EUS development in China: Results from national surveys in 2013 and 2020.

Background and Objectives: EUS has recently gained attraction in mainland China. This study aimed to evaluate the development of EUS from results of two national surveys. Methods: EUS-related information, including infrastructure, personnel, volume, and quality indicator, was extracted from the Chinese Digestive Endoscopy Census. Data from 2012 and 2019 were compared, and differences among various hospitals and regions were analyzed. The EUS rates (EUS annual volume per 100,000 inhabitants) between China and developed countries were also compared. Results: The number of hospitals performing EUS in mainland China increased from 531 to 1236 (2.33-fold), and 4025 endoscopists performed EUS in 2019. The volumes of all EUS and interventional EUS increased from 207,166 to 464,182 (2.24-fold) and 10,737 to 15,334 (1.43-fold), respectively. The EUS rate in China was lower than that in developed countries but showed a higher growth rate. EUS rate varied substantially among different provincial regions (in 2019: 4.9-152.0 per 100,000 inhabitants) and showed significant positive association with gross domestic product per capita (in 2019: r = 0.559, P = 0.001). The EUS-FNA-positive rate in 2019 was comparable between hospitals in terms of annual volume (≥50 or < 50: 79.9% vs. 71.6%, P = 0.704) and practice duration (starting EUS-FNA before or after 2012: 78.7% vs. 72.6%, P = 0.565). Conclusion: EUS has developed considerably in China in recent years but still needs substantial improvement. More resources are in demand for hospitals in less-developed regions and with low EUS volume.

[Cross-sectional analysis of libido status and risk factors in male patients with chronic headache].

OBJECTIVE: Exploring the libido status of male chronic headache patients and analyzing its relationship with headache symptoms, sleep, anxiety, and depression, providing reference for the comprehensive treatment of male chronic headache. METHODS: 179 patients with chronic headache who visited the Third Affiliated Hospital of Qiqihar Medical College from January 2022 to February 2023 were selected. The male Self Rated Libido Scale , Visual Analog Scale for Pain, Migraine Disability Assessment Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7, and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 were used to evaluate the libido status, headache severity, disability level, sleep quality, anxiety, and depression of the research subjects, respectively. RESULTS: Among 179 male chronic headache patients, 97 were chronic migraine (CM) patients and 82 were chronic tension type (CTT) patients, and 47 were screened for low libido. The influencing factors of libido in male chronic headache patients include age, smoking, frequency of exercise, course of disease, severity of pain, frequency of headache, disability score, sleep quality, anxiety and depression (all P<0.05). Compared with male CTT patients, male CM patients have higher pain severity, headache frequency, disability score, and anxiety score, while lower libido score (all P<0.05). The results of multivariate analysis showed that age, frequency of exercise, course of disease, severity of pain, frequency of headache, degree of disability, sleep quality, anxiety, and depression were the influencing factors for the decline of libido in male chronic headache patients. CONCLUSION: It is common for male chronic headache patients to experience decreased libido, with male chronic migraine (CM) patients exhibiting more severe reductions. Advanced age, decreased physical activity, longer disease duration, severe pain intensity, frequent headaches, higher disability levels, poor sleep, anxiety, and depression are risk factors for decreased libido in male chronic headache patients.

