Animals ; Cognition ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Electrocardiography ; Female ; Heart ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred Strains ; Myocardium ; pathology ; Phytotherapy ; methods

AIMTo establish a method for detection of plasma total homocysteine with HPLC.

METHODSThe chromatography analysis was carried out using a Symmetry Shield RP18. The mobile phase was sodium acetate (0.08 mol/L) and methanol (1%) and we utilized a HPLC system with fluorescence detection of plasma homocysteine derivatized from reaction with 7-fluorobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole-4-sulphonate (SBD-F).

RESULTSThe average recoveries were 95.8 - 100.8% and the relative standard deviations were 1.2-2.0%.

CONCLUSIONThe results showed it to be a rapid and accurate method for the determination of homocysteine level in plasma.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; methods ; Homocysteine ; blood ; Humans ; Plasma ; chemistry ; Spectrometry, Fluorescence

AIMTo study the mechanisms of protection of bcl-2 gene transfection against heat-stressed cardiomyocytes.

METHODSCardiomyocytes were isolated and cultured. bcl-2 was transfected into cardiomyocytes with Lipofectamine transfection methods. The cardiomyocytes were stressed by heat. The change of H+ -ATPase synthesis activity of cardiomyocytes mitochondria caused by bcl-2 transfection was measured by chemical radiation method. The changes of Caspase 3 activity of cardiomyocytes caused by bcl-2 transfection was measured by fluorometric analysis.

RESULTSbcl-2 transfection could increase the H+ -ATPase synthesis activity of cardiomyocytes mitochondria under heat stress at 41 degrees C and 43 degrees C and could decrease the Caspase 3 activity of cardiomyocytes under heat stress at 41 degrees C and 43 degrees C.

CONCLUSIONThe protection effect of bcl-2 transfection on heat-stressed cardiomyocytes may be associated with preserved H+ ATPase synthesis activity of cardiomyocytes mitochondria and the activity of Caspase 3 of cardiomyocytes.

Animals ; Caspase 3 ; metabolism ; Cells, Cultured ; Genes, bcl-2 ; Heat-Shock Response ; genetics ; Myocytes, Cardiac ; cytology ; metabolism ; Proton-Translocating ATPases ; metabolism ; Rats ; Transfection

Hearing Loss, Sensorineural ; genetics ; Humans

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effects of prenatal stress on neurological functions after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) in adult offspring rats.

METHODSPregnant rats were randomly assigned to prenatal stress treatment, which was exposed to restraint three times daily in the last week of pregnancy, and no prenatal stress treatment. Adult male offspring rats were subjected to transient focal cerebral ischemia by MCAO. They were randomly divided into four groups: sham group, prenatal stress + sham group, MCAO group and prenatal stress + MCAO group (n = 10). After 24 hours of reperfusion, the neurological deficits were evaluated. The infarct size, cell apoptosis and expression of Caspase 3, cleaved Caspase 3 and Bcl-2 were detected.

RESULTSCompared with MCAO group, the neurological deficits, infarct size and apoptotic cells in prenatal stress + MCAO group were increased significantly (all P < 0.05). The expressions of Caspase 3 and cleaved Caspase 3 were much greater in prenatal stress + MCAO group than those of MCAO group, while the expression of Bcl-2 was significantly decreased in prenatal stress + MCAO group compared with MCAO group (all P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONPrenatal stress might exacerbate neuroloeical deficits in the offspring rats after MCAO by increasing cell apoptosis.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; Caspase 3 ; metabolism ; Female ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; physiopathology ; Ischemic Attack, Transient ; physiopathology ; Male ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects ; physiopathology ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Stress, Physiological

Objective To study the changes of flow parameters of superior mesenteric artery (SMA) in children with abdominal type Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) using color Doppler ultrasound.Methods Ten children with abdominal type HSP and 17 controls were included in present study.The blood flow parameters of SMA[including peak velocity(PV),end-diastole velocity(EDV),resistant index(RI)]were measured at acute and recovery stage separately.Statistical analysis was conducted among groups.Results PV were (41.57±8.02)cm/s,(33.38±7.44)cm/s and (35.34±9.73)cm/s in acute stage,recovery stage and control group,respectively.There was no statistically significant difference among groups(F=2.471,P=0.10).EDV were(7.63±4.28)cm/s,(4.23±2.57)cm/s and (3.77±0.87) cm/s in acute stage,recovery stage and control group,respectively.There was significantly significant differences between acute stage group and other two groups(t=0.066,P=0.025;t=0.059,P=0.003).RI were (0.85±0.17),(1.00±0.15) and (1.04±0.13) in acute stage,recovery stage and control group,respectively.Also there was significantly significant differences between acute stage group and other two groups(t=1.391,P=0.020;t=1.239,P=0.026).Conclusion For abdominal type HSP in children,the changes of PV,EDV and RI of SMA were significant,which may help us determine the stage of disease.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the drug resistance of clinical isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae and molecular epidemiology with BOX-PCR in Nanchang. METHODS Antibiotic susceptibility was determined by the Etest methods or K-B disk diffusion test. Twenty-nine Penicillin-resistant S. pneumoniae(PRSP) clinical isolates were molecularly typed by BOX-PCR to detect the clonal relationship of them. RESULTS 85.7% were resistant to erythromycin,57.1% were PRSP. The resistant rates to tetracycline,clindamycin,trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and chloramphenicol were 88.1%,79.8%,60.7%,and 28.6%. Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid,levofloxacin and ceftriaxone retained activity against most of the isolates. All of strains were susceptible to vancomycin. Twenty-nine S. pneumoniae strains were divided into 14 distinct types,and 19 subtypes with subtype A (n=4) as the predominant type. CONCLUSIONS The resistance rate of S. pneumoniae to penicillin is very high,BOX-PCR typing demonstrats a high discriminatory potential and easy to be accurately analyzed.

