Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a powerful angiogeuetic factor. In recent years, it has been found that it has a powerful capacity to promote nerve regeneration, and has potential value in the treatment of ischemic cerebrovascular disease. Newborn endothelial celts can form "vascular niche", and promote neurogenesis by releasing an array of neurotrophic factors. Also, newborn neuronal cells can enhance angiogenesis. There is a "cross-talk" between angiogenesis and neurogenesis, and VEGF plays a very important intermediary role in it. This article reviews the studies of VEGF in promoting angiogenesis and neurogenesis after cerebral ischemia.

Objective To investigate the etiology and clinical characteristics of chronic pancreatitis (CP) in children,so as to improve its diagnosis and treatment.Methods The etiology,clinical characteristics,radiological records and therapy were retrospectively analyzed in children with CP who were admitted to Beijing Children's Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University from July 2006 to May 2014.Results A total of 29 medical records of children with CP,including 19 male and 10 female,with a mean age of (8.5 ± 3.7) years,and the youngest case was a 2-year-old child,the oldest case was a 15-year-and-2-month-old child.The main etiological factor was idiopathic pancreatitis (51.7％,15/29 cases),and 9 cases were caused by anatomical anomalies (31.0％,9/29 cases).The main symptoms included abdominal pain (89.7％,26/29 cases),malnutrition (48.3％,14/29 cases),nausea and vomiting (31.0％,9/29 cases),and chest distress and dyspnea (17.2％,5/29 cases).The serum amylase level in 18 cases (62.1％) increased.The positive diagnostic rate of transabdominal ultrasound was 96.6％ (28/29 cases),and dilations of pancreatic ducts or/and intraductal stones were 82.8％ (24/29 cases).The positive rate by magnetic resonance cholangio-pancreatography (MRCP) for morphological changes in pancreas was 88.5％ (23/26 cases),and dilations of the pancreatic ducts were 80.8％ (21/26 cases).A total of 10 endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP) procedures were performed on 6 children,and pancreatic ductal stenosis or dilations were detected in them.All the patients were treated conservatively at first,and then 7 cases of them had surgical therapy (oledochojejunostomy,choledochoduodenostomy,choledochocystectomy,etc.),aud 6 cases had stent insertion by ERCP.Conclusions The main causes of CP in children are idiopathic and anatomical anomaly,and its diagnosis is based on symptoms and imaging changes;surgical or endoscopic therapy can be used if internal therapy is not effective.

Objective To study the prognosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease ( GERD) in children, and explore the factors which impacts on the prognosis of GERD. Methods One hundred and thirteen children with GERD were enrolled on the basis of positive result of 24-hour pH-monitoring between January 2007 and November 2011. The number of patients who were followed up was 87,and the parents of children were contacted with the telephone. The prognosis was evaluated by comparing the degree of patients′symptom relief,and the cumulative symptom relief rate was calculated by Kaplan-meier product limit method. The univariate Log-rank test and the COX proportional hazardmodel multivariate analysis were applied to detect the factors impacting on the prognosis,including age,gender,the regularity of treatment,reflux index,and Boix-Ochoa standard score,with esophageal hiatal hernia or without,receiving surgical treatment or not,the diet and lifestyle improved or not,receiving anti-acid treatment or not,as well as with allergies his-tory or without. Results At last,76 out of 87 children had symptom relieved. Survival curve showed the cumulative symptom relief rate at different time points,the median cumulative symptom relief rate reached 6 months,the final relief rate was close to 90. 0%,and the continuous treatment time was 44 months. The study showed that 14. 9% (13/87 ca-ses) of children′s growth and development were affected and the life and learning in 16. 1% (14/87 cases) of children were impacted. Age (P=0. 012,Wald=6. 376) and the regularity of treatment (P=0. 000,Wald=13. 059) were the risk factors in the prognosis of GERD. Conclusions Age and the treatment regularity were the factors in the prognosis. The children aged more than 1-year old have poor prognosis compared with those less than 1-year old,and the irregular treatment is the risk factor in the prognosis.

