Objective To investigate the normal waveform,lantency and amplitude of auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) of exogenous components in children at different ages,and summarize the developmental rules and clinical perspectives of exogenous ERPs according to the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology (IFCN) Recommended Standards in 2009.Methods One hundred and thirty-six children aged from 3 to 17 years old (admitted in the departments from healthcare,orthopedics,general surgery,and respiratory and digestive diseases,and those recovered from respiratory infection and gastrointestinal infection),and healthy adults (from undergraduates of Chongqing medical university) were recruited in this study from 2008 to 2010.They were divided into 4 groups in accordance with their ages,that is,3 ～5,＞ 5 ～7,＞ 7 ～9,and ＞ 9 ～17 years old groups,and adult group (22 ～29 years old).ERPs were recorded from the midline site (Cz) with classical auditory Oddball paradigm.Each subject was tested twice or more to determine waveform repeatability.The overlapped graphs of ERPs under target and standard stimuli were obtained in the potentiometer.The exogenous ERPs,including P1,N1,P2 and N2,lantency and amplitude were measured.Results The latencies of exogenous ERPs under target and standard stimuli were shortened in a non-uniform manner with the increasing of age.No matter under target or standard stimuli,over 95％ of mean latencies of exogenous ERPs were within the range of 2SD.In addition to N1 component,the amplitude of P1,P2 and N2 components induced by target stimulus were in a trend of increased first and then decreased with the increasing of age.Compared with the children,the amplitude was much lower in the adults and adolescents (P ＜ 0.05).The N2 component induced by target stimulus was absent among 95％ healthy adults.The Standard deviations of amplitudes of exogenous components were great in all aged groups,indicating significant individual differences.Conclusion The latencies of exogenous ERPs are shortened with the increasing of age.Target stimulus will produce more stable results than the standard stimulus,and the ERPs under target stimulus can reflect the primary auditory cortex function of temporal lobe,and are independent on patients' cooperation.

Background and purpose: Germline variation in Tg (thyroglobulin) and TSHR (thyroid stimulating hormone receptor) confers an increased risk of benign thyroid disorders. Benign thyroid disorders are strong risk factors for non-medullary thyroid cancer (NMTC). To explore the hypothesis that polymorphic variation in these genes affects the risk of NMTC. Methods: Tg A7589G and TSHR C253A polymorphisms were determined by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (FCR-RFLP) method, to analyze the relationship between the Tg and TSHR gene polymorphisms and NMTC in NMTC and control groups. Results: Among 360 cases, there was no statistic difference in the frequencies of genotype and allele of TSHR C253A between NMTC and control groups. There were Tg A7589G polymorphisms in the 360 cases. The frequencies ofAG+GG genotype in NMTC group were significantly higher than those in control groups (P<0.05). The frequencies of G allele in NMTC group were significantly higher than those in control groups (P<0.001). Conclusion: There were Tg A7589G gene polymorphisms in NMTC and control groups. G allele may be the predisposing gene of NMTC.

Objective To evaluate the correlation of the CT features of the collateral circulation and the degree of esophageal-gastric varices in patients with portal hypertension caused by hepatic cirrhosis.Methods 30 cases with portal hypertension were in group A and 30 healthy people were in group B.The diameter of portal vein(PV),gastriccoronary vein(GCV),the total cross-sectional surface area(CSA) of varices in gastro-splenic region were measured in both group A and B,the results and endoscopic signs were analysed with multiple linear regression.Results The diameters of PV were(16.17?2.44) mm in group A and(12.42?1.53) mm in group B,Beta =0.39. The diameters of GCV were(6.22?2.41)mm in group A and (3.39?1.03) mm in group B,Beta =0.85. The total CSA of varicosis in gastro-splenic region were(5.14?5.96) cm2 in group A and (1.32?0.98) cm2 in group B, Beta =1.90. Multiple linear regression equation : y=0.39X1+0.85X2+1.90X3 Conclusion The total CSA of varicosis in gastro-splenic region is a useful CT feature in evaluating portal hypertension.

