OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of embryonic dermal signal on the hair-inductive capacity of neonatal mice dermal cells which have been amplified in vitro.

METHODSEmbryonic mice dermal cells of embryonic day 14 were added to a chamber on the back of nude mice with neonatal mice dermal cells which had been amplified in vitro for 3 days and freshly isolated neonatal mice epidermal cells. The hair regeneration was compared between the groups with or without embryonic mice dermal cells. Meanwhile, chambers with following cells respectively were constructed as controls: embryonic mice dermal cells + neonatal mice epidermal cells; freshly isolated neonatal mice dermal cells + neonatal mice epidermal cells; amplified neonatal mice dermal cells only; embryonic mice dermal cells only; freshly isolated neonatal mice dermal cells only; neonatal mice epidermal cells only.

RESULTSThe number of regenerated hairs with the aid of embryonic mice dermal cells (207 +/- 15. 948) was significantly higher than that (67 +/- 8.963) in the group without embryonic mice dermal cells (n = 3, t = 7.653, P = 0.002).

CONCLUSIONEmbryonic dermal signal can enhance the hair-inductive capacity of neonatal mice dermal cells which have been amplified in vitro.

Animals ; Cell Transplantation ; methods ; Cells, Cultured ; Hair ; physiology ; Hair Follicle ; surgery ; Mice ; Mice, Nude ; Reconstructive Surgical Procedures ; Regeneration ; Skin ; cytology ; embryology

The validity of fasting plasma glucose(FPG)combined with HbA_1c in diagnosing diabetes was assessed in patients with coronary heart disease.The results showed that the paired determination of FPG and HbA_1c helped to identify potentially diabetic subjects in patients with coronary heart disease.

Objective:To discuss the clinical efficacy and plausible mechanism of Tiao Yang Qu Xie(regulating Yang to eliminate pathogenic factors)needling method plus paroxetine in treating mild-to-moderate depression. Methods:Sixty-six patients with mild-to-moderate depression were divided into an observation group and a control group using the random number table method,each consisting of 33 cases.Another 25 healthy subjects were recruited as a healthy group.The control group took oral paroxetine tablets for treatment,and the observation group received additional acupuncture treatment 3 times weekly.Both groups underwent 4-week treatment.Before treatment,after 2-week and 4-week treatment,and 2 weeks after treatment(follow-up),the patients were assessed using the Hamilton depression scale-17-item(HAMD-17),self-rating depression scale(SDS),self-rating anxiety scale(SAS),and traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)pattern element identification scale for depression.The two groups each randomly contributed 25 cases to detect the protein content of brain-derived neurotrophic factor(BDNF)before treatment and after 4-week treatment,and compared with the healthy group. Results:After 2-week treatment,the markedly effective and total effective rates were significantly higher in the observation group than in the control group(P<0.05);after 4-week treatment,the observation group significantly surpassed the control group in comparing the markedly effective rate(P<0.05).After 2 and 4 weeks of treatment and at the follow-up,the HAMD-17 total score and sleep disorder factor score were lower in the observation group than in the control group(P<0.05);the anxiety-somatic score was lower in the observation group than in the control group after 2-week treatment(P<0.05).After 2 and 4 weeks of treatment and at the follow-up,the observation group was lower than the control group in comparing the scores of SDS,SAS,and TCM pattern element identification scale for depression(P<0.05).After 4-week treatment,the observation group had an increased serum BDNF protein content,higher than that in the control group(P<0.05)and had no significant difference compared to the healthy group(P>0.05). Conclusion:Compared to the use of oral paroxetine alone,acupuncture plus paroxetine can produce more significant efficacy in treating mild-to-moderate depression and act faster in improving sleep disorder and anxiety-somatic symptoms;increasing the serum BDNF protein content may be a part of the mechanism underlying its antidepressant actions.

Objective To evaluate the value of measuring ankle brachial index (ABI) for diagnosing peripheral arterial disease(PAD)compared with conventional digital subtraction angiography (DSA) as the reference standard.Methotis A total of 383 consecutive inpatients (245 male.mean age 64.1 ±11.7 years) underwent both conventional DSA and ABI measurements.Results The rate of statin intervention was 90.9%,ACEI 69.2%,antiplatelet 96.6% and β-blockers 67.9%.The intravascular stenosis was classified into six degrees:normal,<30%,30%-49%,50%-69%,70%-89% and≥90%.Compared to the traditional gold standard (DSA) in diagnosis PDA.the ABI value decreased in proportion to the sevefity of PAD (the ABI value was 1.08±0.11,1.05±0.16,0.99±0.17,0.66±0.24,0.55±0.28 and 0.54±0.00 respectively in the six ranks).There was a significant correlation between DSA and ABI in diagnosis PAD.Conclusion ABI measurement is an accurate and reliable non-invasive altemative to conventional DSA in the assessment of lower extremity arteries in patients with peripheral arterial disease.