Objective The expression and neuroprotective effect of meteorin in neurons and astrocytes after cerebral infarc-tion have yet to be clarified.This study was to investigate the expression and location of meteorin in the rat model of middle cerebral ar -tery occlusion (MCAO) and its neuroprotective effect against oxygen -glucose deprivation (OGD)-induced injury in cultured neurons or astrocytes. Methods Forty-two healthy adult male SD rats were randomly divided into 6 groups of equal number:sham operation and 6 h, 12 h, 24 h, 3 d, and 7 d MCAO.The cortical tissue was harvested for determination of the expression and location of meteorin by Western blot and immunohistochemistry as well as the meteorin expression in the neurons and astrocytes subjected to OGD. The neuroprotective effect of meteorin on the neurons and astrocytes was e-valuated by CCK8 and PI/Hoechst33342 staining. Results Com-pared with the sham operation group, the expression of meteorin was decreased after MCAO and reached the lowest level at 3 days ( P<0.01) , mainly in the neurons and astrocytes.Exogenous meteorin helped the survival of the astrocytes subjected to OGD, with the A value decreased in the groups of OGD ( 0.63 ) , OGD +meteorin
(0.78), and OGD+PBS (0.60) as compared with the sham control ( 1.51) (P<0.01), with no statistically significant differences among the former three groups (P>0.05).Concerning the effect of meteorin intervention on the OGD-induced injury of the astrocytes, the A value was significantly reduced in OGD (1.24 ±0.17), OGD+meteorin (1.51 ±0.30), and OGD+PBS (1.23 ±0.16) in comparison with the sham control (2.43 ±0.12) (P<0.01), lower in the OGD and OGD+PBS groups than in the OGD+meteorin group ( P<0.05) . Conclusion Meteorin is mainly expressed in the neurons and astrocytes after MCAO and it promotes the survival of the astrocytes with OGD-induced injury.

Objective To study the effect of intranasal nerve growth factor (NGF) on the expression of amyloid-β,peptide (Aβ) in the central nervous system in rats with traumatic brain injury (TBI).Methods Eighty rats were randomly divided into sham(n =26),control(n =27) and treatment group (n =27 ).They were subjected to the modified Feeney' s weight-drop model.The treatment group was treated with NGF administered by nasal route,and the control group was given phosphate-buffered saline (PBS).Beam walking and Morris water maze test were performed in the three groups.The concentration of Aβ40 and Aβ42 in the injured ipsilateral hippocampus was elevated by ELISA measurement.Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the amyloid precursor protein (APP) positive cells near the region of injury in the hippocampus in rats after TBI.Results NGF group traversed the beam significantly quicker (s) than control group ( 19.00 + 6.99 vs 27.33 ± 7.39 respectively,F2,15 =12.87,P =0.028 ).Morris water maze performance revealed that mean time of latency in the NGF group was significant shorter than vehicle group,and significant memory retention in NGF group as evidenced by a greater percentage of the 60 s allotted time spent in the target quadrant (45.82％ ± 11.15％ vs 33.99％ ± 3.46％,F2,15 =6.814,P=0.037),as well as the number crossing of the former site of the removed platform in NGF group was significant more than control group (8.60 ±2.73 vs 3.60 ±2.06,F2,15 =5.346,P =0.04).The Aβ42 level in control group was increased significantly higher than NGF group as indicated by ELISA measurements.While the Aβ40 level did not have similar shown.Immunohistochemical staining showed that APP level had significant differences among three groups ( F2,15 =8.672,P =0.003).The APP level in NGF group did not alter with control group.Conclusion Intranasal administration of NGF can regulate Aβ42 overproduction,improve the motor and cognitive function after brain injury in rats.

OBJECTIVETo analyze the clinical characteristics and diagnosis of 2 cases with chylothorax due to primary lymphatic dysplasia and to elevate pediatrician's recognition level for this disease.

METHODClinical manifestations of the children were retrospectively analyzed. Primary lymphatic dysplasia was diagnosed by lymphoscintigraphy.

