Effect of Dexmedetomidine on inflammatory mediators in thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer / 中国内镜杂志

Objective To investigate the effects of Dexmedetomidine on inflammatory mediators in thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer. Methods 120 thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer patients ASA Ⅰ or Ⅱ underwent selective operation were randomly divided into two groups: Dexmedetomidine anesthesia (group Ⅰ ) and control group (group Ⅱ ), 60 cases in each. In either group, peripheral venous blood was collected at the following time points: before anesthesia induction (T0), the end of the operation (T1), 12 h (T2) and 24 h (T3) after operation, and the serum concentration of IL-8, IL-6 and TNF-α were measured. Results The concentration of IL-8, IL-6 and TNF-α at T1, T2 were higher than that at T0, and the levels of IL-8, IL-6 and TNF-α in group Ⅰ lower than that in group Ⅱ (P < 0.05). Conclusion Dexmedetomidine can decrease the level of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 in serum of patients thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer. This may inhibit excessive inflammation response of patients.

Effect of Dexmedetomidine on inflammatory mediators in thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer / 中国内镜杂志

Objective To investigate the effects of Dexmedetomidine on inflammatory mediators in thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer. Methods 120 thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer patients ASA Ⅰ or Ⅱ underwent selective operation were randomly divided into two groups: Dexmedetomidine anesthesia (group Ⅰ ) and control group (group Ⅱ ), 60 cases in each. In either group, peripheral venous blood was collected at the following time points: before anesthesia induction (T0), the end of the operation (T1), 12 h (T2) and 24 h (T3) after operation, and the serum concentration of IL-8, IL-6 and TNF-α were measured. Results The concentration of IL-8, IL-6 and TNF-α at T1, T2 were higher than that at T0, and the levels of IL-8, IL-6 and TNF-α in group Ⅰ lower than that in group Ⅱ (P < 0.05). Conclusion Dexmedetomidine can decrease the level of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 in serum of patients thoracoscopic radical resection of lung cancer. This may inhibit excessive inflammation response of patients.

Inferring a transcriptional regulatory network of the cytokinesis-related genes by network component analysis.

BACKGROUND: Network Component Analysis (NCA) is a network structure-driven framework for deducing regulatory signal dynamics. In contrast to principal component analysis, which can be employed to select the high-variance genes, NCA makes use of the connectivity structure from transcriptional regulatory networks to infer dynamics of transcription factor activities. Using the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model system, we aim to deduce regulatory actions of cytokinesis-related genes, using precise spatial proximity (midbody) and/or temporal synchronicity (cytokinesis) to avoid full-scale computation from genome-wide databases. RESULTS: NCA was applied to infer regulatory actions of transcription factor activity from microarray data and partial transcription factor-gene connectivity information for cytokinesis-related genes, which were a subset of genome-wide datasets. No literature has so far discussed the inferred results through NCA are independent of the scale of the gene expression dataset. To avoid full-scale computation from genome-wide databases, four cytokinesis-related gene cases were selected for NCA by running computational analysis over the transcription factor database to confirm the approach being scale-free. The inferred dynamics of transcription factor activity through NCA were independent of the scale of the data matrix selected from the four cytokinesis-related gene sets. Moreover, the inferred regulatory actions were nearly identical to published observations for the selected cytokinesis-related genes in the budding yeast; namely, Mcm1, Ndd1, and Fkh2, which form a transcription factor complex to control expression of the CLB2 cluster (i.e. BUD4, CHS2, IQG1, and CDC5). CONCLUSION: In this study, using S. cerevisiae as a model system, NCA was successfully applied to infer similar regulatory actions of transcription factor activities from two various microarray databases and several partial transcription factor-gene connectivity datasets for selected cytokinesis-related genes independent of data sizes. The regulated action for four selected cytokinesis-related genes (BUD4, CHS2, IQG1, and CDC5) belongs to the M-phase or M/G1 phase, consistent with the empirical observations that in S. cerevisiae, the Mcm1-Ndd1-Fkh2 transcription factor complex can regulate expression of the cytokinesis-related genes BUD4, CHS2, IQG1, and CDC5. Since Bud4, Iqg1, and Cdc5 are highly conserved between human and yeast, results obtained from NCA for cytokinesis in the budding yeast can lead to a suggestion that human cells should have the transcription regulator(s) as the budding yeast Mcm1-Ndd1-Fkh2 transcription factor complex in controlling occurrence of cytokinesis.

