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Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate whether apolipoprotein gene polymorphisms confer susceptibility to osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH). Methods: The relevant literature was screened from databases of Pubmed, Embase, Wanfang, Weipu and China National Knowledge Internet (CNKI) until May, 2017. In addition, odds ratio (OR) and its corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) were used as a measure of effect size for calculating effect size. Results: Totally, six case-control studies were included in this meta-analysis. It revealed that ApoB-C7623T polymorphism frequency was increased in ONFH group than in control group under three genetic models, including allele model (T vs. C, OR = 4.5149, 95% CI: 1.6968–12.0134); additive model (TC vs. CC, OR = 6.2515, 95% CI: 2.0939–18.6640); and dominant model (TT + TC vs. CC, OR = 5.4998, 95% CI: 1.9246–15.7163). In addition, the increased risk of ONFH were related to ApoA1-rs1799837 polymorphism under additive model (AA vs. GG, OR = 1. 4175, 95% CI: 1.0522–1.9096) and recessive model (AA vs. GG + AG, OR = 1.7727, 95% CI: 1.3399–2.3452). However, four ApoB rs1042031, rs693, 3’-VNTR and G12619A polymorphisms under the all genetic models were not associated with susceptibility to ONFH. Conclusion: The T allele and TC genotype of ApoB-C7623T and AA genotype of ApoA1-rs1799837 may contribute to increase the risk of ONFH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Most infarctions occur in the left anterior descending coronary artery and cause myocardium damage of the left ventricle. Although current pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) and directed cardiac differentiation techniques are able to generate fetal-like human cardiomyocytes, isolation of pure ventricular cardiomyocytes has been challenging. For repairing ventricular damage, we aimed to establish a highly efficient purification system to obtain homogeneous ventricular cardiomyocytes and prepare engineered human ventricular heart muscles in a dish. Methods: The purification system used TALEN-mediated genomic editing techniques to insert the neomycin or EGFP selection marker directly after the myosin light chain 2 (MYL2) locus in human pluripotent stem cells. Purified early ventricular cardiomyocytes were estimated by immunofluorescence, fluorescence-activated cell sorting, quantitative PCR, microelectrode array, and patch clamp. In subsequent experiments, the mixture of mature MYL2-positive ventricular cardiomyocytes and mesenchymal cells were cocultured with decellularized natural heart matrix. Histological and electrophysiology analyses of the formed tissues were performed 2 weeks later. Results: Human ventricular cardiomyocytes were efficiently isolated based on the purification system using G418 or flow cytometry selection. When combined with the decellularized natural heart matrix as the scaffold, functional human ventricular heart muscles were prepared in a dish. Conclusions: These engineered human ventricular muscles can be great tools for regenerative therapy of human ventricular damage as well as drug screening and ventricular-specific disease modeling in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Human noroviruses are a major cause of viral gastroenteritis and are the main etiological agents of acute gastroenteritis outbreaks. An increasing number of outbreaks and sporadic cases of norovirus have been reported in China in recent years. There was a large acute gastroenteritis outbreak at a university in Henan Province, China in the past five years. We want to identify the source, transmission routes of the outbreak by epidemiological investigation and laboratory testing in order to provide the effective control measures. Methods: The clinical cases were investigated, and analysed by descriptive epidemiological methods according to factors such as time, department, grade and so on. Samples were collected from clinical cases, healthy persons, the environment, water, and food at the university. These samples were tested for potential bacteria and viruses. The samples that tested positive for norovirus were selected for whole genome sequencing and the sequences were then analysed. Results: From 4 March to 3 April 2015, a total of 753 acute diarrhoea cases were reported at the university; the attack rate was 3.29%. The epidemic curve showed two peaks, with the main peak occurring between 10 and 20 March, accounting for 85.26% of reported cases. The rates of norovirus detection in samples from confirmed cases, people without symptoms, and environmental samples were 32.72%, 17.39%, and 9.17%, respectively. The phylogenetic analysis showed that the norovirus belonged to the genotype GII.17. Conclusions: This is the largest and most severe outbreak caused by genotype GII.17 norovirus in recent years in China. The GII.17 viruses displayed high epidemic activity and have become a dominant strain in China since the winter of 2014, having replaced the previously dominant GII.4 Sydney 2012 strain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The current reports on the association of claudin-4 expression with gastric cancer outcome were inconsistent. Thus, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the association of claudin-4 expression with the prognosis and clinical parameters more precisely. Methods: Systematic searches on PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library prior to December 2014 were performed. The pooled hazard ratio (HR) with its 95 % confidence interval (95 %CI) was used to assess the prognostic value of claudin-4 expression with gastric cancer patients, and the pooled odds ratio (OR) with its 95 %CI was used to assess the association with clinical parameters. Results: Nine studies with a total of 1265 gastric cancer patients were included. Overall, the pooled results showed that over-expression of claudin-4 was associated with a poor survival in gastric cancer patients (HR: 2.01, 95 % CI: 1.62-2.50). Over-expression of claudin-4 was also associated with advanced stage (OR: 1.96, 95 % CI: 1.08-3.56) and lymphoid node metastasis (OR: 1.72, 95 % CI: 1.05-2.81) of