Objective To explore the left ventricular overall systolic and diastolic function in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) patients with echocardiography.Methods 30 normal people and 30 hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients were examined by routine echocardiography and examine the results of LVDd,IVSd,LVPW,LVFE and E/A.Results The results of IVSd [(16.47 ± 2.08) cm],LVPW [(10.28 ± 0.56) cm] and LVEF [(62.18 ±6.74) ％] in HCM patients were superior than control group [(9.56 ± 0.45) cm,(9.30 ± 0.98) cm,(57.66 ±5.22) ％] (t =-17.809,-4.756,-2.91,all P ＜ 0.05) while the results of LVDd [(40.28 ± 3.80) cm] and E/A[(0.99 ±0.17)] of HCM patients were obviously lower than control group [(45.15 ±3.84) cm,(1.10 ±0.24)](t =4.899,2.132,all P ＜ 0.05) and LVEF was obviously larger than control group (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion Echocardiography can exactly evaluate left ventricular overall systolic and diastolic function in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) patients and guide the diagnosis and treatment.

Anti-Allergic Agents ; therapeutic use ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Glucocorticoids ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Histamine Antagonists ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Rhinitis, Allergic ; drug therapy

Objective To observe the therapeutic effect of minimally invasive evacuation of intracerebral hematoma in dog model of cerebral hemorrhage by using Purdy score, serum levels of neuron-specific-enolase (NSE) and numbers of perihematomal apoptotic cells. Method Twenty dogs were selected to prepoxe the model of cerebral hemorrhage, and they were randomly divided( random number) into minimally invasive treatment group and control group. Minimally invasive procedures were performed to evacuate the hematoma in minimally invasive treatment group in 6 hours after the models were established. The dogs of control group only received medical treatment. Purdy score and serum levels of neuron-specific-enolase were determined on 1,3,5,7 days after the evacuation of the hemotoma and apoptotic cells were counted after the dogs were sacrificed at 7 days after operation. All the results were compared with control group. Purdy score and serum levels of neuron-specific-enolase were compaired with variance analysis of repeated measurement design and apoptotic cells was compared with variance analysis of factorial design,the difference of the two groups showed with q test. P <0.01 showed the difference was significant. Results The Purdy scores in minimally invasive treatment group were 6.3 ± 1.702, 5.8 ± 1. 685,4.2 ± 1.762 and 4.1 ± 1.875 on 1,3,5 and 7 day after evacuation of the hematoma, significant difference was observed as compared with the control group(8.9 ± 1.632, 8.6± 1.342, 7.8±1.335, 7.9±1.468, P <0.01).The serum levels of neuron-specific-enolase were 0.632 ± 0.077, 0.721±0.771, 0.549±0.124 and 0.430 ±0.136 respectively in minimally invasive treatment group, while in the control group were 0.934 ± 0. 064, 0. 997 ±0.075, 0.986 ± 0.042, 0.874 ± 0.165, significant differences in serum levels of neuron-specific-enolase were found between the two groups(P < 0.01). The perihematomal apoptotic cells in minimally invasive treatment group(37.4 cells) was decreased significantly as compared with the control group(88.6 cells), with P < 0.01.Conclusions Minimally invasive procedures for evacuation of intracerbral hematoma might significantly reduce the neurological deficit score and decrease the serum neuron-specific enolase levels and numbers of apeptotic neurons.

Objective To investigate the effect of Peg-Interferon α-2a therapy on the quality of life (QOL) of patients with chronic hepatitis C,and to evaluate the effect of healthcare insurance policy in Guangzhou city on these patients.Methods Totally 102 patients with chronic hepatitis C were enrolled.Forty-two patients (group A) were treated with Peg-Interferon α-2a plus ribavirin whose medical expenses were covered by medical insurance; 30 patients (group B ) received the same therapy but at their own expenses ; and the other 30 patients ( group C) were not treated with Peg-Interferon α-2a.QOL of patients in three groups were investigated using the general quality of life inventory questionnaire (GQOLI-74) before and after Peg-Interferon α-2a treatment.Wilcoxon test was used to compare on all scales and total scores before and after treatment in each group,and Kruskal-Wallis test was performed to compare on all scales and total scores among three groups.Results Before treatment,the physical function,psychological function,social function,material life and total score of group A were 55.3,58.8,61.9,60.6 and 58.5 ; those of group B were 57.5,60.4,61.1,55.2 and 58.3; those of group C were 58.6,60.3,57.5,54.8 and 56.4.There was no statistic difference on all scales and total scores among three groups (Z =- 1.177,- 0.846,- 1.062,-0.377 and - 1.085,P ＞ 0.05).After treatment,group A had higher QOL on all scales (67.1,76.4,68.1,70.1) and total score (72.6) than group C (54.6,54.0,53.3,57.5 and 54.6,P ＜0.01) ; group B had higher QOL (P ＜0.05) on three scales (65.1,65.0 and 69.6) and total score ( 64.3 ) except material life ( 56.3 ) than group C ; group A had higher QOL on psychological function,material life and total score than group B ( P ＜ 0.05 ).Conclusions QOLs of chronic hepatitis C patients treated with Peg-Interferon α-2a are higher than those without Peg-Interferon α-2a treatment.Patients whose medical expenses are covered by medical insurance may have higher QOLs than those at their own expenses.

