Aim To observe the effect of ramipril on ischemia-reperfusion induced apoptosis of cardiomyocytes and expression of apoptosis-related genes.Method Male Wistar rats were subjected to 30 min of myocardial ischemia and 120 min of reperfusion.Rats were randomized to receive vehicle or ramipril(1 mg?kg~(-1)) orally 24 h before surgery.Myocardial infarct size was measured using the staining agent 2,3,5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride(TTC).Cardiomyocyte apoptosis was assessed using terminal deoxyribonucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling(TUNEL) assay and confirmed with detection of DNA ladder formation.The expression of antiapoptotic gene(Bcl-2) and proapoptotic gene(Bax) was determined by immunohistochemistry.Results At the end of reperfusion,infarct size was reduced by ramipril.TUNEL assay and DNA-laddering study demonstrated that cardiomyocyte apoptosis was attenuated in ramipril-treated hearts,correlating with increased expression of Bcl-2 and ratio of Bcl-2/Bax.Conclusion Ramipril exerts cardioprotection by decreasing the ischemia-reperfusion induced necrosis and apoptosis of cardiomyocyte and increasing the expression of Bcl-2 and ratio of Bcl-2/Bax.

Aim To investigate the protection of ramipril,BQ-123 and their combination against myocardial ischemia/reperfusion(I/R)injury in vivo in anesthetized rats,and to explore the mechanism of action of drugs on myocardial oxidation-antioxidation system.Methods Healthy male Wistar rats were divided into 5 groups randomly,sham operated(Sham)group,I/R group,ramipril(RAM)group,BQ-123(BQ)group and ramipril and BQ-123(R&B)group.All groups but not sham were subjected to I/R procedure.Twenty four hours before ligation,ramipril(1 mg·kg~(-1))was intragastrically administered to rats in RAM and R&B groups.The equal volume of normal saline was given to rats in other groups.BQ-123(10 μg·kg~(-1)· min-1)was infused intravenously from 10 min before ligation to the end of 30 min ischemia to rats in BQ and R&B groups.The equal volume of normal saline was given to other groups.HR,MAP and the change of ST-segment were observed;ventricular arrhythmias were monitored during ischemia;the infarct size was examined by TTC staining;the activity of myocardial T-SOD,Mn-SOD,CAT and the content of MDA were detected by spectrophotometer.Results Compared with I/R group,the elevation of ST-segment was decreased,onset of VPC and VT was delayed,duration of VPC and VT was shortened,incidence of VPC,VT and VF was decreased,IS and IS/AAR were improved,activity of T-SOD,Mn-SOD and CAT was increased,the content of MDA was decreased in RAM,BQ and R&B groups.Compared with RAM and BQ alone group,onset of VPC and VT,duration of VPC and VT,size,activity of T-SOD and Mn-SOD and content of MDA were changed dramatically in R&B group.Conclusions Ramipril,BQ-123 and the combined use of these two agents protected myocardium from I/R injury in vivo.The protective effects of the combination on delaying onset of VA,shortening duration of VA,decreasing infarct size and content of MDA,and increasing activity of SOD are better than those of using ramipril or BQ-123 alone.

Objective To establish a flow-cytometric method to detect microvesicles (MVs) in rat peripheral blood, and to detect platelets-derived MVs (PMVs) and endothelial cell-derived MVs (EMVs) in blood from ischemic precondition-ing (IPC) treated rats. Methods Blood was withdrawn from rat abdominal aorta and anticoagulated with sodium citrate. Platelets-free plasma (PFP) was isolated through two centrifugations at room temperature. PFP was incubated with FITC-conjugated mouse anti-rat CD61 or PE-conjugated mouse anti-rat CD144. Standard beads in diameter of 1 and 2μm were used for calibration and absolute counting, respectively. Analysis was performed on flow cytometer. Results When 3.5%so-dium citrate was mixed with blood at volume ratio of 1∶4, clear supernatant was collected after centrifugation. Signals of parti-cles smaller than 1μm accounted for more than 99%of overall signals. PMVs and EMVs were CD61 positive and CD144 positive, respectively. Their diameters were both smaller than 1 μm. The concentration of PMVs and EMVs in peripheral blood from IPC treated rats was (4 053±1 987)/μL and (4 870±825)/μL, respectively. Conclusion The method for MVs de-tection by flow cytometry was successfully established and optimized, and verified through detecting PMVs and EMVs in pe-ripheral blood from IPC treated rats.

