Objective To get phagc's capsid Vp3 gene and protein of guinea pig inclusion conjunctivitis (GPIC) chlamydia. Methods The genome DNA was extracted from the φCPG1 phage.The full sequence of Vp3 gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from the above genome DNA. The Vp3 gene was digested by restriction endonuclease and then inserted into prokaryotic plasmid vector pET30a (+). The recombinant plasmid was transformed into E. coil BL21, and was identified by restriction endonuclease, PCR and sequencing. The E. coil BL21 with expected recombinant plasmid was induced and the expressed recombinant Vp3 protein was identified by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and Western blot, then purified by agarose gel. Results The recombinant gene was sequenced and proved to be 447 bp which was consistent with the φCPG1 Vp3 gene sequence in GenBank. A 25 000 capsid protein was expressed and confirmed by SDS-PAGE and Western blot. The purified protein was obtained. Conclusion The capsid Vp3 protein of φCPG1 is successfully expressed and purified, which is helpful for the further study on its mechanism and clinical applications.

Objective To compare the infectivity of several transformed Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) mouse pneumonitis (Mopn) strains to host cells, and to identify cell invasion-related virulence genes in Chlamydial plasmids. Methods Several Ct strains, including wild-type Ct Mopn strain(WT strain), plasmid-free Ct strain(CMUT3 strain), Ct Mopn strain transformed with the shuttle vector carrying pGFP and the complete C. muridarum (CM) plasmid (pGFP::CM strain)and Ct Mopn strains transformed with shuttle vectors carrying pGFP and mutant CM plasmids with in-frame deletions of Pgp3, 4, 5 or 7 (pGFP::CM△Pgp3, 4, 5, 7 strains), were cultured, amplified and collected. After the concentrations of Ct were determined, each of these strains was divided into four groups to be inoculated at a same amount(1.5 × 104 inclusion forming units(IFU)) followed by four different treatments respectively: centrifugalization +DEAE group treated with centrifugalization followed by ion-exchange chromatography on diethylaminoethyl(DEAE)-cellulose columns, centrifugalization group treated with centrifugalization only, DEAE group treated with chromatography on DEAE-cellulose columns only, control group receiving no treatment. After additional culture for 20 - 24 hours, indirect immunofluorescence assay was performed to count the number of chlamydial inclusions. At 20, 40 and 60 hours after infection, the growth rate and area of chlamydial plaques were assessed after three continuous passages. Lugol′s iodine staining was conducted to observe glycogen synthesis in bacterial inclusions. Results The inclusion number in the centrifugalization + DEAE group, centrifugalization group, DEAE group and control group was 10.20 ± 1.30, 6.80 ± 0.44, 3.00 ± 1.22 and 0.80 ± 0.45 respectively for the pGFP::CM△Pgp4 strain, 6.40 ± 0.89, 3.80 ± 0.83, 1.60 ± 0.89 and 0.60 ± 0.54 respectively for the CMUT3 strain. Under same experiment conditions, the pGFP::CM△Pgp4 strain and CMUT3 strain showed similar infectivity, and formed less inclusions compared with the other Ct strains (all P < 0.01). The number of inclusions formed by the same Ct strains were significantly different among the 4 groups(F = 845.310, P <0.01), and were highest in the centrifugalization + DEAE group for all the strains. The pGFP::CM△Pgp4 strain showed significantly lower growth rate and area of plaques with an abnormality in glycogen accumulation compared with the other strains at 20, 40 and 60 hours after infection. Conclusion The plasmid-encoding gene Pgp4 may be a cell invasion-associated virulence gene in chlamydial plasmids.

Objective To express recombinant Vp1 protein of chlamydiaphage φCPG1, prepare monoclonal antibody against Vp1 protein and utilize it to screen clinical isolates of Chlamydia trachomatis. Methods The Vp1 protein was obtained by prokaryotic expression, and monoclonal antibody against this protein was prepared by hybridoma technique. ELISA and Western blot were used to identify monoclonal antibodies. Then,the monoclonal antibody was prepared in quantity by injecting hybridoma cells into the abdominal cavity of BALB/C mice, and purified by using protein G affinity chromatography. Clinical isolates of Chlamydia trachomatis were screened for the chlamydiaphage by immumofluorescence assay using the prepared monoclonal antibody.Results Purified Vp1 protein was obtained. The monoclonal antibody against Vp1 protein was gained after 3times of sub-clone and consistently identified as IgG1. Three hybridoma cell strains that stably secreted monoclonal antibody were generated. Chromosome analysis of hybridoma cells showed that the mean number of chromosome was 96, most of them were telocentric and a few were submetacentric. The titer of purified monoclonal antibody was more than 1: 12 800. Twenty clinical isolates were screened by using the monoclonal antibody and no positive results were obtained. Conclusions The monoclonal antibody against Vp1 protein of chlamydiaphage φCPG1 is successfully prepared, while no chlamydiaphage is detected by immumofluorescence assay using the prepared antibody in 20 clinical isolates of Ct.

