Global, regional and national burdens of occupational injuries, 1990-2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

OBJECTIVES: Occupational injuries pose a significant challenge to global health and development. This study aimed to quantify the international and regional burdens of occupational injuries from 1990 to 2019, stratified by specific causes. METHODS: We analysed global trends in deaths, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), age-standardised mortality rates (ASMR) and age-standardised DALY rates (ASDR) related to occupational injuries. Specific injuries, including animal contact, drowning, mechanical forces, falls, fire, heat, hot substances, foreign bodies, poisoning and road injuries, were evaluated. Age-stratified and regional analyses were also performed. RESULTS: Globally, the number of deaths, DALYs, ASMR and ASDR related to occupational injuries declined from 1990 to 2019. The middle Socio-demographic Index (SDI) region exhibited the highest burden, whereas the high SDI region showed the least burden. China and India had the highest occupational injury-related death rates in 2019. Males, particularly those aged 25-44 years, were found to be more vulnerable. Road injuries were the leading cause of death in all age groups. Compared with 1990, mortality numbers and rates decreased significantly by 2019, with the highest burdens experienced in East Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia. CONCLUSION: The global decline in occupational injuries is promising; however, certain regions and demographics remain disproportionately affected. Targeted interventions in high-burden areas are crucial to further reduce the impact of occupational injuries.

First Report of Colletotrichum siamense Causing Leaf Spot on Jasminum sambac in China.

Jasmine (Jasminum sambac (L.) Aiton) is cultivated as a commercial floricultural crop in many countries around the world (Gao et al., 2020). From June to August 2020, leaf spots on jasmine were observed on a jasmine plantation in Hengzhou of Guangxi province. Over 40% of the plants in 6 ha fields were infected. This disease was prevalent in jasmine production area of China (Chen et al., 2012; Du et al., 2020). Symptoms began as chlorotic regions (from 5 to 10 mm in diameter) with light brown necrotic centers, which gradually expanded to the entire leaf. Eventually, the disease leaded to defoliation and dieback. The edges of the affected parts from diseased leaves were cut into pieces (3 mm2). Pieces were treated with 75% ethanol for 10 s, soaked in 2% NaClO solution for 1 min, washed three times with sterile water, and then incubated on potato dextrose agar (PDA) plates at 28℃ for 5 days in the dark. Fungal cultures that showed similar morphological characteristics were isolated, and three representative isolates (HL6-1 to HL6-3) were purified following Mo et al. (2018). The cultures on PDA changed from white to dark grey after 7 days and produced conidiomata after 14 days. Conidia were hyaline, one-celled, guttulate, cylindrical, of 12.07 to 18.09 × 4.04 to 8.05 µm, 13.17 to 16.35 × 4.22 to 6.13 µm and 10.11 to 22.17 × 3.65 to 8.1 µm for HL6-1, HL6-2 and HL6-3, respectively. Gray-brown or dark brown appressoria formed from conidia were subglobose or elliptical. Conidial appressoria and mycelial appressoria were 5.53 to 13.96 × 3.58 to 13.95 µm and 4.24 to 14.01 × 2.4 to 10.86 µm. Genomic DNA was extracted from three isolates and the partial internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions, intergenic region of apn2 and MAT1-2-1 (ApMAT), and fragments of actin (ACT), glyceraldehydes-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), chitin synthase (CHS-1), and ß-tubulin (TUB2) genes were amplified, sequenced and submitted to GenBank (ITS, ON115173 to ON115175; ApMat, ON156517 to ON156519; ACT, ON146469 to ON146471; GAPDH, ON156502 to ON156504; CHS-1, ON156507 to ON156509; TUB-2, ON156512 to ON156514). Phylogenetic tree was constructed with MrBayes v. 3.2.6 and MEGA v. 10.1.5 based on the concatenation of multiple sequences. Three isolates were grouped with strain C. siamense ICMP 18578. Results indicated three isolates were identified as Colletotrichum siamense Prihastuti, L. Cai & K.D. Hyde. To confirm the pathogenicity of the three isolates, four sets (five plants per set) of 160 healthy leaves of 2-year-old plants (J. sambac, eight leaves per plant) were slightly scratched with a sterilized toothpick at each of eight locations. Conidial suspension (1×106 conidia/mL) in 0.1% Tween 20 were inoculated onto each wounded spot of three sets as the treatment groups, while wounded leaves treated with sterile water as the control. All plants were covered with plastic bags and cultivated in phytotron (12 h/12 h light/dark, 28°C). After 7 days, irregular chlorotic regions with brown lesions were observed on inoculated leaves while no symptoms on controls. The same fungi were reisolated from inoculated leaves and confirmed by morphological and molecular identification, fulfilling Koch's postulates. Colletotrichum siamense has been associated with leaf anthracnose of J. sambac in Vietnam (Wikee et al., 2011) and J. mesnyi in China (Zhang et al., 2019). To our knowledge, this is the first report of C. siamense causing jasmine anthracnose in China, which provides a reference for the management of this disease.

