The electrophysiological effects of dicentrine on the conduction system of rabbit heart.

1. The electrophysiological effects of dicentrine, an aporphine alkaloid isolated from the root of Lindera megaphylla, were examined in the Langendorff perfused rabbit heart and rabbit isolated cardiac cells. 2. Standard electrophysiological characters were measured in the Langendorff perfused rabbit heart (control study) and after 5 min exposure to 1, 3 and 9 microM of dicentrine and during the subsequent recovery phase sequentially (n = 7). The same study protocols were performed in 0.5 to 4.5 microM quinidine (n = 7), 18 to 162 microM procainamide and N-acetylprocainamide (n = 7) for comparison. 3. The results showed that the spontaneously beating heart rate and the sinoatrial (SA) and atrioventricular nodal (AH) conduction time were not significantly affected by dicentrine but were significantly suppressed by the higher doses of quinidine (4.5 microM) and procainamide (162 microM). 4. The His-Purkinje conduction time was significantly increased by the higher dose of dicentrine, quinidine and procainamide. 5. The ventricular repolarization time and its effective refractory period were significantly increased by the higher dose of dicentrine and the other agents. 6. The effective refractory period of the atrium, AV node and His-Purkinje system were also significantly increased by dicentrine and the other agents. 7. A voltage clamp study revealed that the prolongation of atrial action potential duration by dicentrine (9 microM) was associated with a significant inhibition of the transient potassium outward current. As well as inhibition of the transient outward current, a significant inhibition of the sodium inward current by dicentrine was found.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Influence of Qingdai Compound Capsule on the expression of c-myc in psoriatic keratinocytes) on the expression of c-myc in psoriatic keratinocytes

In this immunohistochemical study, the authors detected the expression of c-myc in keratinocytes (ECK) from 30 psoriatics before and after Qingdai Compound Capsule (QDCC) treatment and 12 normal subjects for control. The results showed that the ECK of patients before treatment was significantly higher than that in the normal control group, and its level was correlated with histopathological changes of affected skin. After treatment the ECK was normalized. It is believed that QDCC could decrease the ECK in psoriatics and this effect was probably mediated by inhibiting c-myc expression. This study provided an experimental evidence for the application of QDCC in treating psoriasis.     

医技人员血源性疾病感染情况调查

医务人员的医院内感染逐渐被人们所关注，其中血源性疾病的感染更应引起大家的重视。为了了解医务人员中医师、检验人员的医院感染发生情况，笔者对某中心医院的医师和检验人员的2002年度体检结果进行了统计分析，现报告如下。     

手助腹腔镜肝部分切除术治疗原发性肝癌

目的 探讨手助腹腔镜肝部分切除术治疗原发性肝癌的方法和应用价值。方法 经临床筛选的第Ⅱ、Ⅲ、Ⅵ段或边缘型的原发性肝癌6例，在腹腔镜辅助下．应用手助器、超声刀、切割器等特殊器械进行腹腔镜下肝癌切除术。结果 6例患者均成功完成手术，包括肝Ⅱ、Ⅲ段切除，Ⅵ段切除及非规则性肝段切除术，手术时间80～130min，术后住院6～9d，手术出血150～700ml，无中转开腹手术，无并发症。术后随访6～15个月，2例分别于手术后3和4个月肝内复发，其余4例随访至今无复发。结论 在经过临床选择的病例中，手助腹腔镜下作肝部分切除术治疗原发性肝癌是安全、可行的手术方式。     

磨损微粒诱导的局部生物学反应

人工髋关节置换失败的主要原因是假体的无菌性松动。研究表明 ,这和假体长期磨损产生的微粒作用于周围的巨噬细胞而诱发的生物学反应有关。磨损微粒激活假体周围组织细胞释放前炎症介质 ,诱导破骨细胞的活化和分化 ,引发假体周围的骨溶解。充分地认识这个过程 ,对减少人工关节无菌性松动 ,延长假体使用寿命具有重要意义。     

Localization of dystonic muscles with 18F-FDG PET/CT in idiopathic cervical dystonia.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether (18)F-FDG PET/CT is useful for localizing dystonic cervical muscles in patients with idiopathic cervical dystonia (ICD) by comparing disease severity before and disease severity after botulinum toxin (BT) injection into hypermetabolic muscles. METHODS: Six patients with ICD underwent (18)F-FDG PET/CT. Dystonic muscles suitable for BT injection therapy were defined as those showing diffusely increased (18)F-FDG uptake. RESULTS: Hypermetabolic cervical muscles were identified in all 6 patients. In 2 patients who underwent PET/CT both in a supine position and in a sitting position during (18)F-FDG uptake, abnormal hypermetabolic muscles were observed by PET/CT only when patients were in the sitting position with their heads and necks in the adopted abnormal involuntary posture. Symptoms were significantly improved in 4 patients who underwent BT injection therapy guided by PET/CT and who were clinically monitored. CONCLUSION: (18)F-FDG PET/CT is potentially useful for identifying dystonic cervical muscles for BT therapy in patients with ICD.     