OBJECTIVETo study the possible etiological role of MLH1 gene 415G/C polymorphism in sporadic Chinese colorectal cancer (CRC) patients.

METHODSNinety-seven sporadic CRC patients and 138 normal controls were collected from Hubei Provincial Cancer Hospital and the People's Hospital of Wuhan University. In addition, five CRC families including 6 patients and their 19 first-degree relatives were also recruited. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood samples. Gene mutation was analyzed by PCR-RFLP. MLH1 mRNA expression in colorectal mucosa was analyzed by RT-PCR.

RESULTSThe frequency of MLH1 gene CC genotype was significantly higher in sporadic CRC patients than that in controls (P=0.035, OR=5.29, 95% CI: 1.07-26.04). In the CRC families, the C allele frequency of CRC patients and their relatives was increased, compared with sporadic CRC patients and normal controls, respectively (P=0.003 and P=0.006). MLH1 mRNA expression of colorectal mucosa was similar in different genotypes.

CONCLUSIONMLH1 gene 415G/C polymorphism might be a risk factor to sporadic CRC in Chinese. The mutation does not affect the MLH1 mRNA expression. For first-degree relatives from CRC families, carriers of MLH1 415C allele have a high risk to CRC.

Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing ; genetics ; Adult ; Aged ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; genetics ; Base Sequence ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; genetics ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; MutL Protein Homolog 1 ; Nuclear Proteins ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the relationship between uric acid (UA) and peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in Chinese patients with coronary heart disease (CHD).

METHODSUA levels and PAD were evaluated in 3251 Chinese hospitalized patients with CHD (age > or = 50 years). PAD was diagnosed when the ankle-brachial index was < 0.9 but patients with an ankle-brachial index of > 1.4 were excluded because of false negative rate. Potential confounding variables with P < 0.10 were adjusted for multivariate analysis.

RESULTSIn univariate analysis, UA levels were higher in patients with PAD than in those without PAD (349.80 micromol/L +/- 128.45 micromol/L vs. 323.00 micromol/L +/- 110.72 micromol/L, P < 0.001). Rate of hyperuricemia in patients with PAD and without PAD were 31.62% and 22.48% (P < 0.001) respectively. Prevalence rates of PAD for quintiles of UA level were 23.2%, 27.4%, 36.1%, 43.2% and 72.7%, respectively (P-trend < 0.05). With UA level as a continuous variable, the multivariate-adjusted odds ratio for PAD was 1.002 (95% confidence interval: 1.001 - 1.002) (P < 0.001). The optimal cut-off point for UA as determined by the receiver operating characteristic curve, was 227.2 micromol/L. The sensitivity and specificity at this cut-off point were 84.6% and 20.3%, respectively. The area under curve was 0.521 (95% confidence interval: 0.504 - 0.547) and the multivariate-adjusted odds ratio for PAD for UA above this level was 1.292 (95% confidence interval: 1.047 - 1.596) (P < 0.01). The results, however, after exclusion those cases who used diuretics, were similar.

CONCLUSIONElevated uric acid level seemed a significant and independent risk factor for PAD in Chinese hospitalized patients with CHD (age > or = 50 years).

Analysis of Variance ; Ankle Brachial Index ; China ; Coronary Disease ; blood ; complications ; Humans ; Hyperuricemia ; complications ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; Peripheral Vascular Diseases ; etiology ; Prevalence ; ROC Curve ; Risk Factors ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Uric Acid ; blood

OBJECTIVETo investigate the prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) and glucose abnormalities in patients with ischemic chronic heart failure (CHF).

METHODSA total of 1004 hospitalized eligible patients from 52 hospitals in 7 Chinese cities were included in this study.

RESULTSIn this survey, 420 out of 1004 patients had DM history (41.8%), 175 patients were newly diagnosed as DM (17.4%), 208 patients (20.7%) had impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). NYHA grade increases in proportion to severity of abnormal glucose metabolism [(r(s)) = 0.17, P = 0.001]. After adjustment of age and other factors, logistic regression analyses showed risk of suffering severe CHF symptoms (NYHA III/IV) increases with the severity of abnormal glucose metabolism: OR, 1.2, 95% CI: 0.7 - 1.7 in patients with IGT; 1.4, 95% CI: 0.9 - 2.1 in the newly diagnosed DM patients and 1.7, 95% CI: 1.2 - 2.4 in the DM history group, respectively.

