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Global pincer is a relatively rare form of pincer deformity and is typically associated with technical challenges during surgery. So far, controversy remains whether patients with global pincer have equivalent surgical outcomes compared to patients with focal pincer. This study compares the clinical outcomes of arthroscopic treatment between patients with global pincer femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) and focal pincer FAI in the Chinese population.Data were retrospectively collected from patients with global and focal pincer FAI who underwent hip arthroscopy with a minimum two-year follow-up between April 2016 and December 2018. Radiographic measurements, arthroscopic procedures, preoperative and postoperative patient-reported outcomes (PROs) including modified Harris hip score (mHHS), hip outcome score-activities of daily living (HOS-ADL), international hip outcome tool-12 (iHOT-12), and visual analogue scale (VAS) scores, rates of revision surgery and conversion to total hip arthroplasty (THA) were recorded. Achievement of minimal clinically important difference (MCID) and patient acceptable symptomatic state (PASS) was compared for the VAS, mHHS, HOS-ADL, and iHOT-12 scores between groups.The total of 33 and 167 patients were included in the global and focal group, respectively. There were no intergroup differences in age, gender, body mass index or follow-up times. Lateral center-edge angle (LCEA) was reduced in both groups postoperatively. Both groups demonstrated significant improvements in PROs compared with preoperative levels at the final follow-up. The preoperative scores showed significant differences in terms of mHHS (60.34 vs 62.90, P = 0.031) and HOS-ADL (61.45 vs 64.74, P = 0.022) scores between two groups, and the improvement of HOS-ADL score was significantly higher in global group (P = 0.027). However, the postoperative scores, including VAS, mHHS, HOS-ADL, and iHOT-12 scores, showed no significant differences between two groups. And there were no significant differences in the rate of meeting the PASS and MCID between groups. One (3.0%) in the global group and six (3.6%) patients in the focal group underwent revision arthroscopy respectively, with no significant difference (P = 0.876). There were no conversions to THA in both groups.Arthroscopic management of global pincer FAI can achieve excellent functional scores at minimum 2-year follow-up. The outcomes were similar to focal pincer FAI patients with a low rate of secondary procedure.

Purpose To identify the clinical features of intra-articular osteoid osteoma (OO) of the hip, to evaluate the clinical effect of arthroscopic excision for intra-articular OO, and to summarize the characteristics of revision cases of hip OO and the revision surgery under arthroscopy in these cases. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the data of 25 patients who underwent arthroscopic excision of hip OO. The case series included 10 patients who underwent revision surgery. Lesion location, presenting symptoms, and symptom duration were analyzed; postoperative improvement was assessed using the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS) and International Hip Outcomes Tool (iHot-12) score. We examined the reasons for revision surgery and the characteristics of OO progression after the first surgery. Results The most common presenting symptom was groin pain that was relieved by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Varying degrees of limitation of range of motion (ROM) were present in all patients. The osteosclerosis around the tumor nest on computed tomography (CT) scan is a characteristic radiographic feature in this disease. However, the classic radiographic feature was apparent on plain x-rays in only 2 of 25 patients. As a kind of efficient radiological method, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can help in distinguishing OO from femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), as the latter is characterized by a large effusion and bone marrow edema at the atypical site of impingement. For the patients who had only 1 arthroscopic resection, the mean (± standard deviation) mHHS and iHot-12 scores were 70.30 ± 9.06 (range 51 to 86) and 75.07 ± 7.69 (57 to 88), respectively. At last follow-up, the mean scores were 98.30 ± 2.15 (94 to 100) and 97.76 ± 2.04 (94 to 100). For revision cases, the mean mHHS and iHot-12 scores were 68.55 ± 3.77 (60 to 72) and 67.88 ± 5.39 (56 to 76). At last follow-up, the mean scores were 97.11 ± 2.47 (94 to 100) and 95.22 ± 1.78 (94 to 100). In the present study, 24 of 25 patients (96%) reached the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of mHHS, and 21 of 22 patients (95.2%) reached the MCID of iHot-12. Among the revision patients, the most common misdiagnosis at first surgery was FAI. Another feature is that a wrong diagnosis or incomplete intra-articular OO resection can stimulate the tumor and cause an inflammatory reaction and rapidly progressive OA, necessitating prompt revision surgery for complete removal. The degree of joint degeneration was related to the time since the first operation. Conclusion OO of the hip joint typically presents with pain and limited joint activity. Misdiagnosis as FAI or synovitis is common, and CT scan is very helpful for accuracy diagnosis. Arthroscopic excision appears to be an effective method for the treatment of OO of the hip joint. Level of Evidence IV, case series.

