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The current research examined the role of the belief in free will on prejudice across Han Chinese and white samples. Belief in free will refers to the extent to which people believe human beings truly have free will. In Study 1, the beliefs of Han Chinese people in free will were measured, and their social distances from the Tibetan Chinese were used as an index of ethnic prejudice. The results showed that the more that Han Chinese endorsed the belief in free will, the less that they showed prejudice against the Tibetan Chinese. In Study 2, the belief of the Han Chinese in free will was manipulated, and their explicit feelings towards the Uyghur Chinese were used as an indicator of ethnic prejudice. The results showed that the participants in the condition of belief in free will reported less prejudice towards Uyghur Chinese compared to their counterparts in the condition of disbelief in free will. In Study 3, white peoples' belief in free will was manipulated, and their pro-black attitudes were measured as an indirect indicator of racial prejudice. The results showed that, compared to the condition of disbelief in free will, the participants who were primed by a belief in free will reported stronger pro-black attitudes. These three studies suggest that endorsement of the belief in free will can lead to decreased ethnic/racial prejudice compared to denial of the belief in free will. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Objectives: This study aimed to conduct a single-center prospective trial of short-term continuous high-volume hemofiltration (HVHF) in patients with predicted severe acute pancreatitis (SAP)., Methods: Patients with acute pancreatitis with Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II scores of greater than 15 on admission between January 2008 and December 2010 were allocated to receive either optimal standard therapy or 72 hours of continuous HVHF on an alternate basis, beginning as soon as possible after admission. Biomarkers and clinical outcomes were compared between the 2 groups., Results: A total of 61 patients received either conventional therapy (n = 29) or HVHF (n = 32). High-volume hemofiltration treatment was associated with a significant reduction in the incidence of renal failure (P = 0.013), infected pancreatic necrosis (P = 0.048), length of hospitalization (P = 0.005), mortality (P = 0.033), as well as duration of renal (P < 0.001), respiratory (P = 0.002), and hepatic failure (P = 0.001). Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score and C-reactive protein and interleukin 6 levels were significantly reduced after the start of HVHF on days 1, 3, and 7 (all, P < 0.05)., Conclusions: This study suggests that short-term HVHF may reduce local and systemic complications and mortality in patients with SAP with Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation score of greater than 15.

In order to improve the prediction accuracy of quantitative analysis model in the near-infrared spectroscopy of blood glucose, this paper, by combining net analyte preprocessing (NAP) algorithm and radial basis functions partial least squares (RBFPLS) regression, builds a nonlinear model building method which is suitable for glucose measurement of human, named as NAP-RBFPLS. First, NAP is used to pre-process the near-infrared spectroscopy of blood glucose, in order to effectively extract the information which only relates to glucose signal from the original near-infrared spectra, so that it could effectively weaken the occasional correlation problems of the glucose changes and the interference factors which are caused by the absorption of water, albumin, hemoglobin, fat and other components of the blood in human body, the change of temperature of human body, the drift of measuring instruments, the changes of measuring environment, and the changes of measuring conditions; and then a nonlinear quantitative analysis model is built with the near-infrared spectroscopy data after NAP, in order to solve the nonlinear relationship between glucose concentrations and near-infrared spectroscopy which is caused by body strong scattering. In this paper, the new method is compared with other three quantitative analysis models building on partial least squares (PLS), net analyte preprocessing partial least squares (NAP-PLS) and RBFPLS respectively. At last, the experimental results show that the nonlinear calibration model, developed by combining NAP algorithm and RBFPLS regression, which was put forward in this paper, greatly improves the prediction accuracy of prediction sets, and what has been proved in this paper is that the nonlinear model building method will produce practical applications for the research of non-invasive detection techniques on human glucose concentrations.

Betaine is an important natural component of rich food sources, especially spinach. Rats were fed diets with betaine or spinach powder at the same level of betaine for 10 days to investigate the dose-dependent effects of spinach powder supplementation on hyperhomocysteinemia induced by guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) addition and choline deprivation. The GAA-induced hyperhomocysteinemia in rats fed 25% casein diet (25 C) was significantly suppressed by supplementation with betaine or spinach, and it was completely suppressed by taking 11.0% spinach supplementation. The choline deprivation-induced enhancement of plasma homocysteine concentration in rats fed 25% soybean protein diet (25S) was markedly suppressed by 3.82% spinach. Supplementation with betaine or spinach partially prevented the effects of GAA on hepatic concentrations of methionine metabolites. The decrease in activity of betaine-homocysteine S-methyltransferase (BHMT) and cystathionine β-synthase (CBS) in GAA-induced hyperhomocysteinemia was recovered by supplementation with betaine or spinach. Supplementation with betaine or spinach did not affect BHMT activity, whereas it partially restored CBS activity in choline-deprived 25S. The results indicated that betaine or spinach could completely suppress the hyperhomocysteinemia induced by choline deficiency resulting from stimulating the homocysteine removal by both remethylation and cystathionine formation.

The influence of temperature, pH value, and solvent on the degradation behavior of astilbin was studied by HPLC. Results showed that the degradation of astilbin was pH and temperature dependent, and the isomerization of astilbin to its three stereoisomers was found. The degradation process followed the first-order kinetics model, and the degradation rate k values increased, whereas half-life (t1/2) values declined with the rise of pH and temperature. The stability of astilbin was related to its B-ring substitution. Engeletin with a 4'-hydroxy-substituted B-ring was more stable than astilbin with a 3',4'-dihydroxy-substituted B-ring. The stability of astilbin differed depending on the solvent and followed the order 50% ethanol > ethanol > methanol > 50% methanol > water. In cultural media, astilbin was less stable than in water, which may be related to the presence of metal ions. The stability results of astilbin were confirmed in the extraction of dihydroflavonols from Rhizoma Smilacis Glabrae and may have a guiding function in turtle jelly production.

Unlabelled: MicroRNA 370 (miR-370) is located within the DLK1/DIO3 imprinting region on human chromosome 14, which has been identified as a cancer-associated genomic region. However, the role of miR-370 in malignances remains controversial. Here, we report that miR-370 was repressed in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues and hepatoma cell lines. Using gain-of-function and loss-of-function experiments, we demonstrated that miR-370 inhibited the malignant phenotype of HCC cells in vitro. Overexpression of miR-370 inhibited growth and metastasis of HCC cells in vivo. Moreover, the RNA-binding protein, LIN28A, was identified as a direct functional target of miR-370, which, in turn, blocked the biogenesis of miR-370 by binding to its precursor. LIN28A also mediated the suppressive effects of miR-370 on migration and invasion of HCC cells by post-transcriptionally regulating RelA/p65, which is an important effector of the canonical nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway. Interleukin-6 (IL-6), a well-known NF-κB downstream inflammatory molecule, reduced miR-370 but increased LIN28A levels in HCC. Furthermore, miR-370 levels were inversely correlated with LIN28A and IL-6 messenger RNA (mRNA) levels, whereas LIN28A mRNA expression was positively correlated with IL-6 expression in human HCC samples. Interestingly, reduction of miR-370 expression was associated with the development of HCC in rats, as well as with aggressive tumor behavior and short survival in HCC patients., Conclusions: These data demonstrate the involvement of a novel regulatory circuit consisting of miR-370, LIN28A, RelA/p65 and IL-6 in HCC progression. Manipulating this feedback loop may have beneficial effect in HCC treatment., (© 2013 by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.)