Objective To detect anti-clinically amyopathic dermatomyositis (CADM)-140 antibody in patients with dermatomyositis (DM) or CADM,and to estimate its clinical correlation.Methods Serum samples were collected from 22 patients with DM,16 patients with CADM,46 patients with other connective tissue diseases complicated by interstitial lung disease(including 8 cases of polymyositis,15 cases of systemic lupus erythematosus,5 cases of systemic sclerosis,6 cases of Sj(o)gren syndrome,6 cases of mixed connective tissue disease,6 cases of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis),and 5 normal human controls.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was performed with the recombinant melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5(rMDA)as a substrate to measure the anti-CADM-140 antibody in these serum samples.Clinical manifestations were compared between patients with anti-CADM-140 antibody and those without.Results The anti-CADM-140antibody was found in 43.8% (7/16) of patients with CADM and 9.1%(2/22) of patients with DM(P<0.05),but absent in the patients with other connective tissue diseases and in the normal human controls.A significant incroase was observed in anti-CADM-140 antibody-positive patients with DM/CADM in the incidence of cutaneous ulceration and necrosis,interstitial lung disease and rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease (8/9 vs.6.9%,P<0.01;9/9 vs.48.3%,P<0.01;5/9 vs.0,P<0.05),serum lactate dehydrogenase level(328.3±104.2 vs 241.1±100.3 IU/L P<0.05),erythrocyte sedimentation rate(40.8±23.1 vs.22.5±16.8 mm/1 h,P<0.05),high resolution computed tomography score(122.9±54.8 vs.70.0±59.8,P<0.05)compared with anti-CADM-140 antibody-negative patients with DM/CADM.The ereatine kinase level was significantly lower(156.3±260.8 vs.1806.2±3737.1 IU/L P<0.05)in anti-CADM-140 antibody-positive patients with DM/CADM than in anti-CADM-140 antibody-negative patients with DM/CADM,while no significant difference was noted in the positivity rate of antinuclear antibodies or incidence of malignancies between the antibody-positive and-negative patients with DM/CADM.Conclusions Anti-CADM.140 antibody not only is useful for the diagnosis of interstitial lung disease in patients with DM/CADM,but also may serve as a serum marker for rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease.Monitoring of serum anti-CADM-140 antibody might help to predict the progression of interstitial lung disease in patients with DM/CADM.

An efficient modified route based on the targeting mechanism of antibacterial fluoroquinolones for the shift from the antibacterial activity to the antitumor one was further developed. Using a fused heterocyclic ring, s-triazolothiadiazine as a carboxyl bioisostere of ciprofloxacin, the title compounds, 1-cyclopropyl-6-fluoro-7-piperazin-1-yl-3-(6-substituted-phenyl-7H-[1, 2, 4]triazolo[3, 4-b][1, 3, 4]thiadiazin-3-yl)-quinolin-4(1H)-ones (5a-5e) and their corresponding N-acetyl products (6a-6e), were designed and synthesized, separately. Meaningfully, a ring-contraction of fused six-membered thiadiazine occurred by a sulfur extrusion reaction gave new tri-acetylated fused heterocycles related to pyrazolo[5, 1-c][1, 2, 4] triazoles (7a-7e). The in vitro antitumor activity against L1210, CHO and HL60 cell lines was also evaluated for the synthesized fifteen heterocycles compared to parent ciprofloxacin by methylthiazole trazolium (MTT) assay. Interestingly, the results displayed that fifteen fused heterocyclic compounds showed more significant growth inhibitory activity (IC50 < 25.0 micromo x L(-1)) than that of parent ciprofloxacin (IC50 > 150.0 micromol x L(-1)), and the active order decreased from 7a-7e to 5a-5e to 6a-6e, respective.

PURPOSE: The purposes of the study were to examine psychological distress and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in relocated and nonrelocated survivors aged 60 years and older, and to analyze predictors for psychological distress and HRQoL in older survivors 5 years after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study with 112 relocated older survivors and 156 nonrelocated older survivors. Our study used a multistage sampling method. The measurements used in the study included self-reporting questionnaire-20, medical outcomes study 36-item short form health survey, and an instrument measuring demographic and disaster-related characteristics. Descriptive and multiple linear regression analysis were performed to determine factors that contributed to psychological distress and HRQoL. RESULTS: The prevalence of psychological distress in relocated group (20.5%) was significantly higher compared to those in nonrelocated group (4.8%). Scores for HRQoL in relocated older survivors was significantly lower than those in nonrelocated older survivors. Relocation from preearthquake residence was the most significant predictor for psychological distress and HRQoL in the total sample. Other predictors were advanced age, lower educational level, the loss of family members during the earthquake, and the presence of chronic illnesses as well as the death of a spouse after the earthquake. CONCLUSIONS: Strategies can be designed in postdisaster recovery program, particularly for older survivors at high risk for psychological distress and poor HRQoL.
*Adaptation, Psychological ; Age Factors ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; China/epidemiology ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Disasters ; *Earthquakes ; Female ; *Health Status ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Quality of Life/*psychology ; *Residence Characteristics ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Stress, Psychological/*epidemiology ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Survivors/*psychology

Gliomas are the most common brain primary tumors worldwide,which is the earliest sequenced cancer gene in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project.The World Health Organization Classification Update of Central Nervous System (CNS) Tumors 2016 highlights that glioma is the first tumor dassified based on both of the molecular markers and histology.Radiomics is an extraction approach for high-throughput data which collects the quantitative image information appearing.Combined imaging data with genomics and proteomics,radiomics show promising prediction for cancer diagnosis,treatment,and prognosis.In this review,the radiomic analysis methods applied in gliomas are highlighted.Some remarkable findings confirm the considerable potential of radiomics in clinical cancer research.

