Gene replacement in mice reveals that the heavily phosphorylated tail of neurofilament heavy subunit does not affect axonal caliber or the transit of cargoes in slow axonal transport

The COOH-terminal tail of mammalian neurofilament heavy subunit (NF-H), the largest neurofilament subunit, contains 44-51 lysine-serine-proline repeats that are nearly stoichiometrically phosphorylated after assembly into neurofilaments in axons. Phosphorylation of these repeats has been implicated in promotion of radial growth of axons, control of nearest neighbor distances between neurofilaments or from neurofilaments to other structural components in axons, and as a determinant of slow axonal transport. These roles have now been tested through analysis of mice in which the NF-H gene was replaced by one deleted in the NF-H tail. Loss of the NF-H tail and all of its phosphorylation sites does not affect the number of neurofilaments, alter the ratios of the three neurofilament subunits, or affect the number of microtubules in axons. Additionally, it does not reduce interfilament spacing of most neurofilaments, the speed of action potential propagation, or mature cross-sectional areas of large motor or sensory axons, although its absence slows the speed of acquisition of normal diameters. Most surprisingly, at least in optic nerve axons, loss of the NF-H tail does not affect the rate of transport of neurofilament subunits.     

Body Anthropometry and the Risk of Hip and Wrist Fractures in Men: Results from a Prospective Study

Available epidemiological information on the associations between body anthropometry and the incidence of fractures in men is limited. We therefore prospectively investigated the association between body anthropometry and the incidence of hip and wrist fractures from low and moderate trauma among 43,053 men who were 40 years to 75 years of age in 1986 when they first enrolled in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. After 8 years of follow-up, 201 wrist fracture cases and 56 hip fracture cases were reported. Greater height was associated with significant elevations in both hip and wrist fractures, whereas nonsignificant inverse associations were observed with weight and body mass index. Men in the highest quintile of waist circumference had a relative risk (RR) of 2.57 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.64 to 10.3) for hip fracture and 2.05 (95% CI 1.06 to 3.96) for wrist fracture when compared with men in the lowest quintile. Waist-to-hip ratio was also positively related to fracture incidence; comparing highest with lowest quintile, the RRs were 3.92 (95% CI 1.07 to 14.3) for hip fracture and 1.50 (95% CI 0.85 to 2.66) for wrist fracture. These anthropometric indicators, in particular waist-to-hip ratio, may be useful for the prediction of hip fracture in adult men.     

经伤椎单节段固定与跨伤椎短节段固定治疗胸腰椎骨折的临床疗效比较研究

目的:研究经伤椎单节段固定和跨伤椎短节段固定对于胸腰椎骨折进行治疗的临床疗效。方法:从2011年6月至2014年6月,选择我院100例胸腰椎骨折患者作为研究对象。以数字法随机分为观察组50例以及对照组50例。观察组患者行经伤椎单节段固定,对照组患者行跨伤椎短节段固定,对比观察两组的临床效果。结果:观察组患者术中出血量及手术时间均明显低于对照组,差异均具有统计学意义(P0.05)。对两组患者手术前后的影像学检测结果进行比较,手术前后两组的压缩率以及Cobb角比较均无显著差异(P0.05),对所有患者进行末次随访时发现,观察组的压缩率明显高于对照组,Cobb角明显低于对照组,差异均具有统计学意义(P0.05)。治疗前两组在社会功能,情感职能以及躯体疼痛评分比较上均无统计学差异(P0.05),治疗后两组以上评分较治疗前均明显升高,并且观察组显著高于对照组,差异均具有统计学意义(P0.05)。结论:使用经伤椎单节段固定较跨伤椎短节段固定方式能更好地恢复患者Cobb角度,对于预防手术之后矫正度的丢失性具有明显优势,且其有利于术后患者生活质量的提高,值得临床推荐使用。     

