"Keyboard sign" and "coffee bean sign" in the prenatal diagnosis of ileal atresia: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Ileal atresia is a congenital abnormality where there is significant stenosis or complete absence of a portion of the ileum. The overall diagnostic accuracy of prenatal ultrasound in detecting jejunal and ileal atresia is low. We report a case of ileal atresia diagnosed prenatally by ultrasound examination with the "keyboard sign" and "coffee bean sign". CASE SUMMARY: We report a case of ileal atresia diagnosed in utero at 31 weeks' of gestation. Prenatal ultrasound examination revealed two rows of intestines arranged in an 'S' shape in the middle abdomen. The inner diameters were 1.7 cm and 1.6 cm, respectively. A typical "keyboard sign" was observed. The intestine canal behind the "keyboard sign" showed an irregular strong echo. There was no normal intestinal wall structure, showing a typical "coffee bean sign". Termination of the pregnancy and autopsy findings confirmed the diagnosis. CONCLUSION: The prenatal diagnosis of ileal atresia is difficult. The sonographic features of the "keyboard sign" and "coffee bean sign" are helpful in diagnosing the location of congenital jejunal and ileal atresia.

Ovarian-adnexal reporting and data system ultrasound evaluation and pathological characteristics of ovarian collision tumor.

BACKGROUND: Collision tumor are neoplasms, including two histologically distinct tumors that coexist in the same mass without histological admixture. The incidence of collision tumor is low and is rare clinically. AIM: To investigate ultrasound images and application of ovarian-adnexal reporting and data system (O-RADS) to evaluate the risk and pathological characteristics of ovarian collision tumor. METHODS: This study retrospectively analyzed 17 cases of ovarian collision tumor diagnosed pathologically from January 2020 to December 2023. All clinical features, ultrasound images and histopathological features were collected and analyzed. The O-RADS score was used for classification. The O-RADS score was determined by two senior doctors in the gynecological ultrasound group. Lesions with O-RADS score of 1-3 were classified as benign tumors, and lesions with O-RADS score of 4 or 5 were classified as malignant tumors. RESULTS: There were 17 collision tumors detected in 16 of 6274 patients who underwent gynecological surgery. The average age of 17 women with ovarian collision tumor was 36.7 years (range 20-68 years), in whom, one occurred bilaterally and the rest occurred unilaterally. The average tumor diameter was 10 cm, of which three were 2-5 cm, 11 were 5-10 cm, and three were > 10 cm. Five (29.4%) tumors with O-RADS score 3 were endometriotic cysts with fibroma/serous cystadenoma, and unilocular or multilocular cysts contained a small number of parenchymal components. Eleven (64.7%) tumors had an O-RADS score of 4, including two in category 4A, six in category 4B, and three in category 4C; all of which were multilocular cystic tumors with solid components or multiple papillary components. One (5.9%) tumor had an O-RADS score of 5. This case was a solid mass, and a small amount of pelvic effusion was detected under ultrasound. The pathology was high-grade serous cystic cancer combined with cystic mature teratoma. There were nine (52.9%) tumors with elevated serum carbohydrate antigen (CA)125 and two (11.8%) with elevated serum CA19-9. Histological and pathological results showed that epithelial-cell-derived tumors combined with other tumors were the most common, which was different from previous results. CONCLUSION: The ultrasound images of ovarian collision tumor have certain specificity, but diagnosis by preoperative ultrasound is difficult. The combination of epithelial and mesenchymal cell tumors is one of the most common types of ovarian collision tumor. The O-RADS score of ovarian collision tumor is mostly ≥ 4, which can sensitively detect malignant tumors.

