Advances in the Treatment of Glucocorticoid Resistance and Relapsed Immune Thrombocytopenia --Review / 中国实验血液学杂志

Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is an immune-mediated acquired hemorrhagic autoimmune disease. At present, the first-line therapeutic drugs for ITP include glucocorticoids and intravenous immunoglobulins. However, about 1/3 of the patients had no response to the first-line treatment, or relapsed after dose reduction or withdrawal of glucocorticoids. In recent years, with the gradual deepening of the understanding on the pathogenesis of ITP, the drugs targeting different pathogenesis continually emerge, including immunomodulators, demethylating agents, spleen tyrosine kinase (SYK) inhibitors and neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn) antagonist. However, most of these drugs are in clinical trials. This review summarized briefly the recent advances in the treatment of glucocorticoids resistance and relapsed ITP, so as to provide reference for the clinical treatments.

Research Advances on Strategies to Promote Homing and Engraftment of Hematopoietic Stem Cells--Review / 中国实验血液学杂志

The homing and engraftment of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) into bone marrow is the first critical step for successful clinical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). SDF-1 / CXCR4 is considered to be a very promising target to promote HSC homing. In recent years, with the in-depth research on the HSC homing, a variety of new strategies for promoting HSC homing and engraftment have been explored, such as nuclear hormone receptor, histone deacetylase inhibitor, prostaglandin and metabolic regulation, so as to increase the success rate of HSCT and improve the survival of patients. In this review, the recent research advances in the mechanism of HSC homing and strategies to promote HSC homing and engraftment were summarized and discussed.

Research progress on chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of seabuckthorn and prediction of its Q-markers / 中国中药杂志

Seabuckthorn contains flavonoids, tannins, terpenoids, polysaccharides, and vitamins, which have anti-inflammation,anti-oxidation, liver protection, anti-cardiovascular disease, anti-aging, immune enhancing, anti-tumor, and anti-bacterial activities.We reviewed the papers focusing on the chemical constituents, pharmacological activities, and utilization of seabuckthorn. The quality markers(Q-markers) of seabuckthorn were predicted and analyzed based on original plant phylogeny, chemical composition correlation, traditional medicinal properties, pharmacodynamic correlation, traditional and extended efficacy, pharmacokinetics, metabolic processes, and measurable components. With this review, we aim to provide theoretical reference for the quality control and quality standard establishment of seabuckthorn, so as to promote the rational exploitation and utilization of seabuckthorn resources, and improve the healthy and sustainable development of seabuckthorn industry.

Histological Validation of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance T1 Mapping for Assessing the Evolution of Myocardial Injury in Myocardial Infarction:An Experimental Study

Objective@#To determine whether T1 mapping could monitor the dynamic changes of injury in myocardial infarction (MI) and be histologically validated. @*Materials and Methods@#In 22 pigs, MI was induced by ligating the left anterior descending artery and they underwent serial cardiovascular magnetic resonance examinations with modified Look-Locker inversion T1 mapping and extracellular volume (ECV) computation in acute (within 24 hours, n = 22), subacute (7 days, n = 13), and chronic (3 months, n = 7) phases of MI. Masson’s trichrome staining was performed for histological ECV calculation. Myocardial native T1 and ECV were obtained by region of interest measurement in infarcted, peri-infarct, and remote myocardium. @*Results@#Native T1 and ECV in peri-infarct myocardium differed from remote myocardium in acute (1181 ± 62 ms vs. 1113 ± 64 ms, p = 0.002; 24 ± 4% vs. 19 ± 4%, p = 0.031) and subacute phases (1264 ± 41 ms vs. 1171 ± 56 ms, p < 0.001; 27 ± 4% vs. 22 ± 2%, p = 0.009) but not in chronic phase (1157 ± 57 ms vs. 1120 ± 54 ms, p = 0.934; 23 ± 2% vs. 20 ± 1%, p = 0.109). From acute to chronic MI, infarcted native T1 peaked in subacute phase (1275 ± 63 ms vs. 1637 ± 123 ms vs. 1471 ± 98 ms, p < 0.001), while ECV progressively increased with time (35 ± 7% vs. 46 ± 6% vs. 52 ± 4%,p < 0.001). Native T1 correlated well with histological findings (R2 = 0.65 to 0.89, all p < 0.001) so did ECV (R2 = 0.73 to 0.94, all p < 0.001). @*Conclusion@#T1 mapping allows the quantitative assessment of injury in MI and the noninvasive monitoring of tissue injury evolution, which correlates well with histological findings.

