Correlation between pulmonary embolism and blood cell count changes.

Pulmonary embolism is one of the acute diseases of the respiratory system. This study investigates changes in red blood cell counts in pulmonary embolisms confirmed by scintigraphy. Counting red blood cells is essential in diseases, especially pulmonary embolism, because of the vital role of these cells.  In this study, 25 patients with pulmonary embolism were selected. A group of 25 healthy volunteers was also considered as a control. At zero, 30, 60 minutes, 24, 48, and 72 hours, blood samples were taken from both control and patient groups, and red blood cells were counted according to the standard method. After extracting technetium-99m from the molybdenum generator, this substance was added to the MAA drug kit under particular conditions. After preparation, radiopharmaceutical 99mTC-MAA with 1.5 millicuries was injected intravenously into both groups. In this study, a significant increase in the red blood cell count of the patient group was observed on the first and second days of the disease. On the third day, this count returned to normal. These changes indicate the functioning of the body's defense system and a response to reduce the complications caused by pulmonary embolism. Therefore, paying more attention to counting red blood cells in pulmonary embolism, along with other care, is recommended due to their particular function.

Effect of thymoquinone on sepsis-induced cardiac damage via anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic mechanisms.

OBJECTIVE: Sepsis is a systemic and deleterious host reaction to severe infection. Cardiac dysfunction is an established serious outcome of multiorgan failure associated with this condition. Therefore, it is important to develop drugs targeting sepsis-induced cardiac damage and inflammation. Thymoquinone (TQ) has anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-fibrotic, anti-tumor, and anti-apoptotic effects. This study examined the effects of thymoquinone on sepsis-induced cardiac damage. METHODS: Male BALB/c mice were randomly segregated into four groups: control, TQ, cecal ligation and puncture (CLP), and CLP + TQ groups. CLP was performed after gavaging the mice with TQ for 2 weeks. After 48 hours, we estimated the histopathological changes in the cardiac tissue and the serum levels of cardiac troponin-T. We evaluated the expression of factors associated with inflammation, apoptosis, oxidative stress, and the PI3K/AKT pathway. RESULTS: TQ significantly reduced intestinal histological alterations and inhibited the upregulation of interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, Bax, NOX4, p-PI3K, and p-AKT. TQ also increased Bcl-2, HO-1, and NRF2 expression. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that TQ effectively modulates pro-inflammatory, apoptotic, oxidative stress, and PI3K/AKT pathways, making it indispensable in the treatment of sepsis-induced cardiac damage.

Protective role of fenofibrate in sepsis-induced acute kidney injury in BALB/c mice.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a severe complication of sepsis, which largely contributes to the associated high mortality rate. Fenofibrate, a peroxisome proliferator activated receptor α (PPARα) agonist, has received considerable attention because of its effects related to renal damage-related energy metabolism and inflammation. The present study investigated the effects of fenofibrate on sepsis-associated AKI in BALB/c mice subjected to caecal ligation and puncture (CLP). Eight-week-old male BALB/c mice were divided into four groups: control group, fenofibrate group, caecal ligation and puncture (CLP) group, and fenofibrate + CLP group. CLP was performed after mice were gavaged with fenofibrate for 2 weeks. After 48 hours, we measured the histopathological alterations of the kidney tissue and plasma levels of serum creatinine (CRE), neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), reactive oxygen species (ROS), ATP, and ADP. We evaluated PPARα and P53 protein levels as well as interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6, and tumour necrosis factor-α mRNA levels. Our results showed that administering fenofibrate significantly reduced kidney histological alterations caused by CLP. Fenofibrate inhibited the plasma levels of ROS, CRE, NGAL, and increased the ATP/ADP ratio. Fenofibrate significantly inhibited elevations in P53, IL-1ß, IL-6, and tumour necrosis factor-α expression. The results suggest that fenofibrate administration effectively modulates energy metabolism and may be a novel approach to treat sepsis-induced renal damage.

The Preparation of Ag Nanoparticle and Ink Used for Inkjet Printing of Paper Based Conductive Patterns.

Ag nanoparticles were successfully prepared using a liquid reduction method with a suitable mixture reductant of polyethylene glycol (PEG) and ethylene glycol (EG). OP-10 as a dispersing agent, was used to prepare the conductive Ag ink. Ag nanoparticles with an average particle size of 40 nm were prepared while the ratio of PEG to EG was 1:2. Meanwhile, the Ag particles had a narrow size distribution and great dispersion performance. The effects of paper substrates, sintering temperature, and sintering time on the conductivity of the printed Ag ink pattern were also studied. It was found that Lucky porous high glossy photo paper was a good candidate as the printing substrate. The resistivity of the printed pattern could reach 5.1 × 10-3 Ω·cm after heated at 100 °C for 2 h. Hence, the printed pattern showed good conductivity which led to the LED light being on. Furthermore, the Ag nanoparticle ink could be printed to form any pattern as required that still showed good electrical conductivity after being sintered under low-temperature. This could provide new possibilities for the preparation of flexible electrodes.

