Application of typical tasks-based mind mapping in nursing teaching for children with autism spectrum disorder / 中华医学教育探索杂志

Objective:To explore the application of typical tasks-based mind mapping in nursing teaching for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).Methods:A total of 102 nursing students who were involved in the nursing of children with ASD in Hunan Children's Hospital were selected and divided into control group and observation group according to the teaching methods. Fifty-one students in the control group were provided with conventional teaching, while 51 students in the observation group were provided with typical tasks-based mind mapping teaching. The students in the two groups were assessed for performance, self-directed learning ability score, and overall literacy at completion of the nursing course. SPSS 22.0 was used for the t test. Results:The scores of theoretical examination[(92.34±4.07) vs. (89.92±3.61)], nursing note writing[(91.07±3.84) vs. (88.60±3.59)], and operational examination[(90.47±2.98) vs. (88.52±2.73)] were significantly higher among students in the observation group than among those in the control group ( P<0.05); after the internship, students in the two groups had significantly increased scores in interpersonal relationships, learning awareness, learning strategies, learning behaviors, and learning evaluation, and the observation group had better performance than the control group in the above indices ( P<0.05); after the internship, students in the two groups had significantly increased scores in problem solving, interpersonal communication, critical thinking, and self-leadership, and the observation group had better performance than the control group in the above indices ( P<0.05). Conclusion:The application of typical tasks-based mind mapping in nursing teaching for children with ASD can improve nursing students' academic performance, enhance their self-directed learning, and improve their overall literacy.

Preparation and pharmacokinetics in vivo of linarin solid dispersion and liposome / 中草药·英文版

Objective: The current investigation aimed to determine the appropriate dosage form by comparing solid dispersion and liposome to achieve the purpose of improving the solubility and bioavailability of linarin. Methods: Linarin solid dispersion (LSD) and linarin liposome (LL) were developed via the solvent method and the thin film hydration method respectively. The Transwell chamber model of Caco-2 cells was established to evaluate the absorption of drug. The pharmacokinetics of linarin, LSD and LL in rats after ig administration were carried out by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. Results: The solubility of LSD and LL was severally 3.29 times and 3.09 times than that of linarin. The permeation coefficients of LSD and LL were greater than 10

Optimization of the simultaneous extraction technology of dietary fiber and flavonoids from the peel of Prunus armeniaca / 中国药房

OBJEC TIVE To optimize the simultaneous extraction technology of dietary fiber （DF）and flavonoids from the peel of Prunus armeniaca . METHODS The content of DF was calculated with enzyme-gravimetric method ，and the content of flavonoids was determined by ultraviolet spectrophotometry. The orthogonal design and single factor test were used to optimize the extraction technology ，with the factors of liquid-solid ratio ，pH，papain concentration ，α-amylase concentration ，temperature of enzymatic hydrolysis and time of enzymatic hydrolysis as factors ，using the contents of DF and flavonoids as indexes. RESULTS The optimal extraction technology included the solid-liquid ratio of 1 ∶ 10（g/mL），pH5，0.5％ papain and 0.5％ α-amylase， enzymatic hydrolysis at 50 ℃ for 1 h. After three times of validation ，the average content of DF was 0.801 g/g（RSD＝1.95％）， and the average content of flavonoids was 2.135 mg/g（RSD＝2.44％）. The average comprehensive score was 0.988（RSD＝ 0.81％）. CONCLUSIONS The optimal extraction technology is stable and feasible.