Effect of Modified Shenfuwan on Lumbar Disc Herniation Due to Kidney Deficiency and Cold Coagulation / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To observe short-term and long-term effect of modified Shenfuwan on lumbar disc herniation due to kidney deficiency and cold coagulation. Method:100 cases were randomly divided into the control group and observation group，50 cases each. The control group were taken meloxicam tablets，7.5 mg each time，once a day and the observation group were given modified Shenfuwan，300 mL each time，twice a day. The treatment course was 3 months. The short form McGill pain questionnaire（SF-MPQ），oswestry disability index（ODI），and lumbar intervertebral disc herniation due to kidney deficiency and cold coagulation by traditional Chinese medicine （TCM ） syndrome were observed before and after treatment. Whole blood viscosity （high，medium，low），serum inflammatory factors ［tumor necrosis factor-alpha（TNF-<italic>α</italic>），interleukin-1<italic>β</italic>（IL-1<italic>β</italic>），interleukin-6（IL-6），pain mediators［endothelin-1（ET-1），prostaglandin E₂（PGE₂），cyclooxygenase-2（COX-2）］ were detected. The clinical efficacyand，recurrence rate followed up for 12 and 24 months was was observed. The type and time of adverse reactions were recorded during the study. Result:After treatment，the total effective rate in the observation group was 98.0%（49/50） higher than that 82.0%（41/50） in the control group（<italic>P</italic><0.05）. After 12 months of follow-up，the recurrence rate in the observation group was 23.9%（11/46） lower than that 52.5%（21/40） in the control group （<italic>χ</italic>²＝5.193，<italic>P</italic><0.05）. After 24 months of follow-up，the recurrence rate in the observation group was 43.9%（18/41） lower than that that 80.6%（29/36） in the control group（<italic>P</italic><0.05）. Compared with the control group after treatment，SF-MPQ，ODI，TCM symptoms，whole blood viscosity，TNF-<italic>α</italic>，IL-1<italic>β</italic>，IL-6，ET-1，PGE₂ and COX-2 were significantly reduced in the observation group（<italic>P</italic><0.05）. The incidence of adverse reactions in the observation group was 2.0%（1/50） lower than that 52.0%（26/50） in the control group（<italic>χ</italic>²＝6.264，<italic>P</italic><0.05）. Conclusion:Modified Shenfuwan can significantly improve the short-term and long-term clinical efficacy of patients with lumbar disc herniation due to kidney deficiency and cold coagulation syndrome，and the incidence of adverse reactions is low.

Effect of Modified Anshentang on Serum Inflammatory Factors, Immune Function, Bone Metabolism on Treatment of Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis in Early and Middle Stages / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:This study aims to investigate the clinical efficacy of modified Anshentang on the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis in early and middle stages with kidney deficiency and cold-governing syndrome and its effect on serum inflammatory factors， immune function， and bone metabolism indexes of patients. Method:In this study， 120 patients were randomly divided into control group and observation group， 60 cases in each group. On the basis of ethotrexate treatment， patients in control group took Bushen Shuji granule orally， while patients in observation group took modified Anshentang orally for 8 weeks. Before and after treatment， patients in two groups were observed for clinical symptoms ［ bath ankylosing spondylitis patient global score （BAS-G）， bath ankylosing spondylitis disease activity index （BASDAI）， spondyloarthritis research consortium of Canada （SPARCC）， traditional Chinese medicine symptoms （TCM symptoms）<italic> </italic>］， serum inflammatory factors ［ tumor necrosis factor-<italic>α </italic>（TNF-<italic>α</italic>）， macrophage migration inhibitory factor （MIF）， interleukin-23 （IL-23）］， immune function ［ immunoglobulin A（IgA）， immunoglobulin G（IgG）， immunoglobulin M（IgM）］， bone metabolic indicators ［osteocalcin （BGP）， bone morphogenetic protein-2 （BMP-2）， bonespecific alkaline phosphatase （BALP）］. The clinical efficacy， adverse reactions and recurrence rates of 12 months in two groups were observed. Result:During the study， 4 cases dropped out from control group and 2 cases from observation group. The total effective rate of 96.55% （56/58） in observation group was higher than 80.36% （45/56） in control group （<italic>χ</italic>²=4.827，<italic>P</italic><0.05）. The recurrence rate of 5.17% （3/58） in observation group was lower than 19.64% （11/56） in control group （<italic>χ</italic>²=5.187， <italic>P</italic><0.05）. Compare with control group after treatment， BAS-G，BASDAI， SPARCC， TCM symptoms， TNF-<italic>α</italic>， MIF and IL-23 in observation group were significantly decreased （<italic>P</italic><0.05）， while BGP， BMP-2， BALP， IgA， IgG and IgM were significantly increased （<italic>P</italic><0.05）. The incidence of adverse reactions was 12.07%（7/58） in observation group， which was lower than 32.14%（18/56） in control group （<italic>χ</italic>²=4.826，<italic>P</italic><0.05）. Conclusion:Modified Anshentang is effective in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis in early and middle stages with kidney deficiency and cold-governing syndrome， and the incidence of adverse reactions is low.