Chemical variation in Aconti Kusnezoffii Radix before and after processing based on UPLC-Orbitrap-MS / 中国中药杂志

Some Chinese herbal medicine needs to be processed before it can be used as medicine, especially toxic Chinese medicine. Highly toxic Aconti Kusnezoffii Radix(Caowu in Chinese) is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine and Mongolian medicine. In traditional Chinese medicine, Caowu is usually processed by boiling with water(CW) until no white part inside and being tasted without tongue-numbing. In Mongolian medicine, it is usually soaked in Chebulae Fructus(Hezi in Chinese) decoction for several days(CH). Both methods could reduce toxicity according to reports. The biggest difference between CW and CH is that CW needs to be heated for 4-6 h, while CH needs Hezi as processing adjuvants. To explore the toxicity reduction mechanism of CW and CH, we studied the contents of various compounds in Caowu processed by two methods by UPLC-Orbitrap-MS. The results indicated that CW had 14 new ingredients, such as 14-O-anisoylneoline and dehydro-mesaconitine, while N-demethyl-mesaconitine and aconitine disappeared. At the same time, it could significantly decrease the content of diester diterpenoid alkaloids and increase the contents of monoester diterpenoid alkaloids and amine-diterpenoid alkaloids. CH had 9 new ingredients from Hezi, like gallic acid, chebulic acid and shikimic acid. Neither the kinds nor the contents of compositions from Caowu in CH changed little. This suggested that the processing mechanism of CW reduced highly toxic components(diester diterpenoid alkaloids) and increased the content of lowly toxic components(monoester diterpenoid alkaloids and amine-diterpenoid alkaloids). Attenuated principle of CH may be related to the components of Hezi. In this experiment, the conclusion shows that the chemical constituents of CW and CH are essentially different, and the two methods have different toxicity reduction principles.

Histological Validation of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance T1 Mapping for Assessing the Evolution of Myocardial Injury in Myocardial Infarction:An Experimental Study

Objective@#To determine whether T1 mapping could monitor the dynamic changes of injury in myocardial infarction (MI) and be histologically validated. @*Materials and Methods@#In 22 pigs, MI was induced by ligating the left anterior descending artery and they underwent serial cardiovascular magnetic resonance examinations with modified Look-Locker inversion T1 mapping and extracellular volume (ECV) computation in acute (within 24 hours, n = 22), subacute (7 days, n = 13), and chronic (3 months, n = 7) phases of MI. Masson’s trichrome staining was performed for histological ECV calculation. Myocardial native T1 and ECV were obtained by region of interest measurement in infarcted, peri-infarct, and remote myocardium. @*Results@#Native T1 and ECV in peri-infarct myocardium differed from remote myocardium in acute (1181 ± 62 ms vs. 1113 ± 64 ms, p = 0.002; 24 ± 4% vs. 19 ± 4%, p = 0.031) and subacute phases (1264 ± 41 ms vs. 1171 ± 56 ms, p < 0.001; 27 ± 4% vs. 22 ± 2%, p = 0.009) but not in chronic phase (1157 ± 57 ms vs. 1120 ± 54 ms, p = 0.934; 23 ± 2% vs. 20 ± 1%, p = 0.109). From acute to chronic MI, infarcted native T1 peaked in subacute phase (1275 ± 63 ms vs. 1637 ± 123 ms vs. 1471 ± 98 ms, p < 0.001), while ECV progressively increased with time (35 ± 7% vs. 46 ± 6% vs. 52 ± 4%,p < 0.001). Native T1 correlated well with histological findings (R2 = 0.65 to 0.89, all p < 0.001) so did ECV (R2 = 0.73 to 0.94, all p < 0.001). @*Conclusion@#T1 mapping allows the quantitative assessment of injury in MI and the noninvasive monitoring of tissue injury evolution, which correlates well with histological findings.