LncRNA TUG1 exhibits pro-fibrosis activity in hypertrophic scar through TAK1/YAP/TAZ pathway via miR-27b-3p.

Hypertrophic Scar (HS) is a complicated fibrotic disease. In addition, its pathogenesis is still to be further explored. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been proved to be participated in multiple diseases, including HS. However, the role of lncRNA TUG1 in HS remains unclear. The expression level of RNA and protein in cells were detected by q-PCR and western blot, respectively. MTT assay was performed to test the cell proliferation. Cell migration was detected by transwell assay. Cell apoptosis was measured by flow cytometry. Dual luciferase report assay and RNA pull down were used to verify the relationship between TUG1, miR-27b-3p and TAK1.TUG1 and TAK1 were upregulated in HS, while miR-27b-3p was downregulated. Knockdown of TUG1 significantly suppressed the proliferation and migration and induced the apoptosis of HS fibroblasts (HSF). In addition, silencing of TUG1 notably inhibited the extracellular matrix (ECM) biosynthesis in HSF. Overexpression of miR-27b-3p has the same effect on HS as that of TUG1 knockdown. Meanwhile, TUG1 could sponge miR-27b-3p, and TAK1 was the direct target of miR-27b-3p. Furthermore, knockdown of TUG1 significantly suppressed the fibrosis in HS via miR-27b-3p/TAK1/YAP/TAZ axis mediation. LncRNA TUG1 promotes the fibrosis in HS via sponging miR-27b-3p and then activates TAK1/YAP/TAZ pathway, which may serve as a potential target for treatment of HS.

VEGFR2 promotes tumorigenesis and metastasis in a pro-angiogenic-independent way in gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: VEGF/VEGFR2 pathway is the central therapeutic target in anti-angiogenic treatment in multiple cancers. However, little work has been carried out concerning the pro-malignancy functions of VEGFR2 that are independent of its pro-angiogenesis effects in gastric cancer. Here, we demonstrated that VEGFR2 up-regulation in gastric cancer tissues was a prognostic marker for poor disease-free survival and overall survival of gastric cancer patients. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry was used to detect VEGFR2 and VTN expressions in specimens. Kaplan-Meier curves were constructed for survival analysis. Stably knockdown cell lines and overexpression cell lines were constructed by small interfering RNA and plasmids transfection. Real-time PCR and Western blot were used to confirm the expressions of target genes at both RNA and protein levels. Cell proliferation was measured by using Cell Counting Kit-8 and xenograft models. Microarray and bioinformatic analysis were also performed to identify the relationship between Vitronectin (VTN) and VEGFR2. RESULTS: When overexpressed in gastric cancer cells, VEGFR2 increased cellular proliferation and invasion in vitro and tumor formation in xenograft models. By using integrating microarray and bioinformatic analysis, we identifiedVTN as a downstream of VEGFR2 pathway. In gain- and loss-of function analysis in gastric cancer cells, VTN was further verified in consistent with VEGFR2 in expression levels and in regulating cell growth and motility in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, in gastric cancer samples, VTN was as also revealed as a poor prognostic factor. CONCLUSIONS: Our present findings defined a novel activity for VEGFR2 in promoting tumorogenicity, motility and indicating a poor survival in gastric cancer beyond its known pro-angiogenic effects. IMPLICATIONS: Our present findings defined a novel activity for VEGFR2 in promoting tumorogenicity, motility and indicating a poor survival in gastric cancer beyond its known pro-angiogenic effects, which may provide a new and valuable target for design of therapies for intervention and a new cognitive perspective for the anti-angiogenesis therapies.

The microRNA miR-17-3p inhibits mouse cardiac fibroblast senescence by targeting Par4.

