Epidemiological characteristics and spatio-temporal distribution of pulmonary tuberculosis cases reported in students from Guizhou Province, 2011-2020 / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective: To analyze the trend of epidemiological characteristics and spatiotemporal distribution of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) among smear-positive or other types of students in Guizhou Province from 2011 to 2020, and to provide a reference for improving prevention and control measures. Methods: Data were collected from the Chinese Information System's Notifiable Disease and Tuberculosis Management Information System for disease control and prevention, the Joinpoint 4.9.1.0 software was used to analyze the trend of registration rate; the ArcGIS 10.6 software was used to construct a ring map and to perform spatial autocorrelation analysis; the SaTScan 9.7 software was used for spatial-temporal scan statistics. Results: A total of 32 682 student PTB cases were reported in Guizhou Province from 2011 to 2020, including 5 949 (18.20%) smear-positive cases. Most cases occurred from high school students of 16 to 18 years old (43.99%, 14 376/32 682); the annual average registered rate was 36.22/100 000, the highest in 2018 (52.90/100 000), and the registration rate showed an increasing trend. Meanwhile, a similar trend of registration rate was observed among smear-positive or other types of students. The spatialtemporal heterogeneity was found that the "high-high" clustering patterns of smear-positive or other types were aggregated in Bijie City. Six spatialtemporal clusters with statistically significant (all P<0.001) were detected among smear-positive or other cases, respectively. Conclusions: Upward trend with spatial- temporal clusters of PTB cases reported in students from Guizhou Province from 2011 to 2020. Surveillance should be strengthened for high school students, and regular screening should be conducted in high-risk areas to control the source of infection and reduce the risk of transmission.

Associations Between Insulin Resistance Indexes and Hyperuricemia in Hypertensive Population / 中国医学科学院学报

Objective To explore the relationship between insulin resistance (IR) indexes and hyperuricemia (HUA) among the people with hypertension. Methods From July to August in 2018,hypertension screening was carried out in Wuyuan county,Jiangxi province,and the data were collected through questionnaire survey,physical measurement,and biochemical test.Logistic regression was performed to analyze the relationship between HUA and IR indexes including metabolic score for IR (METS-IR),triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index,TyG-body mass index (BMI),TyG-waist circumference (WC),visceral adiposity index (VAI),triglyceride (TG)/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C),and lipid accumulation product (LAP).The penalty spline method was used for the curve fitting between IR indexes and HUA.The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was employed to reveal the correlation between each index and HUA. Results The 14 220 hypertension patients included 6 713 males and 7 507 females,with the average age of (63.8±9.4) years old,the average uric acid level of (418.9±120.6) mmol/L,and the HUA detection rate of 44.4%.The HUA group had higher proportions of males,current drinking,current smoking,diabetes,and using antihypertensive drugs,older age,higher diastolic blood pressure,WC,BMI,homocysteine,total cholesterol,TG,low-density lipoprotein cholesterol,blood urea nitrogen,creatinine,aspartate aminotransferase,alanine aminotransferase,total protein,albumin,total bilirubin,direct bilirubin, METS-IR, TyG, TyG-BMI, TyG-WC, VAI, TG/HDL-C, and LAP, and lower systolic blood pressure and HDL-C than the normal uric acid group (all P<0.05).Multivariate Logistic regression showed that METS-IR (OR=1.049,95%CI=1.038-1.060, P<0.001), TyG (OR=1.639,95%CI=1.496-1.797, P<0.001), TyG-BMI (OR=1.008,95%CI=1.006-1.010, P<0.001), TyG-WC (OR=1.003,95%CI=1.002-1.004, P<0.001), lnVAI (OR=1.850, 95%CI=1.735-1.973, P<0.001), ln(TG/HDL-C) (OR=1.862,95%CI=1.692-2.048, P<0.001),and lnLAP (OR=1.503,95%CI=1.401-1.613,P<0.001) were associated with the risk of HUA.Curve fitting indicated that METS-IR,TyG,TYG-BMI,TYG-WC,lnVAI,ln(TG/HDL-C),and lnLAP were positively correlated with HUA (all P<0.001),and the AUC of TyG index was higher than that of other IR indexes (all P<0.05). Conclusion Increased IR indexes,especially TyG,were associated with the risk of HUA among people with hypertension.

