Objective To investigate the correlations of body mass index (BMI) with plasma apelin, waist-hip ratio (WHR), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbAlc), biochemical indicator, blood fat and ultrasonic cardiogram (UCG) figures in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF).Methods A total of 41 elderly CHF patients (20 males and 21 females, aged 66.0±12.3 years) were divided into 3 groups according to BMI: normal group (n= 16), overweight group (n=13) and obese group (n= 12).And they were also divided into 2 subgroups: grade Ⅲ heart function group (n=22) and grade Ⅳ heart function group (n= 19).Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect the levels of plasma apelin, and BMI, WHR, C-reactive protein (CRP), FPG, creatine kinase (CK), CK-MB, blood fat, electrolyte and UCG of all patients were detected .Results There were significant differences in waist circumference, hip circumference and WHR among the 3 groups (P<0.05 or P<0.01).But there were no significant differences in high density lipoprotein (HDL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), FPG, HbAlc, CK, CK-MB, potassium, sodium, CRP, left ventricular internal diameter at end-diastole (LVIDd), left ventricular internal diameter at end-diastole (LVIDs), interventricular septal thickness at end diastole (IVSd) and left ventrieular ejection fraction (LVEF) among the 3 groups (all P> 0.05).The apelin level was higher in obese group than in normal group and in overweight group ((0.48±0.15) mg/L vs.(0.18±0.15) mg/L and (0.27±0.06) mg/L, both P<0.01].And the plasma apelin level was higher in grade Ⅳ heart function group than in grade Ⅲ heart function group [(0.35±0.16) mg/L vs.(0.26±0.13)mg/L, P<0.05].The level of plasma apelin was positively correlated with BMI, white blood cell, CK, hemoglobin and TG, and was negatively correlated with cardiac function and LVEF.The influencing factors for the plasma apelin were BMI (β=0.672, P<0.01), age (β=0.244, P<0.05) and HDL (β=-1.000, P<0.01).Conclusions The plasma apelin level is closely correlated with the development of heart failure.Cardiac dysfunction is more severer when the level of plasma apelin is higher.The high level of plasma apelin may be one of factors for the higher survival rate of the obese CHF patients.Plasma apelin level may be used as an indicator of state of illness.

AIM:To study the effect of captopril on calcineurin and NF-?B p65 in the signal transduction pathway of the cardiovascular remodeling in hypertensive rats.METHODS:Using a animal model of hypertension induced by abdominal aortic banding,the rats were treated with captopril for 10 weeks.The blood pressure was observed with a tail cuff method.The heart weight and heart weight/body weight were measured.The expression of calcineurin and NF-?B p65 were studied by using immunohistochemistry.RESULTS:After treated with captopril,the blood pressure of the model rats was decreased(P

OBJECTIVE To improve the knowledge on the early diagnosis and treatment of the isolated fungus ball sphenoid sinusitis.METHODS A retrospe ctive study was made on10cases of isolated fungus ball sphenoid sinusitis to discuss the clinical manifestation,radiographic features and treatment with endoscopic sinus surgery.RESULTS The common symptoms in10cases were headache and/or bloody nasal discharge.Radiographic features of the disease were a soft tissue image occupying the sphenoid sinus with bones wall thickening.A soft tissue image with calcification in the sphenoid sinus was the feature of CT image.All the patients were treated by nasal endoscopic sinus surgery and cured after followed up for3to18.CONCLUSION Isolated fungus ball sphenoid sinusitis was difficult to diagnose in early stage because of its non-specif ic symptoms.The nasal endoscopy and CT scan make the early diagnosis possible.The diagnosis can be def initely confi rmed by pathological studies.Treatment with endoscopic sinus surgery is an effective method for fungus ball sphenoid sinusitis.

