Search

Objective To investigate the effect of 3 laparoscopic surgical procedures (hysterectomy, oophorectomy and fallectomy) on anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) level. Methods A total of 162 women who were treated with laparoscopic surgical procedures (56 cases of hysterectomy, 52 cases of oophorectomy and 54 cases of fallectomy) in our department from November 2019 to February 2021 were enrolled in this study. The AMH level of each patient was compared preoperatively, and 1, 3 and 6 months postoperatively. The changes in AMH for the same type, different surgical procedures, were also compared. Results No statistical difference was observed in preoperative serum AMH level among the 3 groups of patients (P>0.05), and the level was significantly decreased in the ovarian and hysterectomy groups than the fallopian tube group in 1 month postoperatively (P=0.04). At 3 and 6 months postoperatively, there was no difference in serum AMH level in the 3 groups (P=0.1, P=0.33), and △AMH level was decreased gradually. For the same type, different surgical procedures, when compared with subtotal hysterectomy, serum AMH level was decreased more significantly in patients with total hysterectomy at 1, 3 and 6 months postoperatively than preoperative level (P=0.016, P=0.021, P=0.021), and the decrease in AMH was more obviously in bilateral than in unilateral oophorectomy. Conclusion All these 3 types of common laparoscopic gynecological surgeries affect ovarian function, with ovarian surgery most significant, followed by hysterectomy and then salpingo-oophorectomy. Total uterine resection has more obvious effect on postoperative decline in ovarian reserve than sub-total uterine resection, and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy than unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, especially in 1 month postoperatively, while no such effect is observed in unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy.

In this study, the composition of volatile flavor substances during the fermentation of cream was analyzed by solid phase microextraction (SPME) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). A total of 32 volatile substances were identified at five different periods, among which acids were the most abundant. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that the composition of volatile compounds differed at different fermentation periods, and samples from different periods could be clearly distinguished. Nine key flavor components, including capric acid, caprylic acid, δ-decalactone, 2-nonanone and 3-hydroxy-2-butanone, were identified by calculating odor activity values (OAVs). Five sensory attributes of the samples were scored by descriptive sensory analysis. The correlations between key flavor substances and sensory attributes were analyzed by partial least squares regression (PLSR) analysis, and it was found that the fermented and creamy flavor had strong correlations with capric acid, capric acid, δ-decalactone, 2-decanone, 2-nonanone and 3-hydroxy-2-butanone. This study is of great significance to regulating the production of fermented cream.

Aimed at the problem that lift check valves cannot fall back to the normal position, the dynamic simulation of unsteady flow in the process of opening and falling back are conducted by using PumpLinx, and the structure of the valve body is proposed and improved. The dynamic response and internal flow field distribution of the prototype and the improved check valves are obtained. The results show that the dynamic opening time and small gap falling time of the improved check valve are significantly reduced by more than 50% compared with those of the prototype. The four additional guide grooves of the improved check valve can promptly discharge the squeezed fluid from the valve core during dynamic opening, and can promptly supplement the fluid when it falls back, so that the fluid force, the pulsation, and the velocity oscillation are weakened, which can make the valve core stable without easy deflection in the dynamic process. Therefore, the check valve proposed can improve the flow stability and solve the problem that the check valve cannot fall back normally.

Network community division is the basis of concept cognition and pattern learning from social networks, and is also a hot topic in the study of machine learning under the network background. In order to make full use of the advantages of formal concepts and network characteristic values, this paper discusses the problem of network community division based on network formal contexts. It firstly gives the notions of network node centrality and centralization based on the information of network structure and node attributes, which makes the division of network community in a network formal context take into account the characteristics of the network structure and node connotation. Then, the network community concept of network formal context is presented. It not only obtains the formal concept of a traditional formal context, but also includes the network characteristic values of the concept. As a result, the average importance of the concept in the network can be described as well as the different quantity between the average importances. Furthermore, considering the characteristics of multiple roles and network orienta-tion in the division of a social network, the directed network is divided into single-role network and double-role network. Besides, two network community division algorithms are proposed by combining the information of network structure and node attributes, and their time complexities are analyzed. Finally, examples are used to show the effectiveness of the proposed network community division algorithms. The obtained rusults can provide a reference for the further study of network data mining and network concept cognition.

In order to relieve the alarm fatigue of security analysts and improve the security operation efficiency, an attacker IP analysis system based on the Ensemble-based Local Outlier Factor algorithm (EBLOF) was proposed in this paper. Firstly, normalized network security alarm logs were extracted and merged, and then the feature engineering was constructed from the attribute dimension and attack behavior dimension of attacker IP. Secondly, inspired by the idea of ensemble learning and traditional LOF anomaly detection algorithm, a robust EBLOF algorithm of finding high-threat attacker IP was constructed in the system. Thirdly, a set of online learning architecture was built by the system, aiming to solve the problem that the machine learning model was difficultly updated online. Through the batch real-time learning technology, the learning architectures ensure that the learning model can be updated online from the system architecture level rather than the algorithm level. Finally, the EBLOF algorithm of this paper was trained on the public anomaly detection data set ODD. The experimental results showed a fact that the algorithm has better robustness than the naive LOF algorithm under different data distributions. The system proposed in the paper was applied in real attack and defense scenarios. Its effectiveness and feasibility were verified by comparing with security operation analysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objectives] The inherent capacity of ship system is an important part of efficiency. In order to evaluate and research inherent capacity of ship system,[Methods] for the function indexes which are difficult to be quantized, the quantitative correspondence between fault status and the function indexes is established by the external test point test and reliability model on the basis of the index system of ship system. A multi-classed robust energy model least squares twin support vector machine (RELS-TSVM) method is used to make a preliminary evaluation for the system inherent capacity.[Results] The simulation result show that the multi-classification evaluation model proposed in this paper improves the classification accuracy by 8.97% compared with the model of simple support vector machine. With the help of added system-level test plan, the coverage ratio of system faults is improved, the credibility of evaluation results is increased, and the problem of data acquisition difficulty in data-driven inherent capacity evaluation methods is solved.[Conclusions] The feasibility and advantage of ship system inherent capacity evaluation scheme based on test analysis and RELS-TSVM are verified. This paper provides a new idea for weapon equipment efficiency evaluation and research.

