We have studied the immunoregulatory mechanisms of CCA on treating AA rats.In vivo,the lower response of splenocytes to ConA and decreased T-suppressor cells in peripheral blood were restored to normal by CCA given orally,but the elevated IL-1 synthesis,H_2O_2 release of peritoneal macrophages(PM(?)s)and PGE_2 production of inflamed joints were reduced by it.In vitro,ConA-induced splenocytes proliferation were enhanced with 0.1-1?g/ml of CCA,but diminished with 10?g/ml of it.CCA(100?g/ml)had no effect on H_2O_2 release of PM(?)s from normal rats,but it could reduce the H_2O_2 release from AA rats.In ummary,the therapeutic effect of CCA on AA rats were dependent on the original immune state of the rats and doses of CCA administerd.

A case of the H syndrome was reported.An 18-year-old man presented with an 8-year history of progressive cutaneous sclerosis,skin hyperpigmentation,and hypertrichosis on the trunk and extremities.In addition,he suffered from short stature,hearing loss,cardiac anomaly,hepatosplenomegaly,and scrotal masses.Laboratory examination revealed hypogonadism.Cutaneous histopathologic examination showed hyperpigmentation of the basal layer with acanthosis,widespread fibrosis (moderate in dermis and severe in subcutis) and an infiltrate composed of histiocytes and plasma cells.A perivascular lymphocyte infiltrate was also observed throughout the dermis and subcutaneous fat tissue.These findings were consistent with the H syndrome.Differential diagnosis must be made with Winchester syndrome and polyneuropathy, organomegaly,endocrinopathy,M-protein and skin change (POEMS) syndrome.

Objective To detect the changes of cell invasion and proliferation in hepatocellular carcino -ma cell line HepG2 through the upregulation of miR -222.Methods The expression of miR-222 was up-reg-ulated by liposomal transfection .The expression of PTEN which is the targeting protein of miR -222 was detected by using Western Blot assay .The changes of proliferative capacity and invasive ability in HepG 2 cells after the upregulation of miR-222 were detected through MTT assay and Transwell assay .Results In Western Blot ex-periments,the expression of PTEN in transfection groups were lower than that in negative control groups and blank control groups.In MTT assay,the OD values in transfected group were higher than that in negative control group and blank control group(P<0.05).In transwell experiments,the number of penetrating cells in transfected group were higher than that in negative control group and blank control group (P<0.05).Conclusion Our results sug-gest that PTEN is significantly down regulated by the upregulation of miR -222.The proliferative capacity and inva-sive ability are raised in hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG 2 through the upregulation of miR-222.

Three cases of medallion-like dermal dendrocyte hamartoma are reported.The patients included two men and one woman,and were aged from 2 to 38 years.All the patients presented with medallion-shaped,welldefined,slightly atrophic and asymptomatic congenital patches with prominently dilated superficial veins that had grown proportionately with the body length.Histological examination revealed similar changes in all of these patients,including epidermal atrophy and dermal proliferation of spindle cells,which stained positive for CD34,factor ⅩⅢa and vimentin,but negative for S100,CD68,CDla,CD31 and smooth muscle actin (SMA).None of the patients received special therapy,and the lesions enlarged slightly with body growth within 3-4 years of follow-up after the diagnosis.

Using the fluorescence method, the effect of Luteolin ( Lut) on H2O2 release of peritoneal macrophages(M(?)s) in rat was studied. The results showed that H2O2 release of peritoneal M(?)s stimulated by op-sonized Zymosan was reduced by in vitro treatment of Lut. The inhibitory effect of Lut is in a concentration-dependent manner over the range of 4 ? 10-7-10-5mol/L. When M(?)s was cultivated with Lut for 4 h, the inhibitory effect of Lut was the most obvious.

Objective To analyse gene mutation in members of a Chinese family with Hailey-Hailey disease(HHD)and study the relationship between the genotype and clinical features of the disease.Meth-ods Genomic DNA of leucocytes were obtained from members of the Chinese family with HHD including4patients and6normal persons.Ten exons of ATP2C1gene were amplified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR)and the products were analysed by single-strand conformation polymorphism(SSCP)and direct DNA sequencing.Results A novel mutation was identified in this family.The sequence of"TGTAGCCAT"(2068→2076)was substituded by"AGATGGAACA",which caused a frame shift of open reading frame and premature termination codon(PTC)in gene ATP2C1.There was no relationship between the genotypes and the phenotypes.Conclusion Gene mutation of ATP2C1gene at exon21is the cause for HHD in this fami-ly.

