[Study on clearance of chlorfenapyr via blood purification (a case analysis)]

This paper analyzed the clinical data of a patient with acute oral emamectin·chlorfenapyr poisoning, and discussed the effect of blood purification therapy on chlorfenapyr poisoning. Chlorfenapyr was detected in the blood, urine, ultrafiltrate and plasma exchange fluid of the patient, and the concentrations of chlorfenapyr poison gradually decreased with time. Blood purification has a certain effect on chlorfenapyr, and early blood purification may be an effective measure to treat chlorfenapyr poisoning.

Primary dedifferentiated liposarcoma of the pancreas: A case report and literature review

BACKGROUND

Dedifferentiated liposarcoma (DDLPS) is a high-grade invasive tumor that more commonly occurs in the retroperitoneum, followed by the thighs and groin. DDLPS in the pancreas is very rare.

CASE SUMMARY

A patient underwent CT examination due to hidden pain in the upper abdomen, which revealed a pancreatic space occupying lesion of unknown nature. Based on the patient's preoperative medical history, physical examination, and auxiliary examination, it was considered that there was a huge space occupying lesion in the head and neck of the pancreas, with clear boundaries and surgical indications. The patient underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy at our hospital, and the postoperative pathology revealed a DDLPS of the pancreas. Three months after the surgery, tumor recurrence occurred. Dacarbazine combined with epirubicin chemotherapy had a poor effect, and the patient passed away 18 mo later.

CONCLUSION

Due to the fact that DDLPS of the pancreas is usually not significantly responsive to radiotherapy and chemotherapy, the currently most effective treatment method for DDLPS of the pancreas is resection with negative margin under a microscope. However, due to the deep location of liposarcoma in the pancreas and its proximity to many surrounding organs, it is difficult to completely remove the tumor, and many patients may develop regional recurrence.

[Prevalence rate and risk factor analysis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in 115 female patients with schizophrenia]

Objective: To investigate the incidence rate and risk factors of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in patients with schizophrenia (SCZ). Methods: The incidence rate of NAFLD in 115 females with SCZ over 40 years of age with complete clinical data was analyzed with the consent of the Ethics Committee of Nantong Fourth People's Hospital. A physical examination report of healthy subjects (n = 95, female, age 40 years old or older) was taken as the control group. Natural language processing technology was used to extract relevant data from the patient's electronic medical record system. Body mass index, alanine aminotransferase, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein, leptin, and adiponectin were used to establish a human NAFLD-related model. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the psychiatric symptoms, and physiological and biochemical indexes for the predictive value of NAFLD in female patients with SCZ. Results: The prevalence of NAFLD was significantly higher in the SCZ group (55.7%, 64/115) than that in the control group (26.3%, 25/95) (χ (2) = 18.335, P < 0.001). The prediction model showed that age, alanine aminotransferase, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein, leptin, adiponectin, and body mass index were significantly correlated with NAFLD in females with SCZ. In the natural language processing search language model, arousal intensity (movements: uncontrolled running behavior) and emotional apathy were strongly linked to female patients with SCZ with NAFLD. Age, alanine aminotransferase, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein, leptin, and body mass index were risk factors for SCZ to develop NAFLD, and adiponectin levels and uncontrolled running behavior were protective factors. Conclusion: The incidence rate of NAFLD is high in middle-aged and elderly females with SCZ. Natural language processing can help to automatically identify the risk factors for SCZ combined with NAFLD and has predictive and auxiliary diagnostic value.

[Identification the key factor of pulmonary fibrosis following silica nanoparticles exposure based on bioinformatics analysis]

Objective: To investigate the main mechanisms of pulmonary fibrosis following silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) exposure through constructing the macrophage-fibroblast model in vitro, which simulated the process of pulmonary fibrosis. Methods: In January 2021, human mononuclear leukemia cells (THP-1) were treated with 0, 25, 50, 100 μg/ml SiNPs for 24 h. The supernatant of THP-1 cells was collected and applied to human embryonic lung fibroblast cells (MRC-5) which divided into control and low, medium and high dose groups at the logarithmic growth stage for 24 h. MRC-5 cell viability was detected by CCK8. The hydroxyproline (Hyp), interleukin 6 (IL-6), interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) expression were detected in the supernatants of MRC-5. The changed proteins were detected by liquid-phase mass spectrometry in high dose group. GeneCard database were applied to identity the differential pulmonary fibrosis proteins in high dose group. Gene Ontology (GO) was performed to identity the key biological process in differential pulmonary fibrosis proteins of high dose group. The String database was used to construct the protein-protein interactions (PPI) network of differential pulmonary fibrosis proteins. The APP of CytoHubba was applied to calculate the key protein of differential pulmonary fibrosis proteins in PPI network. Correlation coefficients between key differential pulmonary fibrosis proteins were calculated using Pearson correlation analysis. Western blotting was applied to detect the expression of key proteins of differential pulmonary fibrosis proteins in different groups. Results: CCK8 results showed that MRC-5 cell viability was increasing in low, medium and high dose groups compared with control group (P<0.05). The expression levels of Hyp and IL-1β in different group were increased compared with control group, the expression levels of IL-6 and TNF-α were increased in high dose group compared with control group (P<0.05). GeneCard database identified 26 differential pulmonary fibrosis proteins, which were mainly involved in extracellular matrix hydrolysis, cell inflammatory response, tissue repair, cell proliferation, inflammation response by GO analysis. The APP of CytoHubba was calculated that matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) and tissue inhibitor metalloproteinase 1 (TIMP1) played an important role in PPI network. The results of correlation analysis showed that MMP9 was correlated with the expression of matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP1), matrix metalloproteinase 3 (MMP3), TIMP1 and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) (r=0.97, 0.98, 0.94, 0.93, P<0.05). Western blotting results showed that TIMP1 protein expression was increased in low, medium and high dose groups, while MMP9 protein expression was increased only in high dose group (P<0.05) . Conclusion: Differential expression proteins related with pulmonary fibrosis in MRC-5 cells mainly regulate biological processes of extracellular matrix hydrolysis, tissue repair, and cellular inflammation response following SiNPs exposure. MMP9 and TIMP1 may be the key proteins, which affected the fibrosis process in vitro pulmonary fibrosis model.

[Study on the relationship between the age at natural menopause and postmenopausal metabolic syndrome]

To explore the relationship between the early or delayed age at natural menopause and metabolic syndrome (MS) in women. A total of 4 734 natural menopausal women who completed the baseline survey from November 2017 to January 2020 in the Guangzhou Middle-aged and Elderly Chronic Disease Prospective Cohort Study were selected in this cross-sectional study. Data on general demographic characteristics, disease history and female physiological health indicators were collected. Logistic regression model and restricted cubic spline curve were used to analyze the relationship between the age at natural menopause and MS. The results showed that the mean age of the subjects was (60±6) years old. The median (Q₁,Q₃) age at natural menopause was 50 (49, 52) years old, and the prevalence of MS was 14.8%(699/4 734). After adjusting for confounders, the age at natural menopause was closely related to MS in an approximate"U"shape. Compared with the group of normal age at natural menopause, the early age at menopause (OR=1.52, 95%CI: 1.12-2.06) and delayed age at menopause (OR=1.77, 95%CI: 1.36-2.30) had a higher risk of MS. In the group with time since menopause ≤6 years and 7-9 years, the risk of MS in the group with delayed age at menopause was 2.40 times (95%CI: 1.54-3.75) and 2.19 times (95%CI: 1.11-4.31) higher than that in the group with normal menopausal age, respectively. In conclusion, the early and delayed age at natural menopause increased the risk of MS. The increased risk of MS in delayed age at natural menopause mainly occurred within 10 years since menopause.

