Analysis of occurrence pattern of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among workers in a shipyard / 中国职业医学

@#Objective - （ ） To analyze the occurrence pattern of work related musculoskeletal disorders WMSDs among workers Methods in a shipyard based on latent category model. A total of 446 workers from a shipyard in Guangdong Province were selected as the research subjects using convenience sampling method. The prevalence of WMSDs in the past year was ， investigated using China Musculoskeletal Questionnaire and the occurrence patterns of WMSDs were analyzed by latent class. Results （ ） The prevalence of WMSDs in the past year was 71.1% 317/446 . The prevalence of WMSDs in single site was 24.4% （ ）， （ ） - 109/446 and was 46.6% 208/446 in multiple sites. The prevalence of WMSDs in multiple sites was 3.9 17.3 times higher than that in single site. The fitting results of latent class model showed that the model with three latent classes was the best - （ ）， model. The three potential categories of WMSDs occurrence patterns in the study subjects were the all site group 28 patients （ ）， （ ）， ， the neck and lower back/waistgroup 153 patients and the few or no site group 265 patients accounting for 6.3% 34.3% ， Conclusion and 59.4% respectively. WMSDs of shipyard workers have obvious category characteristics. Latent class analysis can be used to explore the occurrence pattern of WMSDs in shipyard workers.

Molecular characterization of Staphylococcus aureus ST6 and ST7 isolates from food-borne illness outbreaks / 中华预防医学杂志

Objective: To analyze the Staphylococcal enterotoxins, Staphylococcal enterotoxin genes, drug resistance and molecular typing of 41 Staphylococcus aureus isolates from 2 food-borne illness outbreaks on 21 August and 27 September 2020 in Guangzhou. Methods: A total of 41 Staphylococcus aureus isolates from 2 outbreaks were analyzed by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and spa typing. The Staphylococcal enterotoxins typing and the Staphylococcal enterotoxin genes of the isolates were analyzed by ELISA and PCR, respectively. The antimicrobial susceptibility of the isolates was performed by disc diffusion. 21 Staphylococcus aureus isolates were characterized using whole genome sequencing (WGS). Based on the whole genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), the phylogenetic tree was constructed by Snippy. Results: 41 Staphylococcus aureus isolates were divided into 2 types by MLST and spa typing: ST6-t701 and ST7-t091. 2 ST7-t091 isolates were identified as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). 25 ST7-t091 isolates and 14 ST6-t701 isolates were methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA), and were resistant to 7 and 6 antibiotics, respectively. All isolates were positive for sea by PCR. WGS revealed all 21 isolates carried scn, sak, sea, hla, hld, hlgA, hlgB, hlgC, lukD virulence genes. The results showed the isolates contained an immune evasion cluster type D which located in bacteriophage ϕSa3. The SNP phylogenetic tree showed 2 MRSA ST7-t091 were constituted a separate clade from the 12 MSSA ST7-t091 isolates and 7 ST6-t701 isolates showed high similarity to each other. Conclusion: Base on the results of phylogenetic analysis, the 2 food-borne illness outbreaks occurred on 21 August and 27 September 2020 are caused by the combination of the MRSA ST7-t091 strain and the MSSA ST7-t091 strain, and the MSSA ST6-t701 strain, respectively. All isolates have high level of antibiotic resistance and carry high virulent genes.

Clinical significance and prognostic value of C-reactive protein/albumin ratio in gastric cancer

