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Objective To explore the feasibility of reducing radiation dose of CT colonography (CTC) while preserving image quality using the third-generation dual-source CT at 70 kV tube voltage with advanced modeled iterative reconstruction (ADMIRE). Methods This prospective study consecutively included 53 patients. All patients underwent CTC at 120 kV in supine position with filtered back projection reconstruction and at 70 kV in prone position with ADMIRE with the same scan range. Radiation dose and image quality were compared between these two protocols. Results CT dose index volume,dose-length product,and effective dose of 70 kV were (1.47±0.23)mGy,(68.85±13.82)mGy·cm,and (1.03±0.21)mSv,respectively,which were significantly lower than 120 kV mode [(2.96±0.61)mGy (t=25.356,P=0.000),(136.97±32.77)mGy·cm (t=22.246,P=0.000),and (2.05±0.49)mSv (t=22.293,P=0.000)]. Signal to noise ratio of 70 kV with ADMIRE was 3.60±0.58,which was obviously higher than that of 120 kV as 2.34±0.47 (t=-18.036,P=0.000). Noise of 70 kV with ADMIRE was (11.81±1.93)HU,which was obviously lower than that of 120 kV as (14.39±2.57)HU (t=7.856,P=0.000). The κ value of two radiologists' overall subjective image score was 0.843 (P=0.000). For 2D images,the noise score of 70 kV with ADMIRE was significantly lower (Z=325.000,P=0.000) and the overall image quality was significantly higher (Z=78.000,P=0.001) compared with 120 kV;however,the sharpness had no significant difference. All scores ranged from 4 to 5. For 3D virtual endoscopy,the overall image quality of 70 kV with ADMIRE and 120 kV was not significantly different (Z=4.000,P=0.059),and all scores ranged from 4 to 5. Conclusion CTC at 70 kV tube voltage combined with ADMIRE can remarkably reduce the radiation dose while maintaining imaging quality than 120 kV at third-generation dual-source CT.
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Humans , Colon , Diagnostic Imaging , Colonography, Computed Tomographic , Methods , Prone Position , Prospective Studies , Radiation Dosage , Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted , Radionuclide Imaging , Signal-To-Noise RatioABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Wnt signaling pathways can stimulate the proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cel s, and promote the repair of spinal cord injury. The electrical field stimulation can change the protein expression of Wnt signaling pathways. QBJECTIVE: To explore the influence of oscil ating electric field on motor function recovery and the expression of Wnt-3a protein in rats with spinal cord injury. METHODS: A total of 36 Sprague-Dawley rats models with spinal cord injury were induced by the Al en’s method. Al rats were randomly divided into oscil ating electric field stimulation group and spinal cord injury group. The stimulating electrodes were added in both groups. The oscil ating electric field stimulation group received oscil ating electric field intervention. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: At 3 days after model establishment, Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale scores and Wnt-3a expression were similar between the oscil ating electric field stimulation group and spinal cord injury group. At 7 and 14 days, significant differences in BBB scores and Wnt-3a expression were detected. These results indicate that oscil ating electric field stimulation can activate Wnt signaling protein in the early stage of spinal cord injury, which may be associated with the promoting effect of oscil ating electric field stimulation on spinal cord injury.
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@#Hepatitis B virus(HBV)-infected hepatitis is one of the most common infectious disease worldwide. To find novel effective anti-HBV agents, a series of Matijin-Su(MTS)derivatives with aromatic heterocycles were synthesized and evaluated for their anti- HBV activities in HepG2 2. 2. 15 cells. Among them, compounds 7a(IC50=2. 94 μmol/L)and 9a(IC50=2. 21 μmol/L)exhibited more potent inhibitory activity against the replication of HBV DNA in HepG2 2. 2. 15 cells than that of lead compound MTS(IC50=11. 16 μmol/L). Notably, both 7a and 9a displayed a high selective index(SI)of 146. 39 and > 250, respectively, which were also much higher than that of MTS(SI=10. 78). Therefore, compounds 7a and 9a may be promising anti-HBV agents with safety profile for HBV infection.
