Objective To study the effects of extracted active components of Chaenomeles Speciosa (EACCS) on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in mice; To discuss the possible molecular mechanism. Methods Forty male KM mice were randomized into four groups, namely normal group, model group, low-dose (50 mg/kg) EACCS group and high-dose (100 mg/kg) EACCS group. Except that the normal group was daily given routine diet, the other groups were given high-fat–high-fructose diet (HFFD). The mice were put to death 4 weeks later. Body weight, liver weight and serum TG were measured. HE and oil red O staining were used to observe liver tissue morphology. RT-PCR and Western blot were used to detect the expression of lipid metabolism related genes. Results Compared with the normal group, the liver size, liver index (P<0.01) and epididymal fat index (P<0.05) increased significantly;The ALT and GLU in serum increased (P<0.05), TG increased (P<0.05), and pathological findings showed significant steatosis; RT-PCR and Western blot showed that the expression levels of SIRT1 and FoxO1 mRNA decreased and the level of SERBP-1c increased in the model group. Compared with the model group, the hepatic lipid accumulation of EACCS groups was obviously improved, and the serum ALT, GLU, and TG levels significantly decreased, the expression levels of hepatic SIRT1 and FoxO1 mRNA increased. Conclusion EACCS has protective effects on NAFLD mice induced by HFFD, and its mechanism may be related to the activation of SIRT1-FoxO1 signaling pathway in the liver tissues.

Objective To investigate the prognostic value of vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C) and clinicopathologic indexes in predicting recurrence following curative resection of pancreatic cancer. Methods The expressions of VEGF-C of 47 patients who underwent curative resection for curative pancreatic cancer resection were detected by Envision immunohistochemical methods. The effects of VEGF-C and clinicopathologic indexes on recurrence were assessed by the Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards model. Results The positive rates of VEGF-C were 61. 7% in = 29) and 14. 9%(n = 7), respectively, in pancreatic cancer and normal pancreatic tissues. The positive expression of VEGF-C in pancreatic carcinoma was obviously higher than the normal pancreatic tissues (P = 0. 018). The median disease-free survival time was 11. 9 months, the average disease-free survival time was 18. 4 + 2. 4 months, and the cumulative 1-year, 2-year and 3-year actuarial recurrence free survival rates were 46. 8%, 23. 4%, 14. 4%, respectively. There was a significant correlation between the VEGF-C expression and lymph node metastasis in pancreatic cancer (P = 0. 036). On Kaplan-Meier analysis, VEGF-C (P = 0. 020), tumor diameter (P = 0. 013), age (P = 0. 057) and adjuvant chemotherapy (P=0. 017) were associated with disease-free survival time. Multivariate analysis showed VEGF-C (P = 0. 009), tumor diameter (P = 0. 010) and adjuvant chemotherapy (P = 0. 017)were independent prognostic factors of disease-free survival after surgery for pancreatic cancer.Conclusion The expression of VEGF-C was higher in pancreatic cancer, and VEGF-C was correlated with lymph node metastasis. VEGF-C was the biomarker that independently predicted disease-free survival after surgery for pancreatic cancer.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the rule of lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer and its affecting factors, and to provide clues for clinical diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancer patients.

METHODSThe clinical data of 1166 cases of colorectal cancer receiving surgical resection were analyzed retrospectively.The relationships between clinicopathologic variables and lymph node metastases were evaluated by crosstabs and logistic regression in SPSS 10.0 for windows.

RESULTSThe rate of lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer was 49.7%. After entering crosstabs estimation, gender and tumor site were not significantly correlated with lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer(chi2=1.46, r=0.035, P>0.05 and chi2=3.86, r=0.012, P>0.05). Age, tumor size, the massive type of the tumor, the differentiating degree of the tumor, histology type and the depth of tumor invasion were proved to be independent factors influencing the lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer (chi2 =13.1, r=0.064, P<0.05 and chi2=77.161, r=0.245, P<0.01 and chi2=144.831, r=0.341, P<0.01 and chi2=128.310, r=0.318, P<0.01 and chi2=120.418, r=0.319, P<0.01 and chi2=227.287, r=0.434, P<0.01). After entering logistic regression estimation, the correlativity of risk factor of lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer: the depth of tumor invasion > the massive type of the tumor>the differentiating degree of the tumor > tumor size. Preoperative blood serum CEA level was significantly correlated with lymph node metastasis (chi2=509.599, r=0.661, P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONThe depth of tumor invasion is the most risk factor of lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer. Preoperative high level of blood serum CEA indicates the occurrence of lymph node metastasis.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Carcinoembryonic Antigen ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; blood ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Invasiveness ; Neoplasm Staging ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Young Adult

