AIM To establish a new bioassay method for estimating the rat angiotensin Ⅰ converting engyme (ACE) activity in vivo by using ramipril (Ram), a ACE inhibitor. METHODS The change in mean arterial pressure induced by angioteuasin Ⅰ (AngⅠ) or bradykinin (BK) was measured before and 1, 24, 48 h after pretreatment with Ram (0 05,0 1 mg?kg -1 ,iv). The ACE activity was expressed by the pressor effect (%)of AngⅠ or the depressor effect (%) of BK. RESULTS The pressor effects of AngⅠ or the supernatant fraction of heart tissue homogenate containing AngⅠ were siginificantly reduced 1 h and 24 h after pretreatment with Ram, but not 48 h after pretreatment with Ram. In comparison of the depressor response of BK vs pressor response of AngⅠ 1 h after pretreatment with Ram,it was shown that the depressor effect of BK is more sensitive than the pressor effect of AngⅠ( P

To investigate the angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity of beta-chain hemoglobin fragments, 17 fragments were synthesized by microwave-assisted solid-phase synthesis method. Wang resin or Trt(2-Cl) resin, Fmoc and HBTU-HOBt were used as solid carrier, N-terminal amino acid protecting groups and coupling reagents, respectively. The ACE inhibitory, alpha-glucosidase inhibitory, antibacterial and antitumor activities of the synthesized fragments were assayed. In vitro, Val-Val-Tyr-Pro-Trp-Thr showed high ACE inhibitory activity (IC50 = 7.42 micromol x L(-1)). The results indicate that there are two active sites in Val-Val-Tyr-Pro-Trp-Thr-Gln-Arg-Phe, one consists of Val-Val-, and the other -Gln-Arg-Phe. Peptides showed high ACE inhibitory activity when the N-terminal was hydrophobic amino acid such as Val and C-terminal tripeptide contained Phe, Trp or Arg. Some of the fragments showed low a-glucosidase inhibitory activity. No antibacterial activity or antitumor activity was detected in vitro. The results indicate that these peptides have a potential antihypertensive effect and possible application in the treatment of hypertension.

Objective To describe the sonographic appearance of mesenchymal hamartoma of the liver(MHL)and to analyze the diagnostic value of ultrasound.Methods Eleven surgically and pathologically confirmed cases of MHL from January 2005 to May 2011 in the Beijing Children′s Hospital were retrospectively reviewed.Results Ultrasound examinations showed 9 cystic hamartomas,including 7 multiseptate cystic and 2 monocystic lesions.Of the 7 multiseptate cystic hamartomas,4 had a honeycomb appearance and 3 had irregularly-distributed multiple cysts with varied septations.Of the 2 monocystic hamartomas,1 had a large cystic portion while the other was mainly solid with approximately 4% cystic portion of the tumor.Two cases in this group were solid,presenting with a well-defined homogenous mass.Conclusions Ultrasonography is an effective imaging modality for the diagnosis for MHL.A mixed or a mainly-cystic liver mass found in a child less than 2 years old should be suspicious for MHL.

Objective To investigate the congenital heart disease (CHD) prevalence of students in Liangshan prefecture in Sichuan province,and to explore the risk factors of CHD.Methods Stratified cluster sampling was conducted in collecting demographic data.Heart auscultation was used to screening the CHD,and colour Doppler flow imaging was used to diagnose the CHD.Results A total of 10 021 student were collected in this study.About 19.74％ of total cases had cardiac murmur.Sixty-eight students were diagnosed as CHD through colour Doppler flow imaging,accounting for 0.68％.In addition,the top three ranks of CHD were atrial septal defect,patent ductus arteriosus,interventricular septal defect.Our study also found that per capita income of CHD families was lower than non-CHD families,meanwhile,the CHD prevalence of Yi nationality was higher than other nationalities.There was no statistical significance in age,gender,height,weight,body mass index,head circumference,waist circumference between different types of CHD.Conclusions The CHD prevalence of students in Liangshan prefecture has been in a high level in China; therefore we need pay more attention on screening for the CHD.