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BACKGROUND:Previous studies have confirmed that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in vitro can promote hepatic stel ate cellapoptosis and inhibit its activity, in which the mechanism of action remains unknown. OBJECTIVE:To screen out apoptosis-related genes during hepatic stel ate cellapoptosis regulated by bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells using gene chip technology. METHODS:Purified human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were seeded in 6-wel Transwel plate and cocultured with hepatic stel ate cells. Cultured human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells alone served as control group, and cultured for 72 hours. The alterations in apoptosis-related genes were analyzed between culture alone group and coculture group using gene chip technology. The genes strongly associated with regulation of hepatic stel ate cells were selected. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:By the functional classification of second-generation SABiosciences Gene chips, apoptotic gene screening found that after coculture, significantly upregulated genes in bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells contained:AKT1, PIK3R2, DAPK1, DHCR24, NOTCH2 and BDNF. Combined with previous findings, we hypothesized that NOTCH may play a key role in the regulation of hepatic stel ate cells by bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells.
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AIM:To investigate the inhibitory effect of small interfering RNA ( siRNA) on the expression of protein kinase Cε( PKCε) in human hepatoma SK-Hep-1 cells, and the biological behaviors of the transduced cells , inclu-ding proliferation and invasion , were investigated.METHODS:The cultured SK-Hep-1 cells were divided into 3 groups, including PKCε-siRNA group , negative control ( NC)-siRNA group and control group .MTT assay was used to analyze the proliferation of the SK-Hep-1 cells in the respective groups , while invasion potency was determined by Transwell assay .The protein levels of functional biomarkers such as Ki 67 and matrix metalloproteinase 9 ( MMP-9 ) were measured by Western blotting .The Luciferase reporter gene assay was used to explore the activity of the NF-κB pathway .RESULTS:PKCεex-pression in SK-Hep-1 cells transfected with PKCε-siRNA was significantly down-regulated at both mRNA and protein levels compared with that in the normal SK-Hep-1 cells (P<0.01), with the decreases in the protein levels of Ki67 and MMP-9. The invasion and proliferation of SK-Hep-1 cells were obviously inhibited in PKCε-siRNA group compared with control group (P<0.01).Furthermore, the transcriptional activity of NF-κB was down-regulated when PKCε was effectively in-hibited by PKCε-siRNA (P<0.01).CONCLUSION:Down-regulation of PKCεinhibits the proliferation and invasion of hepatic carcinoma cells , which might be mediated via the NF-κB signaling pathway .
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<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>The present study assessed the pathological staging features of rectal cancer after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy, and its relation to prognosis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Pathologic data related to TNM classification were analyzed on the surgical specimens of 135 patients with mid-low rectal cancer after neoadjuvant themoradiotherapy from 2005 to 2012. Tumor invasion, nodal status, local invasive factors (including cancer deposit, radial margin, perivascular or perineural invasion) were investigated with patients' 3-year disease-free survival (DFS).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The overall 3-year DFS was 85.2%, with a pathological complete response (pCR) rate of 19.26%. Three out of 29 patients (10.4%) with ypT0 were found to have positive lymph nodes. There was a trend towards decreased survival as the ypT category and ypTNM staging increased (χ(2) = 14.296 and 52.643, P = 0.006 and 0.000). ypT0-T2 in T category and yp0-I in TNM staging showed a favorable survival above 92%, while the patients with ypT3, or ypIIIB had a comparable lower DFS of 70.2% and 46.7%. DFS in patients with negative lymph node were significantly improved than those with positive nodes (93.5% vs. 66.7%, χ(2) = 34.125, P = 0.000). Patients with or without local invasive factor significantly differed in DFS (42.9% vs. 90.1%, χ(2) = 32.666, P = 0.000) . Cox regression analyze showed that the nodal status (RR = 12.312, 95%CI: 2.828-39.258, P = 0.000) and local invasive factors (RR = 5.422, 95%CI: 1.202-8.493, P = 0.020) were independent risk factors to 3-year survival. As the concept of clinical complete response (cCR) is obscure, there were 27.6% of patients with ypT0 had normal mucosa or no evidence of tumor by EUS or MRI tests before surgery.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Postoperative pathologic staging features were closely associated with patient's prognosis. The increasing of ypT or ypTNM staging was correlated to decreasing of DFS. Nodal status, positive radial margin, perivascular and perineural invasion were independent risk factors to DFS. Since cCR did not correlate and could not predict pCR, the ongoing radical surgery could not be avoided even there was no evidence of tumor existing before operation.</p>