Objective To explore the correlation between serum leptin level and insulin resistance, together with the correlation between the two indexes and the indicator of sleep breathing monitoring of patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) . Methods We selected 69 patients without any treatment as the study group and 20 healthy volunteers as the control group. Then we tested the indicators of PSG monitoring, body mass index (BMI), fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting serum leptin and fasting insulin (FINS) and evaluated the insulin resistance according to HOMA-IR. 1. (1) Based on AHI, four groups were divided, including normal control group (n =10), mild group (n = 19), moderate group (n=26) and severe group (n = 24); (2) Based on AHI and BMI, four groups were divided, including group A (normal control group, n = 10), group B (simple obese, n =10), group C (non-obese OSAHS, n = 27), group D (obese OSAHS, n = 42) . The fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting serum leptin and fasting insulin (FINS) and HOMA-IR were compared between different groups. (3) We analyzed the correlation between serum leptin level and HOMA-IR, and the correlation between serum leptin level, HOMA-IR and FBG, FINS, indicators of PSG monitoring as well. Results (1) As to serum leptin level, FINS, HOMA-IR, of which the severe OSAHS group was higher than those of the mild, moderate and control group, group B, C, and D were higher than group A (P < 0.05), group D was higher than group B and C (P < 0.05) . (2) As to FBG, of which the severe OSAHS group was higher than that of the mild and control group (P < 0.05), group B, C, and D were higher than group A (P < 0. 05), group D was higher than group B and C (P < 0.05) . (3) There was no significant diffidence in these indexes between group B and C, and between the mild and moderate group (P > 0.05) . (4) The OSAHS patient's serum leptin level was positively correlated with HOMA-IR; serum leptin, HOMA-IR were positively correlated with FBG, FINS, AHI, BMI, ESS, and negatively correlated with the nocturnal lowest SaO2 and the nocturnal average SaO2. Conclusions The increase of serum leptin level and insulin resistance of OSAHS patients is associated with sleep-disorder breathing ( SDB) and hypoxia. The OSAHS patient's insulin resistance is associated with the rising of serum leptin level, the severity of OSAHS may influence leptin secretion and insulin resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The traditional spectral clustering algorithm is greatly affected by its scale parameter use in Gaussian kernel, and is sensitive to noise and outliers in the data, and can't use priori information to guide the clustering process. To solve these problems, this paper proposed a robust path-based similarity measurement for spectral clustering (RPB-SC). The algorithm combined path-based clustering with spectral clustering. It computed the similarity between samples by defining a weighted local scale in Gaussian kernel and adjusted the whole similarity by path-based clustering. Meanwhile, it incorporated pairwise constraints in data to assist clustering search. Experiments on synthetic as well as real world datasets show that the new proposed method will not be affected by the scale parameter and is significantly more robust, leading to substantial performance enhancement of clustering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To evaluate the effects of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) treatment on fasting serum leptin concentration and insulin resistance in patients with OSAHS. Methods Fasting serum leptin levels, FPG, FINS, HOMA-IR, BMI, AHI, ESS, the lowest oxygen saturation, the mean oxygen saturation (Spo2) and the sleep time of oxygen saturation below 90% were measured before and after on nCPAP in 16 moderate- severe OSAHS patients. The correlations of the change of serum leptin levels, the change of insulin resistance and indicators of the change of OSAHS with treatment were analyzed. Results The serum leptin levels, AHI, the sleep time of oxygen saturation below 90%, ESS were significantly decreased after nCPAP treatment (P < 0.01), the nocturnal lowest SpO2 and the nocturnal average SpO2 were significantly increased after nCPAP treatment (P < 0.01), while HOMA-IR, FBG, FINS and BMI did not change after treatment. The change of serum leptin levels was positively correlated with the change of the nocturnal lowest SpO2 and the change of AHI in OSAHS patients with treatment. Conclusion nCPAP therapy can reduce the serum leptin levels, improve sleep-disordered breathing, but can not improve insulin resistance and fasting serum glucose, the change of serum leptin levels is correlated with the change of the nocturnal lowest SpO2 and the change of AHI in OSAHS patients with nCPAP treatment, indicating the importance of improving sleep-disorder in OSAHS patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clustering is a critical analytical tool in data mining. An improved density-based clustering algorithm concerning local center object is proposed based on the classical DBS CAN algorithm. In this algorithm, the density of each object is measured by its k-nearest neighbors. The object which has the local maximal density is regarded as the center object. The data set is divided into different districts. The cluster expands from the center object until the edge decided by the scale-factor of density. To improve the quality of clustering, the candidate core object is proposed in the algorithm. Core objects can be recognized from candidate core objects, so that current clustering is expanded. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm is considerably effective in reducing the sensitivity of the parameters, improving the clustering results with maldistribution of data sets and enhancing the clustering accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To improve the adaptability of the mathematical models for the partition curve and further explicit the meaning of parameters in the models, a four-parameter mathematical model for partition curve was constructed based on the generalized normal distribution of three parameters including skew coefficient. The new model was established by separation density, ecart probable, skew coefficient and kurtosis coefficient directly as parameters, where kurtosis coefficient was newly added. Examined by 16 groups of partition curve data from heavy medium cyclone, jigger and spiral separators, the model has good fitness. The skew coefficient and kurtosis coefficient provide good instructions for the symmetrical characteristics and the shape of the two ends of partition curves, respectively. The partition curve is of left skew and the low density contaminant increases when the skew coefficient is positive. By contrast, the partition curve is of right skew and the high density contaminant increases when the skew coefficient is negative. The kurtosis coefficient affects the shape of the two ends of the partition curves. Larger kurtosis coefficient means higher separation sharpness at the two ends. A mathematical model with five parameters was also suggested, which can further improve the fitting precision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to study the effect of particle size and density on the classification and separation of cyclones, separation experiments of <3 mm coal slimes were carried out on a hydrocyclone with 20° cone and a water-only cyclone with 130° cone. Screen and sink-and-float analysis of each size fraction were conducted and the distribution law of particles with different size and density was obtained. The results show that classification predominates in hydrocyclone with 20° cone, while density-based separation effect does exist in each size fraction, and the density-based separation effect is especially significant for <0.125 mm fraction, which is the origin of low ash coarse coal loss into the vortex finder and fine coal slime entrainment in the underflow. Density-based separation predominates in water-only cyclone with 130° cone while significant classification does occur for particles of higher density, which is the origin of high ash contaminate in the vortex finder. This size-based classification does not occur for low density particles, but becomes apparent for higher density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We established a mixed-effects model incorporating climatic factors for the base diameter and length of the primary branches of Larix kaempferi using stepwise regression, based on climatic data from a total of 40 standard plots located in Xiaolongshan, Gansu Province, Changlinggang Forest Farm in Jianshi County, Hubei Province, and Dagujia Forest Farm in Qingyuan County, Liaoning Province, as well as the data from 120 L. kaempferi sample trees. Additionally, we created prediction charts for the fixed effects portion of the optimal mixed model to determine the relationship between climatic factors and base diameter and branch length, to explore the differential response of L. kaempferi branches to climatic variables. The results showed that the base diameter mixing model with annual mean temperature and water vapor deficit and the branch length mixing model with annual mean temperature had the best fitting effect, with R 2 of 0.6152 and 0.6823, respectively. Based on the fixed effects prediction chart of the mixed model, the overall basal diameter showed an increasing trend with the increases of relative branch depth. The average basal diameter size was in an order of young-aged plantation