Maximum fat oxidation intensity of obese female college students / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To explore the relationship between the adiposity index and the maximum fat oxidation intensity (Fat max ) of obese female college students, and to provide a composite indicas for formulating exercise prescriptions.@*Methods@#Fifty four obese female college students without sports background in Chongqing from June 2017 to March 2018 were selected as subjects. Fat max was measured through an incremental load exercise test on a sports treadmill in all participants. Differences of fat max among pariticipants with different body fat percentage(BFP), waist to hip ratio(WHR), and skinfold thickness of different parts (abdomen, lower scapula, upper arm and humerus) were compared. Associations between different body fat percentage(BFP), waist to hip ratio(WHR), skinfold thickness of different parts (abdomen, lower scapula, upper arm triceps) and Fat max were analyzed.@*Results@#Fat max (MET, %VO 2max ) of female college students classified as obese by BFP, WHR, abdominal, upper arm triceps, and lower scapula indicators were lower than the control group. Fat max [(6.19±1.21)MET, (48.71±8.62)% VO 2max ] of female college students with abdominal obesity was significantly lower than that of the control group [(7.65±0.88) MET, (57.64±8.90)% VO 2max ], all the differences were statistically significant ( t =2.48, 2.61, P <0.05). Fat max [(6.10±1.16)MET] of female college students with obesity under the scapula was significantly lower than that of the control group [(7.18±1.25)MET] ( t =2.50, P < 0.05 ), and negative correlation was found( r=-0.27, P <0.01).@*Conclusion@#The obesity indicas are closely related to Fat max among obese female college students, and the skinfold thickness of the abdominal and back show prominent impact on the Fat max of obese female college students.

Analysis of driver gene mutations in colorectal cancer by using next-generation sequencing / 中华老年医学杂志

Objective:To investigate the characteristics of gene mutations in colorectal cancer(CRC)patients by using next-generation generation sequencing(NGS).Methods:Blood and tissue samples were collected from 90 CRC patients admitted to Beijing Hospital between August 5, 2016 and December 29, 2020.Analysis of driver gene mutations was performed by using a 1021-gene NGS panel.Results:There were 43 tissue samples and 83 blood samples.Also, 36 patients had both tissue and blood samples.The frequency rates of KRAS and BRAF mutations were 51.2%(22/43)and 20.9%(9/43)in tissue samples, and 3 rare concomitant KRAS/ BRAF mutations were detected.The frequency rates of KRAS and BRAF mutations were 26.5%(22/83)and 10.8%(9/83)in blood samples.In patients with tissue and blood samples, the rates of KRAS and BRAF mutations were 52.8%(19/36)and 10.8%(8/36). Conclusions:The rate of KRAS mutations in tissue samples from colorectal cancer patients is similar to rates reported in the literature, but the rate of BRAF mutation and the rate of rare KRAS and BRAF co-mutations are higher than those reported from other countries.

Progress on chemotherapy for peritoneal carcinomatosis / 中国肿瘤临床

Peritoneal carcinomatosis is obtaining extensive attention because of its late detection and poor prognosis. Lately, cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) are widely used for the treatment of this condition and could be effective in some carefully selected patients. Different chemotherapies are combined with CRS or HIPEC, and different drug administration routes are used, such as intraperitoneal or pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy. Furthermore, the results of many clinical trials differed among patients with different types of cancer. Herein, we reviewed recent studies in patients with gastric, colon, and ovarian cancer to evaluate the progress of chemotherapy for peritoneal carcinomatosis.

Long non-coding RNA LINC01106 regulates colorectal cancer cell proliferation and apoptosis through the STAT3 pathway / 南方医科大学学报

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the expression of LINC01106 in colorectal cancer and its role in regulating the proliferation and apoptosis of colorectal cancer cells.@*METHODS@#We analyzed the data of LINC01106 expression levels in tumor tissues and normal tissues of patients with colorectal cancer in TCGA database and explored the association of LINC01106 expression level with the prognosis of the patients. Colorectal cancer SW480 cell lines with LINC01106 knockdown or overexpression were established, and their proliferation and apoptosis relative to the parental cells were evaluated using CCK-8 assay and flow cytometry, respectively. The expressions of p-STAT3, STAT3, and Bcl-2 in the cells were detected by immunoblotting. Nude mouse models bearing xenografts of SW480 cells with LINC01106 knockdown or na?ve SW480 cells were established to observe the effect of LINC01106 knockdown on the growth of SW480 cells .@*RESULTS@#Analysis of the data from TCGA database showed that the expression level of LINC01106 was significantly higher in colorectal cancer tissues than in normal tissues, and LINC01106 expression level was significantly related to the prognosis of the patients ( < 0.05). Knockdown of LINC01106 significantly inhibited the proliferation and promoted apoptosis of SW480 cells ( < 0.05), while LINC01106 overexpression significantly promoted proliferation of the cells. LINC01106 knockdown in SW-480 cells obviously lowered the expressions of p- STAT3 and Bcl-2 and suppressed the growth of the xenograft in nude mice.@*CONCLUSIONS@#LINC01106 is significantly up-regulated in colorectal cancer tissue and is related to the prognosis of the patients. LINC01106 can regulate the proliferation and apoptosis of SW480 cells through STAT3/Bcl-2 signaling and may serve as a potential marker for the diagnosis and prognostic evaluation of colorectal cancer.

