Protective effect of selaginellin on glutamate-induced cytotoxicity and apoptosis in differentiated PC12 cells

l-glutamate plays a key role in neuronal cell death associated with many neurodegenerative conditions such as cerebral ischemia, hypoxia, Alzheimer's, Huntington’s, and Parkinson’s diseases. Selaginellin, a component extracted from Saussurea pulvinata (Hook.et Grev.) Maximo, was assessed for its ability to protect rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells against oxidative toxicity induced by glutamate. The differentiated PC12 cells were pretreated with various concentrations (10⁻⁷, 3 × 10⁻⁷, or 10⁻⁶ M) of selaginellin for 1 h prior to exposure to l-glutamate. Selaginellin was shown to protect PC12 cells against glutamate toxicity, as determined by characteristic morphological features, lactate dehydrogenase release and cell viability, and apoptosis as evaluated by Hoechst 33342 staining assay and caspase-3 activity. In addition, the increase in levels of reactive oxygen species and decrease in klotho gene expression induced by glutamate were significantly reversed by selaginellin. Our study suggests that selaginellin has a neuroprotective effect against l-glutamate-induced neurotoxicity through mechanisms related to anti-oxidation and anti-apoptosis via scavenging reactive oxygen species and up-regulating the expression of klotho gene.     

Review of Chinese clinical trials on CIK cell treatment for malignancies

China is the country where the most clinical trials on CIK cells have been performed. We aimed to provide definite evidence for using CIK cell treatment and extrapolate a common applicative standard for malignancies. We chose the VIP database of Chinese scientific and technological journals to search the literature. We entered the keywords “CIK” or “xi bao yin zi you dao de sha shang xi bao” (the equivalent Chinese phrase for CIK cells, by Chinese characters) and searched for in vivo human trials. In 24 collected trials, 936 patients were treated with CIK cells, 525 men and 246 women. The cultivation time of CIK cells ranged from 7 to 28 days. In five studies, CIK cells were co-cultured with dendritic cells. The total number of CIK cells used ranged from 6×10⁶ to 1.5×10¹⁰. The total number of DC-CIK cells used ranged from 1×10⁹ to 1.3×10¹⁰. In all studies, those immune parameters and tumour markers examined increased, but not all increased significantly. Of the reported 563 patients, 40 had a complete response, 126 had a partial response, 125 had a minimal response, 135 had stable disease and 58 had progressive disease. The remaining 76 patients did not reach an objective response. The total response rate was 51.7% (291/563). The toxicities were slight. CIK cell treatment is a promising and safe modality for treating malignancies. We proposed a standard for cultivating CIK cells.     

PI-3K在非酒精性脂肪性肝病发病中作用的研究进展

随着生活水平的提高、饮食习惯的改变以及糖尿病和代谢综合征患病率的急速上升, 非酒精性脂肪性肝病的发病率不断的升高. 最近的研究表明此病与胰岛素介导的磷脂酰肌醇3-激酶(phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, PI-3K)传导通路有着密切的关系, 他在非酒精性脂肪性肝病发病机制中起着关键的作. 本文就PI-3K在非酒精性脂肪性肝病中的作用机制研究现状作一综述.     

Myopic shift of sulcus suture-fixated posterior chamber intraocular lenses

PurposeThe objective of this study is to evaluate the myopic shift in sulcus suture-fixated posterior chamber intraocular lenses (PC IOLs).MethodsIt was a retrospective study of patients diagnosed with lens subluxation or aphakia who received sulcus suture-fixated PC IOLs from 2004 to 2010. Preoperative visual acuity; axial length; predicted IOL power by the SRK-T, Hoffer-Q, and Holladay-1 formulas; predicted refraction; postoperative visual acuity; and postoperative refraction were recorded. Differences between postoperative refraction and predicted refraction for an in-the-bag lens were calculated for each patient.ResultsTwenty eyes from 16 patients with sulcus suture-fixated PC IOLs were included in the study. Another 18 eyes from 18 patients with in-the-bag fixation of IOL were assigned to the control group. In a study group, the difference between postoperative spherical equivalent and predicted refraction was ?1.66 ± 0.97 D. The simple linear regression suggests that the SRK-T formula provides a better calculation of IOL power than other formulas for sulcus suture fixation of PC IOL using our technique. A comparison of postoperative refraction shifts between the study and the control groups showed that the myopic shift was statistically significant in the study group (p < 0.001).ConclusionSulcus suture-fixation of a PC IOL induces, on average, a 1.66 D myopic shift, which is equivalent to an IOL power of around 2 D. In order to prevent a postoperative hyperopia refraction, we suggest that IOL power should be reduced to 1–1.5 D for performing sulcus fixation using our technique.     

