中药玉竹有效成分研究

自江苏海门产百合科植物玉竹[Polygonatum odoratum(Mill.)Druce]根茎的乙醇提取物中分得六个单体化合物,根据化学性质和光谱解析,鉴定其化学结构分别为β-谷甾醇(S-A)),β-谷甾醇-3-O-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖甙(S-B),25(R,S)螺甾-5-烯-3β-醇-3-O-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基-(1→2)-[β-D-吡喃木糖基-(1→3)]-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基(1→4)-β-吡喃半乳糖甙(POD-I),25(R)螺甾-5-烯-3β,14a-二醇-3-0-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基-(1→2)-[β-D-吡喃木糖基-(1→3)]-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基-(1→4)-β-D-吡喃半乳糖甙(POD-II),25(R,S)螺甾-5-烯-3β,14a-二醇-3-O-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基-(1→2)-[β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基-(1→3)]-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基(1→4)-β-D-吡喃半乳糖甙(POD-III)和25(R,S)螺甾-5-烯-3β-醇-3-O-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基-(1-2)-[β-D-吡喃葡萄糖基-(1→3)]-β-D-吡喃哺葡萄糖基(1→4)-β-D-吡喃半乳糖甙(POD-IV)。POD-II为首次分离得到的25(R)构型的纯品,POD-III和POD-IV为首次从玉竹中得到。经初步药理实验显示,POD-II有诱生集落刺激因子(CSF)的作用,POD-III能协同ConA和Lps对淋巴细胞转化有促进作用。     

A comparison between previous and present histologic assessments of chronic hepatitis C viral infections in humans

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A feasibility study developing an integrated testing strategy assessing skin irritation potential of chemicals

The regulatory assessment of chemical safety is still driven by hazard testing in animals. The Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and restriction of Chemicals (REACH) legislation and new technologies require a shift in the way in which safety assessments are conducted. Integrated testing strategies (ITSs) help in providing such a framework. Many of the ITS building blocks are already in use, but the concepts for their integration and application in a regulatory setting have yet to be fully implemented. This paper describes a feasibility study investigating how a combination of in silico, in vitro, and in vivo information could be applied in the assessment of skin irritation hazard. Therefore, a database of 100 existing and new chemicals was compiled. A number of strategies, both animal-free and inclusive of animal data were constructed and subsequently evaluated considering predictive capacities, severity of misclassifications and testing costs. Comparison of constructed ITS based on these assessment parameters identified best performing strategies for chemical classification. However, defining the in vivo test as the reference test limited the evaluation of the ITS inclusive of animal data. This study demonstrated that ITS can be constructed, evaluated and compared in a systematic fashion. To promote ITS, further guidance on construction and multi-parameter evaluation need to be developed.     

Chemical reactivity indices and mechanism-based read-across for non-animal based assessment of skin sensitisation potential

The skin sensitisation potential of chemicals is currently assessed using in vivo methods where the murine local lymph node assay (LLNA) is typically the method of first choice. Current regulatory initiatives are driving the impetus for the use of in vitro/in silico alternative approaches to provide the relevant information needed for the effective assessment of skin sensitisation, for both hazard characterisation and risk assessment purposes. A chemical must undergo a number of steps for it to induce skin sensitisation but the main determining step is formation of a stable covalent association with carrier protein. The ability of a chemical to react covalently with carrier protein nucleophiles relates to both its electrophilic reactivity and its hydrophobicity. This paper focuses on quantitative indices of electrophilic reactivity with nucleophiles, in a chemical mechanism-of-action context, and compares and contrasts the experimental approaches available to generate reactivity data that are suitable for mathematical modelling and making predictions of skin sensitisation potential, using new chemistry data correlated against existing in vivo bioassay data. As such, the paper goes on to describe an illustrative example of how quantitative kinetic measures of reactivity can be usefully and simply applied to perform mechanism-based read-across that enables hazard characterisation of skin sensitisation potential. An illustration of the types of quantitative mechanistic models that could be built using databases of kinetic measures of reactivity, hydrophobicity and existing in vivo bioassay data is also given.     

Molecular characterization of a novel form of (A gamma delta beta)zero thalassemia deletion in a Chinese family

We have identified and molecularly characterized a novel deletion in the beta-globin gene cluster that is associated with elevated fetal hemoglobin in the adult. The propositus is a homozygote from the Yunnan province of China. The deletion spans about 90 kb of DNA and removes the A gamma, delta, and beta-globin genes. The 5' breakpoint of the deletion is located about 0.13 kb upstream from the A gamma-globin gene, whereas the 3' breakpoint is located about 66 kb downstream from the beta-globin gene, about 13 kb upstream from the breakpoint of the Chinese (A gamma delta beta)zero-thalassemia. Heterozygotes for this Yunnanese form of (A gamma delta beta)zero-thalassemia express between 9% and 17% of fetal hemoglobin, whereas the homozygote present with a mild anemia (Hb = 10.7 g/dl). Comparison of the sites of 3' breakpoints of the Yunnanese and the Chinese (A gamma delta beta)zero-thalassemia mutants is compatible with the hypothesis that an enhancer element is located between the 3' breakpoints of these two mutants. Juxta-position to the G gamma gene of this element may be responsible for the efficient gamma-gene expression in the Yunnanese mutant.     