Objective: To observe the effect of electroacupuncture （EA） at "Zhongwan" （CV12）, "Tianshu" （ST25） and "Shangjuxu" （ST37） （an acupoint prescription "Changbingfang" for treatment of intestinal disorders） on autophagy and expression of AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway in rats with ulcerative colitis （UC）, so as to explore its mechanism underlying improvement of UC., Methods: Thirty-two male SD rats were randomly divided into control, model, medication and EA groups, with 8 rats in each group. The UC model was established by free drinking of 5% dextran sulfate sodium salt solution for 7 days. EA stimulation （10 Hz/50 Hz） was delivered to CV12, ST25 and ST37 for 20 min, once a day for 3 consecutive days. Rats of the medication group received gavage of mesalazine suspension （200 mg/kg） once a day, 3 times in total. The rats' general conditions were recorded for calculating the disease activity index （DAI） score （0-4 points）. Histomorphological changes of colon were observed via HE staining. The levels of serum interleukin 6 （IL-6）, tumor necrosis factor- α （TNF- α ） and IL-10 were measured by ELISA. The mRNA expressions of LC3B and p62 were tested by fluorescence quantitative PCR. Western blot was used to detect the expression levels of LC3B, p62 and AMPK/mTOR pathway related proteins in colon tissues., Results: Compared with the control group, the DAI score, contents of serum IL-6 and TNF- α , the expression levels of p62 protein and mRNA, ratio of p-mTOR/mTOR were significantly increased （ P <0.01）； while the content of serum IL-10, the expression levels of LC3B mRNA, ratio of LC3BⅡ/LC3BⅠ and p-AMPK/AMPK were decreased （ P <0.01, P <0.05） in the model group. Relevant to the model group, modeling-induced increases of DAI score, serum IL-6, TNF- α and IL-10 contents, expressions of p62 protein and mRNA, LC3B mRNA, ratio of p-mTOR/mTOR, LC3BⅡ/LC3BⅠ and p-AMPK/AMPK were reversed in both medication and EA groups （ P <0.01, P <0.05）. The effect of EA was apparently superior to that of mesalazine in up-regulating ratio of LC3BⅡ/LC3BⅠ and p-AMPK/AMPK, p62 mRNA expression （ P <0.01, P <0.05）, and in down-regulating ratio of p-mTOR/mTOR （ P <0.05）. H.E. staining showed severe damage of the colonic mucosal barrier with infiltration of a large number of inflammatory cells in the model group, which was milder in medication and EA groups., Conclusion: EA of acupoint recipe "Changbingfang" can improve the symptoms in UC rats, which may be related to its functions in promoting colonic autophagy, increasing AMPK phosphorylation level, and decreasing mTOR phosphorylation level.

