Phospholipid fatty acids are the major constituents of the membranes of all living cells, and different groups of microorganism synthesize a variety of PLFA through various biochemical pathways. Several PLFAs can be used as "signatures" to analyze changes in microbial biomass and microbial communities structure. More and more PLFA method was used in soil microbial analysis. This article briefly reviewed the applications of PLFA methods in soil microbial analysis.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Brain ; drug effects ; Caspase 3 ; metabolism ; Curcumin ; pharmacology ; Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Objective: To investigate the effect of combining acupuncture and auricular point sticking on heart rate variability (HRV) in patients with post-stroke depression (PSD). Methods: A total of 80 cases with PSD were randomized into a treatment group and a control group. The control group was intervened by oral administration of paroxetine hydrochloride, whereas the treatment group received acupuncture plus auricular point sticking base on the same oral administration. The Hamilton depression rating scale (HAMD) and HRV were measured before and after treatment in both groups. Results: The individual and global scores of HAMD significantly dropped after 8 weeks of treatment in both groups (all P<0.05). In the treatment group, anxiety/somatization factor, sleep disturbance, hopelessness factor, cognition factor and global score were significantly different from those in the control group (all P<0.05). The 24 h standard deviation of all normal-to-normal R-R interval (SDNN), standard deviation of 5-minute average of normal R-R intervals (SDANN), root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD), percent of differences between adjacent normal R-R intervals >50 ms (PNN50) and high frequency (HF) were increased while low frequency (LF) and LF/HF decreased significantly after 8 weeks of treatment in both groups (P<0.05). All items in the treatment group were significantly different from those in the control group (all P<0.05). Conclusion: Combining acupuncture and auricular point sticking can enhance the conventional medical treatment for HRV in patients with PSD.

Objective To explore the therapeutic effect and medication safety of low-dose erythromycin treatment on intractable allergic rhinitis(AR) associated with bronchus asthma.Methods Totally 173 cases of children received outpatient treatment because of AR associated with asthma,their ages ranging from 3 to 14 years.Among them,78 cases developed intractable AR with symptoms of asthma having been controlled or satisfactorily controlled after 2 courses of conventional treatment.Seventy-six children with intractable AR received full follow-up and were randomly divided into observation group and control group.The control group was given different second-generation antihistamines,when necessary,supplemented by nasal glucocorticoids.In the observation group,the same treatment as it was done in control group was continued,plus oral treatment with erythromycin enteric-coated capsules(10 mg?kg-1?d-1,which were taken 3 times a day for 1 month) to the observation group.Both observation group and control group were in accordance with the norms of the treatment of asthma.Results The improvement rate,inefficiency and the total efficiency were different between observation group and control group,and the diffe-rence was statistically significant(?2=12.629,8.412,8.412,Pa0.05).Their liver function was also monitored and was found normal before treatment and after the replacement of drugs for 1 month,including alanine ami-notransferase,aspartate aminotransferase,albumin,globulin,and were found normal.Conclusions On the basis of conventional treatment,low-dose erythromycin treatment of intractable AR is effective and safe.However,the treatment must be limited to the refractory cases,and the appropriate indications must be strictly observed.

pH, affects of different alkaline materials KOH, K 2CO 3, NaOH, Na 2CO 3 on the growth, and NaCl, KCl tolerance of 29 isolates from the saline and alkaline soils in Xinjiang and Qinghai Provinces of China and 1 type strain were studied. Results showed that only a few alkaliphilic actinomycetes were Na +-obligately dependent, and K +-sensitive. Some alkaliphilic actinomycetes were CO 3 2- -sensitive, and NaCl, KCl could inhibit their growth. 4 kinds of alkaline materials had no affect on growth of alkaliphilic Nocardiopsis, and these strains showed high tolerance to NaCl, KCl. So it was presumed that only K + and CO 3 2- obligately dependent alkaliphilic Actinomycetes maybe exist in alkaline environments.

A rapid screening model for biosurfactant-producing strains is described in this paper, according as biosurfac-tant can make the blood-plate hemolysis and produce the blue cycles in blue-glue-plate. 12 microorganisms have been got from soil and water samples sampled from oil field and refinery using this model, and one of them can produce the glyco-lipid biosurfactant, which can depress the interfacial tension of water from 71. 3mN/m to 30. 5mN/m, and yield is 6.5 g/L.