Effect of interferon-α and thymopentin on the mRNA expression of APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B in HepG2.2.15 cells / 临床肝胆病杂志

ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of synergistic intervention of interferonα (IFNα) and thymopentin (TP5) on the mRNA expression of apolipoprotein B mRNA editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like 3A (APOBEC3A) and apolipoprotein B mRNA editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like 3B (APOBEC3B) in HepG2.2.15 cells. MethodsHepG2.2.15 cells were divided into blank control group, IFNα treatment group, TP5 treatment group, and IFNα+TP5 treatment group, and at 12, 24, 48, and 72 hours of treatment, quantitative real-time PCR was used to measure the mRNA expression of APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B in HepG2.2.15 cells. An analysis of variance was used for comparison of continuous data between multiple groups, and the least significant difference t-test was used for further comparison between two groups. ResultsCompared with the blank control group, the IFNα treatment group and the IFNα+TP5 treatment group had a significant increase in the mRNA expression of APOBEC3A at 12, 24, 48, and 72 hours of treatment (all P＜0001). Compared with the IFNα treatment group, the IFNα+TP5 treatment group had a significant increase in the mRNA expression of APOBEC3A at these four time points (all P＜0.001). TP5 treatment had no significant influence on the mRNA expression of APOBEC3A at each time point (all P＞0.05). There was no significant difference in the mRNA expression of APOBEC3B between the blank control group and the treatment groups (all P＞0.05). ConclusionIFNα combined with TP5 can significantly upregulate the mRNA expression of APOBEC3A in HepG2.2.15 cells.

Diagnostic accuracy of RPR, FIB-4, APRI and AAR in liver fibrosis patients with chronic hepatitis B / 中国实用内科杂志

OBJECTIVE: We intended to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of red cell distribution width to platelet ratio(RPR),and compare it with other three markers of fibrosis-4(FIB-4), aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet-ratio-index(APRI) and aspartateaminotransferase-to-alanine aminotransferase ratio(AAR) for judging liver fibrosis and fibrosis severity in patients with chronic hepatitis B(CHB). METHODS: who had not received antiviral treatment met the requirements of this cross-sectional study. Hematology,biochemistry, virology testing and liver biopsy were performed. Receiver-operating characteristic curves were constructed and the area under the ROC curve was calculated. RESULTS: The cut-off value for distinguishing F0-1, F2-3 and F4 was 0.079, 0.141 and 0.279,respectively(P<0.001) for RPR; 1.194, 3.703 and 4.383(P<0.001) for FIB-4; 0.384, 0.660 and 1.441, respectively(P<0.001) for APRI; and 0.915, 0.850 and 0.960(P=0.706) for AAR. The sensitivity was 76.09% for RPR, 78.26% for FIB-4, 97.83% for AAR and80.43% for APRI; specificity was 81.48% for RPR, 75.93% for FIB-4, 14.81% for AAR and 80.43% for APRI; the AUROC was 0.787 for RPR, 0.778 for FIB-4, 0.540 for AAR and 0.759 for APRI. The common cut-off value was 0.11, 1.94, 0.60 and 0.59 for RPR, FIB-4, AAR and APRI respectively. CONCLUSION: RPR, FIB-4 and APRI have good efficiency in appraising significant and severe fibrosis in patients with CHB, however RPR is superior to FIB-4 and FIB-4 is superior to APRI, therefore, RPR is a better index in evaluating liver cirrhosis.

