Objective To prepare and characterize glycyrrhetinic acid cationic liposomes.Methods Liposomes were prepared by ethanol injection technique.An orthogonal test was utilized to optimize the formulation and preparation of glycyrrhetinic acid liposomes.The unencapsulated glycyrrhetinic acid and liposomes were separated by Sephadex gel G-50,the encapsulation efficiency was detected by HPLC.The morphological examination of glycyrrhetinic acid liposomes was performed using transmission electron microscopy.The particle size and Zeta potential of the liposomes were measured.The release rate of glycyrrhetinic acid from liposomes was tested.Results The liposomes with spherical or ellipsoidal shape and better stability featured the encapsulation efficiency of(91.61?1.16)%,the mean partical size of(141?10)nm,and Zeta potential of(35.9?5)mV.The in vitro release kinetics were consistent with Higuchi equation.The stability of glycyrrhetinic acid liposomes was better.Conclusion The selected formulation and preparation technic of glycyrrhetinic acid liposomes could be rational,stable,and with a sustained feature in vitro release.

Objective To determine the encapsulation efficiency of glycyrrhetinic acid(GA) liposomes and to study the release of GA from the liposomes in vitro.Methods GA liposomes were prepared by ethanol injection.The unencapsulated glycyrrhetinic acid and liposomes were separated by sephadex gel G-50,and the encapsulation efficiency was detected by HPLC.The release behavior of the drug was studied by the third method for dissolution issued in Chinese pharmacopoeia(published in 2005).Results The encapsulation efficiency of liposomes was 91.61%,and the in-vitro drug-release curve was accorded with Higuchi equation.Conclusion The GA liposomes have high encapsulation efficiency and sustained-release effect.

The β-Glucuronidase gene (sbGUS) cDNA firstly from Scutellari abaicalensis leaf was cloned by RT-PCR, with GenBank accession number KR364726. The full length cDNA of sbGUS was 1 584 bp with an open reading frame (ORF), encoding an unstable protein with 527 amino acids. The bioinformatic analysis showed that the sbGUS encoding protein had isoelectric point (pI) of 5.55 and a calculated molecular weight about 58.724 8 kDa, with a transmembrane regions and signal peptide, had conserved domains of glycoside hydrolase super family and unintegrated trans-glycosidase catalytic structure. In the secondary structure, the percentage of alpha helix, extended strand, β-extended and random coil were 25.62%, 28.84%, 13.28% and 32.26%, respectively. The homologous analysis indicated the nucleotide sequence 98.93% similarity and the amino acid sequence 98.29% similarity with S. baicalensis (BAA97804.1), in the nine positions were different. The expression level of sGUS was the highest in root based on a real-time PCR analysis, followed by flower and stem, and the lowest was in stem. The results provide a foundation for exploring the molecular function of sbGUS involved in baicalcin biosynthesis based on synthetic biology approach in S. baicalensis plants.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Base Sequence ; Cloning, Molecular ; Computational Biology ; Glucuronidase ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Open Reading Frames ; Phylogeny ; Plant Proteins ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; Protein Structure, Secondary ; Scutellaria baicalensis ; chemistry ; enzymology ; genetics ; Sequence Alignment

