BACKGROUND:Ideal tissue-engineered urinary tract should have good mechanical properties to bear long-term attack of urine and excretion. Muscular conduit of urinary tract in static culture exerts poor strength. It is reported that mechanical stimuli promote cellular growth and secretion of extracellular matrix. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the feasibility of constructing tissue-engineered muscular conduit of urinary tract in bioreactor. METHODS:Adipose-derived stem cells were harvested by col agen enzyme method. After series culture and expansion in vitro, flow cytometric analysis was carried out to detect the immunophenotypes of adipose-derived stem cells. Then the cel-polyglycolic acid complex was constructed by seeding adipose-derived stem cells on polyglycolic acid fibers. After 1 week of in vitro culture, cel-polyglycolic acid complex was cultured in a bioreactor. The experimental group was subjected to pulsatile stimuli, while the control group was cultured in static state. After 3 weeks of in vitro culture in basic medium, the cel-polyglycolic acid complex was induced in the induced culture medium for 4 weeks, and then engineered tissue was examined both grossly and histological y. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Flow cytometry demonstrated that the adipose-derived stem cells expressed CD90 (99.42%), CD44 (98.12%) and CD105 (93.27%), but not CD34 (4.92%) or CD45 (0.38%). In the experimental group, tissue-engineered muscular conduit of urinary tract appeared bright color with a round lumen. Immunohistochemical staining showed that after cel-polyglycolic acid complex was induced for 4 weeks, the cells expressed desmin and α-smooth muscle actin. More col agen was found in the complex. In contrast, the control group appeared pale surface and its lumen col apsed slightly. Less col agen was in the complex. Tissue-engineered muscular conduit of urinary tract with good structure can be constructed in a bioreactor.

Objective To investigate the significance of PI3K/AKT signal transduetion pathway in gastrointestinal stromal tumors(GIST).Methods The expression of PI3K、Akt、PTEN were detected with RT-PCR and Westem-blot of tumor specimens from 124 GIST cases and the corresponding normal gastric mucosa.Results In gastrointestinal stromal tumors,the tumor suppressor gene-PTEN was on low expression as with the inereased expression of PI3K and Akt.The positive expression rate of PTEN,PI3K and Akt was not statistically correlated with patients'demographics and tumor histological type,but they are significantly correlated with lymphatic metastasis and mucosal invasion.The expression of PI3 K and Akt are of significantly positive correlation(r=0.292,P=0.031).The expression of PI3K and PTEN are of significantly negetive correlation(r=-0.412,P=0.036).The expression of PTEN and Akt are of significantly negetive correlation(r=-0.386,P=0.024).Conclusion PI3 K/Akt and P,PTEN may have bean on reciprocally suppressive effect during the development of GIST.

Objective To study the expression of HIF-1α and bcl-XL in gastric cancer and their relationship with tumor angiogenesis,clinicopathologic feature and prognosis.Methods Immunohistochemical technique was used to detect the expression of HIF-1α and bcl-XL in 54 cases of gastric canoer.SPSS 12.0 software was used to analyze the relationship between the expression of HIF-1α, bcl-XL and tumor angiogenesis,clinicopathologic feature of patients.Results The positive expression rate of HIF-1α in gastric cancer(74.07%) was significantly higher than that in normal gastric tissue(0),P＜0.01;The expression of HIF-1α in gastric cancer was significantly associated with TNM stage,invasive depth and lymph-node metastasis,P＜0.05 or P＜0.01;The positive expression rate of bcl-XL in gastric cancer(53.7%) was significantly higher than that in normal gastric tissue(33.3%),P＜0.05;The expression of bcl-XL in gastric cancer was significantly associated with histological types,TNM stage and lymph-node metastasis,P＜0.05;There was a positive correlation between expression of HIF-1α and bcl-XL (r=0.41,P＜0.05).Conclusion HIF-1α and bcl-XL play a very important role in the development in gastric cancer and could be a factor in diagnosis of gastric cancer and estimation of prognosis.