Modified Bascom cleft lift procedure for chronic pilonidal sinus / 中华普通外科杂志

Objective To evaluate the clinical efficacy of modified Bascom cleft lift procedure in the treatment of chronic sinus.Methods Modified Bascom cleft lift procedure was performed in 53 patients admitted from Oct 2012 to Jul 2016.49 cases were male and 4 were female.The average age was (25.4± 2.3) years.Results All patients were satisfied with the operation.There were 49 cases of primary healing and 4 cases of incision complications.The average follow-up was (12.1 ±4.3) months,no recurrence was observed.Conclusion The modified Bascom cleft lift technique is effective and reliable,with less complications and a lower recurrence rate.

A Web-based Survey of Marital Quality and Job Satisfaction among Chinese Nurses

PURPOSE: This study aimed to use a web-based survey to investigate the correlation between job satisfaction and marital quality and to identify the association of demographics with job satisfaction and marital quality. METHODS: Married nurses (N = 2,296) completed the questionnaires. Correlations and linear regression analyses were carried out. RESULTS: Both marital quality and job satisfaction were relatively low. Additionally, marital quality was positively correlated with job satisfaction. Age, marital status (in years) and average daily hours spent with spouse had positive impact on job satisfaction. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that age, monthly income, average daily hours spent with spouse and marital quality were positively associated with job satisfaction. CONCLUSION: Because of the shifts nurses working, there is little time for nurses to spend with their spouses and family. It is recommended that hospital leaders could provide more flexibility with nurses' shift choices so nurses can arrange their work-life balance better. Other considerations like reducing workload and reducing working hours should be promoted as options. Nurse managers could offer counseling services including strategies to cope with the balance between work and life. This effort could improve job satisfaction and reduce the rate of turnover of nurses.

Reconstruction and practice of key nodes in the clinical pathway information system / 中华医院管理杂志

Xiangya Hospital of Central South University has reconstructed its key nodes of the clinical pathway information system in order to promote efficient and extensive implementation of the clinical pathway. Its methods include introduction of new classification of clinical pathways, enriched contents of clinical pathway forms, and design of such concepts as "Standard stage date", "Big category of drugs","Grouping prescriptions" and "Concreted mutation".

Therapeutic Observation of Bai Xiao Moxibustion plus Electroacupuncture for Lumbar Intervertebral Disc Herniation / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of Bai Xiao moxibustion plus electroacupuncture in treating lumbar intervertebral disc herniation (LIDH). Method Ninety-six LIDH patients were randomized into a treatment group and a control group, 48 cases each. The treatment group was intervened by Bai Xiao moxibustion plus electroacupuncture, while the control group was intervened by electroacupuncture alone. Before and after the treatment, the lower back pain scores of Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) were evaluated, and the clinical efficacies of the two groups were compared. Result The JOA and VAS lower back pain scores were changed significantly after the treatment in both groups (P<0.05). After the treatment, the JOA and VAS lower back pain scores of the treatment group were significantly different from those of the control group (P<0.05). The pain release time was (2.95±0.59)d after the intervention in the treatment group versus (4.26±0.68)d in the control group, and the between-group difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). The total effective rate was 95.7％ in the treatment group versus 91.7％ in the control group, and the between-group difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Conclusion Bai Xiao moxibustion plus electroacupuncture is an effective method in treating LIDH and it can reduce the lower back pain.

Association between genetic polymorphism of CYP3A4, CYP2D6 and response to methadone maintenance treatment / 中国感染控制杂志

Objective To explore the association between the genetic polymorphism of CYP3A4,CYP2D6 and response to methadone maintenance treatment(MMT)among heroin-dependent patients.Methods Patients undergoing MMT in 6 MMT clinics were randomly selected,information about general socia-demographic characteristics,drug abuse history,and MMT data of patients were collected,genotypes of peripheral blood CYP3A4 and CYP2D6 polymorphic loci were detected.Results A total of 820 patients were enrolled in the study,210 cases were with good response and 610 cases with poor response to MMT.Difference in age between different response groups was statistically significant(P0.05).Conclusion The association between CYP3A4 rs2242480,CYP2D6 rs16947 and response to MMT has not yet found in heroin-dependent patients.

