Objective To investigate the immunity effects of quorum sensing in the pulmonary infection in rats due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa.Method(1)300 healthy,clean Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 3 groups randomly:two different Pseudomonas aeruginosa(the wide-type Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 and its double mutant PAO-JP2,in which the quorum sensing systems were defective,embedded in minute seaweed algiante beads which was made by an ejection set with an acuminate hole were inoculated to Sprague-Dawley rats to establish animal model of chronic pulmonary infection.The control group were dealed with the same methods using the sterile brine instead.(2)The levels of antibody IgG,IgM,IgG1,IgG2a to Pseudomonas aeruginosa in sera and cytokines including interferon-?(IFN-?),Interleukin-4(IL-4)in lung homogenate was measured at 3,7,14,28 days after infection.Results(1)The mortality in the PAO1-JP2-infected group(11.0%)was significantly lower than that of the PAO1-infected group(29.7%)and the control group(4.21%).(2) Compared with the PAO-JP2 group,during the early stages of infection(3 days after infection),the IFN-?level in lung homogenates was significantly higher;during the middle stages of infection(7 days after infection),the levels of IFN-?and IL-4 of PAO1-infected rats were significantly higher;In the later stages of infection(14 to 28 days after infection),levles of IFN-?,IgG2a were lower,while levels of IL-4,IgG,IgG1 were higher persistantly in PAO1-infected rats.Conclusions Quorum sensing system play an important role in pathogenesis and immunity effects of pseudomonas aeruginosa infection via modulating the expression of virulence factors and interfering with the immune system of hosts.

Penaeidin-2 (Pen-2) is an important antimicrobial peptide derived from the Pacific white shrimp, Penaeus vannamei, and possesses both antibacterial and antifungal activities. Recent studies suggest that recombinant penaeidins show similar activities to the native Pen-2 protein. Previous researches have shown that some antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) exhibit cytotoxic activity against cancer cells. To date, there have been no studies on the antitumor effects of Pen-2. This study evaluated the potential of recombinant pen-2 (rPen-2) in the selective killing of kidney cancer cell lines ACHN and A498, and its action mechanism. MTT assays found the maximal growth inhibition of HK-2, ACHN and A498 cells treated with 100 μg/mL rPen-2 at 48 h was 13.2%, 62.4%, and 70.4%, respectively. DNA-specific fluorescent dye staining showed a high percentage of apoptosis on cancer cells. Flow cytometry revealed that the apoptosis rate of HK-2, ACHN and A498 cells was 15.2%, 55.2%, and 61.5% at 48 h respectively, suggesting that rPen-2 induced higher apoptosis rate in cancer cells than in HK-2 cells. Laser confocal scanning microscopy demonstrated that the plasma membrane was the key site where rPen-2 interacted with and destroyed tumor cells. Scanning electron microscopy showed the morphologic changes of the cell membranes of kidney cancer cells treated with rPen-2. These results suggest that rPen-2 is a novel potential therapeutic agent that may be useful in treating kidney cancers.

Objective To study the effect of lipopolysaccharide(LPS)on the endo-pulmonary natrium channel(ENaC)expression in the lung of rats with acute lung injured.Method Sixteen rats were randomly divided into normal control group and LPS-group.Rats of normal control group and LPS-group were killed at 6 hours after intravenous injection of normal saline(8 ml/kg)or LPS(8 mg/kg).The extent of lung injury was assessed by arterial blood gas analysis and histological examination.At the same time,?-ENaC protein and???- ENaC mRNA expression in the lung tissue were analyzed by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR.Results PaO_2 in LPS-group was noticeably lower than in normal control group(P

This paper introduces a random measurement analysis of, lung function measurement values with two different apparatus. in 41 patients. It shows that the differences are not statistically significant (P>0.05) between two apparatus measurement values except DLCO, FEF25, FEF75 in the group of normal ventilation, FVC in the group of abnormal ventilation. The two groups are both correlated closely (r> 0.9) except MMF(r=0.7725, RV r=0.808) in the normal group of ventilation, and FEF75 (r=0.58) in the abnormal group of ventilation (p<0.001). The two apparatus with different measuring theories have a good correlation.
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Respiratory Function Tests ; instrumentation ; methods

AIMTo discuss the merits of "tubes treatment" for esophageal fistula (EF).

METHODSA 66-year-old female who suffered from a bronchoesophageal and esophagothoratic fistula underwent a successful "three tubes treatment" (close chest drainage, negative pressure suction at the leak, and nasojejunal feeding tube), combination of antibiotics, antacid drugs and nutritional support. Another 55-year-old male patient developed an esophagopleural fistula (EPF) after esophageal carcinoma operation. He too was treated conservatively with the three tubes strategy as mentioned above towards a favorable outcome.

