelium significantly increased in the COPD group (P＜0.001);the immune response of MUC5AC was significantly lower in the EA group compared with that in the COPD group (P＜0.001).Conclusion:EA treatment can improve the lung function of COPD rats,which may be related to its effect in the down-regulation of ACh and MUC5AC contents in the lungs as well as the inhibition of mucus hypersecretion.

To investigate the inhibition of cyclosporin A (CsA) on neutrophil adhesion to human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs, ECV-304) induced by hypoxia/reoxygenation and further explore its mechanism, a 1 h hypoxia/4 h reoxygenation model was reproduced using ECV-304. The adhesion rate of neutrophils to ECV-304 was determined by measuring the activity of endogenous hexosaminidase. The expression of endothelial cell adhesion molecules of E-selectin and ICAM-1 was measured by flow cytometry. The expression of cyclophilin A (CyPA) and the activation of ERK1/2 was compared among experimental groups by Western blot. The content of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was measured by Fenton reaction. After being stimulated with 1 h hypoxia/4 h reoxygenation, ECV-304 showed an enhanced neutrophil adhensiveness in association with an increased surface expression of E-selectin and ICAM-1. In parallel, the content of ROS was also increased. These effects were significantly suppressed by the addition of CsA. Most importantly, the expression of CyPA was significantly increased following 1 h hypoxia/4 h reoxygenation, which was accompanied with an increased activation of ERK1/2. Treatment with CyPA inhibitor CsA and CyPA antisense oligonucleotides significantly inhibited the activation of ERK1/2 and decreased the adhesion of neutrophils to ECV-304. The specific ERK1/2 inhibitor PD98059 caused an inhibition of neutrophil adhesion to hypoxia/reoxygenation-stimulated ECV-304. Our data confirm that CsA inhibits neutrophil adhesion to hypoxia/reoxygenation stimulated ECV-304 by a mechanism involving inhibition of the signal transduction of ROS, CyPA and ERK1/2.
Cell Adhesion ; Cell Hypoxia ; Cells, Cultured ; Cyclophilins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Cyclosporine ; pharmacology ; Endothelium, Vascular ; cytology ; Humans ; Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 1 ; metabolism ; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 3 ; metabolism ; Neutrophils ; cytology ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; metabolism ; Reperfusion Injury ; physiopathology ; Signal Transduction ; Umbilical Veins ; cytology

This study was purposed to investigate the immunoregulatory effect of endothelial cells derived from mesenchymal stem cells (MSC). The human MSC was induced to differentiate into endothelial cells for one week. The phenotypes were evaluated by flow cytometry, the cell morphologic feature was observed by invert phase-contrast microscope and analysis of capillary formation was performed by using the in vitro angiogenesis kit. The immunoregulatory effect was detected by lymphocyte transformation test. The result indicated that during the differentiation cells grew fast and there was no significant change in the phenotypes, i.e. CD73, CD105, HLA-ABC were positive and CD34, CD80, CD86, HLA-DR, CD31 were negative. Immunofluorescence analysis showed typical expression of the von Willebrand factor. Differentiated MSCs formed capillary-like structure. Endothelial cells derived from MSC also revealed immunosuppressive effect on T cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner. It is concluded that endothelial cells derived from MSC also harbor immunoregulatory effect on T lymphocytes.
5'-Nucleotidase ; metabolism ; Cell Differentiation ; physiology ; Cells, Cultured ; Child ; Endothelial Cells ; cytology ; immunology ; Humans ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; T-Lymphocytes ; immunology ; von Willebrand Factor ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the prognostic factors in treating primary liver cancer (PLC) patients by Pi-strengthening and qi-regulating method (PSQRM), thus providing evidence and optimizing Pi-strengthening and qi-regulating program.

METHODSClinical data of 151 PLC patients treated by PSQRM at Oncology Department, Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine from May 2007 to March 2009 were retrospectively analyzed. The univariate analysis was determined to analyze possible prognostic factors. Selected key factors were introduced into the COX proportional hazard model, and multivariate analysis was carried out.

RESULTSThe 1-year survival rate was 21.85%, the median survival time was 6.80 months, and the mean survival time was 8.98 months. The univariate analysis showed that Chinese medicine (CM) syndrome types, clinical symptoms at the initial diagnosis, ascites, tumor types, ratios of foci, portal vein tumor thrombus, intrahepatic metastasis, a-fetoprotein (AFP) levels, total bilirubin classification, albumin classification, Child-Pugh classification, and domestic staging of liver cancer were significant prognostic factors (P < 0.05). The statistic data of multivariate analysis indicated that CM syndrome types, ascites, tumor types, portal vein tumor thrombus, AFP levels, Child-Pugh classification, and domestic staging of liver cancer were independent factors influencing prognosis (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe prognosis of PLC treated with PSQRM is determined by multiple factors including CM syndrome types, ascites, tumor types, portal vein tumor thrombus, AFP levels, Child-Pugh classification, and domestic staging of liver cancer.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; epidemiology ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; therapy ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome