Quality of Life Assessment and Related Factors of HIV-Infected Patients in Hangzhou Using a Path Analysis Model: An Observational Study.

Objective: This study aimed to examine which path among direct and indirect effects was more influential to the quality of life (QOL) for patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Methods: An observational study among 951 individuals diagnosed with HIV was conducted in designated acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) medical institutions in Hangzhou using simple random sampling technique. We collected the demographic data of patients and then evaluated their QOL by 12-Item Short-Form (SF-12) questionnaire survey. The two-stage least squares analysis was firstly performed to filter the independent influencing factors of Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS). We then enrolled the PCS, MCS, and their influencing factors into the path analysis of QOL, and further revealed the direct and indirect effects of variables and examined the important path that was more influential on the patient's QOL. Results: The patient's PCS, MCS, and quality of life showed a significant difference between groups in terms of education level and working condition (all P<0.05). Regression analysis showed that depression, age, education level, and treatment independently affected the PCS (all P<0.05), and depression and anxiety exerted an independent effect on the MCS (all P<0.05). Further path analysis integrating related variables showed that the main indexes of the goodness of fit implied the final model fit the data well. The path analysis showed that PCS and MCS exerted direct effects on the QOL (all P<0.001), especially the MCS (ß=0.785), but other variables exerted no direct effects (all ß=0, all P>0.05). It should be noted that anxiety presented an obvious indirect effect on the QOL (ß=0.460), and its indirect effect was similar to the direct effect of PCS (ß=0.471). Conclusion: The MCS might exert a more important effect on the QOL of HIV patients. In addition, the indirect effect of anxiety on the QOL should not be ignored.

The Role of Fibrocyte in the Pathogenesis of Silicosis / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

Exposure to free silica induces silicosis and myofibroblasts are regarded as primary effector cells. Fibrocytes can differentiate into myofibroblast. Therefore, the present study was designed to investigate whether fibrocytes participate in silicosis. The rat model of silicosis was established. Hematoxylin-eosin stainings and Masson stainings were used to evaluate the histopathology and collagen deposition. Flow cytometry and immunofluorescence were performed to detect the number of fibrocytes and their contribution to myofibroblasts. Results showed that fibrocytes participate in silicosis. Trend analysis of different sources of myofibroblasts during silicosis indicated that fibrocytes and lung type II epithelial cell-derived myofibroblasts play an important role in the early stage of silicosis, while resident lung fibroblast-derived myofibroblasts play a predominant role during the fibrosis formative period.

Changes of paired-pulse evoked responses during the development of epileptic activity in the hippocampus.

Dysfunction of inhibitory synaptic transmission can destroy the balance between excitatory and inhibitory synaptic inputs in neurons, thereby inducing epileptic activity. The aim of the paper is to investigate the effects of successive excitatory inputs on the epileptic activity induced in the absence of inhibitions. Paired-pulse orthodromic and antidromic stimulations were used to test the changes in the evoked responses in the hippocampus. Picrotoxin (PTX), γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) type A (GABA(A)) receptor antagonist, was added to block the inhibitory synaptic transmission and to establish the epileptic model. Extracellular evoked population spike (PS) was recorded in the CA1 region of the hippocampus. The results showed that the application of PTX induced a biphasic change in the paired-pulse ratio of PS amplitude. A short latency increase of the second PS (PS2) was later followed by a reappearance of PS2 depression. This type of depression was observed in both orthodromic and antidromic paired-pulse responses, whereas the GABAergic PS2 depression [called paired-pulse depression (PPD)] during baseline recordings only appeared in orthodromic-evoked responses. In addition, the depression duration at approximately 100 ms was consistent with a relative silent period observed within spontaneous burst discharges induced by prolonged application of PTX. In conclusion, the neurons may ignore the excitatory inputs and intrinsically generate bursts during epileptic activity. The depolarization block could be the mechanisms underlying the PPD in the absence of GABA(A) inhibitions. The distinct neuronal responses to stimulations during different epileptic stages may implicate the different antiepileptic effects of electrical stimulation.