The hip joint is the largest weight‐bearing joint in the body and is surrounded by dense capsules and thick muscles. Hip arthroscopic techniques are suitable for the treatment of hip‐related conditions. These minimally invasive techniques have rapidly developed in China since 2007. Moreover, they have been used in the treatment of gluteal muscle contracture, snapping hip syndrome, femoral acetabular impingement, acetabular labral injury, hip labral calcification, synovial chondroma, osteoid osteoma, synovitis, osteonecrosis of the femoral head, and developmental dysplasia of the hip. This technique has showed its advantage in the total debridement of lesions, precision treatment, and less trauma. However, we lack understanding of the overall development of arthroscopic techniques in China. This review illustrates the recent development of hip arthroscopic techniques in China and related research progress., Hip arthroscopic techniques have rapidly developed in China in the last few decades. This review illustrates the recent development of hip arthroscopic techniques in China and related research progress.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the surgical methods and clinical outcomes of arthroscopic treatment of a special type of calcification with surrounding inflammation in the acetabular labrum of the hip, which was temporarily named “calcifying labrumitis”. From April 2015 to November 2019, a total of seven patients with calcifying labrumitis of the hip who underwent arthroscopic excision of calcified lesions and suture or partial resection of the labrum were included in this study. Radiographs were retrospectively evaluated for morphologic characteristics of calcifying labrumitis. Each patient was assessed by the visual analogue scale (VAS), modified Harris hip score (mHHS), nonarthritic hip score (NAHS) and satisfaction rate before surgery and at the final follow-up evaluation. Seven patients, one male and six females aged 29–48 years, were included in the study; of these patients, three had calcifying labrumitis on the left side and four had calcifying labrumitis on the right side. All patients had hip pain and limited range of motion for a mean of 7.5 ± 3.1 months (range, 3–12 months). The mean follow-up period was 34.9 ± 19.5 months (range, 12–66 months). The lateral central-edge angle (LCEA) was 31.7 ± 3.9° (range, 28.8–36.4°), and the α angle was 41.4 ± 5.3° (range, 33.6–48.2°). None of the patients had cam or pincer lesions. After complete removal of calcified lesions, five patients underwent repair of the labrum with a suture anchor, and two patients underwent partial resection of the labrum. The symptoms of all patients improved significantly at the last follow-up. Mean scores improved from 5.8 ± 1.5 to 1.1 ± 0.3 (p

Background Subspine impingement (SSI) lacks effective diagnostic criteria, especially in patients combined with femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). The classification of AIIS morphology through three-dimensional CT was in doubt. Purpose To propose the method of ultrasound-guided anterior inferior iliac spine (AIIS) injection as a diagnostic idea for SSI and evaluate the accuracy of the radiography method including 3-D CT or MRI as well as intraoperative findings for diagnosis. Methods Patients diagnosed with FAI between September 2020 and December 2021 were evaluated. Those who met the criteria received ultrasound-guided AIIS injection test. It was recorded whether the pain were relieved after injection in the radiology report. Those patients who experienced a significant relief of the anterior groin pain (more than 50%) after AIIS injection were considered as positive responses and received a final diagnosis of SSI. The positive response was compared to the radiography materials including AIIS morphology measured by 3-D CT as well as the superior capsular edema on MRI. It was recorded whether there was congestion or bruise on the capsule side of labrum corresponding to AIIS during hip arthroscopy. Results A total of 73 patients with FAI received ultrasound-guided AIIS injection test. The prevalence of 13.70% (10/73), 58.90% (43/73), 23.29% (17/73) and 4.11% (3/73) were determined for Type I, Type IIA, Type IIB and Type III AIIS respectively. 36 patients had positive responses to injection and 37 patients had negative responses to injection. None patients of Type I AIIS, 23(53.49%) patients of Type IIA, 11(64.71%) patients of Type IIB and 2(66.7%) patients of Type III AIIS had positive responses to injection. A total of 57.14% patients with Type II or Type III AIIS had positive responses to injection. The positive ratio of superior capsular edema on MRI in patients with Type I, Type IIA, Type IIB, Type III was 0%, 30.23%, 29.41% and 0%. In non-type I AIIS patients, patients reported positive responses to injection had a higher incidence of superior capsular edema (38.89% vs 14.81%, P = 0.036), but they had no significant differences in the rate of congestion or bruise of labrum (47.22% vs 37.04%, P = 0.419). The results show that any two methods of ultrasound-guided injection, MRI, and intraoperative findings cannot obtain good consistency (κ = 0.222, κ = 0.098 and κ=-0.116, respectively). Conclusions This study propose to use the method of ultrasound-guided AIIS injection test to help diagnosing SSI. The methods of radiography including 3-D CT and MRI as well as the intraoperative findings of the labrum cannot be considered as accurate and reliable diagnosis and treatment basis for symptomatic SSI. Level of Evidence: IV, case series.

