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BackgroundHyperuricemia is a common and serious public health problem. There has been no broad epidemiological survey of hyperuricemia in China, especially in Tibetan area. This study was therefore investigated the prevalence of hyperuricemia and its correlated factors among people aged 18–85 years in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China.MethodsWe carried out a cross-sectional study among 3093 participants in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture using questionnaires in face-to-face interviews, anthropometric measurements and biochemical tests. We included 1416 subjects with complete data including serum uric acid and medical history to analyze the prevalence of hyperuricemia and correlated factors. Hyperuricemia was defined as a fasting serum uric acid level higher than 420 μmol/L in men and 360 μmol/L in women.ResultsThe overall crude prevalence of hyperuricemia was 37.2%, and was greater in men than women (41% vs 34.4%, P = 0.011). The age-adjusted prevalence was 33.0%. Characteristics linked to hyperuricemia were farmers-herdsmen (OR: 1.749, 95% CI: 1.022–2.992), low to moderate education level (low OR:1.57, 95% CI: 1.102–2.237; moderate OR: 1.86, 95% CI: 1.167–2.963), current drinking (OR: 1.795, 95% CI: 1.193–2.702), hypertension (OR: 1.48, 95% CI: 1.091–2.006), higher body mass index (1 unit increase) (OR: 1.116, 95% CI: 1.077–1.156) and higher serum creatinine (1 unit increase) (OR: 1.046, 95% CI: 1.034–1.059). Serum uric acid was positively related to triglycerides and total cholesterol and negatively related to high density lipoprotein cholesterol in all subjects. Hyperuricemia was a risk factor for high triglyceride ((OR: 2.13, 95% CI: 1.156–3.9266) and high total cholesterol (OR: 2.313, 95% CI: 1.364–3.923) in men and for high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (OR: 2.696, 95% CI: 1.386–5.245) in women.ConclusionThere is a high prevalence of hyperuricemia in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. The government needs to prevent and manage hyperuricemia in this area.

Inspired from falling leaves, ZnO nanorods-nanoslices hierarchical structure (NHS) was constructed to modify the surfaces of two widely used implant materials: titanium (Ti) and tantalum (Ta), respectively. By which means, two-stage release of antibacterial active substances were realized to address the clinical importance of long-term broad-spectrum antibacterial activity. At early stages (within 48 h), the NHS exhibited a rapid releasing to kill the bacteria around the implant immediately. At a second stage (over 2 weeks), the NHS exhibited a slow releasing to realize long-term inhibition. The excellent antibacterial activity of ZnO NHS was confirmed once again by animal test in vivo. According to the subsequent experiments, the ZnO NHS coating exhibited the great advantage of high efficiency, low toxicity, and long-term durability, which could be a feasible manner to prevent the abuse of antibiotics on implant-related surgery.

Abstract. The present study aimed to investigate the expression of micro (mi)RNA-21 in osteosarcoma cells, and its role in inhibiting the invasion and metastasis of osteosarcoma. Human osteosarcoma MG-63 cells and osteoblast hFOB1.19 cells were used to compare the expression of miRNA-21 using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. A miRNA-21 mimic or inhibitor were transfected into the MG-63 cells to upregulate and downregulate the expression of miRNA-21, respectively. The present study investigated the proliferation and invasion of transfected MG-63 cells using MTT and Transwell assays. Western blot analyses were used to investigate the regulation of important proteins in the phosphatase and tensin homolog/phosphoinositide 3-kinase/RAC-α serine/threonine-protein kinase (PTEN/PI3K/AKT) signaling pathway. Compared with hFOB1.19 cells, miRNA-21 expression was significantly upregulated in the MG-63 cells (P<0.01), which lead to increased proliferation. Downregulating miRNA-21 expression reduced the proliferation of MG-63 cells compared with hFOB1.19 cells. Invasion assays and western blot analyses revealed that the overexpression of miRNA-21 significantly enhanced the invasion ability of MG-63 cells and the expression of phosphorylated (p-)AKT, while downregulation of miRNA-21 expression reduced the protein level of AKT and p-AKT. In the MG-63 cells, miRNA-21 upregulation significantly inhibited the protein level of PTEN, resulting in significantly increased AKT and PI3K protein levels (P<0.01). In conclusion, the results of the present study indicate that the expression of miRNA-21, PI3K and AKT is increased in the osteosarcoma cell line MG-63, which results in reduced expression of PTEN and increased expression of proteins in the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, and thus increases the aggressiveness of osteosarcoma cells.

Three-dimensional (3-D) printing technology has rapidly developed in the last few decades. Meanwhile, the application of this technology has reached beyond the engineering field and expanded to almost all disciplines, including medicine. There has been much research on the medical applications of 3-D printing in neurosurgery, orthopedics, maxillofacial surgery, plastic surgery, tissue engineering, as well as other fields. Because of the complexity of the cardiovascular system, the application of this technology is limited and difficult, as compared to other disciplines, and thus there is much room for future development. Many of the difficulties associated with this technology must be overcome. Nonetheless, there is no doubt that 3-D printing technology will benefit patients with cardiovascular diseases in the near future.