Effects of MK-801 and Phenytoin on Flurothyl-Induced Seizures During Development

Summary We determined the effects of the N-methyl-Daspartate (NMDA) receptor blocker MK-801 (0.05, 0.1, and 0.5 mg/kg intraperitoneally, i.p.) and phenytoin (PHT, 5, 10, and 20 mg/kg i.p.) on flurothyl-induced clonic and tonic-clonic seizures in 9-, 1 5, 30-, and 60-day-old male rats. Both agents had seizure-, age-, and dose-specific effects. The highest dose of MK-801 was anticonvulsant against clonic flurothyl-induced seizures only in 9- and 60-day-old rats, but suppressed tonic-clonic seizures in all ages. The lowest dose of MK-801 (0.05 mg/kg) produced significant anticonvulsant effects only in 15 day old rats. PHT did not have any effect on clonic seizures throughout development. Both doses of PHT (10 and 20 mg/kg) were anticonvulsant against tonic-clonic seizures in adult rats but not in any other age group. The results indicate that NMDA receptors play an important role in tonic-clonic flurothyl-induced seizures throughout development (especially in 15-day-old rats) and that the anticonvulsant effects of PHT may vary at different stages of brain development.     

基因诊断技术在脊柱结核诊断中的应用现状

脊柱结核是一种常见的肺外结核病。近年来,随着脊柱结核患者逐年增多,不典型脊柱结核患者亦逐渐增多,而不典型脊柱结核诊断较为困难,需要与一般细菌感染、肿瘤以及非结核分枝杆菌感染相鉴别。基因诊断技术是一项诊断脊柱结核的重要工具,对临床不典型脊柱结核的诊断有较高价值。本文将对脊柱结核的流行现状、诊断及基因诊断技术进行综述,以帮助临床工作者对脊柱结核做出更加准确的诊断。     

方剑乔教授针药结合治疗类风湿性关节炎的临床思辨特色与治疗经验

[目的] 介绍方剑乔教授针药结合治疗类风湿性关节炎的临床思辨特色及其临证经验。[方法] 通过整理、回顾、分析方教授治疗类风湿性关节炎的相关文献及医案,从中医病因病机和治则治法等方面,总结归纳方教授治疗类风湿性关节炎的学术经验,并列举医案一则予以佐证。[结果] 临床思辨上,方教授认为“痰、瘀、虚交错”为该病的基本病机,治疗宜针药结合,主要起到同效相须、异效互补和反效制约的作用。临证治疗上,方教授强调,针刺宜整体治疗与局部穴位兼顾,须重视经络辨证。合理应用电针,疼痛急性发作期电针频率多选择“先高后低”,先100 Hz/10～15 min,后2 Hz/30 min;慢性疼痛期电针治疗多选择疏密波(2/100 Hz)。用药强调精准辨证,在该病四种基本证型的基础上提出了阴虚湿热兼证的概念,确立了滋阴清热、通络止痛的治疗大法。倡导适时采用经皮穴位电刺激治疗,其操作简单,携带方便,在镇痛方面具有明显的优势。所举病案采用西药甲氨蝶呤片抑制免疫,稳定病情;中药以祛风除湿为主,佐以藤类药通络行窜、祛风止痛;电针治疗选择频率为2/100 Hz的疏密波调和气血、通络止痛。经治疗后,患者症状缓解,相关指标趋于正常。[结论] 方剑乔教授根据本病的病因病机及临床特点进行辨证论治,针药并重,中西医取长补短,临床特色鲜明,治疗效果显著,值得临床借鉴和推广。     

Diagnostic role of fine-needle aspiration of bone lesions in patients with a previous history of malignancy

At the present time fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is considered a routine diagnostic procedure in evaluating neoplastic vs. nonneoplastic lesions in many organs, with high sensitivity and specificity. The purpose of this study was to assess the utility of FNA in areas of diagnostic difficulty and its limitations in evaluating bone lesions in patients with a previous history of malignancy. From 1989 to 2000, 249 CT-guided FNAs of bone lesion were performed at our institutions; 187/249 (75.1%) patients had a previous history of malignancy. Aspirated material was air-dried for Diff-Quik stain or fixed in ethanol for Papanicolaou staining. Subsequent surgical tissue was available in 69/187 (36.9%) of the cases. There were 114 males and 73 females, ages 14-86 yr (mean, 64 yr). The primary tumor site was lung 49, genitourinary 46, breast 31, gastrointestinal 28, hematopoietic 26, soft tissue/skin 5, and thyroid 2. There were 125 FNAs of the vertebral spine, 19 from the pelvis, 11 from the ribs, 9 from the sternum, 5 from the femur, and 18 from miscellaneous bone sites. Out of 187, 166 (88.7%) were malignant aspirates confirming the patients' primary malignancies. The most common malignancy encountered was adenocarcinoma, 126/187 (67.4%). Surgical tissue was available for review in 69 patients and the results were in agreement with the FNAs diagnosis in all cases. Nine out of 187 (4.8%) cases were diagnosed as marrow elements on cytological material. These patients have been followed for 1-9 yr and have failed to reveal signs or symptoms of clinical recurrence. Three out of 187 (1.6%) cases showed osteomyelitis. Nine out of 187 (4.8%) were unsatisfactory specimens, with biopsy follow-up available in four cases, showing three metastatic tumors and one case of osteomyelitis. FNA of metastatic bone lesions is a major step in pretreatment diagnosis. On satisfactory specimens, the cytological diagnosis viewed in the clinical-radiological context proves to be similar to surgical diagnosis. FNA is an excellent technique with a high accuracy rate in assessing metastatic bone lesions.     

