Cortisol moderates the relationship between testosterone and aggression in delinquent male adolescents.

BACKGROUND: In animals, strong evidence exists for an association between testosterone and aggression. In humans, and particularly in children and adolescents, findings have been less consistent. Previous research has suggested that this may partly be due to moderating effects of other factors, e.g., hormones. This study aims to investigate the moderating effect of cortisol on the relationship between testosterone and subtypes of aggression in delinquent male adolescents. METHODS: Participants were 103 boys (mean age 13.7) referred to a delinquency diversion program. Testosterone and cortisol levels were determined from saliva samples collected during resting conditions and related to self-report scores on overt and covert aggression. RESULTS: Linear regression analyses revealed a significant interaction between cortisol and testosterone in relation to overt aggression, with a significant positive relationship between testosterone and overt aggression in subjects with low cortisol levels but not in subjects with high cortisol levels. Using the same model for covert aggression, no significant effects of testosterone, cortisol, or testosterone x cortisol interaction were found. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate a moderating effect of cortisol on the relationship between testosterone and overt aggression in delinquent male adolescents. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Pituitary volume in teenagers with first-presentation borderline personality disorder

This study used magnetic resonance imaging to examine pituitary gland volume (PGV) in teenage patients with a first presentation of borderline personality disorder (BPD). No difference in PGV was observed between healthy controls (n = 20) and the total BPD cohort (n = 20). However, within the BPD cohort, those exposed to childhood trauma (n = 9) tended to have smaller pituitaries (− 18%) than those with no history of childhood trauma (n = 10). These preliminary findings suggest that exposure to childhood trauma, rather than BPD, per se, might be associated with reduced PGV, possibly reflecting hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis dysfunction.     

补益中药对老龄雄性大鼠下丘脑神经递质——甲状腺轴机能作用的研究

本文通过对3月龄、18月龄、24月龄雄性大鼠下丘脑去甲肾上腺素(NE)、多巴胺(DA)、5-羟色胺(5-HT)、5-羟吲哚乙酸(5-HIAA),和下丘脑垂体促甲状腺释放激素(TRH)、垂体、血甲状腺释放激素(TSH)、血甲状腺激素(T_3、T_4)的测定,研究了大鼠下丘脑神经递质与甲状腺轴机能的增龄性变化,并在此基础上探讨了补益中药对老龄大鼠下丘脑—垂体—甲状腺机能的作用。结果提示:老龄大鼠下丘脑机能的减退是甲状腺轴机能减退的重要原因;补益中药可能改善了老龄大鼠下丘脑的调控机能,进而延缓了甲状腺轴机能的老年性变化。     

Release of vasopressin from supraoptic neurons within the median eminence in vivo. A combined microdialysis and push-pull perfusion study in the rat

The present study was designed to investigate whether or not arginine vasopressin (AVP) is released from magnocellular neurons within the median eminence (ME) in vivo. Urethane-anesthetized adult male Wistar rats were equipped with a microdialysis probe aimed at the supraoptic (SON) or paraventricular nucleus (PVN), a push-pull perfusion probe resting in the ME, and a blood microdialysis probe within the jugular vein. Dialysis of the SON (but not the PVN) with Ringer's solution containing 56 mmol l⁻¹ K⁺ resulted in an increase in AVP release within the ME (to 492 ± 192% of release during basal conditions,P < 0.05) and into blood (to 138 ± 9%,P < 0.01) whereby the release probably occurred from axonal swellings and nerve terminals of supraoptic neurons which project through the internal zone of the ME to the posterior pituitary. The calculated amount of AVP released into the extracellular fluid of the ME was high enough (approximately 1 pg/μ1) to hypothesize that the neuropeptide could enter the portal blood capillaries in physiologically relevant concentrations. Taken together, the present study indicates that activation of magnocellular neurons is accompanied by release of AVP within the median eminence. We assume that AVP released in this way might mediate a communication between the hypothalamic-neurohypophysial system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in response to selected stressful stimuli.     

