Objective:To compare the effect of TiO 2 nanoparticles on antioxidant function and element content of liver and kidney tissues in young and adult rats .Methods:Forty-eight SD male rats , half in 4-week (youth) old and half in 9-week (adult) old rats, were randomly divided into 8 groups, which were exposed to TiO2 nanoparticles [(75 ±15) nm, anatase] through intragastric administration at 0, 10, 50 and 200 mg/kg body weight every day for 30 days.The liver and kidney tissues were collected for antioxidant function and element content analysis .Results: 200 mg/kg TiO2 nanoparticles exposure significantly increased the liver total superoxide dismutase ( T-SOD ) activity and the kidney reduced glutathione (GSH)/oxidized glutathione (GSSG) ratios in young rats, and significantly decreased the liver Mo, Co, Mn and P contents and the kidney Rb and Na contents in young rats .200 mg/kg TiO2 nanoparticles exposure significantly increased GSH/GSSG ratios and Rb contents and decreased Na con-tents in the liver of adult rats .No significantly difference was found in antioxidant indexes and elements content in the kidney of adult rats between three experimental groups and control group .Conclusion:TiO2 nanoparticles can enhance the antioxidant capacity and decrease the elements content in rat liver and kidney tissues .The liver is the more sensitive target organ and the young animals are more susceptible to TiO2 nanoparticles toxicity by the oral routes .

Child ; Child Welfare ; Education, Medical, Continuing ; Humans ; Pediatrics ; education

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the therapeutic effect and safety of letrozole in the treatment of adolescent boys with idiopathic short stature (ISS). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 16 adolescent boys with ISS who had a bone age of ≥14 years. Among these boys, 8 were initially treated with recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH), followed by rhGH combined with letrozole during a bone age of 14-15.5 years. The other 8 boys were initially treated with rhGH combined with letrozole since their bone age was ≥14 years at diagnosis. Of the 16 boys, 16 were treated for not less than 6 months, 12 were treated for not less than 1 year, and 5 were treated for not less than 1.5 years. The increase in bone age, predicted adult height (PAH), final adult height, sex hormones, and adverse reactions after treatment were analyzed. RESULTS: After 6 months, 1 year, and 1.5 years of treatment, median bone age was increased by 0 year, 0.5 year, and 0.5 year respectively, which was significantly lower than the increase in age (P<0.05). There was a significant increase in PAH after treatment (P<0.05). Seven boys reached final height, which was significantly higher than PAH before treatment (P<0.05). All the 16 boys had significant increases in luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and testosterone levels after treatment (P<0.05), with a significant reduction in the estradiol level and a significant increase in the insulin level at 1 year of treatment (P<0.05). There was a significant increase in the insulin-like growth factor-1 level at 6 months and 1 year of treatment (P<0.05). There were no significant changes in blood glucose, blood lipids, uric acid, and the three indices for thyroid function as monitored during treatment (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS In adolescent boys with ISS and a high bone age, rhGH combined with letrozole can safely and effectively delay the increase in bone age and improve PAH and final adult height, with little adverse effect.
Adolescent ; Body Height ; Dwarfism ; Growth Disorders ; Human Growth Hormone ; Humans ; Letrozole ; therapeutic use ; Male ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the clinical features of respiratory diseases of late preterm neonates.

METHODSSix hundred and thirty late preterm infant(gestational age: 34~36+6weeks),4401 cases of term infants and 328 early preterm infants who were born at the obstetrical department of Peking University 3rd Hospital from January 2009 to December 2010 were enrolled. Among them 84 late preterm infants, 135 term infants and 182 early preterm infants developed respiratory diseases. The incidence of respiratory diseases,clinical features and the severity of the diseases were compared among the three groups.

RESULTSThe incidence and mortality rates of respiratory diseases and the percentage of severe cases were significantly higher in the late preterm group than in the term group, but lower than in the early preterm group (P<0.01). The symptoms of respiratory disease occurred earlier in the late preterm group than in the term group, but later than in the early preterm group (P<0.01). The late preterm group had a significantly higher incidence of tachypnea and lower incidence of retraction sign when compared with the term and early preterm groups (P<0.05). The percentages requiring oxygen therapy and mechanical ventilation in the late preterm group were both significantly higher than in the term group, but lower than in the early preterm group (P<0.05). The multiple linear regression analysis showed 11 factors associated with the severity of respiratory diseases: decreased arterial partial pressure of oxygen, hematokrit, pH value and respiratory rate, arterial oxyhemoglobin saturation, systolic arterial pressure, 5 minute Apgar score and gestational age, and increased blood urea nitrogen, heart rate and respiratory rate.

CONCLUSIONSLate preterm infants are more likely to develop respiratory diseases than term infants, and to develop a more severe condition and need a more intensive respiratory support treatment. Tachypnea is a common presentation of dyspnea in late preterm infants and occurs earlier than in term infants but later than in early preterm infants. It may usually indicate a serious condition when dyspnea, abnormal heart rate and blood pressure, and multisystem damages occur in late preterm infants.

Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature, Diseases ; epidemiology ; mortality ; Prognosis ; Respiratory Tract Diseases ; epidemiology ; mortality ; Retrospective Studies

Atrial Flutter ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Male

OBJECTIVETo understand the influence of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism and beta3-adrenergic receptor (beta3-AR) gene Trp64Arg polymorphism on fetal growth and neonatal insulin sensitivity.

METHODSTotally 296 newborn infants were selected into our study and divided into 2 groups according to gestational age and birth weight: adequate-for-gestational-age (AGA) group (222 cases) and small-for-gestational-age (SGA) group (74 case). Serum glucose and insulin were examined in the morning of the 3rd day before milk. Insulin sensitivity was evaluated by homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) equation. beta3-AR gene Trp64Arg polymorphism and ACE gene I/D polymorphism (202 cases) were analysed using polymerase chain reaction-restricted fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) technique. Gestational age, birth weight, birth weight percentage, serum glucose, insulin and HOMA-IR were compared among different genotype groups. Statistical analysis was performed with the SPSS 10.0 software.

RESULTSNo significant difference was found between the serum glucose level of SGA group (4.03 +/- 1.05 mmol/L) and AGA group (4.05 +/- 1.14 mmol/L), P = 0.008. The serum insulin level (converted into Ln) of SGA group (2.262 +/- 0.746) was significantly higher than that of AGA group (1.757 +/- 0.805), P < 0.001. The HOMA-IR (also converted into Ln) level of SGA group (0.217 +/- 0.367) was also significantly higher than that of AGA group (0.001 +/- 0.378), P < 0.001. In the SGA group beta3-AR gene Arg64 allele carriers had higher serum insulin and HOMA-IR level (both changed to Ln, 2.654 +/- 0.701, 0.371 +/- 0.338) compared with noncarriers (2.074 +/- 0.698, 0.143 +/- 0.360), P < 0.05. The ACE gene DD genotype carriers had higher serum insulin and HOMA-IR level (both were converted into Ln, 2.19 +/- 0.91, 0.51 +/- 1.01) compared with II (1.77 +/- 0.85, 0.02 +/- 0.93) and ID genotype group (1.77 +/- 0.83, 0.05 +/- 0.91), P < 0.05. The ACE gene DD carriers had lower birth weight percentage compared with II and ID genotype group, P < 0.05. When both genes' polymorphisms were taken into account, the newborns who had both DD genotype and Arg64 allele had obviously higher serum insulin level (Ln, 2.560 +/- 1.160) than the neonates who had only one of the polymorphisms mentioned above (1.970 +/- 0.821, 1.992 +/- 0.706) and the neonates who had neither of the two polymorphisms (1.683 +/- 0.832), P < 0.05. The newborns who had both DD genotype and Arg64 allele also had significantly higher HOMA-IR level (Ln, 1.042 +/- 1.315) than the neonates who had only one of the polymorphisms mentioned above (0.247 +/- 0.710, 0.230 +/- 0.890) and the neonates who had neither of the two polymorphisms (-0.053 +/- 0.924), P < 0.05.

CONCLUSIONNewborns SGA had impaired insulin sensitivity. beta3-AR gene Trp64Arg polymorphism and ACE gene I/D polymorphism are important factors that may connect IUGR with insulin resistance syndrome in adulthood.

Female ; Fetal Development ; genetics ; Humans ; INDEL Mutation ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Small for Gestational Age ; Insulin Resistance ; Male ; Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Receptors, Adrenergic, beta-3 ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo study the characteristics of R bone age, C bone age, and T bone age in children with different causes of short stature based on the Tanner and Whitehouse skeletal age assessment system 2 (TW2), and to provide a reference for the etiological diagnosis of short stature.

METHODSThree hundred and sixty-three children with previously untreated short stature were classified into four groups according to the causes: growth hormone deficiency (GHD; 27 cases), idiopathic short stature (ISS; 280 cases), small for gestational age (SGA; 41 cases), and Turner syndrome (TS; 15 cases). The X-ray films of their left hand-wrist bones were taken to determine the bone age. R bone age, C bone age, and T bone age were assessed by the TW2 method and compared with their chronological age (CA).

RESULTSR bone age, C bone age, and T bone age were over 2 years less than CA in both boys and girls from the GHD group. In the ISS group, R bone age, C bone age, and T bone age were about 1 year less than CA in boys, while there were no significant differences between the bone ages and CA in girls. In the SGA group, there were no significant differences between the bone ages and CA in either boys or girls. In the TS group, R bone age and T bone age were significantly lower than CA, while there was no significant difference between C bone age and CA.

CONCLUSIONSThe children with different causes of short stature have different characteristics of R bone age, C bone age, and T bone age assessed by the TW2 method. The assessment of R bone age, C bone age, and T bone age by the TW2 method is helpful for the etiological diagnosis of short stature in children.