In vitro studies on cellular and molecular mechanisms of arsenic trioxide (As2O3) in the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia: As2O3 induces NB4 cell apoptosis with downregulation of Bcl-2 expression and modulation of PML-RAR alpha/PML proteins

It has been shown recently in China that arsenic trioxide (As2O3) is a very effective treatment for acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). APL patients resistant to all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and conventional chemotherapy can still respond to AS2O3. In this study, we addressed the possible cellular and molecular mechanisms of this treatment by using NB4 cells as a model. The results show that: (1) As2O3 triggers relatively specific NB4 cell apoptosis at micromolar concentration, as proved by morphology, histogramic related nuclear DNA contents, and DNA gel eletrophoresis. (2) As2O3 does not influence bax, bcl-x, c-myc, and p53 gene expression, but downregulates bcl-2 gene expression at both mRNA and protein levels. (3) As2O3 induces a significant modulation of the PML staining pattern in NB4 cells and HL-60 cells. The micropunctates characteristic of PML-RAR alpha in NB4 cells dissappear after treatment with As2O3, whereas a diffuse PML staining occurs in the perinuclear cytoplasmic region. In addition, a low percentage of untreated NB4 cells exhibits an accumulation of PML positive particles in a compartment of cytoplasm. The percentage of these cells can be significantly increased after As2O3 treatment. A similar PML staining pattern is observed in apoptotic cells. (4) ATRA pretreatment does not influence As2O3-induced apoptosis. These results suggest that induction of cell apoptosis can be one of the mechanisms of the therapeutic effect of As2O3. Moreover, this apoptosis induction occurs independently of the retinoid pathway and may be mediated, at least partly, through the modulation of bcl-2, as well as PML-RAR alpha and/ or PML proteins.     

FS04.3Hair dyes, prediction of sensitization potential with QSAR

Objectives:  To identify substances and tonnage data for use for hair dyes registered in Europe. To predict the sensitization potential of each substance and to rank the substances due to their sensitization potential. Further to group the substances in clusters based on their physical chemical properties with a cluster analysis.
Methods:  The Inventory list of Cosmetics Ingredients (INCI), new regulation on cosmetics, tonnage data for use and Toxnet were used to identify and quantify the hair dyes. Salts were disregarded. A QSAR (Qualitative structure‐activity relationship) model called TOPS‐MODE, based on local lymph node assay (LLNA) data and physical chemical properties were used to predict the sensitization potential and make a cluster analysis.
Results:  Out of 315 hair dye substances 229 meet the inclusion criteria. Most of the hair dye substances 75% were predicted to be strong to moderate sensitizers. Less were predicted to be weak 22% and only a small part 3% were predicted to be extremely weak or non sensitizing. The 8 most used hair dye substances were predicted to be strong to moderate sensitizers. Ppd is the most used hair dye allergy marker but some azodyes were predicted to be more potent than para‐phenylenediamine (ppd).
Conclusions:  Most hair dye substances are predicted to be strong to moderate sensitizers, which explain why some people gets hair dye dermatitis. A patch test series with potent, much used azodyes, might prove useful in diagnosing ppd‐negative patients, with hair dye allergy. The cluster analysis grouped the substances which can be helpful choosing substances for clinical patch test.     

苏皖地区汉族人群不稳定型心绞痛患者与血小板反应素4基因A387P多态性的关系

目的:观察血小板反应素4基因G29926C(A387P)多态性与中国苏皖地区汉族人群不稳定型心绞痛的可能关系。方法:选择2004-11/2006-05在南京医科大学第一附属医院和江苏大学附属武进医院住院不稳定型心绞痛患者110例,病例均符合2002年AHA/ACC关于不稳定型心绞痛诊断指南的诊断标准,同期选择337例非冠心病者为对照。酚-氯仿法提取白细胞DNA,应用聚合酶链反应-限制性片段长度多态性方法分析血小板反应素4A387P多态性,取部分PCR扩增产物进一步测序鉴定,比较两组间多态性频率分布差异,探讨血小板反应素4基因多态性与不稳定型心绞痛发病的可能关系。结果:447例均进入结果分析。GC基因型在不稳定型心绞痛组和对照组的分布无统计学差异(5.5%,7.1%,P=0.54),未检测到CC纯合子。C等位基因频率在不稳定型心绞痛组和对照组分别为2.7%,3.6%(P=0.55)。GC基因型与不稳定型心绞痛无显著性关联(OR=0.75,95%CI:0.30￣1.89,P=0.54)。结论:血小板反应素4基因387A→P不是中国苏皖地区汉族人群常见的多态位点,且与不稳定型心绞痛的发病无显著相关性。