Significance of circulating tumor cell monitoring in targeted therapy for gastrointestinal stromal tumors / 中华胃肠外科杂志

Objective: To explore the significance of circulating tumor cell (CTC) monitoring in evaluating the efficacy of targeted therapy for gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST). Methods: A prospective cohort study was performed. The data of patients with locally advanced GIST or liver metastasis who were admitted to The Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University from August 2013 to December 2018 were collected. Inclusion criteria: (1) patients aged older than 18 years; (2) patients who were diagnosed with GIST based on pathology; (3) patients without surgery, whose preoperative imaging evaluation of GIST found the violations of the surrounding organs or partial transfer of an estimated difficulty to achieve R0 resection, or the maximum diameter of the tumor > 10 cm, or the liver metastasis, or the expectation of higher risk of surgical complications; (4) patients who were treated with the imatinib 400 mg/d for the first time; (5) Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score of 0-2. Exclusion criteria: (1) genetic testing revealed a D842V mutation in exon 18 of the PDGFRA gene; (2) alanine aminotransferase and/or aspartate aminotransferase > 2.5 times the normal upper limit; (3) serum total bilirubin >1.5 times of normal upper limit; (4) neutrophil count < 1.5×10(9)/L, or platelet count < 75×10(9)/L, or hemoglobin < 60 g/L; (5) creatinine > normal upper limit; (6) patients had serious cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases within 12 months before enrollment; (7) female patients were pregnant or lactating; (8) patients suffered from other serious acute and chronic physical or mental problems, and were not suitable for participating in this study judged by researchers. The patients who could not tolerate treatment regimen, or developed serious adverse reactions and did not follow the medication scheme after enrollment were excluded. Before imatinib treatment and 1-month and 2-month after treatment, quantitative PCR was used to detect the DOG-1 expression of monocytes in peripheral blood, and the ratio of DOG-1/β-actin > 3×10(-5) was used as the CTC positive threshold of GIST. The positive rate of CTC, the efficacy of imatinib treatment (complete response, partial response, stable disease, progressive disease, and occurrence of adverse reactions), and the relationship between CTC positive rate and clinicopathological characteristics of patients were analyzed. Furthermore, the ratio of DOG-1 decrease/baseline DOG-1 after 1-month of treatment was used as an indicator to evaluate whether targeted therapy was effective. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was rendered, and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated. Results: A total of 68 GIST patients were enrolled in this study, including 39 cases of locally advanced GIST and 29 cases with liver metastases, 32 males and 36 females with the mean age of (51.2±11.8) (range 31 to 74) years. After 2-month of imatinib treatment, 43 cases were evaluated as partial response, 11 cases as stable disease, and 14 cases as progressive disease, with an effective rate of 79.4% (54/68). During the treatment of imatinib, the incidence of grade 3 or higher adverse reactions was 22.1% (15/68), including 12 cases of grade 3 neutropenia and 3 of grade 4 drug eruption, which were all relieved after conservative treatment. The positive rates of CTC in 68 patients before treatment, 1-month and 2-month after treatment were 66.2% (45/68), 41.2% (28/68) and 23.5% (16/68), respectively. The positive rate of CTC was associated with tumor size, liver metastasis, mitotic count and risk level (all P<0.05). By analyzing the effective group and the ineffective group of targeted therapy, it was found that the positive rate of CTC in the effective group showed a decreasing trend, while the positive rate of CTC in the ineffective group showed an increasing trend. The AUC of predicting the efficacy of targeted therapy for GIST was 0.823 by detecting the change trend of CTC 1-month after treatment (P<0.001). When the DOG-1 content decreased by more than 57.5% 1-month after treatment, it can be used as an indicator to judge the effectiveness of the treatment, whose sensitivity was 72.2% and specificity was 100%. Conclusion: The detection of peripheral blood CTC can evaluate the efficacy of targeted therapy in GIST patients and can provide decision-making basis for further clinical treatment.

ZnFeAl-layered double hydroxides/TiO2 composites as photoanodes for photocathodic protection of 304 stainless steel.