Objective: To evaluate the effects and clinical prognosis of out-patient department-based smoking cessation services for coronary heart disease (CHD) patients., Methods: A total of 140 smoking patients diagnosed with coronary heart disease in our cardiovascular department were randomly divided into the intensive smoking cessation clinic follow-up group (intervention group, patients were informed on the importance and methods to quit smoking at the first visit and reminded for that at months interval for 6 months, n = 70) and the conventional treatment group (control group, n = 70). After 6 months, the smoking status, cardiovascular event rates, drug usage, out-patient medical costs and quality of life were compared between the two groups., Results: Age, gender, concomitant diseases, drug usage were similar between the two groups at baseline (all P > 0.05). After 6 months, smoking quit rate [34.2% (24/70) vs. 5.7% (4/70), P < 0.01], drug use rates: lipid-lowering drugs [95.3% (67/70) vs. 80.4% (56/70)], β blockers [82.4% (57/70) vs. 41.3% (28/70)], and ACEI/ARB [61.4% (43/70) vs. 34.4% (24/70)] were significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group, while total cardiovascular event rates [21.4% (15/70) vs. 47.1% (33/70), P < 0.01] and out-patient medical costs (3789.3 RMB vs. 4984.2 RMB, P < 0.01) were significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group. The quality of life scores derived from MYO health survey questionnaire was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group (P < 0.01). The top three reasons responsible for continuous smoking for all patients failed to quit smoking were: (1) others smoked more than me and still alive and healthy [90.3% (56/62)]; (2) smoking helped me to keep relaxed and reduce trouble in daily work and life [70.9% (44/62)]; (3) smoking was essential while chatting and drinking with friends [66.1% (41/62)]. The overall satisfactory rate to this smoking cessation program was 42.8% and the satisfactory rate was up to 50.0% by patients., Conclusions: Intensive outpatient smoking cessation follow-up program can significantly improve the smoking cessation rates, the guideline drug use rate and the quality of life while reduce medical costs for coronary heart disease patients.

Objective: The angiotensin-converting enzyme gene is one of the most studied candidate genes related to atrial fibrillation. Among the polymorphisms of the angiotensin-converting enzyme gene, the 2350 G/A polymorphism (rs4343) is known to have the most significant effects on the plasma angiotensin-converting enzyme concentration. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association of the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2350 G/A polymorphism with atrial fibrillation in Han Chinese patients with essential hypertension., Methods: A total of 169 hypertensive patients were eligible for this study. Patients with atrial fibrillation (n = 75) were allocated to the atrial fibrillation group, and 94 subjects without atrial fibrillation were allocated to the control group. The PCR-based restriction fragment length polymorphism technique was used to assess the genotype frequencies., Results: The distributions of the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2350 G/A genotypes (GG, GA, and AA, respectively) were 40.43%, 41.49%, and 18.08% in the controls and 18.67%, 46.67%, and 34.66% in the atrial fibrillation subjects (p = 0.037). The frequency of the A allele in the atrial fibrillation group was significantly greater than in the control group (58.00% vs. 38.83%, p = 0.0007). Compared with the wild-type GG genotype, the GA and AA genotypes had an increased risk for atrial fibrillation. Additionally, atrial fibrillation patients with the AA genotype had greater left atrial dimensions than the patients with the GG or GA genotypes (p<0.01 and p<0.05, respectively)., Conclusions: The results obtained in this study indicate that the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2350 G/A polymorphism is associated with atrial fibrillation and that the A allele shows an increased risk for atrial fibrillation in Han Chinese patients with essential hypertension.

Background/aims: To investigate whether the human leukocyte antigen-DR (HLA-DR) expression on peripheral monocytes can be utilized as a precursor to a secondary infection of severe acute pancreatitis (SAP)., Methodology: Patients diagnosed with SAP who were admitted into West China Hospital within 48 h after symptom onset from July 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010 (n = 40) were included. HLD-DR expression on peripheral monocytes on the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th day of hospitalization was detected with flow cytometry analysis to determine whether a prediction could be made in regards to development of a secondary infection., Results: There were 11 patients with secondary infection complications, 4 of which died during hospitalization. On the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th day, HLA-DR expression on monocytes in the infected patients was lower than those in the noninfected patients (P < 0.05). There was no statistical significance in the serum CRP and APACHE II between the groups on the first day (P > 0.05). Upon initial admission HLA-DR expression showed a negative correlation with longer-term admission APACHE II (r = -0.790, P = 0.000) and serum CRP (r = -0.642, P = 0.000). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.837 (95%CI: 0.685-0.989, P = 0.001) for admission HLA-DR, 0.809 (95% CI: 0.667-0.951; P = 0.003) for APACHE II score and 0.781 for serum CRP (95% CI: 0.627-0.934; P = 0.007) to predict secondary infection. The cut-off value of prediction of secondary infection was 35.8% in HLA-DR expression with a sensitivity of 81.8% and a specificity of 82.8%, 10.5 in APACHE II on admission with a sensitivity of 90.9% and a specificity of 48.3%, 155 mg/L in serum CRP on admission with a sensitivity of 90.9% and a specificity of 44.8%., Conclusions: The HLA-DR expression on monocytes may be an ideal marker for an early prediction of secondary infection in SAP.

Amphiphilic derivatives of poly(benzyl malate) were synthesized and characterized with the aim of being used as degradable and biocompatible building blocks for the design of functional nanoparticles (NPs). An anti-cancer model drug, doxorubicin, has been successfully encapsulated into the prepared NPs and its release profile has been evaluated in water and in culture medium. NPs bearing biotin molecules were prepared either for site-specific drug delivery via the targeting of biotin receptors overexpressed on the surface of several cancer cells, or for grafting biotinylated cyclic RGD peptide onto their surface using the strong and highly specific interactions between biotin and the streptavidin protein. We have shown that this binding did not affect dramatically the physico-chemical properties of the corresponding NPs. Cyclic RGD grafted fluorescent NPs were more efficiently uptaken by the HepaRG hepatoma cells than biotinylated fluorescent NPs. Furthermore, the targeting of HepaRG hepatoma cells with NPs bearing cyclic RGD was very efficient and much weaker for HeLa and HT29 cell lines confirming that cyclic RGD is a suitable targeting agent for liver cells. Our results also provide a new mean for rapid screening of short hepatotropic peptides in order to design NPs showing specific liver targeting properties., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: More attention is being paid to the relationship between kidney dysfunction and cardiovascular events Characteristic features include renal dysfunction, left ventricular (LV) and left atrial (LA) enlargement. The aim of this study is to evaluate the relationships between circulating levels of β2-microglobulin (β2-m) and cystatin C and left atrial size in patients with coronary artery disease., Materials and Methods: We recruited 300 patients who presented with chest tightness or chest pain and subsequently underwent coronary angiography. Of these, 202 patients were diagnosed with coronary artery disease (CAD) and 98 patients without CAD (non-CAD). Laboratory measurements included liver, kidney function (urea nitrogen, creatinine, β2-m and cystatin C), fasting glucose, and lipid analysis. CrCl were calculated according to Cockroft-Gault formula. Echocardiology was used to evaluate the cardiac structure and function., Results: Significant differences of β2-m and cystatin C exist and no difference of creatinine and CrCl existed between the two groups. LA diameters were positively related to circulating levels of β2-m in the CAD group (r = 0.452, p < 0.001) and non-CAD group (r = 0.360, p < 0.001), and the similar relationships between LAD and circulating levels of cystatin C in the CAD group (r = 0.302, p < 0.001) and non-CAD group (r = 0.243, p = 0.016). LA diameters were negatively related to CrCl in both groups. After multivariate logistic regression analysis, the data indicated that the independent cardiovascular risk factors of LA enlargement for the patients with CAD were age, BMI, systolic blood pressure, LV mass, LVEDD, E/A, Em/Am, CrCl, and circulating levels of β2-m (OR = 1.630, 95% CI: 1.115 - 2.384, p = 0.012), cystatin C (OR = 4.504, 95% CI: 1.478 - 13.726, p = 0.008)., Conclusions: A linear correlation exists between circulating levels of β2-m or cystatin C and LA diameters. Higher circulating levels of β2-m or cystatin C are independent cardiovascular risk factors of LA enlargement in patients with CAD, and could be a link between the kidney and the heart.

