Onychomycosis caused by Fusarium solani in a woman with diabetes

A case of untreated fusarial onychomycosis leading to serious consequences is reported. Fusarium solani is a widespread fungus and an occasional human pathogen. It usually invades rapidly in immunocompromised hosts, and often results in a poor outcome despite treatment. We report a woman with diabetes mellitus who had untreated fusarial infection of the nails, which developed into subcutaneous fusariosis, superinfected by bacteria, and then evolved into osteomyelitis that subsequently resulted in septic shock. Early management of mycotic nails in immunocompromised hosts is crucial to prevent life‐threatening disease.     

UVB对角质形成细胞产生细胞因子的影响

角质形成细胞可产生多种细胞因子，这些细胞因子除介导炎症和免疫反应外，还参与组织细胞的生长和分化。UVB照射影响了角质形成细胞合成、分泌细胞因子，并影响细胞因子对角质形成细胞的作用及细胞因子之间的相互作用。概述角质形成细胞产生各种细胞因子的生物学效应。     

丘脑底核电刺激治疗帕金森病术后程控问题分析

目的 总结丘脑底核电刺激治疗帕金森病术后程控经验，提高术后程控水平，改善疗效。方法 对32例丘脑底核电刺激术后的帕金森病患者进行程控，其中单侧植入者6例，双侧26例；年龄40～73岁，在不同刺激器植入中心接受手术，程控时间术后3周至4年之间。程控前均停药10h以上，程控参数调整主要为刺激电极触点、电压、频率、脉宽四项，程控过程中密切观察病员肌张力和震颤等症状改变以及副反应发生情况，作好详细记录，并分别评估患者程控前后药物“关期”和“开期”症状改善情况，部分行UPDRS评分。结果 31例（97％）患者术后症状得到不同程度改善。刺激电极触点选择中，共29例患者采用单极模式，3例因出现持续、无法耐受的副反应采用双极模式。除1位患者使用循环模式外，其他患者均使用持续刺激模式。刺激电压2．0-4．0V，主要集中于2．8～3-3V，是主要的程控调整参数，电压的高低与病人UPDRS运动评分不具有相关性（P〉0．05）。刺激脉宽60～120μs，刺激频率130～185Hz。药物“关”期，患者UPDRS运动评分，在刺激器打开时，平均18．7分；刺激器关闭时平均47．9分。在刺激器打开情况下，药物“开”期患者症状仍然有进一步缓解．主要表现为步态、全身协调动作方面。合并异动患者6例中，3例适当降低刺激电量，1例提高电压后，异动缓解。结论 丘脑底核电刺激术是有效的帕金森病症状控制手段。准确植入刺激电极是术后获得良好症状控制的前提条件，而术后程控是脑深部刺激器置入术后的关键环节．精确的参数调整能够满意控制病人症状。     

袖套法异种心脏移植模型

采用Heron袖套法进行异种（小鼠→大鼠）心脏移植，异位移植于颈部皮下，供体主动脉接受体颈内动脉，供体肺动脉接受体项外静脉，并对手术方法进行了部分改进。进行正式手术22次，成功率86％，移植后平均存活时间2．10±0．80天；该方法简单、迅速、可靠，移植于颈部易于观察，对于超急性排斥反应的观察以及免疫耐受的诱导，抗免疫排斥药物筛选是一位得推广的动物模型。     

A comparative study of etanercept plus methotrexate and methotrexate alone in Taiwanese patients with active rheumatoid arthritis: a 12-week, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Etanercept (Enbrel), a recombinant tumor necrosis factor receptor fusion protein, has been shown to be effective in the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of etanercept in combination with methotrexate (MTX) and MTX alone in Taiwanese patients with active RA. METHODS: In this double-blind study, 58 patients with active RA who were maintained on MTX therapy at a stable dose of 12.5 to 20 mg per week for 4 weeks were randomized to receive either etanercept 25 mg (n = 29) or placebo (n = 29) by subcutaneous injection twice weekly over a period of 12 weeks. The primary endpoint was the reduction of tender and swollen joint counts by 20% (ACR 20), 50% (ACR 50), and 70% (ACR 70) as determined by the American College of Rheumatology criteria at the 12th week. RESULTS: The addition of etanercept to MTX resulted in a greater reduction in the number of tender (7.00 vs 2.45, p = 0.012) and swollen joints (8.55 vs 3.86, p = 0.017), and in serum levels of C-reactive protein (1.26 mg/dL vs 0.45 mg/dL, p = 0.014) compared to MTX alone after 12 weeks of therapy. In addition, the global assessment of disease activity by both physicians and patients, duration of morning stiffness, pain visual analog scale score, and Health Assessment Questionnaire were all improved by etanercept plus MTX therapy. Results for the overall improvement in disease activity assessed by ACR 20 (90% vs 34%), ACR 50 (66% vs 10%) and ACR 70 (24% vs 0%) all favored the etanercept plus MTX group. However, the adverse events were comparable between the 2 treatment groups. CONCLUSION: Etanercept in combination with MTX was well tolerated and provided significantly more clinical benefit than MTX alone in Taiwanese patients with active RA.     