Objective To study the possible relationship between human papillomaviruse (HPV) infection and external genital proliferative diseases. Methods HPV DNA was detected using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with a consensus primer and typed by using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) method in 151 paraffin-embedded biopsy specimens from seven kinds of external genital epidermal proliferative lesions. Results In 30 cases of condyloma acuminatum, HPV DNA was positive for all cases, among which HPV6 and HPV11 accounted for 60% and 26.7%, respectively. In 40 cases of bowenoid papulosis, 5 cases of genital Bowen′s disease and 6 cases of erythroplasia of Queyrat, the positive rates of HPV DNA were 55%, 100% and 33.3%, respectively, and the predominant type was HPV16. In 18 cases of external genital invasive squamous cell carcinoma HPV DNA positive rate was 27.8%, and HPV16 was detected in all of the 5 HPV-positive cases. HPV DNA was negative in 32 cases of leukoplakia and 20 cases of extramammary Paget′s disease. Conclusions Condyloma acuminatum is mainly caused by HPV6 infection, followed by HPV11; HPV16 infection is closely associated with the pathogenesis of bowenoid papulosis and external genital squmous cell carcinoma including Bowen′s disease and erythroplasia of Queyrat. In external genital invasive squamous cell carcinoma, HPV16 infection may be one of the multiple carcinogenic factors. No clear relationship is found between HPV infection and leukoplakia or extramammary Paget′s disease.

Two cases of frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA) were reported.Case 1,a 44-year-old woman,presented with progressive recession of the frontotemporal hairline for 4 years and multiple skincolored facial papules for 2 years.Skin examination showed that the frontotemporal hairline was receded,the local skin was smooth and thin,and a few remaining fine hairs could be seen.Additionally,eyebrows,axillary and pubic hairs were partly shed,and plenty of millet-sized skin-colored papules were diffusedly distributed on the frontotemporal region and bilateral mandibular angles.Dermatoscopy showed reduced hair follicular openings,different hair shaft diameters,cicatricial white patches and perifollicular erythema.Case 2,a 55-year-old woman,presented with progressive frontotemporal hair loss for 2 years.Skin examination revealed the recession of bilateral frontotemporal hairline and partial loss of eyebrows,axillary and pubic hairs.Histopathological examinations of the 2 patients both revealed perifollicular infiltration of lymphocytes,liquefaction degeneration of basal cells and perifollicular lamellar fibrosis.Clinical manifestations and histopathological features of the 2 patients both confirmed the diagnosis of FFA.

Objective To induce the mutation of HPV-16 E7 in two zinc-binding motifs near the C terminus by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and evaluate the effect of this mutation on the antigen-specific immunity of HPV-16 E7. Methods HPV-16 E7 fragment was amplified by PCR and cloned into pGEM-3zf vector. Two site mutations at 58 and 91 animo acid sites in the open reading frame of HPV-16 E7 were induced by PCR, and then the molecular clones of HPV-16 E7 wild type (pcDNA3.1/E7) and mutant (pcDNA3.1/ME7) were successfully reconstructed. Western blot and immunofluorescence were used to detect the expression of E7 protein. Results Intracellular fluorescence signals were observed in the cells transfected with pcDNA3.1/E7 and pcDNA3.1/ME7 24 hours after transfection, but the signals in the cells transfected with pcDNA3.1/ME7 disappeared 48 hours after tansfection. Twenty-four and 48 hours after transfection with pcDNA3.1/ME7, E7 protein was not detected by Western blot. Conclusions The stability of HPV-16 E7 protein is reduced by mutations (C58G, C91G) near two zinc-binding motifs. It is suggested that the zinc-binding motifs near the C terminus of HPV-16 E7 may be important for maintaining the stability of E7 protein.

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of 0.03% tacrolimus ointment for the treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD) in Chinese children. Methods A total of 139 children, 2 to17 years of age, with moderate to severe AD from 5 study centres were enrolled in this multicentre, randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled, parallel group study. Treatment with 0.03% tacrolimus ointment or vehicle was applied twice daily to the affected areas for 3 weeks. Visits were scheduled on day 1 (base line, before treatment) and 1, 2, 3 weeks after the treatment. The main therapeutic parameter was the efficacy rate at the end of the treatment. Results The efficacy rates were 84.6% and 29.0% for tacrolimus group and vehicle group, respectively (P