[Analysis on the law of height growth spurt in adolescence of children and adolescents in Zhongshan City].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the characteristics of the age at peak height velocity and peak height velocity of primary and middle school students in Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province, and to explore the law of the sudden increase in adolescent height in this area, and to understand the law of height growth spurt in adolescence by longitudinal tracking of the height of children and adolescents in Zhong-shan City. METHODS: Based on the physical examination database of primary and middle school students in Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province from 2005 to 2016, individuals who had been continuously tracked for more than 6 times were selected as research samples. SITAR model was used to fit the height data of the sample population, and the age at peak height velocity and peak height velocity were calcula-ted. RESULTS: A total of 49 579 subjects were included in this study, including 26 524 boys and 26 008 urban students. The median follow-up ages of boys and girls were 7.74 and 7.72 years, respectively. The boy's height spurt peak age was (12.72±0.89) years, and later than the girls at the age of (10.98±0.95) years (t=207.639, P < 0.001), the boy's height spurt peak velocity of (10.12±1.49) cm/year, higher than the girls of (8.35±1.12) cm/year (t=150.826, P < 0.001). The gender differences of height spurt peak age and height spurt peak speed in urban and rural students were consistent with the whole sample. The height surge peak age of urban male students was earlier than that of rural male students, and the height surge peak speed of urban female students was lower than that of rural female students. CONCLUSION: The peak age of the surge of girls was earlier than that of boys, but the peak rate of the surge of girls was lower than that of boys, the peak age of urban students was earlier than that of rural students, but the peak rate of urban boys was lower than that of rural boys in Guangdong Province.

[Analysis of comorbidity and polypharmacy in middle-aged and elderly patients].

Objective: To investigate the characteristics of comorbidities and polypharmacy in middle-aged and elderly patients and assess the potential risk of drug-drug interactions. Methods: Retrospective analysis was carried out among the outpatients aged ≥45 years in the Second Medical Center of the PLA General Hospital from January to December 2016. The patient's comorbidities and polypharmacy were collected from the electronic medical records and annual physical examination reports. The frequency and grade of drug-drug interactions (DDIs) were summarized and ranked by Lexicomp(®) Drug Interactions database. Results: A total of 1 340 patients were enrolled in the study, of which 930 patients (69.40%) used 5 or more drugs, and 660 patients (49.25%) used 10 or more drugs. Multivariate analysis showed that age and the number of comorbidities were independent factors of excessive polypharmacy. The total frequency of detecting clinically significant DDIs (C+D+X) was 857 cases, with 0.8 cases per person by Lexicomp(®) Drug Interactions database. Among them, medications for nervous system accounted for the highest proportion of X-level DDIs. Conclusions: The comorbidities and polypharmacy in middle-aged and elderly patients are very prominent. More attention should be paid to drug interactions, especially in patients with neurological medication.

[Expression of GTF2IP23 in breast cancer and it mediated regulation of GTF2I].

Objective: To investigate the expression level of antisense transcript of pseudogene, general transcription factor Ⅱi psedugen23 (GTF2IP23), in breast cancer and its effect on the host gene general transcription factor Ⅱi (GTF2I). Methods: The expressions of GTF2IP23 and GTF2I were detected in 40 cases of invasive breast cancer tumors and their counterparts by using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The effects of GTF2IP23 on the expression of GTF2I gene and cell proliferation and migration were analyzed by overexpression of GTF2IP23 in breast cancer cells. Results: The expression of GTF2IP23 mRNA in breast cancer tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent tissues (P<0.001), while the expression of GTF2I mRNA was significantly lower than that in adjacent tissues (P=0.007). The expression of GTF2IP23 was negatively correlated with GTF2I (r=-0.335, P=0.025). The expression of GTF2IP23 in breast cancer cells was significantly higher than in normal breast cells (P<0.01), while GTF2I expression in breast cancer cells was significantly lower than that in normal breast cells (P<0.01). Overexpression of GTF2IP23 in ZR-75-30 cells significantly reduced the expression of GTF2I (P=0.034) and enhanced cell proliferation (P=0.017) and migration (P=0.026) capacity. Conclusions: GTF2IP23 is distinctly upregulated in breast cancer, it inhibits the expression of real gene GTF2I and promotes the proliferation of breast cancer cells.