Background Angiogenesis is an essential event for the growth and mobility of malignant tumors,but there is little literature about the effects of anoxia and angiogenesis-related factors on angiogenesis in choroidal melanoma.Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of angiogeneic factors such as hypoxia inducible factor-1α(HIF-1α),inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS),cyclooxygenase-2(COX-2),and vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)in choroidal melanoma and their clinical significance.Methods The specimens from 44 cases of choroidal melanoma and 16 cases of eyelid nevi identified by pathology were collected.Immunohistochemistry SP was used to examine the expression of HIF-1α,iNOS,COX-2 and VEGF in the samples.The expression of HIF-1 α,iNOS,COX-2 and VEGF in tumors with different sizes,different pathological types and different growth patterns was evaluated.The correlations among these four proteins in tumor growth and development were assessed.Results The expression of HIF-1α,iNOS,COX-2 and VEGF in choroidal melanoma were significantly higher than those in the eyelid nevi group(x2 =6.58,4.105,8.350,13.240,P＜0.05).The expression of VEGF was associated with tumor size(x2 =9.389,P＜0.05),but not associated with pathological types(x2 =1.186,P＞0.05)and infiltration depth(x2 =5.398,P＞ 0.05).The expression of HIF-1α was associated with tumor size(x2=8.664,P＜0.05)and pathological type(x2=6.622,P ＜ 0.05),but not associated with infiltration depth(x2=4.914,P＞0.05).The expression of iNOS was associated with tumor size(x2 =8.609,P＜0.05),but was not associated withpathological type(x2 =4.789,P＞0.05)and infiltration depth(x2 =4.309,P＞0.05).The expression of COX-2 was associated with tumor size(x2 =7.320,P＜0.05),but was not associated with pathological type(x2 =2.772,P＞0.05)and infiltration depth(x2 =2.103,P＞0.05).The expression of HIF-1 α,iNOS,and COX-2 were significantly correlated with the expression of VEGF(r =0.943,1.000,0.986,P ＜ 0.05).The expression of COX-2 was significantly correlated with the expression of iNOS(r =0.986,P＜0.05).The expression of HIF-1 α was significantly associated with the expression of COX-2(r=0.986,P＜O.05).The expression of HIF-1α was significantly associated with the expression of iNOS(r=0.943,P＜0.05).Conclusions The expressions of the HIF-1 α,iNOS,COX-2 and VEGF protein are up-regulated in choroidal melanoma.They may play important roles in the angiogenesis of the choroidal melanoma.Assessment of the expression of HIF-1α,iNOS and COX-2 may be useful for the diagnosis and therapy of choroidal melanoma.

″Herb-Pairs″, also known as pair drugs, refers to a prescription consisted of two relatively fixed traditional Chinese medicine, is the most basic, most simple and most common form of medication prescription in traditional Chinese medicine compound compatibility. It is not a random combination of two herbs, nor is the simple accumulation of efficacy, but the simple and delicate experience of ancient Chinese medicine practitioners. As a bridge between single drug and prescriptions, it is the embodiment of the regular and dialectical connotation. Therefore, research on Herb-Pairs has always been the most basic and most important entry point for compound compatibility studies. However, the interaction between herbs and herbs is an effect with a downside as well as benefits. The beneficial herb-herb interaction in Herb-Pairs include mutual promotion, mutual enhancement, mutual restraint between two drugs and counteract toxicity of another drug. And the harmful herb- herb interaction in Herb- Pairs includes mutual inhibition and antagonism. All of these interactions areby means of affecting the metabolism of components to play a therapeutic effect. Using the pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) binding model, the combination of drug metabolism and pharmacodynamics can further elucidate the influence on effect caused by drug concentration and metabolism, which can help elucidate the mechanism of drug action. Consequently, in this review, the herb-herb interactions in terms of pharmacokinetic were summarized to elucidate rule of TCM compatibility.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the efficacy and safety of tiaogan Lipi Recipe (TLR) in treating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) patients of Gan stagnation Pi deficiency syndrome (GSP-DS).

