Structured Reporting of Computed Tomography Enterography in Crohn's Disease.

BACKGROUND: To compare the integrity, clarity, conciseness, etc., of the structured report (SR) versus free-text report (FTR) for computed tomography enterography of Crohn's disease (CD). METHODS: FTRs and SRs were generated for 30 patients with CD. The integrity, clarity, conciseness etc., of SRs versus FTRs, were compared. In this study, an evidence-based medicine practice model was utilized on 92 CD patients based on SR in order to evaluate its clinical value. Then, the life quality of the patients in two groups was evaluated before and after three months of intervention using an Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (IBDQ). RESULTS: SRs received higher ratings for satisfaction with integrity (median rating 4.27 vs. 3.75, P=0.008), clarity (median rating 4.20 vs. 3.43, P=0.003), conciseness (median rating 4.23 vs. 3.20, P=0.003), the possibility of contacting a radiologist to interpret (median rating 4.17 vs. 3.20, P<0.001), and overall clinical impact (median rating 4.23 vs. 3.27, P<0.001) than FTRs. Besides, research group had higher score of IBDQ intestinal symptom dimension (median score 61.13 vs. 58.02, P=0.003), IBDQ systemic symptom dimension (median score 24.48 vs. 20.67, P<0.001), IBDQ emotional capacity dimension (median score 65.65 vs. 61.74, P<0.001), IBDQ social ability dimension (median score 26.80 vs. 22.37, P<0.001), and total IBDQ score (median score 178.07 vs. 162.80, P<0.001) than control group. CONCLUSION: The SR of CTE in CD patients was conducive to improving the quality and readability of the report, and CD patients' life quality could significantly improve after the intervention of an evidence-based medicine model based on SR.

Hyperglycemia Aggravates the Cerebral Ischemia Injury via Protein O-GlcNAcylation.

BACKGROUND: At least one-third of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients have cerebrovascular abnormalities, micro- and macro-infarctions, and ischemic white matter alterations. Stroke prognosis impacts AD development due to vascular disease. Hyperglycemia can readily produce vascular lesions and atherosclerosis, increasing the risk of cerebral ischemia. Our previous research has demonstrated that protein O-GlcNAcylation, a dynamic and reversible post-translational modification, provides protection against ischemic stroke. However, the role of O-GlcNAcylation in the exacerbation of cerebral ischemia injury due to hyperglycemia remains to be elucidated. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we explored the role and underlying mechanism of protein O-GlcNAcylation in the exacerbation of cerebral ischemia injury caused by hyperglycemia. METHODS: High glucose-cultured brain microvascular endothelial (bEnd3) cells were injured by oxygen-glucose deprivation. Cell viability was used as the assay result. Stroke outcomes and hemorrhagic transformation incidence were assessed in mice after middle cerebral artery occlusion under high glucose and streptozotocin-induced hyperglycemic conditions. Western blot estimated that O-GlcNAcylation influenced apoptosis levels in vitro and in vivo. RESULTS: In in vitro analyses showed that Thiamet-G induces upregulation of protein O-GlcNAcylation, which attenuates oxygen-glucose deprivation/R-induce injury in bEnd3 cells cultured under normal glucose conditions, while aggravated it under high glucose conditions. In in vivo analyses, Thiamet-G exacerbated cerebral ischemic injury and induced hemorrhagic transformation, accompanied by increased apoptosis. While blocking protein O-GlcNAcylation with 6-diazo-5-oxo-L-norleucine alleviated cerebral injury of ischemic stroke in different hyperglycemic mice. CONCLUSION: Overall, our study highlights the crucial role of O-GlcNAcylation in exacerbating cerebral ischemia injury under conditions of hyperglycemia. O-GlcNAcylation could potentially serve as a therapeutic target for ischemic stroke associated with AD.

A clinical study of inferior mesenteric artery typing in laparoscopic radical resections with left colonic artery preservation of rectal cancer.

