Search

Mechanical obstruction is the most common cause of shunt failure for hydrocephalic patients. However, the diagnosis is extremely challenging and often requires invasive testing methods. Thus, a simple and non-invasive technique is in urgent need to predict the intracranial pressure (ICP) of hydrocephalic patients during their post-surgical follow-up, which could help neurosurgeons to determine the conditions of the shunt system.Two groups of patients were enrolled in the current study. In group I, patients were enrolled as they were diagnosed with high ICP hydrocephalus and received shunt surgery. The shunt valve pressures were taken for their post-surgical ICP. Meanwhile, the participants of group II exhibited abnormally increased lumbar puncture opening pressure (LPOP; from 180 to 400 mmHWhen patients' ICP were in the normal range (group I, from 50 to 180 mmHWe believe the TMT-ICP algorithm (the Y-Jiang model) could be used for preliminary prediction of shunt malfunction as well as monitoring ICP changes.

Owing to its excellent mechanical properties, processability, and biodegradability, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) has been widely investigated in the past few decades as a biomaterial. However, the poor heat resistance of PLA severely limits its applicability. In this review, several heat resistance modification methods, such as nucleating agent addition, fiber reinforcement, compounding, blending, stereoisomer complexation, and chemical modification, have been reviewed and their related mechanisms have been discussed in brief.

Background Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disease caused by the over-synchronization of neurons leading to brain dysfunction. Recurrent seizures can lead to cognitive and behavioral deficits, and irreversible brain damage. While the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway regulates various physiological processes of neurons and glia, it may also lead to abnormal neuronal signal transduction under pathological conditions, including that of epilepsy. Everolimus (Eve), an mTOR inhibitor, may modulate neuronal excitability and therefore exert protection against epilepsy. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the neuroprotective effect of Everolimus on seizure-induced brain injury and its regulation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR and NF-kB/IL-6 signaling pathway. Kainic acid (KA) 15 mg/kg was used to induce seizures and Everolimus (1, 2, 5 mg/kg) was administered as a pretreatment. Hippocampal tissue was extracted 24 h post-seizure. Results The protein and mRNA expression levels of PI3K、p-AKt、p-mTOR、NF-kB and IL-6 as well as neuronal apoptosis and microglia activation, significantly increased after KA-induced seizures, however, these effects were inhibited by Everolimus treatment. Furthermore, pretreatment with Everolimus decreased seizure scores and increased seizure latency. Conclusions Everolimus can decrease the PI3K/Akt/mTOR and NF-kB/IL-6 signaling pathway, reduce neuronal apoptosis and microglia activation, and attenuate seizure susceptibility and intensity, thus having a protective effect on seizure-induced brain damage.

Background: Epilepsy is a common acute and severe disease in infants and children. Recurrent seizures or status epilepticus can cause irreversible brain damage. While the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway regulates various physiological processes of neurons and glia, it may also lead to abnormal neuronal signal transduction under pathological conditions, including that of epilepsy. Everolimus (Eve) is an mammalian target of repamycin (mTOR) inhibitor that may affect neuronal excitability and have a therapeutic effect on epilepsy. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the protective effect of Everolimus on post-epileptic brain injury and the regulation mechanism of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR and NF-kB/IL-6 signaling pathway. Intraperitoneal administration of kanic acid (KA) 15mg/kg was used to induce epilepsy in the developing rat and Everolimus (1, 2, 5mg/kg) was injected intraperitoneally 2 hours before KA injection. Cerebral cortex tissue was sampled at 24 hours post-epilepsy.Results: The protein and mRNA levels of PI3K、AKt、mTOR、NF-kB and IL-6 as well as microglia activation significantly increased after KA-induced epilepsy, however these effects were inhibited by Everolimus treatment. Furthermore, pretreatment with Everolimus decreased seizure scores and increased seizure latency. This study demonstrates that mTOR inhibitor.Conclusions: Everolimus can decrease the PI3K/Akt/mTOR and NF-kB/IL-6 signaling pathway, reduce microglia activation, and attenuate seizure susceptibility and intensity, thus having a protective effect on post-epileptic brain damage.

The dynamics of produced excited carriers under the irradiation of Ge crystal is investigated theoretically by using femtosecond laser pulse. A two-temperature model combined with the Drude model is also used to study the nonequilibrium carrier density, carrier and lattice temperatures, and optical properties of the crystal. The properties of the surface plasmon wave when excited are also studied. The influences of non-radiation and radiative recombination process on the photoexcitation of the semiconductor during pulse and the relaxation after the pulse are described in detail. The results show that the effects of Auger recombination on the nonequilibrium carrier density and optical properties of the crystal and the properties of the surface plasmon polariton are great, whereas the effect of radiative recombination is extremely small.