The microRNA miR-17-92 cluster plays a fundamental role in heart development. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a member of this cluster, miR-17, on cardiac senescence. We examined the roles of miR-17 in senescence and demonstrated that miR-17-3p attenuates cardiac aging in the myocardium by targeting Par4 (also known as PAWR). This upregulates the downstream proteins CEBPB, FAK, N-cadherin, vimentin, Oct4 and Sca-1 (also known as stem cell antigen-1), and downregulates E-cadherin. Par4 has been reported as a tumor suppressor gene that induces apoptosis in cancer cells, but not in normal cells. Repression of Par4 by miR-17-3p enhances the transcription of CEBPB and FAK, which promotes mouse cardiac fibroblast (MCF) epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and self-renewal, resulting in cellular senescence and apoptosis resistance. We conclude that Par4 can bind to the CEBPB promoter and inhibit its transcription. Decreased Par4 expression increases the amount of CEBPB, which binds to the FAK promoter and enhances FAK transcription. Par4, CEBPB and FAK form a senescence signaling pathway, playing roles in modulating cell survival, growth, apoptosis, EMT and self-renewal. Through this novel senescence signaling axis, miR-17-3p represses Par4 expression, acting pleiotropically as a negative modulator of cardiac aging and cardiac fibroblast cellular senescence.

Global, regional, and national burden and trends analysis of malignant neoplasm of bone and articular cartilage from 1990 to 2021: A systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021.

BACKGROUND: Malignant neoplasm of bone and articular cartilage (MNBAC) is one of the causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. To date, there is a lack of detailed studies on the disease burden of MNBAC. METHODS: Data on the incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) of MNBAC from 1990 to 2021 were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease study. We estimated the trends in the burden of MNBAC by calculating the estimated annual percentage change (EAPC) in age-standardized rates by region, country, and social development index. RESULTS: Globally, the cases of incidence and deaths of MNBAC showed a significant upward trend. In 2021, the global incidence cases of MNBAC were 91,375.1 (73,780.4-102,469.7), and the number of deaths was 66,114.3 (53,305.4-74,466.9). The age-standardized incidence, mortality, and DALYs rates were all on the rise, with EAPCs of 0.59 (0.51 to 0.68), 0.11 (0.02 to 0.21), and 0.08 (0 to 0.17), respectively. In 2021, China had the highest number of incidence cases and deaths. Two peaks in incidence cases and deaths were observed in the 15-19 and 65-69 age groups, with incidence rates and death rates generally increasing with age, and higher in males than females. The region with the highest incidence cases, deaths, and age-standardized incidence rate was East Asia, while Eastern Sub-Saharan Africa had the highest age-standardized mortality, and DALYs rates. CONCLUSION: From 1990 to 2021, the global burden of MNBAC has continued to increase, particularly in East Asia, which faces the highest number of incidence cases and deaths, while Eastern Sub-Saharan Africa faces the highest ASMR and ASDR. To mitigate this burden, different regions should develop cancer control actions based on their respective epidemiological characteristics, with a focus on the elderly and adolescents, and control of risk factors.

Global burden of fracture of sternum and/or ribs: An analysis of 204 countries and territories between 1990 and 2019.

BACKGROUND: Sternum and rib fractures represent a significant global health concern, contributing to morbidity and disability on a worldwide scale. However, there is a notable lack of recent epidemiological data detailing the global and regional burden of these fractures. METHODS: We undertook a systematic analysis of the prevalence of sternum and rib fractures at the global, regional, and national levels in 2019, while also examining time trends spanning from 1990 to 2019. To achieve this, we extracted data from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019, enabling us to determine incidence, prevalence, years lived with disability (YLDs), and their corresponding age-standardized rates. RESULTS: In 2019, there were 4.1 million incident cases and 2 million prevalent cases of sternum and rib fractures worldwide. These figures represent increases of 43.7 % and 64.1 %, respectively, since 1990. YLDs also exhibited a notable increase, rising by 62.4 % to reach 190,834 cases. However, since 1990, their equivalent age-standardized rates, which ranged from 5.5 % to 7.1 %, have decreased. Notably, China had the greatest incidence (1.2 million cases), prevalence (573,000 cases), and number of YLDs (55,400 cases), all in 2019. The greatest age-standardized incidence rate (143/100,000) and age-standardized prevalence rate (65/100,000) were both recorded in Greenland in the same year. It's critical to emphasize that men experience these fractures at considerably higher rates than women. Around 70 % of incident instances included unintentional injuries worldwide and across all regions. High-socioeconomic regions had the highest rates of incidence, prevalence, and YLDs, albeit these rates have declined by 6.4 % to 7.1 % since 1990, whereas low-middle and low-income areas have had rises. CONCLUSIONS: This study, which spans the years 1990 to 2019, provides a thorough and current assessment of the global burden attributed to sternum and rib fractures. In terms of nations, regions, sociodemographic index (SDI) levels, age groups, genders, and reasons, it reveals significant variances and trends. The knowledge obtained from this study can be extremely useful in formulating health policy, allocating resources, and developing methods to prevent these injuries.

