Management of single large nonstaghorn renal stones in the CROES PCNL global study.

Purpose: We compared stone characteristics and outcomes in patients with a single large nonstaghorn renal calculus treated with percutaneous nephrolithotomy in the Clinical Research Office of Endourological Society global study.

Materials And Methods: Two statistical analyses were done, including one comparing renal stone size (20 to 30, 31 to 40 and 41 to 60 mm) and the other comparing renal stone site (pelvis, or upper, mid or lower calyx). Surgical outcomes, including operative time, hospital stay, stone-free rate and postoperative fever, were compared between groups.

Memory defect induced by β-amyloid plus glutamate receptor agonist is alleviated by catalpol and donepezil through different mechanisms.

Our previous studies demonstrate that a non-cholinesterase inhibitor (AChEI) compound catalpol, purified from a traditional Chinese medicinal herb Rehmannia glutinosa, could improve the symptoms and pathological changes in animal and cellular models of memory related neurodegenerative diseases. In this study, we compared catalpol with the most commonly used AChEI donepezil in respect to their mechanism of action on the neurodegenerative changes in an animal model induced by beta-amyloid (Aβ) plus glutamate receptor agonist. It was found that the model mice showed significant deficit in the learning ability and memory in Y maze avoidance test, and meanwhile both donepezil and catalpol greatly improve the learning ability and memory after 2 to 3 months' administration.

Glucose-mediated repression of menin promotes pancreatic β-cell proliferation.

Menin, encoded by the Men1 gene, is responsible for β-cell tumor formation in patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1. Recently, menin has been proven to negatively regulate β-cell proliferation during pregnancy. However, it is unclear whether menin is involved in pancreatic β-cell proliferation in response to other physiological replication stimuli, such as glucose.

[Genetic polymorphism of the killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor genes in the Inner Mongolian population].

Objective: To investigate the killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) gene frequencies and genotypes distributions in the Inner Mongolian population.

Methods: Ninety genomic DNA samples were extracted from blood samples of randomly chosen Mongolian individuals. Gene-specific PCR amplification was used to identify genes present or absent for 16 KIR loci.

[Two cases of partial trisomy 8p derived from paternal reciprocal translocation or maternal insertion translocation: clinical features and genetic abnormalities].

Objective: To determine the origin of aberrant chromosomes involving the short arm of chromosome 8 in two mentally retarded children, and to correlate the karyotype with abnormal phenotype.

Methods: Routine G-banding was performed to analyze the karyotypes of the two patients and their parents, and array comparative genomic hybridization (array CGH) was used for the first patient for fine mapping of the aberrant region.

Results: The first patient presented with only mental retardation.

[Analysis of outocome of pirarubicin-based combination chemotherapy regimen in the treatment of newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia-a prospective, open, randomized and multicenter clinical trial].

Objective: To compare the effectiveness and side effects of two chemotherapy regimens [pirarubicin + cytarabine (TA) and daunorubicin + cytarabine (DA)] in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Methods: From Oct 2006 to Jul 2009, there were 207 newly diagnosed AML patients randomized into DA or TA group from 72 centers all over the country. The aim of this clinical trial is to observe and evaluate complete remission rate (CR), total remission rate (TRR), and side effect after one or two circles of therapy.

[Treatment outcome analysis of CTOP or CHOP regimen in newly diagnosed aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients-results of a prospective, open, randomized, multicenter clinical trial].

Objective: To compare the efficacy and toxicity of CTOP and CHOP regimen for newly diagnosed aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) patients.

Method: From Oct 2006 to Jun 2009, 196 patients enrolled into this clinical trial from 72 centers in China were randomized into CTOP or CHOP group.

Results: Of 154 patients evaluated, 105 assigned in CTOP group and 49 in CHOP.

Artemisinin inhibits extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 expression via a protein kinase Cδ/p38/extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathway in phorbol myristate acetate-induced THP-1 macrophages.

1. Overexpression of extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN) and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) by monocytes/macrophages has been proposed to play a significant role in atherosclerotic plaque progression and rupture. The aim of the present study was to explore whether artemisinin, a natural extract from Artemisia annua, could decrease EMMPRIN and MMP-9 expression in phorbol myristate acetate (PMA)-induced macrophages by regulating the protein kinase (PK) Cδ/c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)/p38/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway.

