The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) around the world, which has posed a great threat to global public health security. Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) has been identified as the major functional receptor of SARS-CoV-2, which plays an essential role in mediating virus invasion into host cells. Thus, an in-depth understanding of the recent progress of ACE2, its relationship with the virus and related drugs is of great significance for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. Here, from the aspects of structure, expression and function, this article reviews the latest research progress of ACE2 and SARS-CoV-2. Meanwhile, this article also summarizes the mechanism of ACE2-mediated virus invasion and ACE2-related drugs, which will provide theoretical reference for viral prevention and treatment.

AIM: To establish the methods of quality control of Kangxian Pills (Redix Astragali,Radix Angelicale Sinensis,Rhizoma Chuanxiong,Radix Scutellariae,Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis,etc.). METHODS: Radix Angelicae sinensis;Rhizoma Chuanxiong;Radix Astragali;Radix Scutellariae were identified with TLC and the content of deoxyschizandrin and schisandrin B in the Kangxian Pills were determined by HPLC The separation was performed on Diamonsil~(TM) C_(18)(4.6 mm?250 mm,5 ?m)analytical column with a mobile phase consisted of methanol and water(78(∶)22) at the flow rate of 1.0 mL/min.The UV detection wavelength was set at 254 nm first and was altered to 220 nm after 17 min. RESULTS: The same color spots in the TLC graphs of sample existed at the corresponding position compared with the reference solution.The linear range of deoxyschizandrin was within 0.39-(1.95) ?g(r=0.999 9).The average recovery was 98.8%,RSD was 1.7%.The linear range of schisandrin B was within 0.09-0.45 ?g(r=0.999 9).The average recorery was 99.1%,RSD was 1.7%. CONCLUSION: The methods are simple and have good reproducibility.

Objective To assess the efficacy and safety of nimotuzumab in combination with radiochemotherapy in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).Methods 42 patients with locoregionally advanced NPC were retrospectively analyzed.They all received the treatment of nimotuzumab in combination with radiochemotherapy.Intensity modulated radiationtherapy (IMRT) was applied and the prescribed radiation dose administered to the primary tumor was between 70 to 79.2 Gy in 32-37 fractions and 41-49 days.The dose administered to lymph nodes was between 65 to 76 Gy in 32-37 fractions and 41-49 days.Nimotuzumab was given weekly during irradiation.All patients received chemotherapy.Results The main adverse events were mucositis,bone marrow suppression,dermatitis and xerostomia.Grade 1 or 2 oropharyngeal mucositis occurred in 29 (69.0 ％) patients,and grade 3 in 2 (4.8 ％).Grade 1 or 2,3 or 4 leucopemia occurred in 25 cases (59.5 ％),16 cases (38.1％),respectively,without occurrence of febrile neutropenia.There was no treatment related death.Complete response (CR) rate was 90.5 ％ (38/42),partial response (PR) rate was 9.5 ％ (4/42) and the total efficiency was 100 ％.After a median follow-up of 22.5 months,the 1-year local control rate was 100 ％.1-year distant metastasis-free survival rate was 92.7 ％.1-year overall survival rate was 95.2 ％.Conclusion Nimotuzumab combined with radiochemotherapy was efficient and safe for locoregionally advanced NPC.

Objective To study the preventive effect ofω-6 soybean oil fatty emulsion on gastric ulcer caused by acetic acid in rat model, and investigate its mechanisms. Methods Thirty healthy rats were randomly and equally assigned to the following 3 groups:sham operation,gastric ulcer,andω-6 Soybean oil fatty emulsion group.The model was induced by acetic acid. Five days after the model was established successfully,rats in ω-6 soybean oil group received the treatment by tail intravenous injection with the dose of 10 mL.kg-1 .d-1 ,the sham operation group and gastric ulcer group were given the same dose of 0.9%sodium chloride solution.The rats were sacrificed at 10th day after the treatment.The pathological changes of rat gastric ulcer tissue were observed by HE staining, and the concentration of gastric acid was detected by acid-base neutralization method,as well as the activity of pepsin was detected by colorimetry.Serum NO concentration was detected with nitrate reductive enzymatic method, and the expression of EGFR in gastric mucosal was detected with immunohistochemical method. Results Gastric ulcer area inω-6 soybean oil fatty emulsion group (5.67±2.32 mm2) was significantly lower than that in gastric ulcer group(8.68±1.98 mm2). The concentration of gastric acid (1.70±0.53 mmol.L-1), activity of pepsin(23.12±6.97 U) and NO level (64.62±13.86μmol.L-1 ) inω-6 soybean oil fatty emulsion group were much lower than those in the model control group.While the expression of EGFR in gastric ulcer tissue was increased after treatment withω-6 soybean oil fatty emulsion. Conclusion ω-6 soybean oil fatty emulsion exerts significant promotion effect on the healing of gastric ulcer,and its mechanism might be related to inhibiting the level of gastric acid, pepsin and NO, while improving the protective effect of EGFR on gastric mucosa.

