Search

The 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games have had a very positive impact on many aspects of Chinese society beyond sport. This article focuses on the wide-ranging changes that have taken place since 1978 for the 83 million persons with disabilities in China. Organizations such as the Chinese Disabled Sports Association (1983) and the Disabled Persons Federation (1988) have been established and the 1995 People's Republic of China Sport Law ‘supporting sport for the elderly and disabled’ was initiated. New government policies also support fitness programmes, special education policies, National Games, new sports facilities, local recreational activities and the participation of high-performance athletes in the international Far East and South Pacific Games for the Disabled (FESPIC) and Paralympic Games. However, there are many ongoing challenges to increasing opportunities for and the participation of those with disabilities in all areas of sport and fitness. Fortunately, with the rapid development of China's economy, more support for disability sport has been possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in tumor necrosis factor alpha ( TNFα) promoter with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in Chinese Han population. Six SNPs at positions −238, −244, −308, −376, −857, −863 within TNFα promoter were genotyped in 367 unrelated RA patients and 271 healthy controls, using direct DNA sequencing method. Allelic, genotypic, and haplotypic associations of these SNPs with RA were examined. The frequencies of TNFα −308A allele and the haplotype GACC (in order of −238, −308, −857, −863) were significantly lower in RA patients when compared with healthy controls ( P = 0.0046, P = 0.0045, respectively) but TNFα −308 polymorphism was not related to the clinical manifestations of RA patients. These results implied that TNFα gene itself or a gene in linkage disequilibrium with it might be associated with RA in Han population of Eastern China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]