BackgroundThough radiotherapy has been widely used for knee pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS), there is few literatures about radiotherapy for the treatment of PVNS hip. Thus, the purpose of this study was to analyze the clinical outcomes of endoscopic synovectomy with/without radiotherapy postoperatively of PVNS hip.MethodsWe performed a retrospective study of patients who underwent endoscopy in our hospital from November 2010 to January 2021. Inclusion criteria was patients with magnetic resonance image (MRI) signs, endoscopic findings and/or histological evidence of PVNS. Exclusion criteria was patients lost follow-up. All patients underwent synovectomy endoscopically and were divided into two groups depending on receiving postoperative radiotherapy or not. The primary outcome measurements were the recurrence of PVNS, receiving revision, and/or converting to total hip arthroplasty (THA). The secondary outcome measurements were the patient-reported outcome (PRO) collected at pre- and post-operation, which consist of Hip Outcome Score Activities of Daily Living (HOS-ADL), modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS), International Hip Outcome Tool-12 (IHOT-12), Non-arthritic Hip Scale (NAHS), and visual analog scale (VAS).ResultsIn a case series of 16 patients (8 cases of male, 50%), 4 (25%) cases were localized type and 12 (75%) cases were diffuse type. The average follow-up was 44.8 ± 38.2 months (range,3 to 110). 8 (50%) cases (6 diffuse cases and 2 localized cases) received radiotherapy postoperatively, and the rest (6 diffuse cases and 2 localized cases) received endoscopic treatment alone. At the latest follow-up, 3 (18.75%) cases (2 diffuse cases and 1 localized case) who did not receive radiotherapy converted to arthroplasty. The preoperative HOS-ADL, mHHS, IHOT-12, NAHS, VAS scores of remaining 13 patients were 63.1 ± 19.1 (range,32.0 to 98.8), 54.8 ± 20.1 (range, 10.0 to 77.0), 50.9 ± 15.4 (range, 31.0 to 76.6),51.6 ± 15.9 (range, 20.0 to 84.4), 6.0 ± 1.4 (range,4.0 to 8.0) points, respectively. The latest HOS-ADL, mHHS, IHOT-12, NAHS, VAS scores of the 13 patients were 79.7 ± 10.8 (range, 58.0 to 97.6), 78.6 ± 9.1 (range,55.0 to 87.0), 74.7 ± 9.7 (range, 55.6 to 91.0), 78.9 ± 18.7 (range,20.0 to 92.5), 3.1 ± 1.2 (range,2.0 to 6.0) points respectively.ConclusionEndoscopic synovectomy can achieve satisfactory PRO in PVNS hip patients. Besides, postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy can achieve higher hip survivability than synovectomy alone in this present study.

