Myeloid differentiation factor MyD88 is a critical adaptor molecule that integrates and transduces intracellular signals in inducing the differentiation of dendritic cells (DCs).The domain regions within MyD88 was searched,it could potentially affect the function of dendritic cells and found that MyD88 aa155-171 motif not only regulate the activity of transcription factor NF-?B, but also control the production of cytokines and expression of costimulatory molecules. Indeed, aa155-171 motif deleted type MyD88 (MyD88155-171) transfected RAW264.7 cells exhibited the reduced NF-?B and AP-1 activity and interrupted the expression of CD86 and B7H1. Meanwhile, lower level expression of cytokines such as IL-12,IFN-? were also observed by means of cytokine array in MyD88-/-DC trasfected with MyD88155-171 as compared to the MyD88 transfected cells. Thus, aa155-171 motif inside MyD88 could affect the expression of costimulatory molecules, production of cytokines and transduction of Toll like receptor signal pathway, suggesting that this motif may play an important role in regulating responses of innate immune system.

OBJECTIVETo study the chemical constituents in roots of Heracleum rapula.

METHODThe constituents were isolated by column chromatography on silica gel and ODS, and identified by spectroscopic methods.

RESULTEight compounds, xanthotoxol (I), 8-geranyloxypsoralen (II), (+)-marmesin (III), beta-sitosterol (IV), stigmasterol (V), oleanolic acid (VI), ferulic (VII), scopoletin (VIII) were isolated and identified.

CONCLUSIONCompounds IV, V, VI, VII, VIII were isolated from this plant for the first time.

Coumaric Acids ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Heracleum ; chemistry ; Oleanolic Acid ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Plant Roots ; chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Scopoletin ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Sitosterols ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Stigmasterol ; chemistry ; isolation & purification

Objective To study the prevalence of mental disorders among the Chinese youths aged 15-34 years,in rural areas and to identify risk factors related to suicide.Methods A consecutive sampling strategy was used for suicidal cases in 16 randomly selected counties in Hunan,Liaoning,and Shandong provinces.Between 2005 and 2008,a total of 392 suicide cases were recruited with 416 community controls at the same age range,selected from the same areas one family member together with one close friend of each suicidal case were interviewed,using the psychological autopsy (PA) method.The same method with structured instruments was performed on the two informants for each control in the same community.SCID was used for the diagnosis of mental disease.Results 48.0％ of the suicides were diagnosed as having at least one mental disorder episode,in comparison with only 3.8％ among the controls.It was found that mental disorder was the most important risk factor for the Chinese young suicide cases in the rural areas.Conclusion As seen in the Western countries,mental disorder had also been the number one correlate on suicidal cases in China,with the difference as other social and psychological factors might have played relatively more important roles in China.

Objective To investigate the antimicrobial resistance of nonfermenting gram-negative bacteria in China in 2012.Methods All the clinical isolates of nonfermenting gram -negative bacteria were collected from 557 tertiary hospitals from 1st January 2012 to 31st December 2012 in China.The antimicrobial susceptibilities of the isolates were de-termined by using various methods such as broth microdilution, disk diffusion, or E-test which according to CLSI 2012 guideline.The sus-ceptibility data were processed with WHONET 5.6 software.Results A total of 198334 nonfermenting gram-negative bacteria susceptibility data were obtained.Among all the isolates, the top 3 isolated nonfermenting gram-negative strains were Pseudomonas aeruginosa ( 80964 strains, 40.8%) , followed by Acinetobacter baumannii(67368 strains, 34.0%) , and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia ( 17520 strains, 8.8%).Against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, polymyxin B, tobramycin, ceftazidime, ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, cefepime, gentamicin and cefoperazone/sulbactam ( CSL) were the only agents to which >70%of isolates were susceptible.No antibiotics except polymyxin B ( 96.9%) , minocycline ( 61.4%) , amikacin (58.7%), CSL (54.3%) and tobramycin (51.3%) were active more than 50% against Acinetobacter baumannii.Susceptibility rates of carbapenem against Acinetobacter baumannii were around 49%, about 9 percentage points higher than 2011 results.There are some differences among the monitoring results from various districts in China.The suscep-tibilities of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii to the tested antimicrobial agents in Central China were generally low, whereas the antimicrobial susceptibilities of Acinetobacter baumannii from North China were genera-lly high.Conclusion The multidrug resistance of nonfermenting gram -negative bacteria, especially Acinetobacter baumannii, has become a worldwide problem.There are some differences among the susceptibilities of isolates from various districts.Polymyxin B has the most effective in vitro antimicrobial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii isolates, the emerging resistant isolates should cause enough attention.Further surveillance needed to be strengthened to prevent the further development and spread of resistant bacteria.

