Deletion of Bmal1 in aggrecan-expressing cells leads to mouse temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis.

INTRODUCTION: Articular cartilage is the major affected tissue during the development of osteoarthritis (OA) in temporomandibular joint (TMJ). The core circadian rhythm molecule Bmal1 regulates chondrocyte proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis; however, its roles in condylar cartilage function and in TMJ OA have not been fully elucidated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: TMJ OA mouse model was induced by unilateral anterior crossbite (UAC) and Bmal1 protein expression in condylar cartilage were examined by western blot analysis. To determine the role of Bmal1 in TMJ OA, we generated cartilage-specific Bmal1 conditional knockout (cKO) mice (Bmal1Agc1CreER mice) and hematoxylin and eosin staining, toluidine blue and Safranin O/fast green, immunohistochemistry, TUNEL assay, real-time PCR analysis and Western blot assay were followed. RESULTS: Bmal1 expression was reduced in condylar cartilage in a TMJ OA mouse model induced by UAC. The Bmal1 cKO mice displayed decreased cartilage matrix synthesis, reduced chondrocyte proliferation, increased chondrocyte hypertrophy and apoptosis as well as the upregulation of YAP expression in TMJ condylar cartilage. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that Bmal1 was essential for TMJ tissue homeostasis and loss-of-function of Bmal1 in chondrocytes leads to the development of TMJ OA.

Preoperative versus postoperative ultrasound-guided rectus sheath block for improving pain, sleep quality and cytokine levels in patients with open midline incisions undergoing transabdominal gynecological surgery: a randomized-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Nerve block is usually performed before surgery because it inhibits reflection of the skin incision and reduces the amount of intraoperative anesthetic used. We hypothesized that performing rectus sheath block (RSB) after surgery would result in a longer duration of the analgesic effects and have a subtle influence on sleep time after surgery but that it would not decrease the perioperative cytokine levels of patients undergoing gynecological surgery. METHODS: A randomized, double-blinded, controlled trial was conducted from October 2015 to June 2016. Seventy-seven patients undergoing elective transabdominal gynecological surgery were randomly assigned to the following two groups: a general anesthesia group who received 0.5% ropivacaine hydrochloride RSB preoperatively and saline RSB postoperatively, and another group who received the opposite sequence. The objective of the trial was to evaluate the postoperative pain, sleep and changes in cytokine levels of patients during the postoperative 48 h. RESULTS: A total of 61 female patients (mean age: 50 years; range: 24-65 years) were included in the final study sample. There was no significant difference in the pain, consumption of oxycodone, or time to first administration of patient-controlled intravenous analgesia between the two groups. The postoperative sleep stages N2 and N3 were increased by 52.9 and 29.1 min per patient, respectively, in the preoperative RSB group compared with those in the postoperative group. The preoperative IL-6 concentration in the preoperative RSB group was lower than that in the same group at the end of surgery and 24 h postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that preoperative RSB might preserve postoperative sleep by inhibiting the increase of IL-6 without shortening the analgesia time compared with postoperative RSB in female patients undergoing elective midline incision transabdominal gynecological surgery. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT02477098 , registered on 15 June 2015.

Changes in the first postoperative night bispectral index of patients after thyroidectomy with different types of primary anesthetic management: a randomized controlled trial.

Despite major advances in anesthesia management and developments in anesthetic agents, postoperative sleep disturbances remain dissatisfactory for many patients. We hypothesized that propofol might have a subtle influence on sleep after thyroidectomy compared to sevoflurane. A randomized, single-blinded, controlled trial was conducted at the First Hospital of China Medical University from October 2014 to October 2015. One hundred and twenty-four patients undergoing thyroidectomy were enrolled and received sevoflurane (sevoflurane group) or propofol (propofol group) as anesthesia maintenance. Major assessments were made during the operation (different types of anesthetic management) and on the first postoperative night (sleep status). The primary outcome was postoperative sleep status, measured by the BIS-Vista monitor on the first night after surgery between propofol and sevoflurane groups. A total of 105 patients (79 women, 26 men; mean age 49 years; range 18-65 years) were included in the final study sample. All patients in both groups showed one of the five sleep patterns classified by this trial. The BIS-area under the curve was decreased, the sleep efficiency index was significantly increased, and the durations of postoperative sleep and sleep stage N3 were increased by 110.5 and 36.5 min per patient, respectively, in the propofol compared to the sevoflurane group. Propofol might preserve sleep time immediately after thyroidectomy. Clinical Trials.gov identifier: NCT 02146976.

