Epidemiological studies of falls among the elderly: a review / 预防医学

Abstract@#Falls are the leading cause of accidental injury deaths among the elderly. Currently, the incidence and disease burden of falls among the elderly remain high. By understanding the influencing factors of falls among the elderly and formulating targeted preventive measures, the risk of falls can be effectively reduced. Studies have found that falls among the elderly are results of the interaction of multiple factors. When formulating fall prevention strategies, attention should be paid to fall risk assessment and stratification, fall prevention exercise support and health education, living environment improvement, and primary healthcare service enhancement. Reviewing publications pertaining to the epidemiological studies of falls from January 2004 to January 2024, this article summarizes the epidemiological characteristics, risk factors, prevention and control strategies of falls among the elderly, aiming to provide the reference for prevention and control.

Research progress on the epidemiology of pneumonia / 预防医学

@#Pneumonia is a common lower respiratory tract infection, which causes a large disease and economic burden worldwide, and is an important public health problem to be solved urgently. Based on review of publications pertaining to the epidemiology of pneumonia from 2013 to 2023, this article summaries the epidemiological characteristics and main influencing factors of pneumonia. It is found that the epidemiological characteristics of pneumonia vary in different areas; men, the elderly and children are the high-risk groups of pneumonia incidence and mortality; and age, smoking, alcohol consumption, air pollution, comorbidity and vaccination are the main factors affecting the incidence and mortality of pneumonia. Strengthening health education, reducing exposure to risk factors and promoting vaccination are recommended to lower the morbidity and mortality of pneumonia in susceptible populations.

Mechanism of Mongolian drug Naru-3 in initiation of neuroinflammation of neuropathic pain from MMP9/IL-1β signaling pathway / 中国中药杂志

Neuropathic pain(NP) has similar phenotypes but different sequential neuroinflammatory mechanisms in the pathological process. It is of great significance to inhibit the initiation of neuroinflammation, which has become a new direction of NP treatment and drug development in recent years. Mongolian drug Naru-3 is clinically effective in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia, sciatica, and other NPs in a short time, but its pharmacodynamic characteristics and mechanism of analgesia are still unclear. In this study, a spinal nerve ligation(SNL) model simulating clinical peripheral nerve injury was established and the efficacy and mechanism of Naru-3 in the treatment of NPs was discussed by means of behavioral detection, side effect evaluation, network analysis, and experimental verification. Pharmacodynamic results showed that Naru-3 increased the basic pain sensitivity threshold(mechanical hyperalgesia and thermal radiation hyperalgesia) in the initiation of SNL in animals and relieved spontaneous pain, however, there was no significant effect on the basic pain sensitivity threshold and motor coordination function of normal animals under physiological and pathological conditions. Meanwhile, the results of primary screening of target tissues showed that Naru-3 inhibited the second phase of injury-induced nociceptive response of formalin test in mice and reduced the expression of inflammatory factors in the spinal cord. Network analysis discovered that Naru-3 had synergy in the treatment of NP, and its mechanism was associated with core targets such as matrix metalloproteinase-9(MMP9) and interleukin-1β(IL-1β). The experiment further took the dorsal root ganglion(DRG) and the stage of patho-logical spinal cord as the research objects, focusing on the core targets of inducing microglial neuroinflammation. By means of Western blot, immunofluorescence, agonists, antagonists, behavior, etc., the mechanism of Naru-3 in exerting NP analgesia may be related to the negative regulation of the MMP9/IL-1β signaling pathway-mediated microglia p38/IL-1β inflammatory loop in the activation phase. The relevant research enriches the biological connotation of Naru-3 in the treatment of NP and provides references for clinical rational drug use.

