[Clinical and pathological characteristics and prognosis analysis of gray zone lymphoma].

To explore the clinical and pathological characteristics as well as therapies and prognosis of gray zone lymphoma (GZL). The clinical data of 10 GZL patients admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from December 2016 to December 2022 were retrospectively collected. The clinical and pathological characteristics, therapies and prognosis were analyzed. The cut-off time for follow-up visits was December 31, 2022, and the median time for follow-up visits [M(Q1, Q3)] was 40.0 (28.3, 59.8) months. Treatment efficacy was divided into complete remission (CR), partial remission (PR), stable disease (SD) and progressive disease (PD).　There were 6 males and 4 females, with a median age [M(Q1, Q3)] of 33.5 (27.3-39.5) years. Among them, 8 patients had mediastinal (thymus) involvement and 7 patients were accompanied with extranodal involvement. According to Ann Arbor staging, 1 case was in the limited stage and 9 cases were in the progressive stage. The immunophenotypes of 4 patients were strong expression of CD20, expression of CD30, and no expression of CD15. The immunophenotypes of 6 patients were unequal expression of CD20 and strong expression of CD30 and CD15. One patient received classical hodgkin lymphoma(cHL)-like immunochemotherapy and only achieved PR, and then received enhanced diffuse large b-cell lymphoma (DLBCL)-like immunochemotherapy to achieve CR. Five patients received enhanced DLBCL-like immunochemotherapy for induction therapy and achieved CR. All 4 patients who did not achieve CR achieved CR after receiving second-line or third-line salvage therapy. All patients were given autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) for consolidation therapy. One patient relapsed and died during the follow-up visit in the 33rd month, and the remaining patients currently maintained a state of sustained remission. It is found that GZL mostly occurs in young patients, mediastinal involvement is common, and diagnosis relies on pathological morphology and immunophenotype. GZL may be more sensitive to DLBCL-like intensive immune regimens. Sequential ASCT for consolidation can reduce the risk of relapse.

A Dosimetric Comparative Study of Carbon-Ion Radiotherapy Versus X-ray Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy for Stage III Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Compared to photon beam, carbon-ion radiotherapy (CIRT) has both physical and biological advantages. AIM: To examine whether two-dimensional (2D) CIRT is dosimetrically superior to photon beam volume-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) in protecting the normal tissues for stage III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted. Thirteen patients with stage III NSCLC treated in our center with curative CIRT and a sham photon beam VMAT treatment planning with the same normal tissue dose constraints were included for analysis. Target dose distributions and the homogeneity index (HI) within the planning target volumes were compared. RESULTS: Both CIRT and VMAT plans have good tumor coverage with no significant differences in D98, D95, and D50 of Planning target volume 1 (PTV1) between the two plans. The HIs between the two plans are similar. The HI of PTV2 is superior in the CIRT plan (CIRT vs. VMAT: 0.08 vs. 0.16, P < 0.05). In general, CIRT results in a lower dose of the organ-at-risk (OAR) than the photon plans. The V5, V10, V20, V30, V40, and Dmean of the contralateral lung in the CIRT plan are significantly lower than that of the photon VMAT. For the ipsilateral lung, the V5 of CIRT is significantly lower. The CIRT also had significantly lower spinal cord Dmax, esophageal Dmean and V50, V10 and V30 of bone, and V50 of the trachea and bronchial tree. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with photon VMAT, 2D-CIRT using the passive beam scanning technique significantly reduces the radiation dose to the OARs in curative radiotherapy of stage III NSCLC, suggesting a better protection of the normal tissues.

[Analysis of vaginal microecology in 23 181 cases of the gynecological female outpatients].