CONCLUSIONSHigh prevalence of abnormal glucose metabolism was observed in patients with chronic ischemic hear failure and the severity of abnormal glucose metabolism was closely related to NYHA symptom grade.

Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Blood Glucose ; metabolism ; China ; Coronary Disease ; complications ; epidemiology ; metabolism ; Diabetes Mellitus ; epidemiology ; Female ; Glucose Intolerance ; epidemiology ; Heart Failure ; complications ; epidemiology ; metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors

With the increasing application of immune checkpoint inhibitors(ICI)in anti-tumor therapy,ICI related infections are often neglected.Mycobacterium tuberculosis(MTB)is also a common pathogen.We reported a case of ICI related pulmonary tuberculosis from Zhongshan Hospital,Fudan University.Meanwhile,18 cases of ICI related tuberculosis infection were collected through literature search,and the characteristics of ICI related tuberculosis were analyzed to improve the understanding in clinic practice.All the cases were confirmed TB including 15 cases of pulmonary tuberculosis(1 case with complication of intestinal tuberculosis)and 4 cases of extra-pulmonary tuberculosis(1 case of disseminated tuberculosis,bone tuberculosis,tuberculous pericarditis and tuberculous pleurisy,respectively).The chest CT characteristics of pulmonary tuberculosis mainly included centrilobular nodules,ground glass nodules,empty lesions,patchy shadows,consolidation and large infiltration.Eighteen cases started anti-tuberculosis treatment,while 4 cases continued ICI treatment.Three cases suspended ICI(2 cases had remission after reuse)and 11 cases stopped ICI,and 1 case was not mentioned.ICI related tuberculosis may be a direct complication of tumor immunotherapy.It is necessary to screen tuberculosis infection and exclude active tuberculosis before immunotherapy.If there are suspected symptoms such as fever,cough and sputum during ICI treatment,active tuberculosis should be taken into account.

Objective To investigate the prevalence of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and correlative risk factors among natural population in China. Methods Ankle brachial index ( ABI) was measured by trained doctors and related data were collected in residents from Beijing, Shanghai, Changsha, Guangdong, Neimenggu, and Xinjiang selected through cluster multistage and random sampling method. PAD was defined as an ABI ≤ 0. 9 in either leg. Results The prevalence of PAD among 21 152 eligible participants was 3. 08% , the standardized prevalence was 3. 04%. The prevalence in males and females was 2. 52% and 3. 66% and the standardized prevalence was 1. 84% and 4. 31% respectively, the prevalence rate was significantly lower in males than that in females (P < 0. 01). The prevalence in both males and females increased significantly in proportion to aging ( P < 0. 01 ) . The prevalence in Han Chinese was significantly higher than that in non-Han Chinese ( P < 0. 01). Logistic regression analysis showed that older age, female gender, Han Chinese, waist circumference, smoking, lipid disorder, diabetes mellitus, coronary artery disease and a history of ischemic stroke were associated with the increased prevalence of PAD. Incidence of known PAD was 1.38% in this cohort. Conclusions Older age, female gender, Han Chinese, waist circumference, smoking, lipid disorder, diabetes mellitus, coronary artery disease and a history of ischemic stroke were associated with the increased prevalence of PAD in natural Chinese population.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the risk factors for peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and the relationship of low ankle brachial index (ABI) to all-cause and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality in Chinese male patients with hypertension.

METHODSThe data of 1606 male participants with hypertension from the eight hospitals in Beijing and Shanghai were analyzed. ABI was ascertained at baseline by measuring the systolic pressures on bilateral brachial and tibial arteries. ABI < or = 0.9 was used as the diagnostic criteria for PAD identification. The follow-up survey was conducted from November 2005 to January 2006.

RESULTSOf 1606 male participants with hypertension at baseline, 406 (25.3% ) were in low-ABI group and 1200 (74.7%) were in normal-ABI group. Older age, TC, history of diabetes, history of smoking and 2-grade hypertension were associated with low ABI in male patients with hypertension. During the (12.87 +/- 2.94) months follow-up, there were 153 deaths. Of which, 62 were attributable to CVD. Low ABI was associated with adjusted all-cause and CVD mortality risk of 1.728 (1.223-2.441) and 2.388 (1.409-4.046) respectively in Cox regression models. Rate of survival for the low-ABI group was significantly worse than for the normal-ABI group. The risk of all-cause and CVD mortality was increased with the decline of ABI.

CONCLUSIONLow ABI is independently associated with the high risks of all-cause and CVD mortality in Chinese male patients with hypertension. The utility of ABI as a tool for predicting mortality in the patients with hypertension should be popularized.

Ankle Brachial Index ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; mortality ; China ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Hypertension ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Male ; Risk Factors