黄芪多糖对2型糖尿病大鼠肝脏AMPK苏氨酸磷酸化的影响

目的:观察2型糖尿病(T2DM)大鼠肝脏组织中腺苷酸活化蛋白激酶(AMPK)磷酸化表达的变化,并探讨黄芪多糖(APS)对T2DM的治疗作用及可能机制。方法:雄性SPF级SD大鼠,随机分为4组:正常对照组(C组,n=8)和APS对照组(APS组,n=8),以普通饲料喂养;T2DM组和T2DM+APS治疗组(T2DM+APS组),以高脂饲料喂养。第8周末,行尾静脉一次性注射小剂量链脲佐菌素(STZ,25mg/kg),实验期间定期检测动物随机血糖(BG)、空腹血糖(FBG)、口服糖耐量(OGTT)、血胰岛素(FINS),计算胰岛素敏感指数(ISI)。于APS治疗第8周末,取各组动物的肝脏组织,以Western blotting检测AMPK磷酸化水平。结果:T2DM组出现高血糖、糖耐量降低,经APS治疗8周后,T2DM+APS组各项实验指标均有显著性改变,肝脏组织中磷酸化AMPK水平较T2DM组显著上升(P<0.01)。结论:APS可以显著改善T2DM大鼠胰岛素抵抗,其作用机制可能与APS增加磷酸化AMPK表达水平,进而改善其能量代谢途径有关。     

卡维地洛与压力负荷心衰大鼠心室重塑和Rho激酶表达的关系

目的研究卡维地洛(α1肾上腺素受体阻断剂、β肾上腺素受体非选择性阻断剂)对升主动脉缩窄压力超负荷心力衰竭大鼠心室重塑、RhoA、Rho激酶表达的影响,探讨卡维地洛改善心力衰竭的新机制。方法将升主动脉缩窄术后心力衰竭Wistar雌性大鼠随机分为2组,一组为心力衰竭组,给予生理盐水灌胃,每日2次(n=10);一组为卡维地洛组,12.5mg/Kg卡维地洛灌胃,每日2次(n=10),治疗12周。同时制备模型设置假手术组作为对照(n=10),不予处置。观察各组大鼠各项指标变化。结果与假手术组相比,心力衰竭大鼠心肌肥厚指数增加,HE染色心肌排列紊乱,血液动力学指标明显异常,心肌细胞RhoA、Rho激酶表达显著升高(P<0.05);药物治疗12w后,与心力衰竭组对比,卡维地洛治疗组心肌肥厚指数降低,HE染色示心肌重塑不明显,血液动力学参数改善,RhoA、Rho激酶表达显著降低。结论卡维地洛可通过对心肌细胞α-Gq-RhoA/Rho激酶通路表达干预,明显缓解心力衰竭症状、改善心室重塑,卡维地洛这种α1肾上腺素受体阻断剂可能对心力衰竭更有利。     

Daily intermittent hypoxia augments spinal BDNF levels, ERK phosphorylation and respiratory long-term facilitation

Acute intermittent hypoxia (AIH) elicits a form of respiratory plasticity known as long-term facilitation (LTF). We hypothesized that: 1) daily AIH (dAIH) preconditioning enhances phrenic and hypoglossal (XII) LTF in a rat strain with low constitutive LTF expression; 2) dAIH induces brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a critical protein for phrenic LTF (pLTF) in the cervical spinal cord; and 3) dAIH increases post-AIH extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) activation. Phrenic and XII motor output were monitored in anesthetized dAIH- or sham-treated Brown Norway rats with and without acute AIH. pLTF was observed in both sham (18 ± 9% baseline; 60 min post-hypoxia; p < 0.05; n = 18) and dAIH treated rats (37 ± 8%; p < 0.05; n = 14), but these values were not significantly different (p = 0.13). XII LTF was not observed in sham-treated rats (4 ± 5%), but was revealed in dAIH pretreated rats (48 ± 18%; p < 0.05). dAIH preconditioning increased basal ventral cervical BDNF protein levels (24 ± 8%; p < 0.05), but had no significant effect on ERK phosphorylation. AIH increased BDNF in sham (25 ± 8%; p < 0.05), but not dAIH-pretreated rats (− 7 ± 4%), and had complex effects on ERK phosphorylation (ERK2 increased in shams whereas ERK1 increased in dAIH-treated rats). Thus, dAIH elicits metaplasticity in LTF, revealing XII LTF in a rat strain with no constitutive XII LTF expression. Increased BDNF synthesis may no longer be necessary for phrenic LTF following dAIH preconditioning since BDNF concentration is already elevated.     