Objective: To analyze the vaginal microecological status of vaginitis population and non-vaginitis population of gynecological female outpatients. Methods: A total of 30 265 women who visited the gynecological outpatient clinic of Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital from December 2018 to December 2020 completed vaginal microecological examination. After removing the follow-up patients, 23 181 women were divided into group with symptoms and signs of vaginitis (6 697 cases) and group without symptoms and signs of vaginitis (16 484 cases), according to whether the women with symptoms and signs of vaginitis or not. And the vaginal microecological status of the two groups was compared and analyzed. Results: (1) The total detection rate of vaginitis in the initial women was 34.87% (8 083/23 181), of which 46.10% (3 087/6 697) in group with symptoms and signs of vaginitis and 30.31% (4 996/16 484) in group without symptoms and signs of vaginitis, nearly 1/3 of the gynecological outpatients without signs and symptoms of vaginitis had vaginitis. (2) Among the types of simple vaginitis, vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) was the most frequent in group with symptoms and signs of vaginitis (16.01%, 1 072/6 697), followed by aerobic vaginitis (AV; 12.83%, 859/6 697), with significant differences compared with group without symptoms and signs of vaginitis (all P<0.001). There were no statistical differences between the two groups of bacterial vaginosis (BV) and trichomonal vaginitis (TV), indicating that BV and TV were more likely to be neglected (all P>0.05). (3) The proportion of various combinations of vaginitis among 2 632 cases of mixed vaginitis were, in descending order: BV+AV, VVC+AV, BV+AV+VVC, AV+TV, AV+TV+BV, BV+VVC. (4) Microecological analysis of 15 098 cases diagnosed with non-vaginitis had normal flora (including those with normal flora and those with normal flora but decreased function) in 14 013 cases (92.81%, 14 013/15 098), abnormal flora in 429 cases (2.84%, 429/15 098) and the BV intermediate in 656 cases (4.34%, 656/15 098); this indicated that the vast majority of the microecological tests were normal in the vaginal microbiota of those without vaginitis. Conclusions: Microecological examination could diagnose multiple pathogenic infections at once, and is especially important as a guide for the definitive diagnosis of mixed vaginitis and vaginitis with atypical clinical symptoms. Vaginal infections such as BV and TV that are easily overlooked should be concerned.

The introduced strain Mesorhizobium ciceri USDA 3378 is more competitive than an indigenous strain in nodulation of chickpea in newly introduced areas of China.

The present study aimed to compare the competitive advantage of two chickpea nodulating rhizobia strains (an indigenous strain Mesorhizobium muleiense CCBAU 83963T and an introduced strain Mesorhizobium ciceri USDA 3378) in different soils originated from new chickpea cultivation areas of China. The results showed that USDA 3378 had a significant competitive advantage in nodulation, with nodulation occupation rates ranging from 84·6% to 100% in all the sampled soils. According to the efficiency of symbiosis under single inoculation, chickpea plants inoculated with USDA 3378 showed better symbiotic performance based on the plant dry weight, leaf chlorophyll content and nodule numbers. The chickpea plants inoculated with USDA 3378 formed nodules about 2 days earlier than those inoculated with CCBAU 83963T . The higher growth in media and the stronger adsorption on chickpea roots of USDA 3378 when mixed with CCBAU 83963T may explain why USDA 3378 shows a competitive advantage. The results from this study will contribute towards the development of effective chickpea rhizobial inoculants for soil conditioning and more environmentally friendly production of chickpeas in China.

[Dynamics of vaginal microbiota in women of reproductive age during the menstrual cycle].

Objective: To investigate the dynamic changes of vaginal microbiota in different phases of menstrual cycle in healthy Chinese women of childbearing age. Methods: A total of 11 healthy women of childbearing age with regular menstruation, who had physical examination in the Gynecology Clinic of Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital from September to December 2020 were randomly selected as research subjects. Vaginal secretions were collected during menstrual phase (2nd-3rd day), mid-follicular phase (7th-8th day), and mid-luteal phase (21st-22nd day) for microbiota analysis through metagenomic sequencing. Results: (1) Vaginal microbiota species were the most diverse in menstrual phase and the least in follicular phase, observing dominant vaginal bacteria gradually changing to Lactobacillus from menstrual phase to follicular phase and then to luteal phase. (2) The dynamic evolution of vaginal microbiota from menstrual phase to follicular phase and then to luteal phase was divided into: no change in dominant bacteria, replacement of dominant bacteria, changes in the proportion of dominant bacteria, and recurrence of dominant bacteria (non-Lactobacillus-dominance appeared again in luteal phase after returning to normal Lactobacillus-dominance in follicular phase). (3) Prevotella, especially Prevotella_bivia, was significantly higher during menstrual phase. Conclusions: Healthy vaginal microbiota should be relatively stable, but also have the ability of dynamic change and self-recovery. Prevotella plays a central role among opportunistic pathogens in the vagina, whose function remains to be investigated.

Chicory fibre improves reproductive performance of pregnant rats involving in altering intestinal microbiota composition.

