[HEAD-US-C quantitative ultrasound assessment scale in evaluation of joint damage in patients with moderate or severe hemophilia A received on-demand versus prophylaxis replacement therapy]

目的

探讨血友病关节超声评估量表（Haemophilic Early Arthropathy Detection with UltraSound in China，HEAD-US-C）对中间型/重型血友病A患者按需、预防治疗关节损伤评估的适用性。

方法

回顾性分析2015年6月至2017年7月70例接受肘、膝、踝关节超声检查的中间型及重型血友病A患者，应用HEAD-US-C超声评估量表及血友病关节健康评分量表2.1版（HJHS2.1）进行关节状况评分。对按需、预防治疗患者HEAD-US-C、HJHS评分进行相关性分析。

结果

70例中间型及重型血友病A患者共接受919例次关节超声检查。在中间型血友病患者中，按需、预防治疗组患者中位年靶关节出血次数差异无统计学意义[1（0，7）对1（0，5），z=1.271，P=0.137]。按需治疗组中位HEAD-US-C评分[1（0，6）对0.5（0，3），z=0.177，P=0.046]及HJHS评分[2（0，4）对2（0，3），z=0.375，P=0.007]明显高于预防治疗组。重型血友病患者按需、预防治疗组中位HEAD-US-C评分分别为4（0，7）、1（0，6）（z=2.189，P=0.008），中位HJHS评分分别为4（1，6）、2（0，5）（z=3.646，P<0.001），年靶关节出血次数分别为3（0，8）、2（0，8）（z=0.780，P=0.037），按需治疗组均高于预防治疗组。按需、预防治疗组患者HEAD-US-C评分与HJHS评分均存在正相关关系（P值均<0.05）。重型患者按需、预防治疗组HEAD-US-C评分与HJHS评分的相关系数分别为0.739（95%CI 0.708~0.767）、0.865（95%CI 0.848~0.880），95%CI不重合（P<0.05），预防治疗组两评分系统间具有更强的相关性。

结论

中间型/重型血友病A患者预防治疗疗效明显优于按需治疗。HEAD-US-C超声评估量表可有效评估中间型/重型血友病A患者按需、预防治疗关节损伤状况，与HJHS系统一致性较好，可为临床疗效评估提供客观指标。

[Clinical application and optimization of HEAD-US quantitative ultrasound assessment scale for hemophilic arthropathy]

目的

评价HEAD-US评估量表在血友病性关节病临床应用的可行性，提出优化的超声评估量表HEAD-US-C。

方法

2015年7月至2017年8月期间，91例血友病患者接受1 035例次关节超声检查，分别采用Melchiorre、HEAD-US、HEAD-US-C量表进行评分，分析与血友病关节健康评分量表（HJHS）评分之间的相关性并比较上述量表评价血友病性关节病的敏感性。

结果

91例患者均为男性，中位年龄16（4~55）岁，血友病A 86例，血友病B 5例。1 035例次关节检查Melchiorre、HEAD-US、HEAD-US-C量表的评分[M（P₂₅, P₇₅）]分别为2（0,6）、1（0,5）、2（0,6），均与HJHS评分之间存在相关关系（相关系数分别为0.747、0.762、0.765，P值均<0.001）。Melchiorre、HEAD-US-C、HEAD-US评分量表的阳性率分别为63.0%（95%CI 59.7%~65.9%）、59.5%（95%CI 56.5%~62.4%）、56.6%（95%CI 53.6%~59.6%），差异有统计学意义（P<0.001）。336例次无症状关节（HJHS评分0分）Melchiorre、HEAD-US-C、HEAD-US评分量表的阳性率分别为25.0%（95%CI 20.6%~29.6%）、17.0%（95%CI12.6%~21.1%）、11.9%（95%CI 8.4%~15.7%）（P<0.001）。40例有关节出血症状的血友病患者（107例次）关节出血前、出血后超声评分差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）。HEAD-US-C与HEAD-US评分的变化幅度比较，差异有统计学意义（P<0.001）。

结论

与Melchiorre比较，HEAD-US、HEAD-US-C与HJHS之间具有相似的良好的相关性。HEAD-US-C评分量表较HEAD-US更为敏感，尤其适合亚临床状态血友病性关节病的评估。

Value of 18F-FDG PET/CT in differentiating malignancy of pulmonary artery from pulmonary thromboembolism: a cohort study and literature review