Programmed Death Ligand-1 (PD-L1) Regulated by NRF-2/MicroRNA-1 Regulatory Axis Enhances Drug Resistance and Promotes Tumorigenic Properties in Sorafenib-Resistant Hepatoma Cells.

Sorafenib, a multityrosine kinase inhibitor, is a standard treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the clinical response to sorafenib is seriously limited by drug resistance. Programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) is one of the most important inhibitory molecules involved in tumor immune evasion. Recently, it has been reported that PD-L1 could play crucial roles in drug resistance of many kinds of cancers. However, the expression, function, and regulation of PD-L1 in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells remain unclear. In this study, we reported that PD-L1 was overexpressed in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells, and shRNA-mediated PD-L1 depletion attenuated drug resistance and suppressed the migration, invasion, colony formation, and tumorigenesis in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistic investigations indicated that loss of microRNA-1 (miR-1), a tumor-suppressive microRNA, contributed to the PD-L1 upregulation in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells, and PD-L1 was a direct regulatory target of miR-1. Further study revealed that an oncogenic transcriptional factor, nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (NRF-2), was induced in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells and inhibited expression of miR-1 in vitro. From molecular mechanism insight back to the functional verification, we eventually demonstrated that miR-1 executed its tumor-suppressive effects on drug resistance and other malignant properties in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells partially by PD-L1 inhibition in vitro and in vivo. In conclusion, our data suggested that a NRF-2/miR-1/PD-L1 regulatory axis contributed to the development and maintenance of drug resistance and other tumorigenic properties in sorafenib-resistant hepatoma cells and provided a potential therapeutic target for overcoming sorafenib resistance in HCC.

LoAdaBoost: Loss-based AdaBoost federated machine learning with reduced computational complexity on IID and non-IID intensive care data.

Intensive care data are valuable for improvement of health care, policy making and many other purposes. Vast amount of such data are stored in different locations, on many different devices and in different data silos. Sharing data among different sources is a big challenge due to regulatory, operational and security reasons. One potential solution is federated machine learning, which is a method that sends machine learning algorithms simultaneously to all data sources, trains models in each source and aggregates the learned models. This strategy allows utilization of valuable data without moving them. One challenge in applying federated machine learning is the possibly different distributions of data from diverse sources. To tackle this problem, we proposed an adaptive boosting method named LoAdaBoost that increases the efficiency of federated machine learning. Using intensive care unit data from hospitals, we investigated the performance of learning in IID and non-IID data distribution scenarios, and showed that the proposed LoAdaBoost method achieved higher predictive accuracy with lower computational complexity than the baseline method.

Immunogenicity and Protective Efficacy of a Fusion Protein Tuberculosis Vaccine Combining Five Esx Family Proteins.

One strategy to develop the next generation of tuberculosis vaccines is to construct subunit vaccines based on T cell antigens. In this study, we have evaluated the vaccine potential of a fusion protein combining EsxB, EsxD, EsxG, EsxU, and EsxM of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb). This recombinant protein, named BM, was expressed in and purified from Escherichia coli. Immunization of C57BL/6 mice with purified BM protein formulated in Freund's incomplete adjuvant induced the production of Th1 cytokines (IFN-γ, TNF, and IL-2) and multifunctional CD4+ T cells. Vaccination of BALB/c mice with BM protein followed by intravenous challenge with Mycobacterium bovis BCG resulted in better levels of protection than the two leading antigens, Ag85A and PPE18. Taken together, these results indicate that BM is a protective antigen. Future studies to combine BM with other antigens and evaluate its effectiveness as a booster of BCG or as a therapeutic vaccine are warranted.