AIM: Chicory fibre (CF) is rich in fructan, which always functions as a quality dietary fibre source during mammalian pregnancy; however, its effect on reproductive performance remains unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: 40 pregnant SD rats were randomly allotted to receive one of four diets: basal diet (control group), basal diet + 5% CF, basal diet + 10% CF, and basal diet + 15% CF, respectively. We found that CF significantly increased the number born alive and total litter birth weight (P < 0·05), increased the expression of intestinal tight junction proteins, mucins and antimicrobial peptides, accompanied by the increase of villi height and the decrease of crypts depth of pregnant SD rats (P < 0·05). We also observed that CF markedly increased the acetic acid, propanoic acid, butyric acid and total SCFAs concentrations in caecum contents and promoted the expression of SCFAs-related receptors (P < 0·05). Notably, rats fed CF increased the relative abundance of Bacteroidetes (P < 0·001), decreased the relative abundance of Firmicutes and Proteobacteria, while markedly lowered the Firmicutes/ Bacteroidetes ratio (F/B ratio) (P < 0·05). Intriguingly, the number born alive and total litter birth weight were positively correlated with some probiotics and negatively correlated with other harmful bacteria by Pearson correlation analysis. CONCLUSION: Collectively, CF can enhance intestinal barrier function and maintain intestinal health, and may improve reproductive performance by altering intestinal microbiota composition. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Adding suitable dietary fibre to the diet can improve the reproductive performance of sows. Indeed, there exist various problems in the application of traditional dietary fibres, including high insoluble fibre content and anti-nutritional factor level, and mycotoxin contamination. This study demonstrates that dietary CF supplementation improves reproductive performance and intestinal health. Thus, CF can be applied in pregnancy animals as a new dietary fibre additive in animal husbandry.

[Analysis of misdiagnosis causes of suprasellar arachnoid cysts].

Objective: To investigate the causes of misdiagnosis of suprasellar arachnoid cysts, analyze its characteristics and put forward the diagnostic basis and differential points. Methods: The clinical data fo 97 cases of suprasellar arachnoid cysts diagnosed and treated in the neurosurgery department of Beijing Tiantan Hospital and Hebei General Hospital from March 2015 to March 2019 were analyzed retrospectively. All patients underwent CT and MRI scans with obstructive hydrocephalus. 13 cases were misdiagnosed, including 7 males and 6 females. First visit age 1-31 years old, with an average age of 6.3 years. There were 10 patients younger than 6 years old. The remaining 15-year-old patients, 31-year-old patients and 26-year-old patients each have one case. 11 cases were misdiagnosed as obstructive hydrocephalus, 2 cases as cystic craniopharyngioma. Results: 13 cases were misdiagnosed and mistreated, 11 cases were treated with intraventricular and abdominal shunt, 9 cases were treated with neuroendoscopy and recovered well. One cases of intracranial hematomas underwent craniotomy again, the hematomas were removed again and the bone slise were decompressed. One case had fissured stable after shunt. There were no operative deaths and no complications in this group. After endoscopic reoperation, CT and/or MRI scans showed that the ventricle narrowed in varying degrees, some of them returned to normal size and the flow of cerebrospinal fluid (cerebrospinal fluid) was unobstruct at the end of magnetic resonance cerebrospinal fluid angiography (MRI) fistula after endoscopic reoperation. Conclusions: The incidence of suprasellar arachnoid cysts is low, it is rare in clinic and it is easy to misdiagnose and mistreate. At present, it is recognized that the best treatment methods are partial resection of endoscope cyst wall, cyst ventricle fistula and third ventricle floor fisthla.

[Analysis of homology and drug sensitivity of vaginal isolates of 10 patients with recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis in recurrent episodes].

