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@#Objective To evaluate the passage stability of H5N1(NIBRG-14) influenza virus vaccine strain in MDCK cells(sMDCK)of serum-free suspension culture.Methods H5N1(NIBRG-14) influenza virus working-bank vaccine strains were passed 15 consecutive times in sMDCK cells.The 8-segment nucleotide sequences(HA,NA,M,NP,NS,PA, PB1 and PB2 genes) of the main-bank,working-bank,virus of P1,P2,P3,P5,P10 and P15 generations were detected for genetic stability by second and first generation sequencing.The stability of amino acid sequences of hemagglutinin(HA)and neuraminidase(NA),the main antigens of the working-bank,P5 and P15 generation viruses,were evaluated by using peptide coverage as indicators;Influenza vaccine was prepared with working-bank,P5 and P15 generation viruses,with which the female BALB/c mice were immunized i.m.with 10 in each group,15 μg HA per mouse,and boosted 28 d later at the same dosage and route.At 28,42 and 56 d after the primary immunization,the mice were detected for the titer of neutralizing antibody in serum to evaluate the stability of immunogenicity.Results No segment insertion or deletion was detected in each generation of influenza virus,and the nucleotide sequence was completely consistent with the main-bank;Single nucleotide polymorphism(SNP) mutations did not occur in the main-bank,working-bank,P1,P2,P3,P5 and P10 generations of viruses,while the possibility of SNP mutation showed in many gene loci of P15 generation virus,with heterozygous SNP accounting for 91.62%.The coverage rate of HA and NA protein peptides of P5 and P15 generation viruses ranged from96.7% to 100%.There was no significant difference in serum neutralizing antibody titer of mice in the working-bank,P5 and P15 groups(H=2.253,2.029 and 1.408,P=0.324,0.363 and 0.495,respectively) at 28,42 and 56 d after the first immunization.Conclusion H5N1(NIBRG-14) influenza virus vaccine strain has good genetic stability in sMDCK cells,which is expected to be used in the production of sMDCK cell matrix pandemic influenza vaccine.
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The goal of this study was to investigate the clinical application of free/total prostate-specific antigen (F/T PSA) ratio, considering the new broad serum total PSA (T-PSA) "gray zone" of 2.0-25.0 ng ml-1 in differential diagnosis of prostate cancer (PCa) and benign prostate diseases (BPD) in men over 50 years in Western China. A total of 1655 patients were included, 528 with PCa and 1127 with BPD. Serum T-PSA, free PSA (F-PSA), and F/T PSA ratio were analyzed. Receiver operating characteristic curves were used to assess the efficiency of PSA and F/T PSA ratio. There were 47.4% of cancer patients with T-PSA of 2.0-25.0 ng ml-1. When T-PSA was 2.0-4.0 ng ml-1, 4.0-10.0 ng ml-1, and 10.0-25.0 ng ml-1, the area under the curve (AUC) of F/T PSA ratio was 0.749, 0.769, and 0.761, respectively. The best AUC of F/T PSA ratio was 0.811 when T-PSA was 2.0-25.0 ng ml-1, with a specificity of 0.732, a sensitivity of 0.788, and an optimal cutoff value of 15.5%. The AUC of F/T PSA ratio in different age groups (50-59 years, 60-69 years, 70-79 years, and ≥80 years) was 0.767, 0.806, 0.815, and 0.833, respectively, and the best sensitivity (0.857) and specificity (0.802) were observed in patients over 80 years. The T-PSA trend was in accordance with the Gleason score, tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage, and American Joint Committee on Cancer prognosis group. Therefore, the F/T PSA ratio can facilitate the differential diagnosis of PCa and BPD in the broad T-PSA "gray zone". Serum T-PSA can be a Gleason score and prognostic indicator.
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Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Area Under Curve , Prostate-Specific Antigen , Prostatic Neoplasms/pathology , ROC Curve , Sensitivity and SpecificityABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES@#A study was conducted to explore the expression pattern and function of ferritin heavy polypeptide gene (fth1b) in zebrafish pharyngeal teeth development and lay the foundation for subsequent research on teeth development and mineralization.@*METHODS@#The zebrafish embryos were harvested at 56, 72, 96, and 120 h after fertilization. The expression of fth1b in zebrafish pharyngeal teeth development was detected by whole embryo @*RESULTS@#The expression pattern of fth1b gene was very similar to that of the known zebrafish pharyngeal teeth marker dlx2b and was specifically expressed in the zebrafish pharyngeal teeth during development. After the specific knockout of the gene fth1b, the earliest gene that can be detect in zebrafish pharyngeal teeth-pitx2 was expressed normally during early development. The dlx2b expression was not significantly different from that of wild type zebrafish, but the mineralization of pharyngeal teeth in the mutant was weaker than that of wild type zebrafish.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The gene fth1b is specifically expressed in zebrafish pharyngeal teeth and acts on their early mineralization.