METHODSA randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was performed. Totally 99 NAFLD patients of GSPDS were randomly allocated into two groups, 66 patients in the treatment group (treated with-TLR, one dose per day) and 33 patients in the control group (treated with placebos, one dose per day). The therapeutic course for all was 12 weeks. All patients received lifestyle interventions including moderate aerobic exercise, moderate caloric restriction, and dietary changes. Clinical symptoms, CT indices, liver functions and blood lipids were observed before and after treatment.

RESULTSAfter 12 weeks of treatment, the total score of clinical symptoms decreased in the two groups (P <0. 01), and it was lower in the treatment group than in the control group (P <0. 05). Liver/spleen CT ratio increased in the treatment group (P <0. 01), and it was higher in the treatment group than in the control group (P <0. 01). After treatment levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) all decreased in the treatment group (P <0. 05, P <0. 01), while levels of ALT decreased in the control group (P <0. 05). Besides, all the 3 levels mentioned above were lower in the treatment group than in the control group (P <0. 05). Levels of total cholesterol (CHO) and triglyceride (TG) decreased in the two groups (P <0. 05), and they were lower in the treatment group (P <0. 05). Total effective rates of TCM syndrome, abdominal CT, liver functions, and blood lipids were 79. 69% (51/64 cases), 54. 69% (35/64 cases), 67. 65% (23/34 cases), and 67. 39% (31/46 cases) in the treatment group, while they were 56. 25% (18/32 cases), 25. 00% (8/32 cases), 33. 33% (6/18 cases), and 55. 56% (10/18 cases) in the control group. All were superior in the treatment group (P <0.05, P <0.01, respectively).

CONCLUSIONTLR combined with lifestyle intervention could safely and effectively improve clinical symptoms of NAFLD patients of GSPDS, elevate liver/spleen CT ratios, and play a role in liver protection, anti-inflammation, and lowering blood lipids.

Alanine Transaminase ; metabolism ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; metabolism ; Cholesterol ; Double-Blind Method ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Lipids ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease ; drug therapy ; Syndrome ; Triglycerides ; gamma-Glutamyltransferase ; metabolism

Objective To find biological markers to predict the mathematical cognitive ability in order to set patients free from the pain and time-consuming behavioral tests. Methods 86 patients with stroke or brain traumatic injuries were recruited and acquired T1 and rest-ing-state functional MRI imaging data. And a mathematical task (7 calculation items, 2 counting items) and a word-reading task (140 items) was also finished. The partial correlative analysis was made between the score of mathematical task and the amplitude of low frequency fluc-tuation of each voxel of the whole brain with the word-reading performance as controlling task, and AlphaSim correction method was used with corrected P<0.05 (single voxel level:P<0.05;cluster size:>110 voxels). Results There were 5 cerebral regions whose amplitude of low frequency fluctuation significantly correlated with mathematical performance:left inferior parietal lobule (161 voxels, rpeak=0.34), left precu-neus/superior parietal lobule (141 voxels, rpeak=0.31), left middle temporal gyrus (359 voxels, rpeak=0.34), left middle frontal gyrus (491 vox-els, rpeak=0.36), and right middle frontal gyrus (156 voxels, rpeak=0.32). Conclusion The amplitude of low frequency fluctuation of left inferior parietal lobule, precuneus/superior parietal lobule, middle temporal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus, and right middle frontal gyrus could be used as predictors of mathematical cognitive ability for brain-damaged patients.