Objective To study the effects of the HBV x gene (HBx) on the biological characteristics and the expression of DNA repair enzyme hMTH1 mRNA of the L02/HBx transgene cell model. Methods Light microscopy was used to observe the morphologic characteristics of gene-transfected cell strain Lff2/HBx that stably expressed the HBx protein and the control groups of L02 and L02/PcDNA3.1. The changes of L02/HBx on the proliferation, cell cycle and apoptosis were observed by MTT assays and flow cytometry analysis respectively. Moreover, the malignant transformation of L02/HBxwas assayed by colony formation in soft agar and the expression of DNA repair enzyme hMTH1 mRNA was assayed in each group by real-time qPCR. Results Inversion phase contrast microscope showed that the morphologic characteristics of L02/HBx had changed obviously compared with control groups. The MTT showed that L02/HBx proliferated more quickly and flow cytometry analysis indicated that HBx could accelerate the progression of cell cycle and inhibit apoptosis. Colony formation in soft agar demonstrated that the rate of colony formation of L02/HBx was remarkably higher than the L02 and the L02/peDNA3. 1 cells (P<0. 05). The real-time qPCR detection showed that the expression of hMTH1 mRNA in L02/HBx was significantly higher than that in the control groups ( P < 0. 05 ). Conclusion HBx could play an important role in the malignant transformation of L02/HBx and the over expression of hMTH1 mRNA.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; epidemiology ; Disease Outbreaks ; Female ; Herbicides ; poisoning ; toxicity ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Paraquat ; poisoning ; toxicity ; Risk Factors ; Time Factors ; Young Adult

Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) was the preferred method of non-operation treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).Radical resection of HCC remains difficult,extrahepatic metastasis was not easy to deal with,and repeated treatment aggravated the liver injury,so the long-term efficacy was poor.Sorafenib could control tumor angiogenesis and block the proliferation of tumor cells.A male patient with primary HCC and in the stage Ⅱb according to the Chinese clinical liver cancer staging system was treated by TACE combined with sorafenib and antiviral treatment in Henan Cancer Hospital.After the treatment,the intrahepatic lesions were inactive,and the pulmonary metastasis was partially relieved.The patient was followed up till May 2012,and the survival time was 39 months.The hepatic function was normal,and the hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication was negative.No intervention treatmentrelated complications were detected,and the KPS score was 100.

Objective To observe the rate-adaptive response of dual sensor pacemakers integrated with activity sensor and minute ventilation sensor.Methods Fifty patients with chronotrepic incompetence were implanted with pacemakers of integrated sensor.The patients with pacemakers implanted were arranged to take upstairs test,downstairs test and tapping test under the monitor of integrated sensor,minute ventilation sensor and activity sensor respectirely.The rate-adaptive responses were tracked down every 15 seconds with remote heart rate monitor.The results were compared with the control group patients with normal sinal chronotropic function(n=15).Results In activity sensor group,pacing rates were significantly higher than the normal control group in downstairs test and tapping test.In minute ventilation sensor group,pacing rates increasement was significantly slower in the beginning of upstairs test.Pacing rates of integrated group were similar to the normal control group in upstairs and downstairs tests.Conclusion The rate-adaptive pacing response of dual sensor integrated with activity sensor and minute ventilation sensor,which is mostly close to the normal chronotropic response,better than that of single sensor.

Objective To assess the therapeutic outcomes of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization combined with percutaneous injection of chemoembolization agent intra-portal vein tumor thrombosis for primary hepatic carcinoma accompanied by portal vein tumor thrombus. Methods Thirty patients with primary hepatic carcinoma accompanied by portal vein tumor thrombosis of type Ⅱ and type Ⅲ were randomly divided into two groups. The Child-Pugh ratings (class A and B) of group A and B were 9 vs 9 (class A) and 5 vs 7 (class B) respectively (χ~2 = 0.201, P > 0.05). The constitution of Type Ⅱ and type Ⅲ portal vein tumor thrombus in group A and B were 8 vs 9 and 6 vs 7 respectively (χ~2 =0.002, P>0.05). The median values of ALT, TBIL, ALB and AFP in group A and B were 58.7U/L vs 70.5 U/L (W=191.5, P>0.05), 21.4 μmol/L vs 21.7μmol/L (W=203, P>0.05), 35.3 g/L vs 37.5 g/L (W = 214, P > 0.05) and 680 μg/L vs 873 μg/L (W = 179. 00, P > 0.05) respectively. Group A was treated with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) using emulsion made up of adriamycin, cisplatin, mitomycin and ultraliquidlipiodol plus percutaneous injection of chemoembolization agent intra-portal vein tumor thrombosis using emulsion consisted of cisplatin and ultraliquidlipiadol, while group B was treated with TACE only as a control group. Survival analyses were performed via the Kaplan-Meier test in SPSS11.5 with the log-rank tests with an threshold of 0.05. Results The 3, 6 and 12 months survival cases of group A and B were 11 vs 10, 10 vs 3, and 7 vs 0 respectively. The median survival time of group A and group B were 14.0 months and 4.0 months respectively. The difference of the two groups was significantly (χ~2 =11.728, P<0.01). There was no severe side-effect related to therapy in both groups. Conclusion Comparing with the control group, TACE combined with percutaneous injection of chemoembolization agent intra-portal vein tumor thrombosis could significantly prolong the median survival time of patient with primary hepatic carcinoma accompanied by type Ⅱ and type Ⅲ portal vein tumor thrombosis.

