OBJECTIVESTo explore whether the angiotensin I -converting enzyme (ACE) I/D (insertion/ deletion) polymorphism is associated with the susceptibility to high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) in the Han Chinese.

METHODSOne hundred and forty-seven HAPE-p (HAPE patients) and 193 HAPE-r (HAPE resistants) were enrolled from the Yushu earthquake reconstruction workers in Qinghai province where the altitude is over 3 500 m above sea level. Blood samples were collected from each of the HAPE-p and HAPE-r groups. Information about physiological phenotypes was obtained via fieldwork investigation. The ACE-I/D polymorphism in HAPE-p and HAPE-r was detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

RESULTSThe SaO2 was significantly lower while HR was significantly higher in HAPE-p group than those in HAPE-r group. The genotype frequencies of ACE-I/D for II, ID, DD in HAPE-r and HAPE-p groups were 0.430, 0.446, 0.124 and 0.435, 0.469, 0.095, respectively, the allelic frequencies of I and D were 0.650, 0.350 and 0.670, 0.330, respectively. The OR of ID, DD and D alleles relative to II for HAPE was 0.961 (0.610-1.514), 1.322 (0.634-2.758) and 1.080 (0.783-1.489). There was no significant difference of the genotypic and the allelic frequencies in ACE-I/D polymorphism between HAPE-p and HAPE-r groups.

CONCLUSIONSThere is no relation between ACE-I/D polymorphism and HAPE in the Han Chinese.

Alleles ; Altitude ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; genetics ; Case-Control Studies ; Gene Frequency ; Genotype ; Humans ; Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Pulmonary Edema ; genetics

Objective To analyze the examination results of external quality assessment (EQA),at all levels of iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) network laboratories in Ningxia Province and to further standardize and improve the laboratory,and to provide a reliable laboratory quality assurance for surveillance and control of IDD.Methods The examination results of EQA at all levels of IDD laboratories in Ningxia Province were statistically analyzed in accordance with the National Reference Laboratory (NRL) of IDD (2002-2011).Results Laboratory hardware equipment and technology at all levels met the testing requirements,and qualified rate of quality control increased year by year.Both of the response rate and qualification rate of urine iodine laboratories at provincial level were 100％ in the past decade.From 2005 on,the response rate of city laboratories had been 100％,and the qualification rate had been 100％ since 2007.The response rate and qualification rate of salt iodine laboratories at both the provincial level and the city level were 100％ in the past decade.The response rate of salt iodine laboratories at county level had been 100％ since 2004,and the qualification rate had been 100％ since 2009.Salt iodine and urinary iodine levels were fully qualified for the past three years at provincial,municipal and county levels.Conclusions All levels of IDD network laboratory in Ningxia Province runs good,EQA is fully qualified,and is able to provide a reliable laboratory quality assurance for surveillance and control of IDD.

Objective CD8 +T cells increased in the airway of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and exis -ted constantly .The aim was to investigate the role of CD 8 +T-cells in rats with chronic bronchitis ( CB) which was induced by cigarette smoking and intratracheal injection with lipopolysaccharide ( LPS) . Methods 18 health Wistar rats were radomly divided into sham smoking group(group A), CB group(group B) and N-acetylcysteine prevention group (group C).The rats in group B and group C re-ceived intratracheal injection with LPS twice and exposed to cigarette smoking for 4 weeks to induce CB model .The rats in Group C re-ceiving intragastric administration with N-acetylcysteine (NAC)(200mg/kg) before received LPS and smoking.Group A was the sham smoking group.The lung tissue of all rats were stained by HE then evaluated about pathological scores .The expression of nuclear fac-tor-κB (NF-κB), major histocompatibility complex class I (MHCI), CD8 +T cell and Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in airway were detected by immunohistochemisty which was stained by labeled streptavidin biotin method . Results The pathological scores of airway ( 10 .83 ±3 .31 ) in group B were higher than (1.17 ±2.40) in group A(P <0.05).The pathological scores of airway(4.66 ±2.25) in group C were less than (10.83 ±3.31) in group B(P <0.05).The expression of NF-κB(4.84), MHC I (2.48),CD8 +T cell(5.35)and VEGF(5.02) in airway increased in group B when compared with (1.18, 1.25, 1.33) and (1.18) in group A respectively(P <0.05).The expression of NF-κB (2.18), MHC I(1.46),CD8 +(2.35)and VEGF(2.02) in airway decreased in group C when compared with (4.84), MHC I(2.48),CD8 +T cell(5.35)and VEGF(5.02) in group B respectively (P<0.05 ). There were positive correlations between the expression of NF-κB, MHC I and CD8 +T cells in airways(r=0.670, r=0.701, respec-tively, all P<0.01).There were positive correlations between the expression of CD 8 +T cells and VEGF the pathological scores of air-ways(r=0.689, r=0.782, respectively, all P<0.01). Conclusion NAC can inhibit airway inflammation which is regulated by CD8 +T-cells and VEGF through suppressing the expression of NF -κB and MHC I.

