多西紫杉醇修饰的人工晶体与眼组织相容性分析

目的：探讨经多西紫杉醇修饰的人工晶体对眼组织相容性的影响。方法：按照随机数字表法将32 只日本大耳兔分为两组： 实验组通过手术植入表面经多西紫杉醇修饰处理后的疏水性人工晶体，对照组植入疏水性人工晶体。比较两组人工晶体亲水角、 术后24 小时光耀斑块计数以及人工晶体周围组织炎症浸润数。结果：实验组的亲水角小于对照组，差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）。 实验组光耀斑块计数低于对照组，差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）。实验组家兔人工晶体周围组织炎症浸润计数低于对照组，差异有 统计学意义（P<0.05）。结论：人工晶体表面经多西紫杉醇修饰后，其亲水性、与眼组织的组织相容性增加，且可缓解光耀斑炎症感 染和降低并发症的发生，有重要的临床参考价值。     

In Vitro Cultivation of Borrelia duttonii on Cultures of SflEp Cells

Borrelia duttonii strain 406 K, a causative agent of relapsing fever, could not be cultivated in vitro in currently available media for borreliae. We have developed an in vitro cultivation system by using SflEp cell cultures. The average increases of the number of borreliae, when inoculated with 1.0 × 10⁵ organisms per ml from infected mice, were 23-fold and 150-fold in the primary culture and the 3rd subculture, respectively. Even a single borrelia could propagate in this cultivation system. This system will be useful for immunological and physiological studies on uncultivable Borrelia strains.     

Study of accumulation behaviour of tungsten based composite using electron probe micro analyser for the application in bone tissue engineering

In this research, a proto-type study we have conducted, where we have synthesized tungsten based composite materials which are tungsten along with combined oxides of other elements like calcium, scandium, barium, and aluminium in the form of powder with bones powder of mice devised by high energy ball mill and later on fabricating high dense pellets by sintering by spark plasma. The particle sizes of the composite materials are found to be 1–2 µm, as evidenced by the electron microscope, suggesting synthesized materials are of micron size. The quantitative and qualitative analysis of sintered pellets are well confirmed by electron probe micro analyzer (EPMA) and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS) which illustrate the greater percentage of tungsten presents in the profound scan areas with other elements of the composite. The absence of pores across the 3D geometry suggesting dense sample, which is quite revealed by the X-ray tomography inspection. The prepared sintered pellets from the tungsten based composites are found to be ≈ 99.5% density with the observation of tungsten to be accumulated uniformly across the scan regions along with focussed hot spots as implied by EPMA. This study paves the way, to examine how the tungsten accumulation and the distribution with the other elements for future understanding in bone tissue engineering application and the in vivo specification of tungsten.     

Biomarkers affected by impact velocity and maximum strain of cartilage during injury

Osteoarthritis is one of the most common, debilitating, musculoskeletal diseases; 12% associated with traumatic injury resulting in post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). Our objective was to develop a single impact model with cartilage “injury level” defined in terms of controlled combinations of strain rate to a maximum strain (both independent of cartilage load resistance) to study their sensitivity to articular cartilage cell viability and potential PTOA biomarkers. A servo-hydraulic test machine was used to measure canine humeral head cartilage explant thickness under repeatable pressure, then subject it (except sham and controls) to a single impact having controlled constant velocity V=1 or 100 mm/s (strain rate 1.82 or 182/s) to maximum strain ε=10%, 30%, or 50%. Thereafter, explants were cultured in media for twelve days, with media changed at day 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 12. Explant thickness was measured at day 0 (pre-injury), 6 and 12 (post-injury). Cell viability, and tissue collagen and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) were analyzed immediately post-injury and day 12. Culture media were tested for biomarkers: GAG, collagen II, chondroitin sulfate-846, nitric oxide, and prostaglandin E₂ (PGE₂). Detrimental effects on cell viability, and release of GAG and PGE₂ to the media were primarily strain-dependent, (PGE₂ being more prolonged and sensitive at lower strains). The cartilage injury model appears to be useful (possibly superior) for investigating the relationship between impact severity of injury and the onset of PTOA, specifically for discovery of biomarkers to evaluate the risk of developing clinical PTOA, and to compare effective treatments for arthritis prevention.     