Subject(s)
Animals , In Situ Hybridization , Odontogenesis , Pharynx , Tooth , Zebrafish/geneticsABSTRACT
Objective To investigate effect of MR field strength on texture features of cerebral T2 fluid attenuated inversion recovery (T2-FLAIR) images. Methods We acquired cerebral 3D T2-FLAIR images of thirty patients who were diagnosed with ischemic white matter lesion (WML) with MR-1.5T and MR-3.0T scanners. Histogram texture features which included mean signal intensity (Mean), Skewness and Kurtosis, and gray level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) texture features which included angular second moment (ASM), Contrast, Correlation, Inverse difference moment (IDM) and Entropy, of regions of interest located in the area of WML and normal white matter (NWM) were measured by ImageJ software. The texture parameters acquired with MR-1.5T scanning were compared with MR-3.0T scanning. Results The Mean of both WML and NWM obtained with MR-1.5T scanning was significantly lower than that acquired with MR-3.0T (0.05). ASM, Correlation and IDM of both WML and NWM acquired with MR-1.5T revealed significantly lower values than those with MR-3.0T (<0.001), while Contrast and Entropy acquired with MR-1.5T showed significantly higher values than those with MR-3.0T (<0.001). Conclusion MR field strength showed no significant effect on histogram textures, while had significant effect on GLCM texture features of cerebral T2-FLAIR images, which indicated that it should be cautious to explain the texture results acquired based on the different MR field strength.
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OBJECTIVE@#This study aims to study the expression patterns of ectodysplasin (EDA) and ectodysplasin receptor (EDAR) during the early development of zebrafish and provide a foundation for further research of the Eda signaling pathway in tooth development.@*METHODS@#Total RNA was extracted from zebrafish embryos at 48 hours postfertilization (hpf) and then reverse transcribed for cDNA library generation. The corresponding RNA polymerase was selected for the synthesis of the digoxin-labeled antisense mRNA probe of zebrafish pharyngeal tooth specific marker dlx2b and Eda signaling-associated genes eda and edar in vitro. The three sequences were ligated into a pGEMT vector with a TA cloning kit, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was applied to linearize the plasmid. The resultant PCR sequences were used as templates for synthesizing Dig-labeled mRNA probe dlx2b, eda, and edar. Zebrafish embryos were collected at 36, 48, 56, 60, 72, and 84 hpf, then whole mount in situ hybridization was performed for the detection of eda and edar expression patterns. Then, their expression patterns at 72 hpf were compared with the expression pattern of dlx2b.@*RESULTS@#The mRNA antisense probes of dlx2b, eda, and edar were successfully obtained. The positive signals of eda and edar were observed in zebrafish pharyngeal tooth region at 48-72 hpf and thus conform to the signals of dlx2b in the positive regions.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The ligand eda and edar, which are associated with the Eda signaling pathway, are strongly expressed only at the pharyngeal tooth region in zebrafish from tooth initiation to the morphogenesis stage. Thus, the Eda signaling pathway may be involved in the regulation of the early development of zebrafish pharyngeal teeth.
Subject(s)
Animals , Ectodysplasins , Edar Receptor , Odontogenesis , Receptors, Ectodysplasin , ZebrafishABSTRACT
Abstract Therapy for large symptomatic keloids is often plagued with complicated reconstruction manner and recurrence. This article reports a rare treatment combination for a chest keloid with internal mammary artery perforator flap reconstruction and radiation therapy. We excised the keloid and covered the defect with an internal mammary artery perforator flap. Immediate electron-beam irradiation therapy was applied on the second postoperative day. There was no sign of recurrence over the follow-up period of 18 months. The combination of internal mammary artery perforator flap and immediate radiation therapy is useful when faced with chest keloids of similar magnitude and intractability.
