Diffusion characteristics of subcortical structures in patients with subcortical ischemic vascular disease and its correlation to cognitive function / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI) characteristics of normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) and normal-appearing gray matter (NAGM) on conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with subcortical ischemic vascular disease (SIVD) and examine the relation of such features with the general cognitive function of the patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>DTI was performed in 46 SIVD patients and 34 age-matched control subjects with normal MRI findings. The apprarent diffusion coeeficient (ADC) and fractional anisotropy (FA) were measured within the regions of white matter lesions (WMLs), NAWM and NAGM. All the subjects were examined by neurologists with MMSE and clinical neurologic examination.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with normal controls, SIVD subjects showed increased ADC values in the subcortical NAGM and NAWM in anterior periventricular and centrum semiovale, with decreased FA values in the caudate nucleus, thalamus and centrum semiovale. An increased severity of the WMLs was associated with increased ADC and decreased FA in the NAWM of SIVD patients. After controlling for age, the ADC in the NAWM of the posterior periventricular, NAWM and WMLs in the centrum semiovale, caudate nucleus and thalamus showed significant inverse correlations to MMSE; FA values in NAWM of the anterior periventricular and WMLs of the centrum semiovale were positively correlated to MMSE.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>In SIVD patients, the NAWM and NAGM regions shown by MRI contain diffusion abnormalities, and these abnormalities shown by DTI are significantly correlated to the general cognitive function of the patients.</p>

Effect of Shuanghuanglian injection on cerebral nuclear factor-kappaB expression in mice with viral encephalitis / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effect of Shuanghuanglian injection on cerebral expression of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) in mice with viral encephalitis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The mice with experimental viral encephalitis received treatment with Shuanghuanglian injection at the dose of 0.2, 1.5, and 5 for 5, 10 or 20 consecutive days. The total RNA of the brain tissue was extracted to analyze the protein and mRNA expression of NF-kappaB using Western blotting and RT-PCR, respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the control group, the mice with experimental viral encephalitis showed significantly increased protein and mRNA expressions of NF-kappaB (P<0.01). Treatment with Shuanghuanglian injection at the doses of 0.2 and 1.5 mg/kg significantly lowered NF-kappaB protein and mRNA expressions in the brain of mice with viral encephalitis (P<0.05), and the effect was even more obvious at the dose of 5 mg/kg (P<0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Shuanghuanglian injection can reduce the expression of NF-kappaB in the brain of mice with viral encephalitis in a dose- and time-dependent manner.</p>