Purpose@#This study was aimed to evaluate the clinical significance and prognostic value of CRP/albumin ratio (CAR) in patients with gastric cancer. @*Methods@#The data of 205 gastric cancer patients who underwent surgery was analyzed retrospectively. The association of CAR with the clinical features and prognostic value in gastric cancer was analyzed. The data of this study was combined with previous studies to further determine the prognostic value of CAR in patients with gastric cancer using a metaanalysis method. @*Results@#Cox analysis revealed that preoperative CAR was an independent prognosis indicator in patients with gastric cancer. High expression of CAR indicated a shorter survival time than in those with lower expression. CAR has a higher prognostic value in the 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival in patients with gastric cancer. CAR showed significant difference regarding the gastric cancer patients’ age, M stage, and clinical stage. The discriminate value of CAR in M stage of gastric cancer was high (area under the curve, 0.809). A meta-analysis combining previous data and our data showed that preoperative CAR demonstrated a significant association with the overall survival of patients with gastric cancer. @*Conclusion@#This study demonstrated that preoperative CAR could serve as an important prognostic indicator in patients with gastric cancer.

Clinical significance and prognostic value of C-reactive protein/albumin ratio in gastric cancer

Purpose@#This study was aimed to evaluate the clinical significance and prognostic value of CRP/albumin ratio (CAR) in patients with gastric cancer. @*Methods@#The data of 205 gastric cancer patients who underwent surgery was analyzed retrospectively. The association of CAR with the clinical features and prognostic value in gastric cancer was analyzed. The data of this study was combined with previous studies to further determine the prognostic value of CAR in patients with gastric cancer using a metaanalysis method. @*Results@#Cox analysis revealed that preoperative CAR was an independent prognosis indicator in patients with gastric cancer. High expression of CAR indicated a shorter survival time than in those with lower expression. CAR has a higher prognostic value in the 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival in patients with gastric cancer. CAR showed significant difference regarding the gastric cancer patients’ age, M stage, and clinical stage. The discriminate value of CAR in M stage of gastric cancer was high (area under the curve, 0.809). A meta-analysis combining previous data and our data showed that preoperative CAR demonstrated a significant association with the overall survival of patients with gastric cancer. @*Conclusion@#This study demonstrated that preoperative CAR could serve as an important prognostic indicator in patients with gastric cancer.

New Model of Traditional Chinese Medicine with Effect of Invigorating Kidney and Filling Sea of Marrow in Regulating Delay in Cortical Maturation of ADHD Based on Theory of Steady Yin and Vexed Yang / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most common neurodevelopmental disorder among children. The theory of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) does not have a special term of this disease, and classifies ADHD to the category of " forgetfulness" " dysphoria" " injudiciousness" according to its clinical manifestations. TCM theoretic and clinical systems for treating ADHD have been developed, but current pharmacodynamics studies of TCM on ADHD have mostly focused on neurotransmitter metabolic system and its receptor signaling pathway to reflect the advantages of multi-component and multi-target effect of TCM, but failed to demonstrate the scientific connotations of TCM theory, such as " coordination between kidney and brain" and " steady Yin and vexed Yang" , and ignored the delay in cortical maturation as the core neuropathology of ADHD. The symptoms relating to " restlessness of Yang" due to Yin deficiency that cannot inhibit hyperactivity of Yang, kidney-Yin deficiency and liver-Yang excess syndrome is the most common syndrome of ADHD, and TCMs with effect of invigorating kidney and filling sea of marrow are mostly used by TCM practitioners. According to anatomy basis of neuronal development disorder, the new theory of " energy metabolism dysfunction" , the pathogenesis hypothesis of sea of marrow development disorder and its relevant clinical practices and experimental studies, substantial basis studies of the therapy for " invigorating kidney and filling sea of marrow" , as well as pharmacodynamics study of <italic>Rehmannia glutinosa</italic> (Shudihuang) for treating ADHD, we put forward ADHD pathogenesis that " restlessness of Yang due to Yin deficiency" is related to the disorder of executive function due to the delay in cortical maturation, energy metabolism dysfunction and neurodevelopmental disorder, and regarded that TCMs with effect of invigorating kidney and filling sea of marrow are the most commonly used to treat ADHD, and improve delay in cortical maturation corresponding to sea of marrow insufficiency by regulating dysfunction of neurodevelopment and energy metabolism, so as to relieve the core symptoms of ADHD. The new treatment model of TCM with effect of invigorating kidney and filling sea of marrow for treating ADHD will provide a theoretical basis for improving the clinical efficacy of ADHD.

