As an important member of the adisintegrin and metalloproteinase (ADAM) superfamily,ADAM17 can mediate a variety of membrane molecular hydrolysis off,such as adhesion molecules,cytokines,growth factors,etc,and play an important role in regulating tumor cell adhesion,apoptosis,metastasis and proliferation through the EGFR-PI3K-Akt pathway,Notch signaling pathway and other signaling pathways.The research of ADAM17 targeted drugs provides a new direction for cancer therapy.

Objective To evaluate the correlation of maternal FTO expression and insulin secretion levels in pregnant women.Methods In outpatient of Zhuhai Municipal Maternal and Child Healthcare Hospital,60 cases of pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and 60 cases of healthy pregnant women were recruited in this study from March 2016 to August 2016.Each pregnant woman was taken two tubes of venous blood.Lymphocytes was isolated from one tube of anticoagulated whole blood.The expression of FTO mRNA in lymphocytes was investigated using RT-PCR.Serum was isolated from another tube of non-anticoagulant whole blood.Its FTO protein was investigated using ELISA,insulin was investigated using chemiluminescence method,and GLU,CHO,TG,HDL-C and LDL-C were investigated by automatic biochemical analyzer.The correlation of the biochemical indicators were analyzed.Results The expression level of FTO mRNA,FTO protein,fasting glucose data,OGTT at 1 h and 2h glucose levels in the case group were 0.17 ％ ± 0.10 ％,61.32 ± 25.23 pg/ml,4.71 ±0.54 mmol/L,10.70±1.36 mmol/L and 8.97 ± 1.60 mmol/L respectively.The values of these biochemical indicators in control group were 0.11％±0.07％,51.47±22.97 pg/ml,4.41± 0.28 mmol/L,8.05±1.04 mmol/L and 6.56±0.75 mmol/L respectively.The differences were statistically significant (t =3.876,2.236,3.817,11.964 and 10.578,P＜0.05).The insulin levels were 6.83±9.76 mU/L in the case group,and 13.15±13.99 mU/L in control group.The differ ences was statistically significant too(t=-2.869,P＜0.05).FTO expression level was positively correlated with FTO protein,OGTT 1h glucose and OGTT 2h glucose levels (r=0.232,0.292,0.242,all P＜0.05),and it was negatively correlated with insulin levels(r=-0.185,P＜0.05).There was no correlation between FTO and fasting glucose expression levels (P ＞0.05).Conclusion The expression of FTO level in pregnant women with GDM was higher than that in healthy pregnant women.The relative expression of FTO mRNA was negatively correlated with insulin.And the regulation of glucose metabolism might be effected by insulin.

OBJECTIVETo estimate the feasibility of 16-multidetector spiral computed tomography (16-MDCT) on detecting coronary plaques in comparison with intravascular ultrasound (IVUS).

METHODSSixty-eight patients suspected of coronary heart diseases were examined by 16-MDCT, quantitative coronary angiography (QCA) and IVUS. Coronary stenosis was defined as lumen diameter reduction (DS) >or= 50%. Hounsfield units (HU) were used to determine different types of plaques: soft plaque (or= 120 HU).

RESULTSCompared to QCA, the sensitivity and the specificity for patients with DS >or= 50% were 91.8% (112/122) and 97.8% (556/568) respectively, the positive and negative predictive value were 90.3% (112/124) and 98.2% (556/566) respectively. In 96 plaques evaluated both by 16-MDCT and IVUS, 20 and 21 soft plaques, 37 and 36 fibrous plaques, 39 and 38 calcified plaques were identified by 16-MDCT and IVUS respectively. HU value of soft (11 +/- 36), fibrous (83 +/- 20), and calcified (292 +/- 80) plaques were significantly different (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSNoninvasive 16-MDCT could correctly estimate coronary stenosis and coronary plaques compositions.

Aged ; Atherosclerosis ; diagnostic imaging ; Coronary Angiography ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Tomography, Spiral Computed ; methods ; Ultrasonography, Interventional

Blood Platelets ; enzymology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; enzymology ; Enzyme Activation ; Humans ; Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors ; pharmacology ; Nitric Oxide Synthase ; metabolism ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III ; Phosphorylation ; Pravastatin ; pharmacology ; Serine ; metabolism

