European multicenter study on LOH of APOC3 at 11q23 in 766 breast cancer patients: relation to clinical variables. Breast Cancer Somatic Genetics Consortium.

High frequencies of loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in chromosome 11q22-qter have been observed in various malignancies, including breast cancer. Previous studies on breast carcinomas by Winqvist et al (Cancer Res 55: 2660-2664) have indicated that a survival factor gene is located in band 11q23, and that the highly informative microsatellite polymorphism at the APOC3 locus would be a suitable tool to perform more extensive LOH studies. In this European multicentre study, we have examined the occurrence of APOC3 LOH and evaluated the effect of LOH of this chromosomal subregion on the clinical behaviour of the disease in a cohort of 766 breast cancer patients in more detail. LOH for APOC3 was found in 42% of the studied tumours, but it was not found to be significantly associated with any of the studied clinical variables, including cancer-specific survival time or survival time after recurrent/metastatic disease. According to the present findings, the putative survival factor gene on 11q23 is not located close enough to the APOC3 gene, but apparently at a more proximal location.     

Estimation of the past and future burden of mortality from mesothelioma in France

OBJECTIVES: Firstly to evaluate future mortality from mesothelioma in France with an age-period-cohort approach and evaluate different hypotheses on risk of mesothelioma for the most recent birth cohort. Secondly to compare the results with a British and an American study. Thirdly to study if any trends were detectable on data for women which would be consistent with the consequences of increasing environmental exposure to asbestos. METHODS: Estimates of mortality from mesothelioma among men and women in France from 1950 to 1995 were based on the analysis of the pleural cancer mortality data coded 163 in the ninth revision of the international classification of diseases (ICD-9). Correction factors were used to derive the mortality from mesothelioma from these data, based on two regional registries. The analysis of the past mortality data has been performed by an age-cohort model (with a maximum likelihood technique). Predictions of deaths from mesothelioma over the next 50 years were based on four different assumptions on the risk of death from mesothelioma in future birth cohorts. RESULTS: The predicted lifetime probability of dying from mesothelioma increases until the last birth cohort 1964-8 among men whereas it decreases strongly from the 1954-8 birth cohort among women. The projected numbers of deaths from mesothelioma in France until 2020 are similar, whichever hypothesis is considered: around 20,000 deaths from mesothelioma might occur among men and 2900 among women from 1996 to 2020. CONCLUSIONS: French data show an increasing lifetime probability of death from mesothelioma in the more recent male cohorts. Although the mortality burden can be predicted until 2020, and is intermediate between the United Kingdom and United States estimates, there is still high uncertainty on the figures after 2020. No increase is found in women, and this does not support the hypothesis that current environmental exposure to asbestos could be associated with a detectable risk of death. Specific surveillance should be set up to monitor future trends or their absence.       

Detection of Epstein-Barr viral genomes in lymph nodes of Hodgkin's disease patients

Previous studies using Southern blot analysis or in situ hybridization have shown that approximately 20% of patients with Hodgkin's disease have Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in involved tissues. We used the more sensitive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique to determine if a higher percentage of EBV could be detected. Of the 16 Hodgkin's disease patients studied, the PCR technique detected EBV in eight (50%). No prognostic significance was associated with the presence of EBV in the eight EBV-positive patients, and the presence of EBV was not associated with B cell monoclonality.     

Inherited factors in diffuse bronchiectasis in the adult: a prospective study.

To evaluate the prevalence of inherited respiratory ciliary structure and underlying mucus abnormalities in the diffuse bronchiectasis syndrome, we investigated 53 subjects comprising 38 patients with diffuse bronchiectasis confirmed by high-resolution thoracic computed tomography, ten with chronic bronchitis and no diffuse bronchiectasis and five healthy nonsmoking control subjects. The clinical history was determined by means of a standardized questionnaire. Axonemal abnormalities of respiratory cilia were evaluated on bronchial or nasal mucosa samples by transmission electron microscopy (structure) and stroboscopic observation (function). Cystic fibrosis (CF) and Young's syndrome were detected by means of the sweat test and semen analysis when male infertility was suspected. Among the 38 patients with diffuse bronchiectasis, a primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) was detected in five (13%) with a high proportion (range: 55-100%) of cilia showing axonemal ultrastructural abnormalities always involving the dynein arms. The prevalence of this inherited condition was higher in North African (36%) than in European patients (4%) (p less than 0.01). After exclusion of the five patients with PCD, the patients with diffuse bronchiectasis showed axonemal ultrastructural abnormalities similar to those with chronic bronchitis. The diagnosis of underlying mucus disorders was based on two types of criterion, i.e. for CF, sweat chloride levels greater than 80 mmol.l-1, or the combination of diagnostic criteria proposed by Stern et al. Respectively, five (three Young's syndrome and two CF) and seven (one Young's syndrome and six CF) cases of inherited mucus disorders were suspected. Our results showed that PCD was highly prevalent among the adult North African patients with diffuse bronchiectasis but relatively rare in the Europeans.     

Genotypic analyses of Richter's syndrome

The authors report the immunogenotype of two cases of Richter's syndrome. The immunoglobulin gene rearrangement pattern obtained on Southern Blot analysis was found in both cases to be the same in leukemic blood cells and in the tissue involved by the lymphoma. The beta chain and gamma chain T-cell receptor gene rearrangement pattern exhibited a germ-line configuration in the peripheral blood cells and in the lymph node in Case 2, whereas in Case 1 the lymph node had a gene rearrangement in the beta chain, as well as in the gamma chain T-cell receptor, and the leukemic cells from bone marrow were found to be in a germ-line configuration for T-cell receptors (beta and gamma chains).     