Effects of ultrasound-guided stellate-ganglion block on sleep and regional cerebral oxygen saturation in patients undergoing breast cancer surgery: a randomized, controlled, double-blinded trial.

Numerous factors could contribute to sleep disturbances in women with breast cancer. We hypothesized that stellate ganglion block (SGB) during surgery would preserve sleep after surgery and increase intraoperative regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2) on the blocked side in patients undergoing breast cancer surgery. A randomized, double-blinded, controlled trial was conducted at the First Hospital of China Medical University from January 2016 to September 2016. Ninety-six patients who underwent radical breast cancer surgery requiring general anaesthesia were randomly assigned to one of two study groups: a control group that received a saline SGB and a block group that received a 0.25% ropivacaine hydrochloride SGB. The primary outcome measure was the postoperative sleep profile, which was assessed using the bispectral index on the first postoperative night. The secondary outcome measure was the intraoperative rSO2, monitored was throughout surgery using near-infrared spectroscopy. A total of 91 female patients (mean age: 45 years; range 24-51 years) were included in the study. The duration of sleep was significantly increased by 66.3 min in the ropivacaine-SGB group compared with the saline-SGB group. No differences in rSO2 were observed on either the left or right side of the patients in either group 50 min after anaesthesia induction. We conclude that ropivacaine-SGB combined with general anaesthesia might increase the first postoperative sleep duration without influencing the intraoperative rSO2 in female patients undergoing elective breast cancer surgery. Clinical trials.gov identifier NCT02651519.

Effects of CO2 Pneumoperitoneum on the Cognitive Function of Patients Undergoing Gynecologic Laparoscopy.

AIM: To evaluate the effects of CO2 pneumoperitoneum during gynecologic laparoscopy on patients' postoperative cognitive function. METHODS: This prospective clinical study included 225 adult female patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status I or II. Patients underwent conventional open surgery (group I, n = 115) or gynecologic laparoscopy using abdominal insufflation with CO2 to an intra-abdominal pressure of 15 mm Hg (group II, n = 110). Serum S100ß and neuron-specific enolase (NSE) concentrations were measured, both immediately before surgery and before the patient awoke after surgery. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was administered 1 day before surgery as well as 1, 6, 12, 24 and 72 h after surgery and before discharge. RESULTS: MMSE scores were significantly lower relative to baseline at 1, 6 and 12 h post surgery, but returned to baseline by 48 h (group I) or 72 h (group II) post surgery. One hour after surgery, S100ß serum levels were higher in group II than in group I (p < 0.05). NSE levels did not differ between the groups. In group II, the MMSE score significantly correlated with serum S100ß or NSE concentrations. CONCLUSION: CO2 pneumoperitoneum influences postoperative cognitive function in patients undergoing gynecologic laparoscopy.

[Anatomical characteristics of the pelvic floor muscles in young nulliparous women based on three-dimensional MRI].

OBJECTIVE: To analyse anatomical characteristics of the pelvic floor in young nulliparous volunteers based on three-dimensional MRI. METHODS: Thin-slice MRI was performed in 25 young nulliparous volunteers in Southern Medical University, MRI were imported into Mimics 10.01 for 3D reconstruction.Using 3D models we measured follow indicators: the levator ani muscle volume (LVOL) , levator plate angle (LPA), levator hiatus width (LH-W)and length (LH-L), distance between symphysis and levator sling muscle (LSG). RESULTS: (1) 25 cases of pelvic three-dimensional models was successfully constructed, including the pelvis, pelvic organs and the pelvic floor muscles (including the ischial coccyx muscle, levator ani muscle and its various components, perineal muscles), the models could be able to clearly reflect the level of the pelvic floor muscles; (2) 25 cases of levator ani muscle measurement results:LVOL: (34 ± 6) cm(3), LPA: (43 ± 4) °, LH-W: (33 ± 4) mm, LH-L: (54 ± 5) mm, left LSG: (18.8 ± 2.5) mm, right LSG: (18.3 ± 2.5) mm. CONCLUSIONS: It is an effective way to use the computer to reconstruct the 3D model of female pelvic floor muscles using MRI data set. The quantitative analysis of levator ani muscle three-dimensional model can be assessed pelvic floor function, which is of great value in clinical practice.It is helpful to understand the pelvic floor disorders pathogenesis, clinical diagnosis, treatment options and treatment evaluation to provide reference standards.

