Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), the important component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, contributes to the integrity of the outer membrane, and protects the cell against bactericidal agents. LPS, also called endotoxin synonymously, is well known as a potent inducer of the innate immune system that often causes septic shock in the intensive cares. Chemically, the amphiphilic LPS is made up of three parts, i.e., hydrophobic lipid A, hydrophilic core oligosaccharide chain, and hydrophilic O-antigenic polysaccharide side chain. Specially, the lipid A is known to be responsible for a variety of biological effects during Gram-negative sepsis. LPS can elicit a strong response from innate immune system and result in local or systemic adverse reactions. LPS can trigger massive inflammatory responses and may result in immunopathology, for which the molecular basis is mediated by the signal path- way of LPS. In recent years, a tremendous progress has been made in determining the associated proteins and receptors in the LPS signaling that leads to the disease. This review gives a summary of recent progresses of research on LPS and LPS receptors.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; chemistry ; Drug Design ; Gram-Negative Bacteria ; drug effects ; Lipopolysaccharides ; chemistry

Currently, all the conventional antibiotics have developed corresponding drug-resistant pathogenic strains, which have increasingly become a serious threat to people's health. Development of completely new types of antibiotics is one of effective ways to solve the drug resistance issue. Antimicrobial peptides with broad-spectrum antibacterial and antimicrobial activity and wild variety become the ideal alternative to traditional antibiotics. Antimicrobial peptides are derived from wide range of sources, such as plants, animals, and microorganisms. Mechanism of function of the antimicrobial peptides and the investigation approaches of different antimicrobial peptides also vary dramatically. In this paper, we give an overview of preparation, antibacterial mechanisms, and research methodology of antimicrobial peptides.
Animals ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Anti-Infective Agents ; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides ; pharmacology ; Humans

Antimicrobial peptides ( AMPs) are critical component of the innate immune system of organisms, and have been demonstrated with the activity against a variety of microorganisms including bacteria, yeast, fungi, viruses and even tumor cells.Broad-spectrum activity and low propensity for resistance development make the AMPs as a kind of great potential for development of new anti-infective agents.In this paper, the origins, the action, the mechanism, the application prospects are reviewed.

Objective To explore the role of expression of membrane Fas(mFas)antigen and serum soluble Fas(sFas)in acute leukemia.Methods Strept avidin-biotin complex method of immunohistochemical staining assay and sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)were used to detect the expression of mFas antigen in bone marrow cells and serum sFas in 30 patients with acute leukemia in Binzhou Medical College Affiliatd Hospital from November 2001 to September 2002,which was compared with normal control group.The relation between expression of serum sFas and chemotherapy outcome were evaluated too.Results The expression of mFas antigen in ALL(5.62?2.27)% and ANLL(8.80?4.15)% were respectively and significantly lower than that in normal control group(28.75?11.20)%(P

The clinical manifestations of the disease include dysphagia, foreign body sensation in pharyngeal, retrosternal pain and regurgitation. Physical examination showed a sausage-shaped mass hanging outside the mouth, sometimes. CT scan demonstrated a benign placeholder in upper segment of esophagus. Surgery is the only way to achieve radical cure. Pathological examination: inflammtory fibroid polyp.
Deglutition Disorders ; Esophagus ; pathology ; Humans ; Hypopharynx ; pathology ; Pharynx ; Polyps ; pathology ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

OBJECTIVE To explore the condition of the cellular immune function of children with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome(OSAHS) and its change after operation METHODS Eighty children diagnosed as OSAHS were included in this study. T lymphocyte subsets and NK cells of the blood were measured before operation and one month after operation respectively. Children without the related disorders or systemic disease were recruited as control group.RESULTS Before operation, CD4+T cell percentage, CD4+/CD8+ ratio and NK cell percentage in OSAHS children were significantly lower than that in the control group[(26.19±3.38)%vs (5.10±4.09)%, (0.90±0.19)%vs (1.61±0.52)%, (11.45±4.35)%vs (13.73±3.78)%,P<0.05], CD8+T cell percentage was significantly higher than that in the control group[(30.02±5.50)%vs (22.31±3.42) %,P<0.05]. The difference, between the two groups, in CD3+T cells was not statistically significant. After operation, the CD4+T cells, CD8+T cells, CD4+/CD8+ ratio, the percentage of NK cells and CD3+T cells showed no significance difference compared with that before operation (P>0.05). CONCLUSION OSAHS may damage the cellular immune function. The operation does not reduce the cellular immune function in the short term.