AIMTo explore the possible effect of the deleted in azoospermia (DAZ) copy cluster deletion on spermatogenesis in the Chinese population, the deletion of the azoospermia factor c (AZFc) region was analyzed in 346 normozoospermic men.

METHODSThree DAZ single nucleotide variant loci and seven AZFc-specific sequence-tagged sites were examined with polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-restriction fragment length polymorphism and routine PCR.

RESULTSFive (1.4%) of the normozoospermic men were found to have deletion of gr/gr-DAZ1/DAZ2. None of the men were found to have b2/b4-entire DAZ deletion.

CONCLUSIONThe presence of gr/gr-DAZ1/DAZ2 deletion in five men with normozoospermia suggests that this deletion per se may not be sufficient for spermatogenic impairment in Chinese men.

Adult ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; genetics ; China ; Chromosomes, Human, Y ; genetics ; Gene Deletion ; Humans ; Male ; Oligospermia ; genetics ; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length ; RNA-Binding Proteins ; genetics ; Recombination, Genetic ; genetics ; Sequence Tagged Sites ; Spermatogenesis ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo study the chemical constituents in roots of Heracleum rapula.

METHODThe constituents were isolated by column chromatography on silica gel and ODS, and identified by spectroscopic methods.

RESULTNine compounds, osthol ( I ), bergapten (II), xanthotoxin (III), isopimpinellin (IV), imperatorin (V), isoimperatorin (VI), cnidilin (VII), phellopterin (VIII), rivulobirin A (IX) were isolated and identified.

CONCLUSIONCompounds VI, VII, VIII, IX were isolated from this plant for the first time.

Coumarins ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Furocoumarins ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; Heracleum ; chemistry ; Plant Roots ; chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo compare the methylation patterns of imprinting control region (ICR) of H19 gene and differentially methylated region (DMR) of IGF2r gene in mature sperms derived from epididymis of Kunming mice and in vitro cultured haploid spermatids.

METHODSThe H19 ICR and IGF2r DMR2 were detected by bisulfite sequencing PCR (BSP). The results were compared with standard sequence derived from GenBank using a DNAman software.

RESULTS96.67% (15 CpG sites) of H19 ICR was found to be methylated, and 94.29% IGF2r DMR2 was found to be unmethylated in mature sperms. By contrast, 69.33% of H19 ICR and 44.29% of IGF2r DMR2 were found to be methylated in the haploid spermatids cultured in vitro. A significant difference was detected in the methylation patterns between the two types of cells (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONThe H19 ICR in mature sperm of Kunming mice was essentially methylated, while the IGF2r DMR2 was essentially unmethylated. Partial methylation loss in H19 ICR and abnormal methylation in IGF2r DMR2 were found in the haploid spermatids cultured in vitro.

Animals ; Base Sequence ; Cells, Cultured ; DNA Methylation ; Genomic Imprinting ; Germ Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; physiology ; Male ; Mice ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Spermatozoa ; cytology ; metabolism ; physiology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the therapeutic efficacy of interferon (IFN) therapy and risk of long-term administration for chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients who cannot tolerate the standard treatment.

METHODSForty-six CHC patients who had proven intolerant to standard treatments were treated with low-dose IFN (non-pegylated IFN: 60 to 300MIU QOD, or pegylated IFN: 50 to 90 mug/w) plus ribavirin (RBV; 0.6g to 0.9 g/d) for 72 weeks.