Objective to investigate the protective effect of omega-3 fish oil fat emulsion on cyclophosphamide-induced gastric mucosal injury in mice. Methods Forty-five kunming mice were randomly divided into three groups as control,model,and omega-3 fish oil fat emulsion group(with 15 mice in each group). Mice of the two experiment groups were administrated with cyclophosphamide i.p. for 2 days to establish the damage model. then mice in omega-3 fish oil fat emulsion group received omega-3 fish oil fat emulsion at a dose of 15 mL/kg daily for 14 days. Meanwhile,the ani-mals in control group and model group were intravenously administered with the same volume of saline. the weight and food intake of the mice in each group were assessed daily. Five mice in each group were respectively sacrificed at day 1,day 7,day 14 after intravenous injection. Morphology of gastric mucosa was observed by HE staining and the activities of SOD and MAO in gastric mucosa were measured respectively by xanthine oxida-tion and ultraviolet spectrophotometry methods. Results Compared with the model group,the general status,nutritional status and the injury in stomach mucosa in omega-3 fish oil fat emulsion group were significantly improved. After 14 day′s treatment,the activities of SOD and MAO in gas-tric mucosa of mice in omega-3 fish oil fat emulsion group were significantly increased(P < 0.05)compared with model group. Conclusion omega-3 fish oil fat emulsion has a significant protective effect on the cyclophosphamide induced injury in gastric mucosa of mice,which may be related to the upregulation of MAO and SOD.

Objective Using an adenoviral vector , the wild-type PTEN gene was transduced into activated hepatic stellate cell (HSC) in vitro and the phosphorylation status of Akt were investigated. Methods The wild type PTEN gene was transduced into activated HSC in vitro mediated by adenoviral vector. The expressions of PTEN and total Akt in HSC were measured by Western blot and Real-time fluorescent quantitation PCR. And the expressions of phosphorylated Akt (Thr308) in HSC was determined by Western blot. Results The data showed that exogenous wild type PTEN gene was successfully transduced and expressed in activated HSC in vitro. The over-expression of wild type PTEN resulted in the significant down-regulated expression of phosphorylated Akt (Thr308) in activated HSC (P < 0.01). But no significant defferences were found in the expression of total Akt in activated HSC at both transcriptional and translational levels(P>0.50). Conclusions The overexpression of wild-type PTEN can negatively regulate PI3K/Akt signaling transduction by inhibiting the phosphorylation of Akt in activated HSC in vitro.

Objective To evaluate whether bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) transplantation can improve the cognitive function of aged rats with vascular dementia. Methods Thirty rats were equally ramdomized into normal control group and 4 treatment groups; the 4 treatment groups received subcutaneous injection of D-galactose (D-gal) for 4 weeks; and then, two-vessel occlusion (2VO) was performed in 3 of the treatment groups; and 24 h after 2VO, D-gal+2VO+saline group and D-gal+2VO+BMSCs group were subjected to stereotactic injection of normal saline and BMSCs into the subventricular zone (SVZ), respectively. The cognitive function was examined by Morris water maze test 6 weeks after stereotactic injection; immunofluorescence staining was employed to observe the transplantation ratio of BMSCs to neurons. Results Increased times and distances during Morris water maze in rats of the D-gal+2VO group, D-gal+2VO+saline group and D-gal+2VO+BMSCs group were noted as compared with those in the controls, indicating that the cognitive function of rats in these 3 groups was obviously impaired; these rats had the characteristics of having vascular dementia.Transplanted BMSCs in the D-gal+2VO+BMSCs group distributed around the lateral ventricles, and acquired the phenotypes of neurons (2%) and astrocyte (1%) 6 weeks after the transplantation. In addition, compared with that in rats of the D-gal+2VO group and D-gal+2VO+saline group, the cognitive dysfunction of rats in the D-gal+2VO+BMSCs group was improved (needing less time and swimming shorter distance, no difference in speed of swimming). Conclusion The D-gal injection plus 2VO can result in cognitive dysfunction of rats, and the engrafted BMSCs may exhibit the beneficial effect on cognitive function.Neural function remolding caused by interaction between BMSCs and host brain may be responsible for the function improvement

OBJECTIVETo assess left ventricular (LV) geometry, LV diastolic and systolic function in maintenance hemodialysis uremic patients.

METHODSForty uremic patients and forty-five normal subjects were included in this study. LV volume, LV mass index (LVMI), relative wall thickness (RWT), LV mass and diastolic volume ratio (LVM/EDV) were measured. Mitral flow E velocity and A velocity ratio, deceleration time, mitral flow E velocity and mitral annulus Ea velocity ratio (E/Ea), pulmonary vein flow S velocity and D velocity ratio, atrial flow reversal velocity of pulmonary vein flow, mitral inflow propagation velocity, left atrium volume (LAV) and pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) were determined for diastolic function evaluation. LV ejection fraction (LVEF) and single volume (SV) were derived from 3D echocardiography, systolic velocity of mitral valve annulus (Sa) by pulse tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) were used to evaluate systolic function. The time to peak systolic velocity (Ts) and early diastole velocity (Td) of LV 12 segments were measured using TDI. The maximal difference of Ts and Td (Ts-Dif and Td-Dif) were calculated to assess LV systolic and diastolic asynchrony.

