TGR5 Attenuated Liver Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury by Activating the Keap1-Nrf2 Signaling Pathway in Mice

Inflammation - Hepatic ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) still remains an unavoidable problem in hepatectomy. The inflammatory response plays an important role in its pathogenesis. The plasma...     

Clinical implications of procalcitonin in Kawasaki disease: a useful candidate for differentiating from sepsis and evaluating IVIG responsiveness

Clinical and Experimental Medicine - Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute systemic vasculitis and suspected to be triggered by several potential infections in which procalcitonin (PCT) experiences an...     

Combined application of multiple autosomal and Y-chromosomal STR loci in solving a homicide case in 2009

International Journal of Legal Medicine - In 2009, a violent murder occurred. Two victims, a 47-year-old mother and her 21-year-old daughter, were murdered at home. After importing the 20 autosomal...     

Fabrication of Tapered Fluidic Microchannels Conducive to Angiogenic Sprouting within Gelatin Methacryloyl Hydrogels

IntroductionThe transplantation of stem cells/tissue constructs into root canal space is a promising strategy for regenerating lost pulp tissue. However, the root canal system, which is cone shaped with a taper from the larger coronal end to the smaller apical end, limits the vascular supply and, therefore, the regenerative capacity. The current study aimed to fabricate built-in microchannels with different tapers to explore various approaches to endothelialize these microchannels.MethodsThe fluidic microchannels with varying tapers (parallel, 0.04, and 0.06) were fabricated within gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) hydrogel (with or without stem cell from the apical papilla [SCAP] encapsulation) of different concentrations (5%, 7.5%, and 10% [w/v]). Green fluorescent protein–expressing human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs-GFP) were seeded alone or with SCAPs in coculture into these microchannels. Angiogenic sprouting was assessed by fluorescence and a confocal microscope and ImageJ software (National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD). Immunostaining was conducted to illustrate monolayer formation. Data were statistically analyzed by 1-way/2-way analysis of variance.ResultsHUVEC-only inoculation formed an endothelial monolayer inside the microchannel without angiogenic sprouting. HUVECs-GFP/SCAPs cocultured at a 1:1 ratio produced the longest sprouting compared with the other 3 ratios. The average length of the sprouting in the 0.04 taper microchannel was significantly longer compared with that in the parallel and 0.06 taper microchannels. Significant differences in HUVEC-GFP sprouting were observed in 5% GelMA hydrogel. Encapsulation of SCAPs within hydrogel further stimulated the sprouting of HUVECs.ConclusionsThe coculture of SCAPs and HUVECs-GFP at a ratio of 1:1 in 0.04 taper fluidic microchannels fabricated with 5% (w/v) GelMA hydrogel with SCAPs encapsulated was found to be the optimal condition to enhance angiogenesis inside tapered microchannels.     

Baicalein reduces lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammation via suppressing JAK/STATs activation and ROS production

Objective

To investigate the precise molecular mechanisms by which baicalein exerts beneficial biochemical activities in RAW264.7 macrophages treated with LPS.

Materials and methods

RAW264.7 cells were cultured in the absence or presence of baicalein together with or without LPS. iNOS and COX-2 expression were measured by western blot and RT-PCR analyses. TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 were determined by using double-antibody sandwich ELISA. Phosphorylations of JAK1 and JAK2, and of STAT1 and STAT3 were detected by western blotting. Nuclear translocation of STAT1 and STAT3 was visualized by confocal microscopy. ROS production was detected by ROS assay.

Results

Baicalein significantly reduced the phosphorylation of STAT1 and STAT3 and the phosphorylation of JAK1 and JAK2, but without affecting MAPKs phosphorylation in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Baicalein suppressed the nuclear translocation of STAT1 and STAT3 and inhibited production of iNOS upon LPS-stimulation, resulting in the inhibition of releases of NO and pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α, in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, we found that baicalein reduced the LPS-induced accumulation of ROS, confirming that baicalein serves as an antioxidant.

Conclusions

Our results suggested that suppressing JAK/STATs activation and interfering with ROS production might contribute to the anti-inflammatory action of baicalein in macrophages.     

Effect of photo-thermal acceleration on in-office bleaching

Odontology - The purpose is to evaluate the effect of photo-thermal acceleration on in-office bleaching efficiency using a bleaching agent without photocatalysts in vitro. Artificially discolored...     

