Effects of combined intervention of physical exercise and cognitive training on cognitive function in stroke survivors with vascular cognitive impairment: a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE:: This study evaluated the possible effect of the combined intervention of physical exercise and cognitive training on cognitive function in stroke survivals with vascular cognitive impairment. DESIGN:: A single-blind (investigator-blinded but not subject-blinded) randomized controlled trial. SETTING:: Medical Rehabilitation Center of Shanghai General Hospital, China. SUBJECTS:: A total of 225 patients (mean age 64.59 years, SD = 4.27) who exhibited vascular cognitive impairment were included in this study. INTERVENTIONS:: Patients were randomly allocated into one of the four groups: (1) physical exercise ( n = 56; 50-minute session), (2) cognitive training ( n = 57; 60-minute session), (3) combined intervention of physical exercise and cognitive training ( n = 55; 50-minute session + 60-minute session), or (4) control groups ( n = 57; 45-minute session). All participants received training for 36 sessions, three days per week, for 12 weeks. PRIMARY MEASURES:: Measures were recorded at baseline, after the intervention and at a six-month follow-up. Primary measurements included the Trail Making Part B, Stroop, forward digit span, and mental rotation tests. RESULTS:: A total of 179 participants (79.56% response rate) completed the study. Cognitive performances on all four tasks in the combined training group improved significantly after the intervention ( P < 0.01). Changes in cognitive performance were greater in the combined intervention group than those in the physical exercise group (e.g. forward digit span, 13.61% vs. 2.18%, P = 0.003), the cognitive training group (e.g. mental rotation, 17.36% vs. 0.87%, P = 0.002), and the control group (e.g. Stroop, -4.11% vs. -0.72%, P = 0.026). CONCLUSION:: The combined intervention produced greater benefits on cognitive function compared to either training alone in stroke survivors with vascular cognitive impairment.

Effect of Aidi injection plus chemotherapy on gastric carcinoma: a Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a Meta-analysis of studies on the effect of Aidi injection combined with chemotherapy versus chemotherapy alone in the treatment of gastric cancer (GC). METHODS: Nine electronic databases and six gray literature databases were comprehensively searched until April 20, 2013. Two reviewers independently selected and assessed included trials according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The risk of bias tool from the Cochrane Handbook version 5.1.0 was used to assess trial quality. All calculations were performed using Review Manager 5.0. RESULTS: Thirty-two studies including 1927 participants met the inclusion criteria, most of which were low quality. Compared with chemotherapy alone, Aidi injection plus the same chemotherapy significantly improved the effective rate [OR = 1.52, 95% CI (1.24, 1.86), P < 0.0001], clinical beneficial rate [OR = 1.77, 95% CI (1.33, 2.36), P < 0.0001], and quality of life [OR = 3.02, 95% CI (2.39, 3.82), P < 0.000 01]. There was a significant improvement in nausea and vomiting incidence [OR = 0.34, 95% CI (0.24, 0.47), P < 0.000 01], diarrhea [OR = 0.47, 95% CI (0.33, 0.69), P < 0.000 01], leukopenia (III-IV) [OR = 0.34, 95% CI (0.23, 0.51), P = 0.05], hemoglobin decrease (III-IV) [OR = 0.42, 95% CI (0.18-1.00), P = 0.05], thrombocytopenia (III-IV) [OR = 0.46, 95% CI (0.22, 0.96), P = 0.04], and damage to liver function [OR = 0.36, 95% CI (0.24, 0.54), P < 0.00001]. CONCLUSION: Aidi injection combined with chemotherapy significantly improved the clinical effect of chemotherapy, reducing the incidence of adverse events. Use of the CONSORT statement for randomized controlled trials is recommended for stricter reporting.

Value of Golgi protein 73 monoclonal antibody in diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the sensitivity and specificity of Golgi protein 73 (GP73) monoclonal antibody in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: Self-prepared GP73 monoclonal antibody was used as the primary antibody for detecting the serum GP73 levels in healthy controls(n=31)and HCC patients (n=59). The baseline level of the healthy controls was determined by semiquantitative analysis. The results were compared with those from GP73 polyclonal antibody and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP). RESULTS: The GP73 level of healthy controls was 1.2 (0.9-1.7) relative unit (RU), which was significantly lower than that of HCC patients [5.7 (2.5-7.8) RU] (P<0.001) with monoclonal antibody. Using polyclonal antibody, the GP73 level of HCC patients was also significantly higher than healthy controls [7.8 (3.0-12.4) RU vs. 1.1 (1.0-2.0) RU, P<0.001]. The sensitivity and specificity of GP73 monoclonal antibody in diagnosis of HCC were 84.7% and 93.5%; on the contrary, those of GP73 polyclonal antibody were 78.0% and 93.5%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of AFP (67.8% and 74.2%, respectively) in the HCC patients were markedly lower than those of GP73. Logistic regression analysis showed that the odds ratio (OR) of GP73 monoclonal antibody was 7.18 and that of GP73 polyclonal antibody was 1.51. CONCLUSIONS: Our self-prepared monoclonal antibody can effectively detect GP73 serum level in HCC patients, and has higher sensitivity and specificity than AFP. It may be superior to the currently used GP73 polyclonal antibody. The results lay the foundation for the further development of ELISA methods by using this monoclonal antibody.

Multifunctional Membrane for Thermal Management Applications.

Space cooling and heating consume a large proportion of global energy, so passive thermal management materials (i.e., without energy input), especially dual-mode materials including cooling and heating bifunctions, are becoming more and more attractive in many areas. Herein, a function-switchable Janus membrane between cooling and heating consisting of a multilayer structure of polyvinylidene fluoride nanofiber/zinc oxide nanosheet/carbon nanotube/Ag nanowire/polydimethylsiloxane was fabricated for comprehensive thermal management applications. In the cooling mode, the high thermal radiation emissivity (89.2%) and sunlight reflectivity (90.6%) of the Janus membrane resulted in huge temperature drops of 8.2-12.6, 9.0-14.0, and 10.9 °C for a substrate, a closed space, and a semiclosed space, respectively. When switching to the heating mode, temperature rises of 3.8-4.6, 4.0-4.8, and 12.5 °C for the substrate, closed space, and semiclosed space, respectively, were achieved owing to the high thermal radiation reflectivity (89.5%) and sunlight absorptivity (74.1%) of the membrane. Besides, the Janus membrane has outstanding comprehensive properties of the membrane, including infrared camouflaging/disguising, electromagnetic shielding (53.1 dB), solvent tolerance, waterproof properties, and high flexibility, which endow the membrane with promising application prospects.

[Effect and mechanism of arsenic trioxide on chemosensitivity of human lung adenocarcinoma cells].

OBJECTIVE: To study the apoptosis and chemosensitive effect of As(2)O(3) on human lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549. METHODS: MTT colorimetric assay, immunohistochemical method, flow cytometry and RT-PCR were applied to observe the different effects induced by As(2)O(3) with different concentrations on A549 cells. RESULTS: 1, 2 micro mol/L As(2)O(3) increased Fas expression and inhibited the expression of bcl-2, MRP and LRP; G(1) arrest was observed and the cells were more sensitive to cisplatin. A549 cells in the presence of 5 micro mol/L As(2)O(3) showed growth inhibition and up-regulation of bcl-2, MRP and LRP expressions; but their chemosensitivity to cisplatin did not change. CONCLUSION: As(2)O(3) in low concentrations can increase the chemosensitivity of A549 cells by regulating the expression of apoptosis genes, anti-apoptosis genes and drug-resistant genes and affecting the cell cycle progress.