Pancreatic cancer cells resistant to chemoradiotherapy rich in "stem-cell-like" tumor cells.

Background: Tumor resistance to chemoradiation therapy is partly attributed to the presence of apoptosis-resistant cancer stem cells (CSCs). Chemoradiation therapy can enrich CSCs by killing apoptosis-susceptible cancer cells.

Aim: Our preliminary study showed chemoradiation-resistant pancreatic cancer cells to have some CSC characteristics, and to undergo epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT); we aimed to verify that study's implication that chemoradiation-resistant subpopulations are enriched with "stem-cell-like" tumor cells, which may be linked to EMT.

Iron deficiency activates pro-inflammatory signaling in macrophages and foam cells via the p38 MAPK-NF-κB pathway.

Background/objectives: Major bleeding in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) increases the risk of recurrent ACS and mortality. However, the mechanism involved is poorly understood. Bleeding induces iron deficiency.

Surgical repair for isolated congenital double-orifice mitral valve.

Congenital double-orifice mitral valve is a rare congenital heart disease and causes mitral-valve regurgitation and/or stenosis. We present a case of congenital double-orifice mitral valve with mitral regurgitation that was not verified by preoperative echocardiography. It was confirmed by open-heart surgery and was successfully repaired with comprehensive techniques.

[Efficacy and safety evaluation of docetaxel plus oxaliplatin and capecitabine in the treatment of advanced gastric adenocarcinoma: a single center non-controlled phase II clinical trial].

Objective: To assess the efficacy and safety of docetaxel plus oxaliplatin and capecitabine (DOX) in the treatment of advanced gastric adenocarcinoma.

Methods: A total of 30 patients were recruited to receive DOX regimen (docetaxel 75 mg/m(2) day 1, oxaliplatin 130 mg/m(2) day 1, and capecitabine 1000 mg/m(2) bid d1-14, repeated every 3 weeks). Only those who completed at least 2 cycles were assessed.

[Long-term therapeutic effect of Zenapax after renal transplantation].

Objective: To determine whether there was any lingering effect after discontinuing Zenapax in renal transplantation and investigate there was any alternative immunity-regulating pathway of Zenapax other than IL-2/IL-2R.

Methods: Thirty patients of renal transplantation were divided into 2 groups. One group of 15 received 2 dosages of induction therapy of Zenapax and another 15 regular immunosuppressive therapy.

Expression of IFNalpha-inducible genes and modulation of HLA-DR and thyroid stimulating hormone receptors in Graves' disease.

Interferon alpha (IFNalpha) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of different autoimmune diseases. IFNalpha is widely used for the treatment of chronic viral infections, particularly chronic hepatitis C virus infection; however, several case reports have emerged describing autoimmune conditions, such as Graves' disease (GD), that have developed in the patients receiving IFNalpha. The mechanism by which IFNalpha is involved in GD remains poorly understood.

A child with coexistent juvenile xanthogranuloma and Langerhans cell histiocytosis.

A 15-month-old boy was seen because of two distinct types of lesions, namely, yellowish papules on the scalp and face, and hemorrhagic macules and papules on the trunk. A biopsy specimen from one of the yellowish papules showed histopathologic and immunohistochemical changes of both juvenile xanthogranuloma and Langerhans cell histiocytosis. The section from the center of the biopsy specimen showed a proliferation of foamy histiocytes, among them Touton giant cells, which were positive for CD68, but negative for S-100 and CD1a.

Expression of adiponectin receptors in mouse adrenal glands and the adrenocortical Y-1 cell line: adiponectin regulates steroidogenesis.

Obesity is frequently associated with malfunctions of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and hyperaldosteronism, but the mechanism underlying this association remains unclear. Since the adrenal glands are embedded in adipose tissue, direct cross-talk between adipose tissue and the adrenal gland has been proposed. A previous study found that adiponectin receptor mRNA was expressed in human adrenal glands and aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA).

[Hypersensitive C-reactive protein test in the diagnosis of early-onset infection in premature infants].

Objective: To evaluate the clinical value of serum hypersensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) test in early diagnosis of early-onset infection in premature infants.

Methods: Thirty-five premature infants with early-onset infection, 50 premature infants with non-infectious diseases and 40 healthy premature infants 3 hrs after birth were enrolled. Serum hsCRP levels were measured by particle enhanced immunoturbidimetric assay.

