The association between heavy metal exposure and erectile dysfunction in the United States / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

Literature regarding the impacts of heavy metal exposure on erectile dysfunction (ED) is scarce. We aimed to evaluate the correlation between 10 urinary metals and ED in a large, nationally representative adult male sample. The dataset was extracted from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) during the period of 2001-2002 and 2003-2004. Weighted proportions and multivariable logistic regression analysis adjusted for confounding variables were utilized to determine the relationship between metal exposure and ED. Weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression was utilized to evaluate the impact of a mixture of urinary metals on ED. A total of 1328 participants were included in our study. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, cobalt (Co) and antimony (Sb) were positively associated with ED (odds ratio [OR]: 1.36, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.10-1.73, P = 0.020; and OR: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.12-1.77, P = 0.018, respectively) after full adjustment. Men in tertile 4 for Co (OR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.02-2.41, P for trend = 0.012) and Sb (OR: 1.53, 95% CI: 1.08-2.40, P for trend = 0.041) had significantly higher odds of ED than those in tertile 1. Furthermore, the WQS index was significantly linked with increased odds of ED after full adjustment (OR: 1.31, 95% CI: 1.04-1.72, P < 0.05). Our study expanded on previous literature indicating the possible role of heavy metal exposure in the etiology of ED. The evaluation of heavy metal exposure should be included in the risk assessment of ED.

Preliminary animal study of sodium polyacrylate as a new intestinal preparation / 医学研究生学报

ObjectiveThere are many kinds of intestinal cleansing drugs in clinical practice at present, but there is no universal and effective intestinal cleansing program. In this study, sodium polyacrylate was used as a candidate drug for intestinal preparation to explore its feasibility, efficacy and safety for intestinal preparation in mice.Methods24 mice fasted for 12 hours were divided, with random number table method, into 4 groups (6 mice in each): blank group, sodium phosphate group, polyethylene glycol group and sodium polyacrylate solution group. Except that the blank group was given isotonic saline (0.6mL/20g) to fill the stomach, the other groups were given sodium phosphate (0.5mL/20g), polyethylene glycol(0.6mL/20g) and sodium polyacrylate solution (0.6mL/20g) to fill the stomach, and the small intestinal propulsion (carbon powder propulsion), the defecation and intestine volume in mice were observed to explore the effect of sodium polyacrylate on the mice colon cleansing.ResultsAfter administration by gavage for 15min, compared with the blank group [(62.72±6.58) %] and the sodium phosphate group [(66.40±9.53) %], the carbon powder propulsion rate of the sodium polyacrylate solution group [(81.17±4.75) %] significantly increased (P<0.05). The number of fecal excretion [(11.5±2.4) granules] in the sodium polyacrylate solution group after 2 hours of gavage was significantly higher than that in the blank group [(4.5±1.0) granules], the sodium phosphate group [(6.2±2.0) granules] and the polyethylene glycol group [(8.5±1.0) granules] (P<0.05). Compared with the blank group [(39.7±11.60) mg] and the sodium phosphate group [(77.2±15.91) mg], the defecation quality of sodium polyacrylate solution [(162.4±16.69) mg] significantly increased within 2h after gavage (P<0.05). Compared with the blank group [(2.25±0.29)g], the sodium phosphate group [(2.72±0.24)g] and the polyethylene glycol group [(2.95±0.19)g], the intestinal mass of the sodium polyacrylate solution group [(3.30±0.16)g] significantly increased (P<0.05).ConclusionOral administration of sodium polyacrylate solution can accelerate intestinal peristalsis in normal mice, promote defecation in mice, and significantly reduce intestinal absorption of water. As a potential intestinal preparation drug, it has the advantages of small dose, high efficiency, safety and reliability.

Reserach progress in etiology, diagnosis and treatment of male urethral stricture / 解放军医学杂志

Male urethral stricture is a common disease in urology, and its etiology includes three aspects: traumatic, iatrogenic and infectious. At present, the diagnosis and treatment of this disease has been a difficult problem for urologists. This article reviews the progress in the research on the etiology, diagnosis and treatment of male urethral stricture, in order to deepen medical workers' understanding of the etiology and treatment of urethral stricture, and to provide reference for the application and promotion of different treatment methods for this disease.

