Zygomaticotemporal suture maturation evaluation in Chinese population using cone-beam computed tomography images / 대한치과교정학회지

Objective@#This study aimed to evaluate the zygomaticotemporal suture (ZTS) maturation, analyze the age distribution patterns of ZTS maturation stages, and investigate the relationship between ZTS and cervical vertebral maturation (CVM). @*Methods@#A total of 261 patients who underwent cone-beam computed tomography (112 males, mean age, 13.1 ± 3.3 years; 149 females, mean age, 13.7 ± 3.1 years) were examined to evaluate the ZTS stages. The ZTS stages were defined based on a modified method from previous studies on zygomaticomaxillary sutures. Differences between groups and correlations between indicators were analyzed using the Spearman correlation test, intraclass coefficient of correlation (ICC), one-way analysis of variance and rank sum test.Statistical significance was set at p 10 were found for several cervical stages (CSs), including CS1 and CS2 for the diagnosis of stage B, CS1 to CS3 for the diagnosis of stages B and C, and CS6 for the diagnosis of stages D and E. @*Conclusions@#The ZTS maturation stage may be more relevant to the CVM stage than to the chronological age. The CVM stages can be good indicators for clinical decisions regarding maxillary protraction, except for CS4 and CS5.

Comparison of pathological characteristics of Wistar and Lewis rat models of collagen-induced rheumatoid arthritis / 中国比较医学杂志

Objective To study the differences of symptoms and pathological features of Wistar and Lewis rat models of collagen-induced rheumatoid arthritis. Methods Wistar and Lewis rats were injected with intermixture of bovine TypeⅡ collage and complete Freund's adjuvant(CFA)for first immunization, then strengthen it after 14 days and observed the incidence of Wistar-RA group and Lewis-RA group. The degree of paws swelling and the titer of serum anti CII antibody were determined. The pathological changes in toe and joint tissues were examined at 12 weeks, and the expressions of VEGF, IL-6, IL-10 and IL-17A in the synovial membrane of ankle joint were detected. Results After collagen induction,the Wistar and Lewis rats showed paw swelling after 10 d and 14 d,and peaked at 21 d and 24 d,the titer of serum anti CII antibody was significantly increased at third week(P< 0.01), and arthritis index(AI)was also significantly increased(P< 0.01). In the Wistar-RA rat group, the rate of molding was 80%, and at fifth weeks, the swelling of the paws subsided and went into a flat level. The molding rate of the Lewis-RA group was 100%,at the seventh week,the swelling of paws subsided and went into a flat level. At 12 weeks,the two model groups showed severe articular cartilage erosion, synovial hyperplasia and inflammatory cell infiltration, neovascularization and pannus formation in the joint synovium,and the bone mineral density of the femur and tibia of the hind limbs was significantly decreased(P<0.01). The expression of VEGF,IL-6 and IL-17A in synovium was significantly increased(P< 0.05,P< 0.01). The expression of IL-10 was obviously decreased(P< 0.01). Compared with the Wistar-RA group,the paw volume and paw thickness were increased for a longer time in the Lewis-RA group,AI was higher than that of the Wistar-RA group,synovial angiogenesis and pannus formation were more distinct, the expression of VEGF in synovium was significantly higher than that of Wistar-RA group(P< 0.05), while the expression of IL-17A was significantly lower than that in the Wistar-RA group(P< 0.05). Conclusions Both the Wistar-RA rat model and Lewis-RA rat model show joint swelling,deformation and decreased activity. AI is increased,the expression of VEGF,IL-6 and IL-17A increased,and the expression of IL-10 decreased,which are consistent with the clinical manifestation. The Wistar-RA rat model has a short duration of swelling, while the Lewis-RA rat model has a longer swelling duration and more severe joint damages. The neovascularization and pannus formation are more obvious. The expression of IL-17A in the Wistar-RA rat model is higher, while the Lewis-RA model has a highly expressed VEGF,which may be related to its pathological characteristics.