Metabolomics study of Danggui Buxue Tang on treatment of type 2 diabetes mice using UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS / 中国中药杂志

In this paper, ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry(UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS)-based metabolomics approach was used to explore the mechanism of Danggui Buxue Tang(DBT) in treating type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2 DM). T2 DM mice model was induced by high-sugar and high-fat fodder and streptozotocin(STZ). The routine indexes such as body weight, blood glucose, plasma insulin, IL-6 and related organ indexes were determined. The UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS technique was used to analyze the metabolism profile of serum samples between the control group and model group, and multiple statistical analysis methods including principal component analysis(PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA) were used to screen and identify biomarkers. Metabolic profiling revealed 16 metabolites as the most potential biomarkers distinguishing mice in model group from those in control group. The metabolomics pathway analysis(MetPA) was used to investigate the underlying metabolic pathways. Seven major metabolic pathways such the valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis, glycerophospholipid metabolism, primary bile acid biosynthesis, taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, phenylalanine metabolism, fatty acid metabolism and biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acid. Eleven metabolites such as taurocholic acid and palmitic acid were down-regulated in T2 DM mice, and five metabolites such as L-leucine and leukotriene E4 were up-regulated. Moreover, the sixteen biomar-kers of each administration group had a trend of returning to mice in control group. The significantly-altered metabolite levels indicated that DBT can improve the progression of type 2 diabetes by increasing insulin sensitivity, regulating sugar and lipid metabolism disorders, and relieving inflammation.

Inhibitory effects of tannins from leaves of Hippophae rhamnoids and their anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity effects / 中草药

Objective: To study the anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity constituents from the leaves of Hippophae rhamnoids. Methods: Several open-column chromatographic techniques and semi-preparative HPLC were used to separate and purify the compounds in H. rhamnoids. The structures of isolated compounds were elucidated by the spectroscopic analysis. Their inhibitory effects on nitric oxide production in RAW264.7 cells, and triglyceride accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells were examined. Results: Eighteen tannins and other compounds were isolated and identified as 1,2,6-tri-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose (1), 1,3,6-tri-O-galloyl-β-D- glucopyranose (2), 1,4,6-tri-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose (3), 1,3,4,6-tetra-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose (4), 1,2,3,6-tetra-O-galloyl- β-D-glucopyranose (5), 1,2,3,4,6-penta-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose (6), 1-O-galloyl-4,6-(S)-HHDP-β-D-glucopyranose (7), 1-O- galloyl-2,3-(S)-HHDP-β-D-glucopyranose (8), 1,3-di-O-galloyl-4,6-(S)-HHDP-β-D-glucopyranose (9), 1,6-di-O-galloyl-2,3-(S)- HHDP-β-D-glucopyranose (10), casuarictin (11), 1,2,3-tri-O-galloyl-4,6-(S)-HHDP-β-D-glucopyranose (12), 1,4,6-tri-O-galloyl-2,3-(S)- HHDP-β-D-glucopyranose (13), hippophaenin B (14), pedunculagin (15), casuarinin (16), ellagic acid (17), and pinitol (18). Conclusion: Tannins from the leaves of H. rhamnoides showed anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity activities. Compounds 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 13 were isolated from this genus for the first time.

Changes of Leukemia Stem Cells in Acute Myeloid Leukemia before and after Treatment / 中国实验血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the presence of leukemia stem cells (LSC) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and find out the relative position of leukemia cells in the figures of flow cytometry, and to analyze the relationship between minimal residual diseases (MRD) and the level of LSC, so as to explore the correlation of LSC changes with the curative effect and the prognosis during chemical therapy.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 85 samples were collected from 50 AML (except M3) patients, including 50 samples from the newly diagnosed patients, 7 samples of AML patients with non-remission and 28 samples of AML patients with complete remission. All samples were used for detection of LSC from immune phenotype of CD34/CD38/CD123 by flow cytometry. The detection of immune phenotypic of leukemia cells was performed in the newly diagnosed patients. The detection of leukemia- associated immune phenotypes (LAIP) was implemented in the non-newly diagnosed patients.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The LSC was identified in the CD34/ CD38/ CD123 in AML and consistent with the relative position of the leukemia cell in flow cytometry figures. Statistical analysis showed significant difference in LSC content between the newly diagnosed AML group and the post-chemotherapy complete remission group(P<0.01),but did not between the newly diagnosed AML group and the post-chemotherapy non-remission group(P>0.05).There was significant positive correlation between the LSC content and MRD level in 28 AML patients with complete remission (r=0.680,P<0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>LSC exist in AML and the relative position are consistent with the leukemia cells in flow cytometry figures, the size characteristics and weak expression of CD45 are also similar to leukemia cells. The proportion of LSC decreases after chemotherapy. Detecting and tracking the LSC changes in bone marrow and combination with detecting minimal resident disease(MRD) may contribute to evaluate the theraputic efficacy and prognosis of leukemia patients.</p>