Anti-reflux surgery for gastroesophageal reflux disease / 医学研究生学报

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is defined as refluxing of gastric contents to the esophagus, causing gastrointestinal tract symptoms and/or complications. Proton pump inhibitors are the first choice for the treatment of GERD, but have no such good effect as anti-reflux surgery on refractory GERD. Endoscopic anti-reflux procedures include transoral incisionless fundoplication (TIF), Stretta radiofrequency ablation, anti-reflux mucosectomy (ARMS), and endoscopic injection or implantation. Anti-reflux surgery involves laproscopic Nissen fundoplication (LNF), magnetic sphincter augmentation (MSA), electrical stimulation on the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), and bariatric surgery. This article introduces the progress in anti-reflux surgery for GERD.

Rectal toxicity prediction based on accurate rectal surface dose summation for cervical cancer radiotherapy / 南方医科大学学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To propose arectal toxicity prediction method based on deformable surface dose accumulation.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The clinical data were collected retrospectively from 42patients receiving radiotherapy for cervical cancer. With the first fraction as the reference, the other fractions of rectum surface were registered to the reference fraction to obtain the deformation vector fields (DVFs), which were used to deform and sum the fractional rectal doses to yield the cumulative rectal dose. The cumulative rectal dose was flattened via 3D-2D mapping to generate a 2D rectum surface dose map. Two dosimetric features, namely DVPs and DGPs were extracted. Logistic regression embedded with sequential forward feature selection was used as the prediction model. The predictive performance was evaluated in terms of the accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Significant improvements for rectum surface DIR were achieved. The best predictive results were achieved by using both DVPs and DGPs as the features with a sensitivity of 79.5%, a specificity of 81.3% and an AUC of 0.88.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The proposed method is feasible for predicting clinical rectal toxicity in patients undergoing radiotherapy for cervical cancer.</p>

Study on the relationship between Chinese medicine constitutive susceptibility and diversity of syndrome in diabetic nephropathy / 中国结合医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the relationship between Chinese medicine (CM) constitutive susceptibility and syndrome diversity in diabetic nephropathy (DN).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Epidemiologic investigation on constitution adopting the "Constitution in Chinese Medicine Questionnaire" (CCMQ), and survey on syndrome type by CM syndrome scale (preliminary) were carried out in 180 DN patients. Cluster analysis on symptom items was used to determine the syndrome type, and canonical correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationship between patients' constitution and syndrome.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Baseline levels in all enrolled patients were not different statistically. Cluster analysis showed 8 syndromes existed in DN patients, namely: I, qi-yin deficiency with qi-stagnancy type; II, yin-yang deficiency with heat-water-blood stasis type; III, qi-yin deficiency with dampness-heat type; IV, yin-yang deficiency with blood-stasis and heat type; V, qi-yin deficiency with stagnant heat type; VI, yin-yang deficiency with inner dampness-heat stagnancy type; VII, yin deficiency with heat stagnancy type; and VIII, Kidney (Shen)-Spleen (Pi) deficiency with stagnant heat type. Correlation analysis on the 8 syndromes and the 9 constitutions showed statistical significant correlations between syndrome III and dampness-heat constitution (P=0.0001); syndrome IV and blood-stasis constitution (P=0.0001); and syndrome VII and yin-deficiency constitution (P=0.0180).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Certain relationship revealed between CM constitutions and syndrome types; constitution decides the disease genesis, its syndrome type and prognosis, as well as the change of syndromes.</p>

Association of Chinese medicine constitution susceptibility to diabetic nephropathy and transforming growth factor-β1 (T869C) gene polymorphism / 中国结合医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the association of Chinese medicine constitution susceptibility to diabetic nephropathy (DN) and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 (T869C) gene polymorphism.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>TGF-β1 gene polymorphism detected with polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was screened for 180 DN cases and 180 type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM) cases without combined DN. Patients with DN were surveyed epidemiologically with constitution in the Chinese medicine questionnaire (CCMQ). Binary logistic regression analysis was utilized to study the correlation between nine types of Chinese medicine constitution and TGF-β1 (T869C) gene polymorphisms.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The DN group has a higher frequency of TGF-β1 (T869C) gene polymorphism than the T2DM group, and CC/CT genotypes than the T2DM group [CC, CT, TT (DN group): 88, 87, 5 (cases) versus (T2DM group) 71, 73, 36 (cases), P<0.05]. The phlegm-dampness constitution, damp-heat constitution, and blood stasis constitution have correlations with TGF-β1 (T869C) gene polymorphism.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Chinese medicine constitutions were associated with TGF-β1 (T869C) gene polymorphism, a potential predictor of susceptibility to DN in T2DM patients.</p>