Objective To investigate the status of rehabilitation for schizophrenia in China. Methods Papers about schizophrenia rehabilitation were retrieved from CNKI and analyzed. Results Schizophrenia rehabilitation was mainly performed by psychiatrists and nurses,rather than rehabilitation teams. 86.91% of the papers reported general rehabilitation. The psychiatric rehabilitation mainly performed in the hospital rather than in community, especially in rural. Conclusion The rehabilitation for schizophrenia needs more team-work and will be further deepened.

Objective To observe the effects of aloe juice on skin wound healing in scalded rats and scavenging the oxygen free radical in their bodies. Methods 24 rats were divided into 3 groups,namely, aloe group, burn cream group and blank control group. And burn wounds ( Ⅱ degree deep) were created with a diameter of 2. 6cm in their backs, respectively. Smear Burn Ointment and Aloe Vera juice,were used to observe the time of the appearance of their epithelial tissues and the time of the wound healing,and the content of SOD, GSH-PX and MDA in healed skin surfaces were detected. Results The time of the appearance of epithelial tissues[(4.6 ±0. 56)d ,(16.2±2.6),(5.4±0.6)d,(18. 1 ±3.4)d,(6.8± 0. 3) d , (22. 3 ± 3.2 ) d], the wound healing and the content of SOD [( (98.07 ± 6. 22) vs(83.97 ± 6. 34), (57. 50 ± 9. 43 )], GSH-PX [(243.21 ± 20. 18)vs (208.25 ± 24. 52), ( 139. 88 ± 22. 70)] and MDA [(4. 89 ±2. 12) vs (6. 93 ± 3.05 ), (8.98 ± 2. 14)] in aloe group have significant difference compared with the blank group( P <0.01, 0.001, 0.005), but no significant difference compared with the burn cream group. Conclusion Aloe juice has the effects of promoting the skin wound healing of scalded rats ,scavenging the oxygen free radical in their bodies and protecting cells.

Objective To survey the prevalence of undemutrition in elderly leprosy patients and explore the feasibility of nutritional assessment. Methods The nutrition status of 60 elderly patients with advanced leprosy was analyzed using Subjective Global Assessment (SGA) and objective methods. Results Undemutrition was determined in 22 patients (36. 6% ), including 5 patients ( 8. 3% ) were at a status of severe undernutrition. Kap-pa value of SGA and the objective items were 0. 619, 0. 571, 0. 476, 0. 454, and 0. 419 for triceps skin-fold thickness (TSF), pre-albumin (PALB), mid arm muscle circumference (MAMC), hemoglobin (Hb), and ser-um albumin, respectively. Gender, admission duration, type of leprosy, or disability grade was not correlated to all nutritional parameters except body height and cholesteroL Age and extent of ulceration were significantly correlated with some parameters such as BMI, TSF, lib, ALB, and PALB ( P < O. 01 ). Sensitivity and specificity of SGA on objective parameters screened were different. TSF and ulcer had the hrgest impacts on SGA. Conclusions The prevalence of undernutrition is not high in elderly leprosy patients. Any single objective parameter is not feasible for the assessment of nutrition status in these patients. A comprehensive method using SGA is preferred.

Problem-based learning (PBL) teaching method combined with formative evalua-tion was used in the teaching practice of pediatrics education. This method was implemented by four phases: courses designing, group-preparing, problems-organizing and teaching practice. The method was evaluated by students' feedback and survey results of patients, teachers and teaching councilors. It was showed that the teaching effects of PBL combined with formative evaluation was better than tra-ditional teaching method in pediatrics teaching.