大肠癌腹腔化疗现状和进展

腹腔复发和腹膜种植转移仍是影响大肠癌患者预后的主要因素,随着腹腔内化疗理论和技术的不断完善,腹腔化疗已成为进展期大肠癌不可或缺的辅助化疗方法.     

Lysophosphatidylcholine-induced elevation of asymmetric dimethylarginine level by the NADPH oxidase pathway in endothelial cells

Recent studies suggested that endothelium is a main source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the major source was via NADPH oxidase pathway. Various stimuli including lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC), a major component of oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL), can enhance the activity of NADPH oxidase and lead to a marked ROS generation. Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is an endogenous nitric oxide (NO) synthase (NOS) inhibitor, which is synthesized by protein arginine methyltransferase I (PRMT I) and degraded by dimethylarginine dimethylaminohydrolase (DDAH) in endothelial cells. Much evidence showed that ADMA was closely related to endothelial dysfunction. Our previous study showed that LPC elevated ADMA level in endothelial cells via increasing oxidative stress, but the precise cellular mechanism is not defined yet. The present study was to explore the mechanism of NADPH oxidase in LPC-induced elevation of ADMA. In LPC-treated endothelial cells, the ROS production, cell viability, ADMA and NO levels, the activity of DDAH and expression of PRMT I were detected. Treatment with LPC (10 microg/ml) for 24 h markedly increased intracellular ROS production, the expression of PRMT I, level of ADMA, decreased the concentration of NO and the activity of DDAH. These effects were attenuated by diphenyliodonium, the NADPH oxidase inhibitor. In summary, the present results suggested that LPC-induced elevation of ADMA was due to reduction of DDAH activity and the up-regulation of PRMT expression by stimulation of ROS production via NADPH oxidase pathway.     

Clinical characteristics and surgical outcomes of pediatric rhegmatogenous retinal detachment in Taiwan

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical features and surgical and visual outcomes of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) in the pediatric population. DESIGN: Retrospective, noncomparative, interventional case series. METHODS: A review of patients under 18 years who underwent primary retinal detachment surgery at National Taiwan University Hospital from 1989 to 2003 was conducted. RESULTS: Included in the study were 152 eyes of 146 patients (mean age of 13.1 years). Male patients comprised 69.9% of the sample. Bilateral RRD was present in 4.1%. Etiologies included myopia >4 diopters (37.5%), trauma (32.9%), developmental anomaly (11.8%), previous surgery (5.9%), previous uveitis (3.9%), atopic dermatitis (2.6%), and unknown (5.3%). Macular detachment was found in 73.0%. The most common primary treatment was scleral buckling (61.2%). Single-operation reattachment was accomplished in 58.5% of patients and eventual reattachment in 78.3% of patients occurring in a mean of 1.5 (SD = 0.9) operations. Average postoperative follow-up time was 48.3 months. Visual improvement occurred in 42.8%, remained the same in 32.2%, and worsened in 19.1%. In the logistic regression model, statistically significant risk factors for poor surgical outcome were nonmyopic RRD (P = .026), macular involvement (P = .01), and presence of proliferative vitreoretinopathy (P = .07). CONCLUSIONS: Myopia >4 diopters was the most common etiology in retinal detachment in our sample, followed by trauma. Myopia (> -4.0 diopters) may be more common than previously reported. Most eyes (78.3%) were anatomically reattached after multiple surgeries. Retinal detachment not associated with myopia is a newly identified predictor for poor surgical outcomes.     