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Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Young Adult , Chemoradiotherapy, Adjuvant , Neoadjuvant Therapy , Neoplasm Staging , Postoperative Period , Prognosis , Rectal Neoplasms , Diagnosis , Mortality , PathologyABSTRACT
Objective To quantitatively assess severity of movement disability by analyzing physical activities recorded by an actigraph monitor in patients with neurology disorders.Methods Eighty-one patients with Parkinson' s disease(PD)and 61 patients with acute cerebral infarction(ACI)accompanying impaired upper limb motor function were included in the study.PD patients and ACI patients were treated using the international PD and ACI treatment guidelines,respectively.The patients were asked to wear an Actigraph monitor for 6 days before the treatment in both PD and ACI patient groups and at 24-38 days post-treatment in PD patients or at 28 days post-treatment in ACI patients.The recorded data was analyzed by power-law exponent(PLE)and detrended fluctuation analysis(DFA).Clinically,before and after the treatments,PD patients were evaluated using the conventional Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS),and ACI patients were evaluated by assessing upper limb motor function using Fugl-Meyer Assessment(FMA)and Functional Independence Measure(FIM).The correlation of the UPDRS scores with PLE was analyzed in PD patients,and the correlation of FMA or FIM with DFA in ACI patients.Results Both the UPDRS scores and the PLE values in PD patients were improved after the drug administration(UPDRS total:32.8 ± 16.2 and 28.8 ± 14.7,Z =2.080,P =0.038; UPDRS Ⅲ:18.6 ± 8.2 and 15.7±6.8,Z=2.155,P=0.031; PLE:0.98 ±0.25 and 0.82 ±0.21,Z=2.212,P=0.027,before and after the treatment,respectively).There were a linear correlation coefficient of 0.699 between the improvements of total UPDRS scores and the PLE values,and of 0.823 between the UPDRS Ⅲ and the PLE values.FMA,FIM scores and DFA were improved significantly than before treatment(FMA:12.39 ± 8.21 and 30.28 ±7.29,Z=3.016,P =0.004; FIM:8.98 ±7.29 and 13.21 ±7.6,Z =2.282,P=0.038; DFA:0.86 ±0.31 and 0.98 ±0.27,Z =2.360,P =0.036,before and after the treatment,respectively).It also showed linear correlations between the improvements of FMA scores and DFA(r =0.638),and between FIM scores and DFA(r =0.712,both P ＜0.05).There was no correlation between UPDRS scores and DFA values in PD patients,nor between FIM scores or FMA scores and PLE values in ACI patients.Conclusions Actigraph device can be used to monitor patients activity in movement disorders.Analysis of its PLE can provide a quantitative evaluation in PD while its DFA may provide useful specific assessment of impaired upper limb motor function in ACI patients.It can also be used in quantitatively assessing new drug efficacy.
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BACKGROUND:It is reported that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell(BMSC)transplantation might be a promising treatment for liver fibrosis.But the mechanism is still unclear.OBJECTIVE:To observe the hepatic stellate cells apoptosis induced by BMSC transplantation,and to study the mechanism of BMSC in treating hepatic fibrosis in vivo.METHODS:CCl_4 subcutaneous injection was performed to induce rat liver fibrosis.After 8 weeks of CCU injection,20 rats which underwent successful model establishment were randomly divided into experimental group and control group,10 in each group.The experimental group received MSC transplantation via tail vein injection,and the control group were given DMEM instead.The rats were killed and the livers were harvested at three time point,the day of MSC transplantation,3 days after transplantation,and 7 days after transplantation.The hydroxyproline content was detected by HE and Masson staining,and the expression changes of α-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA)proteins were determined using immunohistochemistry.The apoptosis of hepatic stellate cells were determined by α-SMA and TUNEL(terminal dUTP nick-end labeling)dual-staining.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:After 8 weeks of CCU injection,the hydroxyproline content increased and histology indicated progress of liver fibrosis.At 7 days after MSC transplantation,the hydroxyproline in the liver was decreased,and the liver fibrosis was alleviated in the experimental group but aggravated in the control group.Immunohistochemistry indicated that α-SMA positive cells were increased at 8 weeks after CCU injection.At day 7 after transplantation,α-SMA positive cells in the experimental group were significantly less than control group(P ＜ 0.05).At 3 days after transplantation,the hepatic stellate cells apoptosis in the experimental group was significantly aggravated compared with control group(P ＜ 0.05).This suggested that MSC transplant was an effective treatment for liver fibrosis.MSC inducing hepatic stellate cells apoptosis may be one of the mechanisms.