To determine the value of ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) in differentiating malignancy of pulmonary artery (PA) from pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) based on a larger number of cases by pooling our cases and those from the literature. Consecutive patients with a PA lesion who had undergone ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT in our hospital were retrospectively reviewed. Moreover, PubMed, Embase, and Medline were searched for literature reporting individual maximum standardised uptake value (SUV_max) of the malignant PA lesion and/or PTE. ¹⁸F-FDG activity was compared between PA malignancy and PTE by pooling the data from literature and our patients. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed to determine the ability of SUV_max to differentiate PA malignancy from PTE. From our database, we identified 11 patients with pulmonary artery sarcoma (PAS), and nine cases of PTE. Fifty patients with a malignant PA lesion (40 cases of PAS and 10 cases of tumor embolism) and 22 subjects with PTE were extracted from the literature. In our cases, the SUV_max of PAS (11.1 ± 4.9, range: 5.5-19.9) was significantly higher than that of PTE (1.9 ± 0.6, range: 1.1-3.2; P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in the SUV_max between the literature data and our cases in malignant lesions or in PTE. Based on the pooled analysis of the literature data and our cases (61 cases of malignant lesions and 31 cases of PTE), the area under the curve for SUV_max to differentiate PA malignancy from PTE was 0.996 (95% CI: 0.989-1.000). At a cutoff value of 3.3, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy were 98.4%, 96.8%, and 97.8%, respectively. The ¹⁸F-FDG uptake value is an accurate index for determining PA malignancy.

Improving seed germination and oil contents by regulating the GDSL transcriptional level in Brassica napus

Seed germination rate and oil content can be regulated at theGDSL transcriptional level by eitherAtGDSL1 orBnGDSL1 inB. napus. Gly-Asp-Ser-Leu (GDSL)-motif lipases represent an important subfamily of lipolytic enzymes, which play important roles in lipid metabolism, seed development, abiotic stress, and pathogen defense. In the present study, two closely related GDSL-motif lipases, Brassica napus GDSL1 and Arabidopsis thaliana GDSL1, were characterized as functioning in regulating germination rate and seed oil content in B. napus. AtGDSL1 and BnGDSL1 overexpression lines showed an increased seed germination rate and improved seedling establishment compared with wild type. Meanwhile, the constitutive overexpression of AtGDSL1 and BnGDSL1 promoted lipid catabolism and decreased the seed oil content. While RNAi-mediated suppression of BnGDSL1 (Bngdsl1) in B. napus improved the seed oil content and decreased seed germination rate. Moreover, the Bngdsl1 transgenic seeds showed changes in the fatty acid (FA) composition, featuring an increase in C18:1 and a decrease in C18:2 and C18:3. The transcriptional levels of six related core enzymes involved in FA mobilization were all elevated in the AtGDSL1 and BnGDSL1 overexpression lines, but strongly suppressed in the Bngdsl1 transgenic line. These results suggest that improving the seed germination and seed oil content in B. napus could be achieved by regulating the GDSL transcriptional level.

Lowering Effects of n-3 Fatty Acid Supplements on Blood Pressure by Reducing Plasma Angiotensin II in Inner Mongolia Hypertensive Patients: A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial

Whether n-3 fatty acid (FA) has hypotensive actions among Chinese adults remains inconclusive. Hypertensive patients from Inner Mongolia, China ( n = 126) were recruited to a double-blind, randomized controlled trial. We investigated the effects of n-3 FA supplements on blood pressure (BP, mm Hg), plasma concentrations of angiotensin II (Ang II, pg/mL), and nitric oxygen (NO, μmol/L), using fish oil ( n = 41, 4 capsules/day, equivalent to 2 g of eicosapentaenoic acid plus docosahexaenoic acid) and flaxseed oil ( n = 42, 4 capsules/day, equivalent to 2.5 g of α-linolenic acid). Comparing to the control group (corn oil, n = 43), the mean systolic BP (-4.52 ± 9.28 vs -1.51 ± 9.23, P = 0.040) and the plasma Ang II levels (-12.68 ± 10.87 vs -4.93 ± 9.08, P = 0.023) were significantly lowered in the fish oil group, whereas diastolic BP ( P = 0.285) and plasma NO levels ( P = 0.220) were not. Such findings suggest that marine-based n-3 FA has a hypotensive efficacy in Chinese hypertensive patients possibly through inhibiting Ang II-dependent vasoconstrictions.

A case series pilot study on the combination of 5-aminolevulinic acid and photodynamic therapy (ALA-PDT) for treatment of vitiligo

BACKGROUND

To study the effective therapeutic concentration, drug application duration, irradiation duration and irradiation dosage of 5-aminolevulinic acid photodynamic therapy (ALA-PDT) for treating vitiligo and observe its clinical efficacy.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the clinical efficacy of ALA-PDT for treating vitiligo.

METHODS

ALA with different drug concentrations, drug application durations, irradiation durations and irradiation dosages were adopted to treat skin lesions caused by vitiligo to determine the effective drug concentration, drug application duration, irradiation duration and irradiation dosage for treating three vitiligo volunteers and observe the therapeutic results.