Baimai Ointment relieves chronic pain induced by chronic compression of dorsal root ganglion in rats by regulating neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction and HIF-1 signaling pathway / 中国中药杂志

The Baimai Ointment with the effect of relaxing sinew and activating collaterals demonstrates a definite effect on Baimai disease with pain, spasm, stiffness and other symptoms, while the pharmacodynamic characteristics and mechanism of this agent remain unclear. In this study, a rat model of chronic compression of L4 dorsal root ganglion(CCD) was established by lumbar disc herniation, and the efficacy and mechanism of Baimai Ointment in the treatment of CCD were preliminarily explored by behavioral tests, side effect evaluation, network analysis, antagonist and molecular biology verification. The pharmacodynamic experiment indicated that Baimai Ointment significantly improved the pain thresholds(mechanical pain, thermal pain, and cold pain) and gait behavior of CCD model rats without causing tolerance or obvious toxic and side effects. Baimai Ointment inhibited the second-phase nociceptive response of mice in the formalin test, increased the hot plate threshold of normal mice, and down-regulated the expression of inflammatory cytokines in the spinal cord. Network analysis showed that Baimai Ointment had synergistic effect in the treatment of CCD and was related to descending inhibition/facilitation system and neuroinflammation. Furthermore, behavioral tests, Western blot, and immunofluorescence assay revealed that the pain-relieving effect of Baimai Ointment on CCD may be related to the regulation of the interaction between neuroactive ligand and receptors(neuroligands) such as CHRNA7, ADRA2A, and ADRB2, and the down-regulation of the expression of NOS2/pERK/PI3K, the core regulatory element of HIF-1 signaling pathway in spinal microglia. The findings preliminarily reveal the mechanism of relaxing sinew and activating collaterals of Baimai Ointment in the treatment of Baimai disease, providing a reference for the rational drug use and further research of this agent.

Investigation on Compatibility Characteristics and Mechanism of Baimai Ointment in Intervening "White Vein" by Integrating Bioinformatics Analysis and Prescription Rule Discovery / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To explore the mechanism and compatibility characteristics of Baimai ointment （BMO） in the treatment of white vein disease from the network perspective based on system theory， so as to provide biological basis for its clinical application. Method:The chemical components and the corresponding candidate target spectra of BMO were obtained from The Encyclopedia of Traditional Chinese Medicine （ETCM） and Integrative Pharmacology-based Research Platform of Traditional Chinese Medicine （TCMIP）. According to the clinicopathological characteristics of white vein disease， focusing on four diseases/symptoms including neuropathic pain， inflammatory pain， chronic pain and lumbar disc herniation root neuralgia， the gene sets related to white vein disease were collected in Human Phenotype Ontology （HPO）， DisGeNET and other databases， then the interaction network of the targets of active components in BMO-gene sets related to white vein disease was constructed. On this basis， the hub network nodes were selected and enriched for exploring the mechanism of four functional groups of BMO in the treatment of white vein disease such as Huoxue Tongluo group （Curcumae Longae Rhizoma， Moschus， Tronae）， Xingqi Zhitong group （Myristicae Semen， Nardostachyos Radix et Rhizoma， Acori Calami Rhizoma）， Wenjing Sanhan Tongluo group （Zingiberis Rhizoma， Zanthoxyli Pericarpium， Caraway） and Jianpi Wenshen Qianggu group （Actinolite， Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma）. Result:The enriched pathways of the four functional groups in BMO were mainly distributed in three modules of nervous system function， inflammation-immune system regulation and body energy metabolism， and each module was connected by common target genes especially had its own focus. Among them， the regulation of nervous system function in Huoxue Tongluo group and Xingqi Zhitong group could be summarized as Huoxue Buqi and Xingshen Kaiqiao. Xingqi Zhitong group and Jianpi Wenshen Qianggu group were mainly used to promote the operation of Qi， promote blood metaplasia， enhance immunity and maintain the regulation of inflammation-immune system. Jianpi Wenshen Qianggu group and Wenjing Sanhan Tongluo group mainly regulated body energy metabolism by invigorating the spleen and supplementing Qi as well as warm-heat medicine. The whole formula focused on the multi-dimensional and multi-level mechanism of BMO in the intervention of white vein disease. Each functional group emphasized its respective characteristics in nervous system function， inflammation-immune regulation， and body energy metabolism. Two types of networks analysis models complemented and verified each other. Conclusion:BMO plays a role in the treatment of white vein disease mainly by regulating the function of nervous system， maintaining the balance of inflammation-immune system and interfering with energy metabolism. The relevant research results can provide reference for the in-depth exploration of the mechanism of BMO， and help to guide the clinical rational use of this preparation.