Cartilage repair presents a challenge to clinicians and researchers. A more effective procedure that can produce hyaline-like cartilage is needed for articular cartilage repair. Mosaic osteochondral grafts for large osteochondral defects often show poor integration between the grafts and the surrounding normal cartilage, leading to defective cracks filled with fibrous tissue instead of hyaline-like cartilage. In the present study, we aimed to repair the defective cracks with a calcium alginate (CaAlg) hydrogel containing bone morphogenetic protein 4 (BMP4)-enhanced adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs). ADSCs were transduced with BMP4 (B-ADSCs). The expression of BMP4 and type II collagen was confirmed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Swine models of large cartilage defects of the knee were constructed and received one of the four treatments: mosaicplasty only, mosaicplasty with the CaAlg hydrogel, mosaicplasty with the CaAlg hydrogel containing ADSCs, or mosaicplasty with the CaAlg hydrogel containing B-ADSCs injected into the defective cracks. Outcomes were evaluated at 12 and 24 weeks after surgery. The in vitro study showed that the osteogenic and chondrogenic activities of the B-ADSCs were enhanced compared with those of the control. In vivo, in the group that received mosaicplasty-containing B-ADSCs, osteochondral tissue was completely integrated with an intact surface. Additionally, the histological scores of the mosaicplasty-containing B-ADSCs group were significantly higher than those of the other groups. Biomechanical examination confirmed that the neocartilage possessed properties similar to those of normal cartilage. Mosaicplasty and hydrogel containing B-ADSCs promoted the repair of large cartilage defects by regenerating hyaline cartilage and repairing dead spaces between osteochondral grafts and donor-site defects, thus improving the feasibility and success rate of one-stage complete repair surgery for large osteochondral defects. This proposed method provides a novel and effective means for the repair of large articular osteochondral defects.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that primarily affects motor neurons and has no effective treatment. Recently, Iida et al. identified a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs2275294 in the ZNF512B gene that is significantly associated with susceptibility to ALS in the Japanese population. Here, we performed a case-control study examining the possible association of rs2275294 with risk of sporadic ALS (SALS) in a large Chinese cohort. Methods: To assess this association, we performed a replication study in 953 SALS patients and 1039 age- and gender-matched healthy control subjects, who were recruited from Peking University Third Hospital and the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University from January 2004 to December 2013 throughout China. We genotyped the rs2275294 SNP using polymerase chain reaction and direct sequencing. Results: The allele frequency of rs2275294 in ZNF512B was different between Japanese and Chinese. The association in Chinese between ALS patients and controls did not reach statistical significance (P = 0.54; odds ratio = 0.94; 95% confidence interval = 0.76-1.15). Conclusions: The SNP rs2275294 in ZNF512B is not considered to be associated with ALS susceptibility in the Chinese population. Our study highlights genetic heterogeneity in ALS susceptibility in different population. Given our negative results, further replication study involving larger and more homogeneous samples in different ethnicities should be performed in the future.

The reservoir pore structure controls the reservoir quality and resistivity response of hydrocarbon-bearing zones and thus, critically affects logging interpretation. We use petrophysical data in three types of reservoir with different pore structure characteristics to show that the complexity of pore structure had a significant effect on the effective porosity and permeability regardless of geological factors responsible for the formation of pore structure. Moreover,, the distribution and content of conductive fluids in the reservoir varies dramatically owing to pore structure differences, which also induces resistivity variations in reservoir rocks. Hence, the origin of low-resistivity hydrocarbon-bearing zones, except for those with conductive matrix and mud filtrate invasion, is attributed to the complexity of the pore structures. Consequently, reservoir-specific evaluation models, parameters, and criteria should be chosen for resistivity log interpretation to make a reliable evaluation of reservoir quality and fluids.

The pressure solution model of granular aggregates was introduced into a FEM code which was developed for the analysis of thermo-hydro-mechanical (T-H-M) coupling in porous medium. Aimed at creating a hypothetical model of nuclear waste disposal in unsaturated quartz aggregate rock mass with laboratory scale, two 4-year computation cases were designed: 1) The porosity and permeability of rock mass are functions of the pressure solution; 2) The porosity and the permeability are constants. Calculation results show that the magnitude and distribution of stresses in the rock mass of these two calculation cases are roughly the same. And, the porosity and the permeability decrease to 43%–54% and 4.4%–9.1% of their original values after case 1 being accomplished; but the negative pore water pressures in cases 1 and 2 are respectively 1.0–1.25 and 1.0–1.1 times of their initial values under the action of nuclear waste. Case 1 exhibits the obvious effect of pressure solution.

Size effect of tunnel excavation in fractured rock mass was analyzed with UDEC in this paper. For simplicity, two series of orthogonal equidistant joints were conceived in the calculation area. Change the excavation size and keep the constitutive model and its parameters of the rock mass around the tunnel to be constant during the solution. The result show, with the increasing of excavation size, vertical displacement of tunnel roof become larger, and the excavation stability turn weaker. So excavation size has great effect on the stability of fractured tunnel. In addition, another key factor, the joint set dip angle, whose effect to the tunnel stability was unearthed by comparing the results of horizontal and 45°joints. The larger the dip angle the weaker the stability at the same tunnel size.

