Plasmids encoding foot-and-mouth disease virus VP1 epitopes elicited immune responses in mice and swine and protected swine against viral infection

VP1 is a capsid protein of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) and contains epitopes of the virus. Plasmids encoding two VP1 epitopes (amino acid residues 141-160 and 200-213) and a host-self immunoglobulin molecule were constructed to produce a new type of FMD DNA vaccine. Two plasmids, namely, pCEIM and pCEIS, containing mouse immunoglobulin (IgG) or swine IgG were subjected to immunogenicity testing in mice and swine, respectively. In mice administrated pCEIM in the abdomen using a genegun, both FMDV-specific T-cell proliferation and neutralizing antibodies were detected. In swine immunized with pCEIS at the back of the ear, immune responses were achieved after the second administration. Swine showed a T-cell proliferative response with a stimulation index (SI) of up to 8.1 and a neutralizing antibody response that was able to protect suckling mice from 10(2) LD(50) (lethal dose 50) FMDV challenge. To compare the immunogenicity of the DNA-based vaccine candidate, versus the protein-based vaccine candidates, a second group of swine was immunized with the protein F1-scIgG, which was encoded by the plasmid pCEIS. Injection with F1-scIgG elicited a T-cell proliferative response of SI < 1.7 and a neutralizing antibody response that protected suckling mice from up to 10(5) LD(50) FMDV challenge. In the challenge test, three of three swine immunized with pCEIS were fully protected from FMDV challenge.     

IL-18在体外培养系统中诱导肿瘤快速杀伤效应及肿瘤特异性CTL

目的应用rhlL-18在体外培养系统(Coculture system in vitro，CCs)中诱导快速肿瘤杀伤效应及诱导肿瘤特异性细胞毒性T淋巴细胞(Cytotoxic T Lymphocyte，CTL)。方法 采用StemSep^TM免疫磁性细胞分离法分离人外周血NK细胞、T细胞及树突细胞(DCs)，流式细胞仪分析细胞表型，125I-UdR标记的细胞毒实验检测杀伤活性，ELISA方法检测IFN-7的产生量。结果 在CCs中，rhIL-18诱导出快速肿瘤杀伤效应，这种杀伤效应无抗原特异性、不受MHC限制，DCs和T细胞的存在与否对其无明显影响。在同一培养系统中，肿瘤抗原存在的条件下，96h后，rhIL-18能够诱导并促进CTL介导的肿瘤特异性杀伤效应。结论 rhIL-18能够在体外培养系统中相继诱导肿瘤快速杀伤效应及肿瘤特异性CTL。     

血糖感应型胰岛素给药智能载体的研究进展

胰岛素控制释放高分子载体系统一直是国内外科技工作者的研究热点 ,迄今已经研究报道了多种具有不同工作原理的血糖感应型胰岛素给药智能载体。本文基于国内外大量研究文献 ,综述了血糖感应型胰岛素控制释放智能化高分子载体的研究进展。     

Association of genetic polymorphism in plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 gene with endometrial hypoplasia in infertile women

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between the plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI-1) polymorphisms and endometrial hypoplasia in infertile women. METHODS: The study was conducted in 105 primary infertile patients with endometrial hypoplasia diagnosed by pathology and the thickness of endometrium by B-mode ultrasound and 85 controls who were not pregnant and had normal fertility. The -675 4G/5G polymorphism in the PAI-1 gene was detected by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymerphim analysis. RESULTS: The frequencies of 4G/4G genotype and 4G allele of the PAI-1 gene were higher in the patient group (48.6% and 66.2%) than in the normal controls (22.4% and 47.1%) (P < 0.01). ThePAI-1 4G/4G genotype was significantly associated with endometrial hypoplasia in the infertile patients (OR=4.9, 95% CI: 2.10-10.12). CONCLUSION: The present findings suggest that the 4G/5G polymorphism of the PAI-1 gene was associated with endometrial hypoplasia in infertile patients.     

Identification and isolation of a common tumor-associated molecule using monoclonal antibody

A monoclonal antibody, 16B-13, derived from the immunization of BALB/c mice with a lung tumor line, immunoprecipitates a common tumor-associated molecule with an apparent mol. wt of 37,000 from lactoperoxidase-ionated lung carcinoma, colon carcinoma, gastric carcinoma, brest carcinoma, melanoma and lymphona cells, but not from normal fibroblasts. Analysis by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of the cell surface-labeled 16B-13 antigen from a colorectal and a melanoma cell line reveals four components with similar mol. wts but with different isoelectric points. The antigen purified froma a colorectal carcinoma cell line by immunoaffinity chromatography was shown to be a 37,000 mol. wt polypeptide similar to that obtained by the lactoperoxidase-labeling procedure. However, the purified antigen from the melanoma cell line shows the presence of a 65,000 mol. wt polypeptide and the loss of the 37,000 mol. wt component as detected by Comassie blue staining and immunoprecipitation.     

