A comparative study on biological characteristics of mesenchymal stem cells from two different sources / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND: Although mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from different sources share many similar characteristics, they also exhibit individual properties. OBJECTIVE: To compare the biological characteristics of MSCs derived from umbilical cord and decidua parietalis. METHODS: Growth curve, cell doubling time, clone formation rate, immune phenotype, differentiation capacity and secreted cytokine levels were analyzed in MSCs derived from umbilical cord and decidua parietalis. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: MSCs from umbilical cord and the decidua basalis exhibited similar morphology, spiral growth, S-shaped growth curve, immunophenotype, and differentiation potentials to osteogenesis and adipogenesis. For two kinds of MSCs, the positive rates of CD73, CD90 and CD105 were over 95% and the positive rates of CD34 and CD45 were below 1%. The growth rate, cell doubling time and clone formation rate of umbilical cord derived MSCs at passages 2 and 5 were significantly higher than those of decidua parietalis derived MSCs at passages 2 and 5 (P < 0.05). The level of epidermal growth factor secreted from umbilical cord MSCs was significantly higher that that from decidua basalis derived MSCs, while the levels of vascular endothelial growth factor and stem cell growth factor from umbilical cord derived MSCs was significantly lower those from decidua basalis derived MSCs (P < 0.05). These findings indicate that MSCs from both sources have similar biological properties, but umbilical cord derived MSCs are deemed to have better application prospects.

Anti-diabetic medication reduces risk of pulmonary tuberculosis in diabetic patients: a population-based cohort study in Taiwan

Objective: The increased risk of pulmonary tuberculosis [PTB] in patients with diabetes mellitus [DM] remains to be clarified with cohort study. The present study further examined whether the anti-diabetic drug treatment associates with developing PTB. Design: Nation wide cohort study Setting: China Medical University Hospital

Subjects: From the Taiwan National Health Insurance database, we identified 22,256 adult patients newly diagnosed with DM in 2000-2006 as DM cohort and 89,024 persons without DM frequency matched with sex, age and DM diagnosed year as non-DM comparison cohort. Intervention: None Main outcome measures: Both cohorts were followed till the end of 2009 to document PTB incidence. Medications were analyzed for the DM cohort to examine the hazard of developing PTB

Results: The incidence of PTB was 1.64-fold higher in DM cohort than in comparison cohort [52.1 Vs 31.8 per 10,000 person-years] with an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.53 [95% CI = 1.40 - 1.67], measured using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression analysis. Men were at higher risk than women to have PTB. The age-specific incidence rates showed that DM cohort to comparison cohort incidence rate ratio was higher in younger group. However, the Cox model measured HR increased with age. Alcoholism, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, alcoholic liver damage and chronic kidney diseases were comorbidities independently associated with PTB. In the DM cohort, anti-DM medications significantly reduced the risk of PTB with a HR of 0.52 for those who had taken metformin, followed by alpha-glucosidase inhibitors, thiazolidinediones, insulins and sulfonylureas [HR = 0.76]. The effects of all anti-diabetic drugs were statistically significant

Conclusions: These findings show patients with DM are associated with an elevated risk of developing PTB, but treatment with anti-diabetic drugs may mediate the risk significantly

Parkinson’s disease and risk of colorectal cancer: A population-based case-control study in Taiwan

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate whether there is an association between Parkinson’s disease (PD) and colorectal cancer in Taiwan. Methods: This was a case-control study using claim data of the Taiwan National Health Insurance Program. There were 64,619 subjects aged 20-84 with newly diagnosed colorectal cancer as cases and 64,619 randomly selected subjects without colorectal cancer as controls from 2005 to 2011. Both cases and controls were matched by sex, age, comorbidities, and index year of diagnosing colorectal cancer. Subjects who were diagnosed with PD within 5 years of diagnosing colorectal cancer were excluded. The multivariable logistic regression model was used to estimate the adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) for risk of colorectal cancer associated with PD. Results: After adjusting for confounding factors, the multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that the adjusted OR of colorectal cancer was 0.69 for subjects with PD more than 5 years before index date (95% CI 0.59, 0.81), as compared with subjects without PD. Conclusion: PD is associated with reduced odds of colorectal cancer. Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms underlying our findings.