Bio-based blends were prepared via solution blending and thermal cross-linking of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) using dicumyl peroxide (DCP) as a cross-linking agent. The thermal stability, flexural properties, and fracture toughness of PLA/PBS blends were investigated. The thermal stability of the blends increased with the addition of PBS and further improved by the cross-lingking. The flexural properties of the blends decreased with the addition of PBS and increased after the cross-lingking. The impact strength of the blend cross-linked with 0.10 wt% DCP increased to 4.25 kJ/m2, which increased by 32% compared to that of pristine PLA.

Increasing preclinical evidence demonstrates that dopamine D3 receptor (D3R) antagonists are a potential option for the treatment of drug addiction. The reinstatement of the addiction can be triggered by environmental stimuli that acquire motivational salience through repeated associations with the drug’s effects. YQA14 is a novel D3R antagonist that has exhibited pharmacotherapeutic efficacy in reducing cocaine and amphetamine reward and relapse to drug seeking in mice. In this study we investigated the effects of YQA14 on morphine-induced context-specific locomotor sensitization in mice. We showed that repeated injection of YQA14 (6.25–25 mg/kg every day ip) prior to morphine (10 mg/kg every day sc) not only inhibited the acquisition, but also significantly attenuated the expression of morphine-induced locomotor sensitization. Furthermore, in the expression phase, one single injection of YQA14 (6.25–25 mg/kg, ip) dose-dependently inhibited the expression of morphine-induced behavioral sensitization. Moreover, YQA14 inhibited the expression of morphine-induced behavioral sensitization in wild mice (WT), but not in D3R knockout (D3R(−/−)) mice in the expression phase. In addition, D3R(−/−) mice also displayed the reduction in the expression phase compared with WT mice. In summary, this study demonstrates that blockade or knockout of the D3R inhibits morphine-induced behavior sensitization, suggesting that D3R plays an important role in the pathogenesis and etiology of morphine addiction, and it might be a potential target for clinical management of opioid addiction.

Increasing evidence suggests that the mesolimbic dopamine system plays a critical role in opioid addiction. However, there is currently no standard drug treatment for opioid addiction. Growing preclinical evidence indicates that the dopamine D(3) receptor antagonists are the potential anti-addiction pharmacotherapeutic agents based on animal models of multiple drug addiction. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effects of YQA14, a novel dopamine D(3) receptor antagonist with a high affinity and selectivity for dopamine D(3) receptor, using morphine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) in rats. The results suggested that YQA14 (6.25-25 mg/kg; intraperitoneal, i.p.) decreased the expression of morphine (10 mg/kg, s.c.)-induced CPP in a dose-related manner but did not influence the acquisition of morphine-induced CPP. At a 25 mg/kg dose of YQA14, it also notably inhibited the reactivation of morphine-priming CPP. These findings suggest that YQA14 is a potential agent for anti-opioid addiction which warrants further study and development.

Cylindrical air spring suspension’s vehicle model with seven freedom degrees is established. Then the model is simulated by use of Matlab/Simulink to accomplish the simulated-computation of the driving state such as rolling angle and pitching angle. Based on the above work, air suspension controller, DSP TMS320F2812 chip as the core processor, is developed. The result of the real vehicle test proves that the controller can obviously improve vehicle’s driving smoothness and handling stability, so it meets the applying requirements.

There is a close relationship between the stability of vehicle and the suspension. In this paper, an air spring suspension stability model is established by MATLAB/Simulink based on vehicle stability theories. This air spring suspension stability model is used to analyze the performance of air spring suspension and the stability of vehicle by the simulation of gyratory motion and linear motion, after that real vehicle tests is performed, the contrast between them will be used to judge the accuracy and effectiveness of the air spring suspension stability model. In this paper, some original data come from a sedan. The data of this paper has proved the vehicle installing the cylindrical air spring suspension, has a good stability performance.