In article we analyzes the conventional experimental method’s characteristic and expatiates the predominance of numerical simulation experiment. The numerical simulation experiment is applied in teaching text in civil engineering school of Henan Polytechnic University and obtained the very good teaching effect. Numerical simulation experiment can simulate routine experiment and get curve and data which can’t be obtained by normal test. Numerical simulation experiment also can simulate large-scale project which can't be done by conventional experiment.

Although anti-slide pile take a key position in slope-treating measures, the method of designing is far from perfect. The methods used in actual projects are based on the rigid body limit equilibrium methods. There is a tendency to using numerical methods in the progress of pile-designing. The safety factor of landslide is calculated according to shear strength reduction theory in the numerical simulation software. Using the shearing forces on pile and the safety factor can ascertain the position of anti-slide piles, the area and distance of piles. For numerical simulation can well perform the simulation slope moving and the load on piles and can give a more reasonable designing.

The permeability and changing characters following variation of physicochemical environment outside of porous media like rock and soil are very important for all kind of civil engineering. But until to now, most theories of them are based on phenomenological method, and they cannot interpret the seepage traits and the variation properties induced by environment changing essentially. The author based on the predecessor’s work which consider that pore number obey exponential and built a capillary bundle model to depict the microscopic peculiarity of porous media seepage. The effect of water temperature, the upper limit of Darcy Law, flow rate beyond Darcy Law’s upper limit, and the infection of porosity on permeability etc issues were discussed theoretically with this model. At last, an instance was calculated with this model for its permeability coefficient and critical hydraulic gradient, and at the end the calculation results were discussed.

Aims of study Ligusticum wallichi Franchat (chuanxiong) is a very common traditional Chinese herbal medicine in China. Tetramethylpyrazine (TMP) is a major active ingredient extracted from Ligusticum wallichi Franchat. We investigated the protective effect of TMP on interleukin-1β (IL-1β) induced proteoglycan (PG) degradation and apoptosis in rabbit articular cartilage and chondrocytes. Materials and methods Rabbit articular cartilage explants and chondrocytes were cultured with 10 ng/ml IL-1β for 72 h in the absence or presence of various concentrations of TMP (50, 100 or 200 μM). Cartilage and chondroprotective effects of TMP were determined by evaluating (1) the degree of PG degradation by measuring the amount of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) released into the culture media with 1,9-dimethylmethylene blue (DMMB) assay in cartilage explants; (2) gene expression of MMP-3 and TIMP-1 by real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction analysis in cartilage explants; (3) chondrocytes viability with MTT assay; (4) the production of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) with laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM). Anti-apoptotic effects of TMP were determined by measuring (1) apoptosis with flow cytometric analysis; (2) mitochondrial membrane potential assay with LSCM; (3) caspase-3 activity with special assay kit. Results IL-1β treatment increased the level of GAG released into the culture media, and induced the gene expression of MMP-3 and inhibited the gene expression of TIMP-1 in cartilage explants. Moreover, IL-1β treatment decreased the cell viability and mitochondrial membrane potential, and enhanced the level of intracellular ROS, apoptosis rate, and caspase-3 activity in chondrocytes. However, simultaneous treatment with TMP attenuated the IL-1β-induced cartilage and chondrocyte destruction in a dose-dependent manner. TMP showed the decrease of GAG degradation and MMP-3 mRNA production, and the enhancement of TIMP-1 mRNA production in cartilage explants. TMP also increased the cell viability in chondrocytes. Furthermore, TMP inhibited the chondrocytes apoptosis through suppression of ROS production, maintaining of mitochondrial membrane potential and downregulation of caspase-3 activity. Conclusion These results demonstrate that TMP has the cartilage and chondroprotective effect, which suggest that TMP could act as an agent for pharmacological intervention in the progress of OA.