This study aims to identify the active components and the mechanism of Jingqi Yukui Capsules(JQYK) in the treatment of gastric ulcer based on network pharmacology, and verify some key targets and signaling pathways through animal experiment. To be specific, first, the active components and targets of JQYK were retrieved from a Bioinformatics Analysis Tool for Molecular Mechanism of Traditional Chinese Medicine(BATMAN-TCM) and Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform(TCMSP), and the targets of gastric ulcer from GeneCards and Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man(OMIM) with the search term &quot;gastric ulcer&quot;. The common targets of the two were the potential targets of the prescription for the treatment of the di-sease. Then, protein-protein interaction(PPI) network of key targets were constructed based on STRING and Cytoscape 3.7.2, followed by Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG) pathway enrichment by matescape database and pathway visualization by Omicshare. For the animal experiment, the improved method of Okabe was used to induce gastric ulcer in rats, and the model rats were classified into the model group, JQYK high-dose(JQYK-H), medium-dose(JQYK-M), and low-dose(JQYK-L) groups, Anweiyang Capsules(WYA) group, and Rabeprazole Sodium Enteric Capsules(RBPZ) group. Normal rats were included in the blank group. Rats in the blank group and model group were given distilled water and those in the administration groups received corresponding drugs. Then gastric ulcer healing in rats was observed. The changes of the gastric histomorphology in rats were evaluated based on hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining, and the content of inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS) in rat gastric tissue was detected with Coomassie brilliant blue method. The mRNA and protein levels of some proteins in rat gastric tissue were determined by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR) and Western blot(WB) to further validate some key targets and signaling pathways. A total of 206 active components and 535 targets of JQYK, 1 305 targets of gastric ulcer, and 166 common targets of the disease and the drug were yielded. According to PPI analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis, multiple key targets, such as interleukin-6(IL-6), tumor necrosis factor(TNF), mitogen-activated protein kinase 1(MAPK1), MAPK3, and MAPK14, as well as nuclear factor kappa-B(NF-κB) signaling pathway, IL-17 signaling pathway, and leukocyte transendothelial migration in the top 20 key signaling pathways were closely related to inflammation. The key protein p38 MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathway were selected for further verification by animal experiment. The gastric ulcer in the JQYK-H group recovered nearly to the level in the blank group, with significant decrease in the content of iNOS in rat gastric tissue and significant reduction in the mRNA and phosphorylation levels of p38 MAPK and the mRNA and protein levels of NF-κB p65 in rat gastric tissue. The results indicated that JQYK can inhibit the phosphorylation of the key protein p38 MAPK and the expression of NF-κB p65 in the NF-κB signaling pathway, thereby exerting the anti-inflammatory effect and effectively improving the quality of gastric ulcer healing in rats. Thus, the animal experiment result verifies some predictions of network pharmacology.

Currently, the aquatic environment of the Tuojiang River basin in Sichuan Province is severely polluted by non-point sources of total nitrogen (TN). This study adopts the pollution discharge coefficient method to estimate the TN pollution load of non-point sources in this watershed during 2007-2017. The temporal and spatial distribution and transfer trends of the TN pollution load in the Tuojiang River basin were examined, based on center-of-gravity statistical and spatial analysis technology. This study aimed to provide an accurate theoretical basis for the prevention and early identification of non-point source pollution in the Tuojiang River basin. The results indicate that livestock breeding was the main non-point source of TN pollution and contributed more than 45% to the TN pollution load during 2007-2017. The contribution rate of rural life and domestic waste decreased continually during the study period, whereas that of farmland solid waste and farmland runoff exhibited an increasing trend. The total pollution load of TN exhibited a decreasing trend during 2007-2017. The maximum and minimum TN pollution loads occurred in 2010 and 2017 with values of 5.7×10 4 t and 4.69×10 4 t, respectively. Spatial heterogeneity of the pollution load, together with the uneven distribution of rainfall runoff, caused a shift from northwest to southeast in the pollution-load centers of gravity for livestock and poultry breeding, farmland solid waste, and farmland runoff. Southeast of the watershed is the key area for prevention and control of these pollution sources. A shift in the centers of gravity for rural living and household waste pollution, from southeast to northwest, was attributed to agricultural populations transforming to urban populations in the southeastern counties. The maximum transfer range was 66.35 km 2 , and this minimum boundary circle is the key identification area of pollution source pollution load change. Northwest of Tuojiang River basin is the key area in which TN pollution from rural living and rural household waste can be prevented. This research expands the methods for exploring the temporal and spatial evolution of pollution load in the Tuojiang River basin, which is of great significance for improving the aquatic environment and promoting sustainable development of the basin economy.

Objective: To explore the molecular mechanism of sorafenib resistance in hepatoma cells and identify for new targets to reverse drug resistance., Methods: THP-1 cells were induced into M2 tumor-associated macrophages (M2-TAMs) in vitro and identified by immunofluorescence. SMMC-7721 cells were co-cultured with M2-TAMs with or without sorafenib treatment. CCK-8 assay was used to observe the inhibitory effect of sorafenib on the cell proliferation. Annexin V/PI double staining and protein immunoblotting were used to assess the effect of sorafenib on the proliferation, apoptosis and the expressions of apoptosis-related proteins and autophagy-related protein in SMMC-7721 cells co-cultured with M2-TAMs in the presence or absence of the autophagy inhibitor chloroquine (CQ)., Results: The IC 50 of sorafenib at 48 h was 2.25 μmol/L in SMMC-7721 cells cultured alone, and increased to 4.72 μmol/L in the cells co-cultured with M2-TAMs. Compared with the cells cultured alone, the co-cultured SMMC-7721 cells showed significantly reduced apoptosis rate in response to sorafenib ( P &lt; 0.01) and significantly increased expression of Bcl-2 and Bcl-2/Bax ratio ( P &lt; 0.05) with also increased LC3-II/LC3-I ratio ( P &lt; 0.001) and lowered expression of p62 ( P &lt; 0.05), suggesting a significantly enhanced level of autophagy. CQ treatment significantly inhibited the proliferation of the co-cultured SMMC-7721 cells ( P &lt; 0.05), increased the cell apoptosis ( P &lt; 0.05) and reduced the Bcl-2/Bax ratio ( P &lt; 0.01)., Conclusions: M2-TAMs can attenuate the inhibitory effect of sorafenib on the proliferation of hepatoma cells by increasing the level of autophagy, suggesting a new strategy for reversing sorafenib resistance induced by the tumor microenvironment by inhibiting autophagy.