A new locus for hereditary hypotrichosis simplex maps to chromosome 13q12.12 approximately 12.3 in a Chinese family.

Background: Hereditary hypotrichosis simplex (MIM 146520, HHS) is a rare form of nonsyndromic alopecia. The locus for autosomal dominant HHS was mapped to 18p11.32-p11.

Berberine differentially modulates the activities of ERK, p38 MAPK, and JNK to suppress Th17 and Th1 T cell differentiation in type 1 diabetic mice.

Berberine, an alkaloid derivative from Berberis vulgaris L., has been used extensively in traditional Chinese medicine to treat diarrhea and diabetes, but the underlying mechanisms for treating diabetes are not fully understood. Recent studies suggested that berberine has many beneficial biological effects, including anti-inflammation.

Catalpol ameliorates beta amyloid-induced degeneration of cholinergic neurons by elevating brain-derived neurotrophic factors.

The purpose of this work is to study the effect of catalpol, an iridoid from Rehmannia glutinosa on neurodegenerative changes induced by beta-amyloid peptide Abeta(25-35) or Abeta(25-35)+ibotenic acid and the underlying mechanism. Results showed that catalpol significantly improved the memory deficits in the neurodegenerative mouse model produced by injection of Abeta(25-35)+ibotenic acid to the nucleus magnocellularis basalis, yet it is neither a cholinesterase inhibitor nor a muscarinic (M) receptor agonist. Instead, the choline acetyl transferase (ChAT) activity and the M receptor density in brain were significantly decreased in the model mice and catalpol could significantly elevate their levels.

Blockade of TRPC6 channels induced G2/M phase arrest and suppressed growth in human gastric cancer cells.

Channels formed by the canonical transient receptor potential (TRPC) subfamily of proteins are Ca(2+)-permeable, nonselective cation channels with various functions. Through a phospholipase C (PLC)-dependent mechanism TRPC6, a member of TRPC subfamily, can be activated by receptor tyrosine kinases (RTK) or G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR), which are implicated in cell proliferation and human malignancies. Here, we report that TRPC6 has a critical role in human gastric cancer development.

Berberine reduces both MMP-9 and EMMPRIN expression through prevention of p38 pathway activation in PMA-induced macrophages.

Background: Overproduction of MMPs (matrix metalloproteinases) and EMMPRIN (extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer) by monocytes/macrophages leads to atherosclerotic plaque rupture by degrading the extracellular matrix. Serum MMP-9 levels may therefore represent a novel marker of inflammation in patients with known coronary artery disease. The purpose of our study was to determine if berberine, a natural extract from Rhizoma coptidis, had any effect on the expression of MMP-9 and EMMPRIN in PMA-induced macrophages.

[EGFR-blockade by antibody Cetuximab inhibits the growth of human gastric cancer xenograft in nude mice and its possible mechanism].

Objective: EGFR-mediated tumor proliferation plays an important role in the development of cancer, and is a key candidate for targeted therapy. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of EGFR monoclonal antibody Cetuximab (C225) on the growth, proliferation and apoptsis of gastric cancer xenograft in nude mice, and its possible mechanisms.

Methods: A gastric cancer cell line SGC-7901 with high EGFR expression level was screened from 7 gastric cancer cell lines.

[Early evaluation of osteoarthritis using objective diagnostic methods].

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic joint disease that involves degeneration of articular cartilage, limited intra-articular inflammation manifested by synovitis and changes in the subchondral bone. After the articular cartilage's stability and complex structure in the framework of pressure-proof were destruct, the ability to repair by itself was weak. Therefore early diagnosis in the treatment of osteoarthritis is a focal ponit.

Heparin coating of small-caliber decellularized xenografts reduces macrophage infiltration and intimal hyperplasia.

Small-caliber decellularized xenografts with surface heparin coating are known to reduce in vivo thrombogenicity. This study was performed to examine whether heparin coating on the small-caliber decellularized xenografts would reduce macrophage infiltration and intimal hyperplasia. In a rabbit model of bilateral carotid implantation, each of the animals (n = 18) received a heparin-coated decellularized xenograft from a canine carotid artery on one side and a nonheparin-coated one on the other side.