RESULTSThe two patients recovered with the tubes treatment, felt well and became able to eat and drink, presenting no complaint.

CONCLUSIONTubes treatment is an effective basic way for EF. It may be an alternative treatment option.

Aged ; Chest Tubes ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Drainage ; instrumentation ; methods ; Enteral Nutrition ; methods ; Esophageal Fistula ; Female ; Humans ; Intubation, Intratracheal ; methods ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Suction ; instrumentation ; methods ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinicopathological features and surgical treatment of pulmonary sclerosing hemangioma (PSH).

METHODSClinic data of PSH patients admitted by surgical resection from January 1985 to December 2010 was analyzed retrospectively. One hundred and sixty-five patients were enrolled in the study. There were 27 male and 138 female patients with a mean age of (48 ± 13) years. Seventy-nine patients were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. Eighty-nine tumors arose in the right lung (27 in right upper lobe, 24 in right middle lobe, 34 in right lower lobe, 2 in right upper lobe with invasion of right middle lobe, 1 in right middle lobe with invasion of right lower lobe, and 1 case with multiple lobe lesions), 75 in the left (33 in left upper lobe, 42 in left lower lobe), and 1 in the bilateral. There were huge mass lesions in 2 cases, endobronchial lesions in 2 cases, and multiple lesions in 6 cases. The mean size of the lesion was (2.6 ± 0.9) cm (ranging from 0.9 to 10.0 cm). Forty-eight cases (29.1%) were misdiagnosed as malignancies preoperatively, and 41 cases (24.8%) were misdiagnosed intraoperatively.

RESULTSResections were performed by means of video-assisted thoracoscopy (n = 53) and thoracotomy (n = 112). Surgical resection included pulmonary wedge excision in 61 patients, lobectomy in 89 patients, right bilobectomy in 5 patients, anatomic segmentectomy in 2 patient, enucleation in 6 patients, and synchronous bilateral pulmonary wedge resection in 1 patient. Operative mortality and morbidity occurred in 0 and 2 (4.3%) patients, respectively. Mean follow-up was 34.7 months (ranging from 6 to 62 months). There was no local recurrence or death from PSH.

CONCLUSIONSPSH is a rare benign lung tumor. It is difficult to make accurate diagnosis preoperatively, and sometimes even intraoperative frozen sections can't differentiate it from malignant tumors. Surgical resection is usually indicated for definite diagnosis and treatment. Partial resection is a sufficient treatment in view of uncommon tumor recurrence. Thoracoscopic surgery is recommended for PSH.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pneumonectomy ; Pulmonary Sclerosing Hemangioma ; diagnosis ; surgery ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo clarify the clinical feature, diagnosis and therapy of the pulmonary cryptococcosis (PC).

METHODSA retrospective study of cases with PC who were diagnosed by pathological examinations between January 1996 and December 2010 was conducted. Eighty-one cases were enrolled in the study (58 male and 23 female patients; mean age of (51±11) years). Forty-one cases were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. There were single pulmonary lesions in 50 cases, and multiple lesions in 31 cases. Fourteen lesions (17.3%) were located in left upper lobe, 27 (33.3%) in left lower lobe, 21 (25.9%) in right upper lobe, 3 (3.7%) in right middle lobe, 28 (34.6%) in right lower lobe, and 3 (3.7%) diffusely involved bilateral lungs. The tumors ranged from 0.8 to 10.0 cm in diameter with a mean of (2.9±1.8) cm. All the cases were misdiagnosis prior to the surgical resection, and histologically confirmed by postoperative pathological specimens.

RESULTSAll the cases received surgical treatment including complete resection in 69 cases, and palliative resection in 12 cases. Resections were performed by means of video-assisted thoracoscopy in 31 cases and thoracotomy in 50 cases. Surgical resections included pulmonary wedge excisions in 42 cases, and lobectomies in 39 cases. After histological confirmation, 63 cases (77.8%) were treated with antifungal agents, which consisted of fluconazole in 38 cases, itraconazole in 18 cases, amphotericin B in 6 cases, and flucytosine in 4 cases. There were no intraoperative death, but two cases died for cryptococcal meningoencephalitis in the postoperative period. Operative morbidity occurred in 7 (8.6%) cases. The median follow-up was 42.5 months (6 to 84 months). There were 2 local relapses of PC, and 9 cases with complications of anti-fungal agents.

CONCLUSIONSThe clinical manifestations of PC are mild and non-specific, with no characteristic radiographic manifestations. Surgical resection is usually indicated for definite diagnosis and treatment. Antifungal drug therapy is indispensable even after complete resection.