[A novel disposable circumcision device versus conventional surgery in the treatment of redundant prepuce and phimosis].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical effect of a novel disposable circumcision device Ring with that of conventional circumcision in the treatment of redundant prepuce and phimosis. METHODS: Totally, 750 patients with redundant prepuce or phimosis underwent Ring circumcision (group A, n = 450) or conventional circumcision (group B, n = 300). We recorded the operation time, intraoperative blood loss, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) intraoperative pain scores, postoperative complications, wound healing time, and patients' satisfaction with postoperative penile appearance, followed by comparison of the collected data between the two groups of patients. RESULTS: All the operations were successfully completed. Group A, as compared with B, showed significantly shorter operation time (ï¼»3.78 ± 0.42ï¼½ vs ï¼»26.24 ± 3.99ï¼½ min, P <0.05), less intraoperative blood loss (ï¼»2.39 ± 1.01ï¼½ vs ï¼»10.80 ± 3.57ï¼½ ml, P <0.05), lower pain scores intraoperatively (0.14 ± 0.36 vs 2.30 ± 1.46, P <0.05), 6 hours postoperatively (0.32 ± 0.78 vs 3.03 ± 1.56, P <0.05) and at the ring removal (3.35 ± 1.42 vs 2.78 ± 1.43, P <0.05), shorter wound healing time (ï¼»7.61 ± 1.60ï¼½ vs ï¼»8.57 ± 1.37ï¼½ d, P <0.05), higher satisfaction with postoperative penile appearance (97.8% ï¼»440/450ï¼½ vs 86% ï¼»258/300ï¼½, P <0.05), and lower incidence of postoperative bleeding or hematoma (0.89% ï¼»4/450ï¼½ vs 3% ï¼»9/300ï¼½, P <0.05). No statistically significant differences were observed between groups A and B in the nocturnal pain score before the ring removal (1.45±1.02 vs 1.38 ± 0.92, P >0.05) or the postoperative incidence rate of edema (0.89% ï¼»4/450ï¼½ vs 2.33% ï¼»7/300ï¼½, P >0.05). There were no significant postoperative infections or delayed incision healing except for 1 case of wound dehiscence in each group. CONCLUSIONS: Ring circumcision, with its advantages of shorter operation time, less blood loss and pain, higher safety, and better postoperative penile appearance, is easily accepted by the patients and deserves wide clinical application.

[A novel disposable ring versus the suture device in circumcision].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical effect of a novel disposable ring versus that of the suture device in circumcision for redundant prepuce and phimosis. METHODS: We randomly assigned 470 male patients with redundant prepuce or phimosis to receive circumcision with a novel disposable ring (the DR group, n = 235) or the suture device (the SD group, n = 235) and compared the operation time, intraoperative blood loss, pain scores, wound healing time, and postoperative complications and penile appearance between the two groups of patients. RESULTS: All the operations were completed smoothly. Compared with the SD group, the DR group showed significantly shorter operation time (ï¼»7.49 ± 1.84ï¼½ vs ï¼»3.83 ± 0.42ï¼½ min, P <0. 05), less intraoperative blood loss (ï¼»3.34 ± 2.59ï¼½ vs ï¼»2.41 ± 1.01ï¼½ ml, P <0.05), lower intraoperative pain score (0.57 ± 0.76 vs 0.20 ± 0.47, P <0.05) and 6-hour postoperative pain score (3.42 ± 1.12 vs 0.48 ± 0.94, P <0.05), shorter wound healing time (ï¼»12.05 ± 2.80ï¼½ vs ï¼»7.79 ± 1.65ï¼½ d, P <0.05), lower incidence rates of postoperative glans congestion or edema (36.17% ï¼»85/235ï¼½ vs 2.56% ï¼»6/235ï¼½, P <0.05), dysuria or strenuous urination (34.04% ï¼»80/235ï¼½ vs 2.13% ï¼»5/235ï¼½, P <0.05) and bleeding or hematoma (5.11% ï¼»12/235ï¼½ vs 1.28% ï¼»3/235ï¼½, P <0.05), and higher satisfaction with postoperative penile appearance (90.6% ï¼»213/235ï¼½ vs 95.8% ï¼»228/235ï¼½, P <0.05). There were no statistically significant differences between the SD and DR groups in the pain scores at the sixth night after operation (1.31 ± 0.96 vs 1.34 ± 1.07, P >0.05) or while the staples scraping the underpants or at the ring removal (3.49 ± 1.22 vs 3.36 ± 1.41, P >0.05). No obvious postoperative infection or delayed healing was observed except for 3 cases of wound dehiscence (1 in the DR and 2 in the SD group) and 8 cases of delayed removal of the staples in the SD group. CONCLUSIONS: The novel disposable ring, with its advantages of short operation time, less bleeding and pain, good penile appearance, high safety, and simple operation, is obviously superior to the suture device in circumcision and deserves to be applied and popularized clinically. .

