ObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) on cardiomyocyte apoptosis following renal ischemia-reperfusion injury(RIRI) in rats.MethodsThirty-six male SD rats weighing 250-280 g were randomly divided into 3 groups ( n =12 each): group sham operation (group S) ; group I/R and group I/R + ALA ( group L).The model of RIRI was produced by occlusion of renal artery and vein for 45 min followed by 24 h reperfusion,in group S the renal pedicles were exposed but not occluded.In group L ALA infusion (30 mg/kg) was given via tail vein at 20 mln before ischemia and at 20 min before reperfusion,while in group I/R the equal volume of solution (35％ polyethylene glycol + 60％ physiological saline + 5％ ethanol) was infused instead of ALA.The animals were saerificed at the end of 24 h of reperfusion,blood samples were taken for detecting concentrations of serum creatinine (Cr) and malondialdehyde (MDA).Then the hearts were immediately removed for determination of SOD activity,MDA content,cardiomyocyte apoptosis (flow cytometry) and Bcl-2/Bax ratio (immunohistology).ResultsSerum Cr concentration,serum and myocardium MDA levels and cardiomyocyte apoptosis were significantly increased after RIRI in groups I/R and L as compared with group S ( P ＜ 0.05).ALA treatment significantly decreased serum Cr concentration,serum and myocardium MDA levels,cardiomyocyte apoptosis and increased SOD activity and Bcl-2/Bax ratio ( P ＜ 0.05).ConclusionALA can attenuate myocardium injury by inhibiting cardiomyocyte apoptosis following RIRI in rats.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of down-regulation of pannexin 2 (Panx-2) channels on cisplatin-induced apoptosis in I-10 cells. METHODS: The expression of Panx-2 protein in testicular cancer cells was detected with Western blotting. The testicular cancer cell line I-10 was transfected with two short hairpin RNA (shRNA1 and shRNA2) Lipofectamine, the empty vector (NC group) or Lipofectamine2000 (blank control group), and the changes in the expression of Panx-2 was detected with Western blotting. The effects of transfection with a Panx-2 inhibitor on surviving fraction of the cells treated with cisplatin (16 μmol/L) for 24 h, 48 h and 72 h was assessed with MTT assay, and the clonogenic capacity of the cells was evaluated with colony-forming assay. At 8 h after incubation with 16 μmol/L cisplatin, AnnexinV/PI double staining was used to detect the early apoptosis of the cells. After 24 h of treatment with 16 μmol/L cisplatin, the cells were examined for expressions of caspase-3, Bcl-2 and Bax using Western blotting. RESULTS: The expression of Panx-2 was significantly increased in cisplatin-resistant I-10/DDP ( < 0.001) cells and Tcam-2/DDP ( < 0.01) cells as compared with I-10 cells and Tcam-2 cells. Transfection of I-10 cells with shRNA1 and shRNA2 resulted in significantly decreased Panx-2 expression ( < 0.05) and significantly reduced cell surviving fraction ( < 0.001). In the presence of cisplatin, the cells in NC group showed a higher clonogenic efficiency than those in shRNA1 and shRNA2 groups ( < 0.001). The early-stage apoptosis rate of the cells in shRNA1 and shRNA2 groups were significantly higher than that in NC group ( < 0.01). Panx-2 knockdown in I-10 cells significantly increased caspase-3 and Bax expressions ( < 0.05) and significantly decreased the expression of Bcl-2 ( < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Down-regulation of Panx-2 channel enhances cisplatin-induced apoptosis in cultured testicular cancer cells.
Antineoplastic Agents ; Apoptosis ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Cisplatin ; Connexins ; Down-Regulation ; Drug Resistance, Neoplasm ; Humans ; Male ; Testicular Neoplasms

Objective:This study explored the association between antenatal calcium supplementation in the childbearing aged women and risk of small for gestational age infant (SGA) among singleton in Shaanxi province,China.Methods:Multi-stage random cluster sampling method was employed to collect information about pregnant women, who were pregnant and had definite outcomes, and their infants, from 30 districts (counties) in 2010 to 2013. Information was collected by face-to-face questionnaire survey. Generalized linear mixed models were employed after adjusting covariates. Dependent variable was whether single-birth neonate was SGA, and independent variable was calcium supplementation of childbearing aged women in different pregnant periods.Results:A total of 28 357 childbearing aged women was recruited in this study. The age of these women was (28.08±4.74) years old, of which, 79.28% were rural residents and 60.90% had calcium supplementation intake. There was a number of 12 810 female in singleton neonates. The neonatal birth weight and gestational age were (3.27±0.16) kg and (277.44±8.80) day, respectively. The prevalence of SGA was 11.35% in total, and 10.48% in mothers with maternal calcium supplementation and 12.70% in mothers without maternal calcium supplementation in whole antenatal period. There were statistically significant differences seen in antenatal calcium supplementation within the subgroups of maternal age (whether the mother was an advanced maternal woman), residential area, maternal occupation, maternal parity, maternal education level, and household incomes ( P<0.05). After adjusting these covariates, the risk of SGA among childbearing aged women with antenatal calcium supplementation showed 16% decreased risk ( OR=0.84, 95% CI: 0.77-0.92). Further analysis of the different antenatal periods showed that calcium supplementation during the second and third trimester had a statistically significant difference in reducing the risk of neonatal SGA ( P<0.05). Besides, subgroup analysis showed that there was a statistically significant difference between the perinatal calcium supplementation and the single-born neonates with SGA Significance ( P<0.05) in non-advanced women, those who had a low education level and moderate household economic status groups. Conclusion:The risk reduction of SGA among singleton neonates is related to calcium supplementation during antenatal period in Shaanxi province.

Co-delivery of chemotherapeutics and immunostimulant or chemoimmunotherapy is an emerging strategy in cancer therapy. The precise control of the targeting and release of agents is critical in this methodology. This article proposes the asynchronous release of the chemotherapeutic agents and immunostimulants to realize the synergistic effect between chemotherapy and immunotherapy. To obtain a proof-of-concept, a co-delivery system was prepared

An epidemiological investigation was carried out on a local cluster of outbreak caused by imported cases of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in rural areas of Chengdu in December 2020, to find out the source of infection and the chain of transmission. According to
COVID-19 ; Disease Outbreaks ; Epidemics ; Humans ; Quarantine ; SARS-CoV-2