BACKGROUND Different kinds of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) procedures have now been used in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Compared with traditional TKA procedure with a long skin incision, clinical studies showed MIS procedures had some advantages. Quadriceps sparing (QS) procedures are the most minimally invasive MIS procedure until now. This study was aimed to find the insertion types for Chinese patients' vastus medialis and if the QS procedure had some advantages in patients' early recovery. METHODS Between February 2006 and May 2007, 120 consecutive patients underwent unilateral primary TKA under general anesthesia, among whom 14 patients were lost to follow-up, the remaining 106 cases were enrolled in this study. Among the 106 cases there were 85 right knees, 21 left knees (15 men and 91 women, with a mean age of 65.1+/-7.4 years); osteoarthritis in 97 patients (91.5%) and rheumatoid arthritis in 9 patients (8.5%). MIS TKA was performed in 49 cases (MIS TKA group), while MIS-QS TKA in 57 cases (MIS-QS TKA group). During the operation, the type I, II and III insertions of the vastus medialis for all patients were recorded. Each knee was rated post-operatively according to the Hospital of Special Surgery (HSS) scoring system. Clinical follow-up was undertaken at 1 week, 2, 6, 12 and 24 weeks. Operating time and complications were recorded. RESULTS There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups for gender distribution, age, left or right knee incidence, pre-operative diagnosis, incidence of varus or valgus deformity. Of the 106 cases there was 1 (0.9%) case with a type I insertion of the vastus medialis, 4 (3.8%) cases with type II insertions, 101 (95.3%) cases with type III insertions. The HSS scoring was significantly different between the MIS-QS TKA group and MIS TKA group within the first two weeks post operation. From 2 weeks later to 24 weeks, no significant difference was found. The average operating time was (53.3+/-12.4) minutes in the MIS TKA group and (64.1+/-15.1) minutes in the MIS-QS TKA group (P

Chondrogenic potential of human adipose derived stem cells (hASCs) makes them a possible source of seeding cells for cartilage tissue engineering. In this study, chondrogenic differentiation of hASCs induced by transduction with replication-deficient adenovirus carrying human transforming growth factor beta2 (Ad5-hTGF beta2) was demonstrated by RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry staining, biochemical and western blot analysis. To evaluate if the in vitro differentiated hASCs could keep their chondrocytic phenotype and produce neo-cartilage in vivo, predifferentiated hASCs were seeded in different scaffolds and implanted in subcutaneous pockets on the dorsum of nude mice. After 4 and 12 weeks culture in vivo, specimens were harvested and examined by histological and immunohistochemical analysis, cartilage-like tissue formation was only found in alginate gel and PLGA/alginate compound groups, in PLGA group, fibrous tissues and angiogenesis ingrowth were observed. These findings demonstrated that adenovirus-mediated hTGF beta2 gene transfer could induce hASCs into a chondrogenic lineage in vitro, however, this predifferentiation did not guarantee ectopic cartilage formation in vivo unless appropriate three-dimensional scaffolds were used as the cell carry vehicles.

Aim: To examine the chondrogenic potential of human adipose derived stem cells (hASC) induced by human transforming growth factor beta2 (hTGF beta2) in vitro , and to investigate if predifferentiated hASC can produce neocartilage in vivo . Methods: hASC were isolated from subcutaneous adipose tissue and cultured in pellets with the addition of hTGF beta2. Chondrogenic differentiation was assayed by RT-PCR, Western blotting, toluidine blue staining, and immuno-histochemistry staining for collagen type II. For the in vivo study, intact induced cell pellets or the released cells embedded in alginate gel with different concentrations were implanted subcutaneously in nude mice. Specimens were harvested at different time points and carried with histological and immunohistochemistry examination to evaluate the cartilage formation. Results: RT-PCR analysis revealed that hASC produced aggrecan and collagen type II after 7 d of induction and continued throughout the culture period. This was also demonstrated by the Western blot analysis, positive staining of toluidine blue, and immunohistochemistry for collagen type II. After reseeding in the monolayer, the cells isolated from the pellets displayed a polygonal morphology compared with the primary spindle shape. hASC were released from the induced cell pellets when embedded in alginate gel (implanted cell concentration=5 × 106/mL or higher). They produced neocartilage after 12 weeks in vivo culture; however, intact induced cell pellets implanted subcutaneously rapidly lost their differentiated phenotype. Conclusion: Chondrogenesis of hASC in vitro can be induced by combining pellet culture and hTGF beta2 treatment. Predifferentiated hASC embedded in alginate gel have the ability of producing neocartilage in vivo .