A series of ZnFeAl-layered double hydroxides/TiO2 (ZnFeAl-LDHs/TiO2) composites are synthesized by a combined anodization and hydrothermal method. The structure, surface morphology, photo absorption and photocathodic protection properties of these samples are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis DRS) and electrochemical tests. The unique structure of the ZnFeAl-LDHs reduces the charge carriers recombination, and the visible photoresponse property increase the light harvesting. The XPS study reveals that the electrons in the ZnFeAl-LDHs travel to TiO2, and the ZnFeAl-LDHs/TiO2 composites generate and transfer more electrons to 304 stainless steel (304SS), and exhibits a better photocathodic protection performance than pure TiO2. In addition, after intermittent visible-light illumination for four days, the photoanode still exhibits good stability and durability.

Relationship between obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome and inflammation in children / 解放军医学杂志

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of anti-inflammatory therapy (intranasal corticosteroids combined with oral leukotriene receptor antagonist) in pediatric mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS),and analyze the relationship between OSAHS and inflammation factors.Methods Fifty patients with mild to moderate OSAHS,diagnosed by polysomnography (PSG) during Jan.to Nov.2016,were enrolled in present study.The patients' medical history,data of special physical examination,paryngorhinoscopy,PSG and OSA-18 questionnaire were collected.Patients received the therapy of intranasal corticosteroids combined with oral leukotriene receptor antagonist for 12 weeks.Special physical examination,paryngorhinoscopy,PSG and OSA-18 questionnaire were reviewed and the data before and after treatment were compared.Results Of the 50 subjects,37 were with mild OSAHS and 13 with moderate OSAHS.A total of 19 cases (38％) were cured including 17 mild OSAHS and 2 moderate cases.Other 19 cases (38％) got therapeutic effect but not be cured.Twelve cases (24％) were invalid or aggravated.There were 10 patients (20％) who received surgical treatment after drug treatment.The average values of obstructive apnea index (OAI) and mixed apnea index (MAI) decreased significantly in mild group and only OAI decreased in moderate group.After treatment,the average volumes of adenoids and tonsils were significantly reduced in mild OSAHS children but not in moderate OSAHS children.The OSA-18 questionnaire score declined only in mild group.No obvious correlation existed between the change of tonsil volume and the parameters of PSG.Conclusion Anti-inflammatory therapy of intranasal corticosteroids combined with oral leukotriene receptor antagonist may obviously reduce the volumes of adenoids and tonsils,improve the PSG indexes and the life quality of OSAHS patients,especially for those children with mild OSAHS.

Capillary electrochromatographic fast enantioseparation based on a chiral metal-organic framework.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have received great attention because of their unusual properties and fascinating structures in separation sciences. However, to the best of our knowledge, there has been no attempt to utilize chiral MOFs as stationary phases in packed-CEC. Here, a chiral MOF [In3 O(obb)3 (HCO2 )(H2 O)]·solvent (4,4'-oxybisbenzoic acid) was explored as the chiral stationary phase in packed-CEC for separation of chiral compounds and isomers. The fabricated [In3 O(obb)3 (HCO2 )(H2 O)]·solvent packed capillary columns gave fast enantioseparation of (±)-hydrobenzoin, (±)-1-phenyl-1,2-ethanediol, and clenbuterol within 3 min in CEC. Besides, the baseline separations of nitrophenol isomers within 6 min were also achieved. The RSDs for the retention time of run-to-run, day-to-day, and column-to-column reproducibility were 1.51-3.63, 1.83-3.98, and 3.42-5.66%, respectively. These results demonstrate that chiral MOFs are promising for enantioseparation in CEC.

Experimental comparison of chiral metal-organic framework used as stationary phase in chromatography.

Chiral metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a new class of multifunctional material, which possess diverse structures and unusual properties such as high surface area, uniform and permanent cavities, as well as good chemical and thermal stability. Their chiral functionality makes them attractive as novel enantioselective adsorbents and stationary phases in separation science. In this paper, the experimental comparison of a chiral MOF [In3O(obb)3(HCO2)(H2O)] solvent used as a stationary phase was investigated in gas chromatography (GC), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and capillary electrochromatography (CEC). The potential relationship between the structure and components of chiral MOFs with their chiral recognition ability and selectivity are presented.