Developing a prognostic signature: identifying differentially expressed genes in cardia and non-cardia gastric cancer for immunity and therapeutic sensitivity analysis.

Background: Gastric cancer (GC) can be anatomically categorized into two subtypes; that is, cardia gastric cancer (CGC) and non-cardia gastric cancer (NCGC), which have distinct molecular mechanisms and prognoses. At present, the majority of pharmacological interventions for GC adhere to non-specific treatment regimens. The stratification of GC based on molecular disparities between CGC and NCGC has important clinical guidance value and could help in the development of precision therapies tailored to individual patient needs. Nevertheless, research in this specialized field remains notably limited. This study aims to investigate the molecular differences between CGC and NCGC and to leverage these differences to develop a prognostic risk scoring model (PRSM). Methods: We used patient data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and performed a differentially expressed gene (DEG) analysis between CGC and NCGC. A PRSM was developed from the prognosis-associated DEGs identified through Cox regression analyses and was well validated using Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) data. Results: A total of 339 DEGs were identified between CGC and NCGC, and four prognosis-associated genes were used to construct the PRSM. Using the risk coefficients and expression levels of signature genes, a median risk score (RS) was calculated to classify patients into high- and low-risk groups. The high-risk group had a significantly worse prognosis than the low-risk group. An in-depth analysis revealed that TP53 mutations were more prevalent in the high-risk group, and MUC16 mutations were more prevalent in the low-risk group. A gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) and the CIBERSORT algorithm were used to assess the differences in the significantly enriched pathways and immune microenvironment in the high- and low-risk groups, respectively. The inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of the chemotherapy drugs for GC also varied between the two groups. Conclusions: This study elucidated the unique molecular characteristics of GC subtypes based on the anatomical site and provided a preliminary contribution for the development of precision medicine for GC.

[Prevalence of thyroid nodules and influencing factors among employees of a company in Qingdao].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of thyroid nodules and influencing factors among employees of a company in Qingdao. METHODS: Through questionnaires, physical examination, thyroid ultrasonography and urinary iodine test, personal health information and examinations of thyroid nodules of 9612 serving and retired employees in a company in 2010 who had lived in Qingdao for more than 5 years were collected to investigate the prevalence of thyroid nodules and its influencing factors. RESULTS: The prevalence of thyroid nodules was 36.56% (3514/9612). The prevalence rates of single nodules and multiple nodules were 18.39% (1768/9612) and 18.16% (1746/9612) respectively. With increasing urinary iodine level, the prevalence of multiple thyroid nodules decreased from 25.51% (366/14350)(urinary iodine < or = 100 microg/L) to 12.99% (214/1648) (urinary iodine > 300 microg/L) showing a clear downward trend (chi2 = 67.11, P < 0.01). The prevalence rates of thyroid nodules among males and females were 31.28% (2283/7299) and 53.22% (1231/2313) (P < 0.01) respectively. With increasing age, the prevalence of thyroid nodules gradually increased from 7.95% (67/843) (19 - 29 years old) to 58.81% (267/454) ( >70 years old) among males and increased from 23.74% (33/139) (19 - 29 years old) to 80.38% (127/158) ( >70 years old) among females. The prevalence of thyroid nodules among males and females showed an increasing trend with age (male: chi2 = 434.12, P < 0.01; female: chi2 = 40.74, P < 0.01). The results of logistic regression showed that compared with males, females were more susceptible to thyroid nodules (OR = 2.809, 95% CI: 2.444 - 3.228). Smoking (OR = 1.394, 95% CI: 1.249 - 1.556), hypertension (OR = 1.155, 95% CI: 1.040 - 1.282), diabetes ( OR = 1.228, 95% CI: 1.039 - 1.452) and overweight (OR = 1.199, 95% CI: 1.078 - 1.333) might be risk factors for thyroid nodules after adjusting for age and gender. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of thyroid nodules was high among the employees. In order to reduce the thyroid nodules, smoking cessation and weight control should be promoted. Blood pressure and glucose level should be actively controlled for patients with hypertension and (or) diabetes.