Adolescent ; Age Determination by Skeleton ; Body Height ; Child ; Female ; Growth Disorders ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Humans ; Male

OBJECTIVETo assess the efficacy of nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) in treatment of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature infants.

METHODSAccording to the requirements of Cochrane systematic review, a thorough literature search was performed among PubMed (1977-2008), Embase (1989-2008), OVID, Cochrane (2008), Chinese Digital Hospital Library (www.chkd.cnki.net) and Chinese Biomedical Literature Disk Database (CBMdisc). Quality assessments of clinical trials were carried out. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with NIPPV and RDS were enrolled, and Revman 4.2 software was used for meta-analysis. The trials were analyzed using relative risk (RR) for dichotomous data, weighted mean difference (WMD) were used for continuous data, both kind of data were expressed by 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). For homogenous data (P> or =0.10), fixed effects model was calculated, for heterogeneity data (P<0.10), random effects model was calculated.

RESULTSFive RCTs involving 284 premature infants diagnosed as respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) were included. Three studies comparing NIPPV with nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) in the postextubation period, the extubation failure rate was 8.34% vs 40.79% in NIPPV group and NCPAP group, the NIPPV group had significantly lower extubation failure rates [RR 0.21 (95% CI: 0.10-0.45; P<0.001)]. Two of the above-mentioned three studies analyzed bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) rates, the incidence of BPD was 39.34% vs 54.39% in NIPPV group and NCPAP group, the NIPPV group had a trend towards lower BPD rates, but this did not reach statistical significance [RR 0.73 (95% CI: 0.49-1.07; P=0.11)]. NIPPV was used as primary mode in two studies, one compared with conventional ventilation (CV), which detected that the NIPPV group had significantly lower BPD rates (10% vs. 33.33%, P=0.04); the other compared with NCPAP, which also showed that NIPPV group had significantly lower BPD rates (2.33% vs. 17.07%, P=0.03).

CONCLUSIONThe primary mode NIPPV was found to be feasible as a method of ventilation in preterm infants with RDS, and was associated with a decreased incidence of BPD. In the postextubation period, NIPPV is more effective in preventing failure of extubation than NCPAP.

Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Intermittent Positive-Pressure Ventilation ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn ; therapy

Cockayne syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive disease. This paper reports a case of Cockayne syndrome confirmed by gene analysis. The baby (male, 7 years old) was referred to Peking University Third Hospital with recurrent desquamation, pigmentation and growth and development failure for 6 years, and recurrent dental caries and tooth loss for 2 years. Physical examination showed very low body weight, body length and head circumference, yellow hair, a lot of fawn spots on the face, skin dry and less elastic, and subcutaneous lipopenia. He had an unusual appearance with sunken eyes, sharp nose, sharp mandible, big auricle and dental caries and tooth loss. Crura spasticity and ataxia with excessive tendon reflexion, and ankle movement limitation while bending back were observed. He had slured speech. The level of serum insulin like growth factor I was low, and the results of blood and urinary amino acid analysis suggested malnutrition. The results of blood growth hormone, thyroxin, parathyroxin, liver function, renal function, lipoprotein profile and blood glucose and electrolytes were all within normal limit. An electronic hearing examination showed moderate neural hearing loss. The sonogram of eyes revealed small eye axis and vitreous body opacity of right side. MRI of brain revealed bilateral calcification of basal ganglia and generalized cerebral and cerebellar atrophy, and brainstem and callus were also atrophic. Genetic analysis confirmed with CSA gene mutation. So the boy was definitely diagnosed with Cockayne syndrome. He was discharged because of no effective treatment.
Child ; Cockayne Syndrome ; diagnosis ; genetics ; therapy ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Male

OBJECTIVETo study the relationship between angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism and left ventricular mass (LVM) in newborns admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

METHODSSeventy-two newborns admitted to the NICU were enrolled. ACE genotypes were determined by genomic DNA which was isolated from heel-prick blood. Disease status of the newborns was evaluated by the Neonatal Critical Score (draft) on postnatal day 1. LVM and LVM index (LVMI) were evaluated by echocardiography on postnatal days 1-3.

RESULTSDD genotype was identified in 11 cases, ID genotype in 31 cases, and II genotype in 30 cases. There were no significant differences in clinical characteristics, critical score and body measurements in newborns with different genotypes. The DD genotype group showed significantly lower LVMI than the group with ID+II genotypes (29±4 g/m2 vs 35±8 g/m2; P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSACE gene polymorphism is associated with the LVMI in newborns admitted to the NICU. The LVMI of DD genotype carriers is significantly lower than that of ID+II genotypes carriers, which suggests that D allele may be associated with the growth and development of left ventricular.

Echocardiography ; Female ; Gene Deletion ; Genotype ; Heart Ventricles ; diagnostic imaging ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units, Neonatal ; Male ; Mutagenesis, Insertional ; Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Genetic