Mouse Sperm Rosette: Assembling During Epididymal Transit,in vitro Disassemble,and Oligosaccharide Participation in the Linkage Material

In many mammals, sperm associations had been observed, but not in the mouse. In this work, mouse sperm rosettes are morphologically described inside the epididymis and during its dissolution in a culture medium. Also characterized are the saccharides present in the linking material. Sperm association and other epididymal actions are supported by sperm during epididymal transit and are verified at the caudal region, suggesting a relation between epididymal transit and sperm maturation. In drops of epididymal content obtained from distal (cauda), but not from proximal (caput and corpus) regions; dissolved in culture medium, rosettes appear to be 10 to 15 motile sperm joined by their heads. After 3 min, sperm progressively detach, disassembling the rosette. These structures are studied by several techniques, including optic, electronic (scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy), and video microscopy. At the ultrastructural level, a dense network of electron‐dense material was observed between sperm heads, joining them. Based on previous works in rat, several lectins were used to characterize the type of saccharides present in this linking material. To avoid the contact between sperm and epididymal fluid from distal region—that probably exerts an influence on sperm association—a ligature was placed between caput and corpus. This epididymal content isolated from caput did not display any rosettes after 28 days. Anat Rec, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

The role of computational models of the immune system in designing vaccination strategies

Mathematical and computational models are designed to improve our understanding of biological phenomena, to confirm/reject hypotheses, and to find points of intervention by altering the behavior of the studied systems. Here we describe the role of mathematical/computational models of the immune system. In particular, we analyze some examples of how mathematical modeling can contribute to finding optimal vaccination strategies. Indeed, computational modeling offers an intriguing opportunity from the theoretical point of view, and it will be of interest for clinically oriented investigators who wish to find optimal therapeutic strategies and for pharmaceutical industries that want to produce effective and successful drugs.     

Elastofibroma dorsi has distinct cytomorphologic features, making diagnostic surgical biopsy unnecessary: cytomorphologic study with clinical, radiologic, and electron microscopic correlations

Elastofibroma dorsi (EFD) is a relatively rare soft tissue mass, probably of reactive nature. The lesion is typically located near the inferior margin of the scapula or between the inferior part of scapula and the chest wall in elderly women. Although location of the tumor together with the age/sex of the patients and radiologic findings is often suggestive of the diagnosis, tissue examination has been considered necessary to confirm the diagnosis. Although the histologic features of EFD are well known, there are only four single case reports of the cytologic findings in the English language literature. We describe the cytologic features of EFD in five patients with correlations to clinical, radiologic, histologic, and electron microscopic findings. The current study suggests that the fine-needle aspiration (FNA) features are highly diagnostic, permitting a firm diagnosis of EFD in a typical clinical setting and eliminating the need for preoperative histologic examination.     

Radiologically guided percutaneous fine-needle aspiration biopsy of pelvic and retroperitoneal masses: a retrospective study of 68 cases

Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) of the pelvis and retroperitoneum (excluding the pancreas, kidney, and adrenal masses) has not achieved its full potential as a diagnostic modality. We reviewed 68 percutaneous, radiologically guided FNAs from these locations to assess the clinical utility and complication rate of this procedure. Satisfactory material was obtained in 66 cases (97.1%), of which 37 were deemed positive (55%), 3 suspicious (4%), 4 atypical (6%), and 22 negative (32%) for malignancy; two cases (3%) were unsatisfactory. Compared to biopsy (36 patients) and clinical information, the sensitivity and specificity of FNA for malignancy were 90.2% and 100%, respectively, yielding a positive predictive value of 100% and a negative predictive value of 86.6%. The four false-negative cases (5.9%) were due to sampling error. One patient had a minor complication (hematoma) from the procedure. We conclude that FNA is the procedure of choice for detecting most malignancies in these two locations.     

Tumor genes and their proteins in cytologic and surgical specimens: Relevance and detection systems

Oncogenesis is the consequence of a series of genetic alterations that allow unrestrained cellular growth, tissue invasion, and eventual metastases. Tumor-related genes can be classified into functional categories. Proto-oncogenes/oncogenes have a stimulatory role in cell growth, and the inactivation of cancer-suppressor genes/antioncogenes results in the loss of cell cycle regulation. More recently, three other groups of tumor-related genes have been recognized. They include the antiapoptosis genes which protect from programmed cell death, the antimetastasis genes, and multidrug resistance genes. Besides aiding in tumor diagnosis, the detection of such tumor-associated genes and their products allows the identification of individuals with an inherited predisposition to neoplastic growths, and the overexpression of many of these oncogene products has been shown to be a potential marker of tumor behavior and a predictor of treatment outcome and response. The ability to utilize DNA and RNA probes for nucleic acid hybridization and polymerase chain reaction procedures in cell and tissue preparations of solid tumors and lymphoid proliferations expands and complements the information provided by immunohistochemical techniques. These probes allow direct visualization and correlation of specific genes and their protein products with cytomorphologic features, and form a powerful addition to the armamentarium of the cytopathologist and surgical pathologist. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

YL-1型颅内血肿穿刺针的临床应用

目的探讨YL-1型颅内血肿穿刺针对颅内疾病微创治疗的价值及临床应用。方法回顾性分析本院2005年3月至2007年3月应用YL-1型颅内血肿穿刺针治疗颅内疾病患者58例（高血压幕上脑出血38例;慢性硬膜下血肿12例;急性硬膜外血肿5例;脑积水2例;颅内张力性积气1例）评价YL-1型颅内血肿穿刺针其在颅内疾病的应用价值。结果经采用CT定位YL-1型颅内血肿穿刺针微创手术治疗颅内疾病患者58例,存活51例;死亡4例;术后放弃治疗3例。结论采用YL-1型颅内血肿穿刺针微创手术治疗颅内血肿、积水、积气是简单、有效的微创手术方法。