Functional analysis of the type 3 effector nodulation outer protein L (NopL) from Rhizobium sp. NGR234: symbiotic effects, phosphorylation, and interference with mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling.

Pathogenic bacteria use type 3 secretion systems to deliver virulence factors (type 3 effector proteins) directly into eukaryotic host cells. Similarly, type 3 effectors of certain nitrogen-fixing rhizobial strains affect nodule formation in the symbiosis with host legumes. Nodulation outer protein L (NopL) of Rhizobium sp. strain NGR234 is a Rhizobium-specific type 3 effector. Nodulation tests and microscopic analysis showed that distinct necrotic areas were rapidly formed in ineffective nodules of Phaseolus vulgaris (cv. Tendergreen) induced by strain NGRΩnopL (NGR234 mutated in nopL), indicating that NopL antagonized nodule senescence. Further experiments revealed that NopL interfered with mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling in yeast and plant cells (Nicotiana tabacum). Expression of nopL in yeast disrupted the mating pheromone (α-factor) response pathway, whereas nopL expression in N. tabacum suppressed cell death induced either by overexpression of the MAPK gene SIPK (salicylic acid-induced protein kinase) or by SIPK(DD) (mutation in the TXY motif resulting in constitutive MAPK activity). These data indicate that NopL impaired function of MAPK proteins or MAPK substrates. Furthermore, we demonstrate that NopL was multiply phosphorylated either in yeast or N. tabacum cells that expressed nopL. Four phosphorylated serines were confirmed by mass spectrometry. All four phosphorylation sites exhibit a Ser-Pro pattern, a typical motif in MAPK substrates. Taken together, data suggest that NopL mimics a MAPK substrate and that NopL suppresses premature nodule senescence by impairing MAPK signaling in host cells.

Expression and purification of coronavirus envelope proteins using a modified ß-barrel construct.

Coronavirus envelope (E) proteins are short (~100 residues) polypeptides that contain at least one transmembrane (TM) domain and a cluster of 2-3 juxtamembrane cysteines. These proteins are involved in viral morphogenesis and tropism, and their absence leads in some cases to aberrant virions, or to viral attenuation. In common to other viroporins, coronavirus envelope proteins increase membrane permeability to ions. Although an NMR-based model for the TM domain of the E protein in the severe acute respiratory syndrome virus (SARS-CoV E) has been reported, structural data and biophysical studies of full length E proteins are not available because efficient expression and purification methods for these proteins are lacking. Herein we have used a novel fusion protein consisting of a modified ß-barrel to purify both wild type and cysteine-less mutants of two representatives of coronavirus E proteins: the shortest (76 residues), from SARS-CoV E, and one of the longest (109 residues), from the infectious bronchitis virus (IBV E). The fusion construct was subsequently cleaved with cyanogen bromide and all polypeptides were obtained with high purity. This is an approach that can be used in other difficult hydrophobic peptides.

[Effect of electroacupuncture on the cognitive function and plasma antibodies against beta-amyloid protein in aged rats with ketamine anesthesia].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) on the changes of behavior after ketamine anesthesia, and changes of serum antibodies against beta-amyloid (Abeta) and Abeta protein in the hippocampus of aged rats, thus exploring the effects of EA on the cognitive dysfunction. METHODS: Thirty 14-month old SD rats were randomly divided into 3 groups, i. e. , the control group (Group A), the ketamine anesthesia group (Group B), and the EA+ketamine anesthesia group (Group C), 10 in each group. 50 mg/kg katemine was intraperitoneally injected to rats in Group B and Group C, once daily for 7 successive days. EA was performed to rats in Group C from the 1st day of the experiment after rats awoke completely from anesthesia, twice daily for 7 successive days. Changes of the ratio of the swim time in the original platform quadrant to the total swim time and the escape latency phase were observed by Morris water maze. The peripheral blood was withdrawn by the end of the experiment. Serum anti-Abeta antibody contents were detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The expressions of Abeta in the hippocampus were detected using Westen blot. RESULTS: Long-term application of ketamine could lower aged rats' cognitive function. In the navigation test, the escape latency phase of rats in Group B was significantly prolonged ( P < 0.01) . On the 7th day of the experiment, the serum level of anti-Abeta antibodies was lower in Group B than in Group A (P < 0.05), while the serum level of anti-Abeta antibodies was significantly higher in Group C than in Group B (P < 0.01). On the 7th day of the experiment, the expression of Abeta in the hippocampus was higher in Group B than in Group A (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: EA could increase the contents of anti-Abeta antibodies in aged rats with ketamine anesthesia, decrease the expression of Abeta in the hippocampus, alleviate the deposition of Abeta, thus improving rats' cognitive dysfunction.