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Objective To evaluate the effect and safety of combined treatment by laparoscopic cholecystectomy and subsequent ablation in patients with HCC adjacent to the gallbladder. Methods From June 2005 to June 2009,13 patients with HCC nodules( less than 3 cm) adjacent to the gallbladder were treated by ablation after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The rate of complete necrosis as well as postoperative complications were also analyzed. Results All the patients showed complete necrosis of their tumor lesions after treatment by ablation subsequence of laparoscopic cholecystectomy. During the follow-up period( nearly 2 years), recurrent nodules appeared in other subsegments but not at the original site treated by ablation. Of note, no fatal complications were observed in all the ablation treated patients. Conclusion Combined treatment by laparoscopic cholecystectomy and subsequent PMCT was an effective and safe method for patients with small HCC which was adjacent to gallhladder.
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Objective To evaluate a thrombolytic system of portal vein port-catheter kit (PC) in the treatment of portal vein thrombosis (PVT). Methods In this study, 42 PVT patients with liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension after splenectomy from 2005 to 2007 were divided into two groups. In group A (20 eases) thrombolysis was administered through the PC device. Urokinase at the dosage of 1000 U?kg-1?h-1 was given for a consecutive 3 -6 days through the PC, and then the therapy was converted to 100 AxaIU/kg of low molecular heparin twice a day for 7 days subcutaneously. In group B, the thrombolysis was performed on 22 patients through peripheral veins. The therapy was same as in group A except for that the urokinase dosage was doubled. The complete thrombolysis rate, the effective thrombolysis rate, the time of thrombolysis, the long-term recurrence rate and the incidence of complication were compared between the two groups. Results The complete thrombolysis rate and the effective thrombolysis rate in group A were 75%, 90% respectively, compared with that of 41%, 59% respectively in group B. The significant differences in the complete thrombolysis rate, the effective thrombolysis rate, the time of thrombolysis and the incidence of complication were found between the two groups, while the thrombolysis recurrence rate had no significant difference between the two groups. Conclusion PC regime is an effective and safe method for the treatment of portal vein thrombosis.
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In this work, the proteomic changes induced by N+ ion implantation were investigated using a sunflower seed model by a two-dimensional electrophoretic analysis. To further understand the changes of total protein irradiated with N+ ion, a proteomic analysis of N+ ion implantation seeds was developed. Among approximately 369 total protein spots displayed in 2-D gels, eight specific proteins were found in non-implanted seeds while four proteins were found in implanted seeds. Six proteins were used for MALDI-TOF MS analysis, of which only two had been reported before. The proteins designated as No.29 showed 23.4% homology to MADS-box transcriptional factor HAM59, while No. 279 protein had 23.20% identity to homeobox-leucine zipper protein HAHB-4. The analysis of proteome changes induced by N+ implantation could provide a new clue to studying mutation mechanism of ion implantation. To our knowledge, this is the first report about the analysis of proteome changes induced by N+ implantation in sunflower seeds.
Subject(s)
Amino Acid Sequence , Electrophoresis, Gel, Two-Dimensional , Helianthus/anatomy & histology , Molecular Sequence Data , Nitrogen/chemistry , Plant Proteins/chemistry , Proteome/analysis , Seeds/chemistry , Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-IonizationABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the long-term curative effects of suture plus proximal gastric vagotomy (PGV) and suture plus triad-therapy (omeprazole, amoxycillin and flagyl taken orally) for the treatment of duodenal ulcer with acute perforation.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Three hundred and twenty-nine patients with duodenal ulcer and acute perforation were treated with 2 different methods, respectively. Method A was suture plus PGV (group A, 153 cases), and method B was suture plus triad-therapy (group B, 176 cases). Follow-up was made by means of correspondence, outpatient reexamination and cooperation with local hospitals in 5 to 8 years after operation. The contents of follow-up included symptom acquisition (such as upper abdominal pain or distention, pyrosis, belch, acid regurgitation, vomiting, diarrhea and conditions of living or working), gastroscopy and Helicobacter pylori (HP) detection. The curative effects were evaluated by the Visick scale.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Three hundred and one patients were followed up (group A 142 and group B 159). According to the Visick scale, 97 (68.3%), 19 (13.4%), 13 (9.15%) and 13 (9.15%) patients in group A, and 31 (19.5%), 28 (17.6%), 24 (15.1%) and 76 (47.8%) in group B were classified as Visick I, II, III and IV respectively (Z = -9.818, P < 0.01). As for HP detection, there were 130 (91.5%) patients in group A and 94 (59.1%) in group B (chi(2) = 41.438, P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The long-term curative effects of suture plus PGV were superior to those of suture plus triad-therapy for duodenal ulcer with acute perforation although HP positive rate was higher in group A than in group B. HP infection is one of the etiological factors of duodenal ulcer. The increased excitability of the vagus nerve remains to play an important role in duodenal ulcer.</p>
