Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of low vision and blindness in the elder people.Various animal models based on the technology of the genetics are established recently in researches on this disease to investigate its pathogenesis or mechanisms.This article reviews different experimental genetic murine models of AMD used in recent studies.

Objective To analyze the risk factors for postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) in elderly patients with esophageal cancer aged 70 years and over. Methods 185 elderly patients aged 70 years and over after esophagectomy were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to examine the risk factors for PPCs and related mortality. Results In 185 elderly patients from 70 to 86 years of age with a median age of 72 years, PPCs occurred in 36 patients(19.5%) including pneumonia in 23(63.8%) cases, atelectasis in 3 (8.3%) cases, adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in 2(5.5%) cases, pulmonary embolism in 1(2.7%) case and respiratory failure in 7(19.4%) cases. The related mortality was 5.9% (11cases) and the causes of death were pneumonia (4 cases), ARDS (1 case), pulmonary embolism (1case) and respiratory failure (5 cases). There were 43 (23.2%) cases with the forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1%)< 65% before operation. The bleeding volume during operation ranged from 200ml～2000 ml, with a mean volume of about 350ml, and was above 800ml in 8(4.3%) cases. Injury of recurrent laryngeal nerve during operation occurred in 13(7.0%) cases. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that smoking, obesity, poor preoperative pulmonary function (FEV1 % < 65%), bleeding volume over 800ml during operation and injury of recurrent laryngeal nerve were the independent risk factors for PPCs in elderly patients with esophageal cancer aged 70 years and over. Poor preoperative pulmonary function (FEV1% < 65%)(OR=29.49, P=0.023), bleeding volume over 800ml during operation(OR=32.93, P=0.011) and injury of recurrent laryngeal nerve(OR= 10.14, P= 0.034) were also the independent risk factors for related mortality of PPCs. Conclusions The high risks of PPCs and related mortality in elderly patients with esophageal cancer are not only due to the physiological and pathological characteristics of elderly people, but also due to the operative manipulation.

Acute Disease ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Ethylene Dichlorides ; poisoning ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Occupational Diseases ; therapy ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

Diethylstilbestrol ; therapeutic use ; Disease Progression ; Endocrine Disruptors ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Urologic Diseases ; drug therapy ; pathology

OBJECTIVETo explore clinical effects of suturing-assisted locking plate in treating elderly proximal humeral fractures.

METHODSFrom January 2005 to January 2013, 55 elderly patients with three- and four-part fractures of proximal humeral fractures were divided into treatment group and control group. In treatment group, there were 31 patients including 12 males, and 19 females aged from 65 to 85 with an average of (74.00±5.42) years old, and treated with suturing-assisted locking plates; 19 patients were Neer 3-part fractures, and 12 patients were Neer 4-part fractures of proximal humerus; 23 patients were suffered from low-energy injuries and 8 patients were caused by high-energy injuries. In control group, there were 24 patients including 7 males, and 17 females aged from 65 to 85 with an average of (72.79±5.34) years old, and treated with locking plates; 16 patients were Neer 3-part fractures, and 8 patients were Neer 4-part fractures of proximal humerus; 17 patients were suffered from low-energy injuries and 7 patients were caused by high-energy injuries. Operative time, blood loss during operation, and bone healing time between two groups were observed and compared. Postoperative Neer scoring were used to evaluate recovery of shoulder joint function.

RESULTSAll patients were followed up from 6 to 24 months with an average of 16.1 months. In treatment group, blood loss was (495.806±143.150) ml, function of Neer scoring was 22.645±2.443, range of action was 18.194±2.613, anatomy was 7.935±1.504 and total score of Neer scoring was 77.161±8.335; while in control group, blood loss was (641.667±169.851) ml, function of Neer scoring was 13.958±1.989, range of action was 13.083±2.165, anatomy was 5.500±1.978 and total score of Neer scoring was 58.792±7.313. There were sigificant difference between two groups in these indexes.

CONCLUSIONSuturing-assisted locking plate for the treatment of proximal humerus fractures in elderly, has advantages of less blood loss, simple fracture reduction and rapid recovery of shoulder joint, and is a effective method.

Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bone Plates ; Case-Control Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Recovery of Function ; Shoulder Fractures ; physiopathology ; surgery ; Shoulder Joint ; physiopathology ; Sutures

OBJECTIVETo explore the application of serum protein pattern models in diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC) by proteinchip technology.

METHODSOne hundred and forty-seven serum samples (55 CRC patients and 92 healthy individuals) randomly divided into training set (n = 87, 32 CRC patients and 55 healthy individuals) and test set (n = 60), were subjected for analysis by surface enhanced laser desorption/ionization-time of flight-mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF-MS). Four top-scored peaks in 5910, 8930, 4476 and 8817 were detected by proteinchip software version 3.0. and were trained by a multi-layer artificial neural network (ANN) with a back propagation algorithm. An artificial neural network classifier had developed for separating CRC from the healthy group. The classifier was then challenged with the test set (60 samples including 23 CRC patients and 37 healthy individuals) to determine the validity and accuracy of the classification system.

RESULTSThe artificial neural network classifier separated the CRC from the healthy samples, with sensitivity of 82.6% and specificity of 91.9%.