Hybrid tumours of the salivary glands. A report of two cases involving the palate and a review of the literature

Hybrid tumours are very rare salivary gland lesions composed of two or more different tumoural entities in a single neoplasm that arise within a definite topographical region. In most cases adenoid cystic carcinoma has been the predominant component in these lesions. In this study we describe two patients with hybrid tumours located in the palate, one in a 49-year-old woman and one in a 71-year-old man. The first case involved adenoid cystic carcinoma and mucoepidermoid carcinoma, and the patient in the second case exhibited adenoid cystic carcinoma and epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma. Both patients were treated with surgery and radiotherapy, and there has been no evidence of recurrence after 13 and 36 months of follow-up, respectively. The recognition of the histologic component with the higher grade of malignancy in every case of hybrid tumour of the salivary glands is a necessary step to determine the biological behaviour and, consequently, to determine the proper therapeutic approach.     

Fidgetin-like 1 gene inhibited by basic fibroblast growth factor regulates the proliferation and differentiation of osteoblasts.

The FIGNL1 gene was proven to be a new subfamily member of ATPases associated with diverse cellular activities (AAA proteins). In this in vitro study, the AAA proteins inhibited osteoblast proliferation and stimulated osteoblast differentiation. We showed that FIGNL1 may play some regulatory role in osteoblastogenesis. INTRODUCTION: The fidgetin-like 1 (FIGNL1) gene encodes a new subfamily member of ATPases associated with diverse cellular activities (AAA proteins). Although the FIGNL1 protein localizes to both the nucleus and cytoplasm, the function of FIGNL1 remains unknown. In a previous study, we identified several genes that mediate the anabolic effects of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) on bone by using microarray data. FIGNL1 was one of the genes that downregulated >2-fold in MC3T3-E1 cells after treatment with bFGF. Therefore, this study was aimed to identify and confirm the function of FIGNL1 on osteoblastogenesis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We examined the effect of the FIGNL1 gene on proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis in mouse osteoblast cells (MC3T3-E1 and mouse primary calvarial cells) using flow cytometry, RT-PCR, cell proliferation assay, and cell death assay. MC3T3-E1 cells and mouse calvarial cells were transfected with small interfering RNA (siRNA) directed against the FIGNL1 or nontargeting control siRNA and examined by cell proliferation and cell death assays. Also, FIGNL1 was fused to enhance green fluorescent protein (EGFP), and the EGFP-fused protein was transiently expressed in MC3T3-E1 cells. RESULTS: Reduced expression of FIGNL1 by bFGF and TGF-beta1 treatment was verified by RT-PCR analysis. Overexpression of FIGNL1 reduced the proliferation of MC3T3-E1 and calvarial cells, more than the mock transfected control cells did. In contrast, siFIGNL1 transfection significantly increased the proliferation of osteoblasts, whereas overexpression of FIGNL1 did not seem to alter apoptosis in osteoblasts. Meanwhile, overexpression of FIGNL1 enhanced the mRNA expression of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin (OCN) in osteoblasts. In contrast, siFIGNL1 decreased the expression of ALP and OCN. A pEGFP-FIGNL1 transfected into MCT3-E1 cells had an initially ubiquitous distribution and rapidly translocated to the nucleus 1 h after bFGF treatment. CONCLUSIONS: From these results, we proposed that FIGNL1, a subfamily member of the AAA family of proteins, might play some regulatory role in osteoblast proliferation and differentiation. Further analyses of FIGNL1 will be needed to better delineate the mechanisms contributing to the inhibition of proliferation and stimulation of osteoblast differentiation.     

Benign childhood epilepsy with centro-temporal spikes (BCECTS): early onset of seizures is associated with poorer response to initial treatment.

AIM: Benign childhood epilepsy with centro-temporal spikes (BCECTS) is the most common idiopathic partial epilepsy in children. Treatment attitudes remain a controversial issue. We examine features that could suggest refractoriness at onset. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 144 children with BCECTS diagnosed at the Division of Pediatric Neurology, Asan Medical Center, from March 1, 1995, to April 30, 2002 and treated with AEDs. The patients were subdivided into two groups according to the number of antiepileptic drugs used for effective seizure control. RESULTS: Of the 144 patients, 75 were male and 69 were female, with a mean age at seizure-onset of 7.2 +/- 2.3 years (range, 2.1-14.3 years); 119 children were taking one antiepileptic drug (AED) (Group A), and 25 were taking more than one (Group B). There were no significant group differences in female-to-male ratio, prescribed AEDs, number of seizures before the start of treatment, interval between seizure-onset and start of treatment, presence of secondarily generalized seizures, or presence of bilateral EEG abnormalities. The groups differed however, in mean age at seizure onset (7.6 +/- 2.2 years versus 5.1 +/- 1.9 years, p < 0.05) and percentage of patients with seizure-onset before 3 years (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: When treated with AEDs, children with BCECTS usually respond well. However, an earlier onset of seizures is associated with more frequent seizures and initial refractoriness to medical treatment.