Jun Chen,1,* Guo-jun Yan,1,* Rong-rong Hu,1 Qian-wen Gu,1 Ming-lei Chen,1 Wei Gu,1 Zhi-peng Chen,1 Bao-chang Cai1,2 1College of Pharmacy, 2Engineering Center of State Ministry of Education for Standardization of Chinese Medicine Processing, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, People's Republic of China *These authors contributed equally to this projectObjective: Brucine was encapsulated into stealth liposomes using the ammonium sulfate gradient method to improve therapeutic index.Materials and methods: Four brucine stealth liposomal formulations were prepared, which were made from different phosphatidylcholines (PCs) with different phase transition temperatures (Tm). The PCs used were soy phosphatidylcholine (SPC), dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC), hydrogenated soy phosphatidylcholine (HSPC), and distearoyl phosphatidylcholine (DSPC). The stabilities, pharmacokinetics, and toxicities of these liposomal formulations were evaluated and compared.Results: Size, zeta potential, and entrapment efficiency of brucine-loaded stealth liposomes (BSL) were not influenced by PC composition. In vitro release studies revealed that drug release rate increased with decreased Tm of PCs, especially with the presence of rat plasma. After intravenous administration, the area under the curve (AUC) values of BSL-SPC, BSL-DPPC, BSL-HSPC, and BSL-DSPC in plasma were 7.71, 9.24, 53.83, and 56.83-fold as large as that of free brucine, respectively. The LD50 values of brucine solution, BSL-SPC, BSL-DPPC, BSL-HSPC, and BSL-DSPC following intravenous injection were 13.17, 37.30, 37.69, 51.18, and 52.86 mg/kg, respectively. It was found in calcein retention experiments that the order of calcein retention in rat plasma was SPC < DPPC << HSPC < DSPC stealth liposomes.Conclusion: PC composition could exert significant influence on the stabilities, pharmacokinetics, and toxicities of brucine-loaded stealth liposomes. DSPC or HSPC with Tm above 50°C should be used to prepare the stealth liposomal formulation for the intravenous delivery of brucine. However, it was found in the present paper that the pharmacokinetics and toxicity of BSL were not influenced by the PC composition when the Tm of the PC was in the range of –20°C to 41°C.Keywords: brucine, stealth liposomes, phosphatidylcholine, pharmacokinetics, toxicity

With the urbanization process, rural houses in Qin-Ling Mountain area changes spontaneous, some of these changes may lead to improvement of thermal performances, while others may be worse and results more energy consumption. Besides, in Qin-Ling Mountain area, energy consumption of rural houses for thermal comfort is mainly in winter. For these reasons, based on the field study in Qin-mao village in north Qin-Ling Mountain, the thermal environment in winter of new rural houses are tested and analyzed in this research. The result shows a close relation between indoor thermal performance and the outside wall materials, as well as location of rooms. And then the influence was quantified in 1-3. On this basis, defect of new rural house design is discussed, and advice is put forward to inprove its indoor thermal environment.

In the rapid urbanization of rural western China, a variety of long-standing housing typologies are being replaced with energy consuming brick-concrete structures that have little connection to vernacular traditions. To improve this situation, this paper proposes an ecologically sensitive alternative, based on a case study of the design and construction of 44 new dwellings in Daping Village, Sichuan Province, after that area was devastated by the May 12, 2008 earthquake. We propose that this eco-approach may represent a generalizable approach for sustainable development of vernacular architecture in western China.

Based on the theory of fluid dynamics and principle of thermodynamics, the characteristic of the stiffness, natural frequency and damping of cylindrical air spring are deduced. Moreover, simulation model for dynamic characteristic of air spring is established under the environment. The simulation results show the characteristics of cylindrical air spring is superior and the isolation effect is good.

Traditional Rammed earth houses are still widespread in rural areas of western China. However, the seismic damage of earth houses is usually serious due to its poor seismic resistance and little research has been conducted on dynamic tests of rammed earth structure. A simple and low-cost method to reinforce the rammed earth wall is put forward in the paper. The shake table testing for both the wall panels with and without reinforcements has been carried out. The test results are analyzed from the aspects of damage phenomenon, dynamic behavior, and acceleration and displacement responses of both specimens. The results show the effectiveness of the reinforcement method on improving the seismic capacity of the rammed earth wall.

Traditional Rammed earth houses, which possess people traditional cultures, are still widespread in rural areas of western China. However, the earth houses damage is usually serious due to its poor seismic resistance. A simple and low-cost method to reinforce the rammed earth wall is put forward in the paper. In order to test the reinforcement effectiveness, shake table testing for both the wall panels with and without structural reinforcements have been carried out. The performances of the wall panels during dynamic testing are presented and discussed briefly. The result of the test demonstrated the effectiveness of the reinforcement method on improving the seismic capacity of the rammed earth wall. The reinforcement can restrain the crack development and increase the structural integrity of the wall panels. The method can be applied to both existing and new building rammed earth houses.

