Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)is prevalent in patients with characteristics of metabolic syndrome.The main clinico-pathological manifestations of NAFLD are fatty degeneration of liver parenchyma cells and fat storage,which can progress to liver cirrhosis and eventually lead to liver failure.Toll -like receptor 4 (TLR4)signaling pathway is involved in the development and progression of NAFLD.At present,the role of TLR4 in the onset of NAFLD is highly valued by clinical doctors.This paper reviews the structure of TLR4, the composition of TLR4 signaling pathway,the regulation of TLR4 expression,the function of TLR4,and the relationship between TLR4 and NAFLD,suggesting that TLR4 signaling pathway is going to be an important research field in the treatment of NAFLD in the future.

Sperm ultrastructural abnormalities are often associated with sperm motility, the integrity of genetic material, and the fertilization potential. The investigation of sperm ultrastructural abnormalities is based on the evolution of microscopy techniques. In his paper, we review the improvement of the microscopy techniques and the ultrastructure of several specific morphological defects and he apoptotic spermatogenic cells in order to expound the significance of sperm ultrastructural observation in clinical practice. We deem it necessary to analyze the sperm ultrastructure before exploring the pathology and adopting assisted reproductive technology for some special patients with teratozoospermia.
Humans ; Male ; Microscopy ; Spermatozoa ; abnormalities ; ultrastructure

Objective:To study the mental health of old people who live in endowment institutions in Shandong Province and its influencing factors. Methods: A sample of 2200 old people over 60 years old was selected with the stratified random sampling method. They were investigated using the self-designed questionnaires, symptom checklist (SCL-90), and Social Support Rating Scale. A total of 2013 questionnaires were recovered effectively (91. 5%), and 271 questionnaires were analyzed in this study. Results:41. 7% of old people in endowment insti-tutions in Shandong Province is positive in SCL -90 . Multivariate analysis showed that self -care ability ( P =0 . 045 ) and type of chronic disease ( P=0 . 025 ) associated with mental health problems of old people in Shandong Province. Conclusion:The mental health status of old people in endowment institutions in Shandong Province was not optimistic and its influencing factors included self-care ability and the type of chronic disease. It should take measures to promote successful aging in Shandong Province.

Objective To explore the operative methods and clinical outcomes in emergency or sube- mergency repair for the complicated tissue defects in hand in first stage applying microsurgical technique. Methods From Jan.,2000 to Aug.,2005,49 emergency cases of complicated hand tissue defects were re- paired in the first stage with replantation,reconstruction,free flaps,combined finger reconstruction and flap transplantation,including 21 cases in mini tissue mass replantation or reconstruction,15 cases in replantation combined with free flap transplantation,8 cases in replantation and reconstruction combined with free flap transplantation,5 cases in combined multiple digits reconstruction with free flap transplantation.The free flap transplantation included the anterolateral femoral flap,the latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap,the dorsalis pe- dis flap,the media pedis flap and the instep flap.Results All the flaps,the replanted and reconstruceted finger survived uneventfully except for one replanted finger necrosis.45 cases healed in the first stage and the other 4 cases healed in the second stage.During a follow-up from 6 months to 3 years postoperatively,a satis- factory appearance and function of the reconstructed hand was achieved.The excellent and good rate was 85.7% assessed with provisional functional assessment criterion for upper limbs issued by Chinese Society of Hand Surgery.Conclusion The emergency or subemergency repair for the complicated tissue defects in hand has the advantage of short-term treatment and desirable functional outcome.The emergency replantation and reconstruction combined with various flaps or tissue mass can be applied to repair tissue defect in hand in the first stage according to the position and area of the defect along with the technique level of the surgeon, having been proved to achieve desirable clinical outcomes.And the key points leading to a successful operation is the correct treatment for the raw surface of the defects,suitable choice for various flaps,logical design of combination pattern and prevention and timely treatment for vessel crisis.

Objective To observe the role of Osterix in controlling bone volume in vertebral body and to investigate the possible mechanism .Methods X-ray radiology ,micro CT and HE staining were used to evaluate the change of bone volume in both Osterix knockout and transgenic mice .TRAP staining was used to assess the activity of osteoclasts and immunohistochemistry was used to examine the expression level of RANKL .Results No obvious changes were found in Osterix transgenic mice ,while X-ray examina-tion ,micro CT and HE staining showed that the bone density and bone volume in the lumbar vertebral body increased significantly in OSX null mice 12 weeks after birth .TRAP staining showed that the number of osteoclasts decreased in OSX null mice .IHC re-vealed that the expression level of RANKL was down-regualted in OSX null mice .Conclusion Osterix play an important role in controlling bone volume of vertebral body in mice .

