BACKGROUNDOcclusal splints have been the preferred modalities in the management of myofascial temporomandibular disorders (TMDs), but now controversy exists in reporting whether they are successful for TMDs treatments. The aim of this study was to give objective evidence to the assessment of treatment effect of occlusal splints for myofascial TMDs patients by clinical assessments and surface electromyography (sEMG) measurements of masseter muscles (MM).

METHODSThirty-six patients (12 males and 24 females) aged 16 - 57 (38 ± 11) years participated in the study. All participants diagnosed with myofascial TMD were randomized into two groups (18 of each). Patients in the first group (A) were treated with occlusal splints for 1 month, while patients in the second group (B) were treated with placebo (non-occluding palatal) splints. Clinical assessments were performed at the beginning of the study and 1 month after treatment. sEMG measurements for MM were performed at mandibular postural position (MPP) and maximum intercuspal contacted position (ICP) 1 month after the treatment. The root mean square (RMS) and the median frequency (MF) as linear indices of sEMG data were used to demonstrate muscle activity and muscle fatigue. Data were analyzed by ANOVA and post hoc SNK test. The differences were considered significant at P < 0.05.

RESULTSIt was found that 89% of group A either completely recovered (39%) or clinically improved (50%), while only 22% of group B had a spontaneous improvement. sEMG analysis showed that at MPP, the mean of RMS value of MM in group A was lower than that of group B, which shows statistical differences (P < 0.01). At ICP, the RMS value of MM in group A was higher than that of group B, which shows statistical differences (P < 0.01). At MPP, MF value of MM in group A was higher than that of group B (P < 0.05). At ICP, MF value of MM was lower than that of group B (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSOcclusal splint could eliminate or improve the signs and symptoms of TMD patients with myofascial pain. sEMG analysis indicates that the wearing of occlusal splints may reduce the degree of fatigue of the masticatory muscles. The splint therapy outcome has a correlation with the electromyographic changes in the masticatory muscles.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Double-Blind Method ; Electromyography ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myofascial Pain Syndromes ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Splints

p53 (encoded by TP53) is undoubtedly one of the most extensively studied genes and proteins. It is a highly potent transcription factor which, under normal circumstances, is maintained at low level. Both genotoxic and non-genotoxic stresses can induce p53 stabilized leading to changes in the expression of p53-responsive genes. The biological outcome inducing this pathway can be either growth arrest and apoptosis or senescence to maintain the integrity of the genome or to delete the damaged cells. The biochemical activity of p53 itself and the cellular environment govern the choice between these outcomes in a cell type- and stress-specific manner. So, p53 is a pivotal tumour suppressor and a mainstay of our body's natural anticancer defence. This review could provide some useful information for further study on the mechanisms of tumorigenesis and its progression, and also could contribute to the discovery of antitumor agents.
Animals ; Apoptosis ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; DNA Damage ; DNA Repair ; Genes, p53 ; Humans ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2 ; metabolism ; Signal Transduction ; Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 ; genetics ; physiology

Huperzine A is a potent,reversible,and blood-brain barrier permeable acetylcholinesterase irhibitor.The aim of this study was to compare the pharmacokinetics,tolerability,and bioavailability of two formulations with the established reference formulation of huperzine A in a fasting,healthy Chinese male population.This was a randomized,single-dose,3-period,6-sequence crossover study.The plasma concentrations of huperzine A were determined by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.Tolerability was assessed based on subject interview,vital sign monitoring,physical examination,and routine blood and urine tests.The mean (SD) pharmacokinetic parameters of the reference drug were Cmax,1.550 (0.528) ng/mL;t1/2,12.092 (1.898) h;AUC0-72h,17.550 (3.794) ng.h/mL.Those of the test formulation A and test formulation B were Cmax,1.412 (0.467),1.521 (0.608) ng/mL;t1/2,12.073 (2.068),12.271 (1.678) h;AUC0-72h,15.286 (3.434) ng.h/mL,15.673 (3.586) ng.h/mL.The 90％ confidence intervals for the AUC0-72h and Cmax were between 0.80 and 1.25.No adverse events were reported by the subjects or found with results of clinical laboratory test.The test and reference products met the regulatory criteria for bioequivalence in these fasting,healthy Chinese male volunteers.All three formulations appeared to be well tolerated.

