Fetal cardiac screening by three- and four-dimensional ultrasound

Objective. The objective of our paper is to show that the spatio-temporal image correlation (STIC) and tomographic ultrasound imaging (TUI) is very convenient and helpful for the fetal screening of complex congenital heart defects (CHD).

Methods. Ultrasound examinations were performed using a Voluson 730 EXPERT or PRO system (GE Medical system, Kretztechnik, Zipf, Austria), and the transabdominal probe (RAB 4-8 MHz or 1-5 MHz) was used to acquire the STIC volumes. Various complex CHD including heterotaxia, ventricular septal defect (VSD), atrio-ventricular septal defect (AVSD), tetralogy of fallot (TOF), transposition of great artery (TGA), hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) were examined between 20 weeks and 35 weeks. After routine cardiac screening and examination by two-dimensional ultrasound, three- and four-dimensional ultrasound were performed by gray-scaled and color flow mapping. After the examination detailed analysis of CHD were performed by STIC and TUI.

Results. In the case of heterotaxia, STIC and TUI was useful for the detection of stomach and cardiac apex in the different slices. In the case of VSD and AVSD, they were useful for the exact determination of septal defect location. In the cases of TOF, TGA and HLHS, they were helpful for observation of outflow tract and exact diagnosis.

Conclusion. In the screening of complex CHD including heterotaxia, VSD, AVSD, TOF, TGA and HLHS, STIC is very useful and powerful tool.     

Activation of peripheral 5-HT4 receptors attenuates colonic sensitivity to intraluminal distension

Tegaserod is a 5-HT(4) receptor partial agonist approved for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome in women with constipation and in both men and women with chronic constipation. The efficacy of tegaserod is based on the importance of 5-HT(4) receptors regulating intestinal peristalsis and secretion, and possibly visceral sensory pathways. Our aim was to investigate the effect of tegaserod on colorectal sensitivity using models of normal and exaggerated responsiveness to colorectal distension (CRD). The visceromotor responses (VMR) to CRD at graded pressures (0-60 mmHg) were measured by the number of reflex abdominal contractions. Acute colorectal hypersensitivity was induced by intracolonic infusion of dilute acetic acid. Chronic hypersensitivity was observed in rats following spontaneous resolution of trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid-induced colitis. Rats with normosensitive colons served as controls. Tegaserod (0.1-10 mg kg(-1)) caused dose-dependent reduction of the VMR to CRD in control rats and in those with colonic hypersensitivity. 5-HT(4) antagonists reversed the effects of tegaserod in rats with normosensitive colons, and partially inhibited effects in rats with colonic hypersensitivity. Central administration of tegaserod had no inhibitory effect. These results support the assumption that colonic hypersensitivity could be normalized by tegaserod acting, at least in part, through peripheral 5-HT(4) receptors.     

孕妇血清AFP、uE3和β-hCG水平与严重胎儿缺陷的关系

①目的 探讨孕中期血清甲胎球蛋白（AFP），游离雌三醇（uF3)和β绒毛膜促性腺激素（β-HCG）水平与严重胎儿缺陷的关系。②方法 用ELISA方法对832例16-21周妊娠妇女血清AFP、UE3和β-hCG进行检测，以筛查阳性病人。③结果 14例胎儿被确诊为异常，其中唐氏综征2例，无脑儿3例，脊柱裂3例，唇腭裂1例，腹裂肠外翻1例，孕中期自然流产2例，死胎1例，葡萄胎1例，总检出率为1.68%，假阳性15例，占被检人数的1.80%。④结论 以上3种生化指标联合检测可作为产前诊断严重胎儿缺陷的有效方法。     

七氟醚和缺氧预适应诱导乳鼠心肌细胞HSP70表达的改变

目的 :探讨七氟醚预适应和缺氧预适应对乳鼠心肌细胞热休克蛋白 70表达的影响。方法 :第 2代培养心肌细胞随机分为正常对照组 (C组 )、缺氧 /复氧组 (A/R组 )、缺氧预适应组 (IP组 )和七氟醚预适应组 (S组 ) ,每组均缺氧 2h ,复氧 48h。分别取复氧 0 ,1,12 ,2 4,36和 48h的细胞 ,用免疫组化染色检测HSP70 表达并进行图象分析。结果 :在各个时间点 ,S组和IP组间的HSP70 表达均显著高于A/R组和C组 (P <0 .0 1) ,A/R组的HSP70 表达略高于C组 ,S组和IP组间的HSP70 表达差异无显著性 (P >0 .0 5 )。随着复氧时间的延长 ,S组和IP组间的HSP70 表达从 1h开始增加 ,2 4h表达最强 ,与 1h相比差异具有显著性 (P <0 .0 5 )。结论 :七氟醚预处理和缺氧预处理均可诱导乳鼠心肌细胞HSP70 在延迟相呈高表达 ,提示HSP70 参与了七氟醚预适应和缺氧预适应的延迟保护相。     