High-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) was used to high performance separate and prepare lignans from Schisandrae chinensis fructus. The solvent system is composed of n-hexane-ethyl acetate-methanol-water (9 : 1 : 5 : 5) and n-hexane-ethyl acetate-methanol-water (9 : 1 : 9 : 5), speed is at 900 r.min-1, and flow rate is at 2.0 mL.min-1. Five fractions from Schisandrae chinensis fructus extract were separated and prepared with one HSCCC process. They were identified as schisandrin, gomisin J, schisandrol B, schisantherin A and deoxyschizandrin by electrospray ionization-multiple tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MSn), respectively. Their contents were obtained in 98.74%, 94.32%, 99.53%, 94.23% and 98.68% by ultra high performance liquid chromatography (UPLC), separately. The rapid and simple method can be applied for the preparation of lignans from Schisandrae chinensis fructus.
Countercurrent Distribution ; Cyclooctanes ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Dioxoles ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Fruit ; chemistry ; Lignans ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Molecular Structure ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Polycyclic Compounds ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Schisandra ; chemistry ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome on the quality of life of the patients. METHODS The quality of life was assessed with the Medical Outcomes Study SF-36 Health Survey in 145 patients with OSAHS and 17 snorers without OSAHS. Excessive Daytime Sleepiness was assessed with Epworth Sleepiness Scale. Pearson linear correlation and stepwise multiple regression analysis were used to study the association between each domain score of SF-36 and patients information,PSG parameters,EDS scores. RESULTS Three domains of SF-36 correlated negatively with Body Mass Index. Four domains correlated negatively with EDS. Three domains and total score correlated significantly with the lowest oxygen saturation. Two domains correlated negatively with the longest time of apnea. AHI and the lowest oxygen saturation have a mild side effect on the quality of life. BMI and EDS score have significantly side effect on the quality of the life. CONCLUSION Comparing to the mild OSAHS patients and snorers without OSAHS,the severe OSAHS patients have worse quality of life. EDS score and BMI have a significantly side effect on the severe OSAHS patients. OSAHS has a side effect on the quality of life of the patients.

In this study, the buffering capacity of amphiphilic pH-sensitivity copolymer poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline)-cholesteryl methyl carbonate (PEOZ-CHMC) was evaluated. The ammonium sulfate gradient method was used to prepare doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX x HCl)-loaded liposomes (DOX-L), and then the post-insertion method was used to prepare PEOZ-CHMC and polyethylene glycol-distearoyl phosphatidyl ethanolamine (PEG-DSPE) modified DOX x HCl-loaded liposomes (PEOZ-DOX-L and PEG-DOX-L). The physico-chemical properties, in vitro drugs release behavior, cellular toxicity and intracellular delivery of liposomes were evaluated, separately. The results showed that PEOZ-CHMC has a satisfactory buffering capacity. The sephadex G-50 column centrifugation method and dynamic light scattering were used to determine the encapsulation efficiency (EE) and particle size of liposomes. The EE and particle size of DOX-L were (97.3 ± 1.4) % and 120 nm, respectively, and the addition of PEOZ-CHMC or PEG-DSPE had no influence on EE and particle size. The zeta potentials of three kinds of liposomes were negative. The release behavior of various DOX liposomes in vitro was investigated by dialysis method. In phosphate buffer solution (PBS) at pH 7.4, DOX x HCl was released from PEOZ-DOX-L in a sustained manner. While in PBS at pH 5.0, the release rate of DOX x HCl from PEOZ-DOX-L increased significantly, which suggested DOX x HCl was released from PEOZ-DOX-L in a pH-dependent manner. The intracellular delivery of liposomes was investigated by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). The CLSM images indicated that PEOZ-DOX-L showed efficient intracellular trafficking including endosomal escape and release DOX x HCl into nucleus, as well as the DOX-L and PEG-DOX-L had no this effect. The cytotoxicity of liposomes against MCF-7 cells was detected by using MTT assay. The results showed that antiproliferative effects of PEOZ-DOX-L enhanced with pH value decreased, whereas DOX-L and PEG-DOX-L did not have any significant difference in inhibitions at different pH conditions. Therefore, the problems of the inhibition of cellular uptake of liposomes and the failed endosomal escape of pH-sensitive liposomes by PEG chain can be overcome by the pH-sensitive liposomes constructed by PEOZ-CHMC.

Objective This paper attempts to explore the application of dizziness handicap inventory (DHI) in evaluation of health -related quality of life (QOL ) changes of patients with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) before and after the treatment with canalith repositioning procedure (CRP) .Methods The DHI was em-ployed to investigate and evaluate the dizziness handicap of 120 patients with BPPV before and after 3 months of CRP treatment (treatment group) and 60 healthy controls (control group) ,while the DHI scoring results were com-pared .Results As indicated by DHI evaluation ,the scoring of each DHI items of patients with BPPV before treatment was higher than that of control group ,treatment group before treatment :functional score 22 .60 ± 6 .54 ,emotional score 18 .50 ± 8 .28 ,physical score 17 .90 ± 5 .05 ,total composite score 59 .00 ± 14 .32 .For the control group:functional score 1 .35 ± 1 .74 ,emotional score 1 .00 ± 1 .01 ,physical score 1 .37 ± 1 .86 ,total composite score 3 .72 ± 3 .46 ,with the differ-ence statistically significant (P<0 .05) .The DHI scoring of treatment group of patients with BPPV after 3 months of CRP treatment was lower than that before the treatment (treatment group after 3 months CRP treatment :functional score 1 .10 ± 1 .42 ,emotional score 1 .50 ± 1 .70 ,physical score 1 .45 ± 1 .46 ,total composite score 4 .05 ± 3 .66) ,and the difference was statistically significant (P<0 .05) .There was no statistically significant difference comparing to the control group (P>0 .05) .Conclusion CRP is effective to treat BPPV .The DHI is available for the evaluation of QOL of BPPV patients .