骨水泥强化椎弓根内固定治疗骨质疏松性脊柱骨折的效果

目的:探讨内固定与植骨融合术治疗骨质疏松性椎体骨折的临床疗效。方法:回顾性分析我院2011年7月至2012年7月收治的80例骨质疏松性椎体骨折患者的临床资料。根据固定方式,将37例采用PMMA骨水泥强化椎弓根内固定的患者作为研究组,其余43例单纯应用椎弓根内固定的患者作为对照组。收集两组患者的手术时间、术中出血量、术后疼痛程度、愈合时间等临床资料。评价患者手术前后侧位X线片椎体高度和内固定效果。术后随访24个月。结果:两组患者的手术时间、术中出血量、住院时间及骨折愈合时间等无显著性差异(P0.05);研究组患者术后疼痛程度、椎体高度、内固定物松动及断裂情况等显著优于对照组,差异具有统计学意义(P0.01)。结论:骨水泥强化椎弓根螺钉治疗骨质疏松性椎体骨折具有良好的临床效果,值得推广应用。     

Systems genetic analysis of hippocampal neuroanatomy and spatial learning in mice

Variation in hippocampal neuroanatomy correlates well with spatial learning ability in mice. Here, we have studied both hippocampal neuroanatomy and behavior in 53 isogenic BXD recombinant strains derived from C57BL/6J and DBA/2J parents. A combination of experimental, neuroinformatic and systems genetics methods was used to test the genetic bases of variation and covariation among traits. Data were collected on seven hippocampal subregions in CA3 and CA4 after testing spatial memory in an eight‐arm radial maze task. Quantitative trait loci were identified for hippocampal structure, including the areas of the intra‐ and infrapyramidal mossy fibers (IIPMFs), stratum radiatum and stratum pyramidale, and for a spatial learning parameter, error rate. We identified multiple loci and gene variants linked to either structural differences or behavior. Gpc4 and Tenm2 are strong candidate genes that may modulate IIPMF areas. Analysis of gene expression networks and trait correlations highlight several processes influencing morphometrical variation and spatial learning.     

Profilin1 activity in cerebellar granule neurons is required for radial migration in vivo

Neuron migration defects are an important aspect of human neuropathies. The underlying molecular mechanisms of such migration defects are largely unknown. Actin dynamics has been recognized as an important determinant of neuronal migration, and we recently found that the actin-binding protein profilin1 is relevant for radial migration of cerebellar granule neurons (CGN). As the exploited brain-specific mutants lacked profilin1 in both neurons and glial cells, it remained unknown whether profilin1 activity in CGN is relevant for CGN migration in vivo. To test this, we capitalized on a transgenic mouse line that expresses a tamoxifen-inducible Cre variant in CGN, but no other cerebellar cell type. In these profilin1 mutants, the cell density was elevated in the molecular layer, and ectopic CGN occurred. Moreover, 5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine tracing experiments revealed impaired CGN radial migration. Hence, our data demonstrate the cell autonomous role of profilin1 activity in CGN for radial migration.     

Life and death in a civitas capital: Metabolic disease and trauma in the children from late Roman Dorchester,Dorset

The impact that “Romanization” and the development of urban centers had on the health of the Romano‐British population is little understood. A re‐examination of the skeletal remains of 364 nonadults from the civitas capital at Roman Dorchester (Durnovaria) in Dorset was carried out to measure the health of the children living in this small urban area. The cemetery population was divided into two groups; the first buried their dead organized within an east–west alignment with possible Christian‐style graves, and the second with more varied “pagan” graves, aligned north–south. A higher prevalence of malnutrition and trauma was evident in the children from Dorchester than in any other published Romano‐British group, with levels similar to those seen in postmedieval industrial communities. Cribra orbitalia was present in 38.5% of the children, with rickets and/or scurvy at 11.2%. Twelve children displayed fractures of the ribs, with 50% of cases associated with rickets and/or scurvy, suggesting that rib fractures should be considered during the diagnosis of these conditions. The high prevalence of anemia, rickets, and scurvy in the Poundbury children, and especially the infants, indicates that this community may have adopted child‐rearing practices that involved fasting the newborn, a poor quality weaning diet, and swaddling, leading to general malnutrition and inadequate exposure to sunlight. The Pagan group showed no evidence of scurvy or rib fractures, indicating difference in religious and child‐rearing practices but that both burial groups were equally susceptible to rickets and anemia suggests a shared poor standard of living in this urban environment. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