Objective: To detect karyotype homology of vaginal isolates from patients with recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVVC) in recurrent episodes, and to discuss changes of susceptibility of Candida strains to antifungal drugs with clinical progress. Method: s Ten patients were recruited from Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, Capital Medical University from September 2018 to June 2019, who were firstly diagnosed with RVVC. Vaginal discharges were collected before first treatment and after first relapse. Vaginal strains were isolated, purificated and identificated. Then karyotype of 20 strains isolated from 10 patients were detected by restriction endonuclease analysis of genomic DNA (REAG) using enzyme BssHⅡand pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) methods, and sensitivity of clinical isolates to 5 antifungal drugs (clostridium, fluconazole, miconazole, itraconazole and nystatin) was also detected using disk diffusion method. Result: s (1) All 20 strains of 10 patients with RVVC were Candida albicans, and their chromosomes were extremely similar after BssHⅡ enzyme digestion. The gene bands of isolated strains from the same patient were completely identical. (2) After clinical medication, the sensitivity of vaginal isolates to azoles was generally decreased, but remained highly sensitive to nystatin, nystatin (first and second clinical isolates: 100% sensitivity and 100% sensitivity)>clotrimazole (100% sensitivity and 90% sensitivity)>fluconazole (80% sensitivity and 70% sensitivity)>itraconazole (60% sensitivity and 50% sensitivity)>miconazole (30% sensitivity and 20% sensitivity). Conclusions: (1) The latency of the same colonized strain in the vagina may be the cause of repeated RVVC episodes. (2) Antifungal agents could selectively induce drug resistance to Candidas, and Candidas show cross-resistance to antifungal agents. Repeated fungal culture and drug sensitivity test in patients with RVVC are very necessary for correct selection of antifungals.

Syndemic effects of HIV risk behaviours: results from the NHANES study.

The aim of the present study is to use the syndemic framework to investigate the risk of contracting HIV in the US population. Cross-sectional analyses are from The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We extracted and aggregated data on HIV antibody test, socio-demographic characteristics, alcohol use, drug use, depression, sexual behaviours and sexually transmitted diseases from cycle 2009-2010 to 2015-2016. We carried out weighted regression among young adults (20-39 years) and adults (40-59 years) separately. In total, 5230 men and 5794 women aged 20-59 years were included in the present analyses. In total, 0.8% men and 0.2% women were tested HIV-positive. Each increasing HIV risk behaviour was associated with elevated odds of being tested HIV-positive (1.15, 95% CI 1.15-1.15) among young adults and adults (1.61, 95% CI 1.61-1.61). Multi-faceted, community-based interventions are urgently required to reduce the incidence of HIV in the USA.

[Summary and expectation of the role of GnRHa in the treatment of breast cancer].

Gonadotropin-releasing-hormone analogues (GnRHa) are widely used in the treatment of premenopausal breast cancer. The anti-tumor effect of GnRHa is similar to that of surgical castration or chemotherapy, through reversibly inhibiting ovarian function and downregulating the estrogen level in premenopausal female. At the same time, GnRHa can protect the ovarian function, avoiding premature ovarian failure. Also GnRHa can reduce the breast density and endometrial thickness, as a result of which GnRHa may be used to prevent breast cancer in the higher risk population and promote quality of life in breast cancer patients. We here review the clinical roles and research progress of GnRHa in breast cancer.

[The preliminary development of reference values of carotid artery intima-media thickness in children aged 6-11 years].

Objective: To develop the reference values of carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) in Chinese children aged 6-11 years. Methods: A convenient cluster sampling method was used to conduct a cross-sectional survey from November 2017 to January 2018 in a primary school in Huantai County, Zibo City, Shandong Province. A total of 1 033 children aged 6-11 years (excluding children with obesity or hypertension) were included. Percentile curves for cIMT were drawn using the lambda, mu and sigma (LMS) method. Results: This study developed the cIMT reference values (P(90) and P(95)) for sex and age aged 6-11 years, including P(90) and P(95) reference values of mean cIMT, left cIMT and right cIMT, respectively. With the increase of age, the cIMT percentile values also increased. For the same age and the same percentile, the cIMT values of boys were higher than those of girls. Conclusion: This study developed sex-specific and age-specific cIMT percentile reference values in children aged 6-11 years.

[Development and validation of a simplified height-specific blood pressure cutoffs table for screening hypertension in Chinese children and adolescents].

