Objective To investigate the effect of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) methylation on the expression of hepatocyte nuclear factor-4α (HNF4c) and its role in the expression of HNF4α regulated by transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1).Methods The expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA in six human hepatoma cell lines (HepG2,Huh-7,Hep3B,SMMC-7721,BEL-7405 and FOCUS),20 hepatic carcinoma specimens and corresponding adjacent tissues was detected by real-time reverse transcription polymerse chain reaction (real-time RT-PCR).The methylation status of the promoter region of HNF4αP1 in six human hepatoma cell lines was examined by bisulfite sequencing PCR (BSP).FOCUS cells were treated with 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-AZA-CdR) and then the methylation status of the promoter region of HNF4αP1 was examined by BSP.The expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA was detected by real-time RT-PCR.The six human hepatoma cell lines were treated with TGFβ1 and the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA was detected by real-time RT-PCR.FOCUS cells were cotreated with 5-AZA-CdR,TGF-β1 and 5-AZA-CdR.The expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA was detected by real-time RT-PCR,and t test was performed for statistical analysis.Results Among 20 human hepatic carcinoma specimens and corresponding adjacent tissues,the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA of 13 human hepatic carcinoma specimens was lower than that of corresponding adjacent tissues (t=2.350,P＜0.05).The relative quantity of the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA was higher in Hep3B,HepG2 and Huh-7 cells,whereas that in SMMC-7721,BEL-7405 and FOCUS cells was lower.The methylation of the promoter region of HNF4αP1 in HepG2,Huh-7 and Hep3B was lower,but that in SMMC-7721,BEL-7405 and FOCUS was higher.Along with the increasing of the concentration of 5-AZA-CdR (0,0.1,1.0 and 2.5 μmol/L),the degree of the methylation of the promoter region of HNF4αP1 in FOCUS cells gradually decreased (61％,46％,32％ and 27％),and however the relative quantity of the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA gradually increased ((9.661 ± 0.336)×10-7,(2.001±0.432)×10-6,(3.689±0.714)×10-6and (4.732±2.451)×10-6).After stimulated with TGF-β1,the relative quantity of the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA was downregulated in HepG2,Huh-7 and Hep3B cells in which the methylation of the promoter region was low (t=12.994,8.441,and 9.032,all P＜0.01).There was no significant difference in the relative quantity of the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA in SMMC-7721,BEL-7405 and FOCUS cells in which the methylation of the promoter region was high (all P ＞ 0.05).The relative quantity of the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA in 5-AZA-CdR treated FOCUS cells ((4.972±0.035) × 10-6) was higher than that of control group ((1.411 ± 0.104) × 10-6) and the difference was statistically significant (t=13.212,P＜0.01).The relative quantity of the expression of HNF4αP1 mRNA in FOCUS cells co-treated with 5-AZA-CdR and TGF-β1 was lower than that in cells treated with 5-AZA-CdR alone and the difference was statistically significant ((1.181 ± 0.132) × 10-6 vs (4.972 ± 0.035) × 10-6,t=13.873,P＜0.01).Conclusions The expression of HNF4αP1 is down-regulated in hepatic carcinoma tissues.DNA methylation may regulate the expression of HNF4αP1 in hepatoma cells.The methylation of HNF4αP1 promoter region inhibits the regulating function of TGF-β1 in the expression of HNF4αP1.

Objective To compare the effectiveness and safety of Foley catheter(FC)and vaginal prostaglandin E2 suppository(PGE2,Propess)for cervical ripening and labor induction in fullterm pregnant women with unfavorable cervix.Methods A prospective randomized controlled trial was conducted.Women with a term or post-term,live,singleton fetus in cephalic presentation,intact membranes,Bishop score＜6,not in labor,medically indicated for labor induction from June 2009 to December 2009 in Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School were randomly divided into two groups:FC group(n=64)and Propess group(n=62).In FC group,a 16-F Foley catheter was inserted into patient's cervical canal; once past the internal os,the balloon was inflated with 80 ml saline.Intravenous oxytocin was initiated after the balloon was spontaneously extruded from the cervix or after 24 hours.In Propess group,vaginal Propess was used.x2 or Fisher's exact test and t test were used to compare the outcomes,delivery mode and induction success rate between the two groups.Results There were no significant differences in gestational weeks,Bishop score,indication of induction,improvement of Bishop score,success rate of induction,rate of vaginal delivery,total duration of labor and volume of postpartum hemorrhage between the two groups(P ＞ 0.05,respectively).Propess group had a higher rate of vaginal birth within 24 hours[56.5％(35/62)vs 28.1％(18/64),t=10.37,P＜0.05],a higher risk for excessively frequent and hard uterine contraction[17.7％(11/62)vs 0.0％(0/64),P＜0.05]and lower incidence of oxytocin induction/augmentation during labor[21.0％(13/62)vs 87.5％(56/64),x2 =56.27,P＜0.05]than those of FC group.There were no differences in neonatal Apgar score,meconium staining and neonatal birth weight between the two groups.Puerperal infection occured in neither group.Conclusions Under strict control of indication and aseptic manipulation,Foley catheter was as effective and safe as Propess for cervical ripening with lower risk of excessive uterine activity.It is suggested that Foley catheter could be used for cervical ripening,especially in patients with economic difficulty.

