Objective To investigate the value of ultrasound diagnosing for hydropneumothorax. Methods In a prospective double-blind randomized concurrent controlled trial. 213 patients doubted pneumotborax were exam-ined with CT, senography and conventional radiography. Results In 213 cases, hydropneumothorax diagnosed in 30 hemithoraces of 30 patients by CT,29 hemitboraces by ultrasound and 22 hemithoraces by X-ray. The sensitivity, nega-tive predictive value,accuracy by ultrasound and X-ray were 96.7% vs 73.3% ,99.8% vs 98.0% ,99.8 vs 98.1% respectively(P<0.05), the specificity and positive predictive value of both ultrasound and X-ray were 100%. Ultra-sound surpassed the X-ray in detecting pneumothorax ( McNemar test P<0.025 ). Conclusion If ultrasound is served to detect pneumothorax, it can make up the defects of the methods commonly used cuxrently.

Objective To explore the effects of early growth response gene-1 (Egr-1) on bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSC) proliferation and osteogenic differentiation,which is aimed at providing new molecular targets for the treatment of osteoporosis.Methods Bone marrow was collected from adult men and the BMSCs were cultured primarily and observed by microscope.Meanwhile,flow cytometry was used for BMSCs phenotypic identification;After transfection of pcDNA3.1/Egr-1 into BM SCs,the level of BMSCs proliferation was determined by MTT respectively on the 2 d,4 d and 6 d;On the 7 d after transfection,the ALP activity assay was used for testing the ALP activity in BMSCs.And then,alizarin red S-calcium kit was used for measuring the calcified knots respectively on the 7 d,14 d and 21 d;On the 21 d after transfection,real-time qPCR and Western blotting were used respectively for measuring the expression of mRNA and protein of Egr-1,Runx2 and NDRG1;Further,BMSCs were transfected with Egr-1 siRNA,and the content of calcium nodules,ALP activity,the expression of Egr-1,Runx2 and NDRG1 were detected as above methods.Results The cells cultured in vitro showed high level of CD90 and CD29 and very low level of CD34 and CD45,which is accorded with the characteristic of BMSCs.The pcDNA3.1/Egr-1 transfection for BMSCs had no effect on cells prolifera tion.However,the calcified knots,ALP activity and the expression of Egr 1,Runx2 and NDRG1 were increased after transfection of pcDNA3.1/Egr-1 for BMSCs.In addition,Egr-1 siRNA showed the opposite effect with pcDNA3.1/Egr-1 transfection for BMSCs.Conclusion Egr-1 induces osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs by promoting NDRG1 but has no effects on proliferation of BMSCs.

Objective To explore the MRI features of ejaculatory duct obstruction.Methods During January 2003 to Dccember 2010,transrectal ultrasonography (TRUS) was performed for 106 patients and underwent surgical treatment for ejaculatory duct obstruction.Among them,16 patients underwent MRI examination.The MRI features of ejaculatory duct obstruction in these patients were summarized.Results Ejaculatory duct cysts,ranging in size from 4 mm ×4 mm ×7 mm to 4 mm ×4 mm ×9 mm and locating in the paramedian line,were detected in 5 of the 16 patients; ejaculatory duct dilation located in the paramedian line was detected in 7 patients,with the internal diameter of 5 to 30 mm. After contrast injection,significant enhancement of the wall of the ejaculatory duct was observed in 2 patients.Mullerian duct cysts complicated with dilated ejaculatory duct and seminal vesicles were detected in 4 patients,in whom the cysts were located in the median line,ranging in size from 4 mm × 5 mm × 6 mm to 34 mm×35 mm ×44 mm,with inverted teardrop shaped pointing toward the seminal colliculus.ConclusionThe most common MRI features of ejaculatory duct obstruction are ejaculatory duct dilation and ejaculatory duct cysts.

Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Rotavirus Infections ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Vomiting ; etiology

One of the important approaches to structure analysis is protein fold recognition, which is oftenapplied when there is no significant sequence similarity between structurally similar proteins. A framework with athree-layer support vector machines fusion network (SFN) is presented. The framework is applied to 27-classprotein fold recognition from primary structure of proteins. SFN uses support vector machines as memberclassifiers, and adopts All-Versus-All as multi-class categorization. Six groups of features are divided into majorand minor ones by SFN, and several diversity fusion schemes are correspondingly built. The final decision is madeby dynamic selection of the results of all fusion schemes. When it is still difficult to know what kind of fusion offeature groups can achieve good prediction,SFN is a dependable solution by selecting the optimal fusion offeature groups automatically, which can ensure the best recognition. Overall recognition system achieves 61.04%fold prediction accuracy on the independent test dataset. The results and the comparison with other approachesdemonstrate the effectiveness of SFN, and thus encourage its further exploration.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have confirmed that atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) exists in different regions of rat gastric mucosa in different densities, and ANP can inhibit the spontaneous contraction of gastric smooth muscles in rat, guinea pig and human.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the ultrastructural localization of ANP-synthesizing cells and the correlation between ANP-synthesizing cells and microvessel density in rat gastric mucosa.DESIGN: Single sampling study.SETTING: Affiliated Hospital of Chengde Medical College. MATERIALS: Eighteen adult male Wistar rats of clean grade, weighing 300-350 g, were used in this study.METHODS: This study was conducted in the Laboratory of Chinese Materia Medica Immunology, Chengde Medical College from October 2004 to July 2007. The ultrastructural localization of ANP-synthesizing cells in rat gastric mucosa was performed by postembedding immunoelectron microscopy technique. The area density of ANP-synthesizing cell distribution was calculated by histochemical technique (saffron solution and toluidine solution staining included). Microvessels of rat gastric mucosa were revealed distinctively by tannic acid-ferric chloride staining method and scanning electron microscope technique.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:①The ultrastructural localization of ANP-synthesizing cells in rat gastric mucosa.②The distribution characteristics of gastric microvessels in different regions of rat gastric mucosa.③The distribution characteristics of ANP-synthesizing cells in rat gastric mucosa.④Correlation between ANP-synthesizing cell distribution and microvessel density.RESULTS: ① Ultrastructural localization of ANP-synthesizing cells: It was confirmed that ANP-cells were the enterochrochromaffin (EC) cells. ② Observation of microvessels: The microvessels were stained successfully by tannic acid-ferric chloride and scanning electron microscope technology. Microvessels of gastric mucous were in wriggled way and cut in different cross-sections. They could be clearly observed in distinct three-dimensions. The microvessel density was the largest in the basal glands of rat gastric mucous. ③ Distribution of ANP-synthesizing cells: It was identified that EC cell was only a chromaffin cell in the rat gastric mucosa. The chromaffin granules (brown granules) were localized in the cytoplasm of EC cells. Negative staining for chromaffin granules was detected in the submucosa and smooth muscle. EC cells had different distribution densities in different regions. The density order of EC cells was gastric cardiac region ＞ gastric pyloric region ＞ gastric fundic region in mucosal layer. ④ Correlation between ANP-synthesizing cells and microvessel density: Correlation analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between ANP-synthesizing cells and microvessel density in the gastric cardiac region(r = 0.53, P ＜ 0.05, n=18), and there was a negative correlation between above-mentioned two indices in the gastric pyloric region(r = 0.38, P ＞ 0.05 , n=18)and in the gastric fundic region(r = -0.29, P ＞ 0.05, n=18).CONCLUSION: ANP-synthesizing cells are the EC cells of gastric mucosa. There is a positive correlation between ANP-synthesizing cells and microvessels in the rat gastric cardiac region, while there is a negative correlation between ANP-synthesizing cells and microvessels in the rat gastric pyloric region and in the gastric fundic region.