Analysis of factors for recurrence of stage Ⅱ colorectal cancer in patients aged 75 years and over after radical resection / 中华老年医学杂志

Objective:To investigate the influencing factors for the recurrence of TNM(T3~4N0M0)stage Ⅱ colorectal cancer in patients aged 75 years and over after radical resection.Methods:Clinicopathologic data of 161 colorectal cancer patients aged 75 years and over undergone radical resection in our hospital from January 2012 to August 2017 were retrospectively analyzed.They were followed up for 49 months(range: 2-84 months). Survival analysis was conducted by the Kaplan-Meier method and the survival rate was examined using the Log-rank method.Multivariate analysis was conducted by the proportional hazards regression model.Results:Univariate analysis showed that age≥80 years, preoperative comorbidities involving more than 1 system, weight loss≥10%, preoperative intestinal obstruction or perforation, preoperative CEA elevation, preoperative CA199 elevation, depth of primary tumor invasion T4, dissection of lymph nodes<12, vascular invasion, nerve invasion, deficient mismatch repair(dMMR), risk stratification and adjuvant chemotherapy were related factors for the prognosis in patients with TNM stage Ⅱ colorectal cancer aged 75 years and over after radical resection.Multivariate analysis showed that preoperative comorbidities involving more than 1 system, weight loss≥10%, preoperative intestinal obstruction or perforation, preoperative CEA elevation, depth of primary tumor invasion T4, dissection of lymph nodes<12 and vascular invasion were independent risk factors for poor prognosis, and adjuvant chemotherapy was an independent factor for favorable prognosis.The 5-year-disease-free survival(DFS)rate was 41.6% in all patients.The Kaplan-Meier curves indicated that disease-free survival(DFS)between the low-risk, middle-risk and high-risk groups had a statistically significant difference( χ2=14.632, P=0.001). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that high-risk patients receiving Oxaliplatin combined with Capecitabine adjuvant chemotherapy had better DFS than those receiving Capecitabine or non-adjuvant chemotherapy( χ2=11.157, P=0.004). Conclusions:DFS is improved in strictly selected patients with stage Ⅱ colorectal cancer aged 75 years and over and at high risk who receive Oxaliplatin combined with Capecitabine adjuvant chemotherapy.

Autophagy inhibitor 3-methyladenine enhances the sensitivity of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells to chemotherapy and radiotherapy / 中南大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the effects of 3-methyladenine (3-MA, an autophagy inhibitor) on sensitivities of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells to radiotherapy and chemotherapy and the underlying mechanisms.
@*METHODS@#Cell proliferation was examined by MTT and colony formation assay, while cell apoptosis was evaluated by annexin V/PI double staining and 2-(4-Amidinophenyl)-6-indolecarbamidine dihydrochloride (DAPI) staining. Mitochondrial membrane potential was measured by commercial kit (JC-1). The expression of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS)-related protein, glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) and autophagy-related protein beclin1, microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3) were examined by Western blot.
@*RESULTS@#Cisplatin (DDP), ionizing radiation (IR) or tunicamycin (TM) treatment obviously inhibited the proliferation of HONE-1 cells in a concentration-dependent and time-dependent manner. Compared with control group, pretreatment with 1 mmol/L of 3-MA significantly 
reduced cell viability and enhanced the apoptosis in the DDP (6.00 μmol/L), 4.00 Gy IR or TM (1.00 μmol/L) groups. There was no significant difference in the apoptosis between the DDP (5.8%) and 4Gy IR (6.7%) groups. Compared with the control group, protein levels of GRP78, beclin1 and lipid-conjugated membrane-bound form (LC3-II) were significantly increased after the treatment of DDP, 4.00 Gy IR or TM, which were inhibited by pretreatment of 3-MA.
@*CONCLUSION@#3-MA can sensitize HONE-1 cells to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, which is related to prevention of endoplasmic reticulum stress-induced autophagy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells.