Ketamine reduces inducible superoxide generation in human neutrophils in vitro by modulating the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-mediated pathway.

Many cellular stresses and inflammatory stimuli can activate p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), a serine/threonine kinase in the MAPK family. The different stimuli act via different receptors or signalling pathways to induce phosphorylation of the cytosolic protein p47(phox), one subunit of the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase. Formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP) has been shown to induce the p38 MAPK phosphorylation during the respiratory burst in human neutrophils. Here, we show that treatment with S(+)-ketamine or R(-)-ketamine at different concentrations (50, 100, 200, 400 microM) reduced fMLP-induced superoxide anion generation and p47(phox) phosphorylation in neutrophils in a concentration-dependent manner (y = -0.093x + 93.35 for S(+)-ketamine and y = -0.0982x + 95.603 for R(-)-ketamine, respectively). While treatment with 50 microM ketamine inhibited fMLP-induced superoxide generation by 10%, treatment with 400 microM S(+)-ketamine and R(-)-ketamine reduced fMLP-induced superoxide generation to 60.5 +/- 8.3% and 60.0 +/- 8.5%, respectively, compared with that in neutrophils treated with fMLP alone. Furthermore, treatment with ketamine down-regulated both fMLP-induced p47(phox) and isoproterenol-induced p38 MAPK phosphorylation and superoxide production. Interestingly, treatment with SB203580, the p38 MAPK inhibitor, also mitigated fMLP-induced superoxide anion generation and p38 MAPK and p47(phox) phosphorylation as well as apoptosis in a concentration-dependent fashion in neutrophils. Therefore, ketamine racemes inhibited fMLP-induced superoxide anion generation and p47(phox) phosphorylation by modulating fMLP-mediated p38 MAPK activation in neutrophils.

Chronic bilateral asynchronous achilles tendon rupture treated using modified whole flexor hallucis longus transfer reconstruction: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Achilles tendon rupture is common, but bilateral ruptures are very rare. Treatment of chronic Achilles tendon rupture is very challenging due tendon retraction and atrophied. We report a case of bilateral asynchronous Achilles tendon rupture patient who was treated with modified minimally invasive whole flexor hallucis longus (FHL) tendon transfer to repair the defects. PATIENT CONCERNS: A 52-year-old male farmer presented to our hospital complaining of bilateral heel pain that had disrupted his walking for 6 months. The patient had been misdiagnosed and under-treated for 1 year. Physical examination showed that his plantar flexors were tender and weak, with marked hypotrophy of the calf muscles. Bilateral ankle radiographs of both X-ray and computed topography (CT) revealed no bone injure. DIAGNOSIS: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) indicated a bilateral Achilles tendon rupture. The diagnosis was further confirmed by postoperative histological examination, which revealed Achilles tendonitis accompanied by regional calcification and chondrometaplasia. INTERVENTIONS: Surgical reconstruction of the ruptured Achilles tendons was done through a modified minimally invasive whole FHL tendon transfer followed by physiotherapy. OUTCOMES: The patient was immobilized in a cast for the next 6 weeks, gradual weight bearing gradually was then encouraged for another 6 weeks, and full weight-bearing started 3 months after surgery. By 6-month postoperation, the patient could walk and jog normally returned to his pre-injury working condition. CONCLUSION: Surgical intervention is among the primary treatment of chronic Achilles tendon rupture. However, one of the challenges in its treatment is providing suitable graft for tendon reconstruction. Our case presents a successful reconstruction procedure using less-invasive whole FHL transfer technique. This surgical technique provides satisfactory clinical and functional outcome and can be considered for future therapy.

Neuroprotective effect of intermittent hypobaric hypoxia preconditioning on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion in rats.

