Objective To investigate the value of Alzheimer-associated neuronal thread protein (AD7c-NTP) level in urine for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease (AD). Methods The urine samples of 450 subjects were collected from out-department of our hospital.There were 257 people with AD diseases (131 mild cases,126 moderate and severe cases) and 193 healthy control.ELISA was applied to test the level of AD7c-NTP in urine samples. Results The levels of AD7c-NTP were (1.94±0.74)μg/L,(3.92 ± 0.86 ) μg/L and (0.65 ± 0.80) μg/L in mild AD,moderate and severe AD,healthy control groups,respectively.There were differences among three groups(F=-13.520,P＜0.001),and between mild and moderate and severe AD(t =1.727,P＜ 0.001).The level of AD7c-NTP was negatively related with MMSE score in mild AD (r =- 0.23,P =0.006),while no correlation was found between AD7c-NTP and MMSE in moderate and severe AD(r=0.59,P =0.113).Using receiver operating characteristic curve(ROC curve),the optimal cutoff point of AD7cNTP in urine for diagnosis of AD was 1.50 μg/L,with 90.6％ sensitivity and 91.8％ specificity,area under the curve was 0.94(95％ CI:0.91-0.97). Conclusions The level of AD7c-NTP in urine may be one of parameters for diagnosing AD.

Objective To explore the effectiveness and safety of deep brain magnetic stimulation technique (dTMS) for treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD).Methods Totally 116 patients with AD were randomly divided into 4 groups:(1) dTMS:given dTMS really stimulation therapy,(2)medication group:treatment with donepezil 5 mg/d,(3) combination treatment group:given dTMS and donepezil therapy,(4) blank control group:given pseudorandom stimulation treatment.33 healthy control cases were given dTMS's stimulation treatment.The treatment course was 6 months.Application of mini mental state examination scale (MMSE),the Montreal cognitive assessment scale (MoCA),Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD),ischemic scale (HIS),Boston naming test,activity of daily living(ADL) and neuropsychological questionnaire (NPI) were used to evaluate the cognitive function.All the participants received blood tests and ECG in order to evaluate the safety of dTMS.Results After 6 months treatment,compair with the blank control group,all scale scoresof dTMS group,medication group and combined treatment group were improved significantly in MMSE (t=2.49,2.46,2.20),MoCA(t=2.59,2.39,2.87),ADL(t=2.35,2.17,2.83),NPI(t=3.05,2.40,2.65) and sub-cognitive scale score (all P＜0.05).All scale scores of combination treatment group were better than dTMS group and medication group (P＜0.05).There's no significant difference between drug treatment groups and dTMS group (P＞0.05).After 6 months treatment,compared with healthy control group,the scale scores were aggravated in 4 groups of AD (P＜0.05)Conclusions dTMS can be effective and safe in the treatment of AD patients with cognitive and noncognitive symptoms.

BACKGROUND: There are many drawbacks with hormone replacement therapy for menopausal syndrome. The blood levels of 5-HT and norepinephrine are lower. Fluoxetine hydrochlorde(ProzacR) is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor which is widely used in treating anxiety and depression,OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of combined antidepressant and estrogen therapy compared to estrogen alone in the treatment of perimenopausal syndrome in this prospective open study.DESIGN: Randomized comparative study.SETTING: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University PARTICIPANTS: From November 2003 to December 2004, 60 female patients with diagnosed menopausal syndrome of 3-12 month duration, aged (46±3) years, from Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University were enrolled into the study after giving their informed consents. The patients were randomly divided into two equal groups with Group 1 (n=30) receiving a combination of antidepressant + estrogen and Group 2 (n=30) receiving estrogen only.METHODS: Patients in Grgup 1 received fluoxetine hydrochloride (ProzacR) 20 mg orally every morning plus oral estradiol 1 mg once every two weeks for 2 months. Patients in Group 2 received only oral estradiol 1 mg once every two weeks for two months. Patients were not taking any other drug during the treatment period. At the end of two month treatment all patients were evaluated with the following 3 assessment tools: ①female menopausal symptom evaluation with the following 4 categories: Complete symptom relief, markedly improved, improved and no effect. Overall efficacy was defined as 50% symptom improvement. ② Hamilton Depression Scale which reflects energy level and psychosomatic factor of sleep and anxiety. ③Menopause index: Which are description of clinical evaluation and adverse effects; this would help to assess the safety of using both drugs in treating the menopausal syndrome.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: female menopausal symptom assessment, hamilton depression scale, and menopause index.RESULTS: ① In female menopausal symptom assessment group 1 showed better results in the complete relief and markedly improved scores. ②Hamilton Depression Scale group 1 also showed better scores than Group2(In Groupl, the scores at week 1 to 8 were 25,18,15,10,8,5,5,4 respectively ,in Group 2, the scores at week 1 to 8 were 25,17,15,14,13,12,13,13 respectively). ③ Group 3 showed a significant better score in the menopausal index with improvement in sleep disorder, anxiety and depression than Group 2 (In Group 1 the scores at week 1-8 were 32,22.5,15,15,14,15,15,14 respectively,In group 2, the scores at week 1 to 8were 33,21,16,14,13,12,13,13 respectively) ,there was no significant difference of incidence of adverse events as compared with Group 3 .CONCLUSION: Combined therapy of fluoxetire hydrochlarde(PROZAC)plus estrogen showed better efficacy in the treatment of menopausal syndrome than estrogen alone.