Mandibular secretory carcinoma: a case report / 华西口腔医学杂志

Secretory carcinoma, a low-grade malignant tumor, occurs mainly in parotid, submandibular gland, and small salivary glands in the mouth. It has not yet been reported in the mandible. Now we report a case occurred in the right mandibular angle of secretory carcinoma, accompanying with its diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.

miR-200c regulates malignant biological behaviors of triple negative breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells via targeting cell energy metabolism and multiple signaling pathways / 中国肿瘤生物治疗杂志

@#Objective: To investigate the effects of miR-200c on the proliferation, apoptosis and migration of triple negative breast cancer cell (TNBC) MDA-MB-231 and its metabolism-related molecular mechanism. Methods: miR-200c-231 (MDA-MB-231 overexpressing miR-200c) cells, miR-NC-231 (MDA-MB-231 transfected with miRNA-negative control) and the corresponding transplanted tumor models in nude mice were used as the study subjects. qPCR was used to detect the content of miR-200c and other related genes in cells and transplanted tumor tissues. The number of Ki67 positive cells in tumor tissue was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The migration and apoptosis of cells were examined by Transwell chamber method and Flow cytometry, respectively. The expressions of proteins associated with proliferation, migration, and metabolism related signaling pathways in cells and tissues were confirmed by Western blotting. The changes of oxygen consumption rate (OCR), extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) and metabolic phenotype were detected by Seahorse energy metabolism detector. UPLC/LTQ-Orbitrap-MStechniquewasusedtoprofilethedifference of metabolites in cells. Results: The content of miR-200c in miR-200c-231cellswassignificantlyhigherthanthatinmiR-NC-231cells.Themass ofmiR-200c-231transplantedtumornotablydecreased,andthenumberofKi67positivecellsintumortissuesalsodecreasedsignificantly. The migration ability of miR-200c-231 cells decreased and the apoptosis rate increased (all P<0.01), accompanied with declined expressionsofZEB1/2,Vimentin,cyclinD1andincreasedexpressionofcleavedPARP(P<0.05orP<0.01),aswellasdecreasedphosphorylation leverofSTAT1/3andNF-κBbutincresedphosphorylationleverofCAMP(allP<0.05).OverexpressionofmiR-200cinMDA-MB-231cells increasedOCRandthecontentof10antitumor metabolites, but decreased ECAR and tryptophan 2,3-plus dioxidase (TDO2) expression (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Conclusion: miR-200c targeting TDO2 elevates the level of intracellular anticancer metabolites in TNBC MDAMB-231 cells, promotes the transformation from glycolysis to aerobic respiration phenotype, and inactivates STAT3 and NF-κB pathyway but activates cAMPpathway TNBC MDA-MB-231 cells, thus affects the malignant biological behaviors of MDA-MB-231 cells.

Epidemiological characteristics of coronavirus disease 2019 in Ningbo / 预防医学

Objective@#To analyze the epidemiological characteristics of coronavirus disease 2019 （COVID-19） cases reported in Ningbo from January 22 to February 22, 2020, so as to provide guidance for the prevention and control of the COVID-19 epidemic.@*Methods@#The confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported by Ningbo were selected from National Diseases Prevention and Control Information System to analyze the epidemiological characteristics by descriptive epidemiological method, including time, spatial and population distribution, clinical symptoms and exposure history.@*Results@#A total of 157 confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported and there was no death. The first confirmed case was reported on January 22. On the incidence curve, the peak was from January 22 to February 4, with a maximum of 15 cases in a single day. The incidence curve presented sustained human-to-human transmission. The number of the cases showed a declining trend from February 5. The confirmed cases were reported in all 10 counties（cities or districts）,among which 69（43.95%）cases were reported in Haishu District. The confirmed cases were mainly 30-69 years old,accounting for 78.34%;were mainly farmers,household workers and retired people,accounting for 59.87%;and were mainly clinically mild,accounting for 87.90%.There were 51 imported cases, accounting for 32.48%. The initial confirmed case was a local case. In the early stage of the epidemic, local cases and imported cases prevalent together,which was due to the outbreak caused by the large-scale buddhist activity on January 19.This event resulted in 67 confirmed cases and 15 asymptomatic cases. There totally reported 22 clusters with 138 （87.90%）confirmed cases. @*Conclusions@# In the early stage of the COVID-19 epidemic in Ningbo, the imported cases and local cases prevalent at the same time. Most of the cases were female, aged from 30 to 69 years, and their occupation were farmers, household workers and retired people. With comprehensive measures taken, the epidemic of COVID-19 in Ningbo have been under control.