Abstract: Objective　To investigate the species distribution and the antifungal susceptibility of fungi originating from positive blood cultures in Guangdong, so as to provide a basis for the rational use of antifungal drugs in clinical fungal bloodstream infections. Methods All data were collected for retrospective study from monitoring units of the Guangdong Fungal Disease Surveillance Network between 2019-2021, including clinical characteristics, species distribution and antifungal susceptibility. Results A total of 3 589 fungi strains were isolated, most of which were Candida spp. (86.5%, 3 105/3 589). The most common species was Candida albicans (36.6%, 1 315/3 589), followed by Candida tropicalis (17.4%, 1 626/3 589) and Candida parapsilosis (14.5%, 520/3 589). There were 42.1%(1 512/3 589) of strains isolated from ICU. The proportions of Candida albicans strains were 40.0%-50.0% among ICU, general surgery, organ transplantation and emergency department. Candida tropicalis (60.0%, 144/240) was the most common species in hematology department. Both Cryptococcus neoformans (35.4%, 69/195) and Talaromyces marneffei (35.9%,70/195) were common in infection department. All of the Candida isolates were of wild-type (WT) phenotype to amphotericin B. Resistance rates of caspofungin and micafungin for Candida spp. ranged from 0.0% to 4.2%. The resistance rates of Candida tropicalis to fluconazole and voriconazole were 42.3% and 38.9%, which were significantly higher than other common Candida spp. The cryptococcus neoformans strains were totally of WT phenotype to fluconazole and voriconazole. Conclusions Candida albicans is the most common species originating from positive blood cultures in Guangdong Province. Common Candida strains are highly sensitive to echinocandins and amphotericin B. Candida tropicalis has a high resistance rate to triazole drugs.

Data quality management system is essential to ensure accurate, complete, consistent, and reliable data collection in clinical research. This paper is devoted to various choices of data quality metrics. They are categorized by study status, e.g. study start up, conduct, and close-out. In each category, metrics for different purposes are listed according to ALCOA+ principles such us completeness, accuracy, timeliness, traceability, etc. Some general quality metrics frequently used are also introduced. This paper contains detail information as much as possible to each metric by providing definition, purpose, evaluation, referenced benchmark, and recommended targets in favor of real practice. It is important that sponsors and data management service providers establish a robust integrated clinical trial data quality management system to ensure sustainable high quality of clinical trial deliverables. It will also support enterprise level of data evaluation and bench marking the quality of data across projects, sponsors, data management service providers by using objective metrics from the real clinical trials. We hope this will be a significant input to accelerate the improvement of clinical trial data quality in the industry.
Benchmarking ; Clinical Trials as Topic ; Data Collection ; standards ; Information Storage and Retrieval ; standards ; Quality Control