Increased risk of hip fracture in diabetic elderly

To investigate the relationship between diabetes mellitus [DM] and risk of hip fracture in older people in Taiwan Retrospective cohort study using the database for the period 1998 - 2010 from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Program Taiwan National Health Insurance program There were 16,249 individuals aged 65 years or older with newly diagnosed DM as the diabetes group and 64,996 individuals without DM as the none-diabetes group. The risk of hip fracture in both groups incidence of hip fracture than the non-diabetes group [1080 Vs 859.6 per 100,000 person-years, incidence rate ratio 1.26, 95% CI 1.20, 1.31]. DM is associated with 1.26-fold increased risk of hip fracture in older people in Taiwan. Older people with DM should be closely followed to reduce the risk of hip fracture

Parkinson’s disease and risk of pancreatic cancer: a population-based case-control study in Taiwan

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is a relationship between Parkinson’s disease and pancreatic cancer in Taiwan. Methods: This was a case-control study using claim data of the Taiwan National Health Insurance Program. There were 13,861 subjects aged 20- 84 with newly diagnosed pancreatic cancer as cases and 55,444 randomly selected subjects without pancreatic cancer as controls from 1998 to 2011. Cases and controls were matched by sex, age and index year of diagnosing pancreatic cancer. The association of pancreatic cancer with Parkinson’s disease was evaluated by the multivariable logistic regression model to estimate the adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Results: After adjusting for confounding factors including acute pancreatitis, chronic pancreatitis, diabetes mellitus, biliary stone, alcoholism, hepatitis B and hepatitis C, the multivariable logistic regression analysis showed the adjusted OR of pancreatic cancer was 0.82 for subjects with Parkinson’s disease (95% CI 0.55, 1.21), as compared with subjects without Parkinson’s disease. Conclusion: No association is detected between Parkinson’s disease and pancreatic cancer.

Ensemble Partial Least Squares Algorithm Based on Variable Clustering for Quantitative Infrared Spectrometric Analysis / 分析化学

Due to the ability of overcoming both the dimensionality and the collinear problems of the spectral data, partial least squares ( PLS ) is in ever increasingly used for quantitative spectrometric analysis, especially for near-infrared spectrum, mid-infrared spectrum and Raman spectrum. In this work, an improved PLS algorithm is proposed for efficient information extraction and noise reduction. The spectral variables are clustering to several subsets, and several sub-models are built for each subset. Then, the sub-models are re-weighted and ensemble to the final model. Experiments on two near-infrared datasets ( octane number prediction in gasoline and nicotine prediction in tobacco leafs ) demonstrate that the new method provides superior prediction performance and outperformed the conventional PLS algorithm, and the root mean square error of prediction ( RMSEP) is reduced by 32% and 22%, respectively.

Use of proton pump inhibitors correlates with increased risk of pancreatic cancer: a case-control study in Taiwan

To investigate whether use of proton pump inhibitors [PPIs] enhances the risk of pancreatic cancer. Retrospective case control study. Department of Public Health, China Medical University, Taiwan. We identified 977 patients aged 20 years or older with newly diagnosed pancreatic cancer as the case group between 2000 and 2010. The control group consisted of 3908 subjects without pancreatic cancer selected from the same sample. Use of Proton pump inhibitors. History of using PPIs and other comorbidities were compared between cases and controls. After adjustment for confounders, multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that pancreatic cancer had strong association with PPIs use [OR 9.28, 95% CI 7.77 - 11.08]. Among PPI drugs, those using esomeprazole were at the highest risk with an odds ratio of 12.1 [95% CI 9.76 - 15.0]. Taking PPIs correlates with increased risk of pancreatic cancer. The risk may greater for those taking esomeprazole