Elimination of Mother-to-Infant Transmission of Hepatitis B Virus: 35 Years of Experience / 대한소아소화기영양학회지

Chronic hepatitis B viral (HBV) infection remains a major health threat, especially in high-prevalence areas. Most infants infected by mother-to-infant HBV transmission become chronic carriers. In Taiwan, many important preventive interventions have been implemented to block the perinatal transmission of HBV in the past 35 years. The first nationwide universal HBV vaccination program was launched in Taiwan in July 1984. The three-dose HBV vaccine completion rate reached 98.1% in 2018. The prevalence of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) decreased from 9.8% in pre-vaccinated period in 1984 to 0.5% in the vaccinated cohort in 2014. The incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in children aged 6–9 years significantly declined from 0.52 to 0.13 per 100,000 children born before and after 1984, respectively. Furthermore, we have performed a maternal HBV screening program during pregnancy since 1984, with the screening rate peaked at 93% in 2012. The HBsAg- and HBeAg-seropositive rate in pregnant women declined from 13.4% and 6.4% in 1984–1985 to 5.9% and 1.0% in 2016, respectively. To closely control perinatal HBV infection, we have administered hepatitis B immunoglobulin immediately after birth and checked the serum level of HBsAg and anti-HBs in high-risk babies born to HBsAg-seropositive mothers, irrespective of their HBeAg status, since July 2019. We have also adopted short-term antiviral treatments such as tenofovir 300 mg daily in the third trimester for highly viremic mothers and reduced the perinatal infection rates from 10.7 to 1.5%. Through all these efforts, we expect to meet the global goal of eliminating HBV infection by 2030.

Detection of Gene Abnormalities in 43 Cases of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia by Fluorescence in Situ Hybridization / 中国实验血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the value of fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in diagnosis and prognosis evaluation of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>R banding technique was used for karyotype analysis in 43 cases of CLL, and fluorescence in situ hybridization（FISH） technique was used for analysis of 5 genes in 43 cases of CLL, including D13S25, RB1,ATM, P53 and CEP 12 .</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The detection rate of chromosome abnormality was 9.3％ for the 43 cases. The chromosome karyotype abnormality was involoved in the number abnormality and the structural abnormality, including No. 2, 6, 14, and sex chromosome. The patients with normal chromosome karyotype were more common（79.1％）. At the same time, mitotic figure in 5 CLL patients did not observed. The positive rate of FISH detection was 55.8％(24/43). Among which, D13S25 deletion was the highest and reached to 37.2％, followed by RB1 deletion（20.9％）, CEP 12 amplification（16.3％）, ATM deletion（9.3％） and P53 deletion（7.0％）. In 24 FISH-positive cases, 20 cases displayed the normal chromosome karyotype, and in 3 cases the mitotic figure was absent. There was only one case of abnormal chromosome, which was not involved in the positive gene tested by FISH.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>FISH is an important means of CLL genetic detection, which can greatly raise the detection rate of cytogenetics abnormalities in CLL, but the probe quantity is limited, so it is necessary to use FISH technology combined with chromosome karyotype analysis so as to improve the detection rate of abnormal cytogenetics, and provide the basis for the clinical diagnosis and prognosis of CLL.</p>

