Vector biological monitoring and strategy to prevent and control severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus (SFTSV) in Daishan Country Zhoushan Islands 2011-2018 / 上海预防医学

Objective To study the severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus (SFTSV)-related vector biological monitoring in Daishan County, Zhoushan Island of Zhejiang Province, and to explore the prevention and control strategies. Methods The monitoring was conducted as follows:squirrel-cage method was used for rodents from 2012 to 2014;the Buqi method for free tick density in villages and towns with confirmed cases in Daishan County from 2015 to 2018;and body surface comb method for parasitic ticks.RT-PCR method was used to detect SFTSV in ticks and rat specimens.Epidemiological survey followed by extensive health education was conducted from 2011 to 2015.Comprehensive health prevention and control measures, such as precision health education and chemical elimination of vectors were taken from 2016 to 2018. Results A total of 327 rodents were captured, including 172 stinking shrews, accounting for 52.60%, and 92 yellow mice, accounting for 28.13%.The main species of ticks was Haematopsus longicortus, accounting for 94.20%.Among them, there were 135 parasitic ticks in three species:Haematopsus longicorum, S.scallopus, and T.nigra. There were 382 free ticks in 6 species, including Haematopsichum longicorum, Sickle fan tick, Hemophilus fannicus, Ixodes ovaliformis, Ixodes granulata, and Ixodes sinensis.From May to October in 2015, the density of field ticks was ≥50 per cloth flag.From May 2016 to 2018, after the elimination application of chemical agents for elimination, the density of ticks was ≤50 per cloth flag.All ticks and rodent specimens tested by RT-PCR were negative for SFTSV.Since precision education in 2016, the awareness rate of SFTS in rural areas has increased from 32.05% to 83.33%.Approximately 70 early warning notices for the epidemic situation were issued in advance.Since 2017, the number of SFTS has been declining year by year, and only 8 cases occurred in 2018. Conclusion In the field environment, chlorothalonil is the dominant mouse species and long horn blood ticks are the dominant ticks.The government leadership, cooperation among departments, technical service provided by professional organization, health education, reduction of tick density in residential environment, timely risk early warning notice, and other comprehensive prevention and control hand strategy all contribute to the achieved result of prevention and control.

Clinical and psychometric validation of the quality of life assessment system for advanced gastric cancer based on traditional Chinese medicine / 中国结合医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To establish questionnaire scaling and reliability and examine the clinical and psychometric validity of the quality of life assessment based on Traditional Chinese Medicine for advanced gastric cancer (QLASTCM-Ga).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The QLASTCM-Ga was developed based on programmed decision procedures with multiple nominal and focus group discussions, in-depth interview, pretesting and quantitative statistical procedures. The questionnaire was administered to 240 patients diagnosed with advanced gastric cancer before and after treatment. Structured group methods were employed to establish a general and a specifific module respectively. The psychometric properties of the scale were evaluated with respect to validity, reliability and responsiveness.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The three identified scales of the QLASTCM-Ga and the total score demonstrated good psychometric properties. Test-retest reliability of the total scale and all domains ranged from 0.90 to 0.94, and internal consistency ranged from 0.86 to 0.93. Correlation and factor analysis demonstrated good construct validity. Signifificant difference in the subscales and the total score were found among groups differing in traditional Chinese medicine syndrome, supporting the clinical sensitivity of the QLASTCM-Ga. Statistically signifificant changes were found for each scale and the total score. Responsiveness was also good.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The QLASTCM-Ga demonstrates good psychometric and clinical validity to assess quality of life in patients with advanced gastric cancer undergoing traditional Chinese medicine therapy. This study is an important fifirst step for future research in this area.</p>