Regulatory effect of Shudihuang on expressions of BDNF/TrkB and NRG-3 in prefrontal cortex and striatum of ADHD model rats / 中国中药杂志

To observe the effect of Shudihuang on behaviors and expression of BDNF/TrkB and NRG-3 in prefrontal cortex and striatum of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) model rats. Thirty 4-week-old spontaneous hypertension rats (SHR) were randomly divided into model group, methylphenidate hydrochloride (MPH, 2 mg·kg⁻¹·d⁻¹) and Shudihuang group (2.4 g·kg⁻¹·d⁻¹). Another 10 Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were selected as normal control group. The 0.5% CMC-Na solution was administered to model group and WKY rats (2 mL·kg⁻¹·d⁻¹). All of the rats were treated for 4 weeks. The open field test was performed at the 14th and 28th days after gavage, in order to evaluate the spontaneous and impulsive behaviors. Subsequently, gene and protein expressions of BDNF/TrkB and NRG-3 were tested by RT-qPCR and Western blot. Compared with model group, MPH and Shudihuang groups showed significant reduction in total distance, mean velocity and central distance in the open field test (<0.05), and Shudihuang group displayed a shorter central distance than MPH group (<0.05). RT-qPCR and Western blot analysis indicated that expressions of BDNF/TrkB and NRG-3 were lower in prefrontal cortex and striatum of SHR compared with WKY rats. Four weeks later after administration, both Shudihuang and MPH significantly elevated mRNA and protein expressions of BDNF/TrkB and NRG-3 (<0.05).In conclusion, neurodevelopmental disorder mediated by BDNF/TrkB and NRG-3 was closely related with SHR rats' behaviors. Shudihuang may ameliorate the spontaneous and impulsive behaviors by up-regulating the expressions of BDNF/TrkB and NRG-3 and improving growth and maturation of neurons in SHR.

Effect of corpus luteum blood flow measured by three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound on pregnancy in elderly women / 西安交通大学学报(医学版)

Objective To explore the effect of corpus luteum blood flow measured by three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound on pregnancy in elderly women.Methods We selected 464 elderly women with normal ovulation who came to the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from January 2016 to July 2017 as study group.Another 436 women aged less than 35 years old who planned pregnancy in the same period were selected as control group.The clinical data were compared between the two groups.Results There was no significant difference in average diameter of dominant follicles and endometrial thickness at each monitoring point between the two groups (P＞0.05).There was no significant difference in corpus luteum blood flow grade 1 day after ovulation (P＞0.05),but corpus luteum blood flow grade 7 to 9 days after ovulation in study group was significantly reduced as compared with control group (P＜0.05).The two groups did not differ significantly in corpus luteum volume (V)or vascular parameters 1 day after ovulation,corpus luteum V 7-9 days after ovulation (P＞0.05).However,luteum vascularization index (VI),flow index (FI)and vascularization flow index (VFI) significantly decreased in study group compared with control group (P＜0.05).Biochemical pregnancy rate and clinical pregnancy rate were 1 6 .3 8% and 9 .05 % in study group ,which were significantly lower than 2 3 .1 7 % and 19.04% in control group,respectively (P＜0.05).Miscarriage rate of biochemical pregnancy in study group was 7. 33%,significantly higher than 4.13% in control group (P＜0.05).Corpus luteum V and vascular parameters in women with biochemical pregnancy abortion in both groups were significantly lower than those with clinical pregnancy (P＜0.05).Conclusion The decreased of blood supply of the corpus luteum in embryo implantation window of elderly women may be related to the reduction of endometrial receptivity and pregnancy rate.Regardless of old age,biochemical pregnancy abortion is likely to lead to loss of corpus luteum blood supply,which results in pregnancy failure.