Alzheimer's disease is an irreversible neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive neuronal loss. To date, there has been no effective medicine or therapy for neurodegenerative disease. With development of stem cell technique and theory, neural stem cell transplantation has been found to be prospective in Alzheimer's disease treatment. However, it was challenged by the deficiency of autologous neural stem cell, which can bypass immunological barrier. Compared with neural stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells exhibit extensive resources, such as liver, bone marrow and adipose, and multiple differentiations into bone, muscle or adipose. Considering the easy access, the minor trauma to the patients, and the neuron differentiation potential of adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells (A-MSC), we hypothesize that A-MSC graft is a potential and innovative strategy for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

Objective To explore the effect of whole renal perfusion imaging removal of arterial phase data on perfusion parameters of renal clear cell carcinoma using Revolution CT.Methods Perfusion imaging with Revolution CT was retrospectively analyzed in 10 patients with pathologically proven clear cell renal cell carcinoma.The z-direction coverage model was used in perfusion imaging,and the images were analyzed with CT Perfusion 4D software.All images were analyzed twice.All 23 phases data was included in group A and only 16 phases except arterial data (9-15 phases) were selected in group B.The abdominal aorta on the level of right hilus was chosen to be the input artery,and the perfusion parameter maps were obtained,including blood flow (BF),blood volume (BV),mean transit time (MTT),permeability of surface (PS).Every perfusion parameters of lesions and contralateral normal cortex,lesions and normal cortex in both groups were compared.Results The BF and PS of lesions were lower than those of normal cortex in both groups (both P＜0.05).There was no statistical difference in BV and MTT between lesions and normal cortex in both groups (all P＞0.05).There was no statistical difference in all perfusion parameters of renal clear cell carcinoma between group A and group B (all P＞0.05).The difference of BF in normal cortex between the two groups was statistically significant (P 0.009),and the difference of the PS,BV,MTT had no statistically significant (all P＞0.05).Conclusion When the duration time of renal CTP is 600 s,there is no difference between including and excluding arterial phase in all perfusion parameters of renal clear cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the reliability, validity, and responsiveness of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) clinical outcomes rating scale for heart failure (HF) based on patients' report.

METHODSTCM clinical outcomes rating scale for HF (TCM-HF-PRO) were evaluated based on 340 HF patients' report from multiple centers. The completion of the investigation was recorded. Cronbach's α coefficient and split-half reliability were used for reliability analysis, and factor analysis was used to assess the construct validity of the rating scale. Pearson correlation analysis was then used for criterion validity analysis. Discriminant analysis was used to assess the responsiveness of the scale. All 340 HF patients having complete TCM-HF-PRO data were assigned to the treatment group and the control group by central randomization. The total TCM-HF-PRO scores of the two groups were compared using paired t-test to reflect the longitude responsiveness of the scale before treatment and at week 2 after treatment.

RESULTS(1) The recycling rate of the scale was 100.0%. One of them was not filled completely, which was rejected thereby. So the completion rate was 99.7%. The completion time for TCM-HF-PRO scale ranged 15 to 25 min. (2) The Cronbach's α coefficient of rating scale was 0.903, split-half reliability was 0.844 and 0.849. (3) Confirmatory factor analysis showed that 7 factors and items formed according to maximum load factor basically coincided with the construct of the rating scale, 7 factors accumulated contribution rate was 43.8%. TCM clinical outcomes rating scale for HF based on patients' report was relatively better correlated with the Minnesota living with HF questionnaire (r = 0.726, P < 0.01). (4) Discriminant analysis showed that the rating scale correctly classified more than 78.8% of case studies having confirmed initial differential diagnosis by experts. The total scale of the rating scale decreased more in the two group after treatment, with significant difference as compared with before treatment (P < 0.01.

CONCLUSIONTCM clinical outcomes rating scale for HF based on patients' report had good reliability, validity and responsiveness, hence it could be used to assess clinical efficacy for HF patients.

Diagnosis, Differential ; Discriminant Analysis ; Factor Analysis, Statistical ; Heart Failure ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; standards ; Reproducibility of Results ; Surveys and Questionnaires