Journal of Tongji Medical University = Tong ji yi ke da xue xue bao最新文献

The BALB/c mice were immunized with Hsp70 DNA and Hsp65 DNA vaccines in human Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Eight weeks after immunization, the eyeballs were removed, blood and spleen taken, and intraperitoneal macrophages were harvested. The lymphocytic stimulating index (SI) was used to measure the cellular proliferating ability and NO release to measure the phagocytic activity of the macrophages. With ELISA kit, the levels of interleukin-2 (IL-2) and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) in serum and the splenic lymphocytic cultured supernatant were detected. The results showed that after the mice were immunized with 100 micrograms/mouse of Hsp70 DNA vaccine intramuscularly, the splenic lymphocytic proliferating ability in the mice was significantly increased as compared with that in the control group, vector group and Hsp65 DNA vaccine group (P < 0.01); The contents of NO in the intraperitoneal macrophages of the mice were significantly lower than in the control group and Hsp65 DNA vaccine group (P < 0.01); The levels of serum IL-2 in the mice were significantly higher than in the control group, but there was no statistical difference between Hsp65 DNA group and vector group (P > 0.05); The contents of serum IFN-gamma in the mice were significantly higher than in the control group, but significantly lower than in the Hsp65 DNA vaccine group (P < 0.05). It was indicated that immunization with Hsp70 DNA vaccine could obviously enhance the immune response, but its intensity seemed inferior to Hsp65 DNA vaccine. The anti-infection mechanisms and clinical use in the future of the vaccines of Hsp70 DNA and Hsp65 DNA are worth further studying.

Presented in this paper were 3 cases of a special kind of polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT). The clinical manifestation was recurrent syncope without organic heart disease. The electrocardiogram (ECG) was characterized by normal QT intervals with short-coupled variant of torsade de pointes. The efficacy of treatment with class I, II, III antiarrhythmic drugs was not apparent but verapamil had an excellent therapeutic effect for it. This kind of VT had a high incidence of sudden death, so it was very important for physicians to identify and treat it promptly with long-term verapamil. The mechanism of short-coupled variant of torsade de pointes was unclear. It probably had some relationship with triggered activity or imbalance of autonomic nervous system.

ATP was added to the cultured sensory neurons obtained from the dorsal root ganglia of the neonatal rats and PBS was added to serve as control. MTT assays were conducted to evaluate the survival and activity of the cultured neurons. And the silicone regenerative chamber was used after the sciatic nerve incision of the mature SD rat. 1 mmol/L ATP was injected into the left chamber and 0.09% natrium chloride was injected into the right chamber as controls. The changes of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity in the corresponding dorsal root ganglia were measured histochemically and image analysis was also performed 4 days after the sciatic nerve injury. The results showed that extracellular ATP could enhance the survival of the neurons and the number of NOS positive neurons were significantly different between the ATP and control groups (P < 0.05). It was suggested that extracellular ATP had neurotrophic effect on neurons survival and could inhibit the NOS activity of the sensory neurons after the peripheral nerve incision, hence exerting the protective effect on the neurons, which was valuable for nerve regeneration after nerve injury.

In order to explore whether the conventional use of 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu) had any toxic effects on trabecular meshwork cells, bovine trabecular meshwork cells were cultured in vitro and exposed to 5-Fu at different concentrations. The cellular morphology, ultrastructure, mortality and phagocytosis were studied under light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and methods of Wright's stain. It was found that the toxic effects of 5-Fu on the cells were in a dose-dependent mode. 1 x 10(-1) mg/ml of 5-Fu caused a large part of cells rounded up, while 1 x 10(-2) mg/ml of the drug only a rough appearance of the cell surface. Exposure to 1 x 10(-2) mg/ml of 5-Fu made mitochrone swollen and rough endoplasmic reticulum enlarged, with the cell mortality being 50.5%. The latex microspheres engulfed in cytoplasm in cells receiving 1 x 10(-1) and 1 x 10(-2) mg/ml of 5-Fu were significantly decreased as compared with those in the control group (P < 0.01). It was concluded that the safe concentration of 5-Fu on bovine trabecular meshwork cells was 1 x 10(-2) mg/ml and the conventional dosage of 5-Fu in clinical practice would not cause injury to trabecular meshwork cells.

The differences of arrhythmias among distinct left ventricular geometric patterns in the patients with essential hypertension were studied. 179 patients with essential hypertension received 24 h dynamic ECG recording, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, echocardiography examination, etc. According to the examinations, left ventricular geometric patterns and arrhythmias were identified. The comparison of morbidity of arrhythmias between the left ventricular remodeling group and the normal geometric pattern group was performed. The multiple stepwise regression analysis was carried out to identify the independent determinants of arrhythmias. After these predictors were controlled or adjusted, the severity of arrhythmias among different left ventricular geometric patterns was compared. It was found that the morbidity of atrial arrhythmia, ventricular arrhythmia and complex ventricular arrhythmias in the left ventricular remodeling group was significantly higher than in the normal geometric pattern group respectively. There were many independent factors influencing on arrhythmias in essential hypertension. Of all these factors, some indices of left ventricular anatomic structure, grade of hypertension, left atrial inner dimension, E/A, diastolic blood pressure load value at night and day average heart rate and so on were very important. After the above-mentioned factors were adjusted, the differences of the orders of arrhythmias between partial geometric patterns were reserved, which resulted from the differences of the geometric patterns. Many factors contributed to arrhythmias of essential hypertension, such as grade of hypertension, LVMI, LA, PWT and so on. The severity of arrhythmias was different in different left ventricular geometric patterns.

