nonlinear association between apolipoprotein B to apolipoprotein A1 ratio and type 2 diabetes", [1] which appeared in Volume 96, Issue 1 of Medicine, the authors' affiliations were listed incorrectly.
Abstract Purpose The risk of heart failure associated with sulphonylureas is unclear. We evaluated the association between sulphonylureas and hospitalization of heart failure (HHF) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in China. Methods A retrospective cohort study was implemented using the Yinzhou Regional Health Care Database (YRHCD). We identified 15 752 adult patients with T2DM who were newly exposed to sulphonylurea monotherapy (N = 12 487) or acarbose monotherapy (N = 3265) from January 2010 to September 2016. Cox proportional hazards models weighted by inverse probability of treatment weights were used to compare the risk of HHF between initiators of sulphonylurea and acarbose. Results During a median follow‐up of 0.55 (0.49, 1.11) and 0.49 (0.35, 0.70) years for sulphonylureas and acarbose initiators separately, 320 patients developed HHF, with 279 events in sulphonylureas group, and 41 events in acarbose group. The incidence rates of HHF among sulphonylureas initiators and acarbose initiators were 22.2 (95% CI 19.6‐24.9) and 18.3 (95% CI 13.2‐24.9) per 1000 person‐years, respectively. The adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) of HHF for sulphonylureas vs acarbose was 1.61 (95% CI 1.14‐2.27). When stratified by history of heart failure, aHR was 1.55 (95% CI 0.79‐3.06) in patients with a history of heart failure, and 1.64 (95% CI 1.10‐2.45) in patients with no history of heart failure. Conclusions Our study suggested that use of sulphonylureas monotherapy compared with acarbose monotherapy for initial treatment of T2DM for approximately 0.5 years are significantly associated with a higher risk of HHF.
Drug safety surveillance is crucial for patient safety. Passive surveillance has been broadly applied, but there are still shortcomings. The active surveillance system based on the electronic health database has gradually attracted various countries' regulatory authorities' attention. China's electronic healthcare data sources are suggested to be feasible for active post-market surveillance of drug safety. The China Hospital Pharmacovigilance System (CHPS) and the first version of China's active surveillance system, the China ADR Sentinel Alliance (CASSA), had been established 5 years ago. Researchers have begun to build relevant data models for active surveillance and evaluate the applicability and feasibility of active surveillance-related statistical analysis methods in China's electronic healthcare databases. In the future, the development of active surveillance of drug safety in China needs to incorporate more electronic healthcare databases and conduct quality assessments. It also needs to evaluate further the application conditions of active surveillance-related methods and tools and establish good cooperation and a win-win mechanism to encourage more stakeholders to be involved in active surveillance.
Abstract To understand the mechanism of precocious sexual maturation following prepubertal growth hormone (GH) therapy, the effects of recombinant human GH (rhGH) on the kisspeptin-gonadotropin-releasing hormone-luteinizing hormone (GnRH-LH) system in the hypothalamus-pituitary axis, systemic and testicular insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF1), spermatogenesis and Leydig cell steroidogenesis, and circulating testosterone levels were examined in immature rats. Following daily injection of rhGH (1 or 2 IU/kg) from postnatal day (PND) 21 to PND 23 or 30, testicular steroidogenic pathway genes and spermatogenesis marker genes mRNA levels, the number and size of HSD17B(+) Leydig cells, and blood testosterone levels in the rhGH rats were significantly higher than those of controls on PNDs 24 and 31. Hypothalamic Kiss1 and Gnrh1 mRNA in the rhGH rats were significantly higher than those in the controls on PND 24, indicating early activation of hypothalamic kisspeptin-GnRH neurons by rhGH. Hypothalamic Igf1 mRNA levels in rhGH rats were significantly higher than those in the controls on PND 24 but significantly lower than those in controls on PND 31. Testicular Igf1 mRNA levels were significantly higher in rhGH rats than in the controls on PNDs 24 and 31 whereas liver Igf1 mRNA levels and circulating IGF1 levels were not. In progenitor Leydig cells, rhGH significantly increased the Igf1 and steroidogenic pathway genes mRNA levels and the testosterone production. Therefore, local increases in testicular IGF1 might be an important mediator of gonadal activation via steroidogenic activation of Leydig cells in immature rats given rhGH.
nonlinear association between apolipoprotein B to apolipoprotein A1 ratio and type 2 diabetes", [1] which appeared in Volume 96, Issue 1, the authors' affiliations appeared incorrectly.
Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) is a critical regulator of skeletal growth. While IGF-I has been shown to be a potent chondrocyte mitogen in vitro , its role in chondrocyte differentiation is less well characterized. We chose to study the action of IGF-I on an accepted model of chondrocyte differentiation, the ATDC5 cell line. Insulin concentrations sufficiently high to interact with the IGF-I receptor are routinely used to induce ATDC5 cells to differentiate. Therefore, we first examined the ability of IGF-I to promote chondrocyte differentiation at physiological concentrations. IGF-I could induce differentiation of these cells at concentrations below 10 nM. However, increasing IGF-I concentrations were less potent at inducing differentiation. We hypothesized that mitogenic effects of IGF-I might inhibit its differentiating effects. Indeed, the extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK)-pathway inhibitor PD98059 inhibited ATDC5 cell DNA synthesis while enhancing differentiation. This suggested that the ability of IGF-I to promote both proliferation and differentiation might require that its signaling be modulated through the differentiation process. We therefore compared IGF-I-mediated ERK activation in proliferating and hypertrophic chondrocytes. IGF-I potently induced ERK activation in proliferating cells, but minimal ERK response was seen in hypertrophic cells. In contrast, IGF-I-mediated Akt activation was unchanged by differentiation, indicating intact upstream IGF-I receptor signaling. Similar findings were observed in the RCJ3.1C5.18 chondrogenic cell line and in primary chick chondrocytes. We conclude that IGF-I promotes both proliferation and differentiation of chondrocytes and that the differentiation effects of IGF-I may require uncoupling of signaling to the ERK pathway.
To explore the optimal therapy for constipation of excess fu syndrome due to phlegm heat in acute cerebral infarction.One hundred and sixty cases were randomized into acupuncture plus herbal medicine group, Chinese herbal medicine group, acupuncture group and Glycerine Enema group, 40 cases in each one. All the patients of 4 groups had received the conventional management in neurological internal medicine department and acupuncture according to the theory of SHI's regaining consciousness. Additionally, in acupuncture plus herbal medicine group, acupuncture and oral administration of Chinese herbal medicine were adopted. Acupuncture was applied to Shaoshang (LU 11), Shangyang (LI 1), Fenglong (ST 40), Tianshu (ST 25), Zhigou (TE 6), etc. Chinese herbal medicine was composed of Jinyinhua (Lonicera Japonica), Liangqiao (Fructus Forysthiae; Weeping Forsythia), Huangqin (Radix Scutellariae), Zhizi (Gardenia jasminoides Ellis; Cape Jasmine), Dannanxing (Rhizoma Arisaematis Cum Bile), Quangualou (Fructus Trichosanthis), etc. In acupuncture group, acupuncture was used simply. In Chinese herbal medicine group, only Chinese herbal medicine was administered orally. In Glycerine Enema group, Glycerine Enema was adopted. The interval time of defecation, stool quality, efficacy on constipation and nerve function score in 7 days and 21 days after treatment were compared among groups.After 7 days treatment of constipation, the total effective rate was 97.5% (39/40) in acupuncture plus herbal medicine group, which was superior apparently to 87.5% (35/40) in Chinese herbal medicine group, 82.5% (33/40) in acupuncture group and 80.0% (32/40) in Glycerine Enema group (all P < 0.05). After 21 days treatment, the total effective rate of constipation was 92.5% (37/40) in acupuncture plus herbal medicine group, which was superior apparently to 82.5% (33/40) in Chinese herbal medicine group. 80.5% (32/40) in acupuncture group and 67.5% (27/40) in Glycerine Enema group (all P < 0.01). The differences in the interval time of defection, stool quality and nerve function score after 7 days and 21 days treatment were significant statistically in comparison among 4 groups (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). The results in acupuncture plus herbal medicine group were superior apparently to the other groups.The integrated acupuncture and herbal medicine is effective definitely on constipation in acute cerebral infarction. Additionally, this therapy may improve the clinical efficacy of cerebral infarction and suggest the coordination between acupuncture-moxibustion and Chinese herbal medicine.