[Proliferative lesions with mesonephric features in the gynecologic tract: a clinicopathological analysis of sixteen cases]

Objective: To investigate the clinicopathological features of proliferations with mesonephric features (PMF) of the gynecologic tract. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on the clinical and pathological data of 16 cases with PMF that were diagnosed from October 2016 to January 2022 at a single institution. The relevant literature was reviewed. Results: Among the 16 cases, with an average of 53 years (31-68 years), there were 5 cases of mesonephric hyperplasia, 4 cases of mesonephric adenocarcinoma and 7 cases of mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma. The five cases of mesonephric hyperplasia were located in the lateral wall of the cervix and composed of simple tubules with growth patterns of diffuse or lobular clusters, without obvious stromal reaction. Four cases of mesonephric adenocarcinoma consisted of a mixture of papillary, cribriform, solid and other architectures, the nuclei resembling these of papillary thyroid carcinoma, and strong fibroproliferative reaction. They were located deep in the cervical and vaginal stroma. One of the tumors showed atypical mesonephric hyperplasia adjacent to the tumor. Five uterine and two ovarian mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma cases had similar histological morphology with mesonephric adenocarcinoma, but no mesonephric remnants/mesonephric hyperplasia were found near the tumors. In addition, four (4/5) uterine mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma cases originated from the endometrium with secondary involvement of myometrium, including one case with clear demarcation between the normal endometrium and the neoplastic glands. One (1/5) uterine mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma case was mainly located in the deep myometrium, along with adenomyosis around the tumor, without mesonephric remnants. Two ovarian mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma cases were associated with endometriotic cyst/endometrioid cystadenoma, including one case with an abrupt transition between normal epithelium and atypical mesonephric cells within the single individual cyst directly adjacent to tumor. All mesonephric hyperplasia and mesonephric adenocarcinoma cases were positive for GATA3, PAX8 and CD10 in a varying degree, and negative for ER, PR and TTF1. Although mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma showed a considerable overlap of immunohistochemical expression with mesonephric adenocarcinoma, seven mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma cases were positive for TTF1 and negative for GATA3. Conclusions: PMF is a class of rare proliferative lesions with morphological and immunophenotypic characteristics of mesonephric duct. Its commonly involved site, microscopic morphology, associated benign and/or atypical lesions, and immunophenotype may contribute to its diagnosis and differential diagnosis.

[The clinical application of mobile internet remote guidance platform for vestibular rehabilitation]

Objective: To guide the patients with vertigo who are suitable for vestibular rehabilitation therapy (VRT), and to evaluate the curative effect through a remote guidance platform based on mobile internet. Methods: Adult outpatients, who were diagnosed as vestibular disorders and required VRT, were selected and conducted baseline evaluation and formulated vestibular rehabilitation plan according to their symptoms, diagnosis and vestibular function examination results. These patients downloaded and installed the mobile internet remote guidance platform app for VRT, and then registered and uploaded medical records. According to the VRT plan formulated by clinicians for patients, the platform launched corresponding exercise guidance videos to guide them to complete 4-week VRT exercise at home. Before and after VRT, the patients were scored with Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC), Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI) and Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS). The rehabilitation effects were statistically analyzed by SigmaStat 4.0 software. Results: From October 2019 to October 2021, 233 patients with vertigo completed the registration of vestibular rehabilitation guidance platform, of whom 187 patients insisted on 4-week rehabilitation training and completed the scale evaluation. Among 187 patients, 65 were male and 122 were female; Age was (49.8±16.0) years; The medical history ranged from one to 192 months, with a median of eight months. Compared with that before rehabilitation exercise, the subjective feeling of vertigo in 170 patients was improved, and the overall effective rate was 90.9% (170/187). The subjective symptoms of vertigo were basically improved after rehabilitation training in patients with unilateral vestibular dysfunction, vestibular neuritis, sudden deafness with vertigo, Hunt syndrome and acoustic neuroma. There were significant differences in ABC, DHI and SAS scores before and after VRT (P<0.05). Of those patients with Meniere's disease in the intermittent period and the patients with Meniere's disease who underwent surgical treatment, more than 90% of their subjective symptoms of vertigo or dizziness improved after VRT, and there were significant differences in the scores of ABC, DHI and SAS before and after VRT exercise (P<0.05). In patients with vestibular migraine, 36.7% (11/30) had no improvement or even aggravation of subjective symptoms of vertigo after VRT, however, the DHI score after rehabilitation exercise was lower than that before exercise, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). In patients with bilateral vestibular dysfunction, although most (6/8) subjective symptom scores were improved compared with those before exercise, there was no significant difference in ABC, DHI and SAS scores before and after rehabilitation (P>0.05). Conclusion: VRT with the help of vestibular rehabilitation mobile internet remote guidance platform can effectively improve the subjective symptoms of vertigo, balance ability and anxiety in patients with unilateral vestibular lesions.

Facile synthesis of chitosan-based acid-resistant composite films for efficient selective adsorption properties towards anionic dyes

To effectively and selectively remove toxic anionic dyes which are heavily discharged and to promote them recovery, a sustainable cellulose nanofiber/chitosan (CNF/CS) composite film was elaborately designed through a facile procedure. Based on the strong supporting effect of CNF and excellent compatibility between CNF and CS, the composite film presents low swelling and acid-proof properties, which can prevent the adsorption process from the disintegration of adsorbent. Moreover, the positive electrical property of CNF/CS film increases the discrepancy in adsorption capacities for anionic and cationic dyes. The maximum adsorption capacity of anionic methyl orange (MO) on CNF/CS film reaches 655.23 mg/g with a desirable recyclability. The adsorption behavior attributed to a physico-chemical and monolayer adsorption process. This work opens a new route for the development of eco-friendly and highly efficient adsorbents on selective removal and recycling of anionic dyes from wastewater.

[Clinical characteristics of connective tissue disease associated interstitial lung disease in children]

Objective: To elucidate the clinical features of connective tissue disease associated interstitial lung disease (CTD-ILD) in children. Methods: A total of 24 children diagnosed with CTD-ILD and treated in Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Shanghai Children's Medical Center from January 2010 to December 2019 were included in the study. Their medical data including clinical features, lab test, imaging, pulmonary function test, treatment and outcome were analyzed statistically. Results: In these 24 patients, 4 were males and 20 females. Their main clinical presentations were cough (10/24, 42%), shortness of breath (10/24, 42%), tachycardia in quiet state (8/24, 33%), fatigue with activity (7/24, 29%), and fever (6/24, 25%). The main abnormal physical examination findings were moist rales (4/24, 17%) and acropachy (2/24, 8%). There were various abnormal findings in the patients' lab test. All the patients (100%) had pulmonary interstitial changes on chest CT. Eight patients had spirometry test, and all (100%) showed decreased diffusion capacity. After immunosuppressive treatment, 15 cases (63%) improved, 4 cases (17%) gave up or died, while 5 cases (21%) had no significant improvement on the imaging examination. Conclusions: The onset of pediatric CTD-ILD could be insidious. Early diagnosis and aggressive treatment may change the prognosis, but are both difficult and need further studies.

