Elemental diet: a therapeutic approach in chronic inflammatory bowel disease

The therapeutic effect of an elemental diet (Pepti 2000) and blended normal diet (placebo) was investigated in 43 out-patients with chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); 24 with ulcerative colitis (UC) and 19 with Crohn's disease (CD), in a mild to moderate state of disease activity. A pilot study on healthy volunteers was executed to investigate palatability of the two diets. The patients were randomized in a double-blind study to the two diet regimes for 14 d. A simultaneous determination of laboratory data including plasma C3c split product and urinary excretion of 51Cr-EDTA was carried out together with a careful registration of the clinical symptoms and signs. No significant effect on the stage of clinical activity was seen in CD. A significant effect on clinical activity was obtained in both UC groups. The clinical improvement was primarily due to a decrease in number of bowel movements both in the elemental diet group and in the group of patients on the blended normal diet. The gross appearance of rectal mucosa did not improve during the study period in the Pepti 2000 or in the placebo group. The concentration of complement split products in plasma remained unchanged. 51Cr-EDTA excretion, as an expression of a leaky bowel mucosa, also remained unchanged. It was concluded that an effect on inflammation could not be demonstrated even if both diets seem to have a beneficial effect on the stage of clinical activity, especially diarrhoea, in patients with UC.     

间质干细胞与免疫调节

目的:间质干细胞能够逃避免疫识别,抑制免疫反应特征。文章就近年来间质干细胞及其免疫调节作用进行综述。资料来源:应用计算机检索PUBMED 1976-01/2006-01期间的相关文章,检索词为"mesenchymal stem cells,immune modulation",并限定文章语言种类为English。资料选择:对资料进行初审,并查看每篇文献后的引文。纳入标准:文章所述内容应与间质干细胞及其免疫调节作用相关。排除标准:重复研究或Meta分析类文章。资料提炼:共收集到263篇相关文献,68篇文献符合纳入标准,排除的195篇文献为内容陈旧或重复。符合纳入标准的68篇文献中,分别涉及间质干细胞的免疫原性、免疫抑制作用及机制、应用等内容。资料综合:间质干细胞广泛存在于各种组织中,本身具有免疫原性低的特点,可以逃避同种异基因免疫识别。间质干细胞在体外、体内均有明确的免疫抑制作用,与间质干细胞对树突状细胞、T细胞、自然杀伤细胞等的调控作用有关。间质干细胞尚可对转化生长因子、白细胞介素、基质细胞来源因子、NF-κB配体、前列腺素、吲哚胺2,3-二氧酶等可溶性因子产生影响。由于间质干细胞多方面的免疫调节活性,使其拥有良好的应用前景,目前已在移植物抗宿主病及自身免疫疾病的治疗中发挥了作用。结论:间质干细胞无论在体内或体外均对T细胞的活化有抑制作用,可调节在同种异体抗原的识别和清除过程中主要细胞群的免疫功能,包括抗原递呈细胞、T细胞和自然杀伤细胞,但其调节免疫抑制作用的分子机制尚未被完全阐明。     

Prevalence of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) in hospitalized acute diarrhea patients in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia

The relationship between enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) and hospitalized patients with acute diarrhea was examined in a study conducted in two hospitals from June 2000 to May 2001 in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia. A total of 489 hospitalized patients with acute diarrhea were enrolled, and their rectal swabs were screened for enteric bacterial pathogens. Toxins, colonization factor antigens (CFAs), in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility and seasonal distribution patterns associated with ETEC were ascertained. The diagnosis of ETEC infection and CFAs association were performed with GM-1 ELISA and Dot blot immunoassays. Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli was isolated from the rectal swabs of 14.9% of the patients. The distribution of toxins among the ETEC strains found was ST in 51 (69.9%), while LT and ST/LT were found in 28.8% and 1.3% respectively. The highest isolation rate for ETEC was found among children between the ages of 1 and 15 years. Colonization factor antigens were identified in 28.8% of the ETEC strains. A high prevalence of CFA was found among the rectal swabs of patients with ST isolates. High frequency of resistance to ampicillin, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, chloramphenicol, tetracycline and cephalothin was displayed among the ETEC strains. All ETEC strains were susceptible to norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin and nalidixic acid. The results of this study document the prevalence of ETEC in hospitalized patients with acute diarrhea in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia. Data generated in this study depicts the prevalence of ETEC diarrhea and CFA types among diarrhea patients in the tourist city of Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.     

