Association of Dietary Fish and n-3 Unsaturated Fatty Acid Consumption with Diabetic Nephropathy from a District Hospital in Northern Taiwan

Nephropathy caused by diabetes mellitus (DM) is the main cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). To understand the association of dietary intake with renal function indicators among patients with diabetic nephropathy (DN), this cross-sectional study was conducted at the dietetic consultation clinic of the Taoyuan Armed Forces General Hospital in Taiwan. In total, 317 participants were recruited for this study. Patients with diabetes who had a urinary albumin–creatinine ratio (UACR) of ≥30 mg/g were defined as having DN. The anthropometric characteristics, blood biochemistry, and renal function of the participants were assessed. Furthermore, a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire (SQFFQ) was administered to investigate the dietary intake of the participants in the DM and DN groups. The result showed that participants in the DN group were older, had longer diabetes duration and poorer glycemic control and renal function than those in the DM group. Logistic regression models revealed that intake of high-fat marine fishes had the lowest odds ratio (OR) for DN risk compared with other fishes (OR: 0.868; 95% CI: 0.781–0.965, p = 0.009). Shellfish, soybean products, and skim milk also provided better protective effects to decrease the risk of DN. A further analysis of polyunsaturated fatty acids revealed that Σn-3 PUFAs significantly reduced DN risk, while Σn-6 PUFAs did not, especially EPA (OR: 0.821; 95% CI: 0.688–0.979, p = 0.029) and DHA (OR: 0.903; 95% CI: 0.823–0.992, p = 0.033) regardless of whether the variables were adjusted, including diabetes duration, age, and HbA1c. Our findings suggest that a diet that incorporates high-fat fish, shellfish, soybean products, and a lower Σn-6/Σn-3 ratio can mitigate DN risk.     

高效毛细管电泳法同时测定尿液清蛋白和肌酐

目的建立同时测定尿液清蛋白和肌酐的高效毛细管电泳法。方法对缓冲系统、pH值、缓冲液的离子强度、检测波长、表面活性剂、电压及电流和进样方法等进行研究,建立同时测定清蛋白和肌酐的毛细管电泳法。结果选择20mmol/L、pH9.3硼砂-NaOH(含6mmol/LSDS)缓冲液作为毛细管区带电泳运行液,利用外标法定量,检测波长214nm,同时测定肌酐和清蛋白。非涂层毛细管有效长度47.5cm,内径75μm;电流79μA,压力进样1psi、4s,电泳时间为12min。肌酐和清蛋白的线性范围分别为4.32～8840μmol/L和1.95～1000mg/L,肌酐和清蛋白最低检出限分别为0.977μmol/L和0.285mg/L。本法的日内和日间变异系数均小于4.8%。肌酐和清蛋白的平均回收率分别为99.6%和102.4%。结论建立的方法线性范围宽,测定简单快速,可用于临床检测。     

Antiproliferative activity and standardization of Tecomella undulata bark extract on K562 cells

Ethnopharmacological relevance

The bark of Tecomella undulata is primarily used in the treatment of syphilis, painful swellings and cancer by traditional healers. Also, it is claimed to be useful in treating urinary discharges, enlargement of spleen, leucorrhoea, leukoderma, tumors, liver disorders, gonorrhea, gout and promotes wound healing in Indian traditional system of medicine.

Aim

To establish a scientific validation for the antitumor effects of Tecomella undulata bark and explore the mechanistic pathway in chronic myeloid leukemia cell line, K562. The study was further extended to standardize the extract using quercetin as biomarker.

Methods

Induction of apoptosis by chloroform extract of Tecomella undulata bark (CTUB) was determined by MTT, Annexin V and caspase activation assays. The cell cycle analysis was done by flow cytometer and nuclear staining by DAPI. The standardization of the extract was performed through reverse phase-HPLC method under PDA detection.

Result

Results clearly showed the induction of apoptosis by CTUB in K562 cells. The effect was found to be dose dependent, having IC₅₀ of 30 μg/ml with activation of FAS, FADD, caspase 8, caspase 3/7 and fragmentation of DNA. The bioactive CTUB was determined to possess 0.03% (w/w) of quercetin.

Conclusion

The investigation clearly demonstrated the potential antitumor effect of CTUB, thereby validating the traditional claim. Quercetin, known to have anticancer activity is being reported and quantified for the first time from the bark of Tecomella undulata.     

基于QSPR 研究绿原酸类化合物与血清白蛋白的结合

本文选取32个小分子化学成分和9个天然产物化学成分为训练集,利用Dragon软件计算分子描述符,应用WEKA软件中CfsSubsetEval评价方法和BestFirst-D1-N5搜索方法进一步筛选描述符,利用Linear Regression方法建立了分子结构与其血清蛋白结合常数值logK的定量结构-性质相关性模型(相关系数为0.9557)。应用该模型对10个绿原酸类化合物的logK进行预测,结果显示绿原酸的logK预测值为4.51,与文献报道的logK值在4~7范围内基本相符。研究结果为进一步探讨绿原酸与血清蛋白的结合情况提供指导,为研究药物与血清蛋白的结合提供思路。     