RESULTS

The clinical trial suggested that ALA at a drug concentration of 1.5%, drug application duration for 3 hours, irradiation dosage of 80mw/cm2 and irradiation duration for 20 min was effective in treating vitiligo. Under these parameters, ALA-PDT was effective to the three vitiligo volunteers, with mild pain and feeling of burning but no other adverse reaction during treatment.

STUDY LIMITATIONS

Due to the small sample size in this study for the effectiveness of PDT in treating vitiligo and the potential variations in the efficacy for treating the disease at different areas, further studies shall be conducted for confirmation.

CONCLUSIONS

ALA with a drug concentration at 1.5%, drug application duration for 3 hours, irradiation dosage of 80 mw/cm2 and irradiation duration for 20 min is effective in treating vitiligo. Therefore, ALA-PDT is safe and effective in treating the disease, with minor adverse events, providing a new method for treating vitiligo in the future.

☆DNA assembly technique simplifies the construction of infectious clone of fowl adenovirus

Plasmid bearing adenovirus genome is generally constructed with the method of homologous recombination in E. coli BJ5183 strain. Here, we utilized Gibson gene assembly technique to generate infectious clone of fowl adenovirus 4 (FAdV-4). Primers flanked with partial inverted terminal repeat (ITR) sequence of FAdV-4 were synthesized to amplify a plasmid backbone containing kanamycin-resistant gene and pBR322 origin (KAN-ORI). DNA assembly was carried out by combining the KAN-ORI fragment, virus genomic DNA and DNA assembly master mix. E. coli competent cells were transformed with the assembled product, and plasmids (pKFAV4) were extracted and confirmed to contain viral genome by restriction analysis and sequencing. Virus was successfully rescued from linear pKFAV4-transfected chicken LMH cells. This approach was further verified in cloning of human adenovirus 5 genome. Our results indicated that DNA assembly technique simplified the construction of infectious clone of adenovirus, suggesting its possible application in virus traditional or reverse genetics.

Novel screening strategy reveals a potent Bacillus antagonist capable of mitigating wheat take-all disease caused by Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici

Take-all is a severe root disease of wheat worldwide that is caused by the soilborne fungal pathogen Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici (Ggt). In this study, 272 Bacillus isolates were screened for their antifungal activity in vitro to Ggt. Of the 128 strains that demonstrated an antagonistic action, 24 of these exhibited at least three of the four plant growth promotion parameters (i.e. indole acetic acid and siderophore production, inorganic phosphorus solubilization and organic phosphorus solubilization) that were tested in wheat plants. The most effective strain found was Bacillus subtilis Pnf-12; its disease reduction effect reached 69%. Pnf-12 also caused a significant improvement (P < 0·05) in the root and shoot weights of wheat plants, though their root length and shoot height were similar to the noninoculated treatment (P > 0·05). The mechanism for this disease control may be linked to the production of the antifungal lipopeptides surfactin, iturin and fengycin production, all of which were detected in the cell-free supernatant of Pnf-12.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

Take-all, which is caused by the soilborne fungal pathogen Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici (Ggt), is one of the most widespread and devastating root diseases of wheat plants. This study focuses on a novel screening strategy of Bacillus isolates to evaluate their potential biological control capacity for suppressing wheat take-all. The joint assessment of antifungal activities, growth promotion factors and variety of antibiotic synthesis genes, in addition to greenhouse experiments, allowed for the identification and demonstration of the Bacillus isolate Pnf-12 as an effective disease control agent.

A SHOX2 loss-of-function mutation underlying familial atrial fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation (AF), as the most common sustained cardiac arrhythmia, is associated with substantially increased morbidity and mortality. Aggregating evidence demonstrates that genetic defects play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of AF, especially in familial AF. Nevertheless, AF is of pronounced genetic heterogeneity, and in an overwhelming majority of cases the genetic determinants underlying AF remain elusive. In the current study, 162 unrelated patients with familial AF and 238 unrelated healthy individuals served as controls were recruited. The coding exons and splicing junction sites of the SHOX2 gene, which encodes a homeobox-containing transcription factor essential for proper development and function of the cardiac conduction system, were sequenced in all study participants. The functional effect of the mutant SHOX2 protein was characterized with a dual-luciferase reporter assay system. As a result, a novel heterozygous SHOX2 mutation, c.580C>T or p.R194X, was identified in an index patient, which was absent from the 476 control chromosomes. Genetic analysis of the proband's pedigree revealed that the nonsense mutation co-segregated with AF in the family with complete penetrance. Functional assays demonstrated that the mutant SHOX2 protein had no transcriptional activity compared with its wild-type counterpart. In conclusion, this is the first report on the association of SHOX2 loss-of-function mutation with enhanced susceptibility to familial AF, which provides novel insight into the molecular mechanism underpinning AF, suggesting potential implications for genetic counseling and individualized management of AF patients.