Chiral metal-organic framework used as stationary phases for capillary electrochromatography.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have received great attention as novel media in separation sciences because of their fascinating structures and unusual properties. However, to the best of our knowledge, there has been no attempt to utilize chiral MOFs as stationary phases in capillary electrochromatography (CEC). In this study, a homochiral helical MOF [Zn2(D-Cam)2(4,4'-bpy)]n (D-Cam=D-(+)-camphoric acid, 4,4'-bpy=4,4'-bipyridine) was explored as the chiral stationary phase in open tubular capillary electrochromatography (OT-CEC) for separation of chiral compounds and isomers. The MOFs coated column has been developed using a simple procedure via MOFs post-coated on the sodium silicate layer. The baseline separations of flavanone and praziquantel were achieved on the MOFs coated column with high resolution of more than 2.10. The influences of pH, organic modifier content and buffer concentration on separation were investigated. Besides, the separations of isomers (nitrophenols and ionones) were evaluated. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) for the retention time of run-to-run, day-to-day and column-to-column were 1.04%, 2.16% and 3.07%, respectively. The results demonstrated that chiral MOFs are promising for enantioseparation in CEC.

[Electroacupuncture intervention combined with general anesthesia for craniocerebral operations].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the safety and effectiveness of electroacupuncture (EA) intervention combined with general anesthesia (GA) for craniocerebral tumor-removal surgery involving cerebral eloquent areas. METHODS: A total of 20 patients with cerebral tumors (durosarcoma, neurogliocytoma, metastatic tumor) involving the cerebral eloquent areas were recruited in the present summary. They were equally divided into general anesthesia (GA) group and EA + GA group. Patients of the EA + GA group were treated with EA stimulation (2 Hz/100 Hz) of the bilateral Fengchi (GB 20), Shuaigu (GB 8) and acupuncture stimulation of Quanliao (SI 18), Zulinqi (GB 41) and Taichong (LR 3), and not given intubation during surgery. Patients of the GA group were treated with intravenous administration of Propofol, Fentanyl, Midazolam, Isopropanol, etc. In addition, all the patients were given with controlled hypotension by intravenous injection of Propofol and Fentanyl. Dosages of Propofol and Sulfentanyl used were recorded. Karnofsky performance status scale was used to assess the patient's general well-being and activities of daily life. RESULTS: The craniocerebral tumor-removal surgery was successful in all the 20 patients. Compared with the GA group, the dosages of Sulfentanyl and Propofol of the EA+ GA group were significantly lower (P < 0.05). No significant difference was found between the GA and EA+ GA groups in Karnofsky performance scores (P > 0.05). Patients of the EA+GA group experienced successful tumour-removal surgery without trachea cannula, were awake and could make a good cooperation with the operator during surgery. They had no aggravation of neurofunctional disturbance following the operation. CONCLUSION: EA combined with general anesthesia is safe and effective for patients with craniocerebral tumor-removal operations involving cerebral eloquent areas.

The study on biocompatibility of porous nHA/PLGA composite scaffolds for tissue engineering with rabbit chondrocytes in vitro.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the biocompatibility of a novel nanohydroxyapatite/poly[lactic-co-glycolic acid] (nHA/PLGA) composite and evaluate its feasibility as a scaffold for cartilage tissue engineering. METHODS: Chondrocytes of fetal rabbit were cultured with nHA/PLGA scaffold in vitro and the cell viability was assessed by MTT assay first. Cells adhering to nHA/PLGA scaffold were then observed by inverted microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The cell cycle profile was analyzed by flow cytometry. RESULTS: The viability of the chondrocytes on the scaffold was not affected by nHA/PLGA comparing with the control group as it was shown by MTT assay. Cells on the surface and in the pores of the scaffold increased in a time-dependent manner. Results obtained from flow cytometry showed that there was no significant difference in cell cycle profiles between the coculture group and control (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The porous nHA/PLGA composite scaffold is a biocompatible and good kind of scaffold for cartilage tissue engineering.