Serum metabolomic profiling of acute complete spinal cord transection in macaques / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND:Non-targeted metabolomic profiling is used to uncover metabolic changes and to identify relationships between metabolites and spinal cord injury,which contributes to further understanding the pathophysiological process and mechanisms of secondary spinal cord injury.OBJECTIVE:To detect and analyze the serum metabolite changes after complete spinal cord transaction in macaques,explore its relationship with the pathophysiological progress of spinal cord injury,and screen the potential biomarkers.METHODS:Five adult macaques were selected,in which the models of complete spinal cord transaction were established.The serum metabolic features were detected using a non-targeted metabolic profiling strategy based on gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry at 1 day before modeling,3 hours (superacute phase) and 3 days (acute phase) after modeling.After compared with the spectrometry profiling,recognizing the metabolites,searching for differential metabolites and the related metabolic pathways,the pathophysiological process and mechanisms were analyzed.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Three hundred and fifty-eight chromatographic peaks were obtained for subsequent data analysis.Fourteen metabolites,including low-molecular-weight organic acid,amino acids,fatty acid and carbohydrate,were identified as differential metabolites.To conclude,the acute phase of complete spinal cord transection is closely related to some metabolic pathways,such as amino acid metabolism,tricarboxylic acid cycle and pyruvate metabolism.

Protective effect of molecular hydrogen against H202-induced oxidative injury in cultured rat spinal cord neurons / 第二军医大学学报

Objective To investigate the protective effect of molecular hydrogen against hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced oxidative injury in primary cultures of rat spinal cord neurons and the related mechanism. Methods Rat spinal cord neurons were cultured for 7 days and were randomly assigned to four groups with different treatments-(1) Normal medium (NM) control: treated with NM; (2) Hydrogen-rich medium(HM): treated with HM; (3) NM+H2O2: treated with 100 μmol/L H2O2 and 15 μmol/L ferrous chloride (FeCl2) after pretreatment with NM for 2 h; and (4) HM+H2O2: treated with 100 μmol/L H2O2 and 15 μmol/L FeCl2 after pretreatment with HM for 2 h. The respective media were changed every 6 h in each group, and 12 h later the cells were collected for assays of reactive oxygen species (ROS), hydroxyl radical (HO •), apoptosis, and the expression of glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) and p-GSK-β. Results Compared with NM, HM significantly reduced the H2O2-induced intracellular production of ROS and HO • in purified neurons (P<0. 01), significantly decreased the number of apoptotic neurons (P < 0. 01) and expression of caspase-3 (P < 0. 01), and significantly promoted phosphorylation of GSK-β (P<0. 01). Conclusion Molecular hydrogen has protective effect against H2O2-induced oxidative injury in primary cultured neurons. Themechanisms might be related to reduction of intracellular production of ROS and HO •, inhibition of apoptosis in neurons and promotion of GSK-β phosphorylation.

CCL5 triggers new thinking on neuropathic pain / 第二军医大学学报

The mechanism of neuropathic pain is extremely complex. Despite of great research efforts on the pathogenesis of neuropathic pain and development of new drugs in recent years, the mechanism of neuropathic pain remains unclear. CCL5 belongs to the C-C chemokine subfamily, and its abnormal regulation of inflammatory responses under pathological condition may induce or exacerbate a variety of diseases. Recently, many researches have suggested that CCL5 has the potential of mediating neuropathic pain, but with unknown mechanism. This paper reviewed the role of CCL5 in the development and regulation of neuropathic pain and discussed the possibility of CCL5 as an cause of neuropathic pain.

Transitional cell carcinoma associated with aristolochic acid nephropathy: most common cancer in chronic hemodialysis patients in China / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>The research of cancer in patients on hemodialysis (HD) in China has not been reported. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical and histological features and outcomes of cancer in Chinese HD patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The study subjects were 49 cancer patients (1.4%) out of 3448 end stage renal disease (ESRD) patients maintained on HD at China-Japan Friendship Hospital from October 1997 to July 2011.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Urinary tract cancer (74%) was the most common followed by gastrointestinal tract cancer (12%), breast cancer (6%), lung cancer (4%), thyroid cancer (2%), and hematologic cancer (2%). Thirty-three patients (67%) had urinary tract transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) and 29 of them had aristolochic acid nephropathy (AAN) as underlying disease. Death occurred in eight patients out of 49, and the survival rate of HD patients with cancer was similar to those without cancer (P = 0.120).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The urinary tract TCC is the most common cancer in HD patients with AAN in one of the centers of northern China.</p>