Comparison among three translucency parameters / 华西口腔医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>This study aims to compare the three commonly used translucency parameters in prosthodontics: transmittance (T), contrast ratio (CR), and translucency parameter (TP).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Six platelet specimens were composed of Vita enamel and dental porcelain. The initial thickness was 1.2 mm. The specimens were gradually ground to 1.0, 0.8, 0.6, 0.4, and 0.2 mm. T, color parameters, and reflection were measured by a spectrocolorimeter for each corresponding thickness. T, CR and TP were calculated and compared.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>TP increased, whereas CR decreased, with decreasing thickness. Moreover, 
T increased with decreasing thickness, and exponential relationships were found. Two-way ANOVA showed statistical significance between T and thickness, except between T and the 1.2 mm and 1.0 mm enamel porcelain groups. No difference was found among the coefficient variations (CV) of T, CR and TP. Curve fitting indicated the existence of exponential relationships between T and CR and between T and TP. The values for goodness of fit with statistical significance were 0.951 and 0.939, respectively (P<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Under the experimental conditions, T, TP and CR achieved the same CV. T and TP, as well as T and CR, were found with exponential relationships. The value of CR and TP could not represent the translucency precisely, especially when comparing the changing ratios.</p>

Therapeutic efficacy of extended therapy with interferon and a nucleoside analogue for treating patients with HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B / 中国综合临床

Objective To observe the therapeutic efficacy of extended therapy with interferon and a nucleoside analogue for treating patients with HBeAg?positive chronic hepatitis B( CHB)?Methods Sixty cases patients diagnosed with CHB in You′an Hospital of Beijing Affiliated to Capital Medical University from March 2012 to May 2015 were retrospectively analyzed?They were divided into group A with 29 cases and group B with 31 cases according to different treatment methods?Group A were treated with pegylated interferonα?2a( Peg?IFNα?2a) combined with adefovir dipivoxil for 96 weeks,group B were treated with Peg?IFN α?2a combined with adefovir and lamivudine for 96 weeks?The patients'recovery rate of ALT,hepatitis B virus( HBV) DNA response rate and HBeAg and HBsAg seroconversion rate and conversion rate of 12,24,48,96 weeks in the treatment were observed?Results There were no significant differences in recovery rate of ALT,hepatitis B virus( HBV) DNA response rate,HBeAg seroconversion rate and HBsAg seroconversion rate between the two groups at differenct time points( P>0?05)?HBeAg seroconversion rates in group A were 34?5% at 48 weeks,62?1% at 96 weeks, and the difference was significant( P=0?036)?HBeAg seroconversion rates in group B were 35?5% at 48 weeks, 61?3% at 96 weeks,and the difference was significant ( P=0?042)?Conclusion The treatment of peginterferonα?2a in combination with adefovir dipivoxil and lamivudine is not more efficacious than peginterferon α?2a in combination with adefovir dipivoxil?The extended treatment of Peg? IFNα?2a plus a nucleoside analogue can achieve high rates of HBeAg seroconversion in patients with HBeAg?positive CHB.

Effect of Busheng Huoxue Capsule on the quality of life of primary osteoporosis senile males / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of Busheng Huoxue Capsule (BHC) on the quality of life (QOL) in senile male osteoporosis (OP) patients, and to explore its mechanisms.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Totally 200 senile primary OP patients were randomly assigned to two groups according to random digit table method, 100 in each group. Patients in the treatment group took BHC plus caltrate-D (600 mg CaCO3), while those in the control group took alendronate (70 mg per week) plus caltrate-D. The therapeutic course was 12 months for all. Chinese medical symptom score and quality of life (QUALEFFO-41) score, bone mineral density (BMD) of lumbar vertebra (L2 -L4) and left femoral neck were compared between the two groups before and after treatment. Serum free testosterone (FT) and estradiol (E2) were also measured.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Chinese medical symptom scores and QUALEFFO-41 scores, serum FT and E2 levels increased in the two groups after treatment (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). The therapeutic effect was superior in the treatment group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). After treatment the BMD of lumbar vertebra (L2 -L4) and the left femoral neck were somewhat improved (P < 0.05), but with no statistical difference between the two groups (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>BHC could effectively improve the QOL of senile male OP patients, which might be correlated with elevating the BMD levels and regulating the levels of sex hormones.</p>