OBJECTIVETo explore the clinical characteristics of Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS) and to review the latest clinical research reports.

METHODClinical and laboratory data of one case of neonatal CdLS are reported, and literature on 17 cases of CdLS in China and the international reports of the clinical and molecular biological research on this disease were reviewed.

RESULT(1) The patient was an infant with intrauterine growth retardation and born as a term small for gestational age infant with specific facial features, bone abnormality of extremities, and patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). She also had severe feeding difficulty and slow weight gain. She was followed up till 4 months of age and showed severe developmental retardation. (2) The total number of past reported case of CdLS in China was 17 with a male to female ratio of 6:12. The average age of diagnosis was 17 months. The following specific facial features could be observed: synophrys, long and curved eyelashes, hirsutism, microcephalus, low hairline, broad depressed nasal bridge, long prominent philtrum, and high palate. Most of the patients were complicated with mental retardation, recurrent vomiting or feeding difficulty, abnormal muscle tone, cutis marmorata, hypophalangism, and genitalia anomaly. Clinical manifestations of Chinese patients were similar to those of the overseas reports. The karyotype of 15 cases was investigated and was normal. The etiology of CdLS is unknown. There is no specific treatment. The commonest causes of death are lung diseases caused by gastroesophageal reflex/aspirate related pneumonia.

CONCLUSIONTypical clinical manifestations of CdLS are specific facial features (mainly synophrys, long and curved eyelashes, long prominent philtrum), complications of multi-system malformations (mainly growth and developmental retardation, esophagogastric reflex, hypophalangism), related gene mutations occurred in NIPBL, SMC1A, and SMC3 gene.

Abnormalities, Multiple ; diagnosis ; genetics ; pathology ; Cause of Death ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Craniofacial Abnormalities ; diagnosis ; genetics ; pathology ; De Lange Syndrome ; diagnosis ; genetics ; pathology ; Ductus Arteriosus, Patent ; etiology ; Female ; Genetic Testing ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Intellectual Disability ; etiology ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Mutation ; Proteins ; genetics ; Severity of Illness Index

To investigate the upregulated genes associated with cold acclimation, a cold acclimation model was established based on Balb/C mouse. mRNA of muscle and liver were isolated, and the upregulated genes of these tissues were studied by representational differential analysis (RDA). The upregulated genes then were sequenced and searched by Blast software in GenBank database. The results showed that some genes were upregulated and possibly associated with cold acclimation. Three of these genes, transferrin, fibrinogen B-beta-chains and a new gene fragment (Genbank ID: AF454762), were confirmed to be upregulated by RNA slot-blot analysis. The finding of these genes might contribute to further understanding of the molecular mechanisms of cold acclimation.
Acclimatization ; genetics ; Animals ; Cold Temperature ; Gene Expression ; Liver ; metabolism ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Muscle, Skeletal ; metabolism ; Transcriptome ; Up-Regulation

AIMTo probe the related proteins to stress-induced myocardium injury.

METHODSAfter establishment of a myocardium injury model induced by restraint stress in rats, myocardium proteins of restraint stress-treated and untreated rats were extracted, and the two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE) maps of the extracted proteins were established by using the immobilized pH gradient (IPG) and SDS-PAGE two-dimensional electrophoresis respectively. The alterative protein spots were analyzed by Image Master 3.01 software and identified with assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and database searching.

RESULTSProteomics analysis showed that there were 10 proteins were significantly influenced by restraint stress in rat myocardium. After stress, proteins, including cardiac myosin heavy chain, dihydrolipoamide succinyltransferase component of 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase complex, similar to dihydrolipoamide S-succinyltransferase, mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase, H (+)-transporting ATP synthase, albumin, myosin heavy chain and apolipoprotein A-I precursor showed increased expression. Mitochondrial aconitase and uncoupling protein UCP-3 showed decreased expression.

CONCLUSIONThese differential expressive proteins might be involved in stress-induced injury to myocardium.

Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Heat-Shock Proteins ; metabolism ; Male ; Myocardium ; metabolism ; Proteomics ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Restraint, Physical ; Stress, Physiological