Right heart modified myocardial performance index and ductus venosus spectrum parameters in pre-eclampsia fetuses for predicting adverse pregnancy outcomes

Objective To observe the values of changes of right heart modified myocardial performance index(Mod-MPI)and ductus venosus(DV)spectrum parameters in pre-eclampsia fetuses for predicting adverse pregnancy outcomes.Methods Eighty-one pregnant women diagnosed as pre-eclampsia were prospectively enrolled and divided into severe pre-eclampsia(SPE)group(n=39)and mild pre-eclampsia(MPE)group(n=42),while 85 healthy pregnant women were taken as controls(control group).Fetal right heart function parameters,including right ventricular isovolumetric relaxation time(IRT),isovolumetric contraction time(ICT),ejection time(ET),total spent time(TST),Mod-MPI,tricuspid valve peak flow velocity ratio in early and late diastole(TV-E/A),as well as blood flow velocities in each waveform of DV spectrum(S,V,D,and A wave)were obtained,and the pulsatility index(PI)and the ratio of blood flow velocities in each waveform of the DV(S/V,S/D,S/A,V/D,V/A,D/A)were calculated.Intrauterine fetal distress,preterm delivery,neonatal asphyxia and newborn with low weight were considered as adverse pregnancy outcomes.The correlations of right heart Mod-MPI and TV-E/A with DV parameters in pre-eclampsia fetuses were assessed,and their predictive efficacies for adverse pregnancy outcomes were evaluated for right heart Mod-MPI and DV using the receiver operating characteristics(ROC)and the area under the curves(AUC).Results Compared with control group and MPE group,fetal right heart IRT,ICT and Mod-MPI increased and ET decreased in SPE group(all P<0.05).No significant differences of right heart TST and TV-E/A among 3 groups(both P>0.05).Fetal DV A-wave velocity and V/D values progressively decreased but PI progressively increased in control,MPE and SPE groups(all P<0.05).Fetal right heart Mod-MPI in pre-eclampsia was moderately positively correlated with DV PI(r=0.637,P=0.016),while TV-E/A was weakly negatively correlated with DV V/D(r=-0.355,P=0.043).Adverse pregnancy outcomes were noticed in 59 pre-eclampsia cases.The AUC of fetal right heart Mod-MPI and DV PI for predicting adverse pregnancy outcomes in pre-eclampsia cases was 0.897 and 0.848,respectively,without significant difference(Z=0.460,P=0.400).Conclusion Changes of right heart Mod-MPI and DV spectrum parameters in pre-eclampsia fetuses had high value for predicting adverse pregnancy outcomes.

羊驼妊娠诊断的几种方式

羊驼的妊娠诊断的性行为诊断是不可靠的,在妊娠70～125天的准确率只有85%[1].一般受孕的雌性不再接受雄性,但是雄性的好斗和生理反应也可能使雌性接受雄性.

PRID十PMSG十LHA3同群羊使用效果体会

2018年10月25日第二轮次的激素处理就是上年度产羔羊的母羊,实质是做高频繁殖技术。埋栓时,气温由热变冷,日照从长变短,属繁殖季节诱导发情配种。共处理上一批次的66只己产生产母羊。采用的是PRID+PMSG十LHA3(孕激素同期发情技术)技术处理。

Efficacy of ultrasonography and alpha-fetoprotein on early detection of hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM： To evaluate the effectiveness of ultrasonographic screening for early detection of hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. METHODS： The data of 14 968 patients who had ultrasonography （US） for chronic liver diseases were collected into a database program from June 1995 to June 2005. The risk factors for HCC were also studied. A total of 6089 patients who had repeated US were enrolled, 264 patients were diagnosed with HCC during follow-up （mean, 39 mo）. RESULTS： The detection rate of small HCC （≤ 3 cm in diameter） was 67.7%. The tumor size detected by screening at the intervals of 6 mo was significantly smaller than that at longer intervals. Only 29.3% of HCC patients had an elevated serum alpha fetoprotein （AFP） level above 400 ng/mL. The risk of HCC development during follow-up was higher in patients with liver cirrhosis （10.9%） and hepatitis C （9.0%） than in patients with chronic hepatitis （4.2%）, hepatitis B （4.9%） and non-B, non-C hepatitis （NBNC, 3.9%）. CONCLUSION： US screening at a interval of 6 mo is beneficial to high-risk patients over 40 years old and the early detection of HCC prolongs survival.

