Locus assignment of two alpha-globin structural mutants from the Caribbean basin: alpha Fort de France (alpha 45 Arg) and alpha Spanish Town (alpha 27 Val)

Two alpha-globin structural mutants were mapped to their encoding loci by in vitro translation of hybrid-selected alpha 1- and alpha 2-globin mRNA. The more highly expressed mutant, alpha Spanish Town (alpha 27Val), is encoded at the alpha 2 locus and the less expressed mutant, alpha Fort de France (alpha 45Arg), is encoded at the alpha 1 locus. These results further define the distribution of alpha-globin structural mutations within the alpha-globin gene cluster and substantiate the dominant role of the alpha 2-globin locus in alpha- globin expression.     

茶多酚治疗慢性酒精性肝损伤的实验研究

目的 建立酒精性肝病大鼠模型,观察茶多酚对酒精性肝病大鼠血清氨基转移酶活性和肝脏病理变化的影响,探讨茶多酚对酒精性肝损伤的防治作用。 方法 SD大鼠分成3组:酒精组(酒精7g·kg-1·d-1灌胃)、茶多酚组(酒精7g·kg-1·d-1 茶多酚0.25g·kg-1·d-1灌胃)和对照组(等渗盐水灌胃)。各组分别于4周末、12周末和24周末处死大鼠留取肝脏标本,用于HE染色和Masson染色。 结果 酒精组大鼠血清氧基转移酶水平较对照组升高,茶多酚组大鼠与酒精组相比,其值有明显降低,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。HE染色显示酒精组大鼠肝细胞浆出现不同程度的脂肪变性,小叶各带可见不同程度的点、灶状或片状坏死,24周大鼠可见桥接坏死。Masson三色染色可见24周大鼠汇管区边缘有绿染胶原纤维包绕增生,肝窦中可见绿染胶原纤维分布。茶多酚组肝脂肪变和炎症程度轻于酒精组,未发现桥接坏死。 结论 茶多酚对酒精性肝损伤具有一定的保护作用。     

Effect of sumac extract on serum oxidative status,RANKL/OPG system and alveolar bone loss in experimental periodontitis in rats

Objectives

Sumac (Rhus coriaria L.) is widely used spice which has several properties such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial. The purpose of this animal study was to evaluate the effects of sumac extract on levels of receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappa B ligand (RANKL), osteoprotegerin (OPG) expression, serum oxidative status, and alveolar bone loss in experimental periodontitis.

Material and Methods

Twenty-four Wistar rats were separated into three groups: non-ligated (NL, n=8), ligature only (LO, n=8), and ligature and treated with sumac extract (S, n=8) (20 mg/kg per day for 11 days). A 4/0 silk suture was placed around the mandibular right first molars subgingivally; after 11 days, the rats were sacrificed, and alveolar bone loss was histometrically measured. The detection of RANKL and OPG were immunohistochemically performed. Levels of serum total antioxidant status (TAS)/total oxidant status (TOS), and oxidative stress index (OSI) were also analyzed.

Results

Alveolar bone loss was significantly greater in the LO group compared to the S and NL groups (p<0.05). The number of inflammatory cell infiltrate (ICI) and osteoclasts in the LO group was significantly higher than that of the NL and S groups (p<0.05). The number of osteoblasts in the LO and S groups was significantly higher than that of the NL group (p<0.05). There were significantly more RANKL-positive cells in the LO group than in the S and NL groups (p<0.05). OPG-positive cells were higher in S group than in LO and NL groups (p<0.05). TOS and OSI levels were significantly reduced in S group compared to LO group (P<0.05) and TAS levels were similar in S and NL group (p>0.05).

Conclusions

The present study showed that systemic administration of sumac extract may reduce alveolar bone loss by affecting RANKL/OPG balance, TOS and OSI levels in periodontal disease in rats.     

超声对甲状腺术后瘢痕组织的诊断应用

甲状腺术后瘢痕组织是甲状腺局部分切除术后由于手术方式及缝线填充而形成的组织,甲状腺术后瘢痕组织形成及其发生发展过程同一般的组织损伤修复病理过程一样,为渐进老化阶段的结缔组织,其内小血管稀少,胶原纤维增多[1]。由于甲状腺术后瘢痕组织其质地较硬,活动性差,超声声像图上表现缺乏典型特征,与癌灶极其相似,因此鉴别较困难。本文将介绍超声对于甲状腺术后的随诊应用,分析甲状腺术后瘢痕组织的超声检查特点并着重介绍超声动态观察甲状腺术后瘢痕组织的应用及其发展前景。     

Comparative efficacy of exenatide versus insulin glargine on glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients inadequately treated with metformin monotherapy