Objective To discuss the technique and value of preoperative reformatting with three-dimensional computed tomography technique for C_2 pedicle screw track.Methods GE Light Speed 16 Pro spinal CT scans of 15 adult dry vertebrae were loaded into an imaging station (software ADW4.2).Two methods of C_2 pedicle screw techniques were analyzed through virtual screw trajectory by VR (volume rendering) and MPR (multiple planar reformatting) techniques,in method A,screw entry point was the intersection between the media-vertical and the cranial line of C_2 inferior facet joint,in method B,the screw track was from the cranial and medial quadrant of the dorsal part of C_2 inferior facet joint.Results The screw track could be observed dynamically from any plane.Two vertebrae were ob- served with smaller height in isthmus and the medial edge of the transverse foramen since no space was a- vailable for the screw.The screw trajectories data were compared between method A and method B,which showed that the angles towards the cephalad (in sagittal plane) and midline (in transverse plane) were bigger in method A than in method B (P＜0.05,0.01),but the safe screw diameter was smaller in method A than in method B (P＜0.05),and there was no difference of the screw length between the two methods(P＜0.05 ).Conclusion In this research,the individual C_2 pedicle screw entry points, screw diameter and security screw angle can be simulated,and the screw track can be observed dynami- cally to make sure if it transits the bone structure completely.Preoperative three-dimensional computed tomography reformatting for pedicle screw track is of great value in clinical and basic researches.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of advanced glycosylation end products (AGEs) modified bovine serum albumin (AGE-BSA) on the expression of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) in human renal mesangial cells (HRMCs).

METHODSHRMCs were cultured in vitro with medium containing different doses of AGE-BSA or BSA (50,100, 200, 400 mg/L) for 48 hours, or with AGE-BSA (200 mg/L) for different times (12, 24, 48, 72 h). Immunocytochemistry assay was used to estimate the protein level of RAGE. The ROS in cells were measured by flow cytometry and the mRNA expression of MCP-1 were analyzed by semi-quantiative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) after treatment with AGE-BSA or BSA.

RESULTSThe protein level of RAGE was upregulated in the HRMCs with AGE-BSA. The expression of ROS and MCP-1 significantly enhanced by incubation of AGE-BSA in a time- and dose-dependent manner. The effects of AGE-BSA-induced up-regulation of ROS and MCP-1 level was significantly blocked by neutralizing antibodies to RAGE, while the expression of ROS and MCP-1 stood nearly unchanged after cultured with huamn IgG.

CONCLUSIONThe expression of ROS and MCP-1 in HRMCs is induced by AGE-BSA through RAGE, which may have potential effects in the pathgenic mechanism of diabetic nephropathy.

Cells, Cultured ; Chemokine CCL2 ; metabolism ; Glycation End Products, Advanced ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Mesangial Cells ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Oxidative Stress ; drug effects ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; metabolism ; Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products ; Receptors, Immunologic ; metabolism ; Serum Albumin, Bovine ; pharmacology