Evaluation of four methods for platelet compatibility testing

Four platelet compatibility assays were performed on serum and platelet or lymphocyte samples from 38 closely HLA-matched donor/recipient pairs involved in 55 single-donor platelet transfusions. The 22 patients studied were refractory to transfusions of pooled random-donor platelets. Of the four assays (platelet suspension immunofluorescence, PSIFT; 51Cr release; microlymphocytotoxicity; and a monoclonal anti-IgG assay, MAIA), the MAIA was most predictive of platelet transfusion outcome (predictability, 74% for one-hour posttransfusion platelet recovery and 76% for 24-hour recovery). The only other assay to reach statistical significance was the PSIFT (63% predictability for one-hour posttransfusion recovery). The degree of HLA compatibility between donor and recipient (exact matches v those utilizing cross-reactive associations) was unrelated to the ability of the MAIA to predict transfusion results. The MAIA may be capable of differentiating HLA antibodies, ABO antibodies, and platelet-specific antibodies responsible for failure of HLA-matched and selectively mismatched single-donor platelet transfusions.     

Double-blind study of milacemide in hospitalized therapy-resistant patients with epilepsy

Milacemide, 2-N-pentylaminoacetamide, a glycine prodrug, which readily crosses the blood-brain barrier, has been tested for antiepileptic efficacy and tolerability in 30 patients compared in a double-blind design with 30 patients treated with placebo. All patients continued to receive, without alteration, their previous partly effective medication. All patients presented an average of at least 10 seizures a month during the 6 months preceding the trial with no more than 50% fluctuation. The ratio of seizure frequency in the trial period over the seizure frequency in the baseline period (RSF) was calculated. In the milacemide group, 9 of 29 patients had an RSF less than 0.7 as opposed to 2 of 29 in the placebo group. Although no firm proof of therapeutic efficacy, this and the dramatic improvement of a patient with myoclonus epilepsy indicates that further studies are warranted. This opinion is strengthened if one considers the subgroup of patients aged less than or equal to 25 years in which a statistically significant reduction in seizure frequency was observed with milacemide treatment. The drug was well tolerated.     

Rheumatoid arthritis: explanatory power of specific radiographic findings for patient clinical status

Radiographs of the hands and wrists of 201 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) were scored for erosion, joint space narrowing, and malalignment. The explanatory power of these findings for measures of clinical status was studied with stepwise multiple linear regression analyses. Radiographic scores explained 59.2% of variation in physical joint count deformity scores, 58.5% of variation in limited motion scores, 22.5% of variation in grip strength scores, 20.5% of variation in button test scores, and 13.5% of variation for the American Rheumatism Association (ARA) Functional Class. Malalignment scores best explained variation in physical deformity, limited motion, and button test scores; joint-space-narrowing scores best explained variation in grip strength; erosion scores best explained variation in ARA Functional Class. When age, duration of disease, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and rheumatoid factor titer were included in the regression analyses, results were similar to those without these variables. Therefore quantitative scores of specific radiographic findings are in themselves explanatory for measures of clinical status.     

VitC/Fe2+对细胞生长状态的影响

0 引言 正常生物体内的自由基产生和清除是处在平衡状态的,外界环境中的自由基易与体内多种物质发生化学反应,并与内源性自由基一起影响着细胞的生长、分化及死亡过程[1～4],但不同实验的结果存在一些差别,甚至矛盾的现象,如过氧化氢可刺激细胞生长或引起细胞凋亡,这提示我们对自由基作用于细胞的剂量-反应关系进行研究.     

Atypical distribution of Pneumocystis carinii infiltrates during radiation therapy

Bilateral peripheral pulmonary infiltrates caused by Pneumocystis carinii developed in a patient undergoing mediastinal irradiation after chemotherapy for Hodgkin disease. The paramediastinal part of the lung included within the treatment port remained clear during the 2 1/2 weeks of radiation therapy. The distribution of the pneumocystis infiltrates was altered by the radiation, producing a pattern that is the "radiographic negative" of typical post-radiation therapy paramediastinal fibrosis.     