PurposeComparative efficacy of exenatide versus insulin glargine primarily on glucemic control, and secondarily on body mass index (BMI), lipid profile and blood pressure, in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients suboptimally treated with metformin monotherapy.Material/MethodsForty-seven inadequately treated T2DM patients on metformin assigned to exenatide (n=18) or insulin glargine (n=29) for 26 weeks. Glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), serum lipids, BMI, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and adverse events, including episodes of hypoglycemia and gastrointestinal symptoms, were recorded.ResultsEither treatment had a similar favorable mean reduction in HbA1c. However, more patients in exenatide group achieved HbA1c ≤ 7% at the 26th week compared with insulin glargine group (p=0.036). Insulin glargine group had significantly more episodes of hypoglycemia compared with exenatide group (p=0.039). Gastrointestinal adverse events were non-significantly higher in the exenatide group. A significantly greater BMI reduction was observed in exenatide group, whereas BMI was not altered in insulin glargine group. Total and LDL cholesterol (p=0.012), and triglycerides (p=0.016) significantly decreased, whereas HDL cholesterol increased (p=0.021) in the exenatide group, whereas only total cholesterol decreased in insulin glargine group. Changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure were insignificant in both groups.ConclusionsExenatide provided similar reduction in HbA1c, but fewer episodes of hypoglycemia, compared with insulin glargine. Exenatide had also a favorable effect on weight loss, although more gastrointestinal adverse events. Exenatide may provide a justified alternative in second line treatment of T2DM, but more trials are required to elucidate its long-term safety and cost-effectiveness.     

Neuropsychological outcomes in epilepsy surgery patients with unilateral hippocampal sclerosis and good preoperative memory function

We examined postoperative changes in the memory function of 68 people with unilateral hippocampal sclerosis (HS) who underwent epilepsy surgery and had no previous clinical memory impairments. One in four with right HS (RHS) and one in five with left HS (LHS) in our sample of 323 people with unilateral HS performed within normal limits on memory tests that are sensitive to hippocampal pathology in group studies. People with intact memory function prior to surgery were significantly younger and had higher IQs than those with memory impairments. The majority of those with intact memory functions prior to surgery had significant postoperative declines on the memory measures at the 1‐year follow‐up and no longer functioned within the average range. People with RHS and left LHS were equally at risk of a postoperative decline. Postoperative deterioration was not related to seizure outcome. A higher IQ appears to protect against postoperative memory decline in this group. This finding does not support the notion that intact memory function in people with unilateral HS represents a migration of memory function to the contralateral structures, and thus protection from surgical insult. People with good preoperative memory function in the context of unilateral HS should therefore be counseled regarding the likelihood of a significant postoperative decline in memory function following a temporal lobe resection.     

白花蛇舌草-半枝莲药对组分对结肠腺癌Lovo细胞生物学行为的影响

摘要:目的　探讨白花蛇舌草-半枝莲药对组分对结肠腺癌Lovo细胞增殖、侵袭、迁移和凋亡的影响及作用机制。方法　将白花蛇舌草、半枝莲按质量1∶1进行3次煎煮,获得水提物,后取适量浸膏用石油醚回流脱脂,再以乙酸乙酯进行多次萃取,获得白花蛇舌草-半枝莲药对组分,并计算得率。实验分为对照组（正常培养Lovo细胞）、白花蛇舌草-半枝莲药对组分低剂量组（10 mg/L）、中剂量组（30 mg/L）及高剂量组（50 mg/L）。通过噻唑蓝比色法（MTT）检测各组细胞培养24、48、72 h后的增殖抑制率。各组细胞培养48 h后,流式细胞仪检测细胞周期分布;Transwell实验检测细胞侵袭能力;划痕实验检测细胞迁移能力;TUNEL法检测细胞凋亡情况;Western blot法检测Grb2相关结合蛋白1（Gab1）、血管内皮生长因子受体2（VEGFR-2）、磷脂酰肌醇3-激酶（PI3K）、苏氨酸激酶（Akt）、基质金属蛋白酶-9（MMP-9）、B淋巴细胞瘤-2基因（Bcl-2）、Bcl-2相关X蛋白（Bax）蛋白表达情况。结果　化学萃取后的白花蛇舌草-半枝莲药对中主要含有对羟基苯乙酮、野黄芩苷、木犀草素和芹菜素4种化合物,组分得率为0.61%。与对照组相比,低、中、高剂量组细胞增殖抑制率升高,G1期肿瘤细胞比例增加,细胞凋亡指数增高,侵袭细胞数和划痕闭合率明显减小（均P＜0.05）,细胞中Gab1、VEGFR-2、PI3K、Akt、MMP-9、Bcl-2蛋白表达降低,Bax表达升高（均P＜0.05）,且存在剂量依赖性。结论　白花蛇舌草-半枝莲药对组分可抑制结肠腺癌Lovo细胞的增殖,降低其迁移和侵袭能力,诱导细胞凋亡,其机制可能与抑制Gab1/VEGFR-2/PI3K/Akt信号通路活化有关。