Polyacrylamide gels (PAAGs) have been widely used for breast augmentation in China and the former Soviet Union since the 1990s. However, breast injection of PAAGs was abandoned due to various complications such as induration and lumps. Currently, this injection procedure is illegally practiced in South Korea and there are a few reports on the radiological findings of PAAG injection mammoplasty, especially describing the sonographic features. We report three cases of PAAG injection mammoplasty.
Acrylic Resins ; Breast ; China ; Female ; Gels ; Mammaplasty ; Pregnancy-Associated alpha 2-Macroglobulins ; Republic of Korea ; USSR

Polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAAG) was developed in the 1980s as an injectable filler for breast augmentation and tissue contour improvement, but its potential risk for oncogenesis and the frequent occurrence of chronic complications after injections led to the prohibition of its further use as an injectable material. Although breast augmentation with PAAG injections was mostly performed in China and Eastern Europe, the migration of patients and long-term complications of the procedure made it a global concern. Herein, we describe the case of a 49-year-old woman who immigrated to Korea after undergoing breast augmentation via PAAG injection in China, and complained of persistent mastodynia and retraction of both breasts. Surgical treatment was undertaken, along with removal of the PAAG and total capsulectomy of the fibrous capsule containing the gel through an inframammary fold incision. We share our experience of diagnosing and treating this case, and present a literature review.
Breast ; Carcinogenesis ; China ; Europe, Eastern ; Female ; Humans ; Hydrogel ; Korea ; Mastodynia ; Middle Aged ; Pregnancy-Associated alpha 2-Macroglobulins

PURPOSE: Urosepsis in adults comprises approximately 25% of all sepsis cases, and is due to complicated urinary tract infections in most cases. However, its mechanism is not fully clarified. Urosepsis is a very complicated disease with no effective strategy for early diagnosis and treatment. This study aimed to identify possible target-related proteins involved in urosepsis using proteomics and establish possible networks using bioinformatics. METHODS: Fifty patients admitted to the Urology Unit of Lanzhou General PLA (Lanzhou, China), from October 2012 to October 2015, were enrolled in this study. The patients were further divided into shock and matched-pair non-shock groups. 2-DE technique, mass spectrometry and database search were used to detect differentially expressed proteins in serum from the two groups. RESULTS: Six proteins were found at higher levels in the shock group compared with non-shock individuals, including serum amyloid A-1 protein (SAA1), apolipoprotein L1 (APOL1), ceruloplasmin (CP), haptoglobin (HP), antithrombin-III (SERPINC1) and prothrombin (F2), while three proteins showed lower levels, including serotransferrin (TF), transthyretin (TTR) and alpha-2-macroglobulin (A2M). CONCLUSION Nine proteins were differentially expressed between uroseptic patients (non-shock groups) and severe uroseptic patients (shock groups), compared with non-shock groups, serum SAA1, APOL1,CP, HP, SERPINC1and F2 at higher levels, while TF, TTR and A2M at lower levels in shock groups.these proteins were mainly involved in platelet activation, signaling and aggregation, acute phase protein pathway, lipid homeostasis, and iron ion transport, deserve further research as potential candidates for early diagnosis and treatment. (The conclusion seems too simple and vague, please re-write it. You may focus at what proteins have been expressed and introduce more detail about its significance.).
Adult ; Aged ; Antithrombin III ; Apolipoprotein L1 ; blood ; Ceruloplasmin ; Female ; Haptoglobins ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prealbumin ; Pregnancy-Associated alpha 2-Macroglobulins ; Proteomics ; Prothrombin ; Sepsis ; blood ; diagnosis ; etiology ; genetics ; Serum Amyloid A Protein ; Transferrin ; Urinary Tract Infections ; complications

