Aim To iuvestigate the effect and the mechanism of salmonmilt DNA (SMD) on age-related involutions in mouse thymus. MethodsFemale BALB/c of 10 months were divided randomly into three groupsaccording to their weights: high dosage group 333.33 mg/(kg @ d), lowdosage group 166. 67 mg/(kg @ d) and control group 0 mg/(kg @ d) .After five weeks, with Image-Pro Plus (version. 4.0) software, the thymusindexes and the thymoctytes in the thymus section were measured, as wellas the thymus cortex thickness. All the data were analyzed by SAS statisticsoftware. Mieroarray technique was applied to screen the gene fragments,which were differently expressed between the high dosage group and thecontrol group, together with RT-PCR to further confirm some of them.Results No significant differences of the variables including bodyweight, thymus weight and thymus indexes among the three groups werefound (F ＜ 3.0 and P ＞ 0.05, respectively). The thymocytes quanti-ties of thymus cortex and medulla in the high dosage group were significantlyhigher than those of the control group [cortex D(H, C) = 9.46, P ＜ 0.01;medulla t( H.C) = 2.53, P ＜ 0.05]. The thymus cortex thicknesses of bothSMD supplement groups were significantly higher than that of the control group[cortex D(L,C)=3.65, P＞ 0.05; medulla t(L, C)=0.8, P＞ 0.05] .112differently expressed gene fragments were isolated. Furthermore, we foundthe fragments with the logged number of U23789, X80232 and Aw209102were highly expressed in the high dosage group when RT-PCR techniquewas used. Conclusion SMD may reverse the age-related involutions inmouse thymus via up-regulation the expression of proliferation related genesand development and differentiation related genes simultaneously.

Objective To observe the therapeutic effect of Guizhi Decoction plus Yupingfeng Powder for chronic urticaria and its effect on serum total IgE level.Methods One hundred and twenty patients were randomly divided into treatment group,control group 1 and control group 2,40 cases in each group.The treatment group was treated with Guizhi Decoction,Yupingfeng Powder and Loratadine Tablets orally,the control group 1 was given intramuscular injection of Bacillus Calmette-Guerin polysaccharide nucleic acid and oral use of Loratadine Tablets,and the control group 2 was only given oral use of Loratadine Tablets.The course of treatment covered 5 weeks.The levels of serum total IgE in the three groups were determined before and after treatment,and the therapeutic effect was evaluated after treatment.Results (1) The total effective rate was 85.0％ in the treatment group,80.0％ in the control group 1,and 55.0％ in the control group 2.The effect of control group 1 and the treatment group was superior to that of the control group 2 (P＜ 0.05),but the difference was insignificant between the treatment group and control group 1 (P＞ 0.05).(2)Before treatment,the serum total IgE level of the three groups was higher than that of the normal control group (P ＜ 0.05).After treatment,the serum total IgE level of the three groups was obviously decreased (P ＜ 0.05 compared with that before treatment);the inter-group comparison results showed that the effect of the treatment group and control group 1 on decreasing the serum total IgE level was superior to that of the control group 2(P ＜ 0.05),while the effect of the treatment group was similar to that of the control group 1 (P ＞0.05).(3) During the treatment,blood routine examination indexes and hepato-renal function of the three groups showed no abnormal changes,neither adverse reaction was shown.Conclusion Guizhi Decoction plus Yupingfeng Powder exerts certain therapeutic effect for the treatment of chronic urticaria,and can decrease the serum total IgE level,thus to stabilize the curative effect and reduce the recurrence.

Objective To assess the anti-arrhythmic activity and cardioprotective effects of Wenxin Granula, a traditional Chinese formula (consisting of Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix, Polygonati Rhizoma, Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma, Nardostachyos Radix et Rhizoma, Angelicae Sinensis Radix, and Succinum), on heart in ischemic-induced myocardial infarction (MI) rats and compare with those of Amiodarone which have been demonstrated in clinic. Methods Rats were randomly divided into Sham-operated (control), Ml + Amiodarone [5 mg/(kg·d)] (MI), and MI + Wenxin Granula [10 mg/(kg·d)] groups and left anterior descending coronary artery was occluded in each group. After left anterior descending for 12 h, standard lead Ⅱ of administration electrocardiogram was recorded in order to analyze the occurrence of arrhythmia. After one month, the size of the infarct area of heart was evaluated by TTC staining method and haemodynamic function was assessed to detect the heart function. Laser scanning confocal microscope and the technique of patch clamp were used to detect the intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]j) and L-type calcium current (ICa-L), respectively. Results Both Wenxin Granula [10 mg/(kg·d)] and Amiodarone [5 mg/(kg·d)] could markedly decrease the incidence of arrhythmia in heart of rats which were subjected to ischemic injury. After one month, Wenxin Granula could significantly decrease mortality to 22.22% and reduce the infarct area (P < 0.05), but Amiodarone did not. The mechanism may involve that Wenxin Granula attenuated [Ca2+]j decreasing in MI rats. Additionally, Wenxin Granula could obviously ameliorate the impaired heart function of MI rats by decreasing the elevated left ventricular end-diastolic pressure and increasing the attenuated maximum change velocity of left ventricular pressure in the isovolumic contraction or relaxation period. On the other hand, electrophysiological experiment results revealed that Wenxin Granula administration one month later also increased the reduced ICa-L density in rat ventricular myocytes in MI rats. The results of LSCM showed that Wenxin Granula could recover the amplitude of [Ca2+]j decreased by heart failure during long term. Conclusion Wenxin Granula could not only inhibit the incidence of arrhythmia but also decrease the mortality, which was accompanied by recovering the amplitude of [Ca2+]j. This protective effect of Wenxin Granula may partially be mediated through changing ICa-L.as well as increasing [Ca2+]j.