A new puncture needle with multiple holes for testicular sperm extraction / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate a new puncture needle with multiple holes (National Invention Patent of China: ZL 2010202466554) in testicular sperm extraction for infertile males.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This study included 215 azoospermia patients, who underwent testicular sperm extraction with a new puncture needle with multiple holes (group A, n = 133), by open biopsy (group B, n = 37), or with a fine needle (group C, n = 45).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The first-time success rate was 100% in group A, 19% in B and 100% in C. The average operation time was obviously shorter in group A ([3 +/- 1] min) than in B ([15 +/- 3] min) and C ([7 +/- 2] min). The rate of postoperative complications was 3.0% in group A, significantly lower than in B (21.6%) and C (11.1%).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The new puncture needle with multiple holes, with its advantages of accuracy, high first-time success rate, minimal invasiveness and low rate of complications, deserves to be generally applied in testicular sperm extraction.</p>

Visfatin upregulates MMP-2 and MMP-9 expressions in human monocytes through activating NF-kappaB / 中华心血管病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effects of visfatin on the MMP-2 and MMP-9 expressions in human monocytes and related mechanisms.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Human monocytes were isolated from blood, the expressions of MMP-2 and MMP-9 at mRNA and protein levels were detected in visfatin stimulated monocytes (0, 100, 200, 400 ng/ml) in the absence and presence of NF-kappaB inhibitor specific Bay11-7082 by Realtime PCR or Western blot, the MMP-2 and MMP-9 enzyme activity in the culture media was also detected by Gelatin Zymography. The NF-kappaB protein level and NF-kappaBp65 expression in visfatin stimulated cells were measured by Western blot and ELISA, respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Visfatin upregulated MMP-2 and MMP-9 expressions in human monocytes in a dose dependent manner. After treatment with visfatin 400 ng/ml for 24 h, comparing with the free visfatin treatment, the protein expressions of MMP-2 and MMP-9 were up-regulated to 1.644 +/- 0.052 and 3.578 +/- 0.081 (all P < 0.001); the enzyme activities of MMP-2 and MMP-9 were enhanced by 1.661 +/- 0.036 (P < 0.001) and 1.662 +/- 0.100 (P < 0.001). NF-kappaB was also activated in these cells by visfatin and these effects could be significantly attenuated by Bay11-7082. Visfatin induced a dose-dependent (100 - 400 ng) increase of NF-kappaBp65 nuclear translocation from 0.763 +/- 0.056 to 1.290 +/- 0.065 at 100 and 400 ng/ml, comparing with free visfatin treatment 0.467 +/- 0.046 (all P < 0.05). Bay11-7082 decreased the protein expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 to 1.183 +/- 0.030 and 2.024 +/- 0.056 (all P < 0.001 comparing with 400 ng/ml visfatin treatment).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Visfatin enhanced the expression and activity of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in human monocytes via activating NF-kappaB signaling pathway.</p>

Clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical study on early gastric signet-ring cell carcinoma / 中华病理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the expression of gastric and intestinal phenotypic markers in gastric signet-ring cell (SRC) carcinoma and the relationship with the clinicopathologic parameters and prognosis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Immunohistochemical study was carried out in 91 cases of early-stage SRC carcinoma using MUC1, MUC5AC and MUC6 antibodies as the gastric phenotypic markers and MUC2 and CDX2 antibodies as the intestinal phenotypic markers. According to the expression of phenotypic markers, the tumors were classified into three different subgroups: gastric, intestinal and mixed. The findings were analyzed together with various clinical parameters and follow-up data.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Amongst the 91 cases studied, 53 cases (58.2%) belonged to gastric type, 22 cases (24.2%) mixed type and 16 cases (17.6%) intestinal type. The positive rates of MUC2 and CDX2 in early submucosal carcinoma were significantly higher than those in mucosal carcinoma (P < 0.01). On the other hand, the rates of MUC5AC and MUC6 expression in early submucosal carcinoma were significantly lower than those in mucosal carcinoma (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05). The rates of MUC2 and CDX2 expression in cases with lymph node metastasis and vascular invasion were significantly higher than those in cases without nodal or vascular involvement (P < 0.05). The expression of CDX2 was also significantly higher in cases with larger tumor size (P < 0.05). Cases with intestinal phenotype more likely had invasion deeper than mucosal layer and carried higher chance of lymph node metastasis (P = 0.000 and P = 0.003). Intestinal and mixed types correlated with shortened five-year survival.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The intestinal type of SRC carcinoma is associated with poorer biologic behavior and prognosis, as compared with that of the gastric type. Classification on the basis of immunophenotypic markers may be useful in predicting prognosis and guiding treatment for patients with gastric SRC carcinoma.</p>