In view of the evaluation of fundus image segmentation, a new evaluation method was proposed to make up insufficiency of the traditional evaluation method which only considers the overlap of pixels and neglects topology structure of the retinal vessel. Mathematical morphology and thinning algorithm were used to obtain the retinal vascular topology structure. Then three features of retinal vessel, including mutual information, correlation coefficient and ratio of nodes, were calculated. The features of the thinned images taken as topology structure of blood vessel were used to evaluate retinal image segmentation. The manually-labeled images and their eroded ones of STARE database were used in the experiment. The result showed that these features, including mutual information, correlation coefficient and ratio of nodes, could be used to evaluate the segmentation quality of retinal vessel on fundus image through topology structure, and the algorithm was simple. The method is of significance to the supplement of traditional segmentation evaluation of retinal vessel on fundus image.

The clinical study was conducted to further evaluation the effectiveness and safety of Fangfeng Tongsheng granule in the treatment of sub-acute eczema (superficial cold and interior heat syndrome, exterior and interior sthenic syndrome). In the block randomized, multi-centered study, totally 108 patients were enrolled and assigned to two groups: 72 patients in the test group and 36 patients in the placebo control group. Those in the test group took Fangfeng Tongsheng granule with the dose of 3 g, twice a day, while those in the control group were give simulated agent granules with the same dose. The therapeutic course lasted for 14 days. Their efficacies in TCM syndrome, dermal symptoms and adverse events were observed. According to the test results, except for the one exit case, all of the remaining 108 cases, including 71 in the test group, and 36 in the control group, completed the clinical trial. As for the efficacy of TCM syndrome, after the medication for 2 weeks, the cure rate was 33.81% (24/71) in the test group and 0% (0/36) in the control group (P < 0.01), with a statistical difference between the two groups. Regarding the TCM score, after the medication for 2 weeks, the test group decreased by (12.82 +/- 7.96), while the control group decreased by (3.67 +/- 4.12), indicating a statistical difference between the two groups. As for the efficacy of dermal symptoms, after the medication for 2 weeks, the cure rate was 25.35% (18/71) in the test group and 0% (0/36) in the control group, with a statistical difference between the two groups. Regarding the dermal symptom score, after the medication for 2 weeks., the test group decreased by (10.04 +/- 7.17), while the control group decreased by (2.33 +/- 3.57), indicating a statistical difference between the two groups. There was no significant adverse event caused by Fangfeng Tongsheng granule. In conclusion, Fangfeng Tongsheng granule was effective and safe in treating subcute eczema (superficial cold and interior heat syndrome, exterior and interior sthenic syndrome).

It is very difficult to measure the human eye properties directly, such as the accommodation mechanism, intraocular pressure distribution, the dynamics of aqueous humor flow and the bio-heat transfer in human eyes. Modeling and simulation may, therefore, play an increasingly important role in the ophthalmologic investigation. The major computer modeling methods, including geometric modeling, physical modeling and mathematical modeling, are introduced in this paper. Modeling and simulation anatomy properties and physiological properties of eye tissues, such as the cornea, aqueous humor and crystalline lens, vitreous, optic nerve head, sclera, are analyzed in the order from global to local, from front to back, from outside to inside. Finally, the problems of computer modeling in ophthalmologic investigation are discussed, and the development trends of the future are pointed out.

Objective: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of preoperative computed tomography urography (CTU) three-dimensional reconstruction, intraoperative radiology and ultrasound guidance followed by percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) in the treatment of complex renal calculi., Methods: We summarized the clinical data of 210 patients with complex renal calculi treated at our hospital from December 2008 to December 2011 in this retrospective study. In the one-stop diagnosis and treatment group (n = 119), the optimal puncture approach was designed according to CTU imaging and three-dimensional reconstruction. Percutaneous track was established by ultrasound and radiology guided puncture. PCNL was performed with EMS system. The control group (n = 91) underwent PCNL without radiological guidance. The success rate of puncture, mean accessing time, mean operative duration, intraoperative volume of blood loss and stone-free rate after one operative session were observed. Post-operative follow-ups were conducted until June 2012., Results: Compared to the control group, the one-stop diagnosis and treatment group showed a higher success rate of puncture [98.3% (117/119) vs 92.3% (84/91), P = 0.037], a shorter operative duration [97.8 ± 13.20 vs 110.0 ± 14.73 min, P = 0.043] and a higher stone-free rate after one operative session [92.4% (110/119) vs 83.5% (76/91), P = 0.037]. No significant difference was detected in the mean accessing time[15.3 ± 3.7 vs 13.9 ± 3.9 min, P = 0.398] or intraoperative volume of blood loss [195.8 ± 84.15 vs 263.3 ± 82.06 ml, P = 0.059]. No severe complications occurred. No recurrence of calculi was noted during the follow-up period., Conclusion: One-stop diagnosis and treatment plan (CTU 3-D reconstruction plus radiology, ultrasound guidance followed by PCNL) may identify the puncture path, improve the successful rate of puncture and stone-free rates and reduce the complications of PCNL.