Objective: To develop and validate a simplified height-specific blood pressure cutoffs table for screening hypertension in Chinese children and adolescents. Methods: We developed a simplified height-specific blood pressure cut offs table according to Chinese Blood Pressure Reference for Children and Adolescents aged 7-18 years (WS/T 610-2018) (hereafter referred to as "complex definition"). Populations from Early Warning, Diagnosis and Treatment of Children Cardiovascular Disease Project ("Ji'nan sample") and Shandong Children Cardiovascular Cohort Study Project ("Zibo sample") were used as validation populations for evaluating the screening effect of the simplified table for elevated blood pressure and hypertension in children and adolescents. Results: We developed simplified height-specific blood pressure cutoffs table including 7 height groups and 28 cutoffs. Both Ji'nan and Zibo samples were selected by convenient sampling method, and the former included 7 233 participants aged 7 to 17 years, among whom 3 790 (52.4%) were boys. Latter population included 1 277 participants aged 7 to 11 years, among whom 681 (53.3%) were boys. The simplified table performed well for identifying elevated blood pressure in Ji'nan sample, with values of area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) (95%CI), sensitivity, specificity, and Kappa statistic as 0.96 (0.95-0.97), 93.0%, 98.5% and 0.91, respectively, which were similar with results in Zibo sample [the values were 0.92 (0.90-0.95), 87.0%, 98.0% and 0.85, respectively]. The simplified table also performed well for identifying hypertension in Ji'nan sample with values of AUC (95%CI), sensitivity, specificity, and Kappa statistic as 0.92 (0.91-0.94), 86.9%, 98.1% and 0.85, respectively, which were similar with results in Zibo sample [the values were 0.94 (0.91-0.96), 88.2%, 98.9% and 0.88, respectively]. Conclusion: Screening for elevated and high blood pressure based on simplified height-specific blood pressure cutoffs table is easy to use and it shows satisfying effect.

Risperidone-induced topological alterations of anatomical brain network in first-episode drug-naive schizophrenia patients: a longitudinal diffusion tensor imaging study.

BACKGROUND: It remains unclear whether the topological deficits of the white matter network documented in cross-sectional studies of chronic schizophrenia patients are due to chronic illness or to other factors such as antipsychotic treatment effects. To answer this question, we evaluated the white matter network in medication-naive first-episode schizophrenia patients (FESP) before and after a course of treatment. METHOD: We performed a longitudinal diffusion tensor imaging study in 42 drug-naive FESP at baseline and then after 8 weeks of risperidone monotherapy, and compared them with 38 healthy volunteers. Graph theory was utilized to calculate the topological characteristics of brain anatomical network. Patients' clinical state was evaluated using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) before and after treatment. RESULTS: Pretreatment, patients had relatively intact overall topological organizations, and deficient nodal topological properties primarily in prefrontal gyrus and limbic system components such as the bilateral anterior and posterior cingulate. Treatment with risperidone normalized topological parameters in the limbic system, and the enhancement positively correlated with the reduction in PANSS-positive symptoms. Prefrontal topological impairments persisted following treatment and negative symptoms did not improve. CONCLUSIONS: During the early phase of antipsychotic medication treatment there are region-specific alterations in white matter topological measures. Limbic white matter topological dysfunction improves with positive symptom reduction. Prefrontal deficits and negative symptoms are unresponsive to medication intervention, and prefrontal deficits are potential trait biomarkers and targets for negative symptom treatment development.

Pulsed 808-nm infrared laser stimulation of the auditory nerve in guinea pig cochlea.

Pulsed near-infrared radiation has been proposed as an alternative stimulus for auditory nerve stimulation and could be potentially used in the design of cochlear implant. Although the infrared with high absorption coefficient of water (i.e., wavelength ranged from 1.8 to 2.2 µm) has been widely investigated, the lymph in the cochlea absorbs most of the infrared energies, and only a small part can arrive at the target auditory nerves. The present study is aimed to test whether the short-wavelength near-infrared irradiation with lower absorption coefficients can penetrate the lymph fluid to stimulate the auditory nerves. An 808-nm near-infrared laser was chosen to stimulate the auditory nerve in the guinea pig cochlea. The infrared pulse was delivered by an optical fiber that was surgically inserted near the round window membrane and oriented toward the spiral ganglion cells in the basal turn of the cochlea. The 2-Hz infrared pulses were used to stimulate the cochlea before and after the deafness with different pulse durations (100-1,000 µs). Optically evoked compound action potentials (oCAPs) were recorded during the infrared radiation. We successfully recorded oCAPs from both normal hearing animals and deafened animals. The oCAP amplitude increased with the infrared radiation energy. The preliminary experiment suggests that the near-infrared with lower absorption coefficients can effectively pass through the lymph filled in the cochlea and stimulate the auditory nerve. Further studies will optimize the deafness animal model and determine the optimal stimulation parameters.

Preoperative chemotherapy with a trastuzumab-containing regimen for a patient with gastric cancer and hepatic metastases.