Objective To investigate the clinical characteristic and the predicting value of plasma Apelin in elderly patients with sepsis.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted in 26 sepsis patients aged (72.9±9.7) years in average and 30 healthy controls.Serum Apelin level was measured by ELISA.Body mass index (BMI) and C-reaction protein (CRP) were detected.Patients were divided into survival group (n=18) and death group (n 8).According to acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE) Ⅱ,patients were divided into subgroup A (n=14,APACHE Ⅱ score≤20) and subgroup B (n=12,APACHE Ⅱ score＞20).Results The Apelin concentration was higher in sepsis patients than in healthy controls [(0.38±0.15)ng/L vs.(0.19±0.12)ng/L,t=2.011,P＜0.05].The Apelin concentration was lower in survival group than in death group[(0.21 ± 0.29)ng/L vs.(0.49 ± 0.32) ng/L,t =2.094,P＜0.05].The Apelin level was increased with APACHE Ⅱ scores increment in sepsis patients (P＜0.05).Multivariable logistic analysis showed that when taking survival/death as the dependent variable and Apelin as the independent variable,the ()R value was 4.162 with 95％ CI:1.115-15.535(P＜0.05).Conclusions Increased serum Apelin level reflects the severity of illness in patients with sepsis,which is a risk factor for death in prognosis of sepsis.

Objective To study whether citrate lock is superior to heparin lock in the prevention of catheter related infections,bleeding complications and catheter malfunctions among hemodialysis patients with tunneled catheters.Methods By searching in Pubmed,the Cochrane Library,EMBASE,Ovid,WanFang,VIP,CNKI and CBM databases as well as related journals,qualified randomized controlled trials were included in a Meta-analysis using Revman 5.0 and STATA 10.0 software.The endpoints included catheter related infection,bleeding complication,thrombolytic treatment,catheter removal for malfunction,catheter thrombosis and all-cause death.Results Fifteen randomized controlled trials were included with 1621 patients involved.Eight studies compared citrate alone with heparin lock,while 7 trials focused on citrate in combination with other antimicrobials.Pooled analysis demonstrated that incidence of catheter related infections in patients receiving citrate lock decreased by 47％ compared with those on heparin (RR=0.53,95％CI 0.36-0.77,P ＜ 0.01).Subgroup analysis by types of citrate lock indicated that all combined lock solutions of citrate and other antimicrobials (citrate + gentamicin,citrate + taurolidine,citrate + methylene blue +methylparaben + propylparaben) were superior to heparin lock in preventing catheter-related infections (P =0.01,0.04,0.01,respectively); citrate alone seemed to reduce catheter-related infection risk (RR =0.68),but no statistically significant difference was observed (95％CI 0.38-1.21,P=0.19).There were fewer patients with bleeding complications in citrate group (RR =0.53,95％ CI 0.34-0.S4,P ＜ 0.01),while citrate showed no advantage over heparin lock in terms of thrombolytic treatment (P =0.93),catheter removal for malfunction (P =0.35),catheter thrombosis (P =0.64) and all-cause death (P =0.35).Conclusions For hemodialysis patients with tunneled catheters,combined lock solutions of citrate and other antimicrobials,rather than citrate alone,are superior to heparin in preventing catheter related infections.Citrate locks are associated with less bleeding complications,and are comparable to heparin in the maintenance of catheter patency.

Objective To conduct a pilot study on genome-wide in vivo protein-RNA interactions in E.coli.Methods Bacterial lysate was treated with RNase before the RNA fragments protected by proteins were extracted from treated lysate and used to construct cDNA library that was applied to high-throughput sequencing .Finally, the transcripts bound by proteins were obtained by bioinformatics analysis .Results A total of 3193 transcripts were obtained , including 2234 mRNAs, 47 sRNAs, 39 tRNAs, 11 rRNAs, and 862 intergenic regions .Conclusion Some information of transcripts interacting with proteins in E.coli is acquired , which will facilitate further studies of protein-RNA interactions .

Objective:To investigate the effect of carvedilol on expression of cardiac matrix metalloproteinases(MMPs)and tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases(TIMPs)after myocardial infarction in rats.Methods:An animal model of acute myocar- dial infarction(AMI)was established by descending left coronary artery ligation in 24 rats and they were divided into carvedilol (10 mg?kg~(-1)?d~(-1))group(n=12)and normal saline group(n=12).Sham operated group(n=9)received the same proce- dure but with no ligation.All animals were treated for 6 weeks via a gastric lavage.Heart function and hemodynamic parame- ters were determined after 6 weeks.The protein expression of cardiac MMP-2,MMP-9 and TIMP-2 was detected by immuno- histoehemical analysis in AMI groups,and the MMPs activities were assessed by zymography.Gene expression of myocardial MMPs/TIMPs(MMP-2,9 and TIMP-1,2)and cytokines(TNF-?,IL-1?)were measured by real-time quantitative PCR.Re- suits:Compared with Sham-operated group,earvedilol group had significantly higher left ventricular end-diastolic pressure(LV- EDP)and lower LV upstroke velocity(+dp/dt_(max))and LV descent velocity(-dp/dt_(max))(P