Objective To evaluate the feasibility and safety of a delivery pathway for the performance of percutaneous left atrial appendage (LAA) occlusion in experimental canine models. Methods Transseptal puncture was performed via femoral vein approach under fluoroscopic and angiographic guidance in 12 experimental dogs. A pigtail catheter was advanced into the left atrium (LA), which was followed by LA angiography. The diameters of the neck of LAA were measured on LAA angiogram obtained in appropriate projection. After the delivery sheath was advanced along the wire into LA, a pigtail catheter was inserted into the ostium of the LAA and the sheath was then advanced over the pigtail into the LAA. LAA angiography was then performed through the delivery sheath to confirm the position of the delivery sheath. One hour after the procedure both electrocardiography (ECG) and transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) were carried out in five dogs to check the results, immediately after which the five dogs were sacrificed to macroscopically observe the damages of the puncture site of inter-atrial septum as well as inside the LA and LAA. One hour and 2 weeks after the procedure TTE was conducted in the remaining 7 dogs and these dogs were followed up for one month. Results One dog died of pericardial tamponade during the operation. In 8 dogs the LAA was clearly displayed in the projection position of right anterior oblique (RAO) 30°/cranial (CRA) 20°,while in 3 dogs the LAA was well visualized in the projection position of RAO 30° , and in one dog in the projection position of RAO 30°/caudal (CAU) 20°. The diameter of LAA neck was (13.6 ± 5.2) mm. The delivery sheath was safely advanced into the LAA along the pigtail catheter in all dogs, and no air embolism, thrombus or pericardial tamponade occurred. Hematoma at puncture point of groin occurred in 2 dogs, which was absorbed through pressure dressing. Macroscopic examination of the heart performed immediately after the operation showed that no bloody pericardial effusion was found, and mild hematoma at posterior wall of LA was seen in one dog and mild damage of the upper-margin intima of LAA was noted in 2 dogs. The mean fluoroscopy time was (10.1 ± 2.5) minutes and the mean operation time was (58 ± 12) minutes. TEE showed no pericardial effusion 2 weeks after the procedure. During the follow-up period of one month no sudden death, stroke or infection occurred. Conclusion This method of placing the delivery sheath into the LAA is clinically safe and effective, and it can reliably establish a pathway to advance the LAA occluder into LAA.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated CEP55 gene silencing on the proliferation of mouse spermatogonia. METHODS: Six patients with azoospermia diagnosed to have maturation arrest (3 cases) or normal spermatogenesis (3 cases) based on testicular biopsy between January 1 and December 31, 2017 in our center were examined for differential proteins in the testicular tissue using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ), and CEP55 was found to differentially expressed between the two groups of patients. We constructed a CEP55 siRNA for transfection in mouse spermatogonia and examined the inhibitory effects on CEP55 expressions using Western blotting and qPCR. The effect of CEP55 gene silencing on the proliferation of mouse spermatogonia was evaluated with CCK8 assay. RESULTS: In the testicular tissues from the 6 patients with azoospermia, iTRAQ combined with LC/MS/MS analysis identified over two hundred differentially expressed proteins, among which CEP55 showed the most significant differential expression between the patients with maturation arrest and those with normal spermatogenesis. The cell transfection experiment showed that compared with the cells transfected with the vehicle or the negative control sequence, the mouse spermatogonia transfected with CEP55 siRNA showed significantly lowered expressions of CEP55 mRNA and protein ( < 0.05) and significantly decreased proliferation rate as shown by CCK8 assay ( < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS CEP55 may play a key role in spermatogenesis and may serve as a potential therapeutic target for non-obstructive azoospermia with maturation arrest.
Animals ; Azoospermia ; congenital ; genetics ; Cell Cycle Proteins ; genetics ; Gene Silencing ; Humans ; Male ; Mice ; Nuclear Proteins ; genetics ; Spermatogenesis ; Spermatogonia ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry ; Transfection

HYD-PEP06, an endostatin-modified polypeptide, has been shown to produce effective anti-colorectal carcinoma effects through inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). However, whether HYD-PEP06 has similar suppressive effect on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remained unknown. In this study, HYD-PEP06 inhibited metastasis and EMT but not proliferation