Corticofugal amplification of facilitative auditory responses of subcortical combination-sensitive neurons in the mustached bat

Recent studies on the bat's auditory system indicate that the corticofugal system mediates a highly focused positive feedback to physiologically "matched" subcortical neurons, and widespread lateral inhibition to physiologically "unmatched" subcortical neurons, to adjust and improve information processing. These findings have solved the controversy in physiological data, accumulated since 1962, of corticofugal effects on subcortical auditory neurons: inhibitory, excitatory, or both (an inhibitory effect is much more frequent than an excitatory effect). In the mustached bat, Pteronotus parnellii parnellii, the inferior colliculus, medial geniculate body, and auditory cortex each have "FM-FM" neurons, which are "combination-sensitive" and are tuned to specific time delays (echo delays) of echo FM components from the FM components of an emitted biosonar pulse. FM-FM neurons are more complex in response properties than cortical neurons which primarily respond to single tones. In the present study, we found that inactivation of the entire FM-FM area in the cortex, including neurons both physiologically matched and unmatched with subcortical FM-FM neurons, on the average reduced the facilitative responses to paired FM sounds by 82% for thalamic FM-FM neurons and by 66% for collicular FM-FM neurons. The corticofugal influence on the facilitative responses of subcortical combination-sensitive neurons is much larger than that on the excitatory responses of subcortical neurons primarily responding to single tones. Therefore we propose the hypothesis that, in general, the processing of complex sounds by combination-sensitive neurons more heavily depends on the corticofugal system than that by single-tone sensitive neurons.     

of the carcinogenic mechanism for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons - extended bay region theory and its quantitative model

With the help of results on the metabolism and the carcinogenicactivities of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), the comprehensivemetabolic process in vivo is discussed. It is thought that thecarcinogenic activity exhibited by a PAH is determined by thecompetition between the carcinogenesis and detoxification inwhich it participates. It is suggested that the essential agentof carcinogenesis should be, as a rule, the highest delocalizationenergy (ß unit) of the carbonium ion at the aromaticangular ring (A region), which is obtained by the perturbationalmolecular orbit (PMO) method. Since there are no essential distinctionsin the molecular geometry and delocalization energy states betweentwo carbonium ions of the aromatic angular ring and of the bayregion, the A region can be looked upon as the extended bayregion. On the basis of discussion of the overall metabolism,evaluation of the detoxification efficacy of each kind of thecompeting carcinogenic factors, including the biological factorB and three structural factors of the PAH molecule: K, A andL, was made. After making necessary approximation, K=0.228,A=0.5, L=1.22 and B=0.7 are obtained. It can be seen from thesevalues that the L region plays the most important role in detoxificationprocesses, and the K region plays the least important role.The effect of biological factor B is approximately the sum ofthe K region and the A region. This paper suggests the conceptof a carcinogenic constant. For the PAHs with the same numberof aromatic rings (N), C is a constant. The curve of functionC=f(N), including the extensional line, is an isosceles triangle.The author suggests that it should be called the ‘PyramidRule’. The final form of the quantitative equation is. The values for 50 PAHs which had been tested by animal experiments were calculated. Of these, 92% of thePAHs are in agreement with experiments on carcinogenic activities.     

中医药对糖尿病足溃疡相关细胞因子调控作用的研究进展

糖尿病足溃疡是糖尿病严重的破坏性并发症,致残率及致死率逐年增高,严重威胁人类身心健康。中医药治疗糖尿病足溃疡,注重辨证论治与整体观念相结合,不仅能改善中医证候,更能在加速创面愈合的同时减少创面的复发,一定程度上延缓了糖尿病足溃疡的进一步恶化,降低其致残率及致死率。现代研究发现,糖尿病足溃疡难以愈合与各种细胞因子如炎症因子、生长因子、趋化因子等分布异常密切相关;随着现代医学对中医药研究的不断深入,中药单体及复方调控细胞因子治疗糖尿病足溃疡已成为研究热点,该文通过对目前国内外研究现状进行归纳,得出以下总结：(1)芝麻酚、栀子苷、当归补血汤、紫朱软膏等调节肿瘤坏死因子-α(TNF-α)、白细胞介素（IL）-1、IL-6、IL-10等炎症因子,抑制创面炎症。(2)白芷、丹酚酸B、四效散、壮药拔毒生肌膏等调节血管内皮生长因子（VEGF）、血小板衍生生长因子（PDGF）、转化生长因子（TGF）、表皮生长因子（EGF）等生长因子,促进创面胶原沉积及血管新生。(3)芍药苷、隐丹参酮、蜂毒、回阳生肌汤等调节CXC趋化因子配体（CXCL）1、CXCL2、CC趋化因子配体（CCL）2、CCL3、基质细胞衍生...     

Sex-Dependent Effects of 7,8-Dihydroxyflavone on Metabolic Health Are Associated with Alterations in the Host Gut Microbiome

7,8-Dihydroxyflavone (DHF) is a naturally occurring flavonoid that has been reported to protect against a variety of pathologies. Chronic administration of DHF prevents high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity in female, but not male, mice. However, the mechanisms underlying this sexual dimorphism have not been elucidated. We have discovered that oral DHF supplementation significantly attenuates fat mass, hepatic lipid accumulation, and adipose tissue inflammation in female mice. In contrast, male mice were not protected from adiposity, and had a paradoxical worsening of hepatic lipid accumulation and adipose tissue inflammation upon DHF supplementation. Consistent with these sexually dimorphic effects on body weight and metabolic health, 7,8-DHF induced early and stable remodeling of the female intestinal microbiome. DHF supplementation significantly increased gut microbial diversity, and suppressed potentially detrimental bacteria, particularly Desulfovibrionaceae, which are pro-inflammatory and positively associated with obesity and inflammation. Changes in the female gut microbiome preceded alterations in body weights, and in silico analyses indicated that these early microbial changes were highly predictive of subsequent weight gain in female mice. While some alterations in the intestinal microbiome were also observed in male DHF-supplemented mice, these changes were distinct from those in females and, importantly, were not predictive of subsequent body weight changes in male animals. The temporality of microbial changes preceding alterations in body weight in female mice suggests a role for the gut microbiome in mediating the sexually dimorphic effects of DHF on body weight. Given the significant clinical interest in this flavonoid across a wide range of pathologies, further elucidation of these sexually dimorphic effects will aid the development of effective clinical therapies.