Study on the mechanism of warming yang and reducing turbidity decoction in the treatment of diabetic kidney disease based on network pharmacology.

This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of warming yang and reducing turbidity decoction in the treatment of diabetic kidney disease (DKD) by network pharmacology. The active components and corresponding targets of warming yang and reducing turbidity decoction were screened through the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology database, DKD-related targets were obtained from Genecard and Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man databases, and drug-disease common targets were screened through Venny online website. Then we used STRING and Cytoscape software to analyze and perform protein-protein interaction network, and used CytoNCA plug-in to perform topological analysis to screen out the core target. We used RStudio to performed gene ontology (GO) functional enrichment analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis. One hundred one active components in warming yang and reducing turbidity decoction participated in the regulation of the body's response to foreign bodies, lipopolysaccharides, metal ions, ketone bodies, hypoxia and oxidative stress by regulating 186 targets related to DKD, and played a role in the treatment of DKD by interfering with pathways such as interfered with lipids and atherosclerosis, PI3K-Akt, fluid shear stress and atherosclerosis, AGE-RAGE and cell senescence. It was implied that warming yang and reducing turbidity decoction had the features of multi components, multi targets and multi pathways in the treatment of DKD, which might create methods and directions for further verification of the molecular mechanism of warming yang and reducing turbidity decoction.

Transcriptomic Insight into Viviparous Growth in Water Lily.

Water lily is an important ornamental flower plant which is capable of viviparous plantlet development. But no study has been reported on the molecular basis of viviparity in water lily. Hence, we performed a comparative transcriptome study between viviparous water lily Nymphaea micrantha and a nonviviparous species Nymphaea colorata at four developmental stages. The higher expression of highly conserved AUX/IAA, ARF, GH3, and SAUR gene families in N. micrantha compared to N. colorata is predicted to have a major impact on the development and evolution of viviparity in water lily. Likewise, differential regulation of hormone signaling, brassinosteroid, photosynthesis, and energy-related pathways in the two species provide clues of their involvement in viviparity phenomenon. This study revealed the complex mechanism of viviparity trait in water lily. The transcriptomic signatures identified are important basis for future breeding and research of viviparity in water lily and other plant species.

Efficacy of relative dose intensity of nab-paclitaxel for the short-term outcomes, survival, and quality of life in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer: a retrospective study.

Background: To optimize treatment, choosing the appropriate relative dose intensity (RDI) of nab-paclitaxel is an important way to improve patient tolerance, therapeutic efficacy, and survival. However, few studies have focused on the efficacy of the RDI of nab-paclitaxel in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer, and whether the RDI of nab-paclitaxel could be employed as an index for treatment remains unknown. To explore the relationship between RDI of nab-paclitaxel and chemotherapy efficacy, survival, quality of life (QoL), and adverse effects in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. Methods: In this retrospective study, a total of 32 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer, ECOG score of 0 to 2 were included from January 2017 to March 2020. The patients were treated with nab-paclitaxel combined with gemcitabine as a first-line treatment and divided into high and low RDI groups. Chemotherapy efficacy, survival, QoL, and adverse effects between two groups were compared. Results: The disease control rate (DCR) was 20.0% in the low RDI group, compared with 81.8% in the high RDI group (P=0.002). A good correlation between nab-paclitaxel RDI and short-term efficacy was observed in all 32 patients (r=0.728, P<0.01). Furthermore, the high RDI group had significantly better median overall survival (mOS: 12 vs. 8 months, P=0.034) and median progression-free survival (mPFS: 5.5 vs. 3 months, P=0.052) compared to that of low RDI patients. Univariate regression analysis showed that longer overall survival was associated with lower ECOG score [hazard ratio (HR): 10.88; 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.54-46.5, P=0.001], tumors located in the body or tail of pancreases (HR: 3.82; 95% CI: 1.4-10.3, P=0.0081), and higher RDI (HR: 0.21; 95% CI: 0.071-0.6, P=0.004). The high RDI group had a significantly better physical function and emotional function improvement compared to the low RDI group (P<0.05). Moreover, high RDI did not increasing the severity and frequency of the adverse events. Conclusions: It is recommended to maintain a sufficient RDI of nab-paclitaxel to ensure that the balance between lerability, therapeutic efficacy, and survival benefits is satisfied in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer.