Mutations in the TARDBP gene have been identified as a major causative factor in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). However, few reports have analyzed the relationship of genotype-phenotype, especially in Chinese ALS patients. Our study investigated the presence and frequency of TARDBP mutations in Chinese patients with ALS. Additionally, we investigated correlations among clinical features and TARDBP gene mutations in a large ALS family with the p.M337 V mutation and one sporadic ALS (SALS) patient with the p.S393 L mutation. The pedigree with the p.M337 V mutation showed variable clinical features with a long lifespan, particularly cognitive impairment. One patient carrying the p.S393 L mutation experienced ALS with cognitive impairment; the patient also had a family history of frontotemporal dementia (FTD). This is the first report of detailed genetic and clinical characterizations of the TARDBP gene in a Chinese population. This research is also the first to demonstrate that the p.M337 V and the p.S393 L mutations are related to cognitive impairment in ALS patients. The mutation frequency of TARDBP was 5.6% in Chinese, SOD1-negative familial ALS (FALS), which was much higher than that reported in previous studies conducted with Caucasian populations, whereas the TARDBP mutation frequency was lower in the Chinese population with regard to SALS patients. Our results emphasize the importance of the genetic and clinical characterization of TARDBP mutations in ALS, which allows us to understand the genotype-phenotype relationship and relative frequencies in different populations.

Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal progenitor cells are capable of chondrogenesis, making them a possible source of cells for cartilage tissue engineering. Because of this, we studied the effect of human transforming growth factor beta2 (TGF-beta2) on mesenchymal progenitor cell chondrogenesis in monolayer culture using gene transfection technology. A recombinant pcDNA3.1(+)/TGF-beta2 construct containing a full-length TGF-beta2 from a human placental cDNA library was created through gene cloning and DNA recombination. The construct was then lipofected into mesenchymal progenitor cells isolated from human bone marrow. RT-PCR, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry analyses were performed to identify the expression of TGF-beta2 and cartilage-associated genes and proteins. The results showed that TGF-beta2 was expressed throughout the culture period. The transfected progenitor cells expressed and produced collagen type II and aggrecan 48 h after transfection, and the expression and synthesis were upregulated after 4 weeks. In contrast, the tested genes and proteins were not detected in non-transfected cells. This shows that transfection of pcDNA3.1(+)/TGF-beta2 into mesenchymal progenitor cells is able to provide transient and persistent expression of cartilage-specific genes and proteins, and suggests that the differentiation of human marrow-derived mesenchymal progenitor cells into chondrocytes in monolayer culture is feasible and may be induced by TGF-beta2.

A kind of test platform applied to receiver mandrel of Multi-pole array acoustic logging tool (MPAL) was designed. According to the structure of receiver mandrel of MPAL specific testing requirements were put forward. In system design, master-slave system architecture is used; the host and front-computer interconnect via Ethernet. The front-computer is based on ARM7 technique. The major units of the test bench include control interface unit linking PC and embed controller (ARM control circuit), interface circuits linking embedded controller and measurement unit, command decoding logic, power supply, host computer software, lower computer software and etc. The special test circuit for receiver mandrel acts as interface circuits which link embedded controller and measurement unit, implements interface with the ARM board, generates serial commands, and processes 32-channel acoustic signals. The uClinux embedded operating system was used in the design, and network applications that were based on the Socket were developed, which implemented the network connection between server (host computer) and client (front-end computer). Applications show that the test bench not only can be used to debug overall receiver mandrel, but also can be used to determine operational status and performance for each of the receiving transducers. The test bench provides an effective instrument in the production and adjustment of tools.

Sinomenine (SIN), an alkaloid extracted from the stem of the Chinese medicinal plant sinomenium acutum, has been used for treating rheumatoid arthritis. But little is known whether SIN has a protective effect on osteoarthritis (OA). In this study, we investigated the protective effect of SIN on IL-1beta-induced proteoglycan degradation and apoptosis in rabbit articular cartilage and chondrocytes. Treatment with 10 ng/ml IL-1beta increased the level of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) released into the culture media, and up-regulated the activity and mRNA expression of matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP-13) and down-regulated the activity and mRNA expression of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 1 (TIMP-1) in cartilage explants, as confirmed by the methods of GAG quantitation, MMP-13/TIMP-1 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and real-time quantitative RT-PCR. Treatment with 10 ng/ml IL-1beta resulted in marked apoptosis in chondrocytes, as demonstrated by decreased cell viability, occurrence of DNA laddering and increased caspase-3 activity and annexin V binding of phosphatidylserine. However, simultaneous treatment with SIN (10, 50 or 250 microM) inhibited the GAG release and the activity and mRNA expression of MMP-13, and enhanced the activity and mRNA expression of TIMP-1 in a dose-dependent manner in cartilage explants. Furthermore, DNA fragment, caspase-3 activity and apoptosis rate were down-regulated, and cell viability was up-regulated dose-dependently in chondrocytes. Thus, SIN has the protective capacity to antagonize cartilage degradation and chondrocyte apoptosis, which suggest that SIN may act as an agent for pharmacological intervention in the progress of OA.