New techniques are required for the rapid and sensitive detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 (E. coli O157:H7), a pathogenic bacterium responsible for serious and sometimes life-threatening diseases in humans. In this study, we developed a highly sensitive and efficient biosensor for the quantitative detection of E. coli O157:H7 by integrating fluorescein-releasable biolabels with a magnetism-separable probe. Hollow silica nanospheres with a diameter of approximately 350 nm were synthesized, enriched with fluorescein, and surface-protected with macromolecule layers of poly (acrylic acid) and poly (dimethyldiallylammonium chloride). These fluorescein-enriched hollow silica nanospheres were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. They were further functionalized as immune labels of E. coli O157:H7 for a sandwich-type immune reaction between this bacterium and magnetic nanoparticles (Fe3O4@SiO2). Next, the E. coli O157:H7 cells were captured, magnetically separated, and quantified based on the fluorescence intensity of the fluorescein released from the biolabels of the fluorescein-enriched hollow silica nanospheres. This analytic process can be completed within 75 min, and the biosensor showed a linear relationship ranging from 4 to 4.0 × 10(8)cfu/mL with a detection limit of 3 cfu/mL. These results show that the developed fluorescent sensor has excellent specificity, and good reproducibility and stability. This study used real spiked samples for detection, indicating that this technique has a wide range of potential applications and may be readily adapted for detecting other pathogens.

To investigate the regulation of calcineurin (CaN) by endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) in podocytes in vitro and in vivo at the stage microalbuminuria in diabetic nehropathy (DN).The urinary albumin excretions of C57BLKS/J (Lepr) db/db and db/m mice at the ages of 6, 9, and 12 weeks were measured. The expressions of CaN and synaptopodin of these mice were observed. In immortalized mouse podocytes, the expression of podocyte CaN incubated with different concentrations of paltimate was quantitatively determined by real-time PCR. The changes of CaN incubated with paltimate with or without ursodeoxy-cholic acid (UDCA) were analyzed by confocal microscopy and Western blotting.As urine protein increased, the expression of CaN was enhanced and the expression of synaptopodin was reduced in early stage DN db/db mice potocytes. In immortalized mouse podocytes, as the concentrations of palmitate increased, CaN mRNA increased. By confocal microscopy, the fluorescence intensity of CaN increased in palmitate treatment group. After co-incubation with palmitate and UDCA, the fluorescence intensity decreased. The similar results were shown by Western blotting.At the stage of microalbuminuria in DN, ERS in podocytes up-regulates the expression of CaN.

Structural evolution with temperature of tetraphenylethene (TPE) is followed using THz-TDS. The observed changes in the terahertz spectra are rationalized by performing DFT calculations on experimentally determined low and high temperature crystal structures, thus allowing the changes to be rationalized in terms of the subtle changes in the supramolecular structure.

Since the carboxylate form could be regarded as a possible “source” of lactone form, the optimum ratio of lactone should be determined for the administration of camptothecin (CPT) analogues such as 9-nitrocamptothecin (9-NC). 9-NC solutions with different lactone ratios (100, 75, 50, 25 and 0 %) were obtained by the change of pH. The resultant 9-NC solution and corresponding blank solvent were intravenously injected to mice to evaluate toxicity. The S180 tumor-bearing mice were intravenously administered 9-NC solutions with different lactone ratios, and the antitumor efficacy and toxicity were compared. The tissue distribution of lactone and total (the total of lactone and carboxylate forms) 9-NC was also investigated as a function of lactone ratio. Toxicity of 9-NC was found to be increased with the increase in lactone ratio. The tumor inhibitory rates of 9-NC solution were determined to be 64.17, 60.43, 42.78, 41.71 and 8.60 % for 100, 75, 50, 25 and 0 % lactone ratio, respectively. The lactone stability of 9-NC in most tissues was found to be higher than in plasma. In tumor and plasma, whether for lactone or total 9-NC AUC values, there was no difference between 100 and 75 % groups. Although carboxylate form of CPTs is inactive, the administration of carboxylate form in an appropriate ratio is active as a result of its conversion to lactone form in vivo.

To investigate partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection (PAPVC) with echocardiography.The right ventricular volume overload was detected by routine echocardiography in 37 child patients, who underwent further echocardiography to find the abnormal locations of pulmonary vein opening at superior, inferior vena cava and right atrium. The ultrasound results were compared with surgical findings.In 30 patients the ultrasound diagnosis was consistent with surgery results, 7 were misdiagnosed by ultrasound with a detective rate of 81.1 %. All 37 PAPVC patients presented varying degrees of right heart enlargement; PAPVC combined with atrial septal defect (ASD) was found in 34 cases.The possibility of PAPVC should be considered when unexplained right heart volume overload was detected by echocardiography. Superior, inferior vena cava and right atrium should be inspected when the pulmonary veins were not seen in echocardiography.