Objective:To evaluate the effect of oxiracetam on sevoflurane-induced cognitive dysfunction in mice and the role of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/serine/threonine protein kinase (PI3K/Akt) signaling pathway.Methods:Eighty adult Kunming mice, half male and half female, weighing 35-55 g, were divided into 4 groups ( n=20 each) using a random number table method: control group (group C), sevoflurane group (group S), oxiracetam plus sevoflurane group (group OS), and LY294002 plus oxiracetam plus sevoflurane group (group LOS). Group S inhaled 2% sevoflurane for 6 h. A 2 h before sevoflurane anesthesia, oxiracetam 105 mg/kg was injected via the tail vein in group OS, oxiracetam 105 mg/kg and LY294002 0.3 mg/kg were injected via the tail vein in group LOS, and the equal volume of normal saline was injected in group S. The apoptosis rate of hippocampal neurons was detected using TUNEL.The expression of PI3K, phosphorylated PI3K (p-PI3K), Akt and phosphorylated Akt (p-Akt) was determined by Western blot.Cognitive function was assessed using Y-maze at 14 days after the end of anesthesia. Results:Compared with group C, the apoptosis rate of hippocampal neurons was significantly increased, the total number of times and the number of errors required for 10 times of correct responses in Y-maze test were increased, and the expression of PI3K, Akt p-PI3K and p-Akt in hippocampal tissues was down-regulated in group S ( P<0.05). Compared with group S, the apoptosis rate of hippocampal neurons was significantly decreased, the total number of times and the number of errors required for 10 times of correct responses in Y-maze test were decreased, the expression of PI3K, Akt, p-PI3K and p-Akt in hippocampal tissues was up-regulated in group OS ( P<0.05), and no significant changes were found in the parameters mentioned above in group LOS ( P>0.05). Compared with group OS, the apoptosis rate of hippocampal neurons was significantly increased, the total number of times and the number of errors required for 10 times of correct responses in Y-maze test were increased, and the expression of PI3K, Akt, p-PI3K and p-Akt in hippocampal tissues was down-regulated in group LOS ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Oxiracetam can alleviate sevoflurane-induced cognitive dysfunction in mice, and the mechanism may be related to activating PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and inhibiting apoptosis in neurons.

A15, a DNA aptamer with binding specificity for U87 glioma cells stably overexpressing the epidermal growth factor receptor variant III (U87-EGFRvIII), was generated by cell systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (cell-SELEX) using a random nucleotide library. Subsequently, we established a cell enzyme-linked assay (cell-ELA) to detect the affinity of A15 compared to an EGFR antibody. We used A15 as a detection probe and cultured U87-EGFRvIII cells as targets. Our data indicate that the equilibrium dissociation constants (K(d)) for A15 were below 100 nmol/L and had similar affinity compared to an EGFR antibody for U87-EGFRvIII. We demonstrated that the cell-ELA was a useful method to determine the equilibrium dissociation constants (K(d)) of aptamers generated by cell-SELEX.
Aptamers, Nucleotide ; metabolism ; Brain Neoplasms ; metabolism ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Glioma ; metabolism ; pathology ; Humans ; Mutation ; Protein Binding ; Receptor, Epidermal Growth Factor ; genetics ; metabolism ; SELEX Aptamer Technique ; methods

OBJECTIVETo investigate the spectrum of β -thalassemia mutations in Guizhou Province.

METHODSFor 542 individuals suspected to have β -thalassemia by decreased mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and corpuscle hemoglobin (MCH) by routine blood test and hemoglobin electrophoresis, reverse dot blot hybridization (RDB) was performed to detect 17 known β -thalassemia mutations, including 8 common and 9 rare mutations. For cases where no mutation was identified, the entire human β -globin gene was screened to find other rare mutations. The distribution and frequencies of detected β -thalassemia mutations were then analyzed.

RESULTSA total of 460 individuals were diagnosed as β -thalassemia by DNA analysis, which included 352 heterozygotes, 67 compound heterozygotes and 41 mutant homozygotes. A total of 12 β -thalassemia mutations were detected in these individuals. The mutations have ranked from high to low frequency as: CD17 (40.74%), CD41-42 (33.69%), IVS-II-654 (13.76%), -28 (3.70%), β E (3.35%), CD71-72(1.94%), CD43 (1.06%), IVS-I-1 (0.71%), CD27-28 (0.35%), -29(0.35%), CAP (0.18%), and CD121 (0.18%). The former six mutations have accounted for 97.18% of all. CD121 (GAA> TAA) detected from a heterozygote, as a dominant mutation, has been firstly found in the Chinese population.