Objective: To investigate the clinical efficacy of noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) in treatment of patients with arrhythmia complicated by sleep apnea syndrome (SAS)., Methods: One hundred and thirty-five arrhythmia patients with polysomnography diagnosed SAS were randomly divided into NPPV group (69 cases) and control group (66 cases), the NPPV group was treated with standard medications and NPPV, and the control group was treated with standard medications. SAS related parameters were compared between the groups after 3 months therapy., Results: (1) Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS) score, apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) and arousal index were significantly lower (8.25 ± 5.41 vs.4.08 ± 3.43, 39.95 ± 7.32 vs. 4.71 ± 1.80 and 39.69 ± 4.40 vs. 15.20 ± 2.05, P < 0.01) while not rapid eye movement (NREM) III and rapid eye movement stage of sleep time and lowest pulse oxygen saturation (LSaO2) were significantly higher in NPPV group than in control group [(4.53 ± 2.10)% vs. (16.78 ± 2.59)%,(8.37 ± 1.380)% vs. (15.25 ± 1.41)%, (77.15 ± 6.72)% vs. (93.35 ± 2.03)%, P < 0.01] after 3 months therapy. (2) Incidence of Sinus bradycardia, sinus tachycardia, sinus arrest, atrial premature beats, ventricular premature beats, paroxysmal atrial tachycardia, paroxysmal ventricular tachycardia, atrial fibrillation, II-III degree atrioventricular block, ST-T segment changes were reduced from 57.4%, 44.4%, 7.4%, 20.4%, 13.0%, 36.5%, 12.0%, 8.3%, 37.0%, 53.7% to 4.6%, 1.9%,0.0%, 3.7%, 2.8%, 7.0%, 0.9%, 0.0%, 1.9%, 4.6% (all P < 0.05) and the total number of arrhythmias happened at night were significantly lower (all P < 0.05) while the heart rate variability (HRV) were significantly higher (P < 0.01) in NPPV group than in control group; AHI was positively while LSaO2 was negatively correlated with the total night arrhythmia number (P < 0.01)., Conclusion: Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation is an effective therapy strategy for treating patients with arrhythmia complicated by sleep apnea syndrome.

Objective: The types and risk factors of arrhythmia were analyzed on acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients under the age of 44 years who were hospitalized in Henan province between September 2009 to June 2012., Methods: Medical records of eligible patients were obtained from the information system of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University teleconsultation information center. Middle aged and elderly ACS patients who were hospitalized at the same period served as controls. Data on arrhythmia types, blood pressure, thyroid disease, respiratory sleep apnea syndrome, smoking history, history of alcohol consumption, eating habits, family history of early-onset arrhythmia, laboratory tests were analyzed., Results: (1) Arrhythmia was detected in 110 out of young ACS patients (55%), which was significantly lower than that in the elderly ACS patients (71.05%, P < 0.01). (2) The top three arrhythmias in young ACS patients were: sinus tachycardia (30.50%), the premature ventricular contractions (19.00%), atrial flutter/atrial fibrillation (16.50%). Incidence of sinus tachycardia, atrial flutter/atrial fibrillation were significantly higher while incidence of ventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia were significantly lower in young ACS patients than in middle-aged ACS patients (all P < 0.05). The incidence of sinus tachycardia was higher while incidence of ventricular premature accelerated ventricular spontaneous cardiac rhythm, ventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, non-paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia, atrial flutter/atrial fibrillation, paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia, sinus bradycardia, nodal escape, atrioventricular block were significantly lower in young ACS patients than in elderly ACS patients (all P < 0.05). (3) Body mass index, incidence of smoking, coronary three-vessel disease, drinking, eating salty foods, thyroid dysfunction, sleep apnea were significantly higher in youth ACS patients with arrhythmia than in young ACS patients without arrhythmia (all P < 0. 05). (4) Logistic regression analysis found that number of diseased coronary vessels (OR = 24.293), smoking (OR = 1.112) and alcohol consumption (OR = 1.039) were independent risk factor for developing arrhythmia in young ACS patients from Henan province., Conclusions: The main types of arrhythmia are sinus tachycardia, premature ventricular contractions, atrial flutter/atrial fibrillation and the major risk factors related to the arrhythmia are number of diseased coronary vessels, smoking and alcohol consumption in young ACS patients from Henan province.

The tumor suppressor gene breast cancer susceptibility gene 2 (BRCA2) is frequently mutated or epigenetically repressed in human cancer and has a significant role in the homologous recombination (HR) of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). Although N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA), N-nitrosodiethanolamine (NDELA) and N-nitrosodipropylamine (NDPA) have similar chemical structures and are able to induce DNA damage, they have varying carcinogenic risks. We hypothesized that the DNA damage repair pathways that are induced by these N-nitroso compounds (NOCs) may differ and that this may contribute to the genotoxic-carcinogenic effect of the NOCs. The present study aimed to characterize the formation of DSBs by NDEA, NDELA and NDPA and also to investigate whether BRCA2 is involved in the DNA damage response. The NOCs were observed to time-dependently induce DSBs and the expression of γ-H2AX in gastric cancer SGC7901 cells. It was observed that the DNA damage induced by NDEA, the most potent carcinogen, was not repaired as efficiently as that caused by NDELA or NDPA. The expression of BRCA2 and RAD51 was demonstrated to be inhibited by NDEA treatment but upregulated by NDELA or NDPA treatment. Furthermore, the knock down of BRCA2 expression impaired the DNA damage repair induced by NDELA or NDPA. The cells with this knock down exhibited an increased sensitivity to NDELA or NDPA treatment, but not to NDEA. These findings suggest that a BRCA2-mediated pathway contributes to differential DSB repair and sensitivity in response to NOC exposure and that it may be associated with the genotoxic-carcinogenic potential of NOCs.

Objective: To investigate the basic characteristics of passive smoking population, and the impact of passive smoking on heart rate variability, heart rate and blood pressure., Methods: Eighty-six passive smokers [mean age: (52.4 ± 7.6) years] were recruited from patients and their relatives who visited cardiovascular outpatient department and excluded structural heart disease between June 2010 and June 2012, 80 normal subjects who were not exposed to smoking served as controls. Questionnaire survey, 24 hours ambulatory electrocardiogram examination and blood pressure measurement were performed in all recruited subjects., Results: (1) Non-marriage rate [18.60% (16/86) vs. 3.75% (3/80), P < 0.01] was significantly higher while education level were significantly lower in passive smoking group than in control group. Passive smokers were more likely service industry workers [29.07% (25/86) vs. 15.00% (12/80), P < 0.05] and had longer daily working time [(7.56 ± 1.24) h vs. (6.02 ± 0.96) h, P < 0.01], and were less likely to be professional technology industry employers [20.93% (18/86) vs. 36.25% (29/80), P < 0.05] and managers [13.95% (12/86) vs. 38.75% (31/80), P < 0.01] compared to controls. The main place of passive smoking was workplace (67.44%, 58/86), entertainment venues (63.95%,55/86), restaurants (48.84%, 42/86). (2) Standard of the normal sinus RR intervals (SDNN), the normal consecutive sinus RR interval difference between the root-mean-square (rMSSD) and adjacent the difference between the RR interval>50 ms the number of share the percentage (PNN50) were significantly lower in passive smoking group than in the control group (all P < 0.05). Every 5 min average of the standard deviation of sinus RR cycle (SDNN index) and 24 h every 5 min sinus RR interval mean standard deviation (SDANN) were similar between the 2 groups (all P > 0.05). Ultra-low-frequency power (VLF), low frequency power (LF), high frequency power (HF) and LF/HF were significantly lower in passive smoking group than in the control group (all P < 0.01). (3) Heart rate and diastolic blood pressure were significantly higher in passive smoking group than in control group (all P < 0.05) while systolic blood pressure was similar between the 2 groups (P > 0.05)., Conclusions: Marriage status, education level, profession and daily working time are independent determinants for passive smoking. Passive smoking mainly occurred in the workplace, entertainment venues and restaurants. Passive smoking is linked with reduced heart rate variability, increased 24 h average heart rate and diastolic blood pressure.