Acupoint Thread Embedding plus Western Medication for Bronchial Asthma in Remission Stage: A Randomized Controlled Trial / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To observe the efficacy of acupoint thread embedding in treating bronchial asthma in remission stage and how it controls the acute attack, the length of interval, and severity of symptoms during the attack. Method Thirty subjects were selected as the treatment group by using the random number table following the visiting sequence, to receive acupoint thread embedding plus Western medication; thirty cases in the control group were given Western medication alone, both for 3 months. The pulmonary function and eosinophil count were compared before and after the intervention, as well as the symptoms scores during the acute attack. Result There were significant differences in most parameters between the two groups (P<0.05). Conclusion Acupoint thread embedding can produce a positive effect in preventing and treating bronchial asthma in remission stage.

A novel disposable circumcision device versus conventional surgery in the treatment of redundant prepuce and phimosis / 中华男科学杂志

Objective@#To compare the clinical effect of a novel disposable circumcision device Ring with that of conventional circumcision in the treatment of redundant prepuce and phimosis.@*METHODS@#Totally, 750 patients with redundant prepuce or phimosis underwent Ring circumcision (group A, n = 450) or conventional circumcision (group B, n = 300). We recorded the operation time, intraoperative blood loss, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) intraoperative pain scores, postoperative complications, wound healing time, and patients' satisfaction with postoperative penile appearance, followed by comparison of the collected data between the two groups of patients.@*RESULTS@#All the operations were successfully completed. Group A, as compared with B, showed significantly shorter operation time (［3.78 ± 0.42］ vs ［26.24 ± 3.99］ min, P 0.05) or the postoperative incidence rate of edema (0.89% ［4/450］ vs 2.33% ［7/300］, P >0.05). There were no significant postoperative infections or delayed incision healing except for 1 case of wound dehiscence in each group.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Ring circumcision, with its advantages of shorter operation time, less blood loss and pain, higher safety, and better postoperative penile appearance, is easily accepted by the patients and deserves wide clinical application.

A novel disposable ring versus the suture device in circumcision / 中华男科学杂志

Objective@#To investigate the clinical effect of a novel disposable ring versus that of the suture device in circumcision for redundant prepuce and phimosis.@*METHODS@#We randomly assigned 470 male patients with redundant prepuce or phimosis to receive circumcision with a novel disposable ring (the DR group, n = 235) or the suture device (the SD group, n = 235) and compared the operation time, intraoperative blood loss, pain scores, wound healing time, and postoperative complications and penile appearance between the two groups of patients.@*RESULTS@#All the operations were completed smoothly. Compared with the SD group, the DR group showed significantly shorter operation time (［7.49 ± 1.84］ vs ［3.83 ± 0.42］ min, P 0.05) or while the staples scraping the underpants or at the ring removal (3.49 ± 1.22 vs 3.36 ± 1.41, P >0.05). No obvious postoperative infection or delayed healing was observed except for 3 cases of wound dehiscence (1 in the DR and 2 in the SD group) and 8 cases of delayed removal of the staples in the SD group.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The novel disposable ring, with its advantages of short operation time, less bleeding and pain, good penile appearance, high safety, and simple operation, is obviously superior to the suture device in circumcision and deserves to be applied and popularized clinically. .