The Blood Oxygenation T₂* Values of Resectable Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinomas as Measured by 3T Magnetic Resonance Imaging: Association with Tumor Stage

OBJECTIVE: To explore the association between the blood oxygenation T₂* values of resectable esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCCs) and tumor stages. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study included 48 ESCC patients and 20 healthy participants who had undergone esophageal T₂*-weighted imaging to obtain T₂* values of the tumors and normal esophagi. ESCC patients underwent surgical resections less than one week after imaging. Statistical analyses were performed to identify the association between T₂* values of ESCCs and tumor stages. RESULTS: One-way ANOVA and Student-Newman-Keuls tests revealed that the T₂* value could differentiate stage T1 ESCCs (17.7 ± 3.3 ms) from stage T2 and T3 tumors (24.6 ± 2.7 ms and 27.8 ± 5.6 ms, respectively; all p(s) 0.05) or between N stages (N1 vs. N2 vs. N3: 24.7 ± 6.9 ms vs. 25.4 ± 4.5 ms vs. 26.8 ± 3.9 ms, respectively; all p(s) > 0.05). The former tests illustrated that the T₂* value could differentiate anatomic stages I and II (18.8 ± 4.8 ms and 26.9 ± 5.9 ms, respectively) or stages I and III (27.3 ± 3.6 ms). ROC analysis depicted the same cutoff T₂* value of 21.3 ms for either differentiation. In addition, the Student's t test revealed that the T₂* value could determine grouped T stages (T0 vs. T1–3: 17.0 ± 2.9 ms vs. 25.2 ± 6.2 ms; T0–1 vs. T2–3: 17.3 ± 3.0 ms vs. 27.1 ± 5.3 ms; and T0–2 vs. T3: 18.8 ± 4.2 ms vs. 27.8 ± 5.6 ms, all p(s) < 0.001). ROC analysis indicated that the T₂* value could detect ESCCs (cutoff, 20 ms), and discriminate between stages T0–1 and T2–3 (cutoff, 21.3 ms) and between T0–2 and T3 (cutoff, 20.4 ms). CONCLUSION: The T₂* value can be an additional quantitative indicator for detecting ESCC except for stage T1 cancer, and can preoperatively discriminate between some T stages and between anatomic stages of this tumor.

Intracranial atherosclerotic middle cerebral arterial stenosis research based on 3.0 Tesla high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging: recent progress / 南方医科大学学报

Intracranial atherosclerotic disease (ICAD) of a major intracranial artery, including middle cerebral artery (MCA),basilar artery, is the most common causes of stroke and is associated with a high risk of recurrent stroke in China. The difficulty to treatment these high-risk disease is to identify high-risk stroke subgroups and to develop more effective treatments (aggressive medical therapy/endovascular therapy). With the benefits, including non-invasive, in vivo, and no-ionizing radiation, 3.0 Tesla high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (HR MRI) could be used to stratify high-risk patients, monitor progression of disease, and evaluate clinical efficacy, based on MCA wall structure and plaque characteristic. HR MRI has the latency of predicting high-risk patients benefit from endovascular therapy, having a broad application prospect during psot-SAMMPRIS era. The current research on MCA stenosis using HR MRI focuses on methodoiogy, diagnosis and differential diagnosis, etiology, and lacks of clinical efficiency evaluation and prognostic analysis of ICAD treatment, especially lacks the research on in-stent restenosis, which needs further investigation.