Updated Lagrangian finite element formulations of various biological soft tissue non-linear material models: a comprehensive procedure and review

Simplified material models are commonly used in computational simulation of biological soft tissue as an approximation of the complicated material response and to minimize computational resources. However, the simulation of complex loadings, such as long-duration tissue swelling, necessitates complex models that are not easy to formulate. This paper strives to offer the updated Lagrangian formulation comprehensive procedure of various non-linear material models for the application of finite element analysis of biological soft tissues including a definition of the Cauchy stress and the spatial tangential stiffness. The relationships between water content, osmotic pressure, ionic concentration and the pore pressure stress of the tissue are discussed with the merits of these models and their applications.     

Rutin decreases lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury via inhibition of oxidative stress and the MAPK–NF-κB pathway

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a serious disease with unacceptably high mortality and morbidity rates. Up to now, no effective therapeutic strategy for ALI has been established. Rutin, quercetin-3-rhamnosyl glucoside, expresses a wide range of biological activities and pharmacological effects, such as anti-inflammatory, antihypertensive, anticarcinogenic, vasoprotective, and cardioprotective activities. Pretreatment with rutin inhibited not only histopathological changes in lung tissues but also infiltration of polymorphonuclear granulocytes into bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI. In addition, LPS-induced inflammatory responses, including increased secretion of proinflammatory cytokines and lipid peroxidation, were inhibited by rutin in a concentration-dependent manner. Furthermore, rutin suppressed phosphorylation of NF-κB and MAPK and degradation of IκB, an NF-κB inhibitor. Decreased activities of antioxidative enzymes such as superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and heme oxygenase-1 caused by LPS were reversed by rutin. At the same time, we found that ALI amelioration by chelation of extracellular metal ions with rutin is more efficacious than with deferoxamine. These results indicate that the protective mechanism of rutin is through inhibition of MAPK–NF-κB activation and upregulation of antioxidative enzymes.     

Inter-session reliability and sex-related differences in hamstrings total reaction time,pre-motor time and motor time during eccentric isokinetic contractions in recreational athlete

The purposes were twofold: (a) to ascertain the inter-session reliability of hamstrings total reaction time, pre-motor time and motor time; and (b) to examine sex-related differences in the hamstrings reaction times profile. Twenty-four men and 24 women completed the study. Biceps femoris and semitendinosus total reaction time, pre-motor time and motor time measured during eccentric isokinetic contractions were recorded on three different occasions. Inter-session reliability was examined through typical percentage error (CV_TE), percentage change in the mean (CM) and intraclass correlations (ICC). For both biceps femoris and semitendinosus, total reaction time, pre-motor time and motor time measures demonstrated moderate inter-session reliability (CV_TE < 10%; CM < 3%; ICC > 0.7). The results also indicated that, although not statistically significant, women reported consistently longer hamstrings total reaction time (23.5 ms), pre-motor time (12.7 ms) and motor time (7.5 ms) values than men. Therefore, an observed change larger than 5%, 9% and 8% for total reaction time, pre-motor time and motor time respectively from baseline scores after performing a training program would indicate that a real change was likely. Furthermore, while not statistically significant, sex differences were noted in the hamstrings reaction time profile which may play a role in the greater incidence of ACL injuries in women.     

Functional lung imaging with synchrotron radiation: Methods and preclinical applications

Many lung disease processes are characterized by structural and functional heterogeneity that is not directly appreciable with traditional physiological measurements. Experimental methods and lung function modeling to study regional lung function are crucial for better understanding of disease mechanisms and for targeting treatment. Synchrotron radiation offers useful properties to this end: coherence, utilized in phase-contrast imaging, and high flux and a wide energy spectrum which allow the selection of very narrow energy bands of radiation, thus allowing imaging at very specific energies. K-edge subtraction imaging (KES) has thus been developed at synchrotrons for both human and small animal imaging. The unique properties of synchrotron radiation extend X-ray computed tomography (CT) capabilities to quantitatively assess lung morphology, and also to map regional lung ventilation, perfusion, inflammation and biomechanical properties, with microscopic spatial resolution. Four-dimensional imaging, allows the investigation of the dynamics of regional lung functional parameters simultaneously with structural deformation of the lung as a function of time. This review summarizes synchrotron radiation imaging methods and overviews examples of its application in the study of disease mechanisms in preclinical animal models, as well as the potential for clinical translation both through the knowledge gained using these techniques and transfer of imaging technology to laboratory X-ray sources.