Background: Semen analysis is essential for evaluating male infertility. Besides sperm concentration, other properties, such as motility and morphology, are critical indicators in assessing sperm quality. Nevertheless, rapid and complete assessment of these measures still presents considerable difficulty and involves a range of complex issues. Here we present a microfluidic device capable of quantifying a range of properties of human sperm via the resistive pulse technique (RPT)., Methods: An aperture, designed as a long channel, was used to allow the quantification of various properties as sperm swam through., Results: The time trace of the voltage drop across the aperture during sperm passage contained a wealth of information: the sperm volume was presented by the amplitude of the induced pulse, the swim velocity was evaluated via the duration, and the beat frequency was calculated from the voltage undulation superposed on the pulse signal. The RPT measurement of swim velocity and beat frequency showed a correlation with the same observation in a microscope (R(2) = 0.94 and 0.70, respectively)., Conclusions: The proposed proof of principle enables substantial quantification of the motion-dependent properties of sperm. Because this approach requires only a current/voltage source and data analysis, it is economically advantageous compared with optical methods for characterizing sperm motion. Furthermore, this approach may be used to characterize sperm morphology.

The objective of this study was to investigate the compositional profiles and microbial shifts of oral microbiota during head-and-neck radiotherapy. Bioinformatic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing was performed to assess the diversity and variation of oral microbiota of irradiated patients. Eight patients with head and neck cancers were involved in this study. For each patient, supragingival plaque samples were collected at seven time points before and during radiotherapy. A total of 147,232 qualified sequences were obtained through pyrosequencing and bioinformatic analysis, representing 3,460 species level operational taxonomic units (OTUs) and 140 genus level taxa. Temporal variations were observed across different time points and supported by cluster analysis based on weighted UniFrac metrics. Moreover, the low evenness of oral microbial communities in relative abundance was revealed by Lorenz curves. This study contributed to a better understanding of the detailed characterization of oral bacterial diversity of irradiated patients.

Objective: To observe the expression and clinical implication of plasma miR-328 in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF)., Methods: Fifty-eight patients with AF (AF group: 17 paroxysmal AF, 21 persistent AF, and 20 permanent AF) and 15 healthy volunteers (Control group) were included. General clinical data and related biochemical parameters were collected. Plasma miR-328 levels were detected with quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis. The correlation between plasma miR-328 and AF risk factors was analyzed., Results: (1) Compared with the control group, the expression level of plasma miR-328 was significantly elevated in AF group (fold 7.72 ± 9.32) (P < 0.05). (2) In AF group, the expression of plasma miR-328 was significantly different in different type of AF[paroxysmal AF with (1.98 ± 0.81), persistent AF with (6.57 ± 5.82) and permanent AF with (13.47 ± 12.29)] (P < 0.05), and which was increased in proportion to the duration of AF. (3) There was a positive correlation between plasma miR-328 level and left atrial diameter in the AF group (r = 0.310, P < 0.05)., Conclusion: miR-328 expression is significantly increased in patients with AF, which may be involved in the atrial remodeling process of AF.

Radiotherapy is the primary treatment modality used for patients with head-and-neck cancers, but inevitably causes microorganism-related oral complications. This study aims to explore the dynamic core microbiome of oral microbiota in supragingival plaque during the course of head-and-neck radiotherapy. Eight subjects aged 26 to 70 were recruited. Dental plaque samples were collected (over seven sampling time points for each patient) before and during radiotherapy. The V1-V3 hypervariable regions of bacterial 16S rRNA genes were amplified, and the high-throughput pyrosequencing was performed. A total of 140 genera belonging to 13 phyla were found. Four phyla (Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Proteobacteria) and 11 genera (Streptococcus, Actinomyces, Veillonella, Capnocytophaga, Derxia, Neisseria, Rothia, Prevotella, Granulicatella, Luteococcus, and Gemella) were found in all subjects, supporting the concept of a core microbiome. Temporal variation of these major cores in relative abundance were observed, as well as a negative correlation between the number of OTUs and radiation dose. Moreover, an optimized conceptual framework was proposed for defining a dynamic core microbiome in extreme conditions such as radiotherapy. This study presents a theoretical foundation for exploring a core microbiome of communities from time series data, and may help predict community responses to perturbation as caused by exposure to ionizing radiation.

The classification of seven kinds of plastic (ABS, PET, PP, PS, PVC, HDPE and PMMA) with the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy based on artificial neural network model was investigated in the present paper. One hundred seventy LIBS spectra for each type of plastic were collected. Firstly, all 1 190 plastics LIBS spectra were studied with principal component analysis. The first five principal components (PC) totally explain 78.4% of the original spectrum information. Therefore, the scores of five PCs of 130 LIBS spectra for each kind of plastic were chosen as the training set to build a back-propagation artificial network model. And the other 40 LIBS spectra of each sample were used as the testing set for the trained model. The classification accuracy was 97.5%. Experimental results demonstrate that plastics can be classified by using principal component analysis and artificial neural network (BP) method.

We investigated the short-term and medium-term results in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) associated with atrial septal defect (ASD) undergoing transcatheter closure. Fifteen patients with severe PAH associated with ASD who underwent successful occluder implantation from 2007 to 2010 were included. Clinical, echocardiographic, and hemodynamic data were reviewed. Severe PAH was defined as pulmonary arterial systolic pressure measured by catheterization was ≥60 mmHg and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) ≥6 Wood Units (WU). Compared with baseline, the 6-minwalking distance significantly increased by 29.7 ± 26.3 m (P < 0.001) at 3 months (short-term) and 65.4 ± 63.6 m (P < 0.001) at 23.4 ± 9.7 months (medium-term), World Health Organization function class considerably improved after postclosure short-term and medium-term. Repeat cardiac catheterization (n = 7) showed that mean pulmonary arterial pressure decreased from 51.6 ± 9.4 mmHg at baseline to 21.0 ± 3.8 mmHg (P < 0.001) at follow-up of 12 months. The PVR decreased by 5.6 ± 1.1 WU (P < 0.001). Through carefully selected patients with severe PAH associated with ASD, transcatheter closure can be safely performed with a promising short-term and medium-term outcome. Trial occlusion is an effective way for deciding the reversibility of severe PAH in ASD patients. The role of aerosolized iloprost for pulmonary vasoreactivity testing in patients with severe PAH secondary to ASD requires further investigation.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations are associated with a large number of neuromuscular diseases. Myoclonus epilepsy with ragged-red fibers (MERRF) syndrome is a mitochondrial disease inherited through the maternal lineage. The most common mutation in MERRF syndrome, the A8344G mutation of mtDNA, is associated with severe defects in mitochondrial protein synthesis, which impair the assembly and function of the respiratory chain. We have previously shown that there is a decreased level of heat shock protein 27 (HSP27) in lymphoblastoid cells derived from a MERRF patient and in cytoplasmic hybrids (cybrids) harboring the A8344G mutation of mtDNA. In the present study, we found a dramatic decrease in the level of phosphorylated HSP27 (p-HSP27) in the mutant cybrids. Even though the steady-state level of p-HSP27 was reduced in the mutant cybrids, normal phosphorylation and dephosphorylation were observed upon exposure to stress, indicating normal kinase and phosphatase activities. To explore the roles that p-HSP27 may play, transfection experiments with HSP27 mutants, in which three specific serines were replaced with alanine or aspartic acid, showed that the phosphomimicking HSP27 desensitized mutant cybrids to apoptotic stress induced by staurosporine (STS). After heat shock stress, p-HSP27 was found to enter the nucleus immediately, and with a prolonged interval of recovery, p-HSP27 returned to the cytoplasm in wild-type cybrids but not in mutant cybrids. The translocation of p-HSP27 was correlated with cell viability, as shown by the increased number of apoptotic cells after p-HSP27 returned to the cytoplasm. In summary, our results demonstrate that p-HSP27 provides significant protection when cells are exposed to different stresses in the cell model of MERRF syndrome. Therapeutic agents targeting anomalous HSP27 phosphorylation might represent a potential treatment for mitochondrial diseases., (© 2012 The Authors Journal compilation © 2012 FEBS.)