Application of implantable telemetry and whole-body plethysmography to observe the changes of circadian rhythm in conscious rats and its application in pharmacological safety evaluation of doxofylline / 中国实验动物学报

Objective To study the application of implantable telemetry and whole-body plethysmography to observe the changes of circadian rhythm in conscious rats and evaluate the pharmacological safety of doxofylline, and to provide a basis for the future application of this technological system for drug safety evaluation.Methods Eight healthy SPF Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study, 4 males and 4 females.The rats were implanted with telemetry transmitters by surgery to establish a telemetry system combined with plethysmography to observe the changes of 24 h physiological parameters and circadian rhythm in conscious rats at 14 d after operation, including heart rate (HR), blood pressure, the time interval from the Q wave to point A in the ECG of the aortic pressure wave (QA interval), respiration, activity, body temperature and pulmonary function parameters.The rats were divided into 3 groups: normal control group, doxofylline 40 mg/kg and 80 mg/kg groups, and the performance was validated by aerosolizing saline, doxofylline 40 mg/kg and 80 mg/kg inhalation, respectively, to observe the changes in physiological parameters after the drug administration.Results The physiological parameters of rats showed obvious changes in circadian rhythms at 14 d after operation.Compared with the normal control group, the doxofylline 40 mg/kg-treated group showed significantly increased changes of HR, tidal volume (TV), minute ventilation (MV), 50% expiratory flow (EF50), peak inspiratory flow (PIF) and peak expiratory flow (PEF) (P0.05).Compared with the normal control group, the group treated with doxofylline 80 mg/kg had significantly increased HR, blood pressure, TV, MV, EF50, PIF and PEF (P0.05).Conclusions The application of implantable telemetry and whole-body plethysmography in this study does not obviously affect the circadian rhythm, and can sensitively monitor the relevant cardiovascular and respiratory parameters in conscious rats.It can be used in drug safety pharmacological research of cardiovascular and respiratory systems in conscious rats.

No evidence for genetic association between alpha-2 macroglobulin I1000V polymorphism and sporadic Alzheimer's disease in two independent Chinese populations / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>Alpha-2 macroglobulin (alpha2M) is a proteinase inhibitor found in association with senile plaques in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Also alpha2M has been implicated in several pathophysiological processes in AD. In view of the recent contradictory reports on the relationship between AD and a common polymorphism I1000V in A2M gene, the present authors studied a relatively large sample, determined the genotype of the I1000V polymorphism in A2M gene in sporadic AD patients and age-matched controls with normal cognition, and examined the possible association of the polymorphism with AD.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Genotypes of A2M and apolipoprotein E (apoE) were detected by polymerase chain reaction combined with restriction fragment length polymorphism in 257 patients and 242 controls in Guangzhou, and 112 patients and 113 controls in Chengdu.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The 1000Val allele frequencies in the merged AD and control groups were 7.7% and 8.7%, respectively. The differences of allelic and genotypic frequencies between the patients and control subjects were not statistically significant, even after stratification by apoE epsilon4 status or by age-of-onset of the disease.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The results of this study revealed no association between the I1000V polymorphism of A2M and Chinese sporadic AD in Guangzhou and Chengdu.</p>

Study on the association of lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase gene polymorphisms with the lipid metabolism in coronary atherosclerotic heart disease / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To examine the distribution of 3 polymorphisms of lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase gene in Chinese population and the association of these polymorphisms with lipid metabolism in patients with atherosclerotic heart disease (CHD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Genotypes and frequencies of 3 sites were examined by PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism technique in 209 unrelated normal control individuals and 203 CHD patients.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The observed allele frequencies conform well to Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The frequency of 608T allele was significantly higher in controls than that in patients (P=0.034). Compared with the CHD patients without 608T, the CHD patients with 608T exhibited a significant increase in plasma HDL-C concentration (P=0.015). 911T/C and 1188C/T polymorphisms were not found in either group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>608T polymorphism of LCAT gene was associated with higher plasma HDL-C level in CHD patients, while 911T/C and 1188C/T polymorphisms maybe very rare in Chinese population.</p>

The relationship between haplotypes of angiotensinogen gene and essential hypertension / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the relationship between the polymorphism of angiotensinogen gene (AGT) and the risk for hypertension in a Chinese population.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Three polymorphisms of AGT gene were analyzed in 335 patients with documented essential hypertension and 196 control subjects by using PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism. Expectation maximization(EM) algorithm was then used for pairwise linkage disequilibrium test and haplotype analysis of AGT polymorphisms.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Linkage disequilibrium between M235T and A-20C, between M235T and A-6G, between A-20C and A-6G was observed (P<10(-4)). The case-control analysis revealed that the frequency of T235 is significantly higher in essential hypertension patients than in control subjects. But all haplotype frequencies showed no significant difference between the patient and control groups.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>No association was noted between the haplotypes of AGT gene and hypertension in tested people, but T235 allele might play an important role in increased risk for essential hypertension.</p>