Objective To construct the eukaryotic expression vector of LDHA with Flag label and detect its effects on the growth of human choroidal melanoma (CM) MUM-2B cells.Methods CM cells line MUM-2B subcultured by the Military Academy of Sciences were divided into two groups:experimental group and control group.The experimental group was transiently transfected with Flag-LDHA plasmid,and the control group was transiently transfected with Flag plasmid.Using the Flag-LDHA with GST label as a template,the LDHA gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR),which then was inserted into eukaryotic expression vector of Flag,and the recombinant plasmid Flag-LDHA was identified by bacterial liquid PCR,double enzyme digestion and sequencing,both which were transiently transfected into human CM MUM-2B cells after successful identification,and finally,its expression was determined by Western blot.The biology behaviors of melanoma cell line MUM-2B transfected with Flag-LDHA and Flag plasmid were analyzed by counting Kit-8 (CCK8) assays.Results The coding region sequence of LDHA gene of approximately 1000 bp was harvested from PCR amplification,which was successfully cloned into the Flag vector.Compared with the control group,the PCR result of the bacterial liquid in the experimental group was positive.The double enzyme digestion results showed that eukaryotic expression vector of Flag with a length of about 4000 bp Flag vector and a 1000 bp LDHA gene band.And the sequencing results indicated that the inserted sequence was completely in consonance with the coding sequence of the LDHA gene.Western blot results showed the successful expression of recombinant plasmid Flag-LDHA in MUM-2B melanoma cells.CCK8 assays demonstrated that Flag-LDHA recombinant plasmid could promote the growth of melanoma cell line MUM-2B.Conclusion The eukaryotic expression vector of Flag-LDHA was successfully constructed,which can promote the growth of melanoma cell line MUM-2B.This will lay the foundation for studying the function of LDHA in the initiation and progression of human CM.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect and safety of zoledronic acid (Zoledex) in patients with cancer-induced hypercalcemia.

METHODSSeventeen patients with cancer-induced hypercalcemia (corrected blood calcium > 2.70 mmol/L) were treated intravenously by 4 mg zoledex within 15 minutes on the first day. The corrected blood calcium was observed every 4 days in the following 28 days.

RESULTSThe response rate was 94.1% (16/17). The mean corrected blood calcium became normal after the first dose of zoledex (P < 0.01). The lowest value was found on the fourteenth day after treatment. The main side effects consisted of fever (29.4%, 5/17), hypocalcemic tetany (11.8%, 2/17) and arythmia (5.9%, 1/17).

CONCLUSIONZoledex is effective and safe in the treatment of patient with cancer-induced hypercalcemia.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bone Density Conservation Agents ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Diphosphonates ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Hypercalcemia ; drug therapy ; etiology ; Imidazoles ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasms ; complications ; Safety

OBJECTIVEIbandronate, a third generation bisphosphonate, inhibits bone resorption in human and animal studies. This study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ibandronate as a single agent in patients with tumor-associated hypercalcemia.

METHODSAn open, multicenter, non-controlled clinical trial was conducted in 22 patients. The patients received 2 mg ibandronate intravenously if the corrected calcium was less than 3.0 mmol/L but more than 2.7 mmol/L; they received 4 mg ibandronate iv if corrected calcium was more than 3.0 mmol/L.

RESULTSThere was 100% efficacy in these two dose groups but the calcium correcting effect was more pronounced in the 4-mg dose group than the 2-mg dose group. The most common adverse reactions were fever and skin itching with an incidence of 4.5%.

CONCLUSIONIbandronate is active in patients with tumor-associated hypercalcemia and the adverse effects are well tolerated.