EGF促进RPE细胞毒蕈碱受体诱导的磷酸肌醇形成：受体间交互作用分析

对培养人眼视网膜色素上皮（RPE）细胞磷酸肌醇（InsPs）水平的分析表明，Carbachol显著刺激RPE细胞InsPs水平的升高，且该效应可被阿托品所阻断，表明在人眼RPE细胞存在毒蕈碱受体。去甲肾上腺素、5-羟色胺、表皮生长因子（EGF）、异丙肾上腺素和NECA对InsPs基础水平无明显影响。异丙肾上腺素和NECA对Carbachol刺激InsPs的效应也无明显影响；但EGF显著促进Carbacol刺激人眼RPE细胞InsPs水平升高的效应。提示在人眼RPE细胞EGF与毒蕈碱受体之间存在有受体间交互作用。 （中华眼底病杂志，1994，10：220-222）     

Cellular B-2 microglobulin expression as a prognostic indicator in renal cell carcinoma.

The expression of B-2 microglobulin (B-2M) on tumor cells and their normal cell counterparts in 39 patients with renal cell carcinoma was studied and correlated to tumor stage and survival. The median survival time of patients with localized disease (stage I) whose tumors expressed B-2M was 10.2 years while the median survival time for patients whose tumors did not express B-2M was only 3.6 years (p less than 0.001). For patients with more advanced disease (stages II, III, IV) whose tumors expressed B-2M, median survival time was 3.6 years compared to 2.0 years in patients whose tumors did not express B-2M, a non-significant difference. It is suggested that the tumor cell membrane expression of B-2M may serve as an indicator of good prognosis in early renal cell carcinoma.     

芹菜甲素保护脑细胞的作用

以每周定时im马桑内酯0.9～1.5mg/kg三个月为实验性癫痫慢性发作模型。ig芹菜甲素700mg/kg能明显降低大鼠癲痫发作的程度和次数,延长潜伏期。脑形态学结果表明,芹菜甲素对大脑顶叶皮层细胞、胶质细胞和小脑蚓部蒲肯野细胞有一定的保护作用。同时观察的安定1.5～5mg/kg则无此作用。     

Adnexal and cul-de-sac abnormalities: transvaginal sonography

Sixty-seven patients selectively chosen from 354 undergoing conventional transabdominal (TA) sonography for evaluation of a clinically suspected adnexal mass subsequently underwent transvaginal (TV) sonography either because the TA sonograms were technically suboptimal or because it was not possible to characterize with certainty an abnormality identified with TA sonography. TV sonography added diagnostically useful information in 25 of 28 patients with cystic pathologic changes in the adnexa uteri. Eight of 12 patients with tuboovarian abscess and nonspecific adnexal masses visualized with TA sonography had tube-shaped fluid collections characteristic of pyosalpinx identified with TV sonography. TV sonography added diagnostically useful information in all seven patients with diseases of the cul-de-sac (rectouterine fossa) and allowed differentiation of adnexal from primary uterine disease in three patients with TA sonograms on which findings were equivocal. It also expedited the diagnosis of a tubal pregnancy in ten of 14 patients and was useful in the detection of adhesions and perforated intrauterine devices. These results indicate that adjunctive TV sonography can provide important diagnostic information.     

U22, a Protocol to Quantify Symptoms Associated with Supraventricular Tachycardia

Background: The main indication for ablation of supraventricular tachyarrhythmias (SVTA) is symptomatic relief. Specific paroxysmal symptoms cannot be quantified with general measures of quality of life, such as with the SF-36 questionnaire. U22 is a new protocol which measures the effects of arrhythmia on well-being, the intensity of discomfort during an episode, the type and temporal characteristics of dominant symptoms, and the duration and frequency of episodes. Discrete 0–10 scales are used. Unlike SF-36, U22 can be used in individual patients.
Methods: U22 and SF-36 protocols were used in the symptomatic evaluation of 88 patients (mean age = 49.6 ± 16.4 years; 43 men), who underwent catheter ablation of SVTA.
Results: The U22 scores (SD) for (a) well-being (10 being best), (b) effects of arrhythmia on well-being (10 being worst), and (c) discomfort during arrhythmia (10 being worst) were 5.6 (2.7), 7.5 (2.8), and 8.0 (2.4), respectively. For comparison, the physical and mental component summaries of SF-36 were 45.3 (11.0) and 45.2 (12.1), respectively, slightly lower than the expected normal of 50. The intensity of dominant symptom scored by U22 was 9.7 (1.2), 10 being worst. In 29% of patients ≥4 symptoms were equally dominant. Multiple dominant symptoms in U22 were associated with a low general well-being in SF-36.
Conclusion: We found U22 useful to quantify symptoms associated with SVTA.