Complete chloroplast genome sequences of the medicinal plant Aconitum transsectum (Ranunculaceae): comparative analysis and phylogenetic relationships.

BACKGROUND: Aconitum transsectum Diels. (Ranunculaceae) is an important medicinal plant that is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine, but its morphological traits make it difficult to recognize from other Aconitum species. No research has sequenced the chloroplast genome of A.transsectum, despite the fact that phylogenetic analysis based on chloroplast genome sequences provides essential evidence for plant classification. RESULTS: In this study, the chloroplast (cp) genome of A. transsectum was sequenced, assembled, and annotated. A. transsectum cp genome is a 155,872 bp tetrameric structure including a large single copy (LSC, 87,671 bp) and a small single copy (SSC, 18,891 bp) section, as well as a pair of inverted repeat sequences (IRa and IRb, 25,894 bp each). 131 genes are encoded by the complete cp genome, comprising 86 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNAs, and 8 rRNAs. The most favored codon in the A. transsectum cp genome is AUG, and 46 repeats and 241 SSRs were also identified. The A. transsectum cp genome is similar in size, gene composition, and IR expansion and contraction to the cp genomes of seven Ranunculaceae species. Phylogenetic analysis of cp genomes of 28 plants from the Ranunculaceae family shows that A. transsectum is most closely related to A. vilmorinianum, A. episcopale, and A. forrestii of Subgen. Aconitum. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, this study provides complete cp genome resources for A. transsectum that will be beneficial for identifying potential.

Role of nuclear medicine in the European guidelines for prostate cancer / 中华核医学与分子影像杂志

Prostate cancer is the most common malignancy of the male genitourinary system. In 2022, the European Association of Urology (EAU) published an update of the guidelines for prostate cancer, following the updating of evidence. The clinical application of nuclear medicine diagnostic and therapeutic techniques in the staging and grading, screening and assessment of prostate cancer, especially metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, is becoming more and more valuable. This article aims to introduce the application of nuclear medicine recommended in the 2022 edition of EAU guidelines for prostate cancer based on the latest clinical evidence.

Molecular cloning, inducible expression and function analysis of Epinephelus coioides Sec6 response to SGIV infection.

Exocyst complex component 3 Sec6 of mammals, one of the components of the exocyst complex, participates in numerous cellular functions, such as promoting cell migration and inhibiting apoptosis. In this study, the Sec6 was obtained from Epinephelus coioides, an economically important cultured fish. The full length of E. coioides Sec6 was 2655 bp including a 245 bp 5' UTR, a 154 bp 3' UTR, and a 2256 bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding 751 amino acids, with a molecular mass of 86.76 kDa and a theoretical pI of 5.57. Sec6 mRNA was detected in all the tissues examined, but the expression level is different in these tissues. Using fluorescence microscopy, Sec6 were distributed in both the nucleus and the cytoplasm. After SGIV infection, the expression of E. coioides Sec6 was significantly up-regulated in both trunk kidney and spleen response to Singapore grouper iridovirus (SGIV), an important pathogens of E. coioides. Sec6 could increase the SGIV-induced cytopathic effects (CPE), the expression of the SGIV genes VP19, LITAF, MCP, ICP18 and MCP, and the viral titers. Besides, E. coioides Sec6 significantly downregulated the promoter of NF-κB and AP-1, and inhibited the SGIV-induced apoptosis. The results demonstrated that E. coioides Sec6 might play important roles in SGIV infection.

Epinephelus coioides Hsp27 negatively regulates innate immune response and apoptosis induced by Singapore grouper iridovirus (SGIV) infection.