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Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Acute Disease , Amoxicillin , Drug Therapy, Combination , Duodenal Ulcer , Drug Therapy , General Surgery , Follow-Up Studies , Metronidazole , Omeprazole , Peptic Ulcer Perforation , Drug Therapy , General Surgery , Suture Techniques , Vagotomy, Proximal Gastric , MethodsABSTRACT
Objective To evaluate the effect of combination splenectomy and endoscopic varices ligation in comparison with Hassab procedure in the treatment of portal hypertension. A prospective, controlled study was carried out on Splenectomy with EVL in comparision with portoazygous disconnection--the Hassab procedure to assess whether SEVL can achieve better results in the treatment of portal hypertension. Methods From Jan 1999 to June 2002, 103 cirrhotic patients with portal hypertension were admitted. These patients were randomized into two groups. Group A were treated by splenectomy combined with EVL(53 cases) , and group B were treated with Hassab procedure(50 cases). Results In both groups, there was a significant postoperative decrease in free portal pressure, the velocity and volume of portal flow (all P0.05). Portal vein thrombosis developed in 7 cases (13%) in group A, and in 14 cases (28%) in group B, P
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Objective To analyze the clinical and radiological features of retroperitoneal fibrosis (RPF), and to deepen the understanding of this unusual disease and improve the diagnostic level at the early stage. Methods Fourteen cases (10 males and 4 females, mean age 45.8 years) of pathologically diagnosed RPF from January 1990 to June 2004 were summarized. The clinical and radiological performance of the cases were analyzed. All patients received non-contrast CT scanning, 10 of them underwent enhanced CT scanning as well. 8 patients received MRI, 10 patients received IVP examination, and 11 received B-ultrasound. Results (1)The very first symptoms usually included back pain, bellyache (10 cases), or urinary tract obstruction (3 cases), with increase of ESR, IgG, CRP value and abnormal renal function.(2)The result of radiological examination showed that 11 lesions of the 14 cases located at retroperitoneum. Ten cases were mass type and 4 cases were diffuse type. Non-contrast CT scanning revealed soft tissue mass at retroperitoneum with inhomogenous or homogenous density. After contrast medium injection the lesions were enhanced with different extent. MRI results showed that the lesions presented low signal in T_1WI, while in T_2WI the signals had no obvious coherence but were different from one case to another. Conclusion Radiological examination is one of the important methods for diagnosis of RPF. Based on the different characteristics of RPF in CT and MRI, together with the clinical findings, we will get valuable references for staging and follow-up of RPF.
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The nutritive composition from tissues of Perinereisaibuhitensis was analyzed. The result indicated that there was 67. 43% amino acids and 14. 24% fatty acids in the tissues, a-mong them the EPA comprises 6. 5343% of the total fatty acids and the glutamic acid comprises 10. 288% of the whole tissues. In the meanwhile, the tissues also contains high content of trace elements, such as zinc, iodine, selenium as well as fibrinolytic enzymes and so on, showing a prospective application value in the future.
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Active fractions were obtained from the c(?)amworm homogenate by reverse-phase concentration, gel filtration and affinity column chromatography. The MTS/PMS assay was used in the screening of antimicrobial peptide in vitro. The MTS/PMS assay and ELISAAFP method were combined to evaluate the effects of antimicrobial peptide on the proliferation and ?-fetoprotein secretion of HepG2 cells as well as on the proliferation of normal mouse osteoblast MC3T3-E1. The results showed that the purified antimicrobial peptide from clamworm Murphysa sanguinea was a constitutive basic protein with MW 8.1 kDa and pI 8.6, which showed inhibition effects on the proliferation and ?-fetoprotein secretion of HepG2 cells at different levels. These effects have a positive correlation with the concentrations of antimicrobial peptide. No obvious inhibition and damage effects were observed on the normal osteoblast.