Variable Virulence and Efficacy of BCG Vaccine Strains in Mice and Correlation With Genome Polymorphisms.

Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG), an attenuated strain of Mycobacterium bovis, is the only vaccine available for tuberculosis (TB) control. However, BCG is not an ideal vaccine and has two major limitations: BCG exhibits highly variable effectiveness against the development of TB both in pediatric and adult populations and can cause disseminated BCG disease in immunocompromised individuals. BCG comprises a number of substrains that are genetically distinct. Whether and how these genetic differences affect BCG efficacy remains largely unknown. In this study, we performed comparative analyses of the virulence and efficacy of 13 BCG strains, representing different genetic lineages, in SCID and BALB/c mice. Our results show that BCG strains of the DU2 group IV (BCG-Phipps, BCG-Frappier, BCG-Pasteur, and BCG-Tice) exhibit the highest levels of virulence, and BCG strains of the DU2 group II (BCG-Sweden, BCG-Birkhaug) are among the least virulent group. These distinct levels of virulence may be explained by strain-specific duplications and deletions of genomic DNA. There appears to be a general trend that more virulent BCG strains are also more effective in protection against Mycobacterium tuberculosis challenge. Our findings have important implications for current BCG vaccine programs and for future TB vaccine development.

MicroRNA-1 promotes apoptosis of hepatocarcinoma cells by targeting apoptosis inhibitor-5 (API-5).

Although microRNA-1 (miR-1) is a known liver cancer suppressor, the role of miR-1 in apoptosis of hepatoma cells has remained largely unknown. Our study shows that ectopic miR-1 overexpression induced apoptosis of liver hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cells. Apoptosis inhibitor 5 (API-5) was found to be a potential regulator of miR-1 induced apoptosis, using a bioinformatics approach. Furthermore, an inverse relationship between miR-1 and API-5 expression was observed in human liver cancer tissues and adjacent normal liver tissues. Negative regulation of API-5 expression by miR-1 was demonstrated to promote apoptosis of HepG2 cells. Our study provides a novel regulatory mechanism of miR-1 in the apoptosis of hepatoma cells.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms of PIN1 promoter region and cancer risk: evidence from a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Peptidylprolyl cis/trans isomerase NIMA-interacting 1 (PIN1) is involved in the process of tumorigenesis. The two single nucleotide polymorphisms (-677T>C, -842G>C) in the PIN1 promoter region have been suspected of being associated with cancer risk for years, but the conclusion is still inconclusive. METHODS: Eligible case-control studies were retrieved by searching databases and references of related reviews and studies. Genotype distribution data, adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence (CIs) intervals were extracted to calculate pooled ORs. RESULTS: A total of 4619 cancer cases and 4661 controls were included in this meta-analysis. Overall, the PIN1 -667T>C polymorphism was not associated with cancer risk, while the -842C allele was significantly associated with reduced cancer risk (CC+GC vs. GG, OR = 0.725, 95% CI: 0.607-0.865; P(heterogeneity) = 0.012 and GC vs. GG: OR = 0.721, 95% CI: 0.591-0.880; P(heterogeneity) = 0.003). Results from genotype distribution data were in agreement with those calculated with adjusted ORs and 95% CIs. No publication bias was detected. CONCLUSIONS: Results of this meta-analysis suggest that the PIN1 -842G>C polymorphism is associated with decreased cancer risk, but that the -667T>C polymorphism is not.