[Expression of proBNP and NT-proBNP in Sudden Death of Coronary Heart Disease]

OBJECTIVES

To study the expression change of pro-brain natriuretic peptide （proBNP） and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide （NT-proBNP） in sudden death of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease, and to explore its application in forensic diagnosis.

METHODS

Myocardial and blood samples were collected from normal control group, sudden death of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease group and single coronary stenosis group （20 cases in each group）. The expression of proBNP in myocardial samples were detected by immunohistochemical staining and Western blotting, and that of BNP mRNA were detected by reverse transcription PCR （RT-PCR）. The content of NT-proBNP in plasma were detected by ELISA.

RESULTS

Immunohistochemical staining showed positive expression of proBNP in both sudden death of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease group and single coronary stenosis group. There was no positive expression in normal control group. For sudden death of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease group and single coronary stenosis group, the relative expression of proBNP protein and BNP mRNA in myocardial tissue and the NT-proBNP content in plasma were higher than that of normal control group （P<0.05）. The NT-proBNP content in plasma of sudden death of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease group was higher than that of single coronary stenosis group （P<0.05）.

CONCLUSIONS

In myocardial ischemia condition, the higher expression of proBNP in cardiac muscle cell shows that the detection of NT-proBNP in plasma can be useful to differentially diagnose the degree of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease and determine whether the sudden death due to coronary atherosclerotic heart disease.

Prevalence of serum neutralizing antibodies to adenovirus type 5 (Ad5) and 41 (Ad41) in children is associated with age and sanitary conditions

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Serum neutralizing antibodies to Ad5 and Ad41 in adults and children were titrated.

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Prevalence of NAb in children was associated with age and sanitary conditions.

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NAb titer distribution pattern was very different between Ad5 an Ad41.

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Ad41 vectored vaccine candidates might have a bright future.

Neutralizing antibody (NAb) can dampen the immunogenicity of adenovirus (Ad) vector-based vaccine. Vector systems based on human adenovirus type 41 (Ad41) have been constructed and used to develop recombinant vaccines. Here, we attempted to study the seroprevalence of NAbs to Ad5 and Ad41 among children and adults in Qinghai province, China. The positive rates (titer ⩾ 40) of Ad5 and Ad41 NAb in adults from Xining city were 75.7% and 94.7%, respectively. The moderate/high-positive rates (titer ⩾ 160) of NAb were quite close between the two viruses in adults (70.4% for Ad5 and 73.5% for Ad41). Age-dependent increase of NAb seroprevalence was observed for both viruses in children. NAb-positive rate of Ad41 reached 50% at 3.3–4.6 years of age for children from Chengxi district, Xining city, approximately 1.5 years earlier than that of Ad5 did. Interestingly, NAb level was also associated with sanitary conditions among young children. For Ad5, 8–15% children (0.2–3.0 years of age) from city or town, where the sanitations were relatively better, had moderate/high-positive NAb, while the same rate was 62% for children from villages. For Ad41, 22% children from city, 47% from town and 88% from villages possessed moderate/high-positive NAb. The possible influence of NAb titer distributions on the application of Ad41-vectored vaccines was discussed in detail. Our results suggested that children from places with poor sanitations should be included for comprehensive Ad NAb seroprevalence studies, and provided insights to the applications of Ad41 vectors.

Circulating long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid and incidence of stroke: a meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies

Background

Circulating long-chain (LC) n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) can provide objective measures that reflect both dietary consumption and relevant biological processes. Nevertheless, prospective cohort studies on circulating LC n-3 PUFA in relation to incidence of stroke have yielded inconsistent results. We therefore conducted a meta-analysis to quantitatively evaluate the association.

Results

A total of 2,836 stroke events occurred among 20,460 individuals aged 35–79 yr from 10 prospective cohort studies. Circulating LC n-3 PUFA was significantly associated with reduced risk of stroke (RR: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.76, 0.98; I² = 0.00%), especially 22:5n-3 (RR: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.60, 0.92) and 22:6n-3 (RR: 0.78; 95% CI: 0.65, 0.94). The associations were more pronounced with ischemic stroke (RR: 0.81; 95% CI: 0.68, 0.96), but not with hemorrhagic stroke (RR: 0.95; 95% CI: 0.60, 1.49). A 1% increment of 22:5n-3 and 22:6n-3 proportions in circulating blood was associated with 25% (RR: 0.75; 95% CI: 0.64, 0.87) and 11% (RR: 0.89; 95% CI: 0.83, 0.95) reduced risk of stroke, respectively.

Materials and Methods

Pertinent studies were identified from Cochrane Library, PubMed and EMBASE database through June 2017. Multivariate-adjusted risk ratios (RRs) with 95% confidence interval (CI) for incident stroke when comparing the top with the bottom tertiles of baseline LC n-3 PUFA proportions in blood were pooled using a random-effect model.