Vitrification technology in whole embryo freezing / 中南大学学报(医学版)

Objective To investigate the clinical outcome of patients who underwent whole embryo vitrification freezing and thawed frozen embryo transplantation, and to compare it with the patients at the same period in the fresh cycle to explore the value of vitrification technology in the whole embryo freezing combined with recovery transplantation. Methods The whole embryo freezing group included 40 untransplanted cases of in-vitro fertilization (IVF), while another 300 patients in the fresh cycle with in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET) at the same period served as the fresh cycle group. The average number of transferred embryos, high-quality embryos, endometrial thickness, estradiol (E2) level, and clinical pregnancy rate were compared.Results The average number of transferred embryos, high-quality embryos, difference in endometrial thickness were not significant between the 2 groups (P>0.05); the E2 level of the fresh cylcle group was significantly higher than that of the whole embryo freezing group (P<0.05), and the clinical pregnancy rate in the fresh cylcle group was significantly lower than that of the whole embryo freezing group (P<0.05). Conclusion Vitrification technology is a simple, reliable, and efficient embryo freezing technology. For patients who meet the requirements, whole embryo vitrfication freezing and thawed frozen embryo transplantation is feasible. It is worth for further clinical research.

Influence of different surface roughness of opaque porcelain on reflectance and L* value of porcelain fused to metal / 华西口腔医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>The purpose of this study was to investigate how different surface roughness of opaque porcelain influence reflectance and CIE L* value of porcelain fused to metal (PFM) restorations.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>48 casted Ni-Cr alloy metal specimens (12.0 mm x 1.0 mm) were fabricated with ShoFu Vintage Halo porcelain and divided into six groups, eight pieces for each group. The specimens in the first group without polishing were used as control. Other groups were polished against 200-, 400-, 600-, 800-, and 1000-grit sandpaper after sintered, respectively. Surface roughness and color parameters of the specimens were measured with a Surface Roughometer EX2154-13 and a spectrocolorimeter, respectively. Ra (arithmetical mean deviation of the profile) was the main standard value to describe the surface roughness of many kinds of meatal or porcelain materials, and here we used it to express surface roughness of opaque porcelain. The data were statistically analyzed by one-way analysis of variance (alpha = 0.05) in SPSS 13.0.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The reflectance value increased from 72.386 +/- 3.953 to 78.671 +/- 3.408, and CIE L* value from 90.189 +/- 1.200 to 93.496 +/- 1.070 with the increasing of surface roughness (Ra) of opaque porcelain from (0.226 +/- 0.069) microm to (0.706 +/- 0.082) microm. The same magnitude were also observed after body porcelain and enamel porcelain were sintered on with reflectance increased from 76.301 +/- 3.097 to 81.529 +/- 4.028, and CIE L* value from 80.694 +/- 1.564 to 84.604 +/- 2.964.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The surface roughness of opaque porcelain had effects on the reflectance and value of PFM restorations. Within the limitation of this study, the recommended Ra range of opaque porcelain was 0.23-0.50 microm.</p>