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Keloid/surgery , Mammary Arteries/transplantation , Perforator Flap/blood supply , Keloid/radiotherapy , Plastic Surgery Procedures/methods , Thorax , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
Objective Depending on the stratification of risk factors, to observe the efficacy and safety of different doses of atorvastatin in patients of northern Han population with acute ischemic cerebrovascular disease. Methods One hundred and sixty patients with acute ischemic cerebrovascular disease, admitted from Oct. 2013 to Jan. 2014, were involved in present study, and they were divided into three groups according to the etiology and pathogenesis. In addition to routine treatment, three groups of patients were given 20mg (n=50), 40mg (n=50) and 60mg (n=60) atorvastatin, respectively. Lipids contents, liver function, renal function, muscle enzymes, high sensitivity C reactive protein (hCRP) levels, and NIH Stroke scale (NIHSS) score were determined respectively before treatment and before discharge from the hospital. Results Blood lipid levels were reduced in all the 3 groups, total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein cholesterol-C (HDL-C) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol-C (LDL-C) lowered obviously with significant difference among the 3 groups (P0.05). The highest compliance rate of LDL-C was observed in 60mg group. Compared with those before treatment, the mean levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were elevated, and that of total bilirubin (TBil) and direct bilirubin (DBil) declined after treatment (P0.05). The average level of creatine kinase (CK) was lowered (P0.05). NIHSS scores were decreased in a dose-dependent manner after treatment with no significant difference among the 3 groups (P=0.157). Conclusions Atorvastatin can safely and effectively reduce the blood lipid levels, improve the neurological deficits, and reduce the hCRP level to certain extent. Administration of 60mg of atorvastatin may result in highest compliance rate of LDL-C and the greatest degree of improvement of NIHSS. However, further study should be untaken to demonstrate if the long-term and high-dose medication of atorvastatin is safe and effective for ischemic stroke.
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<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the value of multidetector CT on aiding intraoperative judgement of serosal invasion of gastric cancer.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Clinical data of 206 cases of gastric cancer undergoing radical surgery in the First Hosptial of China Medical University from August 2009 to June 2011 were analyzed retrospectively. Preoperative CT findings and intraoperative judgement of serosal invasion in gastric cancer were compared with pathological results in order to investigate their values.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The sensitivity and specificity of preoperative CT findings and intraoperative judgement of serosal invasion were 88.5%, 81.5% and 98.9%, 61.3%, respectively. The accuracy of preoperative CT in diagnosing serosal invasion was higher than that of intraoperative judgement, while the difference was not statistically significant (84.5% vs. 77.2%, P=0.060). The rates of serosal invasion of normal type, reactive type, nodular type, tendonoid type and color-diffused type were 0 (0/29), 2.5% (1/40), 40.5% (15/37), 59.2% (29/49), and 82.4% (42/51) respectively. The accuracy of preoperative CT in diagnosing serosal invasion of gastric cancer with tendonoid type was higher than that of intraoperative judgement, and the difference was statistically significant (61.2% vs. 87.8%, P=0.002).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Multidetector CT plays an important role in aiding intraoperation judgement of serosal invasion of gastric cancer. For gastric cancer with tendonoid and color-diffused macroscopic serosal appearance, surgeons should pay attention to the value of preoperative CT findings.</p>
Subject(s)
Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Intraoperative Care , Neoplasm Invasiveness , Diagnostic Imaging , Retrospective Studies , Sensitivity and Specificity , Serous Membrane , Diagnostic Imaging , Pathology , Stomach Neoplasms , Diagnostic Imaging , Pathology , Tomography, Spiral Computed , MethodsABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the characteristic findings of autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) to increase the recognition of AIP.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From February 2002 to April 2008, a total of 14 cases of AIP were reviewed by clinical, imaging, serologic, histopathologic features and treatment response. There were 13 male and 1 female, with a mean age of 53 years. The main clinical manifestations included progressive obstructive jaundice in 11 cases, upper abdomen pain in 3 cases.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Diffuse enlargement of pancreas and diffuse narrowing of the main pancreatic duct (MPD) were observed in 11 cases, while 3 patients showed localized pancreatic head enlargement and focal narrowing of the MPD. Distal common bile duct stenosis was found in all cases. Increased expression of serum immunoglobulin G was found in 7 patients. Autoantibody test was positive in 5 of 12 patients. Nine of 14 patients with AIP had extrapancreatic organ involvement. Massive lymphocytes and plasma cells infiltration in pancreatic tissues were showed on pathology, as well as parenchymal fibrosis. Seven earlier patients were treated initially with surgical laparotomy or resection for suspected malignancy. Steroid therapy was given to the other patients and was responsive. There were 4 recurrences after initial treatment.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>AIP should be a differential diagnosis in pancreatic head mass in order to avoid unnecessary resection.</p>