Skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) eyeball oil exerts an anti-inflammatory effect by inhibiting NF-κB and MAPK activation in LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells and croton oil-treated mice

The effect of tuna eyeball oil (TEO) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation in macrophage cells was investigated. TEO had no cytotoxicity in cell viability as compared to the control in LPS induced RAW 264.7 cells. TEO reduced the levels of NO and pro-inflammatory cytokines by up to 50% in a dose-dependent manner. The expression of NF-κB and MAPKs as well as iNOS and COX-2 proteins was reduced by TEO, which suggests that its anti-inflammatory activity is related to the suppression of the NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways. The rate of formation of ear edema was reduced compared to that in the control at the highest dose tested. In an acute toxicity test, no mice were killed by TEO doses of up to 5000 mg/kg body weight during the two week observation period. These results suggested that TEO may have a significant effect on inflammatory factors and be a potential anti-inflammatory therapeutic.     

Osteoblast-specific overexpression of amphiregulin leads to transient increase in femoral cancellous bone mass in mice

The epidermal growth factor receptor ligand amphiregulin (AREG) has been implicated in bone physiology and in bone anabolism mediated by intermittent parathyroid hormone treatment. However, the functions of AREG in bone have been only incipiently evaluated in vivo. Here, we generated transgenic mice overexpressing AREG specifically in osteoblasts (Col1-Areg). pQCT analysis of the femoral metaphysis revealed increased trabecular bone mass at 4, 8, and 10 weeks of age in Col1-Areg mice compared to control littermates. However, the high bone mass phenotype was transient and disappeared in older animals. Micro-CT analysis of the secondary spongiosa confirmed increased trabecular bone volume and trabecular number in the distal femur of 4-week-old AREG-tg mice compared to control littermates. Furthermore, μ-CT analysis of the primary spongiosa revealed unaltered production of new bone trabeculae in distal femora of Col1-Areg mice. Histomorphometric analysis revealed a reduced number of osteoclasts in 4-week-old Col1-Areg mice, but not at later time points. Cancellous bone formation rate remained unchanged in Col1-Areg mice at all time points. In addition, bone mass and bone turnover in lumbar vertebral bodies were similar in Col1-Areg and control mice at all ages examined. Proliferation and differentiation of osteoblasts isolated from neonatal calvariae did not differ between Col1-Areg and control mice. Taken together, these data suggest that AREG overexpression in osteoblasts induces a transient high bone mass phenotype in the trabecular compartment of the appendicular skeleton by a growth-related, non-cell autonomous mechanism, leading to a positive bone balance with unchanged bone formation and lowered bone resorption.     

Evaluation of mutagenic,recombinogenic and carcinogenic potential of (+)-usnic acid in somatic cells of Drosophila melanogaster

The main of this study was to evaluate the mutagenic and carcinogenic potential of (+) – usnic acid (UA), using Somatic Mutation and Recombination Test (SMART) and the test for detecting epithelial tumor clones (wts) in Drosophila melanogaster. Larvae from 72 ± 4 h from Drosophila were fed with UA (5.0, 10.0 or 20.0 mM); urethane (10.0 mM) (positive control); and solvent (Milli-Q water, 1% Tween-80 and 3% ethanol) (negative control). ST cross produced increase in total mutant spots in the individuals treated with 5.0, 10.0 or 20.0 mM of UA. HB cross produced spot frequencies in the concentration of 5.0 mM that were higher than the frequency for the same concentration in the ST cross. In the highest concentrations the result was negative, which means that the difference observed can be attributed, in part, to the high levels of P450, suggesting that increasing the metabolic capacity maximized the toxic effect of these doses. In the evaluation of carcinogenesis using the wts test, the results obtained for the same concentrations of UA show a positive result for the presence of tumors when compared to the negative control. We conclude that UA has recombinogenic, mutagenic and carcinogenic effects on somatic cells in D. melanogaster.     

Psychographic characteristics,tobacco, and alcohol use in a sample of young adults on the U.S./México border

Few studies using psychographic segmentation have been conducted; even fewer in minority samples. Study aims were to identify psychographic clusters and their relation to tobacco and alcohol use within a predominantly Hispanic (87%) young adult (ages 18–25) sample. Participants (N = 754; 72.5% female; M_age = 20.7 [2.2]) completed the following measures online: sociodemographics, tobacco use history, the Daily Drinking Questionnaire (Collins, Parks, & Marlatt, 1985), a social activities scale, a psychographic survey, a music preference item, the Brief Sensation Seeking Scale (Hoyle, Stephenson, Palmgreen, Lorch, & Donohew, 2002), and the Mini-International Personality Item Pool (Donnellan, Oswald, Baird, & Lucas, 2006). Two step cluster analysis identified two groups. ‘Popular Extroverts’ (49.3% of sample) reported higher: extroversion scores F(1, 652) = 40.03, sensation seeking scores F(1, 652) = 20.38, alcohol use (greater number of drinks per week [F(1, 652) = 9.69]; and past month binge drinking [χ² (1) = 12.80]), and lifetime tobacco use (χ² [1] = 10.61) (all ps ≤ 0.002). ‘Mainstream/Conventionals’ (50.7% of sample) reported greater intentions to smoke in the next month F(1, 284) = 11.81, p = 0.001. ‘Popular Extroverts’ may benefit from prevention/cessation messaging promoting peer support and intensity-oriented activities. For ‘Mainstream/Conventionals,’ messaging communicating negative attitudes toward smoking and the tobacco industry may be effective. Future directions include testing targeted messages which may be incorporated into mass media tobacco and alcohol interventions for young adults on the U.S./México border.     

A组乙型链球菌脂磷壁酸的提取及其交叉反应性研究

目的 探讨A组乙型链球菌(iAS)脂磷壁酸(LTA)提取方法及其在风湿热发病过程中的意义。方法 用曲通114(TX—114)从GAS中提取LTA并用阴离子交换树脂二乙基氨基纤维素(DEAE—Sephace1)层析纯化；做LTA与人心瓣膜抗原吸附试验；分析LTA抗体的滴度与风湿性心脏病瓣膜病理结果的关系。结果 用TX—114提取并用阴离子交换树脂DEAE-Sephaccl层析纯化的LTA纯度较高，且保持了LTA的生物学活性；吸附抗体后的血清标本LTA抗体由阳性转为阴性，而末吸附抗体的血清标本LTA抗体仍为阳性，提示LTA与人心瓣膜之间存在交叉抗原性：血清LTA—IgG抗体阳性的4例患者中有3例病理切片发现心瓣膜或心肌间质有灶性炎症细胞浸润；血清LTA-IgG抗体阴性的6例病人均未见灶性炎症细胞浸润(Fiher精确概率=0．033)。结论 TX—114法是提取GAS的LTA的有效新方法；GAS的UFA与人心瓣膜之间存在交叉抗原性，LTA可能参与了风湿热的发病过程。