Up-regulation of urinary UPIII mRNA levels in vesicoureteral reflux patients: Potential application as a screening test for vesicoureteral reflux

OBJECTIVES: Vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) is the most common congenital urinary tract anomaly. This disease can pose a major threat to the kidneys as twenty percent of patients with endstage renal disease are reported to have VUR. Although genetic studies for uroplakin III (UPIII) have been reported recently, no study has focused on UPIII gene expression in VUR patients. We describe here the up-regulation of UPIII mRNA in exfoliated urinary cells from primary VUR patients. METHODS: A real-time RT-PCR for UPIII mRNA was performed on exfoliated urothelial cells from 18 primary VUR and 38 control samples. UPIII mRNA copies were calculated for each sample. The statistical differences were assessed by the Mann-Whitney U test. Receiver operator characteristic curves were constructed for analysis of the diagnostic values. RESULTS: UPIII mRNA was found to be up-regulated to a greater extent in VUR than in control exfoliated urinary cells (mean +/- SE: 497.0 +/- 178.5 copies vs. 69.0 +/- 10.0 copies, respectively, P < 0.001). In evaluating the measurement of urinary UPIII mRNA as a screening test for VUR, the sensitivity was 77.8% and the specificity was 76.3% by the best diagnostic cutoff point. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first report demonstrating up-regulation of UPIII in mRNA levels in VUR patients. We submit that the quantitative measurement of urinary UPIII mRNA has a potential of developing into the first non-invasive screening test for VUR.     

在就诊患者和健康体检者中筛检人胃螺杆菌

目的：通过几种不同的检查方法调查人胃螺杆菌在人群中的感染情况及在慢性胃炎中的致病作用。方法：３８０例行消化道症状的就诊患者和４３２名健康体检者的胃粘膜活检标本分别行涂片、尿素酶试验、１４Ｃ－尿素呼吸试验和组织学检查。结果：人胃螺杆菌在上述两类人群中的感染率分别为２．１１％和１．１６％。涂片Ｇｒａｍ染色和切片ＷＳ银染是目前诊断该菌感染较理想的手段，不论有无症状，患者在组织学上均伴有慢性炎症改变，根据形态学特点该菌可大致分为两型，分别与某些动物胃内的螺旋菌相似。结论：人胃螺杆菌在人群中感染率较低，可能是一种源自动物的慢性胃炎相关性病原菌。     

Kindergarten and first grade: A time for developing and nurturing gifted behaviors in young children

This article concludes that there is a tremendous need for gifted programs at the kindergarten and first grade levels. A review of the literature suggests that it is difficult to identify young gifted children through traditional screening techniques. The author concludes that Renzulli's Enrichment Triad Model may prove useful for identifying young gifted children.     

奥美拉唑静脉给药治疗上消化道大出血的疗效观察

本文阐述了奥美拉唑（Ｏｍｅｐｒａｚｏｌｅ）治疗急性上消化道大出血８０例与法莫替丁（Ｆａｍｏｔｉｄｉｎｅ）治疗上消化道大出血５０例比较，前者有效率明显高于后者。提示奥美拉唑治疗急性上消化道大出血效果好，无副作用，减少了手术率、死亡率，是一种有效的止血药物。     

Prenatal nicotine exposure increased duration of nicotine-induced analgesia in adult rats

The effect of prenatal exposure to nicotine on nicotine-induced analgesia was studied in rats. The analgesic effect of a single dose of nicotine (1 mg/kg SC) was measured by the tail-flick technique, and two subsequent studies were carried out. In the first study, 7-month-old male rats, born to dams chronically treated with nicotine during pregnancy (NIC), exhibited prolonged nicotine-induced analgesia compared to matched controls. The second study was designed to explore whether rats prenatally exposed to nicotine (NIC rats) are born with an increased sensitivity to nicotine and whether there is any sex difference. The analgesic effect of nicotine was tested on control and NIC rats of both sexes once a month from 2 to 7 months of age. At an early age, male but not female NIC rats, exhibited shorter analgesic responses to nicotine than did the matched controls. With increasing age, however, the duration of nicotine analgesia began to be prolonged in NIC rats of both sexes. Significant differences between control and NIC rats were found at the age of 6 and 7 months, in both sexes. Thus, rats prenatally exposed to nicotine are not born with an increased sensitivity to the analgesic effect of a single dose of nicotine. This phenomenon develops later, during the course of life, independently of gender.     

Laboratory screening method for selection of healthy volunteers

The aim of laboratory screening in Phase I is to exclude subjects with subclinical illness, who might be at increased risk in the study, and who might also adversely influence interpretation of the results. A new method for laboratory screening, based on Bayesian probability theory, is proposed, which consists of: 1. Drawing up a list of diseases to be excluded. 2. Defining for each disease, the maximum acceptable risk that an included subject could be affected by it. 3. Identifying one test for each disease. 4. Using a contingency table to calculate the specificity of the test and integrating the estimated prevalence of the disease from epidemiological data. 5. Applying the percentage obtained by the calculation of specificity to the previously determined distribution of values in the volunteer population to identify the threshold value for inclusion. Use of this deductive method in screening volunteers for Phase I trials affords increased security of selection, while reducing the number of non-pertinent exclusions because of laboratory findings.     

Screening of somatization disorder: validation of the Spanish version of the Othmer and DeSouza Test

The objective of this study was to validate the Spanish version of the Othmer and DeSouza Screening Test for Somatization Disorder. We have designed a validity study using the Standardized Polyvalent Psychiatric Interview, an instrument specifically designed to diagnose psychiatric morbidity in medical settings as the ‘golden rule’. The control group displayed ‘functional’ and ‘presenting’ somatization. The Othmer and DeSouza Screening Test, with a threshold of three symptoms, shows 88% sensitivity, 78% specificity and a misclassification rate of 17%. It is concluded that Othmer and DeSouza's screening test, with a threshold of three symptoms, is a useful tool for the diagnosis of somatization disorder in medical and primary care settings in Spain. Discrepancies with US findings are discussed on a cross-cultural basis.     

摆动筛运动的数学分析

本文分析了摆动筛的运动规律,并计算了位移、速度和加速度,分析了筛面上颗粒物体的受力情况,可供设计、制造和使用作参考。