Conclusions

Circulating LC n-3 PUFAs were linearly associated with reduced risk of stroke, especially 22:5n-3 and 22:6n-3. Such findings highlight the importance of circulating LC n-3 PUFA in the development of ischemic stroke.

Differential Diagnosis of Pulmonary Artery Sarcoma and Central Chronic Pulmonary Thromboembolism Using CT and MR Images

BACKGROUND

Clinical and imaging manifestations are similar in pulmonary artery sarcomas (PAS) and thromboembolic diseases, especially central chronic pulmonary thromboembolism (CPTE). The feasibility of utilising clinical imaging tools such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for differential diagnosis of PAS and CPTE has not been fully explored, especially MRI.

METHODS

Patients with PAS (n=18) and central CPTE (n=20) treated at our hospital between January 2013 and September 2016 were identified retrospectively. Computed tomography and MRI findings of pulmonary artery (PA) filling defects including the location, the involvement of pulmonary artery, morphology, signal intensities and enhancement in MRI, calcification, sizes of right atrium and ventricle, inner diameters of the pulmonary artery trunk and branches, and mediastinal collateral circulation in both groups were examined, and differences were analysed by Fisher exact test and independent sample t-test.

RESULTS

Compared to those of central CPTE, PAS lesions were in full shape or expansive growth (p<0.001), and the proximal end of the tumours was often bulging or lobulated (p<0.001). These lesions were aneurysm- or grape-like distally (p<0.01) with inhomogeneous enhancement (p<0.001). The MRI contrast enhancement pattern of PAS lesions were cloudy with inhomogeneous delayed enhancement and the time-density curves for some of the lesions increased gradually.

CONCLUSION

Computed tomographic and MR imaging manifestations may resemble PAS and central CPTE; however, some manifestations still have great value for the differential diagnosis of these two conditions, specifically the morphology and MRI enhancement patterns.

Disconnections of Cortico-Subcortical Pathways Related to Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Leukoaraiosis: A Preliminary Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study

BACKGROUND

We aimed to explore the relation between the microstructural integrity of white matter using the technique of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and changes of cognition in leukoaraiosis (LA).

METHODS

Fifty patients with LA and 50 age- and gender-matched controls were recruited consecutively. The average values of mean diffusivity (MD) and fractional anisotropy (FA) were quantified both within white matter lesions (WMLs) and normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) from the regions of interest (ROIs).

RESULTS

We found significantly decreased FA and increased MD in WMLs at the 5 ROIs than that in NAWM and controls (p < 0.05). The values of FA in NAWM were significantly lower at centrum semiovale and posterior periventricular white matter than those of controls (p < 0.05). The values of MD in NAWM were significantly higher at the anterior periventricular white matter and corpus callosum than those of controls (p < 0.05). The values of FA in NAWM located at anterior periventricular white matter correlated inversely with the Z scores of executive function (r = -0.420, p = 0.028).

CONCLUSIONS

DTI may provide some important information about the cognitive dysfunction in patients with LA, which may largely attribute to the "disconnection" of cortico-subcortical pathways, with the evidence of reduced FA and increased MD.

Dietary flavonoid luteolin attenuates uropathogenic Escherichia. Coli invasion of the urinary bladder

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), the primary uropathogen, adhere to and invade bladder epithelial cells (BECs) to establish a successful urinary tract infection (UTI). Emerging antibiotic resistance requires novel nonantibiotic strategies. Our previous study indicated that luteolin attenuated adhesive and invasive abilities as well as cytotoxicity of UPEC on T24 BECs through down-regulating UPEC virulence factors. The aims of this study were to investigate the possible function of the flavonoid luteolin and the mechanisms by which luteolin functions in UPEC-induced bladder infection. Firstly, obvious reduction of UPEC invasion but not adhesion were observed in luteolin-pretreated 5637 and T24 BECs sa well as mice bladder via colony counting. The luteolin-mediated suppression of UPEC invasion was linked to elevated levels of intracellular cAMP induced by inhibiting the activity of cAMP-phosphodiesterases (cAMP-PDEs), which resulting activation of protein kinase A, thereby negatively regulating Rac1-GTPase-mediated actin polymerization. Furthermore, p38 MAPK was primarily and ERK1/2 was partially involved in luteolin-mediated suppression of UPEC invasion and actin polymerization, as confirmed with chemical activators of p38 MAPK and ERK1/2. These data suggest that luteolin can protect bladder epithelial cells against UPEC invasion. Therefore, luteolin or luteolin-rich products as dietary supplement may be beneficial to control the UPEC-related bladder infections, and cAMP-PDEs may be a therapy target for UTIs treatment. © 2016 BioFactors, 42(6):674-685, 2016.

