Clinical parameters and outcomes of Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia in non-HIV/AIDS patients

Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia （PCP） is one of the most serious and potentially fatal infectionsencountered in immonosuppressed patients. It remains the most common cause of pulmonary morbidity and mortality in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus （HIV）.     

Spontaneous remission of Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia in 2 non-AIDS immunocompromised patients

Pneumocystis jiroveci (P.jiroveci) pneumonia (PCP)in non-AIDS immunocompromised patients is much more critical than that in AIDS patients.1 Without treatment,mortality of PCP in immunocompromised patients approaches 100 percent,and there were no reports of spontaneous remissions of PCP without anti-PCP therapy.2 Here we report 2 non-AIDS immunocompromised patients in whom PCP developed and remitted without treatment. Case 1 A 31-year-old man was admitted to hospital because of mild cough and fever for 14 days (the maximum temperature of 37.8℃) and a little breathless for 2 days.     

Inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion in a patient with pulmonary lymphoepithelioma like carcinoma

Antidiuretic hormone （ADH） is produced by an area of he brain called the hypothalamus. The hormone is stored in and released by the pituitary gland. When ADH （also called vasopressin） is produced somewhere other than the hypothalamus, the condition is called syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone （SIADH）. A variety of conditions can trigger abnormal ADH production, but the main cause is cancer. It is frequently one of the first signs of lung cancer, especially small cell carcinoma, which produces ADH ectopically.l     

Secondary pulmonary alveolar proteinosis associated with myelodysplastic syndrome

Pulmonary alveolar proteinosis （PAP） IS an uncommon disease first reported by Rosen et al^1 in 1958, and characterized by the accumulation of surtactant proteins and phospholipids within the alveolar spaces. Acquired PAP is divided into two forms based on clinical features： idiopathic PAP and secondary PAE Secondary PAP is reported to be associated with haematological malignancies, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and inhalation of silica or titanium, and the most frequent underlying disease of secondary PAP is haematological malignancy. The exact incidence of PAP in haematological malignancies is still obscure, since there have been only sporadic reports of secondary PAP.^ 2, 3     

卡氏肺孢子虫肺炎小鼠改良模型的建立

目的获得低死亡率卡氏肺孢子虫肺炎（Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia，PCP）小鼠模型并缩短诱导时间。方法将雌性C57小鼠随机分为地塞米松实验组、氢化可的松实验组和对照组。地塞米松实验组采用每隔2d皮下注射地塞米松1次的方法诱导PCP；氢化可的松实验组每周皮下注射氢化可的松2次；对照组注射等体积0．9％氯化钠注射液。结果地塞米松实验组至用药第16次（48d）后未见一只小鼠死亡，卡氏肺孢子虫（Pneumocystis carinii，PC）包囊总检出率为86．67％（26／30），与氢化可的松实验组PC包囊总检出率63．33％（19／30）相比，差异具有统计学意义（P〈0．05）。地塞米松实验组给药14次（42d）后PC包囊检出率与氢化可的松实验组给药56d后比较，差异无统计学意义（P〉0．05）。结论每隔2d皮下注射地塞米松1次可建立低死亡率小鼠PCP模型且缩短诱导时间。     

卡介菌多糖核酸对尖锐湿疣患者外周血T细胞亚群及其细胞因子表达的影响

目的 研究卡介菌多糖核酸（BCG-PSN）对尖锐湿疣（CA）患者外周血T淋巴细胞亚群及胞内细胞因子表达的影响，探讨BCG-PSN对尖锐湿疣可能的免疫调节机制。方法 采用三色和双色荧光抗体染色技术经流式细胞仪检测18例CA患者在BCG-PSN治疗前后外周血T淋巴细胞亚群及CD4^＋T细胞、CD8^＋T细胞内IL-2、IL-4、IL-12、IFN-γ染色阳性细胞百分率。结果 在BCG-PSN治疗前，CA患者CD3^＋T细胞、CD4^＋T细胞、CD4^＋／CD8^＋比值明显低于对照组（均P〈O．01），CD4^＋T细胞和CD8^＋T细胞内IL-2、IL-12、IFN-γ阳性细胞百分率较对照组明显下降（均P〈0．01），IL-4阳性细胞百分率与对照组比较差异无显著性意义（P〉0．05）；而治疗后CA患者CD3^＋T细胞、CD4^＋T细胞、CD4^＋／CD8^＋比值明显高于治疗前（均P〈O．01）；CD4^＋T细胞和CD8^＋T细胞内IL-2、IL-12、IFN-γ阳性细胞百分率较治疗前升高（均P〈0．01）。结论 BCG-PSN可通过调节尖锐湿疣患者T细胞亚群，纠正患者Th1／Th2模式及Tc1／Tc2模式失衡现象，起到治疗尖锐湿疣的作用。     