OBJECTIVETo study the changes in quantitative kinetic parameters in dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) during radiotherapy and their value for efficacy evaluation in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

METHODSTwenty-four patients with NPC that had been pathologically confirmed as poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma underwent conventional MRI and DCE-MRI scans 1-2 days before radiotherapy (Pre-RT), during radiotherapy (RT 50 Gy), and upon completion of radiotherapy (RT 70 Gy). Based on the two-compartment model and using the arterial input function deconvolution technique, we calculated the quantitative kinetic parameters of DCE-MRI (K(trans), kep, and Ve) of the tumor tissues, examined the correlation between the tumor regression rate (RS0-50) and the parameters on Pre-RT and RT 50 Gy, and compared the parameters for RT 70 Gy among the groups with different prognosis.

RESULTSThe K(trans) value of the tumor tissue decreased after radiotherapy and showed a significant difference between Pre-RT and RT 70 Gy, but not between Pre-RT and RT 50 Gy. The kep value decreased and Ve value increased after radiotherapy. The tumor regression rate was found to be positively correlated with the K(trans) value for Pre-RT (P=0.005) but negatively with the K(trans) value for RT 50 Gy (P=0.001). During the follow-up for 3 years, 5 patients died and 3 patients had distant metastases. No statistical differences in K(trans), kep, or Ve were found between the groups with different prognosis.

CONCLUSIONSThe kinetic parameters in DCE-MRI, which vary significantly during radiotherapy, allow monitoring of tumor angiogenesis and vascular permeability and quantitative assessment of treatment efficacy for NPC. K(trans) value for Pre-RT and RT 50 Gy can serve as an indicator for early efficacy assessment of radiotherapy and for treatment adjustment, but its relation with the long-term outcomes awaits further study.

Algorithms ; Capillary Permeability ; Carcinoma ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms ; blood supply ; radiotherapy ; Neovascularization, Pathologic ; Prognosis ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo study the genetic background of Evodia rutaecarpa by AFLP, and analyze the genetic diversity of E. rutaecarpa from different areas.

METHODE. rutaecarpa genomic DNA was extracted. The AFLP reaction system was established and AFLP primer pairs were chosen for the analysis. Forty-six individuals of E. rutaecarpa which from five provinces were analyzed by AFLP. The NTSYS-pc 2.1 software was used for cluster analysis.

RESULTSix out of the original 72 pairs of primers were optimized for the study; AFLP analysis revealed the similarity coefficient of 0.53, the samples of E. rutaecarpa var. officinalis from Zhejiang province was separated from other accessions; E. rutaecarpa var. officinalis also showed more pronounced genetic variation than the E. rutaecarpa, and strong geo-related relevance.

CONCLUSIONVariance of genetic background of E. rutaecarpa are large, AFLP analysis method can obviously identify different varieties of E. rutaecarpa, and can detect the genetic characteristics of inter-regional differences.

Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis ; DNA, Plant ; Evodia ; classification ; genetics ; Genetic Variation ; Phylogeny

Objective To investigate the expression of TLR 4 and its downstream factor TNF-αin the patients with human immunodeficiency virus and Mycobacterium tuberculosis ( HIV/MTB) co-infection. Methods A total of 119 subjects including 32 patients with HIV infection (HIV group), 30 patients with HIV/MTB co-infection (HIV/MTB group), 28 patients with MTB infection (MTB group) and 29 healthy subjects ( control group ) were recruited continuously from the Fourth People′s Hospital of Nanning City , Guangxi.The expression of TLR4 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from the patients was de-termined by flow cytometry .ELISA was performed to detect TNF-αin plasma samples .The HIV-1 viral load was determined by standard method .Results The mean fluorescence intensity ( MFI) for TLR4 expression in PBMCs from HIV, HIV/MTB, MTB and control groups were 21.62±4.67, 18.29±3.87, 16.79±4.45, and 22.85±5.80, respectively, showing significant differences among four groups (F=8.105, P<0.01). The TLR4 levels in MTB and HIV/MTB groups were significantly lower than those in control group ( both P<0.01) and HIV group (P<0.01, P=0.014).The plasma concentrations of TNF-αin HIV, HIV/MTB, MTB and control groups were 15.892 (10.494-21.646) pg/ml, 13.142 (8.014-22.038) pg/ml, 16.284 (11.916-24.005) pg/ml, and 26.657 (16.321-34.541) pg/ml, respectively, that were significantly dif-ferent from each other (F=4.350, P=0.006).The levels of TNF-αin plasma from patients with HIV and HIV/MTB infection were significantly lower than those of healthy subjects (P=0.009 and P=0.001).The viral load in patients from HIV/MTB group (5.113 ±1.018 copies/ml) was significantly higher than that from HIV group (4.416±1.020 copies/ml) (t=3.449, P=0.001).Conclusion MTB infection might promote HIV replication by inhibiting the expression of TLR 4.HIV infection might increase host′s suscepti-bility to MTB infection by reducing the production of TNF-α.Suppressed expression of TLR and TNF-αpro-duction could contribute to the occurrence of HIV /MTB co-infection .