Objective To investigate the effect of sulfasalazine on serum procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in elderly patients with ulcerative colitis. Methods A total of 80 elderly patients with ulcerative colitis who were admitted to hospital were randomly divided into two groups. Mesalazine was given to the control group and sulfasalazine was added to the observation group. The patient's disease activity, light pathological morphology, fecal occult blood, mucosal histology score, colonoscopy morphology, overall treatment effect, serum PCT, CRP and other indicators were observed. Results The disease activity index (DAI) score, Mayo score, fecal occult blood (OB) score, Geboes index, CRP, PCT, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), interleukin (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P ＜ 0. 05), while the clinical efficiency rate, hemoglobin (Hb) and albumin (ALb) levels weresignificantly higher than the control group (P ＜ 0. 05). The intestinal mucosa repair status of the observation group was better than that of the control group. Conclusion Sulfasalazine has significant therapeutic effect on ulcerative colitis in the elderly, which can obviously improve inflammatory factors such as PCT, CRP, and improve the level of intestinal mucosal repair.

Objective To investigate the effect of sulfasalazine on serum procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in elderly patients with ulcerative colitis. Methods A total of 80 elderly patients with ulcerative colitis who were admitted to hospital were randomly divided into two groups. Mesalazine was given to the control group and sulfasalazine was added to the observation group. The patient's disease activity, light pathological morphology, fecal occult blood, mucosal histology score, colonoscopy morphology, overall treatment effect, serum PCT, CRP and other indicators were observed. Results The disease activity index (DAI) score, Mayo score, fecal occult blood (OB) score, Geboes index, CRP, PCT, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), interleukin (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P ＜ 0. 05), while the clinical efficiency rate, hemoglobin (Hb) and albumin (ALb) levels weresignificantly higher than the control group (P ＜ 0. 05). The intestinal mucosa repair status of the observation group was better than that of the control group. Conclusion Sulfasalazine has significant therapeutic effect on ulcerative colitis in the elderly, which can obviously improve inflammatory factors such as PCT, CRP, and improve the level of intestinal mucosal repair.

Objective:To explore the role and mechanism of kidney brain protein (KIBRA) down-regulation in cognitive dysfunction caused by chronic cerebral hypoperfusion.Methods:Ninety male SPF grade Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were divided into four groups according to random number table: sham operation group ( n=15), chronic hypoperfusion group (2VO group, n=25), chronic hypoperfusion stereotaxic injection of AAV-KIBRA group (2VO+ AAV-KIBRA group, n=25), chronic hypoperfusion stereotaxic injection of AAV-Vector group (2VO+ AAV-vector group, n=25). Chronic cerebral hypoperfusion model was established by bilateral ligation of common carotid artery, and stereotactic injection of 2 μL AAV-KIBRA or AAV-vector was performed for 30 days.Morris water maze, in vitro electrophysiology, p21-activated kinase 3(PAK3) activity detection, Western blot, immunoprecipitation and Golgi staining were used to detect spatial learning and memory ability, long-term potentiation(LTP), KIBRA level expression, PAK3 activity changes and the distribution of dendritic spines.SPSS 16.0 statistical software was used for statistical data.One-way ANOVA was used to compare the differences between groups.LSD test was used to compare the significance of data differences between the two groups.Welch test was used for uneven variance. Results:After 1 month of chronic cerebral hypoperfusion, the level of KIBRA in the hippocampus of rats was detected by homogenate and Western blot, and it was found that the level of KIBRA in 2VO group was lower than that of sham group(73.49±4.12)% ( P<0.01). AAV-KIBRA injection in hippocampal CA1 region significantly up-regulated the level of KIBRA to (91.91±7.01)% over 2VO group ( P<0.01). Morris water maze test showed that the latency of the 2VO group(3rd-7th day trail data: (48.18±2.82)s, (43.45±2.27)s, (32.27±2.22)s, (26.55±2.37)s, (17.18±2.67)s) were significantly longer than those of the sham group((41.67±2.74)s, (32.58±2.57)s, (22.50±2.94)s, (16.91±2.39)s, (8.75±1.52)s) (all P<0.05), and the latencies of the 2VO+ AAV-KIBRA group 3rd-7th day trail data: (43.83±2.95)s, (35.25±2.15)s, (26.58±2.03)s, (19.92±2.17)s, (17.75±1.35)s) was significantly shorter than that of the 2VO group ((all P<0.01). The Morris water maze test with the platform removed showed that the latency of rats in the 2VO group to reach the platform region was significantly longer than that of the sham group, while the latency of rats in the 2VO+ AAV-KIBRA group to reach the platform region was significantly shorter than that in the 2VO group ( P<0.01). At the same time, the retention time and the crossing times in the platform region of 2VO group were less than those of the sham group ( P<0.01), but the retention time and the crossing times in the platform region of 2VO+ AAV-KIBRA group were significantly higher than those in the 2VO group ( P<0.01). The electrophysiological records of the brain slices showed that the relative excitatory postsynaptic field potential of 2VO group (1.43±7.43) was significantly lower than that of sham group (2.21±6.54) after high frequency stimulation, while the relative excitatory postsynaptic field potential of 2VO+ AAV-KIBRA group (1.90±8.15) was higher than that of 2VO group ( P<0.01). Immunoprecipitation in rat hippocampus revealed that PAK3 could be detected by Western blot assay when KIBRA was precipitated.The results showed that the relative enzyme activity of PAK3 in 2VO hippocampal tissue (0.64±0.04) was significantly lower than that in sham group (1.02±0.07), while the relative enzyme activity of PAK3 in 2VO+ AAV-KIBRA group (0.86±0.03) was significantly higher than that in 2VO group.Golgi staining showed that the density of dendritic spines in 2VO hippocampal neurons((6.85±0.43)/10 μm) was significantly lower than that in sham group((11.83±0.58)/10 μm), while the density of dendritic spines in 2VO+ AAV-KIBRA group((10.22±0.39)/10 μm) was significantly higher than that in 2VO group. Conclusion:The down-regulated of KIBRA after chronic cerebral hypoperfusion plays a key role in cognitive dysfunction and is also involved in the decrease of synaptic functional plasticity.The downregulation of KIBRA is involved in the structural plasticity of dendrites through the regulation of PAK3 activity.Therefore, KIBRA may be an important target for the prevention and treatment of cognitive function of chronic cerebral hypoperfusion.

