Cortical Surface Area Rather Than Cortical Thickness Potentially Differentiates Radiation Encephalopathy at Early Stage in Patients With Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

Radiation encephalopathy (RE) is one of the most severe complications in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients after radiotherapy (RT). However, the morphological alteration of early RE is insufficiently investigated. We aimed to investigate the cortical thickness and surface area alterations in NPC patients with or without RE in the follow-up.

Association of polymorphisms in SPARC and NLRP2 genes with rheumatoid arthritis in a Chinese Han population.

Objectives: To investigate the association of the polymorphisms in SPARC and NLRP2 with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in a Chinese Han population.

Methods: Four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) covering SPARC and three SNPs covering NLRP2 were investigated in 624 Chinese Han RA patients and 1920 healthy controls.

Results: The A allele at SPARC rs3210714, SPARC rs11950384, NLRP2 rs2217659, and NLRP2 rs703468 were linked to reduced risk of RA (p = 0.

Urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor as a predictor of poor outcome in patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome.

Background: Urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) and urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) are known as important factors, which mediate a variety of functions in terms of vascular homeostasis, inflammation and tissue repair. However, their role in systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) has been less well studied. This study aimed to test the hypothesis that the abnormalities of fibrinolysis and degradation of extracellular matrix mediated by uPA and uPAR are directly related to the patients with SIRS.

[Dynamic changes in plasma levels of urokinase type plasminogen activator and urokinase type plasminogen activator receptor in patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome].

Objective: To study the dynamic changes in plasma levels of urokinase type plasminogen activator (uPA) and urokinase type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) and their influence on prognosis in patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS).

Methods: In this study, a prospective clinical case control study was adopted. Eighty-five patients were divided into two groups according to diagnostic criteria of SIRS: SIRS patients (n=50) and non-SIRS patients (n=35).

[Clinical observation of rheumatoid arthritis associated interstitial lung disease patients and changes of serum cytokines thereof].

Objective: To observe the clinical feature of rheumatoid arthritis associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) patients and changes of serum cytokines tumor growth factor (TGF)-beta 1, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1, and platelet derived growth factor (PDGF)-AB.

Methods: The clinical manifestations, lung high resolution CT (HRCT), lung functions, blood gas and other relative laboratory findings of 30 RA-ILD patients and 35 RA patients were observed. ELISA was used to detect the levels of TGF-beta 1, TNF-alpha, IGF-1, and PDGF-AB.

[Analysis of false-positive associated with antibody tests for SARS-CoV in SLE patients].

To discuss the false-positive of serological diagnostic testing for coronavirus antibody in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE), 66 normal individual and 31 SLE with non-SARS patients were detected for SARS-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) antibody and RNA by enzymelinked immunosorbent assays(ELISA) and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR). The result showed 2/66 cases(3.0%) were positive of SARS-CoV-IgG antibody and 66 cases were negative of SARS-CoV-IgM antibody in the 66 cases healthy controls; in 31 cases with SLE, positive rates of SARS-CoV-IgG and IgM antibody were 58.