Anti-tumor research targeting IAPs / 中国药理学通报

Apoptosis inhibitors ( inhibitor of apoptosis proteins, IAPs) are a class of highly conserved apoptotic endogenous anti-cytokine family, primarily by inhibiting caspase activity and par-ticipation in regulation of nuclear factor NF-κB inhibition of ap-optosis. caspases cascade of protease activation is a central part of the apoptotic process, Bcl-2 family proteins and IAPs family proteins are the main controlling factors. In recent years, we found that abnormal expression of some IAPs members is closely associated with the tumor, a potential target for cancer therapy. Therefore, this paper reviews the major protein associated with IAPs family and anti-tumor research targeting IAPs.

Correction of/L/consonant disorder by the method of “vertical tongue” / 实用口腔医学杂志

The “vertical tongue”method was used in speech training for 12 patients with functional speech disorder of consonant /L/.Af-ter treatment,the average vocal intilligibility of the 12 patients increased from 86.3% to 98.9%(P <0.05)./L/consonant average intelligi-bility increased from 42.9% to 85.2%(P <0.05).

The research and analysis from the present situation of nursing students' mobile learning / 中国实用护理杂志

Objective The research is to understand students' mobile learning (M-learning) attitudes and behaviors,and provide a reference for the development of mobile learning systems and learning resources.Methods The research used the method of questionnaires to investigate nursing students' present situation of M-learning.Results About 2/3 of the students were so eager to have targeted mobile tutorial course.Most of the students were not satisfied though there were a lot of resources.More than 2/3 of the students used telephone to surf on the internet almost every day (mainly on reading web pages and communicate with classmates using chat software,see / write blog lowest).The mobile learning time of more than 60％ students was not more than 10 minutes.1/3 of students used the time between 10 to 30 minutes.The highest cost that students spent on monthly mobile learning was less than 10 Yuan,accounting for the total number of 1/3.Compared with the junior college students,the proportion of undergraduates who support to use phone to surf on the internet was higher.Undergraduate students were more likely to read pages and see multimedia,most of them hope to see courseware within 2 to 5 minutes,etc.Conclusions Nursing students have good hardware conditions on mobile learning.Students are recognized on mobile learning.The current mobile learning resources are chaos and lack of design so that it hindered the development of mobile learning.Mobile learning courses should be short and pithy,rich and colorful.Application design of mobile blog in mobile learning needs to be strengthened.Generally speaking,undergraduate college students are more actively to take mobile learning into their learning and life.

Glycosylation inhibitor 2-deoxy-D-glucose sensitizes oral cancer cells to TRAIL-induced apoptosis / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) in enhancing the sensitivity of oral cancer cells to tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL)-induced apoptosis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The oral cancer cell line KB was incubated in the presence of different concentrations (0, 0.625, 1.25, 2.5, 5, and 10 mmol/L) of 2-DG with or without TRAIL (200 ng/ml). The cell viability was measured using MTT assay and cell apoptosis was detected using flow cytometry with propidium iodide (PI) staining. KB cells treated with 5 mmol/L 2-DG with or without TRAIL for 0, 6, 16, or 24 h were examined with Western blotting for protein expressions of death receptor 5 (DR5) and caspase-3.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Treatment of the cells with 5 mmol/L 2-DG for 24, 48 and 72 h resulted in a cell viability of 25.25%, 69.06%, and 59.19%, respectively. Combined treatment with 5 mmol/L 2-DG with TRAIL for 24 significantly enhanced the cell apoptotic rate (72.5%) as compared to the rate induced by TRAIL alone (45.3%) and by 2-DG (15.9%) alone. 2-DG treatment markedly up-regulated DR5 and caspase-3 expression and enhanced the inhibitory effect of TRAIL on cell colony formation.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>2-DG sensitizes oral cancer cells to TRAIL- induced apoptosis by up-regulating DR5 and caspase-3 expressions.</p>