Bone Neoplasms ; complications ; secretion ; Breast Neoplasms ; complications ; pathology ; Calcium ; blood ; Diphosphonates ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Drug Administration Schedule ; Female ; Fever ; chemically induced ; Humans ; Hypercalcemia ; blood ; drug therapy ; etiology ; Lung Neoplasms ; complications ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multiple Myeloma ; complications ; Phosphorus ; blood ; Pruritus ; chemically induced

BACKGROUNDSome larger scale, randomized studies have demonstrated the superiority of drug-eluting stents (DES) over bare metal stents (BMS) for the treatment of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). This study aimed to investigate the impact of DES, in comparison with BMS, on the 2-year clinical outcomes in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

METHODSFrom January 2002 to December 2008, a total of 1301 consecutive STEMI patients treated with coronary stenting in Shenyang Northern Hospital were prospectively registered. Patients received BMS (n = 868) or DES (n = 435) implantation in the infarction related artery according to physician's discretion. A propensity score analysis was performed and two well matched subgroups were selected (BMS, n = 288; DES, n = 288) to evaluate the 2-year clinical outcomes. The primary outcome was the occurrence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE), which was defined as a composite of all-cause death, myocardial infarction (MI), or target vessel revascularization (TVR).

RESULTSSurvival salvage analysis showed that 2-year cumulative hazards were not significantly different between the two groups with respect to TVR (2.8% vs. 3.1%, log-rank P = 0.780), stent thrombosis (1.7% vs. 4.2%, log-rank P = 0.079) and MACE (8% vs. 10.8%, log-rank P = 0.236). Multivariate analysis showed that DES was an independent protective factor of MI (HR: 0.211, 95%CI: 0.049 to 0.908) and stent thrombosis (HR: 0.327, 95%CI: 0.107 to 0.994).

CONCLUSIONDES was associated with similar 2-year clinical outcomes to those of BMS for the treatment of STEMI in daily practice.

Aged ; Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; methods ; Drug-Eluting Stents ; adverse effects ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myocardial Infarction ; mortality ; therapy ; Prospective Studies ; Stents ; adverse effects ; Thrombosis ; etiology ; Treatment Outcome

BACKGROUND: Morinda officinalis oligosaccharide is the main active ingredient of morinda officinalis extract,which can promote the angiogenesis of ischemic tissue, but the mechanism is unknown. At present, there are two ways for endothelial repair:vascular endothelial cell division or differentiation from vascular endothelial progenitor cells in the peripheral blood. Here, we attempted to explain the pro-angiogenesis mechanism of morinda officinalis oligosaccharide by exploring whether there is a correlation between morinda officinalis oligosaccharide and the biological function of vascular endothelial progenitor cells, thereby providing experimental reference for new drug development. OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of morindae officinalis oligosaccharide on the proliferation, differentiation and paracrine of vascular endothelial progenitor cells. METHODS: Vascular endothelial progenitor cells were isolated from healthy human peripheral blood, and divided into two groups: control group (without morindae officinalis oligosaccharide) and experimental group (with 0.15 g/L morindae officinalis oligosaccharide), followed by 48 hours of in vitro culture.The proliferation of vascular endothelial progenitor cells was tested by fluorescent staining;the ratio of vascular endothelial progenitor cells expressing CD31 was detected by flow cytometry; and the levels of vascular endothelial growth factor, stromal cell-derived factor 1 and interleukin 8 were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent method. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The percentage of vascular endothelial cells expressing CD34, CD133 or VEGFR- 2 was (84.72±4.34)%. After 48 hours of culture by 0.15 g/L morindae officinalis oligosaccharide, the proliferation rate and the positive expression of CD31 in the experimental group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The levels of vascular endothelial growth factor, stromal cell-derived factor 1 and interleukin 8 in the experimental group were also higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). To conclude, morindae officinalis oligosaccharide can promote the proliferation and differentiation of vascular endothelial progenitor cells, and meanwhile, it can stimulate the release of vascular endothelial growth factor, stromal cell-derived factor 1 and interleukin 8 from vascular endothelial progenitor cells through the paracrine pathway. Consequently, it is a potential drug for myocardial ischemic diseases.

