P2X7 is the most important subtype of the ATP receptors known so far. Recent investigations showed that the downstream signaling pathway of P2X7 is coupled with several key inflammatory molecules including IL-1beta and IL-18, this suggests P2X7 might have roles in the inflammatory diseases. Moreover, attenuation of P2X7 by selective antagonists in vitro and knockout mice in vivo reducing the inflammatory response indicated that P2X7 is a potential therapeutic target for inflammatory diseases. However, most previous studies on P2X7 were focused on nerve system diseases most, while its effects in inflammatory respiratory diseases, especially in asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer have been poorly investigated. In this paper, we reviewed the research progress on the structure, distribution, biological activities of P2X7 and its relationship with inflammatory respiratory diseases including asthma, COPD and lung cancer, along with the development of P2X7 antagonist as therapeutics.

Objective To investigate the safety and efficacy of nephron-sparing surgery (NSS)for selective T2 stage renal tumor.Methods The surgical database of 26 patients treated with NSS for clinical T2 stage renal cell carcinomas between March 2010 and May 2013 were collected and analyzed retrospectively.There were 17 males and 9 females,with a mean age of 52 years (39-74 years),mean tumor size of 10.3 cm(7.2-16.5 cm),and mean R.E.N.A.L score of 7.5 (6-10).Patients'demographics,clinical characteristics,oncologic outcomes,renal function were reviewed.Results The renal masses were removed successfully and the surgical margins were negative.There were 21 (80.8％) cases of clear cell carcinoma,4 (15.4％) papillary carcinoma and 1 (3.8％) chromophobe carcinoma.The mean ischemia time was (28.3 ± 12.5) minutes (7 patients were clamp-free).Three patients needed transfusion,one experienced urine fistula and cured by conservative treatment,and one patient's renal function got progressive worsening and required long-term hemodialysis.The average serum creatinine was 121 μ mol/L before and 136 μmol/L after surgery (P =0.06).After a period of 22-47 months' follow-up,no patient had local recurrence or metastasis.Conclusions NSS can be safely performed and provide effective oncologic outcomes for selective patients with clinical T2 stage renal cell carcinomas.R.E.N.A.L nephrometry is an important factor and should be used to evaluate the feasibility of NSS.

AIM:To study the blocking effect of shRNA on the expression of PSMA gene in LNCaP cell line by using shRNA eukaryotic expression vector.METHODS:Three pairs of DNA templates coding shRNA,synthesized against PSMA and cloned into the vector pSilencer 2.1-U6-neo,which was named pSilencer 2.1-U6-neo-shRNA,were identified by restriction endonuclease digestion analysis and DNA sequencing.LNCaP cells were then transfected with these three pSilencer 2.1-U6-neo-shRNAs and the negative control pSilencer 2.1-U6-neo-NC.After G418 selection,the cells were selected and the interfering effect was detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting.The biological behaviours of the transfected LNCaP cells were also tested.RESULTS:Restriction endonuclease digestion analysis and DNA sequencing results all showed that the 3 target segments were cloned into pSilencer 2.1-U6-neo vector respectively.After transfected into LNCaP cells,the inhibitory ratio of PSMA mRNA was 33.15%,9.26% and 41.97% respectively,and that of PSMA protein was 26.26%,6.47%,40.69% respectively.The p-shRNA3 was chosen to test the cell growth and its invasive power in vitro.The results showed that after interfering,the invasiveness of LNCaP cells were enhanced.CONCLUSION:The vector-based shRNA on PSMA gene effectively knocks down the PSMA gene expression.The successful construction of PSMA shRNA makes it possible for further study of the interaction between PSMA and prostate cancer.

AIM: To obtain eukaryotic expression vector of Chinese prostate-specific membrane antigen. METHODS: Chinese prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) cDNA was amplified by RT-PCR from prostate cancer tissues, then cloned into eukaryotic expression vector pcDNA3 0 and sequenced. RESULTS: Seven bases in Chinese PSMA cDNA sequence were found different from those reported by Israeli, which lead to two different amino acids. CONCLUSION: We have obtained the PSMA cDNA, and the recombinant eukaryotic expression vector was successfully constructed. The study lays foundation for DCs vaccine modified by PSMA gene for the treatment of prostate neoplasms.

AIM: To discuss the relationship between prostate specific membrane antigen(PSMA) and prostate cancer and to seek a target for diagnosis and therapy of prostate cancer.METHODS: A pair of primers was designed according to the published PSMA mRNA sequence.Total RNA was extracted from prostate cancer tissues and was reversely transcribed into cDNA,which was used as a template for PCR to amplify the PSMA gene.The recombinant was sequenced and the result was analyzed by BLAST.The PSMA5 gene specific primers were designed to identify its expression in different cells and prostate tissues.RESULTS: A new alternatively spliced variant of PSMA named PSMA5 was discovered when sequencing the recombinant.PSMA5 showed well pathological tissue-specificity,and its expression rate in prostate cancer,benign prostatic hyperplasia of prostate,and normal prostate tissue were 92.6%,78.8% and 10.0%,respectively.It expressed specifically in Pca cell line LNCaP,not in cell lines of PC3,bladder carcinoma,renal carcinoma,or hepatoma.CONCLUSION: A new alternative spliced variant of PSMA named PSMA5 was discovered,which was well correlated with prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia.This finding may give a new clue to the evolution of prostate cancer and may provide a target for the diagnosis and therapy of prostate cancer.