Islet transplantation is one of the effective therapies for diabetes mellitus. Nevertheless, multiple issues still exist, such as shortage of donors and adverse reactions caused by long-term use of immunosuppressants, which limit the islet survival post-transplantation. Microencapsulated islet transplantation may overcome these difficulties to certain extent, whereas many factors, such as the destruction of immune isolation microenvironment within the microcapsules and insufficient supply of oxygen and nutrients, constrain the application of microencapsulated islet transplantation in clinical practice. In recent years, how to enhance the effect of microencapsulated islet transplantation has been gradually studied. The application of stem cells in microencapsulated islet transplantation has steadily become a research hot spot. Therefore, the optimizing strategies for microencapsulated islet transplantation and the application of stem cells in microencapsulated islet transplantation were reviewed, and the potential improvement techniques of microencapsulated islet transplantation were investigated in this article, aiming to provide reference for further clinical application of microencapsulated islet transplantation.

Objective To investigate the effect of compound Fufangteng mixture-containing serum on the proliferation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC) and its mechanism. Methods Rat BMSC were isolated, cultured and purified in vitro by direct adherence method. Cell morphology was observed. Surface markers were identified by flow cytometry. The rats were treated with compound Fufangteng mixture at a dose of 3 mL/(kg·d) by gavage for 14 d, and then the drug-containing serum was collected. BMSC were divided into the blank control group, drug-containing serum group, Notch1 small interfering ribonucleic acid (siRNA) group and Notch1 siRNA+drug-containing serum group. The proliferation rate of BMSC was detected and the relative expression levels of Notch1 signaling pathway-associated messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) and proteins were measured in each group. Results Microscopic observation showed that the first generation BMSC were seen in the long spindle shape, and grown in the parallel or spiral pattern. The third generation BMSC positively expressed CD90 and CD44, whereas were negative for CD45. Compared with the blank control group, the proliferation rate of BMSC in the drug-containing serum group and Notch1 siRNA+ drug-containing serum group was significantly increased, whereas that of BMSC was significantly decreased in the Notch1 siRNA group (all P < 0.05). Compared with the Notch1 siRNA group, the proliferation rate of BMSC was significantly increased in the Notch1 siRNA+drug-containing serum group (P < 0.05). Compared with the blank control group, the relative expression levels of Hey1 and Delta-like ligand (DLL)1 mRNA and proteins were significantly up-regulated in the drug-containing serum group, whereas those were significantly down-regulated in the Notch1 siRNA group and Notch1 siRNA+drug-containing serum group (all P < 0.05). Compared with the Notch1 siRNA group, the relative expression levels of Hey1 and DLL1 mRNA and proteins were significantly up-regulated in the Notch1 siRNA+drug-containing serum group (all P < 0.05). Conclusions Compound Fufangteng mixture-containing serum may promote the proliferation of rat BMSC, and its mechanism is probably associated with the activation of Notch1 signaling pathway.

