Objective To evaluate the method of detecting antibodies to Bacillus anthracis by enzymelinked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)using crude antigen.Methods The anti-Bacillus anthracis antibody levels in sera of 42 healthy people and 42 patients were detected by indirect ELISA.Standard curve was plotted using the data from positive controls,based on which the relative content of each serum was calculated and compared with the result of rLF.Results The median of antibody's relative content in patient group and healthy people group are 1.19 and 0.24,the differences being statistically significant(uc=7.643,P＜0.05).The result of crude antigen is in concordance with rLF(but not parallel absolutely).Conclusions Crude antigen can distinguish most of patients with healthy population effectively.The results suggested that crude antigen is applicable in anti-Bacillus anthracis antibody surveillance.

Objective To evaluate the clinical significance of epithelial cellular adhesion molecule (Ep-CAM)expression in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma(SCC).Methods The Ep-CAM expression was immunohistochemically investigated in 70 normal esophageal mucosas,SCCs and 72 lymph nodes.Results Ep-CAM expression was observed in 94.3% of the tumors,but no expression in the normal mucosa.The Ep- CAM expression was not significantly different between different tumor scales and tumors invading depths,its expression level was relevant with the tumors differentiation and lymph node metastases(P

OBJECTIVETo analyze the transcription activation and possible regulation mechanism of human X-box binding protein 1(XBP1)gene 5'upstream DNA sequence in different cell lines.

METHODSSix kinds of XBP1 promoter deletion mutants were cloned into pGEM-Teasy vector, which included XBP1 gene 5' upstream -1039 to 66 bp,-859 to 66 bp,-623 to 66 bp,-351 to 66 bp,-227 to 66 bp,-227 to -45 bp respectively. Every deletion mutant sequence was cut from Teasy-XBP1p by KpnI and Xho I, and subcloned into pCAT3-Basic to produce a set of constructs termed as p1-XBP1p, p2-XBP1p, p3-XBP1p, p4-XBP1p, p5-XBP1p, p6-XBP1p, respectively. The transcription activity of each construct was detected after transiently transfecting K562, HepG2,NIH-3T3 and L0(2)cell with FuGENE 6 transfection reagent. Cells transfected by pCAT3-Basic or pCAT3-Promoter were used as negative and positive controls. The activity of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase(CAT), which reflects the transcription activation of the XBP1 gene promoter, was detected by ELISA after 48 hours of transfection.

RESULTSThe reporter vectors of six kinds of XBP1 promoter deletion mutants were successfully constructed, as confirmed by restriction enzyme digestion and sequencing. The activities of p4-XBP1p and p5-XBP1p were higher than the other deletion mutants in K562 and HepG2. And the activity of p5-XBP1p was the highest in HepG2. There was no activity detected from any transfected NIH-3T3.

CONCLUSIONThe XBP1 gene promoter can transactivate its downstream gene to transcription. The core sequence of XBP1 promoter was implied between -227 bp and 66 bp. This sequence was connected with the transcriptional activity of XBP1 promoter closely. Its transcription activity varies with different cell lines. XBP1 promoter might drive gene expression with cell-type specificity.

3T3 Cells ; 5' Flanking Region ; genetics ; Animals ; Base Sequence ; Cell Line ; Chloramphenicol O-Acetyltransferase ; metabolism ; DNA ; analysis ; DNA-Binding Proteins ; genetics ; Gene Deletion ; Gene Expression Regulation ; physiology ; Genes, Reporter ; Humans ; K562 Cells ; Mice ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Nuclear Proteins ; genetics ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; genetics ; Regulatory Factor X Transcription Factors ; Transcription Factors ; Transcription, Genetic ; physiology ; Transcriptional Activation ; Transfection ; Tumor Cells, Cultured ; X-Box Binding Protein 1

Objective To observe the c linical effect of scalp acupuncture combined with swallowing and speech therapeutic instrument for the treatment of post-stroke dysphagia. Methods Sixty-eight patients with post-stroke dysphagia were randomly divided into treatment group (N = 34)and control group (N = 34). Both groups were given the internal medicine treatment for lowering blood lipids,stabilizing plaque,and nourishing nerves,and took rehabilitation training. And additionally,the treatment group was given scalp acupuncture therapy and the treatment with swallowing and speech therapeutic instrument,and the control group was given the treatment with s wallowing speech therapeutic instrument alone. Two weeks constituted one treatment course, and the two groups were treated for 4 weeks. The scores of Standardized Swallowing Assessment(SSA) and Swallowing Quality of Life Instrument (SWAL-QOL) of the two groups were observed before and after treatment, and then the curative effects were evaluated by Saito 7-grade dysphagia assessment method. Results (1)Till the end of the trial,7 cases of the 68 patients were excluded for transferring to other departments or loss to follow-up. Of the 7 excluded cases, 3 cases were from the treatment group and 4 were from the control group. (2) The total effective rate of the treatment group was 90.32%and that of the control group was 66.67%,the difference being significant(P < 0.05).(3)After treatment,SSA scores of the 2 groups were decreased(P < 0.01)and SWAL-QOL scores were increased (P < 0.01),and the effect on improving SSA scores and SWAL-QOL scores in the treatment group was superior to that in the control group (P < 0.01). Conclusion Both groups can relieve dysphagia and improve the quality of life of post-stroke dysphagia patients,and the scalp acupuncture combined with swallowing and speech therapeutic instrument is more effective for the treatment of post-stroke dysphagia.