Chondrogenic potential of human adipose derived stem cells (hASCs) makes them a possible source of seeding cells for cartilage tissue engineering. We aim to examine the chondrogenic differentiation of human transforming growth factor β2 (hTGF β2) transduced hASCs seeded in three-dimensional scaffold in vitro and in vivo. In this study, hASCs were isolated from human subcutaneous adipose tissue and transduced with a replication deficient adenovirus carrying hTGF β2 (Ad5-hTGF β2), and then the transduced cells were seeded and cultured in PLGA/alginate compounds. RT-PCR analysis revealed that Ad5-hTGF β2 transduced hASCs produced aggrecan and collagen type II after 7-day induction in vitro and continued throughout the culture period; this was also demonstrated by the positive staining of Alcian blue and immunohistochemistry for collagen type II. For in vivo study, Ad5-hTGF β2 transduced hASCs seeded in PLGA/alginate compounds were implanted in subcutaneous pockets of nude mice; after 12 weeks, the implants were harvested and examined by haematoxylin and eosin staining, AB-PAS staining, and immunohistochemical analysis, and the results demonstrated the formation of cartilage tissue. As a control, all these were not observed in the constructs with Ad5-EGFP transduced hASCs. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that adenovirus-mediated hTGF β2 gene transfer is able to induce the hASCs into chondrogenic lineage both in vitro and in vivo. Ad5-hTGF β2 transduced hASCs combined with three-dimensional PLGA/alginate compound may be a viable method in treating injuries of cartilage. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 2008

To investigate the neuroprotective effect of tubuloside B, one of the phenylethanoids isolated from the stems of Cistanche salsa, on tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha)-induced apoptosis in SH-SY5Y neuronal cells.Cell viability was analyzed using MTT assay. Apoptotic cells were detected using Hoechst33342 staining, and confirmed by DNA fragmentation and flow cytometric analysis. The activity of caspase-3 was measured with special assay kit. The concentration of free intracellular calcium was determined with the probe Indo-1 by spectrometer. The level of intracellular reactive oxygen species and the potential of mitochondrial membrane were determined by laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM) combined with fluorescence probe H2DCFDA or JC-1 respectively.SH-SY5Y cells treated with TNFalpha 100 microg/L for 36 h showed typical morphological changes of apoptosis. DNA ladder could be observed by agarose gel electrophoresis. The highest percentage of apoptotic cells accumulated to 37.5 %. Following 36 h treatment with TNFalpha, accumulation of intracellular ROS and [Ca2+]i and decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential were observed, and caspase-3 activity increased by about five-fold compared with controls. However, pretreatment with tubuloside B (1, 10, or 100 mg/L) for 2 h attenuated the TNFalpha-mediated apoptosis. The antiapoptotic action of tubuloside B was partially dependent on an anti-oxidative stress effects, maintain of mitochondria function, decrease of concentration of free intracellular calcium and inhibition of caspase-3 activity.Tubuloside B has the neuroprotective capacity to antagonize TNFalpha-induced apoptosis in SH-SY5Y cells and may be useful in treating some neurodegenerative diseases.

To study the effect of hydroxyurea and etoposide on transduction of human marrow mesenchymal and progenitor stem cells by adeno-associated virus (AAV).Isolated human bone marrow mesenchymal stem and progenitor cells (hMSCs) were cultured in DMEM containing 10% FBS or 5% FBS and dexamethasone 1 micromol/L respectively. After being treated with hydroxyurea and etoposide, hMSCs were transduced by AAV-LUC. After two days luciferase activity (relative light unites per second or RLU/s) were tested, which indirectly reflected the relative transduction efficiency of different groups, and virus DNA was isolated by Hirt extraction for Southern hybridization.Transduction luciferase activity and transduction efficiency in cultures treated with hydroxyurea and etoposide were significantly higher than that in control cultures. Dividing cells had about 20-fold higher transduction efficiency compared with control cells. Transduction efficiency in stationary cells was about 50 times higher than that in control cells. Southern analysis showed that hydroxyurea and etoposide enhanced second-strand DNA synthesis by rAAV.Hydroxyurea and etoposide could increase transduction efficiency of hMSCs by AAV vectors, and stationary cells were more sensitive to these drugs than dividing cells.