[Antibacterial and residual antimicrobial activities of five final irrigants in infected root canal: an in vitro comparative study]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate antibacterial and residual antimicrobial activities of five root canal irrigants including Qmix, MTAD(mixture of a tetracycline isomer, an acid, and a detergent), 0.2% cetrimide(CTR), 2% chlorhexidine(CHX) and 17% ethylene diaminetetraacetic acid(EDTA) and to find the most optimal final irrigants for using in root canal therapy.

METHODS

The standard enterococcus infection models were built up in 100 single rooted incisors with single canal. Totally 30 teeth were selected by using random number tablefor detecting the quality of the bacteria model. Crown-down technique with rotary ProTaper system was used to prepare the root canals. Then the teeth were randomly divided into seven groups of which five groups were irrigated with five different irrigants respectively, one group was irrigated with distilled water(distilled water group) and one group was no-irrigation group. Each tooth was sectioned into three parts: apical 1/3, middle 1/3 and coronal 1/3. After irrigation, specimenswere cultivated from day 0 to day 14. All statistical analyses were performed by means of SPSS 17.0 software. Chi-squared test was used to evaluate antibacterial activities. Generalized estimating equations was used to evaluate residual antimicrobial activities.

RESULTS

All samples rinsed with Qmix, MTAD, CTR, CHX were bacteria-free in 0 day. The samples rinsed with EDTA and distilled water had no bacteria in 7 coronal sections, 6 middle sections and 9 apical sections, respectively. The results of Qmix, MTAD, CTR and CHX groups showed significant difference when compared with that of distilled water, EDTA and control groups(P<0.05). Residual antimicrobial resultsin EDTA, distilled water, no-irrigation groups showed significant differences compared with that of Qmix, MTAD, CTR, CHX groups according to pairwise comparison(P<0.05) on day 1, 2 and 3. There was no significant difference between the other two groups(P>0.05). Antimicrobial properties on the coronal 1/3 and apical 1/3, middle 1/3 and apical 1/3 showed significant difference(P<0.05) while middle 1/3 and coronal 1/3 showed no significant difference(P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Qmix, MTAD, CTR and CHX had an antimicrobial activity, but could not destroy Enterococcus faecalis completely. Antimicrobial activity in coronal 1/3 was better than in apical 1/3. Qmix, MTAD, CTR and CHX had a residual antimicrobial activity with various lasting times. The lasting time of residual antimicrobial activity was as follow: MTAD> CTR>Qmix>CHX. EDTA had no antibacterial and residual antimicrobial activities.

Expressions of Mast Cell Tryptase and Brain Natriuretic Peptide in Myocardium of Sudden Death due to Hypersensitivity and Coronary Atherosclerotic Heart Disease

OBJECTIVES

To explore the value of mast cell tryptase and brain natriuretic peptide（BNP） in the differential diagnostic of sudden death due to hypersensitivity and coronary atherosclerotic heart disease.

METHODS

Totally 30 myocardial samples were collected from the autopsy cases in the Department of Forensic Pathology, Shanxi Medical University during 2010-2015. All samples were divided into three groups： death of craniocerebral injury group, sudden death of hypersensitivity group and sudden death of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease group, 10 cases in each group. Mast cell tryptase and BNP in myocardium were detected by immunofluorescence staining and Western Blotting.

RESULTS

Immunofluorescence staining showed that the positive staining mast cell tryptase appeared in myocardium of sudden death of hypersensitivity group and coronary atherosclerotic heart disease group. Among the three groups, the expression of mast cell tryptase showed significantly differences through pairwise comparison （P<0.05）; The expression level of BNP in sudden death of coronary atherosclerotic heart disease group were significantly higher than the sudden death of hypersensitivity group and death of craniocerebral injury group （P<0.05）. The difference of the expression level of BNP between the sudden death of hypersensitivity group and the death of craniocerebral injury group had no statistical significance （P>0.05）.

CONCLUSIONS

The combined detection of the mast cell tryptase and BNP in myocardium is expected to provide help for the forensic differential diagnosis of sudden death due to hypersensitivity and coronary atherosclerotic heart disease.

Diversity and degradation mechanism of an anaerobic bacterial community treating phenolic wastewater with sulfate as an electron acceptor

Petrochemical wastewater often contains high concentrations of phenol and sulfate that must be properly treated to meet discharge standards. This study acclimated anaerobic-activated sludge to treat saline phenolic wastewater with sulfate reduction and clarified the diversity and degradation mechanism of the microbial community. The active sludge in an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor could remove 90 % of phenol and maintain the effluent concentration of SO4 (2-) below 400 mg/L. Cloning and sequencing showed that Clostridium spp. and Desulfotomaculum spp. were major phenol-degrading bacteria. Phenol was probably degraded through the carboxylation pathway and sulfate reduction catalyzed by adenosine-5'-phosphosulfate (APS) reductase and dissimilatory sulfite reductase (DSR). A real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) showed that as phenol concentration increased, the quantities of 16S rRNA gene, dsrB, and mcrA in the sludge all decreased. The relative abundance of dsrB dropped to 12.46 %, while that of mcrA increased to 56.18 %. The change in the electron flow ratio suggested that the chemical oxygen demand (COD) was removed mainly by sulfate-reducing bacteria under a phenol concentration of 420 mg/L, whereas it was removed mainly by methanogens above 630 mg/L.