Heat shock proteins (Hsps) are important for maintaining protein homeostasis and cell survival. In this study, Hsp27 of Epinephelus coioides, an economically important marine fish in China and Southeast Asian countries, was characterized. E. coioides Hsp27 contains the consered ACD_HspB1_like domain and three p38 MAPK phosphorylation sites, located at Thr-13, Thr-60 and Ser-167. E. coioides Hsp27 was distributed in both the cytoplasm and nucleus, its mRNA was detected in all 14 tissues examined, and its expression was up-regulated after challenge with Singapore grouper iridovirus (SGIV), an important E. coioides pathogen. Over-expression of E. coioides Hsp27 significantly upregulated the expressions of the key SGIV genes (VP19, LITAF, MCP, and ICP18), downgraded the expressions of the E. coioides immune factors (IRF3, IRF7, ISG15, and TRAF6) and proinflammatory factors (TNF-α, IL-8), downgraded the activation of nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) and activator protein-1 (AP-1), and substantially inhibited the cell apoptosis induced by SGIV infection. These data illustrated that E. coioides Hsp27 might be involved in SGIV infection by negatively regulating the innate immune response.

Development of a prediction model for enteral feeding intolerance in intensive care unit patients: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Enteral nutrition (EN) is essential for critically ill patients. However, some patients will have enteral feeding intolerance (EFI) in the process of EN. AIM: To develop a clinical prediction model to predict the risk of EFI in patients receiving EN in the intensive care unit. METHODS: A prospective cohort study was performed. The enrolled patients' basic information, medical status, nutritional support, and gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms were recorded. The baseline data and influencing factors were compared. Logistic regression analysis was used to establish the model, and the bootstrap resampling method was used to conduct internal validation. RESULTS: The sample cohort included 203 patients, and 37.93% of the patients were diagnosed with EFI. After the final regression analysis, age, GI disease, early feeding, mechanical ventilation before EN started, and abnormal serum sodium were identified. In the internal validation, 500 bootstrap resample samples were performed, and the area under the curve was 0.70 (95%CI: 0.63-0.77). CONCLUSION: This clinical prediction model can be applied to predict the risk of EFI.

Feasibility of application of deformable image registration to the dosimetry assessment of fractionated brachytherapy for cervical cancer / 中华放射医学与防护杂志

Objective:To study the differences in the cumulative dose between deformable image registration (DIR) and simple dose-volume histogram (DVH) summation in the fractionated brachytherapy of cervical cancer, and to analyze the feasibility of the application of DIR in the dosimetry assessment of targets and organs-at-risk (OARs) in the brachytherapy.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted for 13 cases with primary cervical cancer treated with four fractions of interstitial brachytherapy guided by CT images. The four CT images of each cases were registered using an intensity-based DIR. Then, the cumulative doses (the D2 cm 3, D1 cm 3, and D0.1 cm 3 of the bladder, rectum, intestine, and colon and the D90for targets) after DIR were calculated and compared to those obtained using simple DVH summation. Afterward, the correlation between the dose difference and dice similarity coefficient (DSC) was analyzed. With the dose difference (the remaining dose of OARs caused by the DIR) as limits, a new plan was made for the latest CT to calculate the dose increase to targets. Results:Compared to simple DVH summation, DIR allowed the cumulative doses of the D2 cm 3 and D1 cm 3 of bladder to be decreased by (2.47±1.92) and (2.82±2.73) Gy, respectively on average ( t=-3.65, -2.93, P < 0.05), those of the D2 cm 3, D1 cm 3, and D0.1 cm 3 of rectum to be decreased by (2.05 ± 1.61) Gy, (1.51 ± 1.58), and (3.21 ± 2.50) Gy, respectively on average ( t=-4.02, -3.02, -4.06, P < 0.05), and those of the D2 cm 3, D1 cm 3, and D0.1 cm 3 to be decreased by (1.42 ± 0.99), (1.55 ± 1.28) Gy, and (2.43 ± 1.95) Gy, respectively on average ( t=-3.52, -2.96, -3.06, P < 0.05). There was no significant statistical difference in the D90 of targets, the D0.1 cm 3 of the bladder, and the D2 cm 3, D1 cm 3, D0.1 cm 3 of the colon ( P > 0.05) between both methods, and there was no distinct correlation between DSC and dose difference ( P > 0.05). The DIR increased the dose to targets, with a median value of 150 cGy. However, the accuracy of the DIR should be improved. Conclusions:In clinical practice of multiple fractions of brachytherapy for cervical cancer, it′s still recommended to adopt the simple dose summation method to assess the doses to targets and OARs.