The ICR(Institute of Cancer Research)mouse infection model was constructed to study the pathogenicity of Sal-monella Telelkebir serotype,and the pathogenic identification of mouse isolates was carried out.Observe the bacterial excretion cycle,evaluate the pathogenicity of Salmonella serotype to mice,and calculate the LD50 by the changes in clinical characteris-tics,histopathology and tissue bacterial load of infected mice;by flight mass spectrometry,biochemical identification,serotype identification,molecular typing and other experiments,compared with human isolates;virulence gene analysis was carried out by PCR experiment and whole genome sequencing.The LD50 of Salmonella Telelkebir is 2.67 × 108 CFU/mL;curling and fluffing may occur 0.5 h after infection;autopsy of dead mice showed that the small intestine was severely congested,with more bubbles and fluid accumulation,cecal necrosis,liver apical degeneration and necrosis,necrotic foci on the surface of the kidney and spleen atrophy;the bacterial load of spleen,kidney,lung,liver and jejunum in mice reached its peak at 3 days after infection,while that of heart at 6 days;the bacterial excretion time of the high-dose group exceeded 100 days;The level of CD3 in tissues increased with increasing dose,with inflammatory cell infiltration,myocardial capillary dilation and hyperemia,large area of vacuoles,degeneration and necrosis of hepatocytes,obvious enlargement of splenic sinus,blurred zoning,thickening of glomerular basement membrane,partial exfoliation of ciliated epithelium,atrophy and exfoliation of jejunal villi;PCR and whole genome sequencing revealed Salmonella-related virulence genes such as cdtB,plt A and pltB.This study was the first to successfully establish the ICR mouse model of Salmonella Telelkebir,demonstrating that this serotype of Salmonella has some pathogenicity.

OBJECTIVETo identify the side effect of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), and improve early therapeutic response in patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL).

METHODThe first case of Sweet's syndrome (SS) developed in a APL patient treated with ATRA was reported in mainland of China, and reviewed correlative literature.

RESULTSOnly 14 cases of SS associated with ATRA therapy in APL have been reported in the literature, including the present case. The median age was 49.5 years (9 -84) and 10 were women and 4 men. Of them, SS was restricted to the skin in 10 case, the other 4 muscle, fascia, kidney, and lung were involved. SS appeared after a median of 18 days of ATRA therapy (6 - 34 days). The median WBC count was 7.05 (0.80 - 23.00) x 10(9)/L. Four patients continued with the ATRA therapy without interruption, 13 patients treated with steroids and 12 responded. One patient improved without any treatment. Two cases of SS developed retinoic acid syndromes after ATRA therapy.

CONCLUSIONSweet's syndrome is a rare adverse effect of ATRA, and has similar features with inflammatory or infective dermatosis. The corticosteroids treatment could improve the systemic and cutaneous symptoms. When ATRA therapy was restarted after SS subsided, no recurrence of rashes was observed.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Leukemia, Promyelocytic, Acute ; drug therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Sweet Syndrome ; chemically induced ; Tretinoin ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use

OBJECTIVETo study the therapeutic effect of Weicao Capsule (WCC) on gout.

METHODSTwo hundred gout patients were assigned to two groups. The treated group was treated with WCC and the control group was treated with Tongfengding Capsule. Both groups were given the respective treatments orally 3 times a day, 2 capsules each time with 2 weeks as one course and all patients received 2 successive courses of treatment. Changes of blood beta(2)-microglobulin (beta(2)-M), hemoglobin (Hb), 24 h urinary protein (24 h UP), pH value of urine and blood uric acid (BUA) as well as kidney function were observed.

RESULTSAfter treatment, level of beta(2)-M got lowered significantly, Hb and 24 h UP, blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine and the clearance rate of creatinine, as well as blood lipids all improved obviously in the treated group (all P<0.01), while these parameters remained unchanged in the control group (P>0.05). The pH value of urine was improved in both groups showing an insignificant difference between them (P>0.05). BUA was decreased in both groups with a decrease to a larger extent in the treated group (P<0.01). The total effective rate was 87% in the treated group, which was superior to that in the control group (62%, P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONWCC has a favorable therapeutic effect on gout and its mechanism of action for improving renal function and reducing urinary protein could be related with the lowering of blood beta(2)-M, BUA and lipids.

Adult ; Aged ; Capsules ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Gout ; blood ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Hemoglobins ; analysis ; Humans ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Kidney Function Tests ; Lipids ; blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Proteins ; analysis ; Treatment Outcome ; Uric Acid ; blood ; beta 2-Microglobulin ; blood

OBJECTIVETo analyze the clinical characteristics and survival data of 57 patients with peripheral T-cell lymphoma-not otherwise specified (PTCL-NOS).