Objective To observe the efficacy and safety of intravitreal injection of ranibizumab in the treatment of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).Methods Data from 49 consecutive ROP patients (95 eyes) including type Ⅰ pre-threshold,threshold and aggressive posterior ROP who had received anti-VEGF treatment for the first time in our hospital from June 2014 to August 2015 were collected.60 eyes from the 95 eyes were confined as the zone Ⅰ disease group,while the remaining 35 eyes as zone Ⅱ disease group.The difference of birth weight,gestational age,corrected gestational age,treatment effects,recurrence and re-treatment time between two groups were compared.0.025 mL ranibizumab (10 mg · mL-1) was injected through 1.5 mm puncture after corneal limbus by using 30G 1 mL injection syringe.At the end of the injection,tobramycin and dexamethasone ophthalmic ointment eye bag was used.After the injection of 3 days,the portable slit lamp and tonometer were used to observe the intraocular pressure,intraocular hemorrhage and endophthalmitis.The indirect ophthalmoscope was used to observe the retinal vascular tortuosity and ridge regression of lesion expansion at 1 week after treatment.At the same time,the systemic adverse reactions related to treatment were observed.Results After receiving ranibizumab treatment for the first time,93 eyes (95.9％) exhibited ROP regression after single injection,including 58 eyes in zone Ⅰ disease group,35 eyes in zone Ⅱ disease group.There was no statistical difference between two groups (P ＞ 0.05).22 eyes required additional anti-VEGF injection or laser treatment for ROP recurrence,including 17 eyes in zone Ⅰ disease group,5 eyes in zone Ⅱ disease group.There was statistical difference between two groups (P ＜0.05).The time from recurrence to re-treatment was (6.50 ±2.54) weeks,which in zone Ⅰ disease group was (6.44 ± 2.74) weeks and in zone Ⅱ disease group was (6.67 ± 2.31)weeks,there was no statistical difference between two groups (P ＞ 0.05).No local or systemic adverse events associated with the treatment or drug was observed within the following period.Conclusion Intravitreal injection of ranibizumab is an effective and well tolerated method for zone Ⅰ and zone Ⅱ ROP,but the recurrence rate is high.There Is no local or systemic adverse events associated with the treatment or drug.

Objective:To discuss the protective effect of carnosine(CAR)against oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation(OGD/R)-induced astrocyte(AS)injury,and to clarify its possible mechanism.Methods:The AS were divided into control group,model group(OGD/R group),OGD/R+CAR group(CAR group),and OGD/R+CAR+AMP-activated protein kinase(AMPK)activator AICAR group(CAR+AICAR group).MTT assay and green cyanine staining method were used to detect the survival rates and green cyanine staining positive rates of the AS in various groups;Annexin V-FITC/PI method and flow cytometry were used to detect the apoptotic rates of the AS in various groups;Western blotting method was used to detect the expression levels of AMPK,phosphorylated AMPK(p-AMPK),mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR),phosphorylated mTOR(p-mTOR),microtubule-associated protein light chain 3B(LC3B),Beclin-1,and P62 proteins in the AS in various groups;immunofluorescence staining was used to observe the LC3B positive fluorescence intensities in the AS in various groups.Results:Compared with control group,the survival rate and green cyanine staining positive rate of the AS in OGD/R group were decreased(P＜0.01),the apoptotic rate of the AS was increased(P＜0.01),the ratios of p-AMPK/AMPK and LC3B Ⅱ/LC3B Ⅰ and the expression level of Beclin-1 protein were increased(P＜0.01),and the ratio of p-mTOR/mTOR and the expression level of P62 protein were decreased(P＜0.01).Compared with OGD/R group,the survival rate and green cyanine staining positive rate of the AS in CAR group were increased(P＜0.01),the apoptotic rate of the AS was decreased(P＜0.01),the ratios of p-AMPK/AMPK and LC3B Ⅱ/LC3B Ⅰ and the expression level of Beclin-1 protein were decreased(P＜0.01),and the ratio of p-mTOR/mTOR and the expression level of P62 protein were increased(P＜0.01).Compared with CAR group,the survival rate and green cyanine staining positive rate of the AS in CAR+AICAR group were decreased(P＜0.01),the apoptotic rate of the AS was increased(P＜0.01),the ratios of p-AMPK/AMPK and LC3B Ⅱ/LC3B Ⅰ and the expression level of Beclin-1 protein were increased(P＜0.01),and the ratio of p-mTOR/mTOR and the expression level of P62 protein were decreased(P＜0.01).The LC3B immunofluorescence staining results were consistent with the Western blotting results.Conclusion:CAR has the protective effect on injury of the AS induced by OGD/R,and its molecular mechanism may be related to the inhibition of the AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway,thereby inhibiting autophagy.