Molecular genetics of autoimmune diabetes / 中华医学遗传学杂志

Autoimmune diabetes is a T cell-mediated disease characterized by the autoimmune destruction of pancreatic β-cells and insulin deficiency. It is related to multiple genes. The IDDM1 locus, which lies within the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) and the IDDM2 locus, which is located to the insulin gene region, are two major genetic contributors of susceptibility. Many other loci conferring susceptibility to autoimmune diabetes are being discovered, including PTPN22, CTLA4, IL2RA and IFIH1. In this article, these loci and their possible immunologic mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of this disease will be reviewed.

Effects of Chinese medicine compound FFJZ on proliferation and apoptosis of leukemia cell line K562 / 中国实验血液学杂志

This study was purposed to explore the biological effects suppressing growth and inducing apoptosis of Chinese medicine compound FFJZ on leukemia cell line K562 and its possible mechanisms of FFJZ. The growth status of K562 cells cultured in vitro was determined by trypan blue exclusion test; the suppressive effect of FFJZ on K562 cells was assayed by MTT method; the inducing apoptosis of FFJZ on K562 cells was detected by flow cytometry. The results showed that after K562 cells were treated with FFJZ in certain concentration range, the inhibited rate of FFJZ on K562 cell growth was remarkably increased along with enhancement of FFJZ, the IC(50) value of FFJZ on K562 cells was 5.6 mg/ml after treatment for 48 hours. At 4 mg/ml of FFJZ the early apoptosis predominated in K562 cells, at 8 mg/ml of FFJZ the late apoptosis ratio significantly increased. As compared with control group without FFJZ, there was significant difference (p < 0.01). It is concluded that the FFJZ in range of certain concentration can suppress growth and proliferation of K562 cells and induce their apoptosis in concentration-dependent manner, the mechanism of which may be associated to inducing apoptosis of K562 cells.

Aspirin and pravastatin reduce lectin-like oxidized low density lipoprotein receptor-1 expression, adhesion molecules and oxidative stress in human coronary artery endothelial cells / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Oxidative stress and inflammation are important steps in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. We postulated that therapeutic concentrations of aspirin and pravastatin, especially in combination, may suppress oxidative stress and inflammation in endothelial cells, and this concept was examined in human coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAECs).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Human coronary artery endothelial cells were cultured and treated with oxidized-low density lipoprotein (ox-LDL, 60 microg/ml for 24 hours) alone, or pre-treated with aspirin (1, 2 or 5 mmol/L), pravastatin (1, 5 or 10 micromol/L) or their combination (1 mmol/L aspirin and 5 micromol/L pravastatin), followed by ox-LDL treatment. After respective treatment, superoxide anion production, p38 mitogen activated protein kinase and transcription factor NF-kappaB activation, protein expression of lectin-like ox-LDL receptor-1 (LOX-1) and adhesion molecules, and monocyte adhesion were measured.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Ox-LDL treatment greatly elicited its receptor LOX-1 expression, superoxide anion production and inflammatory response, which were minimally affected by low concentration of aspirin (1 mmol/L) or pravastatin (5 micromol/L), but were markedly decreased by their combination. Activation of p38 mitogen activated protein kinase and NF-kappaB, the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 and monocyte chemotactic protein-1, which were only mildly affected by aspirin or pravastatin alone, were significantly attenuated by their combination. As a consequence, monocyte adhesion to endothelial cells was markedly attenuated by the combination of the two agents. Well-known anti-oxidants alpha-tocopherol and gamma-tocopherol had similar inhibitory effects on ox-LDL-mediated oxidative stress and LOX-1 expression as well as monocyte adhesion as did the combination of aspirin and pravastatin.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>These studies point to a positive interaction between aspirin and pravastatin with regard to endothelial biology. Anti-oxidant and subsequent anti-inflammatory effect may be one of the potential underling mechanisms.</p>