Synthesis, electrochemistry, DNA binding and in vitro cytotoxic activity of tripodal ferrocenyl bis-naphthalimide derivatives.

A series of tripodal ferrocenyl bis-naphthalimide derivatives were synthesized and characterized. All of the bis-naphthalimide derivatives exhibited good DNA binding ability which was confirmed by ethidium bromide (EB) displacement experiment and ultraviolet (UV)-visible absorption titration. And the binding mode of these compounds was proved to be a hybrid binding mode by experiments. The cytotoxicity of synthesized compounds against 4 different human cancer cell lines (EC109, BGC823, SGC7901 and HEPG2) was evaluated by thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. All of the bis-naphthalimide derivatives exhibited good anticancer activity than the positive control drug (amonafide), which was due to the promotion of reactive oxygen species (ROS) level in test cancer cells by the reversible one-electron redox process of ferrocenyl bis-naphthalimide derivatives. Although there was no obvious relationship between the binding constants and the chain length, the structure cytotoxicity relationship revealed that the linker of n = 3, m = 1 was the best choice for the tested tripodol bis-naphthalimide derivatives. SYNOPSIS: A series of tripodal ferrocenyl bis-naphthalimide derivatives were synthesized to study the DNA binding ability and the cytotoxicity induced by reactive oxygen species. All of the compounds exhibited good DNA binding ability. And the structure cytotoxicity relationship revealed that the structure of 5h was the best choice.

Research Progress on Chemical Constituents， Pharmacological Effect and Clinical Applications of Daturae Flos / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Daturae Flos is a traditional antitussive and antiasthmatic medicine， its flowers and leaves are rich in a variety of compounds， including withanolides， alkaloids， terpenes， flavonoids and amides. Because of its antiasthmatic， antitussive， antispasmodic and analgesia effect， it is traditionally used for the treatment of asthma， cough， cold pain in abdominal cavity， rheumatic arthralgia， infantile chronic eclampsia， and can also be used as raw material for surgical anesthesia. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that in addition to the traditional efficacy， Daturae Flos also has anti-inflammatory， immunosuppression， anti-convulsion and other effects， and is often used in the treatment of psoriasis， Parkinson's disease， epilepsy， rheumatoid arthritis and other diseases. At present， the chemical constituents of Daturae Flos are mainly focused on withanolides and alkaloids. At the same time， there is a lack of clear classification of chemical components and the distribution of chemical components in medicinal parts of this medicine， and little information is available for the pharmacological effects of polysaccharides. Based on this， this paper systematically searched relevant literature of Daturae Flos， and summarized and analyzed its chemical composition， pharmacological effect and clinical application， in order to provide reference for further development and utilization of Daturae Flos.

Study of the verification of the source positioning and dwelling time based on the well-chamber / 中华放射肿瘤学杂志

Objective:To establish a dosimetric method based on the well-chamber to verify the accuracy of the source positioning and dwelling time for the afterloading machine, aiming to provide a new method for the quality control of afterloading machine.Methods:The principle of this method was explained according to the hardware structure of the well-chamber. Then, the precision of this method was analyzed by the simulation test and data fitting. The feasibility test was also performed. And the advantages and disadvantages of this method were compared with those of the traditional method.Results:The precision of this method for detecting the source positioning was 0.07 mm and the dwelling time was 0.09 s, respectively. In the feasibility test, the standard deviation of the measure value was below 3%.Conclusions:The well-chamber method has high precision and convenient operation. It can be applied in the rapid verification of the relative accuracy of the source positioning and dwelling time of well-chamber.

Vascular Complications of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Regression Analysis.