成年大鼠纹状体海人藻酸损伤后nestin的表达

目的　 研究成年大鼠纹状体海人藻酸 (kainicacid,KA)损伤后不同时间点nestin的表达并探讨其机制。方法　向成年SD大鼠纹状体内立体定位注射 0 .5 μlKA(1mg/ml) ,分别于手术后第 1、3、7、14天用免疫组织化学法检测纹状体内nestin表达的变化。结果　 正常纹状体内可观察到微弱的淡染nestin样免疫活性阳性细胞 ;大鼠纹状体KA损伤后 1d ,nestin样免疫活性增强 ;第 3天nestin样免疫活性达峰值 ,nestin样免疫活性阳性细胞的胞体肥大 ,突起粗大 ,分支增加 ;此后nestin样免疫活性阳性细胞染色强度减弱 ,其胞体和突起逐渐变小变细。 结论　 成年大鼠纹状体内注射海人藻酸可诱导nestin的大量表达 ,该表达可能与脑损伤后的自身修复相关。     

头皮针对脑缺血模型大鼠血浆内皮素-1的影响

目的 :研究头皮针对脑缺血模型大鼠内皮素 - 1 ( ET- 1 )的影响 ,并与电针组比较。方法 :Wistar大鼠 5 0只 ,随机分正常、假手术、模型、电针、头皮针五组 ,每组 1 0只 ,后四组均于造模后 72小时、1 0天、1 5天取血测 ET- 1 ,并与手术后 6小时测定值进行比较 ;前三组不治疗 ,后两组造模后分别用电针与头皮针治疗。观察治疗前后 ET- 1测定值。结果 :神经功能评分 ,术后 1 0天与 1 5天 ,治疗组与模型组有显著性差异 ( P<0 .0 5～ 0 .0 1 ) ,电针组与头皮针组 ET- 1测定值无明显差异。对ET- 1的影响 ,术后 72小时及 1 0天时 ,治疗组 ET- 1明显低于模型组 ( P<0 .0 5 ) ,头皮针组明显低于电针组 ( P<0 .0 5 )。结论 :头皮针可在脑缺血早期就明显降低血浆 ET- 1含量 ,这可能是头皮针减轻脑缺血损伤并促进肢体功能恢复的机制之一。     

P-glycoprotein,multidrug resistance and tumor progression

P-glycoprotein (Pgp) is a plasma membrane protein that was first characterised in multidrug resistant cell lines. The occurrence of Pgp in clinical tumors has been widely studied. Recent investigations have begun to focus on the relationship between Pgp detection in tumors and treatment outcome. In several types of tumors, detection of Pgp correlates with poor response to chemotherapy and shorter survival. P-glycoprotein overexpression often occurs upon relapse from chemotherapy but may also occur at the time of diagnosis. Studies of experimental rat liver carcinogenesis have shown that Pgp expression increases in late stages of carcinogenesis, suggesting that Pgp may be involved in tumor progression. While some of the Pgp isoforms are known to transport hydrophobic chemotherapeutic drugs out of tumor cells, the biologic effects of Pgp overexpression in tumor cells are not fully understood, because the spectrum of substrates for Pgp-mediated transport has not been determined. In the rat liver carcinoma model, strong expression of Pgp is associated with a highly vascular stroma, suggesting that Pgp in tumor cells may affect the connective tissue stroma. The regulation of Pgp appears to be complex, and little is known about how it is up-regulated during carcinogenesis. Further studies of the role of Pgp in malignancy may contribute to our understanding of molecular mechanisms which underlie tumor progression.     

High-resolution imaging of progressive articular cartilage degeneration.

The objective of this study was to develop and verify a new technique for monitoring the progression of osteoarthritis (OA) by combining a rat model with the imaging modality optical coherence tomography (OCT). Time-sequential, in vivo, OCT imaging was performed on the left femoral condyles of 12 Wistar rats following sodium-iodoacetic acid-induced OA progression. The right femoral condyles (untreated) were also imaged and served as controls. Imaging was performed on days 0, 10, 20, 30, and 60 with an OCT system capable of acquiring images at four frames per second and an axial resolution of 5 microm. Progressive changes were analyzed using an OA scoring system. OCT successfully identified progressive cartilage degeneration as well as alteration of the cartilage/bone interface. Significant changes to both of these structures were observed in the sodium-iodoacetic acid-injected condyles. Structural changes detected with OCT were confirmed histologically. OCT in combination with a well-known model used in arthritis research represents a powerful tool for following degenerative joint disease progression in a given animal by detecting changes to the cartilage/bone interface and articular cartilage.     

胎儿主要肢骨发育时间表──超声骨龄

用Ｂ超检测正常妊娠中的胎儿。选择受精龄为１２至３８整周（ｃｏｍｐｌｅｔｅｄｗｅｅｋ）的胎儿２９７例。测量其主要肢骨（干）长度。并将所测数据进行统计学处理。结果表明胎儿肢骨的生长发育与胎龄有显著的正相关关系。