Objective: To observe the clinical efficacy of auricular point pricking-bloodletting plus auricular point sticking therapy for acne vulgaris. Methods: A total of 66 patients with acne vulgaris were randomized into an observation group and a control group by the random number table, with 33 cases in each group. The observation group was treated with auricular point pricking-bloodletting plus auricular point sticking therapy, and the control group was treated only with auricular point sticking therapy. The treatments of both groups were performed twice a week, 4 weeks as a course of treatment, for 3 courses in total. The scores of skin lesions and dermatology life quality index (DLQI) scores were recorded before and after treatment to assess the clinical efficacy. Results: During the trial, there were 3 cases of drop-out both in the observation group and the control group. After 3 courses of treatment, the total effective rate of the observation group was 96.7％, while that of the control group was 76.7％. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P<0.05). The intra-group comparison showed that the scores of skin lesion and DLQI were both decreased with the increase of treatment times, that was, the scores were lower than those at the previous time point (allP<0.05). After 1, 2, and 3 courses of treatment, the scores of skin lesion and DLQI of both groups were statistically different from those of the same group before treatment (allP<0.05). At every time point during the treatment, the scores of skin lesion and DLQI of the observation group were lower than those of the control group, and the differences between the two groups were statistically significant (all P<0.05). Conclusion: Auricular point pricking-bloodletting plus auricular point sticking has a better curative effect than auricular point sticking therapy alone in the treatment of acne vulgaris, and has a time-effect correlation.

OBJECTIVETo compare efficacy differences between fire filiform needle combined with mild moxibustion and gabapentin combined with sham acupuncture for postherpetic neuralgia (PHN).

METHODSOne hundred cases of PHN were randomly divided into a needle group and a medicine group, 50 cases in each one. In the needle group, pricking method of fire filiform needle was given at the Ashi points, and then mild moxibustion was applied for 15 min. In the medicine group, the oral administration of gabapentin capsule and sham acupuncture at non-acupoints in the distal end of lesions were applied. The treatment was required for 21 days in both groups. The visual analogue score (VAS) was recorded before treatment and on the 1st day, 2nd day, 3rd day, 6th day, 9th day and 12th day of treatment. The most severity of pain within last 24 h, preset severity of pain, immediate analgesia effect and starting time of pain relief were observed, also the efficacy was assessed and improvement of symptoms was observed in the follow-up visit.

RESULTSThe total effective rate was 94.0% (47/50) in the fire filiform needle group, which was superior to 86.0% (43/50) in the medicine group (P < 0.05). Compared with medicine group, the VAS of the most severity of pain within last 24 h was obviously reduced after the 2nd treatment in the fire filiform needle group while that of present severity of pain was relieved after the 1st treatment (both P < 0.05). The immediate analgesia effect in the fire filiform needle group was obviously superior to that in the medicine group in the first three times of treatment (all P < 0.05). The average time of pain relief was (3.91 +/- 0.82) days in the fire filiform needle group, which was significantly earlier to (6.53 +/- 1.13) days in the medicine group (P < 0.05). 26 cases were cured in the fire filiform needle group in the follow-up visit, which was superior to 2 cases in the medicine group (P < 0.05). The improvement of VAS, pain range and sleep quality in the needle group were also superior to those in the medicine group (all P < 0.05). The direct medical cost in the fire filiform needle group was (232.32 +/- 48.108) yuan, which was significantly lower than (466.00 +/- 41.09) yuan in the medicine group (P < 0.05). There was only one case of adverse effect in the medicine group during the treatment.

CONCLUSIONThe fire filiform needle combined with mild moxibustion could obviously relieve the pain in PHN patients, which has superior immediate analgesia effect and pain relieving time compared with gabapentin, which also has less adverse effects and cheap cost.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Aged ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Moxibustion ; Neuralgia, Postherpetic ; therapy ; Pain Measurement ; Treatment Outcome