Analysis of surgical treatment results in 120 cases of Budd-Chiari syndrome / 中华外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the results of the surgical treatment of patients with Budd-Chiari syndrome (BCS).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The clinic data of 120 BCS patients who underwent various consecutive surgical treatments from July 2001 to October 2010 was analyzed. There were 82 male and 38 female patients, aging from 11 to 72 years with a mean age of (41 ± 13) years. All patients experienced various examinations to identify the pathological type of BCS. There were 5 cases of small hepatic veins type, 28 cases of large hepatic veins (LHV) type, 31 cases of inferior vena cava (IVC) type and 56 cases of combined obstruction of LHV and IVC. Totally, 25 patients experienced interventional treatment, include percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and/or stenting for stenosis of hepatic vein and/or IVC, 77 patients experienced open-thorax operation for BCS radical resection under protection of right atrium by-pass with extracorporeal circulation.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Totally 97 cases were followed up from 1 to 120 months after various surgical treatment methods. Perioperative mortality was 6.2% (6/97). Follow-up period mortality was 8.2% (8/97). The restenosis of IVC and/or hepatic vein happened in 3 cases out of 25 cases in intervention treatment group in contrast with 15 cases out of 77 cases in radical resection group. The 5-year patency and survival rate of IVC/hepatic vein were 64.5% and 83.3%.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The surgical treatment of BCS need to get accurate diagnosis and pathological classification firstly, then, to choose appropriate therapeutic strategies based on individual pathological classification. The BCS radical resection can be an alternative method in some particular pathological classifications and the cases who failed in interventional treatment.</p>

5-AZA-2'-deoxycytidine (5-AZA-CdR) leads to down-regulation of Dnmt1o and gene expression in preimplantation mouse embryos.

5-AZA-2'-deoxycytidine (5-AZA-CdR) is a demethylating, teratogenic agent and a mutagen, which causes defects in the developing mouse and rat after implantation. Our previous data indicated that 5-AZA-CdR (0.2 and 1.0 muM) inhibited the development of mouse preimplantation embryos. Pronuclear embryos exposed to 5-AZA-CdR at the pronuclear stage were unable to form 8-cell embryos, while 2-cell-stage embryos exposed to 5-AZA-CdR only developed into uncompacted 8-cell-stage embryos. And there was no formation of blastocysts when 4-cell embryos cultured in 5-AZA-CdR. In our present study, we detected Dnmt1o protein and some developmental gene expression in order to find the reasons for the developmental arrest. Dnmt1o could not traffic to 8-cell nuclei as control when embryos were exposed to 5-AZA-CdR. Dnmt1o was in cytoplasm at 2-cell and 4-cell stages before and after treated with 5-AZA-CdR. Gene expression changes were also detected in this research. Our data indicated that connexin 31 (Cx31), connexin 43 (Cx43), connexin 45 (Cx45), E-cadherin (Cdh1) and beta-catenin (Ctnnb1) were all downregulated by 5-AZA-CdR. Cx31, Cx43 and Cx45 are members of connexins family, which have a central role in gap junctions. Cdh1 and Ctnnb1 are necessary for the foundation of tight junctions. Therefore, developmental arrest induced by 5-AZA-CdR may be caused by the failure of Dnmt1o cytoplasmic-nuclear traffic and the down-regulation of developmental gene expression. Normal compaction and blastocoel cavitation need Dnmt1o traffic to 8-cell nuclei and the right gene expression, especially the correlative genes in gap junctions and tight junctions.

[Progress in predicting animal feed intake of plant secondary compounds by spectral analysis].