炙甘草汤含药血清对兔心肌细胞瞬间外向钾电流的影响

目的 用血清药理学的方法研究炙甘草汤含药血清对兔心肌细胞瞬间外向钾电流（ho）的影响。方法 进行单个心室肌细胞的分离和膜片钳全细胞记录,将心室肌细胞分为对照组、空白血清组及5％、10%、20％、40%含药血清组,分别以普通细胞外液及加入上述不同浓度血清的细胞外液进行灌流,检测不同浓度含药血清对I10的影响。结果 含药血清可抑制I10,5％、10%、20%、40%含药血清分别将I10峰值（PA／PF）从（16．1±1．4）降至（13．9±1．5）、（11．8±1．9）、（8．3±1．5）、（8．2±1．2）,洗脱后其作用可消除。结论 炙甘草汤含药血清可抑制l。,且呈浓度依赖性作用增强,可能是炙甘草汤抗心律失常作用的机理。     

96例肝硬化继发肾功能损害患者血清胱抑素C检测结果分析

目的:探讨血清胱抑素C检测在诊断肝硬化继发肾功能损害患者的临床意义。方法:回顾性分析2011年01月-2013年08月我院收治的96例肝硬化继发肾功能损害患者(观察组)CysC、Urea及Cr检测结果,并与我院同期50例健康体检者(对照组)检测结果作对比分析。结果:观察组血清Cvs C及Urea水平明显高于对照组,差异有统计学意义(P0.05),而血清Cr在两组之间差异无统计学意义(P0.05);观察组CysC、Urea及Cr阳性率比较,Cys C阳性率明显高于Urea及Cr阳性率(P0.O5)。结论:肝硬化患者早期肾损害时,CysC已有变化,检测Cys C可有效判断肝硬化患者早期肾功能损害情况。     

Association of folic acid receptor α in maternal serum with neural tube defects

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate whether serum folic receptor α levels are changed in women whose previous pregnancies were complicated with neural tube defects (NTDs).

Methods: This was a case–control study that included 41 women as the control group who had previously had at least one healthy pregnancy and 37 women as the study group who had a previous pregnancy complicated with NTDs. Blood samples were obtained from all of the participants six weeks after the termination of pregnancy or delivery of a baby. Serum folate receptor α concentrations were analyzed using a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit.

Results: The mean concentrations of serum folate receptor α were significantly lower in the NTD cases compared to those in the control group (p?=?0.02). There was no significant difference in mean serum folate titers between the NTD cases and the control group (p?=?0.07).

Conclusion: Low serum folic acid receptor α levels in the current study did not appear to be a regulatory marker of maternal folate homeostasis per se but rather a factor that contributed to the development of NTDs.     

Predictive value of postoperative serum prealbumin levels for early detection of anastomotic leak after esophagectomy: A retrospective study

The impact of serum prealbumin in patients with esophageal carcinoma after undergoing esophagectomy remains unclear, we speculated that serum prealbumin is associated with anastomotic leak (AL) after surgery, low serum prealbumin level may lead to AL. The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between serum prealbumin levels and AL after esophagectomy, to explore the value of serum prealbumin as an early predictor of AL after esophagectomy.Between January 2014 and December 2018, 255 patients were enrolled in this study, their basic characteristics and perioperative serum prealbumin levels were retrospectively analyzed. Statistical analysis by t test, nonparametric test and logistic regression were used to analyze data for patients with and without AL. Based on a receiver operator characteristic curve, a cut-off value for serum prealbumin levels as a predictor of AL was determined.Among the 255 patients, 18 patients were diagnosed with AL. The overall AL rate was 7.0% (18/255) including 12 cases of intrathoracic AL and 6 cases of cervical AL. By univariate analysis, we identified postoperative serum prealbumin level as a risk factor for AL (P < .001). Multivariate analysis also demonstrated postoperative serum prealbumin level (P = .028) to be an independent risk factor for AL. The best cut-off value of postoperative serum prealbumin level was 131 mg/L for predicting AL, with 83.3% sensitivity and 72.2% specificity.Postoperative serum prealbumin level was significantly associated with AL. it may help the early prediction of postoperative AL.     

甲苯二异氰酸盐对人支气管上皮细胞血管内皮生长因子表达的影响

目的 探讨甲苯二异氰酸盐(TDI)对正常人支气管上皮细胞(HBE)血管内皮生长因子(VEGF)表达的影响.方法 应用改良的Son氏等方法制备TDI-人血清白蛋白(TDI-HSA).四唑盐(MTT)比色法检测不同浓度的TDI-HSA和HSA对正常人支气管上皮细胞株HBE135-E6E7活力的影响;分别用浓度为10、20、30、40μg/ml的HSA和TDI-HSA处理HBE135-E6E7,以未加任何处理因素的HBE135-E6E7为对照组.用半定量RT-PCR同时扩增各组HBE135-E6E7VEGF和β-actin基因片段,从基因水平上比较各组VEGF的相对表达情况.结果 40μg/ml以下浓度的HSA和TDI-HSA不影响HBE135-E6E7活力;HBE135-E6E7组成性表达VEGF189和VEGF165;与10μg/ml HSA组以及对照组相比,10μg/ml TDI-HSA组HBE135-E6E7 VEGF189和VEGF165的表达增加,但无显著差异(P＞0.05),20、30、40μg/ml的TD1-HSA组与相应浓度的HSA组以及对照组相比,HBE135-E6E7 VEGF189和VEGF165的表达均显著增加(P＜0.05),且随着TDI-HSA浓度的增加,HBE135-E6E7 VEGF189和VEGF165的表达亦随之增加(P＜0.05).结论 TDI显著增加HBE VEGF表达,这可能是TDI诱发哮喘的发病机制之一.