Since initiation of training on laboratory of molecular biology in my school, we accumulated experience in teaching process especially among international students and application of pedagogy as well as technology. Strengths, weakness and opportunities are analyzed to improve teaching quality.

To observe the influence of the placental apoptosis on the expression of Bax,Bcl-2, Fas, FasLand TNF-α during the second trimester of pregnancy, mice of experimental group were intraperitoneal injected with 100 purified Toxoplasma gondii tachyzoites added in 0.2mL of PBS, while those of the control group were injected with 0.2 mL of sterile PBS (0.01 mol/L, pH 7.4) in the 8-th day of pregnancy. During the 12, 14, 16 and 18-th days of pregnancy, 5 mice both in experimental and control group were randomly killed and the expression levels of the apoptosis-related proteins Bax, Bcl-2, Fas, FasL and TNF-α in the placental tissues were determined by means of immunohistochemical methods. It was showed that the apoptosis-related protein expressed both in villus and decidua of the placenta, most of which were expressed in syneytiotrophoblast (ST). The positive cells with expression of Bax, Fas, FasL and TNF-α increased along with the increase of the pregnant days in both the experimental group and the control group, and the positive cells with expression of Bcl-2 decreased along with the increase of the pregnant days. It was also demonstrated that the positive cells with expression of Bax, Fas, FasL and TNF-α of the experimental group showed a higher percentage of expression than that of the control group on the same pregnant days, but the positive cells with Bcl-2 expression of the experimental group were fewer than that of the control group. It is concluded that the expression of apoptosis-related protein Bax, Bcl-2, Fas, FasL and TNF-α in the placenta were altered when the pregnant mice were infected with Toxoplasma gondii during the second trimester, which may induce the apoptosis through the endogenic and ectogenic pathway.

Objective To analyze the effects of five proteins secreted by Chlamydia trachomatis on the phagocytosis of macrophages and dendritic cells derived from bone marrow cells of C3H/HeJ mice. Methods Glutathione S-transferase ( GST)-CT311, GST-GIgA, GST-cHtrA, GST-OmcBc and GST-Pgp3 proteins were prepared through an Escherichia coli prokaryotic expression system and purified by GST Mag-Beads. Chlamydia membrane protein GST-IncA was also prepared as a control. Proteins of interest were ob-tained by cleaving off GST-tag with PreScission protease. Macrophages (MΦ) and dendritic cells (DC) were prepared from bone marrow cells of C3H/HeJ mice and pretreated with either 100 μg/ml or 500 μg/ml of the above proteins. LPS was used as a control to testify the specificity of the proteins' functions. Four hours after pretreatment,fluorescent beads were added to culture media to evaluate the changes in phagocytosis with direct immunofluorescence assay. Results LPS and low concentration (100 μg/ml) of these proteins had no significant influence on the phagocytosis of DC and MΦ,while high concentration (500 μg/ml) of Pgp3, cHtrA and CT311 could significantly promote the phagocytosis of DC and MΦ. Conclusion Pgp3, cHtrA and CT311 can promote the in vitro phagocytosis of DC and MΦ,which may facilitate the in vivo dissemina-tion of Chlamyida trachomatis.