AIM: To find out the gene structure and diversity of protate specific membrane antigen(PSMA) alternative spliced variants, and probe into the pathogenesis of prostate cancer.METHODS: 5'-RACE and 3'-RACE methods were used to amplify the 5' and 3'end of alternative spliced variant and then those viariants were sequenced for analyzing the gene stucture and diversity of PSMA alternative spliced variants of prostate cancer tissues.RESULTS: Four new alternative spliced variants of PSMA were discovered from prostate cancer tissues.Compared with reported PSMA alternative spliced variants,different insertions and deletions existed in different sites of those new variants.CONCLUSION: The discovery of the new variants confirms the diversity of PSMA spliced variants and provides the clues for seeking the target of diagnosis and therapy of prostate cancer.

Objective:To investigate whether different type of chronic prostatitis could have a deleterious effect on semen quality. Methods: Forty-nine patients diagnosed as suffering from chronic prostatitis were included and di-vided into groups according to the presence of infection and/or cellular autoimmune response against prostate anti-gens. Healthy normal individuals were included as controls. Measurements for sperm concentration, motility, morphology, prostate and seminal vesicle markers, antisperm antibodies, white blood cells and pro-inflammatory cytokines were performed accordingly. Results:The most severe abnormalities were found in patients with no evi-dent infection and an autoimmune response against prostate antigens. Moreover, significantly increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines were detected in seminal plasma from these patients. Conclusions: This study shows that chronic prostatitis patients with cellular autoimmune response to prostate antigens present important altera-tions in their semen quality parameters and may affect male fertility.

Objective:To explore the value of quantitative parameters of enhanced MRI in predicting the establishment of inferior vena cava collateral circulation in patients with renal cell carcinoma and inferior vena cava tumor thrombus.Methods:Sixty-seven patients with renal cell carcinoma and inferior vena cava tumor thrombus who underwent radical resection and inferior vena cava venography in First Medical Center, PLA General Hospital from May 2006 to January 2021 were included retrospectively. According to the results of inferior vena cava venography, the patients were divided into two groups: the well-established collateral circulation group ( n=41) and the poor-established collateral circulation group ( n=26). Quantitative parameters were measured on preoperative enhanced MRI images, including tumor size, the maximum diameter of bilateral lumbar veins, the length of tumor thrombus, and the long and short diameters of tumor thrombus. Student′s t test or Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison between the two groups. The independent risk factors related to the establishment of collateral circulation were obtained by binary logistic regression analysis and the model was established. The receiver operating characteristic curve was employed to evaluate MRI quantitative parameters and the logistic model, and the area under the curve (AUC) was compared by the DeLong test. Results:Between the well-established collateral circulation group and the poor-established collateral circulation group, the maximum diameter of the right lumbar vein, the maximum diameter of the left lumbar vein, the length of the tumor thrombus, the long diameter of the tumor thrombus, and the short diameter of the tumor thrombus were different significantly ( P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the tumor size between the two groups ( t=0.30, P=0.766). The AUC of the maximum diameters of the right lumbar veins and left lumbar veins, length of tumor thrombus, long and short diameters of tumor thrombus in predicting the collateral circulation were 0.917 (95%CI 0.824-0.971), 0.869 (95%CI 0.764-0.939), 0.756 (95%CI 0.636-0.853), 0.886 (95%CI 0.785-0.951), and 0.906 (95%CI 0.809-0.963). The AUC of the maximum diameter of the right lumbar vein and the short diameter of the tumor thrombus were larger than those of the length of the tumor thrombus, and the differences were statistically significant ( Z=2.25, 2.04, P=0.025, 0.041), but the AUC between other parameters had no significant difference ( P>0.05). The maximum diameter of the right lumbar vein (OR 24.210, 95%CI 2.845-205.998), the maximum diameter of the left lumbar vein (OR 20.973, 95%CI 2.359-186.490), and the length of the tumor thrombus (OR 23.006, 95%CI 2.952-179.309) were independent risk factors for predicting the establishment of inferior vena cava collateral circulation. The AUC of logistic model was 0.969 (95%CI 0.931-1.000). Conclusion:Quantitative parameters of tumor thrombus and lumbar vein based on enhanced MRI have a good ability in predicting the establishment of inferior vena cava collateral circulation in patients with renal cell carcinoma and inferior vena cava tumor thrombus. The maximum diameter of bilateral lumbar veins and the length of the tumor thrombus were independent risk factors for inferior vena cava collateral circulation.