METHODSThe medical records of 57 patients with PTCL-NOS classified according to the revised REAL-WHO criteria, treated from Jan 1993 to Dec 2007 at the First and the Third affiliated Hospitals of Medical School of Xi'an Jiaotong University, were retrospectively evaluated by K-M univariate and COX multivariate analysis.

RESULTS39 of the patients (68.4%) were males and 18 (31.6%) were females, aged 44 (3 - 88). Nine of the 57 patients (15.8%) were treated with chemo-radiotherapy, 43 (75.4%) with chemotherapy, 3 (5.3%) with radiotherapy, and 2 with supported treatment alone (2.5%). The overall response rate was 87.3%, with a complete remission (CR) rate of 60.0% in 55 evaluable cases. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival (OS) rates were 67.0%, 48.0% and 24.3%, respectively, with a median follow-up of 30.4 months (ranged 1-100 months). The median survival time (MST) was 36.0 months. Multivariate analysis showed that the prognostic index for T cell lymphoma (PIT) score was an independent prognostic factor for PTCL-NOS (P < 0.05), but bone marrow involvement, performance status, extranodal involvement, stage, B symptom were not independent prognostic factors.

CONCLUSIONAlthough conventional chemotherapy yields a high response rate for PTCL-NOS, the long-term survival is still low and further investigation for optional treatment is needed.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bone Marrow ; pathology ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Lymphoma, T-Cell, Peripheral ; drug therapy ; pathology ; radiotherapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Odds Ratio ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Remission Induction ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Young Adult

Objective To establish information management systems of drinking water defluoridation project in water-related endemic fluorosis areas and investigate the status of drinking water defluoridation project in Liaoning, provide the basis for the development of control measures. Methods Global positioning systems (GPS)and geographic information systems(GIS) were used in the study in August 2006 - July 2008. Water defluoridation projects of 1234 in 48 counties(cities, districts) in drinking water type of fluorosis areas were positioned. Latitude and longitude, water samples, water fluoride content were collected or tested. GIS was used to establish information management system of water defluoridation projects. Results We have established information management system for the facilities of decreasing water fluorine in drinking water type of endemic fluorosis regions in Liaoning. One thousand two hundred and thirty four defluoridation facilities distributed in east longitude between 39.39° - 43.37°,north latitude between 119.25° - 125.50°, and altitude between - 6.60 and 801.14 meter in 48 endemic fluorosis counties in 13 cities. Nine hundred and twenty seven facilities for decreasing fluorine were able to supply water regularly, accounting for 75.1% of investigated projects;29 facilities was .not yet completely rebuilt, accounting for 2.4%;278 facilities(supply water for 344 villages) were out of order or discarded for 22.5% of investigated projects.Water fluorine contents of 63 facilities were greater than 1.2 mg/L, accounting for 6.8% of investigation project.Facilities working regularly and water fluorine was in accord with hygienic standard for drinking water facilities were 70.0%. Conclusions The establishment of Liaoning province defluoridation project information management system in the whole province of drinking water type of fluorosis areas provides scientific basis for accurate decision-making on prevention and control of the disease.

To investigate the prevalence of drug-resistance mutations, resistance to antiretroviral drugs, and the subsequent virological response to therapy in treatment-naive and antiretroviral-treated patients infected with HIV/AIDS in Henan, China, a total of 431 plasma samples were collected in Queshan county between 2003 and 2004, from patients undergoing the antiretroviral regimen Zidovudine + Didanosine + Nevirapine (Azt+Ddi+Nvp). Personal information was collected by face to face interview. Viral load and genotypic drug resistance were tested. Drug resistance mutation data were obtained by analyzing patient-derived sequences through the HIVdb Program (http://hivdb.stanford.edu). Overall, 38.5% of treatment-naive patients had undetectable plasma viral load (VL), the rate significantly increased to 61.9% in 0 to 6 months treatment patients (mean 3 months) (P＜0.005) but again significantly decrease to 38.6% in 6 to 12 months treatment patients (mean 9 months) (P＜0.001) and 40.0% in patients receiving more than 12 months treatment (mean 16 months) (P＜0.005). The prevalence of drug resistance in patients who had a detectable VL and available sequences were 7.0%, 48.6%, 70.8%, 72.3% in treatment-na(1)ve, 0 to 6 months treatment, 6 to 12 months treatment, and treatment for greater than 12 months patients, respectively. No mutation associated with resistance to Protease inhibitor (PI) was detected in this study. Nucleoside RT inhibitor (NRTI) mutations always emerged after non-nucleoside RT inhibitor (NNRTI) mutations, and were only found in patients treated for more than 6 months, with a frequency less than 5%, with the exception of mutation T215Y (12.8%, 6/47) which occurred in patients treated for more than 12 months. NNRTI mutations emerged quickly after therapy begun, and increased significantly in patients treated for more than 6 months (P＜0.005), and the most frequent mutations were K103N, V106A, Y181C, G190A. There had been optimal viral suppression in patients undergoing treatment for less than 6 months in Queshan,Henan. The drug resistance strains were highly prevalent in antiretroviral-treated patients, and increased with the continuation of therapy, with many patients encountering virological failure after 6 months therapy.