Objective To analyze the correlation between quantitative evaluation of high-resolution CT (HRCT) and pulmonary function tests (PFT) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and evaluate the characteristics of PFT in different CT phenotypes of COPD. Methods 65 patients with COPD underwent CT chest scan and PFT. The dimensions of subsubsegmental apical bronchi of right upper lobes were measured , which included the following parameters:airway wall thickness (T), total airway diameter (D), and pulmonary artery (PA), ratio of airway wall thickness and pulmonary artery (T/PA), thickness diameter ratio (TDR), percentage of wall area (WA%) and percentage of airway luminal area (Ai%). The percentage of total lung area occupied by low attenuation area (LAA%) was measured by lung density software. The relationship between the measurements and PFT parameters were analyzed. Patients were classified into three phenotypes based on the presence of emphysema or bronchial wall thickening evaluated by HRCT. Phenotype A: without or with little emphysema (LAA% < 25%), with or without bronchial wall thickening; Phenotype E: emphysema without bronchial wall thickening (LAA%≥25%, T/PA < 30%); Phenotype M: emphysema with bronchial wall thickening (LAA%≥25%, T/PA≥30%). The characteristics of different CT phenotypes were analyzed. Results LAA% had a good correlation with PFT parameters. PA, T/PA, WA% and Ai% also had correlation with PFT parameters. There was 53 patients of Phenotype A, 12 patients of Phenotype M. PA, T/PA, LAA%and PFT were different in two groups. Conclusions LAA%and airway quantitative measurements in HRCT have certain correlation with PFT parameters. Patients with different CT phenotypes differs in PFT parameters , which can provide reference for clinical diagnosis and treatment.

AIM: To observe the effect of Jiawei sinisan (JWSNS) on some amino acids in hippocampus of rats with chronic stress. METHODS: Wistar rats were randomly divided into 3 groups: control, model and JWSNS group. OPA (HPLC) was adopted to detect the contents of amino acids in hippocampus. RESULTS: The contents of Glu and Asp in hippocampus of model group increased significantly ( P

AIM: To observe the effect of Jiawei Sini Decoction (JWSND) on glucocorticoid receptor (GCR) in thymocytes of chronic psychological stress rats. METHODS: The rats were randomly divided into 4 groups, control group (C), model group (M), group treated by JWSND (C 1), group treated by ginsenosides (C 2). The number of thymocyte GCR sites and the GCR nuclear thanslocation rate were detected by radioimmunoassay. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, in the model group, the thymocyte weight index lowered significantly ( P

