Influence of Prior Psychiatric Disorders on the Treatment Course of Gynaecological Cancer – A Nationwide Cohort Study

Aims

To examine the influence of pre-existing psychiatric disorder on the choice of treatment in patients with gynaecological cancer.

Hyodeoxycholic acid protects the neurovascular unit against oxygen-glucose deprivation and reoxygenation-induced injury in vitro

Calculus bovis is commonly used for the treatment of stroke in traditional Chinese medicine. Hyodeoxycholic acid(HDCA) is a bioactive compound extracted from calculus bovis. When combined with cholic acid, baicalin and jas-minoidin, HDCA prevents hypoxia-reoxygenation-induced brain injury by suppressing endoplasmic reticulum stress-mediated apoptotic signaling. However, the effects of HDCA in ischemic stroke injury have not yet been studied. Neurovascular unit(NVU) dysfunction occurs in ischemic stroke. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the effects of HDCA on the NVU under ischemic conditions in vitro. We co-cultured primary brain microvascular endothelial cells, neurons and astrocytes using a transwell chamber co-culture system. The NVU was pre-treated with 10.16 or 2.54 μg/mL HDCA for 24 hours before exposure to oxygen-glucose deprivation for 1 hour. The cell counting kit-8 assay was used to detect cell activity. Flow cytometry and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling were used to assess apoptosis. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to measure the expression levels of inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-1β, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α, and neurotrophic factors, including brain-derived neurotrophic factor and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor. Oxidative stress-related factors, such as superoxide dismutase, nitric oxide, malondialdehyde and γ-glutamyltransferase, were measured using kits. Pretreatment with HDCA significantly decreased blood-brain barrier permeability and neuronal apoptosis, significantly increased transendothelial electrical resistance and γ-glutamyltransferase activity, attenuated oxidative stress damage and the release of inflammatory cytokines, and increased brain-derived neurotrophic factor and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor expression. Our findings suggest that HDCA maintains NVU morphological integrity and function by modulating inflammation, oxidation stress, apoptosis, and the expression of neurotrophic factors. Therefore, HDCA may have therapeutic potential in the clinical management of ischemic stroke. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Experimental Animals of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine(approval No. BUCM-3-2016040201-2003) in April 2016.     

Association Between Diaphragmatic Paralysis and Ipsilateral Cervical Spondylosis on MRI

Lung - Diaphragmatic paralysis (DP) is an important cause of dyspnea with many underlying etiologies; however, frequently no cause is identified despite extensive investigation. We hypothesized...     

Mechanisms of repigmentation induced by photobiomodulation therapy in vitiligo

Photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy is based on the exposure of biological tissues to low‐level laser light (coherent light) or light‐emitting diodes (LEDs; noncoherent light), leading to the modulation of cellular functions, such as proliferation and migration, which result in tissue regeneration. PBM therapy has important clinical applications in regenerative medicine. Vitiligo is an acquired depigmentary disorder resulting from disappearance of functional melanocytes in the involved skin. Vitiligo repigmentation depends on available melanocytes derived from (a) melanocyte stem cells located in the bulge area of hair follicles and (b) the epidermis at the lesional borders, which contains a pool of functional melanocytes. Since follicular melanoblasts (MBs) are derived from the melanocyte stem cells residing at the bulge area of hair follicle, the process of vitiligo repigmentation presents a research model for studying the regenerative effect of PBM therapy. Previous reports have shown favourable response for treatment of vitiligo with a low‐energy helium‐neon (He‐Ne) laser. This review focuses on the molecular events that took place during the repigmentation process of vitiligo triggered by He‐Ne laser (632.8 nm, red light). Monochromatic radiation in the visible and infrared A (IRA) range sustains matrix metalloproteinase (MMP), improves mitochondrial function, and increases adenosine triphosphate (ATP) synthesis and O₂ consumption, which lead to cellular regenerative pathways. Cytochrome c oxidase in the mitochondria was reported to be the photoacceptor upon which He‐Ne laser exerts its effects. Mitochondrial retrograde signalling is responsible for the cellular events by red light. This review shows that He‐Ne laser initiated mitochondrial retrograde signalling via a Ca²⁺‐dependent cascade. The impact on cytochrome c oxidase within the mitochondria, an event that results in activation of CREB (cyclic‐AMP response element binding protein)‐related cascade, is responsible for the He‐Ne laser promoting functional development at different stages of MBs and boosting functional melanocytes. He‐Ne laser irradiation induced (a) melanocyte stem cell differentiation; (b) immature outer root sheath MB migration; (c) differentiated outer root sheath MB melanogenesis and migration; and (d) perilesional melanocyte migration and proliferation. These photobiomodulation effects result in perifollocular and marginal repigmentation in vitiligo.     

Chalcone hybrids and their antimalarial activity

Malaria, one of the most striking, re-emerging infectious diseases caused by the genus Plasmodium, places a huge burden on global healthcare systems. A major challenge in the control and eradication of malaria is the continuous emergence of increasingly widespread drug-resistant malaria, creating an urgent need to develop novel antimalarial agents. Chalcone derivatives are ubiquitous in nature and have become indispensable units in medicinal chemistry applications due to their diverse biological profiles. Many chalcone derivatives demonstrate potential in vitro and in vivo antimalarial activity, so chalcone could be a useful template for the development of novel antimalarial agents. This review covers the recent development of chalcone hybrids as antimalarial agents. The critical aspects of the design and structure–activity relationship of these compounds are also discussed.     

细胞因子白细胞介素-4对认知功能改善的研究进展

白细胞介素4(IL-4)是T辅助2(Th2)介导的免疫反应的基本免疫调节细胞因子,IL-4具有复杂的信号系统和多效的功能,但在脑组织中,诸多研究发现IL-4可在炎症中保护认知功能。该文总结了关于IL-4保护认知功能的证据及机制,以及在阿尔茨海默病、缺血性脑血管病以及手术后认知功能障碍中IL-4保护认知功能的途径及证据。