Differentiation of human bone marrow precursor cells into neuronal-like cells after transplantation into canine spinal cord organotypic slice cultures.

BACKGROUND: Treatments to regenerate different tissue involving the transplantation of bone marrow derived mesenchymal precursor cells are anticipated. Using an alternative methods, in vitro organotypic slice culture method, would be useful to transplant cells and assessing the effects. This study was to determine the possibility of differentiating human bone marrow precursor cells into cells of the neuronal lineage by transplanting into canine spinal cord organotypic slice cultures. METHODS: Bone marrow aspirates were obtained from posterior superior iliac spine (PSIS) of patients that had undergone spinal fusion due to a degenerative spinal disorder. For cell imaging, mesenchymal precursor cells (MPCs) were pre-stained with PKH-26 just before transplantation to canine spinal cord slices. Canine spinal cord tissues were obtained from three adult beagle dogs. Spinal cords were cut into transverse slices of 1 mm using tissue chopper. Two slices were transferred into 6-well plate containing 3 ml DMEM with antibiotics. Prepared MPCs (1×10(4)) were transplanted into spinal cord slices. On days 0, 3, 7, 14, MPCs were observed for morphological changes and expression of neuronal markers through immunofluorescence and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS: The morphological study showed: spherical cells in the control and experiment groups on day 0; and on day 3, cells in the control group had one or two thick, short processes and ones in the experiment group had three or four thin, long processes. On day 7, these variously-sized processes contacted each other in the experiment group, but showed typical spindle-shaped cells in the control group. Immunofluorescence showed that PKH-26(+) MPCs stained positive for NeuN(+) and GFAP(+) in experimental group only. Also RT-PCR showed weak expression of ß-tubulin III and GFAP. CONCLUSIONS: Human bone marrow mesenchymal precursor cells (hMPCs) have the potential to differentiate into the neuronal like cells in this canine spinal cord organotypic slice culture model. Furthermore, these findings suggested the possibility that these cells can be utilized to treat patients with spinal cord injuries.

Improved charge transport and absorption coefficient in indacenodithieno[3,2-b]thiophene-based ladder-type polymer leading to highly efficient polymer solar cells.

A novel ladder-type donor (IDTT) is developed by substituting the two outward thiophenes of the IDT donor with two thieno[3,2-b]thiophenes. The polymer derived from this donor possesses longer effective conjugation and better planarity, which improves electron delocalization along the polymer backbone and charge mobility. The polymer solar cell device using PIDTT-DFBT shows a high power conversion efficiency of 7.03% with a large open-circuit voltage of 0.95 V without using any additives or post-solvent/thermal annealing processes.

Evaluation of driver fatigue on two channels of EEG data.

Electroencephalogram (EEG) data is an effective indicator to evaluate driver fatigue. The 16 channels of EEG data are collected and transformed into three bands (θ, α, and ß) in the current paper. First, 12 types of energy parameters are computed based on the EEG data. Then, Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) is introduced to identify the optimal indicator of driver fatigue, after which, the number of significant electrodes is reduced using Kernel Principle Component Analysis (KPCA). Finally, the evaluation model for driver fatigue is established with the regression equation based on the EEG data from two significant electrodes (Fp1 and O1). The experimental results verify that the model is effective in evaluating driver fatigue.

Dendrobium candidum extract increases the expression of aquaporin-5 in labial glands from patients with Sjögren's syndrome.

