Pangolin Indexing System: implications in forensic surveillance of large seizures

International Journal of Legal Medicine - Demand for pangolin scales in East Asia has increased dramatically in the past two decades, raising concern to the pangolin survival and bringing them to...     

Primary Malignant Melanoma of Maxillary Gingiva

Malignant melanoma of maxillary gingiva is a rare clinical entity. Mucosal melanoma is more aggressive than cutaneous form and carries comparatively poorer prognosis. High index of suspicion is required for diagnosing malignant melanoma of oral cavity. Any pigmented lesion in the oral cavity should be taken seriously by the clinician.     

Targeting VPAC1 Receptors for Imaging Glioblastoma

Molecular Imaging and Biology - Scintigraphic imaging of malignant glioblastoma (MG) continues to be challenging. We hypothesized that VPAC1 cell surface receptors can be targeted for positron...     

Onychocryptosis – decrypting the controversies

Onychocryptosis, or ingrown toenail, is a frequent, painful condition affecting young individuals. Controversies still exist regarding its etiopathogenesis and treatment options, including conservative and surgical techniques. The choice of treatment method depends on the stage of disease as conservative measures are mostly effective in early stages and surgical procedures are required in the later stages. Among surgical techniques, phenol cauterization of lateral nail matrix has been the most effective, safe, and commonly performed method. Other more destructive surgical procedures are rarely done nowadays. In this review, we briefly discuss the etiopathogenesis, clinical features, and different treatment options of ingrown toenail.     

淋巴细胞和Ⅲ型前胶原氨基端肽与肺气肿合并肺纤维化的关系

目的:观察肺气肿合并肺纤维化(CPFE)淋巴细胞亚型的分布和III型前胶原氨基端肽(PIIINP)水平及纤维化程度,探讨其炎症反应、免疫状态与肺纤维化(PF)的关系。方法:对2005-03/2007-03西安交通大学第一附属医院收治的21例CPFE、25例特发性肺纤维化(IPF)19例对照进行如下检测:光镜下观察肺活检标本的病理改变;对支气管肺泡灌洗液(BALF)进行炎细胞计数和分类;流式细胞术(FCM)检测BALF中T淋巴细胞亚型;放射免疫法检测BALF和血清PⅢNP水平。结果:活检病理结果发现,IPF组纤维化率高于CPFE组(P0.01),但两组纤维化率与是否吸烟均不相关(P0.05);BALF炎细胞分类结果显示CPFE组细胞总数和淋巴细胞比例均高于IPF组和对照组(P0.05,P0.01);FCM检测BALF发现CPFE组CD8+T淋巴细胞百分比高于IPF组和对照组(P0.05);CPFE组和IPF组CD4+/CD8+比值均明显低于对照组(P0.01);三组之间CD4+的百分率无统计学差异;CPFE组与IPF组血清PIIINP检测值均高于对照组(P0.01),其中CPFE组血清PIIINP检测值显著低于IPF组(P0.01)。BALF与血清PIIINP水平呈正相关(γ=0.82)。结论:CPFE的PF病变具有自身特点和发展规律,香烟烟雾刺激可能并非其直接或主要致纤维化因素;CPFE肺组织局部具有较IPF和对照明显且以CD8+T淋巴细胞增高为主的炎性反应,抗淋巴细胞炎症和免疫调节治疗可能有助于改善病情;血清PⅢNP可用作早期发现CPFE和监测PF治疗的指标。     

Dual depolarization responses generated within the same lateral septal neurons by TRPC4-containing channels

In the central nervous system, canonical transient receptor potential (TRPC) channels have been implicated in mediating neuronal excitation induced by stimulating metabotropic receptors, including group 1 metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs). Lateral septal (LS) neurons express high levels of TRPC4 and group I mGluRs. However, to what extent native TRPC4-containing channels (TRPC4-cc) are activated as well as the impact of different levels of TRPC4-cc activation on neuronal excitability remain elusive. Here, we report that stimulating LS neurons with group I mGluR agonist, (S)-3,5-DHPG, causes either an immediate increase in firing rate or an initial burst followed by a pause of firing, which can be correlated with below-threshold-depolarization (BTD) or above-threshold-plateau-depolarization (ATPD), respectively, in whole-cell recordings. The early phase of BTD and the entire ATPD are completely absent in neurons from TRPC4^?/? mice. Moreover, in the same LS neurons, BTD can be converted to ATPD at more depolarized potentials or with a brief current injection, suggesting that BTD and ATPD may represent partial and full activations of TRPC4-cc, respectively. We show that coincident mGluR stimulation and depolarization is required to evoke strong TRPC4-cc current, and Na⁺ and Ca²⁺ influx, together with dynamic changes of intracellular Ca²⁺, are essential for ATPD induction. Our results suggest that TRPC4-cc integrates metabotropic receptor stimulation with intracellular Ca²⁺ signals to generate two interconvertible depolarization responses to affect excitability of LS neurons in distinct fashions.