Squamous cell papilloma of the stomach

Benign tumors in the stomach are rare in comparison with malignant tumors. Squamous cell papilloma [SCP] of the stomach is a relatively rare benign tumor and only few case reports are found in the literature. Herein, we report a case of squamous cell papilloma of the gastric cardia and also a review the relevant literature

No association between schizophrenia and female hepatocellular carcinoma: a case-control study in Taiwan

To investigate the relationship between schizophrenia and hepatocellular carcinoma [HCC] in women in Taiwan Case-control study by analyzing the database from the Taiwan National Health Insurance program There were 922 female subjects aged 40 years or older with newly diagnosed HCC as the case group and 3688 female subjects aged 40 years or older without HCC as the control group. The relationship between schizophrenia and HCC was investigated. After controlling for confounding factors, multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the odds ratio of HCC was 1.82 [95% CI = 0.64, 5.18] in subjects with schizophrenia, when compared with non-schizophrenia subjects. There is no association between schizophrenia and HCC in women in Taiwan

Cardiovascular disease and colorectal cancer: a population-based observation in Taiwan

To explore the relationship between cardiovascular disease and colorectal cancer in Taiwan. Population-based cohort study. Using database of the Taiwan National Health Insurance program from 2000 to 2006, 89,034 patients [35 years or older] with newly diagnosed cardiovascular disease [CVD] which included coronary artery disease, heart failure, cerebrovascular disease, peripheral atherosclerosis, or hypertension, and 89,034 control subjects without CVD were studied. The incidence of colorectal cancer at the end of 2009 and the association with CVD and other co-morbidities were determined. The incidence of colorectal cancer was 1.19-fold higher in the CVD group compared with the non-CVD group [10.87 Vs 9.11 per 10,000 person-years, 95%CI = 1.05-1.36]. After adjustment for covariates, no association was found between CVD and colorectal cancer [95%CI = 0.87-1.13]. Men [HR = 1.53, 95%CI = 1.34-1.75], increasing age [HR = 1.07, 95%CI = 1.06-1.07], and colorectal adenoma [HR = 1.80, 95%CI = 1.06-3.05] were associated with colorectal cancer. No association between cardiovascular disease and colorectal cancer is found. Men, increasing age, and colorectal adenoma correlate with the increased risk of colorectal cancer

Statin use and risk of lung cancer in males: a case-control study in Taiwan

To explore the association between statin use and lung cancer risk in men in Taiwan. A nested case-control study. Data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Program, 2000 to 2010 Two thousand two hundred and ninety male patients aged 20 years or older with newly diagnosed lung cancer as cases and 9160 male subjects without lung cancer as controls. The association between statin use and lung cancer risk was estimated After adjustment for confounders including pulmonary tuberculosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asbestosis and tobacco use, multivariate logistic regression showed the adjusted odds ratio of lung cancer was 0.79 for the statins-use group [95% CI: 0.68, 0.91], when compared with no use of statins. We found an association between statin use and lung cancer risk in men in Taiwan

Kidney cancer and diabetes mellitus: a population-based case-control study in Taiwan

<p><b>INTRODUCTION</b>The purpose of this study was to explore whether diabetes mellitus (DM) correlates with the risk of kidney cancer in Taiwan.</p><p><b>MATERIALS AND METHODS</b>We designed a population-based case-control study from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Database, which consisted of 116 patients with newly diagnosed kidney cancer as cases and 464 subjects without kidney cancer as controls in 2000 to 2009. Both cases and controls were aged ≥20 years. Baseline comorbidities were compared between kidney cancer cases and controls.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Multivariable analysis showed no association was detected between DM and kidney cancer (OR 1.06, 95% CI, 0.58 to 1.94). Hypertension (OR 2.05, 95% CI, 1.23 to 3.42), chronic kidney diseases (OR 2.57, 95% CI, 1.23 to 5.37), cystic kidney diseases (OR 18.6, 95% CI, 1.84 to 187.6) and kidney stones (OR 4.02, 95% CI, 2.43 to 6.66) were significant comorbidities associated with increased risk of kidney cancer. Use of alpha-glucosidase inhibitor was associated with increased risk of kidney cancer (OR 4.31, 95% CI, 1.07 to 17.3).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>DM does not correlate with the risk of kidney cancer. Hypertension, chronic kidney diseases, cystic kidney diseases, kidney stones and use of alpha-glucosidase inhibitors are associated with kidney cancer.</p>