OBJECTIVES: Perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of vascular complications associated with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and identify prognostic and predictive factors. DATA SOURCES: Systematic search for publications reporting vascular complications on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, published from 1972 to January 31, 2020, was conducted via PubMed, Scopus, and Embase. STUDY SELECTION: Of 4,076 references screened, 47 studies with 6,583 patients were included in final analyses. Studies with fewer than 10 patients were excluded. DATA EXTRACTION: Relevant data, including demographics, comorbidities, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and cannulation characteristics, occurrence rates of early and late vascular complications, patient outcomes, and use of distal perfusion cannula, were extracted from selected articles into an excel sheet specifically designed for this review. DATA SYNTHESIS: Random-effects meta-analyses and meta-regression analyses were undertaken. Overall pooled estimate of vascular complications in our meta-analysis was 29.5% (95% CI, 23.6-35.9%). Two-thousand three-hundred forty-seven vascular complications in 6,124 venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation patients compared with 95 in 459 venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation patients (odds ratio, 2.35; 95% CI, 1.87-2.96; p < 0.0001) were analyzed. Successful weaning off extracorporeal membrane oxygenation occurred in 60.6% of pooled patients; 46.2% were eventually discharged. Pooled prevalences of vascular complications like significant bleeding, limb ischemia, and cannula site bleeding were 15.4% (95% CI, 8.6-23.7%), 12.6% (95% CI, 10.0-15.5%), and 12.6% (95% CI, 9.6-18.5%), respectively. Meta-analysis showed that the use of distal perfusion cannula was associated with lower odds of limb ischemia (odds ratio, 1.93; 95% CI, 1.17-2.47; p = 0.03) Meta-regression showed that male sex, smoking, advanced age, and comorbidities contributed to higher in-hospital mortality, while distal perfusion cannula was protective. CONCLUSIONS: Nearly a third of patients on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation develop vascular complications; elderly males with comorbidities appear vulnerable. The use of distal perfusion cannulas caused significant reduction in limb ischemia and mortality.

Feasibility study of using two dimensional array ion-chamber to verifiy relative dose distribution calculated with Acuros BV / 中华放射医学与防护杂志

Objective To study the feasibility of using the PTW729 2D array ion-chamber to verify the relative dose distribution calculated with the Acuros BV algorithm.Both advantages and disadvantages of the method were analyzed to provide reference for practical clinical practices.Methods Based on self-built measurement phantoms,the dose distribution on the same slice of the phantom was measured with PTW729 and film,respectively,under the same measurement condition and plan.The dose distributions obtained by the two method were compared with the result calculated with Acuros BV,separately,by using γ analytical tool.And the stability of the PTW729 was tested.Results The γ comparison value was 95.9％ between the film and Acuros BV,98.9％ between the PTW729 and Acuros BV and 88.0％ between the film and PTW729,with 95.0％,i00.0％,and 100.0％,in their stability test respectively.Conclusions PTW729 2D array ion-chamber can be applied to the rapid verification of Acuros BV algorithm-calculated relative dose distribution.

Feasibility study of using two dimensional array ion-chamber to verifiy relative dose distribution calculated with Acuros BV / 中华放射医学与防护杂志

Objective@#To study the feasibility of using the PTW729 2D array ion-chamber to verify the relative dose distribution calculated with the Acuros BV algorithm. Both advantages and disadvantages of the method were analyzed to provide reference for practical clinical practices.@*Methods@#Based on self-built measurement phantoms, the dose distribution on the same slice of the phantom was measured with PTW729 and film, respectively, under the same measurement condition and plan. The dose distributions obtained by the two method were compared with the result calculated with Acuros BV, separately, by using γ analytical tool. And the stability of the PTW729 was tested.@*Results@#The γ comparison value was 95.9% between the film and Acuros BV, 98.9% between the PTW729 and Acuros BV and 88.0% between the film and PTW729, with 95.0%, 100.0%, and 100.0%, in their stability test respectively.@*Conclusions@#PTW729 2D array ion-chamber can be applied to the rapid verification of Acuros BV algorithm-calculated relative dose distribution.

Autopsy and clinical discrepancies in patients undergoing extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: a case series.