RESULTSRWT, LVMI and LVM/EDV were significantly increased in uremic patients. There were 50% concentric, 17.5% eccentric hypertrophy and 17.5%concentric remodeling, respectively in uremic patients. The indices for LV diastolic function (E/Ea, LAV and PASP) were significantly higher in uremic patients than those in control subjects (P < 0.01). About 85% of the diastolic dysfunction in uremic patients presented as impaired relaxation pattern and 32.5% as increased filling pressure. LVEF and SV were similar between uremic patients and control subjects. Sa was significantly lower in uremic group than that in controls (P < 0.05). Ts-Dif was similar between the 2 groups while Td-Dif was significantly higher in uremic patients than control subjects (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONLV hypertrophy, LV mass increase and LV diastolic dysfunction were the major characteristic of myocardial injury in uremia patients.

Adult ; Aged ; Case-Control Studies ; Echocardiography ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Renal Dialysis ; Uremia ; diagnostic imaging ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Ventricular Remodeling

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of adiponectin (APN) on the expression of T-cadherin in cultured Sprague-Dawley (SD) rat cardiomyocytes injured by hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R). Primary myocardial cells from neonatal rats were obtained by enzymatic digestion. The cells were divided into control group, H/R group and H/R+APN (3, 10, 20 and 30 μg/mL) groups. The H/R group was incubated in anoxic environment (anoxic solution saturated with high concentration N2) for 3 h, and then in the reoxygenation environment (the reoxygenation solution saturated with pure oxygen) for 1 h. The H/R+APN group was pretreated with different concentrations of APN for 24 h prior to the initiation of H/R. The content of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) was measured by chemistry chromatometry. Cellular apoptosis was analyzed by flow cytometry and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL). The expression of T-cadherin was detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting. The results showed that, compared with control group, the apoptotic rate and release of LDH were significantly increased in the H/R group, whereas the expressions of T-cad mRNA and protein were decreased. Pretreating with APN significantly and dose-dependently decreased apoptotic rate and LDH release, and up-regulated T-cad mRNA and protein level in rat neonatal cardiomyocytes under H/R conditions. These results suggest that APN may protect cardiomyocytes against H/R-induced injury by up-regulating H/R-decreased T-cad expression.
Adiponectin ; pharmacology ; Animals ; Apoptosis ; Cadherins ; metabolism ; Cell Hypoxia ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase ; metabolism ; Myocytes, Cardiac ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Oxygen ; adverse effects ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Up-Regulation

Objective: To evaluate the long-term prognosis of coronary artery disease (CAD) patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) by risk stratification with American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA) classification of coronary lesions. Methods: Data used in this study derived from the I-LOVE-IT 2 trial. I-LOVE-IT 2 trial was a prospective, multicenter, randomized, assessor-blinded, noninferiority study. A total of 1 255 patients in I-LOVE-IT 2 trial with only one lesion and underwent biodegradable polymer drug-eluting stent implantation were included and grouped according to ACC/AHA classification of coronary lesions, namely type A/B1 lesion group (n=184), type B2 lesion group (n=457) and type C lesion group (n=614). The primary endpoint was 48-month patient-oriented composite endpoint (PoCE), a composite of all-cause mortality, all myocardial infarction, stroke, and/or any revascularization. The secondary endpoints were target lesion failure (TLF), components of PoCE, major bleeding (bleeding academic research consortium(BARC) type 3-5) and definite/probable stent thrombosis within 48 months. The incidences of endpoint events were compared in the three groups. The multivariable Cox hazard ratio model was used to analyze the independent predictors of PoCE and TLF at 48 months. Results: Incidences of PoCE at 48 months were significantly higher in patients with type C lesion compared with patients with type A/B1 (24.43%(150/614) vs. 14.13%(26/184), P<0.05) or B2 lesion (24.43%(150/614) vs. 15.97%(73/457), P<0.05). The multivariable Cox hazard ratio model showed that the type C lesion were the independent predictors of 48-month PoCE (HR=1.59, 95%CI 1.21-2.08, P<0.001) and TLF (HR=2.31, 95%CI 1.53-3.49, P<0.001). After multivariable adjustment, the HRs of PoCE for patients with type C lesion versus type A/B1 and type B2 were 1.91 (95%CI 1.25-2.92, P=0.003) and 1.64 (95%CI 1.23-2.20, P<0.001), respectively. Meanwhile, the HRs of TLF for patients with type C lesion versus type A/B1 and type B2 were 2.45 (95%CI 1.29-4.64, P=0.006) and 2.55 (95%CI 1.62-4.02, P=0.001), respectively. Conclusions: The ACC/AHA classification of coronary lesions has good discrimination with long-term outcomes for CAD patients undergoing PCI. The type C lesion is associated with a worse prognosis, enough attention should be paid in these patients during routine clinical management.
Cardiovascular Agents ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Drug-Eluting Stents ; Humans ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention ; Prognosis ; Prospective Studies ; Risk Assessment ; Risk Factors ; Sirolimus ; Treatment Outcome