胰高血糖素样肽1及其类似物的脑保护作用

胰高血糖样肽1是一种肠促胰岛素,它通过促进胰岛素的释放,抑制胰高血糖素分泌、胰岛β细胞增殖、延缓胃排空等多种途径发挥降糖作用。在临床上胰高血糖素样肽1及其类似物已用于2型糖尿病的治疗。近年来,研究发现胰高血糖样肽1受体不仅分布于胰腺中,在人和动物的脑中也有广泛分布,胰高血糖样肽1及其类似物具有脑保护作用,预示着他们有可能成为治疗中枢神经系统疾病的新型药物。     

医院装饰水性涂料新宠——0ALEK抗菌釉面漆

在医疗环境装饰装修工程中,医院建设者们在选择内墙装饰材料时经常会陷入两难境地：如果选用装饰板,抗污性强,耐久性好,但质地坚硬,造价较高;如果选用涂料,色彩丰富,质地柔软,价格适中,但抗污性和耐久性较差。     

血管紧张素Ⅱ1型受体自身抗体在急性冠状动脉综合征中的表达及意义

目的检测急性冠状动脉综合征（ACS）患者外周血中血管紧张素Ⅱ1型受体自身抗体（AT1-AAs）、单核细胞趋化蛋白-1（MCP-1）及高敏C反应蛋白（hs-CRP）表达情况,探讨AT1-AAs表达与ACS发病及斑块稳定性的关系。方法选择临床确诊ACS患者（AGS组）、稳定型心绞痛（SAP）患者（SAP组）和健康体检者（对照组）各60例,人工合成血管紧张素Ⅱ1型受体细胞外第二环功能表位肽段,采用酶联免疫吸附试验（ELISA）法检测患者外周血中AT1-AAs阳性表达情况,并检测MCP-1、hs-CRP水平。结果ACS组、SAP组及对照组AT1-AAs阳性表达率分别为45．0％（27／60）、21．7％（13／60）和5．0％（3／60）,ACS组、SAP组明显高于对照组,ACS组明显高于SAP组,差异有统计学意义（P〈0．01）。ACS组、SAP组MCP-1和hs-CRP明显高于对照组,ACS组明显高于SAP组,差异有统计学意义（P〈0．01）。ACS组及SAP组AT1-AAs阳性患者的MCP-1和hs-CRP均明显高于AT1-AAs阴性患者,差异有统计学意义（P〈0．01）。结论AT1-AAs可能参与ACS的发病过程,促进炎性因子表达可能是AT1-AAs导致ACS斑块不稳定的重要机制之一。     

New dianthramide and cinnamic ester glucosides from the roots of Aconitum carmichaelii

Four new compounds N-salicyl-3-hydroxyanthranilic acid methyl ester (1), N-(2′-dehydroxysalicyl)-3-hydroxyanthranilic acid methyl ester (2), methyl-4-β-D-allopyranosyl-ferulate (3), and methyl-4-β-D-gulopyranosyl-cinnamate (4), along with six known compounds (5–10), were isolated from the roots of Aconitum carmichelii Debx. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectral data analysis, including 1D, 2D-NMR, and HR-ESI-MS. Compounds 1 and 2 showed the inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) production with IC₅₀ values of 9.13 and 19.94 μM, respectively.     

Assay sensitivity in “Hybrid thorough QT/QTc (TQT)” study

A concurrent positive control should be included in a thorough QTc clinical trial to validate the study according to ICH E14 guidance. Some pharmaceutical companies have started to use “hybrid TQT” study to meet ICH E14 regulatory requirements since the release of ICH E14 Q&A (R3). The “hybrid TQT” study includes the same treatment arms (therapeutic and/or supratherapeutic dose of investigational drug, placebo, and positive control) with sample size less than traditional TQT studies, but use concentration-QTc (C-QTc) analysis as primary analysis and assay sensitivity analysis. To better understand the statistical characteristics of assay sensitivity with a commonly used positive control – Moxifloxacin - in “hybrid TQT” studies, we examined the original and subsampled moxifloxacin and placebo data from more than a hundred of TQT studies submitted to FDA. The assay sensitivity results are quite consistent between classical E14 analysis and C-QTc analysis using the original datasets. Performance of assay sensitivity in “hybrid TQT” studies using subsampled data depends on number of moxifloxacin subjects, study design (crossover design and parallel design), and C-QTc model. The results presented here can aid the design of future “hybrid TQT” studies.     