Epidemiology, clinical and laboratory characteristics of currently alive HIV-1 infected former blood donors naive to antiretroviral therapy in Anhui Province, China

Background Unregulated commercial blood/plasma collection among farmers occurred between 1992 and 1995 in central China and caused the second major epidemic of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 （HIV-1） infection in China. It is important to characterize HIV-l-infected former blood donors and to study characteristics associated with disease progression for future clinical intervention and vaccine development. Methods A cross-sectional study was performed on HIV-l-infected former blood donors （FBDs） and age-matched HIV-seronegative local residents. Demographic, epidemiologic, clinical and key laboratory data were collected from all study participants. Both unadjusted and adjusted multivariate linear regressions were employed to analyze the association of the decrease of CD4^＋ T-cell counts with other characteristics. Results Two hundred and ninety-four HIV-l-infected FBDs and 59 age-matched HIV-seronegative local residents were enrolled in this study. The unregulated blood/plasma collection occurred more than a decade （10.8 --12.8 years） ago, which caused the rapid spread of HIV-1 infection and the high prevalence of co-infection with hepatitis C virus （HCV, 89.5%）, hepatitis B virus （HBV） co-infection was observed in only 11 HIV＋participants （3.7%）. Deterioration in both clinical manifestation and laboratory parameters and increase of viral loads were observed in parallel with the decrease of CD4^＋ T-cell counts. The decrease of total lymphocyte counts （P〈0.001） and hemoglobin levels （P〈0.001） and the appearance of dermatosis （P=0.03） were observed in parallel with the decrease of CD4^＋ T-cell counts whereas viral loads （P〈0.001） and CD8^＋ T-cell counts （P=0.01） were inversely associated with CD4^＋ T-cell counts. Conclusions Co-infection with HCV but not HBV is highly prevalent among HIV-l-infected FBDs. CD4^＋ T-cell counts is a reliable indicator for disease progression among FBDs. Total lymphocyte counts, hemoglobin level and appearance of dermatosis were positively, whereas CD8^＋ T-cell counts and viral loads were inversely associated with the decreased CD4^＋ T-cell counts.     

肺癌患者卡氏肺孢子虫感染情况初步观察

<正>卡氏肺孢子虫是一种机会致病性原虫,其所致的卡氏肺孢子虫肺炎（Pneumocystis carinii　pneumonia,PCP）常见于艾滋病患者、恶性肿瘤晚期患者、器官移植者等免疫功能低下者。肺癌因与卡氏肺孢子虫的感染出现在相同的部位,其与PCP     

Experimental study of acute lung injury induced by different tidal volume ventilation in rats

Mechanical ventilation (MV) is a dual blade sward which if misused could lead to lung injury, called ventilator induced lung injury (VILI). Pathogenesis of VILI is very complex with various manifestations, which is the focus in MV field in recent years.^1 In our research, the rats were ventilated with different tidal volume,     