In traditional Chinese medicine herbs (TCM), including Radix Salviae Miltiorrhizae (Danshen), Radix Puerariae Lobatae (Gegen), Radix Angelicae Sinensis (Danggui), and Rhizoma Chuanxiong (Chuanxiong) are widely used for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases and also often co-administered with Western drugs as a part of integrative medicine practice. Carboxylesterase 1 (CES1) plays a pivotal role in the metabolisms of pro-drugs. Since (S)-2-(2-(6-dimethylamino)-benzothiazole)-4,5-dihydro-thiazole-4-carboxylate (NLMe) has recently been identified by us as a selective CES1 bioluminescent sensor, we developed a rapid method using this substrate for the direct measurement of CES1 activity in rats. This bioluminescence assay was applied to determine CES1 activity in rat tissues after a two-week oral administration of each of the four herbs noted above. The results demonstrated the presence of CES1 enzyme in rat blood and all tested tissues with much higher enzyme activity in the blood, liver, kidney and heart than that in the small intestine, spleen, lung, pancreas, brain and stomach. In addition, the four herbs showed tissue-specific effects on rat CES1 expression. Based on the CES1 biodistribution and its changes after treatment in rats, the possibility that Danshen, Gegen and Danggui might alter CES1 ac-tivities in human blood and kidney should be considered. In summary, a selective and sensitive biolu-minescence assay was developed to rapidly evaluate CES1 activity and the effects of orally administered TCMs in rats.

OBJECTIVETo investigate whether p53 pathway participates in the effect of emodin on vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation.

METHODSThe effects of emodin on vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation were evaluated by cell count, senescent-associated beta-galactosidase staining, and annexin V staining. DNA synthesis was determined by (3)H-thymidine corporation, cell cycle was analyzed by FACS, the p53 protein level was measured by Western blot and cDNA expression array technology was used to demonstrate the effect of emodin on the simultaneous expression of a large number of genes in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells.

RESULTSEmodin at 1.6-3.1 microg/ml inhibited VSMC growth, at 6.3-12.5 microg/ml promoted VSMC aging and induced VSMC apoptosis at 25.0 microg/ml 24 hours after exposure. Unscheduled DNA synthesis, which was a sensitive indicator for DNA injury, was observed in VSMC following 24 hours emodin exposure. The mRNA and protein levels of p53 were up-regulated in a concentration-dependent manner. Proliferation/carcinogenesis-related genes were down-regulated and other genes related to cell senescence, apoptosis, and DNA damage/repair were up-regulated in VSMC after exposure to emodin for 24 hours. Emodin readily permeated VSMC membrane and mostly located in the cytoplasm and few of them in the nucleus.

CONCLUSIONSThe p53 pathway in VSMC was activated post emodin exposure in a concentration-dependent manner and which might be responsible for the observed antiproliferative effects of emodin in vascular smooth muscle cells.

Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Cell Differentiation ; drug effects ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; DNA Damage ; Emodin ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle ; cytology ; drug effects ; metabolism ; RNA, Messenger ; metabolism ; Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 ; metabolism

BACKGROUNDInvasive intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) is current diagnostic standard for myocardial bridging (MB). Non-invasive multislice computerized tomography coronary angiography (MSCT) technique has provided a good anatomical view of the tunnel artery now.

METHODSA total of 51 consecutive patients with atypical or typical angina scheduled for IVUS were enrolled in this study and MSCT was performed 7 days before IVUS. Coronary imaging was quantified using IVUS and MSCT. Four main vessels (left main artery (LMA), left anterior descending (LAD), left circumflex (LCX), right coronary artery (RCA)) were examined.

RESULTSForty-one out of 51 (80%) patients received metaprolol (25 mg) before the MSCT scan and 25 of them were current beta-blocker users. The mean heart rate was (64 +/- 3) beats per minute. A total of 51 patients underwent IVUS examination (30 with MB and 21 without MB) were chosen for this study. Twenty-eight out of 30 MB cases were correctly diagnosed by MSCT and 2 patients with MB were not detected. Comparison with IVUS, the sensitivity of detection by MSCT was 93%, specificity was 100%. The lumen diameter of the tunnel artery derived from MSCT and IVUS significantly decreased from (2.9 +/- 0.3) mm to (2.4 +/- 0.4) mm (P < 0.001) and from (3.3 +/- 0.3) mm to (2.6 +/- 0.5) mm (P < 0.001), respectively. Minimal and maximal diameters of MB derived from MSCT were significantly smaller than those from IVUS ((2.4 +/- 0.4) mm vs (2.6 +/- 0.5) mm, P < 0.05 and (2.9 +/- 0.3) mm vs (3.3 +/- 0.3) mm, P < 0.05), respectively.

CONCLUSIONSMSCT offers a reliable non-invasive method for MB in LAD and atherosclerosis diagnosis with diagnostic accuracy comparable with invasive IVUS.

Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myocardial Bridging ; diagnostic imaging ; Tomography, Spiral Computed ; methods ; Ultrasonography, Interventional ; methods

An expression plasmid carrying anthrax protective antigen (PA) gene was constructed, which has an OmpA signal sequence attached to the 5' end of PA gene. The plasmid was transformed into E. coli and induced to express recombinant PA (rPA) . The recombinant protein, about 10% of the total bacterial protein in volume, was secreted to the periplasmic space of the cell. After a purification procedure including ion-exchange, hydrophobic interaction chromatography, and gel filtration, about 15 mg of 95 % pure rPA was obtained from 1-liter culture. The bioactivity of rPA was proved by in vitro cytotoxicity assay. The polyclonal antiserum from rabbits immunized with rPA could inhibit the action of anthrax lethal toxin in vitro, which suggests that antibodies against rPA can provide high passive protection against anthrax. The results reported here may be helpful to develop a safe and efficacious recombinant PA vaccine against anthrax.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Animals ; Anthrax Vaccines ; immunology ; Antigens, Bacterial ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; toxicity ; Bacterial Toxins ; chemistry ; genetics ; immunology ; toxicity ; Base Sequence ; Mice ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Plasmids ; Rabbits ; Recombinant Proteins ; biosynthesis ; immunology ; Vaccines, Synthetic ; immunology

This study was aimed to explore clinical significance of Livin mRNA and protein expressions in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). The immunohistochemistry was used to determine the expression of Livin protein in lymph nodes of 30 patients with NHL and 11 patients with reactive hyperplasia of lymph node. The real-time PCR was performed to detect the expression levels of Livin mRNA in 20 patients with NHL, 10 patients with reactive hyperplasia of lymph node and 4 normal person lymph nodes. The correlation of Livin mRNA and protein expressions with NHL clinical features were analyzed. The results showed that the expression of Livin mRNA was statistically higher in NHL samples than in normal lymph nodes and reactive hyperplastic lymph nodes (12.4 vs 0.34, 12.4 vs 0.61, median) (p<0.05), while there was no statistical difference between normal and reactive hyperplastic lymph nodes (p>0.05). Livin protein expression was exhibited to be positive in 16 of 30 cases of NHL with a positive rate of 53.3% and only 1 in reactive hyperplastic lymph nodes with a positive rate of 9.1%. In addition, Livin protein almost appeared in the cytoplasm of cells, seldom in nucleus. The expressions of both Livin mRNA and protein were positively correlated with clinical stages of NHL (p=0.023; p=0.009), B symptoms (p=0.015; p=0.026), blood beta2-microglobulin (beta2-MG, p=0.031; p=0.012) and the serum level of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH, p=0.037; p=0.007), but the expressions of Livin mRNA and protein had no significant correlation with age, sex and typing. It is concluded that the Livin mRNA and protein highly express in NHL patients and correlate with many clinical features, such as stage of NHL, B symptom, beta2-MG and LDH, therefore, the Livin may play a role in the prognosis of NHL patients. The further study on inhibitory effect of Livin expression will promote the illustration of NHL pathogenesis and contribute to the treatment and prognosis of NHL.
Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing ; genetics ; metabolism ; Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Lymph Nodes ; pathology ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Neoplasm Staging ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo assess the prevalence of pre-hypertension and hypertension as well as the association with overweight/obesity in Shanghai adolescents.

METHODSSchool children aged 11 - 17 years in four schools in Shanghai were included in this survey. All students were visited in May 2010 at school by trained nurses or physicians who administered a questionnaire and carried out anthropometric measurements. Anthropometric measurements included height, weight, heart rate and blood pressure. Repeat measurements were performed in school children with elevated blood pressure within one month. The pre-hypertension and hypertension was defined on the basis of the 2004 National High Blood Pressure Education Program Working Group definitions. The overweight and obesity was defined using cutoff points recommended by Working Group of Obesity, China (WGOC).

RESULTSThere were 4175 school children aged 11 - 17 years [mean (15.0 ± 1.9) years, 52.3% (n = 2183) girls and 47.7% (n = 1992) boys]. There were 72.5% (n = 3025) participants with normal blood pressure [ girls (n = 1666) 76.3% and boys (n = 1361) 68.3%], 18.0% (n = 750)participants with pre-hypertension [14.2% (n = 310) for girls and 22.1% (n = 440) for boys], 8.3% (n = 346) participants with stage 1 hypertension [8.2% (n = 179) for girls and 8.3% (n = 165) for boys] and 1.3% (n = 54) participants with stage 2 hypertension [1.3% (n = 28) for girls and 1.3% (n = 26) for boys]. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 6.7% (n = 147) and 3.0% (n = 66) for girls and 13.7% (n = 273) and 6.3% (n = 125) for boys. After adjusting for gender, age, parental history of hypertension and physical activities, multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the overweight [adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence interval: 1.42 (1.16 - 1.75)] and obesity [adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence interval: 2.35 (1.78 - 3.11)] were independent predictors of elevated blood pressure in this cohort.

CONCLUSIONSThe prevalence of elevated blood pressure is common in adolescents in Shanghai. Overweight and obesity are closely associated with the elevated blood pressure in this cohort.

Adolescent ; Child ; China ; epidemiology ; Epidemiological Monitoring ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension ; epidemiology ; Male ; Obesity ; epidemiology ; Overweight ; epidemiology ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors