Multi-detector spiral CT diagnosis of common bile duct ampullary carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this project was to study the imaging characteristics of multi-detector CT (MDCT) in different types of malignant tumor in the common bile duct ampulla. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We examined 30 cases of pancreatic head cancer, 35 of terminal cholangiocarcinoma, 26 of ampullary carcinoma, and 40 of benign lesions, all confirmed by pathology. We used 64-slice spiral CT plain scan and multi-phase enhanced scan with multi-planar reconstruction (MPR) and curved planar reconstruction (CPR) post-processing to obtain three-dimensional images. From these images, we analyzed intrahepatic and extrahepatic bile ducts, gallbladder and common bile duct dilation, and morphology and enhancement pattern of lesions and surrounding tissue. RESULTS: The dilatation rate of intrahepatic, extrahepatic bile duct and gallbladder in terminal cholangiocarcinoma was the highest. The double duct sign was most evident in pancreatic head cancer. Ampullary carcinoma fell in between, and the benign lesions had no intrahepatic or extrahepatic bile duct and pancreatic duct dilation. Pancreatic cancer had a larger diameter, a higher internal rate of necrosis, and the surrounding tissues had a higher vulnerability to invasion. Terminal cholangiocarcinoma had a smaller diameter and a thicker wall. Benign lesions showed isodensity and hyperdensity shadow in the lumen, but no other significant changes were observed. Pancreatic head carcinoma had lower enhancement degree than normal pancreatic tissue, no enhancement in the internal necrotic area, and the borderline was unclear. Thickened ductal wall of the terminal cholangiocarcinoma showed equal density, enhancement and commonly delayed enhancement. The enhancement degree was higher than in the cancer of the pancreatic head and slightly lower than in ampullary cancer. Ampullary cancer had a regular margin and a significant enhancement, with enhancement degree higher than in pancreatic cancer and lower than in common bile duct cancer. Arterial and venous phases showed enhancement, but benign lesions did not show enhancement. CONCLUSIONS: MDCT imaging and post-processing techniques have significant application in the diagnosis of benign and malignant lesions, as well as a malignant tumor of the common bile duct ampulla.

[Effect of haidonghua powder(HDHP) on hypothalamic obesity in rats].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of HDHP including Laminaria japonica Aresch. and Benincasa hispida(Thunb.) Cogn. etc. on antiobesity in rats with hypothalamic obesity. METHOD: A rat model of hypothalamic obesity induced by MSG was used and the relative indexes was observed. RESULT: HDHP(2.5 g.kg-1) could significantly reduce the Lee's index as well as the size of fat cells. HDHP did not influence the serum levels of T3 and T4, insulin and aldosterone, did not inhibited appetite not led to diarrhea. CONCLUSION: HDHP has the effect of anti-obesity, Without any influencing on the function of thyroid gland and metabolism of water and salt. The mechanism is related to the reduction of fat cell size and the accumulation of fat.

[Establishment of studying system cloned vernalization-putative cDNA clone by means of differential display PCR].

Differential display PCR has been developed as a tool detecting and characterizing specially expressed gene in eukaryotic cells recently. In this paper, a studying system was established which applied the novel approach of differential display PCR to clone vernalization-related cDNA clone. Here methodological details were provided which included the purification of total RNA, removal of contaminated DNA, reverse transcription of cDNAs, parameters of PCR, electrophoresis of amplified cDNAs, recovery and reamplification of cDNAs. It was also identified a vernalization-putative cDNA clone (VPC) of VPC28 which was only expressed at the key stage of vernalization for 20 d in winter wheat. These results moreover made it readily applicable to a broad spectrum of similar studies.

[Study on effects of Codonopsis eupolyphaga anti-obesity powder in mice with nutritive obesity].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effects of Codonopsis Eupolyphaga anti-obesity powder(CEAOP) in mice with nutritive obesity. METHODS: CEAOP 0.5-2.5 g/kg was given to mice for 4 weeks and its effect was observed. RESULTS: CEAOP could significantly reduce the Lee's index, weight of fat cushion and fat index, lower the blood levels of total cholesterol, triglyceride and blood glucose, but influence neither the calories and quantity of food intake, nor the endurance against anoxia and fatigue, the property of stool was not changed at all. CONCLUSIONS: The anti-obesity effect of CEAOP was similar to Fenfluramini but without influence on appetite and bowel movement, tolerance against anoxia and fatigue. The mechanism of the anti-obesity might be related with its metabolism regulating actions on lipids and glucose.

Environmental determinants of lung cancer in Shenyang, China.

To investigate determinants of the high rates of lung cancer in Shenyang, an industrial city in north-eastern China, a case-control study was conducted. Interviews with 1249 lung cancer patients and 1345 population-based controls revealed that cigarette smoking was the main cause of lung cancer. Smoking accounted for 55% of the lung tumours in men and 37% in women. In addition, air pollution from coal-burning heating and cooking devices was significantly linked to lung cancer, with risks rising in proportion to duration of exposure to indoor pollutants. Measurement of benzo[a]pyrene revealed average wintertime levels in air that were nearly 60 times the recommended upper limit for US cities, with even higher concentrations indoors in traditional single-storey homes using coal-burning kang (stoves). Occupational factors were also involved, the risk being elevated by three fold among smelter workers. Soil levels of arsenic and other metals rose with increasing proximity to the Shenyang copper smelter, and elevated risks of lung cancer were found among men, but not women, living within 1 km of its central stacks. Prior nonmalignant lung disease was common and was reported more often among the lung cancer patients than among controls. The findings suggest that cigarette smoking and environmental pollutants combine to account for most of the excess risk of lung cancer in this population.

Indoor radon and lung cancer in China.

Radon has long been known to contribute to risk of lung cancer, especially in undergound miners who are exposed to large amounts of the carcinogen. Recently, however, lower amounts of radon present in living areas have been suggested as an important cause of lung cancer. In an effort to clarify the relationship of low amounts of radon with lung cancer risk, we placed alpha-track radon detectors in the homes of 308 women with newly diagnosed lung cancer and 356 randomly selected female control subjects of similar age. Measurements were taken after 1 year. All study participants were part of the general population of Shenyang, People's Republic of China, an industrial city in the northeast part of the country that has one of the world's highest rates of lung cancer in women. The median time of residence in the homes was 24 years. The median household radon level was 2.3 pCi/L of air; 20% of the levels were greater than 4 pCi/L. Radon levels tended to be higher in single-story houses or on the first floor of multiple-story dwellings, and they were also higher in houses with increased levels of indoor air pollution from coal-burning stoves. However, the levels were not higher in homes of women who developed lung cancer than in homes of controls, nor did lung cancer risk increase with increasing radon level. No association between radon and lung cancer was observed regardless of cigarette-smoking status, except for a nonsignificant trend among heavy smokers. No positive associations of lung cancer cell type with radon were observed, except for a nonsignificant excess risk of small cell cancers among the more heavily exposed residents. Our data suggest that projections from surveys of miners exposed to high radon levels may have overestimated the overall risks of lung cancer associated with levels typically seen in homes in this Chinese city. However, further studies in other population groups are needed to clarify the carcinogenic potential of indoor radon.

Quantitative optical image subtraction by means of pulse-width modulation through one-dimensional contact screens.

A quantitative optical image-subtraction method based on the principle of spatial pulse-width modulation through a one-dimensional contact-screen process and superposition of positive and negative halftone photographs is described. The difference in intensity transmittance of two images A and B can be measured by either superposing the halftone positive of A onto the halftone negative of B or vice versa. Not only subtle differences between the two photographs but also the polarity of such differences can be found.