Cytogenetic study on 53 patients with multiple myeloma / 中国实验血液学杂志

To explore the conventional cytogenetic (CC) characteristics and the partial molecular cytogenetic characteristics of multiple myeloma (MM), R banding technique was used for karyotype analysis in 53 cases of MM, and fluorescence in situ hybridization(FISH) technique was used for molecular cytogenetic analysis in 20 cases out of them. The results showed that the rate of chromosome abnormality was 32.1% in 53 cases. Among these abnormalities, 82.4% were involved in 3 or more than 3 chromosome aberrations, the mode of chromosome was from 44 to 90. The chromosome karyotype abnormality was involved in all of 24 chromosomes, and 70.6% chromosome aberrations involved at least one of 1q21 amplification, 13q14 deletion, 17p13 deletion and 14q32 translocation. Some uncommon structural aberrations were observed, such as t(11;16)(p11;p13) and some chromosome abnormalities were often revealed in acute or chronic leukemia. FISH detection showed that the results of 3 in 12 cases of MM with normal karyotype were positive; the results of 5 in 8 cases of MM with abnormal karyotype were positive. It is concluded that the abnormal chromosome karyotype was relatively complex in most cases of MM showing obvious heterogenicity. Detected rate of chromosome abnormalities in MM can be raised by FISH, though FISH technique has its limitations. If CC analysis and FISH technique are combined, it will be useful to raise the identification capability in detection of abnormal chromosomes in the cytogenetic study of MM.

Application of fluorescence in situ hybridization technique in diagnosis of variant Ph chromosome translocation and Ph-negative chronic myelocytic leukemia / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the value of fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) technique in diagnosis of variant Ph chromosome translocation (VT) and Ph chromosome-negative chronic myelocytic leukemia (CML).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Nine CML patients with VT and 2 Ph chromosome-negative CML patients confirmed by R banding were assayed with dual color-dual fusion BCR/ABL probe by FISH.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The 9 patients with VT involved chromosomes 1, 3, 5, 12, 13, 15, 17 and 21 besides chromosomes 9 and 22, and some of them showed recurrent aberrations; FISH results were positive and the signal feature was 2R2G1Y. The 2 Ph-negative CML patients had normal karyotypes; FISH was positive and the signal feature was 1R1G2Y and 1R1G1Y respectively.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>FISH can provide better diagnosis for CML with VT and Ph-negative CML. Abnormal karyotype and marker gene changes can be assessed based on the signal feature of the positive cell. So FISH is a complementary method to banding technique in diagnosis of CML.</p>

Development of neonatal mouse and fetal human testicular tissue as ectopic grafts in immunodeficient mice / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>AIM</b>To investigate the stepwise development and germ cell gene expression in allografted neonatal mouse testes and the differentiation of immature human testicular cells in xenografted human testes.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Immunodeficient nude mice were used as hosts for allografting of neonatal mouse testes and xenografting of human fetal testicular tissues. Stepwise development and stage-specific gene expression of germ cells in allografts were systematically evaluated and parallel compared with those in intact mice by periodically monitoring the graft status with measurement of graft weight, histological analysis and determination of five stage-specific genes. Human testicular tissues from 20 and 26 weeks fetuses were used for the xenografting study. Histological analysis of xenografts was performed 116 and 135 d after the grafting procedure.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>In the allografting study, progressive increase in tissue volume and weight as well as in tubule diameter in grafts was observed; the appearance time of various germ cells in seminiferous tubules, including spermatogonia, spermatocytes, round and elongate spermatids and sperm, was comparable with that in intact donors; the initiation of gene transcription in grafts showed a similar trend as in normal mice. Graft weight ceased to increase after 7-8 weeks and degradation of grafts was observed after 5 weeks with progressive damage to seminiferous epithelium. In the xenografting study using immature human testicular tissues, graft survival and development was indicated by increasing graft weight, Sertoli cells differentiation into advanced stage, germ cells migration and location to the basal lamina and formation of a niche-like structure.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The developmental course and gene expression pattern of germ cells in allografts were similar to those in intact mice. The best time point for retrieval of mouse sperm from grafts was 5-7 weeks after grafting procedure. An accelerated development of immature human testicular cells could be achieved by ectopic xenografting of human testes.</p>

