Objective To detect the expression of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) gene in peripheral blood of patients with oral paraquat (PQ) poisoning and evaluate its predictive value for their prognosis.Methods Thirty-seven cases of oral PQ poisoning admitted to Linyi People's Hospital from January 2013 to June 2014 were enrolled,and they were divided into survival group (26 cases) and death group (11 cases) according to the survival sitnation in 28 days after poisoning;a healthy control group included 10 healthy people selected in the same period.The peripheral blood 3 mL was collected from each PQ patient on the 1st and 3rd day after admission,and in the healthy control group,3 mL peripheral venous blood was obtained under fast on the day for physical examination.The MMP-9 gene expression of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was detected by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) methods;the serum MMP-9 concentration was determined by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA);the serum PQ level was detected by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC),and the amount of poison orally taken was recorded.The correlations between PQ amount orally taken,serum PQ level and MMP-9 expression were analyzed by Spearman correlation analysis.A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn to evaluate the predictive value of peripheral blood MMP-9 level for the 28-day prognosis of PQ poisoning patients.Results After admission the 1 day serum PQ level was (2.60 ± 1.29) mg/L,and the amount of poison taken was 50.0 (7.5,60.0) mL in the 37 patients with oral PQ poisoning.The MMP-9 gene expression level in PBMCs and serum MMP-9 protein level of both PQ poisoning groups were significantly higher than those of healthy control group,and the levels were gradually increased with the extension of poisoning time;the degrees of elevation in death group were more significant [the PBMCs' MMP-9 gene expression (A value):2.84± 1.16 vs.0.95 ± 0.23 on the 1st poisoning day,4.22± 1.75 vs.1.29 ±0.30 on the 3rd poisoning day;serum MMP-9 concentration (μg/L):2791.48± 1 230.88 vs.807.81±279.86 on the 1st poisoning day,4384.21 ± 1 781.97 vs.1 131.14±291.76 on the 3rd poisoning day,all P ＜ 0.05].Correlation analysis showed:there were significant positive correlations of oral PQ amount,serum PQ concentration to the MMP-9 gene expression in PBMCs and serum MMP-9 protein concentration in patients with oral PQ poisoning (all P =0.000).ROC curve analysis showed:the MMP-9 gene expression in PBMCs on the 1st day and the serum MMP-9 content on the 3rd day after admission had predictive value for 28-day prognosis in patients with oral PQ poisoning,and the ROC areas under the curve (AUC) was 0.820 and 0.776 respectively.When the cutoff value of MMP-9 gene expression level on the 1st day after admission was 0.90,the predictive sensitivity and specificity were 80.00％ and 63.64％ respectively;when the cutoff value of serum MMP-9 protein content on the 3rd day after admission was 904.36 μg/L,the predictive sensitivity and specificity were 80.00％ and 72.73％ respectively.Conclusion Oral PQ poisoning can lead to the MMP-9 gene expression in PBMCs and elevation of serum MMP-9 protein level in the body,and the MMP-9 gene expression has predictive value for the prognosis of patients with oral PQ poisoning.

[ ABSTRACT] AIM:To investigate the characteristics of the intestinal microbial flora in the pregnant women with congenital heart disease fetus ( PW group) and normal pregnant women ( NW group) .METHODS: Stool samples were collected from 15 NW and 17 PW cases.The bacterial genomic DNA was extracted.The 16S rDNA was amplified by PCR, and the second generation of Illumina sequencing was conducted.RESULTS: We obtained 2 696 276 ( NW group) and 2 445 530 ( PW group) optimized sequences.The coverage was greater than 97%.We obtained 77 243 operational taxono-mic units ( OTUs) in NW group and 75 600 OTUs in PW group after a 97%similarity merge.In NW group, the Chao 1 in-dex and the Shannon index were greater than those in PW group.The diversity analysis of microbial population indicated that they were mainly composed of Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria.In family, the Bifidobacteriaceae and Cori-obacteriaceae were significantly different through analysis of variance.CONCLUSION: The Bifidobacteriaceae and Cori-obacteriaceae may play an important role in the occurrence of congenital heart disease.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the efficacy and experience in right ventricular pacing-percutaneous balloon aortic valvuloplasty (RVP-PBAV) for congenital aortic stenosis (AS).

METHODA total of sixteen children with AS accepted the treatment with RRVP-PBAV. The patients were at ages 6 months to 15 years, their median age was 5.4 years. Their body weight was between 8.5 and 59.0 kg, average (22.3 ± 16.5) kg. The gradient pressure across the aortic valve was measured for all the patients and aortic regurgitation was observed. The follow-up time ranged from 1 month to 5.5 years.

RESULTAll patients underwent RVP-PBAV successfully. The ratios of balloon/valve were 0.86 to 1.12. The gradient pressure varied from preoperative Δp = (96 ± 32) mmHg (1 mmHg = 0.133 kPa) to the immediate postoperative ΔP = (41 ± 26) mmHg, (P < 0.05). One case had postoperative restenosis, and 3 cases were complicated with bicuspid aortic valve deformity.

CONCLUSIONThe treatment with RVP-PBAV for congenital aortic stenosis is safe and reliable. Rapid ventricular pacing is a safe procedure to stabilize the balloon during balloon aortic valvuloplasty and may decrease the incidence of aortic insufficiency.

Adolescent ; Aorta ; Aortic Valve ; abnormalities ; Aortic Valve Insufficiency ; Aortic Valve Stenosis ; therapy ; Balloon Valvuloplasty ; methods ; Body Weight ; Cardiac Surgical Procedures ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart Defects, Congenital ; Heart Valve Diseases ; Heart Ventricles ; Humans ; Infant ; Postoperative Period ; Treatment Outcome ; Vascular Malformations