Objective To evaluate the effect of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) coated-islets on instant blood-mediated inflammatory reaction (IBMIR) after islet transplantation. Methods MSC labeled with tracer and human islets were placed into an ultra-low adsorption cell culture dish, shaken and mixed twice at an interval of 0.5 h, and then incubated at 37 ℃ and 5% CO₂ for 24 h to obtain MSC-coated islets. The coating effect of MSC and in vitro function of the islets were assessed. A blood circulation tube-shaped model was established in vitro. In the blank control group, 0.2 mL of islet culture solution was added. In the islet group, 800 islet equivalent quantity (IEQ) of uncoated islets were supplemented. In the MSC-coated islets group, 800 IEQ of MSC-coated islets were added, and circulated for 60 min at 37 ℃. A portion of 0.5 mL blood sample was taken for routine blood test at 0, 30 and 60 min, respectively. After 60 min circulation, the blood sample was filtered with a 70 μm filter to collect plasma, blood clots and islets. Blood clots and islets were subject to hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining and immunohistochemical staining. Morphological changes and the aggregation of CD11b-positive cells surrounding the islets were observed. The contents of plasma thrombin-antithrombin complex (TAT), tissue factor (TF), C3a, C5b-9, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 and IL-8 were determined by enzyme-linked immune absorbent assay. Results After 24 h co-incubation, the islets were coated by MSC, with a coating degree of approximately 80%. In the islet and MSC-coated islet group, a large quantity of neutrophils and monocytes were observed surrounding the blood clots and islets, and the quantity of CD11b-positive cells in the MSC-coated islet group was less compared with that in the islet group. After co-incubation with the whole blood for 0, 30 and 60 min, the quantity of platelets, neutrophils and monocytes was declined in the MSC-coated and islet groups, and gradually decreased over time. Compared with the blank control group, the quantity of platelets, monocytes and neutrophils was lower, whereas the TF content was higher in the MSC-coated islet group. Compared with the islet group, the quantity of platelets, monocytes and neutrophils was higher, whereas the TAT and TF contents were less in the MSC-coated islet group, the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). Compared with the blank control group, the expression levels of C3a, C5b-9, IL-6, TNF-α and IL-8 were up-regulated in the MSC-coated islet group. Compared with the islet group, the expression levels of C3a, C5b-9, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, IL-8 and MCP-1 were down-regulated in the MSC-coated islet group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). Conclusions MSC-coated islets may reduce the exposure of islet TF in the blood and prevent the incidence of IBMIR during the coagulation response stage, thereby mitigating the injury and loss of islet allograft in the early stage of islet transplantation.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between cerebrovascular variation and the occurrence and recurrence of cerebral infarction, and provide a theoretical basis for the precise prevention and treatment of cerebral infarction.Methods:Totally 13 939 patients who underwent magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) and magnetic resonance angiography(MRA) examination at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University from January 2020 to December 2021 were grouped according to clinical symptoms combined with the imaging report, including 4 412 cases in the cerebral infarction group and 9 527 cases in the control group.2 048 patients in the cerebral infarction group were eventually enrolled in the study according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, including 1 479 cases of initial cerebral infarction and 569 cases of recurrent cerebral infarction.SPSS 25.0 statistical software was used for data analysis.The χ2 test was used to compare the incidence of cerebral infarction with different cerebrovascular variations.Univariate analysis of suspected risk factors for recurrent cerebral infarction was performed with χ2 test, nonparametric test and t test.The binary logistic regression was used to analyze independent risk factors of recurrent cerebral infarction. Results:The incidence of cerebral infarction in the dual-system cerebrovascular variant patients, the single-system cerebrovascular variant patients, and the non-cerebrovascular variant patients were 40.9%, 30.7% and 31.8% respectively.The incidence of cerebral infarction in the dual-system cerebrovascular variant patients was the highest compared with those in the single-system cerebrovascular variant patients and the non-cerebrovascular variant patients (both P<0.05). The incidence rates of embryonic posterior cerebral artery, vertebral artery dominance, and bilateral common origin anterior cerebral arteries were 14.09%, 10.76% and 5.32%, respectively.The incidence of bilateral common origin anterior cerebral arteries in the cerebral infarction group was significantly higher than that in the control group and the difference was statistically significant.Patients with cerebral infarction who were familial aggregation ( OR=2.207, 95% CI=1.591-3.062), hyperhomocysteinemia ( OR=1.262, 95% CI=1.014-1.570), hypertension ( OR=1.461, 95% CI=1.114-1.918), diabetes mellitus ( OR=1.348, 95% CI=1.072-1.694), coronary heart disease ( OR=1.491, 95% CI=1.196-1.858) were more likely to recurrent cerebral infarction ( P<0.05), and patients with cerebral infarction had a significantly increased risk of recurrent cerebral infarction with age ( OR=1.031, 95% CI=1.020-1.042, P<0.05). Conclusion:Dual-system cerebrovascular variation and bilateral common origin anterior cerebral arteries are risk factors for cerebral infarction.