Design of an efficient site-specific drug delivery system based on degradable functional polymers still remains challenging. In this work, we synthesized and characterized three degradable functional polyesters belonging to the poly(malic acid) family: the poly(benzyl malate) (PMLABe), the poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(benzyl malate) (PEG(42)-b-PMLABe), the biotin-poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(benzyl malate) (Biot-PEG(62)-PMLABe). Starting from these building blocks, we were able to prepare the corresponding well-defined degradable functional nanoparticles whose toxicity was evaluated in vitro on normal and cancer cell lines. Results have evidenced that the prepared nanoparticles did not show any significant cytotoxicity even at high concentrations. A model anti-cancer drug (doxorubicin, Dox) or a fluorescent probe (1,1'-dioctadecyl-3,3,3',3'-tetramethylindodicarbocyanine, DiD oil) has been encapsulated into PMLABe, PEG(42)-PMLABe or Biot-PEG(62)-PMLABe based nanoparticles in order to evaluate, respectively, the in vitro cytotoxicity of Dox-loaded nanoparticles on normal and cancer cell lines and the ligand (biotin) effect on cellular uptake in vitro using mmt 060562 cell line. Dox-loaded PMLABe, PEG(42)-PMLABe or Biot-PEG(62)-PMLABe nanoparticles showed an in vitro cytotoxicity similar to that of free Dox. Moreover, the DiD oil loaded Biot-PEG(62)-PMLABe based nanoparticles showed a better in vitro cellular uptake than ligand-free DiD oil loaded nanoparticles. Both results evidence the great potential of such degradable functional poly(malic acid) derivatives for the design of highly efficient site-specific anti-cancer nanovectors., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: This study aimed to address whether hydroxyethyl starch (HES) is beneficial for intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) in severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) in early stages., Methods: Forty-one patients with SAP were randomized to HES group (n = 20) and the Ringer's lactate (RL) group (n = 21). The groups received 6% HES 130/0.4 for 8 days and RL solution without colloid, respectively. The primary end point was the IAP. The secondary end points were fluid balance, major organ complications, the Acute Physiology and Chronic Heath Evaluation II score, and the serum levels of C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and interleukin-8., Results: The characteristics of baseline data were similar in the 2 groups. In the HES group, the IAP was significantly lower in 2 to 7 days, and fewer patients received mechanical ventilation (15.0% vs 47.6%). A negative fluid balance was observed earlier in the HES group than in the RL group (2.5 ± 2.2 vs 4.0 ± 2.5 days)., Conclusions: Fluid resuscitation with HES in the early stages of SAP can decrease the risk of intra-abdominal hypertension and reduce the use of mechanical ventilation.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to describe the synthesis of Gadolinium-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid-deoxyglucosamine (Gd-DTPA-DG) which is a d-glucosamine metabolic MR imaging contrast agent. We will also discuss its use in a pilot MRI study using a xenograft mouse model of human adenocarcinoma., Methods: This novel contrast agent was specifically studied because of its ability to "target" metabolically active tumor tissues. In this study Gd-DTPA-DG is used to investigate how tumor tissues would react to a dose of 0.2 mmol Gd/kg over a 120 min exposure in a xenograft mouse model. These experiments used athymic mice implanted with human pulmonary adenocarcinoma (A549) as demonstrated by dynamic MRI. Alternately, another contrast agent that is not specific for targeting, Gd-DTPA, was used as the control at a similar dose of gadolinium. Efficacy of the targeted contrast agent was assessed by measuring relaxation rate in vitro and signal intensity (SI) in vivo. Statistical differences were calculated using one-way analysis of variance., Results: The synthesized Gd-DTPA-DG was shown to improve the contrast of tumor tissue in this model. Gd-DTPA-DG was also shown to have a similar pharmacokinetic rate but generated a higher relaxation rate in tumor tissues relative to the control contrast Gd-DTPA. In comparison to the pre-contrast imaging, the SI of tumor tissue in the experimental group was shown to be significantly increased at 15 min after injection of Gd-DTPA-DG (p<0.001). The enhanced signal intensity spread from the edge of the tumor to the center and seemed to strengthen the idea that MRI performance would be useful in different tumor tissues., Conclusion: This preliminary study shows that this new chelated contrast agent, Gd-DTPA-DG, can be specifically targeted to accumulation in tumor tissue as compared to normal tissues. This targeted paramagnetic contrast agent has potential for specific cancer molecular imaging with MRI., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of 5-aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy (PDT) on cervical condylomata accuminate (CA) and to determine the ultrastructural changes of the lesion after treatment., Background Data: Although there are many methods to treat cervical CA, a high recurrence rate and cervical scars are troublesome problems., Materials and Methods: Forty-eight patients with cervical CA were treated with topical 20% ALA gel followed by PDT through a cylindrical fiber with a wavelength of 630 nm of laser light. The treatment was repeated 7 days later if the lesion had not been removed completely. Eight cases were biopsied before and after treatment, and the biopsied lesions were evaluated by electron microscopy., Results: After the first PDT treatment, the cervical condylomatous lesions were removed completely in 62.5% (30/48). The complete response (CR) rate was 95.8% (46/48) after three treatments. The recurrence rate was 4.4% at the 12-month follow-up. Electron microscopy revealed that ALA-PDT damaged proliferative keratinocytes of CA lesions while the surrounding normal tissue injury was less damaged., Conclusions: ALA-PDT is an effective and minimally invasive treatment for cervical CA.

Objectives: To investigate the ability of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in the assessment of acute pancreatitis (AP), as well as its diagnostic accuracy in the evaluation of the severity of pancreatitis., Methods: A prospective double-blind study was carried out in 33 AP patients from May 2007 to January 2008. Each patient underwent both CEUS and contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) with the time interval between two examinations less than 72 h. Using CECT as gold standard, the ability of CEUS to diagnose pancreatic necrosis as well as peripancreatic effusion and/or complications, and its diagnostic value in the evaluation of the severity of pancreatitis, were investigated. Balthazar's grading system was used to measure CT and ultrasound severity indices (CTSI and USSI), and the correlation between CTSI and USSI was tested by Spearman's rank correlation coefficient., Results: A strong correlation between CTSI and USSI was found (r = 0.92, P < 0.01).The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive and negative predictive value of CEUS in the diagnosis of pancreatic parenchyma necrosis were 90, 95, 94, 90 and 95%, in the diagnosis of peripancreatic effusion and/or complications were 83, 100, 93, 100 and 91%, and in the diagnosis of severe pancreatitis were 97, 67, 94, 97 and 67%, respectively., Conclusions: CEUS has shown to be of clinical value in the assessment of pancreatic necrosis as well as peripancreatic complications in AP and has a high diagnostic accuracy in the evaluation of the severity of pancreatitis. Further studies are needed to add it to the diagnostic algorithm for acute pancreatitis.

Purpose: To investigate the effect of Streptococcus mutans luxS gene on polysaccharide matrix metabolism., Methods: Based on the immobilization of magnetic beads by adherent cells,an assay of biofilm quantitative analysis was developed for the kinetic quantification of biofilm formation. S.mutans luxS gene mutant strain and wild-type strain were compared for their ability of utilizing exogenous carbohydrate to form extracellular polysaccharide matrix. SPSS 10.0 software package was used for statistical analysis. Dunnet t two-side test of one factor analysis of variance was performed., Results: Both luxS mutant strain and wild-type strain could use exogenous carbohydrate to form polysaccharide matrix.With 1% sucrose added ,both strains completed their biofilm formation within one hour.When adding 1% glucose,these strains also accelerated the formation of biofilm,and this was more significant in the mutant strain., Conclusions: The luxS gene of S. mutans can regulate its extracellular polysaccharide matrix metabolism. Moreover, the regulation of this gene on biofilm formation is more probably via polysaccharide matrix pathway. Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(30872886), Research Fund of Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality(08DZ2271100),Shanghai Leading Academic Discipline Project(S30206) and Youth Phosphor Program of Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality (09QA1403700).