The exact pathomechanism of anti-epidermal cell pemphigus antibodies in developing acantholytic changes is unknown. Recent investigations have suggested that pemphigus antibodies, after binding to the antigenic site, induce activation of epidermal plasminogen activator. This increased activity of the plasminogen activator converts plasminogen to plasmin in high level degrades intercellular bridges resulting in loss of adhesion between epidermal cells. Author examined, by modified direct immunofluorescence, the deposition of plasmin and its inhibitor proteins such as alpha 1-antitrypsin and alpha 2-macroglobulin, with the early lesional skin specimens from 5 patients of pemphigus All these lesional skin demonstrated intense deposits of plasmin and aIpha 2-mscrogIobulin, and to a less degree alpha l-antitrypsin, all having indentical patterns to that of IgGautoantibodies. These proteins were also stained at the dermoepidermal junction and upper dermis, but less intensely. The identification of these particular proteins ; plasmin, alpha 1 antitrypsin, and alpha 2 macroglobulin, could be an alternate mean for the enzyme-histologic diagncsis of pemphigus.
alpha 1-Antitrypsin ; alpha-Macroglobulins ; Antibodies ; Dermis ; Fibrinolysin* ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Direct ; Humans ; Pemphigus* ; Plasminogen ; Plasminogen Activators ; Skin*

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The primary pathophysiologic abnormality in achalasia is known to be a loss of inhibitory myenteric ganglion cells, which may result from an immune-mediated response or neuronal degeneration. The aim of this study was to identify proteins suggestive of an immune-mediated response or neuronal degeneration in the serum of achalasia patients using a proteomic analysis. METHODS: Blood samples were collected from five symptomatic achalasia patients and five sex- and age-matched healthy controls. Serum proteomic analysis was conducted, and the protein spots were identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization/time-of-flight and a proteomics analyzer. The serum level of C3 was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in nine patients with achalasia and 18 sex- and age-matched healthy controls. RESULTS: Of the 658 matched protein spots, 28 spots were up-regulated over 2-fold in the serum from achalasia patients compared with that from controls. The up-regulated proteins included complement C4B5, complement C3, cyclin-dependent kinase 5, transthyretin, and alpha 2 macroglobulin. The serum levels of C3 in achalasia patients were significantly higher than those of controls. CONCLUSIONS: The serum proteomic analysis of achalasia patients suggests an immune-mediated response or neuronal degeneration. Further validation studies in larger samples and the esophageal tissue of achalasia patients are required.
alpha-Macroglobulins ; Complement C3 ; Complement System Proteins ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5 ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Esophageal Achalasia ; Ganglion Cysts ; Humans ; Neurons ; Prealbumin ; Proteins ; Proteomics

Biomarkers ; urine ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Cystatin C ; Cystatins ; urine ; Cytomegalovirus Infections ; pathology ; urine ; Female ; Humans ; Kidney ; pathology ; Male ; TATA Box Binding Protein-Like Proteins ; urine ; alpha-Macroglobulins ; urine

BACKGROUND: This study aims to detect any causative genetic alterations and to demonstrate any correlations of these genes in the pathogenesis of mostly late-occurring sporadic type of Alzheimer's disease (AD). METHODS: A total of 67 registered cases of autopsy-confirmed brain tissues were analyzed. Included here was sporadic AD (n=41), vascular dementia (n=17), and non-demented physiologically aging control brains (n=9). ApoE genotyping was done with the enzymatic digestion, and allele specific PCR was done to analyze the -491 A/T polymorphism of ApoE. Detection of polymorphism of alpha 2-macroglobulin (A2M) was done with enzymatic digestion and DNA sequencing. RT-PCR products were electrophoresed to detect mRNA expression of alpha 1-antichymotrypsin (ACT). RESULTS: A prevalence rate of ApoE E4 genotype (E3/E4, E4/E4) showed significantly higher in patients with AD than in patients with vascular dementia (43.8% vs. 11.7%, p=0.019). Only 1 out of 4 cases of sporadic AD was associated with the E4/E4 allele. -491A/ T polymorphism of the ApoE promoter was found only in AD (2/41 cases, 4.9%). The incidence of heterozygous allelic polymorphism with 5 bp deletions in exon 18 of A2M-2 was 4.9% (2 out of 41) in AD. Messenger RNA expression of ACT, which is closely associated with the ApoE E4 allele, was increased in AD in comparison with normal control (p=0.0002). CONCLUSIONS: ApoE4 genotype and ACT are closely related to the pathogenesis of late-onset sporadic AD. Neither -491 polymorphism of ApoE promoter nor A2M-2 showed close association with AD in these brain samples.
Aging ; Alleles ; alpha 1-Antichymotrypsin* ; alpha-Macroglobulins ; Alzheimer Disease* ; Apolipoprotein E4 ; Apolipoproteins E ; Apolipoproteins* ; Brain* ; Dementia, Vascular ; Digestion ; Exons ; Genotype ; Humans ; Incidence ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prevalence ; RNA, Messenger ; Sequence Analysis, DNA

OBJECTIVETo examine the presence of gender differences in pro-inflammatory potential of cadmium in rats by comparing systemic inflammatory response to acute cadmium intoxication in animals of the two sexes.

