Differential effects of cadmium administration on peripheral blood granulocytes in rats

Infiltration of circulatory inflammatory cells is a common histopathological finding in target organs following cadmium administration, but there is paucity of data concerning their activity. In this study, the effects of sublethal (1 mg/kg) cadmium on peripheral blood polymorphonuclear (PMN) cells were examined 48 h following administration in rats, when tissue (liver and lung) infiltration of these cells was observed. Cadmium administration resulted in systemic inflammatory cytokine and acute phase response with an increase in circulatory neutrophil numbers and cells that express CD11b molecules. Rise in basic aspects of oxidative activity including intracellular myeloperoxidase (MPO), reactive oxygen (nitroblue tetrazolium/NBT cytochemical assay) and nitrogen (Griess assay) species production was observed in PMNs from cadmium-administered rats. A decrease in levels of mRNA for IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6 was noted, but production of these cytokines was affected differentially. Described effects of cadmium on PMNs add further to the understanding of inflammatory potential of this environmental contaminant.     

Characterizing the performance of emergency medical transport time metrics in a residentially segregated community

ObjectiveTo derive and characterize the performance of various metrics of emergency transport time in assessing for sociodemographic disparities in the setting of residential segregation. Secondarily to characterize racial disparities in emergency transport time of suspected stroke patients in Austin, Texas.Data sourcesWe used a novel dataset of 2518 unique entries with detailed spatial and temporal information on all suspected stroke transports conducted by a public emergency medical service in Central Texas between 2010 and 2018.Study designWe conducted one-way ANOVA tests with post-hoc pairwise t-tests to assess how mean hospital transport times varied by patient race. We also developed a spatially-independent metric of emergency transport urgency, the ratio of expected duration of self-transport to a hospital and the measured transport time by an ambulance.Data collection/extractionWe calculated ambulance arrival and destination times using sequential temporospatial coordinates. We excluded any entries in which patient race was not recorded. We also excluded entries in which ambulances' routes did not pass within 100 m of either the patient's location or the documented hospital destination.Principal findingsWe found that mean transport time to a hospital was 2.5 min shorter for black patients compared to white patients. However, white patients' transport times to a hospital were found to be, on average, 4.1 min shorter than expected compared to 3.4 min shorter than expected for black patients. One-way ANOVA testing for the spatially-independent index of emergency transport urgency was not statistically significant, indicating that average transport time did not vary significantly across racial groups when accounting for variations in transport distance.ConclusionsUsing a novel transport urgency index, we demonstrate that these findings represent race-based variation in spatial distributions rather than racial bias in emergency medical transport. These results highlight the importance of closely examining spatial distributions when utilizing temporospatial data to investigate geographically-dependent research questions.     

江苏省脊髓灰质炎实验室细胞系敏感性实验方法的建立和监测

目的评价江苏省疾病预防控制中心脊髓灰质炎（脊灰）实验室所用细胞系对脊灰病毒的敏感性，制备江苏省脊灰实验室的标准毒株（QC）。方法采用96孔微量培养板滴定法。结果江苏省脊灰实验QC3次独立的细胞敏感性实验结果的滴度波动为±0．5 log 10CCID50，同时用中国疾病预防控制中心病毒病预防控制所国家脊灰实验室提供的已知滴度的Sabin参考株（China Sabin Test Reference Strain；CSTRS）做平行对照，CSTRS株3次滴度结果与其本身提供的参考值相比较，其滴度波动也均为±0．5细10CCID50。结论江苏省脊灰实验室QC结果符合实验要求，脊灰实验室所用细胞系对脊灰病毒的敏感性未下降。是敏感、有效的。     

呼出一氧化氮预测放射性肺炎价值的临床研究

目的 探讨一氧化氮呼出值（FeNO）预测放射性肺炎的价值。方法 收集2016年8月至2017年2月收治的131例胸部肿瘤患者，对放疗前、后的FeNO水平进行检测，并分析大气道（50 ml／s流速）、小气道（200 ml／s流速）和肺泡放疗前、后FeNO水平与放射性肺炎分级的关系。结果 131例患者放疗前平均大气道FeNO为19.86 ppb，小气道为9.49 ppb，肺泡为2.84 ppb；仅肺泡FeNO放疗后上升明显，差异有统计学意义（P=0.015）。全组患者放疗后出现1级放射性肺炎43例，2级70例，3级18例，无4级及以上者。放疗前、后大气道、小气道、肺泡FeNO水平与放射性肺炎分级无关。结论 肺泡FeNO在放疗后上升明显，但大、小气道放疗前、后FeNO水平不能预测放射性肺炎。     

Pilot study of salivary butyrylcholinesterase,phosphodiesterase, thiols and cerulopalsmin in auditory neuropathy

ObjectiveTo estimate butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), phosphodiesterase (PDE), thiols and cerulopalsmin by non – invasive means in saliva a of subjects (both cases and controls) and correlated to their hearing sensitivity.MethodsTotal of 13 subjects participated in this study. Among them 7 were having auditory neuropathy and 6 were healthy controls. Unstimulated saliva (10 ml) was collected from each participant. Ceruloplasmin, thiols, phosphodiesterase and pseudocholinesterase were estimated by colorimetric method in the salivary samples.ResultsSalivary BChE and PDE levels were marginally elevated and protein thiols were marginally decreased in cases as compared to that of controls. Salivary ceruloplasmin was significantly decreased (p = 0.022) in cases as compared to that of controls.ConclusionsSaliva can be used as a potential noninvasive tool for evaluation of disorders.     

Vicenin 2 isolated from Artemisia capillaris exhibited potent anti-glycation properties

Vicenin 2, isolated from a traditionally used medicinal plant Artemisia capillaris, is a 6,8-di-C-glucoside of apigenin which has been previously reported to possess a wide variety of pharmacological activities including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and hepatoprotective. However, there have not been any reports concerning its anti-diabetic potential until now. Therefore, in the present study, we evaluated the anti-diabetic potential of vicenin 2 via α-glucosidase, protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B), rat lens aldose reductase (RLAR), and advanced glycation end products (AGE) formation inhibitory assays. Vicenin 2 strongly inhibited α-glucosidase, PTP1B, and RLAR in the corresponding assays. In addition, vicenin 2 inhibited the formation of both fluorescent AGE and nonfluorescent AGE, e.g., CML, as well as the level of fructosamine in glucose–fructose-induced bovine serum albumin (BSA) glycation. In the test system, vicenin 2 suppressed glycation-induced protein oxidation by attenuating the formation of protein carbonyl groups as well as by inhibiting the modification of protein thiol groups. Moreover, vicenin 2 was found to be a potent inhibitor of glycation-induced formation of amyloid cross-β structures in BSA. Taken together, vicenin 2 might be a useful lead for the development of multiple target-oriented therapeutic modalities for the treatment of diabetes and diabetes-associated complications.