[Application of molecular analysis in differential diagnosis of ovarian adult granulosa cell tumors]

Objective: To investigate the application value of molecular detection in the differential diagnosis of ovarian adult granulosa cell tumors (AGCT) by analyzing FOXL2, AKT1 and DICER1 mutations in these tumors. Methods: A total of 48 cases of ovarian sex cord-stromal tumor (SCST) were selected from July 2012 to June 2019 in Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, including 21 adult granulosa cell tumors (AGCT), 15 fibromas/fibrothecomas, 8 Sertoli-Leydig cell tumors (SLCT) and 4 other types of ovarian SCST. Genomic DNA was extracted from the formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections. Polymerase chain reaction amplification for FOXL2, AKT1 and DICER1 genes was performed, followed by sequencing using capillary electrophoresis. Fisher exact test was used to compare the prevalence difference of FOXL2, AKT1 and DICER1 mutations among the groups. P<0.05 was considered significant. Results: Eighteen of the 21 (85.7%) AGCT harbored FOXL2 mutation. Compared with other SCST (13.0%, 3 of 23; including fibromas/fibrothecomas and SLCT), FOXL2 mutation was significantly higher in AGCT (P<0.001). In addition, FOXL2 mutation was also detected in one fibrothecoma, two SLCT and two gynandroblastomas. DICER1 mutation was identified in four of eight SLCT, and these cases were moderately to poorly differentiated. FOXL2 mutation was found in one SLCT with DICER1 mutation. There was no DICER1 mutation in other ovarian SCST. No AKT1 mutation was detected in all the patients. Conclusions: FOXL2 mutation is a highly specific biomarker for adult AGCT and may be helpful to resolve problematic cases. Diagnosis should also be taken into consideration of the clinical and histological features as FOXL2 mutation is also found in other SCST. The detection of DICER1 mutation is helpful for the differential diagnosis of ovarian SLCT. Synchronous DICER1 and FOXL2 mutation in the SLCT has been observed, and its significance needs to be further studied.

Production of bioethanol from unwashed-pretreated rapeseed straw at high solid loading

Reduction in water consumption and increase in ethanol concentration are two main challenges for bioethanol production from lignocellulosic materials. To address the two challenges, the aim of this work was to study the production of bioethanol from unwashed-pretreated rapeseed straw (RS) at high solid loading. RS pretreated with 1% (w w^-1) H₂SO₄ at 160 °C for 10 min resulted in excellent digestibility and fermentability of pretreated RS. The unwashed-pretreated RS was subjected to presaccharification and fed-batch simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (P-FB-SSF) at a final solid loading of 22% (w w^-1). Ethanol concentration and ethanol yield of 53.1 g L^-1 (equivalent to 4.1% (w w^-1) based on fermentation slurry) and 72.4% were obtained, respectively. In total, 92.1 g water g^-1 ethanol was consumed, a much smaller amount than that observed with washing after pretreatment or fermentation performed at lower solid loading.

[The network investigation on knowledge, attitude and practice about Novel coronavirus pneumonia of the residents in Anhui Province]

Objective: To analyze the current situation of the knowledge, attitudes and practice about Novelcoronavirus pneumonia (NCP) of the residents in Anhui Province. Methods: Anonymous network sampling survey was carried out with an electronic questionnaire that designed by the questionnaire star, and a total of 4016 subjects from Anhui province were investigated. The content of the survey includes that the basic information of subjects,the residents' knowledge, attitudes and practice about NCP, as well as their satisfaction with the prevention and control measures adopted by the government and health authorities and the suggestions on future prevention. The questionnaire doesn't involve any privacy information, and all questions were mandatory to ensure the response rate. Results: The M (P(25), P(75)) age the 4016 subjects was 21 (19, 24), and the ranging from 7 to 80 years old. The number of males was1431(35.6%). Social networking tools such as WeChat and QQ were the main sources of epidemic information for residents (97.8%, 3 929 respondents). Residents have a high awareness rate of the main symptoms, transmission routes, using of masks, hand washing and treatment information of NCP, while a low awareness rate of the atypical symptoms. 92.6% of the subjects (n=3 720) think that the outbreak was scary. In terms of psychological behavior scores, the results showed that female (9.38±4.81), the urban (9.37±5.02) and the medical workers (10.79±5.19) had a poorer mental health than the male (8.45±5.00) , the rural (8.71±4.75) and the non-medical workers (the students: 8.85±4.83; public institude workers: 9.02±5.08; others: 8.97±5.39) (P < 0.05). 71.9% of the residents (n=2 887)were satisfied with the local epidemic control measures. The residents took various of the measures to prevent and control the epidemic. The ratio of residents that could achieve "no gathering and less going out" , "wear masks when going out" and "do not go to crowded and closed places" was up to 97.4% (n=3 913), 93.6% (n=3758) and 91.5% (n=3 673) respectively. Conclusion: The residents in Anhui province have a good KAP about NCP, yet it is necessary to strengthen the community publicity, the mental health maintenance of residents and students' health education.

[Application of three methods in occupational health risk assessment of automobile 4S shop]

Objective: To choose various occupational health risk assessment of the mature methods at home and abroad respectively occupational health risk assessment was carried out on the 4s stores, to explore different risk assessment methods on the 4 s shop the applicability of the occupational health risk assessment. Methods: Chemical was applied on the harmful factors of occupational health risk assessment technology guideline in the composite index method, quantitative cancer risk assessment method using the guidelines for the harmful factors of occupational health risk assessment of chemical technology of composite index method, quantitative cancer risk assessment method, international commission on mining and metals (ICMM) occupational health risk assessment quantitative method and the occupational-disease-inductive operation classification to evaluate chemical factors in 4S store, Combined with on-site occupational health investigation to compare with the result of risk assessment and analysis of international mining and metals (ICMM) committee occupational health risk assessment quantitative method and the occupational-disease-inductive operation classification of 4S store to evaluate chemical factors, combined with on-site occupational health investigation comparison and analysis the result of the risk assessment. Results: Except for 6 times, the results of ICMM matrix method and comprehensive index method were consistent, which were all higher than job classification. The other results were job classification of >of ICMM matrix method >comprehensive index method or job classification of >of ICMM matrix method. Conclusion: When the concentration of occupational-disease-inductive factors is lower than 1/2 limit, the risk assessment results tend to be ICMM quantitative >composite index method >operation classification. When the occupational-disease-inductive factors were involved with triphenyl, the quantitative non-carcinogenic risk assessment method was more likely to reach the conclusion that the occupational health risk was unacceptable.

Highly Bendable and Durable Waterproof Paper for Ultra-High Electromagnetic Interference Shielding

An efficient electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding paper with excellent water repellency and mechanical flexibility has been developed, by assembling silver nanowires (AgNWs) and hydrophobic inorganic ceramic on the cellulose paper, via a facile dip-coating preparation. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) observations confirmed that AgNWs were interconnected and densely coated on both sides of the cellulose fiber, which endows the as-prepared paper with high conductivity (33.69 S/cm in-plane direction) at a low AgNW area density of 0.13 mg/cm2. Owing to multiple reflections and scattering between the two outer highly conductive surfaces, the obtained composite presented a high EMI shielding effectiveness (EMI SE) of up to 46 dB against the X band, and ultrahigh specific EMI SE of 271.2 dB mm-1. Moreover, the prepared hydrophobic AgNW/cellulose (H-AgNW/cellulose) composite paper could also maintain high EMI SE and extraordinary waterproofness (water contact angle > 140°) by suffering dozens of bending tests or one thousand peeling tests. Overall, such a multifunctional paper might have practical applications in packaging conductive components and can be used as EMI shielding elements in advanced application areas, even under harsh conditions.

