OBJECTIVESTo observe the regulation of Chinese herbal medicine, Modifified Qing'e Pill (, MQEP), on the expression of adiponectin, bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2), osteoprotegerin (OPG) and other potentially relevant risk factors in patients with nontraumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH).

METHODSA total of 96 patients with nontraumatic ONFH were unequal randomly divided into treatment group (60 cases) and control group (36 cases). The treatment group were treated with MQEP while the control group were treated with simulated pills. Both groups were given caltrate D. Six months were taken as a treatment course. Patients were followed up every 2 months. The levels of plasma adiponectin, BMP2, OPG, von Willebrand factor (vWF), von Willebrand factor cleaving protease (vWF-cp), plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1), tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), C-reactive protein (CRP), blood rheology, bone mineral density (BMD) of the femoral head and Harris Hip Score were measured before and after treatment.

RESULTSAfter 6 months of treatment, compared with the control group, patients in the treatment group had signifificantly higher adiponectin and BMP2 levels (P<0.01 and P=0.013, respectively), lower vWF, PAI-1 and CRP levels (P=0.019, P<0.01 and P<0.01, respectively), and lower blood rheology parameters. BMD of the femoral neck, triangle area and Harris Hip Score in the treatment group were signifificantly higher than those in the control group. Moreover, plasma adiponectin showed a positive association with BMP2 (r=0.231, P=0.003) and a negative association with PAI-1 (r=-0.159, P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONMQEP may play a protective role against nontraumatic ONFH by increasing the expression of adiponectin, regulating bone metabolism and improving the hypercoagulation state, which may provide an experimental base for its clinical effects.

Adiponectin ; metabolism ; Adult ; Blood Coagulation Factors ; metabolism ; Bone Density ; drug effects ; Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2 ; metabolism ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Femur Head Necrosis ; blood ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Male

OBJECTIVETo investigate the relationship between miR-501-5p expression and the clinicopathological factors in patients with lung adenocarcinoma in Xuanwei area.

METHODSSurgical specimens of lung adenocarcinoma and paired adjacent tissues from 24 patients with lung adenocarcinoma from Xuanwei area were examined for miR-501-5p expression using microRNA microarray technique and qPCR. Chi-square test was used to analyze the association of miR-501-5P expression with the clinicopathological characteristics of the patients. Multiple regression analysis was performed to analyze the association of miR-501-5p expression with the patients' gender, age, tumor stage, and preoperative CEA level.

RESULTSMicroRNA microarray analysis and qPCR validation results revealed significantly upregulated expressions of miR-501-5p in patients with lung adenocarcinoma from Xuanwei area (Plt;0.01). The microarray data showed an up-regulation of miR-501-5p by 3.17 folds in lung adenocarcinoma tissue compared with the adjacent tissue (P=0.22376, FDR=0.071395). Chi-square test indicated that miR-501-5p expression level was associated with the patients' age (f=7.168, P=0.014), TNM stage (f=36.627, P<0.01), and preoperative serum CEA level (f=30.045, Plt;0.01), but not with the patients' gender (f=3.612, P=0.071). Multiple regression analysis revealed that miR-501-5p expression was positively correlated with the patients' age, TNM stage of the tumor, and serum CEA (Plt;0.05).

CONCLUSIONmiR-501-5p expression is up-regulated in lung adenocarcinoma with significant associations with the patients' age, TNM stages and serum CEA level in patients from Xuanwei area, suggesting its potential role in the tumorigenesis and progression of lung adenocarcinoma in Xuanwei area.

BACKGROUNDFor patients with a brain metastasis (BM), systemic therapy is usually administered after the completion of radiotherapy, especially in cases of multiple BMs. However, the role of systemic therapy in patients with a limited number of BMs is not clear. Therefore, we conducted a retrospective study to explore this question.

METHODSConsecutive patients with a pathologically confirmed malignancy and 1-3 intracranial lesions that had been documented within the last decade were selected from the databases of three hospitals in China.

RESULTSA total of 250 patients were enrolled; of them, 135 received radiotherapy alone and 115 received radiotherapy plus systemic therapy. In patients receiving whole-brain radiation therapy (WBRT) as radiotherapy, 28 received WBRT alone and 35 patients received WBRT plus systemic therapy. Of the patients treated with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), 107 received SRS alone and 80 received SRS plus systemic therapy. Multivariate analysis revealed that systemic therapy significantly reduced the risk of mortality compared with radiotherapy alone (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.294, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.158-0.548). Further, when the analysis was conducted in subgroups of WBRT (HR = 0.230, 95% CI = 0.081-0.653) or SRS (HR = 0.305, 95% CI = 0.127-0.731), systemic therapy still showed the ability to reduce the risk of mortality in patients with BMs.

