依替膦酸二钠对卵巢切除妇女骨密度降低的预防作用

目的 探讨双膦酸盐对切除双侧卵巢的妇女骨密度减低的预防作用。方法 18例早期恶性肿瘤行双侧卵巢切除的患者使用骨吸收抑制剂依替膦酸二钠,400 mg/d×14d,每3个月间断用药一次,持续1年,并以20例因其它病因而实施去势手术的妇女作为对照,研究骨吸收抑制剂依替膦酸二钠对早期恶性肿瘤去势术后妇女骨量的保护作用。结果使用依替膦酸二钠1年时,患者的骨量虽然未能保持在术前水平,但可以显著减少骨量的丢失,与对照组相比差异有显著性(P<0.05),并且骨密度的变化与BALP呈负相关性(P<0.05)。投药1年时肿瘤患者无1例复发。结论依替膦酸二钠可以减少去势手术妇女的骨量丢失,对预防去势手术妇女的骨质疏松有积极的作用。     

Bone and collagen turnover during treatment with inhaled dry powder budesonide and beclomethasone dipropionate

OBJECTIVES--To assess bone and collagen turnover in asthmatic children treated with dry powder budesonide from the Turbuhaler and dry powder beclomethasone dipropionate from the Diskhaler in a dose of 800 micrograms/day. SUBJECTS--Thirteen prepubertal children with asthma. DESIGN--Open crossover study with two treatment periods and treatment free run-in and wash-out periods. All periods were of two weeks' duration. At day 14 in each period blood samples were taken for assessment of serum osteocalcin, the carboxyterminal propeptide of type I collagen (PICP), and the aminoterminal propeptide of type III collagen (PIIINP). At the same time urine was collected for assessment of creatinine corrected pyridinoline (uPYR/cr) and deoxypyridinoline (udPYR/cr) crosslinks. RESULTS--Osteocalcin concentrations were not influenced by any of the treatments. During budesonide treatment mean (SEM) PICP was reduced by 18% (8%) (p = 0.03), PIIINP by 24% (3%) (p = 0.0002), uPYR/cr by 16% (6%) (p = 0.03), and udPYR/cr by 21% (13%) (p = 0.12). During treatment with beclomethasone dipropionate mean (SEM) PICP was reduced by 20% (6%) (p = 0.01), PIIINP by 36% (3%) (p = 0.0002), uPYR/cr by 18% (4%) (p = 0.004), and udPYR by 13% (5%) (p = 0.02). The suppressive effect of beclomethasone dipropionate on PIIINP was more marked than that of budesonide (p = 0.001). CONCLUSION--Treatment with dry powder budesonide and beclomethasone dipropionate 800 micrograms/day is associated with suppression of bone and collagen turnover. The suppression seems to be more marked during treatment with beclomethasone dipropionate. Long term effects and effects of lower doses of budesonide and beclomethasone dipropionate on bone and collagen markers needs further study.     

Tumor markers in patients with advanced breast cancer as prognosticators: A preliminary study

Summary A retrospective study was performed on 69 breast cancer patients (stage II, N=18; advanced disease, N=51) in order to assess the prognostic value of circulating prolactin (PRL), CEA, CA 15-3, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), and epidermal growth factor (EGF) by RIA/IRMA. These markers were compared with short-term prognosis (two years). Significant difference was observed only for PRL (<20.0 ng/ml vs. >20.0 ng/ml), which provide an independent predictor of short-term prognosis in advanced breast cancer.     

Differential expression of an equivalent clonotype among BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice

The primary anti-phosphorylcholine (PC) response in BALB/c, C57BL/6, and congenic and recombinant inbred strains of these parental types has been examined in the splenic focus system. The frequencies of PC-specific precursors were shown to vary among these strains from 2 to 20 precursors per 10(6) splenic B cells. The distribution of these frequencies suggests that elements closely linked to or within the major histocompatibility complex may play a role in the determination of this parameter, although additional experiments are necessary to adequately assess this possibility. Moreover, all strains tested, regardless of immunoglobulin allotype, expressed monoclonal antibodies indistinguishable from the TEPC 15 myeloma protein (T15) clonotype. Further, the frequency of this clonotype in a given strain did not appear related to allotype, since both high and low T15 frequencies were found among strains of either the BALB/c (a(1)) or C57BL/6 (a(2)) allotype. The examination of normal serum for the T15 idiotype, however, revealed that only mice of the BALB/c allotype (a(1)) expressed the T15 idiotype in detectable quantities. After immunization with Diplococcus pneumoniae, sera from mice of the a(1) allotype consistently contained large quantities of the T15 idiotype, whereas sera from mice of the a(2) allotype exhibited various degrees of cross-reactivity with anti-T15 antibody. These results suggest that: (a) the allotype of an individual, although closely related to serum levels of an idiotype, is unrelated to the proportion of the precursor population which expresses that idiotype and; (b) the serum expression of a given idiotype may reflect regulatory processes, which act either during or before antigenic stimulation, rather than the actual clonotype representation in the repertoire. These findings indicate that distinctions must be made between the expression of idiotypic determinants within precursor B-cell populations and elements which regulate the subsequent appearance of those idiotypes in serum antibodies.     