Calendar of events

We compared serum creatine kinase (CK) levels between spinobulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and reviewed available histochemical studies of frozen sections of muscle biopsies. CK levels and the frequency of patients with elevated CK levels were significantly higher in the SBMA group when compared with the ALS group. CK levels occasionally approached values up to 8 times the upper limit of normal in the SBMA group. In addition to the chronic neurogenic changes in the muscle biopsy, all SBMA patients showed one or more myopathic changes. Increased numbers of markedly hypertrophic fibers were consistently seen in all patients. It is not clear whether the elevated CK level is directly related to the increased number of hypertrophic fibers or to other myopathic features. Based on these findings, we recommend genetic testing for SBMA in cases of male patients with motor neuron disease who present with a significantly elevated serum creatine kinase level, even when other characteristic clinical features of SBMA are absent. Muscle Nerve 40: 126–129, 2009     

Advances in preclinical therapeutics development using small animal imaging and molecular analyses: the gastrointestinal stromal tumors model

The large use of target therapies in the treatment of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) highlighted the urgency to integrate new molecular imaging technologies, to develop new criteria for tumor response evaluation and to reach a more comprehensive definition of the molecular target. These aspects, which come from clinical experiences, are not considered enough in preclinical research studies which aim to evaluate the efficacy of new drugs or new combination of drugs with molecular target. We developed a xenograft animal model GIST882 using nude mice. We evaluated both the molecular and functional characterization of the tumor mass. The mutational analysis of KIT receptor of the GIST882 cell lines and tumor mass showed a mutation on exon 13 that was still present after in vivo cell growth. The glucose metabolism and cell proliferation was evaluated with a small animal PET using both FDG and FLT. The experimental development of new therapies for GIST treatment requires sophisticated animal models in order to represent the tumor molecular heterogeneity already demonstrated in the clinical setting and in order to evaluate the efficacy of the treatment also considering the inhibition of tumor metabolism, and not only considering the change in size of tumors. This approach of cancer research on GISTs is crucial and essential for innovative perspectives that could cross over to other types of cancer.     

Role of p21‐activated kinase in cell polarity and directional mesendoderm migration in the Xenopus gastrula

The p21 activated kinases (Paks) are prominently involved in the regulation of cell motility. Using a kinase‐dead mutant of xPak1, we show that during Xenopus gastrulation, the kinase activity of Pak1 is required upstream of Cdc42 for the establishment of cell polarity in the migrating mesendoderm. Overactivation of Pak1 function by the expression of constitutively active xPak1 compromises the maintenance of cell polarity, by indirectly inhibiting RhoA function. Inhibition of cell polarization does not affect the migration of single mesendoderm cells. However, Pak1 inhibition interferes with the guidance of mesendoderm migration by directional cues residing in the extracellular matrix of the blastocoel roof, and with mesendoderm translocation in the embryo. Developmental Dynamics 238:1709–1726, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Targeted deletion of Nm23/nucleoside diphosphate kinase A and B reveals their requirement for definitive erythropoiesis in the mouse embryo

The ubiquitously expressed nucleoside diphosphate kinases (Nm23/NDPK/Awd) are a large family of multifunctional enzymes implicated in nucleic acid metabolism and in normal and abnormal development. Here, we describe the generation and characterization of NDPK A‐ and B‐deficient (Nme1^?/?/Nme2^?/?) mice in which >95% of the enzyme activity is eliminated. These mice are undersized, die perinatally, and exhibit a spectrum of hematological phenotypes including severe anemia, impaired maturation of erythrocytes, and abnormal hematopoiesis in the liver and bone marrow. Flow cytometric analysis of developing Nme1^?/?/Nme2^?/? erythroid cells indicated that the major iron transport receptor molecule TfR1 is attenuated concomitant with a reduction of intracellular iron, suggesting that TfR1 is a downstream target of NDPKs and that reduced iron in Nme1^?/?/Nme2^?/? erythroblasts is inhibiting their development. We conclude that Nm23/NDPKs play critical roles in definitive erythroid development. Our novel mouse model also links erythropoiesis and nucleotide metabolism. Developmental Dynamics 238:775–787, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Modeling ATM mutant proteins from missense changes confirms retained kinase activity

Ataxia‐telangiectasia mutated (ATM) is the gene mutated in the cancer‐predisposing disorder ataxia‐telangiectasia (A‐T). We modeled ATM sequence variants identified in UK A‐T patients to determine the stability and kinase activity of the resulting proteins as well as the distribution of these mutations across the coding region. Of 20 missense changes modeled, 10 proteins showed ATM kinase activity and 10 showed none. In the majority of cases the mutant ATM protein was unstable, although this was variable. Reduction in ATM kinase activity can result either from the presence of low levels of unstable mutant protein with relatively normal specific kinase activity or from stable mutant protein with deficient ATM kinase activation. Indeed, ATM mutant proteins without kinase activity toward downstream targets were still able to autophosphorylate on serine 1981, although in a much less efficient manner, suggesting that this was not sufficient for ATM activation. In terms of function, green fluorescent protein (GFP)‐tagged kinase inactive ATM proteins could form ionizing radiation (IR)‐induced foci (IRIF), at least temporarily, which colocalized with the DNA double‐strand break (DSB) marker γH2AX. Consistent with this, both kinase active and inactive mutant ATM proteins were able to interfere with phosphorylation of targets by endogenous ATM. Since the majority of missense mutations occurred C‐terminal to aa1966, including all 10 mutations with absence of kinase activity, the implication was that mutations N‐terminal to this, with exceptions, are less likely to result in loss of kinase activity and therefore, are less likely to be identified in A‐T patients. Hum Mutat 30:1–9, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.