Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ; drug therapy ; epidemiology ; Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active ; adverse effects ; methods ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; HIV Infections ; drug therapy ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Male ; Minority Groups

AIMTo explore the changes of mRNA and protein expressions of heart-type fatty acid binding protein (H-FABP) in rat ischemic myocardium at different intervals ischemia.

METHODS60 SD male rats weighing 250-350 g, were randomly divided into one sham-operated group and five study groups (group A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, the left coronary artery of rats has been ligated for 1 h, 2 h, 4 h, 6 h, 12 h respectively). Myocardil samples from infarct zone, ischemic and non-ischemic zone, were obtained for histology examination, and the mRNA for H-FABP in ischemic myocardial tissue were determined by RT-PCR. Serum free fatty acid(FFA) was determined by colorimetric method.

RESULTSCompared to sham hearts, H-FABP mRNA expression were significantly decreased in ischemia zone of AMI rat hearts (P < 0.05), especially in rats underwent 4 h ischemia and 6 h ischemia (P < 0.01). Serum FFA were significantly increased in AMI rats relative to sham rats (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSignificant down-regulated heart-type fatty acid binding protein after myocardial ischemia might play an important role in myocardial injury and energy metabolism disorder.

Animals ; Down-Regulation ; Fatty Acid-Binding Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Male ; Myocardial Infarction ; metabolism ; Myocytes, Cardiac ; metabolism ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; metabolism ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the significance of the expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in prostate cancer (PCa) and its clinical association.

METHODSFifty one cases of PCa and 10 cases of BPH were studied by immunohistochemical method using monoclonal antibodies to MMP2 and MMP9.

RESULTSThere was significant correlation between MMP2 or MMP9 and pathological grade, Gleason score and PCa metastasis.

CONCLUSIONThe expression of MMP2 and MMP9 may play an important role in the development and metastasis of PCa.

Aged ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Male ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 ; biosynthesis ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 ; biosynthesis ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of metoprolol on electrophysiology of ischemic and anoxic myocardium in diabetic rats.

METHODSForty Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were divided into 4 groups: diabetes group; diabetes and ablation of left sympathetic nerve group; diabetes and metoprolol group and sham group. The diabetes model was induced by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ, 60 mg/kg). The ventricular diastolic effective threshold (DET), effective refractive period (ERP), and Ventricular fibrillation threshold (VFT) were measured. The serum concentration of nerve growth factor (NGF) was measured.

RESULTSMetoprolol increased DET of ischemic and anoxic myocardium in diabetic rats. The ablation of the left sympathetic nerve increased VFT of diabetic rats. VFT in metoprolo group was significantly increased compared to diabetes group after ischemia. The concentrations of NGF in diabetic group and metoprolol group were higher than those in sham group. There were no difference in NGF levels between ablation of left sympathetic nerve group and sham group.

CONCLUSIONThe remodeling of sympathetic nerve affects the electrophysiology of ischemic myocardium of diabetic rats. Metoprolol can increase the VFT and decrease the excitation threshold of the ischemic myocardium in diabetic rats.

Animals ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; physiopathology ; Heart ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Male ; Metoprolol ; pharmacology ; Myocardial Ischemia ; physiopathology ; Nerve Growth Factor ; blood ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Sympathectomy

AIMTo determine the protective effect of ONO-1078, a leukotriene receptor antagonist, on focal cerebral ischemia induced by endothelin-1 in rats.

METHODSSlow microinjection of endothelin-1 (120 pmol in 6 microL, for > 6 min) into the region near the middle cerebral artery was used to induce focal cerebral ischemia. ONO-1078 (0.1 mg.kg-1) was i.p. injected 1 h before endothelin-1 injection. Neurological symptoms, brain edema, brain infarction size, and the survival neurons in cortex and striatum were observed 24 h after ischemia.

