[Clinical application of bipolar tweezers-clamp for hepatic parenchymal transection].

Objective: To investigate the clinical value of the bipolar tweezers-clamp for the hepatic parenchymal transection in the resection of hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: From January 2020 to January 2021,63 patients with the hepatocellular carcinoma for hepatectomy at Department of Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery,Yuebei People's Hospital Affiliated to Shantou University Medical College were analyzed retrospectively.According to the different instruments used in the hepatic parenchymal transection,the patients were divided into bipolar tweezers-clamp group and ultrasonic scalpel group.There were 32 patients in bipolar tweezers-clamp group,with age of (55.5±10.5)years(range:37 to 78 years),including 22 males and 10 females,tumor size was (6.0±3.4)cm(range:2.4 to 13.4 cm). There were 6 patients with portal vein tumor thrombus and 5 patients with portal hypertension. There were 31 patients in ultrasonic scalpel group,with aged(57.8±10.1)years(range:37 to 79 years),including 27males and 4 females,tumor size was(7.9±5.1)cm(range: 2.4 to 21.3 cm),3 patients with portal vein tumor thrombus and 2 patients with portal hypertension. The preoperative baseline data,operation time,blood loss,postoperative liver function and the complications were compared between two groups using t test,χ2 test and Fisher exact probabilityrespectively. Results: The operation was successfully completed in both groups.Compared with the ultrasonic scalpel group,the operation time was significantly shorter((219.3±76.4)minutes vs.(294.0±100.8)minutes,t=-3.322,P=0.002),the blood loss was less((250(475)ml vs. 500(1 050)ml,t=-2.307,P=0.026),the concentrate red blood cells transfusion volume was less(0.92(0.88)U vs. 2.32(4.00)U,Z=-1.987,P=0.047) in the bipolar tweezers-clamp group.The postoperative serum ALB level was higher in the bipolar tweezers-clamp group than that in the ultrasonic scalpel group((33.5±6.1)g/L vs. (29.5±4.2)g/L,t=3.226,P=0.020) on postoperative day 1;((35.7±4.5)g/L vs.(30.1±3.2)g/L,t=5.575,P<0.01) on postoperative day 3;((33.2±3.7)g/L vs. (31.0±4.4)g/L,t=3.020,P=0.004) on postoperative day 7. There was no significant difference in serum ALT,TBIL and PT level between the two groups(all P>0.05).No postoperative bile leakage occurred in both groups.The postoperative complications occurred in 8 cases(25.0%)in the bipolar tweezers-clamp group,including liver failure in one,and in 11 cases(35.5%)in the ultrasonic scalpel group,including liver failure in two(P>0.05). Conclusion: The bipolar tweezers-clamp is a safe and reliable method for the hepatic parenchymal transaction,which is quick and less bleeding during the hepatic resection.

Activation of p38-mitogen-activated protein kinase contributes to ischemia reperfusion in rat brain.

Inflammation plays an important role in cerebral ischemia reperfusion, which can cause severe damage to the brain and may lead to cerebral hemorrhage transformation. p38-mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38mapk) has been implicated in the etiology of a number of diseases because it is a cause of inflammation, but comparatively little research has been carried out into its role in the etiology of ischemia reperfusion. We investigated the expression of p38mapk in cerebral ischemia reperfusion to gain a better understanding of its potential role in hemorrhagic transformation (HT). One hundred rats were randomly divided into three groups: an ischemia reperfusion group, an ischemia group, and a sham-operated group. We carried out neurological deficit assessments, infarct volume measurements, histopathological examinations, and immunohistochemistry analyses. p38mapk was overexpressed in the ischemia reperfusion group, which exhibited severe tissue damage and greater edema than the other two groups. These results suggest that p38mapk plays an important role in cerebral ischemia reperfusion, and may be one of the causes of HT.

Design of back-streaming white neutron beam line at CSNS.

A white neutron beam line using back-streaming neutrons from the spallation target is under construction at China Spallation Neutron Source (CSNS). Different spectrometers, to be installed in the so-called Back-n beam line for nuclear data measurements, are also being developed in phases. The physical design of the beam line is carried out with the help of a complicated collimation system and a sophisticated neutron dump, taking the overview of the neutron beam characteristics into account. This includes energy spectrum, flux and time structure, the optimizations of neutron beam spots and in-hall background. The wide neutron energy range of 1eV-100MeV is excellent for supporting different applications, especially nuclear data measurements. At Endstation#2, which is about 80m away from the target, the main properties of the beam line include neutron flux of 106n/cm2/s, time resolution of a few per mille over nearly the entire energy range, and in-hall background of about 0.01/cm2/s for both neutron and gamma. With its first commission in late 2017, Back-n will not only be the first high-performance white neutron source in China, but also one of the best white neutron sources in the world.