BACKGROUND: Extracorporeal life support is used as a salvage procedure to treat refractory cardiopulmonary failure. There are limited data addressing discrepancies between pre- and postmortem findings in patients undergoing extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). We investigated discrepancies between clinical and autopsy findings in patients placed on ECMO to assess in what proportion of patients were there significant cardiovascular or other pathologies present that were not clinically apparent prior to death. METHODOLOGY: After institutional review board approval, a list of deceased ECMO patients who underwent autopsy examination from 2004 through 2015 was obtained from our institutional database. Retrospective analyses of findings on clinical investigations done while patients were on ECMO and findings on autopsy examination were compared and stratified according to modified Goldman Criteria, which classify discrepancies into four grades depending on their impact on patient's management and mortality. RESULTS: Of 19 patients, 18 patients had venoarterial ECMO (9 central + 5 peripheral + 4 conversions of ECMO type) and 1 patient received venovenous ECMO. Clinically unrecognized findings were found on autopsy in all patients. 56.6% of total discrepancies found were major [class I/II; e.g., myocardial infarction (MI), intracranial bleeding]. All patients had major discrepancies (class I/II) with an average of 4.21 class I discrepancies per patient. Class I discrepancies are findings which could have altered the course of treatment and survival of the patient if recognized premortem. The most common discrepancies were cardiovascular (MI 63.2%, marked cardiac remodeling 42.1%, severe coronary disease 31.6%) in nature across four classes of discrepancies. CONCLUSIONS: We found major discrepancies between premortem and postmortem diagnoses in patients who underwent ECMO. Our findings underscore difficulties in clinically diagnosing events on ECMO as well as the need for enhanced surveillance and better diagnostic techniques in ECMO patients. Further prospective studies are necessary to understand effects of ECMO on major organs.

Study on cardiovascular injury of anesthesia rat induced by chronic intermittent hypoxia / 局解手术学杂志

Objective To investigate the effect of chronic intermittent hypoxia(CIH)on the cardiovascular system in anesthetized rats. Methods A totally of 72 male SD rats were randomly divided into three groups(n=24),namely the ormoxia control group(control group), the normoxia anesthesia group(model group)and the chronic intermittent hypoxia group(CIH group).Rats of the control group breathe nor-mally.The model group was given intraperitoneal injection of 10%hydration with 0.3 mL/kg,and the CIH group was given chronic intermit-tent hypoxic stimulation with 8 h/d in addtion to the model group.The difference of ultrasonic echocardiography data,blood pressure,endothe-lin type-1,and endothelial nitric oxide synthase(eNOS)in rats of the three groups were compared.After 28 days,these rats were sacrificed to observe the changes of myocardial cell structure.Results In the control group,the myocardial morphology was normal,the cells arranged e-venly,and there was no swelling and inflammation.In the model group,the myocardial cells were evenly arranged without hypertrophy and in-flammatory changes.In the CIH group,the myocardial cells in the hypoxic group were not evenly arranged,and hypertrophy,swelling,deform-ation,hyperchromia,and obvious inflammatory changes of the myocardial tissue were observed.In the control group,myocardial cell nucleus and cytoplasm were uniformly arranged,and there was no obvious changes in the model group.On the contrary,myocardial cell morphology changed obviously in the CIH group,with the cell morphology and size of the inhomogeneity increased, and the color of the apoptosis cells changes from light to dark.The tail artery systolic pressure of rats in CIH group was significantly higher than that of the control group and the model group,and the LVEF of CIH group was significantly lower than that of the other two groups(P<0.05).Ultrasound detection value sug-gests that the LVID and left ventricular of rats in the CIH group were slightly larger,and the diastolic function was normal.The LVDs of the model group and the CIH group were both higher than that of the control group with statistically significant difference(P<0.05).The RBC, HCT,dp/dtmax,and -dp/dtmax in the CIH group were significantly higher than those of the control group and the model group(P<0.05). Serum levels of endothelin-1 in CIH group were significantly higher than that of control group and model group,while the summation of serum NO2-/NO3-and eNOS in CIH group were significantly lower than those of the control group and the model group(P<0.05).Conclusion Chronic intermittent hypoxia can cause cardiac dysfunction in anesthetized rats,which may lead to the imbalance of serum endothelin-1 and NO levels,leading to endothelial dysfunction and myocardial injury.