Gastric cancer is the fourth most common cancer worldwide and the leading cause of tumor-related death in China. Gastric cancer is a heterogeneous disease and therefore requires different treatments based on the subtype. We describe a patient who had gastric cancer with liver metastases. Biopsy and tumor analysis using the HercepTest revealed a human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive adenocarcinoma as confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization. The patient was treated with a regimen of trastuzumab, oxaliplatin, and S-1 (six cycles). When positron emission tomography findings suggested that the metastases had resolved, the patient underwent surgery. Histopathologically, no cancer cells were observed in the resected hepatic tissue. The patient underwent tumor resection surgery, during which the tumor and gastric lymph nodes with lesions were removed. The patient has remained disease-free for 3 months. Therefore, trastuzumab may be an effective agent in the chemotherapeutic treatment of liver metastases in patients with HER2-positive gastric adenocarcinoma.

[Current status of pubertal sexual characteristics development of 2 704 girls aged 6-18 years in Tongzhou District of Beijing].

Objective: To understand the current status of pubertal sexual characteristics development of girls aged 6-18 years in Tongzhou District of Beijing and to compare the differences in sexual characteristics development among girls characterized as thin, normal, overweight, and obese. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 2 844 girls aged 6-18 years in Tongzhou District of Beijing from September 2022 to July 2023. The developmental stages of breast and pubic hair were assessed on site, and menarche status was inquired. Weight and height were measured. The girls were subsequently characterized into thin, normal, overweight and obese groups. Basic information (including family and personal history) was obtained through questionnaires. Probit probability unit regression was applied to calculate the age of each Tanner stage of sexual characteristics development and the age of menarche. The χ2 test was applied to compare the counting data between two or multiple groups. Results: A total of 2 844 girls were surveyed and 2 704 girls met the inclusion criteria, resulting in a valid response rate of 95.1%. Among these girls, 1 105 (40.9%) were aged 6-9 years, 1 053 (38.9%) were aged 10-13 years, and 546 (20.2%) were aged 14-18 years. The of height-for-age Z-score (HAZ), weight-for-age Z-score (WAZ), and body mass index-for-age Z-score (BAZ) were 0.46(-0.23,1.16), 0.69(-0.16,1.67), and 0.67(-0.27,1.73) respectively. The prevalences of thin, overweight, and obesity were respectively 1.7% (45/2 704), 17.3% (467/2 704), and 19.9% (538/2 704), respectively. There were 45 girls in the thin group, 1 654 girls in the normal weight group, 1 005 girls in the overweight and obesity group. The age of Tanner stage breast 2 (B2), Tanner stage pubic hair 2 (P2), and menarche was 9.0 (95%CI 8.9-9.1), 10.5 (95%CI 10.4-10.6), and 11.4 (95%CI 11.3-1.5) years, respectively. The current status of breast and pubic hair maturity in girls with pubertal development shows that 64.6% (1 211/1 874) of these girls had breast development preceding pubic hair development, 32.4% (607/1 874) had concurrent breast and pubic hair development, and 3.0% (56/1 874) had pubic hairs development preceding breast development. The interval age between B2 and B5 was 4.7 (95%CI 4.6-4.8) years, between P2 and P5 was 4.5 (95%CI 4.4-4.6) years, and between B2 and menarche was 2.4 (95%CI 2.3-2.5) years. The ages of sexual characteristics development in overweight and obese groups were earlier than that in normal and thin groups. The ages of B2 in thin, normal, overweight, and obese groups were 10.0 (95%CI 9.5-10.6), 9.3 (95%CI 9.2-9.4), and 8.6 (95%CI 8.4-8.7) years, respectively. The age of menarche in thin, normal, overweight, and obese groups were 13.1 (95%CI 12.4-13.7), 11.6 (95%CI 11.4-11.7), and 11.1 (95%CI 11.0-11.2) years, respectively. The interval ages between B2 and B5 and between P2 and P5 was 4.5 and 4.1 years, respectively in the overweight and obese groups, and those in normal group and thin group was 4.7 and 4.5 years, 4.6 and 4.7 years, respectively. Conclusions: The ages of sexual characteristics development and menarche tend in Tongzhou District of Beijing to be earlier than that being reported of Beijing's survey 20 years ago. Girls characterized as overweight and obese not only start puberty at an earlier age than girls of normal weight, but also have a shorter developmental process.