Objective:To analyze the incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in 1 902 patients and to evaluate the efficacy of drug treatment in 266 patients, aiming to provide reference for the treatment of HPV infection.Methods:The subtypes of HPV isolated from 1 902 patients aged 15-86 years visiting the venereology outpatient clinic of Tianjin Medical University General Hospital from October 2019 to May 2021 were identified by polymerase chain reaction-reverse dot blot hybridization. Drug treatment efficacy in 266 patients of them was retrospectively analyzed.Results:The overall incidence of HPV infection in the 1 902 patients was as high as 53.84% (1 024/1 902). It was 52.60% (689/1 310) in males and 56.59% (335/592) in females. There was no significant difference in the incidence between males and females ( P>0.05). The most common HPV genotype in males and females was HPV6 [15.27% (200/1 310) and 21.96% (130/592)], followed by HPV16 [10.61% (139/1 310) and 9.46% (56/592)], HPV11 [9.31% (122/1 310) and 8.61% (51/592)], HPV52 [6.79% (89/1 310) and 8.95% (53/592)] and HPV43 [5.64% (87/1 310) and 8.45% (50/592)]. The majority of HPV-positive patients were aged between 20 and 39 years. There were 476 cases (25.03%, 476/1 902) of single-type infection and 548 cases (28.81%, 548/1 902) of multiple infection. The incidence of multiple infection was higher than that of single-type infection ( P<0.05). The incidence of multiple infection in females was higher than that in males ( P<0.05). Among the 266 patients, 106 were treated with Paiteling, a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) preparation, and 68 of them tested negative (64.15%) after treatment. Fifty-eight patients were treated with recombinant human interferon α2b and 22 of them (37.93%) tested negative after treatment. Twenty out of the 56 subjects treated with imiquimod tested negative after treatment. Eight out of the 46 patients without treatment also turned negative. Conclusions:The incidence of HPV infection in the 1 902 patients visiting the venereology outpatient clinic was very high, and most of them were young adults. Multiple infection was more common than single-type infection. Topical application of drugs such as Paiteling, recombinant human interferon α2b and imiquimod was effective in treating HPV infection.

Objective:To explore the potential mechanism of Jiajian Xuezheng Decotion in infiltrative gastric cancer by network pharmacology and proteomics.Methods:The Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database (TCMSP) database was used to find the compounds and their targets of Jiajianxuezhengtang, and the targets of invasive gastric cancer were determined by high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). The predicted target gene of Jiajian Xuezheng Decotion and the target protein data of infiltrative gastric cancer were analyzed by Venny to obtain the target gene. The target gene set was analyzed by Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment by the David. The protein interaction network diagram (PPI) was obtained by the String method, displaying the prescription-drug-compound-gene network in Cytoscape software.Results:69 active ingredients and 215 drug targets were screened from Jiajian Xuezheng Decotion; 660 proteins were significantly up-expressed in infiltrative gastric cancer, and 10 drug targets and gene targets were the common targets. There were 10 protein nodes in the PPI network, of which 3 core nodes were CASP3, BCL2L1 and STAT1. The 11 KEGG pathways were significantly enriched such as include PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, p53 signaling pathway, proteoglycan in cancer, apoptosis, Jak-STAT signaling pathway and other pathways.Conclusions:Jiajian Xuezheng Decotion plays an anti-infiltrative gastric cancer effect possibly regulated apoptosis through PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, p53 signaling pathway and Jak-STAT signaling pathway. This study provides a theoretical basis for further research on the mechanism of Jiajian Xuezheng Decotion in the treatment of invasive gastric cancer.

Objective: To evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of penciclovir combined with foscarnet sodium in the treatment of herpes zoster. Methods: The clinical datas of 135 herpes zoster patients from the ward of Department of Dermatology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital were collected. Among them 64 patients received penciclovir and foscarnet sodium, and the remaining 71 patients only received penciclovir alone.Their general information, the time for vesicle stopped emerging, rash began to scab, pain to relief obviously, the adverse reaction and if they got the postherpetic neuralgia were recorded and included into statistical analysis. Results: The general information showed no significant differences between the 2 groups(all P>0.05). The time for vesicle stopped emerging, rash began to scab, pain to relief obviously in combination group was shorter than the penciclovir group (all P<0.001). The number of patients who developed postherpetic neuralgia of combination group was fewer than that of penciclovir group(P=0.013). There was no statistical significance between the 2 groups the adverse reaction(P=0.928). Conclusions The penciclovir and foscarnet sodium combination therapy showed rapid therapeutic effects on herpes zoster patients, the incidence of postherpetic neuralgia was low, and there was no more side effects than penciclovir alone therapy. The combined therapy may be a reliable way to treat herpes zoster.

Animals ; Mice ; Chlamydia muridarum ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Antigens, Bacterial ; Chlamydia Infections