The effectiveness of beta-blockers in women with congestive heart failure.

BACKGROUND: Beta-blockers have been shown to improve survival in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). However, few studies have looked at the effects of these medications specifically in women. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness of beta-blockers in women with CHF. PATIENTS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study that used administrative databases of all patients >65 years of age discharged with a diagnosis of CHF between January 1998 and March 2003 in Quebec, Canada. Follow-up information was available until March 31, 2004. METHOD: The cohort included 27,837 patients. Subjects with filled prescription for a beta-blocker (14,083 users) were compared with those who never filled such prescription (12,254 nonusers). The primary outcome was survival in women and men by beta-blocker use. RESULTS: There were 14,693 women (52% were prescribed beta-blockers) and 13,144 men (49% were prescribed beta-blockers). Women were older and had more hypertension, whereas men had more myocardial infarction. There was a significant survival benefit with beta-blockers use in both sexes (hazard ratio [HR] 0.79, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.75-0.83 in women, and 0.76, 95% CI 0.72-0.80 in men). Sensitivity analyses adjusting for selection bias showed similar survival benefits in both sexes. Overall, men had a worse survival than women (HR 1.2, 95% CI 1.2-1.3 in men). CONCLUSIONS: Beta-blockers appear to improve survival from CHF as much in women as in men. Clinical trials involving large numbers of women are necessary to demonstrate potential treatment benefits.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and survival in women and men with heart failure.

BACKGROUND: Several randomized controlled trials demonstrate that angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors improve survival in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). However, whether ACE inhibitors benefit both sexes is not adequately addressed. PURPOSE: Our objective was to determine the effectiveness of ACE inhibitors in women with CHF. METHODS: The Quebec hospital discharge database was linked with the physician and drug claims database to identify a cohort with a discharge diagnosis of CHF between January 1998 and March 2003. In this retrospective cohort study, subjects who filled a prescription for ACE inhibitors (19,220 exposed) were compared to those who never filled such prescription (8617 non-exposed). The primary outcome was survival by exposure to ACE inhibitors. MAIN FINDINGS: There were 14,693 women (67% exposed) and 13,144 men (72% exposed). The 1 year mortality was 19.5% and 30% in those exposed and non-exposed, respectively. A significant survival benefit was demonstrated in both sexes exposed to ACE inhibitors [adjusted hazard ratio (95% confidence interval): women 0.80 (0.76-0.85); men 0.71 (0.67-0.75)]. PRINCIPAL CONCLUSIONS: ACE inhibitors improve survival in both sexes with CHF, but the protective effect appears to be greater in men. Our results support the current recommendations for the management of women with CHF.

Sex differences in the effectiveness of statins after myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUND: We sought to investigate the sex differences in the effectiveness of statins in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). METHODS: Linking hospital discharge and drug claims databases from Quebec, Canada (1998-2004), we identified statin users (n = 14 710) and non-users (n = 23 833) discharged from hospital after an AMI-related hospital stay and followed up for as long as 7 years. RESULTS: All-cause death rates were 4.1 and 14.6 per 100 person-years among users and non-users, respectively, whereas cardiac death rates were 2.2 and 7.4 per 100 person-years. For death from any cause, the adjusted hazard ratios associated with statin use in women were 0.61 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54-0.69) within 1 year of follow-up, 0.55 (0.48-0.63) at 1-3 years and 0.38 (0.31-0.49) at > 3 years; in men, the corresponding estimates were 0.54 (0.48-0.60), 0.48 (0.42-0.55) and 0.34 (0.30-0.39). For cardiac-related death, the adjusted hazard ratios associated with statin use in women were 0.70 (0.60-0.81) within 1 year, 0.56 (0.46-0.68) at 1-3 years and 0.44 (0.31-0.62) at > 3 years of follow-up, whereas in men, the estimates were 0.59 (0.51-0.69), 0.47 (0.39-0.58) and 0.37 (0.30-0.45), respectively. INTERPRETATION: Statin therapy after an AMI was associated with reduced rates of all-cause and cardiac mortality. The effect increased with time in both sexes, but the degree of risk reduction was less for women than for men.