RESULTSIntracerebral microinjection of endothelin-1 induced remarkable neurological symptoms, brain infarction, brain edema, and decrease of survival neurons in the cortex and striatum. In rats pretreated with ONO-1078, endothelin-1-induced brain edema and brain infarction size were decreased. The numbers of survival neurons in striatum and cortex were increased significantly. The neurological symptoms were improved but not significantly.

CONCLUSIONONO-1078 possesses neuroprotective effect against cerebral ischemic injury induced by endothelin-1, therefore, leukotrienes may play a role in the injury of cerebral ischemia.

Animals ; Behavior, Animal ; drug effects ; Brain Edema ; pathology ; Brain Ischemia ; chemically induced ; pathology ; Cerebral Cortex ; pathology ; Cerebral Infarction ; pathology ; Chromones ; pharmacology ; Corpus Striatum ; pathology ; Endothelin-1 ; Leukotriene Antagonists ; pharmacology ; Male ; Neurons ; drug effects ; Neuroprotective Agents ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Objective To observe the efficacy and safety of applying sirolimus-eluting stents in emergency percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for the patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI).Methods In total,220 patients with AMI were enrolled in this study at Shanghai Tongji Hospital, divided into two groups,one with bare-metal stent and the other with sirolimus-eluting stent.Cardiovascular fatality,major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and target vessel revascularization (TVR) were observed one and six months after PCI in the two groups.Results There was no significant difference in overall fatality and MACE in the 1~(st) or 6~(th) months after PCI between the two groups.Three cardiogenic deaths occurred in bare-metal stent group with a fatality of 2.8 percent,and five deaths in sirolimus-eluting stent group with a fatality of 4.5 percent in six months after PCI.However,rate of restenosis in those with sirolimus-eluting stents was significantly lower than that of bare-metal stents (6.0 percent vs 16.1 percent,P

Objective In this study,we investigated the relationship between oxidative stress,selenoproteins level and onset of Keshan disease (KD) through detecting the expression of 8-hydroxy-2-deoxy guanosine (8-OH-dG),thioredoxin reductase 1 (TrxR1) and glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPx1) in myocardial tissue.Methods Myocardium samples of autopsy patients including 8 cases of KD (KD group included 4 acute KD and 4 chronic KD) and 9 cases of non-KD (control group) were immunohistochemically stained for 8-OH-dG,TrxR1 and GPx1.The staining intensities subsequently quantified by using Olympus Image-Pro Plus 6.0 software.Results The positive rate of 8-OH-dG expression in myocardial nuclei was higher in the case group[(68.6 ± 20.4)％] than that of the control group[(2.4 ± 1.5)％,t =8.515,P ＜ 0.05].In addition,the positive rate of 8-OH-dG expression in acute KD[(91.7 ± 3.7)％] was significantly higher than that of chronic KD[(53.2 ± 7.9)％,t =6.409,P＜0.05].The distribution of TrxR1 and GPx1 was not associated with the distribution of myocardial damage.The expression of these two selenoproteins in KD group (401340 ± 59865,497590 ± 197082) were both lower than that of control group(2790300 ± 379298,1348400 ±615840; t =-28.493,-6.016,respectively,all P＜0.01).Conclusions Oxidative damage is detected in myocardium tissue of KD,and 8-OH-dG expression is associated with the degree of myocardial damage in KD.Selenoproteins,TrxR1 and GPx1,may be closely related to the pathogenesis of KD.

OBJECTIVETo use a mathematical model and computer simulation to study transmission dynamics and control of schistosomiasis in mountainous regions of Sichuan.

METHODSBased on studies of schistosomiasis japonica transmission in 20 villages in mountainous regions of Sichuan, a mathematical model was developed to characterize the impact of local environmental factors on transmission intensity. The model integrated site-specific factors and was calibrated to field epidemiological data from 3 subset villages. The dichotomic method was then used to predict different control measures.