Differences in bioavailability of fornixes in different head positions.

Clinically, in infectious corneal or scleral ulcers, we have found some upper lesions to show a poorer response to eye-drops than lower lesions. This clinical observation stimulated our interest to investigate the differences of drug bioavailability in upper and lower fornixes in three different head positions. Seventeen people, 34 eyes, were enrolled in this study. There were three head positions for 0.1% fluorescein eye-drops application, including sitting, supine, and supine-with-chin-up. Schirmer's test paper was placed in the fornix to absorb the fluorescein, and the bioavailability was analyzed by fluorescence spectrophotometry. Fluorescein bioavailability of upper-and-lower fornixes were 1.30 x 10(-5)% and 7.33 x 10(-5)%, 3.93 x 10(-5)% and 9.57 x 10(-5)%, and 23.19 x 10(-5)% and 5.09 x 10(-5)% in sitting, supine, and supine-with-chin-up positions, respectively. Bioavailability of the lower fornix was significantly higher than that of the upper in the sitting position, and the bioavailability of the upper fornix was significantly higher than for the lower fornix in the supine-with-chin-up position. The bioavailability of the upper fornix in the supine-with-chin-up position was significantly higher than that in the sitting and supine positions, respectively. The total fluorescein bioavailability of both fornixes in the supine-with-chin-up position was significantly higher than that in the sitting position. We postulate that different head positions can influence drug bioavailability in the upper and lower fornixes. Ocular surface lesions in different sites may require different head positions during eye-drop application to obtain the best therapeutic results.     

The depressor and vasodilator effects of rutaecarpine are mediated by calcitonin gene-related peptide

Previous studies have shown that rutaecarpine has depressor and vasodilator effects, and activates vanilloid receptors to evoke calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) release. In the present study, we examined whether the depressor and vasodilator effects of rutaecarpine are related to the stimulation of endogenous CGRP release via activation of vanilloid receptors in rats. Rutaecarpine (30, 100, or 300 microg/kg, i. v.) caused a depressor effect concomitantly with an increase in the plasma concentrations of CGRP in a dose-dependent manner, and the effects of rutaecarpine were abolished by pretreatment with capsaicin (50 mg/kg, s. c.) which depletes neurotransmitters in sensory nerves. In aortic and superior mesenteric arterial rings, rutaecarpine (10 (-7)-10(-5) M) or capsaicin (3 x 10(-9)-3 x 10(-6) M) caused a concentration-dependent vasodilator response, which was significantly attenuated by capsazepine (10(-5) M), a competitive vanilloid receptor antagonist, or by CGRP-(8-37) (10(-6) M), a selective CGRP receptor antagonist. After pretreatment with capsaicin (10(-5) M) for 20 min, vasodilator responses to rutaecarpine were also markedly attenuated. Similarly, pretreatment with rutaecarpine (10(-5) M) for 20 min also attenuated vasodilator responses to capsaicin. These results suggest that the depressor and vasodilator effects of rutaecarpine are related to stimulation of endogenous CGRP release via activation of vanilloid receptors in rats.     

86例胎儿淋巴水囊瘤超声表现及预后分析

目的:通过对比86例胎儿淋巴水囊瘤的超声表现及妊娠结局,进一步深入分析胎儿淋巴水囊瘤的产前诊断思路及预后判断。方法:对2002年1月~2005年12月在我院行产前超声检查发现的86例胎儿淋巴水囊瘤孕妇进行随访,记录产后新生儿复查情况或引产者的相关尸检结果。结果:86例孕妇中,淋巴水囊瘤自行消失的有6例,合并染色体异常的有9例,继续妊娠至产后新生儿行外科治疗的有12例。结论:胎儿淋巴水囊瘤在遗传性超声中具有重要意义,且不同类型的淋巴水囊瘤,超声表现不同,预后亦不同。