Objective To investigate the prevalence, common clinical symptoms and complications, transmission routes and media of brucellosis among human in the city of Songyuan in Jilin province, and to provide practical basis for brucellosis intervention and related control measures. Methods Use self-designed questionnaire to collect information from outpatients in brucellosis clinic in Songyuan Center for Disease Control and Prevention from January to June 2009, and to analyze the related data from the survey: prevalence, time and geographical distribution, clinical symptom, transmission route and media. Results Of the total 620 cases investigated, there were 284 patients accounting for 45.8% (284/620), 75 suspected patients accounting for 12.1% (75/620), 13stealth patients accounting for 2.1% (13/620) and 248 negative people accounting for 40.0% (248/640). Main common symptoms of the patients were fever[66.5%( 189/284)], muscle and joint pain[38.7%( 110/284)],fatigue[27.5%(78/284)], hyperhidrosis[25.0%(71/284)]and low back pain[17.3%(49/284)]. The patients group had a significantly higher prevalence of mucocutaneous infection, contacting infected animal abortion flow,fur, soil, faeces and dust than the uninfected group(χ2 value were 27.12, 22.75, 8.90, 6.65, 6.39, 6.39, all P< 0.01 or < 0.05). Conclusions The positive rate of brucellosis in the brucellosis clinic of Songyuan city is high,and patients have typical symptoms. We should take comprehensive control measures to protect the high-risk group and reduce the local infectivety.

Objective To investigate the high-risk behaviors related to acquared immune deficiency syndrome/sexually transmitted disease (AIDS/STDs) infection among fishermen in Lv-si harbor,Jiangsu province.Methods A cross-sectional study was designed to investigate the research participants' demographic characteristics,high-risk behaviors that related to AIDS/STDs.Logistic regression was performed to measure the associations between potential risk factors and reported potential high-risk sexual behavior.Results 817 fishermen participated in the study and casual or commercial sex activities appeared to be the main high-risk behavior for AIDS/STDs infection in the target population.The rates of casual and commercial sex reported were 18.1％ and 28.9％ among fishermen.Risk factors associated with AIDS/STDs related high-risk behaviors among fishermen were high mobility (OR=1.516,P=0.038),higher lifetime sex frequency (OR=1.422,P=0.002)and unmarried status ( OR =7.527,P=0.014).Protective factors against high-risk behaviors were low intake of alcohol (OR=0.803,P=0.053),negative STD history (OR=0.268,P=0.001 ),age of initial sexual intercourse at or older than 22 years (OR =0.440,P=0.000) of age,as well as negative attitude toward multiple sexual parmers (OR=0.662,P=0.023 ) and legitimation for commercial sex (OR=0.612,P=0.007).Conclusion There were risk behaviors of AIDS/STDs in those infected fishmen.Casual and commercial sex were common high-risk behaviors.

OBJECTIVETo identify novel multi-drug resistance-related genes, and to explore the mechanisms of multi-drug resistance.

METHODSMulti-drug resistant cell line Lovo/5-FU was established by incubation with increasing dose of 5-FU. The sensitivity to 5-FU and cis-diaminodichloroplatinum (CDDP) was measured by MTT assay. Two dimensional electrophoresis plus mass spectrum(2-DE/MS) was used to identify the differentially expressed protein between Lovo and Lovo/5-FU. The identified protein was then verified by Western blot analysis.

RESULTSThe IC50 concentrations of Lovo/5-FU to 5-FU and CDDP were increased by 31 and 3 times, compared with Lovo (both P<0.01). 2DE-MS showed that CAP-G and RhoGDI2 were up-regulated, whereas 6-PGL, DCI, Prdx-6 and Maspin were down-regulated in Lovo/5-FU. Western blot analysis confirmed that the expression levels of RhoGDI2 and CAP-G in Lovo/5-FU were increased by 6.14 and 2.98 fold respectively (both P<0.01), whereas Maspin was decreased to 5.2% of Lovo(P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONSMulti-gene and multi-pathway are involved in the development of multi-drug resistance of colorectal cancer cells. CAP-G, RhoGDI2 and Maspin are potential multi-drug resistant genes.