[Relationship between occupational stress, psychological capital and depressive symptoms among female workers in five electronic manufacturing enterprises]

Objective: To explore the relationship between occupational stress, psychological capital and depressive symptoms among electronic manufacturing female workers in the Pearl River Delta region. Methods: Using cluster sampling method, 845 female workers from 5 electronic manufacturing enterprises in the Pearl River Delta region were selected as research subjects from June to August 2017. The Effort Reward Imbalance questionnaire (ERI) , Psychological Capital questionnaire-24 (PCQ-24) and Patient Health questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) were applied to measure the level of occupational stress, psychological capital and depressive symptoms in female workers. Results: Effort (r=0.197, P<0.01) and over commitment (r=-0.260, P<0.01) were positively correlated with the score of depressive symptoms, and the rewards was negatively correlated with depressive symptoms (r=-0.211, P<0.01) . The reward and over-commitment for depressive symptoms were accounted for 8.2%. Psychological capital was negatively correlated with depressive symptoms, and plays a partly mediating role in the relationship between occupational stress and depressive symptoms of female workers. The psychological capital for depressive symptoms was accounted for 8.7%. Conclusion: Occupational stress can affects the depressive symptoms of electronic manufacturing female workers, or indirectly affect depressive symptoms through psychological capital, reduce occupational stress and improve psychological capital as a way to relieve the depressive symptoms of female workers.

Highly Sensitive and Stretchable Polyurethane Fiber Strain Sensors with Embedded Silver Nanowires

Flexible strain sensors have attracted a great amount of attention for promising applications in next-generation artificially intelligent devices. However, it is difficult for conventional planar strain sensors to meet the requirements of miniature size and light weight for flexible electronics. Herein, a highly sensitive and stretchable fiber strain sensor with a millimeter diameter was innovatively fabricated by the capillary tube method to integrate silver nanowires (AgNWs) in polyurethane (PU) fibers. Scanning electron microscopy results demonstrate that AgNWs were embedded into the surface layer of PU fibers and formed completely conductive networks. The unique AgNW networks endow the PU/AgNW fibers with superior electrical conductivity of 3.1 S/cm, high elongation at break of 265%, wide response range of 43%, high gauge factor of 87.6 up to 22% strain, fast response time of 49 ms, and excellent reliability and stability. Such satisfactory stretchability and sensitivity is attributed to the combination of the highly stretchable PU matrix and the embedded architecture of the AgNW conductive network. Moreover, PU/AgNW fibers can be employed as wearable devices to detect various human motions and to drive light-emitting diodes at a lower voltage (2.7 V).

[Expression of type 1 and type 2 cytokines from serum of coal miners and the evaluation in surveillance of coal workers' pneumoconiosis at earlier stage]

Objectives: To explore the expression regulation of type 1 and type 2 (Th1 and Th2) cytokines from serum of coal miners and the evaluation in surveillance of coal workers' pneumoconiosis, 630 coal miners were studied. Methods: A total of 90 male patients diagnosed as coal workers' pneumoconiosis (CWP) in a institute for occupational health and 19 male workers newly diagnosed as CWP patients was chosen as CWP group with simple random sampling method from a coal mine group from January 2013 to December in 2015. 180 male coal miners with abnormal but not diagnosed as CWP were selected as CWP suspected group with simple random sampling methods, meanwhile 180 male coal miners with normal chest X-ray photograph was as dust-exposed group by 1∶1 matched as age. And 161 healthy males accepted pre-employed examination were selected as control group, CWP suspected group, dust-exposed group and control group called as non-CWP group. According to screening test and diagnosis test, the basic information and occupational history of all subjects were collected, and cytokines including IL-1β, IL-8, IFN-γ, IL-6 and IL-10 of serum were detected. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine the optimal cutoff value of each cytokine. Area under curve (AUC), the validity and reliability were calculated and judged. Results: The average age of control group, dust-exposed group, CWP suspected group and CWP group were (27.4±5.0) , (43.4±10.7) , (48.2±6.2) , (64.7±7.0) years old, respectively. The median level of IL-1β, IL-8, IFN-γ and IL-6 in cases group (1 638.30, 2 099.49, 815.18,140.32 pg/ml) were higher than that of non-cases group (1 445.57, 1 402.26, 736.38, 95.73 pg/ml) (P<0.05) . The level of IL-8 (1 503.99 pg/ml) in CWP suspected group was higher than that of control group (1 295.67 pg/ml) and dust-exposed group (1 376.94 pg/ml) , but the level of IL-10 (654.08 pg/ml) was lower than that of control group (596.64 pg/ml) . The ratio of IFN-γ/IL-6 ranged from 5 to 8, and the ratio in CWP group (5.87) was lower than that of non-CWP group (7.61) . The IL-6 and IL-8 among the subjects of dust-exposed group in terms of the age distribution of among had reached statistical significance. According to ROC, the cutoff value of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10 and INF-γ reached 1 582.65, 116.53, 1 791.54, 581.08 and 792.69 pg/ml, respectively. The AUC was 0.668, 0.895, 0.859, 0.716 and 0.637, respectively. It was found that IL-6 and IL-8 could be used as biomarkers in detecting CWP, the sensitivity and specificity was 82.6% and 84.6%, 78.0% and 84.8%, respectively; Youden's index was 0.674 and 0.628 and the consistency rate was 84.3% and 83.7%, while Kappa value was 0.55 and 0.52. Conclusion: There was Type 1 and type 2 cytokine dysregulation in CWP patients. IL-6 and IL-8 can be used as effective biomarkers to forecast lung injury before X-ray changes.

Frond transformation system mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens for Lemna minor

The Lemnaceae, known as duckweed, the smallest flowering aquatic plant, shows promise as a plant bioreactor. For applying this potential plant bioreactor, establishing a stable and efficient genetic transformation system is necessary. The currently favored callus-based method for duckweed transformation is time consuming and genotype limited, as it requires callus culture and regeneration, which is inapplicable to many elite duckweed strains suitable for bioreactor exploitation. In this study, we attempted to establish a simple frond transformation system mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens for Lemna minor, one of the most widespread duckweed species in the world. To evaluate the feasibility of the new transformation system, the gene CYP710A11 was overexpressed to improve the yield of stigmasterol, which has multiple medicinal purposes. Three L. minor strains, ZH0055, D0158 and M0165, were transformed by both a conventional callus transformation system (CTS) and the simple frond transformation system (FTS). GUS staining, PCR, quantitative PCR and stigmasterol content detection showed that FTS can produce stable transgenic lines as well as CTS. Moreover, compared to CTS, FTS can avoid the genotype constraints of callus induction, thus saving at least half of the required processing time (CTS took 8-9 months while FTS took approximately 3 months in this study). Therefore, this transformation system is feasible in producing stable transgenic lines for a wide range of L. minor genotypes.