Inhibitory effect of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells on interleukin-17 production in peripheral blood T cells from spondyloarthritis patients / 中国实验血液学杂志

In this study, the inhibitory effect of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSC) on interleukin-17 (IL-17) production in peripheral blood T cells from patients with spondyloarthritis (SpA) were investigated, in order to explore the therapeutic potential of hUCMSC in the SpA. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) were isolated from patients with SpA (n = 12) and healthy subjects (n = 6). PBMNC were cultured in vitro with hUCMSC or alone. The expression of IL-17 in CD4(+) T cells or γ/δ T cells were determined in each subject group by flow cytometry. IL-17 concentrations in PBMNC culture supernatants were measured by ELISA. The results indicated that the proportion of IL-17-producing CD4(+) T cells and IL-17-producing γ/δ T cells of SpA patients were 4.5 folds and 5 folds of healthy controls [CD3(+)CD4(+)IL-17(+) cells (3.42 ± 0.82)% vs (0.75 ± 0.25)%, P < 0.01; CD3(+)γδTCR(+)IL-17(+) cells (0.30 ± 0.10)% vs (0.06 ± 0.02)%, P < 0.01]. After co-culture of PBMNC in patients with hUCMSC, the increased proportions of CD3(+)CD4(+)IL-17(+) cells and CD3(+)γδTCR(+)IL-17(+) cells in SpA patients were inhibited significantly by hUCMSC [CD3(+)CD4(+)IL-17(+) cells (3.42 ± 0.82)% vs (1.81 ± 0.59)% (P < 0.01); CD3(+)γδTCR(+)IL-17(+) cells (0.30 ± 0.10)% vs (0.16 ± 0.06)% (P < 0.01]. In response to phytohemagglutinin (PHA, 1 µg/ml), PBMNC from SpA patients secreted more IL-17 than that from healthy control [(573.95 ± 171.68) pg/ml vs (115.53 ± 40.41) pg/ml (P < 0.01)]. In the presence of hUCMSC, PBMNC of SpA patients produced less amount of IL-17 [(573.95 ± 171.68) pg/ml vs (443.20 ± 147.94) pg/ml, (P < 0.01)]. It is concluded that the IL-17 production in peripheral blood T cells from SpA patients can be inhibited by hUCMSC, which have therapeutic potential for SpA.

Differentiation of human promyelocytic leukemia HL-60 cells induced by proanthocyanidin and its mechanism / 中国实验血液学杂志

This study was purposed to investigate the proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis of human promyelocytic leukemia HL-60 cells induced by proanthocyanidin (PAC). HL-60 cells were incubated with 20 mg/L PAC for 24 h, the cell growth was evaluated by CCK-8 assay. the effect of PAC on HL-60 cells was evaluated and the cells morphology was observed by optical microscopy. Expression of CD14 and CD11b, and cell cycle were analyzed by flow cytometry. The results showed that the growth of HL-60 cells was inhibited after treatment with PAC of different concentration in a dose-dependent manner (P < 0.05). 20 mg/L PAC displayed significant effect on HL-60 cells with inhibition ratio (72.3 ± 1.8)% for 24 h. Microscopy displayed that some cells differentiated to relative mature cells after treating for 48 h. Expression of CD14 increased and the expression of CD11b increased a little after treating with 20 mg/L PAC for 24 h, the ratio of cells in G0/G1 phase increased, but the ratio of cells in S phase decreased. The mRNA and protein expression of P21 gene increased, but the protein expression of CDK4 and Cyclin D1 decreased. It is concluded that PAC may inhibit the proliferation of HL-60 cells in vitro, induces the differentiation of HL-60 cells, and arrests the cells in G0/G1 phase. The possible mechanism may be related to up-regulation of P21 gene expression and down-regulation of the protein expression of CDK4 and Cyclin D1.

Assessment of right ventricular function for patients with rheumatic mitral stenosis by 64-slice multi-detector row computed tomography: comparison with magnetic resonance imaging / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Right ventricular (RV) dysfunction ensues due to rheumatic mitral stenosis (RMS). The evaluation of RV function is clinically important for the diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up for patients with different degrees of RMS. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the 64-slice multi-detector row computed tomography (64-slice MDCT) can assess the RV function in RMS with high accuracy and reproducibility when compared to MR imaging (MRI).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Right ventricular end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes (RV-EDV and RV-ESV), stroke volume (RV-SV), ejection fraction (RV-EF), cardiac output (RV-CO), and wall mass (RV-Mass) were measured with dedicated cardiac analysis software on 64-slice MDCT and compared with values measured with MRI in 43 consecutive patients with RMS. Agreement between MRI and 64-MDCT results were compared with Bland and Altman analysis and linear regression analysis. Repeated measurements were performed to determine intraobserver and interobserver variability.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>No significant differences were revealed in calculated RV function parameters between the two methods. RV-EDV, RV-ESV, RV-SV, RV-EF, RV-CO, and RV-Mass by 64-slice MDCT were similar to those by MRI (P > 0.05). There were good correlations (r = 0.98, 0.97, 0.96, 0.96, 0.95 and 0.77, respectively) and close agreement (bias = -0.2 ml, -1.0 ml, 0.8 ml, 0.5%, 26.1 ml, and 0.5 g, respectively, P > 0.05). The variability in 64-slice MDCT measurements was similar to that in MRI values.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>ECG-gated 64-slice MDCT could assess the RV function in RMS with high accuracy and reproducibility when compared to MRI.</p>