Cell Line, Tumor ; Colonic Neoplasms ; genetics ; Drug Resistance, Multiple ; genetics ; Drug Resistance, Neoplasm ; genetics ; Humans ; Microfilament Proteins ; genetics ; Nuclear Proteins ; genetics ; Serpins ; genetics ; rho Guanine Nucleotide Dissociation Inhibitor beta ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo investigate the inhibitory effect of RNA interference (RNAi) on MMP-24 expression and invasiveness of ovarian cancer SKOV(3) cells.

METHODTwo pairs of small interfering RNA (siRNA) specific to MMP-24 mRNA were designed and transfected into SKOV(3) cells. RT-PCR and Western blotting were used to detect the mRNA and protein expressions of MMP-24, and the cell invasiveness was assessed using an in vitro invasion test.

RESULTSAfter transfection with siRNA, the mRNA and protein expression levels of MMP-24 were obviously reduced in SKOV(3) cells, which also showed significantly decreased invasiveness in vitro.

CONCLUSIONSMMP-24 gene silencing by RNAi can suppress the invasiveness of ovarian cancer SKOV(3) cells in vitro, which may provide a new therapeutic approach of ovarian cancer.

Blotting, Western ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Female ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Humans ; Matrix Metalloproteinases, Membrane-Associated ; deficiency ; genetics ; metabolism ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; genetics ; pathology ; Plasmids ; genetics ; RNA Interference ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; metabolism ; Transfection

ObjectiveTo detect the concentration and distribution of fluoride ions in osteoblasts exposed to fluoride in vitro culture,and to provide basic information for studying the effect of fluoride on osteoblast injury.MethodsIn vitro cultured osteoblasts were exposed to 0,5,10,20,40 mg/L fluoride for 3,10,30 d (n =6),respectively.Concentration and distribution of fluoride ions in the cytoplasm and the nucleus of these osteoblasts were determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.Results(①) After cultured for 3 d,fluoride ion content of the bone cytoplasm exposed to different concentrations of fluoride 0,5,10,20,40 mg/L were (0.83 ±0.65),(0.54 ± 0.23),(0.65 ± 0.77),(0.59 ± 0.87),(3.64 ± 1.21 )mg/L,respectively,and the values of exposed to 40 mg/L fluoride group was significantly higher than that of exposed to 0,5 mg/L groups (all P ＜ 0.05).(②)after cultured for 10 d,the composition of the fluoride ion in cytoplasm of exposed to fluoride 10,20,40 mg/L groups were (4.03 ± 1.23),(3.66 ± 0.98),(6.26 ± 2.10)mg/L,respectively,which were higher than that of exposed to 0,5 mg/L groups [(0.78 ± 0.75),(2.69 ± 0.89)mg/L,respectively,all P ＜ 0.05].Of fluoride 20,40 mg/L groups,the composition of the fluoride ion in nucleus were (1.63 ± 1.19),(2.17 ± 1.21 )mg/L,respectively,which were higher than that of 0,5 mg/L groups[(0.65 ± 0.46),(1.57 ± 0.33) mg/L,all P ＜ 0.05].(③)After cultured for 30 d,of the exposed to fluoride 10,20,40 mg/L groups,the composition of the fluoride ion in cytoplasm were (3.99 ± 0.84),(4.33 ± 1.67),(5.80 ± 1.38)mg/L,respectively,which were higher than that of 0,5 mg/L groups[(0.88 ± 0.44),(2.84 ± 0.43)mg/L,all P ＜ 0.05].The composition of the fluoride ion in nucleus of the fluoride 20,40 mg/Lgroups were (3.33 ± 1.46),(3.53 ± 1.22)mg/L,respectively,which were significantly higher than that of 0,5mg/L groups [(0.70 ± 0.66),(1.99 ± 0.76)mg/L,all P ＜ 0.05].ConclusionsWhen osteoblasts are exposed to fluoride environment,fluoride ions enter into the osteoblasts quickly,and quickly accumulate in the nucleus,showing a special affinity between fluoride and bone tissue.Intracellular fluoride ions increase with the increase of contact time and exposure dose.