Antioxidant and Antigenotoxic Activity of Bioactive Extracts from Corn Tassel简

This study is designed to evaluate antioxidant and antigenotoxic activities of corn tassel extracts（CTTs）. The major bioactive components of CTTs include flavonoid, saponin and polysaccharide. The antioxidant properties of the three bioactive components of CTTs were investigated by Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Property（FRAP） and 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl（DPPH） assays. The activities of the extracts were determined by assessing the inhibition of mutagenicity of the direct-acting mutagen fenaminosulf, sodium azide, and indirect-acting mutagen 2-aminofluorene using the Ames test（strains TA98 and TA100）. The results showed that the extraction rates of flavonoid, saponin, and polysaccharide from the dried corn tassels were 1.67%, 2.41% and 4.76% respectively. DPPH and FRAP assay strongly demonstrated that CTTs had antioxidant properties. CTTs at doses of 625, 1250 and 2500 μg per plate reduced 2-aminofluorene mutagenicity by 12.52%, 28.76% and 36.49% in Salmonella typhimurium TA98 strain assay respectively and by 10.98%, 25.27% and 37.83%, at the same doses in Salmonella typhimurium TA100 assay system, respectively. 3-[4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide（MTT） assay showed that the different concentrations of CTTs inhibited the proliferation of MGC80-3 cells in a dose-dependent manner（P0.01）. It is concluded that these integrated approaches to antioxidant and antigenotoxicity assessment may be useful to study corn tassel as a natural herbal material.     

Dioscin-induced Apoptosis of Human LNCaP Prostate Carcinoma Cells through Activation of Caspase-3 and Modulation of Bcl-2 Protein Family简

Dioscin is a natural steroid saponin derived from several plants, showing potent anti-cancer effect against a variety of tumor cell lines. In the present study, we investigated the anti-cancer activity of dioscin against human LNCaP cells, and evaluated the possible mechanism involved in its antineoplastic action. It was found that dioscin（1, 2 and 4 μmol/L） could significantly inhibit the viability of LNCaP cells in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. Flow cytometry revealed that the apoptosis rate was increased after treatment of LNCaP cells with dioscin for 24 h, indicating that apoptosis was an important mechanism by which dioscin inhibited cancer. Western blotting was employed to detect the expression of caspase-3, Bcl-2 and Bax in LNCaP cells. The expression of cleaved caspase-3 was significantly increased, and meanwhile procaspase-3 was markedly decreased. The expression of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 was down-regulated, whereas the pro-apoptotic protein Bax was up-regulated. Moreover, the Bcl-2/Bax ratio was drastically decreased. These results suggested that dioscin possessed potential anti-tumor activity in human LNCaP cells through the apoptosis pathway, which might be associated with caspase-3 and Bcl-2 protein family.     

The role of central nervous system on hypoglycemia and the feasibility of the brain theory in traditional Chinese medicine on treatment of diabetes mellitus

The central nervous system （CNS） plays a key regulatory role in glucose homeostasis. In particular, the brain is important in initiating and coordinating protective counterregulatory responses when blood glucose levels fall. This may due to the metabolic dependency of the CNS on glucose, and protection of food supply to the brain. In healthy subjects, blood glucose is normally maintained within a relatively narrow range. Hypoglycemia in diabetic patients can increase the risk of complications, such as heart disease and diabetic peripheral neuropathy. The clinical research finds that the use of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） has a positive effect on the treatment of hypoglycemia. Here the authors reviewed the current understanding of sensing and counterregulatory responses to hypoglycemia, and discuss combining traditional Chinese and Western medicine and the theory of iatrogenic hypoglycemia in diabetes treatment. Furthermore, the authors clarify the feasibility of treating hypoglycemia on the basis of TCM theory and CNS and have an insight on its clinical practice.     

TGF-β1 Precursor and CD8 Are Potential Prognostic and Predictive Markers in Operated Breast Cancer简