Progress of study on ex vivo expansion of CD4(+) CD25(+) T regulatory cells / 中国实验血液学杂志

There has been a history of 30 years in the study of CD4(+)CD25(+) T regulatory cells (Treg) which primarily play a role of immune suppression in vivo. Many autoimmune diseases are related to the decrease and the disorder of these cells, such as multiple sclerosis, non-obese diabet (NOD) and lupus erythematosus. In the field of transplantation tolerance, the role played by Treg is also very important. All of these features have drawn the attention to the prevention of autoimmune diseases and the rejection of transplantation. However, the low frequency of Treg in vivo affected their use and study. Currently, many techniques about expansion of Treg in vitro have been established so as to overcome the problem of their limited cell numbers in vivo. Recent studies suggest that antigen-specific T regulator cells (sTreg) expanded by dentritic cells (DC) showed a superior immunosuppression in comparison with polyclonal Treg expanded by anti-CD3/CD28Ab, which is the focus of current studies. This article mainly reviews and compares the expansion techniques and the mechanism of regulatory T cells.

Earthquake-related Crush Injury versus Non-Earthquake Injury in Abdominal Trauma Patients on Emergency Multidetector Computed Tomography: A Comparative Study

The aim of this study was to investigate features of abdominal earthquake-related crush traumas in comparison with non-earthquake injury. A cross sectional survey was conducted with 51 survivors with abdominal crush injury in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, and 41 with abdominal non-earthquake injury, undergoing non-enhanced computed tomography (CT) scans, serving as earthquake trauma and control group, respectively. Data were analyzed between groups focusing on CT appearance. We found that injury of abdominal-wall soft tissue and fractures of lumbar vertebrae were more common in earthquake trauma group than in control group (28 vs 13 victims, and 24 vs 9, respectively; all P < 0.05); and fractures were predominantly in transverse process of 1-2 vertebrae among L1-3 vertebrae. Retroperitoneal injury in the kidney occurred more frequently in earthquake trauma group than in control group (29 vs 14 victims, P < 0.05). Abdominal injury in combination with thoracic and pelvic injury occurred more frequently in earthquake trauma group than in control group (43 vs 29 victims, P < 0.05). In conclusion, abdominal earthquake-related crush injury might be characteristic of high incidence in injury of abdominal-wall soft tissue, fractures of lumbar vertebrae in transverse process of 1-2 vertebrae among L1-3 vertebrae, retroperitoneal injury in the kidney, and in combination with injury in the thorax and pelvis.

Change of serum TGF-beta1 and TNF-alpha in silicosis patients / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe serum TGF-beta1 and TNF-alpha in silicosis patients and workers exposed to silica dust to study the role of TGF-beta1 and TNF-alpha in the development of silicosis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred non-exposed workers were selected as control group, 200 workers exposed to silica dust for more than 1 year as exposed group, 32 suspected silicosis patients (originally diagnosed as 0+) as observing group, 130 silicosis patients were as silicosis group. Serum TGF-beta1 and TNF-alpha in each group were determined with ELISA.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Serum TNF-alpha in exposed group [(47.86 +/- 16.52) pg/ml], observing group [(109.11 +/- 31.08) pg/ml], silicosis group [(216.35 +/- 51.03) pg/ml] were significantly higher than that in control group [(6.90 +/- 2.24) pg/ml] (P < 0.01); Silicosis group and observing group were also higher than exposed group (P < 0.01, P < 0.05). Compared with control group [(23.28 +/- 12.24) pg/ml] and exposed group [(29.31 +/- 14.52) pg/ml], serum TGF-beta1 in silicosis group was much higher (P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>TGF-beta1, and TNF-alpha were essential in the development of silicosis, so the detection of TGF-beta1 and TNF-alpha in peripheral blood was very useful for occupational health surveillance and early diagnosis of silicosis.</p>

