Time-series transcriptome reveals inflammatory signature in monocytes and neutrophils following acute heat exposure in mine rescuers.

Occupational exposure to extreme high temperatures and the increasing global temperatures necessitates a deeper understanding of the impact of heat exposure on human health. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the response of monocytes and neutrophils to heat exposure in occupational population remain to be fully elucidated. This study used longitudinal transcriptome to assess the impact of acute heat exposure (50°C for 30 min) in 10 subjects from a mine rescue team before acute heat exposure (baseline) and at 5 min, 30 min, 1 h, and 24 h after acute heat exposure (recovery). The time-series analysis revealed a coordinated molecular choreography of changes involving inflammation, coagulation, extracellular matrix, and energy metabolism. Importantly, the study characterized the inflammatory signature associated with heat exposure in monocytes and neutrophils, as evidenced by the rapid activation of the inflammation-related transcriptome following heat exposure. Additionally, we pinpointed potential regulators, such as NR4A1, FOSL1, EGR3, and ATF3. In summary, the study suggested that the initial response to heat stress in monocytes and neutrophils from mine rescue team member was primarily characterized by a pro-inflammatory stress response, which could potentially lead to the development of inflammation and ultimately result in a systemic inflammatory response in heatstroke.

[The Research Advancement and Conception of the Deep-underground Medicine].

The 21th century is the century of exploring and utilizing the underground space. In the future, more and more people will spend more and more time living or/and working in the underground space. However,we know little about the effect on the health of human caused by the underground environment. Herein,we systematically put forward the strategic conception of the deep-underground medicine,in order to reveal relative effects and mechanism of the potential factors in the deep underground space on human's physiological and psychological healthy,and to work out the corresponding countermeasures. The original deep-underground medicine includes the following items. ①To model different depth of underground environment according to various parameters (such as temperature,radiation,air pressure, rock,microorganism), and to explore their quantitative character and effects on human health and mechanism. ② To study the psychological change, maintenance of homeostasis and biothythm of organism in the deep underground space. ③ To learn the association between psychological healthy of human and the depth, structure, physical environment and working time of underground space. ④ To investigate the effect of different terrane and lithology on healthy of human and to deliberate their contribution on organism growth. ⑤ To research the character and their mechanism of growth,metabolism,exchange of energy,response of growth, aging and adaptation of cells living in deep underground space. ⑥ To explore the physiological feature,growth of microbiome and it's interaction with host in the deep underground space. ⑦ To develop deep-underground simulation space, the biologically medical technology and equipments. As a research basis,a deep-underground medical lab under a rock thickness of about 1 470 m has been built,which aims to operate the research of the effect on living organism caused by different depth of underground environment.

Transformation of the education of health professionals in China: progress and challenges.

In this Review we examine the progress and challenges of China's ambitious 1998 reform of the world's largest health professional educational system. The reforms merged training institutions into universities and greatly expanded enrolment of health professionals. Positive achievements include an increase in the number of graduates to address human resources shortages, acceleration of production of diploma nurses to correct skill-mix imbalance, and priority for general practitioner training, especially of rural primary care workers. These developments have been accompanied by concerns: rapid expansion of the number of students without commensurate faculty strengthening, worries about dilution effect on quality, outdated curricular content, and ethical professionalism challenged by narrow technical training and growing admissions of students who did not express medicine as their first career choice. In this Review we underscore the importance of rebalance of the roles of health sciences institutions and government in educational policies and implementation. The imperative for reform is shown by a looming crisis of violence against health workers hypothesised as a result of many factors including deficient educational preparation and harmful profit-driven clinical practices.

Current perspectives on medical education in China.

CONTEXT: China has a long tradition of education and medicine. However, limited economic conditions and a huge population mean that further development of medical education in China must be tailored to meet the country's needs. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this paper is to describe current medical education practice in China with reference to the general and historical purposes of education in China and how they have affected and continue to affect student learning. Reference is also made to both Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine. METHODS: It is argued that traditional educational practices in China have encouraged rote learning and that creativity is not cultivated. This affects the way many Chinese students learn medicine. Since 1949, the Chinese medical education system has developed according to its own needs. The current system for training medical students is complex, with medical school curricula lasting 3-8 years. However, medical education reform is taking place and new teaching methods are being introduced in some schools. DISCUSSION: Medical education is important to China's large population. The undergraduate medical education system is being streamlined and national standards are being established. Innovations in medical education have recently been encouraged and supported, including the adoption of problem-based learning. It is important that the momentum is kept up so that the health care of a fifth of the world's population is assured.

Attitudes of Chinese medical students toward the global minimum essential requirements established by the Institute for International Medical Education.

BACKGROUND: The Institute for International Medical Education has published "Global Minimum Essential Requirements (GMERs) in Medical Education." PURPOSE: This study examined attitudes of a sample of Chinese medical students toward the GMERs. METHODS: Matriculating and graduating West China School of Medicine Sichuan University medical students were administered parallel surveys during the 2001 to 2002 academic years. RESULTS: Both cohorts produced similar response profiles. The majority in both groups rated the 7 GMER domains as either important or very important for their medical education. Matriculating students rated professional values, attitudes, behavior, and ethics as most important, whereas graduating students valued clinical skills highest. Population health and health systems received the lowest importance ratings from both groups. Please note that this study was conducted before the SARS outbreak. As a result of the SARS experience, attitudes toward population health and health systems might have changed. CONCLUSION: Although medical students ascribe importance to the GMERs, efforts are needed to increase the perceived importance of the population health and health systems domain.

[The effects of selective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors on the growth of gastric adenocarcinoma].

OBJECTIVE: This study was aimed to compare the effects of three kinds of selective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors (meloxicam, celecoxib, rofecoxib on the growth of gastric adenocarcinoma SGC7901 cell line, and to observe the effect of rofecoxib, on transplanted gastric cancer of nude mice in vivo. METHODS: The proliferation and apoptosis of SGC7901 cells were measured by 3H-thymidine incorporation into DNA and the TdT-mediated dUTP nick end-labeling assay (TUNEL) separately. The expression of PCNA and COX-2 of gastric adenocarcinoma cells were detected by immunocytochemistry. Human gastric adenocarcinoma SGC7901 cells were implanted orthotopically in the stomach of nude mice. Rofecoxib (30 mg.kg-1.d-1) was administrated i.g. for eight weeks. RESULTS: All the drugs potentially decreased 3H-thymidine incorporation into SGC7901 cells. The inhibition effects showed a dose-dependence manner. The median-response concentration was: 1.18 x 10(-7) mol/L (meloxicam), 1.68 x 10(-8) mol/L (celecoxib), 4.39 x 10(-9) mol/L (rofecoxib). After treatment with meloxicam, celecoxib, rofecoxib (1 x 10(-5) mol/L) for 24 hours, the apoptosis indices of SGC7901 cells were: 19.8% +/- 1.8%, 24.6% +/- 1.2% and 31.2% +/- 2.2%, respectively. The higher selective inhibition on COX-2, the higher apoptosis index (P < 0.01). Rofecoxib down-regulated the expression of COX-2 and PCNA of SGC7901 cell, both in vitro and in vivo. The inhibition rate for xenografts in situ in nude mice treated with rofecoxib was 93.9%. CONCLUSION: The higher selective inhibition on COX-2, the stronger inhibition on gastric adenocarcinoma cells. Rofecoxib may be one of the important medicines in the treatment of gastric adenocarcinoma.