CONCLUSIONSystemic therapy after either SRS or WBRT radiotherapy may significantly reduce the risk of mortality of patients with 1-3 BMs.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the association between the serum level of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and the severity of asthma in children.

METHODSA total of 60 children with acute exacerbation of asthma were enrolled and divided according to the severity of the disease into mild group (n=18), moderate group (n=25), and severe group (n=17). Sixty healthy children were enrolled as controls. ELISA was used to measure the serum BDNF level in each group and the association between serum BDNF level and the severity of asthma was analyzed.

RESULTSThe asthmatic children at the acute exacerbation and remission stages had significantly higher serum BDNF levels than healthy controls (P<0.05). The serum BDNF level was significantly reduced in the remission stage compared with that in the acute exacerbation stage in asthmatic children (P<0.05). The children with varying degrees of severity at the acute exacerbation stage had different serum BDNF levels: the severe group had the highest serum BDNF level and the mild group had the lowest level (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSBDNF may play an important role in the pathogenesis of childhood asthma and is related to the severity of the disease.

Adolescent ; Asthma ; blood ; etiology ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor ; blood ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Severity of Illness Index

OBJECTIVETo identify differentially expressed microRNAs (miRNAs) related to lung adenocarcinoma in Xuanwei region and predict their target genes and related signaling pathways based on bioinformatic analysis.

METHODSHigh-throughput microarray assay was performed to detect miRNA expression profiles in 34 paired human lung adenocarcinoma and adjacent normal tissues (including 24 cases in Xuanwei region and 10 in other regions). Gene ontology and KEGG pathway analyses were used to predict the target genes and the regulatory signaling pathways.

RESULTSThirty-four miRNAs were differentially expressed in lung adenocarcinoma tissues in cases in Xuanwei region as compared with cases in other regions, including 23 upregulated and 11 downregulated miRNAs. The predicted target genes included GF, RTK, SOS, IRS1, BCAP, CYTOKINSR, ECM, ITGB, FAK and Gbeta;Y involving the PI3K/Alt, WNT and MAPK pathways.

CONCLUSIONThe specific microRNA expression profiles of lung adenocarcinoma in cases found in Xuanwei region allow for a better understanding of the pathogenesis of lung adenocarcinoma in Xuanwei. The predicted target genes may involve the PI3K/Alt, WNT and MAPK pathways.

Adenocarcinoma ; genetics ; metabolism ; Computational Biology ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Humans ; Lung ; metabolism ; Lung Neoplasms ; genetics ; metabolism ; MicroRNAs ; genetics ; metabolism ; Signal Transduction

Vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) is becoming more and more popular among the world. Despite its dramatic efficacy, however, the mechanism of VSG remains largely undetermined. This study aimed to test interferon (IFN)-γ secretion n of mesenteric lymph nodes in obese mice (ob/ob mice), a model of VSG, and its relationship with farnesoid X receptor (FXR) expression in the liver and small intestine, and to investigate the weight loss mechanism of VSG. The wild type (WT) mice and ob/ob mice were divided into four groups: A (WT+Sham), B (WT+VSG), C (ob/ob+Sham), and D (ob/ob+VSG). Body weight values were monitored. The IFN-γ expression in mesenteric lymph nodes of ob/ob mice pre- and post-operation was detected by flow cytometry (FCM). The FXR expression in the liver and small intestine was detected by Western blotting. The mouse AML-12 liver cells were stimulated with IFN-γ at different concentrations in vitro. The changes of FXR expression were also examined. The results showed that the body weight of ob/ob mice was significantly declined from (40.6±2.7) g to (27.5±3.8) g on the 30th day after VSG (P<0.05). At the same time, VSG induced a higher level secretion of IFN-γ in mesenteric lymph nodes of ob/ob mice than that pre-operation (P<0.05). The FXR expression levels in the liver and small intestine after VSG were respectively 0.97±0.07 and 0.84±0.07 fold of GAPDH, which were significantly higher than pre-operative levels of 0.50±0.06 and 0.48±0.06 respectively (P<0.05). After the stimulation of AML-12 liver cells in vitro by different concentrations of IFN-γ (0, 10, 25, 50, 100, and 200 ng/mL), the relative FXR expression levels were 0.22±0.04, 0.31±0.04, 0.39±0.05, 0.38±0.05, 0.56±0.06, and 0.35±0.05, respectively, suggesting IFN-γ could distinctly promote the FXR expression in a dose-dependent manner in comparison to those cells without IFN-γ stimulation (P<0.05). It was concluded that VSG induces a weight loss in ob/ob mice by increasing IFN-γ secretion of mesenteric lymph nodes, which then increases the FXR expression of the liver and small intestine.
Animals ; Body Weight ; Cell Line ; Gastrectomy ; methods ; Gene Expression ; Hepatocytes ; cytology ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Interferon-gamma ; biosynthesis ; pharmacology ; secretion ; Intestine, Small ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Liver ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Lymph Nodes ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Mesentery ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Mice ; Mice, Obese ; Obesity ; metabolism ; pathology ; surgery ; Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear ; agonists ; genetics ; metabolism ; Weight Loss