Expression of aquaporin-1 in human oligohydramnios placenta and fetal membranes / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To detect aquaporin-1 mRNA (AQP1) expression in human oligohydramnios placenta and fetal membranes.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Placenta and fetal membranes samples were obtained from 5 women with oligohydramnios and 5 with normal amniotic fluid volume. AQP-1 mRNA expression in the tissue samples was detected by semi-quantitative RT-PCR.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The expression of AQP1 mRNA was significantly lower in oligohydramnios placenta than in normal pregnancy placenta at term (P<0.05), and also significantly lower in oligohydramnios fetal membranes than in normal fetal membranes at term (P<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Alterations in AQP1 mRNA expressions in human placenta and fetal membranes may play an important role in the disorder of maternal-fetal fluid exchange and amniotic fluid volume.</p>

Acute heat stress increases HSP70 expression in the testis, epididymis and vas deferens of adult male mice / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effects of acute heat stress on the expression patterns of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) in the testis, epididymis and vas deferens of adult male mice.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Thirty-two 8-week-old male mice were randomly divided into a control and 3 heat stress groups. After a week of pretreatment, the latter 3 groups were exposed to heat stress at (39 +/- 0.5) degrees C for 0.5, 1 and 3 hours, respectively, followed immediately by collection of the blood and determination of glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT) concentration. Sperm suspension was made from one epididymis for the detection of sperm concentration and abnormal acrosome rate, while the testis, epididymis and vas deferens on the other side were harvested for immunohistochemical analysis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Heat stress induced different degrees of decrease in epididymis indexes and sperm concentration and a dramatic increase in GOT concentration (P < 0.01), but caused no significant changes in the body weight, testis indexes and abnormal acrosome rate in the mice (P > 0.05). There was a tendency of gradual descent in sperm concentration and ascent in abnormal acrosome rate with the increasing time of heat stress. The most decrease in body weight, testis indexes and epididymis indexes was observed in the 0.5 h group. Immunohistochemical results showed that HSP70 was expressed in the testis, epididymis and vas deferens, mildly in the Leydig cells of the testis and distributed in the nuclei of the Leydig cells, spermatoblasts and spermatocytes. In the epididymis, HSP70 was expressed mainly in the cytoplasm of principal and ciliated cells, but not in the basal and clear cells, while in the vas deferens, it was observed mainly in the cytoplasm of the basal cells, but not in the principal cells. With the increase of heating time, the HSP70 expression was markedly elevated in the testis and epididymis, but not so obviously in the vas deferens.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Acute heat stress was harmful to the reproductive system of adult male mice. The region- and cell-specific patterns of HSP70 expressions in the testis, epididymis and vas deferens suggested that HSP70 might play an important role in spermatogenesis and sperm maturation. The dramatic increase of HSP70 expression after heat stress might be responsible for the prevention of cells from high temperature.</p>

Expression and role of toll-like receptors in U937 cells / 中国实验血液学杂志

The aim of study was to explore the potential application of targeting at Toll-like receptors (TLRs) in the immunotherapy of acute myelocytic leukemia, and to investigate the expression of TLR and the effects of TLR 8 agonist ssRNA40/LyoVec on proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle of U937 cells. The expression of TLR 1 - 9 in U937 cells was detected by using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the expression of TLR 8 was assayed by flow cytometry (FCM). The effect of TLR 8 agonist, ssRNA40/LyoVec, at different concentrations on U937 cells proliferation was evaluated by CCK-8, apoptosis and cell cycle were detected by FCM. The results showed that U937 cells expressed TLR 1 - 9. TLR 8 agonist ssRNA40/LyoVec could inhibit the growth of U937 cells both in time-and dose-dependent manner and the inhibitory rate could reach 70%. It also increased the percentage of cells in G(0)/G(1) phase. There was no significant difference in percentage of apoptotic cells between control and treated groups. It is concluded that TLRs including TLR 1 - 9 express on U937 cells and TLR 8 agonist ssRNA40/LyoVec may be able to inhibit the growth of U937 cells, arrest the cells in G(0)/G(1) phase, but have no effect of promoting apoptosis.