Expression and location of α-fetoprotein during rat colon development

AIM： To investigate the expression of α-fetoprotein （AFP）, a cancer-associated fetal glycoprotein, and its involvement during rat colon development. METHODS： Colons from Sprague-Dawley rat fetuses, young and adult （8 wk old） animals were used in this study. Expression levels of AFP in colons of different development stage were detected by reversetranscriptase PCR （RT-PCR） and Western blotting. To identify the cell location of AFP in the developing rat colons, double-immunofluorescent staining was performed using antibodies to specific cell markers and AFP, respectively. RESULTS： The highest levels of AFP mRNA were detected in colons of rats at embryonic day 18.5 （e18.5）. Compared to e18.5 d, the AFP expression was significantly decreased during rat development （85% for e20.5, P 〈 0.05, 58% for postnatal day 0.5 （P〈0.5）, P 〈 0.05, 37% for P7, P 〈 0.05, 24% for P14, P 〈 0.05, and 11% for P21, P 〈 0.05） and undetected in adult rats. Only the 72-kDa isoform of AFP was detected by Western blotting, the expression pattern was similar to AFP mRNA and conformed to the results of mRNA expression. The AFP positive staining was identical to different distribution patterns in fetuses, young and adult animals and positive staining for both AFP and vimentin was overlapped in mesenchymal cells at each stage tested. CONCLUSION： This study has for the first time demonstrated that AFP is localized in the mesenchyme of rat colon from the embryo to the weaning stage by immunofluorescence and presents 72-kDa isoform in the developing rat colons by Western blotting. The dynamic expression of AFP in the various developmental stages of the colon indicates that AFP might be involved in many aspects of colon development.

Very high alpha-fetoprotein in a young man due to concomitant presentation of hepatocellular carcinoma and Sertoli cell testis tumor

Studies reported that there is a close relationship between hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC） and testis carcinoma. Both tumors can be presented as synchronal tumors, or as testicular metastases of HCC or as hepatic metastases of testicular tumor. HCC is one of the most common malignancies worldwide and the incidence of HCC increases with age. The relationship between hepatitis B incidence and HCC rates is also well recognized. Alpha fetoprotein （AFP） is produced by 70% of HCC. Though a level of AFP 〉400 ng/mL is diagnostic for HCC, in the presence of active hepatitis B infection, the cut-off level should be considered to be at least 1 000-4 000 ng/mL. Like HCC, germ cell tumors of the testis also release AFP; but it is shown that some of Sertoli cell tumors of testis can also release AFP. Herein we have reported about the first case of HCC in the literature which is presented concomitantly with Sertoli-Leydig tumor of testis, leading to extremely high level of AFP in a 21-year-old man.

The ultrasound diagnosis of fetal gastric teratoma

Objective: The aim of the study was to discuss the value of ultrasound examination in the diagnosis of fetal gastric teratoma. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 2 cases with fetal gastric teratoma in our hospital (Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China). It involved clinical, ultrasonic, X-ray, CT and MRI, biochemical, pathological, karyotype and immunohistochemical data. Results: There both were hybrid echo masses in the abdominal of the fetus with the sonography and the ultrasound features which mostly like the teratomas. Two cases were dead after induced abortion. The pathological results of the mass were gastric immature teratoma in one, and stomach mature teratoma in another. Conclusion: Fetal gastric teratoma is rarely seen and easily be misdiagnosed in clinic. The diagnosis depends finally on pathological examination. Ultrasound scan as the easy and direct method is helpful to clew the diagnosis of fetal gastric teratoma.

ANTENATAL DIAGNOSIS AND MANAGEMENT OF DANDY-WALKER SYNDROME

The Dandy-Walker syndrome (DWS) can be accurately diagnosed in utero by sonographic demonstration of characteristic morphologic changes of the fetus, which includes hydrocephalus, incomplete cerebellar vermis and a posterior fossa cyst. We present a case of Dandy-Walker syndrome diagnosed antenatally. The assoiacted anomalies are reviewed, and the value of antenatal diagnosis is discussed.

Microscopic Inspection on Developmental Process of Myeloma Cells

The developmental process of Myeloma cells under a digital optical microscope has been inspected and monitored by using time-lapsed recording technique. Myeloma cells were cultured in medium contained 20% and 50% of Fetal Bovine Serum （FBS）, respectively. Inspection and monitoring for 6 hours showed the effect of the FBS to mobility, proliferation rate, and development of cell cycle phases of Myeloma cells. Using time-lapsed data, the speed of cells was 3.5-6.0 pm/s when using FBS 20% and increased to 5.0-8.0 p.m/s when using FBS 50%. The rate of cells decreases from 2 cells/hr when using FBS 20% to 1/6 cells/br when using FBS 50%. The cells division process is signified by the change in gray level and it took every 50-70 minutes.

Recent Possibilities for the Diagnosis and Pharmacological Control of Pregnancy Loss in Dairy Cow

One of the most recent techniques for the diagnosis of EP （early pregnancy） in cattle on the farm is B-mode ultrasonography. Under field conditions, acceptable results may be achieved with ultrasonography from days 25 to 30 post-AI. The reliability of the test greatly depends on the frequency of the transducer used, the skill of the examiner, the criterion used for a positive PD （pregnancy diagnosis） and the position of the uterus in the pelvic inlet. Pregnancy protein assays （PAG, PSPB） may provide an alternative method to ultrasonography for determining EP or LEM/EFM （late embryonic/early foetal mortality） in the cow. Although early pregnancy factor is the earliest specific indicator for fertilization, its detection is entirely dependend on the use of the RIT （rosette inhibition test）, therefore its use in the field needs further inventions. Preventive pharmaceutical treatments with hCG （human chorionic gonadotropin）, GnRH （gonadotropin realising hormone）, PRID （progesterone-releasing intravaginal device） or CIDR （controlled internal drug release） inserts at different time periods at or post-AI may have some benefit in decreasing PL （pregnancy loss）, however further examinations are warranted to determine how and when these treatments may influence PL in the field.