This study aimed to evaluate changes in the biodiversity of the oral microflora of patients with head and neck cancer treated with postoperative intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) or conventional radiotherapy (CRT). Pooled dental plaque samples were collected during the radiation treatment from patients receiving IMRT (n = 13) and CRT (n = 12). Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) was used to analyze the temporal variation of these plaque samples. The stimulated and unstimulated salivary flow rates were also compared between IMRT and CRT patients. Reductions in the severity of hyposalivation were observed in IMRT patients compared with CRT patients. We also observed that the temporal stability of the oral ecosystem was significantly higher in the IMRT group (69.96 ± 7.82%) than in the CRT group (51.98 ± 10.45%) (P < 0.05). The findings of the present study suggest that IMRT is more conducive to maintaining the relative stability of the oral ecosystem than CRT.

Objective: Coronary features of young smokers and non-smokers with coronary heart disease were compared and the effect of tobacco control education was analyzed., Methods: A total of 160 young patients (14 - 35 years old) diagnosed with coronary heart disease by coronary angiography were included in this study, patients were followed up for 3 months. There were 118 smokers and 42 non-smokers, smokers were further divided to psychological counseling intervention group (68 cases) and control group (50 cases), non-smokers were also divided into psychological counseling intervention group (22 cases) and control group (20 cases)., Results: Incidence of single-vessel lesion (50.84% vs. 66.67%) was significantly lower, acute coronary syndrome (75.42% vs. 50.00%), double-vessel lesions (24.58% vs. 19.05%), three-vessel lesions (11.86% vs. 4.74%) as well as coronary artery ectasias (12.71% vs. 9.52%) was significantly higher in smokers than in non-smokers. Gensini scores (61.94 ± 40.35 vs. 45.08 ± 28.97) was significantly higher in smokers than in non-smokers (all P < 0.05). At the end 3-months follow up, smoking cessation rate was significantly higher in psychological counseling intervention group than in control group (61.76% vs. 30.00%, P < 0.05). New smokers was zero in psychological counseling intervention group and 1 in control group among previous non-smokers., Conclusion: Smoking is linked with severe coronary artery lesion in young patients with coronary heart disease and psychological counseling intervention could significantly increase the short-term successful smoking cessation rate in these patients.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to develop a mathematical model to quantitatively describe the passive transport of macromolecules within dental biofilms., Methodology: Fluorescently labeled dextrans with different molecular mass (3 kD, 10 kD, 40 kD, 70 kD, 2000 kD) were used as a series of diffusion probes. Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguinis, Actinomyces naeslundii and Fusobacterium nucleatum were used as inocula for biofilm formation. The diffusion processes of different probes through the in vitro biofilm were recorded with a confocal laser microscope., Results: Mathematical function of biofilm penetration was constructed on the basis of the inverse problem method. Based on this function, not only the relationship between average concentration of steady-state and molecule weights can be analyzed, but also that between penetrative time and molecule weights., Conclusion: This can be used to predict the effective concentration and the penetrative time of anti-biofilm medicines that can diffuse through oral biofilm. Furthermore, an improved model for large molecule is proposed by considering the exchange time at the upper boundary of the dental biofilm.

Objective: To explore the protective effects and mechanism of Emodin on intestinal lesion in the rats with acute necrotizing pancreatitis (ANP)., Methods: Thirty SD rats were randomly divided into 3 groups: sham-operated (SO) group, ANP group and Emodin-treated group. ANP was induced by retro-pumping 3.5% sodium cholate to pancreaticobiliary duct. 5.5 hours after modeling, phenol red, which was employed to measure intestinal transit, was injected to duodenum. 0.5 hour later, rats were sacrificed to collect intestine for the results of intestinal transit and other tests of intestine. Furthermore, intestinal tissue (HE staining) was observed by light microscope, and the activity of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappaB) in intestine was detected by immunohistochemical method. The content of intestinal tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) was detected with the method of enzyme-labeled immunosorbent assay (ELISA)., Results: Compared with SO group, there was significantly decrease of intestinal transit in ANG group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, intestinal transit in Emodin-treated group significantly increased when compared with ANP group (P < 0.05). NF-kappaB p65 positive rate of intestinal cell nuclei, content of intestinal TNF-alpha and IL-1beta in ANP group were obviously higher than those in SO group (P < 0.05). After the treatment of Emodin, NF-kappaB p65 positive rate of intestinal cell nuclei, content of TNF-alpha and IL-1beta were decreased (P < 0.05). Moreover, there was a negative correlation between intestinal transit and content of TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, with correlation coefficients--0.83, -0.76, respectively (P < 0.05)., Conclusion: Emodin could increase intestinal transit, suppress the activity of NF-kappaB in intestine, decrease the content of intestinal TNF-alpha and IL-1beta, and attenuate the pathological damage of intestine.

Background and Purpose: Telomere length must be maintained throughout cancer cell progression and proliferation. In most tumours, telomerase activity maintains telomere length. Therefore, telomerase is a target for cancer treatments. However, some cancer cells maintain telomere length through an alternative mechanism termed 'alternative lengthening of telomeres'. To determine how telomerase inhibition relates to the initiation of the alternative lengthening of telomeres pathway, we investigated telomerase activity and telomere maintenance in Hep-2 cells with and without reduced telomerase activity., Materials and Methods: We investigated telomerase activity levels in a normal Hep-2 cell line and in residual cells following telomerase inhibition treatment. Additionally, we looked for expression of a marker protein for the alternative lengthening of telomeres mechanism., Results and Conclusions: In the residual cells, telomerase activity was eliminated. However, these cells had higher levels of the alternative lengthening of telomeres biomarker, suggesting an alternative mechanism for telomere maintenance following telomerase inhibition. These results could have a major impact on the design of new cancer treatments.

Objective: To assess left ventricular systolic synchronicity by quantitative tissue velocity imaging (QTVI) in patients with left ventricular noncompaction (LVNC)., Methods: Eighteen LVNC patients and 30 healthy controls were included. Two-dimensional echocardiography, QTVI was applied on parasternal long axis view, apical two-chamber and four-chamber view. Tissue velocity curve was obtained from the middle and basal segments of left ventricular posterior, lateral, septal, anterior, inferior and anteroseptal walls. Time interval from the beginning of QRS complex to the peak systolic velocity (Q-Ts) and the maximal difference in Ts among all 12 LV segments (Max-DeltaTs) was calculated., Results: Q-Ts from basal and middle segments of left ventricular inferior, lateral and posterior walls was significantly prolonged in LVNC patients compared to controls (P < 0.001). Max-DeltaTs was also significantly increased in LVNC patients [(161.9 +/- 93.2) ms] than that in controls [(61.2 +/- 27.4) ms, P < 0.001]., Conclusions: There was significant left ventricular asynchronies in patients with LVNC and delayed systolic contraction occurred mostly in the basal and middle segments of left ventricular inferior, posterior and lateral walls.

Objective: The effect of dietary restriction, intense exercise and menstrual dysfunction on bone mineral density remains controversial. The aim of this study was to assess the skeletal health status and relationship between bone mineral density and nutrient intake, menstrual status, estrogen level and other factos in Chinese adolescent dancers., Methods: Sixty dancers and 77 healthy controls underwent measurements of bone density, body composition, and estrogen level. Nutrient intake, menstrual status and physical activity were assessed with questionnaires. The correlation between these factors were analyzed., Results: The dancers under study had a significantly lean body mass index (18.3 +/- 1.4 kg/m2 vs. 21.7 +/- 3.1 kg/m2), lower percentage of body fat (0.25 +/- 0.05 vs. 0.34 +/- 0.04) and later age at menarche (14.0 +/- 0.9 y vs. 13.0 +/- 1.3 y), and the estrogen level, daily calorie and fat intake in them were also lower than in the controls. All the dancers undertook intensive physical activity every day and up to 69% of them suffered from irregular menarche. Yet they had relatively high BMD and BMC of the total body and legs than the controls after adjusting for BMI and age. Site-specific BMD was positively correlated to BMI, body composition and training hours per week and negatively correlated to the age at menarche and menstrual frequency., Conclusions: The relatively high BMD and BMC of the dancers at the total body and legs were probably caused by high levels of weight-bearing physical activity. To ameliorate disordered eating, especially low energy intake might be helpful to prevent the Triad and to improve the bone health in adolescent dancers.