Objective To investigate the diagnostic significance of the difference values between Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA)in elderly patients with dementia.Methods 331 elderly patients with dementia were collected from outpatients in our hospital.There were 148 people with Alzheimer's disease (AD),87 cases with vascular dementia (VaD),44 cases with mixed dementia (MD),41 cases with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and 11 cases with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB).MMSE and MoCA were applied to test the cognitive impairment separately.Results The difference values between MMSE and MoCA was (3.3±1.7) points,(6.6±2.1) points,(6.6±2.1) points,(5.4±2.3) points,(6.1 ± 1.9) points in AD,VaD,MD,FTD and DLB group respectively,and there were statistical differences among the five groups (F=46.420,P=0.000).Statistical differences were found in the difference values between MMSE and MoCA between dementia patients with AD and non-AD (t=-13.429,P=0.000).According to receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC curve),the optimal cut off point of the difference values between MMSE and MoCA for differential diagnosis between AD and non-AD dementia was 5 points,with 79.8％ sensitivity and 78.4％ specificity,and area under the curve was 0.848 (95％CI:0.807-0.890).Conclusions The difference values between MMSE and MoCA may be one of parameters for differential diagnosis between AD and non-AD dementia.

Animals ; Biological Warfare ; Burns ; pathology ; Burns, Chemical ; pathology ; Chemical Warfare ; China ; Humans ; Military Medicine ; Radiation Injuries ; pathology ; Wounds, Gunshot ; pathology

Objective To study the inhibitory effects of δ-opioid receptor activation in serumdeprivation induced apoptosis of human liver cells and the proposed protein kinase C(PKC)pathway mechanism.Methods MTT assay was used to detect the survival rate of human liver cells in vitro and Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining was used to detect the cell apoptosis rate.Flow cytometry was used to analyze cell cycle,RT PCR used to analyze the PKC mRNA and Western Blot analysis was used for detecting the protein expression of PKC and Caspase-3.Results After serum-deprivation for 48h of cultured human liver cells in vitro,significant liver cell apoptosis occurred.The apoptosis was suppressed by δ-opioid receptor activation,which manifested as a slower rate of apoptosis,decreased expression of Caspase-3and increased expression of PKC.After GF109203X was added,the inhibitory effects of DADLE decreased markedly.Conclusion Activation of δ-opioid receptor on the membrane of human liver cells has inhibitory effects on serum-deprivation induced apoptosis of liver cells.The underlying mechanism may be associated with PKC pathway activation.

Objective To assess the clinical and pathological feature of patients with livedo vasculitis.Methods Clinical data were collected from 47 patients with livedo vasculitis,and retrospectively analyzed.All the patients were classified into three groups according to treatment strategy:anticoagulation group,anticoagulation + corticosteroids group,and anticoagulation + sulfasalazine group.Results Clinically,livedo vasculitis usually began as petechia or ecchymosis,edema with distending pain,followed by spotty necrosis which subsequently evolved into vermiculated ulcers and,finally,atrophie blanche.Pathological features included fibrinoid degeneration of and thrombus formation in small vessel walls within the superficial or deep dermis,as well as a sparse lymphocytic infiltrate around the injured vessels.The average time to onset of action of administrated drugs was (9.14 ± 3.48),(5.62 ± 1.04) and (8.23 ± 2.68) days,and time to remission was (2.57 ± 1.41),(4.06 ± 1.51) and (5.64 ± 1.32) months,in the anticoagulation group,anticoagulation + corticosteroids group and anticoagulation + sulfasalazine group,respectively.Conclusion Anticoagulation in combination with anti-inflammatory therapy appears to have a more rapid onset of action in the treatment of livedo vasculitis with a reduced recurrence rate compared with anticoagulation therapy alone.

Objective To analyze the correlation between functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)in TYMS gene and the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)patients treated with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE).Methods Five functional SNPs in TYMS gene were genotyped in a cohort of 41 9 unresectable Chinese HCC patients treated with TACE and prognosis analysis was performed.Results No SNP significantly associated with OS of HCC,but in patients with only TACE treat-ment,SNPs rs523230 exhibited significant associations with death risk in HCC patients under the additive model.Patients over 60 years old,SNP rs9967368 exhibited significant associations with death risk in HCC patients under the recessive model.Conclusion Genetic variations in TYMS gene may be a potential biomarker for predicting clinical outcome of HCC patients treated with TACE.

Hemagglutinin and neuraminidase, two important glycoproteins on the surface of influenza virus, play a considerable role in the entry and release stage of the viral life cycle, respectively. With in-depth investigation of influenza virus glycoproteins and the continuous innovation of drug discovery strategies, a new generation of glycoproteins inhibitors have been continuously discovered. From the point of view of medicinal chemistry, this review summarizes the current advances in seeking small-molecule inhibitors targeting influenza virus glycoproteins, hoping to provide valuable guidance for future development of novel antiviral drugs.

The peeled stem of Syringa pinnatifolia is a Mongolia folk medicine, mainly distributed in Helan mountain, inner Mongolia and Ningxia provinces of China. It has been used for the treatment of cardiopalmus, angina pectoris, and cardiopulmonary diseases for a long history. Contemporary research revealed the presence of major lignans, sesquitepenes, and essential oils, and showed myocardial ischemia related diseases. This review summarizes the plant origins, taxonomic disputes, phytochemical and pharmacological research progress, hopefully to provide reference for full medicinal utilization, clarification of biological effective substance, and drug development.
Animals ; Drug Therapy ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Medicine, Mongolian Traditional ; Molecular Structure ; Syringa ; chemistry