[Mediating effect of hemoglobin and hematocrit on the association between alcohol consumption and blood pressure among middle-aged and elderly male residents in Guangzhou]

Objective: To explore the mediating effect of hemoglobin (Hb) and hematocrit (HCT) on the association between alcohol consumption and blood pressure, and provide evidence for the prevention and control of alcohol-attributed hypertension. Methods: 1 091 male (age >50 years old) participants with drinking habit were selected from the Guangzhou biobank cohort study (GBCS). Mediation analysis was used to evaluate the mediating effect of Hb and HCT on the association of alcohol consumption (unit/day) with systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure(DBP), pulse pressure(PP) and mean arterial pressure (MAP). Results: After adjusting for age, body mass index, education level, personal annual income, smoking, occupation and physical activity, the associations of alcohol consumption with SBP, DBP, PP and MAP were partly mediated by Hb, the proportion of mediating effect was 11.8% (95%CI 4.8%-24.7%), 15.3% (95%CI 6.5%-32.0%), 8.4% (95%CI 2.2%-22.5%) and 13.5% (95%CI 5.9%-27.5%), respectively. The associations of alcohol consumption with SBP, DBP, and MAP were also partly mediated by HCT, the proportion of mediating effect was 6.3% (95%CI 1.0%-16.0%), 8.7% (95%CI 1.4%-21.4%), and 7.5% (95%CI 1.0%-18.6%), respectively. Conclusion: There is a significant mediating effect of Hb and HCT on the association between alcohol consumption and blood pressure. Besides efforts on alcohol control, the potential effects of alcohol-induced increase on Hb and HCT, which might also increase the blood pressure, need to be considered to achieve optimal monitoring and prevention of alcohol-related hypertension.

[Foreign bodies of external nose and forehead:a case report]

Foreign bodies of external nose and forehead are rarely seen.In this case the patient stuck an acupuncture needle into the middle of two sides of the superliliary arch 3 months ago. Patient complains of slight pain in that region because of the infection.The X-ray and 3D CT examination present 4 abnormal high-density shadows in the subscutaneous tissue of external nose and forehead.Foreign bodies in maxillofacial region have the quality of being changeable when the muscles are contracting. The key point to the successful operation is finding the accurate location of the foreign bodies with feasible image examination and designing reasonable incisions.

Cancer cell-derived von Willebrand factor enhanced metastasis of gastric adenocarcinoma

Cancer prognosis is poor for patients with blood-borne metastasis. Platelets are known to assist cancer cells in transmigrating through the endothelium, but ligands for the platelet-mediated cancer metastasis remain poorly defined. von Willebrand factor (vWF) is a major platelet ligand that has been widely used as a biomarker in cancer and associated inflammation. However, its functional role in cancer growth and metastasis is largely unknown. Here we report that gastric cancer cells from patients and cells from two well-established gastric cancer lines express vWF and secrete it into the circulation, upon which it rapidly becomes cell-bound to mediate cancer-cell aggregation and interaction with platelets and endothelial cells. The vWF-mediated homotypic and heterotypic cell-cell interactions promote the pulmonary graft of vWF-overexpressing gastric cancer BGC823 cells in a mouse model. The metastasis-promoting activity of vWF was blocked by antibodies against vWF and its platelet receptor GP Ibα. It was also reduced by an inhibitory siRNA that suppresses vWF expression. These findings demonstrate a causal role of cancer-cell-derived vWF in mediating gastric cancer metastasis and identify vWF as a new therapeutic target.

[Association between body weight change during early and middle adulthood and the risk of type 2 diabetes in middle aged and elderly population]

Objective: To examine the association between weight changes during early and middle adulthood and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in middle aged and elderly population. Methods: Based on the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study (GBCS), 28 736 residents aged ≥50 years were included in Guangzhou. Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze the association between body weight changes during early or middle adulthood and age when the heaviest weight reaching the threshold on the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in middle age or elderly population. Adjustments on age, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, education level, occupation, district of residence and body mass index etc., were made. Results: The mean age was 64.3 (standard deviation=6.7) years in men and 61.0 (standard deviation=7.0) years in women, with the prevalence rates of diabetes as 13.1% and 13.7% in men and women, respectively. Compared to those with stable body weight, the risk of diabetes increased with weight gain during early and middle adulthood in both men and women (both P values for trend<0.01). Participants who gained more than 20 kg during early and middle adulthood were associated with the highest risk of diabetes in men (OR=2.83, 95%CI:1.99-4.02) and women (OR=3.13, 95%CI: 2.47-3.96). Compared to those who reached the highest weight at age 20, those who reaching the highest weight at 40 to 49 years were associated with the highest risk of diabetes, with OR being 5.32 (95%CI: 1.92-14.8) in men and 3.41 (95%CI: 2.49-4.67) in women, respectively. Weight loss in adulthood was associated with self-reported but not newly diagnosed diabetic cases in both middle and older aged men and women. Conclusion: Weight gain during early and middle adulthood may increase the risk of diabetes in middle and older aged population. The detrimental effect of obesity on diabetes might become significantly visible in the next decades.

Adiposity and incident diabetes within 4 years of follow-up: the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study

AIM

Whether different adiposity measures predict incident diabetes differentially in general Chinese populations is unclear. We investigated this in Chinese people aged 50+ years in the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study.

METHODS

Waist circumference and BMI were measured at baseline, and fasting glucose was measured at both baseline and follow-up examinations. Incident diabetes was defined as fasting glucose ≥ 7.0 mmol/l, glucose after 2-h oral glucose tolerance test ≥ 11.1 mmol/l, and/or self-reported physician-diagnosed diabetes during the follow-up period.

RESULTS

Of 15 752 people without diabetes at baseline from 2003 to 2008, 1779 (11.3%) developed incident diabetes during the follow-up from 2008 to 2012 (mean = 3.6 years, sd = 1.0). After mutually adjusting each other and adjusting for other potential confounders, waist circumference showed a higher predictive value than BMI. The odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval (CI) was 1.50 (95% CI 1.37-1.64) for a 1 sd increment in waist circumference and 1.21 (95% CI 1.11-1.33), for a 1 sd increment in BMI. Similarly, after mutual adjustment, abdominal obesity was associated with an almost twofold odds of incident diabetes (OR 1.93, 95% CI 1.71-2.17), which was higher than that for general obesity (OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.50-2.06). The area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for waist circumference was higher than that for BMI [AUC = 0.676 (95% CI 0.660-0.686) vs. 0.665 (95% CI 0.651-0.678), P = 0.02].

CONCLUSION

Abdominal obesity predicted incident diabetes in older people better than general obesity. Our findings may be an early warning signal for local government or public health practitioners to develop and investigate more effective intervention programmes for diabetes, and should also be disseminated to the public to pay more attention to this important public health issue.

Establishment of a cell line with high transfection efficiency from zebrafish Danio rerio embryos and its susceptibility to fish viruses

A cell line ZBE3 isolated from a continuous cell culture derived from zebrafish Danio rerio blastomeres by clonal growth was characterized. ZBE3 cells had been subcultured for >120 passages since the initial primary culture of the blastomeres. The ZBE3 cells grow stably at temperature from 20 to 32° C with an optimum temperature of 28° C in ESM2 or ESM4 medium with 15% foetal bovine serum (FBS). The optimum FBS concentration for ZBE3 cell growth ranged from 15 to 20%. Cytogenetical analysis indicated that the modal chromosome number of ZBE3 cells was 50, the same as the diploid chromosome number of D. rerio. Significant cytopathic effect was observed in ZBE3 cells after infection with redspotted grouper nervous necrosis virus, Singapore grouper iridovirus and grass carp reovirus, and the viral replication in the cells was confirmed by real-time quantitative PCR and transmission electron microscopy, indicating the susceptibility of ZBE3 cells to the three fish viruses. After transfected with pEGFP-N3 plasmid, ZBE3 cells showed a transfection efficiency of about 40% which was indicated by the percentage of cells expressing green fluorescence protein. The stable growth, susceptibility to fish viruses as well as high transfection efficiency make ZBE3 cells be a useful tool in transgenic manipulation, fish virus-host cell interaction and immune response in fish.