铁饼运动员旋转开始阶段肩关节急性损伤的生物力学分析

目的:采用问卷调查法和三维运动生物力学分析法,了解国家优秀女子铁饼运动员旋转开始阶段肩关节可能出现的运动损伤及其呈现的生物力学特点。方法:2004-06/07发放调查问卷14份,调查14名国家健将级优秀女子铁饼运动员肩关节损伤构成比。2005-03采用近景动态立体摄影的测量方法,用两台有电子快门的进口松下摄像机,对运动员现场比赛、训练进行定点拍摄,拍摄频率为50Hz。再采用爱捷运动录像快速反馈分析系统,进行图像采样和数据计算,获取生物力学指标,重点分析女子铁饼运动员旋转开始阶段肩关节可能出现的运动损伤及其呈现的生物力学特点。结果:①14份问卷全部收回,有效率100%。通过对问卷的分析,发现国家健将级优秀女子铁饼运动员肩关节损伤构成比最高的是肱二头肌长头肌肌腱损伤(34%),其次是肩袖损伤23%,肩锁关节扭伤及脱位、脱位与半脱位(盂肱关节)、三角肌拉伤、其他分别占14%,3%,5%,18%。②旋转开始阶段肩关节的生物力学指标:右脚离地瞬间,肩髋角度45°、拉引角度126°、肩轴角度2°,左肩速度为2.65m/s、右肩速度为0.98m/s;左脚离地瞬间,肩髋角度27°、拉引角度150°、肩轴角度-12°、左肩速度为1.98m/s、右肩速度为1.99m/s。结论:旋转开始阶段,由于女子铁饼运动员拉引角增加幅度相对较大,肱二头肌长头肌腱损伤构成比最高,拉引角增加幅度大可能是造成肱二头肌的长头肌腱损伤的重要因素。     

应用灰关联分析及信息处理方法评价骨质疏松症复方中药治疗的用药规律

学术背景：中医药在防治骨质疏松症方面具有独特优势,但目前关于该病的中药复方用药规律的研究较少,而且多以统计用药频率为主。此法往往需要大样本且须具有典型的概率分布。此外,在中医诊治过程中,个人经验也造成处方配伍用药的偏倚,药物剂量相距甚远,这使药物治疗的安全性和有效性难以保证。目的：应用灰关联分析及信息处理方法探讨治疗骨质疏松症的用药规律。 检索策略：由第一、三、四作者应用计算机检索中国知网1995-01/2005-12期间的相关文献。所用中文检索词包括“骨质疏松,骨萎,中药,治疗”。共检索到169篇文献。纳入标准：①治疗方法为单纯使用中药治疗,不包括其他辅助治疗,如西药、手法、针灸等。②所有中药复方必须药味完整,剂量准确,主治明确,疗效确切。排除标准：排除含有辅助治疗及疗效不确切,药味不全、没有给出药物剂量或剂量不准确的文献。结果选出104篇符合标准的文章。 文献评价：文献的来源主要是通过对治疗骨质疏松症的中药复方的相关文章进行循证医学系统查询,通过灰关联分析及信息处理方法分析查询结果,以此探讨治疗骨质疏松症的中药复方用药规律。资料综合：在治疗骨质疏松症的104首中药复方中共使用106种药物1204频次。其中,使用频次在10次以上的依次为熟地、淫洋藿、杜仲等34味中药,使用总频次为890次,灰关联系数大小依次为山药、淫羊藿、骨碎补等。性温、平,味甘、苦、辛,归肾经、肝经和脾经的药物所占比例较大。在药物分类中,补益药达到23种,占总数的67.6%。其中,又以补阳药为主,其次为补气药。 结论：灰关联分析及信息处理结果认为骨质疏松症的主要病理是脾肾阳虚,其次为气虚、阴虚和血虚,在用药中主要使用补益肝肾、补脾益气、滋阴活血药。     

三维超声心动图测量左室心肌质量与心脏终点结局事件的相关性

目的:为评价三维超声心动图在心血管疾病中的应用前景,验证左室心肌质量对心血管事件和死亡发生的预测价值,应用三维超声心动图检测左室心肌质量,探讨左室心肌质量与心血管病患者远期预后的关系。方法:①超声测定:选择2003-10/2007-04武警医学院附属医院CCU及普通病房住院的64例患者接受左室心肌质量指数、静息左室射血分数测定和NYHA心脏功能分级的评估,仪器采用彩色多普勒超声诊断仪,型号为GE vivid-7。②分组及随访:根据左室肥厚标准和各参数平均数分为2组,左室心肌质量指数男性<131g/m2或女性<100g/m2为Ⅰ组,男性≥131g/m2或女性≥100g/m2为Ⅱ组,连续随访54个月,观察终点为心源性死亡。结果:61例进入结果分析。随访期末发现左室心肌质量指数与远期死亡有着显著的相关性(r=0.592,P=0.000);静息左室射血分数和NYHA心脏功能分级与死亡没有相关性(P>0.05);左室肥厚的Ⅱ组死亡例数多于Ⅰ组(P<0.01),两组的静息左室射血分数和NYHA心脏功能分级比较差异不显著(P>0.05);左室心肌质量指数高于平均数的Ⅱ组与Ⅰ组死亡相对危险比为2.56(95%CI),差异有统计学意义(P=0.020),但是静息左室射血分数和NYHA心脏功能分级之间死亡相对危险比没有统计学意义(P>0.05)。结论:①左室心肌质量与心血管病患者远期预后关系密切,可用于预测心源性死亡的发生情况。②三维超声心动图测定左室心肌质量及功能参数方便准确,可用于心功能定量评估。