To investigate the mechanism and correlated factors of systolic anterior motion (SAM) phenomenon after aortic valve replacement, 48 patients with severe aortic valvular stenosis were studied. Tested by echo-Doppler one week after aortic valve replacement, the patients were divided into two groups: SAM group and non-SAM group. The data of the left ventricular end-diastolic diameters, the left ventricular end-systolic diameters, the left ventricular outflow diameters, the thickness of the interventricular septum, the posterior wall of left ventricle, the blood velocities of left ventricular outflow and intra-cavitary gradients were recorded and compared. The results showed that no patients died during or after the operation. The blood velocities of left ventricular outflow was increased significantly in 9 patients (>2.5 m/s), and 6 of them developed SAM phenomenon. There was significant difference in all indexes (P<0.05 or P<0.01) except the posterior wall of left ventricle (P>0.05) between two groups. These indicated that the present of SAM phenomenon after aortic valve replacement may be directly related to the increase of blood velocities of left ventricular outflow and intra-cavitary gradients. It is also suggested that smaller left ventricular diastolic diameters, left ventricular systolic diameters, left ventricular outflow diameters and hypertrophy of interventricular septum may be the anatomy basis of SAM phenomenon.

This study is to investigate the effect of local phVEGF₁₆₅ injection on sciatic nerve regeneration in the rats and to search for a new way in the further treatment of peripheral nerve injuries. Forty-five adult male Wistar rats received a neurotomy to bilateral sciatic nerves, which were subsequently reconnected with 10/0 epineurial nylon sutures. The injured segments was locally injected with normal saline (group A), or 25 μg of phVEGF₁₆₅ (group B) or 50 μg phVEGF₁₆₅ (group C). Nerve conduction and regeneration were evaluated in terms of the histological changes, weight of gastrocnemius muscles, electrophysiology and morphometric results. Our study demonstrated that rats of group C showed the best results in terms of nerve regeneration, followed by group B and group A. Our findings suggested that local injection of phVEGF165 can facilitate nerve regeneration and promote functional recovery in a dose-dependent manner.

In order to observe the nutrition state in the severe multiple trauma patients undergoing adjuvant recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) nutritional support therapy, 45 patients with severe multiple traumas (ISS>25) were randomly divided into 3 groups. All the 3 groups had been supplied with nitrogen and caloricity according to the need of patients for 16 days. The rhGH therapy started 48 h after surgery and lasted for 14 days in two rhGH-treated groups in which rhGH was 0.2 and 0.4 U/(kg · d) respectively, and the resting group served as control one. The levels of nitrogen balance, prealbumin and safety variables (blood sugar, Na⁺, TT₃ and TT₄) were observed and compared among the three groups. The levels of nitrogen balance on the postoperative day (POD) 3 and 5 in the rhGH-treated groups were −1.28±3.19, 5.45±2.00 and −0.18±2.55, 6.11±1.60, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in the control group (−5.17±1.68 and −1.08±3.31, P<0.01). The values of prealbumin on the POD 3 and 5 in the rhGH-treated groups were 180.19±27.15, 194.44±50.82 and 194.94±29.65, 194.11±16.17, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in the control group (117.42±19.10 and 135.63±28.31, P<0.01). There was no significant difference between the rhGH 0.2 U/(kg · d) group and rhGH 0.4 U/(kg · d) group in both of the levels of nitrogen balance and prealbumin. It is concluded that the nutritional support therapy with adjuvant rhGH which starts 48 h after surgery improves the nutrition state of the patients with severe multiple trauma. It is safe for severe multiple trauma patients who accept rhGH at the dose of 0.2 and 0.4 U/(kg · d).

To study the inhibitory effect of Nogo-A shRNA on cell line PC12, the Nogo-A shRNA (short hairpin RNA, or shRNA) was designed and synthesized. The annealed shRNA template was inserted into plasmid pGenesil-1 containing enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) gene by gene cloning technique to generate eukaryotic expression vector. The recombinant plasmid was transfected into PC12 cells by lipofecamine2000 and the mRNA and protein expression level of Nogo-A gene was detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting 48 h after the transfection. Gene sequencing showed that that the Nogo-A shRNA eukaryotic expression vector was successfully constructed. No significant change was found in the Nogo-A mRNA and protein expression level in empty vector-transfected group as compared with controls (P>0.05), while the expression level in shRNA-transfected group decreased significantly (P<0.05). It is concluded that the pGenesil-1/Nogo-AshRNA recombinant plasmid can effectively suppress the expression of Nogo-A gene in PC12 cells.

By using decoy-oligodeoxynucleotides (decoy-ODNS) technique, the effects of Stathmin gene on the proliferation and differentiation of in vitro cultured precartilainous stem cells (PSCs) were investigated. The Stathmin decoy-ODNs were transfected into PSCs in rats by using gene transfection technique. Under the induction of cortisol (1 μmol/L), electrophoretic mobility shift assay was used the inhibitory effects of decoy-ODNS on Stathmin gene. MTT and cytometry were used to test the cell proliferation. The expression of collagen II and V and Stathmin protein was detected by using Western blot. The results showed that Stathmin decoy-ODNs inhibited the Stathmin activity in a dose-dependent manner. When the concentration of decoy-ODNs was 10 times of standard concentration, the proliferation of PSCs was obviously suppressed and the differentiation happened. Compared to the control group, the difference was significant (P<0.05). It was concluded that decoy-ODNs could inhibit the proliferation and promote the differentiation of PSCs by antagonizing Stathmin activity.

In order to assess whether gene transfection could be mediated by ultrasound in association with P85 and find the appropriate parameters of ultrasound irradiation, the effects of ultrasound with or without P85 on gene transfection of HepG2 cells were examined. The HepG2 cells were irradiated by ultrasound at 1 MHz, 0.4–2.0 W/cm² and 50% duty cycle with plasmid encoding enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) as a report gene. Forty-eight h later, the expression of EGFP was detected under the fluorescence microscopy. Transfection efficacy was quantitatively assessed by flow cytometry, and cell viability was evaluated by trypan blue exclusion. The results showed that the transfection efficacy was increased with the increases in ultrasound output power and the ideal transfection efficacy was achieved in HepG2 cells irradiated by ultrasound at 0.8 W/cm² for 30 s. The transfection efficacy in ulstrasound+P85 group was three times higher than in single ultrasound group [(17.63±1.07)% vs (5.57±0.56)%, P<0.05]. The cell viability was about 81% and 62% in ultrasound group and ultrasound+P85 group respectively. It was concluded that ultrasound in combination with P85 could mediate the gene transfection of HepG2 cells, ideal transfection efficacy was achieved by ultrasound irradiation at 0.8 W/cm² for 30 s, and P85 could somewhat increase the damage to cells caused by ultrasound.