[Progress in the role of neurotrophin-3 and its receptors in the development of cochlear spiral ganglion in rats]

Neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) attracted increasing attention about NTFs researches in recent years. But the mechanism of promoting the development of neurons and neurite extension is not clear. Recombinant human NT-3 or NT-3 gene is commonly used in the treatment of peripheral and central neurons system damage. When rats are born, the cochlear is not mature yet. It is a suitable experimental animal for studying the morphological and functional development of the peripheral auditory pathway. It was found that NT-3 could promote the survival, growth, division and extension of the cochlear neurons in rats. To make clear the role of NT-3 in the development of spiral ganglion in the rat cochlear will be of significance for the treatment of nervous hearing loss by NT-3 in the future.

[Influence of extreme weather on years of life lost due to diabetes death in Chongqing and Harbin, China]

Objective: To understand the associations between extremely low and high air temperature and the years of life lost (YLL) due to diabetes deaths in Chongqing and Harbin with different climatic characteristics in China. Methods: A double threshold B-spline distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) was used to investigate the lag and cumulative effects of extremely low and high air temperature on YLL due to diabetes for lag 0-30 days by using the urban meteorological and diabetes mortality data of Chongqing (2011-2013) and Harbin (2008-2010). The effects were expressed as relative risk (RR). Results: In Chongqing, the cold effects on YLL due to diabetes were delayed by four days and lasted for three days (lag4-6) with the highest RR of 1.304 (95%CI:1.033-1.647) at lag5. The hot effects were delayed by one day (lag1) with RR of 1.321 (95%CI:1.061-1.646). In Harbin, the extreme cold effects on YLL were delayed by four days and lasted for seven days (lag4-10) with the highest RR of 1.309 (95%CI: 1.088-1.575) at lag6. The hot effects were delayed by one day and lasted for four days (lag1-4) with the highest RR of 1.460 (95%CI:1.114-1.915) at lag2. The unit risk for cold and hot effects was 43.7% (P=0.005 5) and 18.0% (P=0.000 2) in Chongqing and 15.0% (P=0.000 8) and 29.5% (P=0.001 2) in Harbin, respectively. Conclusions: Both extremely low air temperature and extremely high air temperature might increase the years of life lost due to diabetes in cities with different climate characteristics. Health education about diabetes prevention should provide information about the effects of extreme weather events.

[Correlation between body fat percentage and general obesity indexes in middle aged and old people in Guangzhou]

Objective: To examine the correlation between body fat percentage (BFP) and general obesity indexes, including body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and waist to hip ratio (WHR) and calculate the corresponding BFP cutoff values in the middle aged and old people in Guangzhou. The corresponding cut-point of optimal body fat percentage for Guangzhou older population. Methods: Based on the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study (GBCS), 3 490 relatively healthy Guangzhou residents aged ≥50 years were selected and were randomly divided into 2 groups. The equations between BFP and BMI, WC, WHR were set up with Curve fitting analysis in one group. The multiple regression analysis was undertaken to establish predictive equations between BFP and BMI, WC, WHR with stepwise model for adding gender, age, physical activity, drinking and smoking. Then, the optimal cut-points of BFP corresponding to BMI, WC and WHR to reflect the degree of obesity were calculated. The equations were then validated with another group. Results: BFP increased with the increase of WHR, WC and BMI. BMI was a better predictor of body fat percentage than WC and WHR. The final regression equation was BFP=(-23.47 -8.87×sex) +2.94× (BMI) - 0.024 × (BMI)²,the coefficient of determination was 0.805. Based on the equation, the BFP corresponding to overweight/obesity (24 kg/m²≤BMI<28 kg/m²) were 24.3% ≤BFP<31.1% in men and 33.2%≤BFP<40.0% in women, respectively. BMI had a better consistency with BFP in identify obesity compared with WC and WHR, obtained the area of ROC 0.909 in men and 0.919 in women respectively. The sensitivity and specificity were 70.3% and 85.5% in men; and 75.2% and 93.0% in women respectively. Conclusion: BFP has a better correlation with BMI. The study results indicated that BFP for middle aged and old males and females in Guangzhou corresponding to overweight/obesity (BMI≥24 kg/m²) were <24.0% and <33.0% respectively.

[Clinicopathological analysis of lymph node metastasis in colorectal adenocarcinoma]

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the correlation of lymph node metastasis with clinicopathological parameters and outcomes of colorectal adenocarcinoma, and to explore its clinicopathological significance.

METHODS

The lymph node metastasis and clinicopathological features of 133 colorectal adenocarcinoma patients whose specimens were interpreted in Department of Pathology of Beijing Tongren Hospital between February 2011 and August 2015 were retrospectively analyzed. The relationship between the lymph node metastasis and clinicopathological features as well as outcomes was also analyzed according to the follow-up data of these patients.

RESULTS

Among the 133 cases, 69 had lymph node metastasis, and the other 64 had no lymph node metastasis. Compared with the non-lymph node metastasis group, the lymph node metastasis group had higher prevalence of neural invasion (20.29% vs 3.13%) and vascular invasion (36.23% vs 3.13%), deeper tumor invasion (beyond the serosa: 1.45% vs 0), lower tumor differentiation (poorly differentiated: 26.09% vs 14.06%), higher mortality (11.59% vs 1.56%) and distant metastasis (17.39% vs 4.69%) (all P<0.05). In the lymph node metastasis group, intra-group comparison among patients of different lymph node N staging (N0, N1a, N1b, N2a, N2b) also showed statistically significant differences in neural invasion, vascular invasion, circumferential resection margin, maximum diameter of the tumor, depth of tumor invasion, tumor differentiation, survival, and distant metastasis (all P<0.05). There were no statistically significant differences between the patients with lymph node metastases <12 and those with lymph node metastases ≥12 in these clinicopathological parameters(all P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Presence/absence of lymph node metastasis and lymph node stage may be correlated with neural invasion, vascular invasion, depth of tumor invasion, tumor differentiation, survival, and distant metastasis. However, no marked relationship was detected of the number of lymph node metastases (<12 or ≥12) with clinicopathological parameters and outcomes.

Smoking and serum vitamin D in older Chinese people: cross-sectional analysis based on the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study

OBJECTIVE

Studies on serum vitamin D in smokers showed conflicting results. We examined the association of smoking status with serum vitamin D in older Chinese men, taking advantage of a community-based sample with natural exposure to vitamin D.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study based on the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study (GBCS).

SETTING

Community-based sample from the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study.

PARTICIPANTS

612 male participants aged 50+years recruited from 2009 to 2011.