This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of Dendrobium candidum extract in promoting expression of aquaporin-5 for treatment of Sjögren's syndrome (SS). Sixteen patients with SS suffered from deficient secretion of saliva due to an autoimmune destruction of salivary glands leading to dry mouth symptoms (xerostomia). However, glandular dysfunction also occurred without destruction. Based upon its abnormal distribution in SS salivary glands, a potential role of the water channel protein aquaporin-5 (AQP-5) in the pathogenesis of SS was proposed. After oral administration of D. candidum extracted liquid (DCEL) for 1 week, saliva and salivary gland biopsies from labial glands of patients were collected and examined by employing immunoreactivity and immunohistochemistry techniques. Results showed that salivary secretion increased by about 65% in patients treated with DCEL as compared with the control group. Higher labeling indices (percentage of acinus area immunoreactive for AQP-5) in the biopsies were found in SS patients who had taken DCEL. This study demonstrated that D. candidum would regulate the expression of AQP-5 in labial glands of SS patients and thereby promoted secretion of saliva to improve dry mouth symptoms.

Surgical management of anterior clinoidal meningiomas: a 26-case report.

BACKGROUND: Resection of anterior clinoidal meningiomas remains a major neurosurgical challenge. We determine the surgical technique for removal of tumor and improvement of patient's outcome. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on 26 consecutive patients with anterior clinoidal meningiomas who underwent surgical resection at the Department of Neurosurgery, Renji Hospital, from January 1999 to August 2006. All patients had surgery through the pterional or extended pterional approach. Microvascular Doppler probe was used to protect the internal carotid artery and its branching arteries during dissection of the tumor. Twenty-two of them had severe visual deficits preoperatively. The follow-up period ranged from 3 to 36 months (22.3 +/- 8.8 months). RESULTS: In this series, Simpson grade II resection in 16 cases (61.5%), Simpson grade III resection in 4 cases (15.4%), Simpson grade IV resection in 6 cases (23.1%) were achieved. Sixteen of the patients with preoperative visual impairment experienced significant improvement. No patients died. There was no evidence of tumor recurrence during follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: In the majority of patients, surgery is still the first choice for total resection of the tumors without major complications. Protection of nerves and blood vessels must be a priority concern during removal of tumors.

Studies on the chemical constituents of Cirsium japonicum DC / 药学学报

<p><b>AIM</b>In order to look for new bioactive compounds, investigation on the chemical constituents, especially on the typical polyacetylenes from the rhizomes of Cirsium japonicum DC. was carried out.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Chromatographic techniques including silica column chromatography and preparative silica thin-layer chromatography were used to separate and purify the constituents. Their structures were elucidated by physicochemical properties and spectral analyses including UV, IR, 1HNMR, 13CNMR, HMQC, HMBC and HREIMS.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Twelve compounds were isolated from the rhizomes of Cirsium japonicum DC., and their structures were identified as cis-8, 9-epoxy-heptadeca-1-ene-11, 13-diyne-10-ol (1), ciryneol A (2), 8,9,10-triacetoxyheptadeca-1-ene-11,13-diyne (3), ciryneone F (4), cireneol G (5), ciryneol H (6), ciryneol C (7), p-coumaric acid (8), syringin (9), linarin (10), beta-sitosterol (11) and daucosterol (12).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Compounds 4, 5 and 6 are new compounds, compound 3 is a new natural product and compound 8 was isolated from this plant for the first time.</p>

Saccopetrins A and B, two novel gamma-lactones from Saccopetalum prolificum.

Two new gamma-lactones, saccopetrin A (1) and saccopetrin B (2), together with 10 known compounds have been isolated from the roots of Saccopetalum prolificum. Their structures were established by spectroscopic and chemical methods. The absolute configuration of 1 was determined by chemical transformation and the Mosher method. Cytotoxic activities were evaluated against several different cell lines. Compound 2 exhibited stronger cytotoxic activities than 1 against KB and HCT-8 cell lines at a concentration of 10(-5) mol/L.