Role of p38 mitogen activated protein kinase signaling pathway in lung ischemia-reperfusion protection offered by HOE642 / 中南大学学报(医学版)

Objective:To explore the protective effect of sodium channels antagonists HOE642 on lung ischemia reperfusion and the role of the p38 mitogen activated protein kinase (p38MAPK) signaling pathway in this process.Methods:A total of 36 mice were randomly divided into a sham operation group (SHAM group),a lung ischemia reperfusion group (I/R group) and a lung ischemia reperfusion+HOE642 group (HOE group).The water content was detected by electronic scales,and the lung tissue pathological changes were observed under optical microscope.The inflammatory cytokines including IL-6 and TNF-α were examined by ELISA.The intracellular calcium fluorescence intensity was examined and observed under fluorescence microscope,and the protein expression of p38MAPK was detected by Western blot.Results:Lung water content in the HOE group was lower than that in the I/R group,but higher than that in the SHAM group (both P＜0.05).Lung interstitial edema,hemorrhage,lung tissue inflammatory cells infiltration were significantly alleviated in the HOE group than those in the I/R group,while the injury in the HOE group was aggravated than those in the SHAM group (both P＜0.05).T he IL-6 and TNF-α in lung tissues in the HOE group were lower than those in the I/R group,but higher than those in the SHAM group (both P＜0.05).Intracellular calcium fluorescence intensity in the HOE group was lower than that in the I/R group,but higher than that in the SHAM group (both P＜0.05).The protein expression of p38MAPK in lung tissues in the HOE group was lower than that in the I/R group,but higher than that in the SHAM group (both P＜0.05).Conclusion:HOE642 may exert protective effect on pulmonary I/R injury through regulation of the p38MAPK signaling pathway,resulting in reduction of intracellular calcium ion concentration and calcium overload,and decrease of inflammatory response.

On Holo-Hilbert spectral analysis: a full informational spectral representation for nonlinear and non-stationary data.

The Holo-Hilbert spectral analysis (HHSA) method is introduced to cure the deficiencies of traditional spectral analysis and to give a full informational representation of nonlinear and non-stationary data. It uses a nested empirical mode decomposition and Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT) approach to identify intrinsic amplitude and frequency modulations often present in nonlinear systems. Comparisons are first made with traditional spectrum analysis, which usually achieved its results through convolutional integral transforms based on additive expansions of an a priori determined basis, mostly under linear and stationary assumptions. Thus, for non-stationary processes, the best one could do historically was to use the time-frequency representations, in which the amplitude (or energy density) variation is still represented in terms of time. For nonlinear processes, the data can have both amplitude and frequency modulations (intra-mode and inter-mode) generated by two different mechanisms: linear additive or nonlinear multiplicative processes. As all existing spectral analysis methods are based on additive expansions, either a priori or adaptive, none of them could possibly represent the multiplicative processes. While the earlier adaptive HHT spectral analysis approach could accommodate the intra-wave nonlinearity quite remarkably, it remained that any inter-wave nonlinear multiplicative mechanisms that include cross-scale coupling and phase-lock modulations were left untreated. To resolve the multiplicative processes issue, additional dimensions in the spectrum result are needed to account for the variations in both the amplitude and frequency modulations simultaneously. HHSA accommodates all the processes: additive and multiplicative, intra-mode and inter-mode, stationary and non-stationary, linear and nonlinear interactions. The Holo prefix in HHSA denotes a multiple dimensional representation with both additive and multiplicative capabilities.