Intractable secondary glaucoma with severe ocular contusion involving the posterior segment is difficult to treat. In this study, we evaluated the safety and efficacy of combined trabeculectomy and vitrectomy for intractable glaucoma with severe ocular contusion involving the posterior segment.This retrospective interventional study enrolled 18 eyes from 18 consecutive cases with uncontrolled intraocular pressure, angle recession exceeding 180°, dense vitreous hemorrhage, and/or limited retinal detachment after severe ocular contusion. Combined trabeculectomy and vitrectomy was performed after giving the patient sufficient anti-inflammatory and intraocular pressure (IOP)-lowering medication. Follow-up averaged 26.2 (range, 6.0- 48.0) months.The mean IOP decreased from (36.4 ± 10.0) mmHg on maximum IOP-lowering medications to (14.6 ± 4.4) mmHg on (0.7 ± 1.2) topical medications at the final follow-up (P0.0001). During the first postoperative month, four eyes (22%) had a short hypertensive phase and six eyes (33%) had early hypotony, including one case (5.6%) of bleb leakage. Seven eyes (39%) developed recurrent hypertension 3- 6 months postoperatively, five of which were controlled by topical medications. Ten (55.6%) eyes were classified as a complete success, five (27.8%) as a qualified success, and three eyes (16.7%) as failures. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis for complete and cumulative success showed 53.5% and 80.0% survival at 48 months, respectively. Visual acuity was improved in 15 eyes (83.3%). Three eyes (16.7%) had unchanged visual acuity, one (5.6%) of which developed atrophia bulbi despite a normal intraocular pressure. No recurrent retinal detachment or vitreous hemorrhage developed.Combined trabeculectomy and vitrectomy is a viable surgical procedure for the management of intractable glaucoma with severe ocular contusion involving the posterior segment in selected cases.

Objective To compare the pharmaceutical properties and the anti-tumor activities of three kinds of stealth liposomes prepared with different phospholipid composition containing brucine. Method Stealth liposomes with different phospholipids composition, such as soybean phosphatidycholine (SPC), hydrogenated soybean phosphatidylcholine (HSPC) and the complex of SPC and HSPC, were prepared by ammonium sulfate transmembrane gradient method. Pharmaceutical properties such as shape, encapsulation efficiency and size of three stealth liposomes were compared intensively. Anti-tumor activity of SPC, HSPC and novel stealth liposomes composed of both SPC and HSPC were compared by established mouse liver cancer H22 model. Meanwhile, the mice body weight and immune organ weight were also compared. Result The encapsulation efficiency of novel, SPC and HSPC stealth liposomes were 77.7%, 64.8% and 74.8%, respectively. The mean diameters of them were less than 100 nm. The tumor inhibition rate of novel, HSPC and SPC stealth liposomes were 57.88%, 49.15%, 23.37%, respectively. The mice body weight, thymus gland index of three stealth liposomes group and spleen index of novel stealth liposomes group had no significant difference with the negative group while SPC and HSPC stealth liposomes group increased the spleen index. Conclusion Phospholipids composition is the key factor which determines the antitumor activity of brucine-loaded stealth liposomes.

There is mounting evidence that garlic extracts possess significant anticancer actions. However, no studies have been reported on the effects of aged black garlic extracts (ABGE) on gastric cancer in vitro or in vivo. To examine the potential action of ABGE against gastric cancer, the present study evaluated its effect on the inhibition of cell proliferation and induction of apoptosis in SGC-7901 human gastric cancer cells. Additionally, we performed an in vivo study by inoculating the murine foregastric carcinoma cell line in Kunming mice and treating them with various doses of ABGE (0, 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) for 2 weeks. Dose-dependent apoptosis was detected in ABGE-treated cells in in vitro studies. In tumor-bearing mice, significant antitumor effects of ABGE were observed, such as growth inhibition of inoculated tumors. Further investigation of serum superoxide dismutases, glutathione peroxidase, interleukin-2 and the increased indices of spleen and thymus indicated that the anticancer action of ABGE may be partly due to its antioxidant and immunomodulative effects.

Objective: To investigate the effects and complications of primary and secondary placements of motility coupling post (MCP) in the unwrapped porous polyethylene orbital implant (PPOI) following enucleation. Methods: We investigated 198 patients who received PPOI implantation following the standard enucleation procedure in the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China, from 2002 to 2004. These patients were subgrouped into PPOI-only patients (112 cases, received PPOI following enucleation), primary MCP patients (46 cases, received primary placement of MCP during PPOI operation), and secondary MCP patients (40 cases, received secondary placement of MCP 6 months after the initial surgery). Effects and complications among these three groups were compared. Results: The PPOI-only patients took shorter treatment course when compared with other two MCP groups (P