The co-occurrence of blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome (BRBNS) and ventricular septal defects is rare. Here we present a case of BRBNS in a 15-year-old boy who was born with multiple cavernous hemangiomas and a ventricular septal defect. Examinations revealed the presence of hemangioma lesions in the subcutaneous and mucosal tissues as well as in the cerebrum, nasopharynx, tongue, esophagus, gastric body, sigmoid colon and adrenal gland. Combined imaging modalities played an important role in the diagnosis of hemangioma lesions.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the association between clinical outcome and gene mutations in children with Fanconi anemia (FA).

METHODSA retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of six children with the same severity of FA and receiving the same treatment. At first, single cell gel electrophoresis and chromosome breakage induced by mitomycin C were performed for diagnosis. Then the gene detection kit for congenital bone marrow failure diseases or complementation test was used for genotyping of FA. Finally the association between the clinical outcome at 3, 6, 9, or 12 months after treatment and gene mutation was analyzed.

RESULTSOf all the six FA children, five had FANCA type disease, and one had FANCM type disease; four children carried two or more FA gene mutations. Among the children with the same severity of FA, those with more FA mutations had a younger age of onset and poorer response to medication, and tended to progress to a severe type.

CONCLUSIONSChildren carrying more than two FA mutations have a poor clinical outcome, and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation should be performed as soon as possible.

Child ; Child, Preschool ; Fanconi Anemia ; genetics ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Mutation ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVETo investigate the correlation between the lumbar bone marrow fat and abdominal fat.

METHODSA total of 68 individuals (32 men and 36 women, aged 21-74 years with a median of 49.5 years) were included in this study. All the subjects underwent spectroscopic examination of the third lumber vertebra with the single voxel method on a 1.5T MR scanner to measure the fat fraction (FF%). Quantitative CT was also performed for measurement of the abdomen subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) and visceral adipose tissue (VAT). The measurements were compared between subjects aged ≥50 years and those below 50 years, respectively,in male or female subjects.

RESULTSIn male subjects, BMI, FF%, VAT or SAT showed no significant differences between the two age groups (P>0.05), and FF% was not correlated with BMI, VAT or SAT (r=0.109, 0.034, 0.066, respectively; P>0.05). In the female subjects, BMI, FF%, VAT and SAT differed significantly between the two age groups (P<0.05), and in ≥50 years group, FF% showed a positive correlation with VAT (r=0.499, P<0.05) but was not correlated with SAT (r=0.221, P>0.05); in<50 years group, FF% was not correlated with VAT or SAT (r=0.076, -0.067, respectively; P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONFF% is positively correlated with VAT in female subjects aged beyond 50 years, but is not correlated with VAT or SAT in male subjects or in younger female subjects.

Adiposity ; Adult ; Aged ; Bone Marrow ; physiology ; Female ; Humans ; Intra-Abdominal Fat ; physiology ; Lumbosacral Region ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Spine ; Subcutaneous Fat, Abdominal ; physiology ; Young Adult

Application of microscopic spectroscopy in quality control of Niuhuang Qingxin pills was discussed. First, microscopic characteristics specified by the statutory standard of Niuhuang Qingxin pills were summarized. Then new identification method was established for Dioscoreae Rhizoma, Saigae Tataricae Cornu, Cinnamomi Cortex and Saposhnikoviae Radix. Finally, microscopic spectroscopy was used for test of Dioscoreae Rhizoma's adulterant Dioscoreae Fordii Rhizoma.It was the first time for this technology being applied in adulteration test of Chinese patent medicine.The results showed that Saigae Tataricae Cornu was not detected in 2 batches of Niuhuang Qingxin pills from 1 manufacturer while Dioscoreae Fordii Rhizoma was detected in 3 batches of samples from 2 manufacturers. The proposed methods were accurate, simple, rapid, objective and economic, which offered a more comprehensive approach for quality control of Niuhuang Qingxin pills. It was indicated that conventional technology such as microscopic spectroscopy could play an important role in identification of traditional Chinese medicine whose index ingredient was deficient or tiny.