More than one hundred strains of marine molds have been isolated from the sediment and the sample of seawater collected from the South China Sea. By the first screening, more than 30 strains of marine molds which can inhibit tested fungi such as Candida albicans and Fursarium sp. were obtained.The results of the second screening showed those strains designed as B 4#-6、B 4#-3、1-B 6-6、1-B 6-10-5、1-B 6-22、C 2#-5、A 2-9 and 1-B 6-10 can produced extracelluar antifungi metabolic products and the crude extract of the strains 1-B 6-10-5 and B 4#-3 can inhibit the growth of many other species of fungi.

Objective To investigate the effect of interferon-γ(IFN-γ) on the expression of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase(IDO),and tryptophanyl-tRNA-synthetase (TTS) in thyrocytes; and to study the relevant immunopathological significance in Graves' disease.Methods The expressions of IDO and TTS genes in IFN-γ stimulated Nthy-ori3-1 cell line and human thyrocytes,as well as in human thyroid tissues were determined by realtime quantitative PCR.Results IDO and TTS genes were expressed slightly in both Nthy-ori3-1 cell line and human thyrocytes,and were significantly up-regulated after IFN-γ stimulation(P＜0.01).Compared to healthy controls,TTS mRNA level was higher in thyroid tissues of patients with Graves' disease (P =0.018 2),while IDO mRNA level showed no difference,but was notably correlated with IFN-γ mRNA level (R2 =0.716,P =0.002).Conclusion In the early stage of Graves' disease,thyrocytes may decompose local tryptophan by enhancing the expression of IDO and TTS under IFN-γstimulation,thus inhibit auto-reactive function of lymphocytes and balance excessive autoimmune reaction.

Objective To evaluate the effects of 131 adrenoceptor anfisense on blood pressure and?1 adrenoceptor mRNA and protein levels in 2 kidney 1 clip(2K1C)rats.Method 2KIC hypertensive rots were produced by clipping renal artery of SD rats.Liposome/AS-ODNs 2.0 were tested intravenously in rats with 2KIC hypertension.Animals were divided into 5 groups(n=18 in each group):?1-AS-ODN group,?1-IN-ODN group,2K1C group,Sham group and SD group.Blood pressure was measured by tail-cuff method,the levels of myocardial?adreneceptor mRNA and protein were tested by RT-PCR and binding assay.Results On the basis of the magnitude and duration of hypotension,?1-AS-ODN decreased blood pressure by 39 mmHg at the most for 4 weeks.Compared with the 2KIC group,?1-AS-ODN did not significantly change the levels of myocardial?1 adrenoceptor mRNA but significantly decreased the levels of myocardial?1 adrenoceptor protein at 2,7,30 days (P

OBJECTIVETo determine if Ganoderma polysaccharides can antagonize prostaglandin E2 (PGE2)-induced suppression of murine splenocyte interferongamma (IFN-gamma) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) mRNA expression.

METHODSMixed lymphocyte culture reaction was used as the experimental model. The expressions levels of IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha mRNA were measured by semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

RESULTSAfter the cultures were treated with PGE2 for 4 h, IFN-gamma mRNA expression was reduced as compared with the control, which was especially obvious when PGE2 concentrations exceeded 10 micromol/L (P<0.01). Ganoderma polysaccharides above 100 mg/L showed partial antagonistic effect against the inhibition of IFN-gamma by PGE2 at the fixed concentration of 20 micromol/L. Further studies indicated that PGE2 (20 micromol/L) impaired the expression of TNF-alpha mRNA after an 8-hour incubation and Ganoderma polysaccharides above 100 mg/L could partially antagonize this effect.

CONCLUSIONGanoderma polysaccharides can partially antagonize PGE2-induced suppression of murine splenocyte IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha mRNA expression.

Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Dinoprostone ; pharmacology ; Female ; Gene Expression ; drug effects ; Interferon-gamma ; genetics ; Lymphocytes ; cytology ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Polysaccharides ; pharmacology ; RNA, Messenger ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Reishi ; chemistry ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Spleen ; cytology ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; genetics