Competition and coexistence in regional habitats.

Habitat heterogeneity plays a key role in the dynamics and structures of communities. In this article, a two-species metapopulation model that includes local competitive dynamics is analyzed to study the population dynamics of two competing species in spatially structured habitats. When local stochastic extinction can be ignored, there are, as in Lotka-Volterra equations, four outcomes of interspecific competition in this model. The outcomes of competition depend on the competitive intensity between the competing pairs. An inferior competitor and a superior competitor, or two strongly competing species, can never stably coexist, whereas two weak competitors (even if they are very similar species) may coexist over the long term in such environments. Local stochastic extinction may greatly affect the outcomes of interspecific competition. Two competing species can or cannot stably coexist depending not only on the competitive intensity between the competing pairs but also on their precompetitive distributions. Two weak competitors that have similar precompetitive distributions can always regionally coexist. Two strongly competing species that competitively exclude each other in more stable habitats may be able to stably coexist in highly heterogenous environments if they have similar precompetitive distributions. There is also a chance for an inferior competitor to coexist regionally or even to exclude a superior competitor when the superior competitor has a narrow precompetitive distribution and the inferior competitor has a wide precompetitive distribution.

Effect of electroacupuncture on vascular dementia and AVP in brain of rats / 中国康复理论与实践

@#ObjectiveTo probe the effect of the electroacupuncture on vascular dementia(VD) and content of arginine vasopressin(AVP) in brain of rats. Methods30 Sprague Dawley rats were made renal hypertension(RHR) by the kidney arteries pinched with silver clip.After 42 days, their bilateral common carotid arteries were blocked repeatedly to cause cerebral ischemia.The Hypertension Vascular Dementia model was made. Then they were divided into model group,electroacupuncture group and medicine group(Dihydroergotoxine,DHET) with 10 in each group. The course was 28 days. The ability of learning and memorizing was observed by water maze, and the content of AVP in brain was detected after treatment. ResultsThe latent period of the electroacupuncture group and medicine group was shorter than that of the model group(P<0.05-0.005), and that of the electroacupuncture group was shorter than medicine group(P<0.05-0.005). In frontal lobe, the contents of AVP in the electroacupuncture and medicine groups were higher than that of model group( P<0.01,P<0.05), and the electroacupuncture group was higher than medicine group in striatum (P<0.05). Conclusions It indicated that electroacupuncture therapy can promote the ability of learning and memorizing and enhance the content of AVP in the brain of VD rats. It's therapeutic effect is better than that of DHET.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GALLBLADDER STONE AND LIPOROGLUCOSE METABOLISM XU / 中国普外基础与临床杂志

Objective　To study the effects of glucose and lipid metabolism on gallstone formation. Methods　Twenty five patients with gallstones and 25 normal volunteer controls were studied from January to April in 1998. The patients were well matched the control with sex and age (1∶1). In the study, Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist-to-Hip circumference ratio (W/H) were measured. Blood glucose, glucosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C), insulin, C peptide and all parameters of lipids were detected at fasting state. The glucose,insulin, C peptide were detected again at 2-hour after taking 75g glucose orally. Results　The result showed there was no difference on BMI and W/H between the patients and controls. HbA1C、mean fasting and 2-hour glucose concentration were not in significantly different between the two groups (P>0.05, P>0.2, P>0.1 respectively). There were 10 patients with abnormal glucose metabolism (7 with NIDDM, 3 with IGT), but only 4 controls were abnoumal (one with NIDDM, three with IGT). The difference was significant (P<0.05). Furthermore, the mean fasting and 2-hour insulin concentration of gallstone group was higher than that of the control (P<0.02, P<0.05). And the gallstone group had a higher fasting C peptide concentration than control (P<0.05). There was no statistical difference on the parameters of plasma lipid between the tow groups. Conclusion　The study suggests that diabetes mellious and hyperinsulinemia acted as an important role on gallstone formation.