RESULTThe first patient was a male aged 2-year-7-month who presented with a history of tachypnea for 43 days, fever and sore throat for 5 days at the early stage of the illness. He had a history of external injury before his illness. Physical examination showed his left chest bulging and left side diminished breath sound. His pleural effusion showed dark red (It was divided into two layers after standing, the upper layer turned into milky white, and the lower turned into hemorrhagic liquid) . White blood cell (WBC) count was 9 000×10(6)/L, mononuclear cell was 0.9, polykaryocytes was 0.1, triglyceride was 12.37 mmol/L in the pleural effusion. Contrast-enhanced lung CT (revascularization) showed pericardial effusion and a massive left sided pleural effusion. The second patient was a male aged 9 years and 6 months, who presented with a history of cough for 24 days, intermittent fever, vomiting, abdominal pain for 19 days, and edema of lower limbs for 4 days. Physical examination showed edema in both eyelids, lower extremities and scrotum. The level of albumin was 14 g/L and the titer of Mycoplasma pneumoniae IgM was 1: 320 in the serum. His hydrothorax pleural effusion showed milk white. White blood cell (WBC) count was 74×10(6)/L, mononuclear cell was 0.78, polykaryocytes was 0.22, triglyceride was 1.01 mmol/L in the pleural effusion. Chyle test showed positive in his pleural effusion and seroperitoneum. High-resolution CT of the lung revealed bilateral interstitial and parenchymal infiltration and both sided pleural effusion. Abdominal ultrasound showed giant hypertrophy of the gastric mucosa and massive ascites. Gastroscopy showed giant hypertrophy of the gastric mucosa. Lymphoscintigraphy revealed primary lymphatic dysplasia in both children.

CONCLUSIONPrimary lymphatic dysplasia might occur in children and result in dropsy of serous cavity (chylothorax, chylopericardium, chylous ascites). Dropsy of serous cavity showed bloody or milk white. WBC count might elevate with lymphocyte increasing mostly, triglyceride was often higher than 1.0 mmol/L in dropsy of serous cavity. Primary lymphatic dysplasia can be diagnosed by lymphoscintigraphy.

Child ; Child, Preschool ; Chylothorax ; diagnosis ; etiology ; pathology ; Humans ; Leukocyte Count ; Lymphatic Abnormalities ; complications ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Lymphoscintigraphy ; Male ; Pericardial Effusion ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Pleural Effusion ; diagnosis ; etiology ; pathology ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Objective:To survey the continuing medical education training needs for village doctors in Beijing suburbs.Methods:A qualitative study on the continuing medical education training needs for village doctors was conducted in Beijing Huairou district from March to July 2021. Six township hospital managers, 19 village doctors, 15 village cadres and 30 villagers from 15 villages of 3 townships in the district selected by purposive sampling method attended the face-to-face, individual, in-depth interviews. A semi-structured interview outline was developed based on literature review and expert consultation. The content of the interviews was analyzed by the thematic framework method.Results:Among 19 rural doctors, 11 preferred the full-time training, while 8 were unable to participate in the full-time training. Most of township hospital managers and village doctors thought the ideal form of training was "classroom knowledge teaching teaching" (5/6, 16/19)and "outpatient clerkship"(6/6, 13/19). The training contents for village doctors were basic medical knowledge and skills, including diagnosis and treatment of common diseases, identification of common symptoms and management of chronic diseases; the appropriate techniques of traditional Chinese medicine including acupuncture, moxibustion, cupping and scraping; and public health including epidemic prevention and control, infectious disease detection and reporting.Conclusion:For improving the applicability and practicality of training for village doctors, it is necessary to apply rational training methods and forms, and develop targeted training program and contents based on training needs.

Skeletal muscle plays a paramount role in physical activity, metabolism, and energy balance, while its homeostasis is being challenged by multiple unfavorable factors such as injury, aging, or obesity. Exosomes, a subset of extracellular vesicles, are now recognized as essential mediators of intercellular communication, holding great clinical potential in the treatment of skeletal muscle diseases. Herein, we outline the recent research progress in exosomal isolation, characterization, and mechanism of action, and emphatically discuss current advances in exosomes derived from multiple organs and tissues, and engineered exosomes regarding the regulation of physiological and pathological development of skeletal muscle. These remarkable advances expand our understanding of myogenesis and muscle diseases. Meanwhile, the engineered exosome, as an endogenous nanocarrier combined with advanced design methodologies of biomolecules, will help to open up innovative therapeutic perspectives for the treatment of muscle diseases.
Exosomes/physiology* ; Muscle, Skeletal/metabolism* ; Cell Communication ; Homeostasis