Effects of Acupuncture at "Sanyinjiao" (SP6) and "Baihui" (GV20) on Behaviors and Monoamine Neurotransmitter in Prefrontal Cortex of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rats / 中国中医药信息杂志

Objective To observe the effects of acupuncture at "Sanyinjiao" (SP6) and "Baihui" (GV20) on behaviors and contents of monoamine neurotransmitter dopamine (DA), noradrenalin (NE) and 5-hydroxytrypamine (5-HT) in prefrontal cortex (PFC) of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) rats; To discuss mechanism of action of acupuncture for prevention and treatment of ADHD. Methods 4-week-old SHR rats were randomly divided into the model group, Western medicine group and acupuncture group, and WKY rats with the same age were selected as the normal control group, with 10 rats in each group. Acupuncture was applied to "Sanyinjiao" (SP6) and "Baihui" (GV20) of rats in acupuncture group for 15 min. The rats in Western medicine group was given MPH (ritalin) for gavage, and rats were treated for 4 weeks in the dark-phase. Open field test (OFT), elevated plus maze (EPM) and novel object recognition test (NORT) were conducted to evaluate the spontaneous activity, impulsivity and learning-memorial ability of rats individually at the end of treatment. Contents of DA, NE and 5-HT in PFC were detected by HPLC. Results Compared with the normal control group, all of the behavior parameters of rats in model group were significantly higher (P＜0.05), and the contents of DA, NE and 5-HT in PFC of model group were lower than those of normal control group (P＜0.05). Compared with the model group, acupuncture group showed shorter movement distance, less rearing and fewer grooming activities in the OFT; percentages of times of entering the open arms and staying duration were reduced in the total period in the EPM; preference index in the NORT was elevated (P＜0.05); the contents of NE and 5-HT in PFC of acupuncture group increased significantly (P＜0.05). Conclusion Acupuncture at "Sanyinjiao" (SP6) and "Baihui" (GV20) canreduce the spontaneous activity and impulsivity, and improve learning and memory ability of ADHD model rats, which may be related to elevated contents of NE and 5-HT in the PFC.

Research on the Effect of Information Intelligence Technology in Hospital Operation Decision / 中国卫生经济

Objective:To observe and analyze the effects of information intelligence technology in hospital operation decision.Methods:Relevant factors have been analyzed vertically before and after the application of information intelligence technology in Beijing Cancer Hospital.In this case,data should be analyzed before and after the usage of the information intelligence technology,in terms of medical quality (bed usage,average length of hospitalization,the number of cases,etc.),workloads (number of visits,number of discharged patients,etc.),social benefits (patient satisfaction and employee satisfaction),and economic benefits (total assets,net assets,fixed assets,business income,per capita business income,etc.).Results:Mter the implementation of information intelligence technology,bed occupancy rate and the number of discharged was higher than that before implementation,as well as average length of hospitalization was significantly lower than before.Secondly,the number of visits,discharged persons,total assets,net assets,business income and per capita business income and the satisfaction rate of patients and staff after the implementation of the information intelligence technology were significantly higher than those before.Conclusion:Information intelligence technology could improve medical process and service efficiency,as well as reduce medical disputes and doctor-patient contradiction in hospital operation decision-making.Moreover,the satisfaction of doctors and patients could be ameliorated,manpower and material resources could be saved significantly as well,and the management efficiency would be effectively improved.

Expressions of p16INK4a protein in cervical lesion tissues of Mongolian patients and their significances / 吉林大学学报(医学版)

