Simvastatin protects against the development of monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension in rats via a heme oxygenase-1-dependent pathway.

Heme oxygease-1 (HO-1) is the rate-limiting enzyme in heme catabolism. Induction of HO-1 has been shown to have vasodilatory, anti-inflammatory, and proapoptotic effects. More recently, experimental studies suggested the potential of simvastatin as a novel therapy for pulmonary hypertension (PH); however, the underlying mechanism remains to be investigated. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether HO-1 is required for the pulmonary vascular protective effects of simvastatin. Simvastatin (2 mg/kg/day) was administered once daily to rats for 4 weeks after monocrotaline (MCT) injection. Zn-protoporphyrin (Znpp), a potent inhibitor of HO, was used to confirm the role of HO-1. The hemodynamic changes, right heart hypertrophy, interleukin-6 (IL-6) level, and HO-1 protein expression in lungs were measured at day 28. Simvastatin significantly ameliorated mean pulmonary arterial hypertension (20.6 mm Hg). In addition, perivascular infiltration of inflammatory cells and the level of IL-6 were decreased in simvastatin treatment group. Simvastatin also increased significantly lung HO-1 protein expression. Inhibiting HO-1 using Znpp resulted in a loss of the effect of simvastatin in MCT rats. These results suggest that HO-1 expression is critical for the vascular protective effects of simvastatin in MCT-induced PH rats.

[Comparison of lung function measurement values with two different apparatus].

This paper introduces a random measurement analysis of, lung function measurement values with two different apparatus. in 41 patients. It shows that the differences are not statistically significant (P>0.05) between two apparatus measurement values except DLCO, FEF25, FEF75 in the group of normal ventilation, FVC in the group of abnormal ventilation. The two groups are both correlated closely (r> 0.9) except MMF(r=0.7725, RV r=0.808) in the normal group of ventilation, and FEF75 (r=0.58) in the abnormal group of ventilation (p<0.001). The two apparatus with different measuring theories have a good correlation.

[The quantitative detection of anti-coronavirus antibody titer in medical personnel closely contacted with severe acute respiratory syndrome patients].

OBJECTIVE: To study the serum anti-coronavirus antibody titer in medical personnel who had closely contacted with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) patients. METHODS: The serum anti-coronavirus IgG antibody titer in medical personnel who had closely contacted with SARS patients, healthy individuals, patients with community acquired pneumonia and patients recovered from SARS was detected by using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. The antibody titer was expressed as the value of absorbency (A) with common logarithm conversion. RESULTS: The serum anti-coronavirus IgG antibody titer in patients recovered from SARS was 0.07 +/- 0.13, which was significantly higher as compared with those in other groups. The antibody titer in medical personnel was -1.18 +/- 0.20, which was also significantly higher as compared with those in community acquired pneumonia patients and healthy persons. In the healthy persons, the antibody titer of serum samples obtained from Beijing in May, 2003 was -1.61 +/- 0.13, which was significantly higher than that of samples obtained from Beijing in 2001 when SARS was not found -1.76 +/- 0.25 and that of samples from Shandong province where SARS was not found in May, 2003 -1.95 +/- 0.44. There was no significant difference in the antibody titer between patients of bacterial pneumonia and patients of atypical pneumonia, which was -1.99 +/- 0.31 and -2.05 +/- 0.23 respectively. CONCLUSION: Close contact with SARS patients can cause the serum anti-coronavirus antibody titer to increase significantly in medical personnel, a phenomenon deserves further study.

[Efficacy and safety of cefditoren pivoxil in treatment of respiratory infections, a clinical study].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of cefditoren pivoxil in treatment of respiratory infections. METHODS: 199 cases of respiratory infection confirmed by etiological and clinical examinations were treated with cefditoren pivoxil tablets taken orally. Therapeutic evaluation was conducted among 196 cases and safety evaluation was conducted among 199 cases. RESULTS: The total effective rate was 94.9%, and the causative bacteria -elimination rate was 96.7%. Clinical adverse events, including moderate diarrhea, mild nausea and vomiting, and stomach discomfort, were seen in 9 cases with an incidence rate of 4.5%. Laboratory adverse events, including increase of with an incidence rate of 3.5%. CONCLUSION: Cefditoren pivoxil is effective and safe in treatment of mild and moderate respiratory infections. The resistance rate to cefditoren pivoxil of pathogens of respiratory infections and the efficacy of cefditoren pivoxil show no difference from those tested 7 years ago.