CONCLUSIONCombination of SELDI-TOF-MS with the artificial neural network yields significant higher sensitivity and specificity than CEA in the diagnosis of CRC, which should be further studied.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Biomarkers, Tumor ; analysis ; Blood Proteins ; analysis ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neural Networks (Computer) ; Protein Array Analysis ; Proteomics ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization

Objective To investigate the relationship between cow's milk protein allergy(CMPA)and gastroesophageal reflux disease(GERD)and the prognosis of GERD combined with CMPA.Methods Fifty patients(24 boys and 26 girls)with GERD were enrolled in this study from January 2015 to June 2016 at Department of Pediatrics,Tangdu Hospital of the Fourth Military Medical University.All children were treated with serum milk protein soluble IgE(sIgE)and milk protein avoidance test,and those with positive results of children's milk protein by provocation test and those with milk serum protein sIgE negative by milk protein provocation tests were diagnosed as CMPA children with GERD according to the CMPA diagnostic criteria and received diet therapy for 1 month and then their blood eosinophil ratio and 24-hour esophageal pH were monitored.Results Twenty-three cases(46％)of 50 children with GERD were diagnosed as CMPA.There was significant difference in clinical symptoms between GERD group and GERD combined with CMPA group(x2=22.78,P<0.05),but there existed cross-symptoms among individual patients,so clinical accurate diagnosis turned out to be difficult.There was no significant difference in family history of allergy between GERD group and GERD combined with CMPA group(x2=3.19,P>0.05).For children with GERD combined with CMPA,the patients received dietary treatment for 1 month.There was significant improvement in vomiting,runny nose/wheezing/cough and diarrhea(P<0.05).However,because the treatment of eczema was long and it could relapse easily,there was no significant change after 1 month of therapy(P>0.05).The proportions of blood eosinophils were decreased after treatment compared with those before treatment [(2.7±1.8)％vs.(8.2±2.7)％,t=10.006,P<0.01].The results of 5 children's 24-hour esophageal pH monitoring showed that the reflux index and the number of acid GERD episodes were lower than before,and the difference was all statistically significant before and after(all P<0.05).Conclusions The occurrence of GERD in infants is partly related to CMPA,and the treatment of CMPA can relieve the clinical symptoms of GERD.

DNA microarrays have been acknowledged to represent a promising approach for the detection of viral pathogens. However, the probes designed for current arrays could cover only part of the given viral variants, that could result in false-negative or ambiguous data. If all the variants are to be covered, the requirement for more probes would render much higher spot density and thus higher cost of the arrays. Here we have developed a new strategy for oligonucleotide probe design. Using type I human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) tat gene as an example, we designed the array probes and validated the optimized parameters in silico. Results show that the oligo number is significantly reduced comparing with the existing methods, while specificity and hybridization efficiency remain intact. The adoption of this method in reducing the oligo numbers could increase the detection capacity for DNA microarrays, and would significantly lower the manufacturing cost for making array chips.

OBJECTIVETo study the effects of Chinese drugs based on strengthening the spleen and replenishing qi treatment rule on neoformative capillaries and fibroblast during the soft tissue repair after serious trauma in rats, so as to explore the biological basis of the TCM theory "the spleen dominate extremities and muscles" applied to the treatment of soft tissue injuries.

METHODSThe model rats were established by bleeding from femoral artery and lancing method, and the rats were randomly divided into the control group, strengthening the spleen group and activating blood and resolving stasis group. The samples were got from the tissue of the wounded area at the 5th, 10th and 15th days after oral administration of the traditional Chinese medicine. After fixation and section, the tissues were stained by CD31 and PCNA staining. The amount of the capillaries and fibroblasts in the tissue of the wounded area were observed through multi-purpose microscope (ZEISS Axioskop2). Quantitative analysis was carried out on Image-ProPlus image analyzer.

RESULTSThe amount of the capillaries and fibroblasts in the wounded tissue in the strengthening the spleen group were larger than that in the control group at the 5th, 10th and 15th day. And the proliferation speed of capillaries and fibroblasts was faster than those in the control group or the activating blood and resolving stasis group.

CONCLUSIONThe Chinese drugs according to strengthening the spleen and replenishing qi treatment rule were effective to promote growth of the granulation tissue and facilitate healing of the wounded area. And it has better effect than the treatment of promoting blood circulation and removing stasis.

Animals ; Capillaries ; pathology ; Cell Count ; Cell Proliferation ; Female ; Fibroblasts ; pathology ; Male ; Qi ; Rats ; Soft Tissue Injuries ; pathology ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Spleen ; physiology ; Wound Healing

OBJECTIVETo explore chemical component changes of dog bone at different lengthening time and in different bone regions of interest, and to evaluate the mineralization during Ilizarov lengthening process.

METHODSThe ash weight, the concentrations of calcium, phosphorus and the calcium/phosphorus ratio were measured at different intervals (2, 4, 6, 8, 12 weeks) since lengthening and the lengthened part was compared with a control area at each interval.

RESULTSThe ash weight, the concentrations of calcium and phosphorus in the lengthened area differed at all development time. The calcium/phosphorus (Ca/P) ratio in the lengthened region remained significantly lower than that in the control region up to 12 weeks after the lengthening.

CONCLUSIONSThese results suggest that also other inorganic ions play an important role in the mineralization process and that they become relatively more important since 8 weeks after the lengthening.

Analysis of Variance ; Animals ; Bone and Bones ; chemistry ; Calcification, Physiologic ; physiology ; Calcium ; analysis ; Dogs ; Ilizarov Technique ; Minerals ; analysis ; Phosphorus ; analysis ; Random Allocation