Objective:To detect the expressions of p16INK4a protein in the cervical lesion tissues of the Mongolian patients, and to explore the relationship between its expression and the occurrence and development of cervical cancer in the Mongolian patients.Methods:A total of 100 cases of paraffin sections of cervical cancer, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia(CIN),chronic cervicitis and uterine leiomyoma were divided into 25 cases of cervical cancer, 35 cases of CIN, 20 cases of chronic cervicitis, and 20 cases of uterine leiomyoma groups. The expressions of p16INK4a protein in different cervical tissues were detected by immunohistochemical SP method.Results:The positive rates of p16INK4a protern in cervical cancer, CIN, chronic cervicitis and uterine leiomyoma tissnes were 100.0%, 74.3%, 25.0%,and 10.0%, respectively.The results of K-W H rank sum test for multiple sample comparisons showed that the positive expression rate of p16INK4a protein in cervical cancer tissue was significantly higher than those in CIN, chronic cervicitis and uterine leiomyoma tissues(P<0.05).Conclusion:p16INK4a protein can be used as a indicator to screen the Mongolian patients with early cervical cancer.

Study on medication regularity of traditional Chinese medicines in treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder based on data mining / 中国中药杂志

In this study, efforts were made to collect 88 traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescriptions for treating ADHD from public literatures, establish a medication database and conduct data mining on the efficacy, properties, tastes, meridian entries and compatibility regularity of TCMs by using frequency analysis, association rules analysis and cluster analysis. The results showed 33 herbs with a high frequency (≥ 10%). The top 12 frequently applied ADHD herbs were respectively Acori Tatarinowii Rhizome, Polygalae Radix, Prepared Rehmanniae Radix, Os Draconis, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizome, Poria, Concha Ostreae, Testudinis Carapacis et Plastri, Paeoniae Alba Radix, Schisandrae Fructus Chinensis, Fructus Corni, Dioscoreae Rhizoma. The top seven types of frequently applied ADHD herbs by effect were respectively tonic herb, sedative herbs, livei-wind calming herbs, heat clearing herbs, astringent herbs, awaking herbs and damp clearing and diuresis promoting herbs. The top three properties were warm, cold and neutral, with warm as the dominance. The top three tastes were sweetness, bitterness and acridity, with sweetness as the dominance. The top three meridian entries were liver meridian, heart meridian and kidney meridian. The association rules analysis showed commonly used herbal pairs. Polygalae Radix-Acori Tatarinowii Rhizome, Concha Ostreae-Os Draconis, Prepared Rehmanniae Radix-Fructus Corni-Os Draconis. Eight highly frequent cluster prescriptions were summarized based on the cluster analysis. This study indicates that basic TCM prescriptions for treating ADHD were principally composed of tonics (nourishing liver and kidney, invigorating heart and spleen) and tranquilization, which were supplemented with herbs for calming liver, clearing heat, promoting qi-circulation, promoting blood-circulation, reducing phlegm and calming endogenous wind. The combination of multiple data mining techniques can reflect the clinical medication regularity of herbs for treating ADHD in an overall and objective manner.

Thromboelastography in women with pathological pregnancies: a preliminary study / 中国医学科学杂志(英文版)

ABNORMALITIES during pregnancy are regarded as pathological pregnancy. Early detection of anomalies is urgent to take measures as soon as possible to prevent serious pregnancy complications. Procoagulant-anticoagulant imbalance is often the pathological basis of many pathological pregnancy conditions, leading to a hypercoagulable state. We compared the thromboelastographic parameters between pathological pregnancy and normal pregnancy patients, evaluated the value of thromboelastography in early detecting pathological pregnancy and predicting postpartum hemorrhage.

Inhibitory effect of arctigenin on lymphocyte activation stimulated with PMA/ionomycin / 药学学报

This study investigated the effect of arctigenin (Arc) on the cell activation, cytokines expression, proliferation, and cell-cycle distribution of mouse T lymphocytes. Mouse lymphocytes were prepared from lymph node and treated with Phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA)/Ionimycin (Ion) and/or Arc. CD69, CD25, cytokines, proliferation and cell cycle were assayed by flow cytometry. The results showed that, at concentrations of less than 1.00 micromol x L(-1), Arc expressed non-obvious cell damage to cultured lymphocytes, however, it could significantly down-regulate the expression of CD69 and CD25, as well as TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-10 on PMA/Ion stimulated lymphocytes. At the same time, Arc could also inhibit the proliferation of PMA/Ion-activated lymphocytes and exhibited lymphocyte G 0/G1 phase cycle arrest. These results suggest that Arc possesses significant anti-inflammatory effects that may be mediated through the regulation of cell activation, cytokines expression and cell proliferation.