As one of the most important biological drugs, protein and peptide drugs have been increasingly used in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases in recent years. However, most of them need to be injected and lack of long-acting formulations, which brings many troubles to patients suffering from chronic diseases. In this review, we summarized the strategies for engineering long-acting formulations for proteins and peptides via preparation means, including extended-release injection, implant, oral preparations and transdermal drug delivery systems, and analyzed their release mechanisms, research advances, advantages and shortcomings, thereby providing potential approaches for promoting the formulation improvement of these drugs.

Cardiovascular Diseases/genetics* ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Humans ; Sequence Analysis, RNA

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of chronic, non-specific inflammatory diseases of the gastrointestinal tract including primarily Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, which are affected by multiple factors. Periodontitis is a type of disease characterized by plaque biofilm as the initiating factor and chronic destruction of alveolar bone via resorption. An increasing number of studies have reported a correlation between periodontitis and IBD, but the relationship between the two remains unclear. In this study, we explore the internal relationships between the two diseases from three dimensions, including epidemiological, biological, and associated treatment evidence. Based on epidemiological evidence, periodontitis was found to be associated with an increased risk of IBD, which also affects periodontal health, although the bidirectional correlation needs to be further studied by expanding the number of data sources. From the biological evidence, both clinical studies and animal experiments show that IBD and periodontitis are interconnected. Based on evidence from association therapy, drugs that are beneficial for the treatment of IBD are also effective in the prevention and treatment of periodontitis. In addition, drugs that are good for improving periodontitis can also significantly alleviate IBD. The interaction mechanism between IBD and periodontitis includes the microbial pathway and the immunization route. The microbial pathway refers to the increase in the probability of intestinal tract ectopic colonization by oral bacteria transmitted through the mouth-gut axis or blood, resulting from the increase in the proportion of opportunistic pathogens in the oral cavity of patients with periodontitis and the influence of IBD on the secretion of gastric juice and the balance of intestinal flora. These microorganisms further aggravate IBD inflammation by releasing virulence factors, destroying the intestinal mucosal barrier, and triggering inflammatory responses. In periodontitis, adaptive immunity is activated in the mouth, leading to the production of a large number of immune cells, including Th17 containing the intestinal homing marker α4β7 integrin on their surface. Increased ligand expression of α4β7 integrin in the intestinal mucosa of patients with IBD accelerates oral Th17 cell transfer to the intestine, thereby worsening intestinal inflammation. In parallel, the abnormal expression of cytokines, such as TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-10, IL-6, IL-21, soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L), IL-23, and INF-γ, in the oral cavity of patients with IBD was observed, suggesting that IBD may affect periodontitis through immunity. These cytokines represent targets for the treatment of both diseases and provide a research direction for their prevention and treatment in the future.