RESULTS

The mean (SD) of vitamin D concentration was 58.3 (17.2), 57.0 (15.0) and 54.7 (15.4) nmol/L for never, former and current smokers, respectively. Adjusted for multiple confounders, vitamin D decreased from never to former, then to current smokers (P for trend 0.02). Compared to never smokers, current smokers had lower serum concentrations of vitamin D, and the concentrations decreased with the increasing number of cigarettes per day (-3.11 (95% CI -9.05 to 2.82), -3.29 (-8.3 to 1.72) and -4.61 (-8.89 to -0.33) for 1-9, 10-19 and 20+cigarettes per day, respectively; p for trend 0.01), duration of smoking (-1.39 (-6.09 to 3.30) and -5.39 (-9.42 to -1.35) for 1-39 and 40+years, respectively; p for trend 0.008) as well as pack-years (-2.89 (-6.78 to 1.01) and -5.58 (-10.48 to -0.67) for 1-39 and 40+pack-years, respectively; p for trend 0.009). Longer duration of quitting smoking was associated with higher vitamin D than was current smoking (P for trend 0.04).

CONCLUSIONS

Current smokers had lower vitamin D than never smokers, and the association showed a dose-response pattern.

Prognostic significance of synergistic hexokinase-2 and beta2-adrenergic receptor expression in human hepatocelluar carcinoma after curative resection

Background

Hexokinase-2 (HK2) and Beta2-adrenergic receptor (Beta2AR) are overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues and associated with poor prognosis. However, the synergistic effect of HK2 and Beta2AR in HCC prognosis is not elucidated. The present study aims to investigate the association between HK2 and Beta2AR expressions in HCC tissues, and to evaluate the synergistic effect of HK2 and Beta2AR in HCC prognosis.

Methods

Immunohistochemistry of HK2 and Beta2AR was performed on 155 paraffin embedded HCC samples retrieved from the archives of pathology department. Corresponding clinical data and prognostic data were collected through searching medical record systems, death registration systems and interviews with patient families. Spearman correlation test was performed to evaluate the association between HK2 and Beta2AR expression. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox regressions were employed to evaluate HK2 and Beta2AR expression in HCC prognosis, respectively and synergistically.

Results

109 of 155 HCC patients reached the death point, the survival time of HCC patients was 46.23 ± 31.01 months after curative surgical resections of HCC. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that large tumor size (more than 5 cm) (hazard ratio (HR) = 8.42, 95 % confidence interval (CI) = 3.81–18.59, P < 0.0001), advanced TNM stage (III and IV stages) (HR = 2.09, 95%CI = 1.21–3.62, P < 0.001) and AFP more than 20 μg/L (HR = 1.49, 95%CI = 1.02–2.18, P = 0.0302) were predictors for poor prognosis. HK2 and Beta2AR positive expression was detected in 66 (42.58) and 122 (78.71 %) HCC samples respectively. In univariate analysis, HK2(+) (HR = 2.70, 95%CI = 1.76–4.15, P < 0.0001) and Beta2AR(+) (HR = 4.61, 96%CI = 3.14–6.76, P < 0.0001) were associated with poor prognosis. In multivariate analysis, HK2(+) (P < 0.0001) and Beta2AR(+) (P < 0.0001) were also associated with poor prognosis. HK2(+)/Beta2AR(+) in HCC samples had poorer prognosis compared with HK2(−)/Beta2AR(−) in both univariate analysis (HR = 4.69, 95%CI = 2.91–7.57, P < 0.0001) and multivariate analysis (P < 0.0001). HK2(+)/Beta2AR(+) in HCC samples had poorer prognosis compared with HK2(−)/Beta2AR(+) in both univariate analysis (HR = 1.76, 95%CI = 1.17–2.64, P = 0.003) and multivariate analysis (P = 0.004).

Conclusion

HK2 and Beta2AR play important roles in HCC progression. HK2 and Beta2AR expression in HCC is correlated positively. Beta2AR may increase HCC invasion and metastasis in collaboration with HK2. HK2 and Beta2AR can predict HCC prognosis both independently and synergistically.

Neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients with vascular dementia in mainland China

Background

Neuropsychiatric deficits can induce marked disability in patients with dementia and increase caregiver distress. Several studies have found that neuropsychiatric symptoms are common both in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and patients with vascular dementia (VaD). However, there are few studies of the neuropsychiatric disturbances in large clinical samples of patients with mixed (cortical - subcortical) VaD from mainland China. This study aimed to investigate the neuropsychiatric symptoms in VaD patients in mainland China.

Methods

Eighty patients with mixed VaD for over 6 months duration, and their caregivers (VaD group), were recruited for interview in Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, from June 2010 to June 2012. Eighty age- and sex-matched normal volunteers (control group) were interviewed at the same time. The Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) were administered to the VaD patients, their caregivers, and normal volunteers. Group differences were analyzed using the unpaired t-test.

Results

The total mean scores of the NPI in the VaD group were higher than in the control group (P < 0.01). The subscale scores of NPI, including delusions, hallucinations, depression, apathy, irritability, agitation, aberrant motor behavior, and change in appetite were significantly higher in the VaD group than in the control group (P < 0.05–0.01). Compared with the mild VaD subgroup, the NPI subscale scores of apathy, irritability and total scores were significantly higher in the moderate VaD subgroup (P < 0.05–0.01); the NPI subscale scores of anxiety, apathy, irritability, and total scores were significantly higher in the severe VaD subgroup (P < 0.01). Compared with the moderate VaD subgroup, the NPI subscale scores of anxiety and apathy were significantly higher in the severe VaD subgroup (P < 0.05–0.01).

Conclusions

Neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as hallucination, anxiety, apathy, irritability and aberrant action behavior, are common in patients with mixed VaD from mainland China; anxiety and apathy were more pronounced in the subgroup of severe VaD patients.

Overexpression of a Populus trichocarpa H+-pyrophosphatase gene PtVP1.1 confers salt tolerance on transgenic poplar

The Arabidopsis vacuolar H(+)-pyrophosphatase (AVP1) has been well studied and subsequently employed to improve salt and/or drought resistance in herbaceous plants. However, the exact function of H(+)-pyrophosphatase in woody plants still remains unknown. In this work, we cloned a homolog of type I H(+)-pyrophosphatase gene, designated as PtVP1.1, from Populus trichocarpa, and investigated its function in both Arabidopsis and poplar. The deduced translation product PtVP1.1 shares 89.74% identity with AVP1. Semi-quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and quantitative real-time PCR analyses revealed a ubiquitous expression pattern of PtVP1.1 in various tissues, including roots, stems, leaves and shoot tips. Heterologous expression of PtVP1.1 rescued the retarded-root-growth phenotype of avp1, an Arabidopsis knock out mutant of AVP1, on low carbohydrate medium. Overexpression of PtVP1.1 in poplar (P. davidiana × P. bolleana) led to more vigorous growth of transgenic plants in the presence of 150 mM NaCl. Microsomal membrane vesicles derived from PtVP1.1 transgenic plants exhibited higher H(+)-pyrophosphatase hydrolytic activity than those from wild type (WT). Further studies indicated that the improved salt tolerance was associated with a decreased Na(+) and increased K(+) accumulation in the leaves of transgenic plants. Na(+) efflux and H(+) influx in the roots of transgenic plants were also significantly higher than those in the WT plants. All these results suggest that PtVP1.1 is a functional counterpart of AVP1 and can be genetically engineered for salt tolerance improvement in trees.

Height, its components, and coagulability among older Chinese: the Guangzhou biobank cohort study

OBJECTIVES

The causal role of some cardiovascular risk factors, such as HDL cholesterol, has been increasingly challenged and attention is returning to all elements of Virchow's triad, i.e., hypercoagulability (including viscosity) as well as endothelial function and blood flow. We examined the life course origins of coagulability.