Genomic characteristics of coxsackievirus B1 MSH/KM9/2009 strain isolated in Yunnan, China / 病毒学报

To characterize the complete genome sequence of coxsackievirus B1 (CVB1) MSH/KM9/2009 strain isolated from Yunnan, China,2009. Eight overlapping clones covering the whole viral genome (excluding the poly-A tail) were obtained by RT-PCR and sequenced, and their nucleotide and amino acid sequences were compared with other known CVB1 strains. The genome of the CVB1 MSH/KM9/2009 strain had 7384 nucleotides in length, and contained a 741nt non-translated region (NTR) at the 5' end and a 94nt NTR at the 3' end. The entire open reading frame contained 6 549 nt, encoding a 2 183-aa polyprotein. In the coding region, there was no nucleotide deletion or insertion, but some changes of amino acid were unique. The complete genome sequence alignments showed that the CVB1 isolate MSH/KM9/2009 strain shared the highest nucleotide (80.9%, 81.6%, 80.5% and 80%) and amino acid (95.6%, 95.8%, 96.2% and 95.6%) identities to the CVB1 M16560, pmMC, Tucson B1 and CVB1Nm strain, respectively. Phylogenetic tree analysis showed that the MSH/KM9/2009, CVB1 M16560, pmMC, Tucson B1 and CVB1Nm strain clustered into same group. The newly isolated CVB1 strain MSH/KM9/2009 from Yunnan Province belonged to genotype CVB1.

Considerations regarding animal research of traditional Chinese medicine on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder / 中国中药杂志

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common developmental neuropsychiatric disorder. Although ADHD can often be treated with stimulant class medications to alleviate symptoms, such treatments may cause undesirable side effects. Recently, Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been gaining interest with treatment potential for ADHD and the lack of the stimulant-associated undesirable side effects. Animal models are useful for study the efficacy and mechanisms of TCM treatment for ADHD, however, previous studies of TCM on ADHD animal models, in general, have not considered appropriate experiemental designs. There were many concerns regarding the choice and source of the model and control animals, drug administration methods, behavioral and biochemical testing criteria, humane use of animals, and statistical power, etc. In this review, we discuss these issues present in the previous literature of animal research, and propose guidelines for future studies in particular consideration with the unique characteristic of Chinese medicine itself.

The pulmonary toxicity study of nano-silica particles on rats through dynamic inhalation / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the pulmonary toxicity of different concentrations of nano-silica (nano-SiO2) under continuous dynamic inhalation conditions in the rat.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>48 male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups, including the dispersant control group (saline) and nano-SiO2 low-dose group (0.3%, w/v), the middle-dose group (1%) and the high-dose group (3%). Animals were sacrificed at 28 d after exposure under continuous dynamic inhalation conditions, and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and lung tissue were collected. And following items were observed: body coefficient, BALF related items (leukocytes and classification, total protein content, LDH activity), lung tissue pathological changes (HE staining), and pulmonary fibrosis forming (collagen fiber VG staining).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared to the dispersant control group, there was no significant change on lung organ coefficient in Nano-SiO2 group (P < 0.05). The BALF total WBC count in 1% and 3% in nano-SiO2 groups showed higher value than the dispersant control group (P < 0.05). No obvious changes were found on total protein content and LDH activity in nano-SiO2 groups compared to the dispersant control group (P > 0.05). For differential WBC counts, lymphocyte count in BALF in nano-SiO2 groups was significantly decreased (P < 0.05), monocyte and macrophage counts were significantly increased (P < 0.05), but there was no difference on the proportion of neutrophils (P > 0.05). HE staining results showed that the obvious thickening of alveolar wall in nano-SiO2 groups, inflammatory cell infiltration also increased around the bronchial and vascular wall. Lung fibrosis VG staining showed no significant change of collagen fiber distribution.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Under our experimental conditions, the continuous dynamic inhalation of nano-SiO2 only caused the significant inflammation in rat lungs, pulmonary fibrosis phenomenon could not be observed significantly.</p>