Ultrastructural identification of cholinergic neurons in the external cuneate nucleus of the gerbil: acetylcholinesterase histochemistry and choline acetyltransferase immunocytochemistry

Summary Using acetylcholinesterase histochemical and choline acetyltransferase immunocytochemical localization methods, this study has provided conclusive evidence for the existence of cholinergic neurons in the external cuneate nucleus of gerbils. By light microscopy, both acetylcholinesterase and choline acetyltransferase labelling was confined to the rostral portion of the external cuneate nucleus. Ultrastructurally, acetylcholinesterase reaction products were found in the nuclear envelope, cisternae of rough endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi saccules of some somata and large dendrites as well as in the membranes of small dendrites, myelinated axons and axon terminals. These neuronal elements were also stained for choline acetyltransferase; immunoreactivity was associated with nuclear pores, nuclear envelope, perikaryal membrane and all the membranous structures within the cytoplasm. Of the total choline acetyltransferase-labelled neuronal profiles analysed, 79% were myelinated axons, 15% dendrites, 4% somata and 2% axon terminals. The immunostained axon terminals consisted of two types containing either round (Rd type; 62.5%) or pleomorphic (Pd type; 37.5%) vesicles. Both were associated directly with choline acetyltransferase-positive dendrites. In contrast to the paucity of choline acetyltransferase-labelled axon terminals, numerous choline acetyltransferase-positive myelinated axons were present. It may thus be hypothesized that most, if not all, of the external cuneate nucleus cholinergic neurons are projection cells; such cells may give rise to axonal collaterals which synapse onto their own dendrites for possible feedback control. Choline acetyltransferase-positive dendrites were contacted by numerous unlabelled presynaptic boutons, 60% of which contained round or spherical synaptic vesicles (Rd boutons) and 40% flattened vesicles (Fd boutons), suggesting that these neurons are under strong inhibitory control. The preferential concentration of cholinergic components in the rostral external cuneate nucleus may be significant in the light of the highly organized somatotopy in the external cuneate nucleus and its extensive efferent projections to medullary autonomic-related nuclei. Our results suggest that the cholinergic neurons may be involved in somatoautonomic integration.     

Gender-specific response to isoflurane preconditioning in focal cerebral ischemia.

Inhalation anesthetics are effective chemical preconditioning agents in experimental cerebral ischemia. However, previous work has been performed exclusively in male animals. We determined if there is a gender difference in ischemic outcome after isoflurane preconditioning (IsoPC), and if this sex-specific response is linked to differences in Akt phosphorylation or expression of neuronal inducible cell-death putative kinase (NIPK), a negative modulator of Akt activation. Young and middle-aged male and female mice were preconditioned for 4 h with air (sham PC) or 1.0% IsoPC and recovered for 24 h. Cortices were subdissected from preconditioned young male and female mice for measurement of Akt phosphorylation (Western blot) and NIPK mRNA (quantitative polymerase chain reaction). Additional cohorts underwent 2 h of reversible middle cerebral artery occlusion. Lastly, male and female Akt1(+/+) and Akt1(-/-) mice were studied to determine if gender differences in ischemic outcome after IsoPC is Akt1-dependent. Infarction volume was determined at 22 h reperfusion (2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride). As expected, IsoPC decreased ischemic damage as compared with sham PC in young and middle-aged male mice. In contrast, IsoPC markedly increased infarction in young female mice and had no effect in middle-aged female mice. Cortical phospho-Akt was increased by IsoPC versus sham PC only in male mice. No increase was observed in IsoPC female mice. NIPK mRNA was higher in female mice than in male mice regardless of preconditioning status. Male IsoPC neuroprotection was lost in Akt1-deficient male mice. We conclude that IsoPC is beneficial only in ischemic male brain and that sex differences in IsoPC are mediated through Akt activation and basal NIPK expression.     

NF1 mutations in neurofibromatosis 1 patients with plexiform neurofibromas

Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by genetic alterations of the NF1 gene on 17q11.2. About 30% of NF1 patients develop plexiform neurofibromas (PNFs), which often cause severe clinical deficits. To determine whether there is a certain genotype underlying PNFs or subtypes of PNFs, we screened 42 NF1 patients from 41 families with PNFs for mutations in the NF1 gene. In 33 out of the 41 (80%) unrelated patients NF1 mutations were found, 24 are novel while the other 9 have been described in previous studies. The 33 mutations included 23 nonsense and frameshift, six splice and four missense mutations. The tumors in these patients had various sizes and features/growth characteristics. No correlation was found between the type or location of the NF1 mutations and size, location or feature of the PNFs, suggesting that many types of NF1 mutations can lead to development of PNFs.