Background and Aim: Functional constipation is a common functional bowel disorder for which there is no reliable medical treatment. This study was designed to determine the therapeutic efficacy and safety of the Yun-chang capsule, a Chinese herbal formula, in the treatment of patients with functional constipation., Methods: In our multi-center, prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, dose-escalation trial, patients with functional constipation received 70 mg of Yun-chang capsule plus 35 mg placebo (group A), 105 mg of Yun-chang capsule (group B), or 105 mg placebo (group C), three times daily for 2 weeks. The primary end-points were the changes in main symptom score and cumulative symptom score 2 weeks after the treatment. The secondary end-points were adverse events., Results: A total of 140 patients were recruited and 132 met the inclusion criteria; 44 patients constituted each of the three treatment groups. Compared with patients in group C, patients in groups A and B had significant improvement in the main symptom score, cumulative symptom score, the change from baseline of the main symptom score, and the change from baseline of the cumulative symptom score at week 1 and week 2. The scores showed slight superiority of group B over group A at week 1 and week 2, although these differences were not statistically significant. There were no differences in adverse events., Conclusions: The Yun-chang capsule is efficacious and safe for the treatment of patients with functional constipation. Larger and longer-term trials are required to fully assess the benefits and safety of this treatment for functional constipation.

Objective: We aimed to synthesize diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid-deoxyglucose (DTPA-DG) radiolabeled with (188)Re and to evaluate its biologic characteristics using mammary tumor-bearing mice., Materials and Methods: The biodistribution of the radiolabeled compound was determined by tissue counting at 3, 12, and 24 hours after injection in experimental animals. Scintigraphic examinations of nude mice bearing breast cancer (MCF-7 cells) were performed after (188)Re-DTPA-DG (18.5 MBq) was injected in the tail vein. For the tumor inhibitory portion of this work, tumor volumes were measured and recorded every 3 days until the 21st day after injection., Results: The radiochemical purity of (188)Re-DTPA-DG was 95.0%. Based on biodistribution measurements, (188)Re-DTPA-DG was taken up at high levels by the tumor. The mean tumoral percent injected dosages per gram (% ID/g) were 1.98 +/- 0.29 (SD), 2.89 +/- 0.43, and 0.42 +/- 0.06 % ID/g at 3, 12, and 24 hours, respectively, after injection. In the (188)Re-DTPA-DG scintigraphic examinations, the tumors were clearly delineated on the images recorded 2, 4, 8, 12, and 24 hours after injection. In the tumor inhibitory evaluations, the tumor volume of the (188)Re-DTPA-DG-treated group increased more slowly than that of the control groups, which were treated with (188)Re-perrhenate or saline (p < 0.01). Rhenium-188-DTPA-DG showed excellent tumor targeting and tumor growth suppression properties on MCF-7 tumor cells., Conclusion: Rhenium-188-DTPA-DG may be a potential agent for the diagnosis and radiotherapy of tumors.

Detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA) and multifractal methods are applied to the time-scaling properties analysis of water pH series in Poyang Lake Inlet and Outlet in China. The results show that these pH series are characterised by long-term memory and multifractal scaling, and these characteristics have obvious differences between the Lake Inlet and Outlet. The comparison results suggest that monofractal and multifractal parameters can be quantitative dynamical indexes reflecting the capability of anti-acidification of Poyang Lake. Furthermore, we investigated the frequency-size distribution of pH series in Poyang Lake Inlet and Outlet. Our findings suggest that water pH is an example of a self-organised criticality (SOC) process. The results show that it is different SOC behaviours that result in the differences of power-law relations between pH series in Poyang Lake Inlet and Outlet. This work can be helpful to improvement of modelling of lake water quality.

Objective: To investigate the association of estrogen receptor alpha (ER-alpha) PvuII polymorphisms with the effect of calcium supplementation on bone development in Chinese pubertal girls, and to study the importance of calcium supplementation by maximizing the peak bone mass at their pubertal stage for bone development and osteoporosis prevention and the role of estrogen in regulating bone mass., Methods: Ninety-four pubertal girls were recruited in the study and divided into two groups and three sub-groups according to the ER-alpha PvuII polymorphisms. One year before and after calcium supplementation, bone mineral density (BMD) was measured by DEXA, while BGP, BAP, TRACP5b, and 25-OH-VitD(3), as well as estrogen were detected by ELISA. Analysis of covariance was used to examine the effect of ER-alpha polymorphisms on bone development., Results: The absolute increase and percentage change of BGP were significantly higher in the supplemented group than in the control group (P<0.05). In the intervened group, The increase and percentage change of the total body and radio distal 1/3 BMD were higher in PP than in PP genotype (P<0.05), and the increase of BAP in Pp was also higher than PP in the same group (P<0.05)., Conclusion: PP genotype shows a better response to calcium supplementation than the other PvuII polymorphisms.

Background: Although there are some Chinese herbal medicines in treatment of constipation, but no multi-center randomized controlled trials have been carried out to prove their effectiveness., Objective: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of Yunchang Capsule in treatment of functional constipation with deficiency of both qi and yin and internal accumulation of poisonous pathogenic factors syndrome, and to explore the clinical dosage., Design, Setting, Participants and Interventions: A randomized, double-blinded controlled, multicenter trial was conducted. A total of 240 patients with functional constipation from West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Tianjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Fujian Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine were randomly divided into three groups: low dose group (80 cases), high dose group (80 cases) and control group (80 cases). Patients in the low dose group were treated with two pills (0.35 g/pill) of Yunchang Capsule and one pill of Yunchang Capsule simulant for three times daily; patients in the high dose group were treated with three pills (0.35 g/pill) of Yunchang Capsule for three times daily; and patients in the control group were treated with three pills (0.35 g/pill) of Biantong Capsule for three times daily. The therapeutic course was 14 days., Main Outcome Measures: Clinical symptoms, syndromes, and adverse effects were observed before and after the treatment, and blood, urine and stool tests, hepatorenal function and electrocardiogram were also examined., Results: Two cases were excluded, eleven cases were lost to follow-up, and there were 234 patients entered to intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis. After the treatment, the therapeutic effects were calculated by full analysis set (FAS) and per-protocol population set (PPS) analysis respectively. The effects on functional constipation in FAS showed the response rates in the low dose, high dose and control groups were 86.25% (69/80), 82.90% (63/76), and 70.52% (55/78) respectively, and PPS analysis showed the response rates were 85.71% (66/77), 83.56% (61/73), and 70.13% (54/77) respectively. There were no significant differences among the three groups (P>0.05). The effects on traditional Chinese medicine syndrome in FAS showed the response rates in the low dose, high dose and control groups were 78.75% (63/80), 69.74% (53/76), and 67.95% (53/78) respectively, and PPS analysis showed the response rates were 77.92% (60/77), 69.87%(51/73), and 67.53% (52/77) respectively. There were also no significant differences among the three groups (P>0.05). No severe adverse events were observed., Conclusion: Both low dose and high dose of Yunchang Capsule are effective and safe in treatment of functional constipation with deficiency of both qi and yin and internal accumulation of poisonous pathogenic factors syndrome.