Long-term outcome of microvascular decompression for hemifacial spasm.

AIM: To investigate the long term outcomes of microvascular decompression (MVD) for hemifacial spasm (HFS) and to identify any prognostic factors. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of 189 consecutive patients with typical HFS who underwent MVD. Multiple logistic regression analysis of variables at various time points including at least immediate time point and one at no less than six years was performed. RESULTS: Short-term follow-up showed a cure rate of 91%, including 51 cases of delayed resolution (27%). At two years or more information was available in 148 (out of 189) cases of patients. 101 cases (68% - of 148 cases) had complete recovery, 28 cases (19%) achieved a partial though worthwhile recovery, so that the effective rate of symptoms relief at six years was 87%. Complications were found (66/189, 34.92%) and cured within the follow-up period (cure rate of 100%). In both the univariate and multivariate analyses, the postoperative findings of clinical outcomes showed that preoperative illness duration, compressive pattern, the intraoperative indentation of the root exit zone (REZ) of the facial nerve and intraoperative AMR disappearance were negative predictors and age considered to be positive, which significantly predicted the clinical outcome of patients following MVD. CONCLUSIONS: MVD may be a safe and effective strategy for HFS patients in view of relatively higher cure rates and lower complication risks within follow-up. Besides, patients' age, duration of disease, intraoperative indentation of the REZ of the facial nerve, and disappearance of AMR were the major influential variables may be useful for the prediction of prognosis in the patients underwent MVD.

Retraction. rhBNP therapy can improve clinical outcomes and reduce in-hospital mortality compared with dobutamine in heart failure patients: a meta-analysis.

AIMS: A meta-analysis was performed to compare the therapeutic outcomes in patients treated for heart failure (HF) with recombinant human brain natriuretic peptide (rhBNP) and dobutamine. METHODS: PubMed, Embase and the Chinese Biomedical Database were exhaustively searched to identify studies relevant to this meta-analysis. Eight cohort studies were found suitable for inclusion. Data regarding trial validity, methodological processes and clinical outcomes were extracted. RESULTS: Patients treated with rhBNP showed statistically significant reduction of in-hospital mortality and re-admission rates compared with the dobutamine treated patient group (both P < 0.05). Further, the rhBNP treated patient group showed higher survival outcomes, compared with dobutamine treated patients, when the post-treatment follow-up period was longer than 6 months (P < 0.05). Stratified analysis based on ethnicity showed a dramatic decrease of in-hospital mortality among mixed race HF patients receiving rhBNP treatment (P < 0.05), but such decreases were not statistically significant in Asian and Caucasian populations (both P > 0.05). On the other hand, re-admission rates were significantly lower in rhBNP treated Caucasian and mixed race populations (both P < 0.05). Notably, in rhBNP treated group, dose levels of 0.015 and 0.03 incrementally lowered the re-admission rates, displaying dose effect, and the re-admission rates at both rhBNP doses were significantly lower than the dobutamine treated group (both P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our meta-analysis results suggested that rhBNP therapy is associated with lower in-hospital mortality and re-admission rates in HF patients compared to the dobutamine regimen. Nevertheless, large scale prospective, randomized trials are necessary to confirm these findings.

Enhancement of Carbon Nanotube Particle Distribution in PPS/PEEK/Carbon Nanotube Ternary Composites with Sausage-Like Structure.

Carbon nanomaterial particles were selectively distributed in an incompatible and high-melting-temperature polymer blend interface, or in a particular phase, to obtain conductive composites. The composite products revealed poor morphology stability and mechanical performance due to processing several times. Poly(phenylene sulfide) (PPS) and poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK) polymers with large differences of processing temperatures were selected as blend components to obtain a compatible blend. PPS/PEEK/multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) ternary nanocomposites were prepared using a controlled melt blending process. The composite samples with similar sausage-like structures of PEEK, as a dispersed phase, promote MWCNT to maximize concentration distribution in the PPS continuous phase. As a result, the theoretical percolation threshold of the composite reduced to 0.347 wt %. Moreover, the conductivity of the composite remained stable even after processing several times. CNTs revealed a particular effect when distributed selectively in this kind of system: it can enhance the dispersion of phases and also provide conductivity to the blend at small CNT contents, which can provide more useful ideas for the development of high-melting-temperature and antistatic or conductive plastic materials.