Involvement of CDK4, pRB, and E2F1 in ginsenoside Rg_1 protecting rat cortical neurons from β-amyloid-induced apoptosis

AIM: To explore the possible mechanism of β-amyloid (Aβ)-induced apoptosis in rat cortical neurons and the protective effect of ginsenoside Rg_1. METHODS: AO-EB staining was used to quantify the apoptotic cells. DNA fragmentation was observed by gel electrophoresis. The levels of cyclin-dependent kinases-4 (CDK4) and phosphorylated pRB were detected by Western blot. RT-PCR was used to examine the expression of E2FI mRNA. RESULTS: Treatment with Aβ_(1-40) at the concentration of 20, 40, 80 mg/L for 48 h induced rat cortical neuron poptosis from 12.5％±1.5％(control) to 22.3％±1.4％, 38.8％±1.3％, 36.7％±1.4％, respectively. Pretreatment with Rg_1 at the dose of 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 μmol/L for 24 h, then treatment with Aβ_(1-40)40 mg/L for 24 h, the percentage of apoptotic neurons decreased from 38.8％±1.3％ to 14.5％±1.3％, 13.3％±1.0％, 11.6％±0.29％, 11.8％±1.0％, 6.2％±0.8％, 5.8％±0.8％, respectively. After treatment with Aβ_(1-40)40 mg/L for 24 h, there were transient increases in CD     

Anti-inflammatory effect of methoxyphenamine compound in rat model of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

AIM: To evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of methoxyphenamine compound (MC) on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in rats by measurement of proinflammatory cytokines, total and differential white cell counts (WCC) of bronchroalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). METHODS: Adult rat model of COPD (COPD group) was induced by intratracheal instillation of lipopolysaccharides and exposure to cigarette smoke. Treatment groups received different dosage of MC (3, 9, and 27 mg daily, MC group) or prednisone (0.25 mg daily, P group) respectively. Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 1beta (IL-113), interleukin-6 (IL-6), transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) of BALF were determined by ELISA. Total and differential WCC were performed after Giemsa staining. RESULTS: The levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, TGF-β, total and differential WCC in BALF of MC groups were significantly decreased than that of COPD group (P<0.01), and there was no significant difference among MC groups. There was no significa     

Chlamydia trachomatis infection in women with ectopic pregnancy

ＣｈｌａｍｙｄｉａｔｒａｃｈｏｍａｔｉｓｉｎｆｅｃｔｉｏｎｉｎｗｏｍｅｎｗｉｔｈｅｃｔｏｐｉｃｐｒｅｇｎａｎｃｙＴａｎｇＪｉａｌｉｎｇＨｕａｎｇＺｉｊｉａｎＨｕａｎｇＸｉａｏｊｕｎＤｅｐｔ．ｏｆＧｙｎａｅｃｏｌｏｇｙ，ＧｕａｎｇｚｈｏｕＭａｔｅｒｎａ...     

纵隔镜检查术在胸部疾病中的诊断价值(附127例临床分析)

共施行纵隔镜检查术１２７例，诊断符合率达８７％。纵隔镜检查术对某些累及纵隔淋巴结的疾病或紧邻纵隔的胸部疾病是一种有效的检查方法，尤其适合诊断不明之单纯纵隔淋巴结肿大者。对肺癌伴有纵隔淋巴结肿大或纵隔肿瘤者可选择应用     

Association of vitamin D receptor and estrogen receptor-αgene polymorphism with peak bone mass and bone size in Chinese women

AIM: To investigate if vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene Apa I polymorphism and estrogen receptor-α (ER-α) gene Pvu II, Xba I polymorphisms are related to bone mineral density (BMD), bone mineral content (BMC) and bone size in premenopausal Chinese women. METHODS: The VDR Apa I genotype and ER-α Pvu II, Xba I genotype were determined by PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) in 493 unrelated healthy women aged 20-40 years of Han nationality in Shanghai city.…     

Moclobemide up-regulates proliferation of hippocarnpal progenitor cells in chronically stressed mice

AIM: To explore the action mechanism of antidepressants. METHODS: The PC12 cell proliferation was detected by flow cytometry,. The proliferation of hippocampal progenitor cells and level of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) were measured by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: Treatment with N-methylaspartate (NMDA) 600μmol/L for 3 d significantly decreased the percentage of S-phase in PC12 cells, while in the presence of classical antidepressant, moclobemide (MOC) 2 and 10μmol/L, the percentage in S-phase increased. Furthermore, the proliferation of progenitor cells in hippocampal dentate gyrus (subgranular zone), as well as the level of BDNF in hippocampus significantly decreased in chronically stressed mice, while chronic administration with MOC 40 mg/kg (ip) up-regulated the progenitor cell proliferation and BDNF level in the same time course. CONLUSION: Up-regulation of the proliferation of hippocampal progenitor cells is one of the action mechanisms for MOC, which may be closely related to the e     

