Objective To explore theDNA damage of brain cells of goldfishs through formaldehyde exposure.Methods The goldfishs were treated with liquid formaldehyde at different concentrations(0.01 mmol/L,0.1 mmol/L和1mmol/L)for three days.Single cell gelelectrophoresis technique(comet assay)was used to test the DNA damage of the brain cells.Results Formaldehyde caused significant DNA strand break at the concentration of 0.01mmol/L,0.1mmol/L and 1.0mmol/L.Conclusions Formaldehyde was both a DNA strand breaker when the concentration is higher,it may cause crosslinkagent to the brain in vivo.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the response rate and adverse reactions of xeloda, an analogue of 5-fluorouracil, in the treatment of relapsed and metastatic breast cancer.

METHODSTwenty-two breast cancer patients who had recurrent and metastatic measurable foci were treated from Dec. 1999 to Feb. 2000. Xeloda was given, as a single drug, at a dose of or 2,510 mg/m2/d, bid, for two weeks followed by one week rest as one cycle, at least for one cycle in each patient.

RESULTSAmong these 22 patients, there was no complete response. Rates of partial response 8(36.4%), stable disease 10(45.5%), progressive disease 4(18.2%), and clinical benefit response (CR + PR + SD) 18(81.8%). The response rate in patients who had failed in previous chemotherapy of taxanes and/or anthracycline was 30.0%-33.3%. The common adverse reactions were hand-foot syndrome, skin pigmentation, nausea, vomiting, anorexia and fatigue. Mild-moderate anemia and leukopenia were observed in 36.4% of patients. Stomatitis, dizziness, diarrhea and chest distress were present in some. One patient developed degree IV myelosuppression. Total bilirubin and alanine transaminase (ALAT) mild elevation occurred in a few patients.

CONCLUSIONXeloda is an effective drug in the treatment of patients with relapsed and metastatic breast cancer, especially for those who have failed in chemotherapy with taxanes and/or anthracycline. Xeloda is well tolerated but has mild adverse reactions.

Adult ; Aged ; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Breast Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; pathology ; Capecitabine ; Deoxycytidine ; adverse effects ; analogs & derivatives ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Fluorouracil ; analogs & derivatives ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Recurrence

OBJECTIVETo make a comparative study on wild and cultivated Astragali Radix in Wuchuan, Neimenggu where is one of the geo-authentic producing areas of Astragalus membranaceus var. mongholicus.

METHODThis comparative study focus on shapes and properties, microscopic features of transverse section and powder of roots, qualitative evaluation of wild and cultivated Astragali Radix.

RESULTWild Astragali Radix had a cylindrical main root, 2 or 3 root branches, dark brown color and many lenticels on the root bark. Cultivated Astragali Radix had a long cylindrical root, few root branches, yellowish white or light brown and fewer lenticels on the root bark. The differences of microscopic features were that the number of cork cells layers in wild Astragali Radix was bigger than that in cultivated Astragali Radix; stone cells were only observed in wild Astragali Radix; distinct annual rings in the xylem were only existed in cultivated Astragali Radix. The results of qualitative evaluation reveal that the contents of major active isoflavonoids and saponins in wild Astragali Radix are higher than those in cultivated Astragali Radix.

CONCLUSIONThere are some diagnostic differences in the main microscopic features of transverse section and powder between wild and cultivated Astragali Radix. The contents of major active isoflavonoids and saponins in wild Astragali Radix are higher than those in cultivated Astragali Radix. Our study provides important scientific evidence for reasonable and effective uses of wild and cultivated Astragali Radix in Wuchuan, and also provides a reliable basis for the quality control of Astragali Radix.

Astragalus Plant ; chemistry ; growth & development ; Plant Roots ; chemistry ; growth & development

Objective:To investigate the effect of different stent oversize in thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) on lumen remodeling of type B aortic dissection (TBAD).Methods:The clinical and follow-up data of 89 TBAD patients receiving TEVAR from Nov 2010 to Jun 2020 at Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. According to the difference of proximal stent oversize, 89 patients were divided into: low oversize group (<10%, 47 cases) and high oversize group (≥10%, 42 cases). The changes of the normal vessel diameter and area at the proximal end of the stent and the long diameter, short diameter and area of the true/false lumen at the distal end of the stent at 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery and postoperative complications were analyzed.Results:The change of proximal vessel diameter with time in the low oversize group is smaller than that in the high oversize group ( P<0.05),and the change of the distal false lumen area of the stent in the low oversize group was greater than that in the high oversize group ( P<0.05). The high oversize group was prone to retrograde type A aortic dissection (RTAD) ( P<0.05). Conclusion:Low oversize stents are more conducive to the remodeling of the aortic lumen in the early and mid-term after TEVAR in TBAD patients.