Dynamic changes in PD-1, TLR3, and TLR4 surface expression on peripheral blood mononuclear cells in chronic hepatitis C patients undergoing peg-IFNalpha-2a plus ribavirin combination therapy / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the dynamic changes in expression of programmed death (PD)-1, Toll-like receptor (TLR)3, and TLR4 on the surface of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) that occur in response to pegylated-interferon alpha-2a (peg-IFNalpha-2a) plus ribavirin (RBV) combination therapy, and to analyze the relation to achievement of sustained virological response (SVR). METHODS Twenty-three CHC patients and 10 healthy controls were enrolled in the study. All CHC patients underwent 48 weeks of combination therapy with peg-IFNalpha-2a (180 microg, subcutaneous injection, once weekly) plus RBV (15 microg/kg, oral, once daily). Total PBMCs were isolated from both groups (CHC patients at treatment week 0, 12, 24, and 48 and post-treatment week 24; controls at enrollment) and subjected to flow cytometric analysis of PD-1, TLR3, and TLR4 surface expression. In addition, serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA levels were analyzed by enzymatic assay and the AmpliPrep/COBAS (Roche) nucleic acid amplification test, respectively. SVR was defined as undetectable levels of HCV RNA at post-treatment week 24. Intergroup differences were assessed by one-way ANOVA.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The expression ratios of PD-1, TLR4 and PD-1: TLR4 on PBMCs were significantly higher in CHC patients before therapy than in the healthy controls (45.20 +/- 7.12% vs. 16.82 +/- 4.13%, 58.45 +/- 15.13% vs. 21.09 +/- 2.89%, and 35.54 +/- 7.69% vs. 14.12 +/- 2.89%; all P < 0.05). In contrast, the expression ratios of TLR3 and PD-1:TLR3 were slightly, but not significantly, higher in CHC patients before therapy than in the healthy controls (P > 0.05). During the course of peg-IFNalpha-2a plus RBV combination therapy, the expression ratios of PD-1 and TLR4 on PBMCs showed a decreasing trend, while TLR3 expression showed an increasing trend. Furthermore, CHB patients who achieved SVR at post-treatment week 24 had a significantly different expression ratio of PD-1 and TLR3 than those who did not achieve SVR (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Surface expression of PD-1, TLR4, and PD-1:TLR4 is up-regulated in the total PBMCs of CHC patients. Peg-IFNalpha-2a plus RBV treatment-induced suppression of HCV replication results in a significant reduction in PD-1 and TLR4 expression on the surface of PBMCs, but a remarkably elevated level of TLR3 expression. The dynamic change in PD-1 and TLR3 expression on PBMCs that occurs during antiviral therapy may be related to achievement of SVR.</p>

Application of ROC curve for evaluation of the effect of prenatal screening during second trimester of pregnancy / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To develop a method for evaluating the feasibility of prenatal screening using local median value and determining the cut-off value.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>With receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis, results of second trimester prenatal screening calculated by a local median value in a new model and the built-in median value in 2T software were compared. The cut-off value was set by serial analysis of true and false positive rates and other relevant data.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The ROC curve has accurately estimated the difference in the screening efficacy between a local median value and that embedded in the 2T model, and established a reasonable cut-off value for the laboratory based on false positive rate and detection rate.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The method of ROC curve can be used to evaluate the performance of local median value in prenatal screening and to test the rationality of cut-off value established in the laboratory. As the result, a better cut-off value may be derived.</p>

