1.Correlation between Th17/Treg ratio imbalance and impaired lung function in patients with COPD
Huaying WANG ; Yuesong WENG ; Huajuan YING ; Wanjun YU
Chinese Journal of Microbiology and Immunology 2014;(7):527-533
Objective To study the correlation between immune imbalance mediated by Th 17 and Treg cells and impaired lung function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ( COPD ) . Methods Ninety-five patients with moderate or severe COPD , thirty-five smokers with normal lung function and thirty-one healthy non-smokers from Yinzhou People′s Hospital from January 2009 to December 2012 were recruited in this study .The percentages of circulating Th 17 and Treg cells in peripheral blood samples were determined by flow cytometry .The concentrations of cytokines in serum samples and supernatants of in-duced sputum samples were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).The expression of ROR-γt and Foxp3 at mRNA level in peripheral blood mononuclear cells ( PBMC) were determined by quan-titative real-time PCR.The potential association between ratios of Th 17/Treg cells and lung function was evaluated.Results Compared with smokers and healthy subjects , patients with moderate or severe COPD showed high levels of Th17 cells, IL-17A, IL-6 and IL-23, and an up-regulated expression of ROR-γt at transcriptional level .However, the percentage of Treg cells , IL-10 level and the expression of Foxp 3 at mRNA level were down-regulated in patients with COPD .The levels of cytokines in supernatants of induced sputum samples varied in the same way as that of Th 17/Treg in peripheral blood samples .The ratio of Th17 to Treg cells was negatively correlated with the values of forced vital capacity ( FVC) , forced expiratory vol-ume in one second (FEV1), and FEV1/FVC.Conclusion Th17/Treg cells imbalance was closely associ-ated with the deterioration of pulmonary function in patients with moderate or severe COPD .Th17/Treg cells imbalance might be involved in the progression of COPD .
2.Utility of serum galactomannan in diagnosis and treatment of invasive fungal infection patients
Zhongming FU ; Wanjun YU ; Huaying WANG ; Yiping WANG ; Weidong PENG ; Huajuan YING ; Xiao GU
Chinese Journal of Primary Medicine and Pharmacy 2011;18(19):2613-2614
ObjectiveTo evaluate the value of serum galactomannan platelia aspergillus kit in the diagnosis and treatment of invasive fungal infection(IFI) patients. MethodsA total of 178 serum samples from 74 high risk patients were collected. ELISA assay was used to detect the level of GM antigen. Refer to domestic IFI diagnostic criteria, 16 patients include the proven cases and probable cases were defined as study group, while 29 patients of improbable cases defined as control group. Fourflod table was founded,by which the sensitivity,specificity,positive predictive value, negative predictive value of this GM test were calculated. Meanwhile, a total of 53 patients received antifungal therapy which divided into GM-positive group(21 patients with I≥0. 5) and GM-negative group(32 patients with I <0. 5). The therapeutic effect comparison of two groups was made according to curative effect criterion. ResultsAccording to the certainty level of IFI diagnosis, 1,9,10 and 4 patients were identified as GM positive in proven, probable,possible and improbable IFI groups respectively. The prevalence of GM in these 4 groups was 50% ,64% ,34% and 14% ,respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of galactomannan ELISA assay were 63% ,86% respectively. The positive and negative predictive values were 71% and 81% respectively. The diagnose accordance rate was 78%, the Younden index was 0. 49. The efficacy of fluconazole in GM-positive patients was significant lower than in GMnegative patients( x2 =4. 95 ,P <0. 05) ,while The efficacy of non-fluconazole drug was superior to that in GM-negative patients( x2 =4. 88,P < 0. 05). After antifungal therapy, the GM value of GM-positive patients decreased significantly( t =2. 13 ,P <0. 05). ConclusionThe galactomannan ELISA assay with high specificity, could be helpful in diagnosis and choicing effective anti-fungi drug in clinic.
3.Study on Optimization and Characterization of Dihydromyricetin Liposome
Na QI ; Fengxiang HUANG ; Ying LIAO ; Huajuan HE ; Shengjiu GU ; Guang LIU
World Science and Technology-Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2014;(6):1427-1433
This study was aimed to optimize dihydromyricetin liposome formulations by orthogonal design in order to study its characterization. Dihydromyricetin liposomes were prepared with thin-film ultrasonic dispersion technology. Formulations of dihydromyricetin liposomes were optimized with entrapment efficiency as the optimized index. The formulation and technology were evaluated by the single factor. Based on this, orthogonal design was made on the screening and optimization of dihydromyricetin liposome. Its morphology was observed by transmission electron micro-scope. Its in vitro drug-release behavior was studied by equilibrium dialysis. The preliminary stability was studied. The results showed that the optimized formulation and technology of dihydromyricetin liposome was when the molar ratio of lecithin and cholesterol was 1:1, the dosage of dihydromyricetin was 4.0 mg. The pH of PBS was 5.0, ultra-sonic time was 3 min. The encapsulation efficiency of dihydromyricetin liposome was 58.1%. Its morphology was small spherical or nearly spherical vesicle with observation in transmission electron microscope. It showed that the in vitro release of dihydromyricetin liposome arrived 76.29% in 48 h. The drug content was still 96.57% of dosage for 30 days at 4oC in the dark place. It was concluded that the optimized formulation and preparation technology of di-hydromyricetin liposome were simple, replicable and stable.