Objective: To explore the clinicopathological significance of the expression of carbonic anhydrase I (CAI) and carbonic anhydrase II (CAII) protein and mRNA levels in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC)., Methods: The expression of CAI and CAII protein in 57 pairs of paraffin-embedded PDAC specimens and adjacent non-cancerous pancreatic tissues were detected by immunohistochemistry. The relationship between the protein expression and clinicopathological characters was analyzed. Western blot and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (QRT-PCR) were used to examine the expression of CAI and CAII protein and mRNA levels in 16 paired fresh PDAC specimens, adjacent non-cancerous pancreatic tissues and 3 different differentiated pancreatic cancer cells (PANC-1, BxPC-3 & SW1990)., Results: The expression of CAI protein was higher in PDAC compared with that in paired non-cancerous pancreatic tissues (t = 2.395, P = 0.020), whereas, CAII expression was significantly lower in PDAC than that in paired non-cancerous pancreatic tissues (t = 4.296, P = 0.000). The expression of CAI and CAII protein had a positive correlation with tumor differentiation (χ(2) = 7.557, P = 0.023; χ(2) = 7.822, P = 0.020) and CAI showed a direct negative correlation with vascular invasion (χ(2) = 6.349, P = 0.012). Univariate and multivariate analysis with clinicopathological characters revealed that the CAII expression was an independent prognostic indicator for PDAC patients (P = 0.017; P = 0.011 respectively). No significant difference of CAI mRNA and protein expression existed between PDAC and adjacent normal pancreatic tissues (t = 1.619, P = 0.126; t = 1.352, P = 0.197) as detected by Western blot and QRT-PCR, but the expression of CAII mRNA and protein levels was much lower in PDAC than that in paired non-cancerous pancreatic tissues, respectively (t = 3.360, P = 0.004; t = 2.934, P = 0.010). Moreover, the mRNA and protein expression of CAI and CAII gradually increased with the better differentiation degree of pancreatic cancer cells., Conclusions: CAI is up-regulated and CAII down-regulated in PDAC. Both of them are correlated with tumor differentiation. CAII expression is an independent prognostic indicator for PDAC patients.

Objective: To study the clinicopathological significance of the expression of carbonic anhydrase (CA)II protein and mRNA in primary invasive ductal cancer (IDC) of human pancreas., Methods: The expression of CAII protein in 33 paired paraffin embedded IDC specimens of the pancreas and paired adjacent non-cancerous pancreatic tissues was detected by immunohistochemistry. Western blot and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) were used to examine the expression of CAII protein and mRNA level in 12 paired fresh IDC specimens of the pancreas and adjuvant non-cancerous pancreatic tissues. The relationship between the protein expression and clinicopathological features was analyzed., Results: Overexpression of CAII protein was shown in 11 cases of pancreatic IDC tissues (33.3%, 11/33), which was much lower than that in paired non-cancerous pancreatic tissues (72.7%, t = 6.275, P = 0.000). The expression of CAII protein had no correlation with tumor position (χ² = 0.992, P = 0.319), differentiation (χ² = 0.866, P = 0.352), TNM stage (χ² = 1.210, P = 0.271) and Lymph node metastasis (χ² = 0.798, P = 0.372), but had bordering statistic sig with the prognosis of the patients (χ² = 3.233, P = 0.072). The median survival time in the patients with high expression of CAII protein was 540 days, while that in the patients with low expression was 320 days. The expression of CAII protein and mRNA was lower in IDC than that in paired non-cancerous pancreatic tissues detected by Western blot and RT-PCR respectively (t = 3.399, P = 0.006; t = 2.281, P = 0.043)., Conclusion: CAII is down regulated in pancreatic IDC and might be relative with the prognosis.

This study is to report the tissue distribution of arsenic after giving different doses of realgar and Liushen pills to Beagle dogs, in order to provide basis for the safety evaluation of Liushen pills. ICP-MS was used to measure arsenic concentration, and HPLC-ICP-MS was used to analyze arsenic speciation. The concentration of total arsenic and As(III) + DMA (arsenite + dimethylarsenic acid) increased with dosing of realgar. Total arsenic concentration in most tissues and As(III) + DMA concentration in all tissues of Liushen pills group are lower than that of realgar group, but AsB concentration in liver, spleen and kidney of Liushen pills group increased. The concentration of total arsenic showed a dose-dependent manner with dosage administered. It was indicated that components in Liushen pills can reduce solubility of arsenic in realgar, which may decrease toxicity of realgar.

Objective: To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of endourological techniques in the treatment of benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) in aged high-risk patients., Methods: We used endourological techniques in the treatment of 283 BPH patients aged over 70 years and complicated with hydronephrosis, renal failure, heart failure, cerebral infarction, respiratory dysfunction, anemia, diabetes, bladder tumor, or prostate weight over 80 g, TURP (transurethral resection of the prostate) for 112 cases and PKRP (transurethral plasmakinetic resection of the prostate) for the other 171. All the patients were followed up for 1-30 months., Results: In the TURP group, the scores on IPSS and QOL were decreased from 27.5 +/- 2.8, 5.5 +/- 1.0 to 5.8 +/- 1.2, 1.0 +/- 0.5, and the residual urine volume (RUV) from (75.0 +/- 20.0) ml to (8.0 +/- 3.0) ml, but the maximal flow rate (Qmax) increased from (6.5 +/- 2.0) ml/s to (18.5 +/- 1.5) ml/s (P < 0.05), while in the PKRP group, the scores on IPSS and QOL were decreased from 28.2 +/- 2.2, 5.5 +/- 1.0 to 5.4 +/- 1.6, 1.0 +/- 0.5, and RUV from (80.0 +/- 20.0) ml to (7.0 +/- 3.0) ml, and Qmax increased from (6.8 +/- 2.1) ml/s to (20.0 +/- 1.5) ml/s (P < 0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in IPSS, QOL, Qmax and RUV after treatment between the two groups (P > 0.05), but significantly less complications were found in the PKRP than in the TURP group (P < 0.05)., Conclusion: Endourological treatment, especially PKRP, with comprehensive perioperative preparations, unerring operative skills, well-controlled operation time, and intensive postoperative monitoring and nursing, has the advantages of high safety, less bleeding, fewer complications and definite effectiveness for aged high-risk BPH patients.

The biocathode of the two-columnar microbial fuel cell was used to denitrify. Factors influencing denitrification performance and power production were studied. When the external resistance decreased from 50 omega to 5 omega, the nitrate removal rate increased from 0.26 mg/(L x h) to 0.76 mg/(L x h). The nitrite accumulated to 55 mg/L with the external resistance decreasing to 5 omega. The nitrate degradation followed the zero order reaction model when the initial nitrate concentration was 20-120 mg/L. The power generation was not affected by the nitrate concentration distinctly. The nitrite concentration increased with the initial nitrate concentration. The nitrite removal could be enhanced by adding organic matter, without significant influence on the power generation.