OBJECTIVES: An investigation of the effects of different types of the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) on laparoscopic left colic artery (LCA) radical resection of rectal cancer was conducted. METHODS: Clinical data were collected from 92 patients who underwent laparoscopic radical resection of rectal cancer with preservation of the LCA at Nantong University's Second Affiliated Hospital. All patients underwent full-abdominal dual-energy CT enhancement examination before surgery and 3D post-processing reconstruction of the IMA. Two radiologists with >3 years of experience in abdominal radiology jointly conducted the examination. A total of three types of IMA were identified among the patients: IMA type I (the LCA arising independently from the IMA), type II (LCA and sigmoid colon artery [SA] branching from a common trunk from IMA), and type III (LCA, SA, and superior rectal artery [SRA] branching from the IMA at the same point). The baseline data, pathological results, and intra-operative and post-operative indicators of the groups were analyzed. RESULTS: The proportions of type I, type II, and type III IMA were 58.70% (54/92), 18.48% (17/92), and 22.82% (21/92), respectively. IMA typing was consistent with the preoperative CT evaluation results. The intra-operative blood loss of type III IMA patients [median (interquartile spacing), M (P25, P75): 52.00 (39.50, 68.50) ml] was higher than that of type I and II IMA patients [35.00 (24.00, 42.00) and 32.00 (25.50, 39.50) ml, respectively] (P<0.05). The incidence of anastomotic fistula in type III IMA patients (4 cases, 19.05%) was higher than that in non-type III IMA patients (1 case, 1.41%) (X2=6.679, P=0.010). The incidence of postoperative complications among the three types of IMA was not significantly different (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Among rectal cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic LCA preservation, type III IMA patients had more intraoperative bleeding and a higher incidence of postoperative anastomotic fistula. However, this did not increase the risk of overall postoperative complications.

Stereoselective Pharmacokinetics and Chiral Inversions of Some Chiral Hydroxy Group Drugs.

BACKGROUND: Chiral safety, especially chiral drug inversion in vivo, is the top priority of current scientific research. Medicine researchers and pharmacists often ignore that one enantiomer will be converted or partially converted to another enantiomer when it is ingested in vivo. So that, in the context that more than 50% of the listed drugs are chiral drugs, it is necessary and important to pay attention to the inversion of chiral drugs. METHODS: The metabolic and stereoselective pharmacokinetic characteristics of seven chiral drugs with one chiral center in the hydroxy group were reviewed in vivo and in vitro including the possible chiral inversion of each drug enantiomer. These seven drugs include (S)-Mandelic acid, RS-8359, Tramadol, Venlafaxine, Carvedilol, Fluoxetine and Metoprolol. RESULTS: The differences in stereoselective pharmacokinetics could be found for all the seven chiral drugs, since R and S isomers often exhibit different PK and PD properties. However, not every drug has shown the properties of one direction or two direction chiral inversion. For chiral hydroxyl group drugs, the redox enzyme system may be one of the key factors for chiral inversion in vivo. CONCLUSION: In vitro and in vivo chiral inversion is a very complex problem and may occur during every process of ADME. Nowadays, research on chiral metabolism in the liver has the most attention, while neglecting the chiral transformation of other processes. Our review may provide the basis for the drug R&D and the safety of drugs in clinical therapy.

Toxicology study of fraxinellone as ovicidal agents against Mythimna separata Walker and Bombyx mori Linaeus.

Fraxinellone is a naturally occurring degraded limonoid isolated from many species of plants in Meliaceae and Rutaceae. Besides structural modification of the lead compounds, the toxicology study of the lead compounds is also a very important procedure to develop insecticidal agents. Herein the toxicology study of fraxinellone was carried out as the ovicidal agent against the eggs of two lepidopteran insects Mythimna separata Walker and Bombyx mori Linaeus. Fraxinellone selectively exhibited an ovicidal activity against the eggs of M. separata. After treatment with fraxinellone, the eggshells of M. separata were shrinked, whereas those of B. mori had no obvious change. The dynamic process of M. separata embryo development demonstrated that the distinct difference between the treated eggs and the control ones was obvious at the second day after treatment, especially, the control embryo finished blastokinesis, whereas the treated ones were still laid at pre-reversion status and a lot of yolk can be seen around the embryo. It ultimately resulted in the eggshell withered and the egg hatching inhibited.

