Objective To analyze the effect of the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) retaining or not on knee-joint proprioception by comparing the proprioceptive difference between PCL retaining and no PCL retaining in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Methods Between June 2009 and June 2010, 38 osteoarthritis patients meeting the inclusion criteria were divided into PCL retaining group (group A, n=19) and PCL-substituting group (group B, n=19) according to the random number table. There was no significant difference in gender, age, disease duration, the range of motion of the knee between 2 groups (P gt; 0.05). The effectiveness and the knee-joint proprioception were separately assessed by the Western Ontario and McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) score and the passive angle reproduction test (30, 60, and 90° of knee flexion) preoperatively and 12 months postoperatively. Results All incisons healed by first intention, without complications of infection, fracture, and deep vein thrombosis of lower limb. The patients were followed up 12-17 months (mean, 14.1 months). The knee function after operation was obviously improved when compared with preoperative one; significant differences were observed in the WOMAC scores and the results of passive angle reproduction test between at preoperation and at 12 months after operation (P lt; 0.05), but no significant difference was found between group A and group B (P gt; 0.05). Conclusion Whether PCL retaining or not in TKA both can improve knee-joint proprioception, and no obvious difference between them.
The aim of this article is to study how andrographolide-releasing collagen scaffolds influence rabbit articular chondrocytes in maintaining their specific phenotype under inflammatory environment. Physical blending combined with vacuum freeze-drying method was utilized to prepare the andrographolide-releasing collagen scaffold. The characteristics of scaffold including its surface morphology and porosity were detected with environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM) and a density instrument. Then, the release of andrographolide from prepared scaffolds was measured by UV-visible spectroscopy. Rabbit chondrocytes were isolated and cultured in vitro and seeded on andrographolide-releasing collagen scaffolds. Following culture with normal medium for 3 d, seeded chondrocytes were cultured with medium containing interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) to stimulate inflammation in vitro for 7 d. The proliferation, morphology and gene transcription of tested chondrocytes were detected with Alamar Blue assay, fluorescein diacetate (FDA) staining and reverse-transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) test respectively. The results showed that the collagen scaffolds prepared by vacuum freeze-dry possess a high porosity close to 96%, and well-interconnected chambers around (120.7±17.8) μm. The andrographolide-releasing collagen scaffold continuously released andrographolide to the PBS solution within 15 d, and collagen scaffolds containing 2.22% andrographolide significantly inhibit the proliferation of chondrocytes. Compared with collagen scaffolds, 0.44% andrographolide-containing collagen scaffolds facilitate chondrocytes to keep specific normal morphologies following 7 d IL-1β induction. The results obtained by RT-qPCR confirmed this effect by enhancing the transcription of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1), collagen II (COL II), aggrecan (Aggrecan) and the ratio of COL II/ collagen I(COL I), meanwhile, reversing the promoted transcription of matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) and matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP-13). In conclusion, our research reveals that andrographolide-releasing (0.44%) collagen scaffolds enhance the ability of chondrocytes to maintain their specific morphologies by up-regulating the transcription of genes like COL II, Aggrecan and TIMP-1, while down-regulating the transcription of genes like MMP-1 and MMP-13 which are bad for phenotypic maintenance under IL-1β simulated inflammatory environment. These results implied the potential use of andrographolide-releasing collagen scaffold in osteoarthritic cartilage repair.
Objective To study the influence of hyperlipemia on rats with acute pancreatits during pregnancy and its mechanism. Methods Seventy two pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into the test group and the control group， and then they were fed with high fat diet and balanced diet for 16 days separately. Pregnant rats were given intraperitoneal injection with L-arginine for 2 times (one time is 250 mg/100 g, the other is 200 mg/100 g) at an interval of 1 h. The serum triglyceride (TG), serum amylase (AMS), and lipase (LPS) from blood samples were tested just after injection, and 12 h， 18 h， 24 h， 30 h and 48 h after injection respectively, and wet/dry ratio of pancreas were measured. The histopathological score of pancreatic tissue was evaluated based on microscopic changes, and the expression of TNF-α protein was determined by SP immunohistochemical technique. Results After the last injection, the level of TG in the test group was obviously higher than that in the control group in each time (P＜0.05). The peak values of AMS and LPS in the test group appeared at 24， 18 h respectively, while the peaks appeared at 30， 24 h in the control group, respectively, which were significantly lower than those in the test group (P＜0.05). Compared with the control group, the wet/dry ratio of pancreas in the test group increased at 12, 18 and 24 h after injection (P＜0.05); The pathological changes of pancreas in test group was more serious with higher histopathological score at 0, 12, 18 and 24 h (P＜0.05), and expression of the TNF-α protein was higher at 12, 18 and 24 h (P＜0.05), too. Conclusion Hyperlipemia can make L-arginine-induced-acute-pancreatitis during pregnancy earlier occur and lead to more serious injury in pancreas. This study demonstrates that hyperlipemia may be a high risk factor for acute pancreatitis during pregnancy, making a great amount of free fatty acid released from TG and up-regulated the expression of TNF-α.
Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of prophylactic octreotide for preventing complications after pancreas transplantation. Methods We searched The Cochrane Library (Issue 1, 2008), PubMed (1970 to January 2008), EMbase (1974 to January 2008) and CBM (1978 to January 2008). Six studies concerning prophylactic octreotide in preventing complications after pancreas transplantation were retrieved. Study selection and assessment, data collection and analyses were undertaken by two reviewers independently. Meta-analyses were done using The Cochrane Collaboration’s RevMan 4.2.10 software. Results Three RCTs, involving a total of 82 patients were included in the review. On the fifth postoperative day, the urinary amylase was significantly lower in patients in the octreotide group compared to the control group (SMD=–784.86, 95%CI –1464.24 to –105.49, P=0.02), and no significant difference was observed between the two groups in serum amylase (SMD=–12.26, 95%CI –56.53 to 32.06, P=0.59). No significant difference in the incidence of complications was noted between the two groups. The differences between the two groups in graft survival rate (90 days after operation) and patients’ 6-month survival rate were not statistically significant (RR=0.96, 95%CI 0.83 to 1.11, P=0.56; RR=1.17, 95%CI 0.86 to 1.58, P=0.32, respectively). As for safety, there were no reports of adverse effects of octreotide on CsA or FK506 absorption and no reports of other adverse reactions. Conclusion The evidence currently available shows that prophylactic octreotide is not capable of reducing dramatically the occurrence of pancreatitis, fistula, thrombosis and rejection after pancreas transplantation. And there is no obvious influence on graft survival rate and patient survival rate. Because the RCTs available for this systematic review are too small, further high-quality large-scale RCTs with long-term follow up are required to provide more reliable evidence.
Objective To evaluate the impact of portal or systemic venous pancreas graft drainage on patient and graft outcomes following simultaneous pancreas kidney transplantation (SPK). Methods We searched The Cochrane Library (2008, Issue 1), PubMed (1970 to Feb 2008) and EMBASE (1974 to Feb 2008) to find studies concerning the effect of systemic versus portal venous pancreas graft drainage on patient and graft outcomes. Meta-analyses were conducted using The Cochrane Collaboration’s RevMan 4.2 software. Results Three RCTs involving 401 simultaneous pancreas kidney transplants were included in our meta-analysis. Statistically significant differences were only observed in 3- and 5-year pancreas graft survival rates (P=0.03 and P=0.05). No significant difference was noted in patient or kidney graft survival rates. Conclusion Currently available evidences from RCTs does not support the effectiveness of portal drainage in preventing thrombosis, rejection or infection after SPK. Large-scale, long-term and appropriately designed RCTs are required to conclude whether portal and systemic drainage in pancreas transplantation are equivalent in terms of patient and graft survival.
Objective To investigate the research base and current understanding of the mechanism of ischemia-reperfusion injury (IR) to intrahepatic cholangiocytes after l iver transplantation, so as to identify the key points of the mechanism and provide references for cl inical practice. Methods We searched PubMed (1970 to 2007) and CBM(1979 to 2007). Qual ity assessment and data collection were performed by two reviewers independently. Since the baseline supplied and the measure were very different, we decided to provide a descriptive summary only. Results The earliest study on liver IR was publ ished in 1970. A total of 65 papers were included. There were 13 on cl inical studies, 35 on basic research studies; and 17 review articles. Most basic studies focus on injury mechanism: ① The physiology of bile ducts and Intrahepatic Bil iary Duct Cells(IBDC); ②the IR caused injury mechanism of IBDC during or after liver transplantation; ③ the basic injury mechanisms include: cold ischemia, warm ischemia, reperfusion, injury of bile and bile salts. Most clinical studies focused on preventive measures, including surgical and non-surgical approaches. Based on the evidence from basic research, changing the composition and perfusion methods of perfusate and protecting the specific blood supply to biliary ducts and cholangiocytes during the operation were important in preventing or reducing such an injury. Conclusion ① The heterogeneity of morphology, function, status and the special blood supply in large and small IBDC are important material base. ② Our own study indicated that simple IR or H/R was able to change the expression of MHC, MIC, DR4, DR5 and other adhesion molecules. ③ Compared to hepatic cells, hIBDC can’ t resist cold ischemia and even worse in tolerating reperfusion injury. ④ Hydrophobic bile salts will could increase the harm to bile ducts during organ preservation. ⑤ Due to the low quantity and limited quantities of clinical researches, the power of evidence was low. The evaluation indexes and baseline conditions are not unified. So the conclusions are for reference only.