Chinese medical journal
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Chinese medical journal · Mar 2009
Different plasma levels of interleukins and chemokines: comparison between children and adults with AIDS in China.
The immunological differences between children and adults with AIDS in China are not well documented. Th1/Th2 cytokines and chemokines are two types of immune factors intimately involved in disease progression of HIV-1 infection. This study aimed to identify changes in plasma levels of Th1/Th2 cytokines inerleukin (IL)-18, IL-16, IL-10 and chemokines regulated on activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted (RANTES), stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) in HIV-1-infected children and adults in China. ⋯ Abnormal immune activation can be measured in Chinese pediatric and adult patients with AIDS, and is higher in children than in adult patients. The cytokines levels coincide with disease progression of AIDS, but have no direct relationship with total CD4(+) T cell count.
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Chinese medical journal · Feb 2009
Predictors and clinical significance of the positive cone margin in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia III patients.
Conization is being widely accepted for diagnosis and treatment of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). There is controversy as to which factors are most predictive of a positive cone margin and the clinical significance of it. We conducted this study to identify the predictive factors and to evaluate the clinical significance of a positive cone margin in CIN III patients. ⋯ Cytological grade, depth of conization, parity and multi-quadrants of CIN III in punch biopsy were significant factors with increased risk in predicting a positive cone margin. Margin status of conization did not mean the presence or absence of CIN, but rather the varied frequency of residual CIN in specimens of subsequent hysterectomy. In view of this fact, it is suggested that the margin status of conization be a valuable surrogate marker for clinical management of CIN III.
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Chinese medical journal · Feb 2009
Relationship between expression of chemokine receptors CCR3, CCR5 and CXCR3 on CD4(+) T cells and spontaneous abortion in mice.
Previous studies have shown that local immune cells in the feto-maternal interface are recruited from peripheral blood, and that chemokines and their receptors play an initial and key role in this recruitment process. In this study, we aimed to determine whether spontaneous abortion is associated with the expression of chemokine receptors CCR3, CCR5, and CXCR3 on CD4(+) T cells. ⋯ The abnormal expression of CCR3, CCR5 and CXCR3 on CD4(+) T cells may play an important role in the pathogenesis of spontaneous abortion.
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Chinese medical journal · Feb 2009
Mutation of plakophilin-2 gene in arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy.
Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is one of the leading causes of sudden cardiac death. Recent studies have shown that ARVC, which is an inheritable genetic change, results from mutations in genes encoding desmosomal proteins. Plakophilin-2 is an important component of the desmosome. Because the full range of genetic variations related to ARVC is unknown and no related studies of the Chinese population have been reported, we aimed to investigate the genetic variation of plakophilin-2 in ARVC patients from the Southern Region of China. ⋯ We discovered a plakophilin-2 mutation that prolongs the QT interval dispersion in the southern Chinese ARVC population.
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Chinese medical journal · Feb 2009
GATA4 and NKX2.5 gene analysis in Chinese Uygur patients with congenital heart disease.
Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common developmental anomaly in newborns. The germline mutations in GATA4 and NKX2.5 genes have been identified as responsible for CHD. The frequency of GATA4 and NKX2.5 mutations in Chinese Uygur patients with CHD and the correlation between their genotype and CHD phenotype are unknown. ⋯ Our results provided the primary data on CHD phenotype associated with GATA4 mutation in the Chinese Uygur population.