This study aimed at comparing the United States, Britain, Australia, the Netherlands and China’s national performance evaluation, and sum up the experience to provide a theoretical basis for the China’s development of hospital performance evaluation system. The study found that China needs to consider the patient's perspective, to establish a fixed third-party performance evaluation agencies, establish an effective incentive mechanism and feedback mechanism and combine a variety of assessment methods in the development of hospital performance evaluation index system.

Objective To evaluate the effect of sevoflurane postconditioning on the expression of CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein (CHOP) in a rat model of hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation.Methods Thirty-six healthy adult male Sprague-Dawley rats,weighing 300-350 g,were divided into 3 groups (n=12 each) using a random number table:sham operation group (group S),hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation group (group HSR) and sevoflurane postconditioning group (group SP).Hemorrhagic shock was induced by withdrawing 40% of the total blood volume from the right carotid artery over an interval of 30 min,and 1 h later the removed blood was reinfused via the left jugular vein for resuscitation.Group SP inhaled 2.4% sevoflurane for 30 min starting from the onset of reinfusion.Mean arterial pressure was monitored and recorded at a 10 min interval.Before withdrawing blood (T0),immediately after the end of withdrawing blood(T1), at 1 h after the end of withdrawing blood(T2) and immediately after the end of reinfusion (T3),blood samples were collected from the common carotid artery for blood gas analysis.At 4 days after reinfusion,6 rats of each group were selected to detect spatial learning and memory ability by using Morris water maze test.The animals were then sacrificed,brains were removed for determination of neuronal apoptosis in hippocampal CA1 area using TUNEL.The rest 6 rats in each group were sacrificed at 72 h after reinfusion,and the hippocampus was isolated to detect the expression of CHOP by Western blot.Results Compared with group S,mean arterial pressure was significantly decreased,and lactic acid concentrations were increased at T1,2 in HSR and SP groups,and the escape latency was significantly prolonged,the percentage of time staying at the target quadrant was decreased,the number of apoptotic neurons in hippocampal CA1 area was increased,and the expression of CHOP was up-regulated in group HSR (P<0.05).Compared with group HSR,the escape latency was significantly shortened,the percentage of time staying at the target quadrant was increased,the number of apoptotic neurons in hippocampal CA1 area was decreased,and the expression of CHOP was down-regulated in group SP (P<0.05).Conclusion The mechanism by which sevoflurane postconditioning improves cognitive function is related to down-regulation of CHOP expression and inhibition of apoptosis in hippocampal neurons in a rat model of hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation.

BACKGROUND:Neural stem cells have self-renewal and multidirectional differentiation potential, but under normal circumstances, the number of neural stem cells is less, and most cells are in the resting state. Thus, to promote the proliferation of neural stem cells is the key to the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effects of osthole on the proliferation of neural stem cells cultured in vitro, and to analyze its mechanism underlying promoting the proliferation. METHODS:Neural stem cells were cultured in vitro, and passage 3 cells were cultured with different concentrations of osthole(10, 50 and 100μmol/L). After 24 hours, cellvitality was determined by cellcounting kit-8. After 3, 5, 7 days of further culture, the radius of neurospheres was measured, and Ki67-positive cells were counted by immunofluorescence staining. Meanwhile, after 3 days of further culture, the gene expression of Notch 1, Hes 1 and Mash 1 in neural stem cells was detected by RT-PCR. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the control group, 50, 100μmol/L osthole could obviously promote the proliferation ability of neural stem cells. 100μmol/L osthole had the most significant effect and increased the expression of Notch 1 gene, Hes 1 gene, but it had no effect on Mash 1 gene. These results suggest that osthole can promote proliferation of neural stem cells cultured in vitro and its mechanism may be associated with activation of Notch 1 gene and Hes 1 gene in Notch signaling pathway.

The paper described the development stages of a hospital performance evaluation scale based on patient experience.An empirical application on 7 856 patients of 26 hospitals in four provinces in the country identified the challenges encountered in the course of its application.These include limits of patients experience,variations on the experience reports incurred by different services experienced by patients,and setting of the patient-inpatient ratio among others.Solutions proposed based on these studies aim at creating a patient experience scale tailored to Chinese patients.