This study aimed to investigate the molecular mechanism and protective effect of total saponins of Panax japonicas (TSPJ) on HepG2 cells apoptosis induced by palmitic acid (PA).The HepG2 cells were cultured , and divided into five groups: the control group, the model group, the high-dose group (50 mg·L⁻¹), the middle-dose group (25 mg·L⁻¹) and the low-dose group (12.5 mg·L⁻¹).The cells of the five groups were cultured continuously for 24 hours. The cell viability was measured with MTT. HepG2 cells apoptosis was detected by Hoechest staining and Annexin V-FITC/PI staining. The protein expressions of BCL-2, CHOP and TLR4 were measured with western blotting and flow cytometry analysis. The mRNA expressions of TNF-α, IL-1β, BCL-2, CHOP and GAPDH were measured with RT-PCR. The results suggested that compared with the control group, the number of HepG2 cells of the model group were reduced significantly (<0.01), while the number of apoptotic HepG2 cells were increased. Compared with the model group, the number of HepG2 cells of the high-dose group and the middle-dose group were increased significantly (<0.01), whereas the number of apoptotic HepG2 cells were reduced. Compared with the control group, TNF-α, IL-1β and CHOP mRNA expressions and CHOP and TLR4 protein expressions in the model group were significantly up-regulated (<0.01), while BCL-2 protein and mRNA expressions in the model group were significantly decreased (<0.01). Compared with the model group, TNF-α, IL-1β and CHOP mRNA expressions and CHOP and TLR4 protein expressions in the high-dose group were significantly decreased (<0.01), while BCL-2 protein and mRNA expressions in the high-dose group were significantly up-regulated (<0.01).In conclusion, TSPJ can reduce inflammation and apoptosis induced by palmitic acid, with a certain protective effect on liver cells.
Apoptosis ; Hep G2 Cells ; Humans ; Palmitic Acids ; Panax ; chemistry ; Phytochemicals ; pharmacology ; Saponins ; pharmacology

To study sesquiterpenes with anti-metastasis breast cancer activity from Chloranthus henryi, ten sesquiterpenes ,zedoarofuran (1), chlorajapolide D (2), 4β, 8β-dihydroxy-5α(H)-eudesm-7(11)-en-8, 12-olide (3), curcolonol (4), lasianthuslactone A (5), chlomultin C (6), (1E,4Z)-8-hydroxy-6-oxogermacra-1(10), 4, 7(11) -trieno-12, 8-lactone (7), shizukanolide E (8) , shizukanolide F (9) , 9α-hydroxycurcolonol (10), and five bis-sesquiterpenes, shizukaol B (11), shizukaol C (12) , cycloshizukaol A (13) , sarcandrolide B (14) , henriol A(15), were isolated by using different kinds of column chromatography methods from the ethyl acetate part of Ch.henryi and their structures were identified based on spectroscopic methods. Compounds 2, 8, 9, and 10 were obtained from the genus Chloranthus for the first time. Compounds 2, 5, 8-10, 12,and 14 were obtained from this plant for the first time. Some isolated compounds were subjected to evaluate the anti-metastasis breast cancer activity by using pharmacological methods, and only compounds 4, 11, and 12 were potent active.

Objective:To investigate the epidemiology, risk factors and biochemical indexes of nutritional status in children and adolescents aged 2~18 years in Southwest China.Methods:Children attending routine health checkups at the Children′s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University between April 2017 and March 2021 were enrolled in this study.Nutritional status was defined based on BMI cut-off values, and statistically analyzed based on gender, region and age.Its risk factors were analyzed by multivariate Logistic regression.Results:A total of 22 609 cases were recruited and the overall prevalence of wasting, overweight and obesity was 5.87%, 9.81% and 10.50%, respectively.The prevalence of obesity and wasting in boys was higher than that in girls ( χ2=24.79, 12.39, all P<0.05), and the prevalence of overweight in boys was lower than that in girls( χ2=4.32, P<0.05). The prevalence of overweight among boys in urban regions was higher than that in rural regions( χ2=4.68, P<0.05). Compared in three age groups, boys aged 12~18 years had the highest prevalence of obesity( χ2=12.49, P<0.01), while girls had the lowest prevalence of wasting( χ2=6.18, P<0.05). Compared with boys, girls had a lower risk of obesity and wasting ( OR=0.80, 95% CI: 0.73~0.87), ( OR=0.80, 95% CI: 0.71~0.90). Compared to children aged 12~18 years, children aged 2~<6 years had a lower risk of obesity ( OR=0.55, 95% CI: 0.46~0.67), while children aged 6~<12 years had a higher risk of wasting ( OR=1.70, 95% CI: 1.25~2.33). Significant differences were reported in ALT, AST, ALP, UA, UN, CRE, TG, TC, HDL-C and LDL-C levels in obese children (all P<0.05). Conclusion:The nutritional status of children and adolescents in Southwest China is comparable to that at the national level.The prevalence of obesity and wasting is associated with gender and age.Obese children are more likely to have biochemical abnormalities.