The transforming growth factor β1（TGF-β1） and CD8-positive T cells are two important immune factors that function at opposite directions. The purpose of this study was to verify the relationship between the two factors and their associations with long-term effects of adjuvant chemotherapy or endocrine therapy in breast cancer. Expression of TGF-β1 precursor and CD8 was immunohistochemically detected on surgically-obtained tumor samples of 130（stageⅠ–Ⅲ） invasive breast carcinomas from Chinese subjects, who were followed up for a mean time of 112 months. Interstitial CD8-positive cells and TGF-β1 precursor-positive cells adjacent to tumor nests were counted. Infiltration of CD8-positive lymphocytes into tumor nests and TGF-β1 precursor expression in tumor cells were observed and survival analysis was performed. Our results showed that density of interstitial CD8-positive lymphocytes was an independent adverse prognostic factor for distant disease-free survival（DDFS）（HR=8.416, 95% CI=1.636–43.292, P=0.011） in hormone receptor-positive patients who were on adjuvant endocrine therapy. For breast cancer patients who did not receive adjuvant chemotherapy, those without infiltration of CD8-positive cells into tumor nests had a shorter overall survival（OS） than their counterparts with CD8-positive cell infiltration into tumor nests（Log-Rank, P=0.003）. But OS of patients without infiltration of CD8-positive cells into tumor nests was significantly prolonged by adjuvant chemotherapy（Log-Rank, P=0.013） and paralleled that of patients with CD8-positive cell infiltration. Although OS was shorter in the tumor cell TGF-β1 precursor（t-TGF-β1-pre）-positive patients than in the negative patients in patients without recieiving chemotherapy（P=0.053）, OS of t-TGF-β1-pre-positive patients was significantly prolonged by adjuvant chemotherapy（P=0.035） and was longer than that of t-TGF-β1-pre-negative patients. Analysis showed that t-TGF-β1-pre was an independent positive prognostic factor for DDFS（HR=0.392 95% CI=0.157–0.978, P=0.045） in patients who received adjuvant chemotherapy. This study suggested that density of interstitial CD8-positive lymphocytes was of prognostic value in hormone receptor-positive patients who received adjuvant endocrine therapy. Our study verified that adverse immunologic signatures consisting of absence of CD8-positive cells in tumor nests or expression of TGF-β1 precursor in tumor cells in breast cancer were associated with worse prognosis and significantly improved long-term survival with adjuvant chemotherapy, respectively.     

Effects of the aqueous extract of Schizandra chinensis fruit on ethanol withdrawal-induced anxiety in rats

Background We previously demonstrated that the aqueous extract of the Schizandra chinensis fruit （AESC） ameliorated Cd-induced depletion of monoamine neurotransmitters in the brain through antioxidant activity.In the present study,we investigated the effect of AESC on anxiety-like behavior and the levels of norepinephrine and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol （a metabolite of norepinephrine） in different brain regions during ethanol withdrawal in rats.Methods Male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with 3 g/kg of ethanol （20％,w/v） or saline by daily intraperitoneal injection for 28 days followed by three days of withdrawal.During withdrawal,rats were given AESC （100 mg.kg 1.d-1 or 300 mg.kg 1·d1,P.O.） once a day for three days.Thirty minutes after the final dose of AESC,the anxiogenic response was evaluated using an elevated plus maze,and the plasma corticosterone levels were examined by radioimmunoassay.Meanwhile,the concentrations of norepinephrine and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-phenylglycol in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus and hippocampus were also measured by high performance liquid chromatography.Results Rats undergoing ethanol withdrawal exhibited substantial anxiety-like behavior,which was characterized by both the decrease in time spent in the open arms of the elevated plus maze and the increased level of corticosterone secretion,which were greatly attenuated by doses of AESC in a dose-dependent manner.The high performance liquid chromatography analysis revealed that ethanol withdrawal significantly increased norepinephrine and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-phenylglycol levels in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus,while not significantly altering them in the hippocampus.Similar to the results from the elevated plus maze test,the AESC significantly inhibited the elevation of norepinephrine and its metabolite in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus in a dose-dependent manner.Conclusions These results suggest that AESC attenuates anxiety-like behavior induced by ethanol withdrawal through modulation of the hypothalamic norepinephrine system in the brain.     

Risk factors for perioperative major cardiac events in Chinese elderly patients with coronary heart disease undergoing noncardiac surgery

Background Few studies have investigated perioperative major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) in elderly Chinese patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) undergoing noncardiac surgery.This study examin...     

WHO西太区与世界中医药学会联合会中医名词术语国际标准比较研究:津液辨证(英文)

Intraditional Chinese medicine (TCM),the so-called津液refers to all the fluid and liquid flowingand maintaining inside the human body.In Chineselanguage,津液is a phrase composed of twoChinese characters which describes two differentkinds of fluid or liquid in the human body .According to the theory of TCM,津refers to thepart of fluid that is thin in texture and flowss moothly inside the body while液refers to thepart of fluid that is thick in texture and mainlymaintains in the joints of the body to nourish andlubr...