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the application of prognosis evaluation of ulnar nerve injury by 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS). METHODS: The metabolites of first dorsal interossei (FDI) of two hands from 12 healthy volunteers and 1 volunteer with complete ulnar nerve injury were detected by 1H-MRS and the data were statistically analyzed. RESULTS: For the FDI of healthy adults, the female peaks area of extra-myocellular lipids (EMCL) was higher than the male (P < 0.05); There was no significant difference in Cho, Cr and intra-myocellular lipids (IMCL) between male and female (P > 0.05); There was no significant difference in all the peaks area between the left and right hand (P > 0.05). The EMCL peak of the injury side was higher than that of the healthy side, and the area of FDI was reduced in the volunteer with ulnar nerve injury. CONCLUSION Noninvasive and quantitative detection of 1H-MRS may be valuable for prognosis evaluation of peripheral nerve injury.
Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Peripheral Nerve Injuries/diagnosis* ; Prognosis ; Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy/methods* ; Sex Distribution ; Ulnar Nerve/metabolism*

OBJECTIVETo study the protective effects of lycopene (LP) on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury induced by focal cerebral ischemia and oxidative stress in rats.

METHODS48 male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly assigned into five groups: A (20 mg/kg LP), B (5 mg/kg LP), C (salad oil), D (salad oil) and E (basic feed control). A, B and C groups were given LP or salad oil orally for 15 d, then cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury was established by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) and D group was used as fake surgery control. The contents of reactive oxygen species (ROS), nitric oxide (NO), lactic acid (LD) and the activities of nitric oxide synthetase (NOS) in cortex were measured at 24 h after reperfusion. The levels of HIF-1alpha mRNA and Bcl-2 mRNA in hippocampi were determined by using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT- PCR) technique.

RESULTSROS levels of A, B, C, D and E groups were (114.23 +/- 18.91), (135.89 +/- 14.17), (171.37 +/- 25.76), (94.24 +/- 2.23) and (92.06 +/- 5.59) fluorescence intensity value/g protein, respectively (F = 9.038, P < 0.01); levels of NO were (6.60 +/- 0.77), (7.13 +/- 0.47), (8.38 +/- 0.80), (5.52 +/- 0.16) and (5.23 +/- 0.51) micromol/g protein respectively (F = 10.197, P < 0.01); levels of NOS were (0.817 +/- 0.016), (0.875 +/- 0.095), (1.030 +/- 0.101), (0.557 +/- 0.094) and (0.595 +/- 0.066) U/mg protein respectively (F = 14.555, P < 0.01); levels of LD were (0.381 +/- 0.069), (0.446 +/- 0.012), (0.576 +/- 0.059), (0.359 +/- 0.021) and (0.310 +/- 0.036) mmol/g protein respectively (F = 10.043, P < 0.01); HIF-1alpha mRNA expression levels in hippocampi were 0.865 +/- 0.274, 0.635 +/- 0.069, 0.491 +/- 0.067, 0.375 +/- 0.052 and 0.361 +/- 0.087, respectively (F = 40.520, P < 0.01); and Bcl-2 mRNA expression levels in hippocampi were 0.263 +/- 0.033, 0.330 +/- 0.028, 0.198 +/- 0.034, 0.304 +/- 0.039 and 0.236 +/- 0.025, respectively (F = 11.003, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONThe protective effects of LP may be related with its abilities of decreasing ROS and LD cumulation, alleviating inflammation and up-regulating the expression of protective genes.

Animals ; Antioxidants ; pharmacology ; Brain Ischemia ; metabolism ; Carotenoids ; pharmacology ; Hippocampus ; metabolism ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; metabolism ; Lactic Acid ; metabolism ; Male ; Nitric Oxide ; metabolism ; Nitric Oxide Synthase ; metabolism ; Oxidative Stress ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; metabolism ; Reperfusion Injury ; metabolism