RESULTSForty-three (93.5%) of the patients were able to tolerate the long-term treatment with low-dose IFN plus RBV. Only three patients experienced severe side effects (low white blood cell and platelet counts) that required treatment withdrawal. The virology response rates over treatment time were: rapid virologic response (RVR): 10.9%; early virus response (EVR): 30.4%; 24 week virologic response: 45.7%; and, 48 week virologic response: 47.8%. B-sonographic imaging revealed that three patients experienced improved liver morphology through the treatment course. The patients who achieved RVR, EVR, or 24 weeks virologic response also attained higher 48 week virologic response. The 24 week virologic response had the strongest predictive value of good prognosis.

CONCLUSIONSOur study demonstrated that long-term treatment with low-dose interferon plus ribavirin is effective for patients who are otherwise intolerant to standard treatment. In these patients, low-dose IFN plus RBV can obtain a high virologic response rate at 48 week. Furthermore, the 24 week virologic response is sufficiently predictive of treatment success. As with any treatment regimen, it is important for healthcare workers to monitor the disease status and potential side effects throughout the course of therapy.

Adult ; Antiviral Agents ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Hepacivirus ; Hepatitis C, Chronic ; drug therapy ; virology ; Humans ; Interferons ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo investigate the expression of proline-rich tyrosine kinase-2 (Pyk2) in human primary colorectal carcinoma (CRC) and it's prognostic significance.

METHODSThe expression of Pyk2 was retrospectively examined with immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 108 tissues of primary CRC. The correlation of Pyk2 expression to prognosis and relevant clinical factors were analyzed.

RESULTSThe rate of Pyk2 low-expression in CRC was 56.5% (61/108). The expression of Pyk2 correlated significantly to the histological grade (P < 0.05) and the TNM stage (P < 0.05), while no correlation between Pyk2 expression and age, tumor size (P > 0.05). Patients with Pyk2 over-expression had significantly higher 5-year survival rate (66.0%) than those with Pyk2 low-expression (31.4%). Pyk2 expression, together with carcinoma histologic grade and TNM stage were prognostic factors to CRC on the multivariate analysis.

CONCLUSIONSPyk2 expression can be a prognostic factor to the CRC patients together with other predictors.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; enzymology ; pathology ; Female ; Focal Adhesion Kinase 2 ; metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis

Objective The aim is to investigate the correlation between bisphenol A (BPA) exposure and tumor tissue ceramide (Cer) as well as serum tumor markers in colorectal cancer (CRC). Methods The morning urine and CRC tumor tissue were collected from 84 patients with CRC. The concentration of urine BPA was determined by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometer (LC-MS), urine BPA concentration was corrected with creatinine (Cr). Cer concentration of CRC tumor tissue was detected by Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The correlations of urine BPAcr, Cer content of CRC tumor tissue and tumor markers were analyzed. Results Cer content in CRC tumor tissue was positively correlated with BPAcr (r=0.784, P＜0.001). Regression analysis showed that the regression coefficient of Cer content in CRC tumor tissue and BPAcr was 0.218 (95% CI: 0.18-0.26), which was statistically significant (P＜0.001). There were significantly differences in CRC tumor tissue Cer and urine BPAcr between the CEA positive and negative groups, CA125 positive and negative groups, and CA19-9 positive and negative groups (all P<0.05), while there was no significant difference between AFP positive and negative groups in CRC tumor tissue Cer and urine BPAcr (P=0.247). Serum CEA, CA125 and CA19-9 were positively correlated with urine BPAcr (r values were 0.348, 0.251, 0.281, respectively, all P＜0.05) and Cer content in CRC tumor tissue (r values were 0.265, 0.309, 0.263, respectively, all P＜0.05). Conclusions BPA exposure may cause an increase of Cer in CRC tumor tissue and abnormalities in serum tumor markers, suggesting that BPA exposure may participate in the development and occurance of CRC by affecting the metabolism of Cer in CRC tumor tissue.