CONCLUSIONThe spectrum of β -thalassemia in Guizhou Province showed certain distinct characteristics, with CD17 being the most common mutation. The newly discovered mutation of CD121 has expanded the spectrum of β -thalassemia in Chinese population. Our result may provide valuable information for the prevention and control of β -thalassemia in Guizhou.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; genetics ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Leukosialin ; genetics ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mutation ; Platelet Membrane Glycoprotein IIb ; genetics ; Receptors, Interleukin-1 Type I ; genetics ; Young Adult ; beta-Globins ; genetics ; beta-Thalassemia ; diagnosis ; ethnology ; genetics

Objective To introduce a practical method that can be used to efficiently express,purify and identify Alzheimer's disease (AD) related beta-site app-cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1) in common eukaryotic cells.Methods BACE1 cDNA was fished out from human brain cDNA library and ligated into the pEGFP-c3 expression vector,and then,the recombinant plasmid was transfected into the HEK293 cells.The BACE1 protein was purified with TALON Mental Affinity Resins column.The target protein was identified by Western blotting and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET).BACE1 Activity Assay Kit was employed to test the activity of purified BACE1 in vitro.The recombinant BACE1/pEGFP-c3 plasmid and amyloid precusor protein (APP)/pDsRed-Monomer-N1 plasmid were co-transfected to the HEK293 cells and the cleavage activity of BACE1 in the cells was identified by Western blotting.Results The sequencing data of the obtained BACE1 gene were identical with those in GenBank.Activity test showed that the fluorescent values of blank controls,expressed BACE1 and standard BACE1 were 55.013±3.597,1836.629±154.195 (n=3) and 2639.548±207.1901 (n=3),respectively;as compared with the control group,significant differences were noted in both of the two groups (F=78.681,P=0.000);however,there is no significant difference between expressed BACE1 and standard BACE1 groups (P＞0.05).Westem blotting showed the co-transfected BACE1 could cleave APP in HEK293 cells and the CTF-APP band was detectable.Conclusion A practical protocol is established for high expression,purification and identification of BACE1 in HEK293 cells,which is helpful to obtain BACE1,an important molecular target in AD research and treatment.

PURPOSE: MicroRNAs (miRs) were recently recognized to be important for immune cell differentiation and immune regulation. However, whether miRs were involved in allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT) remains largely unknown. This study sought to examine changes in miR-146a and T regulatory cells in children with persistent allergic rhinitis (AR) after 3 months of subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) and sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT). METHODS: Twenty-four HDM-sensitized children with persistent AR were enrolled and treated with SCIT (n=13) or SLIT (n=11) for 3 months. Relative miR-146a and Foxp3 mRNA expression, the TRAF6 protein level, and the ratio of post-treatment to baseline IL-10+CD4+ T cells between the SCIT and SLIT groups were examined in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of AR patients using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), flow cytometry, and Western blot analysis, respectively. Serum levels of IL-5 and IL-10 were determined using ELISA. RESULTS: After 3 months of SIT, both the TNSS and INSS scores were significantly decreased compared to the baseline value (P<0.01). The relative expression of miR-146a and Foxp3 mRNA was significantly increased after both SCIT and SLIT (P<0.01). The ratio of post-treatment to baseline IL-10+CD4+ T cells and the serum IL-10 level were significantly increased in both the SCIT and SLIT groups (P<0.01), whereas the TRAF6 protein level and serum IL-5 level were significantly decreased (P<0.01). No significant differences in these biomarkers were observed between the SCIT and SLIT groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that miR-146a and its related biomarkers may be comparably modulated after both SCIT and SLIT, highlighting miR-146a as a potential therapeutic target for the improved management of AR.
Biomarkers ; Blotting, Western ; Cell Differentiation ; Child* ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Immunotherapy* ; Interleukin-10 ; Interleukin-5 ; MicroRNAs ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Reverse Transcription ; Rhinitis* ; RNA, Messenger ; Sublingual Immunotherapy ; T-Lymphocytes ; TNF Receptor-Associated Factor 6

Post-acute pancreatitis diabetes is one of the most common distant complications of acute pancreatitis. However, its incidence has been underestimated for a long time, indicating that it has not been taken seriously by healthcare professionals in clinical practice. This article provides a review of the urgent need for healthcare professionals to focus on the current status, adverse outcomes, screening and management aspects of diabetes after acute pancreatitis, and aims to provide a reference for healthcare professionals in their relevant clinical work.