合贝爽联合阿托伐他汀治疗不稳定型心绞痛的效果分析

目的:分析合贝爽联合阿托伐他汀治疗不稳定型心绞痛的临床疗效,为相关治疗提供参考。方法:回顾性分析我院2007年1月至2009年6月确诊为不稳定型心绞痛而住院的患者140例,随机分为常规治疗组、合贝爽治疗组、阿托伐他汀治疗组与合贝爽联合阿托伐他汀治疗组,每组35例患者,持续用药治疗2周后,分析比较各组临床症状的缓解或消失情况。结果:合贝爽联合阿托伐他汀治疗组的心电图(ST-T改变)、早搏、心悸、胸痛、胸闷等主要症状的改善程度明显高于其他三组,差异有统计学意义,P<0.01,但其产生不良反应率偏高。结论:合贝爽联合阿托伐他汀治疗不稳定心绞痛虽可显著缓解心绞痛发作症状,但是也存在较大的副作用,用药时需要引起注意。     

广西金钟山细叶云南松径向生长及其对气候因子的响应

为探究广西金钟山细叶云南松径向生长及其对气候的响应,该文建立了细叶云南松树木年轮标准年表,采用响应分析探讨了径向生长与气候因子的关系,并使用逐步回归和方差分解量化了不同气候因子对径向生长的影响。结果表明:(1)响应分析结果显示,上一年1月、8月、9月、11月的日照时数以及上一年10月的平均最低气温和平均气温与标准年表年轮宽度均呈显著正相关,而上一年6月降雨量>10 mm的天数与年轮宽度呈显著负相关; 当年2月的降雨量、3月的空气相对湿度和平均最低气温、6月的日照时数以及9月的平均气温和平均最高气温均与年轮宽度呈显著正相关。(2)逐步回归最终模型的方差分解结果显示,上一年10月的平均最低气温对细叶云南松径向生长的影响最大(方差解释量达23.35%),其次是当年9月的平均最高气温(方差解释量为10.39%); 上一年1月和11月的日照时数分别解释了径向生长变异的3.94%和6.58%。综上表明,秋季的温度和冬季的光照条件是限制细叶云南松径向生长最主要的气候因子,早春干旱和雨季大降雨量会降低细叶云南松的径向生长。     

Apoplastic barriers to radial oxygen loss and solute penetration: a chemical and functional comparison of the exodermis of two wetland species, Phragmites australis and Glyceria maxima

Few studies have examined exodermal development in relation to the formation of barriers to both radial oxygen loss (ROL) and solute penetration along growing roots. Here, we report on the structural development, chemical composition and functional properties of the exodermis in two diverse wetland grasses, Glyceria maxima and Phragmites australis. Anatomical features, development, the biochemical composition of exodermal suberin and the penetration of apoplastic tracers and oxygen were examined. Striking interspecific differences in exodermal structure, suberin composition and quantity per unit surface area, and developmental changes along the roots were recorded. Towards the root base, ROL and periodic acid (H(5)IO(6)) penetration were virtually stopped in P. australis; in G. maxima, a tight ROL barrier restricted but did not stop H(5)IO(6) penetration and the exodermis failed to stain with lipidic dyes. Cultivation in stagnant deep hypoxia conditions or oxygenated circulating solution affected the longitudinal pattern of ROL profiles in G. maxima but statistically significant changes in exodermal suberin composition or content were not detected. Interspecific differences in barrier performance were found to be related to hypodermal structure and probably to qualitative as well as quantitative variations in suberin composition and distribution within exodermal cell walls. Implications for root system function are discussed, and it is emphasized that sufficient spatial resolution to identify the effects of developmental changes along roots is crucial for realistic evaluation of exodermal barrier properties.