BACKGROUND: When one is in a stress state, some amino acids as neurotransmitter in his brain are of important regulating action to his cerebral functions and his psychic behaviors,and some traditional Chinese drugs can regulate the stress state of the body.OBJECTIVE:To observe the content changes of glutamic acid,aspartic acid, γ-aminobutyric acid and taurine in the hypothalamus and hippocampus of rats under repeatedly psychic stress so as to investigate the effects of tiaogan recipe, jianpi recipe, bushen recipe and ginsenoside on them.DESIGN: A randomized grouping and controlled observation trial.SETTING:Department of Basic Theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM) of Basic Medical Science College, Guangzhou University of TCM.MATERIALS:The experiment was completed from March 2002 to January 2003 at the Animal Center of Guangzhou University of TCM.Totally60 Wistar rats were randomly divided into 6 groups: normal, model, tiaogan, bushen, jianpi and ginsenoside groups, with 10 in each group. Compositions and doses of tiaogan recipe: radix bupleuri 5 g, fruetus gardeniae 5 g,radix paeoniae alba 15 g,fructus lycii 15 g,fructus aurantii 6 g,radix rehmanniae 18 g, concha haliotidis 30 g. Compositions and doses of shenqi pill: radix rehmanniae 30 g, rhizoma dioscoreae 15 g, fructus corni 15 g,rhizoma alismatis 10 g,poria 10 g,cortex moutan radicis 10 g,ramulus cinnamomi 4 g, radix aconiti praeparata 4 g. Compositions and doses of sijunzi decoction:radix codonopsis pilosulae 20 g,rhizoma atractylodis macrocephalae 15 g, poria 15 g, radix glycyrrhizae preparata 6 g.METHODS:① The traditional Chinese medicines were conventionally decocted; and the tiaogan recipe condensed to the liquid containing1.69 g/mL crude drug, shenqi pill containing 1.76 g/mL crude drug,sijunzi decoction containing 1.01 g/mL crude drug.Ginsenoside was prepared as 7 g/L water solution.The rats in the normal and model groups were by gavage given 2 mL of 9.0 g/L sodium chloride injection.The rats in the tiaogan, bushen, jianpi and ginsenoside groups were respectively by gavage given 2 mL of tiaogan recipe, shenqi pill, sijunzi decoction and ginsenoside solution 1 hour before immobilization stress. ② Except for rats in the normal group, those in the rest groups were all conducted for establishment of psychic stress reaction model.The rats were put into an immobilization tube,their action space was gradually reduced by using a mobile insertion piece,they were regulated to a nervous state without prpduction of intense revolting, which was done once a day, starting with 4 hours immobilization on the first day, and later on increased by 30-60 minutes per day, for consecutive 14 days. ③ The whole brain of the rats in each group was collected by decapitation,OPA high-performance liquid chromatography was used for assays of the contents of glutamic acid, aspartic acid, γaminobutyric acid and taurine in hypothalamus and hippocampus of the rats.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The content changes of glutamic acid,aspartic acid,γ-aminobutyric acid and tanrine in the hypothalamus and hippocampus of rats in each group.RESULTS: Totally 60 rats involved all entered into the result analysis. ①The content changes of glutamic acid in the hypothalamus and hippocampus of rats in each group:Compared with normal group,the contents of glutamic acid in hypothalamus of rats in the tiaogan, jianpi,bushen and ginsenoside groups were markedly decreased [(21.85±8.19), (15.76±1.80),(14.68±7.91), (21.46±5.45), (13.43±7.68) μmoL/g]; compared with model group,the contents in the tiaogan, bushen, jianpi and ginsenoside groups were obviously raised [(11.04±3.65), (11.78±2.17), (18.67±2.98), (20.91 ±3.96),(17.71±1.83) μ moL/g, P ＜ 0.05, P ＜ 0.01, P ＜ 0.01, P ＜ 0.05]. ② The content changes of aspartic acid in the hypothalamus and hippocampus of rats in each group:Compared with model group,the contents of aspartic acid in the hypothalamus in the jianpi and ginsenoside groups were obviously decreased [(8.65±1.18), (5.72±1.32), (4.67±1.88) μmoL/g, P ＜ 0.01,P ＜ 0.01], while the contents in the hippocampus of rats in the jianpi,bushen and ginsenoside groups were markedly raised[(2.58 ±0.87),(3.93±0.49), (4.52±0.98), (3.83±0.41) μmoL/g, P ＜ 0.01, P ＜ 0.01, P ＜ 0.05].③ The content changes of γ-aminobutyric acid in the hypothalamus and hippocampus of rats in each group:Compared with model group,the contents of γ-aminobutyric acid in the hypothalamus of rats in the tiaogan,jianpi,bushen and ginsenoside groups were markedly decreased[(20.92±4.96), (15.87±2.90), (13.84±2.63), (14.94±3.98), (10.94±3.68) μ moL/g,P ＜ 0.05, P ＜ 0.05, P ＜ 0.01, P ＜ 0.01], while the contents in the hypothalamus were obviously raised [(4.12±1.66), (4.18±1.04), (6.67±1.29),(6.11±0.99), (6.37±0.78) μmoL/g, P＜ 0.05, P＜ 0.01, P＜ 0.01, P＜ 0.01].④ The content changes of taurine in the hypothalamus and hippocampus of rats in each group: Compared with model group, the contents of taurine in the hypothalamus of rats in the tiaogan, jianpi, bushen and ginsenoside groups were markedly decreased [(10.24±1.72), (7.82±1.14), (8.00±2.05),(6.42±3.17) μmoL/g, P ＜ 0.05, P ＜ 0.05, P ＜ 0.01], while the contents in the hippocampus in the jianpi and ginsenoside groups were obviously raised [(12.61±3.51), (17.03±2.74), (18.04±2.14) μnoL/g, P＜ 0.01, P＜ 0.01].CONCLUSION:The central acting site of tiaogan recipe may mainly be in the hypothalamus,possibly being related with down-regulating amino acids.While the central acting sites ofjianpi recipe,bushen recipe and ginsenoside may include the hippocampus and hypothalamus, being mainly related with up-regulating amino acids,through enhancing the integration of the hippocampus on stress so as to gain the effect of anti-injury of stress.