METHODS

We used multivariable linear regression to assess whether childhood influences, proxied by height and its components, were associated with hematocrit (Hct), hemoglobin (HGB), and other hematological parameters in 28,595 older Chinese adults (mean age = 61.8 years) from the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study.

RESULTS

Adjusted for age, sex, and recruitment phase, leg length was negatively associated with platelets (PLT) (-0.83 × 10(9) /l per centimeter (cm), 95% confidence interval (CI) -1.01 to -0.65). Sitting height and height were positively associated with Hct (0.05% per cm, 95% CI 0.04-0.07 for sitting height; 0.02% per cm, 95% CI 0.01-0.02 for height), HGB (0.21 g/l per cm, 95% CI 0.17-0.25; 0.07 g/l per cm, 95% CI 0.04-0.09) and negatively associated with PLT (-1.2 × 10(9) /l per cm, 95% CI -1.4 to -1.0; -0.83 × 10(9) /l per cm, 95% CI -0.95 to -0.70). Further adjustment for potential confounders did little to change the estimates.

CONCLUSIONS

For the first time we provide anthropometric evidence for the different roles of prepubertal and pubertal influences in relation to Hct and HGB. Whether factors that promote leg growth but reduce growth of sitting height may help to prevent cardiovascular events, via effects on hypercoagulability or viscosity, overall or in specific subgroups, remains to be determined.

Dibromidobis(2-methyl-1H-benzimidazole-κN3)cadmium

In the title compound, [CdBr₂(C₈H₈N₂)₂], the Cd^II atom has a distorted tetra­hedral coordination formed by the two imino N atoms of two 2-methyl­benzimidazole ligands and two terminal bromide ligands. The Cd^II atom is slightly out of the benzimidazole planes by 0.320 (3) and 0.210 (3) Å. The dihedral angle between the benzimidazole planes is 71.6 (2)°. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked by N—H⋯Br hydrogen bonds into puckered layers parallel to (001).

trans-Tetra-kis(1-allyl-1H-imidazole-κN)bis-(thio-cyanato-κN)nickel(II)

The structure of the title compound, [Ni(NCS)₂(C₆H₈N₂)₄], consists of isolated mol­ecules of [Ni(NCS)₂(Aim)₄] (Aim = 1-allyl­imidazole), which contain a distorted octa­hedral NiN₆ chromophore. The NCS⁻ anions are trans and four N atoms from the 1-allyl­imidazole ligands define the equatorial plane. The mean Mn—N(Aim) and Mn—N(NCS) distances are 2.105 (2) and 2.098 (2) Å, respectively. Weak C—H⋯N inter­actions contribute to the crystal packing stability.

Tetrakis(1-allyl-1H-imidazole-κN3)bis(thiocyanato-κN)manganese(II)

The structure of the title compound, [Mn(NCS)₂(C₆H₈N₂)₄], consists of isolated mol­ecules of [Mn(NCS)₂(Aim)₄] (Aim = 1-allyl­imidazole), which contain a compressed octa­hedral MnN₆ chromophore (site symmetry ). The NCS⁻ anions are trans and four N atoms from the Aim ligands define the equatorial plane. The mean Mn—N(Aim) and Mn—N(NCS) distances are 2.270 and 2.229 Å, respectively. Weak C—H⋯N inter­actions contribute to the crystal packing stability.

[Expression of enoyl CoA hydratase 1 reduces cell proliferation and migration in mouse hepatocarcinoma cells]

OBJECTIVE

To study the expression of enoyl CoA hydratase 1 (ECH1) and the effect when down-regulation of ECH1 gene expression in mouse hepatocarcinoma cell.

METHODS

Immunofluorescence was used for detecting the expression of ECH1, and stably transfected Hca-F cells with pGPU6/GFP/Neo-shRNA-ECH1 expression plasmids. Cell proliferation was assessed by Cell counting kit-8 (CCK8) assay. The Boyden-transwell assay (8 µm pore size) was performed to analyze the inhibitory effect of shRNA on Hca-F cell migration and invasion.

RESULTS

ECH1 expression was obtained in the cytoplasm and upregulated expression in Hca-F cells than that in Hca-P cells. The down-regulation of ECH1 could inhibit the cell proliferation of Hca-F cells, decrease the number of cell pass through Transwell (27.07 ± 17.49) compared with scramble-negative (72.38 ± 18.83) and Hca-F controls (59.06 ± 30.33), decrease the migration capacities of Hca-F cells, increase the ratio of Hca-F cells in S phase (86.1%) compared with scramble-negative (75.8%) and Hca-F controls (66.2%) and decrease the ratio of G(1) phase (9.4%) compared with scramble-negative (24.2%) and Hca-F controls (30.3%).

CONCLUSION

ECH1 serves as a potential critical factor attributes to tumor lymphatic metastasis.

White blood cell subsets are associated with carotid intima-media thickness and pulse wave velocity in an older Chinese population: the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study

Cross-sectional associations between white blood cell (WBC) count, lymphocyte and granulocyte numbers, and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (PWV) were examined in a novel older Chinese community sample. A total of 817 men and 760 women from a sub-study of the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study had a full blood count measured by an automated hematology analyzer, carotid IMT by B-mode ultrasonography and brachial-ankle PWV by a non-invasive automatic waveform analyzer. Following adjustment for confounders, WBC count (β=0.07, P<0.001) and granulocyte (β=0.07, P<0.001) number were significantly positively related to PWV, but not lymphocyte number. Similarly, WBC count (β=0.08, P=0.03), lymphocyte (β=0.08, P=0.002) and granulocyte (β=0.03, P=0.04) number were significantly positively associated with carotid IMT, but only the association with lymphocyte count survived correction for other cardiovascular risk factors. In conclusion, higher WBC, particularly lymphocyte and granulocyte, count could be used, respectively, as markers of cardiovascular disease risk, measured through indicators of atherosclerosis and arterial stiffness. The associations for WBC count previously observed by others were likely driven by higher granulocytes; an index of systemic inflammation.

Refractive index measurement for biomaterial samples by total internal reflection

The refractive index of biological tissue is a fundamental parameter in applications of optical diagnosis and laser treatments. In the present work, the refractive indices and thermo-optic coefficients of some basic biomaterials, such as blood plasma, haemoglobin solution and lipid membrane, were studied by the method of total internal reflection at the wavelengths of 532 and 632.8 nm that are the most frequently used laser wavelengths in the biomedical field. The effects of the sample concentration and the temperature on refractive index were measured, and empirical relationships were summarized, accompanied by a theoretical explanation based on molecular polarization theory. The results provide some fundamental data for the refractive indices of these biomaterials under variant conditions, and also demonstrate that the total internal reflection method is a feasible and reliable way to measure the refractive indices of biological samples.

Inhibition of 6A8 alpha-mannosidase gene expression resulted in telomere length shortening in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell CNE-2L2

Telomere length shortening was observed in the nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell CNE-2L2 when 6A8 alpha-mannosidase expression was inhibited by antisense 6A8 DNA. Transduction with mock or an irrelevant DNA did not affect the telomere length in the carcinoma cells. Telomerase activity and mRNA transcription of TRF 1 and 2 were not changed in the cells treated with antisense 6A8. The Con A binding test showed an enhancement on the proteins isolated from the cells treated with antisense 6A8, but not on those from mock- or irrelevant DNA-treated cells. The data imply an association between glycosylation modification with telomere shortening in antisense 6A8-treated cells.