Protective role of selenium-enriched supplement on spinal cord injury through the up-regulation of CNTF and CNTF-Ralpha.

OBJECTIVE: Spinal cord injury (SCI), as one of the common serious spine disorders, often leads to severe neurological dysfunction and even permanent disability, which will cause heavy economical burden for family and society. Currently, selenium-enriched products have an obvious role in the protection and recovery of SCI; however, its protective mechanism is still unclear. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In order to explore the protective effect of selenium-enriched supplement (SES) on SCI, the adult rats were randomly divided into sham operation control (SC) group, ischemia-reperfusion model (IM) group and SES pretreatment (ST) group to investigate the change of ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) and its receptor-alpha (CNTF-Ralpha) during SCI in the presence of SES. The rats in IM and ST groups were subjected to the blockage of their abdominal aorta to establish the model of SCI; but the rats in SC group were subjected to sham operation without the blockage of abdominal aorta. The rats in ST group were fed with foods containing SES at the dose of equivalent 5 mg/L selenium in water before blocking their abdominal aorta. After 7 days, the rats were sacrificed to observe the structure of nerve cells through HE staining and the expression of CNTF and CNTF-Ralpha by Western blot, immunohistochemical, and RT-PCR methods, respectively. RESULTS: Both protein and mRNA of CNTF and CNTF-Ralpha were positively expressed in rats from SC group. The mRNA expression levels of CNTF and CNTF-Ralpha in ST group were much higher than SCI model group. CONCLUSIONS: SES can execute a protective role in SCI through up-regulating the expression of CNTF and CNTF-Ralpha.

First Report of Tobacco Bushy Top Disease in China.

In 1993, a severe epidemic of a new disease of flue-cured tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) occurred in western Yunnan Province, People's Republic of China. Since then, over 40,000 ha of tobacco have been affected, with an average incidence of ≈15%. Infected plants were stunted, and leaves showed symptoms of vein distortion, vein clearing, mottling, and rounding. Axillary buds sprouted from the main stem of infected plants early and formed lateral shoots, on which other shoots were produced. As a result, the infected plants presented the characteristic "bushy" appearance. Aphid- (Myzus persicae (Sulzer)) and sap-transmission experiments were conducted. In aphid-transmission tests, after an acquisition feeding period of 24 h on diseased tobacco, the shortest test feeding that resulted in infection was 5 min. The causal agent(s) was readily sap-transmissible, but it could not be transmitted from sap-inoculated plants to healthy plants by aphids. Thirty-two species of plants in eleven families were tested by sap-inoculation for infectivity to alternative hosts by the casual agent(s). All the species of Nicotiana tested were infected. All the hosts were restricted to the solanaceae. The symptoms, transmission, and host range of this disease were identical to those of tobacco bushy top disease in Zimbabwe (1). Using umbravirus-specific primers (3), a 550-bp DNA fragment was amplified by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from diseased tobacco, whose sequence (GenBank Accession No. AF402620) indicated the occurrence of an umbravirus. The results coincided with the taxonomic status of Tobacco bushy top virus, one of the causal agents of tobacco bushy top disease (1), a tentative species of the genus Umbravirus (2). To our knowledge, this is the first report of tobacco bushy top disease in China and the first report of a large outbreak of the disease outside sub-Saharan Africa. References: (1) L. F. Gates. Ann. Appl. Biol. 50:169, 1962. (2) F. A. Murphy. et al. Page 388 in: Virus Taxonomy: Sixth Report of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses, Page 388, 1995. (3) P. Vercruysse et al. J. Virol. Methods 88:153, 2000.

Sex phermone components of mulberry looper,Hemerophila atrilineata butler (lepidoptera: Geometridae).

(6Z-9S, 10R)-Epoxy-octadecene (SR-1) and (3Z, 6Z-9S, 10R)-epoxy-octadecadiene (SR-2) are sex pheromone components of the mulberry looper (MBL),Hemerophila atrilineata Butler. Compounds extracted from female MBL pheromone glands were identified by coupled gas chromatographic-electroantennographic detection (GC-EAD) and GC-mass spectrometry. In field experiments in China,SR-2,RS-2, or both combined were hardly attractive, butSR-2 in combination withSR-1 attracted significant numbers of MBL males. Synergistic behavioral activity ofSR-1 plusSR-2, but not of corresponding antipode mixtures, indicates enantiospecificity of MBL pheromone communication. Because blends of racemic and enantiospecific (SR)1 plus2 were similarly attractive, racemic1 plus2 may have potential for mass trapping or confusion of MBL males in commercial mulberry plantations.