Objective: To investigate the role of phosphorylation of glycogen synthase kinase-3beta (GSK-3beta) inducing epithelial mesenchymal transition in human peritoneal mesothelial cells (HPMC)., Methods: Primary HPMC was harvested from human omental tissue and maintained under defined in vitro conditions. The expression of p-GSK-3beta and total GSK-3beta in HMPC was detected by Western blot after incubation with different concentrations (0, 5, 10, 20, and 40 mmol/L)of LiCl at different time points (0, 1, 3, 6, and 12 h). The protein expression of E-cadherin and alpha-SMA was also examined after treatment with 20 mmol/L LiCl according to different time courses. The intracellular distribution and expression of alpha-SMA were determined by indirect immunofluorescence., Results: LiCl stimulated phosphorylation of GSK-3beta and the effect was time-dependent and concentration-dependent to limited extent (P<0.05). The expression of alpha-SMA increased (P<0.05) and the expression of E-cadherin decreased significantly (P<0.05) after 24 h stimulation by 20 mmol/L LiCl. The indirect immunoflurescence showed that the expression of alpha-SMA in HPMC increased significantly after 24 h incubation with 20 mmol/L LiCl., Conclusion: The phosphorylation of GSK-3beta leads HMPC to epithelial mesenchymal transition and provides new clue for the treatment of peritoneal fibrosis.

Objective: To establish an RP-HPLC method for determination of atractylodinol in Ateractylodes lancea and compare the contents of atractylodinol in the herbs of different origins., Method: The samples were separated on an Agilent TC-C18 (4.6 mm x 250 mm, 5 microm) column with the mobile phase of acetonitrile-water (49:51). Flow rate was 1.0 mL x min(-1). The detection wave length was set at 337 nm. Column temperature was 30 degrees C., Result: The linear range of atractylodinol was 9.12 x 10(-2) -9.12 mg x L(-1) (r = 0.999 9), the average recovery was 97.15%, RSD was 1.5% (n = 5). The contents of atractylodinol were in the range of 0.268-1.213 mg x g(-1) in the samples from different orgins. The contents of atractylodinol in samples growing in Dabieshan mountain were higher than those in Jiangsu province (P < 0.001)., Conclusion: The established method for determination of atractylodinol is accurate and reliable, which can be used to evaluate the quality of A. lancea, the contents of atractylodinol in the sample was related with its morphological characteristic and geographic orgin.

Objective: To study the pattern of lymph node metastasis of thoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) after esophagectomy and its impact on the clinical target volume (CTV) delineation in radiotherapy fpr thoracic ESCC., Methods: The pattern of lymph node metastasis was retrospectively analyzed in 1077 patients with primary thoracic ESCC. All patients received esophagectomy with two- or three-field lymphadenectomy. The clinicopathologic factors related to lymph node metastasis were then analyzed using logistic regression analysis., Results: The rates of cervical, upper mediastinal, middle mediastinal, lower mediastinal and abdominal cavity lymph node metastasis were 16.7%, 33.3%, 11.1%, 5.6% and 5.6%, respectively. The rates of those node metastasis in the middle thoracic ESCC were 4.0%, 3.8%, 28.5%, 7.1% and 17.1%, respectively, and the rates of those node metastasis in the lower thoracic ESCC were 1.5%, 3.0%, 22.7%, 37.0% and 33.2%, respectively. The depth of tumor invasion, histologic differentiation and the length of tumor were showed to be statistically most significant risk factors of lymph node metastasis of ESCC (P < 0.001)., Conclusion: The depth of tumor invasion, histologic differentiation, and length of tumor were closely correlated with lymph node metastasis of ESCC. All these factors and tumor location should be considered comprehensively when designing the target volume for radiotherapy.

Aim: To study the effects of recombinant soluble MHC class I chain-related protein A (sMICA) on the cytotoxicity, secretion of IFN-gamma, proliferation and apoptosis of peripheral NK cells., Methods: After NK cells were co-cultured with recombinant soluble MICA proteins overnight, the cytotoxicity of NK cell on target cells was detected by flow cytometry. The supernant was collected to determine the concentration of IFN-gamma by ELISA. The proliferation of NK cells to sMICA was detected by MTS/PMS. NK cells were labeled with annexin V and PI to analyze their apoptosis., Results: Soluble MICA inhibited the cytotoxicity of NK cells and down-regulated the secretion of IFN-gamma, but it showed no effects on the proliferation and apoptosis of freshly isolated peripheral NK cells., Conclusion: The soluble MICA shedding from tumor cells could be a pathway of cancer immune evasion by down-regulating the biologic activities of NK cells.

Objective: To analysis the risk factors of pancreatic fistula after pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD)., Methods: A retrospective clinical study had been done in 97 patients who underwent PD between June 2001 and June 2006. The two groups were first compared by the univariate analysis;logistic regression was then used to determine the effect of multiple factors on pancreatic fistula. A P-value of less than 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant., Results: Of the 97 patients, 13 patients were identified as having pancreatic fistula. Factors significantly increasing the risk of pancreatic fistula by univariate analysis included preoperative serum total bilirubin (P = 0.038), operative time (P = 0.003) and whether or not Braun anastomosis (P = 0.034), and prophylactic use of somatostatin (P = 0.003) after operation. A multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed the factors most highly associated with pancreatic fistula to be preoperative serum total bilirubin (OR = 11.687, P = 0.021) and postoperative prophylactic use of somatostatin (OR = 0.056, P = 0.020)., Conclusions: Preoperative serum total bilirubin more than 170 mmol/L was a risk factor of pancreatic fistula after PD, and postoperative prophylactic use of somatostatin was a protect factor of pancreatic fistula after PD.

