Cordocentesis is a simple, safe, and reliable procedure for prenatal diagnosis.

Objective: To analyze the etiologies of nonimmune hydrops fetalis (NIHF) for a southern section of China. Methods: 138 cases of NIHF presenting after 20 weeks’ gestation over a 10-year period were reviewed. Results: The causes of fetal hydrops were identified in 92.0%. Homozygous α-thalassemia dominated as the cause of NIHF (55.1%), followed by infection (15.2%) and structural abnormalities (10.9%). No obvious cause was identified in 11 cases (8.0%). Termination of pregnancy was performed in 131 cases. Conclusions: Homozygous α-thalassemia is the most common cause of NIHF in southern China. An effective prenatal thalassemia screening program should be established in this high prevalence region.

Alpha-thalassemia (thal) is one of the most common genetic diseases and is widely distributed in southern China. Fetuses with homozygous alpha(0)-thal, known as Hb Bart's (gamma(4)) disease, usually die during the last trimester of gestation, and the affected pregnancies are frequently associated with serious maternal morbidity and mortality. Prenatal diagnosis is needed for early detection of this disease in couples at-risk. This can be performed by invasive fetal sampling or by serial ultrasonography to detect affected fetuses followed by invasive testing. Of 122 at-risk families who received prenatal testing, 98 (80.3%) chose ultrasonography, and 24 (19.7%) chose direct invasive testing. In all, 28 affected pregnancies were detected and terminated. Ultrasonography is now playing a major role in prenatal control of Hb Bart's disease in our region, and limits the invasive procedures to the few patients identified to be at high risk.

The object of the investigation was to determine whether chronic fetal hypoxemia triggers a systemic fetal inflammatory response absent bacterial infection. Chronically hypoxemic (10.5% O(2)) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 400 microg/kg of maternal body weight) injected intrauterine (but extra-amniotic) treated pregnant guinea pigs were used with appropriate controls. The presence of bacteria in the amniotic cavity was sought using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) protein levels were measured in fetal sera and amniotic fluid (AF) by a commercially available, sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA; IL-6 and TNF-alpha messenger RNA (mRNA) were also quantified in multiple fetal organs using real-time PCR. Prokaryotic DNA was not amplified from any sample, confirming the animals were not infected. Chronic hypoxemia dramatically increased IL-6 and TNF-alpha proteins in fetal sera and mRNA in lung, heart, and brain. There were no significant changes in either cytokine observed in the AF, fetal membranes, or fetal liver. Intrauterine but extra amniotic LPS also increased IL-6 and TNF-alpha protein in fetal sera and mRNA in lung, heart, and brain, plus increased the levels of both cytokines (protein/mRNA) in AF, fetal membranes, and fetal liver. Thus, an elevation in fetal blood IL-6 is not a specific marker of infection-induced fetal inflammatory response syndrome (FIRS). And in contrast to the fetal blood, an elevation in AF IL-6 seems associated only with LPS-induced FIRS.

The Linglong-Jiaojia district is one of the most important regions containing gold deposits in China. These gold deposits can be divided into: a) the pyrite-gold-quartz vein type (Linglong type), which is controlled by brittle-ductile to ductile deformation structures, and b) the alteration-zone type (Jiaojia type), characterized by small veinlets, or the disseminated type recognized in brittle shear zones. Lode gold deposits in the Jiaojia area occur in NE brittle fracture zones, formed in a dominantly simple shear deformation regime, mainly in thrust attitude with a minor sinistral strike slip component. In the Linglong area, the lode gold deposits are located at the intersection of three types of structures: NNE and NE brittle-ductile fault zones and the ENE ductile reverse shear zone in the south of the area. The structural characteristics of these brittle shear zones are consistent with a tectonic NNW-SSE principal stress field orientation. Similar stresses explain the ENE Qixia fold axes, the Potouqing and several other ENE reverse ductile shear zones elsewhere in the region, the Tancheng-Lujiang fault zone and its subsidiaries in the vicinity of the Linglong-Jiaojia district, as well as the southern ENE suture zone north of Qingdao. Therefore these structural systems occurred as part of different major tectonic events under NNW-SSE compression principal stress fields in the area.Gold deposits are hosted in smaller-scale structures within the brittle fault zones and brittle-ductile shear zones. Although ore bodies and, on a smaller scale, quartz ore veins often seem to be randomly oriented, it is possible to explain their distribution and orientation in terms of the simple shear deformation process under which they were developed. The progressive simple shear failure is characterized by various fracture modes (tension and shear) that intervene in sequence. The tension and shear fractures are influenced by the stress level (depth of burial beneath the paleosurface) in their structural behavior, show variable dilatancy (void openings) and extend on all scales. By making use of these characteristics, a progressive failure analysis can be applied to predicting the shape and extent of ore bodies as well as the styles of mineralization at any given location.