Objective To evaluate the effect of sevoflurane postconditioning on inositol-requiring enzyme 1 (IRE1) signaling pathway in the brain tissues in a rat model of hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation (HSR).Methods Sixty healthy adult male Sprague-Dawley rats,weighing 300-350 g,were divided into 5 groups (n =12 each) using a random number table:sham operation group (group Sham),group HSR,1.2％ sevoflurane postconditioning group (group SP1),2.4％ sevoflurane postconditioning group (group SP2) and 3.6％ sevoflurane postconditioning group (group SP3).Hemorrhagic shock was induced by withdrawing blood (40％ of the total blood volume) from the right common carotid artery over an interval of 30 min,and 1 h later the animals were resuscitated with the shed blood infused via the left jugular vein over 30 min.SP1,SP2 and SP3 groups inhaled 1.2％,2.4％ and 3.6％ sevoflurane,respectively,for 30 min starting from the beginning of infusion of the shed blood.Oxygen was inhaled for 30 min instead of sevoflurane in Sham and HSR groups.Mean arterial pressure was recorded before withdrawing blood (T0),immediately after the end of withdrawing blood (T1),at 30 min after the end of withdrawing blood (T2),before infusion of the shed blood (T3),and immediately after infusion of the shed blood (T4).Arterial blood samples were obtained at T0,T1,T3 and T4 for blood gas analysis.Morris water maze test was performed at 72 h after the end of infusion of the shed blood.The animals were then sacrificed,and brains were removed for determination of the expression of caspase-3 in hippocampal CA1 region (by immunohistochemistry) and expression of IRE1 and X-box binding protein 1 (XBP1) in hippocampal tissues (by Western blot).Results Compared with group Sham,mean arterial pressure was significantly decreased at T1-3,the pH value and base excess were decreased,lactic acid concentrations were increased,the escape latency was prolonged,the frequency of crossing the original platform was decreased,and the expression of caspase-3 in hippocampal CA1 regitn and IRE1 and X BP 1 in hippocampal tissues was up-reg ulated in group HSR (P＜0.05).Compared with group HSR,the escape latency was significantly shortened,the frequency of crossing the original platform was increased,and the expression of caspase-3 in hippocampal CA1 region and IRE1 and XBP1 in hippocampal tissues was down-regulated in SP2 and SP3 groups (P＜0.05),and no significant changes were found in the parameters mentioned above in group SP1 (P＞0.05).Conclusion The mechanism by which sevoflurane postconditioning reduces brain injury may be related to activating IRE1 signaling pathway in the brain tissues in a rat model of HSR.

Objective To investigate the effects of osthole on neural stem cells ( NSCs) differentiation and explore the potential mechanism. Methods Brain-derived NSCs from newborn mice were isolated and cultured in vitro and determined by immunofluorescence. The P5 generations of NSCs were placed in culture solution with osthole at concentrations of (0,10,50, 100 μmol·L-1 ) . The neuron, astrocyte and oligodendroglia cell differentiation were determined by immunofluorescence. The mRNA expression of Notch 1 and its target genes Mash 1 and Neurogenin 2 were assessed by RT-PCR. Results The neurosphere displayed Nestin and Sox 2-postive by immunofluorescence, suggesting that the cultured cells were NSCs. Osthole promoted NSCs differentiating into more neuron(P<0. 01) and oligodendrocyte(P<0. 05), but not astrocyte. Meanwhile, osthole significantly reduced the mRNA expression of Notch 1(P<0. 01) and increased Ngn 2(P<0. 01)at the dose of 100 μmol·L-1. Conclusion Osthole enhances NSCs differentiating into more neuron and oligodendrocyte via probablly inhibiting Notch signal pathway.