The Interplay of Vitamin D Deficiency and Cellular Senescence in The Pathogenesis of Obesity-Related Co-Morbidities

This scoping review aims to clarify the interplay between obesity, vitamin D deficiency, cellular senescence, and obesity-related metabolic consequences, mainly subclinical atherosclerosis, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Obesity is a significant global health problem that involves cellular, environmental, behavioral, and genetic elements. The fundamental cause of obesity throughout all life stages is an energy imbalance, and its consequences are countless and, foremost, very common. Obesity has been comprehensively studied in the literature given its association with low serum vitamin D, with many proposed mechanisms linking the two conditions. Moreover, markers of exaggerated cellular senescence have been proven to accumulate in obese individuals. Subclinical atherosclerosis initiates an early stage that ends in serious cardiac events, and obesity, low vitamin D, and senescent cells largely contribute to its associated chronic low-grade inflammation. Furthermore, NAFLD signifies the hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome, and studies have highlighted the important role of obesity, vitamin D deficiency, and cellular senescence in its development. Therefore, we outlined the most important mechanisms tying these conditions to one another.     

Predictors of citation rates for research publications in Neurosciences

Objectives:To identify the predictors of citation rates for research publication in Neurosciences.Methods:All original articles including meta-analyses (MAs) and systematic reviews (SRs) that were published in Neurosciences during 2011 to 2019 were reviewed. The impact of several predictors on citation rates was assessed using correlation coefficient and mean difference tests.Results:This study examined 231 articles. The mean article citation number was 11.6. The correlation analysis showed a significant association between citation rates and duration from publication in years (p<0.0001), sample size (p<0.0001), study design (p=0.0353), and level of evidence (LOE) (p=0.03). The comparative analysis showed significantly more citations for articles that were published 6-10 years ago (p<0.0001), had a sample size >91 (p=0.0359), were randomized controlled trials (p=0.0353), MAs and SRs (p<0.0001), and level of evidence (LOE)-I (p=0.0004). Retrospective case series had significantly lower citations. The higher and lower citation numbers for publications from Iran and rehabilitation, respectively, may have been influenced by the duration from publication.Conclusion:The most significant predictors of citation rates for Neurosciences publications were the age of articles, population size, study design, and LOE. Awareness of the predictors of citation rates may help researchers enhance the academic impact of their work.

The number of citations an article receives, also referred to as the citation rate, is arguably the most important indicator of its impact and clinical significance. ^1,2 Identification of the predictors of citation rates is useful for researchers and journals in order to boost the impact of their work. ¹ This topic has been the subject of several studies in recent years. Most such publications have focused on identifying the predictors of citation rates in the literature relating to certain fields, including neurosurgery, ² spine, ³ orthopedics, ⁴ neurosciences, ⁵ plastic surgery, ⁶ urology, ⁷ radiology, ⁸ and glioblastoma multiforme trials. ⁹ Several variables were identified as potential citation rate predictors. Their significance however, differed between various reports. These included sample size, study design, level of evidence (LOE), topic, journal IF, field, and publishing country, as well as the number of authors, institutions, countries, and references listed on the paper. ^1-4,6-9 In a recent study, ⁵ several bibliometrics besides journal IF were identified as predictors of citation counts in neurosciences journals. These included the Eigenfactor score, cited half-life, immediacy index, and number of articles. Furthermore, in the era of digitization, open access, and social media activities are increasingly recognized as drivers of citation activities. ¹ Neurosciences Journal, which is referred to as Neurosciences (Riyadh) in PubMed and will heretofore be referred to as Neurosciences in this article, is an open access, peer-reviewed, quarterly publication that was launched in 1996. ¹⁰ The journal is published by the Armed Forces Hospital, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). ¹⁰ The Scimago Journal and Country Rank (SJR) web site, ¹¹ ranked KSA as fortieth in the world and fourth in the Middle East based on the total citations of its clinical neuroscience literature during 1996- 2020. However, to date, the factors that influence citation rates have not been addressed in Neurosciences or in any other Saudi medical journal. The objective of this study is to identify the predictors of citation rates for Neurosciences publications. It is hoped that the awareness of the factors that impact citations will help researchers enhance the impact of their work.