Small interfering RNA-mediated RIP1 knockdown enhances L-OHP sensitivity of human oral squamous carcinoma cells / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of small interfering RNA-mediated receptor-interacting protein kinase 1 (RIP1) knockdown on the sensitivity of human oral squamous carcinoma cells to to oxaliplatin (L-OHP)-induced apoptosis and explore a new target for clinical treatment of oral squamous carcinoma.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The viability of human oral squamous carcinoma cell line KB exposed to different concentrations (0, 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4 µmol/L) of L-OHP were detected by MTT assay. PI/Annexin V staining was used to observe cell apoptosis in naive KB cells, cell and transfected with pSH1Si-RIP1 or with the empty plasmid. Western blotting was used to detect RIP1 expression in KB cells exposed to L-OHP and in cells transfected with pSH1Si-RIP1.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Exposure to L-OHP (1µmol/L) for 24, 48, 72 h resulted in KB cell survival rates of 67.66%, 55.17%, and 41.34%, respectively, but the cell apoptosis rate was only 9.6% following a 24-h exposure. KB cells transfected with pSH1Si-RIP1 showed an apoptotic rate of 9.4%, which increased to 29.1% following L-OHP exposure. RIP1 expression was first up-regulated and then down-regulated in KB cells treated with L-OHP, and was significantly reduced after cell transfection with pSH1Si-RIP1.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Suppression of RIP1 expression increases the apoptotic rate of human oral squamous carcinoma cells, suggesting the potential of RIP1 as a new candidate target for clinical treatment of oral squamous carcinoma.</p>

Small interfering RNA-mediated glucose-regulated protein 78 knockdown enhances chemosensitivity of breast cancer cells to cisplatin / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of small interfering RNA-mediated glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) knockdown on the chemosensitivity of breast cancer cells to cisplatin.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 was exposed to different doses of cisplatin (0, 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 µmol/L), and the changes in cell viability were detected using MTT assay. PI/Annexin V staining was used to observe the apoptosis of the cells in response to transfection with a small interfering RNA targeting GRP78 (pSH1Si-GRP78). Western blotting was employed to detect GRP78 expression in pSH1Si- GRP78-transfected cells after exposure to 8 µmol/L cisplatin for 24, 48 and 72 h.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Exposure of the cells to 8 µmol/L cisplatin for 24, 48 and 72 h resulted in a cell survival rate of 83.13%, 54.22% and 35.79%, respectively, but the cell apoptosis rate was only 10.8% at 24 h. Transfection of MDA-MB-231 cells with pSH1Si-GRP78 caused a cell apoptosis rate of 24.6%, which increased to 48.9% in cells with both pSH1Si-GRP78 transfection and cisplatin exposure. Cisplatin exposure caused an initial up-regulation followed then by a down-regulation of GRP78 expression in MDA-MB-231 cells, while pSH1Si-GRP78 transfection produced an obvious down-regulation of GRP78 expression.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Inhibition of GRP78 expression increases the apoptosis and enhance cisplatin chemosensitivity of breast cancer cells in vitro, suggesting the value of GRP78 as a potential therapeutic target in the clinical treatment of breast cancer.</p>

Effects of cisplatin combined with heparanase inhibitor on proliferation and invasion of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells / 药学学报

This study is to investigate the effects of cisplatin combined with heparanase inhibitor OGT2115 on proliferation, invasion and migration of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells CNE-2 and to provide a new target for the treatment of metastasis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. MTT assay was used to detect the cell viability of CNE-2 after exposure to different concentrations of DDP (2, 4, 8, 16 and 32 micromol x L(-1)), different concentrations of OGT2115 (0.4, 0.8, 1.6, 3.2 and 6.4 micromol x L(-1)), and DDP combined with OGT2115. Transwell assay was applied to analyze the effects of drugs on invasion and migration of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells. Wound healing assay was performed to detect cell migration and heparanase activity was analyzed by ELISA. MTT results showed that DDP can inhibit the proliferation of CNE-2 cells in a time and concentration-dependent manner, with an IC50 of 24.03 micromol x L(-1) at 24 h (P < 0.05), low concentration of DDP has almost no inhibitory effect on cell invasion and migration. DDP combined with OGT2115 can significantly inhibit cell invasion and migration. Inhibition of heparanase can significantly enhance anti-invasion and anti-proliferation of DDP.