Pulmonary angiography with iopamidol: patient comfort, image quality, and hemodynamics

The choice of a contrast agent for pulmonary angiography has important implications for patient comfort, image quality, and perhaps the safety of the procedure, particularly for "high-risk" patients. In a prospective study the nonionic, low-osmolality agent iopamidol eliminated the problem of image degradation due to coughing, and patients showed excellent tolerance for it. However, pressure measurements obtained within 3-5 minutes of injection of iopamidol and diatrizoate sodium meglumine 76% showed no significant difference in the hemodynamic effects of the two contrast agents, either for normotensive or for pulmonary hypertensive patients. Contrary to a common presumption, pulmonary hypertension by itself did not appear to increase the risk of pulmonary angiography. The theoretic presumption of greater hemodynamic stability with low-osmolality contrast agents was not clinically evident in this trial with iopamidol. At present, enhanced patient comfort and improved image quality remain the only confirmed bases for choosing this contrast agent for pulmonary angiography.     

Telementoringineducationoflaparoscopicsurgeons:Anemergingtechnology

Laparoscopy, minimally invasive and minimal access surgery with more surgeons performing these ad-vanced procedures. We highlight in the review several key emerging technologies such as the telementor-ing and virtual reality simulators, that provide a solid ground for delivering surgical education to rural area and allow young surgeons a safety net and confidence while operating on a newly learned technique.     

骨髓间充质干细胞移植治疗脑梗死:有望产生结构与功能的双重修复作用

学术背景：成年人脑海马齿状回和嗅球等部位发现神经干细胞后，彻底改变了传统发生生物学所认为的成熟神经元一旦受损就不能再生这一观念，但神经干细胞存在取材不便、受伦理学限制及免疫排斥等缺陷。通过骨髓间充质干细胞移植治疗脑梗死，有望从组织结构功能上对坏死神经元进行修复。 目的：归纳总结近年来骨髓间充质干细胞移植治疗脑梗死方面的实验研究进展。检索策略：由该论文的研究人员应用计算机检索Pubmed数据库1998—01／2006—12的相关文献，检索词“mesenchymal stem cells，cerebralinfarction，cerebral ischemia，transplant”，并限定文章语言种类为English。同时计算机检索中国期刊全文数据库1998—01／2006—12的相关文献，检索词“骨髓间充质干细胞，脑梗死，脑缺血，移植”，并限定文章语言种类为中文。共检索到88篇文献，对资料进行初审，纳入标准：文章所述内容应与骨髓间充质干细胞移植治疗脑梗死、脑缺血的研究相关。排除标准：重复性研究。 文献评价：文献的来源主要是通过对骨髓间充质干细胞移植治疗脑梗死方面内容进行汇总分析。所选用的30篇文献中，1篇为综述，其余均为临床或基础实验研究。 资料综合：①骨髓间充质干细胞具有高度自我更新和多向分化潜能，在体内外可以分化为多种细胞，近年来作为组织工程的种子细胞用于脑梗死的治疗。②骨髓间充质干细胞来源方便，体外培养扩增快速，可通过静脉、动脉、立体定位注射和腹腔注射等途径移植人脑梗死模型动物体内，并且能够迁移至受损脑组织。③骨髓间充质干细胞可能通过分泌神经营养因子，减少神经细胞凋亡，替代受损神经元，促进血管、轴突、髓鞘等再生，激活内源性神经干细胞的增殖分化等机制修复受损脑组织。④骨髓间充质干细胞可作为基因载体，通过导人外源性基因，与基因治疗相结合治疗脑梗死效果更好。 结论：骨髓间充质干细胞作为种子细胞在治疗模型动物脑梗死方面已经取得一定效果，其详细机制仍有待进一步深入研究，而且在应用于临床前仍有许多理论和技术问题需要解决。