To summarized the experiences from our basic experimental and clinical research on peritoneal dialysis. In the past 16 years, peritoneal fibrosis rat models and rabbit models of peritonitis were first established successfully in our laboratory in China. Peritoneal mesothelial cells were also separated and identificated. Besides, we assessed the biocompatibility of peritoneal dialysis fluid and analyzed the molecular mechanism of peritoneal mesothelial cell injury. We demonstrated the key role of transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1), connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) and peroxisome proliferative activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma) in the pathogenesis of peritoneal fibrosis, as well as their regulation of molecular mechanism. Furthermore, we transfected the plasmids encoding TGF-beta1-shRNA or pCTGF-shRNA into peritoneal cells and tissues by nanocarrier technologies. In clinical research, the positioning of peritoneal dialysis catheters, peritoneal dialysis treatment modalities and the prevention and treatment of its complications were studied. The characteristics and mechanism of solute transport in peritoneal dialysis was also explored.

Objective: To discuss the diagnosis and management of asymptomatic primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT)., Methods: Clinical data of 46 cases of primary hyperparathyroidism from January 1990 to December 2006 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 5 cases of asymptomatic PHPT. Three out of the 5 cases obtained the diagnosis by routine health examination and 1 case was misdiagnosed as thyroid tumor before surgery, but was conformed as parathyroid adenoma by intraoperative biopsy. Remaining 1 case was diagnosed because of weakness. The serum calcium and the parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels were elevated in 4 cases, while only 1 being normal range. Unilateral neck exploration was performed in all 5 cases., Results: There were no operational death, recurrent nerve injury or other complications. All patients had the same pathological diagnosis as parathyroid adenomas. Three cases showed gentle circumoral paresthesia after surgery with normal serum level of calcium, but the symptoms were relieved with oral use of calcium gluconate. Only 1 patient had tetany with the lowest level of serum calcemia at 1.96 mmol/L in 24 h postoperatively. The signs and symptoms were all relieved by intravenous use of calcium gluconate for 3 d after surgery. Remaining 1 case has normal level of serum calcemia after surgery. Time range of following-up for 4 cases was from 2 months to 2 years. The level of serum calcemia was normal for them. One lost following-up., Conclusions: Asymptomatic primary hyperparathyroidism could be diagnosed according to co-elevated serum calcemia and PTH without typical symptoms. Unilateral neck exploration was the best choice for the patients with accurate imaging localization. Conservative management including adequate hydration, dietary calcium intake and pharmacological approaches could be used for the patients who were unfit for surgery.

Objective: To study the effect of Supplemented Taoren Chengqi decoction (STCD) on the secretion of insulin and proliferation of NIT-1., Method: The effect of STCD and the serum of rat after orally administrating of STCD on the secretion of insulin and proliferation of NIT-1 were studied. The proliferation of NIT-1 was measured by 3H-TdR incorporation and cell counting methods, while the secretion of insulin was measured from the cultured medium by the ultra sensitive rat insulin ELISIA kit., Result: Both the STCD and the serum of rat after orally administrating of STCD significantly could increased the secretion of insulin and proliferation of NIT-1., Conclusion: The treatment of the diabetic patients by STCD might be through with its improvement of secretion of insulin and proliferation on pancreatic beta-cell.

Objective: To determine the effect of EGF on the invasiveness of pancreatic cancer cells and its related regulatory mechanism., Methods: The effects of EGF on the proliferation, adhesion and invasion of pancreatic cancer cells were detected by WST-1 proliferation assay, adhesion assay and invasive assay. The expression of uPA was assayed by Western blot and RT-PCR. The activity of NF-kappaB was examined by EMSA., Results: EGF significantly increased the invasiveness of pancreatic cancer cells but did not affect cell proliferation or adhesion. Increased invasiveness was associated with the induction of uPA at both mRNA and protein levels. Furthermore, EGF stimulated the NF-kappaB binding activity, and pretreatment of cells with a NF-kappaB inhibitor, pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate, markedly attenuated EGF-induced NF-kappaB activation. Subsequently, the EGF-induced uPA expression and invasiveness were also inhibited by NF-kappaB inhibitor., Conclusion: Our findings indicated that NF-kappaB-mediated up-regulation of uPA expression is responsible for EGF-induced invasiveness in pancreatic cancer cells, and implicate that such anti-NF-kappaB therapy with NF-kappaB inhibitors may contribute to the reduction of invasiveness of pancreatic cancer.

Objective: To investigate the effect of p16beta interfering with the signal conduction of Hep-2 cell cycle in Vitro., Methods: AdEasy Vector System was used to construct the recombinant adenovirus vector AdEasy-GFP-p1613. The recombinant adenovirus vector could introduce p16beta gene into HEK 293 cell. Then the purified recombinant adenovirus was used to infect Hep-2 cells in vitro. The protein expression of p16beta, proliferation inhibition, cell cycle arrest, DNA content, apoptosis ratio in Hep-2 cells were examined by MTT, Western blotting analysis, Flow cytometry assay, Immunocytochemistry respectively., Results: The recombinant adenovirus Adeasy-p16beta was constructed successfully and higher titer recombinant adenovirus particle was got. When Adeasy-p16beta was transferred into Hep-2 cells, both the growth inhibition and P14 (ARF) protein overexpression in Hep-2 cells were visible effectively. The most Hep-2 cells were blocked in G1/G0 phase and the cell apoptosis ratio increased., Conclusion: The p16beta in Hep-2 cell infected by recombinant adenovirus, which lead to express P14 (ARF) protein effectively and to inhibit cell proliferative activation, effectively interfere the signal conduction mechanisms of culture Hep-2 laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma, and the growth of much cultured cells is blocked in G1/G0 phase.