Incidence of pleural effusion in patients with pulmonary embolism

Background:

No data on the incidence of pleural effusion (PE) in Chinese patients with pulmonary embolism are available to date. The aim of the current study was to investigate the frequency of PE in a Chinese population of patients with pulmonary embolism.

Methods:

This was a retrospective observational single-center study. All data of computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) performed over 6-year period on adult patients with clinically suspected pulmonary embolism were analyzed.

Results:

From January 2008 until December 2013, PE was identified in 423 of 3141 patients (13.5%) with clinically suspected pulmonary embolism who underwent CTPA. The incidence of PE in patients with pulmonary embolism (19.9%) was significantly higher than in those without embolism (9.4%) (P < 0.001). Majority of PEs in pulmonary embolism patients were small to moderate and were unilateral. The locations of emboli and the numbers of arteries involved, CT pulmonary obstruction index, and parenchymal abnormalities at CT were not associated with the development of PE.

Conclusions:

PEs are present in about one fifth of a Chinese population of patients with pulmonary embolism, which are usually small, unilateral, and unsuitable for diagnostic thoracentesis.

Vascular endothelial growth factor gene is associated with hypertensive cerebellar hemorrhage and rehabilitative treatment

Early rehabilitative therapy is important for patients with hypertensive cerebral hemorrhage to improve long-term function of the extremities. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is closely associated with the pathogenesis of hypertension. To identify the markers contributing to the genetic susceptibility to hypertensive cerebellar hemorrhage (HCH) and rehabilitative treatment, we examined the potential association between HCH and 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms of the VEGF gene. Participants included 244 patients with HCH and 251 healthy controls from our rehabilitation department. The T allelic frequencies of the rs3025020 (intron 6) and rs3025039 (3'-UTR) polymorphisms were significantly higher in the patients with HCH than in the healthy controls (rs3025020 T allele: P = 0.0002, OR = 1.619, 95%CI = 1.256-2.088; rs3025039 T allele: P = 0.001, OR = 1.682, 95%CI = 1.246-2.270). Strong linkage disequilibrium was observed in three blocks (D' > 0.9), and significantly more C-G-C (rs3025020, rs3025030, and rs3025039) haplotypes (P = 0.001) were found in the controls in block 3. Significantly more T-G-C haplotypes were found in the patients with HCH (P = 0.046). Further genotype and clinical phenotype correlation study of the rs3025039 carriers showed that Fugl-Meyer and Barthel index scores were lower in the patients with the TT genotype relative to CT + CC genotypes (P < 0.01). These findings point to a role for VEGF polymorphism in HCH, and may be informative for future investigations on the pathogenesis of rehabilitative treatment.

Transcriptome Analysis Comparison of Lipid Biosynthesis in the Leaves and Developing Seeds of Brassica napus

Brassica napus seed is a lipid storage organ containing approximately 40% oil, while its leaves contain many kinds of lipids for many biological roles, but the overall amounts are less than in seeds. Thus, lipid biosynthesis in the developing seeds and the leaves is strictly regulated which results the final difference of lipids. However, there are few reports about the molecular mechanism controlling the difference in lipid biosynthesis between developing seeds and leaves. In this study, we tried to uncover this mechanism by analyzing the transcriptome data for lipid biosynthesis. The transcriptome data were de novo assembled and a total of 47,216 unigenes were obtained, which had an N50 length and median of 1271 and 755 bp, respectively. Among these unigenes, 36,368 (about 77.02%) were annotated and there were 109 up-regulated unigenes and 72 down-regulated unigenes in the developing seeds lipid synthetic pathway after comparing with leaves. In the oleic acid pathway, 23 unigenes were up-regulated and four unigenes were down-regulated. During triacylglycerol (TAG) synthesis, the key unigenes were all up-regulated, such as phosphatidate phosphatase and diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase. During palmitic acid, palmitoleic acid, stearic acid, linoleic acid and linolenic acid synthesis in leaves, the unigenes were nearly all up-regulated, which indicated that the biosynthesis of these particular fatty acids were more important in leaves. In the developing seeds, almost all the unigenes in the ABI3VP1, RKD, CPP, E2F-DP, GRF, JUMONJI, MYB-related, PHD and REM transcript factor families were up-regulated, which helped us to discern the regulation mechanism underlying lipid biosynthesis. The differential up/down-regulation of the genes and TFs involved in lipid biosynthesis in developing seeds and leaves provided direct evidence that allowed us to map the network that regulates lipid biosynthesis, and the identification of new TFs that are up-regulated in developing seeds will help us to further elucidate the lipids biosynthesis pathway in developing seeds and leaves.