The effects of agmatine on acute peritoneal inflammatory injury and neutrophil infiltration induced by zymosan in mice / 中华危重病急救医学

Objective To investigate the protective effect of agmatine (AGM) against peritoneal inflammatory response and neutrophil (PMN) infiltration induced by zymosan (ZYM) in mice. Methods Thirty-six adult male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into sham group, model group, and AGM treatment group. Peritonitis model was reproduced by intra-peritoneal injection of 1 mg/mL ZYM (0.5 mL), while equivalent phosphate buffer saline (PBS) was given to sham group. 200 mg/kg AGM was injected into peritoneal cavity after ZYM challenge in AGM treatment group. Six mice in each group were sacrificed at 2 hours and 6 hours, respectively, after reproduction of the model. Blood sample and peritoneal lavage fluid (PLF) were collected. The levels of keratinocyte-derived chemokine (KC), macrophage inflammatory protein 2 (MIP-2), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukins-6 (IL-6) in serum and PLF were determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The number of leukocytes and PMN in PLF were determined by hemocytometer and flow cytometry, respectively. Results Compared with sham group, all serum and PLF levels of KC, MIP-2, TNF-α and IL-6 were greatly elevated at 2 hours after ZYM injection in model group, while AGM treatment could dramatically reduce the levels of the above-mentioned cytokines in serum and PLF as compared with those of the model group [serum KC (ng/L): 990.7±137.9 vs. 2 053.2±262.7, MIP-2 (ng/L): 642.2±124.4 vs. 1 369.7±146.5, TNF-α (ng/L): 608.6±38.1 vs. 1 044.7±101.0, IL-6 (ng/L): 1 058.2±129.1 vs. 1 443.3±190.1; PLF KC (ng/L): 7 462.3±839.6 vs. 12 723.5±1 515.7, MIP-2 (ng/L): 1 570.8±193.4 vs. 3 471.4±384.7, TNF-α (ng/L): 1 115.8±156.7 vs. 1 499.2±231.2, IL-6 (ng/L): 2 646.5±223.2 vs. 3 126.7±291.4; all P < 0.05]. The expressions of KC, MIP-2 and TNF-α at 6 hours were significantly lower than those at 2 hours in model group and AGM treatment group, but IL-6 levels were further increased. The levels of KC and MIP-2 in serum and PLF at 6 hours were decreased to the levels of sham group. At 6 hours after the reproduction of the model, the number of total inflammatory cells and PMN of PLF in the model group was significantly higher than those of the sham group. In contrast, AGM notably lowered the number of inflammatory cells and PMN in peritoneal fluid after ZYM attack [total inflammatory cells (×109/L): 14.7±1.1 vs. 2.0±0.4, 10.1±1.2 vs. 14.7±1.1; PMN (×109/L): 11.37±1.22 vs. 0.18±0.05, 7.69±0.57 vs. 11.37±1.22, all P < 0.05]. Conclusion AGM can effectively alleviate acute peritoneal inflammatory injury induced by ZYM, mainly through reducing the secretion of inflammatory mediators and chemokines, and inhibiting the infiltration of leukocytes and neutrophils.

Preimplantation genetic diagnosis of infantile malignant osteopetrosis in a Chinese family / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the application of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for infantile malignant osteopetrosis (IMO).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>For a family affected with IMO, PGD was provided using combined parental mutation detection and haplotype constructions with microsatellite markers spanning the TCIRG1 gene. Prenatal diagnosis was performed on the chorionic villus and amniocentesis samples by direct sequencing.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Prenatal diagnosis showed that the fetus by the third pregnancy has carried the parental mutations [c.242delC (p.Pro81Argfs*85) and c.1114C>T (p.Gln372*)], and the pregnancy was terminated. PGD was subsequently performed through mutations detection and haplotype analyses following whole genome amplification (WGA) of each of 13 cells. The results showed that 6 of the 13 embryos were unaffected, 3 were carriers and 4 were affected. Well developed unaffected/carrier embryos were selected and transferred into the uterus. A single pregnancy was confirmed. Subsequently pre- and post-natal diagnoses have confirmed development of a healthy child.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The study demonstrated the advantage of PGD over prenatal diagnosis when natural pregnancies have repeatedly produced IMO children/fetuses.</p>