完全性左束支传导阻滞合并显著电轴左偏32例分析

本文对32例完全性左束支传导阻滞(CLBBB)合并显著电轴左偏超过(-30°)和20例CLBBB电轴正常两组病人进行对比观察。结果无论在心脏形态大小或心电图改变方面电轴左偏病人比电轴正常者病情严重。CLBBB合并电轴明显左偏的发病机制可以有五种情况解释。     

肺部、肠道菌群及其相互作用与慢性阻塞性肺疾病发生发展的研究进展

慢性阻塞性肺疾病（COPD）是一种常见的慢性呼吸系统疾病,对人类健康造成极大威胁。研究发现,COPD患者与健康人群相比,肺部菌群及肠道菌群的组成结构发生了显著改变,导致黏膜屏障功能及机体免疫稳态被破坏,进而加重病情。积极调节肺部、肠道菌群平衡对于干预COPD的发生、发展有着至关重要的作用,但目前关于肺部、肠道菌群及其相互作用机制在COPD中作用的总结和认识还有待进一步阐明。本文就健康人群以及COPD患者肺部、肠道菌群的组成特点及可能的相互作用机制,以及现阶段基于肺部、肠道菌群及其相互作用防治COPD的最新研究成果进行综述,以期为COPD的发病机制、早期诊断、预防与治疗研究提供新思路。     

枢椎齿突骨折的有限元分析

目的：建立枢椎的三维有限元(FE)模型，探讨在前、后方不同载荷下齿突的不同损伤机制和骨折类型。方法：对一例新鲜枢椎标本进行CT扫描，层厚1mm，扫描图像转换后输入微机，通过软件PRO／E重建枢椎的三维立体模型，再转入有限元软件MARK并赋予此模型物理材料属性，然后模拟齿突骨折的受力条件，在齿突中性矢状面对齿突施加不同角度的载荷，分析各种条件下枢椎模型的应力、应变分布，探讨相应条件下可能导致的枢椎齿突骨折类型。结果：(1)对于齿突前部斜向后下方载荷，应力集中区从齿突前上部斜贯穿至后下部；对于齿突前部斜向后上方载荷，应力集中区从齿突前下部斜贯穿至后上部；齿突腰部始终保持高应力；(2)在齿突后部载荷下，其应力集中情况与前部载荷相似，不过应力集中区位置有所偏下。结论：(1)在齿突中性矢状面，齿突前部载荷容易导致齿突腰部发生断裂，形成枢椎齿突Ⅱ型骨折，也可能导致基底部发生断裂，形成枢椎齿突Ⅲ型骨折；(2)齿突后部载荷更容易导致基底部发生断裂，形成枢椎齿突Ⅲ型骨折。     

基于粗配准和混合互信息的医学图像配准算法

利用边缘检测算子和数学形态学方法提取医学图像轮廓,采用主轴矩法配准两幅图像的轮廓,使其达到粗略配准的目的。通常的互信息测度是基于香农熵的,因为香农熵对于局部极值具有很强吸引域,而某些参数下的雷尼熵可以消除局部极值,将两种测度分别用于精配过程中不同的搜索阶段。首先利用全局搜索算法,寻找基于雷尼熵的归一化互信息测度的全局最优初值,再通过局部优化算法对当前的最优解寻找基于香农熵的更精确的全局最优解。实验表明,这种配准算法是有效的。     

Early embryonic expression patterns of the mouse Flamingo and Prickle orthologues.

The Drosophila melanogaster proteins Flamingo and Prickle act in the planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway, which is required for acquisition of epithelial polarity in the wing, eye, and epidermis. In mammals, PCP signaling has been shown to regulate cell movements and polarity in a variety of tissues. Here, we show that the murine Flamingo orthologues Celsr1-3 and the Prickle orthologues Prickle1, Prickle2, and Testin have dynamic patterns of expression during pregastrulation and gastrulation stages. Celsr1 is expressed in the anterior visceral endoderm and nascent mesoderm, Celsr2 and Celsr3 mark the prospective neuroectoderm, Prickle1 is expressed in the primitive streak and mesoderm, Prickle2 in the node, and Testin in the anterior visceral endoderm, the extraembryonic ectoderm, primitive streak, and mesoderm. Analysis of a gene-trap mutation in Testin indicates that this gene is not required for embryogenesis; therefore, other Prickle homologues may compensate for its function during development.