Antitumor Effect of Embryonic Stem Cells in a Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Model: Antitumor Factors and Immune Responses

Research in recent years has revealed that embryonic stem cells (ESCs) could generate obvious antitumor effects in both vitro and vivo. In vitro, ESCs could secrete soluble factors that are capable of blocking cancer cells proliferation, moreover, embryonic microenvironments could effectively inhibit tumorigenesis and metastasis; while in vivo, administration of ESCs in tumor-bearing mice could generate significant antitumor effects by indirectly activating the antitumor immune system. In this study, non-small cell lung cancer cells (Lewis Lung Carcinoma cells, LLCs) and ESCs were co-injected together into mice, after that subcutaneous tumor growth was monitored, cellular and humoral immune responses were detected, and different control groups were set to compare the results in different conditions. Our results suggested that compared to be injected alone, ESCs co-injected with cancer cells could inhibit cancer cell growth more efficiently in vivo, with more CD8+ lymphocytes generated in both peripheral circulation and spleen, and with higher serum anticancer cytokine level (interleukin (IL)-2 and interferon (IFN)-γ). We conclude that the boosted antitumor effects induced by ESCs and cancer cells co-injection may be both the effects of antitumor factors secreted by ESCs and immune responses induced by ESCs in vivo.     

An effective biocompatible fluorescent probe for bisulfite detection in aqueous solution,living cells,and mice

Sulfur dioxide, an air pollutant, is easily hydrated to sulfites and bisulfites and extremely harmful to human health. On the other hand, endogenous sulfur dioxide is the fourth gasotransmitter. In view of the above, it is worth developing an effective method for the detection of these compounds. In this paper, a novel colorimetric fluorescent probe (Hcy-Mo), based on hemi-cyanine, for bisulfites is reported. Hcy-Mo shows excellent selectivity for bisulfites over various other species including cysteine, glutathione, CN⁻, and HS⁻, and undergoes 1,4-addition reactions at the C-4 atom of the ethylene group. The reaction can be completed in 30 s in a PBS buffer solution and displays high sensitivity (limit of detection is 80 nM) for bisulfites. Test paper experiments show that the probe can be used for bisulfite detection in aqueous solutions. In addition, Hcy-Mo exhibits excellent cell permeability and low cytotoxicity for the successful detection of bisulfites in living MDA-MB-231 cells and in living mice, implying that this probe would be of great benefit to biological researchers for investigating the detailed biological and pharmacological functions of bisulfites in biological systems.

Sulfur dioxide, an air pollutant, is easily hydrated to sulfites and bisulfites and extremely harmful to human health.     

Morphology,structural, thermal and rheological properties of wheat starch–palmitic acid complexes prepared during steam cooking

This work aimed to determine the changes in the morphology, complexation degree, the structural, thermal, and rheological properties of starch–fatty acid complexes during steam cooking. In this study, wheat starch with certain water and palmitic acid contents were steamed for 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, and 2.5 h. The complexing index (CI) first decreased and then progressively increased with the prolonging of steam cooking time. The decrease in CI was associated with the decomposition of the complex layer formed on the granule surface at 0.5 h of steam cooking. The interaction between wheat starch and palmitic acid led to the change of starch crystal type. Prolonging treatment time promoted thermal stability and structural order degree. The type I and IIa complexes reached saturation and fatty acids in the interstitial space between helices increased with excessive treatment times. Rheological behavior analysis showed that the viscoelasticity and deformation degree of samples decreased and increased, respectively, with increasing steam cooking time. Results showed that the thermostability and order degree of the complex layer were lower than those of samples with long treatment times and complexing was effective during steam cooking.

The present paper introduces the formation and characteristics of wheat starch–palmitic acid complexes during long-term steam cooking.     

Green and facile edge-oxidation of multi-layer graphene by sodium persulfate activated with ferrous ions

Effective edge oxidation of graphene with high structural integrity is highly desirable yet technically challenging for most practical applications. In this work, we have developed a green and facile strategy to obtain edge-oxidized graphene with good dispersion stability and high electrical conductivity by exploiting high edge reactivity of highly conductive multi-layer graphene and oxidizing radicals (SO₄⁻˙) generated from sodium persulfate (Na₂S₂O₈) with ferrous ion (Fe²⁺) activation. Owing to high structural integrity of pristine graphene and effective edge oxidation, the obtained edge-oxidized graphene exhibited excellent dispersion stability and satisfactory electrical conductivity (i.e. ≥240 S cm⁻¹). Moreover, the oxidation degree of pristine graphene can be well controlled by adjusting treatment time. The obtained edge-oxidized graphene is expected to find a variety of applications in many fields of anti-static films, energy storage materials, flexible sensors and high-performance nanocomposites.

A green and facile strategy is represented to obtain edge-oxidized graphene by exploiting sulfate radicals generated from Na₂S₂O₈ with Fe²⁺ activation.