Pattern of distant metastases and predictive nomograms in colorectal mucinous adenocarcinoma: a SEER analysis.

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the metastatic patterns and explored the prognostic value of distant metastasis pattern in patients with metastatic colorectal mucinous adenocarcinoma (MC) using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. METHODS: Between 2010 and 2015, newly diagnosed colorectal MC patients were selected using the SEER database. Patient prognosis was compared based on the clinicopathological parameters, treatment method, and the site and number of metastatic organs. Cox analyses were used to identify factors associated with overall survival (OS). A nomogram was built to predict the patient's survival. Harrell's concordance index (c-index) and calibration curves were used to analyze the discriminative ability of the prognostic factors. RESULTS: Of 3,088 patients diagnosed with colorectal MC, the liver was the only metastatic organ in 78.4% (997/1,271) of all liver metastasis cases, the lung was the only metastatic organ in 41.0% (164/400) of all lung metastasis cases, bone was the only metastatic organ in 26.6% (29/109) of all bone metastasis cases, and the brain was the only metastatic organ in 23.5% (4/17) of all brain metastasis cases. Compared with the untreated cases, those treated with chemotherapy, surgery, and radiotherapy had better OS (P<0.001). There were marked OS differences (P<0.001) between patients with and without liver and bone metastases. Patients with bone metastasis had the best survival, while those with brain metastasis had the worst survival (P<0.001). Patients with one metastatic site had better prognosis compared to those with two or three (P<0.001). Patients with liver metastasis had the best survival, while those with bone and brain metastasis had the worst survival (P<0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that age <65 years, non-black race, grade I, N0 stage, chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, liver metastasis, and bone metastasis were independent prognostic factors. A nomogram was constructed to predict survival probability. The c-index value was up to 0.745. The calibration plot showed that the nomogram was clinically useful. CONCLUSIONS: Metastatic MC (mMC) patients had a characteristic distant metastasis pattern. This study constructed a new and sufficiently accurate prognostic model of mMC based on population-based data. These findings can be utilized to predict prognosis and guide mMC patient management.

Transcriptomic Analysis of the Anthocyanin Biosynthetic Pathway Reveals the Molecular Mechanism Associated with Purple Color Formation in Dendrobium Nestor.

Dendrobium nestor is a famous orchid species in the Orchidaceae family. There is a diversity of flower colorations in the Dendrobium species, but knowledge of the genes involved and molecular mechanism underlying the flower color formation in D. nestor is less studied. Therefore, we performed transcriptome profiling using Illumina sequencing to facilitate thorough studies of the purple color formation in petal samples collected at three developmental stages, namely-flower bud stage (F), half bloom stage (H), and full bloom stage (B) in D. nestor. In addition, we identified key genes and their biosynthetic pathways as well as the transcription factors (TFs) associated with purple flower color formation. We found that the phenylpropanoid-flavonoid-anthocyanin biosynthesis genes such as phenylalanine ammonia lyase, chalcone synthase, anthocyanidin synthase, and UDP-flavonoid glucosyl transferase, were largely up-regulated in the H and B samples as compared to the F samples. This upregulation might partly account for the accumulation of anthocyanins, which confer the purple coloration in these samples. We further identified several differentially expressed genes related to phytohormones such as auxin, ethylene, cytokinins, salicylic acid, brassinosteroid, and abscisic acid, as well as TFs such as MYB and bHLH, which might play important roles in color formation in D. nestor flower. Sturdy upregulation of anthocyanin biosynthetic structural genes might be a potential regulatory mechanism in purple color formation in D. nestor flowers. Several TFs were predicted to regulate the anthocyanin genes through a K-mean clustering analysis. Our study provides valuable resource for future studies to expand our understanding of flower color development mechanisms in D. nestor.

Intrathecal morphine verse femoral nerve block for pain control in total knee arthroplasty: A meta-analysis from randomized control trials.