Assessing the Impact of Air Pollution on Grain Yield of Winter Wheat - A Case Study in the North China Plain.

The major wheat production region of China the North China Plain (NCP) is seriously affected by air pollution. In this study, yield of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was analyzed with respect to the potential impact of air pollution index under conditions of optimal crop management in the NCP from 2001 to 2012. Results showed that air pollution was especially serious at the early phase of winter wheat growth significantly influencing various weather factors. However, no significant correlations were found between final grain yield and the weather factors during the early growth phase. In contrast, significant correlations were found between grain yield and total solar radiation gap, sunshine hour gap, diurnal temperature range and relative humidity during the late growing phase. To disentangle the confounding effects of various weather factors, and test the isolated effect of air pollution induced changes in incoming global solar radiation on yield under ceteris paribus conditions, crop model based scenario-analysis was conducted. The simulation results of the calibrated Agricultural Production Systems Simulator (APSIM) model indicated that a reduction in radiation by 10% might cause a yield reduction by more than 10%. Increasing incident radiation by 10% would lead to yield increases of (only) 7%, with the effects being much stronger during the late growing phase compared to the early growing phase. However, there is evidence that APSIM overestimates the effect of air pollution induced changes on radiation, as it does not consider the changes in radiative properties of solar insulation, i.e. the relative increase of diffuse over direct radiation, which may partly alleviate the negative effects of reduced total radiation by air pollution. Concluding, the present study could not detect a significantly negative effect of air pollution on wheat yields in the NCP.

'Naked-eye' quinoline-based 'reactive' sensor for recognition of Hg²âº ion in aqueous solution.

A new 'naked-eye' quinoline-based 'reactive' ratiometric fluorescent probe was prepared. The reactive stoichiometry of the probe with Hg²âº ion was 2:1. The probe exhibited high selectivity towards Hg²âº ion to other metal ions with a 410-fold increase in absorbance intensity ratio (A402/A340) in aqueous solution over a wide-range pH value (2-12), accompanied by a resonance color change from colorless to pale yellow visible to naked-eye.

[Analysis of the changes in bacterial types and drug sensitivity profiles of mycobacterial strains in Guangzhou over the last twelve years].

OBJECTIVE: To improve evidence-based care in the management of tuberculosis, we retrospectively analyzed the bacterial types and drug sensitivity test results of mycobacteria in Guangzhou over the past twelve years (from July 1998 to March 2010). METHODS: Over these twelve years, a total of 14 095 mycobacterial strains isolated from different samples were subjected to type identification and drug sensitivity tests according to the Standard Protocols of Laboratory Diagnostics for Tuberculosis by the Chinese Antituberculosis Association. Chi-square test was performed for statistical analyses for comparisons between groups. RESULTS: Of 14 095 strains of mycobacteria isolated, 10 844 strains (76.84%) were MTB, and 3251 strains (23.16%) were non-tuberculosis mycobacteria (NTM). Compared with the result of the fourth national survey of tuberculosis epidemiology, which showed 11.1% of NTM, the one of our study was significantly different (χ(2) = 69.79, P < 0.001). Drug sensitivity tests of MTB showed tolerance rates of 28.99% (2729/9413), 21.75% (2047/9413), 17.45% (1643/9413) and 11.53% (1085/9413) against isoniazid, rifampin, streptomycin and ethambutol, respectively. CONCLUSION: An increasing trend was observed in MTB drug tolerance against streptomycin, rifampin and isoniazid, whereas more and more NTM strains were isolated in recent years. These findings are worthy of note for clinicians.