Adult ; Aged ; Antifungal Agents ; therapeutic use ; Cryptococcosis ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; surgery ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Lung ; microbiology ; pathology ; Lung Diseases, Fungal ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

Penaeidin-2 (Pen-2) is an important antimicrobial peptide derived from the Pacific white shrimp, Penaeus vannamei, and possesses both antibacterial and antifungal activities. Recent studies suggest that recombinant penaeidins show similar activities to the native Pen-2 protein. Previous researches have shown that some antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) exhibit cytotoxic activity against cancer cells. To date, there have been no studies on the antitumor effects of Pen-2. This study evaluated the potential of recombinant pen-2 (rPen-2) in the selective killing of kidney cancer cell lines ACHN and A498, and its action mechanism. MTT assays found the maximal growth inhibition of HK-2, ACHN and A498 cells treated with 100 μg/mL rPen-2 at 48 h was 13.2%, 62.4%, and 70.4%, respectively. DNA-specific fluorescent dye staining showed a high percentage of apoptosis on cancer cells. Flow cytometry revealed that the apoptosis rate of HK-2, ACHN and A498 cells was 15.2%, 55.2%, and 61.5% at 48 h respectively, suggesting that rPen-2 induced higher apoptosis rate in cancer cells than in HK-2 cells. Laser confocal scanning microscopy demonstrated that the plasma membrane was the key site where rPen-2 interacted with and destroyed tumor cells. Scanning electron microscopy showed the morphologic changes of the cell membranes of kidney cancer cells treated with rPen-2. These results suggest that rPen-2 is a novel potential therapeutic agent that may be useful in treating kidney cancers.
Animals ; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides ; genetics ; pharmacology ; Antineoplastic Agents ; pharmacology ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Arthropod Proteins ; genetics ; pharmacology ; Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor ; Humans ; Kidney Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; pathology ; Penaeidae ; genetics ; Recombinant Proteins ; genetics ; pharmacology

OBJECTIVETo study the influence of C-terminal domain of ADAMTS13 on its cleaving activity.

METHODSThe full-length wild-type (WT) and C-terminal domain truncated type (TT, TSP8 + CUB domains were deleted) of human ADAMTS13 recombinant protein were transfected into and permanent expressed on Hela cells. Western blot and R-CBA were used to directly detect the activities of the two recombinant proteins under the static and stressed condition respectively. ELISA was used to compare the binding abilities of the two proteins by coating with vWF.

RESULTSThe recombinant proteins were identified by Western blot with anti-his-tag or anti-ADAMTS13 antibodies. With pretreatment of 1.5 M urea, the enzyme activity of TT was significantly higher than that of WT, and so did in binding ability with vWF While, only WT could cleave vWF under high stress.

CONCLUSIONThe distal carboxyl-terminal TSP8 together with CUB domains of ADAMTS13 may affect the enzyme activity by regulating the binding of ADAMTS13 to vWF in different conditions, and they are very important for the enzyme activity under high stress force condition.

Galium ; Humans ; Recombinant Proteins ; metabolism ; Transfection ; von Willebrand Factor ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of transcatheter hepatic arterial chemoembolization (TACE) therapy on the survival and prognosis of recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after surgical resection.

METHODSThe data of 130 surgically resected but recurrent HCC patients treated by TACE were reviewed retrospectively. The survival and influencing factors on the prognosis were analyzed.

RESULTSThe overall 1-, 3-, 5-year survival rates of these 130 patients were 83.0%, 45.5% and 17.6% respectively (median survival time 2.4 years). Ninty-four of the series were treated with TACE alone, which gave the 1-, 3- year survival rates of 76.4% and 37.1%, respectively (median survival time 2.1 years). Thirty-six out of 130 patients treated with TACE plus percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI), the 1-, 3-year survival rates were 100.0% and 66.5% respectively with a median survival time (MST) of 3.5 years. The survival of TACE plus PEI group was significantly better, and the mortality risk was significantly lower than that of TACE alone group (P < 0.05). The mortality risk of those with > 5 cm diameter recurrent tumor or with distant metastasis was significantly higher than those with < or = 5 cm diameter tumor or without metastasis (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONTACE combined with PEI may improve the survival of recurrent HCC patients.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; administration & dosage ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; pathology ; therapy ; Chemoembolization, Therapeutic ; Child ; Cisplatin ; administration & dosage ; Ethanol ; administration & dosage ; Female ; Fluorouracil ; administration & dosage ; Hepatic Artery ; Humans ; Iodized Oil ; administration & dosage ; Liver Neoplasms ; pathology ; therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mitomycin ; administration & dosage ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; therapy ; Postoperative Period ; Treatment Outcome