OBJECTIVE: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is usually associated with postoperative pain. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of femoral nerve block compared with intrathecal morphine for pain management after TKA. METHODS: Potentially relevant literature was identified from electronic databases including Medline, PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect and the Cochrane Library. Gray academic studies were also identified from the reference of included literature. There was no language restriction. Pooling of data was carried out using Stata 11.0. RESULTS: Four randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving 185 patients met the inclusion criteria. The meta-analysis indicated that there were no significant differences in terms of Visual Analog Scale (VAS) score at 6 h (standard mean difference (SMD) = -0.09, 95% CI: -1.62 to 1.43, P = 0.903), 12 h (weighted mean difference (WMD) = 1.84, 95% CI: -8.01 to 11.69, P = 0.714) or 24 h (WMD = 1.56, 95% CI: -14.31 to 17.42, P = 0.8474). No significant difference were found regarding morphine consumption at 6 h (WMD = -0.84, 95% CI: -2.52 to 0.85, P = 0.332), 12 h (WMD = 0.031, 95% CI: -3.304 to 0.3366, P = 0.985), 24 h (WMD = 0.21, 95% CI: -7.32 to 7.75, P = 0.956) or incidence of postoperative vomit and nausea (risk difference (RD) = -0.01, 95% CI: -0.15 to 0.12, P = 0.847). There was a significant difference between the groups in terms of the risk of itching postoperatively (RD = 0.41, 95% CI: 0.29 to 0.54, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Femoral nerve block provides equal postoperative pain control compared with intrathecal morphine following total knee arthroplasty, although there were fewer side effects in the FNB groups. In contrast, FNB was performed with an additional procedure and required a special apparatus. Both methods are effective at pain control following TKA.

[Facial nerve decompression through transmastoid, extralabyrinthine, subtemporal approach for management of facial paralysis in temporal bone fracture].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical outcomes of facial nerve decompression via transmastoid, extra labyrinthine,subtemporal approach for management of facial paralysis in temporal bone fracture. METHOD: Twenty-six cases of traumatic facial paralysis (House-Brackmann grade III-V) hospitalized between January 2006 and April 2008 received facial nerve decompression surgery. There were 4 patients diagnosed as House-Braekmann Grade III, 12 as Grade V in and 10 as Grade VI. The preoperative mean air conduction threshold was 52 dB in 16 cases with longitudinal temporal bone fracture and serious sensorineural heating loss in 10 cases with transverse temporal bone fracture. The fracture lines were detected in 13 cases by temporal bone axial CT scans and ossicular disruption could be determined in 9 cases by virtual endoscopy. The geniculate ganglion,the tympanic and mastoid segment of the facial nerve displayed an irregular morphology in curved planar reformation images of the facial nerve canal. RESULT: All cases had primary healing and no complication occurred. At following-up times ranging from 0.5 to 3 years (average 1.2 years), facial nerve function recovered to House-Brackmann Grades I in 15, II in 6, III in 5. Overall air conduction pure tone averages improved 33 dB. CONCLUSION: Facial nerve decompression with rebuilding of ossicular chain through transmastoid, extralabyrinthine, subtemporal approach is a good approach for the treatment of facial paralysis in temporal bone fracture.

[Preliminary establishment of transplanted human chronic myeloid leukemia model in nude mice].

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a malignant clonal disease derived from hematopoietic stem cells. CML stem cells were thought to be the root which could lead disease development and ultimately rapid change. However, a stable animal model for studying the characteristics of CML stem cells is currently lacking. This study was aimed to establish a transplanted human CML nude-mice model to further explore the biological behavior of CML stem cells in vivo, and to enrich CML stem cells in nude mice by series transplantation. The 4 - 6 weeks old BALB/c nude mice pretreated by splenectomy (S), cytoxan intraperitoneal injection (C) and sublethal irradiation (I) were transplanted intravenously with (5 - 7) × 10(7) of bone marrow mononuclear cells from CML patients in chronic phase. Alternatively, 4 - 6 weeks old BALB/c nude mice pretreated by lethal irradiation were transplanted intravenously with 5 × 10(6) homologous bone marrow cells of BALB/c nude mice together with (5 - 7) × 10(7) of bone marrow mononuclear cells from CML patients in chronic phase simultaneously. The leukemic cells engrafted and infiltrated in organs and bone marrow of the mice were tracked by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), plastic-embedded biopsy and flow cytometry. The results of these two methods were compared. The results showed that human CML cells engrafted and infiltrating into the bone marrow of two nude mice pretreated with SCI could be detected. In spite of the low successful rate, results suggested the feasibility of this method by using BALB/c nude mice as a human CML animal model. In contrast, in nude mice pretreated by the lethal dose irradiation, CML cells in the bone marrow could not be found. It is concluded that human bone marrow CML cells can results in leukemia in nude mice pretreated by SCI. Thus this study provides a new strategy for establishment of CML animal models which deserves further elaboration.