Study on feed intake of phytophagic animals is a key issue in promoting animal productivity and conservation of wild life. However, how to accurately predict the feed intake of grazing animal and wild life is a long remaining problem. Under the mechanism of co-evolution, plant produces secondary compounds such as phenolics, terpenoids and nitrogen-containing compounds to avoid or reduce animal herbivorous damage as a defensive strategy, while animal attained detoxification capacity of biotransforming and mineralizing the compounds by microbial activities and reactions such as hydrolysis and reduction. The attributes of feedstuff and the amount of a particular feed consumed by the animal affect directly the urinary excretion of secondary metabolites. Plant secondary compounds and their metabolites can be efficiently extracted, separated and structure-identified by spectroscopic analytic method. Then the feed intake of the animal can be accurately measured or predicted by the inference model of concentration-ratio that is based on the regression of correlating the secondary metabolites to the precursors in plant. Aromatic compounds, an universal occurrence in vascular plants, play an important role in predicting feed intake of ruminants. Progresses have been made all-around about the new method. Intensive studies have found that different species and developing stage of plant have varying kinds and levels of secondary compounds, and the age, gender and type of animal have different capacity of metabolizing the compounds. Increasing concentrations of the compounds in the diet led to a dose-dependent decrease in food intake best described as an exponential decay. Animals that had not previously been exposed to the compounds ate significantly more when first offered food containing the compound than on subsequent days. Advanced spectroscopic analytic method has been developed and widely applied in extraction (e. g. microwave assisted extraction and ultrasonic extraction), separation and purification (e. g. paper chromatography, VLC, GC, HSCCC, Micro-LC and HPLC), and structure-identification (e. g. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, ultraviolet spectroscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy) of plant secondary compounds and their metabolites. Studies suggest that some aromatic compounds like phenolic alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, lignin and N-alkane are suited internal markers and find that the method to predict animal feed intake of plant secondary compound by spectral analysis is quick, accurate and applicable. The further focus should be on selecting appropriate compounds and their fate in metabolizing and excretion, and the development of intelligentized spectroscopy equipments.

AP-1 regulates TGF-beta1-induced secretion of Type I collagen in human lung fibroblasts / 中南大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the role of AP-1 in the secretion of Type I collagen in TGF-beta1-stimulated human lung fibroblasts.@*METHODS@#Human lung fibroblasts cell line (HLF-02) was cultured, and then stimulated with 10 microg/L TGF-beta1 at different time points. Curcumin was added into the culture medium to inhibit the AP-1 activity before incubating with TGF-beta1. AP-1 DNA binding activity was assayed by electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA), and the expression of Type I collagen was detected by Western blot and RT-PCR.@*RESULTS@#TGF-beta1 could induce the transcription and secretion of Type I collagen in HLF-02 cells(P<0.05). TGF-beta1 could upregulate the AP-1 DNA binding activity ( P<0.05). Curcumin ( 5, 10, 15, and 20 micromol/L) could inhibit the AP-1 DNA binding activity in TGF-beta1-stimulated cells (the inhibition ratio was 17.1%, 17.6%, 24.2%, and 31.3%; P<0.05). Curcumin (5, 10, 15, and 20 micromol/L) could also inhibit the secretion of Type I collagen significantly (the inhibition ratio was 62.1%, 58.8%, 62.1%, and 59.6%; P<0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#AP-1 is responsible for the secretion of TGF-beta1-induced Type I collagen in human lung fibroblasts.

Expression and role of nuclear transcription factor Sp1 in macrophages stimulated by silicon dioxide / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the expression and localization of nuclear transcription factor Sp1 in macrophages after stimulated by silicon dioxide in vivo and in vitro.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Forty Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into the control group and the silica exposure group, 20 in each group. The rat silicosis models were established by direct tracheal instillation of silica into rat lung (0.2 g/kg) only once while the control group was instilled with equal amount of saline. Animals were killed at 1st, 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th day after instillation. Dynamic changes of Sp1 protein expression and its cellular localization were detected by immunohistochemistry in pulmonary macrophages. In vitro, Sp1 mRNA and protein expression and their dynamic changes were monitored by RT-PCR and western blotting after stimulated by silicon dioxide in cultured RAW264.7 macrophages respectively. Cellular localization of Sp1 protein was characterized by immunocytochemistry.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared to the control group, the Sp1 protein expression was increased in pulmonary macrophages and reached the peak at the 14th day in the silica exposure group. In vitro, the Sp1 mRNA level began to rise at 30 minutes after the administration of silicon dioxide and reached the peak at 240 minutes and then decreased to the minimal level at 960 minutes. The Sp1 total protein and nuclear protein also exhibited the similar trend. The former reached the peak at 240 minutes and the latter at 480 minutes. The significant nuclear translocation of Sp1 protein was observed at 120 minutes after the administration of silicon dioxide and became most significant at 480 minutes.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Silicon dioxide can activate nuclear transcription factor Sp1 in macrophages in vivo and in vitro. Sp1 might play an important pathogenic role in the development of silicosis.</p>