METHODSBasic aspects of this response were evaluated, including plasma levels of inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) and of major rat acute phase protein alpha 2-macroglobulin (alpha2-M), as soluble indicators of inflammation, and the number and activity of peripheral blood leukocytes, as cellular indicators of inflammation.

RESULTSDifferential increases of IL-6 and alpha2-M (higher in males than in females) in peripheral blood cell counts and types (leukocytosis and shift in the ratio of granulocytes to lymphocytes more pronounced in males vs females) and in levels of neutrophil priming (higher in males vs females) were noted.

CONCLUSIONThe data document a more intense inflammatory response to cadmium administration in males. The sex differences in inflammatory effects of cadmium might be taken into consideration in studying the toxicity of this heavy metal.

Animals ; Cadmium ; administration & dosage ; toxicity ; Female ; Inflammation ; chemically induced ; Interleukin-6 ; blood ; Leukocyte Count ; Male ; Neutrophils ; drug effects ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred Strains ; Sex Factors ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; blood ; alpha-Macroglobulins ; analysis

OBJECTIVETo study the association of two polymorphisms of alpha-2 macroglobulin gene (A2M), a 1000G/A in exon 24 and a pentanucleotide insertion/deletion (I/D) in the 5'splice site in exon 18, with Parkinson's disease (PD) and essential tremor (ET) in North China.

METHODSUsing polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method to investigate 87 cases of Parkinson's disease (PD),73 cases of ET and 100 randomly selected healthy control subjects.

RESULTS(1) The allelic and genotypic distributions of A2M G/A were significantly different among the PD, ET patients and controls (P<0.05). The allele G and genotype GA in PD patients were significantly higher than those in ET patients or controls (P<0.05). There was no statistically significant difference between ET patients and controls in allelic and genotypic distribution (P>0.05). (2) The differences in allelic and genotypic distributions of A2M I/D among PD, ET patients and selected controls were found to be of no statistical significance (P>0.05).

CONCLUSION(1) The polymorphism at the site of G/A might be associated with PD, but there might be no genetic association of polymorphism at this site with ET. (2) There might be no association of polymorphism at the site of I/D with PD and ET in North China.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; genetics ; Essential Tremor ; genetics ; Female ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Parkinson Disease ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; alpha-Macroglobulins ; genetics

The purpose of this prospective study was to verify and compare the strengths of various blood markers and fibrosis models in predicting significant liver fibrosis. One hundred fifty-eight patients with chronic liver disease who underwent liver biopsy were enrolled. The mean age was 41 yr and male patients accounted for 70.2%. The common causes of liver disease were hepatitis B (67.7%) and C (16.5%) and fatty liver (9.5%). Stages of liver fibrosis (F0-4) were assessed according to the Batts and Ludwig scoring system. Significant fibrosis was defined as > or =F2. Sixteen blood markers were measured along with liver biopsy, and estimates of hepatic fibrosis were calculated using various predictive models. Predictive accuracy was evaluated with a receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve. Liver biopsy revealed significant fibrosis in 106 cases (67.1%). On multivariate analysis, alpha2-macroglobulin, hyaluronic acid, and haptoglobin were found to be independently related to significant hepatic fibrosis. A new predictive model was constructed based on these variables, and its area under the ROC curve was 0.91 (95% confidence interval, 0.85-0.96). In conclusion, alpha2-macroglobulin, hyaluronic acid, and haptoglobin levels are independent predictors for significant hepatic fibrosis in chronic liver disease.
Adult ; Biological Markers/blood ; Chronic Disease ; Fatty Liver/complications ; Female ; Fibrosis ; Haptoglobins/analysis ; Hepatitis B/complications ; Hepatitis C/complications ; Humans ; Hyaluronic Acid/blood ; Liver Cirrhosis/complications/*diagnosis ; Liver Diseases/complications/*diagnosis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Predictive Value of Tests ; Prospective Studies ; ROC Curve ; alpha-Macroglobulins/analysis