Correlation between carbonic anhydrase IX (CA-9), XII (CA-12) and hypoxia inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α) in breast cancer

Hypoxia inducible factor 2α (HIF-2α) can trigger the expression of several genes related to many aspects of tumor progress under hypoxia. As an independent factor, the role of HIF-2α is different from other hypoxia-mediated elements, including HIF-1α. Carbonic anhydrase (CA) were also regarded as important enzymes that involve in the tumor microenvironment pH. To find clinical-pathological features of breast cancer in plateau and explore the impact of CAIX, XII (CA-9, CA-12) and HIF-2α on patients with breast cancer. Clinical data were collected and summarized in 94 patients with breast cancer. The expression of HIF-2α, CA-9 and CA-12 were detected, using immunohistochemistry of specimens. The relation between expressions and clinical-pathology was analyzed. Under normoxia, hypoxia, and after being pretreated with the JNK inhibitor SP600125, HIF- 2α, CA-9 and CA-12 expressions were detected, and adhesion and invasion assays were performed in MCF-7 cells and HIF- 2α shRNA cells, respectively. There are higher expressions of HIF-2α in tumor classification 2 and clinical stage 2 (P < 0.05). High expression of CA-12 was observed in clinical stage 2 (P < 0.05). CA-9 expression is significantly correlated with CA-12 expression (r = 0.376, P = 0.0001). HIF-2α expression is not correlated with both CA-9 expression (P = 0.21) and CA-12 expression (P = 0.27). Breast cancer cells in vitro showed that HIF-2α, CA-9 or CA-12 had an increase expression under hypoxia (1% O2). CA-9 or CA-12 expression was observed in HIF-2α shRNA cells. JNK inhibitor SP 600125 reduced the HIF-2α expression and inhibited the adhesion and invasion of breast cancer cell. Slight inhibition effect on CA-9 and CA-12 expression was found. In conclusion, HIF-2α, CA-9 and CA-12 are important hypoxia responsive elements in breast cancer. HIF-2α was involved in metastasis and invasion of breast cancer cells under hypoxia, by the involvement of c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) signal pathway. CA-9 and CA-12 may tend to be regulated by HIF-1α more often than by HIF-2α under hypoxia.

Inefficient export of viral late mRNA contributes to fastidiousness of human adenovirus type 41 (HAdV-41) in 293 cells

The human adenovirus (HAdV) early protein E1B55K interacts with E4orf6 to form an E3 ubiquitin ligase complex, which plays key roles in virus replication. To illustrate the reason for the fastidiousness of HAdV-41 in 293 cells, interaction between heterotypic E1B55K and E4orf6 proteins was investigated. HAdV-5 E1B55K could interact with HAdV-41 E4orf6, and vice versa. To form E1B55K/E4orf6 E3 ubiquitin ligase, HAdV-41 E4orf6 recruited Cul2 while HAdV-5 E4orf6 interacted with Cul5. The ligase complex formed by HAdV-5 E1B55K and HAdV-41 E4orf6 could cause the degradation of p53 and Mre11. However, in E1-deleted HAdV-41-infected 293TE7 cells, which expressed HAdV-41 E1B55K, viral late mRNAs were exported from nucleus more efficiently and accumulated to a higher concentration in cytoplasm when compared with that in infected 293 cells. These results suggested that interaction between homotypic E1B55K and E4orf6 was indispensable for efficient export of viral late mRNAs.

Vascular risk factors aggravate the progression of Alzheimer's disease: a 3-year follow-up study of Chinese population

PURPOSE

To explore the correlation of vascular risk factors for Alzheimer's disease (AD) in Chinese population.

METHODS

A total of 123 outpatients with probable AD followed up for 3 years were investigated. Severity of cognitive impairment and functional ability was assessed using Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and modified activities of daily living (ADLs), respectively. The incidence of vascular risk factors was studied in patients with AD.

RESULTS

Univariate analysis showed significance difference in MMSE and ADL scores between patients with and without vascular risk factors (P < .05). Multiple regression analysis showed age, education, hyperhomocysteinemia, and hypertension were significant variables associated with annual MMSE, while there were no significant correlations between annual MMSE and sex, initial MMSE, diabetes, and so on.

CONCLUSIONS

Vascular risk factors are common comorbidities in patients with AD in China, with younger, better educated ones showing faster cognitive decline. Hypertension and hyperhomocysteinemia may also aggravate the progression, and it is important to prevent and treat patients with AD.