Objective To study the efficacy and safety of tacalcitol combined with monochromatic excimer light (MEL) 308 nm vs MEL 308 nm monotherapy in treating vitiligo.Methods Thirty-eight pa- tients with vitiligo were enrolled in the single-blind clinical trial,using plabebo-treated lesions in the same patient as controls.Contralateral or nearby lesions were randomly selected to be treated by either tacalcitol or placebo.All lesions were treated weekly with MEL 308 nm,for a total of 12 sessions.Patients were ex- amined at monthly intervals.The mean number of sessions and the cumulative dosage for initial and excel- lent repigrnentation were calculated.Results Thirty-five patients were evaluated.The mean?SEM cumu- lative dose and number of MEL exposures for initial repigmentation,respectively,were 4.27?3.59 J/cm~2 and 4.89?3.16 on tacalcitol-treated site,5.36?4.12 J/cm~2 and 5.69?3.29 on placebo-treated site,re- spectively (both P＜0.05).For excellent repigrnentation,the cumulative dose and number of exposures were 7.72?5.64 J/cm~2 and 7.79?4.70 respectively on tacalcitol-treated site,and 8.18?4.87 J/cm~2 and 8.4?3.92 respectively on placebo-treated site (both P＞0.05).Treatment with tacalcitol resulted in a sig- nificantly higher percentage (71.4% vs 54.3%) of repigmentation than that with placebo.Conclusions Our results show that MEL 308 nm is safe and effective for the treatment of vitiligo.Additionally,concur- rent topical tacalcitol potentiates the efficacy of MEL 308 nm in the treatment of vitiligo;this combination achieves more rapid pigmentation with a lower total MEL dosage.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of monochromatic excimer light (MEL) 308 nm in the treatment of vitiligo. Methods Seventy-seven patients were enrolled in the prospective and open clinical study. Two-hundred and one lesions were subjected to local phototherapy of MEL 308-nm once a week for 3 to 6 months. Results Of these lesions, 86.6% obtained repigmentation at different degrees. The repigmentation was more obvious in lesions on the head, face, neck and trunk than in those on the limbs or extremities. Moreover, patients with generalized and segmental vitiligo got a better improvement than patients with other types of vitiligo. Conclusion MEL 308-nm is effective in the treatment of vitiligo without obvious adverse effects.

Objective To study the import way of schistosomiasis and the vector snail in Three Gorges Reservoir areas (TGR), so as to provide the reference for the surveillance, early warning of schistosomiasis.Methods A total of 256 movement population in Badong County and Zigui County and 1584 immigrants from TGR to the endemic area of Hubei Province were investigated by questionnaire, and screened by means of IHA and COPT. The farm cattle were surveyed in Badong County and Zigui County. Production of paper mills, the source of papermaking raw material, flowers and trees in gardens were investigated for snail survey. At the same time, current situation of immigrants in TGR was investigated. Social data (statistic yearbook, etc) and policy data of development of TGR were collected. Results No farm cattle from endemic area of schistosomiasis was found. In Hubei reach of TGR, the movenment population were mainly from the endemic area of schistosomiasis in Hubei Province. The positive rate of both IHA and COPY was 0 57%(1/175); the positive rate of both IHA in emigrants from TGR was 1 01%(12/1186). No Oncomelania snail was found in the introduced flowers and trees in garden. In paper mills, no reed from the endemic area of schistosomiasis was found. Migrants′ living and sanitary condition were improved after moving,but the production was not well arranged. Orange industry, travel industry, animal husbandry and fishery should be developed preferentially in the future. Conclusion Migrants from TGR to the endemic area of schistosomiasis and the movement population will be the mainly infection source. The problem on cattle as the infection source should be paid attention. It can't be excluded that snail will enter TGR together with the raw material for paper mills or flowers and trees. To develop orange industry will be good for the control of schistosomiasis; but the development of animal husbandry, fishery and travel industry will increase the risk of import of the infection source and snails to TGR.