BACKGROUNDRecent studies have demonstrated that dexamethasone (DEX) interferes with immune responses by targeting key functions of dendritic cells (DCs) at the earliest stage. However, the cellular and molecular mechanisms are still incompletely understood. This study aimed to explore the possible mechanisms by investigating the roles of DEX on differentiation, maturation & function of murine DCs and the effects of DEX on DCs via Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-nuclear factor (NF)-kappaB mediated signal pathway.

METHODSImmature DCs (imDCs) were cultured from murine bone marrow (BM) cells. We added DEX into culture medium at different time. The expression of CD11c, CD86 and I-A(b) (mouse MHC class II molecule) was determined by flow cytometry. We determined the expression of NF-kappaB and its inhibitory protein I-kappaBalpha by electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) and Western blotting, respectively. The productions of interleukin (IL)-12p70 and IL-10 in cell culture supernatants were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

RESULTSDEX impaired differentiation of DCs from murine bone marrow progenitors, and inhibited lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced maturation of DCs. DEX significantly inhibited NF-kappaB expression of normal DCs, the higher the DEX concentration or the longer the DEX treatment time, the more obvious the effect. However, DEX had little effect on LPS-induced NF-kappaB activation, and partially impaired LPS-induced I-kappaBalpha degradation. DEX significantly decreased LPS induced IL-12p70 production by DCs. Interestingly, our results showed a synergistic effect between DEX and LPS on the production of IL-10 by DCs.

CONCLUSIONSDEX inhibits the differentiation and maturation of murine DCs involved in TLR4-I-kappaB-NF-kappaB pathway, and also indirectly impairs Th1 development and interferes with the Th1-Th2 balance through IL-12 and/or IL-10 secretion by DCs.

Animals ; Blotting, Western ; Bone Marrow Cells ; cytology ; Cell Differentiation ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Dendritic Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; Dexamethasone ; pharmacology ; Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Flow Cytometry ; Male ; Mice ; NF-kappa B ; metabolism ; Signal Transduction ; drug effects ; Toll-Like Receptor 4 ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo investigate the incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its influencing factors for three years following the "5.12" Wenchuan Earthquake.

METHODSA systematic sampling of 870 subjects who came from Beichuan (605 persons) and Jiangyou (265 persons) areas were investigated by adopting subscale of PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) and Social Demographic Questionnaire.

RESULTSThe incidence rate of PTSD was 8.5% (74/870), the incidence rates of PTSD for the area of Beichuan and Jiangyou were 11.2% (68/605) and 2.3% (6/265) respectively. Subjects from Beichuan had higher PTSD incidence rate compared to Jiangyou (P < 0.05). The prevalence of PTSD for female and male were 11.8% (55/465) and 4.7% (19/405) respectively, female had higher prevalence of PTSD compared to male (P < 0.05). The incidence rates of PTSD for victims who suffered from major property lost and those who lost less were 13.3% (62/466) and 3.0% (12/404) respectively, victims suffered major property lost had higher incidence rate of PTSD(P < 0.05). The incidence rates of PTSD for victims who lost family members and those did not were 13.4% (45/336) and 5.4% (29/534) respectively, victims who lost family members had higher incidence rates of PTSD (P < 0.05). The posttraumatic symptoms for survivors who suffered from PTSD mainly focused on the symptoms of reexpericement and over vigilance, the prevalence rate was 100% (74/74). Exaggerated startle response, intense psychological distress and physiological reactivity were higher than others in total 17 symptoms, accounting for 96% (71/74), 94% (70/74) and 90% (67/74). The logistic regression showed that being female, victims who suffered from major property lost, lost family member in this earthquake were the risk factors of PTSD, and the values of OR (95%CI) were 2.746 (1.580 - 4.772), 3.616 (1.871 - 6.988) and 1.805(1.057 - 3.084), respectively.

CONCLUSIONPosttraumatic symptoms were still common among survivors three years after "5.12" Wenchuan Earthquake. Survivors in Beichuan (heavy hit area), female victims, victims who suffered from major property lost, victims who lost family member need more social and economic support.

Adolescent ; Adult ; China ; epidemiology ; Disasters ; Earthquakes ; Female ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Risk Factors ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic ; epidemiology ; Stress, Psychological ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Survivors ; psychology ; Young Adult