gastric cancer patients. No significant publication bias was found among the studies (P > 0.05). Conclusions: This meta-analysis shows that over-expression of claudin-4 is associated with progress of gastric cancer and poor prognosis of gastric cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Treatment with steroids covers a wide spectrum of diseases in clinic. However, some users are suffering from serious side effects of steroid administration, while we enjoy the benefit it brings about. Osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH) is a troublesome one among them. Recent studies have demonstrated that lipid metabolism disorder may play a vital role in pathogenesis of ONFH and mutation of the paraoxonase-1 (PON-1) gene may be involved in the occurrence of this disease. However, the relationship between polymorphisms of PON-1 and ONFH has not been thoroughly studied. The aim of this study was to determine whether PON-1 polymorphisms are associated with steroid-induced ONFH through a cohort study among Chinese Han population. Methods This trial applied a case-control scheme to compare the clinical data including PON-1 SNP among 94 patients and 106 control subjects to analyze the association between SNP and risk of steroid-induced ONFH. Time of Flight Mass Spectrometer is utilized for genotyping and the result was analyzed in multivariate analysis models. Results According to polymorphism test of rs662, its SNP was significantly associated with the risk of ONFH in overdominant analysis model [P value: 0.022; odds ratio (OR): 0.39]. However, genotype frequencies of rs662 of PON-1 gene between case and control group showed no differences (P > 0.05). Conclusions Our data suggest for the first time that SNP (rs662) of the PON-1 gene was associated with the risk of steroid-induced ONFH. In addition, PAI-1 SNPs may play an important role in pathogenesis of ONFH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Ovarian hyper stimulation syndrome (OHSS) is an iatrogenic complication associated with fertility drugs. It is characterized by increased vascular permeability and substantial fluid shift with accumulation in the body cavity. The pathogenesis of OHSS remains obscure, and no definitive treatments are currently available. Results: Using western blot and short-circuit current (Isc) techniques, we investigate the potential coactions of analysis in cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) and aquaporin 1 (AQP1) on the hyper permeability of body cavity peritoneal epithelial cells in the pathogenesis of OHSS. The rats develop OHSS symptoms, with the up regulation of both CFTR and AQP1 expression and enhanced CFTR channel activity in peritoneal epithelial cells, can also be mimicked by administration of estrogen, alone in ovariectomized rats. Administration of progesterone suppresses CFTR activity, OHSS symptoms as well as CFTR and AQP1 expression. Besides, AQP1 inhibitor, HgCl2, can suppress CFTR channel activity. Therefore, antisera against CFTR or AQP1 to OHSS animals may result in alleviation of the symptom. Conclusion: This study confirms the coactions of CFTR and AQP1 play a critical role in the development and progression of increased peritoneal epithelial permeability in severe OHSS. These findings may provide grounds for ameliorating assisted reproduction treatment strategy to reduce the risk of OHSS in in vitro fertilization (IVF). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The master clock within the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) synchronizing clocks in peripheral tissues is entrained by the environmental condition, such as the light-dark (LD) cycle. The mechanisms of circadian clockwork are similar in both SCN and peripheral tissues. The aim of the present work was to observe the profiles of clock genes expression in mouse central and peripheral tissues within postnatal day 5 (P5). The daily expression of four clock genes mRNA (Bmal1, Per2, Cry1 and Rev-erb alpha) in mouse SCN and heart was measured at P1, P3 and P5 by real-time PCR. Results: All the studied mice clock genes began to express in a circadian rhythms manner in heart and SCN at P3 and P5 respectively. Interestingly, the daily rhythmic phase of some clock genes shifted during the postnatal days. Moreover, the expressions of clock genes in heart were not synchronized with those in SCN until at P5. Conclusion: The data showed the gradual development of clock genes in SCN and a peripheral tissue, and suggested that development of clock genes differed between in the SCN and the heart. Judging from the mRNA expression, it was possible that the central clock synchronized the peripheral clock as early as P5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Normalization is an important step for microarray data analysis to minimize biological and technical variations. Choosing a suitable approach can be critical. The default method in GeneChip expression microarray uses a constant factor, the scaling factor (SF), for every gene on an array. The SF is obtained from a trimmed average signal of the array after excluding the 2% of the probe sets with the highest and the lowest values. Results: Among the 76 U34A GeneChip experiments, the total signals on each array showed 25.8% variations in terms of the coefficient of variation, although all microarrays were hybridized with the same amount of biotin-labeled cRNA. The 2% of the probe sets with the highest signals that were normally excluded from SF calculation accounted for 34% to 54% of the total signals (40.7% ± 4.4%, mean ± sd). In comparison with normalization factors obtained from the median signal or from the mean of the log transformed signal, SF showed the greatest variation. The normalization factors obtained from log transformed signals showed least variation. Conclusions: Eliminating 40% of the signal data during SF calculation failed to show any benefit. Normalization factors obtained with log transformed signals performed the best. Thus, it is suggested to use the mean of the logarithm transformed data for normalization, rather than the arithmetic mean of signals in GeneChip gene expression microarrays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]