Value of multi slice spiral computed tomography in diagnosing lymph node metastasis of gastric cancer / 中国医学科学院学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the value of multi-slice spiral computed tomography (CT) in the preoperative evaluation of lymph node metastasis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Totally 45 patients with gastric cancer detected by 64-slice spiral CT were enrolled in this study. The potential lymph node metastasis was evaluated by measuring or calculating the long diameter, extent of enhancement, and short-to-long diameter ratio of the lymph nodes. The results were compared with postoperative pathological findings.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>A long diameter ≥ 8mm,enhanced density ≥ 80Hu, and short-to-long diameter ratio ≥ 0.7 had the best consistency with postoperative pathological findings.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>As a simple and noninvasive technique, multi-slice spiral CT is helpful to identify potential lymph node metastasis of gastric cancer based on long diameter, extent of enhancement, and short-to-long diameter ratio of the lymph nodes, and thus provide important information for surgery selection, prognosis, and development of new procedures.</p>

Method for expansion in vitro of CD3-CD56+CD16+NK cells highly purified from human peripheral blood / 中国实验血液学杂志

The aim of this study was to establish an efficient method for expansion in vitro of natural killer (NK) cells highly purified from human peripheral blood. The CD3-CD56+CD16+ NK cells purified by the negative sorting method of MACS (magnetic microbeads activated cells sorting) were expanded with the different combinations of IL-2, SCF, IL-15 in SCGM (stem cell growth medium) supplemented with 10% human AB serum for 18 days. Cultures were fed with fresh medium and cytokines every 3 days. The sum of cells was counted for evaluating the efficiency of expansion. Then the purity of the CD3-CD56+CD16+ NK cells were determined by flow cytometry and the cytotoxicity to K562 targets was detected by CCK-8 assay in the end. Furthermore, the same way was used to explore the relationship between the efficiency of expansion, cytotoxicity to K562 targets of NK cells and the dose of IL-2. The results showed that after peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) were purified by the negative sorting method of MACS, the purity of CD3-CD56+CD16+ NK cells increased from (12.70±2.66)% to (93.03±1.72)%. The CD3-CD56+CD16+ NK cells purified by MACS were expanded with the different combinations of IL-2, SCF, IL-15 in SCGM supplemented with 10% human AB serum for 18 days. The expanding multiple of IL-2/IL-15/SCF group was significantly higher than other groups (p<0.05). The purity of NK cells in the groups with cytokines was not significantly lower than that before expansion (p>0.05). The cytotoxicity of the groups with cytokines was significantly higher than that before expansion. Especially, the cytotoxicity (%) of NK cells in IL-2/IL-15 group and IL-2/IL-15/SCF group was more than 90%. The expanding multiples of low-dose group, medium-dose group and high-dose group were significantly higher than that of zero-dose group (p<0.05), but no significant difference was found between themselves (p>0.05). The cytotoxicity of the groups with IL-2 was significantly higher than that before expansion. Cytotoxicity to K562 cells in high-dose group was significantly higher than that in others (p<0.05); there was no significant difference between low-dose group and medium-dose group (p>0.05). It is concluded that cytokines in the 4 groups were efficient for expansion and the cytotoxicity of highly purified NK cells in vitro. IL-2/SCF/IL-15 combination is the most efficient one among different combinations, and enhanced significantly the cytotoxicity of NK cells against K562 targets. The efficiency of expansion and the cytotoxicity in vitro of NK cells are not related with the dose of IL-2, when IL-2<1,000 U/ml. It is indicated that IL-2 of high-dose (≥1,000 U/ml) may enhance the cytotoxicity of NK cells in vitro more efficiently.

Transcatheter Embolization of a Ruptured Internal Pudendal Artery Pseudoaneurysm in a Patient with Neurofibromatosis Type 1

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF-1) is an autosomal dominant disorder. Pseudoaneurysms formation and rupture is an unusual complication of neurofibromatosis. To date, pseudoaneurysm of the internal pudendal artery associated with NF-1 has not been reported. In this article, we present a 62-yr-old man with NF-1 suffering from spontaneous hematoma of the perinea and scrotum. A digital substraction angiography disclosed a ruptured pseudoaneurysm of the right internal pudendal artery, which was successfully managed with transcatheter embolization.