Attenuation and mechanism of endoplasmic reticulum stress-mediated hepatocyte apoptosis in rats with alcohol-induced liver injury by qinggan huoxue recipe and its disassembled formulas / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore attenuation and mechanism of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS)-mediated hepatocyte apoptosis in rats with alcohol-induced liver injury by Qinggan Huoxue Recipe (QGHXR) and its disassembled formulas (Qinggan Recipe and Huoxue Recipe respectively).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A rat model of chronic alcoholic liver injury was successfully established using a compound reagent of alcohol, corn oil, and pyrazol. The modeled rats were randomly divided into the model group, the QGHXR group, the Qinggan Recipe (QGR) group, and the Huoxue Recipe group (HXR). The CCl4 control group and the normal control group were also set up. There were ten rats in each group. All rats of modeled groups were gastrogavaged with alcohol compound reagent every morning. Rats in the QGHXR group (at the daily dose of 9. 5 g/kg, QGR group (at the daily dose of 3.0 g/kg), and HXR group (at the daily dose of 6.5 g/kg) were administered with corresponding medicines by gastrogavage every afternoon. Equal volume of normal saline was given to rats of the model group by gastrogavage. CCl4 was intraperitoneally injected at the dose of 0.3 mL/kg to rats in the CCl4 control group, once per week. Normal saline was given to rats in the normal control group by gastrogavage. The treatment was lasted for two weeks. Pathological changes of the liver were observed by histopathology. Serum total homocysteine (tHCY) level was detected by ELISA. The hepatocyte apoptosis rate was detected using flow cytometry. The gene and protein expressions of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 alpha (elF-2alpha), phosphorylation elF-2alpha (pelF-2alpha), glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78), and Caspase-3 in the liver were examined using Real-time PCR and Westen blot respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the normal control group, typical pathological changes of chronic alcoholic liver injury such as steatosis, inflammation, and even fibrosis occurred in model rats. The hepatocyte apoptosis obviously increased, with the apoptosis rate reaching the five-fold of that in normal rats. Besides, early apoptosis dominated. The serum tHCY level significantly increased. The expressions of p-elF-2alpha, GRP78, and Caspase-3 protein obviously increased (P < 0.01). Expressions of GRP78 and Caspase-3 mRNA significantly increased (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). Compared with the model group, the degrees of the liver injury and the hepatocyte apoptosis in the QGHXR group, the QGR group, and the HXR group were significantly alleviated. The serum tHCY level was significantly lowered. The protein expressions of p-elF-2a, GRP78, and Caspase-3 obviously decreased (P < 0.01). mRNA expressions of GRP78 and Caspase-3 obviously decreased in the QGHXR group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). Only GRP78 mRNA expression obviously decreased in the QGR group (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>QGHXR and its disassembled formulas could attenuate ERS-mediated hepatocyte apoptosis in alcohol-induced liver injury rats by lowering the serum tHCY level and expressions of ERS apoptosis correlated factors.</p>

Role of PERK/eIF2a signaling pathway in hepatocyte apoptosis of alcoholic liver injury rats / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the role of PERK/eIF2alpha signaling pathway in hepatocyte apoptosis of alcoholic liver injury rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Rat models with ethanol-induced liver injury were successfully developed by gastric gavage with ethanol-corn oil mixtures for 12 weeks. At different time points (4, 6, 10, 12 week), liver pathology was dynamically observed. The hepatocyte apoptosis was quantitatively analyzed by Annexin V-FITC/PI double-labeled flow cytometry, the serum total homocysteine (tHCY) level was detected by ELISA and the expressions of eIF2a, p-eIF2a, GRP78/Bip, GRP94, caspase-3 and caspase-12 in liver were examined using Real-time PCR and Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Typical acute liver injury and chronic liver injury were observed at week 4 and week 12 respectively. The hepatocyte apoptosis rates in 6-week model rats significantly increased compared with normal rats (P value less than 0.05), and the degree of hepatocyte apoptosis continued to increase with the modeling time, and the percentages of early and total apoptosis reached 26% and 29% at week 12. From week 6 to week 12, the serum tHCY levels in model rats were obviously higher than in normal rats (P value less than 0.01). Since week 4, eIF2a protein phosphorylation in model rat livers remarkably elevated compared with that in normal rat livers (P value less than 0.01), and at week 12 the peIF2a protein expression in model rat livers increased by 2.81-fold. Since week 4 the expressions of GRP78/Bip, GRP94, caspase-12 and caspase-3 mRNA and protein in model rat livers showed a significant increase as compared to normal rat livers, and at week 12, these gene and protein levels increased 4.70, 12.95, 3.83, 4.05 fold and 3.93, 6.93, 9.88, 3.31 fold, respectively (P value less than 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Activation of PERK/eIF2a signaling pathway contributes to the occurrence and development of hepatocyte apoptosis in alcoholic liver injury rats and it might be as a potential target for therapeutic applications in alcoholic liver diseases.</p>