Aqueous leaching of lithium from simulated pyrometallurgical slag by sodium sulfate roasting

In the pyrometallurgical treatment for spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), lithium is generally present in slag with Al, Ca and Si and is hard to be further treated. In this study, lithium was recovered from a simulated pyrometallurgical slag (pyro-slag) via sodium roasting and water leaching. The thermodynamic process for the reactions between slag and additives such as NaCl, NaNO₃ and Na₂SO₄ were simulated during roasting by the HSC software, where Na₂SO₄ possessed stronger chemical reactivity. The optimal conditions for roasting were experimentally determined to be 800 °C for 60 min and an Na₂SO₄/Li molar ratio of 3 : 1, followed by water leaching at 70 °C for 80 min using a liquid-to-solid (L/S) mass ratio of 30 : 1. This yielded a maximum of 93.62% lithium recovery. The mechanism by which insoluble lithium in slag was transformed into soluble lithium by salt roasting was proposed using the analysis of XRD and EDS spectra, in which ion exchange occurred between Na⁺ and Li⁺ at a certain temperature.

An effective method for the recovery of lithium from the slag formed by treating spent lithium-ion batteries.     

Activation of Nrf2 signaling by sitagliptin and quercetin combination against β-amyloid induced Alzheimer's disease in rats

The objective of this study was to evaluate the neuroprotective effect of sitagliptin (Sita), quercetin (QCR) and its combination in β-amyloid (Aβ) induced Alzheimer's disease (AD). Male Sprague–Dawley rats, weighing between 220 and 280 g were used for experiment. Rats were divided into 5 groups (n = 10) and the groups were as follows: (a) Sham control; (b) Aβ injected; (c) Aβ injected + Sita 100; (d) Aβ injected + QCR 100; and (e) Aβ injected + Sita 100 + QCR 100. Cognitive performance was observed by the Morris water maze (MWM), biochemical markers, for example, MDA, SOD, CAT, GSH, Aβ1-42 level, Nrf2/HO-1 expression and histopathological study of rat brain were estimated. Pretreatment with Sita, QCR and their combination showed a significant increase in escape latency in particular MWM cognitive model. Further co-administration of sita and QCR significantly reduced Aβ1-42 level when compared with individual treatment. Biochemical markers, for example, increased SOD, CAT and GSH, decreased MDA were seen, and histopathological studies revealed the reversal of neuronal damage in the treatment group. Additionally, Nrf2/HO-1 pathway in rat's brain was significantly increased by Sita, QCR and their combination. Pretreatment with QCR potentiates the action of Sita in Aβ induced AD in rats. The improved cognitive memory could be because of the synergistic effect of the drugs by decreasing Aβ1-42 level, antioxidant activity and increased expression of Nrf2/HO-1 in rat brain.     

Phylogenetic and Phylogeographic Analyses of Porcine Circovirus Type 2 Among Pig Farms in Vietnam

This study demonstrated the prevalence of Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) among pig farms in Vietnam. Analyses of the genome, capsid protein and phylogeny classified all 30 Vietnamese PCV2 strains as the PCV2b genotype, belonging to the clusters of 1A, 1B, 1C and recombinant forms. Each viral genome was 1767 nucleotides long and shared 96.0–100% nucleotide sequence identity. The amino acid substitutions in the capsid protein of the Vietnamese PCV2 strains were in immunodominant regions, and the majority of strains (24/30) contained a lysine extension at the C‐terminus. Bayesian phylogeographic analysis revealed epidemic links of the PCV2 recombinant cluster within and among countries, which supports a circulating recombinant form of PCV2. Further analysis by the Jameson–Wolf antigenic index indicated antigenic alterations at important sites in the capsid protein (sites 131–133) among the recombinant cluster and the other clusters of PCV2b.     

Enhancement of vaccine efficacy by expression of a TLR5 ligand in the defined live attenuated Francisella tularensis subsp. novicida strain U112ΔiglB::fljB

Oral vaccination with the defined live attenuated Francisella novicida vaccine strain U112ΔiglB has been demonstrated to induce protective immunity against pulmonary challenge with the highly human virulent Francisella tularensis strain SCHU S4. However, this vaccination regimen requires a booster dose in mice and Exhibits 50% protective efficacy in the Fischer 344 rat model. To enhance the efficacy of this vaccine strain, we engineered U112ΔiglB to express the Salmonella typhimurium FljB flagellin D1 domain, a TLR5 agonist. The U112ΔiglB::fljB strain was highly attenuated for intracellular macrophage replication, and although the FljB protein was expressed within the cytosol, it exhibited TLR5 activation in a TLR5-expressing HEK cell line. Additionally, infection of splenocytes and lymphocytes with U112ΔiglB::fljB induced significantly greater TNF-α production than infection with U112ΔiglB. Oral vaccination with U112ΔiglB::fljB also induced significantly greater protection than U112ΔiglB against pulmonary SCHU S4 challenge in rats. The enhanced protection was accompanied by higher IgG2a production and serum-mediated reduction of Francisella infectivity. Thus, the U112ΔiglB::fljB strain may serve as a potential vaccine candidate against pneumonic tularemia.