The backscatter from sonicated albumin microbubbles (Albunex) was analyzed using acoustic densitometry in an in vitro pulsatile heart model to evaluate the effects of pressure on the backscatter from Albunex, and the cardiac cyclic changes of intracardiac backscatter from sonicated albumin microbubbles in 16 healthy persons were analyzed. It was found that the Albunex microbubbles were compressed in systole and decompressed in diastole, causing corresponding changes of backscatter in cardiac cycle. Although the intensities of backscatter in diastole and systole were related to the concentration of microbubbles, the concentration of microbubbles had no effect on the difference of end-diastolic and end-systolic backscatter. The difference of the backscatter was highly correlated with end-systolic pressure (r = 0.96, P = 0.001). In human studies, we also observed same intracardiac cyclic changes of backscatter from sonicated albumin microbubbles. Our study indicates that it is possible to evaluate the intracardiac pressure non-invasively by analyzing the intracardiac backscatter from the microbubbles with acoustic densitometry.

In order to improve the curative effect of onychomycosis, the factors influencing the therapeutic effects were investigated. 545 cases including 245 males and 300 females, who were diagnosed both clinically and mycologically, were treated by Intraconazole with intermittent pulse therapy. The therapeutic effects were judged by the following observations regularly and analyzed from the factors as follows: age; growing speed of nails; accompanied diseases; family history; trauma of nails; infection ways of the pathogens; manifestation of the injury; pathogens; duration of the treatment. The results showed that the recovery rate was higher in younger patients (P < 0.01) with a quicker recovery rate (P < 0.001), and a lower recurrent rate (P < 0.01), as well as in those with quicker growing speed of new-born nail. Also the patients with WSO and DLSO manifestation had a higher recovery rate. The patients with onychomycosis caused by T. rubrum had a higher recovery rate (P < 0.01 to 0.001) no matter whether to prolong the treatment duration. The patients with diabetes mellitus or hyperhidrosis, as well as with positive family history or basic nail diseases such as trauma and paronychia, had a lower recovery rate and the curative effects were not satisfactory. It was concluded that although the single and some DLSO-manifestation nail injury could be cured by internal and external treatments with the help of removing the sick nail and the duration of the treatment could be shortened. The treatment duration should be prolonged in order to increase the curative effects and decrease the recurrence under such conditions as following: old patients above 60 years; patients with low-growing-speed new-borne nails; patients with thumb and big toel injury and ingrowing nail; patients with diabetes mellitus, hyperhidrosis or Renauld's phenomenon; patients with nail trauma before or during the treatment; patients with PSO or TDO manifestation; patients with onychomycosis caused by Candida or Aspergillus; patients with abnormal new-borne nails of abnormal color, coarse surface or abnormal thickness.

To study the preparation and cleavage of hairpin ribozyme (HpRz) directed against the transcript of HBV core region in vitro, HRz gene designed by computer targeting the transcript of HBV core gene was cloned into the vector p1.5 between 5'-cis-Rz and 3'-cis-Rz. 32P-labeled HpRz transcript proved whether the vector fit for the preparation of hairpin ribozyme. 32P-labeled pKC transcript containing HBV core region as targets-RNA was transcribed by using T7 RNA polymerase and purified by PAGE. Cold HpRz transcript was incubated with 32P-labeled target-RNAs under different conditions and radioautographed after denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The results showed that HpRz had the ability of cleavage at 37 degrees C and 12 mmol/L MgCl2 and the design of ribozyme was correct. It is concluded that HpRz prepared in vitro possesses specific catalytic activity, indicating that it is possible for HpRz to intracellularly inhibit the replication of HBV. It may be developed into a nucleic acid drug in the treatment of hepatitis B in the future.

The potent antioxidative potential of propofol during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) in adults was investigated. The selected 30 patients receiving open heart surgery under CPB were randomly divided into group A and group B. The patients in the group A and group B were given propofol (0.1 mg.kg-1.min-1) and fentanyl (5 micrograms.kg-1.min-1) respectively to maintain anesthesia after aorta was cross-clamped. Blood samples were drawn pre-anesthesia, pre-CPB, at 30 min of CPB, at the end of CPB, at 1 h after CPB, at the end of operation, at 12 and 24 h postoperatively. RBC suspension was prepared and erythrocyte glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PD) and phosphofructokinase (PFK) activities, total erythrocyte reduced glutathione (GSH) and oxidized GSH (GSSG) were assayed and GSH/GSSG ratio was calculated. In the group A, G-6-PD and PFK activities and GSH/GSSG ratio were almost uneventfully during CPB and postoperatively. In the group B, G-6-PD activity was increased and PFK activity and GSH/GSSG ratio decreased significantly from 30 min of CPB until 12 h postoperatively. It was demonstrated that propofol could obviously attenuate free radical activity during CPB, while fentanyl has no effect on free radical reduction. Propofol could be beneficial as an anesthetic in patients presenting pathologies associated with free radical reactions during CPB.