萨满医术:北方民族精神医学

治病是北方少数民族萨满的主要职能之一。在信仰萨满教的民族中萨满往往充当民间医生的角色。萨满医术是一种精神医术和心灵医术。萨满主要是治心因性的精神疾病,其主要治疗手段也是一种心理治疗。在萨满医术中包含着现代精神医学中使用的一些治疗方法和治愈机制。萨满的精神医术之本质在于通过各种方式使患者的心理得到平衡,与此同时让患者振作起来,对自己的病情持乐观的态度,确立战胜病魔的信心。萨满精神医术就是一种典型的宗教性心理——生理调控术。对萨满医术,应从心理人类学、医学人类学、宗教人类学等多种角度进行研究,这样才能够得出比较全面而相对正确的结论。     

安哥拉山羊及其杂种羊DNA指纹图谱分析

应用寡苷酸探针(CA/GATA/TCC)     

安哥拉山羊及其杂种羊父权认定的DNA指纹图分析

应用ＤＮＡ指纹技术对安哥拉山羊作亲子鉴定,结果发现子代个体的ＤＮＡ指纹图中,谱带均分别来自父亲和母亲,没有新带出现。父权概率为０．９８８９,表明（ＣＡ／ＧＡＴＡ／ＴＣＣ）５探针能有效地应用于安哥拉山羊及其杂种后代的遗传分析。     

The molecular evolution of acquired resistance to targeted EGFR blockade in colorectal cancers

Colorectal tumours that are wild type for KRAS are often sensitive to EGFR blockade, but almost always develop resistance within several months of initiating therapy. The mechanisms underlying this acquired resistance to anti-EGFR antibodies are largely unknown. This situation is in marked contrast to that of small-molecule targeted agents, such as inhibitors of ABL, EGFR, BRAF and MEK, in which mutations in the genes encoding the protein targets render the tumours resistant to the effects of the drugs. The simplest hypothesis to account for the development of resistance to EGFR blockade is that rare cells with KRAS mutations pre-exist at low levels in tumours with ostensibly wild-type KRAS genes. Although this hypothesis would seem readily testable, there is no evidence in pre-clinical models to support it, nor is there data from patients. To test this hypothesis, we determined whether mutant KRAS DNA could be detected in the circulation of 28 patients receiving monotherapy with panitumumab, a therapeutic anti-EGFR antibody. We found that 9 out of 24 (38%) patients whose tumours were initially KRAS wild type developed detectable mutations in KRAS in their sera, three of which developed multiple different KRAS mutations. The appearance of these mutations was very consistent, generally occurring between 5 and 6 months following treatment. Mathematical modelling indicated that the mutations were present in expanded subclones before the initiation of panitumumab treatment. These results suggest that the emergence of KRAS mutations is a mediator of acquired resistance to EGFR blockade and that these mutations can be detected in a non-invasive manner. They explain why solid tumours develop resistance to targeted therapies in a highly reproducible fashion.     

Evolution of phosphofructokinase--gene duplication and creation of new effector sites

Phosphofructokinases (PFK; EC 2.7.1.11) are tetrameric enzymes that have a key role in the regulation of glycolysis; as such, they are subject to allosteric activation and inhibition by various metabolites. Eukaryotic PFKs are about twice the size of prokaryotic enzymes and are regulated by a wider repertoire of effectors: for example, the subunit molecular weights of rabbit muscle (RM) PFK and Bacillus stearothermophilus (Bs) PFK are 82,000 and 36,000, respectively. Both enzymes are activated by ADP (or AMP), but RM-PFK is also activated by fructose bisphosphates (FBP) and inhibited by ATP and citrate. This, together with other evidence, has led to speculation that mammalian PFKs have evolved by duplication of a prokaryotic gene, although previous peptide analysis failed to reveal internal homology in RM-PFK. Here we demonstrate clear homology among the N- and C-halves of RM-PFK and Bs-PFK, thus establishing an evolutionary relationship by series gene duplication and divergence. Furthermore, detailed knowledge of the Bs-PFK structure provides the basis for inferences concerning the structural organization of RM-PFK and the evolution of new effector sites in the enzyme tetramer.     

Mast cells are essential intermediaries in regulatory T-cell tolerance

Contrary to the proinflammatory role of mast cells in allergic disorders, the results obtained in this study establish that mast cells are essential in CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T (T(Reg))-cell-dependent peripheral tolerance. Here we confirm that tolerant allografts, which are sustained owing to the immunosuppressive effects of T(Reg) cells, acquire a unique genetic signature dominated by the expression of mast-cell-gene products. We also show that mast cells are crucial for allograft tolerance, through the inability to induce tolerance in mast-cell-deficient mice. High levels of interleukin (IL)-9--a mast cell growth and activation factor--are produced by activated T(Reg) cells, and IL-9 production seems important in mast cell recruitment to, and activation in, tolerant tissue. Our data indicate that IL-9 represents the functional link through which activated T(Reg) cells recruit and activate mast cells to mediate regional immune suppression, because neutralization of IL-9 greatly accelerates allograft rejection in tolerant mice. Finally, immunohistochemical analysis clearly demonstrates the existence of this novel T(Reg)-IL-9-mast cell relationship within tolerant allografts.     

Climate change and the resurgence of malaria in the East African highlands

The public health and economic consequences of Plasmodium falciparum malaria are once again regarded as priorities for global development. There has been much speculation on whether anthropogenic climate change is exacerbating the malaria problem, especially in areas of high altitude where P. falciparum transmission is limited by low temperature. The International Panel on Climate Change has concluded that there is likely to be a net extension in the distribution of malaria and an increase in incidence within this range. We investigated long-term meteorological trends in four high-altitude sites in East Africa, where increases in malaria have been reported in the past two decades. Here we show that temperature, rainfall, vapour pressure and the number of months suitable for P. falciparum transmission have not changed significantly during the past century or during the period of reported malaria resurgence. A high degree of temporal and spatial variation in the climate of East Africa suggests further that claimed associations between local malaria resurgences and regional changes in climate are overly simplistic.     

A Kind of Systems Methodology——The SPIPRO Principle

This paper deals with the Self-Increasing-Difficulty system (SIDIS) separated from general systems, with emphasis on the relevant methodology based on the Spiral Combining Propulsion Principle (SPIPRO principle in short). The system feature and its causative factors are analysed, and the implications and mechanism of the SPIPRO principle are discussed. Finally, the application possibilities of this methodology are illustrated with some examples.     

Satellite imagery in the study and forecast of malaria

More than 30 years ago, human beings looked back from the Moon to see the magnificent spectacle of Earth-rise. The technology that put us into space has since been used to assess the damage we are doing to our natural environment and is now being harnessed to monitor and predict diseases through space and time. Satellite sensor data promise the development of early-warning systems for diseases such as malaria, which kills between 1 and 2 million people each year.