RESULTSThe study showed high variations in prevalence of infection and infection intensity across villages, ranging between 3%-73%, 0.1-100 epg (eggs per gram stool), respectively. Important factors including occupation of local residents, exposure to contaminated water, microclimatic characteristics were integrated in the model. The predictions of dichotomic models showed that continuing chemotherapy (coverage between 50%-60%) could reduce infection intensities to 30%-80%, but could not change local transmission potential; therefore, the termination of chemotherapy would be followed by bouncing back of transmission. Sustaining targeted environmental interventions through snail and parasite oval control at certain coverage (30%-50%, respectively) could reduce the transmission to relatively stable levels. The model predictions showed that an integrated control (e.g., including both chemotherapy and environmental interventions) could suppress the transmission to an undetectable level even interruption of transmission between 5-10 years.

CONCLUSIONThe study demonstrated the feasibility of using a dynamic model, calibrated to local data, to gain insights into complicated processes underlying the transmission and informing site-specific control strategies.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Animals ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; Environment ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Models, Theoretical ; Schistosoma japonicum ; Schistosomiasis japonica ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; transmission ; Snails ; parasitology

Interferon a gene was cloned from genomic DNA of Chinese Luxi yellow cattle by PCR, and the PCR product was inserted into vector pET32a( + ) to make a recombinant plasmid pET32a( + )/BoIFN-alpha. The expression of BoIFN-alpha in Escherichia coli was induced by addition of IPTG. Sequence analysis showed that the Chinese Luxi yellow cattle IFN-alpha gene is composed of 498 nucleotides, encoding a mature polypeptide of 166 amino acids. Compared with other BoIFN-alpha subtypes, it shares the highest identity of 97.6% to the C-subtype. SDS-PAGE results showed that recombinant proteins were expressed in inclusion bodies in Escherichia coli with molecular weight of 40 kD and the recombinant proteins accounted for 26.7% of the whole proteins.The expressed product was purified by affinity chromatography with immobilized nickel chelating NTA (Ni-NTA) and its antiviral activities were tested on MDBK/VSV cell system. Its antiviral activities were 5 x 10(5) u/mg on MDBK/VSV cell system. The results showed that the expression plasmid was successfully constructed and BoIFN-alpha C2 protein was expressed in Escherichia coli. Moreover the purification had good effects on antiviral activities.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Animals ; Antiviral Agents ; isolation & purification ; Base Sequence ; Cattle ; genetics ; Escherichia coli ; genetics ; metabolism ; Interferon-alpha ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Recombinant Fusion Proteins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Rotavirus ; drug effects ; Sequence Analysis

BACKGROUNDEfficient cell adhesion and proliferation is a central issue in cell-based tissue engineering, which offers great promise for repair of urethral defects or strictures. This study evaluated the adhesion and growth of rabbit uroepithelium on a surface-modified three-dimensional poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) scaffold.

METHODSUrethral mucosa were harvested from male New Zealand rabbits and the urothelium were dissociated and then cultured. Immunocytochemistry on cultured uroepithelium for pancytokeratin and uroplakin II and TE-7 confirmed pure populations. After in vitro proliferation, cells were seeded onto a surface-modified urethral scaffold with non-knitted filaments. The morphology and viability of the cells were examined by immunohistochemical and fluorescence staining. Inverted and scanning microscopes were used to document cell growth and adhesion.

RESULTSThree to five days after primary culture, the uroepithelial cells gradually became confluent, assuming a cobblestone pattern. The filaments of the urethral scaffold had excellent biocompatibility and allowed growth of the uroepithelium, without affecting viability. The uroepithelial cells adhered to and grew well on the scaffold. After 3 - 7 days, the cells grew vigorously and meshes of the scaffold were full of uroepitheliums.

CONCLUSIONSThe surface-modified urethral scaffold with non-knitted filaments allows the growth of uroepithelium and can serve as a carrier for the tissue engineering of urethra.

Absorbable Implants ; Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Epithelial Cells ; physiology ; Lactic Acid ; Male ; Polyesters ; Polymers ; Rabbits ; Tissue Engineering ; methods ; Urethra ; cytology