Objective To evaluate the effect of sevoflurane postconditioning on the expression of activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6) in the brain tissues in a rat model of hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation.Methods Thirty-six pathogen-free healthy adult male Sprague-Dawley rats,weighing 300-350 g,were randomized into 3 groups (n=12 each) using a random number table:sham operation group (group S);hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation group (group HSR);sevoflurane postconditioning group (group SP).Hemorrhagic shock was induced by withdrawing blood (40％ of the total blood volume) from the right common carotid artery over an interval of 30 min,and 1 h later the animals were resuscitated with infusion of the shed blood via the left jugular vein over 30 min.In group SP,2.4％ sevoflurane was inhaled for 30 min starting from the onset of infusion of the shed blood.Mean arterial pressure was recorded before withdrawing blood (T0),immediately after the end of withdrawing blood (T1),at 30 min after the end of withdrawing blood (T2),before infusion of the shed blood (T3),and immediately after infusion of the shed blood (T4).The arterial blood samples were obtained at T0,T1,T3 and T4 for blood gas analysis.At 72 h after infusion of the shed blood,6 rats were selected from each group,and cognitive function was assessed by Y-maze test.The animals were then sacrificed,and brains were removed and sliced for determination of the expression of caspase-12 in hippocampal CA1 region by immunohistochemistry.The rest 6 rats in each group were sacrificed at 72 h after infusion of the shed blood,and the hippocampus was isolated for determination of the expression of ATF6 and caspase-12 by Western blot.Results Compared with group S,mean arterial pressure was significantly decreased at T1-3 (P＜0.05),the pH value and base excess were significantly decreased at T1.3,and the blood lactic acid was significantly increased at T1,3 in HSR and SP groups,and the number of total training was significantly increased,the rate of memory retention was significantly decreased,the expression of caspase-12 in hippocampal CA 1 region was significantly up-regulated,and the expression of ATF6 and caspase-12 in hippocampal tissues was significantly up-regulated in group HSR (P＜ 0.05).Compared with group HSR,the number of total training was significantly decreased,the rate of memory retention was significantly increased,the expression of caspase-12 in hippocampal CA1 region was significantly down-regulated,and the expression of ATF6 and caspase-12 in hippocampal tissues was significantly down-regulated in group SP (P＜0.05).Conclusion The mechanism by which sevoflurane postconditioning improves cognitive function is related to down-regulation of ATF6 expression in the brain tissues in a rat model of hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation.

Objective To investigate the effect of inhibition of ghrelin O-acyltransferase (GOAT) by small interfering RNA (siRNA) on hepatocyte fatty degeneration and related mechanism of action.Methods Human LO2 hepatocytes were treated with free fatty acid (FFA)to induce hepatocyte fatty degeneration.LO2 hepatocytes were treated with FFA and siRNA-GOAT alone or in combination and then divided into normal control (NC) group (treated with phosphate buffered saline alone),siRNA-GOAT group (treated with siRNA-GOAT at a final concentration of 10 nm),FFA group (treated with FFA at a final concentration of 1 mm),and FFA + siRNA-GOAT group (treated with FFA at a final concentration of 1 mm and siRNA-GOAT at a final concentration of 10 nm).Oil red O staining was performed for hepatocytes to identify lipid droplets;the triglyceride (TG) test kit was used to measure the lipid level in LO2 hepatocytes;Western blot,qRT-PCR,immunofluorescent staining,and electron microscopy were used to measure autophagy;ELISA and RT-PCR were used to measure the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα) and interleukin-6 (IL-6);ELISA was used to measure the changes in the levels of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR),phosphorylated mTOR (p-mTOR),AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK),and phosphorylated AMPK.A one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison between multiple groups,and the least significant difference t-test was used for further comparison between any two groups.Results Compared with the FFA group,the FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had a significant reduction in the formation of lipid droplets and a significantly lower TG level (P ＜0.001).Compared with the FFA group,the FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had significant reductions in the protein and mRNA expression of TNFα and IL-6 (all P ＜ 0.005).The siRNA + GOAT group had significantly higher mRNA expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 than the NC group (all P ＜0.001).The FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had significantly higher mRNA expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 than the FFA group (all P ＜0.001).The siRNA + GOAT group had significantly higher protein expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 than the NC group (all P ＜ 0.05).The FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had significantly higher protein expression of LC3-Ⅱ and Beclin-1 than the FFA group (all P ＜ 0.05).Immunofluorescent staining showed that compared with the FFA group and the siRNA-GOAT group,the FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had a significant increase in the expression of endogenous LC3-Ⅱ in LO2 hepatocytes.Electron microscopy showed that compared with the FFA group,the FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had a significant increase in the expression of autophagosome.After the LO2 hepatocytes were treated by autophagy inhibitors siRNA-ATG5 and 3-MA or an autophagy stimulant,rapamycin,there was a significant difference in TG level between the FFA + siRNA-ATG5 group and the FFA + siRNA-GOAT group (P ＜ 0.001),as well as between the FFA + 3-MA group and the FFA + rapamycin group (P ＜ 0.001).The FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had a significantly higher level of LC3-Ⅰ/Ⅱ than the FFA + siRNA-ATG5 group (P ＜0.05),and the FFA + rapamycin group had a significantly higher level of LC3-Ⅰ/Ⅱ than the FFA + 3-MA group (P ＜ 0.05).Compared with the FFA group,the FFA + siRNA-GOAT group had significantly higher protein expression of p-AMPK (P ＜ 0.05) and significantly lower protein expression of p-rmTOR (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion GOAT inhibition by siRNA can upregnlate autophagy and alleviate hepatocyte fatty degeneration,possibly by regulating the AMPK/mTOR pathway.