Increased risk of myocardial infarction with duration of protease inhibitor therapy in HIV-infected men

BACKGROUND: In the current context of dyslipidaema, hyperglycaema and lipodystrophia observed among HIV-seropositive subjects, it is important to study the risk of myocardial infarction (MI) in this population. The French Hospital Database on HIV, which includes a large number of seropositive subjects followed for substantial periods, offers the opportunity to analyse the impact of protease inhibitors (PI) on the risk of MI among men. METHODS: Cox model was used to study the risk factors of MI occurrence. Standardized morbidity ratios (SMR) in men exposed to PI were calculated with data from the French general male population (FGMP) of the same age as reference. RESULTS: Between 1996 and 1999, MI was diagnosed in 60 men among 88 029 person-years (PY), including 49 cases among men exposed to PI. In the Cox model, exposure to PI was associated with a higher risk of MI [relative hazard (RH), 2.56; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.03-6.34]. The expected incidence in the FGMP was 10.8/10,000 PY. The SMR relative to the FGMP was 0.8 (95% CI, 0.5-1.3) for men exposed to PI for < 18 months (G1), 1.5 (95% CI, 0.8-2.5) for men exposed for 18-29 months (G2) and 2.9 (95% CI, 1.5-5.0) for men exposed for >or= 30 months (G3). With G1 as reference, the SMR was 1.9 (95% CI, 1.0-3.1) for G2 and 3.6 (95% CI, 1.8-6.2) for G3. CONCLUSION: Our results point to a duration-related effect relationship between PI and MI, with a higher MI incidence rate among men exposed to PI for 18 months or more.     

Improved outcome for children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia: results of Total Therapy Study XIIIB at St Jude Children's Research Hospital

St Jude Total Therapy Study XIIIB for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) incorporated more stringent risk classification, early intensification of intrathecal chemotherapy, reinduction treatment, and the addition of dexamethasone to postremission therapy to increase the proportion of event-free survivors without jeopardizing their quality of life. Cranial irradiation was reserved for the 12% of patients who had T-cell ALL and a presenting leukocyte count of 100 x 10(9)/L or more, or CNS-3 (5 or more leukocytes/microL with identifiable blast cells in an atraumatic sample or the presence of cranial nerve palsy) status. Among the 247 consecutive patients enrolled in the study, 117 were classified as having lower-risk leukemia and received mainly antimetabolite-based continuation therapy; the 130 cases with higher-risk leukemia received more intensive continuation chemotherapy with multiple drug pairs administered in weekly rotation. The 5-year event-free survival estimate was 80.8% +/- 2.6% (SE); the 8-year rate was 78.6% +/- 5.8%. The 5-year cumulative risk of an isolated central nervous system (CNS) relapse was 1.7% +/- 0.8%, and that of isolated plus combined CNS relapse was 3.0% +/- 1.1%. The 5-year cumulative risks of etoposide-related myeloid malignancies were 1.8% +/- 1.3% in the lower-risk patients who received a cumulative dose of 1.2 g/m(2) and 5.0% +/- 2.0% in the higher-risk patients who received a cumulative dose of up to 14.4 g/m(2) (P = .18). Independent adverse prognostic features included the presence of MLL-AF4 or BCR-ABL fusion gene and minimal residual leukemia of 0.01% or more at the end of the 6-week remission induction phase. Our results suggest the efficacy of early intensification of intrathecal chemotherapy and provide the basis for studies omitting cranial irradiation altogether.     

Enteroaggregative Escherichia aoliisolated from Chinese diarrhea patients with high-pathogenicity island of Yersinia''''xs involved in synthesis of siderophore yersiniabactin

AIM: To investigate the distribution of 12 high-pathogenicity island(HPI) genes and the relation between HPI genes and expression of yersiniabactin(Ybt) in enteroaggregative E.coli(EAggEC) isolated from Chinese diarrhea patients. METHODS: The distribution of 12 HPI genes was investigated by PCR and DNA hybridization in two prototype strains of EAggEC, EAggEC 17-2, EAggEC 042, and 6 clinical EAggEC isolates from China. The production of siderophore Ybt in HPI-positive strains was detected by reporter gene bioassay to determine the relation between HPI genes and expression of Ybt. Flow cytometry was used to detect fluorescent signal of the reporter strain that could designate production of Ybt. RESULTS: Seven strains were HPI-positive and one strain was HPI-negative. Six of the seven HPI-positive strains were inserted into asnT-tRNA site. Moreover, seven EAggEC HPI-positive strains revealed enhanced fluorescence signal but the EAggEC HPI-negative strain did not. However, there was a difference in Ybt expression condition and level among these seven EAggEC HPI-positive strains. Although UFT073 strain, the prototype strain of uropathogenic E.coli(UPEC), carried the complete HPI core part, we did not detect the expression of Ybt in it. CONCLUSION: EAggEC HPI-positive strains can express the Ybt system, but the presence of HPI core part does not mean the functional expression of Ybt.