Research progress in ectopic grafting of testicular tissues / 中华男科学杂志

Since Nature published the first report in 2002 on using immunodeficient mice as recipients and allogeneous or heterogeneous testes as donor tissues to study the ectopic development of spermatogenic cells, the technique has been widely applied in various species (including human). In comparison with other in vitro maturation methods for male germ cells, testicular allografting or xenografting technique has such advantages as similar environment for the development of germ cells in physiological conditions, and better reproducibility. Up to now, sperm has been successfully produced by this technique from the testicular tisues of the immature mouse, hamster, cat, rabbit, pig, goat, bovine and rhesus monkey, and their offspring have even been generated by ICSI technique using the mouse and rabbit sperm derived from testis grafts. This article comprehensively reviews the development of the technique by discussing the influencing factors on the germ cell development in grafts including the variety and age of donors, the sex, integrity and immunity of recipients, the graft location and grafting time. And the applications of the technique and the existing problems are discussed as well.

Differential gene expression profiles in paclitaxel-induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human breast cancer MCF-7 cells / 药学学报

<p><b>AIM</b>To elucidate the molecular mechanism of cell cycle arrest and apoptosis of MCF-7 cells induced by paclitaxel.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Flow cytometry was used to determine the cell cycle changes of MCF-7 cells upon paclitaxel treatment. Gene expression profiles of MCF-7 cells induced by paclitaxel were obtained by using cDNA microarrays containing 9984 genes and expressed sequence tags (ESTs).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Cell cycle analysis showed that 77.8% of cells arrested at G2/M phase and 1.3% of cells underwent apoptosis upon 100 nmol x L(-1) paclitaxel treatment for 24 hours; cDNA microarray results revealed that 27 and 77 genes were differentially expressed upon 12.5 nmol x L(-1) (IC50) and 100 nmol x L(-1) paclitaxel treatment, respectively.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Paclitaxel stabilized microtubules and caused G2/M cell cycle arrest and apoptotic cell death in a concentration-dependent manner, which is associated with the regulation of selected genes related to microtubule assembly and cytoskeleton, cell cycle regulation, and DNA repair and apoptosis.</p>

Effects of electromagnetic pulse on contents of amino acids in hippocampus of rats / 中华劳动卫生职业病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the relationship between the changes of amino acids contents in hippocampus of rats and electromagnetic pulse (EMP) exposure.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Rats were decapitated and hippocampus were removed after EMP (6 x 10(4) V/m, rise time 20 ns, pulse width 30 micro s, 5 pulses in 2 minutes) irradiation, and contents of amino acids were detected with high performance liquid chromatograpy (HPLC).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The contents of aspartic acid (Asp) and glutamic acid (Glu) increased significantly 0, 3, 6 h after irradiation. The peak values of Asp [(17.25 +/- 1.63) pmol/ micro l] and Glu [(13.67 +/- 0.95) pmol/ micro l] were higher than those of control [(10.56 +/- 1.50), (6.94 +/- 1.10) pmol/ micro l respectively, P < 0.05]. Then both decreased gradually and reached the normal level 24 - 48 h after irradiation. The contents of glycine (Gly), taurine (Tau) and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) also rose after exposure, the peak value of them [(4.51 +/- 0.60), (29.85 +/- 2.70), (5.14 +/- 0.73) pmol/ micro l respectively] were higher than those of control group [(2.18 +/- 0.31), (9.88 +/- 1.47), (2.84 +/- 0.67) pmol/ micro l, P < 0.05], then recovered 48 h after irradiation. The value of Glu/GABA increased immediately after exposure (3.45 +/- 0.25, P < 0.05), then decreased 24 h (1.62 +/- 0.23, P < 0.05) and recovered 48 h after exposure.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The toxic effect of excess excitatory amino acids may be partly responsible for the early retardation (within 24 h) of learning of rats.</p>