Expression of Skp2 in cervical squamous cell carcinoma and precancerous lesions and its correlation with HPV16/18 infection / 中华病理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the expression of Skp2 in cervical squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and its precancerous lesions, and to investigate its relationship with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The expression of Skp2 protein and HPV16/18 DNA was determined using immunohistochemistry and in-situ hybridization in 30 cases of normal cervical squamous epithelium, 29 cases of low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, 31 cases of high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia and 31 cases of cervical SCC.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Skp2 expression was not detected in normal cervical squamous epithelium and no significant difference was obtained statistically on Skp2 expression between normal cervical squamous epithelium and low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia (P > 0.05). However, the expression of Skp2 gradually increased with elevation of epithelial lesion grading in an order from low to high grade and to cervical SCC (P < 0.01). The positive rate of HPV16/18 DNA in cases of normal cervical squamous epithelium, low-grade, high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical SCC was significantly different (P < 0.01), although both high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical SCC had a similar high HPV infection rate up to 96.8%. There was no correlation obtained between Skp2 expression and HPV16/18 infection in low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia. In contrast, expression of Skp2 and HPV infection were significantly correlated in both high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical SCC (gammaH = 0.373, gammaC = 0.416, P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Abnormal expression of Skp2 is present mainly in high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and invasive carcinoma, which may be considered as a surrogate marker for the high-grade lesions. Skp2 may play a key role in the development of cervical squamous carcinoma induced by HPV16/18 infection, through E7-Skp2-Rb signaling pathway.</p>

Effect of Diabetic Status on the Preventive Efficiency of Methylcobal on Peripheral Neuropathy in Rats / 中国康复理论与实践

@#ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of varied hyperglycemia and durations on preventing peripheral neuropathy (PN) with methylcobal in diabetic rats.Methods80 Sprague Dawley rats were selected and randomly chosen 16 as normal control (NC) group, others 64 animals as diabetic model induced by alloxan. The model rats were evenly divided into relatively good control (GC) group and relatively poor control (PC) group based on levels of hyperglycemia regulated with exogenous insulin. 16 rats of each GC/PC group were intramuscularly injected with methylcobal (500 μg/kg). The sensory nerve conduction velocity (SNCV), motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV) and evoked potential amplitute (EPA) of sciatic nerve of rats were detected by evoked electromyogram respectively at 2nd, 8th and 12th week after onset of diabetes. Fructosamine in serum was also detected.ResultsThe rats injected with methylcobal had a significantly delayed reduction of SNCV, MNCV and EP in GC group (fructosamine,1.0 mmol/L) than that in PC group (fructosamine, 1.2 mmol/L) ( P<0.05～0.01). Up to 8th week after onset of diabetes, there was no obvious difference in physioelectroparameters between the GC group and NC group. At 12th week after onset of diabetes, physioelectroparameters in the PC group fell to the level of non-methylcobal injected group. No effect of methylcobal on blood glucose revealed in any groups ( P>0.05).ConclusionMethylcobal has a beneficial effect on delaying the onset of diabetic PN, and is of high efficacy with a good control of diabetic state, especially at early stage.

Expression and significance of SEL1L and p63 protein in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and precarcinomacous lesion / 上海第二医科大学学报

Objective To investigate the expression of SEL1L and p63 protein in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and precarcinomacous lesion.Methods Immunohistochemical staining(EnVision method)was employed to detect the expression of SEL1L and p63 protein in 60 samples of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma,32 samples of high grade esophageal intraepithelial neoplasia,13 samples of low grade esophageal intraepithelial neoplasia and 33 samples of normal esophageal mucosa.Results The positive rate of SEL1L protein expression was 61.5%in low grade intraepithelia neoplasia,90.6%in high grade intraepithelial neoplasia and 96.7%in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma,significantly higher than that in normal esophageal mucosa(6.1%)(P0.05).Conclusion Both the expression of SEL1L and p63 protein increases steadily in the progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma,which indicates that the two genes may play a role and cooperate with each other in the carcinogenesis.