[Study on the application of oral magnesium sulfate solution in split doses as bowel preparation for colonoscopy in elderly patients].

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of oral magnesium sulfate solution in split doses as bowel preparation in elderly patients undergoing colonoscopy. Methods: A total of 368 elderly patients undergoing colonoscopy were enrolled at PLA General Hospital. The patients were randomly divided into magnesium sulfate solution orally in split doses group (group A, n=178) and single dose group (group B, n=190). Parameters including general information, defecation frequency, Boston bowel preparation score (BBPS), detection rate of lesions and adverse reactions. Results: The frequency of defecations in group A was (7.6±1.4), more than that in group B (6.6±1.5) with statistical significance (P<0.05). The duration of bowel preparation in group A was (128.6±25.3) min, shorter than that of group B (165.4±29.7) min (P<0.05). The BBPS in group A was (8.09±0.67), better than that of group B (7.34±0.58) (P<0.05). The detection rates of intestinal polyps and micropolyps (diameter<0.5 cm) in group A were 73/178 (41.0%) and 51/178 (28.7%) respectively, compared with 58/190 (30.5%) and 37/190 (19.5%) in group B (both P<0.05). In group A, 8 patients reported adverse reactions as abdominal distension and discomfort. One patient had ST-T abnormality of electrocardiogram (ECG). No nausea or vomiting occurred, yet 2 cases needed enema for inadequate bowel preparation. Twenty-one cases in group B reported adverse events including 7 with nausea and vomiting. There were 13 patients treated with enema. Abnormal ECG was found in 4 patients in group B. The satisfaction rate of group A was 97.8%, higher than that of group B (91.6%) (P<0.05). Conclusions: The effect of bowel preparation of elderly patients with magnesium sulfate solution in split dose has a better tolerance, good cleaning effect and low incidence of adverse reactions. It is an ideal choice for the elderly to prepare colonoscopy.

[Expression of FAS-AS1 in breast cancer and its effect on the host gene sFas].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expression level of antisense transcript of FAS (FAS-antisense 1, FAS-AS1) in breast cancer, and its effect on the host gene soluble Fas receptor (sFas). METHODS: The expression of FAS-AS1 and sFas gene was detected in 20 cases of breast cancer tumors and breast cancer cells and their normal counterparts by using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR). The effects of FAS-AS1 on the expression of sFas gene in breast cancer cells were analyzed by overexpressing FAS-AS1 in breast cancer cells. RESULTS: FAS-AS1 expression in breast cancer tissue and cell lines was significantly lower than that of adjacent breast tissue (P=0.000) and normal breast cells (P<0.01). However, sFasexpression in the breast cancer tissue and cell lines was significantly higher than that of adjacent breast tissue (P=0.001) and normal breast cells (P<0.01). The expression of FAS-AS1 was negatively correlated with the expression of sFas(r=-0.751, P=0.020). FAS-AS1 expression was observed to be closely correlated with tumor size (r(2)=0.351, P=0.025) and lymph node metastasis (r(2)=0.265, P=0.043). Expression of sFas and cell proliferation was significantly reduced in FAS-AS1-overexpressing MCF-7 cells (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: FAS-AS1 is distinctly downexpressed in breast cancer, and it has certain effects on the expression of host gene sFas and breast cancer development.

Aspirin may modify tumor microenvironment via antiplatelet effect.

High-quality evidence suggests that aspirin is a promising agent for cancer prevention and treatment. Direct inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) pathway is generally thought to be the main mechanism by which aspirin inhibits cancer development. However, either pharmacological properties of aspirin or recent results of epidemiologic studies do not support that mechanism. To address this inconsistency, we hypothesize that antiplatelet effect of aspirin via inhibition of COX-1 may be one of potential mechanisms to inhibit carcinogenesis. Aberrant platelet activation will lead to promote hostility of tumor microenvironment by releasing an abundant array of angiogenesis regulators. Given the outstanding ability of antiplatelet, aspirin may restore balance of pro- and anti-angiogenic factors released from platelet to "normalize" tumor vasculature and shape tumor microenvironment to some extent, which will not only diminish tumor aggressiveness and progression, but also enhance the sensitivity to therapeutic treatment. Thus, targeting the platelet activation leading to alter tumor microenvironment may provide a novel way to tumor therapy.