Effects of taurine on the ultrastructure and P2X7 receptor expression in brain following traumatic brain injury in rats / 中国应用生理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the effects of taurine on the ultrastructure and P2X7 receptor protein expression in brain following traumatic brain injury (TBI) in rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Forty male SD rats, were divided randomly into four groups that were sham-operated group, TBI group, TBI plus low-dose taurine group and TBI plus high-dose taurine group. The TBI model was established by Marmarou's method, the expression of P2X7 receptor protein in parietal cortex and hippocampus was detected by the immunohistochemical method, the ultrastructure of parietal cortex were observed by transmission electron microscope.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with sham-operated group, the positive expression cells of P2X7 receptor protein in parietal cortex and hippocampus of TBI group were significantly increased (P < 0.01). Compared with TBI group, the positive expression cells of P2X7 receptor protein in parietal cortex and hippocampus of TBI plus low-dose taurine group and TBI plus high-dose taurine group were significantly decreased (P <0.01 or P <0.05). Compared with TBI plus low-dose taurine group, the positive expression cells of P2X7 receptor protein in parietal cortex and hippocampus of TBI plus high-dose taurine group were significantly decreased (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). The pathological damage of parietal cortex in the TBI plus high-dose taurine group was obviously lightened.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Taurine exerts the neuroprotective effect on TBI in rats, the protective mechanism might be associated with down-regulating the expression of P2X7 receptor protein in parietal cortex and hippocampus.</p>

Pulmonary toxicity in high-fat diet SD rats induced by intravenous injection of multi-walled carbon nanotubes / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the pulmonary toxicity of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) in high-fat diet SD rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred forty male SD rats were randomly divided into 6 groups. The normal control group, high-fat diet model group, vehicle group, and group treated with low dose of MWCNTs consisted of 30 rats, respectively, which were divided in 3 subgroups (10 rats each subgroup), respectively. The groups treated with medium and high loses of MWCNTs consisted of 10 rats, respectively. All the animals were exposed to high-fat-diet except for the control group which was given with normal diet. Before intravenous exposure, the high-fat diet model group, vehicle group, and three MWCNTs treated groups were gavaged with 700 thousand U/kg Vit D3 for three days, then given with high-fat-diet. The vehicle group was exposed to normal saline containing 1% Tween 80 and the low exposure group was exposed to MWCNTs at the dose of 50 µg/kg by tail vein injection twice a week for 8, 12 or 16 weeks. Other tow exposure groups were exposed to MWCNTs at the doses of 100, and 200 µg/kg by tail vein injection twice a week, respectively for 16 weeks. The lungs were from the executed rats, the lung indexes were calculated, the pathological changes of lungs were examined under light microscope after HE staining. qRT-PCR assay was utilized to detect the expression levels of pro-inflammation cytokines IL-1β (IL-1β) and TNF-α mRNA in the lungs.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>As compared with the vehicle group, the lung indexes in groups exposed to 100 and 200 µg/kg MWCNTs increased significantly (P < 0.05). It was found under light microscope that the MWCNTs were accumulated in lungs of three exposure groups in 16 weeks after exposure, including pneumorrhagia, alveolar walls thicken, fibrosis, and granulomas. As compared with the vehicle group, the levels of IL-1β mRNA in group exposed to 50 µg/kg MWCNTs for 12 weeks and the groups exposed to 50, 100 and 200 µg/kg MWCNTs for 16 weeks decreased significantly (P < 0.05). As compared with the vehicle group, the levels of TNF-α mRNA in the groups exposed to 50 µg/kg MWCNTs for 8 and 16 weeks increased significantly (P < 0.05), the level of TNF-α mRNA in the groups exposed to 50 µg/kg MWCNTs for 12 weeks decreased significantly (P < 0.05). As compared with the vehicle group, the level of TNF-α mRNA in the groups exposed to 200 µg/kg MWCNTs for 16 weeks reduced significantly (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The MWCNTs accumulation and chronic inflammatory changes were found in the lungs of rats exposed to MWCNTs by tail vein injection.</p>