This study was aimed to explore the expression of DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs) in adult acute leukemia and its correlation with clinical characteristics, karyotype and prognosis. Indirect immunofluorescent cytometry was used to detect the expression of DNA-PKcs in bone marrow mononuclear cells of 105 patients with acute leukemia before chemotherapy and 41 of them after 2 cycles of chemotherapy. Cytogenetic data were obtained from 26 of them by R band karyotypic analysis. The results showed that the expression of DNA-PKcs was correlated with higher WBC count level in peripheral blood (p < 0.05), but was not obviously associated with median age, gender, percentage of bone marrow blasts, clinical classification, median hemoglobin level and median platelet count (p > 0.05). The middle and strong positive expression of DNA-Pkcs in non-remission group was significantly higher than that in remission group (p < 0.05). The positive rate of DNA-PKcs in abnormal chromosome group was significantly higher than that in chromosome normal group (p < 0.05). It is concluded that the DNA-PKcs expression level is closely related with the increased WBC count, and the expression of DNA-PKcs is correlated also with karyotype and clinical prognosis in adult acute leukemia.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Chromosome Aberrations ; DNA-Activated Protein Kinase ; genetics ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; Karyotype ; Leukemia ; diagnosis ; genetics ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nuclear Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Prognosis ; Young Adult

This study is to prepare the in situ forming sustained-release injection which can perform sustained release behavior at the periodontal site for 7 days and to evaluate its in vitro and in vivo properties. After preparation of in situ forming sustained-release injection the in situ time was studied. And the surface of the solid injection was characterized by SEM. The rheological curve at 0 degrees C, 25 degrees C, 37 degrees C was determined and the impact of the temperature on the viscosity was examined. The in vitro release behavior was investigated. At last, rabbit periodontitis model was established to study its pharmacokinetics. The injection was stable, hard to stratify and decompose. The in situ forming time was about 6 seconds. It can easily adhere into periodontal pockets. There were lots of holes on the surface of the solid injection for the drug to diffuse. The drug releasing curves could be fit by Korsmeyer-Peppas equation. The drug smoothly released for 7 days at pH 7.4 PBS buffer with a very slight burst release and maintained a certain concentration. In vivo pharmacokinetics results indicated that after administration with the in situ forming injection, achievement of tinidazole (TNZ) concentration in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) was more comparable and long-lasting than usual solution of TNZ management and relatively constant TNZ levels were attained until 168 h. All these results supported the prospect of tinidazole in situ forming sustained-release injection in clinical applications.
Animals ; Antitrichomonal Agents ; administration & dosage ; pharmacokinetics ; Delayed-Action Preparations ; Drug Carriers ; Drug Compounding ; methods ; Endotoxins ; Gingival Crevicular Fluid ; metabolism ; Injections ; Periodontal Pocket ; metabolism ; Periodontitis ; chemically induced ; metabolism ; Polyesters ; chemical synthesis ; pharmacokinetics ; Polyethylene Glycols ; chemical synthesis ; pharmacokinetics ; Rabbits ; Random Allocation ; Rheology ; Tinidazole ; administration & dosage ; pharmacokinetics

OBJECTIVETo explore the feasibility of tracing mesenchymal stem cells in vivo with scintigraphy.

METHODSTransferrin receptor expression of cultured mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) was quantified with radioligand-receptor binding assay before the cells were transplanted into the spinal cord of rabbits. (131)I-labeled transferrin was then administered into the subarachnoid space of the rabbits, and scintigraphic images were acquired with a gamma camera at different time points after the administration. In the control experiments, (131)I-labeled human serum albumin was used in stead of (131)I-transferrin as the tracer, or only PBS was injected without stem cell transplantation. The images were semi-quantitatively analyzed with region of interest (ROI) techniques, and the phosphor imaging on the spinal sections were performed.

RESULTSRadioligand-receptor binding assay showed 10 770 binding sites with high affinity (KD=0.982 nmol/L) for Fe saturated transferrin on each human mesenchymal cell. Visible accumulation of radioactivity at the cell transplantation sites was observed 16 h and 24 h after intrathecal injection of (131)I-transferrin tracer, but not in two control groups. ROI analysis showed that the difference between (131)I-transferrin and the control groups was statistically significant (P<0.05). Phosphor imaging further verified that it was the specific coupling of transferrin to the implanted cells that resulted in radioactivity accumulation at the transplantation sites.

CONCLUSIONSTransferrin receptor imaging is capable of in vivo tracing of the implanted stem cells, and has the potential for use in non-invasive monitoring for stem cell transplantation therapy after further technical improvements.

Animals ; Autoradiography ; Cell Survival ; Feasibility Studies ; Female ; Gene Expression Regulation ; Humans ; Iodine Radioisotopes ; Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; Molecular Imaging ; methods ; Rabbits ; Receptors, Transferrin ; metabolism ; Spinal Cord ; diagnostic imaging ; metabolism ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon ; Transferrin ; chemistry ; metabolism