Currently, there is still no effective curative treatment for the development of late-stage liver fibrosis. Here, we have illustrated that TB001, a dual glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor/glucagon receptor (GLP-1R/GCGR) agonist with higher affinity towards GCGR, could retard the progression of liver fibrosis in various rodent models, with remarkable potency, selectivity, extended half-life and low toxicity. Four types of liver fibrosis animal models which were induced by CCl₄, α-naphthyl-isothiocyanate (ANIT), bile duct ligation (BDL) and Schistosoma japonicum were used in our study. We found that TB001 treatment dose-dependently significantly attenuated liver injury and collagen accumulation in these animal models. In addition to decreased levels of extracellular matrix (ECM) accumulation during hepatic injury, activation of hepatic stellate cells was also inhibited via suppression of TGF-β expression as well as downstream Smad signaling pathways particularly in CCl₄-and S. japonicum-induced liver fibrosis. Moreover, TB001 attenuated liver fibrosis through blocking downstream activation of pro-inflammatory nuclear factor kappa B/NF-kappa-B inhibitor alpha (NFκB/IKBα) pathways as well as c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)-dependent induction of hepatocyte apoptosis. Furthermore, GLP-1R and/or GCGR knock-down results represented GCGR played an important role in ameliorating CCl₄-induced hepatic fibrosis. Therefore, TB001 can be used as a promising therapeutic candidate for the treatment of multiple causes of hepatic fibrosis demonstrated by our extensive pre-clinical evaluation of TB001.

The antimicrobial peptide APKGVQGPNG (named YD), a natural peptide originating from Bacillus amyloliquefaciens CBSYD1, exhibited excellent antibacterial and antioxidant properties in vitro. These characteristics are closely related to inflammatory responses which is the central trigger for liver fibrosis. However, the therapeutic effects of YD against hepatic fibrosis and the underlying mechanisms are rarely studied. In this study, we show that YD improved liver function and inhibited the progression of liver fibrosis by measuring the serum transaminase activity and the expression of α-smooth muscle actin and collagen I in carbon tetrachloride-induced mice. Then we found that YD inhibited the level of miR-155, which plays an important role in inflammation and liver fibrosis. Bioinformatics analysis and luciferase reporter assay indicate that Casp12 is a new target of miR-155. We demonstrate that YD significantly decreases the contents of inflammatory cytokines and suppresses the NF-κB signaling pathway. Further studies show that transfection of the miR-155 mimic in RAW264.7 cells partially reversed the YD-mediated CASP12 upregulation, the downregulated levels of inflammatory cytokines, and the inactivation of the NF-κB pathways. Collectively, our study indicates that YD reduces inflammation through the miR-155–Casp12–NF-κB axis during liver fibrosis and provides a promising therapeutic candidate for hepatic fibrosis.