Objective: To investigate the effect of acupuncture or moxibustion at acupoint Geshu (BL 17) on raising leukocyte and promoting marrow proliferation. Methods: Wister rats were selected to establish the leukopenia and immuno-suppression model by intraperitoneal injection of cytoxan (CTX). After they were grouped and treated, leukocyte and marrow karyocyte were counted in different phases to evaluate the effect of acupuncture or moxibustion at acupoint Geshu (BL 17) on raising leukocyte and promoting marrow hematopoiesis. Results: Acupuncture or moxibustion at acupoint Geshu (BL 17) and routine western medicine could all significantly raise leukocyte and increase marrow karyocyte. The curative effect was better in moxibustion group than in acupuncture group and in routine western medicine group (P<0.05). Conclusion: Moxibustion at acupoint Geshu (BL 17) can markedly raise peripheral blood leukocyte and marrow karyocyte of the leucopenia model in rats.

A splicing mutation in VPS4B can cause dentin dysplasia type I (DD-I), a hereditary autosomal-dominant disorder characterized by rootless teeth, the etiology of which is genetically heterogeneous. In our study, dental follicle cells (DFCs) were isolated and cultured from a patient with DD-I and compared with those from an age-matched, healthy control. In a previous study, this DD-I patient was confirmed to have a loss-of-function splicing mutation in VPS4B (IVS7 + 46C > G). The results from this study showed that the isolated DFCs were vimentin-positive and CK14-negative, indicating that the isolated cells were derived from the mesenchyme. DFCs harboring the VPS4B mutation had a significantly higher proliferation rate from day 3 to day 8 than control DFCs, indicating that VPS4B is involved in cell proliferation. The cells were then replenished with osteogenic medium to investigate how the VPS4B mutation affected osteogenic differentiation. Induction of osteogenesis, detected by alizarin red and alkaline phosphatase staining in vitro, was decreased in the DFCs from the DD-I patient compared to the control DFCs. Furthermore, we also found that the VPS4B mutation in the DD-I patient downregulated the expression of osteoblast-related genes, such as ALP, BSP, OCN, RUNX2, and their encoded proteins. These outcomes confirmed that the DD-I-associated VPS4B mutation could decrease the capacity of DFCs to differentiate during the mineralization process and may also impair physiological root formation and bone remodeling. This might provide valuable insights and implications for exploring the pathological mechanisms underlying DD-I root development.
ATPases Associated with Diverse Cellular Activities ; genetics ; Case-Control Studies ; Cell Differentiation ; genetics ; Cells, Cultured ; Dental Sac ; cytology ; Dentin Dysplasia ; genetics ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Endosomal Sorting Complexes Required for Transport ; genetics ; Humans ; Mutation ; genetics ; Osteogenesis ; genetics ; RNA Splicing ; genetics