The role of neurokinin B and its receptor in hypothalamic-pituitary-gonad axis / 国际儿科学杂志

Kisspoptin signaling plays an essential role in the onset of puberty and reproductive development.Recently studies implicate that steroid-responsive NKB,kisspeptin,NK3 R,and estrogen receptor α (ERα) coexpress in arcuate nucleus of hypothalamus of variety of mammalian species and regulate the secretion of gonadotrophic hormone.The function of neurons in the hypothalamus is to regulate the estrogen negative feedback on gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion.Loss of function of neurokinin B (NKB) or its receptor,the neurokinin-3 receptor produces idiopathic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism.These studies demonstrate NKB and neurokinin-3 receptor as the essential elements of the human reproductive axis.

Driving efficiency in a high-throughput metabolic stability assay through a generic high-resolution accurate mass method and automated data mining

Improving analytical throughput is the focus of many quantitative workflows being developed for early drug discovery. For drug candidate screening, it is common practice to use ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (U-HPLC) coupled with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry. This approach certainly results in short analytical run time; however, in assessing the true throughput, all aspects of the workflow needs to be considered, including instrument optimization and the necessity to re-run samples when information is missed. Here we describe a high-throughput metabolic stability assay with a simplified instrument set-up which significantly improves the overall assay efficiency. In addition, as the data is acquired in a non-biased manner, high information content of both the parent compound and metabolites is gathered at the same time to facilitate the decision of which compounds to proceed through the drug discovery pipeline.

The analysis of survival factors of patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer aged 70 years and over / 中华老年医学杂志

Objective To explore the effect of related factors on survival of patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer aged 70 years and over. Methods Fifty-seven patients with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer aged 70 years and over were enrolled.Their survival time were analyzed with SPSS 13.0 by taking account of gender, age, smoking history,alcohol history, pancreatic disease history, diabetes mellitus history, Eastern Collaborative Oncology Group (ECOG) scoring, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, CEA and CA199 levels. Results Gender,ECOG scoring, chemotherapy and radiotherapy had relationship with overall survival. The median survival time was 8.9 months and one-year survival rate was 28.1%. The median survival was (10.7±5.4) months in male group and (5.5±2.3) months in female group (P=0.000). The median survival was(10.1±5.8) months in patients with ECOG 0～1 group and(7.3±3.8)months in patients with ECOG 2 group (P=0.040). The median survival was(7.76±5.27) months in nochemotherapy group and(11.5±5.0)months in chemotherapy group (P=0.038). The median survival was(8.87±5.36)months in no radiotherapy group and (13.7±3.8) months in radiotherapy group (P=0.048). Conclusions The patients who have better ECOG performance status and receive chemotherapy or radiotherapy show better survival.

A comparative study on the enhancement efficacy of specific and non-specific iron chelators for protoporphyrin IX production and photosensitization in HaCat cells / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

The iron chelators can be utilized in target cells to improve 5-aminolaevulinic acid (ALA)-based photodynamic therapy (PDT). The purpose of this study is to compare the effect of two kinds of iron chelators, desferrioxamine (DFO) and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) on the enhancement of ALA-PDT. HaCat cells were cultured in medium containing 2.0 mmol/L of ALA and 0.5 mmol/L of DFO or EDTA. After 3-h incubation in the dark, the concentration of cellular protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) was detected by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and the fluorescence of PpIX was observed at 630 nm emission under confocal laser scanning microscope. For PDT, HaCat cells were irradiated using 632.8 nm laser, and the fractions of apoptotic and necrotic cells were flow cytometrically assayed. Related differences in morphology and ultrastructure of Ha-Cat cells were observed using optical microscope or transmission electron microscope. Compared to incubation with ALA alone, the addition of DFO or EDTA increased the concentration of cellular PpIX and the fluorescent density of PpIX, and also increased cell death ratio after PDT. PDT using ALA plus DFO produced the highest cellular PpIX level, greatest cell death ratio and most severe structural damage to the cells. It was concluded that both DFO and EDTA could enhance ALA-based PpIX production and PDT. Compared to the non-specific iron chelator of EDTA, the specific chelator, DFO, showed more potential for the enhancement.