BACKGROUND: Ischemic tolerance is an endogenous protective mechanism in organs or tissues undergoing one or more short-term sublethal ischemias. Intermittent hypobaric hypoxia preconditioning (IHHP) can induce tolerance and thus protect brain tissues from cerebral ischemic injury (CIR). The current study evaluated the neuroprotective effect of IHHP. METHODS: The established xenograft model was divided into the ischemia/reperfusion (I/R), IHHP, IHHP+I/R, and sham groups. Transmission electron microscopy was used to observe alterations in neuron ultrastructure. Neuron damage was detected using Nissl staining. Western blot and qRT-PCR were used to evaluate the relative expression of genes and proteins related to apoptosis. Immunohistochemistry was used to determine the expression of proteins involved in the processes of neuroprotection and repair. RESULTS: Our results indicated that the damage to the neurons, organelles, and axons was significantly less following ischemia/reperfusion and intermittent hypobaric hypoxia reconditioning treatment than that in the ischemia/reperfusion group. Compared to the ischemia/reperfusion group, significant downregulation of pro-apoptotic gene/protein expressions along with upregulation of anti-apoptotic and nerve regeneration gene/protein expressions in the IHHP+I/R group were observed. CONCLUSION: IHHP can significantly reduce ischemia/reperfusion injury in rat brain nerves and promote nerve repair.

Value of MRI biliary score and liver/muscle ratio in evaluating the pathological grade of liver fibrosis / 临床肝胆病杂志

ObjectiveTo investigate the value of biliary score and hepatic signal intensity-to-muscle signal intensity ratio （HMR） obtained by multiphase contrast-enhanced MRI scan using Gd-EOB-DTPA in evaluating the pathological grade of liver fibrosis. MethodsA retrospective analysis was performed for the MRI and clinical data of 51 patients with chronic hepatitis B liver fibrosis in Wuming Hospital Affiliated to Guangxi Medical University from January 2020 to May 2023. The 51 patients with liver fibrosis were divided into low-grade group （S1-S2） and high-grade group （S3-S4）. GE Architact 3.0T MR scanner was used to perform MRI scans， including routine plain scan and contrast-enhanced scan at arterial phase， portal venous phase， delayed phase， hepatobiliary phase， and excretory phase， and biliary score and HMR were measured for the patients with different grades of liver fibrosis. The t-test was used for comparison of continuous data between groups， and the chi-square test or the Fisher’s exact test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups. The receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve was plotted to evaluate the value of MRI indicators in determining the pathological grade of liver fibrosis. ResultsAmong the 51 patients with liver fibrosis， there were 30 patients in the low-grade group and 21 in the high-grade group. Compared with the high-grade group， the low-grade group had significantly higher biliary score （3.67±0.55 vs 2.57±0.75， t=6.05， P<0.001） and HMR at portal venous phase （2.38±0.76 vs 1.97±0.18， t=2.41， P=0.020）， delayed phase （2.48±0.70 vs 1.99±0.27， t=3.09， P=0.003）， and hepatobiliary phase （4.10±0.63 vs 3.16±0.47， t=5.81， P<0.001）. The above indicators had an area under the ROC curve （AUC） of 0.86， 0.79， 0.82， and 0.88， respectively， in distinguishing low- and high-grade liver fibrosis， with a positive rate of 70%， 63.3%， 83.3%， and 96.7%， respectively， and a negative rate of 90%， 95.2%， 74.1%， and 100%， respectively， in the diagnosis of high-grade liver fibrosis. Biliary score combined HMR had an AUC of 0.95， with a positive rate of 85.7% and a negative rate of 96.7%. ConclusionBiliary score and HMR at hepatobiliary phase obtained by multiphase contrast-enhanced MRI scan using Gd-EOB-DTPA has a relatively high diagnostic efficacy in distinguishing between low- and high-grade liver fibrosis and a certain guiding value for the diagnosis and treatment of liver fibrosis in clinical practice.

Influence of immobilization on phenanthrene degradation by Bacillus sp. P1 in the presence of Cd(II).