Combined effects of goserelin and tamoxifen on estradiol level, breast density, and endometrial thickness in premenopausal and perimenopausal women with early-stage hormone receptor-positive breast cancer: a randomised controlled clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: This study is to investigate the effects of geserelin+tamoxifen (TAM) on estradiol level, breast density (BD), endometrial thickness (ET), and blood lipids in premenopausal and perimenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive early-stage breast cancer. METHODS: This study recruited 110 premenopausal and perimenopausal patients with hormone receptor-positive early-stage breast cancer between 22 June 2008 and 31 December 2009 and randomly assigned them to receive either goserelin plus TAM or TAM alone for 1.5 years. Blood levels of sex hormones and lipids and ET were determined at 0, 3, 6, 12, and 18 months. Contralateral BD was also measured at 0, 12, and 18 months. RESULTS: Five participants dropped out of the goserelin plus TAM group, and two participants dropped out of the TAM-alone group before initiation of endocrine therapy. The rest of patients received scheduled treatment and 3 years of median follow-up. No serious adverse effects were observed, and only two local recurrences have been observed in these patients. Estradiol level and BD were lower in the goserelin plus TAM group than in the TAM-alone group (P<0.05). The endometrium in the goserelin plus TAM group was significantly thinner than that in the TAM-alone group (P<0.05), and women in the TAM-alone group exhibited endometrial thickening over the course of the study. Furthermore, no significant differences in blood lipid levels were reported between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The data from the current study demonstrated that the addition of goserelin to TAM results in downregulation of estradiol level, followed by significant reduction in BD and ET in premenopausal and perimenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, which may eventually lead to better outcome in these patients.

Irradiation of 850-nm laser light changes the neural activities in rat primary visual cortex.

Although infrared laser was proven to be an alternative approach for neural stimulation, there is very little known about the neural response to infrared laser irradiation in visual cortex. This study is to investigate the effect of near-infrared laser irradiation on neural activities at the cortex level. A 850-nm pigtailed diode laser was applied to stimulate the rat primary visual cortex while the horizontal black and white stripe pattern was used as standard visual stimulation to evoke visual-evoked potential (VEP). Both amplitude and latency of VEP P100 was measured with or without infrared pulse stimulation applied in rat primary visual cortex. Paired t test and one-way analysis of variance were used to evaluate the impact of infrared irradiation and its pulse width on the amplitudes and latencies of P100, respectively. The results from our preliminary study revealed that, the pulsed near-infrared laser depressed the VEP amplitude and shortened the latency of P100; with the increment of pulse width of infrared irradiation, further decline of VEP amplitude and much shortened latency of P100 were observed. The present work suggests that near-infrared laser irradiation can alter the neural activities in primary visual cortex transiently, and could provide a novel contactless artificial neural stimulus to brain cortex with high spatial selectivity.

Association between Intrinsic Capacity and Sarcopenia in Hospitalized Older Patients.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to clarify the association between intrinsic capacity (IC) and sarcopenia in hospitalized older patients. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SETTING: Hospital-based. PARTICIPANTS: This study included 381 inpatients aged ≥ 60 years (225 men and 156 women). MEASUREMENTS: IC was evaluated in five domains defined by the World Health Organization: cognition (Mini-Mental State Examination), locomotion (Short Physical Performance Battery test), vitality (Short-Form Mini Nutritional Assessment), sensory (self-reported hearing and vision) and psychological (5-item Geriatric Depression Scale) capacities. IC composite score (0-5) was calculated based on five domains, with lower scores representing greater IC. Sarcopenia was defined in accordance with the criteria recommended by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS) 2019. Multiple linear and logistic regressions were performed to explore the associations between IC composite score and IC domains with sarcopenia and its defining components. RESULTS: The mean age of 381 patients included was 81.95±8.42 years. Of them, 128 (33.6%) patients had sarcopenia. The median IC composite score was 1 (1, 2). Cognition, locomotion, vitality, sensory and psychological capacities were impaired in 22.6%, 63.5%, 18.9%, 27.3% and 11.3% of patients. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that favorable IC domain scores in cognition, locomotion and vitality were associated with a stronger handgrip strength. A higher vitality score was associated with a greater appendicular skeletal muscle mass index (ASMI), and a higher locomotion score was associated with a greater gait speed. The multiple logistic regression analysis showed that only vitality impairment was associated with sarcopenia. A higher IC composite score was associated with higher risks of sarcopenia, as well as low ASMI, handgrip strength and gait speed. CONCLUSION: This study indicated that a more serious impairment of IC was associated with a greater risk of sarcopenia. Vitality was the domain most strongly associated with sarcopenia. IC may be employed to detect and manage sarcopenia.