Background: Resistin level is high in patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP), and resistin is expected to be a new marker for evaluating the severity of acute pancreatitis., Objective: To explore the influence of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine therapy on serum resistin levels in SAP patients., Design, Setting, Participants and Interventions: Twenty-eight SAP patients meeting inclusion criteria from Department of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University were included, and the patients were randomly divided into treatment group and placebo group. There were 13 patients in the treatment group and 15 patients in the placebo group. Patients in the treatment group were given traditional Chinese herbal medicine in addition to the conventional treatment. Patients in the placebo group were given placebo in addition to the conventional treatment., Main Outcome Measures: The serum resistin levels on admission, and days 1, 3, 5, and 7 after the admission were detected., Results: The serum resistin levels on admission in all the patients were higher than normal level, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (P>0.05). On days 1, 3, 5, and 7 after admission, the resistin levels in the treatment group were (3.29 + or - 1.66) microg/L, (3.71 + or - 1.05) microg/L, (3.08 + or - 1.47) microg/L and (3.62 + or - 1.67) microg/L, and in the control group (5.16 + or - 1.93) microg/L, (5.07 + or - 1.53) microg/L, (4.88 + or - 1.47) microg/L and (5.12 + or - 1.48) microg/L, respectively. The resistin levels were lower in the treatment group than in the control group (P<0.05)., Conclusion: Serum resistin level in SAP patients can be decreased by integrated traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine therapy.

Objective: Hearing sensitivity usually diminishes with noise exposure. In the present study, we examined the effect of 93 dB(A) wide band noise on cochlear micromechanical sensitivity in awake guinea pigs., Methods: Animals were randomly assigned to groups receiving either single or repeated noise exposure. Distortion product otoacoustic emission amplitudes were recorded before, during and after noise exposure., Results: Ninety-three decibel(A) wide band noise reduced the distortion product otoacoustic emission amplitudes at all tested frequencies. The distortion product otoacoustic emission amplitudes for higher frequencies showed a permanent reduction, whereas those for lower frequencies showed a temporary reduction. Distortion product otoacoustic emission amplitudes for middle frequencies showed prolonged enhancement after repeated noise exposure., Conclusion: Our results suggest that (1) it is likely that there are intermediate stages between permanent threshold shift and temporary threshold shift, and (2) long-term enhancement of distortion product otoacoustic emission amplitudes may be an indication of tinnitus generation.

Objective: To investigate the therapeutic effects of an early application of Chaiqin Chengqi Decoction (CQCQD) on severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) complicated with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)., Methods: Forty patients of SAP-ARDS were equally randomized into the early-treated group (ET) and the late-treated group (LT), CQCQD was administered to them immediately and 3 days later after hospitalization respectively. Baseline materials in the two groups at the entry were insignificantly different (P > 0.05), and the same conventional Western medical therapy were available to them all. The Acute Physiology and Chronic Heath Evaluation II (APACHE I) scores, the incidence and sustained time of complications, the occurrence of infection, requirement of operation shifting on day 7, as well as the duration resided in hospital and mortality in patients were observed and compared., Results: Comparisons of the above-mentioned clinical indexes between groups showed that the APACHE II score was lower (5.1 +/- 2.0 scores vs 9.3 +/- 4.3 scores, P < 0.01); the incidence of shock was lesser (1/20 vs 7/19); the duration of ARDS, renal failure, cardiac insufficiency, hepatic dysfunction, cerebropathy and enteroplegia, as well as the duration in hospital and the requirement of operation shifting were all shorter significantly (P < 0.05) in the ET group than those in the LT group, but no statistical difference (P > 0.05) was shown in terms of the infection incidence and the mortality., Conclusion: An early application of CQCQD in the treatment of SAP could shorten the duration of complications and the couse of disease, lower the requirement of operation shifting. But further study with large samples for explore its impact on the infection incidence and the mortality is needed.

Objective: To investigate the effect of Streptococcus mutans luxS mutarotation on the early biofilm formation., Methods: Based on the immobilization of magnetic beads by adherent cells, an assay of biofilm quantitative analysis was developed for the kinetic quantification of biofilm formation in this study. Streptococcus mutans luxS mutant strain was constructed and subject to this biofilm luxS mutant strain were compared., Results: The delta luxS mutant started to form a biofilm from the 6th hour (delta BFI = 2.015), and the delta BFI of luxS mutant increased more quickly than that of the wild type strain, until reaching a complete immobilization of the beads after 10 hours (delta BFI = 7.025). The wild-type strain start to form a biofilm from the 10 th hour (delta BFI = 1.875) and the beads were completely immobilized between 12 and 14 hours., Conclusions: The luxS mutation can accelerate biofilm on a polystyrene surface during the mid-exponential growth phase. And a luxS-dependent signal may play an important role in the early biofilm formation of Streptococcus mutans.

Objective: To evaluate the value of Ranson, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II), Balthazar CT and pancreatitis outcome prediction (POP) scoring systems in predicting the prognosis of severe acute pancreatitis (SAP)., Methods: A total of 253 consecutive patients with SAP, admitted into West China Hospital of Sichuan University from January 2004 to August 2007 were studied retrospectively. Data associated to Ranson, APACHE II, Balthazar CT and POP scoring systems after admissions were recorded. Four outcome signals including death, local complications, operation transformation, and development of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) were analyzed. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were also drawn and the areas under the ROC curve (AUC) were obtained to compare the sensitivity, specificity, Youden index, and likelihood ratio positive test (LRPT) of the clinical scoring systems in assessing the prognosis of SAP., Results: Through comparison of AUC, Ranson score could be used to predict the outcomes except for local complications (P=0.00), and all its diagnosis threshold was 5. APACHE II score showed that it could assess the outcomes of SAP except for local complications (P=0.00). Its thresholds in mortality, operation transformation, and incidence of MODS were 14, 10, and 12 respectively. Balthazar CT could predict all the outcomes, and the threshold was 6. POP score could predict all the outcomes except for local complications, and its predictive value in mortality was particularly prominent. The sensitivity and specificity of POP in predicting death were 0.90 and 0.92 as the cutoff was no less than 14. The thresholds of POP in mortality, operation transformation, and incidence of MODS were 14, 8, and 10 respectively., Conclusion: The prognostic ability of the four scoring systems is not the same. Ranson, APACHE II and POP scoring systems can predict the severity of SAP and entire complication, but they can't predict the local complications. POP score may predict the mortality well, and Balthazar CT scanning can predict all the outcomes, but the sensitivity and specificity are low.

Novel magnetic Fe(3)O(4)/chitosan (CS) microspheres were prepared using magnetic Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles and the natural macromolecule chitosan. Then, using an easy and effective hemoglobin (Hb) immobilization method, an innovative biosensor with a Fe(3)O(4)/CS-Hb-Fe(3)O(4)/CS "sandwich" configuration was constructed. This biosensor had a fast (less than 10 s) response to H(2)O(2) and excellent linear relationships were obtained in the concentration range of 5.0 × 10(-5) to 1.8 × 10(-3) M and 1.8 × 10(-3) to 6.8 × 10(-3) M with a detection limit of 4.0 × 10(-6) M (s/n = 3) under the optimum conditions. The apparent Michaelis-Menten constant K(m) was 0.29 mM and it showed the excellent biological activity of the fixed Hb. Moreover, the biosensor had long-time stability and good reproducibility. The method was used to determine H(2)O(2) concentration in real samples.

Salicylate, a common drug frequently used long term in the clinic, is well known for causing reversible hearing loss and tinnitus. Our previous study, however, demonstrated that chronic administration of salicylate progressively raised the amplitude of distortion product of otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs), which are mainly caused by (outer hair cell) OHC electromotility. How salicylate affects OHC electromotility to cause this paradoxical increase remains unclear. One possibility is that it could affect prestin, which is a motor protein that contributes to the mechano-electrical properties of OHCs. In this experiment, we assessed the effect of acute and chronic salicylate treatment on prestin expression. Interestingly, after long-term salicylate injection (200 mg/kg, twice daily for 14 days), prestin gene and protein levels were up-regulated about twofold. These levels returned to baseline 14 days after treatment stopped. Acute injection of salicylate (single injection, 400 mg/kg) did not affect prestin levels. These data reveal that chronic salicylate administration markedly, but reversibly, increased prestin levels which may contribute to the enhanced DPOAE amplitudes we observed previously with similar salicylate treatment, which may be responsible for salicylate-induced tinnitus generation.