Detection of plague IgM antibody in the serum of herding dogs by capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay / 中国地方病学杂志

Objective To establish a capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for detection of plague IgM antibody in herding dogs.Methods ELISA plates were coated with serum IgM antibody against dogs and F1 antibody to plague in the serum of herding dogs was detected by a sandwich ELISA.Results A total of 216 serum samples of herding dogs were tested,26 were positive for plague F1 antibody and the positive rate was 12.03％ (26/216); 14 were positive for plague IgM antibody and the positive rate was 6.48％ (14/216); IgM positive accounted for 53.8％(14/26) of all positive samples.Conclusions Serum plague IgM antibody of herding dogs can be used to predict the prevalent time and distribution of recent animal plague in plague foci indirectly,and to provide reference information for timely implementation of control measures.

Related factors for rectosigmoid hyperplastic polyps: a hospital-based study

Little evidence is available about the related factors for colorectal hyperplastic polyps in Taiwan. The aim of this study was to explore the prevalence of rectosigmoid hyperplastic polyps and to determine the related factors. Medical center in Taichung city, Taiwan Retrospective hospital-based, cross-sectional study. We analyzed the medical records of all subjects receiving periodic health examination at one medical center in Taichung city in Taiwan from 2001 to 2004. A total of 4413 subjects were enrolled in this study. All subjects underwent a 60-cm flexible sigmoidoscopic examination and laboratory survey. Prevalence of hyperplastic Polyps and related factors.There were 2444 men [55.4%] and 1969 women [44.6%]. The mean age was 49.3 years [standard deviation 12.3, range from 20 to 87]. The overall prevalence of hyperplastic polyps was 5.5%, with higher prevalence in men than in women [6.9% Vs 3.7%, p < 0.001]. After controlling for the other co-variates, multivariate logistic regression model showed that the related factors for hyperplastic polyps were increasing age [OR = 1.03, 95% CI = 1.02 -1.05, p < 0.001], male gender [OR =1.79, 95% CI = 1.31 - 2.46, p < 0.001], generalized obesity [OR = 1.59, 95% CI = 1.10 - 2.28, p = 0.012], and smoking [OR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.02 - 1.93, p = 0.038]. These findings reveal that increasing age, male gender, generalized obesity and smoking are the related factors for rectosigmoid hyperplastic polyps

Thrombocytopenia and its related factors: a hospital-based, cross-sectional study

<p><b>INTRODUCTION</b>The objective of this study was to explore the association between thrombocytopenia and its related factors.</p><p><b>MATERIALS AND METHODS</b>This was a hospital-based, cross-sectional study. We retrospectively analysed the medical records of all patients who received periodic health examinations at a medical centre located at Taichung in Taiwan between 2000 and 2004. In all, 5585 subjects were included for further analysis. A complete physical examination, laboratory survey and abdominal ultrasonography were performed on each subject. The t-test, chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The subjects consisted of 3123 men (55.9%) and 2462 women (44.1%). The mean age was 49.4 +/- 12.3 years (range, 20 to 87). The overall prevalence of thrombocytopenia was found to be 0.5%, higher in men than in women (0.6% vs 0.4%, P = 0.504). After controlling for the other covariates, multivariate logistic regression analysis exhibited that the factors significantly related to thrombocytopenia were increasing age (OR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.004-1.08), anti-HCV positive (OR, 5.24; 95% CI, 2.08-13.20), liver cirrhosis (OR, 7.93; 95% CI, 2.28-27.62), and splenomegaly (OR, 18.86; 95% CI, 6.86-51.87).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>It is advisable to further check the hepatic status, if thrombocytopenia is noted.</p>