BACKGROUNDGefitinib, a selective inhibitor of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase, has been approved effective in local advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), with the equivalent response rate to that of chemotherapy in Asian patients. Asian ethnicity, gender, smoking history, adenocarcinoma histology were remarkably associated with gefitinib response and survival. However, predictive factors of gefitinib response and survival are still unclear in Asian population. In this study, we retrospectively reviewed the data of 153 Chinese NSCLC patients who received a single agent of gefitinib with the purpose of identifying the potential predictive factors of gefitinib response and survival.

METHODSTumor response, survival and the clinicopathologic factors of 153 NSCLC patients treated between November of 2003 and June of 2004 were collected retrospectively from the multicenter clinical trial in China. Pearson Chi-square test and Logistic regression test were performed respectively as univariate and multivariate analyses of gefitinib response. Overall survivals between groups with different predictive factors were compared by log-rank tests. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify factors that independently predict for survival.

RESULTSA total of 153 patients were included in this analysis. Objective response rate was statistically significant higher in patients with younger age (≤65 years) and longer interval from diagnosis to gefitinib treatment (≥6 months) in multivariate analysis (P < 0.05). The median follow-up duration was 10.0 months (0.5-16.8). The median survival was 10.3 months (95% CI: 8.1-12.6) and 1-year survival was 44.1%. Significant independent predictive factors associated with longer survival in multivariate analysis were good performance status (score 0-1), controlled disease (CR+PR+SD) to most recent chemotherapy and controlled disease to gefitinib (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSGefitinib is effective in local advanced or metastatic NSCLC patients who failed to chemotherapy in Chinese population. In Chinese NSCLC population, younger age (≤65 years) and longer interval from diagnosis to gefitinib treatment (≥6 months) were predictive factors in multivariate analysis for gefitinib response; good performance status (score 0-1), controlled disease to most recent chemotherapy and controlled disease to gefitinib were independent prognostic factors for survival.

BACKGROUNDEndostar™ (rh-endostatin, YH-16) is a new recombinant human endostatin developed by Medgenn Bioengineering Co. Ltd., Yantai, Shandong, P.R.China. Pre-clinical study indicated that YH-16 could inhibit tumor endothelial cell proliferation, angiogenesis and tumor growth. Phase I and phase II studies revealed that YH-16 was effective as single agent with good tolerance in clinical use.The current study was to compare the response rate , median ti me to progression (TTP) ,clinical benefit andsafety in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer ( NSCLC) , who were treated with YH-16 plus vi-norelbine and cisplatin (NP) or placebo plus NP.

METHODSFour hundred and ninety-three histologically or cy-tologically confirmed stage IIIB and IV NSCLC patients , withlife expectancy > 3 months and ECOG perform-ance status 0-2 , were enrolledin a randomized ,double-blind ,placebo-controlled , multicenter trial ,either trialgroup : NP plus YH-16 (vinorelbine 25 mg/m² on day 1 and day 5 ,cisplatin 30mg/m² on days 2 to 4 , YH-167.5mg/m² on days 1 to 14) or control group : NP plus placebo (vinorelbine 25 mg/m² on day 1 and day 5 ,cis-platin 30 mg/m² on days 2 to 4 ,0.9% sodium-chloride 3 .75 ml on days 1 to 14) every 3 weeks for 2-6 cycles .The trial endpoints included response rate ,clinical benefit rate ,time to progression,quality of life and safety .

RESULTSOf 486 assessable patients , overall response rate was 35.4% in trial group and 19.5% in controlgroup (P=0 .0003) . The median TTP was 6 .3 months and 3 .6 months for trial group and control group respectively (P < 0 .001) . The clinical benefit rate was 73 .3 %in trial group and 64.0% in control group (P=0 .035) .In untreated patients of trial group and control group ,the response rate was 40 .0% and 23.9%(P=0 .003) ,the clinical benefit rate was 76 .5 % and 65 .0 % (P=0 .023) ,the median TTP was 6 .6 and 3 .7months (P=0 .0000) ,respectively .In pretreated patients of trial group and control group ,the response ratewas 23.9% and 8.5%(P=0 .034) ,the clinical benefit rate was 65.2% and 61.7%(P=0 .68) ,the median TTP was 5 .7 and 3 .2 months (P=0 .0002) ,respectively . The relief rate of clinical symptoms in trial groupwas higher than that of those in control group ,but no significance existed (P > 0 .05) . The score of quality oflife in trial group was significantly higher than that in control group (P=0 .0155) after treatment . There were no significant differences in incidence of hematologic and non-hematologic toxicity , moderate and severe sideeffects betweentrial group and control group .

CONCLUSIONSThe addition of YH-16 to NP regimen results in significantly and clinically meaningful improvement in response rate , median time to tumor progression,and clinical benefit rate compared with NP alone in advanced NSCLC patients . YH-16 in combination with chemotherapy shows a synergic activity and a favorable toxic profile in advanced cancer patients .