Suspended microbes gradually lost advantages in practical applications of PAHs and heavy metals bioremediation. Therefore this study investigated the effect of immobilization on phenanthrene degradation by Bacillus sp. P1 in the presence of different Cd(II) concentrations. Condensed Bacillus sp. P1 was immobilized with polyvinyl alcohol and sodium alginate and PVA-SA-cell cryogel beads were prepared. The results indicated that the use of gel beads increased the number of adsorption sites thus accelerating phenanthrene degradation. In addition, changes in detoxification indices, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione (GSH), were determined to elucidate the immobilization mechanisms related to cells protection from Cd(II) when degrading phenanthrene. By protecting the gel membrane, oxidative damage was minimized, while SOD activity increased from 55.72 to 81.33 U/mgprot as Cd(II) increased from 0 to 200 mg/L but later dropped to 44.29 U/mgprot as Cd(II) increased to 300 mg/L for the non-immobilized system. On the other hand, the SOD activity kept increasing from 52.23 to 473.35 U/mgprot for the immobilized system exposed to Cd(II) concentration between 0 and 300 mg/L. For CAT and GSH, immobilization only slowed down the depletion process without any change on the variation trends. The changes in surface properties and physiological responses of microbes caused the differences of immobilization effect on phenanthrene biodegradation in the presence of Cd(II), which is a novel finding.

Clinical application of single breath-holding left ventricle artificial intelligence assisted compression sensing T 2-weighted dark blood imaging sequence / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To explore the feasibility of cardiac T 2 weighted dark blood sequence (T 2W-DB) based on artificial intelligence assisted compression-sensing(ACS) in clinical cardiac MR examination, compared with the conventional cardiac fast spin-echo T 2W-DB sequence. Methods:A total of 38 patients referred for cardiac MR examination in Tongji Hospital were enrolled prospectively from August to December 2021. The conventional T 2W-DB scan and the single-shot ACS T 2W-DB scan were acquired at continuous short-axial slices covering the whole left ventricle in all patients, and the acquisition time of each scan was recorded. The image quality of the two sequences was evaluated by the objective quantitative parameters and the subjective scoring methods, respectively. The signal to noise ratio (SNR), the contrast to noise ratio of the interventricular septum to blood pool (CNR), and the sharpness of the images were calculated. The subjective scoring was to evaluate the overall image quality, the effect of blood pool suppression, the visibility of right ventricular free wall, left ventricular free wall, and interventricular septum with a 5-point Likert scale. The intraclass correlation coefficient and Kendall W were calculated to evaluate the interobserver agreement of the objective quantitative parameters and subjective scoring. The paired t-test or Wilcoxon test was used to compare the difference in acquisition time, objective quantitative parameters and subjective scoring between the conventional T 2W-DB and the single-shot ACS T 2W-DB. Results:The inter-observer agreement between the single-shot ACS T 2W-DB and conventional T 2W-DB was good in all the objective quantitative parameters and subjective scoring of image quality ( P<0.05 for all). Compared with conventional T 2W-DB, acquisition time of single-shot ACS T 2W-DB was remarkably shortened [(85.8±14.7) s vs. (16.9±3.0) s, t=35.42, P<0.001]. Compared with SNR (66.4±29.0) and CNR(61.8±28.6) of conventional T 2W-DB, single-shot ACS T 2W-DB had significantly higher SNR(110.8±36.8, t=-8.13, P?0.001) and CNR(88.2±31.1, t=-5.89, P?0.001). Compared with conventional T 2W-DB, single-shot ACS T 2W-DB had better blood pool inhibition effect (4.6±0.6 vs. 4.7±0.5, Z=-2.64, P=0.008). There was no significant difference in overall image quality, visibility of right ventricular free wall, left ventricular free wall, and interventricular septum between the two sequences( P>0.05 for all). Conclusions:In cardiac MR examination, compared with the conventional T 2W-DB sequence, the single-shot ACS T 2W-DB sequence can significantly shorten the acquisition time and obtain better image quality.

[Effect of short-term global health training on tropical diseases and its related factors].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of short-term global health training on tropical diseases in China, so as to provide the reference in professional trainings. METHODS: The study took the short-term global health training project on tropical diseases in China as an example. The structured questionnaires were distributed to each trainee pre- and post-training course. RESULTS: A total of 89 trainees were included in the survey, and 68.5% (61 cases) of the trainees were older than 35 years and 85.4% (76 cases) of the trainees came from provincial institutes. The passing rate for the test of global health knowledge was significantly improved from the pre-training test (18.0%, 16/89) to the post one (68.2%, 58/85) (χ2 = 44.930, P < 0.05) . The knowledge of global health was closely related to the professionals' capacity, i.e., the education level, age, professional title, and experience of international cooperation, but was not statistically related to their genders. CONCLUSIONS: This kind of short-term trainings not only greatly improves the professionals' knowledge of tropical diseases control, but also is expected to play a leading role in the international cooperation of global health and tropical diseases control in the future.